After being reborn, I became the apple of my enemy's eye.

Chapter 152 Preparations for Entering the Palace

Zheng Jihua then realized that she had been too harsh, and gently comforted Yan Yun, saying, "If Ning'er doesn't like that nanny, she can tell her father."

He didn't say too much in one breath, letting Yan Yun slowly absorb what he was saying.

"That nanny only came for a few days. She just told Ning'er some things to pay attention to, but she didn't need to learn any rules."

He felt that it was not good to make Yan Yun learn any rules, as she was unwilling to do so.

Yan Yun also wanted to say that they shouldn't send anyone over.

But even then, Zheng Jihua might not listen.

Zheng Jihua said someone would be coming, but Yan Yun didn't respond much, just waved and went back to the courtyard.

Zheng Jihua watched her retreating figure. After Yan Yun returned to the room, he looked at the maid beside him and asked, "Why didn't I see Mo'er?"

When the maids heard Zheng Jihua ask about Mo'er, they immediately said, "Mo'er must have gone to help in the backyard."

They naturally didn't know where Mo'er had gone. That girl moved around without anyone noticing and couldn't get along with them at all. However, since the adults had taken the initiative to talk to them, they naturally had to respond to the adults as well. If they said they didn't know, they would be in trouble.

The adults won't remember them either.

When Zheng Jihua heard them say that Mo'er had gone to the backyard, she didn't ask any further questions.

When Yan Yun returned to the room, she saw Mo'er standing inside, folding her clothes for her.

The maids said they didn't know, which was a lie. However, Zheng Jihua's sudden question about Mo'er made Yan Yun feel a little strange.

Mo'er looked at Yan Yun and immediately stepped forward to bow.

"Miss, you are back."

She remained gentle and kind to Yan Yun, always showing him great care.

Yan Yun nodded. She felt a little tired and prepared to take off her clothes and rest for a while, because she hadn't been sleeping well at night.

There's nothing to do during the day, and I don't need to go to the academy, so I can sleep soundly.

It went on until night.

Zheng Jihua came to the courtyard again. It was already getting dark. This time, he brought a lantern with him. When he arrived, Mo'er was putting a warm stove on Yan Yuntian's stove outside the room.

Zheng Jihua called out to Mo'er.

"Mo'er."

Mo'er immediately stopped, but did not turn around; she kept her head down.

"Big, my lord."

Zheng Jihua handed the box in his hand to her.

"this is for you."

Mo'er immediately raised her hand to refuse, "My lord, I dare not do that, how could I be worthy?"

Zheng Jihua, however, did not feel that it was inappropriate.

"I chose this because I thought it suited you. Since I'm giving it to you, just accept it. Do you think I, a great man, would be reluctant to give you a bracelet?"

Zheng Jihua's reasoning was, "You take good care of Miss every day. With such a sensible maid like you by Ning'er's side, I can worry less."

Mo'er still reached out and tremblingly took the box that Zheng Jihua handed over.

She held it in her hand and whispered, "It is my blessing to be able to help you, sir."

Seeing her say that, Zheng Jihua smiled.

"You must continue to take good care of Miss. If anything happens to Miss, please let me know first."

"Yes."

Yan Yun also witnessed these little incidents, but she didn't expect Zheng Jihua to show kindness to a maid.

But then she thought of something else that seemed impossible.

After all, Mo'er's face is now disfigured, so if Zheng Jihua saw her face, he would naturally...

Yan Yun only thought about it for a moment before immediately telling himself that he couldn't think that way, but the thought was fleeting.

She thought of her former concubine, then of Lu Lan, and then of Mo'er beside her. Now she understood why Mo'er was so kind and patient with her...

But can Mo'er really get what she wants from Zheng Jihua, just like the concubine and Lu Lan?

Yan Yun, however, thought it might not be so.

Dinner was eaten together by several people.

At the dinner table, the old lady naturally brought up the old topic again. Lu Lan from the mansion had also come. The old lady said bluntly, "Lan'er, now the most important thing is to have children."

Lu Lan blushed slightly and lowered her head.

Zheng Jihua listened from the side but did not say anything.

The concubine, holding chopsticks, managed to put a mouthful of millet rice into her mouth, but it tasted like wax, and she couldn't swallow it for a long time.

Recently, Yan Yun has been fond of eating things dipped in oil. Chicken and fish are always placed in front of Yan Yun, and Zheng Jihua, seeing what he likes to eat, always puts the food in front of her as well.

The old lady looked at Yan Yun and said, "You little brat, you come to eat and don't even greet your grandmother?"

Yan Yun naturally did not offer his greetings.

How malicious must the old lady have been to the person she once was when she hid the things under the bed?

Why would someone who wants to die want to pay their respects to her?

Zheng Jihua knew that since Zhu Mama died because of her, the old lady's affection for Ning'er would naturally diminish.

Seeing that Ning'er was eating happily, he didn't want to mention his mother in the first place, thinking that she was probably unhappy now as well.

But having spoken to Ning'er, he naturally couldn't ignore her.

Zheng Jihua looked at her mother from the side and said, "Ning'er has only just started speaking, Mother, please don't push her too hard."

Hearing Zheng Jihua's protective words, the old lady put down her chopsticks, looked at Zheng Jihua and said, "Even when I gave birth to you, I never spoiled you like this."

Zheng Jihua replied, "Ning'er grew up with her mother since she was little, so it's normal for her to be a bit aloof now. Of course she knows that her mother is her grandmother. She just hasn't said it."

The old lady looked at Yan Yun, who was still eating meat.

They naturally didn't believe Zheng Jihua's words. Looking at her, she didn't act like she was treating herself as a grandmother at all.

The old lady felt even more unhappy, and her heart was filled with resentment.

She found the concubine, who was eating awkwardly to the side, even more irritating.

She had originally thought that the birth of her first child was a blessing for the Zheng family, but now it seemed that the girl and she didn't get along at all.

The old lady said she was full, and she looked at her concubine beside her and instructed, "Jiaoyun, escort me back to my courtyard."

The concubine ate half of her meal, and no one cared whether she was full or not.

When the old lady spoke, she naturally had to get up.

She took a handkerchief and wiped her mouth, then looked at Zheng Jihua, "Then, sir, Jiaoyun will take Mother back to her courtyard first."

Zheng Jihua waved his hand.

"Go."

The old lady had her concubine accompany her.

Lu Lan, who remained at the dinner table, was watching Yan Yun.

She kept observing Yan Yun, after all, she had misjudged the girl and never expected that she had such a hidden skill.

She was looking closely.

Yan Yun suddenly looked up and met her gaze.

Lu Lan was taken aback.

She immediately picked out all the bones from the fish in front of her.

She got up and placed the plate in front of Yan Yun.

“Ning’er loves to eat fish. Mother says that eating more fish will make people smarter and more beautiful. Look, you are becoming more and more beautiful now, so pretty.”

Her praise seemed sincere, but there was little truth in her words.

Yan Yun glanced at the fish but showed no interest.

After eating a big chicken leg, she felt a bit greasy. Before eating, she clearly wanted to eat more, but once she put it in her mouth, she found it tasteless and couldn't even drink the soup.

Zheng Jihua asked the maid to bring over hot water.

He personally helped Yan Yun wash his hands, while Lu Lan watched from the side. She truly hadn't expected Zheng Jihua to go to such lengths.

Ning'er is clearly not a child anymore, so why does she need Zheng Jihua to help her wash her hands with hot water?

Lu Lan immediately gripped her skirt tightly; she had never experienced anything like this before.

She wasn't jealous, just unhappy. Seeing how well Zheng Jihua treated Yan Yun made her dissatisfied, but she couldn't show her displeasure.

If Yan Yun complains, Zheng Jihua will also dislike him.

If he were to develop a dislike for her, she would end up in the same predicament as that woman, and she couldn't afford to be like that.

Thinking of this, Lu Lan forced a smile again. She remembered what the old lady had said: to give birth to the child. She was young and in better health than that woman, so she naturally had a better chance.

She also invited a doctor to examine her. The doctor said that her body was perfectly normal and that as long as she had normal sexual intercourse, she would naturally become pregnant within a year.

The doctor had clearly stated that everything was true, so Lu Lan naturally felt even more confident.

She saw Zheng Jihua wiping Yan Yun's hands, and then she saw her own hands. Lu Lan stood up and handed her her handkerchief.

"My lord, please use Lan'er's."

As Lu Lan spoke softly, Zheng Jihua took the handkerchief, which was much softer than the others, and gently wiped Yan Yun clean.

Yan Yun let him do whatever he wanted, not knowing who he was trying to impress, and waited for him to clean his hands up.

Yan Yun was about to go back to her room.

Seeing that Lu Lan hadn't eaten much, Zheng Jihua said to her, "Why don't you eat some more with me? I'll have someone else take Ning'er home."

Lu Lan's heart immediately fluttered.

It turns out that adults aren't completely ignorant after all.

Zheng Jihua stayed for Lu Lan's sake and had the other maids escort Yan Yun back.

Yan Yun turned to look at Lu Lan, who had already sat down next to Zheng Jihua.

Seeing the adoration in her eyes as she looked at Zheng Jihua, Yan Yun felt a chill run down his spine.

By nightfall, Yan Yun had already had the birdcage moved outside.

The maids in the courtyard were all afraid of the white eagle and dared not approach it.

But Mo'er was bold enough to approach and even clean up the droppings left by the white eagle.

But the white eagle didn't like Mo'er. When it circled in mid-air, it defecated on Mo'er.

Yan Yun had encountered this twice before, and she never expected Bai Ying to act like this, but he had never acted like this when he was by her side.

Mo'er calmly said to Yan Yun, "Miss, it's alright. This is what a maid should do. Miss's pets are of the same status as Miss, and it's my duty to take care of them."

Mo'er lowered her head even further, "Getting covered in feces is just bad luck."

The more considerate and generous she was, the stranger it seemed to Yan Yun. Yan Yun had also touched the white eagle, but the white eagle was very docile.

Yan Yun thought it could recognize people. Several times, Yan Yun whispered to it, "I clearly didn't lock you up, so I don't know why you won't leave?"

He went to Changgu City with me and came back, and even became a messenger.

But Yan Yun felt that, "Since you have a pair of wings, you should soar through the sky and be free."

Following me would only mean being confined to the courtyard.

This is just an appointment for occasional conversations between Yan Yun and the white eagle. The white eagle will not respond to Yan Yun, and Yan Yun will not expect it to answer him.

At night, she set a trap and waited for Jing Ri to arrive.

Jing then disappeared again and did not come to the mansion.

The nanny hired by Zheng Jihua.

Although she was called a nanny, Yan Yun could tell at a glance that she was different from other maids. In Yan Yun's eyes, her every word and action was the demeanor of someone from a wealthy family.

The old woman said, "My surname is Chang. Miss, you can call me Granny Chang."

Yan Yun did not speak. The maid beside her explained, "It's because Miss is still a little shy, so she doesn't talk much."

Granny Chang smiled and said, "Miss, there's no need to be so formal."

That Granny Chang was completely different from the other nannies who taught Yan Yun needlework and embroidery, and who were good wives and mothers.

She teaches etiquette.

In the palace, who should you address and how? From princes to princesses to the emperor, how should you greet them?

Granny Chang told Yan Yun everything, big and small.

We must not lose sight of the rules, we must not forget the rules, and we must not disregard the rules.

Unlike their own residences, the palace was a place where every word and action was being watched. A single wrong word or action could have consequences ranging from the execution of the entire family to being confined to the palace for the rest of one's life in solitude.

After finishing her sentence, Granny Chang told Yan Yun, "Miss may not understand what I mean now, but Miss must know that in the palace, you can't trust anyone except your trusted confidants who entered the palace with you."

As she spoke, she suddenly remembered something and added, "You can't just trust the people who are by your side. In the palace, you have to learn the rules, but there's another thing you have to learn: don't believe things."

She looked into Yan Yun's somewhat sincere eyes.

Granny Chang smiled and said, "You must be having some difficulty listening to me talk. Would you like to tell me what you like to do? I'd love to hear it."

Granny Chang was not a harsh person. When talking to Yan Yun, she was willing to stop and listen to what he had to say.

Granny Chang then asked Yan Yun, "Miss, would you like to go to the palace?"

Yan Yun thought about it seriously.

If one wanted to enter the palace, naturally everyone would think about it. Back then, when I was still a young lady of the Yan family, I heard that there were also young ladies from Changgu City who went to the palace. It was said that those young ladies could become the emperor's concubines. However, those young ladies were about the same age as me, and I didn't hear of many of them being able to return to the mansion smoothly.

Many people naturally mentioned that those who were close to the emperor were naturally people of high rank and power, enjoying endless wealth and honor. However, at that time, Yan Yun's father felt that with three thousand beauties in the harem, Yan Yun, with his nature, would not be able to win anything even if he tried.

Yan Yun is kind-hearted and down-to-earth.

It would be better to choose a husband who lives in Changgu City. Back then, when she chose the Zheng family, Yan Yun was considered to be marrying down.

But who would have thought that the once prosperous Yan family would eventually come to an end, while the lame Zheng Jihua would gradually make his way to the capital.

Yan Yun recalled the past, when her parents must have thought long and hard about marrying her off to Zheng Jihua.

Zheng Jihua must feel the same way about himself now, thinking this is the best arrangement, which is why he suggested that he go to the palace.

But none of their arrangements led to the outcome they wanted.

As for the Third Prince Yan Yunhe, he was naturally just a stranger and would never be on the same boat.

If given the chance, Yan Yun would like to visit the palace, but he dares not even think about entering it.

Yan Yun shook his head.

Granny Chang said to Yan Yun, "That's because Miss hasn't found the most important thing yet. Once Miss finds the most important thing to her, she will naturally know what she wants."

Yan Yun did not refute.

Just listen to what she says.

After saying this, Granny Chang returned to the rules of the palace.

Starting with His Majesty the Emperor, the story was told to Yan Yun in great detail, and Chang Mama would add a few more words if Yan Yun didn't understand or remember something.

She was patient all the way up to Yan Yunji.

Like Han Shu, she left at noon.

Yan Yun hadn't expected that Zheng Jihua would hire such a nanny.