Offering Incense for the Birthday Celebration

"Young lady, this is Old Madam instructed us to give to each young lady in the three mansions."

Nanny Zhao brought over a box of crabapple blossom hairpins and two sets of clothes.

Xiruo took the gift and asked, "Is it the same style? Did you send one to the Second Miss's place?"

Nanny Zhao said, "It's the same. It's already been sent to the Second Miss."

Xiruo said coldly, "There is an order of seniority. From now on, you should send the Eldest Miss here first."

Nanny Zhao spoke first, then paused before saying, "... Yes."

Before leaving, she added, "Madam said to tell the girls to wear crabapple blossoms when they go to Ci'en Temple to pray for blessings; it's very fitting."

"Knew."

Xiruo took the clothes and jewelry inside for Lin Yunwan to try on. They fit her perfectly.

She changed her clothes and went to Nanny Fan's class. Nanny Fan asked them to draw flower patterns and to draw the flowers from the flower market from memory.

Nanny Fan watched over them in the Side Room for a while before going out for some fresh air.

Lin Yunjiao looked up and spoke to Lin Yunwan, "Where did you go when we were at the flower market? I haven't seen you anywhere."

Lin Yunwan ignored her.

Lin Yunjiao frowned and said, "Lin Yun Wan, are you deaf?"

Xiruo overheard this outside, came in and said, "Second Miss, you don't even address the Eldest Miss. How is the Eldest Miss supposed to know who you're talking to?"

Lin Yunjiao, "Who do you think you are, a mere maid, to teach me...?"

Nanny Fan was looking this way from the Courtyard.

Lin Yunjiao glared at Xiruo reluctantly said to Lin Yunwan, "Eldest Sister, you'd better tell me where you went, or I'll go tell Father and Mother on you..."

Lin Yunwan and said calmly, "I'm going to see the flowers."

"Otherwise, how could I have drawn these flowers?"

She laid out the several flower patterns she had drawn on the table.

Lin Yunjiao glanced at it and shut her mouth.

Nanny Fan came in, smiling, and asked, "Is everything finished?"

Lin Yunjiao pouted, Lin Yunwan said, "Granny, it's finished."

Nanny Fan accepted Lin Yunwan's calligraphy practice and said with a smile, "Young lady, you've done a very good job. You've improved a lot. It's completely different from when you first started practicing calligraphy here."

She looked at several pages in a row, nodding the whole time.

Nanny Fan added, "We're going to Ci'en Temple tomorrow, and I have to go back to the Old Madam's place. Please go back first after you've finished drawing, young lady."

Lin Yunwan got up to take her leave.

Lin Yunjiao watched her walk away, feeling a little anxious. She could leave once she finished drawing; why didn't the nanny say so sooner? She definitely wanted to leave before Lin Yun Wan!

Nanny Fan knew Lin Yunjiao was anxious, and said to her, "Second Miss, please calm down. If you don't draw it well, you'll have to start all over again. Why bother?"

"Don't aim for instant success, but also don't waste your efforts."

Lin Yunjiao gritted her teeth secretly, and as she continued to draw, her mind calmed down.

If that girl from the countryside can draw it well, so can she!

When Lin Yunjiao finally left, she was still seething with anger.

"If it weren't for my help, why would Nanny Fan have taught Lin Yun Wan! She even drew faster than me."

The maid dared not utter a sound.

Lin Yunjiao then asked, "Did you see the flowers she drew just now? Weren't they as good as mine?"

The maid stammered, "... Yes."

Lin Yunjiao frowned and asked, "Have you forgotten how to speak? If you saw it, you saw it; if you didn't see it, you didn't see it."

"This servant didn't see it."

Lin Yunjiao, "Next time, open your eyes wider!"

"... yes."

Lin Yunjiao went to pay her respects to Zheng Shi, but unexpectedly Lin Yunwan came out from inside.

What are you doing here?

Lin Yunwan said, "Greetings to Madam and Master."

"Dad's back?"

Lin Yunwan said calmly, "Master is in a bad mood, you'd better not go in."

Do you think you can be like me?

Lin Yunjiao.

Lin Yunwan also left with a smile.

Xiruo whispered, "... Master is so anxious because he can't find Lingxiang! Going there, Second Miss, will only bring bad luck."

The same applies to biological daughters.

Sure enough, not long after they left, Lin Yunjiao was also kicked out.

Lin Huabin and Zheng Shi were arguing inside.

Originally, the two of them weren't arguing, Zheng Shi was anxious, and Lin Huabin was worried about affecting the Old Madam's birthday celebration. So the couple started talking back and forth, and their voices got louder.

Lin Huabin frowned and sighed inside the room, "Lingxiang is just a maid, where can she hide?"

The men he sent out, along with those sent by the Prefect, searched together, but they couldn't find it.

Zheng Shi was extremely flustered. "Master, do you think you might have offended someone... who deliberately chose to cause trouble on the Old Madam's birthday?"

Lin Huabin frowned and asked, "Whom would I offend?"

He was always kind and righteous as long as no one provoked him, and he never offended anyone outside.

Zheng Shi wrung out her handkerchief and said, "You are a good person, but you can't help but be petty and narrow-minded by outsiders, don't you think?"

Lin Huabin sneered, "If Lingxiang dares to make false accusations, it won't matter who tells her to complain."

You know perfectly well what you've done.

He had personally seen the complaint that Lingxiang handed him!

Zheng Shi stood up and said, "What did I do! She's just talking nonsense!"

"That would be best."

Lin Huabin turned and left, then ordered his trusted men to continue searching for people.

They hadn't found Lingxiang even after arriving at the Lin Residence and heading to Ci'en Temple.

Lin Huabin personally selected the family's guards to escort the Old Madam when she went out. He instructed the head guard, "... If you see any suspicious women, stop them immediately."

Worried that Lingxiang might sneak into Ci'en Temple, he instructed her, "Once inside, surround the Old Madam's quarters tightly; don't let even a fly get in."

The head nurse, a square-faced and very taciturn man, nodded and proceeded to give instructions layer by layer according to the master's wishes.

The Lin family's carriages drove one by one toward Ci'en Temple, and officials from the yamen came out to help clear the road.

Many of the gentlemen Madam from West Lin Residence also came, and their carriages were parked outside Ci'en Temple.

"Miss, we've arrived."

Xiruo helped Lin Yunwan down from the carriage. It was very lively outside. A porridge stall had been set up, and the Stewardess Eldest Master the East Lin Residence, along with their Matron and servants, were distributing porridge to passersby.

Lin Yunwan glanced at it and said, "The Matron in the Eldest Master's mansion are very skilled; it seems they often do things like distributing porridge. The Old Madam is a kind and generous person."

Xiruo said, "When I arrived, I heard the servants from East Lin praising our Old Madam. It didn't sound like mere polite talk; the Old Madam is a truly kind person."

The two men spoke in hushed tones, and all the young wives and girls from the East Lin and West Lin Residence got off their carriages and filled the area outside Ci'en Temple.

Xiruo exclaimed in surprise, "There are so many people in both mansions..."

Roughly counting, there are at least thirty.

Lin Yunwan said, "There are quite a few people from West Lin Residence."

Their clothes were all very expensive, and the Young Madam 'Madam demeanor clearly overshadowed that of Zheng Shi.

Xiruo whispered, "In this situation, Master can no longer pretend to be deaf and dumb."