Chapter 474 Chengzhang is ill
Gu Jingxi tacitly agreed and changed the subject: "Ayao, didn't you say you wanted a portrait of your pregnancy? We happen to have some free time today, so why don't I paint one for you?"
Upon hearing this, Meng Jinyao's eyes lit up, and she nodded repeatedly: "Okay."
Gu Jingxi immediately instructed the maid to prepare painting tools, and then took his young wife to a scenic spot in the mansion to paint.
However, he didn't expect that his niece, whom he had just dumped not long ago, would see them and come running over again, standing beside him to watch him paint, occasionally offering a few comments, which made him quite depressed, because his niece wasn't praising his painting skills.
For example, at this moment, the niece suddenly blurted out: "Third Uncle, you are clearly looking at Third Aunt with affection, so why is it that when you paint, Third Aunt in the painting is looking ahead with affection? Your painting is not realistic. Third Aunt's eyes are clearly gentle and loving at this moment. She is definitely thinking about my unborn brother, not about you in front of her."
Gu Jingxi: "..."
Suddenly I don't like children anymore.
The next moment, Gu Xuanyi said, "Oh, I see. There's still a blank space in front. Uncle San wants to draw himself in as well, so you can look at each other affectionately?"
Gu Jingxi: "..."
This child is really unlikable; she says everything.
Hearing Gu Xuanyi's words and seeing her husband's depressed expression, Meng Jinyao couldn't help but laugh out loud. She said, "Xuanyi is right. I am indeed thinking about the child. But if you want to paint it this way, it's actually quite nice."
Gu Jingxi softly hummed in agreement and continued to bury himself in his painting. In the end, just as Xuan Yi had said, he painted himself in as well, and the couple gazed at each other affectionately.
Looking at the portrait, Gu Xuanyi first praised it, and then said, "I used to think that Third Aunt would be very clingy, but I didn't expect that it was Third Uncle who was clingy. He even drew himself in a portrait to cling to Third Aunt."
Gu Jingxi put down his paintbrush and began to settle scores: "Xuanyi, didn't you say you were going to apologize to your sister-in-law? It hasn't been long, and you're back here with us. You apologized so quickly?"
Upon hearing this, Gu Xuanyi's expression tightened, and she hurriedly said, "My mother is busy and doesn't have time to see me, so I came out for a walk. I didn't expect to run into my third uncle and third aunt, so I came over."
Gu Jingxi said, "In that case, let's continue with the previous question. I'll test your knowledge first."
Gu Xuanyi was stunned: "?"
Hasn't this matter already been put behind us?
In the end, Gu Xuanyi couldn't escape. Her third uncle caught her and asked her several questions, none of which she could answer. The only question she could answer, she didn't say because she lacked confidence and wasn't sure of the answer.
Gu Jingxi said earnestly, "Xuanyi, although you are a woman and do not need to participate in the imperial examination, you cannot be too bad at your studies. You need to set a good example for your unborn younger brother or sister."
Gu Xuanyi nodded repeatedly with a dejected look on her face: "Third Uncle, I will definitely study hard in my spare time in the future."
Gu Jingxi said without room for argument, "I tested you on the Book of Poetry and you couldn't even answer it. I'm punishing you by making you go back and copy the Book of Poetry."
Upon hearing this, Gu Xuanyi's eyes widened suddenly, and she looked at her third uncle in disbelief. She never expected that being punished by copying books would happen when she was seventeen years old.
Seeing this, Gu Jingxi's tone turned serious: "What? You're not willing?"
How could Gu Xuanyi dare to refuse?
She nodded eagerly: "Yes, I'm willing. It's just that I didn't study hard before. Copying and memorizing at the same time will help me consolidate my memory. That way, when Uncle tests me again next time, I'll be able to answer the questions."
As soon as she finished speaking, she regretted it immediately, wishing she could turn back time and never say such a thing. How confident was she to dare to suggest that her third uncle test her again next time? If she couldn't answer, she would have to copy it again. What was she going to do then?
Gu Jingxi was satisfied and said, "Then go back and copy it now. The handwriting must be neat and you can't be perfunctory. If I find that you are perfunctory when I check, then you will have to copy it again."
Gu Xuanyi didn't dare to delay and immediately took her leave. Otherwise, if she couldn't answer any of the questions she was tested on, wouldn't she be punished again?
Watching her fleeing figure, Meng Jinyao said helplessly, "Husband, why are you bullying the child?"
Gu Jingxi disagreed: "I don't think we're bullying her. As a daughter of the Gu family, how can she be so ignorant? Anyway, she's just idling around now, so she might as well study, practice calligraphy, and memorize texts. Otherwise, what kind of person would she be, doing nothing all day?"
Meng Jinyao was slightly taken aback, and suddenly realized that his sophistry made a lot of sense.
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The second day of the Lunar New Year is the day when married daughters and their husbands return to their parents' home. The wives who care about their families are accompanied by their husbands to visit their parents' home.
No matter how dissatisfied Meng Jinyao was with the Meng family, she still had to save face. Besides, the Meng family also had her second brother. In the morning, she and Gu Jingxi went back to her parents' home with gifts.
Meng Jinyu married far away and returned to Yangzhou with her husband. She did not return to her parents' home that day. In fact, daughters who marry far away do not have many opportunities to return to their parents' home in their lives. Some women do not return to their parents' home for more than ten years after marrying far away.
Madam Dong gave the kitchen the menu early in the morning. The dishes on the menu were prepared according to the tastes of Meng Jinyao and her husband. She had previously eaten at a banquet with her stepdaughter and had noticed what her stepdaughter liked to eat. As for her son-in-law's menu, she had asked her husband, who had eaten at the same table with her son-in-law.
Upon returning to the Yongchang Marquis's residence, Meng Jinyao paid her respects to Old Madam Meng but did not see Meng Chengzhang. Finding this strange, she asked Madam Dong, "Mother, where is my second brother? Why haven't I seen him?"
Madam Dong truthfully replied, "Chengzhang is sick. I was afraid of passing on his illness to you, so I didn't come over."
Upon hearing this, Meng Jinyao's heart tightened, and she asked anxiously, "Second brother, why did you suddenly fall ill?"
Just as Madam Meng was about to speak, Madam Dong spoke first, honestly saying, "On New Year's Eve, Chengzhang knelt in the ancestral hall all night. There wasn't even any charcoal fire in the ancestral hall, and he caught a chill and developed a high fever, but the fever has subsided now."
Dong's words infuriated Old Madam Meng. While Dong was clever, she sometimes seemed brainless, too honest, answering every question directly, which always made it seem like she was doing it on purpose.
Meng Jinyao's face darkened. She thought that her second brother had passed the imperial examination and even ranked first in the examination, so the Meng family would gradually pay more attention to him. She never expected that her second brother would be made to kneel in the ancestral hall on New Year's Eve. She asked in a deep voice, "New Year's Eve is a day when everyone should stay up together to welcome the new year. What did my second brother do wrong? Why are you making him kneel in the ancestral hall?"
Her accusatory tone displeased Old Madam Meng, but she couldn't lash out because Gu Jingxi was present.
Meng Chengxing very considerately helped his grandmother out of the predicament, replying in a way that downplayed the seriousness of the situation: "Eldest sister, it was really because Second Brother was disrespectful to his elders and talked back to Grandmother that Grandmother was so angry that she made Second Brother kneel in the ancestral hall to reflect on his actions. I didn't expect Second Brother to catch a cold. When I found out that Second Brother had caught a cold, Grandmother immediately sent the family doctor to treat him."
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