Madam Ning pulled Ning Wenyi away, leaving the two sisters and Ning Yiyi behind.
Ning Qiong smiled speechlessly, "Father still loves to hide money from Mother."
Ning Yao asked, puzzled, "Father isn't short of money, and I've given him quite a bit. Why doesn't Mother seem to care about that?"
Ning Yiyi reached out for a hug from Ning Yao, who, no longer as awkward as before, naturally took his arm.
"Auntie, Xiangxiang." Ning Yiyi gave Ning Yao a big kiss on the cheek.
Ning Yao couldn't help but give him a kiss on the cheek: "Our Yi Yi is the real Xiang Xiang."
Ning Qiong watched the two kissing and shook her head with a smile.
“Mother doesn’t care about that money. The Duke of Zhenguo’s mansion has never been short of money. Father isn’t really hiding money from Mother. How could the head of the family not even have the freedom to spend money?”
Ning Yao suddenly realized and exclaimed in surprise, "So it's just a little romantic gesture!"
"Huh? What?"
"It's a way of getting along between husband and wife. The father deliberately hides money from his wife to make her angry, and the mother is happy to play this boring little game with him."
Ning Qiong couldn't help but glance at her sideways: "You noticed?"
Ning Yao shrugged: "I didn't understand at first, but I understood as soon as you explained it to me, big sister."
"It's like this, I'm the eldest daughter, I'm twenty-six this year, and they've been married for almost thirty years. My parents have always had a very good relationship, and there are only three of us siblings in the family."
"Many people outside say that Mother is a tigress and Father is afraid of Mother, but they don't know how much they envy the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion and the Duke of Zhenguo's wife behind their backs."
"The Duke of Zhenguo holds a high position and great power. He is handsome and learned. He fell in love with my mother at first sight and married her as his principal wife. His household is clean and tidy. My mother is the only mistress of the house. She is envied by others, and the three of us are also the object of their envy."
“Yaoyao, even with such good role models as your parents, your eldest sister still made a mistake and can’t start over; now your second brother has also married the legitimate daughter of the Prince Duan’s mansion, and he will not have any concubines in the future, which can be considered a happy ending; only you, Shen Ce’s imperial decree ruined your life, and your eldest sister will never forgive him!”
"It's good to stay in Licheng, away from that troublesome place. No one will know our identities then, and your parents won't allow anyone to harm you. If all else fails, our family is big and wealthy, so we can find you a son-in-law to live with us, so you won't be bullied in someone else's home."
Ning Yao stared at Ning Qiong in disbelief: "Big...Big sister, you're finding me a husband to come live with us? Are you serious?"
Ning Qiong was a typical feudal woman, and the virtues and precepts for women were already deeply rooted in her heart.
Even if the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion was very enlightened, she still learned the principles of the Three Obediences and Four Virtues.
The practice of women seeking husbands to come to their homes is something that only applies to princesses and women who are truly unable to find a husband.
If a family were to recruit a son-in-law, they would certainly be the subject of gossip and criticism.
"Actually, sister, life doesn't necessarily have to be complete just by getting married and having children."
Ning Qiong became anxious: "How can we not get married and have children? Don't you think Yi Yi is adorable?"
Ning Yao kissed Ning Yiyi's chubby little face: "Yiyi is cute, but that doesn't conflict with my thoughts at all."
"I'm not saying I'm against it. If it's meant to be, that's great. If not, it's okay to let nature take its course. The important thing is to live a happy life."
Ning Qiong was truly puzzled. In her view, people in the world have a thousand faces, like her parents, and like her and Shen Ce. Her third sister's idea was to reject all possibilities.
She wanted to say something more, but looking at her sister, she couldn't bring herself to speak.
"Big sister, let's not talk about this anymore. I'll ask Zhilan to make some snacks for Yiyi later. It would be good if we could raise our Yiyi to be plump and healthy."
Ning Yiyi giggled.
—
Inside Shian Garden.
The couple, who were putting on a show for their daughter, returned to normal as soon as they entered the courtyard.
The two entered the room, and Ning Wenyi locked the door.
"Is there really no problem with the storage space?" Madam Ning asked suspiciously.
Ning Wenyi replied, "No, really."
"Sigh, Yao Yao is very capable. I know you two have secrets. Since you won't tell me, I won't ask. But you should always be careful. This is only because there are few people in the family right now. As the family grows, we'll have to be more cautious!"
"If anything happens to you and your daughters, wouldn't that be the death of me?"
Ning Wenyi's heart softened, and he stepped forward to put his arm around her shoulder, saying softly, "My wife is right. I will keep that in mind and be careful in the future."
"I can't tell you about Yao Yao right now. She can make her own decisions. When she feels the time is right, she certainly won't hide it from you, her mother."
Madam Ning nodded: "I'm not in a hurry. As long as you are all well, I'm fine with anything."
After thinking it over, Ning Wenyi decided to reveal some things to her first.
Ning Wenyi helped Madam Ning sit down and then sat down opposite her.
"Does Madam know of the rumored Ning family?"
Madam Ning frowned: "I've only heard a few words about it, what's wrong?"
"My wife and I have been married for nearly thirty years. Have you noticed anything different?"
Madam Ning wasn't stupid; she knew something was wrong from what he said.
When I thought that he also had the surname Ning, I found it unbelievable. But then I realized that he wasn't the only one in the world with the surname Ning.
There was another official in the capital, also surnamed Ning, who was of the third rank, but had absolutely no relation to their family.
"Don't tell me you are it?"
Ning Wenyi nodded: "Madam is indeed intelligent!"
Madam Ning knew her husband's temperament well; he wouldn't let such a thing go unpunished without a reason.
"I've never heard you mention it before."
"I have my reasons, otherwise why would I have gone to the trouble of hiding it for so long?"
Madam Ning straightened her sleeves and asked seriously, "What's your predicament? Tell me about it."
Ning Wenyi said what he could say, and it took the couple a long time to sort things out.
"So, Yao Yao is the person you're looking for? I don't understand. Isn't she our own daughter? Why did you only find out in the last two years? And we also have Qiong'er and Jin'er, why aren't they?"
Ning Wenyi shook his head: "I don't know either. Logically speaking, anyone with the Ning family bloodline could be a suspect, but I ruled out Qiong'er and Jin'er. I thought Yao Yao wasn't a suspect either, but I accidentally confirmed it later. I still can't figure this out."
Madam Ning's understanding of the Ning family was limited to rumors, and she didn't know what to say.
Even Ning Wenyi only had a vague understanding.
"The Ning family is more mysterious than we imagined. Even though I am a member of the Ning family, Yao Yao is probably the only one who can solve all the mysteries. We came to Licheng not only to seek refuge, but also to find the Ning family's whereabouts."
“Once the Ning family reappears, I’m afraid Licheng will not be peaceful.”
Madam Ning ignored everything else; she only understood one thing: "You can't find your way back to your hometown?"
Ning Wenyi's expression froze, and the atmosphere became somewhat awkward: "Strictly speaking... it's like this..."
"No wonder you've never taken my family to meet your parents all these years."
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