Transmigrator Meets Reincarnator

Chapter 246: Lack of Table Manners

He Changdi had sent a messenger in the afternoon to inform her that he would be returning late tonight, so Chu Lian didn't need to wait for him to have dinner.

When it was time, Chu Lian set off to make greetings to the elders as per usual.

Since it was still rather early, Chu Lian brought Wenqing and Xiyan to her mother-in-law's residence first.

In the last few days, Countess Jing'an had been drinking the medicine made with the Snow Mountain Mists flower. The medicine, paired with acupuncture, had greatly improved her health, so she was now able to get out of bed and walk around more frequently.

Since Miaozhen's child had been saved and she didn't have anywhere else to stay, Miaozhen had remained at Countess Jing'an's courtyard.

When Chu Lian entered the parlour, Countess Jing'an was sitting cross-legged on the hearth bed and playing with Little An and Little Lin.

Little An was already seven years old this year and was becoming more aware of her surroundings. She had become increasingly quiet, perhaps due to the separation of her parents. She sat silently by Countess Jing'an's side, toying with a Chinese ring puzzle.

The five-year-old Little Lin was at the age when children were the most mischievous. She was livelier than her sister and was calling out for a handmaid to play cat's cradle with her.

Countess Jing'an was watching her granddaughters with a doting expression. When she heard a servant announce that Chu Lian had come, she beckoned Chu Lian over. The quick-witted maidservant quickly moved a stool over to Countess Jing'an's side.

"Lian'er, come sit with me."

Chu Lian smiled and curtseyed towards Countess Jing'an before taking a seat on the stool.

When Countess Jing'an noticed that Chu Lian was looking at the children, she sighed and said, "Madam Zou might have made some mistakes, but the children are innocent. The ones who were hurt the most by Dalang's divorce are Little Lin and Little An. I couldn't trust the servants in Dalang's courtyard, so I'm temporarily raising them here. I don't have much to do anyway, so I might as well occupy myself with something."

Countess Jing'an was actually explaining Little An and Little Lin's presence in her courtyard to Chu Lian.

To be frank, Chu Lian didn't know her mother-in-law all too well as she hadn't spent much time with her. Countess Jing'an had been bedridden since the start of her marriage, so Chu Lian didn't have a good grasp of her personality.

However, Chu Lian had gotten some insights during the ruckus over the miscarriage.

What was a good way to phrase it?

Countess Jing'an was a good person, but she was too weak and naive. She was also easily swayed by the words of others. With those qualities, it would be hard for her to take on the role of lady-in-charge, a role which required both wits and willpower. Perhaps it was due to her years spent bedridden, or perhaps Count Jing'an had shielded her too much from reality. Even at her age, her thoughts were still so innocent!

Although she was similar to the matriarch in the sense that she couldn't wait to see her eldest son, He Changqi, have an heir, she would never mistreat her granddaughters in the process.

This could be seen from the fact that she had the two young ladies move over the moment He Changqi and Madam Zou divorced.

From Little Lin and Little An's expressions and actions, Chu Lian could tell that the two children loved their kind and gentle grandmother very much.

Countess Jing'an's request for candied hawthorns that day had probably come from someone else's whispers into her ear, leading her to unintentionally create the drama that had happened.