A good omen for a good person

  Guessing the holy intention, that is the prelude to death, and the old master doesn't have the guts. The madam naturally believes that this is not something someone would say casually. If this matter is true, it will not only benefit her husband but also increase the power of her father's position in the future, making it a double gain, a great joy. Thinking back to the generous gifts from her daughter's family this year, the madam's smile deepens, and her waist becomes even straighter. The grievances she received from the old lady and the aunt during this time also disappear instantly. After all, a woman's natal family is her reliance. Even if the mother-in-law doesn't like it, relying on the power of her natal family, her husband will still cherish and protect her, just like the old master does. Even though the old lady is unwilling, he still stays at the madam's place for several days in a row, even forgetting about his beloved Concubine Cao.

  Madam, with the arrival of New Year's Eve, became more radiant and refreshed. Even if she had to deal with the heavy chores of the past year, or even if she was treated coldly by Old Lady when paying her respects, Madam didn't take it to heart at all. She could even smile three parts at Concubine Han, appearing more magnanimous than before.

  During the New Year's period, the three young masters from the front yard were less restricted and often chatted with the old lady in her courtyard. The third young master, Jin Fenghua, also frequently appeared in the backyard due to his temporary favor with Madame Han, which benefited the many lovely maidservants. Wherever he went, there would be maidservants hiding in corners, stealing glances at him with spring-like faces. Even Douniao, who was usually steady and calm in the old lady's courtyard, thought of ways to frequently leave the courtyard, hoping to have a chance encounter with the third young master.

  All this has nothing to do with Xian Yi, and she is happy to watch the excitement on the side. However, she never thought that such a lively and festive New Year's Eve would be her last one in the Jin Mansion, and her life was slowly changing as the Lunar New Year passed.

  The New Year has just passed, and after the big madam returned home, her face is full of spirit that can't be hidden. Without mentioning that the Cao family sent someone to actively negotiate the marriage of the young master, even the second young master's marriage was inquired about. Moreover, according to the news from the girl's family, Yan sister's entry into the palace has made progress, and as long as there are no big mistakes during the selection process, the opportunity to stay in the palace is not 100%, but at least 99%. In this way, if the Chen family can produce a favored concubine, then this Chen family girl will be respected by others in the future, regardless of her husband's status.

  But heaven never lets people live in peace, the big madam had just been happy for a few days when news came from the eldest daughter's place that she had given birth prematurely to a boy. Xian Yi carefully calculated the dates and found that the child was born after only 7 months, in such a medically backward ancient times, it can be imagined how weak the child's body would be, and whether he could even survive to grow up is also a worrying thing. The big madam's temper was originally fiery, as soon as she heard that her daughter had given birth prematurely, she felt that there must be some ulterior motive, and without listening to the old master's advice, she actually went to the Right Chancellor's mansion in a huff during the New Year's festival, and news gradually came out from the front that the eldest son-in-law seemed gentle but unexpectedly had a mistress outside, originally hiding it tightly, who would have thought that the mistress was pregnant, and with a big belly rushed to the Right Chancellor's mansion, making the eldest daughter so angry that she fainted, and also affecting the child in her womb.

  This time, the madam left Chen Ayi to watch the house and took two big girls and Zeng Ayi to Langzhongfu. Originally, Xianyi thought that this matter had nothing to do with herself, but she didn't expect that after the madam left, Chen Ayi would start arranging for Xianyi to meet her future in-laws, even inviting the other party's mother to their home. It is said that the other party is a small servant from the front yard, and after the 15th, he will be sent to the capital to work as the second manager of a shop. The boy's parents are also Chen family's attached servants, and Chen Ayi had a good relationship with them before. Moreover, the boy's father passed away two years ago, and according to the servant's calculation, the mourning period has just ended at the end of the year, and his age is suitable for Xianyi. Furthermore, the boy's mother is weak-willed, and with Xianyi's personality in the past, she can control the whole family, which is considered a good place to settle down.

  That boy had been sized up by Xian Yi from afar, and he didn't look bad, but wasn't particularly handsome either. From head to toe, he was relatively clean and refreshing, which made Xian Yi quite satisfied. Moreover, the boy was clever and ambitious, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to become a second-in-command at such a young age. It seemed that as long as they managed well in the future, their days ahead wouldn't be bad either. Furthermore, the boy's mother was on good terms with Chen Nian Nian, and when they were discussing Xian Yi's marriage, she had mentioned that after the children got married, the two widows could live together, which wasn't a bad idea at all.

  Apart from other things, just talking about this last point, Xianyi is very willing to do so. For her, love and all that are not important. After living together for a while, there will always be some feelings. As long as they can spend their future days harmoniously and beautifully, it's better than true love.

  The fairy dress seemed to have been put away, and Chen Ayi also seemed to have put down some worries. Although the servants did not explicitly tell their master that they could not get engaged, it was still effective in words, so they just waited for the day when Madame's mood improved, and Chen Ayi would mention it again. Xianyi estimated that with Chen Ayi's influence on Madame, she would probably have to marry before she turned eighteen.

  Having a marriage arrangement or not made no difference to Xianyi, but people around her began to look at her with ambiguous eyes, especially Xiuzhu. After Xianyi helped her once and knew that Xianyi was unwilling to be a concubine, she became more intimate with Xianyi after settling on a small servant, and often liked to joke about this topic to tease Xianyi. Xianyi didn't care, at most pretending to be shy, but life went on as usual.

  It was the maids in the courtyard who, except for the young Xue Shuang, were envious: Yun Shuang was admiring, Lu Shuang was indifferent, and Yu Shuang was not particularly interested, but when she met Xianyi, she became even more silent.

  The lady of the house had been away at Lang Zhongfu's place for three days and hadn't returned. Fortunately, Chen Ayi was holding down the fort in the mansion, and the old master was getting increasingly busy with his promotion to the Ministry of Justice. However, since the mistress wasn't around, the dinner party that had been planned to invite colleagues and friends naturally got postponed as well.

  Without the lady's presence, the old master began to return to the arms of the concubines. The eldest granddaughter from Gu Taotai's family initially pretended to be gentle but gradually revealed her true nature. Every day, she would find excuses to get close to the two young masters, while showing disdain for Han Ayi and the third young master, who were favored by their grandmother.

  Even though she often saw Jin Fenghua and became infatuated, this person's degree of sycophancy was such that even Xiu Zhu couldn't compare.

  Fortunately, the young lady didn't dare to go to the front yard again. Besides, Madame understood things clearly, and even if she wanted Meng Hui Lan to marry into a Beijing family, she would never imagine her own granddaughter marrying the son of the madam. Originally, she actually preferred Jin Fenghua, after all, as Jin Fenghua's concubine, he could find a better wife than Meng Hui Lan in the future, and it was possible that she might not be as good as Meng Hui Lan. However, Madame had such calculations, but her eldest granddaughter didn't cooperate, so she could only use words to suppress her, without letting her truly lose face.

  Xiu Zhu saw this and wasn't willing to show weakness either. Moreover, she had the advantage of being a slave girl and had experienced the last time being discovered by Xian Yi, so even if she was more enthusiastic in her attitude, she didn't overstep the rules. On the contrary, it made the young master pay more attention to her, making her happy all day long.

  Unfortunately, the carefree days didn't last long. The madam settled her family matters and hastily returned to the main house with Da Niang and Ya Niang. Her mood was already off due to her daughter's affairs, but no one expected that as soon as she arrived back at the main house and before she even had a chance to drink some hot tea, someone came to report that Cao Niang had good news.

  "They're all fox spirits!" The madam threw her cup on the spot, and Chen Ayi originally wanted to persuade her, but saw Zeng Ayi take a few steps forward, as if blocking Chen Ayi, and leaned in to persuade the madam for a few sentences. To everyone's surprise, the madam didn't get angry and didn't drive Zeng Ayi out either.

  Xian Yi looked at her mother on the side, Chen Niangniang shook her head towards her, there must be some reason for this, but it can't be understood immediately.

  The old master received the news and returned early to comfort Madame, after learning that Madame had accidentally dropped a bowl of medicine which caused the concubine's miscarriage, and then called someone from outside to take away the concubine on the spot. His eyebrows furrowed slightly, but he didn't say anything else, only mentioning his own promotion and the emperor's recent decision to abolish the Ministry of Rites. In the end, Xian Yi was chased out without hearing clearly, but still managed to catch a few words, seemingly related to Eunuch Cui in the palace, probably making him a favorite of the emperor.

  At night, Xian Yi wasn't on duty as a maid, and her mother hadn't returned. She lay alone in her bed, thinking about the attitude of the main wife towards Zeng Yiniang that day. It wasn't that she was worried that Zeng Yiniang would replace her mother's position, but she understood that if the main wife had brought back her own mother, then the matter of the mistress wouldn't have been handled like this. At least they would have waited until the mistress gave birth to the child before taking action. However, things had already turned out this way, and even if there was a rift between Dagu's husband's family and Dagu as well as the Jin Manor, it wasn't something that Xian Yi could change.

  Tossing and turning, Xian Yi initially thought it was just a mouse in the house, but soon realized that there were faint sounds coming from above her head. She quickly put on her outer clothes, feeling increasingly uneasy. Wrapping herself in the quilt, she lay in bed thinking of a plan, using a handkerchief to cover her mouth and nose as a precaution. Just when Xian Yi thought she was being paranoid, the window suddenly opened, and someone jumped in, making no effort to conceal their presence. Instead, they landed heavily on the ground, letting out a muffled grunt. Then, to Xian Yi's astonishment, the person pinched their throat and exclaimed, "You actually know martial arts?"

  Xian Yi's voice trembled, and this sound was surprisingly similar to the one she heard that day at Tian Feng Guan.

  "I spare your life, go back and tell your master that since he's so interested in me, he should come find me himself."

  Xian Yi suddenly felt a blackness in front of her eyes, and that voice was all too familiar, it was actually Jin Fenghua, the third young master of the Jin family.