Chapter 159: Taken Advantage Of

 Chapter 159: Taken Advantage Of 

Daohua was led by Li family's eldest aunt, Fan Shi, into the main courtyard. Along the way, Fan Shi kept smiling and staring at Daohua, and despite Daohua’s belief that her skin was thick enough, she couldn’t help but feel embarrassed under the constant gaze.

Even after entering the room, Fan Shi continued to look at Daohua without blinking.  

"Big sister, stop staring, you’re making the girl blush," second aunt, Jiang Shi, came forward and rescued Daohua from Fan Shi's gaze.

Fan Shi chuckled, "Blushing makes her even more beautiful!"

Daohua: ...

This eldest aunt was a bit hard to handle!

Jiang Shi laughed as she pulled Daohua to sit down on a mat and said, "Your eldest aunt is like this. She gets mesmerized when she sees a pretty girl. You don’t know, she only married your uncle because she was captivated by your beautiful mother."

Daohua’s eyes widened in surprise.

Even Yan Wenxiu and Yan Wenkai were stunned for a moment.

Fan Shi, hearing Jiang Shi talk about the past, had no shame at all. In fact, she looked quite proud as she explained, "I just liked your mother. She was such a beautiful woman, just looking at her would make anyone feel happy and at ease."

She then laughed to herself and continued speaking to Daohua and her brothers.

"At that time, I saw your mother and thought, if the women in this family are so beautiful, then the men must be just as good-looking. When I saw your uncle, I was a little disappointed, but he was still acceptable, so I reluctantly married him."

Daohua was left speechless, completely stunned.

Was this what people meant by being obsessed with beauty? And not just a little bit, but a super obsession!

Seeing Daohua's round, wide eyes filled with innocence and cuteness, Fan Shi couldn’t resist and reached out to gently touch her soft, fair cheek.

"Ah, how do you take care of your skin? It's so smooth and soft!"

Daohua was stunned, her mouth agape as she stared at her overly pleased aunt. The only thought in her head was that she had just been taken advantage of!

Below them, Li Xingnian glanced at Fan Shi helplessly, but there was also a hint of amusement in his eyes.

He had heard Daohua was quite bold, but now it seemed she was actually caught off guard!

"Big sister, stop teasing. Let the younger ones meet each other now."

Only then did Fan Shi stop her playful behavior and turned to face Li Cheny, the brothers and sisters. "What are you all waiting for? Go and greet your younger sister."

Daohua quickly stood up and bowed to her three cousins and two cousins.

Jiang Shi stood up and began introducing everyone to Daohua. "It’s your first time here, so you might not recognize them, let me introduce them."

"This is your eldest cousin, Li Cheny, he’s two years older than your eldest brother. This is your second cousin, Li Chenliang, he’s a year older than your eldest brother. And this is your third cousin, Li Chenzhi, who was born in the same year as your fourth brother, though a few months older."

She then pointed to the two cousins.

"This is your eldest cousin, Li Zitong, three years older than you. This is your second cousin, Li Zixin, two years older than you. You also have two younger cousins, but they’re illegitimate children, so you won’t meet them today." 

Daohua quietly memorized the names and relationships.

In ancient times, a family could have anywhere from a few members to dozens, or even more. It was definitely a challenge to recognize everyone.

In the Yan family, some households had four generations living together, and when Daohua was introduced to people by the old matriarch, she had caused some funny situations at first.

There were just too many people for her to remember, and it was hard to match faces with names.

After years of practice, she had gotten better at it.

But to avoid embarrassing herself, she would always review beforehand.

Thinking back to the family introductions Madam Li had done for her, she recalled that her eldest and third cousins were from the eldest uncle’s family, while her second cousins and eldest cousin were from the second uncle’s family.

She silently repeated the names and relationships in her mind to avoid mixing them up.

After everyone had been introduced, Daohua was pulled back to sit beside Fan Shi again.

Although it was the first time the cousins had met Daohua, they were all curious about her. However, none of them dared to speak up.

"Hey, what’s going on? We all know each other, so why act so reserved?"

Yan Wenkai couldn’t stand the silence from his cousins. He and his elder brother had been to their uncle’s house several times before, so they were familiar with their cousins. The last time they came, everyone had a lot of fun, but now, none of them spoke, which made him feel uncomfortable.

Seeing several of her cousins looking awkward due to her fourth brother’s teasing, Daohua couldn’t help but burst into laughter. Her fourth brother was such a character—he would say anything, but somehow, it never bothered anyone.

Li Cheny, noticing Daohua’s laughter directed at them, gave a self-conscious smile, quickly averted his gaze, and started talking to Yan Wenxiu.

With Yan Wenkai breaking the silence, the younger generation started to loosen up.

"Yiyi, cousin, what do you usually do at home?"

Li Zixuan pulled Li Zixin to sit next to Daohua and started a conversation.

Daohua smiled and replied, "I read, learn to write, do some needlework, and occasionally tend to flowers and plants. What about you, cousins?"

Li Zixuan, seeing Daohua’s gentle tone and sweet smile, felt a sense of closeness and became less reserved. "We do about the same, though we also learn a few more talents."

"Oh?" Daohua became curious. "What talents do you learn?"

Li Zixuan replied, "I learned to play the konghou, and my second sister learned to dance. Don’t you learn any talents?"

Daohua awkwardly smiled. "I don’t think I have much of a talent for that."

Li Zixin chimed in, "Then what will you do if you’re at a banquet and there’s a talent show?"

Daohua thought for a moment and seriously answered, "I’ll slip away!"

Li Zixuan and Li Zixin were taken aback by her response and were at a loss for words.

Meanwhile, Fan Shi and Jiang Shi were watching the younger ones chatting without interrupting.

"Cousin, what’s that around your neck?"

After talking for a while, Li Zixin, now more at ease, pointed to the pendant Daohua was wearing.

Daohua looked down and smiled. "It’s the jeweled necklace that my two aunts gave me."

Li Zixin shook her head. "I’m not talking about the necklace, I mean the gold round pendant on it."

She and her sister had bought the necklace with their mother and aunt, so they knew what it looked like. But when they bought it, the gold round pendant wasn’t part of it.

Daohua picked up the necklace and smiled. "Oh, this is a pocket watch. I found that it doesn’t match well just hanging from a chain, so I had it set into the necklace."

"A pocket watch?"

When Li Xingnian heard this, he immediately turned to look. "That’s a pocket watch? It’s a foreign item; we rarely see these around here. Only..." He paused, then asked, "Where did you get it?"

Daohua answered, "A friend gave it to me."

Li Xingnian immediately understood what was going on.

It was probably from that Young Prince again.  

"Can I see it?" Li Zixin asked. Since even her second uncle had never seen a pocket watch, she was quite curious.

"Of course." Daohua nodded without hesitation, took off the necklace, and handed it to Li Zixin and her sister.

Seeing this, both Fan Shi and Jiang Shi smiled even more deeply.

At that moment, Li Xingchang returned from outside.

Daohua and her siblings quickly stood up to greet him.

Li Xingchang waved his hand, signaling for them to sit down. "Your eldest uncle has been busy with social engagements lately, so he couldn’t pick you up. Why are you only arriving today?" He then looked at Li Xingnian.

Li Xingnian replied, "There was a delay on the road."

Seeing that he didn’t elaborate, Li Xingchang understood there were matters he didn’t want to discuss in front of the children, so he didn’t press the issue. Instead, he smiled and began chatting with Yan Wenxiu and his siblings about family matters.

(End of Chapter)