Song Mingyue nodded with a smile, "Alright, I'll listen to you."
"It's getting late, I'll head back first. I'll visit you again another day," Qi Zhenzhen stood up.
Song Mingyue looked at Qi Zhenzhen with a hint of melancholy, "Leaving already?"
"I still need to go back to the Li family. Xuanxuan is still there," Qi Zhenzhen said. "Besides, there's a curfew at the mansion. It's not good to return too late."
"The capital is full of rules," Song Mingyue grumbled, getting up to see Qi Zhenzhen out. "Then be careful on your way. Remember to visit me when you have time. And in the future, don't hide things from me. Even if I can't help, I can at least be a listener."
Qi Zhenzhen smiled, "You, don't overthink things. If there's really something, I'll definitely tell you."
Song Mingyue sighed, "Although the capital is prosperous, I always feel it's not as carefree as it was in Xinghua Village."
Qi Zhenzhen pursed her lips, "There's always a trade-off. It depends on how you look at it."
...
"I knew my second sister would come back for me," Qi Xuanxuan pounced into Qi Zhenzhen's arms.
"Of course. If second sister brought you out, would she not take you back?" Qi Zhenzhen chuckled.
"Hand it over!" Qi Xuanxuan made a face at Qian Yuanbao and extended her hand towards him, looking quite pleased.
Qian Yuanbao cast a resentful glance at Qi Zhenzhen, unfastened his money pouch from his waist, and tossed it to Qi Xuanxuan.
"What's going on here?" Qi Zhenzhen asked, puzzled.
Li Rou explained, "Just now, sister-in-law Yuanbao said she would send Xuanxuan back. Xuanxuan said she didn't need to, that you would definitely come back for her. So, sister-in-law Yuanbao made a bet with her. If you came back, she would give Xuanxuan the newly acquired luminous pearl."
No wonder Qian Yuanbao was looking at her like that.
Qi Xuanxuan proudly presented the luminous pearl to Qi Zhenzhen, "Second sister, I'm giving this pearl to you. You can put it in your room at night for light."
"Thank you, Xuanxuan. I really like this. And thank you, young master Qian. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have gotten this good thing," Qi Zhenzhen said with a straight face.
"A Nuan, see? This is a typical case of getting the benefit and acting coy," Qian Yuanbao muttered.
Li Nuan smiled gently, "You two!"
Qi Zhenzhen led Qi Xuanxuan to say goodbye to Madam Wang. Madam Wang held Qi Zhenzhen's hand, "Zhenzhen, please talk to Rou'er more. After thinking about it, it's not good for a young lady to do woodworking. When people come to propose in a few years, they'll hear that the Li family's daughter is a carpenter. Who will come to propose? Will she do woodworking her whole life?"
Madam Tang also looked at Qi Zhenzhen expectantly from the side.
"Aunties, you don't need to be so anxious. Rou'er is still young. Perhaps she'll change her mind herself? You know, at her age, there's a rebellious streak. The more you tell her not to do something, the more she wants to do it. Besides, I truly think Rou'er is talented in this regard," Qi Zhenzhen said sincerely.
Madam Wang and Madam Tang exchanged glances. Finally, Madam Tang spoke, "Zhenzhen has a point. Perhaps we should let her be? Marriage proposals are still a few years away anyway."
Since her own mother agreed, Madam Wang couldn't say anything more and vaguely replied, "Let's see then."
On the carriage ride back, Qi Xuanxuan asked, "Second sister, why did you leave so suddenly? Didn't you say you would take me to Sister Mingyue's house too?"
Qi Zhenzhen felt awkward. "I saw you were having a good time with Rou'er, so I thought I'd let you play with Rou'er first, and I'll take you to Mingyue's next time."
Qi Xuanxuan said "oh" and didn't think much of it. She took out a box from her sleeve and showed it to Qi Zhenzhen, "This is what Sister Rou gave me."