Union

Chapter 5 explains it.
With a place to go and Chen's mother agreeing to release her, Yunying finally breathed a sigh of relief and discreetly wiped her sweaty palms with a handkerchief.

However, she can't relax too much, otherwise things might take another turn for the worse, and her little heart won't be able to handle it.

On the way back, the girls were all silent.

Those who have a promising future are now thinking about keeping a low profile and not attracting too much attention; while those who have no future are looking downcast and naturally have no heart for laughter.

Finally, they entered the courtyard and separated from the main group. After walking for a while, when only Yunying, Jin Kui, and their maids remained, Jin Kui finally spoke with a heavy heart: "You, what kind of good place is the Third Son-in-Law's mansion?"

Seeing Yunying's nonchalant expression, Jin Kui became even more annoyed. "Fine, you've gotten what you wanted. But Lingnan is a thousand miles away. Don't die on the way before you even get to enjoy your blessings."

“You too.” Yunying paused for a moment before saying, “Be more careful in everything you do, and don’t be so nice to everyone.”

Upon hearing this, Jin Kui rolled her eyes so hard they almost reached the sky.

Is she some kind of overly kind-hearted person? It's only because she sees how incredibly naive and simple-minded she is, and because she didn't get angry or upset her when she was in a bad mood and teased her multiple times, that she stepped in to help her.

However, she won't be able to help anymore, so she can only pray for the best.

As for herself, her life is extremely precious. If anyone wants her life, she will drag that person down with her even if she dies.

Jin Kui waved her hand, "Just take care of yourself, don't worry about me."

Having finally decided to pursue her future, Jin Kui had no time to say anything more to Yun Ying and turned to walk towards her room.

Yunying watched Jin Kui's figure disappear from sight, then took Que'er back to her room.

Sparrow was distraught and remained terribly silent.

She originally thought that Yunying could go to the Prince's Mansion. The Prince's Mansion was so big and the people inside were so complicated. Yunying would definitely need help there. She would suggest that she go with her to serve her, and Yunying would definitely agree.

Yunying couldn't go to the Prince's mansion, but instead had to go to Lingnan with her son-in-law...

Que'er hesitated before speaking, "Miss, if you go to Lingnan, I won't be able to go with you to serve you."

Lingnan is a wild and untamed land, and it is so far from the capital. She was afraid of dying on the way, and even more afraid of dying in poverty.

She had wanted to leave the estate because her looks were only average, and there was no way she could stand out there. But if she went to Lingnan… it would be better to stay on the estate.

Que'er was still young and not thick-skinned enough. After saying such heartless words, she didn't dare to look at Yun Ying's face. She hurriedly went into the room to help Yun Ying pack her luggage, and then, after hearing the commotion in the courtyard, she quickly ran out to get Yun Ying's food.

Seeing that she was the only one left in the room, Yunying's expression finally relaxed.

She was still thinking about escaping, so how could she dare to let Que'er accompany her?
You can't take the sparrow with you when you run away, and you definitely can't take the sparrow with you if you're not running away.

After all, she wasn't the original Yunying, and she didn't want to play the role of Yunying for the rest of her life.

Que'er didn't want to go, which was perfect for her. However, given the original owner's personality, she couldn't bring herself to say it.

Many thoughts flashed through Yunying's mind before she turned around and silently packed her luggage again.

From the few remaining memories of the original owner, Yunying learned that the original owner came to this manor when she was ten years old, and now she is sixteen years old and has lived here for six years.

Over the course of six years, the original owner's most numerous possessions were various clothes. There were also some books, but not many, along with writing brushes, ink, paper, inkstones, and a well-preserved ancient zither.

She had no money, but she did have some jewelry.

These pieces of jewelry were gifts given to the original owner by her governess when she did well in her studies.

The original owner's best skills were calligraphy and the guqin (a seven-stringed zither).

Yunying was passable at calligraphy, but she knew absolutely nothing about the guqin. Therefore, it was even more important not to let Que'er accompany her.

Just as she thought of Que'er, a thought popped into Yun Ying's mind: Que'er went to the yard to get food, why hasn't she come back for so long?

Yunying was about to go out and take a look when she heard messy footsteps outside the door, as well as Que'er's excited shouts.

The sound not only attracted Yunying, but also summoned Jinkui, who lived in the west wing.

Jin Kui asked, "Did something happen?"

Que'er nodded vigorously, her eyes sparkling, looking as excited as a badger who had just eaten a melon. "You girls would never believe it, Xianglan and Chen Ping have actually confessed their feelings to each other. Didn't Mama Liu previously appoint Xianglan to serve at the Prince's mansion? Chen Ping only found out about this after that, and he immediately started arguing with Xianglan."

Chen Ping knew that his "embezzlement" couldn't be made public, otherwise not only would he be implicated, but his mother would also suffer.

However, the fact that Xianglan was chosen to go to the Prince's mansion was too much of a shock to him. In his anxiety, he climbed over the back window into Xianglan's room.

No one saw this scene, but Chen Ping and Xiang Lan got into an argument, and Xiang Lan failed to calm Chen Ping down. Both of them were agitated and their voices grew louder and louder.

You know, Xianglan got such a good place this time, so naturally she was envied and was being watched.

Everyone was worried about how to pull her down, but now that they heard the noise in her room, they quickly went over to eavesdrop.

As a result, Xianglan and Chenping were caught red-handed by everyone, and the two have been placed under guard by Liu Mama's people.

Upon hearing this, Jin Kui stared in disbelief, unable to speak coherently, "How...how could those two dare to do that?"

Judging from their tone, the two were still "mutually attracted," and Jin Kui didn't know what to say.

Yunying nodded.

Isn't it?

The girls in the courtyard are all pampered and spoiled, and even the young masters of the mansion cannot even dream of them. Could it be that Chen Ping has been guarding the "sheep pen" for too long and has come to think that all the "sheep" here are his private property, so he can do whatever he wants?
He touched her inappropriately before, and now he's having a passionate affair with Xianglan. Has he lost all his courage?

On the other hand, Xianglan doesn't seem like a fool, so how did she end up getting involved with Chen Ping?

As Yunying was pondering this oddity, Que'er chimed in, "Xianglan's retribution came swiftly. She pushed our young lady in front of the flower hall, almost disfiguring her. I thought then that with such a vicious heart, she would surely meet a bad end. I never expected her to find a good place so soon, and I was even thinking that Heaven was blind. Who would have thought that Heaven was right, and her retribution came so quickly."

The crowd chanted phrases like "How foolish!" "God has really opened his eyes!" and "Serves him right!" before reluctantly dispersing.

Although the gathering had ended, because the nature of the incident was so egregious and the village was so boring, everyone remained highly attentive to it.

Inside Yunying's room, Que'er served her meal before running out to watch the commotion.

When she returned, she told Yunying that Chen Ping had harassed the girl several times before, and it turned out that it was Xianglan who instigated it.

That Xianglan is truly a heartless viper.

She wanted to marry into a higher social class, but she worried that girls like Yunying, Jinkui, and Wanbi were too beautiful and would block her way.

Therefore, he took a wrong turn and got involved with Chen Ping.

On the surface, the two of them seemed to be deeply in love, but in reality, Xianglan used the excuse of not getting along with Yunying, Jinkui, and others to coax Chen Ping into standing up for her.

Unfortunately, Jin Kui was a feisty woman, and even Chen Ping didn't dare to offend her.

After arriving at the estate, Wanbi secretly recognized Chen Mama as her godmother. This was kept very secret, and Xianglan was unaware of it. But how could Chen Ping, as Wanbi's brother, possibly lay a hand on his god-sister?

After much deliberation, only Yunying was easy to manipulate and had no powerful backing. So, if Chen Ping didn't bring her out to tease her and vent his anger for his beloved girl, who else would he bother with?
Que'er eagerly recounted all the news she had heard, and Yunying's face showed a look of sudden realization upon hearing it.

At this point, everything that had puzzled her before became clear. For example, although Chen Ping harassed her, he didn't show any signs of impatience; Xianglan had no grudge against her, yet she shoved her violently…

"How did Liu Mama handle this matter in the end?" What Yunying cared about most was what punishment the two of them received; and, since Xianglan and Chen Ping had already gotten involved together, could she still enter the Prince's Mansion?
Que'er clearly understood Yun Ying's meaning, so she secretly glanced outside the door and whispered, "Mama Liu is just a maidservant by the Madam's side, so she can't deal with Chen Ping. But such a big matter certainly can't be tolerated. I think Mama Liu will definitely tell the Madam about this so that the Madam can handle it personally."

Yunying nodded; this was within her expectations.

The matter has already been leaked. If Liu Mama is more impartial, she can explain herself to Madam Hou. But if she lets it go or turns a blind eye, she might also be blamed later.

As for the fragrant orchid...

Que'er said, "Xianglan keeps saying that she is still innocent and begs Liu Mama to be lenient. She will not forget Liu Mama or the Marquis's mansion once she enters the Prince's mansion and gains favor."

But her affair with Chen Ping has become common knowledge. If she is still sent to the Prince's Mansion, who will bear the consequences of the thunder explosion?
The fact that the Marquis of Chang'an's mansion sent a beauty to the Prince of Zhaoyang's mansion must mean they wanted something from the Prince of Zhaoyang, or perhaps they wanted to win him over. Under such circumstances, they could not be too cautious. Why would they send someone in knowing that Xianglan was inappropriate? Wouldn't that be digging a hole for themselves?
Que'er said, "Mother Liu said that since Xianglan has someone she likes, she won't send her to the Prince's Mansion. However, she didn't continue to choose someone, probably because she was upset about this matter and had no heart to choose anyone."

Updated promptly at 7:01 PM every day.

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(End of this chapter)