Shen Xinyan nodded, knowing that the Duke must be asking the teacher about his son's academic performance.
It turned out that the Duke of England had high hopes for his eldest grandson. He would ask about Wei Chenglin's studies every now and then, and sometimes even taught him martial arts personally.
Fortunately, Wei Chenglin never let him down.
The mother and son sat opposite each other. Wei Chenglin had always been a man of few words, and Shen Xinyan, who still had some concerns about him from her previous life, just asked about his food, clothing, housing and transportation as usual.
The two of them asked and answered each other, and soon fell silent.
"Mom - do you think I'm pretty?" Just when she was feeling uncomfortable, Xiao Yingzhi, who had run into the inner room at some point, came out with a "thump thump thump" sound, ran straight to her, and asked proudly with her little face raised.
Shen Xinyan couldn't help but burst out laughing.
The little girl was seen pouting her bloody mouth, with rouge of varying sizes and shades smeared on both sides of her cheeks. At first glance, she looked like a matchmaker in the market, and Shen Xinyan was so happy that she held her stomach and laughed non-stop.
Even the usually calm Wei Chenglin couldn't help laughing.
The little girl was unhappy with her mother and brother's laughter. She pouted her little mouth and looked aggrievedly at her mother who was bent over with laughter, and then looked at her brother who had his back turned and was laughing secretly.
"What's the happy news? Tell me and I'll be happy too!" Wei Junhang's mood unconsciously became cheerful when he heard his wife's unusually happy laughter before he even walked into the house.
"Dad!" When the little girl saw her beloved dad coming back, she wanted to rush over to hug him and complain like a spoiled child.
Wei Junhang habitually tried to bend down to hug his daughter, but when he first saw the little face that had completely changed from its original appearance, he was startled and took a step back unconsciously.
When the little girl saw it, she immediately burst into tears with a wronged look.
Shen Xinyan panicked and rushed forward to coax her, but Wei Junhang was quicker than her and picked up his daughter first, coaxing her non-stop like a loving child.
Xiao Yingzhi wiped her tears with her little hands, but she didn't expect the rouge to be washed away by the tears. When she wiped it, her face immediately became a cat-like face, which made Shen Xinyan laugh.
"Sister, don't cry. It won't look good if you cry." When she finally suppressed her laughter and was about to go forward to join in coaxing her daughter, she unexpectedly saw her son holding a clean handkerchief and wiping the little girl's tears very tenderly.
The little girl was not a crybaby, but it was a rare occasion for her to be dressed so "beautifully". Not only did she not receive any praise from her parents and brothers, but she was also disliked. She felt extremely wronged when she thought about it.
Now, with her father and brother coaxing her on either side, she gradually stopped crying. She looked at her father with her big wet eyes, then at her brother, and finally she stretched out her chubby little arms, hugged her brother's neck, and buried her little face in his neck and rubbed it non-stop.
"Young Master, let me carry the fourth young lady down to wash her face!" Chun Liu, who came in after hearing the voice, stepped forward and said with a smile.
"No need, I can do it myself." Wei Chenglin shook his head, dodged Chunliu's hand that was about to hug his sister, and personally carried the little girl into the clean room.
"I didn't expect that Brother Lin could be so gentle and considerate!" Wei Junhang sighed as he watched the brother and sister disappear behind the screen.
Shen Xinyan also agreed with this.
In the past two lifetimes, except for Zhou Wanning, her son was never polite to his closest relatives, not to mention that he would hold his sister and wash her hands and face personally.
She remembered clearly that her daughter in her previous life was fearless except for her brother. Although she was not as afraid of him as a mouse seeing a cat, she would not take the initiative to get close to him unless it was absolutely necessary.
Like now, with her parents by her side, she had never taken the initiative to let her brother carry her to clean water to wash her face before.
Shen Xinyan wondered, could it be because her son in this life had spent more time in the main courtyard accompanying her and her daughter? It seemed that there was no other reason.
"I just saw Qi Ge'er in the garden. I haven't seen him for a few days. Why does he seem to be getting more and more timid?" Wei Junhang said after taking a few sips of the hot tea offered by Chunliu.
Shen Xinyan was tidying up the rouge and powder that her daughter had made a mess of at the dressing table. When she heard him say this, a thin and weak figure emerged in her mind.
Wei Chengqi is the posthumous son of the previous prince Wei Junting. In Shen Xinyan's memory, he has always been a quiet, well-behaved but somewhat timid child.
Fang was eager for her son to become successful and wanted him to inherit his father's excellence. Moreover, there was a Wei Chenglin in the mansion who was highly praised by the elders. Therefore, she was more strict in disciplining Wei Chengqi. Although she did not go to the extent of beating or scolding the child, the language she used was a little harsh, which made the already timid Wei Chengqi even more timid.
This becomes an unbreakable vicious circle.
The stricter Fang disciplined him, the more timid and cowardly Wei Chengqi became. The more timid and cowardly he became, the more dissatisfied Fang became, and the stricter she disciplined him.
However, Shen Xinyan did not like Fang, but was quite jealous of her.
Because she has a son who will never leave her!
In the first year of her being trapped in the family temple in her previous life, Fang monopolized power in the Duke's Mansion. In order to pave the way for her son, she took action against Zhou Wanning, which finally angered Wei Chenglin. In the end, she was almost killed by Wei Chenglin's ruthless tactics.
Wei Chengqi gave up everything he had in the Duke's Mansion in exchange for her life and freedom.
At least, when Shen Xinyan died in her previous life, Fang was still living well under the care of her son.
In that life, her son was very outstanding, young and promising, with a bright future, but what she got was being trapped for the second half of her life and dying of madness.
Compared to Fang, how much better is she? They are both failed mothers!
"Qi Ge'er... is a good boy..." This was the only thing Shen Xinyan could say in the end.
Wei Junhang nodded in agreement, then said helplessly: "It's just that my sister-in-law's discipline is inevitably a bit strict."
Shen Xinyan lowered her eyes, took the teapot and refilled his tea, and said in a light voice: "Even the mother can't say much about the eldest sister-in-law teaching her son, and it's naturally even more difficult for us uncles and aunts to say anything."
She felt sorry for Wei Chengqi, but she had no intention of asking for trouble by standing up for him. Wei Chengqi was a thorn in Fang's side, and anyone who dared to touch him would die!
The most important thing is that she herself doesn't even know how to be a mother, so how can she be qualified to take care of other people's children.
Wei Junhang knew this, so he just nodded and said, "When Qi Ge'er grows up and moves to the outer courtyard, I'll hire a few martial arts masters for him. He'll come into contact with more people, and I think his timid nature will change."
Shen Xinyan just smiled and didn't respond to him, but she didn't agree with it in her heart.
Is it easier to move to the outer courtyard? You still underestimate your good sister-in-law!
"My third sister-in-law is pregnant. I want to go back to the Earl's Mansion tomorrow. Is that okay?" Shen Xinyan started talking about business.
The third sister-in-law she referred to was naturally her sister-in-law from her mother's side.
"It just so happens that I am free tomorrow, so I will go with you, Madam!" To her surprise, Wei Junhang actually took the initiative to offer to go back with her.
"Thank you very much, Your Highness!" She was stunned for a moment and then smiled.
Although she has other purposes for her visit to her parents' home tomorrow, it would be better if Wei Junhang could go, at least it would show her status in the Duke's Mansion to some people in her parents' home.
The next morning, taking advantage of the opportunity when their daughter was called away by the Grand Princess, Shen Xinyan and Wei Junhang immediately ordered people to prepare carriages and set off for the Jing'an Marquis's Mansion.
The Jing'an Marquis's Mansion is not far from the Yingguo Duke's Mansion, and it only takes half an hour to get there by carriage.
The current Jing'an Earl is Shen Xinyan's brother from the same mother. The Earl's wife Liang and Shen Xinyan have a mediocre relationship. They don't like each other very much, but at least they can maintain face and affection. It was not until Shen Xinyan got lucky and suddenly became the wife of the prince of the Duke's Mansion that Liang's attitude towards her became much warmer.
Although Shen Xinyan disliked her sister-in-law Liang, she loved Liang's daughter Shen Huiran very much. Otherwise, she would not have wanted her to be her daughter-in-law in her previous life.
But when she saw her niece again in this life, her feelings became much more complicated. The one thing that was involved was the tragic death of her daughter Wei Yingzhi in her previous life.
Zhou Jia Erlang was the murderer of Wei Yingzhi's death, but Shen Huiran was the direct cause of her accidental murder. Although Shen Huiran chose to hang himself because of guilt in his previous life, it still left a thorn in Shen Xinyan's heart.
"Second aunt." Shen Huiran was now only a seven-year-old girl. She was obediently and politely going forward under the guidance of the adults.
Shen Xinyan smiled at her, but did not hug her as affectionately as before.
"But after not seeing you for a while, Hui'er has grown a lot taller."
Shen Huiran pursed her lips and put on a somewhat shy smile.
"A few days ago, this girl kept telling me that she hadn't seen her second aunt for a long time and she missed her very much. Now you are finally here. I think I can have some peace and quiet for a while." Lady Liang glared at her daughter, smiled and walked up to Shen Xinyan, holding her hand affectionately.
"After all, they are real aunt and niece. Why doesn't Hui'er talk about Third Aunt?" A woman's joking voice was heard nearby. Shen Xinyan looked over and recognized that the person who was speaking was the target of her trip - Shen Xinlan.
"Hui'er misses Third Aunt, too." Shen Huiran was still young, so her face turned red when she heard her say that, and she spoke in a low voice with some uneasiness.
"Okay, you're an adult, and you're still arguing with children." Mrs. Shen smiled and spat at Shen Xinlan.
Shen Xinlan covered her mouth and chuckled.
"Let's go into the house quickly and don't keep mother waiting for too long," said Liang.
The aunts, sisters-in-law, and sisters in this room walked towards the wife of the Marquis of Jing'an, chatting and laughing. Wei Junhang in the other room was also led in by the brothers of the Marquis of Jing'an.
"Why don't I see my third sister-in-law?" Shen Xinyan asked on the way.
"She vomited everything she ate these days and couldn't sleep well at night. She felt sleepy after breakfast just now, so mother asked her to go back to her room to rest. She must not have woken up yet!" Liang replied.