Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 599 - 597

Chapter 599: 597

"That girl can be assigned to do the laundry or cleaning, I have no idea who she is, she absolutely can’t be allowed into the kitchen." Shen Chengyao said uneasily. The kitchen involved the food for the entire family, and he wouldn’t feel at ease if she was there.

"Let her clean in my courtyard!" Xiao’er suggested. She felt it was unsafe to have this ticking time bomb anywhere, it would be best under her own gaze.

The crafty Aunt Rong and Yang Mei spent most of the day in her courtyard! What could escape from the eagle-eyed Aunt Rong?

"That’s a good plan! That way, Dad and my two brothers won’t be bewitched by the vixen!" Xi’er said dramatically.

Xiao’er looked down and grinned to herself. With Xi’er’s constant mention of the vixen, she imagined the three men in their house would run away immediately upon coming across Rou’er, after all, who would want to be enchanted by a vixen?

Jingrui: ...

Jinghao: ...

Shen Chengyao: ...

Was Xi’er too idle? She spent all her time reading storybooks at home, they needed to find her something to do! The three thought to themselves.

Shen Chengyao decided to visit the bookstore after work tomorrow. He would see if there were any suitable books for Xi’er to read. Otherwise, if she continued reading those storybooks, Shen Chengyao was worried she’d spout off some nonsense that would give him heart trouble.

Shen Chengyao and his siblings made mooncakes together while discussing how to deal with Rou’er. When they had finished making the mooncakes, he returned to his own quarters to see his infant son he had missed all day.

Newborns grow up so fast, every day seems different. Shen Chengyao felt his little son was a little taller every day when he came back from work.

Once the mooncakes were done, Xiao’er told the maid to take them to the kitchen and bake them in an earthen oven. When the mooncakes were done, the maids came over with it. Immediately, the room was filled with a sweet fragrance.

"Sis, can I eat it now?" Xi’er asked impatiently, looking at the colorful pastries.

"The mooncakes are best eaten the night after they’re made, once the oil has had a chance to settle. But it’s not forbidden to eat them now either."

Upon hearing this, Xi’er immediately reached out for the mooncakes. Wait an entire night? She would have insomnia.

However, the freshly baked mooncakes were hot, and Xi’er retracted her hand as soon as she touched them.

"You should get a small knife and cut it into pieces, then use a bamboo stick to eat it," Xiao’er instructed Xi’er.

Xi’er’s maid quickly went to get the bamboo stick and the knife.

Jingrui and the others also couldn’t resist and decided to eat some while it was still warm. After spending half the day working on it, who wouldn’t want to eat their handiwork?

Xiao’er had her maids pack some for Shen Chengyao and Mrs. Liu, emphasizing that Mrs. Liu should not overeat.

Also, there were instructions to send a plate to Aunt Rong.

Then, she sat down at a table nearby and started to decorate a food basket with ribbons.

The packaging had to be pleasing to the eye when gifting mooncakes to others, right?

Xiao’er finished decorating the food box and placed one of each flavor and different faced mooncakes inside. Then she told Yang Mei, "Once the mooncakes are completely cooled, close the food box. Early tomorrow morning, send them to the prince’s residences, Marquis Zhongyong mansion, Lai mansion, and Fourth Uncle’s house."

Yang Mei nodded in agreement.

At dinner time, Xiao’er’s family received the Washing, Full Moon and Mid-Autumn Festival gifts sent from Mrs. Liu’s maiden family in Shengping County.

Mrs. Liu’s news of giving birth definitely couldn’t have reached them this soon, so they must have estimated the dates and sent the three gifts together.

Also included with the gifts was a letter with various greetings and small talk from family affairs.

One aspect mentioned in the letter made Xiao’er somewhat puzzled: Xiao’er’s aunt, Mrs. Tan, said that there was a military drafting in her sister-in-law’s maternal family’s town. Her sister-in-law’s nephew had joined the army, purportedly under General Di’s command. Knowing that Xiao’er’s family had a close relationship with Marquis Zhongyong’s Mansion, Mrs. Tan requested in the letter that Xiao’er ask General Di to look out for her nephew. She wasn’t necessarily asking for him to receive a ranking position, but rather hoped that he wouldn’t lose his life on the battlefield, ideally serving in a cooking class or something similar in the army.

Xiao’er laughed when she read this. It was just a wish for the son to return safely, with no expectations for him to achieve any meritorious service. However, Xiao’er understood this sentiment, as every parent naturally wished their child no harm.

But, drafting soldiers? Xiao’er had not heard any news about a draft. Information about a draft wasn’t a state secret; when and where the Imperial Court was drafting soldiers was always public knowledge.

Her aunt’s sister-in-law was married from a mountainous region in the neighboring Lianyun County, which was rather remote. As for what the village was called, she had no idea.

The Imperial Court was indeed conducting a draft recently, Xiao’er had seen the notice board, but there seemed to be no mention of Lianyun County.

If the drafting in that region was not performed by the Imperial Court but was conducted by someone under the guise of Imperial authority to draft private soldiers, then... the situation could become severe.

Jingrui also frowned upon reading the content of the letter, "Xiao’er, the Imperial Court doesn’t seem to be drafting soldiers in Lianyun County, right?"

Xiao’er nodded, "It indeed was not posted on the notice board. As for whether the local area may broaden the draft due to a shortage of soldiers, I don’t know."

"The Imperial Court had already drafted soldiers from Lianyun County a few years ago. This time, they naturally needed to avoid Lianyun County and draft from other counties instead. Even if they were to widen the range of the draft, it shouldn’t extend to Lianyun County," Jinghao explained what he knew.

As a show of fairness, regions that had been subjected to past drafts were typically excluded from the next draft. This unusual occurrence was cause for concern.

The three siblings exchanged glances. Xiao’er thought for a moment and then said, "We need to verify this. We can’t act rashly."

Xiao’er called in Yang Liu and asked her to tell Zhao Yong to check if the Sixth Prince had any free time today, if so, he could come over.

Yang Liu obeyed and turned to leave.

Xiao’er caught a glimpse from the corner of her eye as part of a robe quickly disappeared.

She couldn’t help but smirk. He couldn’t contain himself any longer? Men were indeed predictable.

Tomorrow would be the Mid-Autumn Festival. Shangguan Xuanyi had to stay in the Imperial Palace and celebrate it with the Emperor and Empress. Furthermore, given that the Emperor was bedridden, he couldn’t be left alone. Even if Xiao’er hadn’t sent for him, Shangguan Xuanyi would have found time to come over tonight.

The moonlight of August 14th was already full and bright. The silvery white moonlight illuminated the courtyard path more brightly than usual.

As Shangguan Xuanyi entered Xiao’er’s courtyard, he saw that she had already set out a round table filled with a variety of pastries, cakes... candied fruits, and other food items.

When Xiao’er saw Shangguan Xuanyi approaching, she poured him some wine while calling him over, "Brother Shangguan, come on over! Try my newly brewed wine."

Shangguan Xuanyi moved to Xiao’er’s side and sat down, hitching up his robes. He picked up a cup of red wine, held in a clear, shimmering colored glaze goblet, brought it to his nose and sniffed, "Smells better than in previous years."

He took a sip after his remark, "Not bad."

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