Chapter 55

Rice porridge, shrimp dumplings, rose rolls… The table was filled with various delicacies, their aroma permeating the air. Perhaps due to her different status, Yuanxi was particularly valued on her return to the mansion this time. Xia Mingyuan specifically instructed the steward to have the kitchen prepare many of her favorite dishes to be sent over.

However, Yuanxi found that even the most exquisite snacks couldn’t satisfy her taste buds. She casually picked two items to eat and then fell into a daze.

Aunt Qi lifted her head and saw Yuanxi’s despondent expression. She sighed quietly in her heart and added a bowl of porridge in front of her, saying softly, “Even if something major happens, you still need to eat. Seeing you like this, Aunt Qi feels heartache.”

Yuanxi, in a daze, turned to look at her. Suddenly, she noticed that within less than a year, Aunt Qi’s temples had turned mostly white. A lifetime spent in the mansion, enduring countless moments of solitude, had she ever resented or hated?

Yuanxi obediently took the bowl of porridge and began to eat slowly. After a while, she couldn’t help but ask softly, “Aunt Qi, do you love Father?”

Aunt Qi’s hand holding the chopsticks trembled slightly. She seemed to have never considered this question before. Perhaps she had loved him once. In her youth, despite knowing her humble status, she couldn’t help but have some inappropriate hopes, longing for that divine-like person to cast a glance at her. However, as time went by, these impulses gradually withered away in the long years of hardship. Many obsessions faded and were forgotten. Even the face of that person became blurred.

She smiled tiredly, the wrinkles around her eyes becoming more prominent. Putting down her chopsticks, she replied, “I don’t remember anymore. Besides, with my status, what right do I have to talk about these things?” Suddenly remembering something, she looked deeply at Yuanxi and said, “Xiao’er, your father is not a good person. But… this is still your home.”

Yuanxi was taken aback by Aunt Qi’s unexpected advice to stay. Though she didn’t understand why, she was moved by the emotions in her words and couldn’t help but shed tears. She walked to Aunt Qi’s side, crouched down, and rested her head on her knees, whispering, “Aunt Qi, I don’t want to leave you either, but I can’t bear to leave him. What should I do?”

People were inherently greedy creatures. Once their hearts were filled, they could never return to those days of contentment. Unable to let go, yet unwilling to hold on, how much better would it have been if they had never met that person? Then they wouldn’t have to endure such torment, finding every moment without him particularly unbearable.

Aunt Qi was about to comfort her when she froze in place. Had the thing she feared most finally happened? When she came to her senses, Yuanxi’s dress was already soaked with tears, and her trembling hand finally reached out to gently support Yuanxi’s shaking shoulders. Aunt Qi’s heart was filled with countless fears and regrets, and she finally closed her eyes and sighed heavily.

A gust of autumn wind blew, stirring up the fallen leaves on the ground, and Aunt Qi’s sigh dispersed into the silent autumn sky.

The fallen leaves piled up on the stone slabs were swept away, and day turned into night. These past few days, the manager of the mansion, Du Guangping, felt extremely troubled. Ever since Xia Mingyuan became the Left Prime Minister, there have been countless visitors to the mansion, especially those bringing gifts. However, in the past few days, almost every hour, a new batch of gifts arrived.

Humans are inherently greedy creatures. Once their hearts are filled to the brim, they can never return to the days of contentment. Unable to break free yet unwilling to let go, how much easier life would have been if she had never met him. Then she wouldn’t have to endure such torment, finding every moment without him unbearable.

Aunt Qi, about to comfort her, froze in mid-motion. Her worst fear had come true. When she regained her composure, Yuanxi’s dress was already soaked with tears, and her trembling hand finally fell. Gently, she placed her hand on Yuanxi’s shaking shoulder, a myriad of fear and guilt passing through her heart as she let out a heavy sigh.

A gust of autumn wind swept up the fallen leaves on the ground, twirling them into spirals, carrying with it the sighs that dispersed beyond the tranquil autumn sky.

The fallen leaves piled up on the stone slabs were swept away, and day turned into night. These past two days, the manager of the mansion, Du Guangping, felt extremely troubled. Ever since Xia Mingyuan became the Left Prime Minister, there had been countless visitors to the mansion, but never like these past two days, where gifts arrived almost every hour.

And it just had to be the steward from the Xuan Yuan Marquis Mansion who was known for sending gifts by name. So, he had to receive the gifts, serve tea, and attend to every detail, fearing that any carelessness might stir up gossip.

He had hoped that by personally handling things, he could manage them effortlessly. But who would have thought that these people had all the time in the world? Each one of them engaged him in idle chatter, lamenting the hardships of running errands and urging the lady of the house to return home. They made him come up with excuses until he was nearly at his wit’s end before they would take their leave.

But no sooner had he seen them off than another group would promptly appear at the gate. As usual, the chief steward, accompanied by several servants, stood grandly at the gilded lacquered gate, loudly reciting a list of gifts. They even insisted on unpacking and counting everything right at the gate before they would carry them into the courtyard. The commotion led people nearby to think that the mansion was hosting some kind of celebration, and even people from several streets away came to see what was happening.

Du Guangping wiped his sweat, feeling overwhelmed by the vastness of the Xuan Yuan Marquis Mansion and their generosity in gift-giving. From luxurious fabrics to exquisite jewelry, the items were numerous and diverse, requiring him to meticulously count and arrange everything and then deliver them to Miss Ye’s room without missing a single thing. While the mansion had no shortage of servants, they couldn’t endure this endless hustle and bustle from morning till night.

Du Guangping sighed and lamented that if this continued, he would have to seek help from the Marquis. If they didn’t persuade Miss Ye to return to the mansion soon, they would all be driven to madness. He shook his head and was about to lift his cup of tea to soothe his throat when a servant hurriedly entered, saying, “Manager Du, the Marquis Mansion… has sent something again!”

With a “puff,” the tea that Du Guangping had not yet swallowed sprayed out. He couldn’t bear this endless torment anymore. He stood up, slammed the table, and shouted, his face contorted, “What bird-brained thing have they sent this time!”

The servant’s expression twitched, and he swallowed hard, his face grimacing, “This time, they’ve sent… a literal bird!”

It was a chubby body, a sharp red beak, adorned with three-colored feathers, a tuft of down on its head, a parrot hanging on a hoop with its feet, its small eyes darting around in all directions, looking adorable. As Anhe and several maids watched, they couldn’t help but become more and more fond of it, reaching out to play with it. This only made the parrot, its feathers bristling, jump up and down in panic on its perch.

Yuanxi frowned as she stared at the pitiful parrot before her, feeling a mix of amusement and exasperation. Her room had already been filled with various items sent by the Marquis Mansion these past few days. Just when she couldn’t stand it anymore and was waiting to see what new antics Xiaodu would come up with, she didn’t expect him to start sending live animals.

And he was young, and seeing this interesting bird, she couldn’t bear to let go. After playing with it for a while, she turned back to Yuanxi with a smile, “Miss, this parrot seems a bit scatterbrained. I wonder what it might say?”

The parrot, as if understanding that its abilities were being questioned, raised its feathers and began squawking loudly, “Mommy, Daddy, the ghost is coming! Mommy, Daddy, the ghost is coming!”

The maids around were dumbfounded, looking at each other in confusion, feeling utterly baffled. Yuanxi also widened her eyes in surprise, not understanding what the parrot was randomly squawking about. They were all curious and surrounded the parrot, trying to get it to talk. But no matter how they coaxed, it kept repeating the same two sentences.

Suddenly, Anhe’s expression changed, and she timidly tugged on Yuanxi’s sleeve, saying, “Miss, do you think this parrot might be able to see those unclean things…”

Yuanxi lightly tapped her head and said, “What nonsense are you thinking? The parrot’s speech is entirely taught by humans. Even if it did see a ghost, it wouldn’t be able to say it.” But she couldn’t help but feel puzzled. Why would Xiaodu teach it such random phrases?

Just then, Lao Ma arranged the lunch and walked out. Seeing everyone crowded on the veranda, she squeezed in and asked curiously, “What’s going on?”

“La Mama, you’ve come at just the right time. Come and listen to what this parrot is saying! It sounds like it’s talking about ghosts, which is quite creepy,” Anhe pointed at the parrot and said.

Li Mama squinted at the lively parrot, listening intently for a while. Being older and more experienced, she suddenly burst into laughter and slapped her thigh, saying, “It’s saying: ‘Madam, come back!’ It seems like it hasn’t been taught for long, and this parrot’s speech is a bit unclear, so it comes out in this ghostly manner.”

The parrot, finding a kindred spirit, gleamed its eyes and spoke even more joyfully, “Mommy, Daddy, the ghost is coming! Mommy, Daddy, the ghost is coming!” Everyone couldn’t help but burst into laughter, sneaking glances at Yuanxi as they laughed.

Yuanxi’s face turned red, deliberately putting on a stern expression, “What are you laughing at? Take it back to my room. It’s just a stupid bird, it’s embarrassing!” With that, she turned and walked back to her room. But the parrot’s coarse and comical words echoed in her ears, causing an inexplicable flutter in her chest. She thought indignantly, “Shameless rascal, can’t even teach a decent bird.”

Meanwhile, the person who was innocently burdened by a bird was holding his breath, concentrating as he wrote on a piece of paper.

After writing a few lines, sweat began to bead on his forehead. He read over it several times, feeling awkward no matter how he looked at it. He sighed in frustration and put down his pen. He hadn’t realized that speaking sweet words smoothly was easy, but writing them out without seeming forced was so difficult. It was unfortunate that he had hardly written any letters in these years except military reports, let alone a love letter to coax his wife back home.

He sighed heavily with regret. He wondered if Luo Yuan deliberately wanted to tease him by suggesting this idea.

If it weren’t for being at his wit’s end, he wouldn’t have lowered his pride to ask for advice from this former rival he had always been wary of. But even if he was unwilling, he had to admit that Luo Yuan had known her longer than him and understood her preferences better.

As he thought about this, his agitation grew, and he stared at the crumpled paper in front of him. Eventually, he reluctantly sat back down and began to write again, stroke by stroke.

Just then, there was a knock on the door, and someone reported, “Master, Third Miss is here.”

Xiaodu quickly put down his pen and carefully tucked away the paper before instructing the person to bring Xiaoxuan in.

Xiaoxuan was dressed, her once lively eyes now dull, and her pointed chin looked even more intimidating. Xiaodu felt his heartache as he softly comforted her, “Big brother knows you’re sad, but you can’t neglect your health like this. Did you not eat well today?”

Xiaoxuan looked at her big brother, who had always cherished her the most, and tears suddenly welled up in her eyes. With a “plop,” she knelt and cried, “Big brother! Auntie didn’t commit suicide, she was murdered! You must not let her die in vain!”

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