Chapter 509 The Troublesome Old Mrs. Qiao
The wooden windbreak next to Zhou was startled by Old Mrs. Qiao and involuntarily trembled.
Zhou hugged the person closer with heartache.
Qiao Qinghe also saw it and couldn't help but frown. Why leave the child here?
Aren't you afraid of scaring the children by facing a large group of strangers?
Qiao Qinghe withdrew her gaze and smiled as she coaxed Old Madam Qiao, "Mother, please forgive me. I really didn't know you were coming to the capital today. If I had known, I would have refused even the Empress's invitation and stayed at the mansion to wait for you."
"But you didn't send me a letter beforehand, how was I supposed to know you would arrive in the capital today?"
"Oh dear, it's all my fault, okay?"
"You're already so old, and you've come all this way to the capital. Don't upset yourself."
Hearing Qiao Qinghe's words, Old Madam Qiao's expression didn't improve at all; instead, she became even angrier. "Are you accusing me of not sending you a message beforehand?"
Qiao Qinghe was not a good-tempered person to begin with, and the fact that she could still coax Old Madam Qiao when she knew that Old Madam Qiao had ill intentions was already a great act of forbearance.
Seeing that Old Mrs. Qiao was still relentless, he immediately frowned.
Seeing the atmosphere become tense, Qiao Jingyi, the third son of the eldest branch, quickly spoke up to smooth things over, saying, "Grandma, please don't be angry. This is all my fault. I didn't think things through and forgot to write to my aunt and tell her in advance."
Then she turned to Qiao Qinghe and said apologetically, "Aunt, please don't be angry. Grandma didn't mean to make things difficult for you. Grandma actually misses you very much. She kept talking about you on the way here."
"However, my aunt didn't grow up with my grandmother and wasn't very close to her. So when my grandmother came, she was always afraid that my aunt wouldn't welcome her. She was also afraid that if she wrote a letter in advance, my aunt wouldn't let her come."
So they prevented them from writing in advance and deliberately acted very assertive, all in an attempt to take the initiative.
Qiao Jingyi didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was very clear.
Qiao Qinghe naturally understood as well.
What he said made a lot of sense, but she didn't believe a single word of it.
However, she is not prepared to expose it now.
"Good child, it's really hard on you, a junior, to worry about the affairs of your elders.
Qiao Qinghe smiled kindly at Qiao Jingyi.
She could tell that Qiao Jingyi and Qiao Wangshi were both eloquent and good at pleasing elders.
Qiao Jingyi waved his hands in delight, "Auntie, you flatter me. We're all family, we should be happy and harmonious."
As he spoke, Qiao Jingyi looked at Grandma Qiao again, "Grandma?"
Grandma Qiao pointed at Qiao Jingyi and snorted, "You're so good at flattering and being smug."
"Sit down and let's talk."
Old Mrs. Qiao said this to Qiao Qinghe, thus putting the matter behind her.
"Aunt, please sit here." Qiao Jingyi gestured for Qiao Qinghe to sit in the spot he had just been sitting in.
Qiao Qinghe walked straight to Zhou Shi and sat down.
After she sat down, seeing that Qiao Jingyi was still standing awkwardly, she said, "Please sit down. We're all family, no need for such formalities."
Otherwise, Qiao Jingyi, a junior, shouldn't have been sitting before she arrived, and even more so, he sat on the left, bypassing Zhou Shi, an elder.
As she spoke, Qiao Qinghe waved to Qiao Wangshi, who was standing by the door with the children, and said, "Wangshi, come and sit down too."
When Qiao Wangshi was suddenly called upon, she stepped forward with delight, curtsied to Qiao Qinghe, glanced at Old Madam Qiao, and seeing that Old Madam Qiao did not object, she happily sat down next to Qiao Jingyi.
"These are..."
Qiao Qinghe then looked at the children standing by the door.
When she returned to Jiangnan last year, she only met the Qiao family children briefly, gave each of them a gift, and then rarely saw them again.
Therefore, all of these children in front of her were unfamiliar to her.
Madam Qiao quickly stood up and called all the children forward, introducing them one by one: "This is my eldest son, Qiao Ze, who is twelve years old this year. This is my second son, Qiao Hai, who is seven years old. This is my daughter, Qiao Bing, who is nine years old this year."
After talking about his three children, he pointed to a girl who was about the same height as Qiao Ze and said, "This is my eldest brother's daughter, Qiao Ning. She is thirteen years old this year."
Qiao Qinghe was stunned. Thirteen years old, the perfect age for marriage proposals. Why bring someone to the capital instead of finding a spouse in their hometown?
Could it be that she's hoping to find her a good husband in the capital?
Qiao Qinghe had a toothache.
He took a closer look at the girl named Qiao Ning. She truly lived up to her name, with skin as smooth as jade, naturally possessing a flawless complexion. Her appearance wasn't stunningly beautiful, but she was definitely the kind of girl wealthy families would prefer. She had an oval face with a touch of baby fat, making her face look round and auspicious.
Qiao Wangshi pointed to the last little boy and said, "My third uncle's grandson, Qiao Ling, is five years old this year."
This is the child who complained earlier.
Seeing Qiao Qinghe looking at her, Qiao Ling stuck out her tongue and made a face at her, clearly a mischievous child.
As Qiao Wangshi introduced them, the children greeted Qiao Qinghe one by one upon hearing their names. It was clear that they had all been carefully taught and were well-mannered.
Of course, the youngest and most mischievous child, Qiao Ling, was an exception.
Qiao Qinghe looked at the children with a kind smile, "I came in a hurry today and didn't bring any gifts. I'll make it up to you all later."
Qiao Wangshi quickly reminded the children, "Why don't you hurry up and thank your great-aunt?"
The children responded in unison, "Thank you, Auntie."
After meeting the children and waiting for them to obediently leave, Qiao Wangshi returned to her seat. Only then did Qiao Qinghe get to the point, looking at the old lady Qiao in the main seat, "Mother, did you come to Beijing this time for business? Or for sightseeing? Have you prepared accommodations in advance?"
Upon hearing this, Grandma Qiao's temper, which had just calmed down, flared up again. "What are you saying? Can't I just come to see you and my grandchildren?"
"And another thing! My second daughter-in-law and youngest daughter both have houses in the capital. Do I have to find a place to stay myself after I come to the capital?"
"What, did you all plan this to kick me out?"
At this point, Old Mrs. Qiao glared at Qiao Yuanyao, who had stood behind Zhou Shi after entering the room, and said, "I was just saying that this girl went to open the door and it took her forever."
"Xiao Bao ran back and said, 'You guys were talking badly about me outside the door.'"
"So you two, aunt and niece, planned this all along at the door?"
Qiao Qinghe finally understood why Qiao Yuanyao had been so frustrated and helpless before.
She had only asked a normal question, so why did this old lady have so many long-winded explanations waiting for her?
She suppressed the frustration rising in her heart and said with a smile, "Mother, you must be tired from the journey and haven't rested well, right? Why are you so irritable?"
"I was just asking casually. Knowing Mother's purpose and plans for coming to the capital will help me arrange things, won't it?"
Grandma Qiao snorted coldly, her face grim, and said in a cold voice, "I've come to the capital this time, and I don't plan to go back anytime soon."
Qiao Qinghe was taken aback. The old lady was already over seventy years old, so it was strange that she would travel so far away from her husband and her children and grandchildren in Jiangnan to come to the capital.
Now they're saying they won't be going back for a while, which is even stranger.
Then Old Mrs. Qiao continued, "Your second sister-in-law's yard is too small; there's not even a place to stand."
"Don't you have a big yard? Make room for a few yards for us."
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