High-class maid

"By the way, Mother, weren't we supposed to be returning to the manor this afternoon? How come it's tomorrow morning?" Shen Xing'er asked.

“You woke up late this morning, and we had to walk to the manor. We were afraid of being late, so the last few times we left in the afternoon. Today your father is home, so we will take a carriage tomorrow morning,” Wang said.

Although their street was next to Chang'an Street, it was still quite a distance from the Minister's residence; otherwise, her parents wouldn't have been able to buy a small courtyard in the capital city where land was incredibly expensive.

"Great! I can stay at home again for another night!" Shen Xing'er happily kissed Wang Shi.

Wang's face flushed red instantly. She glanced around somewhat awkwardly and scolded, "You child, you have no manners."

Shen Xing'er linked arms with her parents and said with a grin, "Let's go home!"

Meanwhile, Song Wenyang was pondering what gift to give. If he gave something expensive, Xing'er probably wouldn't accept it; if he gave something too cheap, it would seem like he had no sincerity.

After much thought, he decided to make a birthday gift himself, so that it wouldn't seem perfunctory and would show that he put his heart into it.

He remembered when he was a child, he would lie on his grandmother's lap and she would tell him stories. She said that peach trees had always been revered as sacred trees, and that their branches had the power to ward off evil spirits. So Song Wenyang decided to give Shen Xing'er a peach wood hairpin.

Without further ado, he found the largest peach tree, bowed to it, and then carefully took down a branch. After thinking it over, he decided that the crabapple blossom was the most suitable for Xing'er.

He drew the design on the hairpin and then began carving and polishing it, working on it until nightfall.

"Young Master, let's eat. It's already past midnight, and the food has been reheated three times." Uncle He called to Song Wenyang once again.

"It's done!" The boy held the peach wood hairpin, looking at it from left to right in the candlelight, as if it were a priceless masterpiece.

He showed it off to Uncle He and said, "Uncle He, how about it? Isn't it beautiful? If you were Xing'er, would you like it?"

"Young Master's hands are so skillful. Not only can he handle weapons, but he can also make such exquisite things. Beautiful, beautiful." Uncle He looked at Song Wenyang as if he were his own child.

"Then I'll take it to Xing'er now." After saying that, Song Wenyang was about to rush out the door, as if he wanted Shen Xing'er to receive the hairpin as soon as possible.

“Hey, young master, it’s already past midnight. Miss Shen has been asleep for a long time. What will her parents think if you knock on her door in the middle of the night?” Uncle He called back the impulsive Song Wenyang.

Song Wenyang looked dejected, like a wilted eggplant, and said, "What can we do? Miss Shen is leaving tomorrow. If we can't deliver it to her tonight, we'll have to wait until next month."

"It's alright, good things come to those who wait," Uncle He comforted him.

Song Wenyang sat back down on the bench. Suddenly, as if remembering something, he looked at Uncle He and said...

"Uncle He, I'm leaving tomorrow too. The Minister's office sent a letter saying my stepmother is sending someone to look for me."

"Hmph, that wretched woman, wasn't it enough that she sent you to Jinling? She even sent people to look for you. She's afraid you'll escape her grasp!" He Bo said angrily.

“Uncle He, you must take good care of yourself. I want to ask the Shen family to take care of you, but I’m afraid that if the Wen family finds out one day, it will implicate their whole family,” Song Wenyang said dejectedly.

"Young master, don't worry about me. Go and study hard, and you'll definitely pass the imperial examination and come back as a scholar!"

"Uncle He, don't worry, I will definitely make something of myself and return to the capital! And you can take this silver note too." Song Wenyang said, taking out a thousand-tael silver note.

This startled He Bo: "You, you, you, where did you get so many silver notes? You can't do anything foolish!"

Song Wenyang smiled helplessly and said, "You're overthinking it, Uncle He. This was given to me by the Second Prince."

It turned out that the Second Prince had handed the Hidden Void Box to the Emperor. The Emperor, mindful of the Second Prince's merit, only took the booklet and gave him all the silver notes.

The Second Prince directly gave Song Wenyang a thousand taels of silver. Song Wenyang did not stand on ceremony. He knew that the Second Prince would be more at ease if he accepted the silver.

Upon hearing that the thousand taels of silver came from the Second Prince, He Bo wisely refrained from asking further questions. He simply placed the silver back into the box and said...

"These are all for you to use when you get married. Once you're able to get married, this old servant will be half at ease."

For some reason, upon hearing these words, Song Wenyang's mind drifted to Shen Xing'er. He shook his head, trying to stop himself from thinking about it, and turned to pack his bags.

At this moment, Shen Xing'er was not asleep. She seemed to hear her mother and father arguing.

At first, Shen Xing'er thought she was hallucinating, but as the two argued louder and louder, she couldn't sleep anymore. She got up, put on her clothes, pushed open the door, and went out.

"Father, Mother, what's wrong?" Shen Xing'er asked softly from outside the window.

The arguing inside stopped abruptly. A moment later, Wang, with red and swollen eyes, opened the door and said, "Come in and let's talk."

After Shen Xing'er entered the house, she saw her father give her an unnatural look, then quickly turn his head away, as if it was a shameful thing for his daughter to find out that the two of them had quarreled.

"Father, what's wrong? What happened?" Shen Xing'er asked Shen Kun.

Shen Kun rolled his eyes at Wang Shi and said helplessly, "Your mother suspects that I have another woman outside!"

After Shen Xing'er entered, Wang seemed even more aggrieved, sitting on the bed and sobbing incessantly.

"What, you still won't admit it? You always say you're busy, but last time you only spent an afternoon with my daughter and me at home. You said you went to help the master with some errands, but you didn't at all!"

After saying this, Wang could no longer hold back and lay down on the bed, weeping bitterly.

Shen Xing'er stared at her father in shock. Her intuition told her that Shen Kun wouldn't have someone else outside. But she also trusted her own mother.

"What, what exactly is going on! Keep a low profile, where did you go that day? Did the master really order you to do something?"

"I, I..." Shen Kun stammered.

"After returning to the manor, I overheard the master and the first wife talking. He said you've been tired lately and instructed Wu Kun to handle some errands!" As if she had caught someone red-handed, Madam Wang insisted on interrogating Shen Kun.

"Meizhen, you just need to believe me. I did indeed do my job. Only my master and I know about this. I will tell you after it's done."

Shen Kun stepped forward and put his arm around Wang's shoulder.

Upon hearing that the master of the house was involved, Madam Wang stopped sobbing and asked, "Are you telling the truth? Or is Xing'er lying to me with Xing'er in front of you?"

"Even if I lie to you, I would never lie to my daughter!" Shen Kun replied, raising his voice.

"Then why didn't you say so just now?" Wang asked again.

"You didn't give me a chance to speak; I couldn't get a word in edgewise. Xing'er, are you willing to believe your father?"

“Mother, don’t let anger cloud your judgment. Even if my father wants to take a concubine, you can’t stop him. My father has been so good to you. Since he said that only he and the master know about this, you should support him.”

Shen Xing'er subconsciously believed her father. It was normal for men to have multiple wives and concubines these days. If her father really had someone else outside, given Shen Kun's personality, he wouldn't hide it.