Chapter 604: Confused (Part 2)

In August, the fragrance of osmanthus and red osmanthus fills the air in Yanjing. However, the oranges beside Lingqiong Villa have just grown and are still green. Standing at Lingqiong Villa and looking down, you have to open your eyes wide to see them under the shade of green trees.

Eleventh Lady kept asking, "Why not wait a few days? At this time, I'm afraid it will be sour and bitter."

Xu Lingyi, wearing a short robe made of Songjiang Sansuo cloth, nimbly jumped out of the pavilion and said, "Come back to pick them in two days!" Then he turned around and looked at his son who was leaning against the beauty in the pavilion and said, "Come here, brother!"

Jiang'er immediately smiled and fell on Xu Lingyi's back.

Shiyi Niang hurriedly took out a bright blue coarse cloth belt and said, "Tie it up... You can carry Jian Ge'er to the orange tree, but it's still a dilemma whether Jian Ge'er can hold your neck all the time. Don't let Jian Ge'er slip away when you get to the orange tree..."

Jian Ge'er twisted his body and said, "I can hug Daddy's neck! I can hug Daddy's neck!"

"Listen to your mother." This time Xu Lingyi did not reject Shiyi Niang's suggestion. He took the cloth belt and tied Jiang'er around his body.

Jiang'er pouted but didn't dare to refuse.

Eleventh Lady went down the mountain.

The guards had already set up the fishing net made of knotted kudzu.

She breathed a sigh of relief.

A little maid shouted, "The Madam is here!"

Shiyi Niang and Xu Lingyi were stunned.

The lady had climbed up breathlessly with the help of Yuban and Zhihong.

"What are you guys up to?" the old man said angrily. "If the guards hadn't come in to pull the nets and the inner courtyard hadn't built a path out with curtains, I wouldn't have known you brought your son here to pick oranges today!"

Eleventh Lady hurried forward and hugged the lady.

The lady said "hmm" with a surprised look on her face, and said: "Although we should be honest and keep our promises, we can't be like you, who agree to everything regardless of whether it is right or wrong. We have to distinguish right from wrong, right? I tell you, if Jin'er loses a hair, I will not forgive you." As she spoke, she walked to the beauty chair. "Good boy!" The lady's expression was slightly relieved, and she coaxed Jin'er softly, "Let your father pick it for you, but you don't want to go. Just watch it here with your grandmother!"

"I want to go!" Jian Ge'er said coquettishly, but he held Xu Lingyi tightly, as if he was afraid that someone would pull him off Xu Lingyi. Xu Lingyi was almost choked. "I want to pick oranges."

Xu Lingyi also hurriedly said: "Mom, don't worry, look, I've tied my son to me!"

Eleventh Lady also advised: "Yesterday, the Marquis went to pick two oranges. He already knew how to get there. It was because I was worried and nagging that the Marquis asked the guards to come in and prop up the fishing net. Mother, please let Qin Ge'er give it a try!"

The old lady was still worried, but Jiang'er had already shouted "Grandma" loudly: "I said I would pick oranges for you to offer to the Bodhisattva. Once you say something, you must do it, otherwise no one will listen to me."

One day, he was having fun with Jian Ge'er and gave Jian Ge'er a small sword made of peach wood that Xu Lingyi had given him. Two days later, he regretted it and asked Jian Ge'er for it. Jian Ge'er refused to give it to him, so the lady scolded Jian Ge'er with these words. She didn't expect that Jian Ge'er would refute her with such words.

The lady was really surprised and delighted. She looked at the strong guards at the foot of the mountain, gritted her teeth and nodded: "Fourth Brother, don't forget that you are carrying Qin'er on your back!"

Xu Lingyi was afraid that if he continued talking, the lady would change her mind again, so he quickly agreed, carried Jiang'er on his back, and carefully went down the slope to the orange tree.



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Wenzhu came in with a bowl of snow pear paste that had been stewed for half an hour. Seeing Xu Siyu was still reading, she smiled and said, "The Marquis is taking the Sixth Young Master to pick oranges at Lingqiong Villa. Why don't you take a break and join in the fun?"

Xu Siyu had just finished his exam and was waiting for the results to be announced.

"I haven't finished my homework yet." His father took his son to pick oranges, and his son must be very happy. Thinking of this, his lips curled up slightly, "I'll go after I memorize these pages of the book." As he said that, he took the pear paste and ate a few mouthfuls, then started to recite again.

Wenzhu looked at it and smiled with relief.

As long as the second young master studies hard, he will have a way out when he is admitted to the imperial examination.

She packed up her things quietly and left.

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"Really!" Xu Sizhen stood up and looked at Wang Quan with sparkling eyes, "Father is taking my sixth brother to pick oranges!" Then he turned around and pulled Xu Sizhen, "Let's go pick oranges too!"

Wang Shu hurriedly stopped Xu Sizhen and said, "That place is very steep. I heard that the Marquis even asked the guards to set up a net at the foot of the mountain!"

"Then we must go and see it!" Xu Sizhen said with a smile, "Last time, mother took my sixth brother to pick chestnuts, and they also set up a net under the tree. My sixth brother thought it was fun, so he jumped directly from the tree into the net, and was bounced into the air!" His tone was full of envy.

"No!" Xu Siqi said hurriedly, "At that time, my sixth brother frightened mother so much that her face turned pale..."

"I know, I know." Xu Sizhen smiled and comforted his brother, "I won't be like Sixth Brother. I just went to take a look!"

Xu Siqi also wanted to go and take a look.

Maids, old women and servants escorted the two of them to the inner courtyard.

Wang Shu followed closely behind Xu Sizhen.

A servant waved at him.

"What's the matter?" He asked impatiently.

The servant looked at him timidly and said with a flattering smile, "It's still Brother Tao Cheng's business..." As he said that, he stuffed his purse into his arms.

Wang Shu threw the bulging purse to the servant and said, "Manager Tao is the maid of the fourth young man's biological mother, and is also in charge of the fourth young master's property. If you want to see the fourth young master, just come in through the main gate. Who dares to stop you? I'm just a servant by the fourth young master's side, and I don't dare to accept your courtesy!" He added, "Since we are from the same hometown, I will let it go this time. If you do this again, I'm afraid of being implicated, so I will have to tell the marquis about this!" After that, he turned around and left.

The boy's face turned pale and blue, and he spat fiercely on the ground, saying "What the hell?" and stuffed the purse into his sleeve: "If you don't want it, I want it."

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Xu Lingyi held the branch beside him with one hand and held Jiange'er with the other, walking briskly in the overgrown woods. He stopped from time to time to point at the trees beside him and turned to talk to Jiange'er. Jiange'er lay on his father's back, stretched his head to look in the direction Xu Lingyi pointed, and his face was immediately filled with smiles.

The lady standing beside the beauty chair could not help but hold Eleventh Lady's hand tightly, muttering, "We can't keep these orange trees. We'll have them all cut down in a few days."

Eleventh Lady was both amused and confused, but she couldn't stop feeling nervous. She stared at the backs of the father and son without blinking.

Xu Lingyi walked to the orange tree, untied the belt, and put Qing'er on his shoulders.

The piles of fruits hanging in front of Jiange'er's eyes made him smile.

He pulled the oranges from the tree vigorously.

The branch bent down and bounced up again, hitting him in the face, earning him a cry of delight.

The lady looked at him with great pity: "Why didn't the fourth child help the child? What if he got hurt?"

Eleventh Lady also looked at Jiang'er worriedly.

Xu Sizhen and Xu Siqi came over.

Seeing Qin Ge'er's expression, Xu Sizhen laughed.

He waved his hands and called out "Jian Ge'er".

Jiang'er grabbed Xu Lingyi's hair, sat on his shoulder and laughed.

Xu Sizhen shouted loudly: "Pick a few for me too!"

"Okay!" Jian'er nodded and went to pick oranges again.

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Madam Wen threw the embroidered silk ribbon in her hand onto the kang and fell on her back with her whole body limp.

"I can't do it anymore!" she murmured. "It only costs two taels of silver to embroider a handkerchief. If I had this skill, I could earn ten taels of silver. No, I could earn twenty taels of silver."

Xia Hong covered her mouth and smiled: "Aunt, why don't you go outside for a walk? The Marquis is taking the Sixth Young Master to pick oranges at Lingqiong Villa. Everyone in our yard has gone to Biyi Gate to watch the excitement!"

Aunt Wen was a little surprised when she heard this and whispered, "Did Aunt Qiao go there too?"

"No!" Xia Hong said, "I heard that in order to save money, Duke Cheng moved all the people who originally lived in the east and west courtyards to the farm on the outskirts of the city. The maids and old women who served were also reduced as much as possible, and those who could be let go were let go. Mrs. Qiao was a widowed sister-in-law, and although she stayed, she moved to a remote courtyard in the back garden, and only a little maid and a rough maid were left to serve her. Aunt Qiao found all the scraps at the bottom of the box, and worked day and night with Xiu Yuan to make a set of clothes for Mrs. Qiao for all four seasons. She hasn't been anywhere these days."

Madam Wen sighed.

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Jiange'er poured the oranges onto the table covered with Sichuan cuisine.

Green oranges tumbled down.

Yuban, Zhihong and Zhuxiang hurried forward to pick oranges.

Jianger stood on the stool and picked for a long time. He finally picked a big one and jumped off the stool to the old lady: "Grandma, eat oranges!"

"Ouch!" The lady smiled happily and kissed the boy.

Jiang Ge'er picked two more oranges, one for Xu Sizhen and one for Xu Siqi, and said, "Brother, eat oranges," then climbed onto the stool impatiently, picked up an orange, broke it in half and put it into his mouth.

Everyone in the room burst into laughter.

Then I saw Jiange'er's face wrinkled and he spat out the orange in his mouth with a "wow".

"It's so sore! It's so sore!" He covered his cheeks and stomped his feet. Zhu Xiang was so scared that her face turned pale. She hurried forward to hold the stool, and he jumped off the stool and ran towards the door.

"Mother, mother," he rushed into the arms of Eleventh Lady, who was helping Xu Lingyi change his clothes, "Oranges taste so bad!"

Just think about it and you will know.

Whether the fruit is delicious or not is related to climate, soil and pollen transmission. There are only a few orange trees there, and over the years, even the best varieties can hardly produce good oranges.

Shiyi Niang smiled and hugged Jian Ge'er: "Let's rinse our mouths with clean water!"

Jiange'er nodded, his big eyes sparkling with tears, and he looked very aggrieved.

Xu Lingyi, who had changed into a royal blue plain silk gown and walked in with Shiyi Niang, couldn't help laughing: "See if you still want to go pick oranges!"

Upon hearing this, the old lady immediately said angrily, "The child has already suffered, and you are still making fun of him." Then she waved to the boy, "Come, come to grandma."