By the time dinner came around, Chen Ting—who had been gone all afternoon—appeared right on schedule, bringing with him Chen Hao, who had just finished school.
Before coming, he had already informed the guard named Fuyao, so Shen Wangshu had instructed the kitchen in advance to prepare dishes the two young masters liked. This time, at least, they would not be left staring at a table full of greens in silence.
“Husband, Hao-ge’er.”
When the tall and short figures appeared at the doorway, Shen Wangshu went forward with a bright smile to greet them, putting on a perfectly obedient and gentle manner. She had been busy all afternoon, and Chen Ting must have received word by now. Wood ash was one thing, but lard was not cheap. This man was so stingy—would he blame her for fooling around?
“Mm.”
Chen Ting responded, his expression unchanged as he entered the room. Behind him followed a dejected Hao-ge’er, head hanging low. Taohong had said the two brothers came from the study; judging by his look, the little brat had clearly been scolded by his elder brother.
No sooner had Chen Hao stepped inside than Chen Ting said in a low voice, “What have I taught you? When you see an elder, you don’t know how to greet them?”
“I greet Sister-in-law. Sister-in-law, may you be well.”
Already dispirited, Hao-ge’er was scolded again, and it looked as though he was about to cry the next second. Shen Wangshu hurriedly said, “Alright, come eat.”
“The kitchen made stewed chicken. Hao-ge’er works hard at school, and my husband works hard too. Let’s eat first.” She smiled and asked, “Shall we eat like before—one takes the wings and one takes the drumsticks?”
Back when their parents were still alive, the two brothers were occasionally taken to the border together. When the others went off to fight, Chen Ting stayed in camp to look after his younger brother. The wild chickens they caught were extra rations. Chen Ting always gave both drumsticks to his brother, leaving the rest of the meat for their parents, while he himself ate only the wings, which had the least meat.
Only the old servants in the residence knew of these past events. Chen Ting discreetly swept his gaze around and figured it must have been the two maids newly sent by his aunt who had told her.
She had only been here one day, yet she had already inquired into quite a lot…
Thinking this, Chen Ting still could not deny that Shen Wangshu’s words did awaken a trace of his brotherly affection. When he looked at Chen Hao, his expression finally softened a little.
Hao-ge’er主动 picked up a drumstick and placed it in his brother’s bowl, saying softly, “I was so young back then. Even if you gave me that much meat, I couldn’t finish it.”
Chen Ting snorted lightly and said nothing more.
The atmosphere between the brothers eased considerably. Chen Hao glanced at Shen Wangshu, who had helped him out. Though he was still a bit annoyed that she hadn’t rescued him in the morning, he nonetheless smiled ingratiatingly at her and raised his chopsticks, preparing to pick up a piece of meat for her as thanks.
The piece of meat was intercepted midair by Chen Ting. The man frowned. “Use the serving chopsticks. And your sister-in-law has been taking medicine these past few days—she can’t have anything greasy.”
“Oh.”
Chen Hao switched to the serving chopsticks and properly placed some light vegetable dishes into Shen Wangshu’s bowl. “I didn’t know, Sister-in-law, but I’ll remember from now on.”
Shen Wangshu nodded and said that was fine, though she was somewhat surprised that Chen Ting knew what medicine she was taking… He hadn’t asked her about it.
Children’s bad moods came quickly and went just as fast. Once the tension eased, Chen Hao was cheerful again, chattering away to Chen Ting about his day at the academy, especially about being praised by the martial instructor during his martial arts class.
“In the future, I want to be a great general who defends the country!”
As Chen Hao spoke animatedly, he picked out all the green vegetables the wet nurse had placed in his bowl, eating the meat with great relish and refusing to touch the vegetables at all.
Shen Wangshu noticed this and shook her head with a smile. “If you don’t eat your vegetables properly, you won’t grow as tall as your brother.”
Chen Hao immediately protested loudly, “That’s not true! My brother never eats vegetables either, but he still grew tall and strong!”
Chen Ting froze for a moment, his brows knitting as he prepared to implement some effective measures, when he heard Shen Wangshu say, “How do you know he didn’t eat them when he was little? Besides, aren’t you still shorter than the girls from the neighboring girls’ academy? That’s because you don’t eat your vegetables properly.”
“…”
Hao-ge’er’s arrogance deflated. He asked in disbelief, “How do you know? Did you come to our academy to look?”
Without even looking at his expression, Shen Wangshu set down her chopsticks and gracefully wiped the corner of her mouth. “I also know that you’re the shortest in your class, and you have the least strength. The martial instructor praises you only for being diligent, not for being formidable.”
Chen Hao looked as though the sky had fallen. “You… how do you know that?!”
How did she know? Of course, Zhang Mama had told her.
Chen Hao had been born prematurely. When the former madam was pregnant, the Turks attacked, and she was frightened into labor. The child was born crying, and nearly didn’t survive at birth. The entire household had expended great effort to save him and raise him properly.
Although his constitution had gradually strengthened over the years and he no longer fell ill, his development lagged behind that of his peers. Naturally, he was smaller and weaker.
He loved martial arts and was always very serious in class. As the young master of the Duke’s residence, and seeing Chen Hao’s earnest attitude, the martial instructor naturally gave him face and praised his diligence.
After talking with Zhang Mama all morning, Shen Wangshu had not merely listened without remembering. All the useful information about the entire Xuanji Courtyard was already stored in her mind.
The way Chen Hao looked at Shen Wangshu changed slightly. The child asked humbly, “Sister-in-law, is it really because I don’t eat vegetables that I’m not as tall as them?”
The one being looked to nodded calmly. “Make less trouble at night, go to bed early, and drink more milk. I guarantee that by this time next year, you’ll be at least five centimeters taller than this year, and you’ll definitely catch up to them.”
The child clenched his teeth and nodded. “I… I believe you.”
The wet nurse cautiously put vegetables into his bowl again, and Chen Hao obediently ate them all. Though his expression was somewhat contorted, it was far better than his earlier struggle.
After dinner, Hao-ge’er followed the wet nurse back to his own courtyard. Once he left, Chen Ting said in a low voice, “When I was young, it seems I really didn’t eat much vegetables.”
“My husband still has the nerve to say that? You’re the one who set a bad example for Hao-ge’er.” Shen Wangshu shot him a look. It was bad enough that he was picky himself—he didn’t even know to watch it in front of a child.
Even a beauty’s reproach held a thousand kinds of charm. It took Chen Ting quite a while to realize that he had actually been lectured. Yet he felt no anger at all, only saying, “Then next time I won’t eat with him.”
“……”
Heh. What a wonderfully effective solution.
Not long after dinner, Fuyao directed people to carry several large chests into the courtyard. Shen Wangshu, who had been about to take a walk to aid digestion, stopped and curiously watched as the chests were opened one by one—
Two chests were filled with various books. One chest was full of gold—small gold ornaments, little gold pigs, little gold pixiu, all adorably chubby and exquisitely made. The other chests held things like nine-ring puzzles, the Huarong Path, and other brain-teasing toys meant to pass the time.
Shen Wangshu asked, “For Hao-ge’er?”
She hadn’t expected that Chen Ting, who looked so stern as an elder brother, was actually quite considerate.
“…They’re for you.”
Chen Ting said expressionlessly, “If you don’t like them, I’ll have someone move them out and throw them away.”