My wife wants a divorce; if she ruins my life, I'll leave.

Since the plan to go to Guangsheng Temple to offer incense and pay respects had been made, the second wife reluctantly began to make the arrangements.

She originally planned to worship at the ancestral hall at home, which would save her a lot of money, but now that she was going to the temple, the incense money would be indispensable.

In addition, the cost of meals and rest for everyone adds up to a considerable expense.

No matter how much it costs, arrangements must be made; we can't go to a temple and not even have a place to rest.

Therefore, the second wife sent someone to Guangsheng Temple the next day to reserve a courtyard.

Meng Ruohua didn't worry about these things; she was only concerned about the situation of Uncle Yang and his group, so she would send people out to inquire every few days.

However, when Madam Lin heard that the Second Madam was going to take the whole family to Guangsheng Temple to offer incense, she returned to Qingfeng Courtyard early and said that she also wanted to go.

“The wet nurse may go if she wishes, and it doesn’t matter who she is,” Meng Ruohua said.

The second madam gave the order that each person only needed to bring two attendants, and she would arrange for the rest of the maids, stewards, and mothers. This was because the second madam didn't want to bring too many people, as a large number of people would require more carriages.

The Song family currently only maintains three carriages; any more would require them to call for them on the street.

The people who would be going this time hadn't been decided yet; it was just that Linglong and Yuye discussed it and decided that one person would go and one person would stay, plus Shanhu.

Since Lin's mother wanted to go, everyone gave her face and let Coral stay.

"Thank you, Second Young Madam. I was just trying to find a good match for your brother-in-law. Others his age already have children." Madam Lin said with a smile, but then she remembered that Meng Ruohua didn't have any children either, and her face turned a little embarrassed.

Meng Ruohua didn't care, "Go ahead."

After Lin's mother went back to her room to rest, Meng Ruohua carefully instructed Linglong, "You are usually gentle, but you should be strict when necessary, otherwise those little girls will have no manners at all."

Linglong smiled and replied, "I always feel sorry for them because they are so young."

"You can feel sorry for them when you need to, but you can't break the rules." Meng Ruohua looked at the few young girls sitting idly in the sun on the porch outside the window and felt that there was no need for these people in the courtyard.

In Qingfeng Courtyard, Linglong and Yuye were first-class head maids. The second-class maids were originally Pearl and Coral, but the position remained vacant after Pearl was given to Song Chen'an. Meng Ruohua...

Thinking about promoting Chunxiu during the New Year, there are still five third-class maids left, who only do errands and cleaning every day, and don't have much to do.

Of these five girls, only Tianguo was brought by the Meng family; the other four were servants of the Song family.

After Shen Yunlan arrived, she sent Ying'er and Dong Mama to inquire about the situation in the mansion. There was a little girl named San'er in her courtyard who lived next door to Ying'er's uncle. They had known each other since childhood and often played together before they entered the mansion.

Yesterday, Ying'er said that she hadn't seen her for many years and managed to get a lot of information out of her. Shanhu happened to be passing by and overheard this, so she reported it to Meng Ruohua.

Their family has a complicated relationship with each other, and some things are impossible to prevent. They can only manage their own yard well.

She can slowly find a few capable people to replace all the staff in the Song family.

Linglong knew that Meng Ruohua valued the loyalty of her servants and vaguely guessed her thoughts. She didn't ask any more questions, but only gave her a stern reprimand in private.

On the third day, everyone finished breakfast early, packed up, and set off.

The second wife rode in one carriage with Song Tian and Shen Yunlan, Meng Ruohua rode in another carriage with Song Xi and Song Ming'an, Song Chang rode in a separate carriage because he felt cold riding a horse, and there were three other carriages with maids and servants. Song Chen'an rode alongside them on horseback.

Along the way, Song Xi and Song Ming'an couldn't sit still and wanted to lift the curtain. Meng Ruohua didn't stop them, but just led Song Xi to sit aside and let Song Ming'an watch.

The poor child had hardly ever left the house.

When he encountered something beautiful, he would describe it to Song Xi, which made Song Xi unable to resist stealing a glance.

Meng Ruohua pitied the two children for being well-behaved and sensible. Whenever the carriage stopped, she would ask the servant accompanying the carriage to buy two snacks to make them craving, one for the coachman and the other for Song Xi and Song Ming'an.

"Ming-ge, you should study hard and pass the imperial examinations in the future."

That would be so much freer!

Whether Song Ming'an understood or not, he nodded firmly, "When I grow up, I will buy lots of delicious food for my second sister-in-law, my older sister, and my aunt."

Meng Ruohua smiled and agreed, "Okay."

That's enough!

The situation wasn't so harmonious in the other car.

Song Tian also wanted to lift the curtain, but this drew a scolding from the second madam, "Sit still, what will people think if they see you like this?"

Reluctantly, Song Tian sat back down, her body going limp as she leaned against Qingping.

The second wife felt a sudden surge of anger, but because Shen Yunlan was present, she only whispered, "You have no manners."

Shen Yunlan pretended not to see the discord between the mother and daughter, and simply sat quietly to the side without looking at them.

Actually, she also wanted to see what was happening outside!

After arriving in the capital the day before yesterday, the caravan sent people to escort her to the Song residence without stopping. It was already dusk, and the streets were deserted, with no lively scene at all.

Sitting in the car today, even through the cotton curtain, I could hear the bustling noise outside, which shows how lively it was.

She really wanted to see how prosperous the ancient capital must have been.

Before she could make a move, Song Tian was scolded, and she had no choice but to put away her restless hand and sit obediently to the side.

She inherited the original owner's memories, and upon careful consideration, she realized that there were many rules in the capital for young women, at the very least prohibiting unmarried daughters from going out on the street alone.

However, the original owner had an admirer named Song Chen'an, and thought that in a few days she could ask Song Chen'an to take her out for a stroll.

Thinking about it, she couldn't help but laugh again. The original owner was only eleven years old when she left the Song family. Even if she was naturally beautiful, she was still just a little girl who hadn't finished elementary school. How could she have captivated Song Chen'an?

Seeing her smiling, Song Tian asked in an annoyed tone, "Is my cousin making fun of me again?"

Uh?

Shen Yunlan was puzzled by her abrupt question, wondering why she had made such a statement. It wasn't until Song Tian's gaze swept across the carriage curtain that she realized what was going on.

"Cousin, you've misunderstood." She quickly waved her hand and made up a story on the spot: "I was just thinking that when we first went to Yanzhou, my second brother insisted on lifting the curtain when we went out. As soon as he lifted it, a gust of wind blew in and covered us all with dust."

Intrigued, Song Tian asked, "Is the sandstorm in Yanzhou really that bad?"

“In spring, when the wind and sand are strong, the sky is always yellowish, and if you don’t wipe the table for a day, a layer of dust will settle on it.”

Are there really many geese in Yanzhou?

"Yes, Yanhu Lake is named after the wild geese."

Along the way, Shen Yunlan kept coaxing Song Tian to ask questions, which earned her a few compliments from the Second Madam, who felt that Shen Yunlan was poised and elegant, with exceptional manners and speech.

Yes, much better than the Meng family!