Zhao Biru held Dou Zhao's hand and walked slowly back.

Dou Zhao asked Zhao Biru: "What is my favorite food?"

Zhao Biru was stunned, but still said gently: "You like to eat anything sweet and crunchy!"

Dou Zhao asked again: "When was the last time you came to our house?"

Zhao Biru looked at Dou Zhao with even more astonishment: "The day before the beginning of winter, Dad asked me and my sister to ask Aunt if Uncle had come back. We also gave Aunt a copy of the Nine Cold Painting, and Aunt rewarded us with a pair of pearl flowers. My sister also accompanied you to turn the rope for a long time. What happened?"

Dou Zhao shook his head.

The two families have such a close relationship. Why did she bite her aunt when her aunt wanted to take her to play with her cousins?

When they returned to the main courtyard, the maids were standing under the veranda. When they saw Dou Zhao and Zhao Biru, they stepped forward with a smile and saluted Zhao Biru respectfully, saying, "Miss, please sit in the guest room for a while. My aunt is talking to grandma!"

Zhao Biru looked at the window of the main house in confusion, and followed Hanxiao to the private room obediently. However, Dou Zhao ran into the inner room in a flash, just in time to hear his aunt angrily say: "... This is simply unreasonable! If the Wang family dares to send someone, you must not say anything, lest you lower your status. I will come forward to argue with Gao!"

My mother's voice was still choked with sobs: "Sister-in-law, why bother! The commotion has only given the Wang family a chance to speak out. No matter what, it's all Wan Yuan's fault."

My aunt sighed for a long time before she said, "My sister is just too soft-hearted!"

My mother smiled and said, "Husband and wife are one body. If he loses face, I will also lose face. I appreciate your kindness, but please don't tell my brother when you go back. It's just a concubine. Do you really want to alarm my brother from my mother's family to flatter the Dou family?"

"I know," said my aunt, "I will come quietly by myself when the time comes."

"Thank you, sister-in-law," said my mother. "I think the quieter this happens, the better."

My aunt nodded. On the 22nd day of the 11th month, he really came alone. When my eldest aunt asked about it, my aunt just said that my uncle was going to study behind closed doors. My eldest aunt didn't ask any more questions, and took my aunt's hand to the flower hall to greet my third aunt, fourth aunt, sixth aunt and other relatives, and set up two mahjong tables to gamble. The women of the Dou family sat at the table, looked at the cards, laughed and talked, and it was very lively.

Only a few of my father's brothers were invited outside, and everyone was talking and drinking tea.

No one from the Wang family came.

The sedan chair carrying Wang Yingxue stopped directly in the flower hall. Wang Yingxue, who was wearing pink rose-colored makeup and floral jacket, was helped down from the sedan chair by a maid. She offered tea to her mother in the flower hall as a formality.

Nanny Yu took Wang Yingxue to Qixia Courtyard. People in the flower hall were playing cards, chatting and laughing, and they kept making noise until three o'clock in the morning, then they dispersed one after another.

Wang Yingxue breathed a sigh of relief.

The maid who was helping Wang Yingxue pouted her lips and said in dissatisfaction: "Young lady shouldn't have advised the eldest lady. Look, how can this be a wedding?"

"Don't talk nonsense." Wang Yingxue frowned and scolded the maid, "Is it a glorious thing for me to be someone's concubine? If the eldest lady comes, it will only be humiliated for nothing. Be careful with your words in the future. If I hear such presumptuous words again, I will send you back to Nanwo immediately."

The maid listened, her eyes immediately turned red, and she knelt down and said, "I will never dare to do it again."

Wang Yingxue was still a little worried, and repeatedly reminded the maid: "When you are under someone's roof, you have to bow your head. You stay here quietly and don't cause any trouble."

The little maidservant nodded in agreement.

Someone reported: "Seventh Master is here!"

Wang Yingxue's eyes lit up.

Dou Shiying walked in quickly.

Wang Yingxue hurried over to greet her, bowed and said, "Seventh Grandma... do you know?"

"I know!" Dou Shiying said with a smile, "She was the one who urged me to come here."

Wang Yingxue was a little excited when she heard this: "Thank you, Seventh Grandma, for saving my face. I will respect her as my own sister in the future."

"Didn't you think of Gu Qiu as your own sister before?" Dou Shiying joked, "I told you a long time ago that Gu Qiu is a very virtuous person."

Wang Yingxue's smile faltered, and she said, "I was not kind in this matter. I owed Sister Gu Qiu a lot, and I was afraid that she would annoy me. Although I treated her as my own sister in my heart, I didn't know if she treated me as her own sister... Now it seems that I was too suspicious. After all, I am not as tolerant and generous as my sister."

Dou Shiying laughed, looking proud.

Wang Yingxue's eyes darkened slightly, but she soon regained her smile.

After welcoming the Stove King and sweeping up the dust, it was New Year's Eve.

The East and West Dou returned to Beilou Village together to worship their ancestors.

Wang Yingxue followed Zhao Guqiu with her head lowered and her eyes obediently. When someone's eyes fell on Wang Yingxue, Dou Zhao, who was holding her mother's skirt, would sweetly call her "Auntie Wang". Everyone suddenly realized who she was and began to praise Wang Yingxue for her good looks. Nanny Yu explained at the side: "She is a girl from the Wang family in Nanwo." Wang Yingxue's face turned purple with shame.

My mother scolded Nanny Yu a few words, and when other relatives asked about Wang Yingxue again, Nanny Yu refused to say anything more.

Dou Zhao only hated his young age.

Wang Yingxue looked at her mother gratefully.

The mother turned a blind eye and continued chatting and laughing with her relatives.

But Wang Yingxue's identity still got out.

During the Spring Festival, Wang Yingxue stayed at home and was unwilling to go out to greet her relatives: "They are all serious grandmothers. It's not appropriate for me to follow them."

Nanny Yu smiled and advised, "What's appropriate or inappropriate? Grandma has Aunt Wang by her side. First, she has a companion, and second, there is someone to serve tea."

Wang Yingxue was very embarrassed. Her father frowned and looked at her mother: "Is this what you meant?"

The mother lowered her head and drank a sip of tea, then said calmly, "In that case, Aunt Wang should stay at home. It will also prevent the baby from getting upset!"

My father hesitated to speak.

Mother carried Dou Zhao out of the house.

My father immediately came over and whispered, "You will only make your relatives laugh at you if you do this."

"I understand." The mother said expressionlessly, "When the baby is born, should I tell my relatives that it is a premature birth?"

"You!" Father glared at me.

Mother had quickly stepped into the carriage.

My father stamped his feet and got on the carriage reluctantly after a long while.

Dou Zhao buried himself between the large pillows in the carriage and sighed deeply.

The mother's worries are justified.

Although this matter is trivial, it is upsetting.

It's like a flea that lands on your body. If you ignore it, it will bite you and make you itchy all over. But if you take it seriously, you can't say anything about it.

Didn’t father say that he would send Wang Yingxue to the manor?

After the Chinese New Year, I have to remind my father!

Dou Zhao was thinking about it as his third birthday arrived.

Father, mother, Wang Yingxue, grandfather, grandmother, Aunt Ding, aunt, and several aunts all gave her birthday gifts, and mother gave her birthday noodles in return; the servants in the house kowtowed to her in the yard and her mother rewarded them with five silver coins each. They were overjoyed, happier than during the Chinese New Year.

The lanterns have been put away for the Lantern Festival and the wind blowing on my face is no longer cold.

It's time for spring ploughing.

Dou Zhao said in his heart, and asked his mother to go see his grandmother.

The mother was surprised: "Didn't we see him during the Chinese New Year?"

"Nothing came of it." Dou Zhao said, "When we were offering sacrifices to our ancestors, my grandmother stood far away. When we were eating New Year's Eve dinner, she said nothing. My father also asked me to keep vigil with my grandfather... On New Year's Day, I went to pay New Year's greetings to my grandmother, but she had already returned to the farm."

"Didn't she leave you some New Year's money?" Mother smiled and took a peach blossom from the crystal plate and put it on Dou Zhao's bun. "What are you up to now?"

"I'm not up to any evil intentions." Dou Zhao muttered, but in her heart she thought that after her grandmother died, she left the farm to her. She arranged capable people to manage the farm and spent a lot of effort to ensure a good harvest even in drought. This was one of the few things she was quite proud of.

Although she was not sent to the farm in this life, she had a very deep affection for her grandmother and the farm.

"I'll take you there in a few days." Seeing that Dou Zhao was unhappy, his mother said, "After the spring plowing is finished on the farms, your father and the steward will go to inspect the farms. Then we will go with your father."

It was no secret in the Dou family that my grandfather disliked my grandmother. In order not to offend my grandfather, my mother, like everyone else in the Dou family, chose to turn a blind eye to my grandmother.

Dou Zhao felt sad when he thought of that kind woman.

Mother smiled and said, "Shall I take you to your uncle's house? We haven't been back to Anxiang for a while."

Dou Zhao noticed that whenever his mother talked about her family, she always liked to use the word "Hui" as if the Dou family was not her family. This seemed to be a common problem for many women. However, this did not include Dou Zhao.

After she married into the Wei family, she breathed a sigh of relief, felt much more energetic, and felt quite proud.

Maybe it’s because I have never considered the Dou family as my mother’s family?

Dou Zhao thought about it and went to Anxiang with his mother.

There are not so many rules in the countryside.

After receiving the news, my aunt took her two cousins ​​to wait for them at the gate.

Dou Zhao already knew his eldest cousin Zhao Biru, his second cousin Zhao Xiuru, who was nine years old this year, and his third cousin Zhao Zhangru, who was five years old this year. The sisters looked very similar, but Zhao Xiuru was shy while Zhao Zhangru was lively. As soon as she saw Dou Zhao, she pulled her into the house and said, "Madam Peng fried some sugar chestnuts. Mother said she would wait for you to come and have some!"

Dou Zhao staggered when she pulled him and had to run inside with her.

Tuoniang hurriedly followed.

Everyone walked in with laughter.

Zhao's family was at the head of the village. After entering through the black-lacquered copper ring gate, there was a stable on the left and a straw shed on the right, piled with carts and furniture. The two side rooms on the left and right were occupied by several long-term workers. After entering the second door, there was a five-room green brick and tile house in front of us, and three side rooms on the left and right. The window frames were covered with white Korean paper. Next to the steps was an old locust tree that was as thick as a man's embrace. It was clean and tidy, spacious and impressive.

As soon as my mother and aunt entered the room, Zhao Zhangru pulled Aunt Peng, who was carrying sugar-roasted chestnuts, in by the collar and turned back to urge Dou Zhao: "Hurry up! Chestnuts won't taste good if they get cold."

This caused everyone to laugh again.

After finally sitting down, Zhao Biru and Zhao Xiuru peeled chestnuts for Dou Zhao and Zhao Zhangru like an older sister.

Mother and aunt sat on the heated kang and talked: "Calculating the date, should it be time for eldest brother to come in?"

"Hmm!" My aunt was a little worried. "If I don't win this time, I'll have to wait another three years."

After hearing this, my mother groaned and said, "I heard from Yu Daqing that my sister-in-law sold ten acres of good farmland a few days ago..."

My aunt blushed and whispered, "I borrowed it before the New Year. I didn't dare tell your brother. He sold the land when he went to Kyoto to make up for his previous losses..." Then she said quickly, "Don't worry, sister. I still have some dowry, but it's all registered. I was afraid that your brother would be unhappy if he knew, so I didn't dare to touch it."