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  Ding Ruo never expected that Li Mama would turn against her because of a single sentence, or betray the Eldest Madam. Facing the frozen Li Mama, anyone would say something to comfort her. Ding Ruo had never thought of gaining anything from Li Mama.

  When Li Mama faced the Eldest Madam again, being able to say half a sentence of good words was already an unexpected surprise.

  After sending Ta Furen to settle in Songyuan, Ta Furen asked Ding Ruo a sentence, "The banquet half a month later?"

  Ding Rou smiled and massaged Tai Furen's legs, "You've already made up your mind, but you still ask Sun'er. Half a month later, regardless of whether the matter has passed or not, you must attend the gathering. Not just you, Mother and Erniang also have to go."

  The old lady smiled slightly, satisfied. Ding Ruo carefully massaged the old lady's legs. Wen Li walked in from behind the screen and said, "Just now, the first wife sent someone to pass on a message saying that Third Miss is ill."

  Ding Ruo's beautiful hands clenched into fists, it was strange that Ding Min didn't get sick after being frozen on the mountain for a day. Afraid of missing the person she was waiting for, Ding Min refused to enter Nian Ci An to avoid the cold wind and stood guard in the wind and snow, almost losing her life, but fortunately, she was lucky.

  Ding Ruo handed over the beautiful woman to Wen Li, stood up and said: "I'll take Grandmother's place to look after Third Sister."

  Ding Min fell ill, and both Ding Ruo and the others had to go take a look. The old lady was also Ding Min's grandmother, and it wasn't good if she didn't ask about him. The old lady pinched her forehead, "Go, tell your mother about today's outing, and have Liu Ya'er explain in detail. Mother needs to be prepared for the gathering half a month from now."

  "Yes."

  Ding Rou bent her knees, put on her cloak and went out. The snow that had been falling for a day stopped, and the stars twinkled in the night sky. The silver moonlight shone on the snowy ground, reflecting white light, making it possible to see the road clearly without using lanterns. Along the way, Ding Rou thought carefully about what she should say to Madame Dai about today's events. There was no need to hide anything about the Zhou family, but the most important thing was the conversation between her and Madame in the carriage, as well as the four young masters of the Yin family and Prince Xinyang that she had seen on her way to the Zhou residence. How should she say these two things properly?

  Entering the embroidery building where Ding Min lived, Ding Rou saw the maidservants bustling about, some holding copper basins and others holding towels. The elder lady sat beside Ding Min, her face showing a hint of worry, with Ding Xuan accompanying her by her side. Ding Rou untied her cloak and knelt down, saying: "Mother."

  "How's Third Sister? Has the doctor arrived yet?"

  Ding Ruo looked at Ding Min, who was lying on the warm kang and shivering, her face deathly pale. She was covered in two or three layers of thick quilts, curled up into a ball, with her dark hair scattered across the pillow. Ding Min had always had beautiful hair, but now it seemed lifeless. Even from a distance, Ding Ruo could feel the heat emanating from Ding Min's body. She lowered her face and tried to breathe as little as possible, afraid of being infected by Ding Min's illness. What great determination she must have had to stand outside for half a day! If she were waiting for the Fourth Young Master of the Yin Manor, his future prospects would be quite uncertain. However, with her association with the Crown Prince, one couldn't predict what would happen in the future. After all, life was about taking things one step at a time.

  "She was so seriously ill that ordinary doctors were afraid to delay treatment, and someone was asked to bring the imperial edict given by Empress Dowager Cixi to invite a doctor from the Imperial Hospital of Taichang Temple to come and examine her."

  "The third sister knew her mother was so worried and must have felt uneasy about it."

  Ding Rou didn't expect that the madam not only accompanied Ding Min by her side, but also invited a doctor to examine Ding Min's illness. It can be seen how much attention the madam paid to Ding Min. The madam sighed: "It's all for Yi'er."

  "Mrs. Hui, Liu Ayi has come to see Third Miss."

  "Let her in."

  Ding Ruo saw the weight lifted off Madame's eyes, and after a moment's thought, she supported her up, "Daughter has a few words to report to Mother."

  The lady was afraid that Ding Min would pass on her illness to her, but as the legitimate mother, she couldn't not be by Ding Min's side. When Ding Min's biological mother arrived, the lady had a chance to leave, and at this time, Ding Rou said she had something to report, which gave the lady an excuse to step down.

  Liu Yiniang's eyes were misty as she greeted the madam, and Ding Rou saw from her anxious face that she was genuinely worried about her daughter. Her gaze remained fixed on Ding Min's heavily ill body, and the madam said in a low voice: "I've already asked for a doctor to come and see Min'er... just take care of Min'er."

  "Yes, I will take good care of Third Miss."

  The old lady got up with Ding Rou's support, and Liu Niang strongly held back her anxiety. As soon as the old lady turned around the screen, Liu Niang rushed to her daughter on the kang, tears falling, Ding Rou saw Liu Niang caressing Ding Min's cheek from the corner of her eye, personally changing Ding Min's handkerchief, there is always a difference between a birth mother and a stepmother.

  Ding Ruo stood beside Mrs. Yu with a gentle and demure expression, "Grandmother said that half a month later at the Wanmei Bieyuan, you and Second Aunt will also have to go."

  Ding Ruo told the old lady about today's events, emphasizing the phrase "let's take another look" and downplaying her own role in the matter. She spoke with skill, slightly raising an eyebrow to see the old lady's reaction, and estimated that she had believed at least half of what Ding Ruo said.

  The old lady sipped her tea, deep in thought for a long time, and then asked casually: "Having always been with the madam, have you seen what happened today? What do you think is on the madam's mind?"

  Although she asked casually, her two eyes stared at Ding Rou, and Ding Rou couldn't help but respond. She lowered her eyes and said softly: "The daughter only heard the grandmother say to wait and see again, the grandmother has a lot of experience and thinks deeply. Since she said to wait, the daughter thought it was always right to wait."

  Her gaze gradually softened, and Madame Ding must have had her own plans. As a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, their relationship was always complicated, with underlying tensions. The Ding family's struggles for control were unique, not just about competing for the husband's favor, but also about his career path. Madame Ding had never liked the Jiangsu-Zhejiang clique, and Ting Ruo had picked up on this. Madame Ding's ancestral home was in the imperial capital of Yanjing, and the ladies who got along with her, although they couldn't match the status of the Jiangsu-Zhejiang faction, were all from the capital, belonging to the northern region. Would the current emperor be able to balance these court factions?

  Ding Ruo didn't dare to be careless, and the more she thought it was over, the more she couldn't relax. Indeed, Madame Wang asked in a soft voice, as if asking herself: "I heard that Xinyang King and Yin Gongzi are planning to go to Nian Ci An, along with Min'er..."

  The big wife curled up her mouth and said, "Who says she has a fate with Min'er?"

  Ding Ruo raised her eyes and smiled: "Third sister went to pray for blessings for eldest sister, even if they happened to meet, in the Buddhist forbidden land, it's likely that they won't have a chance encounter."

  The old lady nodded, "Poor Min'er, she's also quite pitiful, I should be more considerate of her."

  Ding Ruo felt a chill in her heart, and the old madam said: "The master is resting at Liu Niang's house today, go tell him that I will take care of Min'er, and ask him to rest assured."

  "Yes."

  Ding Rou left with her knees bent, and the old lady let her see Ding Dong as a reward, rewarding her performance today. Liu Shi also got the reward of serving in bed. In the eyes of everyone, it seemed like a good thing, but in Ding Rou's heart, she didn't feel happy at all. Her father was not only a stranger to her, but also someone she extremely disliked.

  As she walked out of the embroidered building, an unfamiliar old man came towards her with a few strands of white whiskers on his chin, dressed very warmly, and beside him was the guide mother. Ding Rou leaned to one side and said, "Doctor, Third Miss is just ahead."

  The imperial physician glanced at Ding Ruo and entered the embroidery building. Ding Ruo faintly heard the sound of conversation coming from inside the house, stood still for a moment to listen, and Liu Niang was crying...Ding Min thought that this ordeal would hurt her vitality, not to mention ancient times, even in modern times, people can die from a cold.

  Ding Ruo went to see Liu Niang, as soon as she entered the door, Liu's half-kneeling servant was waiting for Ding Tong to soak his feet. Ding Tong was leaning on the kang, holding a half-volume book in his hand, reading by the candlelight. The originally warm scene, due to the male chauvinism and Liu being a concubine, made Ding Ruo feel heartbroken and suffocated, but she couldn't say that Ding Tong was wrong or Liu was wrong.

  "Father."

  "Uh-huh."

  Ding Dong put down the book and heard Ding Rou's voice. Liu Shi got up, wiped her hands, and bowed slightly: "Sixth Miss."

  At the age of Ding Dong, he was elegant and mature, never worried about making a living. In the Hanlin Academy, he spent his days with books, and the scholarly atmosphere on him grew stronger, subtly revealing a hint of bookishness. Ting Rong had analyzed Ding Dong's path to promotion in the future, he was a typical example of having more knowledge than talent, always missing opportunities by a hair's breadth, lacking decisiveness, and being somewhat aloof. Currently serving as the deputy examiner for the imperial examination, this was the emperor's last chance given to him. If he couldn't make it, Ding Dong would spend his whole life in the Hanlin Academy.

  "How is Min'er?"

  Ding Dong's gaze at Ding Rou was slightly stunned, and Ding Rou bowed her head respectfully and said: "Mother asked me to tell Father that Third Sister is doing well. Mother attaches great importance to Third Sister and invited the national medical expert to diagnose Third Sister's pulse. With Mother's love for Third Sister, she will surely recover soon."

  Ding Dong's gaze shifted to the book, "Did you go to Lord Zhou's mansion today?"

  "Accompanied her grandmother to Zhou Shilang's mansion as a guest, where she met Mrs. Meng and her family from her hometown, the stunningly beautiful Miss Meng."

  Ding Ruo said a lot about the Zhou family's gatherings, and talked about Miss Ta's dressing, but didn't mention the topic that Ding Dong cared most about, just to make him anxious, wasn't he supposed to be calm and composed? Ding Ruo saw Ding Dong's impatient face and felt quite pleased in her heart. Her eyes sparkled with laughter, pure and clear. "Father, I really admire Meng sister, she plays the guqin well, paints well, writes good characters, elegant and refined, a true model of a virtuous woman."

  Mrs. Liu obviously saw Ding Dong's impatience, she didn't know what was going on, did her part, gave her daughter a wink, and Ding Rou continued to talk to herself, Mrs. Liu couldn't understand why the usually clever Xiao Rou couldn't see it?

  Kneeling down and asking: "Master, shall I change some hot water for you?"

  Liu picked up the copper kettle beside him and walked over to Ding Rou, lowering his voice to say, "Xiao Rou."

  Ding Rou saw the worry on Liu's face, and silently sighed. "When we left the mansion, a famous courtesan from Jiangnan came to our door. Grandmother said that at the imperial court, the censor would impeach Lord Zhou for his immoral behavior."

  Ding Dong was stunned at first, but then his eyes suddenly lit up, apparently he saw an opportunity. "Let the famous courtesan come to our door, ah, Brother Nian is confused."

  Ding Rou bent her knees slightly and said, "Grandma says wait and see, Father. Daughter will take her leave first."

  Ding Dong waved his hand, and when Ding Rou went out the door, she caught a glimpse of Ding Dong deep in thought. He thinks too much and does too little, wanting to compete but not daring to take action, no wonder he can't make a name for himself after more than a decade.

  "Xiao Rou." Liu grabbed Ding Rou's hand, "Just now..."

  Ding Rou's face broke into a sincere smile, and she touched the hairpin flower on Liu Shi's head, "Don't worry, no matter what Father says tonight, Mother will remember one thing - to wait for the right moment."

  Liu remembered in her heart, a shy smile: "Actually, Master won't say anything to me, he's not as strict as Xiaorou looks... Just now I was talking to Mother about Xiaorou."

  Ding Ruo smiled slightly, not caring whether Ding Dong was hurting her or not. She had originally wanted to advise Madam Liu a few words, but what Madam Liu did just now was the duty of a concubine. The words turned in Ding Ruo's mouth three times before she finally let out a silent sigh and told Madam Liu to take care of herself, then left.

  Today's double update, and there will be another one this afternoon. Ding Wu is not a villain, but a feudal literati who understands the night, respects his legitimate wife, and looks down on concubines. Ding Ruo has modern thoughts, which makes her uncomfortable, she regards Liu Shi as her mother, but Ding Ruo can't say anything, that's the saddest part, what Ding Ruo dislikes is actually Liu Shi's survival rule.

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