The Anyang Marquis Mansion was not small, with the main courtyard and the second courtyard located on opposite sides.
Apart from Chu Nanli going to diagnose Chu Nanying, she rarely crossed paths with the "Tian family" whose soul had been swapped with hers.
However, as the days grew colder, Chu Shuo had already instructed his servants to prepare winter clothes for the family, and he even sent so exquisite soup pots to Nanli.
When Chu Shuo brought them over, he was hoping for praise from his younger sister.
Little did he expect that there were already many styles of winter clothes in the room, with several fox fur cloaks among them.
The red one, in particular, stood out.
It was sothing money couldn’t buy; one had to personally go hunting for it.
Needless to say, Chu Shuo said, "It must be the Ninth Prince who sent them, right?"
Ever since his sixth sister was engaged, he felt completely useless!
"The palace also sent so," Nanli said.
"Each palace sent quite a lot, and my courtyard’s storeroom is almost full." She was quite troubled by this.
Chu Shuo sighed, "Who asked you to be favored by the Emperor and beco the future daughter-in-law of the Ninth Prince? It’s only natural for the palace concubines to send gifts. This is just the first year, you’ll have to get used to it. There will be plenty more in the future."
He was both happy and worried.
It was a good thing that his sixth sister was being valued and liked, but as soon as soone sent gifts, he was pushed to the background.
In that case, how could his sixth sister use the things he carefully selected for her?
Nanli’s face fell upon hearing this.
She didn’t like being confined to the backyard and dealing with these social interactions.
It was the two maidservants who understood her well and said, "Miss, rest assured, we will register everything and store them properly in the storeroom."
Nanli almost burst into tears of gratitude upon hearing this.
After drinking a cup of tea, Chu Shuo was about to leave when he learned that Nanli was going to Qiutang Pavilion to deliver sothing.
Nanli quickly joined him.
She had refined a new elixir and was planning to give it to Chu Nanying.
Upon learning that Nanli had finally arrived, Zhou Min sat in front of the dressing table and adjusted her hairpin, unable to help but smile.
"You’ve finally co." The maidservants looked at her with curiosity.
After all, Sixth Miss had just been here not long ago.
Zhou Min’s smile was gentle, reminiscent of Tian.
"Quick, go prepare so tea."
In the side room, after Nanli finished examining Chu Nanying’s pulse, she reminded her, "You’re still weak, so you mustn’t expose yourself to cold winds."
Chu Nanying nodded earnestly. Her small face was sowhat pale, and she blinked her eyes. "Sister, can I join you all for a spring outing and horse racing next year?"
"You can, as long as you take good care of yourself," Nanli said, patting her head. Chu Nanying’s expression brightened, and she nodded eagerly.
At this mont, Zhou Min entered the room.
Her face was filled with tender smiles.
"Thank you, Sixth Sister. With your elixir, Yinger will surely recover soon." Nanli stood up and, together with Chu Shuo, paid their respects.
"Second Aunt." Zhou Min didn’t stop them and accepted their greetings before inviting them to the flower hall outside to have tea.
The tea was of good quality, although slightly different from before.
Nanli could tell with just one sip and said, "Second Aunt, this tea seems a bit different from the previous one."
"Is that so?" Zhou Min was sowhat surprised.
"We finished the Dahongpao tea, so soone bought a new batch."
"If Qiutang Pavilion’s tea is finished, Second Aunt can go to the central storeroom to get so. The mansion has only the finest tea leaves," Chu Shuo said.
"Alright, I’ll rember that for next ti," Zhou Min replied with a smile.
They chatted for a while before leaving Qiutang Pavilion.
On the road, Chu Shuo muttered, "Second Aunt has indeed changed. Previously, when we paid our respects to her, she would rely incline her body slightly. Now, she receives the greetings with such grandeur and flourish. She has been elevated to the position of the official wife, our elder, so it is not surprising."
Nanli found sothing even more peculiar.
This second uncle of hers held no official position and had limited wealth.
Therefore, all the expenses for food and drink in the courtyard were provided from within, without any purchases from outside.
Tian assisted the second uncle in managing the household affairs, showcasing this traditional virtue to the fullest.
Why then did they purchase such an expensive robe from outside this ti?
Was it because the provisions in the storage were insufficient, or was it because Tian, now the official wife, wanted to change her traditional virtue?
"Indeed," Chu Shuo agreed, "but the second uncle is still deeply devoted to Second Aunt. It would be wonderful if she could bear him a son and a daughter."
He loved giving gifts to his younger siblings the most.
Nanli didn’t say much because she observed the expression on her second uncle’s face, and she knew he only had one daughter, the seventh sister.
In the Qiutang Hall, the tea had already cooled, yet Zhou Min still took a sip, murmuring, "I find it identical, yet she can discern the difference. Her taste buds are truly remarkable."
It seed that she had to avoid Chu Nanli with her thods.
Although it was a bit regrettable, Chu Nanli’s deep love for her family, even if it caused her great pain, was comndable.
Zhou Min gently placed the teacup on the small table.
Due to the incomplete synchronization of her soul and body, her smile appeared twitchy and eerie.
----
On a cold winter night, the wind was biting.
However, inside the house, there were several incense burners, providing warmth akin to spring.
Nanli held the Tianxing brush in her hand, deep in thought.
Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck her, and she swiftly drew two new talismans.
Zhi Mi leaned over to take a look and couldn’t help but exclaim, "Senior Sister, are these the new poison-detecting talismans you created?"
"No need for unnecessary words, let’s test them," Nanli urged.
Zhi Mi quickly brought two cups of tea.
One cup was poisoned, the other was not.
Nanli activated the two talismans, and in a flash of light, one of the cups of tea exploded with a loud bang.
Fragnts and tea splattered all over the floor.
"How is it?" Nanli asked expectantly.
Zhi Mi grimaced and said, "It is indeed poisoned, but can you modify it? The explosion is too dangerous and could easily harm soone."
Just then, Yuanbao and Yuanchun, two maidservants, startled by the commotion, rushed in and anxiously asked what had happened.
They both stared at Zhi Mi, convinced that he had offended their young miss.
"It’s nothing, I was just testing the talismans," Nanli waved her hand dismissively.
"Please clean up the ss."
Only then did the two maidservants breathe a sigh of relief and quickly tidied up the area.
It was getting late, and they urged Nanli to rest.
Zhi Mi also couldn’t stay any longer and prepared to leave the inner courtyard.
However, as soon as he stepped out, a person hurriedly entered the courtyard and exclaid, "Miss Chu, please help! Miss Chu, please help!"
By the light of the lanterns in the corridor, Zhi Mi saw that the person was dressed as a eunuch, with embroidered patterns of birds and animals on his attire, indicating his high rank.
Nanli heard the cry for help and ca out, sowhat surprised.
"Master Wang?" It was the eunuch chief steward by Emperor Muwu’s side.
The eunuch chief steward appeared anxious and said, "The unborn child of Lady of Bright Deportnt is in danger. Please co to the palace imdiately to see her."
"Shouldn’t you find the imperial physician? Why co to ?" Nanli was even more puzzled.
The eunuch chief steward explained, "They have all been called, but they cannot find the cause. Later, Shen, the imperial physician, gave her a pill to ward off evil spirits. After taking it, Lady of Bright Deportnt’s pain subsided slightly. That’s why the Emperor urgently sent to invite you."
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