Chapter 6: Second Brother's handwriting looks great

Liu Shi gave her grandmother a red sapphire embroidered forehead ornament, and she gave her a set of delicate silk spring clothes, which must have taken a lot of effort to make.

However, her grandmother was not impressed at all. She coldly waved her hand and said, "Take them to the storeroom. Jiao Jiao, you shouldn't wear this dress either. No matter how well the embroidery is done by others, it can't compare to the embroiderers in our mansion. If a needle falls into your clothes, it will hurt you, won't it?"

Liu Shi's maid was also present, hoping to get a few words of praise from the old lady to please her mistress, but she didn't expect the old lady to be so harsh.

She forced a smile and said, "Madam, these two items were made by our mistress after staying up all night. Although the embroidery may not be as good as the top embroiderers, it still represents our mistress's sincere intentions..."

The old lady sneered, "Shameless woman, ruining other people's marriages, not even worthy of being called a stepmother, and yet you dare to call yourself 'mistress'? Go back and tell your mistress not to send any dirty things to my mansion, don't dirty my place!"

The maid blushed and felt ashamed.

She made a hasty bow and quickly left Songhe Court.

Nan Baoyi's eyes turned red.

In her previous life, her grandmother also didn't like Liu Shi, but she was moved by Liu Shi's frequent gifts and thought she was the best stepmother in the world. She even threw a tantrum in front of her grandmother, demanding that Liu Shi be allowed into the house, which led to the subsequent consequences.

She held back her tears and obediently served tea to the old lady, "If you don't like Aunt Liu's craftsmanship, I will make a forehead ornament for you tomorrow... But my craftsmanship definitely can't compare to the embroiderers in the mansion. Grandmother, please don't make fun of me!"

The old lady hugged her, delighted, "It's good that you have this intention, but you must not really do it. Embroidery needles are so sharp, what if you hurt your hand? A girl like you should be well taken care of and not do any embroidery work!"

As she left Songhe Court, Nan Baoyi resolved not to let Liu Shi into the house in this life.

However, her father's attitude was firm, so she had to come up with a good plan.

As she walked, lost in thought, Xiao Yi followed her from a distance, his narrow eyes cold and inscrutable.

This girl kept saying she wanted to take care of him, and even called him "second brother" in a coquettish manner. Just now, she even served him tea, but now she was ignoring him.

Nan Baoyi, walking and lost in thought, suddenly felt a chill on her back, as if she were being watched by a wild dog.

She turned around and saw Xiao Yi, and quickly put on a sweet smile, "Second brother!"

Xiao Yi didn't look at her, and coldly walked past her.

Nan Baoyi quickly caught up, "Second brother, I fainted the other day, and I didn't know you were punished to kneel in the ancestral hall. I'm sorry!"

The young man remained expressionless.

Nan Baoyi followed him, trying hard to show her meekness and helplessness, and at the same time, flattering him, "Second brother, I don't want Aunt Liu to enter the mansion. You are so clever, can you help me come up with a good idea?"

The young man seemed not to hear, and walked away coldly.

Nan Baoyi stopped, feeling a bit discouraged.

It's so difficult to please the future powerful minister. He doesn't even bother to talk to people...

But she was not one to give up easily. She went back to the Embroidery Pavilion and had the kitchen cook a pot of chicken soup, which she personally brought to Xiao Yi.

Xiao Yi was writing by the window.

She eagerly opened the food box, "Second brother, would you like some chicken soup? It's just been cooked, and it's seasoned with fresh bamboo shoots. It tastes delicious!"

Xiao Yi's face remained cold as he continued writing.

Nan Baoyi felt like she was performing a monologue.

She saw the brand new writing materials on the desk, and found a new topic, "Is this a gift from grandmother to second brother? Look at this inkstone, it's round and large, it must be very valuable, a top-quality inkstone, right? Only such an inkstone can match the elegance of second brother's calligraphy!"

She praised him, and Xiao Yi raised his eyebrows and finally responded, "Smooth as skin, sharp as a blade, this is a Hui inkstone. Don't mistake it for something else just because it looks like a good inkstone."

Nan Baoyi: "..."

She really put her foot in her mouth!

She stirred the chicken soup and glanced at the ink characters on the paper, continuing to flatter, "Second brother, your calligraphy is so beautiful!"

The young man coldly asked, "What's beautiful about it?"

What's beautiful about it?

Nan Baoyi paused. How would she know what's beautiful about it? She was just trying her best to flatter him!

She forced herself to say, "I can't really say what's beautiful about it, but when I look at second brother's calligraphy, I feel at ease, and everything else fades away, and my heart feels joyful..."

Xiao Yi continued writing indifferently.

The people of the Nan family have no knowledge in literature, and have no understanding of writing materials and calligraphy. Fortunately, he is not from the Nan family.

Nan Baoyi clearly understood the disdain in his eyes and blushed with embarrassment, "Second brother, are you very hungry? Come and have some chicken soup..."

She served a bowl, but the soup was too hot. Before she could hand it to Xiao Yi, she accidentally spilled the whole bowl on his calligraphy!

The soup splattered and soaked the ink characters, even wetting the ancient books on the table.

Xiao Yi stared at Nan Baoyi expressionlessly. If her hands hadn't been red from the burn, he would have suspected that she did it on purpose.

Nan Baoyi blew on her hands and looked up at the young man's gloomy eyes, retreating a few steps in fear, "I didn't mean to do it..."

She just wanted to please him!

Xiao Yi coldly sat at the window, "Clean it up."

"Oh..."

Nan Bao Yi was cleaning up the bookshelf with a bit of reluctance.

Xiao Yi rested his chin on his hand and opened the travelogue, but his gaze fell on the young girl.

She was dressed in a light pink spring outfit, with a pair of pearl earrings hanging from her waist, and her slender waist was delicate and graceful.

Even when she was working, she always liked to raise her little finger, more delicate and beautiful than her peers.

It was such a pity that such a delicate young girl was being polished by the Liu family. It would be better for him to take care of it himself, as a way of getting back at her for the humiliation she had inflicted on him before...

Thinking like this, he said lightly, "You asked me how to stop Liu from entering the door?"

Nan Bao Yi turned around in surprise, "Second brother is willing to help me?"

Xiao Yi flicked his fingertips, "That night, I told you the story of the monkey and the cat in the fire."

Nan Bao Yi recalled that the story was about a monkey instructing a cat to fetch roasted chestnuts from the fire, but the cat ended up getting burned and gained nothing, while the monkey effortlessly got the roasted chestnuts.

She nodded, "Second brother said that most people are like that foolish cat."

Xiao Yi smiled faintly, "So, why don't you become the monkey who instructs the foolish cat?"

Nan Bao Yi: "..."

Become the monkey?

Was this a hint from Lord Quan Chen?

She pursed her lips and suddenly remembered something from her previous life.

At that time, after Liu had been married to her father for half a year, the owner of the pear garden came looking for her, claiming that he still had Liu's contract of sale and demanded a large sum of money from her father, otherwise he would take Liu back to the pear garden.

When the head of the family was involved in such a scandal, her father was furious. Although he blamed Liu for not telling the truth, and knew that the pear garden owner was extorting him, it was a fait accompli. He had no choice but to pay a large sum of silver to finally settle the matter.

If...

If in this life, she personally bought Liu's contract of sale and gave it to the ruffians on the street...

Just thinking about it made her excited!

Seeing so many familiar little fairies leaving comments and voting, I want to hug you all tightly!