Qi He frowned, completely devoid of his usual playfulness. "I'm Xiao He. My uncle still looks unhappy to see me, as always."
"How could that be? Your uncle is just surprised you came here too." He Song genuinely hadn't expected Qi He to show up, and felt a bit awkward and at a loss for words.
He didn't stop to think that this was his brother-in-law's territory. As his son, it was perfectly reasonable for Qi He to be here.
"Master, master, is brother-in-law here? Why didn't you invite him inside and you're just standing here, you silly thing."
As she spoke, a woman in red emerged from the courtyard. She wore a cinched long skirt and walked with a captivating sway, which greatly astonished the Meng clan members.
The woman's face broke into a smile when she saw Qi Yuanshan. "Brother-in-law, you're here, come inside and rest." But when she saw Qi He next to Qi Yuanshan, she was also startled. "This, this is Xiao He?"
"Xiao He, what's going on?"
Seeing the expressions on his brother-in-law and sister-in-law's faces when they saw Xiao He, Qi Yuanshan began to suspect that something he didn't know was going on.
"Brother-in-law, it's nothing. It's just that Xia He and we haven't seen each other for two or three years. Seeing him so suddenly, we're still a bit disbelieving, hehe."
He Liu Shi's reaction was much quicker than He Song's. She quickly chimed in with a casual remark.
"I don't want to see you, just as you dislike me. It's just that I didn't expect you to be here with my father."
He Liu Shi: This brat is still as annoying as ever, hasn't improved at all.
Qi Yuanshan had sharp eyes. His son's words had already revealed the couple's past attitude towards the child.
For Mei Er's sake, he didn't show his displeasure in front of everyone.
"Brother-in-law." He Song didn't want to be ignored by his brother-in-law. Their family's ability to thrive here was all thanks to his brother-in-law.
"Oh, new people have arrived in the village. Go and get the roster and the account books."
"Brother-in-law, there are still some days before the autumn harvest. I haven't finished organizing the account books yet, could I...?"
"You barely know a few characters, what account books can you organize? Hurry up and bring me the roster and account books."
"Brother-in-law."
"Go quickly."
Seeing that Qi Yuanshan was truly getting impatient, He Song dared not delay any longer. He turned and went back into the house to get the account books. He Liu Shi also found it awkward to stay, so she followed him back, swaying her hips.
Watching the couple's reluctant retreating figures, Qi He was very curious. "Dad, why are they here with you?"
"Xiao He doesn't know they came to Dad's place?"
"No."
Seeing his father's incredulous expression, Qi He started telling him about what had happened before. "It seems like it was two years ago, right after my maternal grandfather passed away. Their whole family disappeared. I was wondering where they went to make a living, but I never thought they'd come to Dad's place. It's really interesting."
Qi He couldn't understand why they would look for his father when he himself couldn't even get a bowl of congee at his maternal grandparents' house.
Just as Qi He was talking with his father, a girl about his age walked out from the courtyard.
The girl was wearing a pale yellow fine cloth shirt and skirt. If not for Fu Xinci's sharp eyesight, she wouldn't have been able to see clearly at this hour.
The girl walked forward without looking at anyone else, her steps delicate. She first bowed to Qi Yuanshan and greeted him, "Uncle." Then she walked smilingly to Qi He and shyly called out, "Cousin."
Qi He looked at the girl several times before asking, "Are you He Xiaoni?"
"Cousin, I'm Xiaoni." The girl was very happy to see that Qi He recognized her.
Seeing this girl, Fu Xinci suddenly had a guess: was this going to be a family affair between cousins?
Wow, children in ancient times were really precocious, thinking about finding a husband at ten years old.
Clearly, Fu Xinci's guess was correct. He Xiaoni's gaze towards Qi He was full of allure.
Unfortunately, Qi He was not buying it. He tugged on Qi Yuanshan's sleeve and whined, "Dad, I'm hungry."
"Uncle, cousin, my mother is cooking. You can come to my house to eat later."
"I dare not go to your house to eat, I'm afraid you'll set dogs on me." Qi He finished speaking and turned to Fang Shi. "I still prefer Auntie's cooking."
If this were a normal remark, Fang Shi would have replied, "Just come over and eat when it's mealtime."
But with the previous sentence, Fang Shi only smiled slightly and said nothing.
He Xiaoni felt awkward. She didn't expect Qi He to still remember after so many years. What a petty person.
If it were any other time, she would have turned around and left, and would never bother with this annoying brat again.
But she thought about what her mother had taught her before coming out, and tears welled up in her eyes.
"Cousin, Xiaoni was ignorant before. Please don't blame me."
The more He Xiaoni thought about it, the more wronged she felt. She had lived like a young lady here for the past two years.
Those girls who had been exiled were once daughters of officials, but here they were all fawning over her. The flattery they offered was as sweet as could be.
Thinking about those words that elevated her so highly, she felt even more wronged. Tears streamed down like a broken string of pearls.
Qi He: "I, who was bitten by the dog, haven't cried yet. You, who set the dog on me, are crying first? I really don't know where you get the nerve to cry?"
"You~"
"What do you mean, you? Look at your behavior. You're actually good-looking, but you insist on putting on this disgusting act. If you changed your clothes and stood in the wilderness, people would think you were a large dog urination mushroom."
"Waa~" He Xiaoni's crying had been three parts genuine, but now it became ten parts.
"Oh my heavens, He Xiaoni, please don't cry. The sun has already set. If you keep crying, you'll attract wolves."
"Uh~"
Hearing Qi He mention attracting wolves, He Xiaoni finally stopped crying. She even stole a glance at the distant mountain forest.
"Alright, it's getting dark. Go in quickly and have your father take out the roster and account books." Qi Yuanshan saw that it was getting darker and felt even more annoyed.
He Xiaoni was still very afraid of her uncle. Seeing that her uncle's tone was not right, she dared not pretend to be a young lady anymore and ran inside to find her father.
By this time, many families had already finished their dinner. Most people, after eating, went to sleep and didn't want to move.
A few people still didn't want to sleep, so they squatted by their doors, looking around.
Hearing the commotion at the village entrance and seeing the torchlight, they sauntered over to see what was happening.
When they saw a large dark crowd, they knew that more exiles had arrived.
Some bolder ones stepped forward and asked, "Commander Qi, why did you come in person?"
In this area, those who were still wandering around the village after dark were usually not good people. Qi Yuanshan didn't want to bother with them and only grunted in response.