The crowd burst into laughter, Xiàs face turned from red to white, and then white to green, staring at Xùér with a dead gaze. Xùér saw that he was speechless, and with a sense of triumph, he raised his chin and gave him a disdainful glance.

  He cant take care of this little girl today, how will he survive in the future? Xià Lěng coldly smiled: "Dont mind her, let me go in. Whoever blocks my way, Ill push them away!" After finishing speaking, she took a step back and two sturdy servants squeezed forward.

  The young servant caught the pungent smell of sweat on them and saw that they were really coming, so he couldnt help but feel a little flustered. He turned around, grabbed the long and thick door bolt, stood in front of the door and said with insufficient breath: "Who dares?"

  Just then, a lazy voice came from the corridor: "Xiu Xia, is it? You brought a group of people to my courtyard without permission, arent you afraid of disturbing me, and now you want to sell my maid? Did I hear that wrong?"

  The voice was soft and smooth, sounding particularly pleasant to the ear. Although it was a questioning tone, it sounded like casual conversation instead. Everyones eyes widened as they looked down at the corridor below, where a tall and slender woman stood, with skin as white as snow and a face as beautiful as a flower, wearing a bright red dress that caught the eye.

  For a moment, the little servants standing behind Xià Shu were stunned. This young lady who had been bedridden for a long time turned out to be so beautiful, why did everyone previously say that she was a sickly and unsightly woman?

  Xīa had been following the young master for a long time and had seen the second mistress a few times. The second mistress had not managed the households trivial matters since she fell ill last autumn. He still remembered that once, after Biyu Concubine gave birth to the eldest son, she took advantage of the young masters favor and pretended to be drunk, causing trouble in front of her. She simply ordered someone to close the door and ignored her. The young master had taken a liking to Qingguan Xisu, the most favored courtesan in Fangyuan Zhai. Xisu intentionally spilled tea on her white jade-embroidered skirt, but praised its beauty instead. She didnt get anxious or angry, and immediately gifted the skirt to Xisu. Her actions earned her the sympathy of the wife, who had not been fond of her before. The wife even spoke to the young master a few times, saying that the distinction between legitimate and concubine-born children should not be blurred.

  Shes been quiet for so long, is she going to make a scene today? She cant compare to those favored concubines, if she doesnt listen to her, and makes trouble all the way to the madams place, shell definitely have to suffer some consequences.

  Xīa Xià thought of this, stepped forward and saluted to apologize: "Xīa Xià has seen Young Madam. Please forgive me, Young Madam, I was following the young masters orders to come and move the flowers for decoration. I misunderstood just now, and my mouth was also at fault. It was just a joke, otherwise, even if I had ten times more courage, I wouldnt have dared to be so presumptuous."

  The peony didnt say yes or no, only asking: "Young master, have you told him which pots to lift?"

  Alas, summer is gone: "Wei Zi, Yao Huang, Jade Building points emerald, purple robe golden belt, jade dew on the jade platform."

  "Peony nodded and said: Xu Er, show Xià the pots youre referring to. Be careful not to damage the branches or buds."

  So this is how you let off this arrogant and rude slave? Xier was extremely unhappy in her heart, pouting as she reluctantly led Xishia inside, but blocked the group of small servants who had long dared not to make a sound outside the courtyard: "One basin at a time, dont all rush in, be careful not to disturb our young mistress."

  Everyone else, however, didnt dare to speak out of turn like before and fell silent, sneaking glances at Peony. Peony remained unruffled, slowly fanning herself with a plain white silk fan, narrowing her eyes as she instructed, "The most important thing is this pot of purple iris, be careful not to touch it."

  Xia had a plan in mind, and tomorrows leading role would be played by this pot of Weizi and the young masters painstakingly cultivated Yu Banbai. Weizi was naturally the most important, not allowing for any mistakes. Therefore, he looked at that pot of Weizi first, which was said to have been around for thirty years, with a height of nearly three feet and a crown diameter of four feet, extremely rare and precious. Such an old peony usually would be directly planted in the ground, but this one was different. The He family had made a large flower pot several years ago for convenient dowry, and at a high price, they invited a florist to carefully nurture it, resulting in todays splendor.

  Xia Shu counted and found that this years Wei Zi was particularly good, with 12 flowers in full bloom, each about the size of a sea bowl. There were also three or four flower buds, and the petals and leaves were all neat and tidy. Xiao Er stood by and said disdainfully, "Such beautiful flowers, to some people, are no different from a string of coins, only knowing how to count the number of flowers, branches and leaves, without any idea of appreciation."

  Xia Bai gave her a glance and walked towards the Yāo Huáng. The Yāo Huáng was the king of flowers, while the Wèi Zǐ was the queen, and if ranked, the Yāo Huáng would be before the Wèi Zǐ. Unfortunately, this pot of Yāo Huáng wasnt very old and was potted, although it had bloomed five or six flowers that shone brightly, but couldnt compare to those tall trees over six feet high.

  Look again at the Jade Tower with emerald green, layer upon layer of white jade-like petals piled up like a tower, with a few pieces of emerald green petals in the center of the flower, looking very fresh and elegant; the Jade Platform with dew, both the petals and stamens are white; the Purple Robe with golden belt, the petals are like purple satin, reflecting soft and smooth light under the sun, the stamen is golden yellow, beautiful and charming. Several varieties of peonies compete to bloom, vying for beauty, each one a rare treasure.

  After finishing the inventory, Xiā Qiū stole a glance at the young mistress standing in the corridor and thought to herself: each of these flowers is worth over 500 yuan for just one stem, yet the young mistress lets them wither away on their own, only for her own viewing pleasure, what a waste.

  Just then, Mu Dan said: "Xi Xia, I heard that Wei Zis painting was sold for 1,000 yuan last autumn? I dont know if its true or false?"

  Its really what you think it is, Xià Hǒ jumped in surprise, and hastily bowed her head to answer: "Yes, thats right, Young Mistress."

  Then Peony said, "I heard that in the north of the city, there is a Peony Garden owned by the Cao family. People who go in to admire it have to pay 50 coins each, and at least 100 people come every day? Sometimes as many as 500 or 600 people?"

  Thats right.

  "Peony fanned herself and slowly walked towards Xixia: Have you ever been there?"

  The figure of the peony is different from that of many plump beauties nowadays, but it has its own elegance. With long legs and a slender waist, full breasts, and steps that are neither too big nor too small, she walks with her head held high, looking exceptionally beautiful in an inexplicable way, especially the two embroidered peonies on her front lapel, which shine brightly and make people want to look again.

  Xià xiā bù gǎn zài kàn, hóng le liǎn dào: "xiǎo rén bù céng qù guò. Gōng zǐ bù xǔ wǒmen jiā de rén qù kàn."

  Translation:

  Xià blushed and said: "Ive never been there, the young master doesnt allow people from our household to go see it."

  "Is that so." Peony looked regretful and stood beside him, saying slowly, "I wonder who has been there? Whats the situation inside?"

  The fragrance on the young ladys body was different from that of other ladies, it was a rare peony scent, faint and lingering, always unintentionally drilling into peoples nostrils. I dont know how much money was spent on making this perfume? The summer ghost was enchanted and politely said: "My sister has been there before, she said that the peonies in Caos family are all planted by a large lake, beside the pavilion and bridge, and under the strange rocks in the middle of the lake. After tourists enter, they take a boat along the lake for a slow tour, and they can see all the beautiful scenery."

  At this point, Xiayu Mei said, "They are just ordinary varieties, only a bit more diverse. If we talk about the rarity and preciousness of peonies, they cant be compared to those of Young Masters wife. If Young Masters wife were to build such a garden, it wouldnt be just 50 cents, even if it were $1, many people would still come."

  The peony beauty smiled and pointed at him with her fan, saying: "Nonsense! If Master knew you gave me such a bad idea, hed beat you to death with a stick!"

  Regretted in an instant, her face turned pale.

  The peony is not exaggerated at all. Liu Chang, as a person, was the only heir of the third generation of the noble family. From childhood, he wore brocade and ate jade food, without knowing what money was, only knowing how to enjoy himself. In winter, he played the flute in front of plum blossoms and boiled tea with snow water; in autumn, he released hawks and chased dogs, riding horses and hunting; in summer, he sailed on a boat on the lake, watching beautiful women sing and dance; in spring, he hit balls and rode horses, admiring flowers and feasting guests. He lived a carefree and joyful life, indulging himself without restraint.

  Until a few years ago, Mr. Liu was confused and greedy, with a huge amount of money, almost being investigated, and urgently needed someone to help him out. The He family, who had long been eyeing Liu Chuans eight characters, took this opportunity to repay the stolen money for him and also gave their daughter a chance to marry into a wealthy family. From then on, Liu Chuan fell in love with money, but also hated it.

  He was a sixth-grade official, serving as a Fengyi Lang, but he had another title and was not only enthusiastic about making connections with the powerful, but also enthusiastic about making money. There were dozens of people in his household who were all thinking of ways to make money, and every year they would bring back a lot of money for the Liu family. However, he never talked about money and didnt like others to mention it in front of him, only loving to follow the elegant and refined. If such a person were to find out that his personal servant had actually instigated his wife, who was from a merchant family, to open up this kind of garden and openly use peony flowers to make money, he would definitely not forgive Xià.

  Peony stood by, watching as a fine sweat broke out on Xias nose tip, flustered and at a loss. She couldnt help but smile lightly, saying carelessly: "Look at you, child, scared like this from just one joke, its really pitiful. The young master wont know, so put your mind at ease and do your job, if your sister likes peonies, Ill send her a few to play with this autumn."

  "Thank you, young lady." Xià exhaled a sigh of relief, but didnt dare to say more, lowering his head and quietly directing others to carry the flowers, completely losing the arrogant demeanor he had earlier.

  "Be careful." Peony smiled contentedly and walked down the corridor, secretly calculating in her mind that if she could really build such a garden, selling tickets for flower viewing tours during peak seasons would be enough for her to live a good life. If she could also cultivate a few rare varieties, she would have nothing to worry about.

  Xuer was diligently supervising the young servants, and anyone who was slightly slow would receive a few scoldings from her. Occasionally, she would also sarcastically mock Xi Xia. Xi Xia had changed from his previous arrogance and ignored Xuers bad attitude, focusing only on doing his job. With great difficulty, everyone carefully worked together to carry out the several pots of flowers one by one, and Xuer immediately ran to close the door.

  The door was about to close, but a plump hand pressed tightly against it. A powdered face with bright red lips smiled: "Excuse me, dont shut the door, Rain Tong has come to pay her respects to the young mistress."

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  I need recommendations for votes, this month is very important for new book rankings.

  ——*——*——

  I need recommendations for votes, this month is very important for new book rankings.