Chapter 296: Every festive season brings more thoughts of family
Zhao Lingmeng rubbed her ears, rolled her eyes at Zhao Houyang, and said helplessly: "Can't you speak more quietly!"
"Mom, my brothers have forgotten me." Zhao Houyang wiped his eyes with his hands. The more he thought about it, the sadder he became! He was thinking about his two brothers every day in the mansion, but they were free outside and had forgotten him long ago.
Seeing Zhao Houyang about to cry, Zhao Lingmeng quickly reached out and rubbed the little guy's head. "Look at you! Your two brothers haven't forgotten you. They wrote you letters and bought you gifts. Where's the manliness you promised to be? Why are you crying so easily?"
Zhao Houyang wasn't afraid of Zhao Lingmeng laughing at him now. Besides, it was clearly his mother's fault. He was very reasonable: "It's because you were teasing me. If I didn't ask, she would definitely wait until she returned from the palace tomorrow before she remembered this matter."
Zhao Lingmeng looked at this guy. If he didn't see the letter and the things tonight, he would not leave. "Okay, this matter is my fault. I shouldn't tease our Yang'er. Come, smile for me. I will take you to see the gifts and the letter. How about it?"
Zhao Houyang snorted softly at first, but finally succumbed to Zhao Lingmeng's temptation, raised his head, and gave Zhao Lingmeng a bright smile.
Zhao Lingmeng looked at such a well-behaved child and suddenly felt a little guilty about bullying him. She reached out and rubbed Zhao Houyang's head, "Let's go! Follow mother back to Menglinyuan to get it."
Zhao Houyang was a child who was easy to coax. After being coaxed by Zhao Lingmeng with just a few words, he happily followed Zhao Lingmeng again.
When they arrived at Menglin Courtyard, Qiuyue immediately went to find the gift and letter. Zhao Lingmeng took them and handed them to Zhao Houyang, "Okay, I've given you the things. You can go now!"
Zhao Houyang then looked at the things Qiuyue had brought out again. Zhao Lingmeng saw this and said helplessly, "That's not for you. That's what your two brothers gave to your cousin."
"Oh, I'm just taking a look. Look at you, mom, you're so stingy." Zhao Houyang would never admit that he was curious about whether his two brothers treated him differently from that kid Yang Chengchen!
"What did you say?" Zhao Lingmeng pretended to grab the box from Zhao Houyang's hand. Zhao Houyang immediately ran away with the box in his arms, shouting, "Mom, go to bed early. I'm leaving now!"
"Brat!" Zhao Lingmeng rubbed his forehead and muttered softly.
When Qiuyue saw His Highness like this, she knew that He was tired, so she immediately went over to help Zhao Lingmeng remove her hair and change her clothes.
"With the third young master here, the whole mansion is much more lively." Qiuyue did not forget to praise Zhao Houyang while working. She thought the young masters were good in every way.
Zhao Lingmeng laughed and shook her head, "In your hearts, there's nothing wrong with having a few kids."
"How could His Highness's children be bad? I wonder if the eldest and second young masters are suffering outside?"
It wasn't finished yet, and Zhao Lingmeng was willing to chat with the people around her about the two children. Mainly because it was Chinese New Year, and she must have missed them. "Zhao Houjing will definitely have to endure some hardships, but Zhao Houming is quite clever. He follows the escort team, occasionally does some business, and makes a profit. He lives a carefree life!"
Qiuyue was very tactful and did not ask why the eldest young master was suffering. After all, His Highness must have his own considerations. As a servant, she was overstepping her bounds by worrying too much. "The second young master has been smart since he was young, and both young masters are filial to him!"
Zhao Lingmeng nodded reluctantly, but she was still thinking about whether her eldest son was filial or not. She needed to observe and see. However, Zhao Lingmeng was not worried about it. Children and grandchildren will have their own blessings.
The two people that Zhao Lingmeng and Zhao Houyang care about really live very different lives!
Zhao Houming had reached the end of his journey on New Year's Eve. He had rented a separate courtyard outside Jingguo Academy and lived there with Dongshui and Moyun. He waited for the academy to reopen after the New Year. He handed in his visiting card, then spent some time studying and interacting with the students before heading back.
Before New Year's Eve, Zhao Houming brought Dong Shui and Mo Yun to this city to set up a stall to sell calligraphy and paintings, as well as some specialties they brought from other counties.
So even though he bought gifts for his family, he still had quite a bit of money left, more than enough to cover the three of them's travel expenses and related expenses.
With money in hand, there's no need to worry. On New Year's Eve, Zhao Houming sent Mo Yun to a restaurant that was open all day. He packed up a large table of food and ate with Dong Shui and Mo Yun, which was considered New Year's Eve. And while Zhao Lingmeng and the others were still thinking about him, he had been reading for a long time.
It was New Year's Eve, and Zhao Houming wasn't reading very well. He missed his mother, his younger brother, his older brother, and even his cousin Yang Chengchen. And he wondered if his mother and younger brother had planted any vegetables for him in his small vegetable patch. He wondered if he'd be able to eat them when he returned next summer.
Zhao Houming's thoughts drifted off into the distance. When he came to his senses, he looked at the book in his hand that he hadn't turned a page for a long time and sighed, "Forget it, I'll read it tomorrow! I'll go to bed early tonight. Maybe I can see my mother in my dreams."
Zhao Houming, who had already fallen asleep, had no idea that his beloved elder brother, Zhao Houjing, was secretly eating in the kitchen of the mansion with his winter sleep and feelings! (Oh, not secretly, they couldn't sleep in the middle of the night and got up to go to the kitchen of the mansion to have a look.)
Why on New Year's Eve, Zhao Houjing, a grown man, was still wandering around the kitchen in the middle of the night? It was mainly because Zhao Houjing overturned the table during the family dinner because of a seating issue, leaving no one with anything to eat. This made Sun Tu and Zhou Shi very angry.
The point is, Zhao Houjing also felt wronged. His good father actually made him sit below the wife he married later. His father's wife even acted like he was taking advantage of her. A concubine was showing off in front of him, the original wife's legitimate son. It almost made him angry to death.
Zhao Houjing used to be a brat in front of Sun Tu and Zhou Shi. He had only restrained his temper in recent years with Zhao Lingmeng, who had two brothers to compare him with. But when he got to Sun Tu, he immediately exploded and flipped the table.
Unfortunately, Zhao Houjing seriously overestimated his current status in the eyes of Sun Tu and Zhou. He used to be the eldest son of Sun Tu and Zhao Lingmeng, and his grandfather was the Marquis of Wu'an. If nothing unexpected happened, he would inherit Sun Tu's family business.
Now that Sun Tu and Zhou had a new grandson, who would care about this grandson who had changed his surname? So he was scolded by Sun Tu. Sun Tu was afraid of that crazy woman Zhao Lingmeng and didn't dare to hit him, so he could only punish him by not eating dinner.
Not to mention that Dong Shui and Huai Qing, who were by Zhao Houjing's side, were both martial arts masters, Zhao Houjing himself was also very agile. The reason he didn't resist was that he wanted to deduct some money from his good father after the New Year before leaving. Otherwise, Zhao Houjing would be very unwilling to leave like this.
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