The eldest sister was reborn and the younger sister traveled through time. I just want to survive.

When everyone followed Concubine Li's gaze and looked over, Yan Muxi's hand holding the soup spoon was still in place.

It was not until the soft flesh on her waist was twisted so hard that it hurt that she confirmed that it was she who was called. She quickly put down the spoon and closed her mouth which had been open for a long time.

Although Concubine Li was nearly forty years old, she was well maintained and looked only about thirty years old. She had an oval face, willow-shaped eyes, long eyebrows and red lips, and was extremely beautiful.

Yan Muxi raised her eyes and met Concubine Li's gaze, confirming once again that she had not made a mistake with two and three. She had no choice but to accept her fate and get out of her seat, walk to the center of the hall, and kneel down to perform the blessing ceremony.

"Your humble servant Yan Muxi greets all the masters and ladies!" Her voice was full of energy and did not sound at all gentle and graceful like a lady.

Concubine Li did not show any disdain, and continued to stare at her with a warm smile, "Judging from your appearance, Miss Yan is indeed a blessed girl. Stop standing there, go back and take a seat!"

"Thank you, Her Majesty, for the compliment!" Yan Muxi sat back in her seat full of doubts. She ignored the gazes from those around her, picked up the spoon and continued to drink the soup.

In fact, she only pretended to be calm on the surface, but she was already in turmoil inside.

Originally, she thought that Concubine Li had mistaken her for Yan Mujun, but judging from Concubine Li's reaction just now, it was Yan Muxi who was deliberately reminded of this.

She didn't dare to dream of becoming the daughter-in-law of Concubine Li. With her status, it would be a stretch for her to be a concubine of the eldest prince.

Besides, with her current shabby appearance, how could she be favored by the royal family?

Su and Qian Manman were also very nervous, but fortunately Concubine Li mentioned the names of several daughters, and they finally felt relieved.

It was already 11:00 p.m. when Yan Muxi returned home from the palace. She was helped to wash and dry her hair. By the time she finished, it was almost midnight.

The maids and old women serving in the courtyard gathered in the main hall to celebrate the New Year. Yan Muxi was exhausted both physically and mentally after a busy day and had no interest in joining in the fun.

Tonight, Concubine Li named several young ladies. It would not be strange if there was one more or one less, but it was very strange that the person was her.

The other ladies who were named were either outstanding in appearance, talented, or of noble status. They always had something to show for themselves. She had nothing, so why should her name be mentioned?

Just in case, she thought she should change her strategy of staying at home like an old maid and find someone to marry as soon as possible to save herself the trouble.

But who should she marry? Cousin Haochuan is a candidate, Yun Chenghe is also a ready-made one, and Su Huachang can also be tried for.

Among the three, she was most inclined to Su Huachang, whose appearance was ruined, because it would save her trouble and effort and she wouldn't have to bother her grandfather for help.

The second is cousin Haochuan. Returning to Jiangnan is something she dreams of, but doing so would be unfair to her cousin.

Yun Chenghe was the worst choice. Marrying into the Yun family was equivalent to being under her father's protection, which was only slightly better than being a concubine to the prince.

The next day, Yan Muxi was dragged out of bed by several maids.

Regardless of whether she could open her eyes or not, the four of them had a clear division of labor: Jinchun and Yinxia put on clothes, Qiuzhu made the bed, and Dongyu washed her hands and face.

Yan Muxi finally opened her eyes with difficulty after she had her hair done and put on makeup.

Seeing her open her eyes, the four of them simultaneously reached out to ask for reward money.

There are four sounds of "pop, pop, pop, pop".

Yan Muxi was impartial and slapped each of the four hands. "Why are you so impatient? I haven't received the New Year's money from your young lady yet. Please wait patiently for me."

Dong Yu puffed up her face and jumped up and down, "Miss, you are such a fool! You can't be beaten during the New Year! Oh~ah~, I got slapped on the first day of the New Year. I will definitely get beaten a lot more this year!"

Although Dongyu is the youngest of the four maids, she is the tallest. She is tall and strong, and she likes to act like a child and act coquettishly. Yan Muxi's eyelids twitch every time she sees her.

"Okay, okay, stop jumping around. The ground is going to crack because of you jumping around. I'm dizzy." As she spoke, she took out the purses she had prepared from the dressing table and threw one to each of them.

He also took out a larger purse and handed it to Qiuzhu, "It contains the tips from the people in the courtyard. Give it out after breakfast!"

The mansion had distributed a wave of reward money before the New Year, and this money was given by Yan Muxi alone.

Giving out bonuses during the Chinese New Year is an unwritten rule between masters and servants in wealthy families. The master with a fatter pocket gets more, and the poorer one gets less, but at least some amount should be given as a token of appreciation.

The servants would also compare with each other to see which courtyard gave more, and they would try their best to enter that courtyard in the next year.

Yan Muxi was not short of money, so of course he would not be stingy with rewards. He gave two taels of gold to each of the maids who served him personally, and three taels of silver to each of the servants who served outside, regardless of the job they did.

It was one or two taels more than what the mansion gave, which was enough to win over the servants without being too outrageous.

When Yan Muxi arrived at Manweiyuan, the sky was already turning pale. Qian Manman kept complaining about her getting up late all the way.

The mother and daughter arrived at Fujuyuan a little late indeed. Except for Yan Muqing who was recuperating, everyone from each courtyard had arrived.

Even Aunt Ge, who had finished her confinement early, came. She was already thin and frail, and now she was even more fragile than a willow, as if she would fall down at the slightest breeze.

The old lady gave her grandchildren New Year's money, the same amount every year, 80 cents for boys and 20 cents for girls.

This amount of New Year's money is not small in the countryside, but in an official's mansion, it is not even as much as what the servants get.

The old lady turned a blind eye to what was happening outside, and no young person dared to make any suggestions. As a result, the amount of New Year's money calculated based on the written amount has remained the same for so many years.

It was a rare family reunion, and the whole family gathered in Fujuyuan to chat and laugh for a while.

After breakfast, Yan's father took several young masters to visit a good friend's house to wish him a happy new year. Su, Qian Manman and several concubines stayed in Fujuyuan to accompany the old lady.

Yan Muxi didn't get enough sleep and was very sleepy. She originally planned to go back to the yard to catch up on her sleep, but then she thought about what she had planned before going to bed last night, so she turned and went to Yaqingyuan halfway.

Compared to the bustling other places in the mansion, Yaqing Garden was too quiet and deserted. Perhaps for fear of disturbing the master's recuperation, the servants even walked in a low voice.

In the bedroom, Yan Muqing leaned against the soft pillow. In just two days, she had lost a lot of weight and spoke weakly. "How can my second sister have time to come to Yaqingyuan? After the New Year, her illness will not be good."

Yan Muxi stepped forward and handed over the string of twenty coins. "Don't worry, big sister. I'm in good health and not susceptible to illness. This is the New Year's money my grandmother gave me, and I brought it to you on the way."

"I am weak and useless, and it is troublesome for my second sister to make a trip for such a small matter." Yan Mucheng said as he handed the copper coin to Lan Shuang.

Yan Muxi sat down on a round stool nearby. "It's just a side job, so it's not hard at all. Is big sister feeling better?"

"Don't worry, second sister. I'm much better now. Cough, cough, cough..." Yan Muqing started coughing violently after saying a few words.

Lan Shuang hurriedly patted her back, and when her coughing became less severe, she brought her half a cup of hot water and fed her to drink, and finally her coughing stopped.

Yan Muxi felt that it was inappropriate to mention Su Huachang in this situation, but since she was already here, it was not good to give up just like that.

She always has to know whether there is any chance at all. If not, she will change her target. After all, time waits for no one.

If the imperial decree granting marriage comes down, she will never be able to rest in peace.

After chatting for a while, Yan Muxi finally spoke carefully, "Big sister is sick, I'm afraid it won't be possible to go to the Su Mansion to pay New Year's greetings tomorrow! Big sister, do you have anything to say to cousin Huachang? I'll wait for big sister to pass on the message."

After two days of recovery, the wound on Yan Muqing's heart had just shown signs of healing, but Yan Muxi's words were equivalent to tearing open a new crack in the wound that had not yet begun to scab.