Chapter 137: Unexpected (Middle)

  As soon as they sat down, the curtain of the western room was lifted up.

  The five madams supported the old lady and walked in front.

  She smiled like a flower, but Madame's expression was somewhat stern.

  The Xu brothers followed behind. Xu Lingyi's face was ashen, and Fifth Master Xu Lingkuan carefully fell two steps behind his brother, with a dejected look on his face.

  The three madams immediately went forward to greet her.

  "Daughter," she supported Madame Wang's other arm, then smiled and called out to the Fifth Lady, "Fifth Sister-in-law."

  The fifth madam smiled calmly and greeted the third madam: "Third sister, why are you just arriving now? We've all been waiting for half a day!"

  The three madams laughed and said, "You've arrived early. I heard you were discussing something, so I'll sit with my fourth brother and sister for a while." There was a hint of schadenfreude in her demeanor, like watching a capsized boat from the Yellow Crane Tower.

  The fifth lady's eyes flashed with disdain, and she smiled as she supported the old lady towards the eastern wing.

  Eleventh Sister and Third Master came forward to pay their respects to Old Madam, the brothers and sisters-in-law exchanged greetings, took their seats in order of seniority, and the maids began serving dishes.

  Everyone was quietly eating, with only the soft clinking of dishes at the table.

  After dinner, everyone followed the old lady to the eastern wing as usual.

  The old lady suddenly stopped in her tracks in the hall.

  "It's getting late, everyone should scatter!" She looked at the five madams, "Especially Danyang, living in the backyard, the road is not easy to walk."

  "Don't worry, Mother, I have Fifth Master to support me!" The fifth madam smiled and looked at Fifth Master.

  Wu Ye immediately stepped forward and supported Wu Fu Ren: "Mother, let's go back first." With an expression that couldn't wait to leave quickly.

  The old lady's eyes sank, her mouth slightly opened, wanting to say something, but the fifth lady had already said: "Mother, then we'll go back first!" Protecting the fifth master.

  "Go back!" The old lady's voice was tinged with a few hints of fatigue.

  Wu Ye's eyes revealed a few worries as he listened, but Wu Furen had already walked out.

  He supported his wife and turned back several times before finally leaving with Madame Wu.

  The two of them walked away, and the atmosphere suddenly became much lighter.

  Xu Siqin smiled and pulled Xu Sizong to bid farewell. The old lady carefully instructed them, and the third lady also came forward to remind them "to be careful all the way", then took the cloak from the maid and personally tied it for Xu Siqin. Xu Sizong looked at him with a straight face, making Xu Siqin feel embarrassed. The third master came out to help his son: "Okay, okay. He's already so big. He knows how to take care of himself!" And Xu Sijian was pulling his younger brother aside, chattering about something, and Zhen sister was laughing at the scene. The atmosphere was very lively.

  Eleventh Sister saw Xu Lingyi standing far away, his expression cold and stern. She thought that since the "Xiaolan" incident, he hadn't had a chance to be alone with Madame yet. She quietly walked over: "Lord Hou, I'll head back first later. Lord Hou, keep Madam company and chat with her for a bit?"

  Her proposal was exactly what Xu Lingyi wanted to hear, and he nodded in agreement: "Then be careful on the road!"

  "Master Hou can rest assured." Eleventh Young Mistress said with a smile, "I understand."

  After seeing off Xu Siqin and Xu Sijue, San Ye and San Furen also left with Xu Sijian.

  Fourth Brother liked Xu Shao very much and saw him off all the way to the gate, where he was led away by Jing'ge.

  Only Tai Fu Ren, Xu Lingyi and Eleventh Lady were left in the house.

  The old lady's face fell and she went into her inner chamber without a word.

  The eleventh girl gave Xu Lingyi a wink and the two followed side by side.

  The old lady had been helped onto the kang by Du's mother.

  The eleventh girl smiled and came forward to help the old lady put on her usual sable fur cloak, saying softly: "I still want to take a good look at those invitations you gave me. I'll go back first."

  Madam Tai was slightly stunned and guessed that there were also words to be said to Xu Lingyi, but she didn't keep the eleventh girl, thinking for a moment, let Du's mother send her back.

  The eleventh girl hastily declined: "It's too late, and I have maidservants by my side, Mother doesn't need to worry."

  The old lady looked tired and said: "Good child, put my mind at ease!"

  Xu Lingyi also said: "Let Du's mother take you!"

  At this point, it would be somewhat hypocritical for Shiyi Niang to say anything else. She smiled and thanked Tai Fu Ren before leaving the door with Du Mama's accompaniment.

  The snow outside has stopped, but the sky is still overcast with dark clouds, and the biting cold wind blows over, sending snowflakes flying and silver dust dancing.

  "Be careful, Fourth Mistress!" Du's mother personally helped Eleventh Lady up.

  Eleventh girl, where is it good for her to support? With a flick of her wrist, she took Du's mother's hand: "Mom, be careful too."

  Du's mother looked at the hands clasped together and smiled slightly, sending Eleven back to the courtyard.

  "Come in and have a cup of tea before you go!" said Eleventh Sister, "The weather is terribly cold."

  "Madam Tai's side can't be short of people." Du's mother said with a hint of refusal, "I'll come to bother Fourth Madam another day."

  Eleventh girl smiled and let Amber send Du's mother back.

  Figures flitted past the gate.

  Under the eaves of the house, the red lanterns illuminated the unique pure white luster of the silk.

  "Who's there lurking around?" she shouted loudly.

  Immediately, maidservants came forward to pull people away.

  A young man of medium build, wearing a dark-colored embroidered cloak with a floral pattern, blew it open and the silk lining inside was lifted up.

  "What are you doing here?" Eleventh Lady looked at the maid with a surprised expression, then suddenly had an enlightened look on her face. "You're waiting for Master Hou, aren't you? Go back and tell Aunt Qiao that Master Hou has something to attend to and will be late coming back. Make sure someone is arranged to keep watch tonight." She also scolded her, "In the future, if there's anything, just tell Xue directly. Don't do such sneaky things again, you're not some young lady from a poor family."

  Her face turned bright red as she nodded and replied in a low voice, "Yes."

  Eleventh girl originally intended to pretend to be taught by Du's mother, but she didn't want to overdo it either. She smiled and joked: "Alright, you can go back now. Don't let Aunt Qiao wait anxiously. It's cold outside, if you catch a chill, I'll have to send a little maid to take care of you."

  Embarrassed and humiliated, she couldn't lift her head up, only knowing to murmur in agreement, then turned around and left as if pardoned.

  Mrs. Du nodded at the side, looking at a place that was almost invisible.

  Eleventh girl sent two steps to Du's mother: "Mother be careful on the road."

  Du's mother exchanged a few pleasantries with her and then, supported by Amber, returned to Madame Du.

  The eleventh girl let out a sigh of relief and quickly walked into the house.

  The room was filled with the fragrance of osmanthus and the warmth from the burning dragon stove.

  The eleventh girl took a deep breath and felt all her pores relax.

  Lu Yun and Shuang Yu hurried forward to help her take off her cloak, heated water for her to wash her face and hands, and served her as she combed and washed.

  When the eleventh girl finished collecting and came out to the warm pavilion behind the bed, Amber had already sent Du's mother back and was waiting for her in the warm pavilion.

  "What's going on? Why did the embroidered sedan chair run to the gate?" Eleventh Lady scattered her hair, leaning on a yellow satin pillow, with a large red brocade quilt covering her body, looking at the invitation card given by Madame Tai in her hand, and asked Huipo faintly, "Don't tell me you don't know what's going on?"

  Amber smiled complacently, "She's been sneaking around all day asking if Master Hou is back... didn't expect it was Madam Du accompanying you instead. If it were Master Hou..." Her tone carried a hint of regret.

  With a "slap", Eleventh Sister's palm landed on the kang table beside her.

  "So you ordered the night watchman's mother to let her peek at the gate!"

  Her eyes were as sharp as a knife's edge, her expression as cold as frost.

  Amber's heart skipped a beat and she hastily explained: "I, I..."

  "You're still not convinced!" Eleventh Sister's face was cold and stern as she stared at her, abruptly interrupting her words with a sentence that cut to the heart of the matter.

  "No, no......" Such a thunderous power, Amber had never seen it before. She was very flustered in her heart and felt that she had done nothing wrong, with a hint of grievance and unwillingness. "Madam..."

  The eleventh girl didn't give her a chance to speak.

  "Do you know why the eldest lady wants to favor only the second lady? Do you know why the third lady, knowing she's just temporarily in charge of the household, still wants to take advantage of the situation? Do you know what happened in all five houses? Do you know how the lord views his three aunts? Do you know why among so many wealthy families, only the Wen family could marry their eldest daughter into the Xu family?" She fired off question after question, each one impossible to answer with just a few words. Xiangyun felt a chill run down her spine, her mind in complete disarray. And then the eleventh lady suddenly raised her voice even higher, "Do you know?"

  She was stunned by this series of changes, dazed and confused, staring blankly at Shiyi Niang, instinctively shaking her head: "I don't know!"

  "I don't know!" The eleventh girl's voice was filled with thick fatigue and despair. "I don't know, you can be my home, be my master!"

  Exhaustion and despair pierced through Amber's heart like a needle. Eleventh Sister, who had always been full of praise for her, occasionally disagreed with Wintergreen, but even though she didn't say anything, the maids in the house would silently follow her lead... Thinking about this, Amber couldn't help but shiver. No, no, no... She was different from Wintergreen. Wintergreen had served Eleventh Sister since she returned from Fujian, and she herself was a reward from the first wife!

  She knelt down straight away: "Madam, I dare not again." Her tone was filled with despair and pleading.

  The road ahead is bumpy, and the future is still unknown. Relying solely on oneself is impossible to go that far. A team of one's own is necessary. The people from the Luo family or Tao Mama are more inclined towards Nian Ge. People like Wang Pozi have limited abilities. As for the Xu family members, those with real abilities were long ago taken in by various branches, leaving behind mostly mediocre ones. The only ones she can rely on are the few maids by her side. Unfortunately, Dong Qing is not good at these things, Bin Ju is not suitable for these things, Zhu Xiang is too young, and there's only Hupo, who is the most satisfactory to her. However, due to the relationship with the first wife, she needs to think of a way to win her over. To be honest, regarding the matter of Xiu Yu spying on her, she can completely ignore it like Qin Niang did when Xu Lingyi came - they are not on the same level, and as long as they don't cross the line, she's happy to turn a blind eye and let the family atmosphere be more lively, making everyone's days better. But Hupo didn't even greet her before taking the initiative to bring Xiu Yu in front of her for her to deal with, which is where things went wrong... It just gave her an opportunity to make trouble.

  She must be taught a lesson, and it's impossible without being severe!

  Eleventh girl looked at the amber beads of sweat on her forehead and thought it was about right.

  She let out a long sigh and stretched out her hand: "Come, sit down beside me."

  Amber looked at those bare hands and stood up involuntarily.