Time Travel: The Noble Family
Chapter 418 - 147: Drawing_2

Chapter 418: Chapter 147: Drawing_2

Yueyao wasn’t the proactive type, simply answering when spoken to. After a short conversation, Yuebing found it exceedingly dull and thus left the Lanxi Courtyard.

Once everyone had left, Yueyao watched Nanny Cui’s retreating figure. Nanny Cui was no simple character; in her past life, Yuebing’s ability to secure her place in the Marquis’ household owed much to Nanny Cui’s efforts. Yueyao hoped that Nanny Cui wouldn’t set her sights on her.

As soon as Nanny Wang returned to the courtyard, she asked, "Second Young Lady, tell me what you’ve observed."

After pondering for a moment, Yuebing said, "The Eldest Miss believes in speaking less to avoid mistakes, staying out of matters; the third younger sister does not wish to be close to us, thus she is very distant; the Fourth Miss is rather thin-skinned."

Nanny Wang nodded. Except for the description of the Third Young Lady not being entirely accurate, the characterizations of the Eldest Miss and Fourth Miss were spot on. She then asked, "Have you considered why the Third Young Lady is courteous to you?"

Yuebing shook her head, "The third younger sister is cautious of my mother; she will not befriend me." As for why Yueyao would be cautious of her, Yuebing had a clear idea in her mind, and it was precisely because she knew the reason that she understood even more that Yueyao would not befriend her.

Nanny Wang shook her head and said, "The Third Young Lady is cold, but she is measured in her actions. You just need to make it known to outsiders that you sisters have a close relationship." With the Third Young Lady’s temperament, she would be on guard against the Second Young Lady rather than becoming friends with her.

Yuebing thought for a long time and then said, "Mother, I understand." They were sisters, and if Yueyao wished to preserve her own reputation, she wouldn’t let others know that she had a bad relationship with her. This left Yuebing with an opportunity. However, Yuebing was somewhat uncertain if Yueyao could befriend noble girls.

Nanny Wang didn’t provide a definite answer, "We’ll just have to wait and see." Nanny Wang couldn’t give Yuebing a hundred percent certainty, but she felt that Yueyao could achieve it.

After returning to her courtyard, Yuehuan muttered to herself, "Nobody has it easy. I have my struggles, and so does she." To gain a foothold, she needed to ingratiate herself with Yuebing, while Yueyao had to please the Ma Family to have their support. She didn’t know who claimed that reborn women and time travelers could command the wind and rain, but looking at the state of these two, it was truly pitiful.

Hong Mei said in surprise, "Miss, who is she?" She didn’t understand why the miss was expressing such sentiments. Hong Mei was now finding the Fourth Miss more inscrutable than ever; since returning from the mountain, the Fourth Miss spoke less and less, and sometimes her words were baffling. But one thing was clear to Hong Mei, the Fourth Miss had become, just like before, the Second Young Lady’s follower.

Upon arriving at Ma’s Mansion, Yueyao naturally stayed in Begonia Garden. As soon as Yueyao entered Begonia Garden, she was stunned.

April was the season for Begonia Flowers to bloom, and the several Begonia trees in the courtyard were in full splendor, like graceful young ladies; the flowers were pink and white, the leaves fresh and lovely.

Yueyao murmured softly, "Bright and beautiful railings reflect upon the golden pond, fragrant trees crisscross over the short wall."

Zhuang Ruolan heard Yueyao reciting poetry and was just about to ask when she noticed Yueyao walking towards the Begonia Trees.

Yueyao had developed the habit of observing carefully, and this time was no exception, reflexively walking forward to scrutinize.

Each of the Begonia Flowers had its own pose: some fully bloomed with every petal transitioning from deep to light red before turning white, the pistils tender yellow like adorable bean sprouts; some were only partially opened like a pink horn or a delicate little bell; others were buds about to burst, their stems and sepals very tender and vivid red; and some were still buds, blood-red like crimson pearls.

Cai Yi spoke softly, "young lady, what is Cousin Miss doing?"

Upon hearing Cai Yi’s words, Yueyao came back to her senses, walked over to Zhuang Ruolan, and whispered, "Cousin-in-law, I want to paint." She remembered that two years ago, she had submitted a begonia painting to Mr. Yu Shan and received his critique. Now, with the begonia flowers in full bloom, Yueyao felt an urge to capture this beautiful scene on canvas.

She wanted to paint another begonia painting for Mr. Yu Shan to critique. Only through the criticism of others could she see her own shortcomings and make significant progress.

Ruo Lan opened her mouth but, her composure was remarkable. Immediately, she smiled and said, "Good." Zhuang Ruolan knew that painting required a quiet environment, so she had all the maids and old nannies leave.

Yueyao was familiar with Begonia Garden, so she entered the study, took out her painting supplies and brushes, set up the easel in the middle of the courtyard, attached the Xuan Paper, but didn’t start painting right away. Instead, she went to observe the begonia flowers closely, then returned to the easel and stretched out her hand to make ceaseless gestures on the paper.

Ruo Lan watched Yueyao in such a state, stunned for a long moment. Seeing Cai Yi wanting to speak, she gestured with her hand and whispered, "Let’s talk outside." After speaking, she led Cai Yi out, leaving only Xi Juan and Xi Yu to attend by the side.

Once they were outside of Begonia Garden, Cai Yi finally said, "young lady, just now Cousin Miss looked like..." Cai Yi originally wanted to say that Yueyao looked as if she were possessed, but the words were unpleasant, and she didn’t dare to speak them.

Yet Ruo Lan smiled and shook her head, "You don’t understand." She had gone to Yueyao’s studio the day before but hadn’t seen a single painting, which left her a bit regretful. However, Yueyao’s performance just now had completely dispelled her regret. From her behavior earlier, Yueyao was evidently an art fanatic, it just hadn’t been noticed before.

Cai Yi shook her head, "Then it’s better not to understand." The expression on Cousin Miss’s face was indeed too frightening, like someone crazed.

Ruo Lan chuckled lightly, and she didn’t offer further explanation. That realm wasn’t comprehensible to Cai Yi, much less to herself.

Loo Ying had known since yesterday that Yueyao would come today, and she wanted to become good friends with Yueyao, so she took the initiative to come over, only to encounter cousin-in-law halfway.

With a smile, Ruo Lan said, "Yueyao is busy, let’s find her in the afternoon!" Painting time should not be disturbed, even if Loo Ying went, she would not be able to see Yueyao.

Loo Ying nodded obediently. She felt uneasy, but the long lessons from her mother allowed her to read the room and act accordingly, no longer speaking as recklessly as before.

At lunchtime, the person Ruo Lan had sent came back and said, "young lady, Cousin Miss said she won’t be coming so soon, and told the young lady not to wait for her." Actually, Yueyao wouldn’t be distracted by anything else when she was painting; these were words Nanny Hao had said.

Ruo Lan laughed and shook her head, "Alright, let’s not wait for her then."

Cai Yi said from the side, "Cousin Miss neglecting regular meals, she doesn’t take good care of her health." Neglecting meals for the sake of painting, how could this be right?

Ruo Lan said amusingly, "Yesterday, I walked so much my feet ached, but Third Young Lady seemed perfectly fine. From this, we can see that Third Young Lady is in good health, at least better than us." Yueyao was tall and her complexion excellent; far from someone who didn’t take care of herself, she perhaps did the exact opposite.