Nanny Su very perceptively waved her hand, leading the several maids to retreat. Su Mei hesitated, but when Madam Xie coldly swept her with a glance, she hurriedly lowered her head and left.
“She was catching fish by the lake, really mischievous. When I called out to her, she got scared and ran away,” Marquis Dingxi continued with a smile, as if he could still see the young woman fleeing like a startled rabbit.
Madam Xie didn’t find this amusing at all. She made a “mm” sound and pushed the account book to Marquis Dingxi, asking about expenses to change the subject.
Marquis Dingxi had never cared about household affairs, and after a few words felt restless and left. After he departed, Nanny Su had just led the maids back in when Madam Xie, who had been smiling moments before, suddenly darkened her face. Without saying a word, she violently threw the account book in her hands to the floor with a crash, frightening all the maids in the room to quickly kneel down.
“Are you all dead? Your hands have reached right in front of the Marquis, and you’re still here grinning at me! If you have that energy, go smile at your new concubine!”
These harsh words were severe enough that even Nanny Su half-knelt.
“This old servant will investigate immediately, this old servant will investigate immediately,” she said, kowtowing.
She got up and hurried outside, but before she could exit, she heard commotion outside.
“Madam, Madam, the Prince has returned!” Servant women and maids ran in laughing, shouting as they ran.
Madam Xie suddenly stood up from the kang, nearly falling from getting up too quickly, but Nanny Su had already turned back and caught her in time.
“Madam, the Prince has returned,” she cried out.
“Quickly, quickly…” Madam Xie wept with joy, leaning on Nanny Su as they hurried outside.
The entire Marquis Dingxi household erupted in excitement.
“What’s happening?” A’Hao emerged from behind flowering trees carrying two small fish when she heard the commotion. Seeing rough-work maids running past in the distance, she hurriedly called out to ask.
The maid didn’t even turn her head.
“Hurry up, the Prince has returned! They’re giving out rewards in front,” she said, disappearing in a flash.
A’Hao cried out in alarm, dropping the fish and running toward Qiu Tong Courtyard.
In Qiu Tong Courtyard, Qi Yue and A’Ru were sitting and talking when A’Hao burst in with a crash, startling both of them.
“Who bullied you?”
“What happened?”
Seeing A’Hao looking as if she were being chased by a vicious dog, they both asked anxiously.
“No…” A’Hao gasped with her hands on her knees. “The… the Prince… has returned.”
Qi Yue and A’Ru both changed color simultaneously, though differently – Qi Yue showed alarm and fear, while A’Ru showed alarm and joy.
“The Prince has returned?” A’Ru ran down incredulously to grab A’Hao and ask, “Did you see him?”
“No, everyone’s running to Madam’s courtyard. The whole household is in uproar, saying they’re giving out rewards,” A’Hao said breathlessly, patting her chest, then exclaimed, “Oh my, my fish…”
Fish? A’Ru temporarily couldn’t worry about where the fish came from, but turned joyfully to look at Qi Yue, about to speak.
“Close the door, close it tight. For the next few days, no one is allowed to go out or see anyone,” Qi Yue said with a serious expression. “Say that I’m ill. If there are rewards, accept them. If there’s celebration, acknowledge it. But no one is allowed to go out, especially not to join the festivities at Madam’s and the Prince’s.”
A’Ru and A’Hao were stunned for a moment, but quickly both nodded.
The slightly ajar main door of Qiu Tong Courtyard clicked shut with a bolt, isolating the household’s sky-high revelry outside.