Chapter 814: The Peasant Girl’s Splendid Manor
Chapter 814: Father and Son's Rift and Anger (3)
The horse, not understanding Mo Yan's words but sensing the kindness she radiated, let out a cheerful snort toward her.
Mo Yan was left with a black line across her forehead. She took out a handkerchief to silently wipe the saliva from her face, mentally crossing out most of the promises of food she had made earlier.
Xiao Ruiyuan patted his playful horse and turned to Mo Yan, saying, "Rest well when you get home. I’ll handle that matter. Don't worry."
"I will, and so should you!" Mo Yan smiled slightly, obediently agreeing. She had felt uneasy about Emperor Hui'an's intention to arrange a marriage for Xiao Ruiyuan during the New Year banquet, fearing something might go wrong. But after their conversation in the carriage, her worries had eased.
Before Xiao Ruiyuan could respond, Xiao Shiyi behind him couldn’t wait to speak: "If the marriage between the master and the princess is settled soon, there wouldn’t be so many troubles. Those who came to test the waters before the New Year nearly wore out the doors of the Marquis' house. The steward has even complained to me several times, saying he would rather go to the estate to do the hardest labor than deal with those people."
"Shut up!" Xiao Ruiyuan snapped, his expression stern. "When we get back, you’ll take ten lashes. Remember this lesson well!"
"Yes, master," Xiao Shiyi immediately accepted the punishment without a word. Then, he shifted his tone, speaking in a somewhat aggrieved manner: "Master, I’m willing to accept the punishment, but what I said was true. Aren’t you also tired of dealing with those people? If the marriage were settled, wouldn’t they stop interfering?"
"Another ten lashes, go stand under that big tree and wait for them. Don’t come near!" Xiao Ruiyuan, with a dark expression, gave a direct order to get rid of Xiao Shiyi. He then turned to Mo Yan, who seemed lost in thought, and said, "Don't take his words to heart, Yan’er. Those troubles are not our fault."
Mo Yan sighed and gave a wry smile, replying, "What Xiao Shiyi said isn’t wrong. If our marriage were settled sooner, these troubles wouldn’t have arisen."
Xiao Ruiyuan’s eyes flashed, and he comforted her, saying, "I can handle these things. You’ll be fifteen soon, and three years will pass quickly."
Mo Yan fell silent, not responding. Three years seemed short, but no one could predict if there would be any changes in the meantime.
Xue Tuanzi had once told her that they shared a karmic bond, and Mo Yan had sensed a trace of regret in the tone when Xue Tuanzi spoke of their past lives. She didn’t know about the other lifetimes, but in the first one, they had met, though one died and the other was left to wander, unable to truly know or fall in love with each other.
In this life, they had found each other and fallen in love, but who could say that no further changes awaited them? Today, Emperor Hui'an’s words and actions had already rung an alarm bell for them, and Mo Yan knew she had to be cautious...
The sound of the carriage wheels gradually faded away, and only then did Xiao Ruiyuan mount his horse, ready to leave.
"Master, you can’t leave me! I know I was wrong!" Xiao Shiyi, standing under the tree, cried out with a mournful face, knowing he couldn’t move without Xiao Ruiyuan’s orders.
"Today, you finally showed some intelligence. You don’t need to receive the twenty military lashes," Xiao Ruiyuan said, his voice carrying a rare hint of joy, even though he didn’t look back.
Xiao Shiyi initially didn’t grasp the meaning, but once he understood, he jumped three feet into the air in joy. He hurriedly mounted his horse and chased after Xiao Ruiyuan.
After such a rare success, how could he not go back and show off, especially with the twenty lashes spared?
...
When Mo Yan returned home, the only one waiting for her in the small study was Mo Qingze, who was reading while waiting. Everyone else had been sent back to their rooms to rest.
Seeing the fatigue on his daughter’s face, Mo Qingze asked a few simple questions before urging her and Li Zhong to go rest, reminding them to sleep in tomorrow and that it was fine to visit the village for New Year’s greetings a bit later.
[End of Chapter]
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