On the first day of September, it was cloudy.

Just after 7 a.m., Qingwen carried a copper pot to the small kitchen in the southeast corner and saw several small maids already crowded inside to fetch water.

Seeing Qingwen coming in from outside, the little maids quickly retreated to the side.

Qingwen, unlike them, was not polite and walked straight to the stove. It wasn't until she saw the innermost circle that Furong was in that she instinctively stopped walking.

"Hmph."

Furong raised her hanging eyebrows and snorted coldly, but then took a half step back from the stove.

Qingwen still took it upon herself to fill her vacancy, gently placing the copper pot on the stove as Xiangling's maidservant. She was supposed to be behind Furong, but yesterday, Sun Shaozong stayed in Xiangling's room, so the hot water for washing and grooming had naturally needed to be used by him first.

However, in the past, this hot water was pre-cooked by the small kitchen, so whoever would come and use it didn’t matter in any order.

Why was it delayed today?

Looking at the servant girl who was boiling the water, bowed her head and was busy in front of the stove. Qingwen had the intention to ask a few questions, but when the words reached her mouth, she remembered her current identity and swallowed the question again.

She didn't ask, but later Furong couldn't bear it anymore and scolded, "It’s fine for the Concubines. Why didn't you even prepare the hot water for the Second Master? If we delay the Second Master's business, who can afford it!"

The maid who was boiling water lowered her head even further upon hearing these words, but she didn't say a word.

Furong became even more annoyed and cursed, "Are you deaf? Or do you want me to report to my concubine so that I can reward you with a good family tradition?"

The maid's shoulders trembled slightly and finally stammered, "Sister, don't be angry. This is the first time I've been serving on the stove, and I didn’t ask in advance. I don't know that this water must be cooked in the later part of the night, so there won't be any more mistakes tomorrow."

Furong listened to her discernment and was about to say something more, but Qingwen couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "Caixia? How is it you?"

It turned out that the bonfire maid buried in front of the stove was Caixia, who had previously been demoted to work as a rough servant outside.

Caixia was called to reveal her identity and finally looked up. She awkwardly and bitterly grinned at Qingwen and whispered, "Yesterday, the concubine was kind and asked me to come and serve on the stove."

Looking at her smoky and fiery expression, Qingwen couldn't help but feel a mix of emotions in her heart.

When they were in Rongguo Mansion, their relationship was not very close, especially after learning that she helped Concubine Zhao and Third Master Huan secretly communicate with each other. Qingwen had some hatred towards Caixia.

However, things had changed, and now both of them have been sent to the Sun family by Old Madam Wang. Seeing her fall so far, Qingwen couldn't help but feel a sense of pity for her.

Opening her mouth, she wanted to say something to Caixia, but at that moment, the stove was boiling with a gurgling sound. Caixia quickly filled Qingwen's copper pot with a water ladle.

***Kuang Kuang~***

Almost at the same time, Furong also placed the copper pot in her hand on the stove.

Qingwen saw that it was not the place to speak, so she hurriedly explained, "Since we are all in the same courtyard, why don't you come and sit at my place after you finish your job?"

As she spoke, she quickly grabbed the copper pot and gave up her seat in the front row.

Leaving Caixia and entering the western room, the annoying sound of the rocking bed not only did not stop but also became more prominent and urgent. Qingwen couldn't help but blush and spit in secret, then turned around and locked the door again.

Upon hearing this commotion, the Second Master and Xiangling didn't need hot water for a moment. After finishing their grooming, Xiangling hesitated for a moment and went to the southern nursery, intending to ask her daughter’s wet nurse if she wanted to wash up.

For the convenience of people who entered to help take care of the children, the door of this southern house had always been open.

Qingwen was afraid that she would wake the Young Lady up and started crying, which disturbed the Second Master and Concubine's elegant mood, so she quietly pushed the door open and walked in.

Inside, she saw the Young Lady sleeping soundly in the cradle, and the wet nurse on the bed wrapped her whole body in a blanket.

Was she not afraid of suffocating herself?

Qingwen shook her head speechlessly and was about to return to the living room. However, as she was about to turn around, she realized that something seemed to be wrong. The bedding was constantly flipping and surging, and it didn't seem like breathing. It seemed to be suffering from malaria.

Wasn’t it that the wet nurse was sick?!

Qingwen immediately lifted her heart to her throat. The Young Lady was not as strong as the Young Master. She had just fallen seriously ill a month ago. If any more diseases were to be transmitted from the wet nurse during this season, how would she end up?!

Thinking of this, she quickly approached and asked, "Sister-in-law, Sister-in-law Song?!"

With just one sound, the shaking of the bedding suddenly froze, and after a while, a face that was bright red and fiery emerged from the bottom. She said in a bitter voice, "You... when did you come in?"

Qingwen felt even more inappropriate when she saw her appearance. She reached out to touch Mrs. Song's forehead and asked with concern, "Sister-in-law, are you not feeling well? Do you want me to report to Second Master and invite a doctor to come and take a look?"

"No, no, no!"

Mrs. Song quickly stretched out her white arm and shook it wildly like a tambourine, saying urgently, "I'm in good health. Don't disturb the Second Master!"

Seeing that her neck was even redder, Qingwen couldn't believe it. She even thought she was afraid of losing her job and deliberately concealed her condition, so she turned around and went to the Second Master's bedroom to report.

Mrs. Song became more and more anxious, not caring about the lack of cover on her body. She jumped up and grabbed her, propped up her body, and shouted, "Good girl, you... Listen to my explanation first!"

Speaking, she whispered a few words in Qingwen's ear.

After listening, Qingwen's melon seed face turned red, and she spat a few times before saying, "Sister-in-law is really... absurd! Forget it, I just brought some water. You should go outside and wash yourself, so as not to cause panic!"

Sister-in-law Song breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that she had no intention of delving deeper. She awkwardly took out a towel and clothes, put Qingwen's good hands on her back, and hurriedly tidied up everything. She also folded the messy mattress before rushing to the outside.

Qingwen didn't follow out because she wanted to stay and take care of the child. She was supposed to sit on the bed nearby, but when she thought about the behavior of the wet nurse just now, she always felt that it was a bit dirty.

So she dug out another chair from the corner and carefully sat down in front of the cradle. Her mind was in a mess, and she didn't know what she was thinking. When she regained her senses, Mrs. Song had already turned back and was looking at her with a smirk on her face.

"Good girl."

Just as she tried to please her, she said, "Don't say anything about it just now, otherwise I... I won't have the face to go out and meet people!"

This mansion had only been prosperous for a few years, and there were not many servants born in the family. Therefore, the nannies were all found outside, and they only came home after three to five days of leisure. It was not easy to stay overnight, and they were already women who had a taste for food. After listening to the music of this evening's extravagance, they had an impulse, which was quite common.

Furthermore, a wet nurse of a wealthy family who couldn’t resist loneliness would often collude with the male master to commit adultery was quite common.

At least this Sister-in-law Song solved her troubles, and it was not a big mistake to say.

However, in the past few days, this Sister-in-law Song had been very harsh towards Qingwen, so Qingwen took advantage of the situation and used the methods of a wealthy maid to strike her a few times.

Until Sister-in-law Song swore to the heavens and said that she would only follow Qingwen's lead in the future, Qingwen said calmly, "Sister-in-law speaks too heavily. As the saying goes, distant relatives are not as good as close neighbors. Besides, we are still under the same roof, so we should help each other more."

"Right, right, supporting each other!"

Sister-in-law Song pecked like rice with her head nodding, her face full of relief. She said that she would be obedient, but her heart was full of reluctance.

With such a face, Qingwen was also accustomed to it in her daily life, so she was too lazy to argue with her anymore. She used the excuse of serving the Second Master and Concubine and got up and went to the living room outside.

At this moment, the annoying commotion finally came to a stop.

As soon as Qingwen breathed a sigh of relief, she heard Xiangling timidly say, "Sister Qingwen, could you please bring some warm water in?"

When they were at Rongguo Mansion, they were familiar with each other. Xiangling was always honest. So these days, although Qingwen had been her servant girl, she was still a Sister.

Qingwen quickly mixed a basin of warm water and knocked on the door. When Xiangling blushed and leaned out, she handed the basin over and said, "Nowadays, it's not like before. I really can't afford you to call me sister. In the future, just call me by my servant's name."

Xiangling covered her mouth and smiled, then took the copper basin and lowered her voice, saying, "Sister is a good person with good looks. Who can say for sure what will happen in the future?"

Speaking, she closed the door again.

These words…

Qingwen frowned and pondered for a while, unable to say whether she was resistant or calm. In short, she had no expectations.

Not long after, another little maid who was assigned to this room also arrived. The two of them each went to the chicken feather duster, cloth, and other things, and began their daily morning routine of sweeping and sprinkling.

Inside the room, Sun Shaozong was lazily leaning on the bed with his arms resting on his pillow, raising his hairy legs high and fiddling with the small clothes on the crossbar, but his heart was completely devoid of any charm.

After he was placed under house arrest that day, the whole Central Judicial Office was calm and without any abnormalities.

Either the spy had a strong psychological resilience and had not been intimidated by this exaggerated approach at all, or his previous inference was incorrect, and the spy was not on the list found under house arrest.

If it was the former, the clue was considered broken; but if it was the latter…

"Do you want to get up now, Master?"

The sweet and soft voice, like glutinous rice, disrupted Sun Shaozong's thoughts. He turned his head and saw that Xiangling was already dressed neatly, so he smiled and said, "Today is the day of rest. Go and tell them both. After breakfast, let's go to the Prison God Temple to visit the flower festival together."

Upon hearing this, Xiangling couldn't help but feel overjoyed. Yesterday morning, Yu Qian and Sun Chengye had already moved out. Ruan Rong and Second Sister You, who were supposed to go to the flower fair in the afternoon, seemed not very interested, and Xiangling couldn't bring up this matter proactively.

Now that Sun Shaozong had promised to accompany them, she was not afraid that the two women would lose interest.

So she quickly called for Qingwen to come in and take care of Sun Shaozong by dressing and washing, and then excitedly went to the main room.

Qingwen came in and saw Sun Shaozong wearing only a pair of shorts, which revealed his ancient copper-colored muscles. She felt a bit uneasy at the moment, her eyes twisted and her gaze wandered, neither daring nor daring to touch. However, she was busy and made several mistakes of a *’blind man touching elephant.’*

Fortunately, Sun Shaozong was currently in his time as a sage and did not respond much to her teasing.

Anyway, when Qingwen finally carried the water to the living room outside, her cheeks were as red as charcoal fire, and she was said to be momentarily as radiant as Sister Song.

She was afraid that the little maid would notice something, so she lowered her head and carried a copper basin outside. Just as she was about to throw it out, she suddenly saw someone peeking into the room from the corridor.

"Caixia?"

Qingwen couldn't help but wonder, "Why did you come here now?"

She asked Caixia to come and talk to her, that's right, but this morning, the small kitchen was busy, so where did she have any spare time?

Especially since Caixia was still a newcomer, being lazy like this could easily cause trouble.

"I..."

Caixia pinched the corner of her clothes and said in a casual tone, "I heard that you followed to the mansion over there a few days ago, but... have you ever heard about Third Master Huan?"

The reason why she was demoted to the outside world had also been mentioned by Yuanyang to Qingwen. At this moment, seeing that she was still inquiring about Jia Huan's news, a sudden evil fire surged in her heart. She threw dirty water into the flower bed and said coldly, "You only care about him, but why don't you ask, has he ever thought of you?"

After enduring the hardships of these days, Caixia finally lost her indomitable spirit. Seeing Qingwen suddenly angry, she thought she was still holding a grudge against Concubine Zhao for poisoning. So she eagerly said, "Third Master has never harmed Baoyu, it's all Concubine Zhao..."

"Never harmed before?!"

Qingwen held the empty bowl and said with a straight face, "Didn't he do something good to burn Baoyu's eyes back then?"

Upon hearing her mention of this matter again, Caixia gritted her silver teeth and stung her neck, saying, "That's your Second Uncle. First, he touched my collar, and that's why I'm so angry that I make up for the injustice."

Qingwen was taken aback by the news and thought about how many more drinks Baoyu had that day. Such things might not be impossible, and half of her anger suddenly dissipated; even her spirit collapsed. She gave a bitter smile and shook her head, saying, "It's okay, doesn’t matter now. How are the two brothers? What does it have to do with us right now?"

As she spoke, she turned her head and walked inside, saying, "You don't need to ask me about the matter of Third Master Huan. If you see Master Xue any day, why don't you ask him? He's been hanging out with Master Xue all day now!"

"Girl, girl!"

Before she could finish speaking, she saw a rough old lady running over and asked with a smile on her face, "Is Second Master in your room?"

Qingwen turned around in confusion and said, "What's wrong? Do you need to find Second Master for something?"

"We have guests at home."

The old woman smiled and said, "It's Master Xue from Zijin Street. I heard our Second Master entrusted him with something. Now that the matter is settled, he came over to report."

It was speaking of the devil.

Qingwen glanced at Caixia and instructed the old woman to wait outside, and she went inside to report. However, when she came out again, Caixia had long disappeared.