As soon as Wei Jingnian sat down, a sweet and charming voice came from the back of the hall, as clear and melodious as a mountain stream.

"Brother Jingnian, you're here!"

Along with the voice came a young girl of marriageable age.

The girl had willow-leaf eyebrows and a lotus-like face. She was delicate and slightly naive, and her smile seemed to melt even the snow in the coldest winter.

When Wang Xueru saw Wei Jingnian, she disregarded the restraint and modesty her mother had taught her and went straight up to him, "Brother Jingnian, why did you only come to see me now?"

Wang Su stood in front of her daughter, intentionally separating the two of them. "Xue Ru, Jing Nian has just arrived. Can't you wait for him to sit down and have some hot tea first?"

Seeing this, Wang Xueru turned around and tugged at Wang Yuanwai's sleeve, saying coquettishly, "Father, look at Mother, she's scolding me again!"

Master Wang coughed twice, covering his face, and said seriously, "Stop saying anything about Xue Ru."

In her anxiety, Madam Wang cried out, "Master!"

Listening to this, Sun Miao'er noticed that the mother and daughter spoke in identical, coquettish tones, and thought that Master Wang was truly blessed.

Master Wang was at his wits' end with his wife. Pointing to the round stool beside him, he said, "Ru'er, sit down first. You're not behaving like a proper young lady. Have your teachers been teaching you all this time for nothing?"

Wang Xueru then obediently quieted down, but as soon as she sat down, she immediately noticed Sun Miao'er next to Wei Jingnian.

His expression tightened, and he stared at Sun Miao'er without any attempt to hide his gaze, as if trying to see right through her. "Brother Jingnian, who is she?"

Sun Miao'er's womanly intuition told her that the girl in front of her saw her as a competitor.

It's not easy to deal with.

Wei Jingnian said directly, "Miss Sun is my friend."

Wang Xueru's expression darkened, and she immediately lost interest. "Brother Jingnian, why did you bring her here?"

Sun Miao'er spoke, meeting those hostile eyes, "Miss Wang, my younger brother works at your residence. I wanted to visit him today, and since Young Master Wei is always so kind, he brought me along."

work?

The hostility in Wang Xueru's eyes instantly turned into disbelief and shock. She was genuinely surprised that her brother Jingnian would be with a country girl.

However, she and Wei Jingnian were childhood sweethearts, and she knew that he had been kind and compassionate since childhood, so after thinking about it carefully, she gradually accepted him.

"Your surname is Sun? Is your younger brother named Sun Xiaoning?"

Wang Xueru poured tea, Biluochun, which Wei Jingnian always loved to drink. She had personally picked the tea leaves in the tea field back in early spring, and her hands had been cut several times while picking them.

But from spring to summer, she still didn't see Brother Jingnian.

Good tea loses its aroma in autumn.

Sun Miao'er straightened up and spoke faster, "Yes, Sun Xiaoning is my younger brother. Miss Wang, where is Xiaoning?"

Having been here for so long without seeing Xiao Ning, Sun Miao'er was filled with unease. Before coming, she had managed to ask someone to let Xiao Ning know, but she wondered if Xiao Ning would react well upon seeing her...

Seeing that Sun Miao'er was eager to see her brother, Wang Xueru figured out her purpose and, unlike before, was not at odds with her. She said, "At this hour, Xiao Ning is with Zi Qian while he studies. After Brother Jing Nian has finished eating, I will take you to see him."

She was completely focused on Wei Jingnian. Although there had been some unpleasant incidents earlier, they were easily overshadowed by the joy of seeing Wei Jingnian.

Knowing that Sun Miao'er was anxious, Wei Jingnian quickly picked up his chopsticks and tasted the food, nodding perfunctorily, "Mmm, this is delicious!"

Despite receiving praise from Wei Jingnian, Wang Xueru's face suddenly turned cold, and she pouted, saying, "Brother Jingnian, you're lying!"

She pointed at the dish, "You clearly hate crucian carp the most!"

Wei Jingnian looked closely and realized that he had just eaten crucian carp. He thought to himself, "Oh no, I've let the cat out of the bag."

He didn't like eating crucian carp when he was young because it had many bones. He once got a fish bone stuck in his throat and it hurt for several days. Since then, he has had a phobia of crucian carp and will never touch it.

Just now, in order to get by, I didn't even see what kind of fish it was before I took it.

Wang Xueru had a keen eye on every move.

Wei Jingnian felt quite helpless about Wang Xueru. Although they were childhood sweethearts, he just couldn't get close to her.

Wang Xueru was the eldest daughter of the Wang family, the only girl born in this generation of the Wang family, and was naturally cherished and pampered by the entire clan as she grew up.

Master Wang was a prominent figure in the city, while Wei Jingnian's family were wealthy local gentry. He was somewhat unable to handle such a spoiled young lady's temper.

Wei Jingnian said in a panic, "Xueru, I didn't see clearly."

Wang Xueru's temper flared up, her round eyes widened, and she said angrily, "Brother Jingnian, if you don't eat properly, I won't take you to see Ziqian."

She said this ostensibly to Wei Jingnian, but everyone knew the real meaning behind it.

Sun Miao'er understood better than anyone the principle that one must bow one's head when under someone's roof.

The Wang family had no way to deal with their daughter, so they let her rant and rave without saying a word.

Wei Jingnian could only eat slowly and carefully. Every time he tasted a dish, Wang Xueru would ask him to comment on it, such as how salty or how the color was.

Sun Miao'er was horrified to hear this; it was a terrifying desire for control.

It seems that Young Master Wei mustered up quite a bit of courage to bring me here.

After struggling for most of the hour, Wei Jingnian breathed a sigh of relief, took the handkerchief handed to him by Wang Xueru, and wiped his mouth.

We finally finished eating.

Wang Xueru smiled contentedly, "Father, Mother, you go and rest. I'll take Brother Jingnian and this granddaughter for a walk around the house."

She even emphasized the word "Sun".

Without her parents' supervision, Wang Xueru was even more free, following Wei Jingnian closely and letting Sun Miao'er walk behind them.

As I walked outside the study, I heard the sound of students reciting their lessons.

Confucius said, standing by a river, “It flows on like this, never ceasing.”

Wang Xueru looked into the study and talked non-stop the whole way, as if she wanted to tell Wei Jingnian everything she had seen and heard in the past few months, without any intention of stopping.

"Brother Jingnian, did you hear that? It's Ziqian reading. He's grown so fast, he's only half a head shorter than me now!"

Sun Miao'er had lost all interest in the matter. She quickly stepped forward and stood outside the study. Through the window, she caught a glimpse of the boy standing by the desk.

Her younger brother, Xiao Ning, was intently grinding ink, and seemed to have grown quite a bit taller since the last time she came home.

The boy sitting next to him was the young master of the Wang family. He was reading so hard that he was drowsy and shaking his head.

A pang of sadness welled up in Sun Miao'er's heart, but she could only console herself that at least she still had the opportunity to study in the Wang family, and Xiao Ning, being so studious, would surely be willing to do so as well.

When Xiao Ning comes home, she will definitely send them to school.

The teacher inside was pacing back and forth reading aloud with his back to the two of them. After finishing this sentence, he seemed about to turn around.

"Young master, young master."

Xiao Ning stopped what she was doing and tugged at Wang Ziqian's sleeve. If her master noticed, she'd definitely get another beating.