A day later, Xiao Lang's wife Li Xueyan gave birth to another little master for the Xiao family. The old man sighed, shook his head and left. Xiao Yao hurried over to comfort him.
"My granddaughter has a feeling that a little girl will be born in our family soon." Xiao Yao supported her grandfather as they walked towards the study. The two figures, one tall and the other petite, were stretched out long on the bluestone slabs.
"Will she?" The old man didn't dare to hold out any hope now. Great-granddaughter! Will he ever see her again?
"Yes, if it's not my second sister-in-law's family, it must be my third sister-in-law's family. Can I give a nickname to my precious niece then?" Xiao Yao continued to coax the old man. The New Year was coming and everyone should be happy. If the grandfather had a gloomy face, no one else in the family would be happy.
"Okay, then you can pick a nickname, and I'll pick one too." The grandfather and grandson became happier and happier as they talked. They linked arms and turned through the moon gate. After a while, they disappeared, leaving only occasional laughter floating in the yard.
The family admires Xiao Yao very much. She can make the old man happy with just a few words. Apart from Xiao Yao, no one else in the entire Xiao family has this ability.
Because the New Year was approaching, the house became increasingly busy. Xiao Yao once again put down her work and helped her mother with the New Year preparations.
When will this dress be embroidered? Xiao Yao regretted taking on this job, but what else could she do? After all, she owed them a favor. If she embroidered this dress carefully, and tried to stay away from the Yun family and the Jing Palace as much as possible, and reduced the number of times she went out, there shouldn't be any trouble!
I can only say that the idea is beautiful, but the reality is cruel. How many things in life can go according to plan step by step?
Just after the Little New Year, the New Year gifts from Prince Jing's Mansion arrived. To the surprise of the manor's steward, he was greeted by the future Crown Prince's Consort. She was calm and composed, unhurried and methodical in her interactions, and possessed the potential to be a mistress of the house.
Xiao Yao was also surprised. The New Year gifts from Prince Jing's Mansion arrived so early! Moreover, the quantity was large and the variety was complete. Even if her family didn't prepare anything, they could still have a prosperous New Year.
After finally getting rid of the people from Prince Jing's Mansion, people from Prince Lingnan's Mansion arrived soon after. Xiao Yao felt that Kong Xuzhe had no good intentions towards her sister, so she planned to find a time when only her mother and third aunt were present to remind them that it was better to be wary of some people.
During the New Year, the Xiao family set off fireworks as usual, which other families tried their best but couldn't get. Today, everyone understands that they can see these fireworks entirely because of Xiao Yao.
Xiao Yao locked herself in the room for three whole days and used the new paint sent by Prince Jing's Mansion to paint a picture of "Family Joy". Every member of the Xiao family came to life on the paper, even the baby boy was held in the arms of his eldest sister-in-law, and the mother and son leaned against the window to watch the fireworks.
Everyone gathered around the table to look at the painting, looking for themselves on it. Xiao Yao quietly pulled Tong Mingyu aside and asked hesitantly and anxiously, "My daughter really likes this paint. Ruonan said if I still want it, I can trade her purse for it, but she only wants the kind for men. Do you think I can agree to her request?"
The paint this time was excellent, with pure, soft, and delicate colors. Xiao Yao really liked it, but unfortunately, after painting a large painting, there was not much left. Yun Ruonan sent a letter along with the paint, proposing the terms of exchange.
Xiao Yao guessed that Yun Ruonan wanted the purse for her brother, Yun Yichen. Perhaps it was because she couldn't embroider the shape Yun Yichen wanted, or perhaps she was just not a hands-on person and wanted to trade something with her. In any case, it wasn't that Yun Yichen wanted a purse he had embroidered himself.
But this matter is not a small one, and I need to report it to my mother. If my family agrees, then there will be someone to testify for me if there is any trouble in the future, right?
"Do you know what the princess wants such a purse for?" Tong Mingyu asked her daughter with a smile. It was obvious that the brother and sister had dug a trap for her to fall into. The poor daughter was tricked and still entangled. She was so silly and cute.
"I guess the princess wants to give it to her brother. She hates sewing the most, and she has something I want, so she wants to be lazy! I don't know if this is okay, so I wanted to ask you."
"Oh!" Tong Mingyu sighed inaudibly. She had originally wanted to ask her daughter to embroider a new purse for Yun Yichen during the Chinese New Year. This was something the Xiao family and her daughter owed him.
Xiao Yao was quite surprised to see her mother actually nodded, but it was a good thing for her that her mother agreed. She would start working as soon as she got home and would be able to finish embroidering one tomorrow. She would ask Xiaohui to send it to Prince Jing's Mansion to exchange for paint.
The next day at noon, Xiao Yao's purse was finished. She wanted to send it to Prince Jing's mansion that afternoon, but Tong Mingyu stopped her. Her daughter was too unrestrained. Although she didn't know the truth and shouldn't be blamed, everyone else in the family knew!
After the new purse was delivered to Prince Jing's Mansion, Yun Yichen was very satisfied. This purse looked much more pleasing to the eye than the previous one.
"How are the two young ladies in your family?" Yun Ruonan knew that her brother wanted to hear news about Xiao Yao the most, so she couldn't help but ask. She thought Xiao Hui didn't know that her best friend and her brother were engaged!
"Very well, thank you for your concern, Princess." Xiaohui secretly glanced at Yun Yichen. Every time she saw this prince, her legs would tremble. The young lady didn't seem to have a good relationship with him. Could two such people be happy together?
It was all over in one sentence. Yun Yichen snorted in dissatisfaction. None of the two maids around the little girl were smart, but she treated her like a treasure, treating her better than herself.
"Our young lady painted a picture of 'Family Reunion' a few days ago and used up all the paints given by the princess." I am not here just to give you a purse today, I have to bring back some paints for the young lady to fulfill my mission.
"You young lady still has the mood to paint." She went out for a trip before the New Year, and she still didn't forget to paint when she got home. When will the wedding dress be embroidered? Is she trying to postpone her wedding?
Xiaohui didn't dare to argue. Did the prince want to ask and interfere with what the young lady wanted to do? Judging from his expression, no matter how she answered, it might not please him. It was safest to keep her mouth shut.
Xiaohui went home with a pout in her mouth, holding the paints Yun Ruonan gave her. The princess had originally prepared a lot of paints for the young lady, but most of them were taken away by the prince, who also asked her to tell the young lady to do more of what she should do.
Seeing her maid's angry expression and then hearing what she relayed, Xiao Yao was filled with laughter. She had never met a man as stingy as Yun Yichen. Not only did he steal her things, he even warned her several times. How could he be so petty?
Anyway, the New Year has passed, and I have almost done everything I need to help my mother with. If she doesn't have to accompany me back to my second uncle's house, she will have time to embroider the wedding dress after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.
Because Zhang disliked her daughter, ever since Mr. Tong and his wife returned to their hometown in Suzhou, Tong Mingyu only brought her three sons with her every year when she went to visit her second brother Tong Guanghui for the New Year. Xiao Yao had not stepped into the Tong family's door for several years.
Tong Mingyu still had no plans to let her daughter go to her uncle's house this year, and Xiao Yi also stayed to accompany his seven-month pregnant wife. Only Xiao Jingkang and his wife, Xiao Yang and his wife, and Xiao Jun went to the Tong family to pay New Year's greetings.
"My sister is busy with her noble duties and hasn't been home for a long time." Zhang looked at her sister-in-law with a half-smile, but she couldn't help but sneer in her heart. So what if you are now the Marquis's wife? Didn't your son, who was the runner-up in the imperial examination, marry a female doctor? No matter how beautiful my daughter is, if she wants to marry her as a wife in Kyoto now, I'm afraid no one will be interested. It's best that I had the foresight to break off the marriage of my two children early on, otherwise my family would be the laughing stock of the whole Kyoto.
"Everyone in Kyoto knows that my second sister-in-law is very good at making friends and getting along with everyone! I am far inferior to you." Tong Mingyu couldn't laugh at her nephew and niece, but she really couldn't agree with some of her second sister-in-law Zhang's actions. As the saying goes, people with different ideals cannot work together, so if you are not on the same path, try to avoid contact as much as possible.
The relationship between Tong Guanghui and Xiao Jingkang was not affected at all. Men were rough-minded and unwilling to get entangled in trivial matters. Tong Jintang pulled his cousin Xiao Jun aside and quietly asked about his cousin Xiao Yao.
"You should study hard and become the top scholar in the future. Don't bring disgrace to your grandfather and uncle's reputation. That's the important thing." Xiao Jun patted his cousin's shoulder hard, making Tong Jintang grit his teeth.
My sister has already been married to that bastard Yun Yichen. There's no point keeping my cousin thinking about her. Besides, there's no way this guy and my sister would be together. He doesn't seem as reliable as Yun Yichen! If my sister marries a man like my cousin who's neither good at literature nor martial arts, the family will have to send someone to protect them every day. From this perspective, Yun Yichen is still a little bit better, just a little bit.
After Xiao Jingkang and his family left, Tong Guanghui scolded his wife, Zhang, saying, "How did you dislike my sister? It's fine that you dislike Ping An, but you actually made sarcastic remarks about Xiao Yang and his new wife. Whether she's a doctor or a lady from a wealthy family is none of your business. If you continue to stir up trouble and disrupt the peace of our family, go to Suzhou and serve the elders! Otherwise, you'll offend all the relatives at home."
It was that bitch, Concubine Xue again. Two years ago, Tong Guanghui brought in a young lady from a government official family who was now impoverished. This Concubine Xue was outstanding in appearance and talent, and was deeply loved by Tong Guanghui.
Aunt Xue is a scheming woman. After she occupied a place in Tong Guanghui's heart, she began to buy off the servants in the family. Now she and Zhang have formed a three-way balance of power. So Zhang suspected that what happened today was caused by her doing something behind the scenes, causing her to be scolded.
Watching her husband walk away in anger, Zhang sat there dejectedly. Why could her sister-in-law receive her husband's wholehearted love, while she had to fight with all the women in the yard?
It's not that I like to feel bad for my sister-in-law, it's jealousy that makes me do so many inexplicable things.
"Mother..." Tong Jintang looked at Zhang with pity. She was jealous of her aunt because she was unhappy and refused to let him get close to the Xiao family.
My cousin is such a good person, but I can't be with her, care about her, or even take care of her for the rest of her life.
If I had gone to Suzhou with my grandparents and cousin, would things have been different?
Unfortunately, there is no "if" in this world. Some opportunities may only come once in a lifetime, and once lost, they can never be found again.
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