"Come on, let’s go take a look." Mrs. Zhan stepped into the estate and couldn’t help but add, "The Xiang family is in such chaos right now. I’m really not comfortable leaving Pangtuan here. But with General Xiang injured and everything that’s happened, it’s not a good time for us to ask to take her with us."

"Let’s wait until Xiang Minghou has recovered," Zhan Chi said. He wasn’t one to take advantage of someone’s misfortune.

"Yes. In that case, I’ll have someone return to our estate and make preparations. We’ll stay here at the General’s estate for now. We can discuss Pangtuan’s situation after General Xiang has recovered."

Zhan Chi was surprised. "You and Dad are both staying?"

"Of course. I can’t rest easy if I go a single day without seeing my granddaughter. Besides, General Xiang trusts me and has asked me to manage the estate’s affairs. I will not let him down."

Zhan Chi’s expression was complicated. Seeing his mother looking so confident, he didn’t have the heart to burst her bubble. He knew Xiang Minghou very well—when he’d asked her to manage the estate’s affairs, he’d only meant for the immediate future.

Now that the imperial edict was down, the matter was considered settled...

「Rear Garden Pavilion」

"Little girl, you don’t seem very happy." Old Gu had followed Ye Qianning all the way to the pavilion.

Ye Qianning propped her head in her little hands, looking rather listless.

"Why so glum?"

"The Old Madam is gone, and I should be happy, but she’s still my father’s mother, after all." Now that it was all over, Ye Qianning felt little joy. Instead, a deep sorrow clouded her features.

’No matter how heartless she was, she was still his birth mother. He’s bound to have some unresolved feelings about it.’

’And I’m worried that I’m the one who created this rift, and that I won’t be able to mend it for him.’

"Don’t you worry," Old Gu said, seeming to understand what was on her mind. "Xiang Minghou is no child. He’s a veteran of countless battles; he’s not that soft-hearted. She got what she deserved. Sparing her life was already an act of immense mercy."

Ye Qianning sighed again. "Living in these grand estates... there’s too much scheming. It’s not as straightforward as the lives of common people."

"And don’t the common folk envy the wealth and status that come with being an official? People... everyone has their troubles in life, rich or poor. That’s why the best thing to do is live in the moment and seize the day."

"You really know how to live freely, Old Gu."

"Heheh. You’re still young, little girl. These aren’t things for someone your age to be worrying about. Stick with me, and I’ll teach you to laugh your way through life."

"You’re right," Ye Qianning agreed.

’A six-year-old should be carefree. Why am I worrying about all this?’

"Don’t run! Stop...!"

The frantic shouts of a servant boy drifted over.

Ye Qianning and Old Gu turned to look. Mrs. Wang was running wildly, a servant boy chasing after her from behind.

After rounding a flowerbed, Mrs. Wang seemed to spot Ye Qianning in the pavilion. She abruptly changed direction and ran straight toward them.

Seeing this, Ye Qianning sighed in dismay. "I really don’t want to deal with this..."

Old Gu’s brow furrowed. As he watched Mrs. Wang approach, he was so incensed his beard practically bristled. "Why is every last one of them coming to torment you, a little girl?"

Ye Qianning shrugged. ’Mrs. Wang is far more cunning than the Old Madam was.’

"Pangtuan! Pangtuan..." Mrs. Wang cried, running toward them in a frenzy.

Luo Wen moved in a flash to block her path.

"Pangtuan, I’m begging you! Please, spare us..." Blocked, Mrs. Wang immediately dropped to her knees and began kowtowing over and over.

Ye Qianning sighed.

"You’re the ones who did wrong! The punishment came from an imperial edict, not from this little girl! It wasn’t her who sent the second branch of the family to the mines." Old Gu’s frown deepened as he listened.

"Please, I’m begging you, spare us! Zhenzhu and Si Yan are still so young! Please..." As if she hadn’t heard a word, Mrs. Wang just kept kowtowing desperately.

"Why, you..."

"Calm down, Old Gu." Ye Qianning poured him a cup of tea. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

"Hmph."

Old Gu snorted. ’If this had happened in the Gu family,’ he thought, ’I’d have thrown every last one of them out without a shred of mercy.’

"Pangtuan, please, I’m begging you..."

Ye Qianning looked at Mrs. Wang. "I’m just a child. It’s no use begging me."