Chapter 52: Man does not offend me
Xiao Zhi lowered his eyes and did not speak.
Xiao Qingyi laughed, "Looks like Father already has his own thoughts. That's fine."
She already knew that this old fox wouldn't give in so easily.
When the word 'forget it' came out, Zhao Ya's eyes instantly lit up. The atmosphere in the hall also changed in an instant.
Xiao Qingran took in the reactions of those few people and raised her eyebrows as she smiled: "However, I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint all of you. The entrance ceremony will continue as usual half a month later."
Xiao Yan had not said anything previously because he thought that she would lose her temper due to the pressure. Now, when he heard her words, his tone immediately changed. "What do you mean by this?"
"It's not interesting. Even if it's for the reputation of the General's Estate that's coming in half a month later, we'll still have to proceed with the original plan." Xiao Qingran twirled her finger, showing an expression as if she was watching a show: "This matter has already spread throughout the capital. If it were anyone else, wouldn't Father be afraid that people would say that you broke your promise?"
Xiao Zhi squinted, and before he could say anything, Xiao Yan said coldly: "Xiao Qing Ran, who are you threatening here? Do you really think that I don't know anything when I just got back? "
"Although father promised you before, he did tell you in private. Only the people in the general's estate know about it now. Even if servants were to spread the news, they wouldn't be so powerful."
What's more, his mother had already set her eyes on the position of the general's wife. How could she allow the servants to speak nonsense?
"Oh? Is that so? "Are you sure?" Xiao Qing tilted her head, a trace of craftiness flashing across her clear eyes.
Xiao Yan's heart skipped a beat. He had a bad feeling about this.
"Old master?" It was the low cry of a servant outside. The voice seemed to have something to say, but it stopped.
Xiao Zhi frowned, "Come in."
The door opened and a grey robed servant walked in. He looked at the crowd and finally nodded at Xiao Qing Ran. He looked like he wanted to say something, but hesitated. Finally, he thought of something and went forward to whisper into Xiao Zhi's ear.
Xiao Zhi did not know what he heard, but he ruthlessly frowned and quickly swept his gaze over Xiao Qing Ran. In the end, he could only suppress the anger in his heart and wave his hand: "This old man knows, you may leave."
"Yes."
When Xiao Qing saw his unsightly expression, she suddenly felt that she was in a good mood. She raised her eyebrows and her tone became a lot lighter: "It seems that Fourth Sister's information is not very good."
"You did it, right?" Xiao Zhi's voice was cold as he suppressed his anger.
The outside world didn't know that in just a short while, the entire capital knew that the General's Estate was going to welcome that person into their family tree.
Xiao Qingran did not hide anything and directly answered: "Yes."
"Are you threatening this old man?" Xiao Zhi clenched his fists.
"If Father thinks so, you can say so too." Xiao Qing suddenly swung her sleeves and put them back on her lower abdomen. She said in a soft but powerful voice, "I said it a long time ago, if people don't offend me, I won't offend them. Whatever you want to do, it doesn't matter to me.
"Previously, Father probably thought that I was just boasting and didn't mean it. In fact, the others only thought that I was just using Su Qianxing's reputation to intimidate others."
"But there is one thing. It doesn't matter if I have real abilities or am just a fox taking advantage of a tiger's might. After all, I carry the title of the third miss of the General's Estate, and will also carry the title of a direct descendant in the future. Father is a smart man, so everyone needs to know some things."
Although he did not like this damned place, his body was inextricably linked to the general's manor. It would not be beneficial to anyone if it got out of hand.
Yang Jing was a young miss from a wealthy family, so she naturally knew about these things.
However, there was no certainty in Zhao Ya's words. "How dare you? How dare you speak to the old master in such a manner. Are you not afraid of …"
"Enough!" Xiao Zhi slammed the table.
Even Xiao Qingqing, who was so far away, could feel the trembling of the tea on the table. She raised her eyebrows and did not pay it any heed.
It only gave the other three a fright.
The temperature in the hall instantly dropped by a few points.
Xiao Zhi stared at Xiao Qing Ran as the turbid light in his eyes constantly changed. No one knew what he was thinking about.
After a long while, Xiao Zhi finally loosened his grip and sighed in relief, "Alright, after all this time, this old man is tired. Xiao Yan'er must have been tired after coming back."
"Daddy? "You …"
"The entrance ceremony will continue in half a month. You can leave the preparations to Madam for now. Also, Qing Qing needs to learn more about the rules in this area. If there aren't any mishaps, the General's Estate will be humiliated." From the looks of it, he had already made up his mind.
"Then I'll first thank you, father." Although Xiao Qingran expressed his thanks, his face did not reveal even the slightest bit of gratitude.
She curled her lips without even glancing at the three women and retreated, leaving behind a stifling atmosphere in the hall for them to digest on their own.
After returning to her residence, Li Er had already finished her work and was waiting.
Xiao Qing used her words to stifle the happiness in the family's hearts. She even ate quite a lot of dinner, but after that meal, she would always hesitate before saying anything. Every time she asked that girl, she would stop, as if she had something on her mind.
Xiao Qingyi clearly understood this girl's personality. Normally, if she revealed such an expression, it might be because she said 'for the sake of the young mistress but I can't say it but to hide it'.
If she didn't say anything, Xiao Qing Qing wouldn't even bother to ask. She would have washed her face a long time ago and lie down on the bed to rest.
She didn't know if she was really tired or not, she was always sleepy, but she had nightmares when she was asleep, and she was restless all night on the boat.
In the morning, when Ri-er came in to tell her to wash up, it was rare for Xiao Qing Qing to have already put on her clothes.
She sat on a chair by the window, holding the jade pendant that had suddenly appeared beside her when she had fainted.
"Miss, what happened to you?" Riko arranged her toiletries properly and walked over quietly, afraid that she would disturb her.
Xiao Qing Ran pondered and did not come back to her senses.
Only after Rio'er walked in did she notice a dark glint in Xiao Qing Ran's eyes. There was a mixture of suspicion, confusion, anger, and various other negative emotions hidden within.
Riko knew that her young lady had definitely not slept well last night. "Miss? Are you okay? "
Xiao Qing was startled and a gentle hand fell on her shoulder. However, because of her cold gaze earlier, she grabbed the wrist that had ambushed her from behind and was about to break it.
"Little... "Miss?" Riko looked at her, still shaken. She said something she was truly concerned about. "You have a nightmare again?"
Ever since the Miss woke up one night a year ago, she had nightmares. She had also invited quite a few people to watch, but they were all useless to her.
Xiao Qing then shook her head, "I'm fine."
It was fine to say so, but she didn't show it.
A tinge of tiredness appeared in the depths of her eyes, and her face was unnaturally pale. She was now in a state of tension and depression.
It was true that she had had nightmares last night, but they were different this time. They were continuous.
She dreamed of her soul floating in the air, watching a man order her to dig up her grave, then throw the jade pendant on her dead body. Finally, the man turned around.
It was a woman's face, and she recognized the face.
But — when she woke up, she couldn't remember.
"Miss …" Riko felt a pang in her heart.
Xiao Qing heaved a sigh of relief and put the jade pendant back on her chest. She put on an indifferent expression: "Alright, it's just some nightmares. I just need to finish today's business and come back to rest. Did the Flower Pavilion send any news over?"
Knowing that she did not want to change the topic on purpose, Li Er nodded and said, "Mother Hua sent someone this morning to say that it was arranged. Miss can go over after breakfast. I'm sure Liu Suifeng is already waiting there."
"Alright."
Xiao Qingran only took half an hour to finish eating and tidying up herself. Before she left, she instructed Riko that if anyone came by in the morning to cause trouble, she would not have to endure and directly send them out.
Yang Jing was someone who knew her limits and Zhao Ya could be considered to have some brains. However, Fourth Young Miss, who had just returned, did not have a good temper.
Riko naturally knew what she was worried about. She could guarantee that she would never lose any face for her mistress, so that she could relax and go about her business.
"Miss, you're here?"
The moment she opened the door, the corner of Xiao Qing Ran's mouth twitched. She quickly took a step back to avoid a beautiful woman who pounced on her.
The flowers that were flying in the air acted as if they were wronged. "Miss, why are you always so unromantic?"
Xiao Qing Ran had more or less recovered after walking for a while, so she rolled her eyes: "You just found out? Furthermore, I shouldn't be explaining my love to a woman, right? "
The flowers leaned against the door frame in a pouncing posture, and smiled seductively: "Why do you say that, Miss? When we first met, your male attire was really charming, and I couldn't forget about it even now. And Miss, don't forget, we were still together at that time … "
Xiao Qingran's eyelids jumped, and she immediately interrupted her. "If you don't have anything to do, then go down and take a look at those kids. When I came up, I could see that there were people making a ruckus."
"They're making trouble for them, so they naturally have someone else to take care of them. The two of us …" Before Hua Hua could finish her sentence, she was hit back by someone's cold gaze. She could only shrug and tactfully said: "Since Miss doesn't want to mention that flower, then I won't say anything. The things are already prepared and placed inside, and the person is already waiting for you."
Xiao Qing rolled her eyes, "Scram."
"Tsk tsk, what empathy." Flower Flower twitched his mouth. He stubbornly gave her a coquettish glance before closing the door and going out.
Inside the room, Liu Suifeng was sitting upright and waiting for her. The moment he saw her, he immediately stood up and saluted like a gentleman, "Beauty, you've finally come. You've really made me wait very hard ~"
Xiao Qing raised her eyebrows and casually swept a glance over him.
Four dishes and a bowl of soup were prepared neatly on the table. There were still many bones left over from eating on the table in front of him. Even the corner of his mouth was greasy and had yet to be wiped clean.
Xiao Qing could almost imagine this man acting the moment she entered the room.