Life at the estate seemed to have returned to a calm state after Lin Yan arrived.
Everyone appeared to have forgotten about the frail young lady who had only stayed in the mansion for a little over ten days and had also been ill for that same duration.
Only the gift boxes, packed and sent from the mansion to the estate during festivals, served as a reminder to all the masters of the Marquis of Huaiyin's household of the existence of their distant cousin.
For the past two years, Lin Yan had been diligently observing the mourning rites according to ancient customs. During this period, she had also undertaken several other endeavors.
Firstly, the several shops that were part of her mother's dowry had been reclaimed and were now managed by her own people. Although she did not personally appear, she provided many ideas. However, in this world, there was a transmigrator with exceptionally forward-thinking ideas, so Lin Yan did not present anything too advanced.
Nevertheless, even in ancient times, the wisdom of many laborers could be applied.
Under the guise of praying for her parents, Lin Yan had adopted many orphans at the estate, teaching them to read and practice martial arts. Most of these children were boys.
It wasn't that she didn't want to take in girls; it was just that girls typically had other "destinations," and there was no time for her to seek them out. However, once people learned that these unwanted children were being taken in, many infant girls began to appear at the estate's gate.
When a servant came to report, Lin Yan sighed. She had expected this to happen, but she still instructed them to take in these children, for they were lives after all.
She could find their parents, but what good would it do even if she sent them back? If they could cruelly abandon their own child once, they would do so a second and third time.
Lin Yan did not keep these girls on the same estate where she resided. Instead, she sent them to another estate. In ancient times, one could not travel without a permit. She certainly did not want the children she raised to be reclaimed by their birth parents later.
When these children grew up, she would tell them about their origins. How they chose to proceed thereafter would be entirely up to them.
Thunder rumbled, and rain poured down like a waterfall. Many people found no sleep on this rainy night.
Within the inner chambers of the Duke of An's mansion, a bedroom in a courtyard was brightly lit.
"Miss has always been afraid of thunder. Let everyone in the room make more noise so that Miss knows we are outside," an elder nanny instructed the young maids inside.
Their young lady had been terrified of thunder since she was little. During thunderstorms, she would cry uncontrollably. As she grew older, it improved slightly, but she still slept restlessly and needed to hear movement outside her room.
Tang Leyi was awakened by the noise outside. Since giving birth to her second child, she had been prone to headaches, and even the slightest sound would disturb her sleep. It had been a long time since anyone dared to be so noisy while she was asleep.
"Why is it so noisy outside?" The moment she spoke, she was startled by her own voice.
This was not the voice she was familiar with. Her voice had become shrill and grating from years of crying. Sometimes she herself detested her own voice, so she rarely spoke unless absolutely necessary.
But the voice just now was soft and pleasant, carrying the languor of just waking up, making people's hearts soften involuntarily.
"Miss is awake. Miss, don't be afraid; it's just the rain. We are all outside accompanying you." The elder nanny lifted the bed curtains, allowing her to see the scene outside.
Was this her wet nurse? She looked so young. She remembered that after her marriage, her wet nurse had worried and toiled for her, her hair turning white within a few years. Later, to take the blame for her, she had been banished to the estate.
She stared blankly in the direction her wet nurse's hand pointed. The young Chunlan and Qiuju were embroidering and chatting under the lamplight. At that moment, they both stopped their work and smiled at her.
Xia He was trimming the candle wick, and the younger Dong Mei was secretly eating snacks. Seeing her looking over, she quickly hid her hand behind her back.
Was this a dream? In her dream, she had returned to her youthful days.
At this time, she was carefree. Even her fear of thunder was met with a house full of people accompanying her. No one thought she was being fussy, nor did anyone scold her for such a small matter.
Her biggest worry each day was that her studies were too difficult, and her greatest concern was what clothes to wear and what jewelry to adorn herself with that day.
How wonderful it was. If not for the growing reputation of that vixen, and if she hadn't achieved great merit that elevated her status to that of a legitimate daughter, her later life wouldn't have been so arduous.
Thinking of this, her eyes were filled with venom.
"Miss, Miss," the wet nurse's call brought her back to her senses.
The wet nurse was also startled at that moment. Miss's gaze just now was not like hers at all, but rather like a devil from hell. She thought some evil spirit had possessed her young lady.
Fortunately, fortunately, Miss returned to normal. However, the wet nurse still harbored a lingering trace of unease.
"Miss, are you alright?"
"I'm fine, wet nurse. Please tell them all to go rest. I feel less afraid now." Although she desperately wanted them to stay with her.
But as they left her one by one, seeing them now filled her with a sense of guilt towards them. She could not face them.
"Then this servant will lower the bed curtains and have Chunlan rest by the footstool. The others can return to their quarters. If you need anything, just call her."
The wet nurse instructed softly and watched as her young lady lay back down before lowering the bed curtains. She then heard her instruct the others to return and rest.
The bed curtains did not block much light. Because she was afraid of the dark, she always slept with the lights on at night. When did this habit disappear?
She had forgotten. So many of her habits had been altered later on, just as she herself had changed, becoming increasingly unlike her former self.
She raised her hand before her eyes. It was a pair of soft, delicate hands, unmarked by any scars. Perfect, as if carved from jade.
But how could her hands be like this? Her hands should have had many scars. The tips and pads of her fingers should have had white marks from the strings of her zither, and the joints of her fingers should have had calluses from practicing calligraphy.
So this must be a dream, a longing for the beautiful years of the past from someone deep in despair.
She lay on the bed, inhaling the scent of her favorite incense from her youth, listening to the distant thunder, and gradually fell asleep again.
It was better to keep such beauty within dreams. After waking, she would have to continue facing her completely ruined life.
However, this beautiful dream could at least bring a little warmth back to her already frozen heart.
When Tang Leyi woke up the next day at her usual time, she found herself still in her maiden boudoir, with the young Chunlan sleeping on the footstool.
She finally realized something was wrong. A dream couldn't be this real, nor could it last for such a long time. She had truly returned, returned to her youthful days.
Tang Leyi did not wake Chunlan. Instead, she mentally recalled the current time and searched for memories related to this period.
This seemed to be before that vixen had made her name known.