vrcanaries Chapter 26: A Fruitful Journey (1)
Chapter 26: A Fruitful Journey (1)
In the early morning, sunlight streamed through the window into the room. Qin Yaoyao got up and went to her dressing table, carefully combing her silky smooth hair. After everything was ready, she summoned her personal maids Yingchun and Banxia, and together they went to her mother's courtyard for breakfast.
As soon as Qin Yaoyao stepped into the courtyard, bursts of hearty laughter echoed from inside the house. She quickened her pace, pushed aside the curtain, and entered. She saw everyone sitting together, chatting and laughing, while her mother watched her with a smile. Upon seeing Qin Yaoyao, her mother turned to her maid, Liuli, and instructed, "Quickly, invite the master and the young masters to come and dine." Liuli respectfully nodded in agreement and then turned to leave.
Second Brother's wife, Zhang Zifeng, was the only beloved daughter of General Zhang Yi. Although born into a military family, she had no interest in martial arts, preferring instead refined pursuits like playing the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Seeing Qin Yaoyao enter the room, Zhang Zifeng quickly greeted her, "Little sister, come sit here." Qin Yaoyao responded and sat down beside Zhang Zifeng, asking curiously, "Second Sister-in-law, what was that all about that made you chat so happily?"
Zhang Zifeng smiled and replied, "It's just some gossip I heard today." Qin Yaoyao secretly wondered if it was about He Mingwen and Liu Xiaoyu's marriage. So she waved her hand dismissively and said, "If it's about Liu Xiaoyu, then it's very boring. I already knew about it." Her second sister-in-law said with a look of disdain, "Of course it's not their business. It's bad luck to mention them!" When Qin Yaoyao heard that it wasn't about them, she immediately became interested and asked eagerly, "Then who is it? Is it someone I know?"
Third Sister-in-law chimed in, "It's hard to say whether you know him or not." Qin Yaoyao hummed in agreement with a suspicious look, then pressed on, "So what exactly is it about?"
Third Sister-in-law replied, "Yesterday, a lot of people were talking about you behind your back, and today those families are starting to sell their shops to raise money." Qin Yaoyao was completely confused and asked, puzzled, "Why is that?"
Second Sister-in-law explained, "I heard it's to be used as an apology to others, but all they said was a few bad things about you at the banquet yesterday, so this apology is definitely aimed at you." Qin Yaoyao immediately added, "But even if it's an apology to me, they only said a few things casually, why do they need to pay so much? People might even think we forced them to do this!"
Before her second sister-in-law could respond, a clear and melodious voice, like a nightingale singing, suddenly came from outside: "Little sister, don't worry..." Qin Yaoyao looked in the direction of the voice and immediately recognized the speaker—it was none other than her third brother, Qin Yun'an, who was elegant, refined, and had a gentle and approachable demeanor!
Qin Yun'an strolled into the house, sat down leisurely in a chair, and then calmly reassured her, "Little sister, you can rest assured, this matter has nothing to do with us."
Upon hearing this, Qin Yaoyao became even more puzzled and couldn't help but ask, "What do you mean by that, Third Brother? Why isn't this our fault?"
Qin Yun'an smiled slightly and patiently explained, "Those people, seeing that the Third Prince's residence was selling shops to raise money for the purpose of making amends, naturally dared not take it lightly."
Qin Yaoyao became increasingly confused, her brows furrowed as she muttered to herself, "But how did they find out about this?"
Just then, Fifth Brother Qin Yunji stepped in and replied, "The reason for this is naturally that someone deliberately spread it."
Seeing that her third and fifth brothers had arrived, Mother casually asked, "Where are your father and second brother?" Fifth brother quickly replied, "Father is discussing important matters with second brother in the study; they'll be here shortly." Qin Yaoyao, full of doubt, asked, "Fifth brother, do you know who spread this message? And why would they do it?" Qin Yunji smiled as he looked at Qin Yaoyao, seemingly surprised by her question, and softly replied, "Can't you guess who it is?"
Qin Yaoyao carefully observed everyone's expressions, secretly pondering. Judging from their reactions, they clearly knew who this person was. So, she cautiously speculated, "Could it be Brother Yanxi's doing?" Before she could finish speaking, Qin Yunji gently tapped Qin Yaoyao's head, saying with a hint of reproach, "How can you be so dense, you little girl!"
Qin Yaoyao winced in pain from the blow and complained unhappily, "Hmph, you wretched fifth brother! Just speak properly, why did you have to hit me like that? It hurts so much!" Qin Yunji, however, didn't seem to care and retorted, "Where did I hit you? It's just that you're getting more and more spoiled. I'm afraid no one will dare to marry you in the future." Hearing this, Qin Yaoyao rubbed her forehead and stubbornly replied, "Of course I'm not worried about getting married. There will definitely be a perfect husband waiting for me! It's you, fifth brother, who's so annoying. Let's see who dares to marry you!" After saying that, she didn't forget to make a face at Qin Yunji.
Changing the subject, Qin Yaoyao suddenly noticed that everyone around her was smiling at her, but saying nothing. Intrigued, she asked, "What are you all laughing at? Did you all already know that this news was leaked by Brother Yanxi?"
Second Sister-in-law smiled slightly and replied softly, "Silly girl, who else besides him cares so much about the reputation of our entire Duke's Mansion? We're all thanks to you." Qin Yaoyao was astonished, pointing at herself in disbelief, and blurted out, "My good fortune? That guy likes you, didn't any of you realize that?"
Just then, a loud voice reached everyone's ears from afar. Everyone turned their heads and saw their father, Qin Zhenhua, and second brother, Qin Yunping, striding into the house. Qin Yaoyao was shocked and quickly asked, "You all knew?" Before she could finish speaking, she saw everyone cover their mouths and snicker. She instantly realized that everyone already knew. Qin Yaoyao shook her head helplessly, thinking, "Great, now everyone has seen it all clearly."
Immediately afterward, Qin Yaoyao turned her gaze to her fifth brother beside her and asked curiously, "Fifth brother, do you think anyone will be willing to marry me in the future?" Just then, Qin Yunji noticed He Yanxi walking towards the house, and an idea came to him. He deliberately said to Qin Yaoyao, "Little sister, that's hard to say. Why don't you ask him yourself?" After speaking, he winked at Qin Yaoyao, gesturing for her to look towards the door. Qin Yaoyao understood immediately and turned to look at the door, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes. She then replied, "Okay, then I'll go ask him myself. But after I'm done asking, you have to give me all this money, okay?" As soon as she said this, Qin Yaoyao held up five slender, jade-like fingers, looking at Qin Yunji with a determined gaze. Qin Yunji replied with a generous expression, "No problem! Don't mention a mere 500,000 taels of silver, even 5 million taels wouldn't be a problem!" Hearing this, Qin Yaoyao thought to herself, "Fifth brother is indeed generous and magnanimous!" I had only casually mentioned wanting five thousand taels, but I didn't expect him to be so generous and directly raise it to five million taels!
Qin Yaoyao quickly said, "Okay, it's settled then!" Then, Qin Yunji asked with a hint of teasing, "Then I'd like to see how you plan to tell him." Qin Yaoyao confidently replied, "Hehe, no need for Fifth Brother to worry about that. The key to our competition this time is whether I have the courage to say it. As for the specific method... well, that's up to each of us to use our own methods!" Before she finished speaking, she had already stepped towards the door.
Just then, He Yanxi stepped into the room and bumped into Qin Yaoyao, who was about to leave. Before He Yanxi could recover from his surprise, he heard a clear and melodious voice calling out, "Brother Yanxi, you're here!"
Qin Yaoyao stared at He Yanxi, who was somewhat dazed, and found him increasingly adorable. She couldn't help but call out again, "Brother Yanxi~"
He Yanxi snapped out of his daze, composed himself, and replied, "Well... I did come here this time to discuss some things with Brother Qin." Qin Yaoyao responded with a hint of disappointment, "Oh, I thought you came specifically to visit me." Hearing Qin Yaoyao's slightly somber tone, He Yanxi's heart softened, and he almost instinctively blurted out, "Of course, seeing you was also an important reason."
Upon hearing this, Qin Yaoyao immediately beamed and asked, "Really?" Her bright eyes sparkled with delight as she stared directly at He Yanxi. He Yanxi, feeling a little embarrassed by her gaze, quickly looked away and tried to change the subject, asking what they had been discussing. Qin Yaoyao enthusiastically replied, "We were just discussing… uh…" However, she abruptly stopped mid-sentence and turned to look at Qin Yunji beside her. He Yanxi mistakenly thought Qin Yaoyao was asking Qin Yunji for permission to continue, so he quickly said that if it wasn't convenient to reveal the details, then there was no need to force herself.
Qin Yaoyao winked playfully at Qin Yunji, then turned to He Yanxi and said, "We were actually discussing whether Brother Yanxi could... well, anyway, I think with Brother Yanxi's abilities, it's definitely no problem!" He Yanxi answered without hesitation, "Yes, he will." Qin Yaoyao immediately smiled brightly, and everyone else in the room laughed along. He Yanxi sat in his chair, feeling a little uneasy, and couldn't help but ask, "So what were you discussing about me? Could it be..." His voice held a hint of doubt and curiosity.
Qin Yunji looked at He Yanxi, a slight smile playing on his lips, and said, "You don't even know what the question is, yet you answered 'yes.' Aren't you afraid my sister will sell you off?" He Yanxi replied earnestly, "She wouldn't do that." Then he pressed on, "So what exactly is the question?"
Qin Yunji raised an eyebrow, deliberately keeping her in suspense: "Well, you should ask her yourself." Hearing this, He Yanxi turned his head and looked at Qin Yaoyao, only to hear Qin Yaoyao say softly, "We were just talking about whether Brother Yanxi will marry me in the future."
Before she could finish speaking, He Yanxi suddenly spat out the tea she had just drunk, her face turning bright red, like a ripe apple, the blush spreading from her cheeks to her ears, and even her neck. Her embarrassment seemed to have seeped through her clothes. Seeing this, her third sister-in-law couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle, teasing, "Little Jiu, what's wrong with you? Why is your face so red? Could it be…?"
Fearing his third sister-in-law would say something even more embarrassing, He Yanxi quickly interrupted her, "Third sister, please stop!" He just wanted to end this awkward conversation as soon as possible; he had already embarrassed himself enough and didn't want to make things worse. He Yanjing laughed even louder and more cheerfully, while He Yanxi felt like he was sitting on pins and needles, his whole body burning with heat, as if he were being roasted alive. Unable to endure this torment any longer, he jumped up from his seat and stammered, "Um... I... I have some things to take care of, so please excuse me." Before he finished speaking, he strode towards the door.
However, before he could take two steps, his second brother suddenly called out to stop him: "Didn't His Highness want to discuss something important with me?"
Hearing this, He Yanxi paused, then turned around and chuckled awkwardly, explaining, "Actually, it's nothing serious. We can talk about it later." He turned to leave again, but just then, Qin Yaoyao, who was closest to him, grabbed his arm, her face full of grievance, and asked, "Brother Yanxi, are you angry with me? I really didn't mean to lie to you. I know I didn't think things through this time. Please don't be angry with me, okay?"
Seeing He Yanxi determined to leave, Qin Yaoyao panicked. She couldn't help but feel annoyed, wondering if she should have asked about it in front of so many people. What if she had misunderstood? What if he didn't like her at all? Or what if he would get angry and ignore her? These anxieties and worries prompted Qin Yaoyao to instinctively grab him.
Seeing Qin Yaoyao's panicked state, everyone was suspicious. After all, it was just a small joke; how could it frighten her so much? However, Qin Yaoyao had no time to consider others' thoughts. She had only one thought in her mind: she absolutely could not anger He Yanxi, make him dislike her, or even ignore her. Otherwise, she feared she would descend into madness. Because in her previous life, it was her unwillingness to explain that caused her to miss her chance with He Yanxi. Therefore, in this life, she absolutely could not repeat the same mistake!
He Yanxi hadn't expected Qin Yaoyao to reach out and grab him. Anyone else would likely have been killed with a single blow. But facing Qin Yaoyao, he was utterly powerless, unwilling to inflict even the slightest harm on her. Gazing at Qin Yaoyao's anxious, almost tearful expression, He Yanxi felt a pang of pain in his heart. He slowly exhaled and said, "I'm not angry. Speak frankly about what's wrong. There's no need to be so cautious in front of me. I will never be angry with you."