Chapter 372, Out of Order
After lunch, Xiao Yeyang hurried away with Defu.
"I don't know what happened? Why did they call Yang back in such a hurry?" Grandma Gu was a little worried.
Daohua smiled and said, "Mother-in-law, it shouldn't be a serious matter. I saw Xiao Yeyang looked quite relaxed when he left."
Hearing this, Granny Gu nodded, then smiled at Daohua and said, "You girl really understand Yang boy well."
Daohua's eyebrows curved. "That's right. After all, I've known him for so many years. I don't say I understand his personality completely, but I can see most of it."
Old Madam Yan said angrily, "I told you you're fat and you're out of breath!"
Daohua muttered, "That's right." Seeing her grandmother glaring at her, she quickly smiled and changed the subject, "Grandma, mother-in-law, Master, you've been sitting for most of the morning. I think you must be tired. Go take a nap."
Gu Jian nodded and said, "I'm old, and my body isn't very good. I've been sitting for a long time, and my waist hurts."
Then, the three old men went to their respective rooms to rest.
After they fell asleep, Daohua took Wang Maner down the mountain and went to the farm.
When Qin Xiaoliu saw the rice flowers, he quickly dropped his work and followed them: "Miss, the farm you asked me to look at before has finally taken shape."
"The land in Ningmen Prefecture is cheap, and many places are sparsely populated. I've seen several farms that are quite large, with the smallest being two to three thousand acres, and the largest being over ten thousand acres."
Rice Flower pondered for a moment: "How is the quality of the fields and the irrigation conditions?"
Qin Xiaoliu: "The several farms I saw were all next to rivers. The fields are not as good as those in Xingzhou, but they are still okay." As he said this, he took out a few simple maps of the farms from his arms.
Daohua took it in her hand and looked at it, then looked at Qin Xiaoliu: "Brother Xiaoliu, we have bought farms several times before. I trust your eyesight. I won't go to check it myself this time."
Qin Xiaoliu quickly said, "Don't worry, young lady. I've checked these manors over and over again. They're better than the others."
Daohua nodded and finally selected two farms, a large farm of ten thousand acres and a medium-sized farm of more than three thousand acres.
"This ten thousand mu farm will be called Wheat Farm in the future. You should prepare it. After the autumn harvest, you can plant the winter wheat."
Qin Xiaoliu nodded.
Rice Flower continued, "This small farm is called a vegetable farm. Send someone to tidy it up. I want to plant tomatoes next year."
Qin Xiaoliu knew about tomatoes. Now, all the greenhouses in Taohua Village were planted with them. They looked very beautiful in bright red. It was said that they were a new vegetable variety introduced from abroad.
"Okay, go ahead and do your work. I'm fine here."
After that, Daohua and Old Lady Yan stayed for another two days. On August 11, Madam Li sent someone to say that the Xiangyang Glass Shop in the city would open on August 13, and Dong Yuanyao and Su Shiyu would come. After saying goodbye to Grandma Gu and Gu Jian, the two returned home.
The first thing Daohua did when she returned to the provincial capital was to find a calligraphy and painting shop and frame the portrait that Xiao Yeyang had painted for her. On the day Dong Yuanyao and Su Shiyu came, they saw the framed portrait in her bedroom.
"Oh my god, Yiyi, which female teacher did you ask to draw this portrait of you? It's so realistic!"
Dong Yuanyao leaned in front of the portrait, staring at it eagerly. After a while, he pulled Daohua and said, "Tell me quickly. I want to hang a painting in my room, too."
Su Shiyu also looked over curiously.
Daohua smiled and said, "What female teacher? It was painted by Xiao Yeyang. That guy's painting skills are really good."
"What?!"
Dong Yuanyao and Su Shiyu both widened their eyes.
Daohua was speechless: "Why are you so surprised?"
Dong Yuanyao was silent for a while, and looked at Daohua hesitantly: "You...you."
Seeing her like this, Daohua looked puzzled: "What are you doing? You're hesitant when speaking. This is not like you."
Dong Yuanyao took a breath and said, "How could you let a stranger draw your portrait? Do you know how outrageous this is?"
This time it was Daohua's turn to be surprised: "Isn't it just a portrait of me? How can it be so out of line?"
Dong Yuanyao glanced around the room, and seeing only the three of them, she breathed a sigh of relief. But she still lowered her voice and said, "Don't you think about it? To paint a person realistically, you have to observe carefully. Look at your painting, and it's a full-body painting. What can I say to you?"
Daohua was stunned for a long time before she understood what Dong Yuanyao meant. She immediately said, "You have dirty thoughts. When Xiao Yeyang was painting, he barely raised his head."
Hearing this, Dong Yuanyao was fed up and immediately started arguing with Daohua, while Su Shiyu, who was always thoughtful, had a glint in her eyes.
She also has some knowledge about painting. She can draw a person without even looking up. How familiar must she be with this person?
Daohua said angrily: "Xiao Yeyang also drew a picture for my grandmother and others. According to what you said, then he is..." Daohua was at a loss for words to say after that.
Dong Yuanyao was helpless: "That's different. The elders are the elders, and you are you."
Rice Flower: "What's the difference? Aren't we all human?"
Dong Yuanyao: "The emotional sustenance is different."
"Yuan Yao!"
Su Shiyu suddenly interrupted Dong Yuanyao and reached out to tap her forehead: "Girl, why are your words becoming more and more outrageous?" After that, she looked at Daohua again.
"Sister Yan, don't listen to her nonsense. It's just a painting, there's no need to make so much nonsense. However, if you want to paint in the future, it's best to find a female teacher."
Daohua frowned, looked at the expressions of the two men, and nodded.
Dong Yuanyao muttered, "I'm doing this for Yiyi's own good." Then, he quickly glanced at Daohua and said, "By the way, no one else knows about this painting, right?"
Rice Flower: "My grandmother knows."
Dong Yuanyao: "Where are the others?"
Daohua: "It's just been framed, and I haven't had time to let my mother and others see it yet."
Dong Yuanyao breathed a sigh of relief: "Don't let your aunt and the others know about your painting, otherwise, you will definitely be scolded."
Daohua was a little skeptical: "Isn't it just a painting? Is it that serious?" After saying that, she looked straight at Su Shiyu. She felt that Su Shiyu was more trustworthy.
Su Shiyu nodded.
Dong Yuanyao: "Of course it's serious. Think about it yourself. In operas and storybooks, what are the situations when men paint portraits of women? Generally speaking, when women want to have their paintings done, they either hire a female teacher or their husbands. What's the point of having a man outside of their family paint them?"
Daohua was silent. She didn't expect that drawing a picture would lead to so many things.
Dong Yuanyao glanced at Daohua, thought for a moment, and then said, "I know you and the young prince have a good relationship, but there are differences between men and women, and you're both grown up now. You can't be as open with each other as you were when you were little."
"By the way, you'd better inform the old lady too, lest you accidentally let something slip and cause trouble. Your family isn't very peaceful either."
Daohua nodded and then let out a long sigh.
Alas, the restrictions on women in ancient times were too severe.
(End of this chapter)
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