"Yinger, give up!"
Xie Ying wielded the carrying pole with even greater force, and the father and daughter directly caused the pole to become one long and one short. Xie Ying seemed to have endless venting, and kept punching Xie Guang. Xie Guang took several punches from his daughter, and then pressed his daughter to the ground with one palm, suppressing her for a while before calming down.
In the end, it was Madam Wang who came out, grabbed the father and daughter by the ears, and scolded them in the courtyard.
The only two carrying poles left in the house were ruined by the father and daughter.
Yelü Qiqi was inside the house, holding a storybook. She then turned to look at the simple mud-brick walls, the chipped earthenware bowl, and the chopsticks of varying lengths. One of the chopsticks was broken.
She suddenly remembered that Xie Ying had won the chicken leg from her uncle and then left it for her. This was the chopstick she had broken.
Even though the people here were so uncivilized, so poor, and the food was so bad that she could only drink water to stave off hunger at night, she was content and felt very happy. It was like having real family.
She looked at Xie Ying, who was standing in the courtyard, head down, enduring the scolding. Suddenly, her vision blurred. She raised her hand to wipe it away, and tears had inexplicably soaked her face.
"Xie... Ying," she called out silently.
As if sensing something, Xie Ying, who was bowing her head in the courtyard, suddenly looked up. Their eyes met, and although they were so close, they suddenly realized that they were already worlds apart.
The last bright green sedan chair for four people stopped at the door. Wu Qiu knocked on the door himself, then pushed it open and saw the former general being scolded. The grown man looked as aggrieved as an eagle.
Wu Qiu immediately said awkwardly, "Well, Madam, I've come to escort the princess back to the palace."
As soon as he said this, he felt a sharp gaze pierce him, but when he looked up, the other person turned away.
Wu Qiu was completely bewildered. He saw that Xie Guang and Madam Wang were both looking at him silently, seemingly not very welcoming.
He thought that he was disliked by the two of them because he hadn't pleaded for them.
Wu Qiu weakly repeated, "The Marshal has ordered that the princess return to the palace... to choose..."
Finally, under the cold stares of Xie Guang, Xie Ying, and Madam Wang, he said somewhat hesitantly, "Choose a portrait of your fiancé."
A note from the author:
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2022-01-28 20:28:56 and 2022-01-29 20:44:19!
Thank you to the little angel who threw the landmine: Gentle and easygoing (1);
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: ALEXIA十四 (30 bottles); 儒雅随和 (10 bottles); 凉欢, 露从今夜白, 鸿言 (5 bottles each); 刘颖慧 (1 bottle for my wife);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 177 Where Will Xie Ying and Qi Qi's Love Go?
Yelü Qiqi was brought back to the palace.
Fearing that his daughter might do something rash, Xie Guang took a few days off to accompany her while she swept the streets. Madam Wang, worried that the father and daughter might clash again, also went along.
The street vendors and passersby all recognized the family of three and were surprised to see them sweeping the floor.
After returning to the palace, Qiqi opened her brother's letter and learned that he had sacrificed a great deal for her, even offending their father. She felt so guilty that she locked herself in her room and hadn't eaten for a day.
When Xie Shangguang heard that Qiqi was going to choose a fiancé in Tianjing, he secretly escaped from Bingzhou. Xie Lanzhi discovered him, arrested him, and scolded him.
Xie Shangguang was physically in Lanzhang Palace, but his heart was in the Zidian Palace.
"Go back immediately, do you hear me?" Xie Lanzhi was very troubled. She now had to keep an eye on Weidu and also act as a matchmaker for her ally in choosing a fiancé.
Xie Shangguang muttered under his breath, "The little princess doesn't even look at the young masters of Tianjing. Even the marshal doesn't understand what she wants."
"You talk like you know everything." Xie Lanzhi slapped the silly boy on the head, wondering how such a powerful woman as the matriarch could give birth to such a love-struck child.
Xie Shangguang has become bolder lately.
He insisted, "Is it because the Marshal simply doesn't understand what young women want?!"
Xie Lanzhi raised an eyebrow and said, "So you know a lot about this. Tell me about it."
When asked, he refused to answer. His expression was somewhat forlorn. He tilted his head and said, "Marshal, not all girls are as resourceful as you. Many of them are forced into such circumstances by the world."
"They are not as strong as men, and they are not qualified for the imperial examinations, let alone be allowed to serve as officials in the court."
"The Marshal has absolutely no idea how women at the bottom of society live, especially Qi Qi. Even though she's a princess with a noble status, in the end, she still had to be sent by her own father to marry into a powerful family and curry favor with other men!"
As he spoke, he looked directly at her, a hint of sadness in his eyes. "Grandma was determined to make me successful and accomplished, never asking me what I wanted, and even wanting me to marry a girl I didn't know or like."
"I thought, if I don't like it, would the girl I marry be willing? Elders always like to impose their own ideas on the younger generation and never ask what the younger generation wants."
Xie Lanzhi finally understood why he had run back from Bingzhou. It wasn't just for his first love, but more so because he wanted to break free from the shackles of feudal society.
Perhaps for children of this age, marriage is the biggest challenge in their lives.
They wanted to rebel against their parents' tyranny and choose to spend their lives with the person they loved.
Xie Shangguang continued with a stubborn look in his eyes, "I know the little princess doesn't like me. My eyes aren't blind these days. I know she's been going to Gou Ying's place."
"I don't know much about her feelings for Gouying, but I do know Gouying."
He stopped mid-sentence.
Xie Lanzhi sighed and said, "So you came back wanting to meddle in something you can't possibly manage."
"And what does this have to do with you?"
Upon hearing this, Xie Shangguang reacted strongly. He clenched his fists and held them across his chest, shouting, "It's very important to me!"
"Because I was thinking, if, if there's even the slightest possibility, if Gouying succeeds, could I also succeed?!"
“She and I are of the same generation. If she can work so hard to achieve the life she wants, why can’t I?”
Xie Lanzhi fell silent. She looked at the boy's earnestness and his eagerness to find a role model. Children of this age are indeed facing a crossroads in their lives; they all need someone to guide them. And Shang Guang now sees Xie Ying as his role model.
Xie Lanzhi asked, "Tell me, why Xie Ying?"
Xie Shangguang said, "Among all members of the Xie family, only she can be considered my rival."
In fact, when Xie Shangguang learned that Yelü Qiqi had fallen in love with Xie Ying, he regarded Xie Ying as his rival. However, after what happened to Xie Ying, he lost his future.
He had been feeling down for a while, secretly harboring feelings for the little princess and thinking about her. Occasionally, he would think of Gouying, wondering if she would find life as a commoner difficult.
Later, he secretly went to see her and tried to give Aunt Wang some money, but she refused. Later, Gouying brought sweet potatoes home, and his second uncle brought rice home. He heard that they didn't even have meat or vegetables and were only eating sweet potato rice to fill their stomachs. At the time, he only felt heartbroken, but afterwards, the laughter of a family of three came from the dilapidated thatched house.
Especially Gou Ying, who went through a period of hardship, but her personality actually became kinder. She used to be so arrogant, making people grit their teeth. I never thought that such a person would become so approachable one day.
Then, on the night he was sent to Bingzhou, he originally wanted to go in, but saw the little princess helping to carry a winnowing basket home; the thatched hut now had someone to take care of. The little princess sold all her jewelry to fund a nearby school. Then she herself ate chaff and wild vegetables with Gou Ying, all while smiling.
At that moment, he knew he had lost.
"Marshal, I didn't say all that to plead for Gou Ying." Xie Shangguang thought of his cousin who died in Xiguo, leaving behind an orphan and a widow. If it weren't for his grandmother's help in taking care of them, the orphan and widow would have been devoured by the clan.
He hated his second uncle, but as a soldier, obedience was his duty. His cousin was a soldier, and from the moment he joined Xie's army, he was prepared to die on the battlefield.
He couldn't let his cousin's conscience be tarnished!
"Please give the boy and the little princess some time."
Xie Shangguang knelt down and kowtowed to her. Xie Lanzhi helped Xie Shangguang up. She couldn't bear to tell them that things were far more complicated than they thought.
The entanglements behind Yelü Qiqi were far more complex than she imagined; it was both a marriage alliance and a political maneuver. If these children were to become involved without any protection, their naivety would make them easy prey, and they would inevitably pay a heavy price.
Xie Lanzhi pulled him up and told him, "What you need to do now is to try your best to pursue Qiqi."
"How will you know if you and she are meant to be if you don't try?"
"Marshal!" Xie Shangguang immediately said with displeasure, "How could you say that? Didn't I just tell you that Gou Ying likes her?"
He has a strong sense of responsibility, believing that a man should not covet his friend's wife.
Xie Lanzhi suddenly had a headache; children this age really don't listen to reason.
She said, "This is an order!"
Xie Shangguang pursed his lips and remained silent.
"Don't feel resentful. Just do as I say. That's the best way to protect them," Xie Lanzhi said.
As a result, Xie Shangguang simply picked his ear with his finger and muttered to his face, "Sure enough, adults are all so domineering."
"I thought the marshal was a wise and powerful man, someone who would at least be reasonable. I didn't expect him to be just like my grandma."
"I'm sorry, but I will not do that. Marshal, give up on that idea."
As soon as she finished speaking, Xie Lanzhi's face darkened. Just as she clenched her fist, Si Xitong returned to Lanzhang Palace from the Golden Palace.
"Lanzhi!" Si Xitong rushed over, looking at the rebellious boy with his face full of anger, and Xie Lanzhi who was on the verge of getting angry.
She guessed what had happened.
Her arrival eased the tension: "Whenever something happens, you have to face it calmly in order to come up with a solution."
"Come in, all of you. I'll make you a cup of tea."
Xie Shangguang nodded: "Thank you, Mistress!"
Hearing the familiar address, Si Xitong smiled and gestured for Shang Guang to come over. Xie Shang Guang didn't want to be the marshal's little shadow right now, so he immediately hopped around and became Si Xitong's little follower.
"Mistress, mistress, I want more roasted sweet potatoes! Orange tea with roasted sweet potatoes is delicious."
"Okay, I'll have Xiaoxiu bake one for you."
Two figures entered Lanzhang Palace one after the other.
Xie Lanzhi put away her fist and said helplessly, "Silly boy, trying to talk about morality now will only get you nothing. At most, you'll get a thank you."
"Or I'll give you a 'friend zone' card."
Moreover, this matter is not simple, and whether it can be resolved satisfactorily is uncertain. That's why she wanted to find Qiqi a good match while avoiding tragedy. At least she couldn't let Li Li's good intentions go to waste.
Thinking about Shang Guang's words, she felt they weren't without reason. He had grown up enough to consider things from his own perspective, while Qi Qi was perhaps already considering things from her brother's point of view.
The girl who was once so willful and cheerful is now so depressed, which clearly shows that she understands the responsibilities she will have to bear in the future.
Xie Lanzhi walked into Lanzhang Palace and saw the silly boy happily eating roasted sweet potatoes and orange tea.
Si Xitong brought her a cup of tea: "Lanzhi, go to Qiqi's place later. I'll try to persuade Shangguang here."
“He won’t listen to anything right now,” Xie Lanzhi said. “It would be better to let Qiqi talk to him directly.”
Upon hearing this, Si Xitong Mingming was taken aback. She asked, "Are you sure?"
That would be too much of a blow to them.
Xie Lanzhi downed the orange tea in one gulp, then glanced at Xie Shangguang and said in a low voice, "If we don't teach him a lesson, he'll never know what pain is."