Zhоu Shаоjin саllеd Fan Qi in and instruсtеd him, "Frоm nоw оn, go to Flat Вridgе Street еvery twо оr thrее dауs to visit Nannу Yu. When you go, buy somе рeаrs or dаtеs аnd kеeр hеr соmрanу for a while. If аnуonе asks, just say I’m grаteful for mу late mоthеr’s kindnеss аnd wаnt tо рrovide Nаnnу Yu with a соmfоrtablе retirеmеnt!"
Fan Qi was рuzzlеd. "She’s аlready еnjoying a соmfоrtablе retirement аt thе Zhоu residеnсе. Whаt mоrе doеs Sеcоnd Young Мiss want? Arе yоu рlаnning to givе hеr аnоther house аnd hire maids and servants tо attend to hеr? She’s used tо working in thе оuter сourtyard. If she’s treated like an old madam, she might not even have anyone to talk to. Wouldn’t it be better to keep things as they are now, where everyone respectfully calls her ‘Nanny’ and she can work or rest as she pleases?"
Zhou Shaojin smiled. "Have you ever heard the story of ‘Buying Bones with a Thousand Pieces of Gold’?"
Fan Qi shook his head.
Suppressing a laugh, Zhou Shaojin said, "Go ask someone about it later! But make sure you carry out my instructions properly, or I’ll have to tell your mother." She then took out two strings of coins. "Use this to buy things. Let me know if you need more."
Fan Qi couldn’t make sense of what the Second Young Miss was saying.
He trudged out with his head hanging low.
On his way out, he ran into Shi Xiang.
Fan Qi’s eyes lit up, and he pulled Shi Xiang aside to a quiet spot. "Sister Shi Xiang, do you know the story of ‘Buying Bones with a Thousand Pieces of Gold’?"
"I do," Shi Xiang replied, unsure of Fan Qi’s intention. She recounted the story as she had read it.
Finally, Fan Qi understood.
So the Second Young Miss wanted to use Nanny Yu as bait to draw out all those who had served her late mother… But what would she do with them once they were found? Would she support and provide for them too?
Fan Qi was still confused.
Nevertheless, he obediently took a few pears and half a pound of dates to the Zhou ancestral home on Flat Bridge Street.
Cheng Jia stormed over to find Zhou Shaojin. Without permission, she chased all the servants out of Zhou Shaojin’s room.
"How shameless!" Once they were alone, Cheng Jia immediately showed her disgust. "Do you know what Pan Qing did? She went for a walk by Clear Stream Lake and, what a coincidence, ran into Cousin Xu. She even chatted and laughed with him, saying how much she admired his knowledge and character and wanted to ask him for advice on playing the qin. She asked if Cousin Xu could recommend her to Old Madam Guo, saying she wanted to learn calligraphy from her… You should have seen her—acting all delicate and coy, like this…" Cheng Jia made an affectionate expression. "It was utterly nauseating… I knew she was shameless, but I never imagined she’d stoop this low! Thankfully, Cousin Xu remained polite and gentle, smiling and speaking softly to her… It made me want to throw up my dinner from last night… She’s never acted so tenderly in front of us…"
Zhou Shaojin was taken aback. "How did you find out?"
Cheng Jia, who had been ranting nonstop, suddenly faltered. After stammering for a moment, she mumbled, "I… I had someone follow her…" As soon as the words left her mouth, she felt she had sounded too guilty and immediately straightened her back, putting on a bold front. "But it’s not my fault! Who told her to be two-faced, always pretending to be nice to me? I had to expose her true nature so my mother could see whether she’s really as gentle, kind, and humble as she claims… That way, my mother won’t keep using her as an example to lecture me every time she sees me…"
Cheng Jia acted like a child.
But Zhou Shaojin couldn’t bring herself to laugh at all.If it weren't for Cheng Jia, she might never have known how low Pan Qing was willing to stoop in order to marry Cheng Xu.
But these were Pan Qing's own affairs.
She shouldn't have used her sister Zhou Chujin to enhance her own reputation.
Zhou Shaojin recalled the servants' gossip.
Her sister was about to be married, yet for their own selfish motives, they still dragged her into this web of rumors.
Zhou Shaojin sneered inwardly and asked Cheng Jia, "Besides you, who else knows about this?"
Zhou Shaojin actually didn't lecture her like a stern old scholar. Cheng Jia felt overjoyed, rolled her eyes, and said coyly, "Do you think I'm stupid? Aren't you my closest friend? Besides you, I haven't told anyone." Then she added worriedly, "But what should we do about this? Should we just let her continue like this? What if someone else sees her? Wouldn't that be utterly humiliating! How unlucky I am to have Pan Qing as my cousin!"
Zhou Shaojin looked at the oblivious Cheng Jia and suddenly felt a wave of sorrow.
Clear Stream Lake was located in the backyard of Nine Prosperities Lane. The Cheng family garden was built along the lake, with the eldest branch residing on the west side and the second branch on the east side. If members of the third branch wanted to take a stroll there, they had to pass through the second branch's area...
If no one had sent word to Pan Qing, why would she go for a walk in such a distant place? And so coincidentally run into Cheng Xu?
Cheng Jia knew nothing.
Could she really have been an accomplice in her own humiliation?
Zhou Shaojin asked Cheng Jia solemnly, "That day at Yicui Pavilion, why didn't Cousin Zheng stop them from competing with the qin?"
"You still mention that," Cheng Jia said, completely unaware of Zhou Shaojin's mood. She said indignantly, "You ran off alone that day, leaving me there to make a fool of myself. I couldn't sit still or stand properly. When I got back, I scolded my elder brother. He said it was because Cousin Shi agreed to it, so he couldn't very well stop it—after all, Cousin Shi is the elder brother!"
Is that so?
If Cheng Yu had objected, would Cheng Shi have embarrassed his cousin over such a trivial matter?
So many things are not as they appear.
Just like Cheng Jia—she had always thought of her as a pampered daughter of heaven, with parents who doted on her, grandparents who indulged her, and an elder brother who looked out for her everywhere... Yet in reality, she was married off far away!
Zhou Shaojin looked at Cheng Jia as if seeing her past self.
Only Cheng Jia never realized the truth until her death, while she was fortunate enough to receive the Buddha's grace and be reborn!
She asked Cheng Jia, "Do you want Pan Qing to go back sooner?"
Cheng Jia stared blankly at Zhou Shaojin.
She had never seen Zhou Shaojin like this—her voice was low, her gaze intense, and her expression serious.
"What... what are you going to do?" Cheng Jia stammered, a little frightened. "At most, I really dislike her, but I can't actually humiliate her... Otherwise, my grandmother would surely be heartbroken..."
Zhou Shaojin's vision blurred instantly.
In the end, Cheng Jia still cared about her family's feelings...
"You make it sound like I'm going to commit murder or arson," she said with a laugh. "I just want to embarrass Pan Qing a little, so she won't be so smug in the future."
"Oh!" Cheng Jia patted her chest. "You scared me to death. If it's just embarrassing her, then that's fine!"
Zhou Shaojin said, "But you'll have to help me."
Cheng Jia quickly replied, "Tell me, tell me.""You must help me find out who suggested going to the Yicui Pavilion for the zither competition," Zhou Shaojin said.
"Why?" Cheng Jia was quite disappointed.
"I need to know the whole story before I can come up with a plan, right?" Zhou Shaojin wanted to understand Cheng Shi's stance in this matter.
However, whether it was Cheng Shi, Cheng Zheng, or the Third Branch, she currently had no way to approach them.
Cheng Jia readily agreed, blinking as she asked, "What good ideas do you have? Tell me!"
Zhou Shaojin hadn’t thought of anything yet. She only vaguely sensed that her grandmother’s birthday might present a good opportunity.
"Once you find out who suggested going to the Yicui Pavilion for the zither competition, we’ll discuss it in detail."
Cheng Jia was even more careless than Zhou Shaojin.
She probably thought that as long as Pan Qing was embarrassed when the time came, that would be enough. As for what needed to be done beforehand or how to handle the aftermath, none of that concerned her.
It was just like how Zhou Shaojin had set a fire in the Fifth Branch.
She chattered with Zhou Shaojin for a long time, repeatedly assuring her that she wouldn’t tell anyone about Pan Qing’s matter, before finally leaving Fragrant Garden Residence satisfied.
However, Zhou Chujin was worried that Zhou Shaojin and Cheng Jia might cause trouble outside, so she said, "On Grandmother’s birthday, many people will come to offer their congratulations. Although they may not compare to the elders of the First and Second Branches, they are all close relatives of the Fourth Branch who have watched us grow up. Don’t run around these next few days. Be careful not to get sunburned, or others might think you’re mischievous. After Grandmother’s birthday, you can go wherever you want to play."
Her sister was always worrying about her!
Zhou Shaojin felt that, given her sister’s behavior in her past life, it was impossible for her to be completely unaware of the Third Branch’s intentions.
She told her sister about Pan Qing’s matter.
As expected, Zhou Chujin wasn’t shocked. She simply remained silent for a long time before advising Zhou Shaojin, "Just keep this matter to yourself. In the future, avoid going to the Third Branch. I didn’t suffer any losses. But you were quite lucky that day—you were called away. If you had stayed there, Cheng Jia had Cousin Zheng to protect her, but I... I’m afraid I wouldn’t have been able to protect you."
Zhou Shaojin hugged her sister tightly.
She listened to her sister’s advice. Apart from going to Jing’an Study to read or to Cold Green Mountain House to copy scriptures, she either accompanied Old Madam Guan in conversation or stayed in her room doing needlework.
During this time, Cheng Jia had Cui Huan send her a message: "Madam Gu said that since Master Zhuo has earned his scholarly title, he’s no longer a child and should have his own friends and confidants. Besides setting up a banquet at the Hibiscus Pavilion, he also arranged one at the Listening to Rain Pavilion in the outer courtyard, inviting Master Shi, Master Zheng, and others. It was our Master Zheng who suggested that since everyone had come to congratulate Master Zhuo, why not replace wine with tea and gather friends through music, hosting a tea party. Master Shi, who has always enjoyed such refined activities, immediately agreed. Then, after discussing, they decided to hold it at the Yicui Pavilion..."
One casually stirred things up, while the other added fuel to the fire...
Zhou Shaojin thought of the subtle relationship between Cheng Shi and Cheng Zheng after she left the Cheng family.
If Cheng Shi didn’t know Cheng Zheng’s intentions or the Third Branch’s plans... she’d rather jump into Mochou Lake.
Perhaps, in her past life, they had worked together like this to push her into the abyss!
Zhou Shaojin paced back and forth in her room.
Fan Qi came to tell her, "Second Miss, there’s an old beggar who says he once drove a carriage for Old Master Zhuang... He insists on seeing you... From what he said, it sounded quite convincing..." He cautiously looked at Zhou Shaojin. "What do you think? Will you see him or not?"So soon, there's news already!
Zhou Shaojin hurriedly said, "Meet him, of course I'll meet him! Where is that person now?"
Fan Qi replied, "I was afraid that person might be a scoundrel, so I didn't dare bring him directly to our door. I handed him over to Manager Ma. Manager Ma has settled him in a small inn on Flat Bridge Street, providing him with good food and drink..."
This is truly good news.
A long-lost smile appeared on Zhou Shaojin's face.
※
Sisters, I have a medical check-up tomorrow morning, so the extra update is tentatively scheduled for around 3 p.m. I'll adjust as soon as possible.
o(n_n)o~
※ (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote to recommend it or cast a monthly vote. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
!!
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