The sickly son died young? After the marriage exchange, I will bring prosperity to his entire clan f

"What is their relationship?"

Du Mingxian wasn't a gossipy person, but seeing how meticulously Liu Ya took care of Jiang Liting, even her own mother probably wouldn't have done that.

If they were siblings, Liu Ya wouldn't refer to Jiang Liting as "Brother Jiang" when mentioning him, proving they are not siblings.

Liu Ya's age makes it even less likely that she is her biological mother.

She didn't seem like a servant at all. If she really was a servant, Liu Ya wouldn't have been able to go inside to sleep. Even if they were master and servant, they were of different genders, so they should have been careful.

Ling Silang glanced at Du Mingxian, finding her gossipy expression amusing. "Husband and wife."

"Huh? A married couple? They don't look like it."

"They are a couple. Yesterday afternoon, Aunt Xu from the first room in the east wing asked in the courtyard, and Liu Ya said so."

Du Mingxian was somewhat surprised. Their relationship didn't seem like that of a married couple at all. Not to mention that Liu Ya looked much older than Jiang Liting, Jiang Liting's domineering attitude was just...

"If you're bored, you can also get to know Liu Ya."

“I’ve actually had that idea. While you’re out there looking at people, I can also get to know these women. Maybe I’ll make some different discoveries.”

"To have a wife like this is enough for a lifetime."

Du Mingxian gave him a playful glare, "Let's eat quickly. I think Liu Ya is going out this afternoon, I can go with her."

"Ah."

The two were eating when Aunt Xu slowly returned. Her son had left in the morning and hadn't come back yet. After she returned, she went inside and came out a short while later.

Just then, Du Mingxian and Ling Silang finished their meal and were about to wash the dishes when Aunt Xu was already standing at the door of their room.

"Young lady."

This title...

That sounds awful.

Du Mingxian felt disgusted and got up to go outside. "Auntie, you can call me Xiao Du."

"Little Du, you've accompanied your husband to the capital for the imperial examinations. It must have cost you a lot of money along the way."

"That's right, it really cost a lot. I was thinking of renting another room as a kitchen, but I had to give up when I asked about the price."

Living in such a large, crowded courtyard, who could possibly have much money left? Of course, the poorer the better.

Aunt Xu's eyes lit up as soon as she heard that. "Oh, I really feel sorry for you. Here's what I'll do: I'll introduce you to a job. As long as you work hard, I guarantee you'll get paid."

"What kind of job is this that pays so much?"

"When it comes to making clothes, I see that we all live in the same courtyard, and since we're both looking for someone, I'll naturally think of my own people."

Du Mingxian was quite good at needlework in her previous life, so she rarely did it. In this life... she has basically never done it. The only thing she did before was make two sets of clothes for An'an. As for her skills, they are really not good.

So when she heard this, her expression stiffened. "Auntie, I...I'm only so-so at needlework."

Even if you don't practice for two days, you'll get rusty, let alone someone who has never practiced in either of her two lifetimes.

There's no difference between not daring to think about it and not being able to.

Aunt Xu was skeptical, but looking at Du Mingxian's pretty face, she said, "If you know how, that's fine. They won't give you anything too difficult when you first start. It'll all be simple tasks. Just look at what they're doing, and you'll get used to it gradually. The better you do, the higher the price."

"Okay." Du Mingxian readily agreed; not agreeing now would make her seem out of place.

"That's good. Pack your things and we'll call you when we leave."

"Okay, thank you, ma'am."

Aunt Xu waved her hand, "Don't be so polite, we're all family. I'll go back and rest for a while."

Du Mingxian watched as Aunt Xu went into the house before turning around and going inside herself.