Deeply shocked and saddened.

  This is strange. Today I was mistaken for a servant girl time and again.

  Also saw second sister staring at her own feet, remembering the red-clothed boy's disdainful gaze...

  She couldn't help but smile bitterly.

  Forget it, I don't have the self-awareness of being a master myself, and it's not others' fault for misunderstanding... Can't go around beating drums and telling everyone that I'm the real "master" anyway...

  The idea was just a flash in the pan.

  There is something more important to be done.

  She found blisters on her feet had burst, and her stockings and book pages were stuck to her feet.

  No wonder it hurts like being stabbed with a knife.

  "You don't have to tell me, but if the masters ask 'what happened', it would be better if you could say something, Second Sister..."

  "You're such a heartless little sister!" Second sister muttered nervously, "It wasn't me who pushed that door down!"

  "That's not you who overturned it, but Xu San who did." Shen Muqing threatened her: "I heard that once a lawsuit is filed, all witnesses will be temporarily detained. When the case goes to court, whether there is a reason or not, they will first be beaten with thirty big boards... The purpose is to prevent the plaintiff from framing others and the witnesses from speaking nonsense. I don't know if this is true or false..."

  Second sister indeed became flustered: "You, little miss, don't try to scare me, I'm not some inexperienced person. Me, at eleven years old, I was already singing in Kyoto's Cuīhuā Alley, and when it comes to 'Little Fú Róng' or Zhuō Xiǎo Què, which of them doesn't know..."

  Shen Muqing pulled the paper off her foot, only to discover that the book torn by the young man in red was a copy of "The Analects". She raised her head and stared coldly at her second sister: "Since you treat my kindness as donkey's liver... let's just pretend I didn't say anything." After finishing speaking, she continued to bend down and pull off the silk stockings on her foot.

  Second sister looked at Shen Muqing, who was lowering his head and ignoring her again. She glanced at the cold and quiet corridor and suddenly felt very lonely. She also thought of Xu San sneaking away and being forced to stay by the master monk, as well as the thoughtful gaze he gave her when he left... Second sister's heart couldn't help but feel a chill.

  I am a rootless water lily, and with just a slight breeze, I will drift away with the wind. What's more, if such a thing were to happen... who knows when I would be treated like a piece of rotten meat and thrown out.

  She gritted her teeth, pondered for a moment, and then whispered to Shen Muqing: "Little sister, I...I'll tell you, let me go... If the girls from the Shen family ask, just say that I...I ran away secretly..."

  Shen Mu Qing had never planned on keeping Er Jie here in the first place.

  The contradictions between the two families of Yuan and Shen are no longer something that can be resolved by evidence or witnesses, but rather a matter of who has more power... Now that two people have already died, why drag even more people down to become sacrifices!

  She smiled faintly and gazed quietly at her second sister, as if negotiating with an opponent on the negotiating table, creating a persistent atmosphere of determination.

  In this static silence, Second Sister became increasingly anxious.

  "She muttered: 'Xu San, Xu San is my husband!'"

  I didn't expect them to be husband and wife!

  Shen Muqing was slightly surprised. A feeling of a fresh flower inserted into cow dung rose in her heart.

  She remained expressionless, continuing to stare at Second Sister as if Second Sister's words had been anticipated. And Second Sister, under her attitude, of course, couldn't fathom what Shen Muqing knew and why she asked about her relationship with Xu San, so naturally, she didn't know what to say or not to say, and it all came pouring out like dumping beans from a bamboo tube.

  "Our two families were both from theatrical troupes, and we were betrothed as children. We followed Master Yang to learn opera together. My brother and I learned the dan role, while he learned the chou role. He had a good voice, was bright, and could pick up any play quickly. My brother and I looked good but couldn't sing well. Both families had high hopes for him to make a big name in the theater world one day, to hang his plaque in the opera house like Master Yang of Liankui Troupe, and perform for the empress dowager.

  As she spoke, Second Sister's face revealed a look of melancholy. "Who knew that my parents would pass away first...and then my husband's parents passed away too...My brother and I ended up singing small tunes in Cuifang Hutong...I don't even know when it started, but he began to learn how to gamble from others...By the time I got married, our family had nothing left, just three tile-roofed houses that were already mortgaged to someone else...This time, we owed someone money again. He said let's hide out in Yaowang Temple for a few days until the storm blows over, and then think of a way to repay the debt...Who knew it would stir up such big trouble." As she spoke, she began to sob."

  Shen Mu Qing sighed quietly and said: "Then what are you going to do?"

  Second sister wiped her eyes with a handkerchief, dazed and said: "I, I don't know what to do either? We can't go to the Emerald Flower Alley for now... I had someone bring a message to my brother, let's see what he says..."

  The two of them stood facing each other in silence. Before long, the sound of chaotic footsteps echoed from the corridor.

  Shen Mu Qing and her second sister looked over in the direction of the sound.

  It was that young man in red clothes, Pang Debao and a stranger wearing a stone blue eight-piece brocade Taoist robe.

  Didn't Director Pang persuade the young man in red away?

  Shen Mu Qing thought about the young man's temperament, feeling somewhat unexpected, yet also thinking it was a matter of course.

  She had just stood up when she heard her second sister's cry of surprise, and ran over like a whirlwind to throw herself into the stranger's arms: "Brother, brother..."

  Shen Mu Qing quietly took a glance at Er Jie's older brother without leaving any trace.

  They, the siblings, looked very alike. Both had tall and slender figures, jet-black hair, fair and oval faces, thin willow-leaf eyebrows, and bright red lips. This appearance on the second sister would naturally be a beautiful woman, but on a man... it made people feel somewhat strange.

  The older brother held his younger sister in his arms and kept whispering softly into her ear, comforting her.

  The young man in red walked up to Shen Muqing. He scolded Shen Muqing in a low voice: "Look at you, what do you look like? In broad daylight, you're actually sitting on the threshold with your big feet...".

  It's a bit unsightly......to be told this by such a young boy, it's really quite embarrassing...

  Shen Mu Qing stood up with a sneer towards him.

  The young man in red became even more sullen.

  Pang De Bao stood behind the young man and kept winking at Shen Mu Qing.

  Shen Muqing didn't know what Pang Debao was getting at, but thinking of his unpredictable temperament and the saying "don't hit a smiling face", he put on a smile and said to the young man: "Young master, how did you meet Second Sister's brother? What a coincidence!"

  "After you go back, use Fructus Gardeniae and white flour, mix with liquor to make a cake, and paste it on your feet." He suddenly blurted out a sentence.

  He was stunned and it took him a while to come back to his senses.

  The crimson-clad youth's eyes, like polished jade, were turbulent as a whirlwind.

  Shen Mu Qing didn't want to stir up the hornet's nest, so he immediately said: "I know, I know. When I get back, I'll immediately follow Young Master's instructions and use mountain clover to stick to my feet."

  The boy in red clothes looked at her coldly, with a disdainful expression, but the stormy waves in his eyes gradually subsided, and his original clarity was restored.

  Shen Muqing let out a long sigh of relief. He felt like his head was as big as a bucket, and apart from obeying him, he didn't know what other way to deal with him.

  "Is there anyone else here?" The red-clothed youth suddenly said, "If there isn't anyone else, you secretly release this Little Swallow!"

  Why suddenly care about this matter?

  The girl is injured and resting in the wing room. We are waiting for mom to come back from burning incense at Mingyin Temple!

  The boy in red lowered his head and whispered into her ear, "This Tuo Xiao Que's brother is called Tuo Xiao Ya, a close follower of Cheng Yi Bo Zeng Ju... Rather than letting Second Sister go to the government office to testify, it would be better to sell personal feelings to Tuo Xiao Ya and let him make some moves in front of Cheng Yi Bo. Although I don't expect him to accomplish anything, at least he can stir up some trouble! Heh heh, making that Town Peace King worry a bit isn't bad either."

  His long breaths landed warmly on Shen Muqing's face, carrying the faint scent of cedar grass.

  Shen Mu Qing took a deep breath.

  It's not like the fragrance on clothes, but rather as if it emanates from within the body itself, carrying a warmth that has been gently heated by body temperature, and subtly seeping into one's lungs.

  Her calm and clear mind became somewhat distracted, and she heard the red-clothed youth shouting in her ear: "Hey, I'm talking to you, did you hear me clearly?"

  Ah, how could this be......

  Her expression changed suddenly, and she said hastily: "Listen carefully, listen carefully!"

  But in his heart, he thought: Tu Xiao Ya is just a follower, what can he say, what kind of wind can he blow...

  A thought flashed through Shen Muqing's mind, and suddenly 16th Master's sarcastic words about Second Brother appeared in her head: "Your brother is a flower in the Chengyi House..."

  She couldn't help but let out an "ah".

  Can it be that those people were telling the truth?

  Shen Muqing's eyes involuntarily drifted onto Tu Xiaoyu's body.

  On the other side, the Tu siblings had each taken their positions, with Tu Xiao Ya holding a handkerchief to wipe away his sister's tears. Feeling Shen Mu Qing's gaze on him, he smiled gently in her direction.

  Her smile is very clean, with a clear and cold demeanor like moonlight.

  Shen Mu Qing was taken aback, and suddenly had a bit of an epiphany.

  She couldn't help but widen her eyes.

  Tou Xiao Ya's face suddenly turned red, and her smile had a few hints of embarrassment and shyness.

  Is it because his gaze at himself was too curious?

  Shen Muqing felt embarrassed and smiled awkwardly at Tu Xiaoyu.

  The boy in red glanced sideways, looking at Tuo Xiao Ya and then Shen Mu Qing, his mouth slightly raised, a hint of sarcasm on his face, saying: "In that case, let's go!"

  His voice was higher than usual and sounded somewhat piercing to the ear, and a pair of ink jade-like eyes stared at Shen Muqing.

  Shen Muqing was confused by the red-clothed youth's constant left and right movements.

  "Are you not going to send us off?" The red-clad youth's tone of voice had a somewhat rough flavor, but for some reason, Shen Muqing felt that there was a probing tone in his words.

  Weakly shouting: Sisters with tickets, please support me a little... Wuuu...