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  Chapter 38

  Some faint footsteps came from the courtyard.

  In a moment, the little girl who was left to guard the door hurried in and reported, "The Jade Building's sister from Autumn Flower Garden has arrived, saying that she was ordered by Fourth Madam to invite Miss to go over."

  Qiu Huayuan was the residence of Mrs. Xue, and because Mrs. Xue had always been close to Ming Huan, she would often send someone to deliver things to Ming Huan's place more frequently than others. Mrs. Xue was kind-hearted and whenever she got something good, she would have Yulou send a portion over to Ming Huan. Over time, Yulou became familiar with the maids in this courtyard, and the old woman at the gate, who had received instructions from above, no longer stopped her.

  Ming Xuan put down the brush and ink in her hand after hearing this, raised her head and said, "Let her come in."

  The jade building lifted the pearl curtain, and the cat slipped into the inner house. She made a courtesy to Ming Xuan, then smiled and said, "The fourth lady's natal family's elder sister-in-law and several officials' wives have arrived. Since there is also an unmarried young lady among the female guests, the fourth lady is afraid of neglecting her hospitality, so she sent me over to ask if Seventh Lady can help entertain the guests?"

  Besides Qiye Yuanhao, there is also Miss Mingru, who is only five years old this year. The Fourth Master has never taken a concubine, and these two children are both legitimate offspring of Lady Xue. However, since Mingru is still young, how can she accompany the guests? Lady Xue had no choice but to ask someone to invite Mingxuan over to respond to the urgency.

  Ming Xuan smiled and nodded, "Go tell Fourth Aunt that I'll change into some clothes and then head over."

  Fourth Uncle was a bastard and had never entered officialdom. Although he was nominally the Fourth Master of Yongning Manor, in reality he had neither power nor wealth. He relied on Gongzhong for everything, so he had always been low-key in his actions, never provoking trouble, and rarely socializing with people from other manors. However, these past few days, it was often heard that he was frequently drinking and socializing outside, and his interactions with high-ranking officials suddenly increased. Today, even Madame Xue Shaoqing brought the wives of other official families to the manor...

  It seems that Fourth Master has also come to a realization. The Hou Manor will inevitably be divided within the next year or two, so it's best to prepare ahead of time and secure a long-term position for Fourth Uncle in the imperial court. That way, after the division of the manor, he won't be left with nothing to do and struggle to make ends meet.

  Ming Xuan thought so, and couldn't help but feel a little sad in her heart.

  The reason why Fourth Uncle cannot serve as an official is the same as Father's bitter intention to stay in a low position. For the sake of the family, someone has to make sacrifices. What is lamentable is that they gave up their own future for the prosperity and peace of the family, but the family did not give them the shelter they deserved. Otherwise, with Her Highness pregnant with the dragon heir, Yongning Marquis Manor is in its heyday, and with Eldest Uncle's current influence in the court, it would be easy to arrange a position for Fourth Uncle, why does he need to plan it himself?

  Under the name of family, sacrifices are made, but the benefits are all taken by oneself. The big house is still selfish after all. She can't be as heartless as that, and now her fourth aunt has come to her for help, this busy person must be helped.

  Dan Hong and the usually indoor serving girl had all gone to Xue Su's place, so Ming Xuan could only wave at the little serving girl who had just stayed by the door, "What's your name, where did you originally work as a servant, do you know how to serve people in dressing and combing hair?"

  It's not that she's being pretentious, but at this time of year, the clothes are complex and layered, making it difficult to put on and take off. If it weren't for Xue Su and Dan Hong helping her out in daily life, she probably wouldn't know how much trouble it would be. As for hair styling, that's an even more meticulous profession, what could she possibly know about it? But since they're going to Autumn Flower Garden to receive guests, they can't just dress casually at home, all these things need to be done properly.

  That girl was clever and knew that she had a task to be entrusted with, her face immediately showed surprise and joy. She hastily replied, "I'm called Xiaosu, I'm the third-class maid in charge of sweeping and cleaning the courtyard. My mother used to be in charge of combing hair for the third madam, I've been watching since I was young and learned some skills too. If it's something difficult, I don't dare say I can do it, but ordinary hairstyles, I can definitely do them."

  Since the decline of the third house, all the maids who used to serve the Lu family have dispersed. The accompanying rooms brought from the Lu family were naturally sent to the dowry villa, while the children born in the Gu family were assigned by Madame Hou to other houses and tasks. Xiaosu's mother was once a hairdresser for the Lu family, which is the first time Mingyu has met someone so closely related to the Lu family.

  She was slightly surprised, yet also delighted. A smile spread across her face as she nodded and said, "Since it's an old friend, I'll believe you this time. Xiaosu, come quickly and help me change into some clothes, then we can go to Autumn Flower Garden together."

  A faint light flickered in Xiao Su's eyes, and she hastily agreed before leading Ming Xuan into the inner chamber.

  Inside the Yu Ge building, there is still a vacant position. If this task can be done well, it will be an opportunity. She doesn't expect to replace Xue Su's position overnight, which is also unlikely, but if someone in the second grade gets promoted, she might think about taking over as the second-grade maid. In the past two years, her family has not been doing well, and being able to get a promotion and raise would allow her to support her family more.

  She thought so, and was even more diligent in serving Ming Xuan, wanting to make a good impression.

  Ming Xuan changed her clothes, re-combed her hair, and wore a lotus-colored velvet jacket with a crimson skirt. She also put on a pale pink outer garment, which made her look neither too flashy nor too dull. She looked at her reflection in the copper mirror, turning left and right, feeling quite satisfied in her heart.

  A smile spread across her face, "Let's go."

  Xiao Su saw the situation and felt a slight relief in her heart, and she couldn't help but add a few more points of expectation.

  Qiu Hua Garden is located on the northernmost side of Yongning Marquis's mansion, actually quite a distance from the main house, but adjacent to the back street. In order to make it convenient for people to enter and exit, a corner gate was opened at the northwest corner, Qiu Hua Garden is not far from here, so there are often servants coming and going every day, so it doesn't look deserted.

  Ming Xuan's sedan chair had just landed when Yu Lou, who had returned to report on the matter, came out to greet her and invited her in.

  It was the third month of spring, and the weather had just turned warm after a cold spell. The charcoal brazier in the Xue family's house had already been extinguished, but the heated kang was still burning, and the thick cotton curtains had not been taken down, so it didn't feel cold inside. When Mingyu entered, she saw Mrs. Xue Shaoqing sitting on the kang chatting with two unfamiliar official wives, a 14- or 15-year-old girl in an orange dress sitting awkwardly at the end of the kang, and Mrs. Xue standing below greeting her.

  As Yu Lou went in to report back, Ming Xuan had already carefully sized up the female guest through the beaded curtain. There was no need to look at the clothes and jewelry of those few people, just looking at Madame Xue's attitude would reveal that their husbands held official positions above the fourth rank. It couldn't be said for certain, but it seemed that Fourth Uncle was planning to seek out the wife of that superior official.

  She caught a glimpse of Xue's tense demeanor, but her expression couldn't hide her excitement, and she guessed that the matter with Fourth Uncle had been settled.

  As expected, when Xue saw Mingxuan enter, she hastily called her over and said, "This is the wife of Grand Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Chang, and this is the wife of Minister Li. Come quickly to pay your respects to both."

  From the second-grade Bu Zhengshi and third-grade Can Zheng, it turned out that Fourth Uncle had actually climbed up to the door of the Bu Zhengsi.

  Ming Xuan thought for a moment, then smiled and bowed, "Nice to meet you, Mrs. Chang, nice to meet you, Mrs. Li."

  Madam Chang smiled and said to Xue Shi, "Is this the seventh young lady of your esteemed household? Indeed, she is the legitimate daughter of the Marquis's household, and her demeanor is not comparable to that of ordinary girls from humble families. I've heard that she also has exceptional embroidery skills, and at such a young age, she already possesses such talent, truly remarkable."

  Zhou Chaoke's heavy reward is the glory of his ancestors' benevolence, although the Chang family is a prominent official family, they do not have any noble titles. Even if their official positions are not low, in front of the dukes and marquises, they always have to be humble, so Madame Chang's tone is particularly polite.

  Ming Xuan humbly spoke a couple of words, but she noticed that four pairs of eyes were staring at her. She glanced over quietly and saw Mrs. Li looking at her with a heavy expression, as if deep in thought. The girl sitting at the end of the kang had a subtle expression, with a knot between her eyebrows and occasional flashes of anger in her eyes.

  "Ah, this is the young daughter of Yan Daren from the Ministry of Works, Qingli. Her mother and Madame Li are sisters. I invited Madame Li to come over today, and she happened to be at Madame Li's house, so she came along with her."

  This is the younger daughter of Mr. Yan, a clean official in the Ministry of Works... So to speak, this shy and seemingly annoyed girl in front of me is actually Yan Qingyan's own sister?

  Ming Xuan's heart skipped a beat, and she felt a bad premonition. With Yan Qingli's expression, could something have happened to the Yan family? Han Xiuer was such a ruthless and decisive person, he wouldn't just let things go after saying such harsh words. Since he had bribed someone to deliberately create an unfavorable horoscope, it was clear that he wouldn't give up easily.

  What if he really did something again?

  She didn't want to give up on this wonderful marriage, but she couldn't bear the thought of the Yan family being innocent victims of Han Xiu's attacks and revenge. The Yan family was innocent, why should they suffer just because she had taken a liking to them? That wasn't fair. But if she gave in to Han Xiu and called off the engagement with the Yan family, what would she do next? She couldn't possibly wait for Han Xiu's wife to pass away and then become his second wife.

  Don't want to, can't, and don't even dare to.

  Yan Qingli followed Mrs. Li to the Hou Mansion as a guest, but in fact, it was not very dignified, let alone that Ming Xuan was already engaged to her brother, and this opportunity to meet again was even more improper. She came from a family of scholars and must have learned etiquette, yet she still did this, presumably because there were unavoidable reasons and unmentionable matters.

  Thinking so, Ming Xuan's heart became more and more anxious, but she saw that Mrs. Chang seemed to be completely unaware of the situation, and Xue Shi had not connected the Ministry of Works' official Yan Daren's family with her own engagement to the Yan family, so she could only hold back her urgent emotions and patiently chatted with them.

  Finally, Xue Shi smiled and said, "Fourth Aunt wants to have a few words with the ladies, Xuan sister, today is just warm weather, accompany Miss Yan to the front garden for a walk, okay?"

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