Before Yun Qi could finish, Lin He smiled at her. “Sister-in-law, you must believe that we have always treated you as family. You were brought in by my eldest brother with the full ceremony; you are the Lin family’s Eldest Young Mistress. Even if there are things you cannot manage perfectly, as long as you try your best, we will naturally recognize it.”

“There is one more thing, Sister-in-law. You are the young mistress of this house. When Mother and Father are old, this household will be entrusted to you and Eldest Brother to manage. Since Eldest Brother must oversee matters outside, you will need to personally manage the household servants from now on. Our Lin family is not harsh toward the servants, but there are rules, and the most crucial one is that servants must understand their station and never presume to step over their masters. Sister-in-law, I know you are kind-hearted and soft, but you must discipline any servants who do not understand the rules properly.”

What Lin He said to Yun Qi was both blunt and veiled. Still, she trusted that Yun Qi knew what she had done; this time, it was meant as a reminder and perhaps a measure of reassurance. How she chose to proceed was up to Yun Qi. If Yun Qi insisted on following her own inclinations, she would have to bear the consequences herself.

Afterward, Lin He stayed with Chen’er in Yun Qi’s room for a while longer, avoiding any more serious talk. It was like the time before Lin He was married, when the three sisters-in-law would chat over embroidery and share jokes. During this time, Lin He noticed a distinct shift in Yun Qi’s demeanor; at the very least, she stopped uttering caustic remarks or creating awkward silences.

When the maidservant came to call them for lunch, the three relatives rose and headed to the dining hall. During the meal, Madam Huang was about to send Xin Rou to deliver lunch to Da Bao, but Lin He stopped her, smiling. “Mother, I’ll take it later. I plan to take Chen’er out this afternoon to buy some things; it’s been a while since I visited the pastry shop, and I can check on the shop while I’m there.”

Hearing this, Xin Rou immediately spoke up. “Eldest Miss, there’s no need. I deliver Young Master Da’s meals every time. I am quite fast on my feet. If I wait until everyone is done eating, the food will be cold. Furthermore, Young Master Da usually eats at this time; we cannot make him wait long.”

Lin He paused, staring at Xin Rou for a moment without speaking. Instead, she turned to Yun Qi, who was seated nearby, and said with a half-smile, “Sister-in-law, your maid is truly dutiful. Those who don’t know better might think she is Eldest Brother’s own maid; she is certainly more attentive to him than we are.”

Yun Qi managed an awkward laugh and then softly admonished Xin Rou, “Xin Rou, do not interrupt when your mistress is speaking. If you do not understand the rules of the manor, follow Zisu tomorrow and learn properly. From now on, you will not be delivering Young Master Da’s meals; I will arrange for someone else.”

As soon as Yun Qi finished speaking, Lin He smiled in admiration. Madam Huang, though somewhat perplexed, felt that Xin Rou had overstepped. The mistress had already spoken, yet the maid insisted on arguing; Madam Huang now thought Yun Qi’s reprimand was justified.

As for Xin Rou, she clearly hadn't expected Yun Qi to scold her in front of so many people. Although she was nominally a maidservant, both she and Yun Qi knew the true nature of their relationship, so Yun Qi had never treated her as a mere servant, let alone chastised her publicly.

Xin Rou was momentarily stunned by Yun Qi’s words, but she quickly regained her composure and admitted her fault. Though she felt a flicker of resentment, she said no more, standing silently behind Yun Qi with her head bowed.

After the family finished eating, Lin He instructed Zi Qing and Zi Yu to prepare two portions of food. One portion was sent with Zi Qing to Da Bao, with Lin He saying she would visit the pastry shop later. She then took Zi Yu and Chen’er with her to Wen Ning Xuan’s shop.

Lin He reasoned that since she wouldn't be home at noon and Wen Ning Xuan hadn't come to eat there, he was likely dining out. Since Lin He planned to walk around the streets in the afternoon anyway, she decided to take Chen’er to the silver shop first and deliver his meal along the way.

When Lin He and her party arrived at the silver shop, Shun Zhu rushed forward to bow upon seeing her. He seemed rather anxious. “Young Mistress, it’s good that you’ve come. Young Master hasn’t eaten his lunch yet. I offered to prepare something for him, but he refused. I was worrying about what to do.”

Lin He smiled at him. “No need to prepare anything for him. You go eat first.”

“Young Mistress need not worry about this servant. It’s fine if I eat later. I will take these things upstairs for you first.” Shun Zhu then took the food box from Zi Yu’s hand.

Lin He let him have his way, asking as she walked upstairs, “Shun Zhu, is the Young Master very busy today? Why won’t he let you prepare his lunch?”

“He is quite busy. The Young Master hasn’t left the accounting office since morning; it seems he has many ledgers to review. The accounting doesn't appear to be going smoothly; the Young Master has lost his temper several times this morning. He has already broken several teacups,” Shun Zhu whispered, following behind Lin He.

Lin He was initially surprised, but then, recalling that Shun Zhu mentioned Wen Ning Xuan throwing tantrums, she found it somewhat amusing. In her memory, Wen Ning Xuan had never displayed such outward emotion; usually, when angry, he would only wear a cold expression and remain silent. She was curious to see what this sudden outburst looked like.

However, it seemed that after spending so much time with her, this fellow was undergoing some changes. Finally, he knew how to vent his dissatisfaction, Lin He thought, shaking her head with a smile.

Zi Yu, walking behind, rolled her eyes upon seeing the smile on Lin He’s face. This Young Mistress was truly too much. Didn't she hear how Shun Zhu spoke of the Young Master’s temper, barely daring to raise his voice? Yet here she was, laughing merrily.

But Zi Yu dared not witness what the Young Master looked like when he was furious. She immediately stopped walking and whispered to Chen’er, “Miss Chen’er, we won’t go up. I see many nice pieces of jewelry in this silver shop. Let’s go look. If you like anything, we can ask Young Mistress to buy it for you, alright?”

Chen’er had wanted to look at the jewelry as soon as they entered the silver shop, but she hadn't spoken up because Big Sister said they needed to deliver lunch to Brother-in-law first. Hearing Zi Yu’s suggestion, she immediately agreed and called out to Lin He, “Big Sister, Zi Yu and I will go downstairs and wait for you. Hurry down after you deliver the meal to Brother-in-law.”

Lin He nodded, telling them to go down first. Noticing Shun Zhu’s increasingly slow steps behind her, she smiled and extended her hand. “You go down with them too. I will take the meal to the Young Master.”

Shun Zhu hesitated for a moment as he looked at the hand Lin He extended. He was wondering if the Young Master would punish him if he let the Young Mistress carry the food box up alone without attending to her.

Seeing that Shun Zhu did not move, Lin He curved her lips slightly and said, “Or perhaps you can take the meal up alone, Shun Zhu? I’ll go down with them.”

Hearing this, Shun Zhu immediately forced a smile, handed the food box to Lin He, and said, “Young Mistress, you should take it up. I will accompany Miss Chen’er and the others downstairs.” With that, he thrust the food box back to Lin He and bolted down the stairs.