CHAPTER 382: CHAPTER 384: CARE (2)

He referred to his elder brother, meaning Sheng.

Xiqiu asked again, "Do you understand the meaning of it? Do you like it?" Min nodded.

Xiqiu looked at the table full of unfinished dishes, her face full of worry, "Min, can you do your mother a favor?"

"What?" Min instinctively asked, showing a guarded expression.

Xiqiu seemed unaware, she pointed to the three or four kinds of porridge, small dishes, and snacks on the table, "Min, can you help mother finish all of these?"

Min was stunned, his small round face showing other expressions in front of Xiqiu for the first time, she looked at Xiqiu with confusion and then at the things on the table...

It was only then that she suddenly realized why she had just suddenly recited poetry!

He looked hesitant, standing there motionless, Xiqiu smiled at him, "Thank you, Min."

Min felt a bit cornered, pouted, but still obediently let the nanny carry him to sit by the table. Chunliu, smiling, immediately served him half a bowl of porridge and placed it in front of him. Min picked up the spoon that had been prepared and lowered his head to drink the porridge moodily.

It seemed really only to help Xiqiu eliminate the wasted food.

Before Xiqiu could finish, she placed a bun in his bowl, opened the meat filling to cool it on the side, and continued to eat from her own bowl.

Min watched the deliberately opened bun in the bone plate, full of skepticism and confusion.

After the two silently finished eating and rinsed their mouths, Xiqiu turned to Chunyan and instructed, "The thousand-layer cake sent from the Grand Dowager yesterday, have Nanny Cen send some back, just say it was given to the Eldest Young Madam by the Grand Dowager."

Chunyan nodded in agreement.

Xiqiu looked at Min again, who was being helped at the door by Bihuai and Chunliu, waiting for Min.

Min wrinkled his brows again, drank a cup of plain water, and reluctantly followed Xiqiu out the door to pay respects at the Grand Dowager’s courtyard.

The Grand Dowager had just asked someone to clear the dishes, and Xing was holding a vegetarian bun in his hand, coming out to greet them with a smile, "Good morning, Aunt Fourth!" Xiqiu smiled and nodded, "Good morning, Xing." She then paid her respects to the Grand Dowager, calling, "Mother."

The Grand Dowager pointed to a footrest in front of her for her to sit down.

On this side, Xing, like a treasure, was pulling Min, who had just entered and taken off his stone-blue cloak, waving the hot bun in his hand with a grin, "I saved a bun for you, it’s still hot."

The Grand Dowager promptly asked, "Go have breakfast quickly, don’t go hungry."

Min stood still, hesitantly glancing at Xiqiu, the Grand Dowager noticed and squinted her eyes slightly... then asked Min, "What’s wrong?"

Min lowered his head and replied, "To respond to Grandmother, I just ate in Mother’s room."

The Grand Dowager was taken aback, clearly not expecting Min to accept Xiqiu so quickly and have breakfast with her, yet she couldn’t help but show a hint of a smile, asking, "Since you’ve eaten, then go play with Xing."

Min perked up at this, went to grab Xing’s hand, and the two small figures paid respects to the Grand Dowager and Xiqiu before heading towards the green gauze cabinet, where they could be heard as Xing asked Min, "Did you eat in Aunt Fourth’s room? What did you eat?"

Min muffled a reply, "A bowl of plain porridge, two buns, and an egg."

The Grand Dowager exchanged a glance with Nanny Wu, who beamed as she served tea to Xiqiu... Young Master Min usually only had half a bowl of porridge in the morning and had never eaten so much, Fourth Madam seemed to have used some method.

"Mother," Xiqiu smiled and said, "I want to go back to my maiden home at the end of the month."

"Is there something the matter?" The Grand Dowager asked with concern on her face.

"Not really, just that Father is returning to Yongzhou at the end of the month, and I want to see him off." Xiqiu said, lowering her head.

The Grand Dowager nodded, "Isn’t First Master Tong going back to the Capital for his post? I remember he’s been in Yongzhou for several decades, right?"

Xiqiu nodded in response, "Yes, ever since I can remember, Father has been serving in Yongzhou." The Grand Dowager listened, nodded again, then turned to Nanny Wu with instructions, "I remember I still have some rabbit fur and fox fur, choose some and send them to Fourth Madam."

Nanny Wu, full of smiles, nodded in agreement.

Xiqiu was taken aback and asked, "Mother, I still have dowries left, which I haven’t used yet. You should keep yours for yourself." The Grand Dowager waved indifferently, "I don’t go out either, these things, while warm to wear, would be too bulky to rest at home. Jiangnan is not like the Capital; the damp cold in winter is the hardest to endure. There are still some days until the end of the month. Pick some of the best fur to make a cloak for your father to take back, as this also counts as part of your filial duty as a daughter."

Old people just like to play benefactor and find satisfaction in it, besides, the Grand Dowager’s gesture was to give her face, how could she refuse.

Xiqiu thought about it, then stood up and smiled at the Grand Dowager, "Letting Mother go to such expense." The thousand-layer sesame cake that Yingtianlai had just sent to Madam Jiang.

The Grand Dowager allowed a faint smile to appear.

First Madam and Second Madam came in one after the other, Second Madam smiling as she spoke, "Mother, the weather is nice today, shall I accompany you for a walk in the courtyard? A couple of wintersweet trees in the back garden have bloomed."

The Grand Dowager heard and was pleased, "This year, the wintersweet bloomed early. Today, we shall be cultured for a while and admire the plums in the snow." Then she glanced at First Madam and Xiqiu, "Join us!"

Xiqiu smiled in agreement, yet she thought to herself, it was still early, so Fifth Madam and Fifth Young Master likely hadn’t moved out yet, and they probably would come to bid farewell soon. The Grand Dowager was doing this intentionally to avoid Fifth Young Master and Fifth Madam, wasn’t she?!

Nanny Wu tidied the hand warmer, gave the Grand Dowager a cloak, called for four palanquins, laid soft mats on them, and put up thick cotton screens against the wind. A group of over a dozen maids and old women carried tea pots, warm stoves, and umbrellas against the wind and followed the Grand Dowager out of the courtyard...

The Grand Dowager, supported by Second Madam and Nanny Wu, seemed to be in high spirits, laughing and chatting with Nanny Wu at times, "In the past few years, every winter when the wintersweet bloomed, I never had the time to see it, today seems just right..."

Nanny Wu laughed and said, "Grand Dowager, take your time to look around today and relax."

The Grand Dowager sighed, "I’m old, even if I want to play, I can’t anymore." Second Madam picked up the conversation and laughed, "Mother, you’re not old at all. If people didn’t know, they wouldn’t dare to say you are our mother when walking with us!"

The Grand Dowager’s face was full of smiles, laughing heartily.

Xiqiu and First Madam walked on either side behind the Grand Dowager. In the distance on a forked path, Xiqiu saw Qingjia from Fifth Madam’s side flash past quickly towards Pinlan Pavilion.

It seems Fifth Madam still hasn’t given up.

"The Marquis had Housekeeper Hu help out early in the morning." Unexpectedly, First Madam suddenly spoke up, her calm voice devoid of emotion, and it took Xiqiu a moment to realize she was speaking to her!