Chapter 176: Chapter 158, First Visit to Uncle’s Home_1

“Haha, I won!”

Taking advantage of Xiao Yeyang’s distraction, Daohua quickly moved one of his chess pieces out of the way and placed her own, then clapped her hands excitedly and shouted.

Xiao Yeyang came back to his senses, glanced at the board, and immediately looked speechless.

This guy, he couldn’t even cheat properly, he saw right away that his piece had been moved.

He had just thought she was clever, it turns out he had thought too much.

Seeing Xiao Yeyang staring at her, Daohua instantly felt guilty and hurriedly messed up the pieces as if trying to cover her ears and steal the bell.

Even Yan Wenxiu who was standing beside couldn’t bear to look at this point.

Isn’t this the case of “thirty taels of silver not hidden here”?

“I won!”

Xiao Yeyang watched Daohua, who was stubbornly insisting she had won, and shook his head, responding without much fervor: “You won.”

Daohua was slightly displeased: “Why do I feel like your words lack sincerity?”

Xiao Yeyang: “Then what do you think I should do to show sincerity? Give a prize?”

Daohua’s eyes immediately lit up.

Seeing her like this, Xiao Yeyang snorted irritably: “Speaking of prizes, you’ve lost to me so many times and haven’t given me one, and now you want one from me?”

Daohua gave an embarrassed smile and murmured, “You’re the one who asked.”

Just then, Defu walked in with a smile: “My lord, dinner is ready.”

Xiao Yeyang stood up and, seeing that Daohua was sitting still, laughed: “Do you really want a prize? Think about what you want; tell me later. Now, let’s go eat.”

Daohua shook her head: “Forget it, I don’t have such thick skin to want a prize after just one win. If I did, wouldn’t that mean I have to return even more? No thanks.” With that, she walked briskly out of the study.

Xiao Yeyang glanced at Yan Wenxiu and shook his head with a smile: “Your sister really is one of a kind.” Not waiting for Yan Wenxiu to say anything, he went after her.

Left behind, Yan Wenxiu could only silently glance at Defu and then followed helplessly.

After dinner, everyone gathered in the living room to chat.

Li Xingnian was a well-traveled man with broad experiences and a smooth talk. Story after story flowed from him, captivating Daohua and the others completely.

It wasn’t until 9:00 PM that everyone reluctantly headed back to their rooms to rest.

In the side hall.

Her two nephews had already undressed and were preparing for bed, but Li Xingnian was still in a state of excitement, finding it hard to sleep.

“Uncle, go to sleep, we still have to travel tomorrow,” Yan Wenkai muttered before burying himself under the cover and falling into a deep slumber.

Yan Wenxiu looked at her uncle, whose eyes were still shining brightly, with slight helplessness.

The uncle was too energetic; after wandering around the palace for most of the day, he was still bright and alert, even though she felt quite tired already.

Seeing Yan Wenxiu waiting for him to sleep, Li Xingnian immediately said: “You go to sleep. Your uncle will sit for a while longer and have a good look at this palace bedroom.” This might be the only time in his life he would stay inside a palace, so he wanted to take it all in.

Hearing this, Yan Wenxiu didn’t argue further because she was really too sleepy and didn’t stick around to accompany him.

Daohua stayed in another side hall, and after the tiring day, she quickly fell into a deep sleep upon lying down on the bed.

The next morning, Daohua was awakened by the sound of Wang Manman and the others talking.

“Manman, who was that just now?”

After getting dressed, Daohua saw Wang Manman walk in holding a big red feathered satin cloak.

“It was Steward Defu. He brought over a cloak, saying it was for the young lady to ward off the cold,” Wang Manman explained as she handed the cloak to Daohua.

Daohua felt the smooth satin of the cloak and the fluffy white fur trim, frowning: “Why is Xiao Yeyang sending things again? I’m starting to feel embarrassed about accepting them.”

Although she always gave something in return, she couldn’t shake off the feeling of taking advantage.

Wang Manman, thinking Daohua was dissatisfied with receiving gifts, hurriedly clarified: “I did try to refuse, but Steward Defu insisted on giving it and I couldn’t argue with him.”

After some thought, since clothes weren’t considered anything valuable, and it was common for friendly families to exchange gifts, Daohua decided not to dwell on the matter anymore: “Let’s get washed up.”

As she left the room, Daohua looked at the cloak and, after a moment’s contemplation, put it on.

Xiao Yeyang being who he was, she suspected he would be displeased if she didn’t wear it.

Indeed, when she arrived at the main hall, Xiao Yeyang saw Daohua wearing the cloak he had sent and immediately curled his lips into a smile.

Yan Wenkai’s eyes brightened: “Elder sister, I’ve never seen you wear that cloak before, it looks really nice.”

Daohua smiled: “I think it looks good too, and it’s warm.”

Hearing Daohua say this, Xiao Yeyang’s mood lifted even further.

Yan Wenxiu glanced at it and said nothing.

He knew that previously his eldest sister had given the Little Prince a prescription for a medicinal bath.

The value of that prescription must not have been low, as Dong Yuanxuan had even inquired about it indirectly.

It was no big deal for the Little Prince to reciprocate with a cloak.

After breakfast, everyone chatted with Xiao Yeyang for a while before getting up to leave.

“Xiao Yeyang, when the Academy is on break and you’re bored, come join my three brothers at my house to play!”

As they were leaving, Daohua said this to Xiao Yeyang.

Xiao Yeyang nodded his head, letting Defu escort them out of the travel palace.

By the time Defu returned, Xiao Yeyang was looking at another food box that Daohua had brought, filled with pastries shaped like various animals.

“So many pastries, Miss Yan must be preparing for you to eat until the end of the lunar month,” Defu commented.

Xiao Yeyang chuckled: “Daohua thinks I’m a pig,” he said while picking up a date-paste cake shaped like a pig’s head and stuffing it into his mouth.

He didn’t have a sweet tooth and was indifferent to most pastries, but he quite enjoyed the ones made by Daohua.

It must have been difficult for her to bring a whole food box over, as previously he saw that her maid could hardly lift it.

“I’m going to read,” announced the prince.

After signaling Defu to put away the pastries, Xiao Yeyang headed to the study.

…

“Uncle, how much longer until we reach the provincial capital?”

Yan Wenkai was growing restless on the boat and kept asking.

Li Xingnian checked the sky: “We’ll arrive by noon. Don’t wander around too much or you’ll get seasick.”

Daohua laughed and took over the conversation: “Uncle, don’t worry, Fourth Brother is really healthy, he won’t get seasick.”

Li Xingnian cast a glance at his nephews, sturdy as calves, and said no more.

Seeing Daohua standing on deck and eagerly observing the riverside scenery, Li Xingnian sat down beside Yan Wenxiu, “The cloak Daohua is wearing seems to be a gift from the Little Prince, is it alright to accept it just like that?”

Yan Wenxiu shook his head, “It’s fine, didn’t Eldest Sister bring gifts as well?”

Upon hearing that, Li Xingnian’s mouth twitched.

Are you referring to the two food boxes from his niece?

Alright, exchanges between children shouldn’t be as profit-driven and concerned with value as those between adults.

Yan Wenxiu thought for a moment and then addressed Li Xingnian, “Uncle, we better keep our overnight stay at the travel palace to ourselves. We’re already getting a lot of attention for being close with the Little Prince. If others find out we stayed at the travel palace, it might lead to trouble.”

Li Xingnian nodded, patted Yan Wenxiu on the shoulder, and spoke with relief: “You’ve grown up so much, and you think things through more and more carefully now. Don’t worry, your uncle knows how to behave.”

At 1:00 PM, Daohua and the others finally arrived at the Li Residence.

“Why did it take so long to arrive?”

No sooner had Li Xingnian walked through the main gate with the three than two aunts and several cousins, having received the news, came out to meet them.

“Wenxiu, Wenkai, Daohua, greetings to the two aunts.”

Yan Wenxiu hurriedly led his siblings to pay their respects.

The eldest aunt, of the Fan Family, immediately helped them up and then pulled Daohua closer to take a good look at her: “This must be Yiyi. Oh my, how handsome she has grown. Look here, second sister-in-law, come and see this child. Isn’t she even more charming than our little sister was in her day?”

A gentle-looking woman approached with a smile and examined Daohua. “Indeed, she is. The daughter of our younger sister seems to outshine her own mother.”

The two aunts of the Li Family had distinct personalities, one straightforward and lively, and the other gentle and demure. Both were very well-maintained and looked to be in their early thirties.

“Enough, enough. Have you aunties ever seen such a thing? Talking about the child like that, she’s getting embarrassed,” Li Xingnian laughed and interrupted, “Let’s continue our conversation indoors.”

The Fan Family aunt immediately laughed, “Look at me, I got so excited I forgot myself.” Saying this, she took Daohua by the hand, gesturing for her son to invite Wenxiu and his brothers inside.

With her enthusiastic aunt overwhelming her, Daohua could only do what she was asked, being the picture of obedience.

Behind them, two of Li Family’s cousins gathered, covertly observing Daohua and her siblings.

Li Zixin of the main branch whispered, “Didn’t mother always say that although our uncle is an official, his financial situation is tight and life is difficult? But just look at Yiyi, our cousin. Isn’t everything she’s wearing top-notch?”

Second branch’s Li Zixuan nodded, “Yes, the cloak Yiyi is wearing, I have seen Dong Family’s young miss wear it from a distance. It’s said to be tribute feather satin. And the Beaded Flower she’s wearing on her head, they’re so pretty. I’ve never even seen these in the shops in the provincial capital.”

Li Zixin gave Daohua another look, “Mother also said that since Yiyi grew up in the countryside, she might be overshadowed by the legitimate daughters in the family. Now look at her, it’s all nonsense.”