Upon returning, Li Xiang'an naturally went to pay his respects to Yan Qingqing immediately.
Yan Qingqing quickly helped him up, looked him over, and then said with a smile, "It's good that you're back safe and sound."
Then he looked at Mu Xi, who was standing to the side, patted her on the shoulder and said, "Thank you for taking care of Xiang An along the way."
Mu Xi's face suddenly turned red for some reason, and she quickly lowered her head and replied, "Madam, you are too kind. Protecting the Second Young Master is simply my duty."
Upon hearing this, Li Xiang'an glanced at Mu Xi, then looked away and said, "Mother, they've had a long and tiring journey following me. Let them go and rest first."
Yan Qingqing's gaze shifted between the two of them, then she smiled and said, "Alright, Mu Xi, you take those children down to rest first."
Let them rest at home for two days before going back up the mountain.
Upon hearing this, Mu Xi quickly agreed and then left.
As soon as Mu Xi left, Li Xiangping came in. His actions were exactly the same as Yan Qingqing's. After confirming that Li Xiang'an was unharmed, he patted him on the shoulder and said, "Second brother, you've really worked hard this time."
Li Xiang'an laughed and said, "Brother, what are you saying? We're brothers, after all."
I haven't yet congratulated my elder brother on the birth of his son. I brought some little trinkets for my nephew from the capital; I'll deliver them to the little guy later.
Li Xiangping laughed twice and said, "In that case, I'll thank you on behalf of the little guy, Second Brother."
Second brother, you probably don't know yet, but Mom gave the little guy the formal name Li Jinqian, which means a gentleman with a bright future. His nickname, which I chose, is Li Dazhuang.
Li Xiang'an found the two contrasting names somewhat amusing, but Li Jinqian was indeed a good name.
After the three women finished catching up, Yan Qingqing asked about Li Xiang'an's affairs in the capital.
Yan Qingqing asked, "I estimated that it would only take about half a month to travel from our Canghe County to the capital. When you came back, you were riding horses, so it should have taken about ten days to get back. Why did it take so long?"
Upon hearing this, Li Xiang'an explained, "I was thinking that since I had finally made it to the capital, I should at least broaden my horizons, so I was delayed for a few days."
In addition, I made two friends in the capital, and I also discussed a business deal with them.
They said they'd like to visit our Canghe Village sometime.
Yan Qingqing didn't ask Li Xiang'an what kind of business he was talking about; as long as he had the ambition, that was good enough.
Li Xiangping said enviously, "Second brother is really capable. This trip not only escorted the bride, but also allowed him to experience the local customs and culture of the capital. More importantly, he even managed to negotiate a business deal."
This is something I could never do.
Li Xiang'an quickly replied, "Brother, you're being too kind. Our family needs your help in everything, both inside and out."
Moreover, I am utterly incapable of farming.
Although doing business can bring in money quickly, my mother also said that if our family wants to move up in the future, we will still need land to support us.
Therefore, our family will still need our eldest brother for the future.
Li Xiangping beamed with joy at Li Xiang'an's words.
Seeing this, Yan Qingqing coughed and said, "Alright, what are you two doing? Have you become estranged after not seeing each other for two months? We're all family, you two brothers should stop flattering each other, lest people laugh at us."
Hearing Yan Qingqing's words, Li Xiangping and Li Xiang'an felt a little embarrassed. They had probably been socializing for a long time, and these official-sounding words came out of their mouths without warning.
Finally, Li Xiangping asked about Li Xin's mother's marriage, and Li Xiang'an's expression instantly turned somewhat unpleasant. However, he quickly recovered.
However, Yan Qingqing and Li Xiangping were not fooled by the change in Li Xiang'an's expression.
Li Xiangping anxiously pressed for an answer: "What happened? What exactly happened? Did they mistreat Xinniang?"
As he spoke, Li Xiangping stood up. If he was bullied right after getting married, what would happen in the future?
Yan Qingqing's face turned cold as she snapped, "Boss, sit down!"
She chose this path herself, so if she gets bullied, she can only blame herself for being incompetent.
Besides, she married far away to the capital; we're too far away to help her, and nobody can do anything about it.
Upon hearing this, Li Xiangping calmed down and sat back down on the stool.
Yan Qingqing then spoke up, "Tell me, what exactly happened?"
Li Xiang'an then recounted what had happened.
After their wedding procession arrived in the capital, the Wu family arranged for them to stay at an inn.
Apart from Wu Jingzhi, no other members of the Wu family came to offer their condolences during this period.
The wedding ceremony finally took place, but the atmosphere in the hall wasn't very good; it was clearly not something that had been carefully prepared.
Li Xiang'an's face immediately darkened, but when he thought that this was Li Xinniang's own choice, he felt powerless.
Later, when they saw Li Xiang'an and the others off, Li Xin's mother arrived very late, and her complexion didn't look very good.
Li Xiang'an knew without asking that her married life wasn't going well.
Li Xin's mother was too ashamed to complain to Li Xiang'an, and only told them to be careful on their way back and to listen to her in the future.
Li Xiang'an had no choice. Yan Qingqing had chosen a path for her, but she refused to follow it. Now that they were married, there was no turning back.
After Li Xiang'an finished speaking, neither Yan Qingqing nor Li Xiangping said anything more.
Yan Qingqing had anticipated this outcome, but she hadn't expected the Wu family to disregard the Li family so much.
Even if she has the rank of a person, so what? In the end, it's still because her family isn't influential enough.
If they want to support Li Xinniang, the only way is for the Li family to be stronger than the Wu family, so strong that the Wu family wouldn't dare to provoke them.
Unfortunately, such a road is long and arduous to build.
Li Xiang'an was exhausted from the journey, so after Yan Qingqing understood the situation, she told him to go back to his room and rest.
Li Xiang'an left, but Li Xiangping was still standing there. Yan Qingqing glanced at him and asked, "What's wrong? Is there something else?"
Li Xiangping said, "Isn't it that Dazhuang is about to turn one month old? After all, the Yuan family is his maternal grandparents' family. Shouldn't we invite the Yuan family to our full-month celebration?"
Yan Qingqing replied matter-of-factly, "Of course you should. As long as you and Hui Niang have discussed it, I have no objection."
Li Xiangping breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, as Yan Qingqing had previously stated that Yuan's mother was not allowed to visit.
However, Yuan's father was, after all, Yuan Huiniang's biological father. Although Li Xiangping preferred to follow Yan Qingqing's advice, Yuan Huiniang was also his wife, who had risked her life to give birth to his children. Therefore, he also had to consider Yuan Huiniang's feelings.
Seeing Li Xiangping's relaxed expression, Yan Qingqing then said, "Let's keep things separate. I can let them in. But I won't let Yuan Huicong in."
Yuan Huicong was sentenced to three years of hard labor by Magistrate Ling for pushing Li Xinniang into the water and molesting the third young lady of the Shen family.
Mr. and Mrs. Yuan did not come to cause trouble again. Since they did not cause any trouble, Yan Qingqing was willing to give them face.
Li Xiangping, of course, also had his bottom line, and immediately stated that he would not plead for Yuan Huicong.
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