After five years away from home, Ruan Qi chatted with the old Marquis and his wife until late on the first night after returning.
In front of Ruan Qi, his parents praised Ruan Mianmian fiercely. On the surface, he didn't say anything, but deep down he felt a little sour. In the past, he was the person they always praised.
Ruan Qi thought about it carefully. It took several generations of the Ruan family to have a daughter like Ruan Mianmian. It is understandable that the old Marquis and his wife were too pampering and exaggerated. Thinking this way, he felt more mentally balanced.
Unexpectedly, Ruan Mianmian was not only arrogant but also extremely difficult to deal with. After hearing Zhou Yuning's words, she really felt a little upset.
Seeing Ruan Qi's silence, Zhou Yunning felt that he might not understand Ruan Mianmian, and felt that she had spoken too much, so she put down her posture.
"Sanlang, Mianmian is just like you, extremely smart."
"Well, it looks like me." Ruan Mianmian's face appeared in Ruan Qi's mind. That little face looked very similar to his, and it was more delicate.
Hearing what Ruan Qi said, Zhou Yunning breathed a sigh of relief. Father and daughter are father and daughter after all.
"Mianmian is also a famous figure in the capital now."
"What?" Ruan Qi's brows almost knitted together when he heard Zhou Yunning's words, "A loving mother often loses her son. What kind of influential figure? It's because of all your pampering and flattery that she becomes arrogant."
Zhou Yunning was not annoyed after hearing this but instead chuckled and said, "I have never praised her. If she is not smart, how can the emperor call her 'Princess Linglong'?"
"By the way, what happened?" Ruan Qi still can't believe it. Ruan Mianmian is only five years old. In his memory, the emperor has never canonized a princess of the opposite sex.
When Ruan Qi asked, Zhou Yunning naturally told Ruan Mianmian's deeds in detail.
After hearing this, Ruan Qi was very shocked. After being surprised, he actually felt a little jealous.
Ruan Qi was raised with support since he was a child, but under the light of Ruan Mianmian's extraordinary talent, he found that he was really inferior. His daughter invisibly undermined his self-confidence, making him seem extremely useless as a father.
Unknowingly, it was getting late, and Zhou Yunning hinted that Ruan Qi should rest. Unexpectedly, he said that he was going to the study and asked her to go back to her room to rest first.
That night, Zhou Yunning tossed and turned. She vaguely felt that Ruan Qi had changed his mind, but she didn't want to think about it too much. She still had expectations in her heart, thinking that he would go back to his room later.
It wasn't until the middle of the night that Zhou Yunning couldn't help but get up and walk to the window to peek. When she saw that the lights in the study had been extinguished, she returned to the bed.
The moment she closed her eyes, tears fell from the corners of her eyes and fell on the pillow. Zhou Yuning couldn't help but feel sad.
The next day, at dawn, Ruan Mianmian sat up and Jiuer stepped forward to serve him.
"Did he spend the night at mother's place last night?"
Jiu'er was stunned for a moment. Although the princess was young, she cared about adults' affairs. She hesitated whether to say something or not.
"Let's spend the night in the study." Ruan Mianmian murmured before Jiu'er could answer.
"Yes, the third master and the third lady chatted for a long time and then went to the study room and didn't come out after that."
Jiuer secretly laughed at herself for worrying too much. The princess was not an ordinary person, she was much smarter than the adults.
"Humph." Ruan Mianmian knew what was going on.
Normally under such circumstances, Ruan Qi should be more kind to Zhou Yunning after he comes back, but now it seems that he is deliberately neglecting her. Ruan Mianmian really doesn't believe that the scumbag father has no other thoughts. She really feels for her mother.
not worth.
No matter what, he would not let his mother be wronged in the slightest. Thinking of this, Ruan Mianmian got up and washed up before going to see Zhou Yunning.
Although Zhou Yunning didn't say anything, Ruan Mianmian knew from her forced smile and the dark circles under her eyes that makeup couldn't cover up that she hadn't slept well and was probably still thinking about him.
Ruan Qi ordered his servants to send breakfast to the study, and Zhou Yunning and her daughter had breakfast together.
Ruan Mianmian thought that she could not let her mother stay in Yanlongyuan anymore, fearing that she would think too much, and was thinking about whether to go out for a walk with her mother today.
At this moment, the servant reported that Miss Gu was visiting, and she also specified that she wanted to visit the third lady.
A light flashed in his eyes, and a sneer appeared at the corner of Xiaonuituanzi's mouth. On the second day after arriving at the Ding'an Marquis Mansion, Gu Ling'an couldn't sit still and came to the door.
Well, let's see what she wants?
"Miss Gu, please come and sit in the hall. I'll be here soon." Zhou Yunning didn't like Gu Ling'an, but she couldn't say he disliked her. After all, she was Ruan Qi's savior.
"Sister Shuang'er, help my mother change her clothes and make up." Ruan Mianmian ordered lightly.
Zhou Yuning smiled and said: "No need."
"The visitor is a guest," Ruan Mianmian said.
Shuang'er is much smarter than Zhou Yuning. She still has a bit of a wink despite her years. The third lady has a big heart, so she should be smarter as a personal maid.
"The Princess is right, Third Madam, it is not good to be rude."
Recalling that things were no better than before, and that Ruan Qi valued etiquette the most, Zhou Yunning nodded lightly.
Gu Ling'an came to the gate of Yanlongyuan, and after a while the boy guarding the door took him into the front yard.
Immediately, a little maid stepped forward to meet him and led Gu Ling'an into the main courtyard.
Arriving at the courtyard in front of the hall, another more decent-looking maid welcomed Gu Ling'an into the hall.
It seemed complicated, but it actually showed the family's heritage. Gu Ling'an didn't expect that there were so many rules just for ushering in.
I originally thought that Lanyuan was better than the wealthy family in Jiangnan and was already the best courtyard. Now that I saw the Yancong Courtyard, Gu Lingan's horizons were opened.
If Lanyuan is exquisite and compact, then Yanlongyuan is low-key and luxurious. Even the area seems to be much larger, probably more than three or four times.
Barely suppressing the shock in her heart, Gu Lingan originally thought that Jiangnan was rich and prosperous, but at best there was a gap between it and the capital. After entering the Ding'an Marquis Mansion, she realized that she was like a frog at the bottom of a well, looking at the sky from a well.
Yesterday, Mrs. Ruan was thoughtful and had someone send new clothes and jewelry to Gu Ling'an.
In order to come to see Zhou Yunning, Gu Lingan took great pains to dress up carefully before coming.
Looking at the maids big and small along the way, Gu Ling'an's confidence when she arrived was completely crushed, especially the eldest maid beside her who was leading her forward. Her outfit was not much different from hers.
Fortunately, there were still jewelry. Gu Ling'an raised her hand and touched the hairpin on her head, the jade bracelet on her wrist, and looked at the sapphire ring on her finger. This outfit was a gift from Mrs. Ruan, and it looked like a good thing.
Gu Ling'an, who finally regained some confidence, followed the maid into the hall of the Yanlong Courtyard. She was stunned for a moment when she stepped across the threshold.
The person sitting on the main seat in the middle of the hall was not Zhou Yunning, but her daughter Ruan Mianmian.
Behind the little breasted dumpling stood Jiu'er, with eight maids in front of her lined up in two rows, waiting on her to wash her hands.
Gu Ling'an was dumbfounded. She had never seen such a big battle to wash hands.
A maid kneeled in front of the little breast dumpling, the maid next to her gently rolled up her sleeves, and the other maid gently washed her hands.
Three people changed the water in three basins three times in a row. The seventh maid wiped the little breast dumpling's hands clean, and the last maid came forward and took out the emollient balm and applied it evenly.
After everything was done, the eight maids lined up in two rows, saluted and then slowly retreated. This chapter has been completed!