Cinderella suddenly remembered what her stepmother had told her that day, that her brother loved cleanliness above all else, and did not like others to appear in front of him in a sloppy and unclean manner.

She hung her head in embarrassment, her hands holding the bucket a little tighter at the sight of her dusty cuffs. Not to mention him, even she herself can't look like she is now.

The Countess was about to be by this dirty embryo, and she said that she would come out and pour dirty water, she came out on purpose at this time, and wanted to show her face in front of Brian!

"This water is dirty and smelly, hurry up and get away!"

Cinderella lowered her head and hurriedly moved to the side, giving way to the opposite group of people out of the door.

At that moment, a white-gloved hand grasped the bucket handle. She looked up at the hands, which were owned by one of the attendants who had been standing behind the young guest.

She exclaimed, "It's dirty, I'll do it myself!"

Qiao Heng just nodded to the attendant in an almost indiscernible way, signaling him to quickly find a place to pour the dirty water.

The squire received the order, bowed slightly, and walked off into the distance.

Cinderella looked at the distant attendant with some panic, then at her stepmother, who was full of disdain for her, and finally at Qiao Heng carefully. Before she could decide what to say, another of the young man's attendants brought her a gift box.

Cinderella thought it was the young man's squire who was troublesome with his things, and wanted her to help him get it. She carefully held the box, which was only slightly larger than a palm, and it was probably fragile, and it would be too bad if she accidentally dropped it on the ground.

The Countess said dissatisfiedly, "You don't have to prepare gifts for her in the future, she doesn't need these things." ”

After she finished speaking, she didn't get a response from Qiao Heng. She was even more unhappy in her heart, and she didn't know what he had sent, so forget it, whatever it was, just let Charlotte and Katie take it from Cinderella later.

Thinking about it this way, she felt that there was nothing wrong with Brian preparing gifts for Cinderella, anyway, no matter how many things were sent, it would eventually be her and her two daughters.

Cinderella froze.

Is this a gift for yourself? Can you receive a gift yourself?

She looked at the young man in disbelief.

Qiao Heng noticed Cinderella's gaze, so he glanced at her as well, his gaze swept over her, and then, as if he had completely ignored her, he led his attendants to pass by her.

Cinderella hurriedly lowered her head again, not daring to look at him again, and stood still and did not dare to move.

After the group walked away, she clutched the gift box to her chest, her eyes shining with joy that she couldn't hide.

......

The Countess asked, as if unintentionally, "Did you not come with you, Madame?"

As if he had expected her to ask this question, Qiao Heng picked up the conversation as soon as she finished asking, and said unhurriedly: "She is not in good health, so she can't come over." ”

The fan was the standard for ladies of the age, and the Countess, like her daughter, held a small and ornate folding fan, and she hid her mouth behind the fan and said to him, "Still the same?"

"Pretty much. Qiao Heng's arm was on the arm of the sofa, supporting his head with one hand, he looked at the intricately patterned carpet, and his eyes didn't even lift.

Seeing that he did not deny it, a smile appeared on the countess's face.

Brian's marriage was handled by her, and she was really satisfied with this marriage. The woman is the daughter of a noble family with a slight decline, and there are no brothers and sisters in the family except her, which is not an outstanding identity background, and there should be nothing commendable, but she has a large dowry that can make people crazy.

What's more, she accidentally fell into the water when she was a child, and although she was rescued by the servants of the family, she lost her health. The Countess had seen her once, and it was obvious that she would not last more than a few years. Even if someone broke in and told her that she had died this morning, she wouldn't be surprised.

Her younger brother probably relied on his wife's status and dowry to meet the king.

Anyway, he has now succeeded in obtaining the title of an earl, and as long as he waits for the sick man to die, her dowry will all fall into his hands.

The Countess looked at her two daughters, who were sitting diagonally across from her, and the smile on her face deepened.

"Brian, is there something you've come to me for this time?" she asked.

Qiao Heng slowly straightened up, his face had just the right amount of questioning, and he asked, "I came here after receiving the letter you wrote to me, didn't I?"

The countess's face was extremely stiff. Did Brian forget how they had discussed it in the first place, or was she pretending to be confused that she had to say it clearly?

After all, her two daughters were the stepdaughters of Count Manifico, and they were more embarrassed.

Although Count Manifico would never be stingy with giving them a generous dowry, as long as Cinderella still existed in the family, her two daughters would have a certain difference in status from her, and in the eyes of many high-class people who paid attention to blood, the title of "count's stepdaughter" was obviously not as noble as "count's own daughter". Plus Cinderella's noble mother......

The Countess was not willing to be compared to a dead man.

After thinking about it, it is better to marry Charlotte or Katie directly to her brother. With Brian's help, is the other daughter still afraid that she won't be able to marry well?

The two girls sat tamely beside each other, the sunlight streaming in through the window and gently resting on their shoulders, looking extremely serene.

......

Cinderella returned to the kitchen, where she sat down in a corner paved with firewood and straw, her calloused fingers stroking over and over the box, and finally with great trepidation, she opened the beautifully crafted box little by little.

There is a necklace inside, and the ruby pendant is like the teardrop of the archangel's blood, magnificent and beautiful.

She snapped the lid shut, holding the box preciously.

It's too precious!

Even when her mother was alive, Cinderella had never worn such precious jewelry. She remembered that she hadn't said thank you to the young man whose name she didn't know just now, and that she had been so rude.

It was such an expensive and beautiful thing, and she knew she couldn't keep it from her stepmother and two sisters, but either way, she felt compelled to say thank you to the unknown gentleman.

But......

He was her stepmother's younger brother, would he hate to see him too? How could he not hate being dirty. However, even though he hated himself, he still chose to give himself a gift, this gentleman is really a kind and kind gentleman.

What Cinderella didn't know was that the gentleman she thought was good, was still discussing with her stepmother how to make her sick wife go to God sooner so that she could take her fortune and marry a new wife.

More often than not, of course, it was the Countess who was talking to herself.