nycdaug Chapter 211 Tired of the Xia Couple
Chapter 211 Tired of the Xia Couple
The Duke's Mansion never had any attitude towards whether the Xia couple stayed or left; everything was up to them.
For dinner today, Xia Cheng and Liu went directly to Xia Xuelian's main house as usual and waited for dinner together.
When Xia Xuelian entered the room, she saw Xia Cheng holding an antique vase and couldn't let it go, and a trace of impatience flashed through her heart.
Just as I was wondering why Liu was not there, I heard the maid Xiaoqing's cautious voice: "Madam Liu, this hairpin is the young lady's favorite."
Liu was holding a green-inlaid wintersweet hairpin and putting it on her head.
This hairpin was specially made for her by Mrs. Wang. It was made of pure gold and agate. It was gorgeous and pretty. When Xia Xuelian saw this hairpin for the first time, her heart almost jumped out.
Not only because of the value of the hairpin itself, but also because it was a gift from her mother. It was so precious.
Seeing Liu's greedy eyes, she took two quick steps and snatched the hairpin.
Seeing this, the maid Xiaoqing quickly lowered her head and left the inner room.
"This is a hairpin that my mother specially customized for me. How can you wear it?" I couldn't bear to wear it myself.
Mrs. Liu smiled awkwardly: "Oh, daughter, I was just trying to put it on."
Although there was a smile on his face, there was a hint of disappointment in his heart.
She hurriedly put on a smile. Xia Xuelian became more and more displeased when she saw her flattering face. She was indeed from a farming family and exuded a poor air.
The flash of annoyance in Xia Xuelian's eyes did not escape Liu's eyes, and she felt dissatisfied with Xia Xuelian in disappointment.
Now that their identities were different, even if he was dissatisfied with Xia Xuelian, he did not show it and walked out of the inner room with a fake smile on his face.
This was the quietest meal the three of them had had since arriving at the Duke's Mansion.
For the first time, the Xia couple felt that there was something different between them and their daughter Xia Xuelian.
Tomorrow is the Little New Year, and the teacher will also leave the Duke's Mansion and go home.
Xia Xuelian secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Both the rules and needlework were fine, but literacy, music, chess, calligraphy and painting were too difficult for her.
Fortunately, the old Duke and the old lady often sent Nanny Rong to tell her not to put too much pressure on herself. Besides, people in the mansion now value her more and more, and gradually she is not as enthusiastic about learning as she was at the beginning.
Yuan En, the female teacher who taught Xia Xuelian, was a widowed woman in her fifties. She was usually very strict, but she had been told by the Duke's Mansion not to be too strict with the eldest lady and to just go along with her temperament.
After hearing this, Mr. Yuan was very surprised that this young lady was so favored.
When Xia Xuelian sent the servant she bought back to Lotus Cottage, the housekeeper asked her to give the servant a name herself.
When Xia Xuelian saw the thin and small girl, she thought of her elder sister who was a married woman far away in Anyang City. She looked down on her very much. Liu had asked her to be her follower since she was a child. All she could remember now was the first time she saw her, and she just thought she was so beautiful.
Snow-white skin, big eyes, it seems like I can fit myself in them. The same clothes look better on her than on me.
She never understood why this happened, and she felt angry when she saw her, so she reached out and slapped her.
It was not until later, when the villagers all said she was a fool and her appearance gradually became uglier, that she felt much better.
So she simply named the little maid Xiaoqing. The older one was originally surnamed Liu, so she was simply called Liu Ma. It wasn't that she didn't want to give a name, but she didn't know what name to give.
Early this morning, Xia Xuelian got up, washed and dressed, then took Xiaoqing straight to Zhufeng Courtyard to pay respects to her grandparents.
Afterwards, I went to the hospital to pay my respects to my father and mother.
She is now getting more and more accustomed to the life in the Duke's Mansion, and she cares more about the fact that she grew up in Anyang City, but she cannot erase it.
So she sometimes thought that if the Xia couple were not there, perhaps the people in the mansion would gradually forget her past.
The servants of Zhufeng Courtyard saw Xia Xuelian walking towards the courtyard with her maid not far away. Several of them hurriedly put down their work and stood aside waiting for her.
Xia Xuelian walked straight past. Ever since the old duke and the old lady indulged and doted on her time and time again, the servants had become extremely respectful towards Xia Xuelian, and Xia Xuelian now very much enjoyed the feeling of being held in the palm of their hands.
This was completely different from Liu's preference for her. She thought that Liu was good to her only because he knew that she was not ordinary, while the Duke's Mansion's favor to her was because they were a real family.
The little maid directly lifted the thick door curtain, and Xia Xuelian walked in slowly. At this time, she saw the old lady sitting there, and Madam Wang was also there.
Xia Xuelian smiled slightly: "Lian'er pays respects to grandma and mother!"
The old lady showed a kind smile: "Lian'er, get up quickly!"
Mrs. Wang also looked at Xia Xuelian with a smile, and the maid next to her very tactfully helped Xia Xuelian to the chair.
After you sit down.
The old lady asked, "Lian'er has lost some weight recently. Don't study too hard. A woman's virtue lies in her lack of talent!"
Mrs. Wang also looked at Xia Xuelian gently and said, "Lian'er, don't work too hard."
Xia Xuelian smiled brightly: "Thank you, grandma. Lian'er will pay attention to it."
After a few more words, they let Xia Xuelian go back.
The time for attending the palace banquet is from 2pm to 6pm on New Year's Eve.
On New Year's Eve, Xia Xuelian was woken up by Xiaoqing early in the morning and asked to wash and dress up.
As soon as Xia Xuelian and her mother Wang Wu arrived, they boarded the carriage of the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion with Madam Wang and headed to the palace to attend the palace banquet. The carriage drove slowly, passing through the bustling streets and heading towards the palace.
When the carriage arrived at the palace gate, what came into view was a busy scene.
The palace gate was already filled with horse-drawn carriages from various families, and the coachmen were busy unloading the shafts and preparing to return.
The ladies and young ladies from each family also got off the carriages one after another, dressed in gorgeous clothes, and walked slowly towards the palace gate.
Xia Xuelian followed her mother Wang out of the carriage. She looked around and found that all the ladies were dressed up carefully, with jewels and jades sparkling, and their luxurious dresses swaying gently in the breeze, showing their identity and status.
In the crowd, Xia Xuelian saw a familiar figure - the woman who had snatched the jewelry from her. She was also dressed in gorgeous clothes and was chatting happily with several young ladies from aristocratic families.
And that woman was none other than Chen Yayuan, the daughter of the governor of Shuntian Prefecture in the capital.
Chen Yayuan also saw Xia Xuelian, and then looked at the lady next to her, who turned out to be the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo.
"Mother, which family's lady is standing next to the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo?" Chen Yayuan asked.
Madam Chen looked at the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo, then glanced at Xia Xuelian beside her, with a hint of contempt in her eyes: "That is the daughter that the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion adopted not long ago. She is a few months younger than you..."