When Fei’er saw her, she laughed and said, "With such heat, sister, why trouble yourself to come here? You could have taken a nap at home much more comfortably!"
Aunt Bi tapped her forehead and chided, "You ungrateful thing. Your sister was worried about you getting overheated, so I specially came to bring you this chilled mung bean soup. And here you are, shooing me away. Am I that annoying? If that’s the case, I’ll just leave."
While she spoke, her feet remained planted, clearly joking with Fei’er.
Fei’er pulled her to sit by the table and laughed, "Listen to what sister is saying. The purse you asked me to make, I’ve already finished it and was just worrying about how to give it to you. Luckily, you’ve come. Sister, please have a look and see if it’s to your satisfaction. If there’s anything you don’t like, just tell me, and I’ll change it!"
Saying so, she handed over a delicately embroidered Koi and Lotus Embroidery Purse to Bi Lian.
Aunt Bi, clutching the purse, laughed grimly and barely managed to maintain her smile.
This familiar purse, she had seen it just a few days ago on her cousin’s waist, identical to this one, evidently made by the same person. That little b*tch had mentioned previously that the purse she embroidered was gifted away; it turned out to be given to her cousin. He cherished the purse greatly, always carrying it with him. Even though he changed clothes several times, she never saw him change the purse, clearly indicating it was a gift from someone special. Naturally, it must be with him every day, too precious to be left at home.
She laughed dryly a few times and praised, "Ah, sister indeed has great skills — comparable to the embroideresses in the Embroidery Department in the Palace!"
"Not at all, sister flatters me!"
Fei’er responded politely, though secretly pleased.
Aunt Bi, holding the purse, casually mentioned, "Speaking of which, I saw this Koi and Lotus pattern at my cousin’s house too, but the version there, both in color and design, is even prettier than this. If sister could embroider according to that pattern, it would certainly look much better!"
Upon hearing this, Fei’er felt a slight stir in her heart. She thought her embroidery patterns, borrowed from the palace by her Master, were the best. Little did she expect there to be an even more beautiful pattern. As an individual obsessed with embroidery skills, how could she ignore any lovely design?
After thinking it over, she said, "Aunt Bi, why don’t you help me get that pattern the next time you visit your cousin’s house? I’ll embroider another purse for you with that pattern. How about that?"
"That would be wonderful!"
Aunt Bi, delighted, said, "In that case, I’ll send the servant girl to borrow the pattern right away, so sister can start working on another one for me sooner. Speaking of which, that pattern is indeed very beautiful..."
As she spoke, she called out, "Mu Xue, go and borrow that ’Koi and Lotus’ pattern I admired the other day from Aunt’s house. You can take my carriage!"
Mu Xue expressed hesitance, "Madam, could you possibly send someone with me? Otherwise, it’s just the coachman and me alone together... Isn’t that inappropriate?" Mu Xue said, lowering her head and fidgeting with the corner of her clothes, looking troubled.
Aunt Bi, displeased, snapped, "You are too proud, girl. I only brought you with me today. Where am I supposed to find another servant girl to accompany you now?"
Upon hearing this, Mu Xue looked up, opened her mouth a few times but said nothing, though her face clearly showed she felt wronged.
Seeing her pitiful appearance, Fei’er softened and said, "Don’t make things difficult, I’ll have Huan Qiu go with her. With the two of you together, there’ll be no room for any idle gossip!"
Mu Xue, relieved, said gratefully, "Thank you, Miss Mu, thank you so much..."
Aunt Bi, impatiently waving her hand, said, "Stop the chatter, just go and come back quickly..."
Huan Qiu, without a word, followed Mu Xue out. Aunt Bi lowered her head, caressing the purse in her hand, her eyes gleaming with a fierce light.
In these past days, her frequent interactions with Mu Caifei had attracted someone’s attention. That person had not revealed his identity, but she inferred that he was no ordinary man — he possessed enough ability to investigate her background thoroughly, knowing not only that she was a concubine but also her reasons and plans for contacting Mu Caifei. However, that person wasn’t interested in her; he was interested in Mu Caifei. To obtain the little b*tch, that person struck a secret deal with her: she was to secretly move Mu Caifei’s servant girl to a house in the Northern suburb of the Capital. If she managed it, the other party would ruin Mu Caifei, ensuring she would no longer have the face to see anyone...
For Aunt Bi, the proposal was too tempting; she accepted it without a second thought.
Ruining Mu Caifei would be such a vindication! The thought exhilarated her — it served the little b*tch right for seducing someone she ought not covet, she deserved her comeuppance!
For Aunt Bi, no one was allowed to take her cousin’s place in his heart, even if he did not love her, he was not to fall for anyone else!
Huan Qiu and Mu Xue had been gone a long time, and when the fabric store was about to close, Cai Fei worriedly sent a shop assistant to hire a carriage for inquiries. However, upon reaching Aunt Bi’s ’cousin’s house’, the family there stated Mu Xue had never visited!
Huan Qiu and Mu Xue had simply vanished into thin air, causing Fei’er, amid her tension, to worry even more. She sent several groups of people to look for them, but they could not be found. When Mu Zhongqing arrived, he especially visited Ying Tianfu to report to the authorities. The government deployed over twenty soldiers to search until the end of Xu Hour when the night had thoroughly darkened, but to no avail.
Aunt Bi had already been picked up by family, exhausted, Mu Zhongqing saw they could not find anyone and reluctantly let Zhang Bo take him and Fei’er back to the Manor, planning to continue the search the next day.
In June, the crops in the countryside had grown to half a person’s height. During the day, these vast stretches of crops presented a picturesque scene; however, in the silence of the night, walking on this pitch-dark rural path imparted a chilling terror!