Upon hearing this, Yun Wenfang, who was on his way out, paused his steps slightly, then revealed a smile: "Understood, Grandmother."
After leaving Old Madam Yun's room, Yun Wenfang thought for a moment and decided to return to his own courtyard.
As soon as he stepped through the courtyard gate, he couldn't help but halt in his tracks.
The pair of colorful glazed fishbowls that had originally been placed in the courtyard were gone, replaced instead by many flowers and plants. As soon as he entered the courtyard, he could smell an indescribable floral fragrance.
Yun Wenfang's former head maid, Yuzhu, had been waiting in the courtyard early on. Seeing him return, she hurried over, her eyes red as she said, "Young Master, you're back?"
Seeing his maid, Yun Wenfang gave a lazy smile. As he walked toward the main room, he casually asked, "Where are those two fishbowls?"
Yuzhu replied, "The two pairs of goldfish you originally raised died. The young mistress doesn't care for keeping fish, so she simply had someone remove the empty fishbowls."
Hearing this, Yun Wenfang raised an eyebrow.
Miss Meng had returned one step ahead of Yun Wenfang. Due to Yun Wenfang's attitude, Miss Meng had hidden herself in the eastern side room upon returning and cried.
When her maid reported that the Second Young Master had returned, Miss Meng hesitated for a moment but remained seated on the southern kang, wiping away tears, and did not go out to greet him. Several of her head maids were by her side, trying to comfort and console her.
As soon as Yun Wenfang entered, he noticed that the room he had lived in for over a decade now looked somewhat unfamiliar. Miss Meng had replaced several pieces of furniture in his room, all of them intricately patterned and ornate huanghuali wood pieces. The antiques displayed on the curio shelf also looked unfamiliar—likely part of Miss Meng's dowry.
"Young Master, the young mistress is over there," Yuzhu whispered, giving Yun Wenfang a meaningful look.
Yun Wenfang curled his lips slightly. Of course, he knew Miss Meng was in the inner room—he could already hear her crying.
One of the maids deliberately raised her voice and said, "Miss, please don't cry anymore. Be careful not to harm your health, or the master and mistress will worry. Didn't the mistress say that if the Yun Family cannot accept you, there will always be the Meng Family to rely on? And look, your husband has returned! This is a joyous occasion! Your husband seems like someone who can distinguish right from wrong—he will surely understand the hardships you've endured these days..."
Yun Wenfang stood in place and listened for a while, then walked over and lifted the curtain to the eastern side room.
Miss Meng, whose eyes were swollen from crying, and the four maids surrounding her all looked over.
After her crying spell, Miss Meng felt somewhat embarrassed when she saw Yun Wenfang enter. In the end, she stood up, sniffled, and curtsied.
Yun Wenfang's voice was somewhat lazy: "Why are you crying? Who has angered your young mistress?"
Upon hearing this, the previously eloquent maid turned pale with anger and opened her mouth to say something, but Miss Meng gently tugged at her sleeve.
Only then did Yun Wenfang turn his gaze to Miss Meng and said with a smile, "I have some words to say to your mistress. All of you may leave now."
The maids who had accompanied Miss Meng as part of her dowry all looked at her. Miss Meng nodded, and only then did they leave.
Yun Wenfang did not sit on the kang with Miss Meng. Instead, he pulled over a stool from a distance, sitting neither too close nor too far from her.
"Is there anything you wish to say to me?" Yun Wenfang asked, looking at Miss Meng with a smile.
This was the first time Miss Meng had sat so close to Yun Wenfang and spoken with him alone. She still harbored some affection in her heart, and her words stumbled slightly due to nervousness.
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