Exchange Fate! She Saved the whole family and the Short-Lived Marquis!-Chapter 104: My Lord, Do You Find Me Annoying?
Although Hu Zi is mischievous, he is lively and sweet-talking, making the customers at the teahouse happy and receiving generous tips from them each day.
Thanks to the convenience of having children from the orphanage, Fu Shinian found a few reliable ones and asked them to pay attention if they happened upon Xiao Fengxing outside.
There’s no need to follow him intentionally; don’t let yourselves get into danger.
However, if Xiao Fengxing happens to be where they work, they should just keep an eye on him.
"Hu Zi said that Xiao Fengxing met with Lin Qingqing’s father at their teahouse," Chunmian said in a low voice. "So Hu Zi swapped duties with a colleague and went to serve in the room."
"As a result, he overheard Lin Qingqing’s father urging Xiao Fengxing to propose marriage to the Lin family," Chunmian said. "Since Xiao Fengxing was originally engaged to the eldest daughter, Lin Qingqing had been waiting for him. But now that the engagement is off, and with Xiao Fengxing’s scandal, no family would be willing to give their daughter to him."
"Lin Qingqing’s father specifically reminded Xiao Fengxing that he is not yet Marquis Changping, and seeing the marquis in increasingly good health, it seems unlikely... So no family would take the risk of marrying their daughter to him. If he still hopes to marry a noble lady, he will have to give up on that idea."
"No one knows how long it will take before he becomes Marquis Changping," Chunmian said in a low voice. "Hu Zi was outside the door at the time and couldn’t see Xiao Fengxing’s expression when hearing this. However, he heard Xiao Fengxing guarantee that he would definitely propose to the Lin family."
"When Mr. Lin asked when he planned to propose, Xiao Fengxing said he would propose after the imperial exams, once his name was on the list, so that he wouldn’t be just the heir of the Changping Marquis family but a newly graduated scholar," Chunmian said. "This would also bring glory to Lin Qingqing."
"Mr. Lin said that although he did not doubt Xiao Fengxing’s talent and believed he would pass, there was always a ’what if’ scenario," Chunmian said. "Xiao Fengxing replied that even in the unlikely event that he didn’t pass, he would still propose marriage. But he was determined to pass and only asked Lin Qingqing to wait two more months."
"Mr. Lin agreed."
After saying all this, Chunmian said angrily, "So it turns out that Lin Qingqing had been involved with Xiao Fengxing for a long time. It’s really shameless!"
"Previously, Lin Qingqing was good friends with the eldest daughter. At that time, the eldest daughter’s engagement with Xiao Fengxing was still on, and Lin Qingqing was involved with Xiao Fengxing while also maintaining a friendship with the eldest daughter."
"Those two were clearly toying with the eldest daughter!" Chunmian said angrily.
"Indeed." Fu Shinian said coldly.
Seeing her so calm, Chunmian asked curiously, "Why are you not surprised at all, miss?"
Fu Shinian sneered, "I’ve long suspected the two of them but never had any evidence. What Hu Zi said today just confirmed my suspicions."
"Those two shameless people really suit each other," Chunmian said indignantly. "It’s just as well they end up together, so they won’t harm others."
"Even so, we can’t let them have their way so easily," Fu Shinian said. "There is no way they can have a grand and celebrated wedding."
"Since Mr. Lin met with Xiao Fengxing today, Xiao Fengxing and Lin Qingqing will surely meet in secret as well," Fu Shinian said, lowering her gaze. "Besides keeping an eye on Xiao Fengxing, make sure to watch Lin Qingqing closely."
"As for Xiao Fengxing, I only told the children to pay attention to him if they saw him at work. Xiao Fengxing is cunning, ruthless, and can’t put the children in danger. Following him might be dangerous," Fu Shinian said. "But there’s less worry about Lin Qingqing."
She is a young girl from a noble family and rarely goes out unless necessary. Besides, she is busy making shoes these days. Even if she’s only pretending, she can’t just leave the mansion easily," Fu Shinian said, looking down. "If she goes out, it must be to secretly meet Xiao Fengxing."
"Chunmian, have your brother contact Cheng Da and ask them to keep an eye on the Lin Mansion. As soon as Lin Qingqing leaves the mansion, tell me immediately," Fu Shinian said.
"Why bother with Cheng Da? My brother can keep watch," Chunmian said.
Fu Shinian shook her head, "Your brother isn’t in this line of work. Cheng Da, being on the streets all the time, reacts quickly and knows how to handle situations."
"Besides, the Lin family is an official family. There’s no need to put your brother at risk. Cheng Da takes money to do the job, so there’s less burden," Fu Shinian said.
So Chunmian went to find her brother.
However, Fu Shinian did not forget her purpose of coming to the Marquis Mansion, which was to ensure Xiao Chengyu rested well.
This time, Chunyu came with her to the Marquis Mansion. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞
Fu Shinian had Chunyu pack the incense-making materials and went to Xiao Chengyu’s study.
Seeing Fu Shinian bring such a pile of things, Xiao Chengyu questioned her with his eyes.
"The marquis doesn’t have any meetings today, right?" Fu Shinian asked.
"That’s right," Xiao Chengyu said.
"Then may I make incense here? Will it disturb the marquis?" Fu Shinian asked immediately.
"I make incense quietly," Fu Shinian added, "The marquis has seen me make incense before, haven’t you?"
Indeed, she made incense silently, but a young girl sitting there would unsettle his thoughts.
Fu Shinian asked again, "Is the marquis annoyed by me?"
Xiao Chengyu: "..."
How could he possibly bear to be?
"No, I’m not..." Xiao Chengyu could only say.
"Then that’s good." Fu Shinian happily directed Chunyu to place the items on the table.
This table had previously belonged to Fu Changqin.
Because of the New Year, Mr. Changshan had given Fu Changqin a break.
On regular days, Fu Changqin would study with Mr. Changshan and then stay in Xiao Chengyu’s study to do his homework.
As Fu Changqin did his homework, Xiao Chengyu would handle his official duties and supervise Fu Changqin.
Since Fu Changqin started studying at the Marquis Mansion, his studies had improved so much that even Mr. Fu thought he had a shot at the lists.
Now that Fu Changqin was resting, Fu Shinian used Fu Changqin’s desk.
To avoid disturbing Xiao Chengyu, Fu Shinian handled everything gently, striving to make no sound.
Her purpose in coming to the study, besides ensuring Xiao Chengyu rested on time, was to figure out if there was any place in his daily routine where one might exploit an opportunity to poison him.
But soon enough, Fu Shinian realized that Xiao Chengyu’s place was truly impenetrable.
Because Xiao Chengyu had few servants around him, any unfamiliar face would be noticed immediately.
Everything had to be checked by Jing Lai and Shaoyao before being further inspected by a doctor.
Especially people associated with Xiao Fengxing, they couldn’t even get close to Xiao Chengyu’s quarters.
Xiao Chengyu hadn’t heard Fu Shinian’s voice for a while and couldn’t help but look over.
