While Wei Changying and Song Zaishui were chatting about family affairs, the white cloth had not yet been completely removed in the lonely rear courtyard of the Wei Family's mansion. When the wind blew, the white cloth danced with the remaining snow, adding sadness and loneliness to the bleak reality.

Wei Changjuan, the Seventh Miss, stood alone in the courtyard under a plum tree with blood-red blossoms, holding a snowy plum branch, lost in thought. She thought melancholily, "In the past, at this time of the year, Mother would always lead people to collect snow from the plum blossoms and seal it in a clay pot to make tea when the spring comes. I remember one year, my first sister saw a recipe for plum blossom cakes in a book, and we collected plum blossoms together to make some. The plum blossom cakes we made at that time were not good at all, but my first sister ate several pieces in order not to lose face. In the end, she had a stomach upset in the middle of the night, at which I laughed for several days."

Having been held for a long while, the snow on the plum branch gradually melted. The coldness permeated her palm, traveled through her meridians, and reached right into her heart.

"But now Mother has gone, my first sister has changed. So have my two elder brothers." Wei Changjuan looked down sadly, "They all say that I got Mother killed, but how could I have thought of that? I just wanted to help Father. It is also true that I dislike Wei Changying. I caused trouble for her twice, but it was just talk. How come... Not only I was beaten hard by Father, but even Mother was also..."

Big tears rolled down from her eyes, falling onto the plum branch. She thought, "It was just something trivial. I know I didn't respect Changying, so they could beat me up for that. But why did they have to kill Mother?"

"My grandmother is so cruel!" Wei Changjuan bit on her lip hard, trying not to whimper, "My brothers and first sister are scared, as our grandmother had Mother killed for such a trivial thing! It was even someone who was sent over from my maternal grandfather's family said that she made my maternal grandfather himself say that he wanted Mother to die. Just because Father is a son of a concubine, our grandmother treated our family so horribly! How can there be such a vicious old woman like that in this world?! Unluckily, she is our grandmother, and even Father has to call her 'Mother'! This old woman is so old. Why didn't she die before Mother?"

"She carries on living, but she had Mother killed!" Wei Changjuan suddenly raised her arm, moved her wrist towards her lips, opened her mouth, and bit hard on it. Warm tears kept falling onto the back of her hand and sleeve, but she tried hard to hold back the urge to wail, thinking sorrowfully, "Now my two sisters-in-law are in charge of the household. Although they haven't started to treat me badly, they are much less considerate than before. My siblings think that I got Mother murdered, and Father has been treating me coldly lately. When I went to see him in the study a few days ago, he sent me back to the rear courtyard without even raising his head. He also said to me that if there was nothing special, I shouldn't go to the study in the future. Whom should I turn to when I cry now? Mother has already gone."

Having stood for a really long time under the plum tree that had been Mrs. Duanmu's favorite during her lifetime, Wei Changjuan felt cold and sad. Then she thought sadly, "I should go back to my room first. I have been standing here for a long time, but none of the maidservants has come to tell me to go back inside or brought a coat to me. When Mother was still alive, no one would have dared to ignore me even if they had been allowed to do so!"

Wei Changjuan turned around slowly. But as she had stood under the tree for too long, she couldn't feel her legs due to the cold. She almost fell over because of her movement. However, as she subconsciously cried out, about to fall onto the cold hard brick floor, she caught a glimpse of a shadow running over. It held on steadily to her arm, and at the same time, a familiar sweet voice spoke above her head, "The seventh sister of the Wei Family, are you alright?"

"Sister Min!" Wei Changjuan raised her head and saw a familiar face, not beautiful but graceful. At this moment, this face that could only be said to be pleasant even if people were trying their best to flatter had an anxious and concerned look on it. It was so warm that Wei Changjuan’s nose twitched and she mumbled to her. Having no intention of listening to what Min Yinuo said next, she fell into her friend's arms and started crying aloud!

It was only after a long time that Min Yinuo managed to calm her down. Only then did Wei Changjuan realize that she had been helped into her room at some point. The underfloor heating was in use, so it was warm in the room. There were freshly renewed daffodils on the table, giving out a sweet scent.

Before Wei Changjuan had gone out, there hadn't been daffodils, fruits, or any small ornaments like these around. At this moment, having seen all of these things, Wei Changjuan subconsciously bit her lip. She guessed that it must be that her two sisters-in-law, who had seen Min Yinuo come over to visit, had sent these things in to show that they hadn't been treating their sister-in-law badly. Actually, the two sisters-in-law were too cautious. Her father and brothers disliked her, and even her elder sister who had loved her the most now hated her. Even if Min Yinuo supported her, she couldn't do anything to Mrs. Min and Mrs. Zhou!

Seeing her staring at the daffodils blankly, Min Yinuo called her a few times but got no response. She couldn't help but sigh.

This sigh brought Wei Changjuan back to her senses. She looked away, speaking in a low voice, "Thank you for coming to see me today, Sister Min."

"There is no need for that. Since when have we been so polite to each other like this?" Min Yinuo told a servant to bring a food box in, saying, "I know you have everything here. Even if there is something that we only get at the New Year, I guess you won't be interested. So, I got the kitchen to make some snacks. Don't worry. These are all vegetarian."

On hearing the sentence "Even if there was something that we only got at the New Year", Wei Changjuan couldn't help but think of the days before Mrs. Duanmu's death. When she had been under her mother's care, she had had her freedom and had been able to have as much fun as she had wanted. Back then, after the New Year holiday, young ladies had begun to visit each other again. Whenever she had seen something interesting at another's family, she had always begged Mrs. Duanmu to get her one when she had returned home. But she hadn't had to tell Mrs. Duanmu about the things she had seen at Min Yinuo's and Liu Ruoye's family, as these two friends were very thoughtful and generous.

As long as she had her eye on something for a moment while her eyes were sweeping around the room, the two would take the initiative to give her the thing.

But now, as Min Yinuo had said, even if she was given the most novel thing, she would not be interested.

Having reluctantly smiled, Wei Changjuan whispered, "Thank you, Sister Min. In fact, I really don't eat much at home these days. Since you have brought some snacks here, they can be a change of taste for me."

On hearing that, Min Yinuo quickly told someone to hand the food box to Wei Changjuan's servants, "Although I kept it in a cotton quilt and there was coal burning in the carriage, as now it's freezing cold, having been brought from the gate to here, it must be cold. Get someone to warm it up before eating the food, in case it makes you ill."

These caring words made Wei Changjuan secretly sad again. Since Mrs. Duanmu had died, when had she ever heard words this compassionate?

Thinking of how her position in the family had sunk to the bottom after her mother's death, Wei Changjuan couldn't help but shed tears.

Seeing that, Min Yinuo had to console her again. Wei Changjuan whimpered for a while and was on the edge of pouring out her bitterness, so she told her servants to leave. When there were only two of them in the room, Wei Changjuan told her in a choked voice about her siblings and father's sudden change in attitude towards her after her mother had died. When she got to the saddest part of her story, Wei Changjuan was choked with sobs!

Min Yinuo thought it was strange. While Min Yinuo was handing over her handkerchief to her to wipe her face, she asked suspiciously, "The fifteenth aunt was your biological mother. Since my aunt has died of illness, you are heartbroken as well. Why do my fifteenth uncle and my cousins blame you?" Min Yinuo's father was a child from a distant branch of the Min Family in Quyin, but her mother was a daughter from the clan of the Duanmu Family. She and Wei Changjuan's mother, Mrs. Duanmu, weren't such distant cousins. Therefore, Min Yinuo and Wei Changjuan considered each other's mothers as sisters of their own mothers.

This was also one of the reasons why Min Yinuo and Wei Changjuan had got along well since they were little and had become close friends.

Wei Changjuan was almost going to tell her how vicious her grandmother was, but at the critical moment, Wei Changwan's strong warning made her scared. She paused, then immediately found an excuse, and said, "On that day, I suddenly wanted to eat walnut glutinous rice cakes. After the kitchen prepared them, I went to offer them to Mother first. She had been very busy for several days and didn't have a good appetite. She had also had something already so she didn't really want anything, but to not disappoint me, she had some. And then..."

Min Yinuo was stunned. Seeing Wei Changjuan become extremely upset, she sighed, trying to comfort her, "This is what happened? They shouldn't blame it all on you. The kitchen had prepared the food you like to eat and you offered it to my fifteenth aunt first. It showed your filial piety towards my aunt. If you had known that my aunt should not eat these cakes, would you have forced her to eat them? That was all a coincidence."

"But I know, after all, because of me, Mother..." Wei Changjuan murmured, "But I never had the intention of harming Mother. Never ever. Why don't my siblings believe me?"

"Don't be like this, the seventh sister." Seeing that Wei Changjuan seemed to be getting hysterical, Min Yinuo was heartbroken. She quickly held her down, saying in a low voice, "Maybe my cousins were just filled with sorrow and that's why they scolded you. Having calmed down by now, they will naturally know that they shouldn't put all the blame on you. By this time, they will definitely regret it and will come to explain why they were like that towards you, so you must not let all of these things get to you!"

Having kept on comforting her like that, Min Yinuo finally calmed Wei Changjuan down. Wei Changjuan wiped her tears, saying gratefully, "Thank you so much, Sister Min. It is very cold, and my family is in such a state, but you have still come to see me."

"I came in by the side door, so I didn't disturb anyone." Min Yinuo bit her lower lip, murmuring, "There is something I don't know if I should say to you now."

Wei Changjuan was not as hysterical as how she had just been, but she was still messed up and couldn't react properly, so she hadn't noticed what Min Yinuo had just said. She took a sip of tea to clear her throat and said with sincerity, "After Mother passed away, apart from people who came to pay their condolences, you are the only one who doesn't mind and came to visit me. I will remember you all my life!"

Having heard that, Min Yinuo pondered for a moment but said, "I am not the only person. It's just that someone couldn't get in."

"Ah?" Wei Changjuan was surprised. She then jumped up, gnashing her teeth and asking, "Who was that? Was that Wei Changying?! How dare she come!" She thought that Wei Changying must be very pleased now and would probably come to mock her family on the pretext of visiting them! As no one in the family had wanted to see her, they had refused her.

"You mean Madam Wei?" Min Yinuo paused and then said with a serious look, "You should be careful about what you say! No matter what, Madam Wei is your lineal cousin. It isn't a big problem that you referred her, using her full name in front of me. However, if this gets out, people will accuse you of being disrespectful towards your elder cousin!"

Wei Changjuan said with extreme hatred, "I disrespect her. I... I could..."

Min Yinuo didn't know why she hated Wei Changying so much. She tried to patiently persuade her, "Madam Wei might have offended you before. But as the saying goes, it's better to become reconciled with your enemies than creating more. Besides, she is your cousin! In terms of seniority, she is older and you are younger. If you don't get along with her, you will be the one who suffers."

These words could only make Wei Changjuan hurt more, so she couldn't agree! She sat down slowly, saying expressionlessly, "Sister Min, you don't know. If I can destroy myself along with Wei Changying, I will willingly give up my life!"

Shocked, Min Yinuo quickly put her finger against her lips, suggesting she should keep her voice down, "The seventh sister, don't be so silly! Madam Wei is pregnant now. If the Shen Family hears what you have just said, they won't let you go!"

"I only say these things to you." Wei Changjuan looked down, saying melancholily, "Nowadays, I have no one else to talk to except you."

Min Yinuo didn't want her to continue cursing her cousin, so she changed the subject, saying, "The other person I was talking about, who wanted to come to see you but couldn't get in, was Liu Ruoye."

"It was her?" Wei Changjuan was stunned and then had a weird look on her face. She got along well with Liu Ruoye and Min Yinuo. In terms of who was closer to her, actually, she used to be closer to Liu Ruoye, as, after all, Min Yinuo was a few years older than her. Liu Ruoye happened to be about the same age as her, and Min Yinuo was also often called in by Princess Linchuan to discuss painting techniques.

However, since the incident at King Run's mansion, Wei Changwan had repeatedly warned her, saying straightforwardly that Liu Ruoye had been using her.

Wei Changjuan didn't fully believe what Wei Changwan had said. As when she had provoked Wei Changying at Su Yuli's wedding and when she had complained to Princess Qingxin, Liu Ruoye had kept telling her what consequences there would be. It had been Wei Changjuan herself who had become more and more agitated whilst hearing Liu Ruoye's advice. Therefore, she felt that Liu Ruoye hadn't had the deliberate intention of harming her, but she herself had been too used to being willful to listen to her advice.

In addition, Liu Ruoye couldn't keep saying no to her under her pressure, so she had to give Wei Changjuan some ideas.

No matter what, it was her own choice. After all, in Wei Changjuan's memory, Liu Ruoye had never deliberately encouraged her to do those things. Liu Ruoye had also patiently yet unsuccessfully tried to dissuade her every time.

But if Liu Ruoye had acted like Min Yinuo, always trying to persuade her to make peace with others and refusing to share any ideas no matter how she had pestered her, perhaps her mother would have still been alive.

With such complicated feelings, Wei Changjuan didn't know what to say for a while. It took a long time before she asked, "Why couldn't she get in?"