Chapter 2, Do Not Talk to Strangers

"Grandfather said that once you go out, you can't stop others from discussing it?" Yue Qianqiu squinted his eyes and said with a smile, as if he had no interest at all in this person who claimed to be his uncle

Struck by such a double blow, he fell backward in shock, with the two maids unexpectedly collapsing heavily on top of him, and the three of them immediately tumbled into a heap on the ground

Ding Youcai, with a bruised face and swollen features, knelt inside the door, his clothes torn into strips, every part of his body aching, yet he was even more cautious.

"That's enough." Yue Qianqiu suddenly interrupted Ding Youcai's words, then looked at the middle-aged man who had come to propose with a sympathetic gaze, and suddenly broke into a smile, "My grandfather told me that the woman who might be my mother has a waist of four feet, is robust, has eyebrows like sleeping silkworms, a face like a full moon, and is quite tall... Therefore, you, uncle, have mistaken the person."

Upon hearing these two words, the old master Yu's expression darkened as he said: "Who has bullied him?"

Young Master Jiu's eloquence is truly remarkable

"Ding Youcai? What use is talent? It would be better to call him Ding Facai..." He spoke nonsense with a serious expression, and seeing Ding Youcai turn pale from being choked by his words, he curiously asked, "Also, what is an uncle?"

Old Master Yue San could not contain his anger: "Father, who doesn't know that you have never spoiled your own grandson like this? Who would dare to bully him?"

Ninth Young Master, it is not that I am being meddlesome, but with such a commotion, others will surely start to speak of your background

Yue Qianqiu lowered his head and muttered a word, then glanced at the hunchbacked laundry women outside the door

Singel

Madam Zhao and the laundry women have never been to such an important place as the Crane Ming Pavilion in their entire lives, and now standing outside the door, they all lower their heads deeply

When this series of questions came to a conclusion, the two maids were completely dumbfounded, while the poor Ding Youcai's face alternated between pale and flushed, remaining in a daze for quite a while before he stammered, "My sister is beautiful, of average build, neither fat nor thin, with willow leaf eyebrows..."

At the first moment, "Yue Qianqiu" evokes a familiar term.

Before Ding Youcai could finish speaking, Old Lady Yue leisurely remarked: "There are so many people coming and going at the back door every day, with at least seven or eight playing children, and sometimes even more than a dozen. Looking at Qianqiu's attire, it is not ostentatious, and no one calls him the Ninth Young Master. He has never seen you before, so how did you recognize him? On what basis do you assert that he is your nephew?"

When the figure known as Xiao Ying indeed dragged Ding Youcai, who resembled a dead dog, out like a ghostly middle-aged man, the old master merely glanced at the laundry women and said: "Each person who has contributed to catching the thief will be rewarded with one guan of silver."

Who would have thought that a burglar would break into a perfectly fine home

The middle-aged man suddenly froze, and then hurriedly put on a sorrowful expression. He wiped his eyes, as if to dry his tears, and stepped over the threshold into the back door of the Yue residence: "Ninth Young Master, my surname is Ding, Ding Youcai, and I am your biological uncle"

He had a day of wits and struggles with his colleagues and subordinates, not wanting to return home while facing such expressions. In that moment, he impatiently dismissed his attendants. After entering the second gate and taking a few steps, he finally asked without turning his head: "What has happened again?"

Ding Youcai, kneeling on the ground, noticed that Old Master Yue's expression was growing darker and hurriedly explained: "I am not a robber; I am truly the maternal uncle of Young Master Jiu..."

Realizing that she had merely misheard the words, Yue Qianqiu cast a glance at the other person, her gaze sweeping over the faded black cloth shoes, and then calmly spoke: "Speak plainly."

Yue Sanlaoye was indifferent to the crude and straightforward criticisms of the old master, nor did he pay any attention to the laundry women who were bowing and expressing their gratitude profusely. He cast a sidelong glance at Yue Qianqiu, only to see the little fellow focused on counting on his fingers.

Ding Youcai swiftly darted through the small door that led directly to the inner courtyard, resembling a nimble rabbit, and immediately after, the sound of capturing the thief pierced the sky

Only Yue Qianqiu appeared unbothered. When Old Master Yue entered, he smiled broadly, clasped his hands, and called out "Grandfather," directly sliding into his usual spot on the right side.

Ding Youcai's expression suddenly changed, but he had no time to speak. A middle-aged man standing to the left of the old gentleman suddenly appeared in front of him, grabbing his collar with his left hand and yanking him up, followed by a heavy punch to his stomach

Only he knows that he was indeed adopted, but where is the evidence that the old master saw a woman about to die on the road and thus took her child home to raise? The old man even set a trap for him by exposing his origins!

Yue Qianqiu was very satisfied with the maid's response, and naturally moved closer to her, but looked at Ding Youcai with a puzzled blink: "Since I do not have an uncle, then who is he?"

Everyone in the Yue residence knows that the Fourth Master is currently unaccounted for; no one knows whether he is alive or dead. Therefore, there is naturally no so-called Fourth Madam. The young lady chosen by the old master back then has long since married someone else. Since there is no nominal adoptive mother, how could Yue Qianqiu have an uncle

You little rascal, only you would dare to speak so nonsensically

Capture the robber

In the evening, the sedan chair of Old Master Yue steadily arrived at the second gate. As he bent down to exit the chair, he was met with the stern face of Old Master Yue San.

In the other courtyard, separated by just a wall, Yue Qianqiu was calmly holding onto the corner of a sturdy maid's garment with one hand.

The Crane Ming Pavilion in the inner courtyard and the Swimming Fish Studio in the outer courtyard face each other; one serves as the daily living space for the elder, while the other is a place for receiving guests

In the past, Yue Qianqiu often strolled here, engaging in leisurely conversations with them about everyday matters, and would bring along some fine tea and snacks. There were also quite a few scraps of silk that were scattered about. One's hand is short when it comes to taking from others, and one's mouth is short when it comes to eating from others; otherwise, how could those two maids outside be so stubborn with others?

The two maids exchanged glances, and upon seeing that Yue Qianqiu winked at them, one of them understood immediately and smiled, saying: "Young Master Jiu is right, you indeed do not have an uncle"

Ding Youcai was momentarily stunned, and the old master Yue lightly struck the armrest, speaking word by word: "Xiaoying, take my name card and deliver it to the Yingtian Prefecture Yamen, and ask them to inquire for me"

Noticing the old man's unfriendly tone, Yue Qianqiu raised his head and revealed a sincere smile: "I have noted it down, and in the future, I must never speak to strangers."

A thousand autumns

Is this a personal inquiry? This has already been concluded without any questions, is that acceptable

Madam Zhao was both troubled and helpless. Ever since the old master inadvertently revealed the identity of Yue Qianqiu, most of the servants kept their distance out of respect, either due to their respective masters or out of envy and jealousy. However, for those of them who were responsible for washing clothes, it truly felt that any master in the household was far too distant.

Old Master Yue did not pay attention to anyone else, and with a stern face, he asked Yue Qianqiu: "Qianqiu, I have instructed you many times not to run around everywhere, why do you not listen again?"

What is it, are you feeling unhappy? What you want to say is that I don't spoil my own grandson this much, but I don't spoil my own son this much either, right? How old are you, arguing and being jealous with a little child!

Ding Youcai never expected to be put in such a predicament by a child, his expression quite unpleasant. After a long pause, he stammered, "Ninth Young Master, I am the elder brother of your biological mother, so I am indeed your uncle. My poor sister came to the capital with her child to seek refuge with me, but who would have thought she fell ill on the way..."

He was momentarily stunned, but then his expression changed drastically as he attempted to rise. However, the two sturdy maids pressing down on him were simply too strong. Despite his efforts to push them away, he was unable to move them at all, and could only watch helplessly as seven or eight robust maids armed with clubs rushed out. In an instant, a rain of clubs began to fall upon him.

The two maids who were washing clothes by the well were originally eavesdropping, and upon hearing the phrase "speaking human language" from Yue Qianqiu, they nearly burst into laughter, almost toppling off their stools.

As if fearing that this reflection was not profound enough, he added, "Especially do not talk to strangers who come to claim kinship. Otherwise, grandfather will have to confront people every time."

What does your sister look like? Is she tall or short, fat or thin? What kind of clothes does she usually like to wear, and what kind of jewelry does she wear? Are her eyes big or small, does she have willow leaf eyebrows or crescent moon eyebrows, and does she have phoenix eyes or double eyelids?

Old Master Yue was instantly amused. It turned out that he had just been confronting a scammer who had appeared out of nowhere

Yue Qianqiu could not help but squint his eyes. It was only a few days ago that the old master casually mentioned in the outer study, Youyu Studio, that his biological mother might have the surname Ding, and already someone had swooped in like a fly drawn to the scent of blood

Yue Sanlaoye was almost brought to tears by what his own elder had said

Turning around, he saw that person standing outside the back door, still a distance away from him. He raised his eyes to scrutinize the other for a moment, suspiciously raising an eyebrow: "Who are you?"

Even as the leader myself, after being called "Aunt Zhao" by Yue Qianqiu so many times, upon hearing the little one shout so loudly to catch the thief, could I just stand by and watch

He was too lazy to beat around the bush and directly recounted the incident in the backyard involving the capture of the thief, then promptly closed his mouth to avoid being retorted by the old man again

He does not want others to help, yet he has caused a lot of trouble for himself

He soon awaited the old master's statement: "Qianqiu, do you realize your mistake?"

One of the burly maids stepped forward in a swift motion, unexpectedly pressing down on his shoulder while suddenly tripping him with her foot. The other, a shorter maid, was even more fierce, directly charging into his embrace.

Fortunately, this time the old man remained silent for a while and did not utter any unpleasant words. Instead, he simply instructed, "Bring the person to Heping Pavilion, and I will ask personally."

What jealousy and rivalry, how can you use idioms, I am not a woman!

He anticipated that this catch would be easily within reach, but unexpectedly, Yue Qianqiu swiftly darted behind a maid. His reaction was also extremely quick; he immediately took a sliding step and continued to pursue Yue Qianqiu. However, he originally thought that this Ninth Young Master would be in an awkward position at the Yue residence, and that the two maids would at most just put on a show, yet they unexpectedly rolled up their sleeves and surrounded him.

Song Qiying, the assistant magistrate of Yingtian Prefecture, is one of his staunch supporters

Faced with the utterly sincere face of Yue Qianqiu, Ding Youcai's expression turned ashen. In the next moment, he could no longer be bothered to waste words, took a deep breath, and suddenly lunged towards Yue Qianqiu.

The two maids could no longer contain themselves and burst into laughter together. However, after laughing, they saw Yue Qianqiu beckoning them with her hand, and they quickly stood up awkwardly, wiping their damp hands on their aprons before hurrying over. Yet, just as they reached Yue Qianqiu, they heard a jaw-dropping question.

When the commanding maid lowered her head to look at him, he immediately revealed a charming smile: "Aunt Zhao is truly impressive"

But the middle-aged man became excited and agitated. Dressed in somewhat worn clothes, he stepped forward and eagerly asked, "Is it you, Xin Ge'er?"

He quickly explained the course of events, but did not mention at all that he was already well acquainted with those laundry women. Once something truly happened, he was confident that he could call upon this group of the strongest women to help with just one shout

Is it really so easy for outsiders to enter through the back door of the house on ordinary days

I only know that I have a grandfather, uncles, aunts, older brothers, older sisters, younger sisters, and also nephews and nieces. What is an uncle?

In the next moment, Ding Youcai heard a clear and sharp voice: "There are robbers! Catch the robbers!"