Chapter 363: Chapter 363: Shen Siyi’s Jade Rabbit

That day.

Shen Ningning came to the Xie Mansion to have a meal with Xie Suzhi.

She took a nap in the afternoon. Just as she woke up, she saw Wanchun passing by the doorway with red-rimmed eyes, carrying a pile of things.

"Sister Wanchun?" Shen Ningning called out to her immediately. "What’s wrong?"

A closer look confirmed her suspicion.

Wanchun’s eyes were brimming with tears, and she looked utterly heartbroken.

"Commandery Princess..." Wanchun wiped her tears with the back of her hand and choked out, "I... I was just collecting Wenxiu’s belongings."

"Wenxiu?" Shen Ningning had never heard the name before.

Wanchun said with tears in her eyes, "She was a household servant, born and raised in the mansion, just like the rest of us. She used to serve in the first branch of the family."

"But not long ago, Housekeeper Pang transferred her to serve Second Madam Xie. Who would have thought she’d be found dead this morning in the pond near the second courtyard?"

"They said she couldn’t see clearly in the dark, fell into the pond, and hit her head on the rockery. She bled, fell unconscious, and froze to death."

Shen Ningning was shocked.

"Didn’t anyone in the second branch see her fall into the pond?"

"The Second Madam hasn’t been in good spirits recently. On top of that, she’s deliberately locked herself in her courtyard to reflect on her misdeeds, so besides Wenxiu, who was her personal attendant, no one else wanted to go over there."

As Wanchun spoke, she recalled seeing the large, bloody gash on Wenxiu’s head when she had gone over.

The gruesome sight was so horrifying that she trembled just thinking about it, overcome with sorrow.

"Wenxiu was a very gentle and reserved person. Initially, Housekeeper Pang wanted to send Wen Lan to the second courtyard, but Wen Lan was afraid of the Second Madam’s temper, so Wenxiu went in her place."

"Who could have known that she would lose her life by going? Perhaps it was just bad luck... sigh..." Wanchun wept, wiping away her tears.

As she did, the belongings of Wenxiu that she was holding tumbled out of her arms.

They were all papers on which she had practiced poetry.

Among them, a particularly small, jade-carved rabbit, only the size of a pinky finger, also fell out.

Shen Ningning bent down to pick it up. Gazing at the Jade Rabbit, her watery eyes widened. "What a beautiful little thing."

Wanchun glanced at it and recognized it. "The First Madam gave that to Wenxiu when she was five, because Wenxiu was born in the year of the rabbit."

It seemed Wenxiu had always treasured this gift from Shen Siyi, even threading a cord through it and tying a red tassel.

When Shen Ningning heard it was a gift from her own mother, she took a closer look.

Suddenly, she noticed, "Huh? There are words under this rabbit."

Wanchun leaned in, curious as well.

Sure enough, two characters were carved beneath the little Jade Rabbit.

But... the structure of the characters was very unique. They didn’t look like the script of Cangyun Country!

Wanchun was completely baffled. "Commandery Princess, what does it say?"

Shen Ningning scratched her chubby pink cheek. "I can’t read it either."

’I’ve read so many books,’ she thought. ’How can there be a script I’ve never seen before?’

Wanchun suddenly remembered something.

"My mother once said that the First Madam had her own set of characters that no one else could recognize. Only she knew what they meant."

"For a while, the First Madam used those abstruse characters for bookkeeping. In the beginning, the Second Madam tried to seize control of the mansion’s management, but she couldn’t win against our Madam because of it."

"I remember the First Madam left behind a thin booklet explaining the script, one she wrote herself. I think she gave it to the Second Young Master."

Shen Ningning blinked her big eyes.

Her little hand tightened around the Jade Rabbit. "Wanchun, what are you going to do with Wenxiu’s belongings?"

At the mention of this, Wanchun couldn’t help but cry again.

"Although Wenxiu was a household servant, after death, she can only be taken to the Family Slave Mountain behind the Xie family’s ancestral tombs. She’s not allowed any burial goods."

"I plan to seal these things in an earthen jar. When I die, I can take them into my tomb with me and return them to her in the afterlife."

Wanchun was warm-hearted and straightforward. Seeing her so heartbroken, it was clear she truly considered Wenxiu a close friend.

Shen Ningning blinked her big eyes and said, "How about this? I’ll go ask Father to let you bury these items with her."

"But lend me this Jade Rabbit for a few days. I want to figure out what these two characters mean, and then I’ll give it back to you."

Wanchun quickly dried her tears and nodded repeatedly. "Okay! Commandery Princess, you’re so kind, just as considerate as the First Madam. This is truly a blessing for Wenxiu."

「That evening.」

Shen Ningning went to Xie Ming’an’s courtyard.

Xie Ming’an was supposed to be at the Ministry of Justice, handling hundreds of case files that had piled up from the commanderies below.

But when he heard Shen Ningning was waiting for him, he immediately put down his brush, gave a quick instruction to his subordinate, and rode his horse back to the mansion.

"Little Sister!" he called out before he even entered the room.

As he stepped into the study, he saw Shen Ningning hunched over his desk, brush in hand, practicing her calligraphy stroke by stroke.

A warm smile spread across Xie Ming’an’s handsome face.

He took off his greatcoat, dusted it off, and warmed his hands over the nearby brazier for a moment before walking over.

As he got closer, he saw that Shen Ningning was holding up a jade rabbit and copying the characters carved on it.

The little one was so engrossed she didn’t even notice he had arrived.

Xie Ming’an smiled, pressing his lips together.

He suddenly reached out and hugged Shen Ningning’s small frame from behind.

"Little Sister, I said your Second Brother is back," he said, lifting Shen Ningning and spinning her around in a circle.

"Let go of me!" Shen Ningning’s head spun from his twirling.

She kicked her little legs and struggled desperately in Xie Ming’an’s arms like a chubby kitten trying to escape a human, her tender little face puffed up in a pout.

But Xie Ming’an just roared with laughter.

He’d been getting the cold shoulder from her lately, but it didn’t matter.

He was more than willing to do whatever it took to please his little sister.

Seeing he wouldn’t let go, Shen Ningning flicked her wrist and, with a "HUP, HUP," drew an ’X’ on his face with her calligraphy brush.

Xie Ming’an froze, his grip instantly loosening.

Shen Ningning landed steadily on her feet, not forgetting to put her little hands on her hips and glare with wide, expressive eyes.

"Don’t you dare sneak up on me again!" the little one warned with adorable ferocity.

Just then, she saw Xie Ming’an’s face darken. On his jade-white complexion, the ’X’ she had drawn was right in the middle of his nose.

"PFFT—" Shen Ningning burst out laughing, clutching her stomach as her little body shook.

"You dare laugh at me? Look what you’ve done!" Xie Ming’an spat twice; some of the ink had just splattered into his mouth.

This only made Shen Ningning laugh harder, so much that she felt her little sides would split.

Xie Ming’an narrowed his eyes and suddenly lunged, intending to catch Shen Ningning.

The little one let out a yelp and started running around the table.

Her frame was small, and her reflexes were quick.

She ended up running circles around Xie Ming’an.

A moment later, Xie Ming’an stopped, panting.

He rested his slender hands on the corner of the table and lifted his thin, annoyed eyes. "I’m not chasing you anymore. You should rest too. If we keep running around, we’ll attract Father, and he’ll scold me again for bullying you."

Shen Ningning puffed out her little tummy smugly.

"He won’t be scolding me, anyway," she said, her big eyes twinkling with a sly expression.

A thin sheen of sweat had formed on Xie Ming’an’s forehead from the chase.

He picked up a teacup, drained it in one gulp, and then asked, "Alright, tell me. Why were you looking for me?"

Shen Ningning held up the Jade Rabbit, pointing at the two characters carved on the bottom.

"Can you read this? What does it say here?"

Xie Ming’an glanced at it.

"This is Mother’s script. She said these characters are from the Hua Country. The ones carved on your rabbit are..."

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