I'm a humble concubine. My acting skills are off the charts. You can check my performance.

Zhao Fangyu has been having a good life lately. People in Qingping Court treat her as if she were the eldest lady's biological child. They are so affectionate to her that it makes one feel as if they are in a hot spring, and all the pores in their body open up.

After coming out of the eldest lady's courtyard, Zhao Fangyu went to the study as usual to sort out books for Zhao Minshan.

Who would have thought that I would meet an unexpected person in the study today - Zhao Fanglan!

When Zhao Fangyu arrived, Zhao Fanglan was already sitting at her small desk, writing something with a pen.

She was wearing a white and blue folded skirt, a blue and white flowered jacket, and her hair was tied in a fallen horse bun, which was Aunt Zhang's favorite style. She had two small tasseled hairpins that were large and made of silver that was almost black due to its age.

Compared with Zhao Fangyu, who was wearing a wide silk jacket and a gold hairpin and jade bracelet, she was much more simple.

Zhao Fangyu looked at everything in front of her. Zhao Minshan seemed unaware of her arrival, his eyes only fixed on the documents in front of him.

Zhao Fangyu was not annoyed. She walked to the side silently, brewing tea and grinding ink, as if she was really a maid who came to the study to serve.

After finishing his work, he found a book on the bookshelf and read it. The sunlight shone directly in, and half of Zhao Fangyu's body felt warm.

It wasn't until Zhao Minshan looked up from the official documents, as if he had just seen Zhao Fangyu, that he pretended to be surprised and asked, "Here you are?"

Zhao Fangyu nodded and walked over to refill Zhao Minshan's cup of tea: "Dad called Third Sister here, obviously he thinks I'm not serving you well."

Zhao Minshan had no expression on his face, and Zhao Fangyu didn't care either, his voice was still soft: "Just now I saw Third Sister's comments, every move seems to be better than mine, no wonder Dad asked Third Sister to give me a sample."

Zhao Fanglan smiled without saying anything, with a hint of contempt in her eyes.

They were all illegitimate children, and in the past she just didn't like to use these cheap means to please people. Now she has done better than Zhao Fangyu, and now that she has lost her father's favor, let's see what she can rely on!

Zhao Fangyu didn't know what Zhao Fanglan was thinking, and he kept smiling: "Recently, the business in the Fourteen States has become increasingly busy. Now only my third sister is free at home. It would be good for my third sister to accompany Dad. It would save me from having any random thoughts."

After hearing what Zhao Fangyu said, Zhao Minshan seemed to have no intention of coming to the study again. Instead, he raised his eyes and looked directly at Zhao Fangyu.

When Zhao Fangyu first came, he was still a kid and had to stand on a stool to help him organize documents.

His evaluation of his daughter at the time was that she was soft and scheming, but later he gradually changed his evaluation to accommodating and thoughtful.

By now, he had already gotten used to Zhao Fangyu's service. He even felt a little uncomfortable during the time when Zhao Fangyu was recuperating.

It was just that the eldest lady treated her too well, and Zhao Minshan was afraid that this would foster her thoughts and make her have some inappropriate ideas, so he wanted to praise Zhao Fanglan and suppress her.

He had already thought of a way out for her. Entering the palace would be most beneficial to the Zhao family. Among the daughters of the Zhao family, Zhao Fangyu was the most suitable to enter the palace. Her temperament and methods could be absorbed into the family little by little, and she could get things done like spring breeze and rain.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Fangyu had no intention of arguing with Zhao Fanglan about this unique father's favor.

Zhao Minshan had been in the rear house for many years, and even the eldest lady had never treated him so coldly, to the point that he had an illusion: in the eyes of the fourth lady of humble origin, he was like an unwanted object. Since someone wanted to snatch him away, Zhao Fangyu didn't even make the most basic attempt to save the relationship, and simply handed him over to the other person.

You like it? I'll give it to you, but it's not a good thing.

Zhao Minshan was shocked by his own thoughts and couldn't help but take a sip of tea to relieve himself.

"Business in the Fourteen States is good?"

Zhao Fangyu said indifferently, still smiling: "It's not as good as those top spice shops. The main reason is that the things they sell are unique. This perfume requires a lot of flowers, which is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and the output is limited."

"There are so many people buying, and it's hard to raise the price. There are only so many things, and I can't make much money, but it's enough to pay my mother's rent."

Zhao Fangyu remained calm, but cursed Lao Deng countless times in her heart. How could she not know what Zhao Minshan was planning? He was just afraid that she would not obey, so he wanted to lift Zhao Fanglan up to fight with her, so as to dampen her spirit.

She is not Zhao Minshan's dog. If he throws a bone to her, she will go up and lick his stinky feet.

Now that she has the eldest lady, Zhao Minshan is just dispensable to Zhao Fangyu. After all, considering the relationship between the eldest lady and Zhao Fangyu, she will never choose a bad husband for her.

Even if she was just an ordinary scholar, with a dowry and the long-term rewards from the eldest lady, plus the profits from the fourteen states, she would no longer be the illegitimate fourth daughter who depended on others and needed to please everyone.

If Zhao Fanglan wants to compete with her, it depends on whether she wants this thing. He is just a middle-aged old man who likes mental control. If Zhao Fanglan likes him, she can give him to her. It would be best if Zhao Minshan likes her so much that he sends her to the palace. This way, she doesn't have to try every means to avoid the palace selection.

Zhao Minshan nodded and let Zhao Fangyu go back.

After seeing Zhao Fangyu leave, Zhao Fanglan timidly asked, "Daddy, will my fourth sister be angry with me?"

Zhao Minshan snorted and laughed: "Now that you're here, why are you telling me this now?"

Looking at Zhao Fanglan who was lowering her head to write again, Zhao Minshan felt a little regretful.

Unfortunately, even after being sent to the old lady, her petty nature still didn't change.

Compared with Fang Yu, it is far inferior.

·

Zhao Fangyu came out of the study and went to Qingping Courtyard to tell them about Zhao Fanglan. The eldest ladies were all there. When they heard that the third young lady, who was as quiet as a chrysanthemum, was rushing to Zhao Minshan's study to serve him with writing materials, they couldn't help laughing.

This was different from Zhao Fangyu's. Zhao Fangyu used the excuse of getting closer to his father, and no one could say anything. But what about Zhao Fanglan? She drove away her sister who missed her father? Who didn't know what she was thinking?

The eldest lady called Zhao Fangyu to her side. She felt happy when she saw the ten-year-old girl dressed up beautifully.

"Don't worry about what she does. She's just a turtle that can't turn over. She can only flutter a few times."

Zhao Fangjin approached Zhao Fangyu with a smile. The two of them were dressed the same as Zhao Fangyu today. They had similar features and eyebrows, and now standing together, they looked even more like a pair of twins.

The eldest lady looked at the two little girls and was very pleased. "There will be a banquet in the mansion in a few days. Your elder sister will have something to say to your brother-in-law in the garden. You should not stick to her and make your brother-in-law unable to find a topic to talk to."

Zhao Fangyu cried out and threw herself into the arms of the eldest lady: "How can I be such a foolish girl without any tact? I just stand beside my mother, say hello to everyone who comes. I carry a sack and put whatever is given to me in it." Zhao Fangyu's teasing words made everyone laugh, especially Zhao Fangjin, whose face turned red with embarrassment.

Until the middle of the month, the Zhao family held a fragrance banquet.

Song Bai brought his younger sister over and was received by Zhao Zhihuai into Zhao's house and sent to the men's seat.

On the way, Song Bai went out under the pretext of sobering up, to look for Zhao Fangjin who was waiting for him in Endless Summer.

Blind marriages are not popular among wealthy families, so after the engagement, they would find ways to let the future couple meet each other, spend some time together and talk.

This also prevents the couple from becoming resentful of each other after marriage due to incompatibility of personalities, which would defeat the original purpose of being a good family.

Zhao Fangyu was sitting at the female guest seat. At today's incense evaluation banquet, most of the incense she evaluated were those she made herself.

The banquet was a buffet. The little girls in red and green were chattering away. However, a light-colored figure quietly stood up and followed Zhao Fangjin into the yard.