Chapter 6: and

She let Siqin support her as she made her way to the table. "Rui-ge'er, you've worked hard these past few days. Sit down and have something to eat with your sister."

Xiao Chenrui nodded and sat down.

After eating a small bowl of tonic, Yunyi refused to let them serve her any more. Instead, she drank a bowl of porridge with some side dishes, finally feeling a bit of strength return to her body.

Seeing her younger brother put down his chopsticks, Yunyi said, "Rui-ge'er, go back to your courtyard. You mustn't fall behind in your studies. I will be well after resting for a few days, so you don't need to worry anymore."

Xiao Chenrui stood up. "Then rest well, Sister. I will go to the neighboring courtyard to check on our little brother before returning to review my books."

Once everyone had left, Yunyi said to the young maid, "I'm tired and want to rest for a while. Close the door and go on; don't come in to disturb me unless there's something important."

Siqin bowed. "Yes, Miss."

Once the room was empty, she began to sort through the original owner's memories again. After all, the official rank was not high, and the family members were few. Because the grandmother had fallen seriously ill some time ago, the household affairs were currently managed by the eldest mistress, Madam He.

The eldest uncle was a scholar; even though his eldest son was already married, he himself was still only a *xiucai*. Yet, he firmly believed that "where there is a will, there is a way," and persisted in trying to pass the imperial examinations.

From the original owner's memories, she knew that the young masters of the manor were sent to prestigious academies in the capital once they reached the appropriate age. The hope was that they would either distinguish themselves through the imperial examinations or, if a career in officialdom proved impossible, at least build connections with the sons of other noble families.

To this end, most of the manor's monthly income was spent on them, all to foster good relationships with the wealthy and powerful young masters at the academies.

As for the young ladies of the manor, a female tutor had been hired to teach them how to read and write, with the hope that they might marry into prominent families in the future and become assets to the Xiao household. Consequently, life in the manor was actually quite strained.

The original owner had been quite favored in the manor previously. After all, although her father was not the eldest son, he held an official position and was only one rank below the grandfather, so the people in the manor did not dare to easily offend the second branch.

But thinking about how their second branch now lacked parents, she feared that life would no longer be as leisurely and carefree as before; the people in the manor were experts at trimming their sails to the wind.

Thinking of the guilty expression the manor physician had worn earlier, and then considering Madam He's actions, it was clear that Madam He was not someone easy to deal with.

At this thought, she took her own pulse and let out a cold laugh. It was exactly as she had suspected; Madam He of the first branch was truly a vicious person. It seemed that the medicinal soups the original owner had been drinking these past few days had been tampered with.

The manor physician still had some conscience, but in the end, the original owner hadn't survived. Even if the physician hadn't followed Madam He's instructions entirely, he had still cost the original owner her life.

Thinking of the original owner's little brother, who was only two months old, she couldn't help but feel a sense of irritation. They were not a high-ranking noble family to begin with, and their daily provisions were pitifully meager.

Now that they lacked the protection of their parents, Madam He was truly capable of anything. She hadn't even sent the monthly allowance to the young masters and misses of the second branch for the past two months. It seemed her character was truly worse than average.

She sighed, wishing that her space had followed her here, and habitually tried to communicate with it using her thoughts.

The result of this attempt gave her a start. The space had indeed followed her, but it was no longer the way it used to be.

She pricked up her ears to listen for any movement outside, then slowly got out of bed. She peeked through the crack in the door and saw the young maid, Siqin, sitting in a pavilion five or six meters away, doing needlework.

She tiptoed back to bolt the door, then returned to the bed, lowered the gauze curtains, and entered the space.