Chapter 7: Not like Aro, but like Ari; like father, like son…

"It's not that there isn't any," Qingduo had just breathed a sigh of relief when she heard her own father shake his head and say, "There isn't even a trace of it!"

Qingduo's heart jumped: "Huh?"

She struggled unwillingly: "Is it possible that I let my guard down because I was in front of you...?"

“When you came in, your son-in-law was right beside you, and I didn’t see you ‘put on’ a disguise!” Tang Li said, making a gesture of putting on clothes in the air when he said the word “put on”.

"It's all over, it's all over, it's all over—" Qingduo looked desperate. Her eyes darted around, and she instantly became righteous, trying to exonerate herself: "It's not my fault! When I was a young lady, that was a long time ago! I don't even remember! Besides, I've never really interacted with the young ladies, how would I know what 'dignified' looks like!"

“What’s so difficult about that! Just imitate your mother! Her maternal grandmother came from a prominent family, and she was raised by your maternal grandmother!”

"Father! When I have memories, Mother was plagued by illness for many years and was always weak and listless. Am I supposed to imitate her?"

"I'm going to suffocate," Qingduo muttered.

"I'm not telling you to act weak! It's about being graceful and being a virtuous wife and loving mother." Tang Li instructed her, "When your mother first married into the family, she would get up with me in the morning, help me get dressed, and see me off. Even though there was a cook in the house, she would sometimes cook for me herself."

"Is that so?" Qingduo asked suspiciously.

"So it was when she had just married into the family!"

Qingduo giggled: "So even Mom couldn't keep up the act anymore!"

“It’s not that I couldn’t keep up the act! Your mother is naturally very refined! She’s not like you, trying to put on an act!” Tang Li retorted angrily. “Besides, you’re already out here, so we can’t just send you back, mother and child. We can only make do with raising you!”

“As the saying goes, ‘Like mother, like son,’ and apart from your appearance, your personality is nothing like Aro’s. How strange!” Tang Li sighed.

"So what?" Qingduo said nonchalantly. "Unlike A Luo, she's just like A Li. That's what they call, 'Like father, like daughter!'"

"This is outrageous!" Tang Li raised his hand as if to hit her, trying to scare her. "How dare you call me 'A-Luo' or 'A-Li'? Only your mother can call me that!"

Qingduo remained completely unfazed. She had been mischievous since childhood, and her parents had only ever made a show of it; a spanking had never actually landed on her. This was just another instance of "bluffing." She had another worry, and whispered to Tang Li, "Father, do you think my husband has noticed anything?"

Two heads, one big and one small, lined up one next to the other, appearing by the door, their eyes darting around as they looked at Zeng Zhengqing. He felt their intense gazes, looked up to meet their eyes, and although surprised, he still smiled in response.

The Tang father and daughter forced identical fake smiles, slowly shrank back, and turned around to say in unison with certainty, "Yes, he didn't notice."

“If he felt something was wrong, he wouldn’t have been so kind to us,” “Captain Qing” speculated, stroking his chin.

"He's just a young lad, and you're engaged to him. What kind of well-educated lady could he have ever met? Even if he had, he wouldn't be staring at her like that! I think he doesn't even know what a lady looks like!" the "Judge of Etiquette" deduced.

“That’s right, his mother is also a bit eccentric, he probably has no concept of ‘virtuous’! Hmm! I still have a chance!” Qingduo was full of energy and spoke confidently, “Dad! Tell me the key points! The one who goes out later won’t be me, ‘Tang Qingduo’, but the complete opposite of me—‘Tang Duoqing’!”

*

True to her word, Tang Duoqing was much more restrained during the meal, wearing a moderate smile and diligently serving food to Tang Li and Zeng Zhengqing. Tang Li gave her an approving look as Zeng Zhengqing ate with his head down.

Qingduo, having earned her father's praise, felt confident, believing she had found a way forward. After the meal, Tang Li, on a whim, suggested taking his son-in-law to pay respects to Qingduo's mother. The father and daughter, used to their own way, planned to leave immediately, but Zeng Zhengqing felt it inappropriate to go empty-handed on their first visit and instructed the steward to quickly prepare some necessary items.

While waiting, he rested briefly in Qingduo's boudoir. It was called a young lady's room, but it didn't quite resemble one. There was only a bed, a table, and a chair. The table was placed by the window, its surface cluttered, with drawing papers piled haphazardly, and several palettes containing remnants of dried paint, their colors vibrant and varied.

Looking up, Zeng Zhengqing's attention was drawn to something on the windowsill: an earthen-yellow Guanyin vase containing a haphazardly arranged branch that sprawled out in all directions, with writing brushes hanging from each branch at varying heights, like fruit. A breeze drifted in through the open window, causing the "writing brush fruits" on the branches to sway gently in the wind.

He was afraid the vase would wobble and fall, so he reached out to protect it, only to find that the vase stood firmly. Upon closer inspection, he saw that the vase was full of water, and a green sprout was peeking out from the branch near the water.

He was secretly amazed. He reached out and touched the bottle, only to find that the bottle was rough and unrefined, and he could even feel the fine sand in the soil. It was simple yet rustic, with a natural, untouched quality.

Seeing that he loved it so much, Qingduo smiled and said, "If you like it, I'll make another one for you someday."

Zeng Zhengqing asked in surprise, "You can also make pottery?"

Qingduo humbly replied, "Not at all, it's just a little bit."

Zeng Zhengqing's gaze fell on the painting spread out on the table. The scene in the painting seemed familiar: a long alley, a neat fence, and a man waiting at the door.

“This is…” He couldn’t help but pick it up and examine it closely. Yes, the scene in the painting was the one he had first come here to, where he stood waiting at the door.

I never expected her to actually draw this.

"I just drew it off the cuff," Qingduo scratched her head and asked, "What do you think?"

A new respect arose in Zeng Zhengqing's heart, and he praised, "Madam is truly multi-talented."

A bright smile spread across Qingduo's face. She glanced at the table unintentionally, then her expression suddenly changed. She rushed over and crumpled up the drawing paper underneath with a "crackling" sound.

"What's wrong?" Zeng Zhengqing asked in surprise.

"No, nothing..." Qingduo looked around, finding nowhere to hide, and in her haste, stuffed the manuscript into her sleeves, mumbling, "It's just some... um... scrap manuscript, yes, scrap manuscript! I can't show it to you, it's embarrassing!"

Zeng Zhengqing chuckled and teased, "Alright, I won't look anymore. I'll preserve the perfect image of Madam in my heart." With that, he took the painting in his hand and moved to the other side.

Qingduo caught a glimpse of him leaving out of the corner of her eye. Still unable to recover from the tension, she breathed heavily, feeling a tingling sensation in her head.

ah! ! !

Why didn't you take care of the rest of the erotic pictures when you left?

We almost gave ourselves away!