Walking to the side room arranged for her, Song Yi'an took the clothes from Nanny Zhou, glared at her brother, turned, and closed the door: "I am going to bathe and rest."
Song Yili, left outside the door, hung his head in frustration.
Madam Gu could not bear it and patted her son's shoulder to comfort him: "Er Ya will stop being angry; give her some time."
Song Yili nodded and silently returned to his own courtyard.
Inside the room, there was no longer a trace of sulking on Song Yi'an's face.
She quickly took off the dirty clothes she had worn for several days, immersed herself in the warm water, and let out a sigh of comfort.
Since washing up in the stream on the day she parted from the Fairy, she had not had a proper bath. She smelled terrible; it was a wonder her mother could even bear to hold her during the day.
As she was soaking comfortably, a respectful voice came from outside: "Young lady, I am Haitang, sent by Nanny Zhou to serve you. May I come in to add water and help you scrub?"
Song Yi'an was not used to having someone watch her bathe: "No need. I will call you if I need anything."
"Yes, young lady." Haitang retreated outside the door to wait.
Steam swirled in the wooden tub, turning Song Yi'an's cheeks slightly red.
She suddenly thought, how wonderful it would be if there were shampoo and body wash. The ancients had a cumbersome process for washing hair and placed great importance on "body, hair, and skin," not allowing them to be cut easily, so washing hair once was a major project.
A thought suddenly arose: since there was none, why not make soap herself?
The top-tier life skills she had honed in the apocalypse would come in handy.
She quickly dried herself, put on clean clothes, called for Haitang, and ordered her to prepare a few things for tomorrow.
Although Haitang did not understand why the young lady wanted these things, she respectfully agreed.
The next morning, just as the sky was beginning to brighten, there was movement in the residence.
Song Yili and Song Mingsi were already packed and ready to head to the private school.
Because they studied at the same schoolroom, the two often shared a carriage.
The carriage was waiting early outside the main gate.
Song Mingsi was helped into the carriage by a maid first, and she tidied her book bag and skirt slightly.
Afterward, Song Yili also climbed up and sat opposite her.
She could feel that Song Yili was in a bad mood, radiating a sense of frustration.
Song Mingsi pondered for a moment and asked in a soft, gentle voice: "Big Brother, is something on your mind? You look quite unhappy."
"Nothing." Song Yili answered sullenly, his gaze falling on the swaying carriage curtain.
Song Mingsi was not discouraged, a knowing smile curling the corners of her lips: "Let me guess, could it be that Big Brother has upset Sister Yi'an?"
Having her thoughts hit the mark, Song Yili blurted out: "How did you know?"
Seeing his reaction, Song Mingsi's eyes shifted.
"Big Brother's moods have always been related to Sister Yi'an. Since Sister Yi'an was just found yesterday, it is easy to guess why you look like this today."
She paused, her eyelids drooping slightly, her tone tinged with a hint of envy, "It is truly enviable to see how Big Brother keeps your sister in your heart and worries about everything for her. Unlike Mingsi, who only has a mischievous younger brother."
Song Yili was startled and felt a bit flustered, blurting out: "I am naturally Mingsi's brother as well."
As for Song Zeyue, Song Yili did not find it easy to comment much.
Song Mingsi: "Really? Then if Mingsi has any troubles in the future, can I also come to find Big Brother?"
"Naturally." Song Yili nodded, his tone gentle.
"Since that is the case, then this sister should also share the burden for her brother."
Song Mingsi leaned forward slightly, her voice softening a bit more.
"I am of a similar age to Sister Yi'an, so perhaps I understand a girl's heart better. In my opinion, Brother, you do not need to worry too much. A young girl of this age has moods that come and go quickly. Often, in two or three days, she will forget about it herself. When that time comes, if you appear at the right moment, Sister Yi'an will naturally be fine."
Hearing this, Song Yili felt that Song Mingsi's words made sense and finally nodded.
Bright Moon Pavilion.
Song Yi'an woke up when the sun was already high. She sat up and stretched; she had slept extremely well.
Haitang, waiting outside the door, heard movement inside and pushed the door open to enter.
"Is the young lady awake?" Haitang walked over and carefully tucked the bed curtains away.
"You slept soundly; the time for lunch has already passed."
Song Yi'an rubbed her eyes: "It is already this late? Have Mother and Big Brother looked for me?"
"The Eldest Young Master has not come." Haitang said while turning to fetch clothes.
"The Second Madam came over to check once this morning, but seeing that you were still asleep, she did not let anyone disturb you."
Song Yi'an took the pink jacket and skirt handed to her by Haitang, her movements still somewhat sluggish.
Haitang tidied Song Yi'an's clothes and asked with a smile: "Does the young lady want to eat now, or would you like to wash up first?"
"Let's wash up first." Song Yi'an got up and walked to the bronze mirror to sit down, her face still showing lingering sleepiness reflected in the glass.
She watched as Haitang nimbly divided her hair into two parts, coiling them into loops on both sides. The loops were full and round, looking cute and playful.
Haitang then took two silk ribbons, the same soft pink as her jacket and skirt, and skillfully tied them at the base of the hair loops, forming two small bows with the ends hanging down lightly, adding a touch of liveliness.
With her hair and makeup done, Haitang's eyes flickered; the Little Miss looked so lovely that one could not look away.
The little girl in the mirror wore a pink, glowing jacket and skirt, with pale white peach blossoms embroidered on the collar and cuffs. Her face was round and cute, and her skin revealed a delicate, smooth luster like jade porcelain.
Her eyebrows were like two faint new moons, and beneath them were embedded a pair of round, bright eyes. Her cheeks were flushed with a natural rosy pink, like a ripe apple, fresh and moist enough to almost exude a sweet fragrance.
Since leaving Luo Town, Song Yi'an had always been covered in dust and dirt; there had not been a single day she was clean.
Today, Haitang had dressed her up so beautifully, but thinking of what she had to do next, she began to feel a bit sorry for Haitang.
Song Yi'an had Haitang fetch the ashes left from burning straw and personally picked a small handful of dried petals that still held their fragrance from under the osmanthus tree in the corner of the courtyard.
She filtered the clear water that had been settled with plant ash through multiple layers of cotton cloth, started a small fire in the courtyard, and placed the ash water in a pottery jar to simmer over a low flame.
Song Yi'an carefully poured the concentrated plant ash water into the lard and stirred continuously.
At first, the water and oil were separate. After stirring for about half an hour, her arm grew sore, so she handed the wooden stick to Haitang, who was waiting nearby.
"You take over; just keep stirring in one direction."
Haitang took it and became more and more surprised as she stirred. The originally thin liquid actually began to thicken bit by bit under her stirring.
Taking advantage of the moment Haitang was focused on stirring, Song Yi'an sprinkled in the washed and dried osmanthus petals. The fine osmanthus bits were dotted in the milky white paste, slowly spreading out as it was stirred.
When the soap liquid became so thick that it could no longer be stirred, and lifting the wooden stick pulled out continuous, sticky threads, Song Yi'an called for a stop.
She found several clean, thick bamboo tubes, poured the soap liquid into them, and instructed Haitang to place them in a ventilated, shaded area under the corridor to let them dry.
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