)

  "Right, I want to go to another courtyard, Ma Bo has found some skilled craftsmen, I want to see if they have wasted my purple sand mud."

  "Why is that soil called Zisha mud?"

  "I saw in a travelogue that this soil is special, used to make tea sets and brew tea which is very beneficial for the body, and the tea will be very fragrant. After a long time, even without putting tea leaves, there will still be a tea fragrance. However, the travelogue said that this purple sand soil is hard to come by and usually comes with a large amount of alumina soil. You brought me so much purple sand soil, where's the alumina soil?"

  It's not as good as the initial one. If she thinks so highly of the purple sand mud, but it's actually something that ordinary people look down on, Qi You thought to herself, "If it's just a matter of using the common 'jia ni' mud to make tea pots and bowls, then it won't be wasted."

  "That's good, if I want it again later, will it be a lot of trouble?"

  "No, I have someone keeping watch there, and if it arrives, they will send it over to you."

  "You have someone directly send it to another hospital, don't draw attention from others."

  Qī Yòu nodded in response, feeling that Rú Chū was secretly using force to try and break free from his grasp. He didn't continue to restrain her, instead taking a red cloth package from his bosom and placing it in her palm before releasing his grip.

  "What?"

  "Take a look."

  She rubbed her palms on her knees and wiped off the wet palms before opening the red silk.

  "Is this... Purple Jade?"

  He was very satisfied to see her surprised look, Qi You covered up and picked up the teacup to take a sip, without looking at her, saying "In Taiyuan, jade accessories are not valuable, not many people wear them, so they don't get much attention. I saw this piece of jade unintentionally, thinking you might like it, so I brought it back."

  Jade was indeed not as valuable as gold in the Southern Dynasty, but this did not include purple jade. Purple jade was extremely rare and because of a legend from the Southern Dynasty, it was considered an auspicious object that could ward off evil spirits by the people of the Southern Dynasty. She had only a small piece, about the size of a fingernail, in her hand. When her mother saw it, she was excited for a long time and repeatedly warned her not to lose it when preparing her dowry, as it would bring her good luck.

  Although she didn't believe in those things, when a man went to such great lengths to find her this large piece of purple jade with special meaning, her heart sank heavily, and the force of it made Hua Ruyi unconsciously press her hand against it.

  Even the lower-ranking concubines value Ziyu's worth, and she doesn't believe that Qiyou wouldn't. If this were to be presented to the Crown Prince, whether he uses it to win the favor of his consort or the affection of the palace nobles, the benefits are self-evident.

  Ke Xiu gave it to her.

  Qī Yòu only thought she was happy, her eyes became softer, and she felt that this time it was worth using her power for personal gain.

  That night, Hua Ruochu was more passionate than ever before, completely opening up her body to accept Qi You's invasion. As their breaths intertwined, looking at the man's joyful expression, she suddenly felt a pang of regret - if only this man could be hers alone, how great that would be.

  This is a greedy desire that everyone has, it's just that others don't dare to put it into action.

  And she, yielding to worldly ways, surrendered her body, but was unwilling and dared not surrender her heart.

  Qī Zhēn rarely left the mansion, and now she was sitting in a soft sedan chair with her sister-in-law, so excited that she couldn't sit still.

  "Sister-in-law, is everything really okay? Will Mother give you a hard time?"

  "You've asked several times already." Hua Ru Chu smoothed her temples, "I said it's nothing, it really is nothing. Your brother's matter, when we went to ask grandmother for instructions, grandmother also personally agreed, mother will not make things difficult for me."

  Qī Zhēn looked embarrassed, twisting her handkerchief, "I'm just afraid of bringing you trouble. Mother has been strict with me, even when some family sends an invitation for me to visit and play, she still asks about it multiple times."

  "It's okay, don't worry."

  Hua Ru didn't explain any further, now that she had the prince's edict in her hand, not even her grandfather would dare to stop her from leaving the mansion. With her grandparents present, Qi Wu wouldn't dare make things difficult for her, at most she might say a few unpleasant words when Hua Ru went to pay her respects.

  They arrived at another courtyard, and Yunshu took Qi Zhen on a tour around the place. Hua Ru followed Ma Bo to the innermost courtyard.

  "On the way, Ma Bo said in a low voice that Master Ge Yunjun's skills are really good, and they have been passed down from his family. However, he has a strange temperament. I heard that his ancestors were extremely wealthy, but he only regards this as a hobby and doesn't make money from it. I was lucky to be able to invite him over. When he was 14 years old, he contracted a serious illness and spent all of his family's savings without seeing any improvement. I promised him that we would take care of all the expenses before he recovered, and he reluctantly agreed to work for us. However, being a slave is out of the question."

  Still quite proud, Hua Ru Xian is satisfied with his initial thoughts.

  As long as she isn't too arrogant, she can accept it; the master's family all hope that their servants will be obedient and well-behaved.

  She hopes he is a person with his own ideas and doesn't follow the crowd.

  Having forbidden others from following, Hua Ruochu and Ma Bo entered the courtyard together.

  It was very quiet inside, and even the two young servants who had been sent by Ma Bo to attend to them tiptoed in and greeted them softly.

  Ma Bo worried about being blamed, and quickly explained in a low voice that Ge Shifu had a big temper, especially when working, he couldn't tolerate even half a sound, yesterday I was still scolded by him, don't mind.

  "Go take a look."

  There were not a few traces of mud in the room, and a middle-aged man sat in the middle of the house, about 40 years old, wearing half-old clothes, splashed with mud, but gave people an extremely regular feeling.

  With both hands stained with mud, he carefully shaped it, his expression solemn and almost reverent.

  He signaled to Ma Bo not to make a sound, and Hua Ru Chuan looked around for a while before retreating.

  Regardless of whether Ge Yunjun can get the purple sand pot out or not, her attitude has already been recognized.

  Out of the yard, Hua Ruochu asked, "Have you made any finished products in the past two days?"

  "There is, but Master Ge has completely ruined it, saying that it's not acceptable and can't waste such good materials."

  "What's so special about this mud?" Hua Ru asked, raising an eyebrow, and then inquired about the cave.

  "I asked Ge Shifu about this, and he said that he had a kiln that had been passed down from his grandfather's generation. However, it hadn't been fired in nearly ten years, as the cost of firing it was too high for his family to bear, and just repairing it would require a significant amount of silver."

  "Did he say anything about the quality of this cave?"

  "He swore that his was no worse than the official kiln's."

  "Alright, you tell him, as long as he can make what I want out of the purple sand clay I brought, there will be a generous reward."

  "Yes."

  "Take this paper and give it to Ma Bo. Regardless of whether he produces satisfactory results or not, hand it over to him. If he asks, just say that I'm only talking on paper and don't understand these things myself, let him study it himself."

  "Yes."

  "Wait a minute," Ma Bo asked, "do we still need to find this craftsman?"

  Hua Ru thought for a moment, "Forget it, the fewer people the better. You've got Ge Yunjun under control, don't let him slip away later."

  "Don't worry about this, it will absolutely not be like that."

  "As long as you're confident." Hua Ru Chu sat down in the octagonal pavilion across from the institute, "How's the progress on the tea garden side?"

  "As you said, while building a house, the tea leaves that have been picked are getting more and more, they are all worried that they will go bad."

  "It can't be helped, let them speed up then, even if they're in a hurry it won't come any faster."

  "I also told them that." Ma Bo smiled, at this moment he looked like a diligent and loyal housekeeper, no one would think that he was once a famous figure in the martial arts world. "You've released Chunyu and Qiuzhen, do you want to bring two more people into the mansion?"

  "It is said that the ladies have had enough, I am confined to the inner house against my will. Let them take turns going out for a stroll, it's all right. What about those few shops I told you to pay attention to, are there any movements?"

  "It's still early days and nothing out of the ordinary can be seen for the time being."

  Hua Ru Chun asked about the newly opened shops, and suddenly remembered something. "When Big Brother left, I asked him to pass on a message to Second Sister, asking her to help me find some skilled embroiderers. You choose someone with a quick mind and a new face to set up an embroidery shop. On the surface, it should be completely separate from the other houses, and it can't have any connection with the Qi Manor. Let's just use the banner of Sister-in-law's side of the family."

  "Yes."

  Qī Zhēn accompanied by Yún Shū strolled through the entire Bié Yuàn, and was about to head directly to Kuà Yuàn to look for her sister-in-law when she saw two people sitting and standing at Bā Jiǎo Tíng.

  The one standing is a man!

  After all, she was a member of a noble family and Qi Zhen didn't say anything that would ruin someone's reputation, even if she was worried sick, she just quickened her pace and walked away.

  "Sister-in-law."

  Hua had seen her from afar and thought she was just playing happily as she walked quickly, so he stopped his conversation with Ma Bo to wait for her.

  She stole a glance at the man, so young and handsome, Qi Zhen's face turned red with embarrassment, not daring to look up again, only looking at her sister-in-law.

  "You're in such a hurry, you've even broken out in sweat."

  Qī Zhēn said with a smile, sitting down beside her, "Elder sister, this courtyard is really beautiful, even more so than the Qī estate."

  "You'll like it, next time I'll bring you again." He took a handkerchief and wiped the sweat for her. Hua Ru Chu couldn't help but smile either. For some reason, looking at this little girl these past two days, he had a feeling of wanting to dote on her. Calculating their ages, even if they were from different generations, it wouldn't be unusual to have a daughter around this age.

  Suddenly felt old.

  "I'd love to come, but after what happened with Mother, I don't dare leave the house casually." Qi Zhen pouted, hoping that her mother would return a bit later.

  She saw her eyes always glanced at Ma Bo, Hua Ru initially thought she was curious, so she introduced him, "This is the steward of my other courtyard, Ma Bo, Ma Bo, this is Qi Fu's Zhen Niang."

  "Have seen Zhen girl."

  He didn't seem to be like an ordinary servant, only slightly bowing his waist and clasping his hands, Qi Zhen wasn't annoyed either. The housekeeper of the aunt's courtyard must have been someone her aunt trusted, so showing respect to her was just being polite, so he also politely responded.

  It's getting late, and Hua Ru Chun doesn't seem to be having lunch here as usual, so she lets Yun Shu go ahead and instruct the sedan chair bearers to wait at the entrance.

  "Take care of things on this side and let everyone in the tea garden speed up."

  "Yes."

  On the way back to the mansion, Qi Zhen secretly opened a gap from the small window and looked outside.

  On the spacious and bustling streets, you can sometimes see girls from good families wearing silk hats.

  Secretly admiring in my heart, but I absolutely won't mention it and just go on walking.

  Sister-in-law can bring her out and she is already very grateful.

  Hua Ru Chu wouldn't mention it naturally, but there are too many unexpected things in crowded places.

  The young girl is now in the midst of her budding youth, and if she secretly catches someone's eye, it would be considered a great sin.

  In this world where one's life is determined by their parents' orders and matchmakers' words, a bit of recklessness can bring about a lifetime of disaster.

  It's better to not understand from the start than to know and understand but still suffer.

  It doesn't hurt if you don't understand.

  P: This is the first time I've written about a house fight, and it wasn't written well until today's chapter started to get into the feel of it. Some parts before this were written a bit stiffly, and I'll go back and revise them.

  It's because it's like the beginning of a new marriage, and spending some time in the mansion is necessary, but it won't be like this forever. Actually, when I got the prince's token, I was freer than before.

  By the way, my butt still hurts, and I need some comfort. If not... you can come and touch it for me. (If you like this work, welcome to subscribe, reward, your support is my biggest motivation.)

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