Chapter 167: She’s No Longer Special
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Grandpa and Grandma had not seen their great-grandchildren and granddaughters for a while. They were living happily every day, but now that they knew that the sixth day of the lunar new year was coming, they were looking forward to reuniting with the big family.
When it was almost noon, the Han family finally arrived outside Heng Manor.
Today, all of her uncles and aunts were not here. Instead, her brothers, sisters-in-law, and cousins of the same generation all came with their children.
Although Han Qiao was prepared, she was still a little surprised to see so many children.
She asked Han Chi to greet them one by one.
The Han family was very puzzled by Han Qiao’s adopted son. They didn’t understand why she didn’t choose one of the Han family’s children if she wanted a son.
Han Chi, on the other hand, greeted them with a calm expression and received a red packet.
He Cheng followed behind him and talked to every one of the guests in his childish voice. He also received a red packet.
After greeting the children, the children were filled with red packets and stood at the side happily.
“Alright, all of you go play. Ah-Xiu, Ah-Yi, you play with your sisters. Ah-Chi, you play with your brothers and take care of everyone.”
“Yes, Mother.”
The children bowed respectfully.
Even He Cheng followed.
He was usually a delicate child, but now he learned to be obedient and followed behind his brother and sisters, running around.
Children loved crowds.
When there were more children, he did not even dare to cry, afraid that no one would play with him if he did.
The adults had their own matters to discuss.
“Let’s have lunch first. We’ll talk slowly after.”
Han Qiao asked again, “Do you want to stay overnight here? Tomorrow is a market day. Even if you don’t want to buy anything, you could still enjoy the show.”
Whenever Puyi County held its market every seventh day, the people from the nearby villages would come over to sell some things that their families could not finish eating. Some would dig up flowers, plants, and herbs from the mountains to exchange for some silver to subsidize their families.
There were also many well-connected and bold traders selling all kinds of things.
“Can your house accommodate so many people?” Han Xiaohong quickly asked.
“Isn’t there an inn nearby? I’ll get Bai Cha to book an inn.” Han Qiao waved at Bai Cha to hurry over.
The inn was open all year round, and people were staying there during the New Year.
Fortunately, Bai Cha quickly rushed over and booked many rooms at once. As long as there were people who could stay, their bookings would remain valid.
Her cousins were even happier. Staying in the county town for a night was not as simple as staying for a night. They wanted to let their in-laws know that they were close to Han Qiao. If they wanted to bully her, they had to think twice.
The family was counting on this sister to earn money in the future.
A few aunts and cousins came a little later.
Thanks to the delay they hadn’t eaten yet.
Han Qiao quickly went over to welcome them.
“Our house is a little far away, so it’s only natural to be late. Don’t take it to heart.”
“Look at what you’re saying. We’re a family. Let’s go inside and wash our hands.”
Han Qiao kindly invited her cousins into the house. They had also brought their children over, which made the place even more lively.
Ten tables were set up in the dining room before all of them sat down. The children even squeezed together. The three or four-year-olds were carried by the adults, or they stood beside the adults to carry a bowl. Han Qiao wanted to set up another table.
“We all sit like this at home. There’s no need to specially set up a table for us. This is enough.”
The children weren’t as delicate as Han Qiao had imagined.
It was already a great joy to be able to come to the county town as a guest, eat good food, and get red packets. They did not care if they could eat at the table or not.
Especially the three or four-year-old children, who didn’t know much. They were very happy to be able to eat all the dishes on the table. Moreover, they were still young, so the adults gave them a lot of food. It was more comfortable than eating at the table.
Han Qiao smiled and invited everyone to eat.
Heng Yi invited his brothers, cousins, and brothers-in-law to drink. He raised his glass and toasted them, remembering their faces so that he wouldn’t feel embarrassed if he didn’t recognize them the next time he saw them.
Since Han Qiao was pregnant, everyone took care of her, so she didn’t need to move around much.
The children were greeted by the lively Han Chi.
Although he wasn’t Han Qiao’s biological child, he wasn’t afraid at all. He greeted all the older children very well.
Meanwhile, in an alley not far from the gates of Heng Manor, Zhou Anshan nudged Han Xiang, “Go ahead.”
Han Xiang’s face darkened.
She didn’t want to come in at all, especially today. Her brothers and sisters were all here. No one said anything about right and wrong, but they knew it in their hearts.
In order to curry favor with Han Qiao, no one would speak up for her.
She turned to look at Zhou Anshan and saw that his eyes were filled with hope and anticipation. She took a deep breath and said, “I’ll give it a try then.”
“Remember to talk nicely when you go. She’s your sister. There’s no overnight enmity between sisters. If she doesn’t like you, just tell her nicely. There are so many relatives today, she will speak up for you.”
“Aren’t you going inside?” Han Xiang asked.
Zhou Anshan opened his mouth before he shook his head.
On the second day of the second lunar month, he met Heng Yi the man, but Heng Yi ignored him.
He was afraid of Heng Yi and didn’t dare to go.
If Han Xiang went, Heng Yi wouldn’t openly attack her. No brother-in-law would hit his sister-in-law.
However, he was different, and if Heng Yi did raise his arm, he could not fight back.
Moreover, he couldn’t beat them if the couple were to tag team.
Han Xiang pursed her lips and dragged her tired body inside.
The door of Heng Manor was wide open. She stood at the gate and looked inside. She could only see a wall blocking the hall inside.
When the butler saw Han Xiang, his expression changed slightly.
He hesitated for a moment and decided to ignore her.
Han Xiang took a deep breath and went forward. Dong Lai immediately stopped her, “I’m sorry. My master and madam have instructed that you are not allowed to cross the threshold. Please leave.”
Han Xiang was stunned at first, then she flew into a rage out of humiliation. “You’re only a slave, a dog, do you know who I am?”
“I know. That’s why 1 didn’t let you in,” Dong Lai repeated, not at all irked by her words.
His master had instructed him and he would do as he was told.
He did not care about anything else.
Han Xiang wanted to cry, but Dong Lai came closer and advised her, “I advise you not to cry here. It’s the new year, it won’t look good if you make a fuss. This family is all respectable people, so they had to keep their dignity. If you shamelessly threw it on the ground, you could not blame others for trampling on you.”
Han Xiang blushed.
Her head buzzed as she turned to look at the alley.
Zhou Anshan was still there, but he didn’t come out from his hiding spot.
Dong Lai followed her gaze and naturally saw Zhou Anshan cowering away.
Dong Lai pursed his lips.
That man was not a man.
He actually let his wife stand up for him while he cowers behind her.
In the end, if everything worked out, he would get the benefits, while his wife would have to experience all the bad and negative consequences if things were to go south.
No wonder his Master and Madam looked down on him.
“…” Dong Lai snorted and returned to the small room next to the door to continue eating.
This residence was built according to the layout of a rich family. The main entrance was a screen wall, and on one side of the screen wall was a gatehouse. There were also two rooms for the servants to rest in. On the side was a place to park the carriage and a place to raise horses, making it convenient for the Master to enter and exit through the main entrance.
There was also a small door at the side of the courtyard for the carriage to enter and exit.
There were rules everywhere.
However, some people felt that they were the exception.
That was what Han Xiang thought.
However, each time she was hit by a wall, she understood that she no longer had the superiority she once had in front of her sister, Han Qiao. She could no longer receive her sister’s love..
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