“You’re saying I died at the Marquis’s front gate.” Zhou Yunning murmured absentmindedly, “Even after I was gone, A-Qi never came back?”
“I don’t know if Daddy came back, but I don’t want to die, and I don’t want Mommy to die either.” Ruan Mianmian hugged Zhou Yunning tightly.
Zhou Yunning raised her sleeve to wipe away Ruan Mianmian’s tears: “You won’t. Don’t cry. Mommy will protect you.”
Ruan Mianmian said stubbornly and confidently, “I want to live well. I want to protect Mommy. We’ll wait together for Daddy to come back.”
Zhou Yunning understood. That dream had awakened Ruan Mianmian. Even a three-year-old little milk dumpling could bravely straighten her back and face reality—so what about herself?
“My precious.” Zhou Yunning embraced Ruan Mianmian. “It’s Mommy’s fault. Mommy was thinking wrongly.”
“Mommy, believe me. You must believe me.”
“Alright, Mommy believes you.”
Ruan Mianmian let out a breath of relief. The hardest hurdle had finally been passed. She would surely honor and protect her mother on behalf of the original owner, reclaim everything that belonged to her, and make the evildoers receive the punishment they deserved.
At this thought, the heavy feeling that had been pressing on Ruan Mianmian’s chest like a stone suddenly disappeared.
On the surface, the farce between Qin Ruolan and Ruan Mianmian appeared to be just children squabbling, but in reality, the first branch had been humiliated, the second branch was watching the show, and the third branch was quietly rising.
After several days of recuperation, Ruan Mianmian was no longer in any danger. She discovered that being a naive and adorable little dumpling was actually quite nice.
In the afternoon, the sun hung high in the sky. Ruan Mianmian ran out of her little wooden house and casually picked a handful of wildflowers and grass.
Sitting leisurely under the shade of a tree to cool off, the fragrance of the flowers in her hands attracted a few small butterflies that fluttered around Ruan Mianmian in dance.
“Young Master, can you play by yourself for a while?” Shuang’er walked out of the house with a basket on her arm.
“Sister Shuang’er, where are you going?”
“The needlework that the Third Madam stayed up all night to finish needs to be delivered to someone today. I’ll also exchange it for some silver to buy daily necessities.”
Ruan Mianmian dashed up to Shuang’er, stood on her tiptoes, and rummaged through the embroidered items in the basket to examine them: “Mommy’s hands are so skillful. The embroidery is so beautiful.”
“Yes, the Third Madam’s embroidery skills are superb. I overheard the noble ladies at the embroidery workshop chatting, saying the style of the embroidery resembles that of Jiangnan. If someone said these embroideries were tribute items, no one would doubt it.”
Ruan Mianmian’s round, rolling eyes darted about. Their entire livelihood depended on her mother’s hands.
With her mother possessing such exceptional skills, Ruan Mianmian saw a business opportunity. A vague idea began to form in her mind.
“The Third Madam is resting right now. If I leave, there will be no one to watch over you.”
Wonderful—finally a chance! Ruan Mianmian was elated inside but put on a well-behaved appearance on the surface: “Don’t worry, go ahead. I won’t disturb Mommy’s afternoon nap.”
“Then you mustn’t leave our courtyard, alright? I’ll hurry back before the sun sets to cook.”
“Got it.”
Ruan Mianmian waved her little hand at Shuang’er with a face full of smiles. She said “got it,” but she hadn’t promised not to go out.
Watching Shuang’er’s figure disappear, Ruan Mianmian turned and ran toward the back of the house.
There was a hole in the fence wall behind the house. Adults couldn’t squeeze through, but Ruan Mianmian, this little milk dumpling, had no problem getting in and out.
Walking along the way, Ruan Mianmian couldn’t help but marvel: As expected of Marquis Ding’an’s Residence—the pavilions and towers were quite luxurious, and the garden’s arrangements were exquisitely done.
Thinking about the Liluoju where the three of them lived, it stood in stark contrast to this estate—simply completely out of place.
It was relatively hot at noon, and most people were resting indoors in the afternoon, making the vast garden seem empty.
“Meow—!” An unexpected cry broke the silence and caught Ruan Mianmian’s attention.
Looking around, she found the sound came from the left, where a small path was separated from this one by dense bushes.
There was a relatively large gap between two bushes. Relying on her small size, Ruan Mianmian crawled on the ground like a puppy and squeezed through.
Eh! As Ruan Mianmian crawled over, she came face to face with a large snow-white cat.
The big white cat had a round head and a fluffy long tail, looking quite cute. Ruan Mianmian grinned—she had always loved small animals, especially cats.
“Meow meow, what are you doing?” Ruan Mianmian blinked and asked.
The big white cat arched its body and stared warily at Ruan Mianmian. Perhaps it sensed her goodwill, for it soon relaxed.
Ruan Mianmian slowly reached out her hand. The big white cat took half a step back but did not retreat further. Her small hand gently stroked its back.
After a moment, Ruan Mianmian sat under the shade of a tree, the big white cat curled up in her arms, the person and cat getting along extremely well.
Qin Ruolan’s closed-door reflection was a pretense; the truth was she had lost face and did not want to go out. But after staying in her Lanyuan for several days in a row, she could not sit still any longer.
It was noon now, and there was probably no one outside. Qin Ruolan could not resist taking Xiaoxi out for a stroll.
After Xiaoxi received the beating, she still walked with a limp after several days. However, the first madam, Chen Wanyu, had secretly rewarded her with many things and trusted her even more, instructing her to serve Qin Ruolan well.
Once outside, Qin Ruolan was in great spirits. She hummed a little tune softly, skipped along, and casually picked a flower to wear.
“Miss Biao, look.” Xiaoxi had sharp eyes and spotted Ruan Mianmian from far away.
The smile disappeared from the corner of Qin Ruolan’s mouth: “What bad luck, why did I run into the little mute again?”
“Never mind him, let’s go.” Xiaoxi could not help touching her buttocks, which still hurt.
“No, don’t alert him. Let’s quietly go over and take a look.”
Qin Ruolan tiptoed along the small path toward Ruan Mianmian’s direction, and Xiaoxi hurried to follow.
When they reached the big tree not far from Ruan Mianmian, they happened to see her stand up. The two of them hid silently behind the big tree.
“Meow meow, I should go back now. Mother will worry if she wakes up and doesn’t see me. You should go back and find your owner too.”
Ruan Mianmian held the big white cat with one hand and vigorously rubbed its round head with the other before setting it down.
The big white cat was clean and wore a collar around its neck, clearly owned by someone. Otherwise, Ruan Mianmian really would have wanted to take it back to Liluoju.
“Meow—!” The big white cat cried as if understanding human nature.
Ruan Mianmian squatted down again, the person and cat gazing at each other, reluctant to part.
After thinking for a moment, Ruan Mianmian rolled up her pant leg and pulled down her sock to reveal her ankle.
Around her ankle was an anklet with two little bells. Ruan Mianmian took out one bell, then removed the big white cat’s collar, hung the bell on it, and put the collar back on for it.
“Meow meow, this is a gift for you.”
The big white cat nuzzled Ruan Mianmian’s hand. She patted its head lightly and then left.
Seeing Ruan Mianmian walk far away, Qin Ruolan came out from behind the big tree. She quickly reached out and hugged the big white cat: “Xue’er.”
The big white cat struggled once, but hearing Qin Ruolan call its name, it looked back—perhaps recognizing her—and after a cry, let itself be held.
“Miss, what did that little mute give Snowball?”
Xiaoxi was curious—from that distance, the mistress and her maid hadn’t been able to see clearly.
Qin Ruolan didn’t answer. She lifted Snowball’s neck, and the two of them saw the little bell that Ruan Mianmian had given it.
“A bell.” Xiaoxi’s face was full of disdain. “I knew the third branch couldn’t come up with anything good.”