When Mi Yao left Tingsong Courtyard, she had agreed with Xiao Liang and the others that she would first visit Xiao Chu, and if nothing was amiss, she would return to join them for a stroll.
After leaving Xiao Chu’s place, her expression was gloomy. Instead of heading to Tingsong Courtyard, she undressed, got into bed, and lay down, pulling the covers over her head.
After lying there for a while, she grew bored. Stretching her hand out from under the soft quilt, she picked up the unfinished leisure book she had been reading.
Seeing this, Shuang Hua and Yu Xiu exchanged glances and sighed in relief. Having always been by Mi Yao’s side, they had a clear understanding of her mood swings.
In the past, Mi Yao would often get angry—upset over not getting the jewelry she wanted, irritated when she didn’t receive enough praise at poetry gatherings, and sometimes even sulking for half a day after running into her stepmother, Li Shi, a few times in the manor.
But over the past six months, Mi Yao seemed to have shed her tendency to hold onto anger, venting any dissatisfaction immediately.
So when they suddenly saw her looking downcast, they felt somewhat uneasy.
Now, seeing her lounging lazily on the couch as usual, reading her book and curling her lips into a smile at amusing parts, they felt reassured.
Since Mi Yao herself didn’t mention going to Tingsong Courtyard, naturally no one urged her to get up. As it neared time to extinguish the lamps, Shi Ya stepped forward and asked, “Madam, should we bring the young lady over?”
“Yes, and while you’re at it, inform the second young master that I went to the Town Envoy’s place, felt tired, and returned to my room to rest instead of joining them for the stroll.”
Mi Yao blinked her tired eyes, not hesitating over the matter.
When she had just left Xiao Chu’s place, she had been in low spirits, wanting to ignore everything and everyone. But after calming down for a quarter of an hour, she felt she had let Xiao Chu affect her too much.
Why should she care what Xiao Chu thought?
Being a pampered wife was different from being an employee. The former relied on looks and coquettish charm to secure life’s necessities, while the latter involved toiling like an ox for meager sustenance.
Besides her appearance, she also had her family background. Setting aside her knowledge that Xiao Chu was a winner in the grand scheme, as he himself had said, he was merely a blade that might perish on the battlefield tomorrow, while she was the legitimate daughter of the Yu clan.
He was an upstart; she was from an esteemed family.
With that in mind, as long as she maintained the superficial formalities, there was no need to let him dampen her spirits.
Since she had decided to start this child-rearing game, she would play it until she had her fill.
Xiao Chu and Mi Yao lived in the same courtyard, so when she sent someone to fetch Xiao Shan, Xiao Chu naturally received the news.
“Town Envoy, should I go and remind Madam?” Pu Qing asked.
Although he thought it was a good thing that the young lady had started learning to speak under Lady Yu’s guidance, if his master was displeased, then it was not right.
“No need.”
Xiao Chu didn’t believe Mi Yao had failed to understand his words; rather, she hadn’t taken them to heart.
Since she hadn’t paid attention to what he said, there was nothing more to discuss.
Mi Yao, acting as she pleased, expected to endure a few more cold glances from Xiao Chu. However, the very next day, Xiao Chu began leaving early and returning late. Even when they occasionally crossed paths in the same courtyard, it was always in haste.
She had initially thought that, since they were married, they should share meals together. But with his unpredictable schedule, she didn’t have to worry about that anymore.
She could continue ordering meals from the small kitchen, catering only to her own tastes.
“Brother-in-law is like this, ah…”
Yu Xiu heaved a heavy sigh. Seeing that her elder sister paid her no mind and was still busy shaping rice balls with Xiao Liang and Xiao Shan, she could only press her lips together and fret silently to herself.
Mi Yao couldn't even be bothered to glance at Yu Xiu's bitter melon-like expression, truly baffled by what Yu Xiu worried about every day.
The manor provided her with ample food and clothing, and no one defied her wishes. She was treated as the second-in-command of the inner household. Even Xiao Liang had relaxed, smiling more often. Yet Yu Xiu spent her days fretting over whether Xiao Chu was happy or not.
"If you stand nearby and these dumplings turn out bitter, it'll be your fault."
After shaping the glutinous rice balls with Xiao Shan and the others, Mi Yao, fearing the cooked flavor might be unsatisfactory, deliberately shifted the blame to Yu Xiu before boiling them.
"Sister, I didn't even do anything," Yu Xiu protested with a pitiful look.
"Your constant sighing, like a bitter melon, could sour even the sweetest treats!"
Mi Yao was making floral-filled glutinous rice balls, stuffed with gardenia, plum blossoms, camellias, and other petals. If not prepared properly, petals could easily turn bitter. Even after adjusting with white vinegar, she feared she might mishandle them.
This was, in fact, her first serious attempt at cooking.
As a child in the orphanage, the food was mediocre, but caretakers handled the meals—no need for her to cook. During school, she ate in the cafeteria. After graduation, while building her business, she was swamped with work and survived on takeout. Her culinary skills barely extended to boiling noodles.
Her recent interest in cooking, oddly enough, had something to do with Xiao Chu.
Managing people in this era was far simpler than in modern times. With signed indentures, everyone weighed their actions carefully.
Thus, even with over forty servants in Xiao Manor, Shuang Hua quickly adapted. Following Mi Yao's instructions, she prepared a ledger to assign daily tasks, checking them off upon completion.
Once the household was settled, Mi Yao began interviewing chefs. She replaced two in the main kitchen, hoping Xiao Chu would eat better and feel more at ease.
During the interviews, she met a chef skilled in Min-style pastries.
Recalling her previous life—collecting recipes and having the protagonist group create pastries that amazed passersby—she felt inspired. She added a new chef to the small kitchen to experiment occasionally.
Her little followers, Xiao Shan and the others, mimicked whatever she did. Hence, the current scene: wearing aprons and sleeves hastily made by the seamstress, their faces smudged, they crafted honeyed glutinous rice balls.
The children were innocent, content as long as they had food and drink. But what could she do? She wasn't a brainless child—it was only natural for her to worry.
Watching her sister and Xiao Shan enjoy the honeyed rice balls sprinkled with dried osmanthus flowers, Yu Xiu tasted one and found it sweet without a hint of bitterness. Resentment swelled in her chest, and she wandered out of the courtyard.
She first sought out Shuang Hua but found her too busy to talk.
After lingering aimlessly for a while, she headed to the lotus pond.
Compared to the muddy pit when Mi Yao first arrived at Xiao Manor, the lotus pond now, though still dotted with withered stalks, had clean flowing water. The pond was clear, occasionally revealing large fish surfacing to blow bubbles.
Moreover, evergreen trees previously absent were planted along the banks, along with a few leafless flowering shrubs. One could imagine the scenery come spring.
In the Yu family, the main branch held precedence over the secondary branch, and the secondary branch was controlled by Li Shi. As a legitimate daughter, Mi Yao had a better courtyard, but with many children in the secondary branch, other half-sisters also shared the wing rooms.
Back then, even if Mi Yao wanted to plant flowers in the yard, space was too cramped. For Yu Xiu, it was even worse.
Nowadays, elder sister would ask her opinion before planting trees—inquiring what flowers she liked. If she had preferences, Shuang Hua would purchase them together and have the gardeners tend to them.
Compared to before, things had improved immensely. No one in Xiao Manor would bring up her status as a concubine’s daughter anymore. Being elder sister’s younger sister made her a mistress of the household.
Yet despite this, she remained unsatisfied, moping with a sorrowful face every day—no wonder elder sister had grown weary of her.
Having reasoned this through, Yu Xiu’s anger had mostly dissipated. She shrank her neck, chilled by the cold wind, and decided to return and apologize to elder sister.
But she had only taken a few steps before halting abruptly.
“I wondered who it was—so it’s you sneaking around here.”
Yu Xiu had heard rustling sounds but didn’t speak up immediately. Instead, she tiptoed behind the rockery and spotted Xiao Yi. She didn’t call out to him, only taunting him after he noticed her presence.
Her gaze swept over Xiao Yi’s hastily fastened clothes, and she snorted, “I thought you were so impressive, but it turns out you’ve been bullied like this outside.”
Xiao Yi had noticed her quickly, but she had still caught sight of the bruises on his shoulder. Seeing the ointment in his hand, she understood exactly why he was hiding there.
“Aunt, I fell,” Xiao Yi murmured, lowering his eyes in defense.
“If you fell, why hide here to apply medicine in secret? Besides, if you fell, your knees, face, or the back of your head would be injured—clearly, it’s your shoulder that’s hurt.”
“My leg is injured too, and when I fell, I hit my shoulder as well…”
“So there are even more places where you were beaten.”
Yu Xiu didn’t believe a word of his nonsense. The Yu family had many children, and she had been bullied by her sisters often in her youth. However, since they were all girls, they never pinned her down to beat her. She had heard from others that among the boys, bullying could even lead to bloody noses.
If Xiao Yi had merely fallen, he wouldn’t have hidden to apply medicine. Hiding meant he had a guilty conscience—he didn’t want anyone to know.
And if he felt guilty, it must be because the other party was someone he couldn’t afford to offend.
As an adopted son without parents or Xiao bloodline, there were far too many people he couldn’t provoke. Previously, even he and Xiao Liang had been afraid of Ma family’s four-year-old “Tiger Head.”
“Aunt, I come from a lowly background. It’s already fortunate that Father took me in and allowed me to stay in the manor. If they hit me, it’s to teach me discipline. I don’t want Mother and Father to worry about me, so please, Aunt, pretend you never saw me today.”
Sensing the disdain in Yu Xiu’s eyes, Xiao Yi knew she looked down on him. He deliberately belittled himself, making her understand that if she spread word of his bullying, he would suffer even more.
Sure enough, as soon as he finished, he heard Yu Xiu snort coldly, “I only came to check if there was a thief after hearing the noise. Who has the patience to meddle in your affairs?”
With that, Yu Xiu turned and left. Seeing this, Xiao Yi breathed a sigh of relief.
He put away the ointment but didn’t return to Tingsong Courtyard immediately. Instead, he found another sheltered spot and rubbed the swollen bruise on his shoulder through his clothes.
It didn’t matter if other places were bruised from punches and kicks, but if this spot swelled, it would hurt when he held a brush to write, and if it hurt, he couldn’t write well.
If the tutor disliked his handwriting and refused to teach him, that would be far worse than being bullied.
By the time he felt the medicinal smell had mostly faded and returned to Tingsong Courtyard, he had just entered the gate when the matron informed him that Mi Yao had come.
Hearing that Mi Yao was there, he stared blankly at Yu Xiu, who held her neck high with pride.
Meeting his gaze, Yu Xiu rolled her eyes.
Of course, she wouldn’t bother with his trivial matters—but elder sister was her support. How could she possibly hide anything from elder sister?
As soon as she left the rockery, she shared her speculation with her elder sister, saying that the eldest son of the Xiao family appeared capable but was actually a fool who dared not speak up when bullied outside.
"Why are you only returning now? Your elder sister has been waiting for you for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea," Yu Xiu said impatiently to Xiao Yi.
Mi Yao waited for Xiao Yi in the study of Tingsong Courtyard. Sheltered from the wind and with books to read, the wait did not feel tiring.
After a while, she even began to consider setting aside a room in her own courtyard to serve as a study.
With new servants entering the estate, aside from assigning a few more to Tingsong Courtyard, she also reallocated the uses of several rooms there.
Originally, the three children shared one room, Xiao Liang’s wet nurse lived with the courtyard’s embroiderer, and Mama Fan occupied a room by herself.
According to Mama Fan, she was merely guarding the young lady’s quarters and could not be considered as having a room to herself.
When the room was opened, the furnishings inside were arranged according to children’s preferences, with chairs and tables lowered in height, similar to Xiao Yi’s room. However, there were few signs of Xiao Shan’s belongings, and the room carried the sour odor of an elderly person who did not bathe frequently in winter, reminiscent of Mama Fan.
At times, Mi Yao truly felt it was not that she was overly compassionate, but that the situations she encountered were so illogical that she could not simply turn a blind eye.
After deducting three months’ wages from Mama Fan as punishment, Mi Yao began rearranging Xiao Shan’s room and cleared out three rooms: one for Xiao Liang, one to serve as a study, and one as a playroom.
"This isn’t about making you sleep separately from your elder brother right away, but about giving you a room of your own. You can keep all your belongings there, so when you feel you’ve grown up enough to sleep alone, the room won’t feel unfamiliar," she explained to Xiao Liang before describing the purposes of the other two rooms.
Once the rooms for the three children were allocated, Mi Yao left the remaining matters untouched. Whether Mama Fan chose to sleep with the others was none of her concern—as long as she did not occupy the masters’ quarters, even if she had to sleep in the courtyard’s open space.
Mi Yao carried out these changes while Xiao Yi was at the academy. When he returned to the estate and heard Xiao Liang excitedly recount the news, he went out of his way to thank Mi Yao and accepted her kindness by moving his reading and writing activities to the study, instead of continuing to use the small round table in his room meant for snacks as a desk.
"May Mother be at peace."
After exchanging glances with Yu Xiu and the others upon entering the room, Xiao Yi noticed Mi Yao examining the draft paper on which he had practiced calligraphy. He could not help but blush. "Mother, my handwriting is poor."
Compared to the scions of noble families who began their education at four or five, Xiao Yi had not known a single character before being adopted by Xiao Chu. Even after his adoption, he had no interest in learning to read, focusing instead on building strength and mastering techniques, aspiring to follow in Xiao Chu’s footsteps and join the military.
It was only this year, after realizing that his adoptive father often studied characters and military texts at home, that he had an epiphany and began applying himself to literacy.
Having started late, his calligraphy was the worst in the academy.
As a result, his fellow students frequently mocked him, and Mi Yao, being a noble-born daughter who valued rules and talent above all, made Xiao Yi feel somewhat anxious.
"For your age, your writing is quite good. At your age, I could barely hold a brush steadily," Mi Yao remarked, looking at the neat regular script on the draft paper. She did not compare it to the original host’s learning progress but spoke of her own experience.
Her first encounter with a brush had been in first grade. Since the orphanage seldom taught writing, she had struggled even with holding a pencil in elementary school, practicing for a long time before mastering the correct grip.
When it came to holding a brush, she couldn't break the habit—her grip would unconsciously shift to how one holds a pencil, earning her scoldings from the teacher for being foolish.
This led her to believe she truly had underdeveloped brains and couldn't control her own hands. It wasn't until she grew older that she learned the saying, "There's no fixed method for holding a brush."
"Come here and write a few characters for me to see."
Remembering her own struggles with gripping a brush, Mi Yao called Xiao Yi forward. Noticing he wrote with a suspended wrist, she felt he had practiced well.
As for the slight tremors in his strokes, she glanced at his arm.
Whoever bullied him was clever—they avoided his face and instead targeted the arm he used for writing. This way, adults wouldn't notice, yet he'd still suffer.
Xiao Yi wrote the sentences taught by his teacher that day. After finishing, he set down the brush and stood before Mi Yao with his head lowered, showing no intention of speaking first.
"Elder Sister, I told you he doesn't appreciate kindness. Your coming here is pointless—he'll just play mute and say nothing."
"I didn't… I know to thank Mother for worrying about me… I just fell."
Hearing Yu Xiu's words, Xiao Yi feared Mi Yao might misunderstand and hurried to explain.
As he spoke, he stole a glance at Mi Yao's expression but couldn't discern her mood.
Over these days, he had come to clearly understand that Mi Yao was a softhearted person. She taught her younger sister to speak, worried her second brother felt lonely, and often invited him to the main courtyard.
In such circumstances, he wished he could be more self-reliant and avoid causing Mi Yao further trouble.
Yet no matter how well-behaved he was at the academy, there were always those who targeted him, finding him an eyesore.
"Tomorrow I'll visit your academy. Show me where you 'fell.'"
As Mi Yao spoke, she recalled Xiao Yi's usual school departure time and paused. "Of course, I won't be going with you—I can't wake up that early. I'll arrive before noon."
"I'm truly fine, Mother. There's no need for you to go out because of me."
Knowing Mi Yao didn't believe his excuse, Xiao Yi pressed his lips together. His younger brother and sister were still small and shared the Xiao family bloodline—it was natural for them to receive Mi Yao's care. But he was merely an adopted son.
"Will you have your meal at Tingsong Courtyard today, or come with me to the main courtyard?"
While he was still pondering how to dissuade her, Mi Yao had already stood up to leave. Hearing her question, Xiao Yi hesitated before replying, "This child will stay at Tingsong Courtyard."
Mi Yao acknowledged with a neutral tone. Xiao Yi couldn't tell whether her mention of visiting his academy tomorrow was sincere or just an offhand remark.
After the evening meal, when a physician arrived at the courtyard to examine his external injuries, Xiao Yi realized Mi Yao had taken his situation to heart.
After being checked head to toe by the physician and having ointment applied to every injured spot, Xiao Yi hesitated with flushed cheeks but ultimately went to the main courtyard.
After Mi Yao married his father, he had prepared himself to pay daily morning respects. But Mi Yao wasn't an early riser—every day when he left for the academy, she was still asleep.
Unable to offer morning greetings, he switched to evening visits.
However, after just one attempt, Mi Yao said she didn't care for such formalities. She told him to either play or sleep after finishing his evening meal and homework, rather than deliberately standing before her as punishment.
Understanding that Mi Yao disliked his frequent presence, he never visited the main courtyard again after that incident, only occasionally seeing her at Tingsong Courtyard.
Thinking of this, he grew even more confused about why Mi Yao had summoned a physician for him and planned to specially visit his academy tomorrow.
Could it be that because he was injured, he was no longer considered a burden?
Seeing Xiao Yi stand there silently after thanking her, Mi Yao paid him no mind and continued to fuss over the floral materials before her.
Having previously passed her time reading for leisure, she noticed her eyesight had slightly declined compared to before. So aside from making pastries, she had added flower arranging to her recreational activities.
She had never learned flower arranging in her modern life, and the original owner hadn't dabbled in it either.
Thus, her method of learning was to gather all the vase flower illustrations from the manor and follow along with other cultured scholars on how to arrange flowers.
After several attempts, she had begun to find some enjoyment in it.
Today, she was preparing a large-bellied blue-glazed vase, using wintersweet and nandina as the secondary branches, with camellia as the main flower.
The floral materials weren't complicated, but no matter how much she trimmed, it still differed from the illustration. As a result, her attention was entirely focused on the trimming.
"Is the floral scene I made beautiful?"
After finishing all the trimming, Mi Yao stepped back to admire it for a while before turning to the only audience in the room.
"Mother, the floral scene you made is very beautiful."
Xiao Yi hadn't expected a few branches of flowers to be arranged into such a lovely display. Previously, he hadn't thought Mi Yao was as others described—aloof and different from ordinary people, like a noble lady from a prestigious family.
But now it seemed she was indeed different from common folk.
Seeing Xiao Yi's expression, Mi Yao knew exactly what he was thinking: "I'm just finding a way to pass the time for myself. The shape was learned from a painter's illustration, and the floral materials were sent for by others. Although I don't deny my own skill, I'm not as remarkable as you think."
After saying this, Mi Yao instructed Shi Ya to take the floral scene outside and returned to the main topic.
She was someone who disliked trouble. If Xiao Yi kept things simple, she naturally wouldn't go out of her way to meddle in his affairs. But being bullied was no small matter, and she certainly couldn't turn a blind eye to it.
If Xiao Yi wasn't willing to be honest, then she would have to take the initiative and bring the matter to light.
"Your father's abilities are well-known, so it stands to reason that those who would provoke you wouldn't be ordinary people. I initially thought it might be the Ma family. Grandma Ma is thoughtless, treating Xiao Manor like her own backyard. I fired her relatives from the main kitchen and docked Mama Fan's monthly pay. Her recent silence is quite unlike her. But seeing how you'd rather die than speak, what? Is it the Zhao family bullying you?"
What kind of trouble could a child possibly stir up?
As soon as Yu Xiu mentioned that Xiao Yi was being bullied, Mi Yao thought of herself.
She first considered the Ma family, but when she saw Xiao Yi unwilling to speak in the study, she thought further and recalled how she had rejected Zhao Qi Niang's invitation letter two days ago.
Xiao Yi hadn't expected Mi Yao to guess the reason so easily, and even identify the right person. He was even more reluctant for her to go to the academy tomorrow.
"The one who attacked me today was Ma Hu's cousin. He's much older than me, and my boxing skills aren't as good as his. But since I suffered today, he should likely back off and stop bothering me in the future."
"If you suffered, why would he back off? Are you saying it backward? He needs to suffer before he'll back off."
After saying this, Mi Yao instructed Shi Ya to fetch her cloak: "Find a few strong, sturdy women to go out with us."
Considering that most of the manor staff were new and fearing she might not find women who could command respect, Mi Yao added, "Go find Pu Qing and ask him to assign me two guards."
She didn't mind causing a scene at someone else's residence late in the evening for the sake of her child, but safety was a must.
Hearing Mi Yao's instructions, Xiao Yi realized what she intended to do and stepped in front of her to stop her: "Mother, there's no need to do this for me. Ma Chengchun held back and didn't inflict any serious injuries on me."
Mi Yao truly admired Xiao Yi. Who else could claim their assailant had shown restraint while being beaten up?
"I know you're afraid of the Ma family's backing, and I also know it was the Zhao family who instigated the Ma boy to attack you. Rest assured, when I storm into their house, I'll act as if I didn't hear a word the Ma family says."
Mi Yao patted Xiao Yi's shoulder reassuringly: "The art of bullying the weak and fearing the strong isn't something only they understand—I know it too."
Before Xiao Yi could fully process her words, he saw her already dressed in her brocade cloak, striding out of the courtyard with radiant energy.