Chapter 19 Insidious Plan
"It's so hot today. It's boring for us to sit here. Madam was kind enough to give us half a day off. Why don't we go for a walk?" Wanxiang said to Ruchun and Shuiqin who were chatting.
Shuiqin has always been following Ruchun. Wanxiang rarely pays attention to her on weekdays, let alone invite her like this. Hearing this, Shuiqin was very happy. She ran to Wanxiang eagerly and walked forward holding Wanxiang's arm.
The three of them walked around the flowerbed not far from the pond. When they came to a big willow tree, Wanxiang stopped and said, "Let's take a break. It's cool under this tree."
"Yes, it's so hot, I wish I could soak in that water every day." Shuiqin pulled the willow branches and said, "Let me tell you, Su Qing is really weird. It's so hot, but she wants to soak her feet in boiling water every night. She's a complete lunatic, haha..."
"Why are you talking about her again? She's really annoying. Can I just have some peace and quiet for a while?" Ruchun said unhappily.
Ever since Su Qing showed off her skills at the flower banquet, her popularity has skyrocketed. Not only has Dongmei, who was beside the lady, become closer to her, but even Mother Liu looks up to her. She has seen Mother Liu prepare delicious food for Su Qing several times.
Mother Yu clearly warned the two of them not to set their sights on Su Qing anymore. The aunt said the same thing. Anyway, she would definitely go to the East Palace this time, and then she could ask Mother Yu to bring her sister in. There was no point in competing with Su Qing.
Although Ruchun understood the truth, she still couldn't swallow it. Why should so many people like her when she was helpless? It didn't make sense.
Wanxiang listened to the conversation between the two people and thought about the day after Young Master Lang got the drug rash. They were all called to turn over all the flowers and plants that Young Master Lang had touched. In the end, they didn't find the "culprit", but they managed to pull out all the fragrant grass in the garden.
Wanxiang remembered that when she was squatting there pulling weeds, the eldest young master came in. He came to take the eldest young mistress and Young Master Lang back to the East Mansion. Seeing them squatting in the sun, he asked Qingping to ask the kitchen to boil some mung bean water for them to drink.
After hearing this, she bravely stood up and bowed to the young master to express her gratitude. She didn't dare to look up, but she could feel the young master's eyes looking her up and down.
When Qingping was about to go to the big kitchen, she hardened her heart, raised her head abruptly, and said in a voice so gentle that water could drip out of it that she could go by herself, and there was no need to trouble Sister Qingping to make a trip.
Her words successfully attracted Meng Shao's attention. Meng Shao stepped onto the stairs and turned around. Wan Xiang raised her head, leaned sideways and lowered her head slightly, raising her big almond eyes with shyness and flattery, and a hint of admiration. After she saw the surprise in Meng Shao's eyes, she lowered her head in satisfaction and turned her body to walk out of the yard slowly. The sight of her back made her body hot and her heart beat wildly.
Wanxiang pulled back her thoughts, thought for a moment and said, "It's so hot, it's better to be served in the master's yard, with ice cubes and ice bowls, it's really delicious."
"That's right, Shuiqin, let me tell you, the ice bowl in the fourth young lady's yard has seven or eight kinds of fruits, and it's topped with a layer of milk, which is especially delicious."
"Really?" Shuqin smacked her lips and said, "It would be nice if I could have it once."
"It's a pity that you can't go to the Fourth Miss's yard, and we can't ask for it for you to eat. That thing will not taste good if it melts. It has to be cold and eaten right away to be comfortable," Wanxiang sighed.
"How could I be so lucky that my two sisters could enter the Fourth Miss's courtyard? Apart from anything else, I would be content if the Fourth Miss could just look me in the eye and talk to me," Shuiqin said with her head down.
"You can't get in, could it be that the Fourth Miss hasn't come out yet? Our Fourth Miss is the most lively and active. Today I heard people in the yard say that Young Master Lang left, and she was bored in the yard alone, so she was thinking about coming here to play again these days." Wanxiang said softly.
Ruchun continued, "That's right. Our fourth young lady likes freedom the most. It may be difficult for us to even see other young ladies, but it's not the case with the fourth young lady. I see that she likes small animals in the wild the most."
"That's right. Look at the birds under her porch and the pheasants and rabbits in the backyard. They were all caught from the mountains." Wanxiang continued.
"If you ask me, if you want the Fourth Miss to look at you straight in the eye, just stay here and you will see her eventually, haha." Ruchun saw Shuiqin looking at her with envy, and followed Wanxiang's words.
But she really didn't expect that she just wanted to tease this innocent girl, but didn't want to fall into Wanxiang's trap, so that when she woke up in the middle of the night, she would always see this silly Shuiqin following her and calling her "Sister Ruchun" in a flattering manner.
"Shuiqin, if you can find some small things for the fourth lady that are not often seen in daily life, maybe the fourth lady will reward you with a fruit milk and ice bowl?" Wanxiang said with her hand covering her mouth and smiling.
"Sister Wanxiang is teasing me again. How can I leave the house or go up the mountain?"
"Okay, let's stop talking. Let's go back, in case someone comes to work and can't find us." Wanxiang took the lead and walked around the big willow tree.
"Oh, look, what is that? It's so cute." Hearing Wanxiang's shout, the two of them came over.
"Teals! Those are teals. They've just hatched." Shuqin shouted. "They're so cute. Look at how yellow and fluffy they are."
"Yes, it's really beautiful, but it's a pity that it has just been hatched and cannot be taken away. Otherwise, I would have taken it back to show the Fourth Miss. I wonder how happy she would be. Maybe if she's happy, she would keep it by her side to serve her." Wanxiang continued.
"You two, why are you making a fuss over a nest of ducks? Be careful with the wooden fence and don't fall down." Ruchun said with a smile.
It turned out that the nest of the ducklings was in a nest on the downhill side of the big willow tree. Because the big willow tree was facing the pond, a half-waist-high wooden fence was built on the downhill side.
"That's right, let's go." Wanxiang pulled up Ruchun's sleeve and walked back. After walking a few steps, she slowly turned around and saw Shuiqin still standing there, staring at the duck in a trance. Wanxiang smiled.
Shuiqin was in a trance for the whole afternoon. She either picked up the wrong plate or mistook a cucumber for a carrot. Ma Wujia scolded her severely, but Shuiqin did not say anything unusual.
Cai'er, who was putting black flour cakes in the steamer, nudged Su Qing with her elbow and pointed in the direction of Shuqin, signaling Su Qing to take a look. Su Qing glanced at her and said nothing, continuing with her work. Cai'er closed the steamer lid, sat down and built a fire.
"Qing'er, this girl must be up to something bad. She never took her eyes off you before, but today she seems to have lost her soul. You better be careful."
"Who cares what she does? At most she is just a firecracker. One day she will be sold out."
"What are you talking about? What cannon? Where was she sold to?" Cai'er stopped putting firewood into the stove and asked with a puzzled look on her face.
Su Qing shook her head. "No, I was just saying it. Didn't Aunt Ma Wu ask you to go get the vegetables? Go quickly. I'll watch the fire."
"Okay, last time Mother Liu said that she would pick a few cucumbers for us to eat when she went to get vegetables." Cai'er brushed off the dust on her body and went out with the basket.