The Eldest Daughter of a Rural Family
Chapter 1063 - 241: Who is Most Favored_4

Chapter 1063: Chapter 241: Who is Most Favored_4

Pei Wendong had also risen in status, and since Pei Qin had never been close to Xie Yi and had a fiercely opposing older sister, Pei Wendong had become even more polite and distant from her. Faced with the seemingly ordinary Pei Qin, she felt utterly lost. She was not just Mo Heng’s sickly wife!

Madam Zhao asked the nanny to take good care of Happy and went to help in the kitchen. Seeing Xie Yi somewhat at a loss and unsure what to do, she laughed and said, "Miss Xie! Why don’t you go out and play with Jiujiu and the others!"

"No!" Xie Yi quickly refused, realizing her own reaction was a bit too intense, and bit her lip, "No... the need! I’ll assist the lady."

Madam Zhao smiled. It seemed Wendong was no longer so enchanted by Xie Yi. Not to mention Pei Qin’s unrivaled status, just Mo Heng alone was a Second Rank General. Would Wendong really marry this petty-minded Xie Yi in the future? Madam Zhao had not found much fault with Xie Yi before, a somewhat pampered daughter of the Official’s family, pitiable and deserving of sympathy. But since arriving in Daxing, her pettiness had slowly begun to show.

Xie Yi no longer had the confidence she once had; the Zheng family had blocked her betrothal to Wendong twice. Pei Qin had talked about arranging her marriage with Pei Wendong, but then there were Lady Yu’s issues and the Rebel Army’s disturbance, and it had been delayed until now. Pei Wendong had been busy since returning and did not discuss anything with her, nor had he mentioned the betrothal again, leaving her feeling very unsettled.

Steamed dumplings with tender wild vegetable filling, chive and egg buns with glutinous flour, fried sweet potato balls, and boiled dumplings in small baskets, along with a variety of side dishes were prepared.

"No more candied sweet potatoes after dinner, I’ll make something else for you to eat!" Pei Qin coaxed the Little Radishes to eat their meal first.

"Mom! What are we going to eat?" Jiujiu and Xixi asked curiously on either side of her.

"First eat your meal! After that, I’ll make it!" Pei Qin was the best at creating a fuss, and it had been a long time since she had stirred things up with the Little Radishes.

"I want some too! I want some too! Auntie! I want some too!" Happy watched Pei Qin serving food and cooed for affection.

Pei Qin laughed as she served everyone, "None of you mind my saliva on the chopsticks!"

Madam Zhao and Pei Yuan both laughed.

Xie Yi was about to take some food but retracted her chopsticks upon hearing this.

Happy was so delighted, it was hard to know what was north! Shen Songming, hearing the laughter, scowled, his heart filled with a resentful snort.

The dining atmosphere in the other room was not as harmonious.

They were all adults, with no Little Radishes. Shen Songming and Mo Heng still disliked each other.

But the atmosphere was a bit better than before. Now, Shen Songming saw Mo Heng as less of a threat, and he raised a glass of plum wine in toast to Ji Bingchu.

Ji Bingchu chuckled, having somewhat rescued Song Ming from his predicament—Mo Heng had started tolerating him much more! But Song Ming seemed even more displeased with him. Was he helping Song Ming to continue causing troubles for Mo Heng, or was he just stirring things up, or perhaps creating trouble?

Pei Wendong, Chang Yonglin, and Xiao Yong, these tight-knit friends, focused solely on eating; everything was delicious, and they had not eaten this well in a long time.

Fang Liuyang felt that, while the chef-made meals were more exquisite and tasty, this kind of local cuisine made him think of his mother, which made him unable to stop eating.

Xie Ze felt uncomfortable seeing that no one paid attention to him. Pei Qin turned out to be the legendary deity general Pei Hansan disguised as a man, a woman earning her fame in battle, mingling daily with men and at the Imperial Court, overshadowing even Mo Heng. Those people didn’t know she was a woman and admired her incredibly. Pei Wendong, too, had risen in stature and was not as good to them, his siblings, anymore. That Dan Mingzhu, apart from being wealthy, came from a commercial family. How could she compare to his sister!?

Zhao Xiaochen, sitting next to him, seeing his distressed expression, asked, "Is something bothering you?"

"No... no!" Xie Ze hastened to say. Seeing everyone at the table glance over, his ears could not help but feel somewhat hot.

Xiao Chen knew he was uncomfortable and patted his shoulder, "I previously dined with the generals, and they were discussing matters. I just honestly sat by and listened and remembered. I learned quite a bit!"

Xie Ze bowed his head and responded, then picked up some food into his bowl to eat.

Chang Yonglin looked at him and smiled, "Young Master Xie will also turn a nominal fourteen next year, won’t you? Why not try for the spring examination?"

They had been studying books with Mo Heng, as well as additional knowledge taught by Pei Qin, so their knowledge and insights were extraordinary, allowing them to participate in the examinations from the age of twelve or thirteen.

Hearing Chang Yonglin mention the examinations, Xie Ze felt that Chang Yonglin was taunting him and couldn’t help feeling annoyed inside, "I do not have a good teacher to instruct me academically. I won’t be able to participate next year."

Xiao Yong caught the hint of resentment in his words, glanced coldly, and said nothing more, changing the subject, "I do not plan to participate in the examinations anymore, possessing the title of Scholar is already sufficient. You two should make haste, the autumn examinations are just around the corner. It will be even more challenging when conducted in Capital Jingcheng." He was now following Sister Qin... Perfect.

"I’m not afraid! As long as I pass the autumn examinations, I have no plan to take the eight-legged essay test!" Chang Yonglin curled his lips into a smile.

"You’re planning to attend the military examinations?" Xiao Chen asked curiously.

Chang Yonglin rolled his eyes at him, "I intend to take the mathematics exam, and afterward directly enter the Ministry of Revenue to become an imperial strategy advisor! I’m not material for scholarly pursuits, and academically, I can only strive to this extent. Sister Qin has already found the right direction for me!"

Xiao Chen nodded; Yuanyuan’s mathematics skills were also learned from their eldest sister, and her calculation speed was exceptionally fast. He laughed, "Good! I’ll wait for you to make a great fuss at the Ministry of Revenue!"

Pei Wendong wished to rely on his own capabilities for the imperial examinations, but he also knew that with his elder sister ranked above him, although she had recently been appointed as Tiance General, she actually had no real military power or authority and did not actively interfere with the imperial politics. His participation in the examinations would certainly be beneficial. However, he had to study even harder so that no one could criticize his elder sister and her husband or accuse him of lacking genuine talent.

Everyone had their own plans. Pei Wendong asked Fang Liuyang, "So you’ve stopped studying and are now following elder sister’s husband to join the army?"

"Yes! I’ve really enjoyed my time at the military camp these past days!" Fang Liuyang responded. He liked the feeling of galloping on horseback and fighting on battlefields.

"As long as it’s something you enjoy, any way of life is good!" Ji Bingchu spoke, then added, "The Imperial Court is precisely in need of people. I expect Fang Liuming must be distraught."

Pei Qian was nearly due for delivery, and even if he were distraught, he likely would not attend.

"We’ll ask them after Pei Qian’s sister has her full month celebration," Xiao Yong said.

While they continued to eat and chat, Zhang Gengshan came in to report, "People from the Zheng family have arrived! They heard that the lady and Miss have returned and have come especially to pay a visit. General, do you wish to see them?"

Xie Ze’s eyes brightened, "Definitely my maternal uncles are here!"

Mo Heng glanced at him, "Take them to the small floral hall in the side court."

Xie Ze’s expression stiffened. Why not allow his maternal uncles into the main court but take them to the side court?

Xie Yi’s expression also changed. The maternal family did not know that Pei Qin was actually Pei Hansan. Seeing the current General Mansion and Second Rank General Mo Heng, they might start to take action.

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