High-class maid

"Oh, I was thinking of taking her with me too." Wu Xiucai lowered his head, hiding the disappointment in his eyes.

"It's alright, she might have arrived even earlier than me. How is your aunt?" Shen Xing'er asked with concern.

"She's much better now. She can walk a few steps now, but we don't dare let her stand for too long."

"It takes a hundred days to recover from a broken bone, don't be too anxious. Being able to stand up is a good thing," Shen Xing'er comforted her.

Wu Xiucai smiled and thanked her for her kindness.

The two chatted idly along the way and unknowingly arrived at the back gate of the Minister's residence.

"Xing'er, Brother Wu, you just arrived too!" Shen Xing'er had just stood still when she heard Shan Tao's energetic voice.

Wu Xiucai turned his head even before her, his eyes revealing a hint of surprise, but because there were many people around, he didn't speak, only nodded.

"Uncle, you're here." Shen Xing'er greeted Chen Shan, who was also pushing a cart.

Chen Shan nodded, his gaze shifting from Shen Xing'er to Wu Xiucai. After a moment, he said, "Xing'er, going to Jinling is not the same as going to the capital. Fortunately, the two of you are going together, so you can look after each other."

"Don't worry, Uncle, Shan Tao and I will discuss everything," Shen Xing'er replied.

Seeing this, Chen Shan nodded in relief, helped Shan Tao carry the boxes down, and then left.

"Xing'er, you're going to Jinling too? I want to go too, what a coincidence!" Wu Xiucai said quietly after everyone around him had left.

"Brother Wu, are you going to Jinling?" Shen Xing'er asked.

“Oh, the teacher who taught me two years ago said that there are many famous teachers in Jinling and wrote a letter of recommendation for me to study in Jinling. But my mother fell and the matter was put on hold. Now that she has recovered, we should set off for Jinling.”

"That's wonderful! If fate allows, we'll meet again in Jinling," Shen Xing'er said sincerely.

Wu Xiucai glanced at Shan Tao subconsciously and saw that she also looked happy. His longing for the capital grew even stronger.

"I won't bother you any longer. Go on your work now, and we'll meet again!" With that, Wu Xiucai pushed his cart back home.

As Shen Xing'er and Shan Tao carried their boxes, they watched the joyful and busy atmosphere of everyone in the mansion, and their own mood was also lifted.

“Xing’er, I don’t think Brother Wu is as weak as other scholars.” Shan Tao recalled how Wu Xunzhi had lifted Shen Xing’er’s box with one hand and said.

“Yes, there are good and bad people everywhere. You can’t say all scholars are bad just because one scholar is bad,” Shen Xing’er said.

"Yes, yes, I was narrow-minded. I will never generalize again," Shan Tao nodded and said.

At 2:45 PM, everyone stopped their day's work and ate in their own little houses. However, the old lady's room was filled with her entire family.

"Mother, is there something you need to tell us?" the second master asked.

"Jiuchuan, you speak," the old lady said, glancing at her eldest son.

"That's right," the master said. "Today, someone from Yongchang Prefecture came to deliver a message, saying that Yi'an's poetry is outstanding and they would like to invite him to discuss poetry in his spare time."

"Could it be? They've relented?" the First Madam asked in surprise. The eldest young master, Xiao Yi'an, also looked delighted.

The old lady was much calmer. She glanced at the mother and son, then asked...

"Then what did you say?"

"My son said that our family is going to Nanjing to pay respects to our ancestors, and we will definitely visit your family when we return."

"Good, very good. It seems this is a sure thing. But in that case, we shouldn't stay in Jinling for too long. It seems we can't spend the New Year there." The old lady turned the prayer beads in her hand and pondered.

"Mother, elder brother, what are you talking about?" The second master was completely confused and couldn't help but ask.

The second wife rolled her eyes at him, too lazy to respond, and said to the first wife with a smile, "Congratulations, sister-in-law! Yi'an's marriage is settled. You have such a good daughter-in-law. Our Minister's Mansion is honored."

The First Madam was overjoyed, waving her handkerchief modestly and saying, "Not at all, it's all predestined."

The old lady nodded in agreement and said, "That's right. Who spends their life with whom is predestined and cannot be forced. Now that Yi'an's marriage is almost settled, Yizhou's should also be put on the agenda."

Upon hearing this, the second young master lowered his head and remained silent. However, the second madam said, "Thank you for your concern, Mother. It's not too late to arrange a marriage for Yizhou after Yi'an's marriage is settled. We should finish one thing at a time."

Ever since the second wife and the second master quarreled, she has become more and more insightful. Since the second master is unreliable, she might as well flatter the old lady and the eldest family. Anyway, her mother-in-law and sister-in-law are not mean people. If she makes them happy, it will only benefit her.

When the master heard her speak like that, he nodded with rare satisfaction and said, "Yes, no rush. There are plenty of good girls out there. We'll talk about everything when we get back from Jinling."

The First Madam was in high spirits, and it was a rare treat to hear her sister-in-law speak so kindly to her. She found her even more pleasing to the eye, and thus generously replied...

"Yes, we'll have to pick a good wife for Yizhou and bring her home!"

The second young master stood up, bowed to the elders, and said, "Yizhou is grateful and thanks to Grandmother, Uncle and Aunt for their kindness."

The eldest son didn't feel that his younger brother had stolen his thunder at all. He smiled slightly at him, and the old lady was also very happy to see the younger generation so harmonious.

Only the second master, whether it was his imagination or not, always felt that the whole family was ignoring him and treating him like he was invisible.

The next day at dawn, Shen Xing'er carefully got up, afraid of waking Jinglin. When she arrived at the gate of the mansion, there were already quite a few people there.

"Xing'er, aren't you dressed a little too lightly?" Wang asked with concern as she approached her daughter.

“Many mothers will get hot as soon as they walk,” Shen Xing’er replied.

Their journey to Jinling would take five days by dirt road and ten days by water. The nannies were kind enough to ride in front of the carriage.

But maids like them had no choice but to walk. This was why Jinglin gave up on going to Jinling.

After packing her bags, Shen Xing'er set off with the rest of the group. The carriages of the Minister's residence filled an entire street; the old lady's luggage alone took three carriages, not to mention the luggage of all the ladies and young misses.

As they walked down the street, many people marveled at the wealth and power of the Minister's mansion. The group strolled leisurely out of the city.

Fortunately, there was no sun today, and it was even a bit cool. Shen Xing'er and Shan Tao chatted quietly along the way, which was quite pleasant.