An Yan clutched the wooden boxes tightly, her fingers turning so white that the blue veins underneath became visible, as she struggled to suppress all her aggrieved feelings.

She inhaled a deep breath and then turned round to walk a step forward towards them.

Today was her own sisters’, Jin jiejie  and Qing jiejie, sixteenth birthday. She wanted to go take a look and wish them a happy birthday.

“Third Miss, why are you here? Madam has been trying to find you for quite a while already.”

Just as An Yan had drummed up the courage to move forward, someone viciously pulled on her clothes from behind, halting her step. Because of the cold, she was wearing a high collar and the forceful yank caused it to tighten around her throat, making it difficult to breathe.

An Yan turned her head around, her small and delicate face turning red from anger at being interrupted. When she saw Nanny Fang, her expression immediately softened and she smiled cheerfully.

“So it is Nanny Fang. Yan-er has dressed up nicely today and wishes to go to that courtyard to enjoy all that liveliness. Yan-er also wants to give these boxes that Yan-er had prepared to her older sisters. Come, Nanny, take a look at the boxes I made!”

An Yan disregarded the expression on Nanny Fang’s face and ignored her. Instead, she looked rather nervous as she checked out the main courtyard. The old woman anxiously pulled An Yan into a completely out-of-sight corner. An Yan again held out the boxes she had been holding tightly, wanting to let Nanny Fang take a look at them to gain some praises.

“Oh no, third Miss, how can you go to the main courtyard?”

After seeing that the people of the main courtyard were not paying any attention to this place, old woman Fang sighed. Her words sounded a little too relaxed.

An Yan, on hearing these words, clutched her boxes tighter and there was a slight change in her expression — there was an unfathomable expression in her jet-black, clear eyes.

The old woman Fang turned her head to see that An Yan’s head was lowered and she was frowning. In addition to her aura that terrified her, she realised what she had just said and hastily corrected her words.

“What this servant means is that there are many people in the front courtyard. If young Miss goes there, you will only be bullied.” Old woman Fang was uncertain how this small 14-year-old girl could cause her to be fearful. Each day she had an amiable and kind character and a smile on her face. But once she frowned, she couldn’t help but feel a burst of fright.

As old woman Fang said this, she saw there wasn’t any huge reaction from An Yan. She held a basket in one hand and pulled An Yan with the other towards the opposite direction of the main courtyard.

“Madam is also afraid that third Miss will be bullied. Madam also knows that third miss loves to eat ca.s.sia flower cake and shrimp crystal dumplings the most so she let this old woman specifically prepare two portions of them for you and rush to give them to you, but who would have imagined that the third miss would appear here?”

An Yan did not move. Old woman Fang tried pulling her, but she did not respond as she absentmindedly thought through all of old woman Fang’s words. She, as usual, turned her head around to look at the bustling crowd that seemed impossible for her to partic.i.p.ate in.   

Actually, she is also a young mistress of the prime minister’s family, the third Miss of the main branch.

Her second Aunt said that, before she was born, her mother had chosen the character Yan as her name as she wished that she would be peaceful every day.

She would remember that she was named An Yan, so each day she would try to live peacefully.

Old woman Fang noticed that An Yan was still standing at the same place as  before, as though that nothing could bring her away from that position. The old woman became a little worried. If An Yan did not leave now, the distinguished guests from the front would eventually notice her. What should she do? This third young Miss shouldn’t be looked at.

She gave a slightly worried look at An Yan’s hands, those two hands which had poisoned the wet nurse that fed her milk in her infancy. She didn’t dare to say anything further. Moreover, the second Madam had instructed her to treat the third Miss gently.