Having served by the Crown Prince’s side since childhood, even when the Crown Prince was still the unfavored Prince Qi, he had been the most favored eunuch among the prince’s attendants. Besides his master, few people could make Quan Yu abandon his dignity and kneel in supplication like this.

Later, when Prince Qi was made Crown Prince, Quan Yu’s status rose accordingly. Many people around Quan Yu flattered him, and even to his master, he had never knelt to anyone else since then.

This was the first time in many years that Quan Yu had abandoned his dignity to kneel and beg a guard.

The Bai family guard felt pity seeing Quan Yu in this state. He had seen Quan Yu many times, and whether toward the eldest miss or the fourth miss, Quan Yu had always been caring and considerate. He wasn’t like other servants who were servile and fawning – his concern and worry came from the heart. He still remembered when the eldest miss was injured, this Eunuch Quan Yu had been more worried than even the Crown Prince.

Hearing there was a disturbance outside the residence, Bai Jinse had come out to see what was happening, wanting to see who was so reckless with their life. Who would have thought that upon coming out, she would see Quan Yu, the eunuch from the Crown Prince’s side?

The Shuoyang Bai family troops guarding the Bai residence entrance were about to salute, but Bai Jinse raised her hand to stop them.

She heard the Bai family guard softly persuading Quan Yu to go back first, saying their eldest miss truly had no time to see him now – the eldest miss hadn’t even rested since returning, and they as guards really couldn’t bear to disturb her.

Bai Jinse turned and gave a low instruction: “Be courteous to that eunuch. Just persuade him to leave, don’t use force.”

The Shuoyang Bai family troops’ squad leader clasped his fists in acknowledgment.

Bai Jinse took a deep look at Quan Yu, who was still crying and pleading outside the Bai residence gates, then turned and went back into the residence.

Quan Yu was the most favored eunuch besides the Jin dynasty’s Crown Prince. By rights… with a new dynasty replacing the old, such a eunuch could not be kept. But Quan Yu had never harmed the Bai family while serving the deposed Crown Prince – in fact, he had helped the eldest sister.

However, Quan Yu’s position was awkward. He so firmly believed that the eldest sister only wanted the throne because she thought the Crown Prince was dead. Even if he truly met the eldest sister, the answer he received would differ from what he expected – so what was the point?

Bai Jinse took a small silver cup and poured some milk drink, then lifted the curtain and entered the upper part of Qinghui Courtyard. She saw Nanny Jiang kneeling beside several baskets of memorials, crying directly to Bai Qingyan. She placed the milk drink and a small silver spoon beside Bai Qingyan’s hand and quietly retreated to the side.

Nanny Jiang’s voice choked with difficulty speaking. Bai Qingyan repeatedly asked Zhenming and Zhenguang to help Nanny Jiang up, but she refused to rise.

Nanny Jiang crawled forward on her knees, looking at Bai Qingyan with slow, sorrowful speech: “Eldest Miss, the Grand Princess meant well – please don’t blame her. She is your grandmother, but she is also the Grand Princess of Jin… The Grand Princess was raised in the palm of her hand since childhood. How could she not consider the realm and nation her imperial father entrusted her to protect? Please don’t blame the Grand Princess!”

“If Nanny insists on kneeling like this, do you want me to kneel alongside you?” Bai Qingyan set down her brush and looked at Nanny Jiang questioningly.

Bai Jinse stepped forward to personally help Nanny Jiang up: “Nanny… please get up! If you keep kneeling like this, eldest sister will truly have to kneel with you…”

Hearing Bai Jinse say this, Nanny Jiang finally stood up with tears, supporting herself on Zhenming’s hand, looking at Bai Qingyan with eyes full of tears: “Eldest Miss…”

“Nanny, I already understand clearly why Grandmother went with Prince Liang. Whether grandmother wanted to make one last effort, hoping to preserve the Lin imperial power with her presence, or whether she was teaching me a lesson about becoming an emperor if I were to rebel against the Lin imperial power and ascend the throne – I will rescue grandmother because she is my grandmother.” Bai Qingyan spoke gently to Nanny Jiang. “Moreover, Prince Liang still needs to use his grandmother to threaten me, so he certainly won’t harm his grandmother in the slightest. Nanny Jiang can rest assured.”

Nanny Jiang nodded, seeing the dark circles under Bai Qingyan’s eyes, she couldn’t help but worry about her health. She gripped the clothes at her side and asked softly: “When the eldest miss was campaigning against Great Liang, the imperial physician sent back news that the eldest miss’s health wasn’t very good. I wonder if it’s better now?”

Nanny Jiang still remembered that during the great mourning of the Bai family, she had only focused on persuading Bai Qingyan to spare that bastard the second master had sired outside, only focused on telling Bai Qingyan about how much the Grand Princess had suffered, completely failing to consider what Bai Jinxiu had said when Bai Qingyan was beaten with a rod for striking the Denunciatory Drum.

Bai Qingyan was someone Nanny Jiang had watched grow up from when she was as small as a kitten. She had always been someone who wouldn’t make a sound even when hurt or in pain. During that period, there were too many heartbreaking matters, and when Bai Qingyan didn’t speak up, she truly thought Bai Qingyan was as invulnerable as a diamond.

“Nanny, rest assured – Physician Hong has been accompanying me throughout.” After Bai Qingyan spoke softly to Nanny Jiang, she added instructions: “Nanny should go rest. When grandmother returns, we’ll still need Nanny to care for her more. Please take good care of your health.”

Nanny Jiang’s reddened eyes looked at Bai Qingyan and nodded: “Eldest Miss should also rest early!”

After Nanny Jiang left, Bai Jinse immediately replaced a brighter lamp for Bai Qingyan.

With the additional lamp, the area around the soft couch and small table brightened up.

Bai Qingyan dipped her brush in cinnabar to make annotations on the memorials. Looking up, she saw Bai Jinse standing beside the tall openwork carved aloes wood stand by the hanging curtains, on her tiptoes, using a silver needle to adjust the lamp wick.

“Has your second sister still not sent back any news?” Bai Qingyan pinched the bridge of her nose and asked Bai Jinse.

After Bai Jinse shook her head, she comforted Bai Qingyan: “Eldest sister needn’t worry too much. As the eldest sister told Nanny Jiang, Prince Liang is holding grandmother hostage… to use her to threaten the eldest sister, so he certainly won’t harm grandmother’s life.”

Seeing Bai Qingyan nod, Bai Jinse sat down beside her: “Eldest sister gave the officials tomorrow to rest and recover – you should rest too!”

“After finishing these memorials…” Bai Qingyan looked up at Bai Jinse’s bandaged hands, reached out to pat her head. “Go rest!”

Bai Jinse wanted to stay here to accompany her eldest sister, but knowing that if she spoke up, her eldest sister would certainly use the reason that she still needed to grow as an excuse to chase her off to bed. So while organizing the memorials that had already been annotated, she said: “Just now, Eunuch Quan Yu from beside the deposed Crown Prince of Jin came to our Bai residence entrance, clamoring to see eldest sister. I went to look… our residence guards were persuading Quan Yu to go back.”

Bai Qingyan’s hand dipping cinnabar paused. She remembered when Xiao Si was investigating the case of sand mixed in military rations, Quan Yu had once given Xiao Si guidance, and she thought of Quan Yu’s many subtle assists… to the point that Xiao Si had mistakenly taken Quan Yu for a secret agent she had arranged.

Without raising her head, she continued annotating the memorials with cinnabar, her voice calm: “Have Zhenming go to the entrance to see if Quan Yu is still there. If he is… bring him in.”

Bai Jinse nodded and lifted the curtain to go out and instruct Zhenming, who was guarding outside the courtyard.

Soon after, Quan Yu was led by Zhenming through the main gate of Qinghui Courtyard.