"Greetings to the Madam." Li Yaonan bowed politely.
Ma looked happy, glanced at him with a slightly reproachful look, and said angrily: "You kid, you have just recovered, why are you so polite? Get up quickly."
"Gifts should not be wasted." Li Yaonan answered with a straight face, playing the stereotype of a pedantic scholar to perfection.
Ma pointed to the chair next to her and said with a smile, "Hurry up and sit down. Your body is precious now, and you must not make any mistakes."
"Thank you, Madam." Li Yaonan pretended that he didn't understand the hidden meaning in her words and didn't intend to put himself in a difficult position. He sat down in the direction she pointed, and then began to look at the second wife in his memory. Ma Yulian was indeed beautiful, with an oval face, phoenix eyes, a small and delicate chin, red lips that seemed to be shy, skin like snow, and a waist as slender as a willow. Even though she was over 30 years old, from a man's perspective, she seemed more charming. No wonder she was able to bewitch Master Li so much and climb up on Zhang's corpse. As a concubine, she was actually quite successful.
"You are the only one who has so many things to do." Li Shuzhen muttered softly, not hiding the contempt for Li Yaonan on her face.
"Don't talk nonsense." Ma scolded with a smile, but there was no blame in her voice. It was obvious that she agreed with her daughter's words.
"That's right!" Li Shuzhen pouted, turned around and pretended to be angry. Her lips were red without any makeup, her cheeks were rosy, and there was a faint blush on her cheeks. She looked so cute.
Ma was more and more satisfied as she looked at him. Her daughter was so beautiful. She smiled and joked, "You think you are right? How will you find a husband in the future if you are so sharp-tongued?"
"Mom—" Li Shuzhen acted coquettishly, her face flushed, and she swayed while holding Ma's arm.
"Go away! Stop shaking. Your mother is old and can't stand the torture."
"Mom, how can she be old? She is still so radiant and charming."
"You're just sweet-talking."
For a moment, the room was filled with their laughter and joy, and the mother and daughter forgot the presence of others.
Li Yaonan remained unmoved, just pretending not to hear and accepting the cold treatment. It didn't matter. If he took it seriously, he would lose.
His second sister, Li Shuyun, was equally calm and when she saw him looking at her, she gave him a faint smile on her young face, and then sat quietly again, as if the friendly scene just now had never happened.
Li Yaonan was speechless and sighed in his heart, once again confirming that the ancients should not be underestimated, as even a nine-year-old child was so talented.
Time passed by little by little. After a while, Ma seemed to remember that he existed. She patted her daughter's hand, indicating that she would talk to her later. She turned to look at Li Yaonan and asked with a smile, "Nan'er, are you dissatisfied with your marriage?"
Li Yaonan rolled his eyes secretly, this is just nonsense.
Before he could answer, Ma continued, "Your elder brother wanted to marry into a good family for your own good. Now that you have failed the imperial examination and are weak, what will you do in the future? Your father and I can still take care of you while we are still alive. But when we are gone, how can you live without someone who knows your well-being? Wouldn't that make us feel uneasy when we leave?"
Li Yaonan sneered at her words. If it was really for his own good, why wasn't he engaged at the age of seventeen? Children in ancient times matured precociously. Children from ordinary families would start dating at the age of twelve or thirteen, get married at the age of fifteen or sixteen, and could become a father at the age of seventeen. If he had been engaged early, there would be no need for the Lin family, and the original owner would not have died in despair.
"Ma'am, that's too serious. Yaonan will obey the orders of his parents and the words of the matchmaker." Li Yaonan replied stiffly. He didn't say yes or no. Anyway, no matter what the marriage was like, he was a good and filial son and would do everything according to his parents' orders. If there were any bad rumors outside in the future, with his words, it would only be that his parents were unkind, but not that he was unfilial.
Ma was choked and became suspicious. When did Li Yaonan talk like this? But thinking about his pedantic character, she felt it was normal. She smiled and said, "I'm glad you figured it out. The new yard has been decorated. If you see anything missing, I'll have someone fill it in. After you get married, you'll be an adult. Don't act recklessly anymore. Do you understand?"
"I don't agree with what my lady said. Although Yaonan is not talented, he is determined to pass the imperial examination. How can he be so willful and reckless?" Li Yaonan retorted. Ma Yulian was really lying with her eyes open. The original owner could tolerate it, but he couldn't. Since the positions of both parties were determined, why should he swallow his anger
"You kid..." Ma Yulian frowned, and the smile on her face finally faded.
Li Yaonan lowered his eyelids to hide the sarcasm hidden in his eyes. He had his own thoughts in his mind. What a scene of loving mother and filial son. Let's see how she can continue to act.
It has always been like this. Ma Yulian has always been kind to him and always said things for his own good, but every word she said was full of traps. Don't think he doesn't know that he has no reputation now. He is gloomy, eccentric, dull, stupid, has a weird temper, beats and scolds servants, is disrespectful to his brothers and sisters, one by one, every one of these things were caused by Ma Yulian's own words and pinned on him. Now he has to be labeled as willful, as if he has no other redeeming qualities except for his filial piety.
"How do you talk to your mother? She's been busy arranging your marriage, but not only are you ungrateful, you even talk back at her?" Li Shuzhen had a hostile look on her face, feeling indignant for her mother.
Li Yaonan sneered. In today's society, filial piety is the most important virtue. If the original owner had not been so rigid and pedantic, and had not insisted on rules and filial piety in everything, leaving Ma Yulian no chance to take advantage of him, he would probably have been accused of being unfilial and kicked out of the house by now. If he really had the reputation of being unfilial, his life would have been ruined.
"Shut up, women should be idle and chaste, have rules for their actions and silence, refrain from speaking evil words, be friendly to sisters, and respect their elder brothers. These are the virtues of women, so please be careful with your words, younger sister." Li Yaonan shouted angrily. He didn't expect that the pedantic scholar would have such benefits. Thanks to the original owner, he could talk about the rules and etiquette of the ancients at will.
"What did you say? Just because you're a loser--" Li Shuzhen was furious. She never expected that her second brother, whom she usually looked down upon the most, would actually scold her for having no moral character as a woman.
"Shut up!" Ma Yulian's face was stern. She glared at her daughter fiercely, then glanced around with a dark gaze. She was relieved when she found that there was no outsider. Just because Li Shuzhen didn't understand didn't mean she didn't understand. If what Li Yaonan said today got out, how could her daughter say anything about him
Looking at Li Yaonan coldly, Ma Yulian no longer concealed the malice in her eyes, and said sternly: "Nan'er, what you said is too harsh. Shuzhen is your sister after all. Even if there is something wrong, as her elder brother, you should teach her well. How can you insult her like this? How can you let her face people in the future? Since you are familiar with the books of sages, you know how to write the words "fraternal love and filial piety"? If you are not filial to your sister today, will you be unfilial to your parents in the future?"
"Madam—" Li Yaonan was heartbroken, as if the sky had fallen, as if Ma Yulian had said something unbelievable. He stood up and argued: "How dare I disrespect my parents? I taught my sister a few words because there was no one in the house. If I get married and still do this, our Li family's reputation will be ruined, and my sister's lifelong happiness... ... Oh! Forget it... ... Madam, what you say is what it is. Yaonan will not dare to say anything more in the future. Please punish me." Li Yaonan said he would punish her, but he stood there motionless. It was just acting. Everyone knows how to act. It depends on who can act well. Didn't Ma Yulian ruin his reputation in the name of doing good for you? He just gave him a taste of his own medicine.
Ma Yulian was so angry that her heart ached. She had never known that Li Yaonan could be so eloquent. His words were ambiguous, leaving people with suspense. What did he mean by not daring to teach his sister? What did he mean by asking her to punish her? Wasn't this a clear indication that she was unkind
After all, she was the mistress of the house. Ma Yulian calmed down quickly. The fierce light in her eyes flashed away. She stared at Li Yaonan and looked at him carefully. She always felt that the child was different today. Yes, the child was not so gloomy today, and his brows were not so depressed. His whole body revealed a kind of indifference to the world. Ma Yulian pondered the reason for his change, but felt relieved in her heart. She thought that Li Yaonan was just very aggrieved, so he lost his temper. She did not take the child's sudden outburst of resistance to heart.
Li Yaonan's heart tightened, but he didn't show it on his face. He let him look at him openly. The reason why he spoke rudely today was also a decision made after careful consideration. He had no status in this mansion. If he kept a low profile and forbearing, it would be no different from before. He would only be suppressed and unable to raise his head. He had just recovered from a serious illness and vomited blood and fainted. This was a good excuse. The blow he suffered was too great, so it was natural that his temperament changed.
"Child, what's the point of talking about punishment or not? Even if you do something wrong, your mother will not blame you. It's good enough as long as you admit your mistakes and correct them." Ma Yulian smiled lightly, her eyes full of tolerance, and in one sentence she identified him as someone who did something wrong.
Li Yaonan didn't care about it. He knew from the game between him and his stepmother in his previous life that you can never reason with women, because you will never be able to win an argument with them. They always have their own reasons, and even if they are unreasonable, they will come up with several excuses.
"Madam is right, Yaonan will learn from your teaching." Li Yaonan remained calm and bowed. His mind was never in the inner courtyard of the backyard. If Ma Yulian thought that she could turn the situation around with just a few words, she was making a wrong calculation.
"Just tell me if you have anything else to say. You're not in good health, so go back and rest early. You don't have to come and pay your respects to me these few days." Ma Yulian was a little discouraged. She put all her strength into her punch, but it turned out to be a punch on cotton. She felt so depressed that even her expression became a little listless.
Li Yaonan lowered his head, hiding the curve at the corner of his lips. This was exactly what he was waiting for, otherwise all the preparations before would have been in vain.