Wen Chuyan
The next morning
The city gates were wide open, and Wen Chuyan rode a tall horse and entered the city with his personal soldiers. The people lined the streets to welcome him, and threw silk handkerchiefs into his arms as if they were free.
After Wen Chuyan reported to the palace, he returned to the Fu family. They had been living in Canaan City for the past few years, leaving only his younger brother in the capital. When they came back, they lived in the Fu family.
Wen Shuangye's face miraculously recovered after the palace banquet. She was angry again, but when she knew Wen Chuyan had returned, a smile finally appeared on her face. She quickly arranged for people to clean up his yard and took people to the front to greet him.
Fu Huaiying followed them and stood behind them, watching Wen Chuyan dismount and walk into the courtyard. She felt a little dazed. How long had it been since she last saw her brother? It seemed like a long time, but also like not long. He hadn't changed much, just like when she sent him out of the city.
"Where's Huairou?"
Wen Shuangye's face froze slightly, "She... wasn't feeling well, so she didn't come to greet you today."
Wen Chuyan frowned, "Have you called a doctor? I'll go take a look."
Wen Yuhe was a little surprised. "Brother, you didn't call a doctor. Aunt, isn't Sister Huairou in the ancestral hall? Did she catch a cold? Why don't you call a doctor to take a look?"
Wen Chuyan then understood that love was not an illness, but a punishment. Seeing that Wen Shuangye was in a bad mood, he did not want to provoke her and pretended not to hear it.
When he was admitted to the hospital, he looked back at Fu Huaiying with gentle eyes. She was still wearing the hairpin he had given her before. When his eyes swept over her face, his smile stopped.
Wen Chuyan immediately stepped forward, "What happened? Who hit you?"
Fu Huaiying hesitated for a long time, then looked up at Wen Shuangye and said, "Don't worry, brother. It was just an accidental fall."
"Do you think my brother is stupid? How could such obvious slap marks be caused by falling? Wen Yuhe, tell me, what happened?"
Wen Yuhe was an honest child and did not understand his aunt's expression. "...It was Sister Huairou who beat me at the palace banquet yesterday."
Wen Shuangye held her forehead. Yu and this child were good in every way except for one thing: they were too honest, and it was hard to read their expressions, and they spoke without thinking.
Wen Chuyan sighed, took out the ointment from his sleeve and handed it to her, saying, "Girls' faces are delicate, remember to apply the ointment every day."
She turned to look at Wen Shuangye again, "Aunt, Huairou is arrogant and spoiled at home, but at the palace banquet, she even openly beat her own sisters. If this reputation of being fierce and vicious gets out, how can she get married smoothly in the future? She's studying in a women's academy. If this gets out, will her future be ruined?"
Fu Huaiying lowered her eyes, feeling a chill in her heart, and her hand holding the medicine bottle gradually tightened. It turned out that she was not worried about her, but about Fu Huairou's future.
I used to remember that my brother treated all his brothers and sisters equally. Now that I think about it, even though he always scolded Huairou, wasn't it for her own good? He always showed concern for me, but it was only because he felt guilty for Wen Shuangye.
Wen Chuyan finished speaking and took out a pair of earrings for her. "Try them on. I saw them at the border and brought them back because I thought they suit you."
"Thank you, brother."
Fu Huaiying took the pair of earrings. Over the years, her brother had been very good to her in the mansion. Although not as good as Fu Huairou, he had helped her after all. From now on, those false fantasies would no longer exist, but she could still be a qualified sister.
Wen Chuyan didn't know what she was thinking, he just thought that the girl was growing up and had more thoughts.
"I'll take you to a play tomorrow, okay?"
Wen Yuhe nodded, "Okay, but should we bring Sister Huairou with us?"
Wen Chuyan glanced at Fu Huaiying. Her expression was unclear, and he didn't know whether she was happy or unhappy. "Don't take her. Wait until she realizes her mistake."
The servant came in from outside, "Madam, General, the young marquis is here."
"Please come in."
After Lin Yanan entered the mansion, he saw a large group of people standing there to greet him. Although he was the young marquis of Dingbei Marquisate, there was no need for such a big fuss, right?
"I heard that Brother Chuyan was back. I'm sorry for coming here without a visiting card."
"That's all right, let's not talk about these empty formalities."
"Brother Chu Yan, now that you're back, could you stay a little longer?"
Wen Chuyan nodded with a smile on his face, "I will definitely stay a little longer this time. By the way, I will take them to the opera tomorrow. Do you want to come with me, young marquis?"
"OK."
Wen Yuhe was about to speak up to refuse on his behalf, but he agreed first.
Wen Shuangye stepped forward and said, "Let's not chat about the past in the courtyard. Let's go inside and have some tea."
Only after she spoke did Lin Yan'an turn around and look her up and down. Was this the first lady Huaiying had told him about in her previous life? It was obvious from her face that she wasn't a good person.
The maid served tea to everyone. Wen Yuhe chattered about his brother's situation at the border. Wen Chuyan patiently answered them one by one. He glanced at Fu Huaiying inadvertently and found that she was staring at Lin Yan'an in a daze.
Lin Yan'an hadn't spoken since he entered the house. He was thinking about when to go and propose marriage, but in this life, he and Huaiying had just met. If he spoke rashly, would she think he was reckless?
Wen Chuyan also noticed something unusual. If he had talked about those border matters in the past, Fu Huaiying would always listen with bright eyes and occasionally ask a few questions, but today he was distracted.
He glanced at Lin Yan'an. He had a good-looking face and beautiful appearance, especially his eyes, which were really beautiful. He looked at Fu Huaiying who was in a daze. Did she like this?
Wen Chuyan felt an inexplicable irritation in his heart, but he attributed this irritation to his worry about his sister. After all, although Lin Yan'an had a good face, he was a notorious playboy and was very arrogant.
"ah!"
Wen Shuangye, who was sitting at the top, suddenly screamed and fell to the ground. Everyone in the hall was startled by her and immediately turned around to look. They saw a small snake coiled on the chair. Wen Shuangye had always been afraid of such slippery things, and she was even more frightened when she saw this little snake.
Lin Yanan chuckled twice and stepped forward to apologize, "Auntie, this little snake is my pet. I originally hid it in my sleeve, but it suddenly ran away just now. I'm really sorry."
As he said this, he stepped forward and put the little snake into his sleeve.
Wen Chuyan frowned. This man was too rude. It would have been fine if he hadn't brought a visiting card and come uninvited, but he even brought out a snake to scare people.
Fu Huaiying took a sip of tea, lowered the corner of her lips, and turned her eyes away to see Lin Yan'an secretly winking at her.
After Wen Shuangye realized what was happening, he felt embarrassed and stood up, saying that he had a headache and wanted to go back to rest.
Since the mistress was not at home, Wen Chuyan had to play the role of host and invite Lin Yanan to stroll around the garden.
Lin Yan'an readily agreed, and the little snake came out of his sleeve again and coiled in his hand. Fu Huaiying was a little curious and couldn't help but take a few more glances at it.
Lin Yan'an slowed down his pace, took two steps behind, and stretched out his hand in front of Fu Huaiying. "It's very obedient and never bites people. Sister Huaiying, do you want to pet it?"
Fu Huaiying couldn't help but stretch out her hand to touch it, but the little snake instantly wrapped itself around her hand and refused to leave.
Lin Yan'an remained expressionless, but he was so happy in his heart. It was a great job. This way, he could give Xiaobai to Huaiying directly, and he could also rely on Xiaobai to talk to her more in the future.
"Young Marquis, I can't take it anymore."
Lin Yanan approached her and touched Xiaobai. "It's okay. Xiaobai has always been aloof, but it seems like he and I have a connection. If possible, can I give him to you?"
"ah?"
"I have quite a few animals in my house, and Xiaobai is quite small, so there are always things I can't take care of. Forgive me for being so presumptuous, but could you please give Xiaobai to my sister and let her take care of him?"
Fu Huaiying looked at the little snake in his hand and really liked it. He didn't bother to be polite with him and nodded, "It's just that I don't know how to raise it..."
"That's fine. I'll bring its rations to my sister tomorrow and write down the feeding instructions on a piece of paper."
"Okay, thank you very much."
"I want to thank you, sister, for helping me solve the problem. From now on, if you have any problems, you can come to the Marquis' Mansion to find me."
Wen Chuyan was talking when no one responded. He turned around and saw Lin Yanan and Fu Huaiying behind them, chatting happily. Fu Huaiying looked very happy, and his eyes darkened slightly.
"Huaiying."
Fu Huaiying looked up and found that they were a little far away, so he quickly stepped forward and asked, "Brother, what's wrong?"
Wen Chuyan opened his mouth, not knowing what to start a conversation with. He suddenly regretted calling her over for no reason. He thought for a moment, "Although Huairou has a bad temper, she's not a bad person by nature. You're more sensible than her. In the future, give in to her and go along with her. Don't argue with her."
Fu Huaiying lowered her eyes, her heart slowly sinking, "I know."
"That's good...you..."
"I've only ever heard of an older sister giving way to a younger sister, but rarely have I heard of a younger sister giving way to an older sister."
Lin Yan'an's face also darkened at this moment. No matter in his past life or this life, no one could lecture his Huaiying in front of him.
Wen Chuyan's expression was not very good either. "Young Marquis, this is our family affair."
Lin Yan'an scoffed, "Young General Wen, your last name is Wen, and Sister Huaiying's last name is Fu. How could this be your family affair? Besides, you just returned to the capital, so you might not know that the slap mark on Sister Huaiying's face was inflicted by Miss Fu, standing in front of the busy palace gate."
Wen Chuyan was a little surprised and turned to look at Wen Yuhe.
Wen Yuhe immediately stepped forward and said, "Brother... I'm not quite sure either. It was the women who said that..."
Fu Huaiying lowered her eyes and said nothing. What difference did it make where the beating happened? They were all beatings. She really couldn't have any expectations of the Wen family.
Lin Yan'an felt a pang of anxiety as he watched her lower her head. He moved aside, half blocking her view. "Does it matter where the fight took place? It happened anyway. I heard that if Minister Liu's daughter hadn't stopped her, Miss Fu would have been planning to attack again at the banquet. Thankfully, the Empress handled the matter impartially, and Miss Fu won't be able to enter the palace anymore."
Fu Huaiying looked up at him, not knowing why he wanted to help her, but having an extra helper was always good, and she could also use someone else's mouth to express her grievances.
Wen Chuyan felt a little guilty for a moment and was about to say something when he was interrupted by Lin Yan'an.
"Sorry for bothering me today. It's time for me to go home. Sister Huaiying, can you give me a ride?"
Fu Huaiying nodded and followed him out.
Only after they were far away and sure that the two people could not hear them did Lin Yan'an speak seriously: "Sister, neither of them has a good man. They are all looking after their own families."
Fu Huaiying smiled and said, "I know, but people are always close and distant. I can't ask someone to put aside my cousin and help me, right?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com