Leaning against the carriage, Lin Yi also raised his eyebrows, but unlike Ma Junying’s gleeful curiosity, Lin Yi looked at Ma Junying with a dangerous air. This guy was really getting bolder, not even hiding the adoration in his eyes anymore. Hmph, don’t think you can have improper thoughts about Madam just because you’re handsome. Madam belongs to the second son!
However, Lin Yuan was oblivious to the changes in Ma Junying’s eyes; her thoughts were still not shifted from Ma Xiaonan: "I imagine Miss Ma must have been terribly bored these days. If Young Master Ma has some free time, do drop by Rice Flower Fragrance. Lin Yuan has come up with some new pastries; take some back for Miss Ma to try something fresh."
Fearing that Ma Junying might misunderstand, Lin Yuan specifically added with a smile, "Consider it a gift from me to Miss Ma, I haven’t seen her for a while and I do miss her a bit."
Lin Yuan’s words were not mere courtesy. She truly liked Ma Xiaonan’s naive and adorable nature, treating her almost like her own sister, even though Ma Xiaonan was actually a bit older than her.
"Miss Lin didn’t have to mention it; I was planning to go to Rice Flower Fragrance later too. To be honest, my little sister talks about your shop’s pastries all the time!" Ma Junying chuckled softly, his gentle smile almost seemed to drive away the chill of the winter day.
After finishing the topic of his sister, Ma Junying’s expression suddenly turned somewhat embarrassed. Driven by curiosity, Lin Yuan inquired further, and only then did Ma Junying give a self-deprecating smile and say with some embarrassment: "Miss Lin, regarding the matter of Xiaoqian, I am very sorry."
Ma Xiaoqian? Lin Yuan was somewhat confused. But after a second thought, it seemed that Ma Junying was aware of the romantic entanglement between Ma Xiaoqian, her husband, and Mo Sanniang. However, his apology was truly puzzling.
"Why would Young Master Ma say that?"
Ma Junying paused: "Isn’t Boss Mo a good sister to Miss Lin? Ah, we only found out about their situation after the incident occurred. Miss Lin must understand, even though my father is the Master of the Ma Family, it’s not appropriate for us to interject in my cousin’s marital affairs."
To be honest, he had no liking for that man surnamed Xie. Although that man was a scholar, he had committed despicable acts of fickleness: he had heard from his little sister, the man surnamed Xie, whilst having one love in his bowl, was still eyeing another in the pot, absurdly hoping to take his old flame as a Little Concubine after his cousin’s marriage. Such a shameless person truly discredits scholars!
So it was because of Mo Sanniang. Lin Yuan casually smiled: "Young Master Ma is being too serious. Besides, Sister Mo has long let go of that past affair. To each their own, as the saying goes. Since Miss Ma and Mr. Xie are suited for each other, Sister Mo will naturally bless them."
Ma Junying silently scorned: What suited for each other? The two are practically incompatible now. If it weren’t for the fear of the Ma Family and the second uncle that Mr. Xie harbored, he wouldn’t have endured the demands of his cousin!
Lin Yi, who was standing by, silently rolled his eyes: This Ma fellow is not that great either, trying to make conversation with Madam out of nothing, and even bringing up Ma Xiaoqian’s affairs! Hmph, he can’t compare to the second son. When the second son is with Madam, they’ve endless topics to discuss. How is he anything like that? He doesn’t even know how to court a girl, what a blockhead!
Seeing Lin Yuan’s eyes fixed on the children running joyously in the courtyard, Ma Junying’s eyes lit up. Just as he was about to invite her to his school for a visit, he heard a little girl suddenly exclaim with surprise: "Ah! It’s snowing!"
As if to confirm the little girl’s words, snowflakes began fluttering down from the sky. It started with tiny specks of ice, but in the blink of an eye, the specks grew larger, clustering together to the point where the six petals of the snowflakes were discernible.
"This is the first snowfall of the year!" Lin Yuan was also extremely excited, instinctively reaching out to catch the whirling snowflakes. Perhaps because it was the first snowfall, the snow came down quickly and heavily, settling in her palm without immediately melting, which exhilarated Lin Yuan even more.