Even though certain NPCs had suffered OOC moments that completely shattered his comprehension limits, the NPCs residing within the Xu family estate were fortunately still functioning with reliable consistency.
Meal times at the Xu household followed a rigid schedule.
Xu Qiduo had timed his return down to the minute. While he didn’t miss the window entirely, he still couldn’t escape a round of passive-aggressive remarks.
His stepmother, the wife of the fifth Xu brother, was only thirty-eight years old and right in her prime age for stirring up trouble.
The moment he sat down at the dining table with Zhou Mengxing, Xiao Wei launched straight into an interrogation across from them. “Xu Qiduo, why are you getting back so late? And with…”
Xiao Wei’s gaze swept over Zhou Mengxing for a moment before shifting back to Xu Qiduo to continue. “How on earth do you manage to hang out with a kid from the countryside?”
The Xu family was large and immensely wealthy, with the men occupied by their own work and business engagements. Even with the family rule requiring everyone to live under the same roof, the men could not manage to return for dinner every single day.
Consequently, the wives held the dominant presence at the estate’s dining table.
Xu Qiduo was the third son of the Xu family’s eldest branch.
Above him sat two career-driven older brothers, and his eldest brother was even being groomed as the successor by Old Master Xu himself.
Therefore, no matter how much of a slacker Xu Qiduo chose to be, nobody bothered to police him.
Xu Qiduo’s biological mother’s health had remained fragile ever since his birth, and she had eventually passed away from illness. His current stepmother was a subsequent wife married by his father, making Xu Qiduo the son of his father and that stepmother.
A stepmother, when all was said and done, was merely the second wife of the eldest branch, while the rest of the sisters-in-law were married to the original partners, naturally looking down upon the current head wife.
Lacking any notable family background or pedigree, the head wife naturally couldn’t suppress these aggressive sisters-in-law.
Thus, while the gardens appeared peaceful enough on the surface, things were boiling with undercurrents behind closed doors.
Though Old Master Xu also resided in the estate, advanced age made him crave tranquility, and he occupied a courtyard entirely to himself. As long as the women of the household didn’t kick up too much of a fuss, he paid them no mind at all.
Xiao Wei had made her remark right in front of Zhou Mengxing, words that would sound harsh even if spoken behind closed doors.
Voicing them publicly before everyone naturally amounted to a direct slap across the face of the second wife’s faction.
Normally, whenever these mothers exchanged veiled jabs and pointed insults, Xu Qiduo never participated.
He only ever wanted to be an innocent bystander eating melons.
Yet this time, his stepmother had deliberately dragged him into the crossfire.
Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Xu Qiduo fully leaned into the persona of a spoiled young master. “Have you ever seen a country kid this drop-dead gorgeous?”
On the strength of his face alone, Zhou Mengxing was already invincible. With his innate aura and temperament, he only needed minor cultivation to project an overwhelming presence that could instantly crush those native young masters.
Xu Qiduo continued, “Besides, why shouldn’t I hang out with him? We go to the same school, so we naturally have things to talk about. The stuff we usually chat about is probably way over Chenchen’s head anyway.”
Xu Qiduo loved drama.
But if that drama threatened to splash against his ankles, he would kick the rotten melon right back out.
Xiao Wei’s son, Xu Chenchen, was currently in the first year of middle school and his grades were an absolute disaster. Despite hiring countless elite private tutors, he had still managed to scrape together a miserable score of 17 on the recent midterms.
Struck right in her weak spot, Xiao Wei darkened her face and stopped talking to Xu Qiduo, turning instead to address the second uncle’s wife.
“Second Sister-in-law, what is the deal with this kid’s household registration? Are you transferring it over to hang under Second Brother’s name?”
Who within the estate didn’t know how many times the second aunt had bickered with her sisters-in-law over this supposed stepson of her long-lost first love.
Xiao Wei was clearly trying to provoke her.
Sure enough, when asked publicly about Zhou Mengxing’s identity, the expression on the second aunt’s face nearly cracked.
Yet the wives in this estate had mastered the specialized art of facial expression switching.
“As for his registration matters, your second brother has been handling it all along, so I am not entirely clear on the details.”
Hearing this, Xu Qiduo nudged Zhou Mengxing, whom he had just pulled down to sit beside him, with his elbow and asked in a low voice, “Do you want some shrimp?”
Dishes were already being served across the table.
On the massive round table, the automatic lazy Susan spun at a slow, steady pace.
Zhou Mengxing still hadn’t spoken a single word to him.
Lifting his chin, Xu Qiduo pressed further. “I want some. Peel two for me.”
The plate of shrimp had rotated into view. Watching Zhou Mengxing obediently reach out with his chopsticks to place two peeled shrimp into his bowl, Xu Qiduo raised his eyes to meet Xiao Wei’s gaze.
Naturally noticing the interaction between the two boys, Xiao Wei seized upon the opening with renewed vigor. “My, these two seem to be getting along wonderfully.”
“He’s a younger brother, you can never have too many of those.” The Xu family’s absolute least scarce commodity was male heirs.
Aside from the three daughters belonging to the second uncle’s household, virtually every other branch boasted two or three sons as a baseline.
Yet stepmother Xiao Wei only had a single son, Xu Chenchen, and hadn’t even managed to squeeze out a daughter in all these years.
“Isn’t the stepmother’s household planning on having another younger brother? Otherwise, Chenchen would be awfully lonely by himself.” Whenever anyone stepped on Xu Qiduo’s toes, he would circle the entire estate if necessary to return the favor.
Pricked right where it hurt most, Xiao Wei wanted to rage at Xu Qiduo, but her status prevented her from lashing out directly. Gritting her teeth, she spat out, “Chenchen is more than enough for our family. Unlike the second sister-in-law’s house, which needs to adopt such a grown boy just to liven the place up.”
The third madam, sitting nearby and watching the show with zero desire to let peace reign, let out a cheerful, cackling laugh.
That remark left the second aunt’s face turning a livid shade of green.
Just then, a tall man strode into the dining hall. “What are you all talking about? You look like you’re having a great time.”
The third madam immediately explained, “We were just saying how well Xu Qiduo gets along with the second branch’s newly adopted boy, they act just like biological brothers.”
“Is it finalized? An adoption? I heard Second Brother say it was a sponsorship.”
The man who had just entered was the third Xu brother. Having no evening business engagements tonight, he was dining at home.
“A sponsorship?” The women present seemed genuinely surprised by the term.
Or rather, they were surprised by the very nature of Zhou Mengxing’s presence.
Whether it was an adoption or a sponsorship represented an absolute world of difference in terms of family standing.
With a male family member now present, the petty infighting among the sisters-in-law gradually subsided.
Still feeling like he hadn’t quite finished jabbing back, Xu Qiduo wiped his hands with a wet wipe, shelled the two shrimp sitting in his bowl, accurately tossed them into Zhou Mengxing’s bowl, and announced with affected arrogance, “I don’t want to eat anymore, finish every bite.”
With the third Xu brother at the table, the conversational tone shifted toward something much milder.
Crossing one leg over the other beneath the table, Xu Qiduo simply buried his head and focused on eating his favorite dishes.
Not until the younger generation began clearing out from the table did Xu Qiduo nudge Zhou Mengxing’s leg with his own, pulling him up to his feet. “We are finished eating, enjoy your meal everyone.”
As the legitimate eldest-branch young master, Xu Qiduo was fully entitled to leave the table the moment he set down his chopsticks.
Tugged along by him, Zhou Mengxing lowered his head slightly and echoed Xu Qiduo’s polite sign-off with practiced docility. “Please continue enjoying your meal.”
“See? I told you those two act just like real brothers,” the third madam teased lightly, her tone entirely devoid of its previous cynicism.
Xu Qiduo flashed her a cheerful smile before pushing Zhou Mengxing’s shoulder to guide him out of the dining room.