Wealth and glory seek stability

Chapter 256: Girl's Concern

"Hurry, the lady is back."

Aqing's voice came from the yard. Yan Jiang was busy cleaning up the pots and pans. She saw Yan Zhikuan coming in with Jian Xi.

Caixia stood up belatedly, as if her whole soul was frozen.

Ever since she learned of Jian Xi's death, she had told herself thousands of times that the news could not be true. She even found it difficult to concentrate while embroidering, and her performance was less than one-tenth of her usual level.

A woman in a royal blue dress pushed the door open and walked in, her eyes gentle and smiling, "What? Are you unhappy to hear that I'm back?"

Caixia looked at the familiar face in astonishment, and the worry and guilt that had been pent up in her heart for many days turned into grievance.

"I'm happy. I just thought I would never see my sister again. A few days ago, I heard that my sister died at the hands of traitors in the suburbs of Beijing. I regretted why I didn't keep my sister. If we had hidden here together, perhaps this would not have happened." As he spoke, his voice became weaker and weaker. He couldn't stop the tears in his eyes and he didn't even have the strength to speak.

Caixia didn't know what was wrong with her.

The furnishings in the room are still the same as when Jian Xi was here.

Jian Xi stepped forward and gently patted Caixia's head, "Okay, I'm back, don't cry. My Caixia is so pretty, it won't look good if her eyes are swollen from crying." She gently wiped away the tears on Caixia's face with a handkerchief.

Caixia blushed, and then she noticed Jian Xi's bulging belly. She quickly brought a stool and placed it behind Jian Xi. She helped Jian Xi sit down slowly with both hands, "Sister, please sit down. You are pregnant now, so you can't stand for long."

Qiao'er always felt that it was not right to stand there, nor was it right to go out. After thinking for a while, she took out a white jade ring from her arms and knelt in front of Jian Xi.

"Madam, this white jade ring was given to me by you. Qiao'er was able to save her life thanks to your kindness and generosity. Now Qiao'er is returning to its original owner."

Jian Xi had almost forgotten about this matter. She took the white jade ring and looked at it carefully for a long time before she remembered what happened.

The longer I'm pregnant, the worse my memory seems to be.

"It's you. Since Caixia is willing to bring you out, I think it's because you have accumulated good karma. I don't need this thing now. It's not easy for a weak woman like you to live. Keep it." Jian Xi had a smile in her eyes, and there was some kindness in her eyes when she looked at Qiao'er.

Qiao'er felt warm in her heart. She had only a shallow foundation in the palace. When she left, she remembered what Jian Xi said about planning for herself. "Thanks to Madam's teachings, when the rebels attacked the city that day, I took advantage of the chaos to steal a few sets of jewelry from Madam's dressing table. They were all things Madam kept to confuse the rebels. They were very valuable and were enough for me to live comfortably for the rest of my life. I really can't keep this white jade ring anymore."

"As a girl, the more money you have, the better. Just keep it."

Qiao'er took a look at what Jian Xi was wearing. Even her hair was inlaid with precious jewels, so she thought she had nothing to lose.

Caixia chimed in, "Just take what my sister gives you."

Jian Xi has always been generous to the people around her, and Caixia understands this very well.

Qiao'er bowed her head and saluted sincerely, "Qiao'er thanks you, Madam."

Ah Qing was knocking on the door outside.

"Madam, my mother has asked my father to go out to buy meat and wine. Why don't you stay here and have a simple meal?"

Hearing this, Caixia looked at Jian Xi with expectant eyes. They hadn't eaten together for a long time.

Jian Xi shook her head. "No, I have to go somewhere else soon, so I'd like to ask Uncle Yan and the others to stop busying themselves."

Caixia was a little reluctant and pulled Jian Xi's sleeve, "Sister, please stay for dinner."

Jian Xi patted Caixia's hand and said, "I'm going to Manager Qi's house. Caiyun is there too. Why don't you come with me and we can get together at their house."

Caixia's eyes lit up, and her lips curled up, but she was afraid that she was not steady enough, so she suppressed it, "Okay."

Jian Xi chuckled, took Caixia's hand and went out.

Qiao'er stood there and watched the two people walking away together. She felt a little lost when she thought of herself wandering alone and no one cared about her.

After a while, Qiao'er gathered her thoughts and went to the kitchen to help Yan Jiang.

Yan Jiang looked at the hardworking and down-to-earth Qiao'er, nodded secretly, and felt satisfied.

This girl is a capable one, and Yan Jiang has seen all of Qiao'er's thoughts in the past.

It’s time for my son to get married.

*

On the carriage.

Caixia started talking and kept asking Jianxi about her situation these days.

Jian Xi talked about how she faked her death and escaped, followed Zhang Cen'er to the Xuanwu Dynasty, the bonfire party on the Wenshan grassland, and the flowers blooming in the ice in the Xuanwu imperial capital and the mysterious witch clan...

Caixia looked longing, it turned out that the world outside was so fun.

The farthest place she had ever been to in her life was the capital city. She always thought that the capital city was the most prosperous place she had ever seen, but she didn't expect that the world outside was so wonderful.

"Sister, you said you are a female official now. Can women be officials? No way?!"

Caixia's eyes were shining and her face was full of disbelief.

Jian Xi took out a token that symbolized her identity from her bosom and pointed to the back of the token to Caixia, "Look, this is my name. This token is a symbol of the identity of an official of the Xuanwu Dynasty. The official's name is engraved on the back. It can't be fake."

Caixia took the token and looked through it carefully. "As expected of a sister, you are always one step ahead of others in everything you do. This is the case with learning embroidery. I am really happy for you to still have such a good life after leaving the capital."

Jian Xi did not miss the fleeting loneliness in Caixia's eyes. "What are your plans for the future? I won't be back for too long this time. There are important things waiting for me to do in Saibei. Caiyun and Laixi are settled now. What do you think? I can still make the decision for you now."

Caixia understood the unspoken meaning in Jian Xi's words.

She didn't want to get married. Dingxiang was the most skilled embroiderer in the palace, and she carefully chose to marry a scholar from a poor family.

Because there was a daughter in the household, Xiucai was considered to be marrying into the family. Not only did Xiucai's family often rely on Dingxiang for support, but the mother-in-law also bullied Dingxiang openly and secretly.

At the beginning of this year, I heard that Dingxiang died of complications during childbirth and passed away after giving birth to a boy.

In the palace, the men of the Baili family are considered to have better character among the aristocratic men, and they have three wives and four concubines.

Although Caixia was concentrating on embroidering in Xia's room, she heard a lot of rumors.

"Sister, I think all men in the world are bad. They are all unfaithful and unlucky. Even if they love each other at first, they will inevitably change their minds in the future. I don't want to get married."

Jian Xi:.......