Chapter 197: Chapter 197: Having Lewd Thoughts About Her
Tuan naturally wasn’t happy that the big kite belonged to someone else, but he never dared to defy Second Uncle’s arrangements.
In the Pei Mansion, the strictest towards Tuan was Pei Yuan. After all, the authority of a father was right there, so Tuan was always afraid of his father. Then there was Uncle; though he cared for him, there had to be reason. When things lacked reason, Second Uncle was even stricter than his father.
The three of them played with kites, and it proved that the Princely Heir’s arrangement was reasonable. A little child like Tuan struggled to manage even a small kite, needing Ren Hua’s help. As for the big kite, it was out of the question.
The kite soared high, drawing the attention of the Third Miss and others who came to watch, and they were all very envious of such a beautiful kite.
"Where did this kite come from? Were there other kites prepared today?" Miss Tan asked, clearly drawn in.
Despite a bit of friction earlier, the guests were guests, and the Third Miss couldn’t truly drive people away, so they had to be treated politely.
"Perhaps Tuan is playing with a kite," the Third Miss said.
Upon hearing this, Miss Tan immediately took an interest. Her mother had instructed her to get closer to Tuan. If Tuan liked her, then the match with the Pei Family would become much easier.
"Who is Tuan playing with? Let’s go and take a look."
As they arrived, they saw Qu Fulan, Ren Hua, and Tuan happily playing together.
Miss Tan had initially thought a little maid was accompanying him, but unexpectedly, it was those two, especially Ren Hua. How could she be allowed to play with the young master?
She immediately approached, displaying what she thought was a friendly smile, and said to Tuan, "How about I play with you?"
Miss Tan believed children would prefer to play with her. If she could get along with Tuan, why would she have to worry about Mr. Pei changing his mind?
Tuan didn’t even look at her.
Kids don’t calculate as adults do; they like what they like and don’t like what they don’t—it all depends on their first impression.
Moreover, over the years, many women had tried to get close to Mr. Pei through Tuan. Tuan was not foolish; he somewhat knew these women wanted to become his stepmother and compete with him for his father. He didn’t like any of them.
Miss Tan’s smile froze as she felt awkward before Tuan.
The Third Miss, worried she might lose face, spoke up, "Who made Tuan this kite? It’s so beautiful."
"Second Uncle gave it to me; this small one is mine, the big one’s for her," Tuan said, pointing at Qu Fulan.
Upon hearing this, those outside of the Third Miss’s group changed their expressions.
It was natural for the Princely Heir to give Tuan a kite, but to give one to a lady—what did that mean?
Putting others aside, Miss Liu’s expression turned very unpleasant.
Back when Qu Fulan was still the Princely Heir’s maid, it was said that he treated her extremely well. Now that she’s not anymore, he still gives her a kite, whereas none of the other Pei Mansion sisters received one—what’s the reason?
The Third Miss and Fang Yuan naturally understood what it meant; it was just Second Brother’s usual way. They were already accustomed to it.
Fang Yuan was also envious. Before, she would have felt uncomfortable, but by now, she had been impressed by Qu Fulan’s capabilities and didn’t mind these things.
Cheng Ru said little today because of the presence of Qu Fulan and Ren Hua, both with the lowest status. Her father’s low official ranking seemed negligible, as she was still a daughter of an official family, far more prestigious than being part of a merchant’s family.
In comparison, Cheng Ru wasn’t troubled this time. After being excluded by Miss Tan and Miss Liu previously, she became wiser, speaking just enough to gain favor.
She should’ve said a few words to gain goodwill, but watching Qu Fulan with the kite, she instinctively felt down, losing the will to speak further.
Qu Fulan, flying the kite, had to endure the intense gazes from others, which made her uncomfortable.
The same went for Ren Hua, who couldn’t fully concentrate on assisting Tuan. Unthinkingly, Tuan’s kite fell from the sky, drifting and landing on the lotus leaves in the pond’s center.
Seeing this, the little fellow cried out, "It’s all your fault! When you came, my kite fell."
"Don’t worry, don’t worry, we’ll have someone row a boat to get it," the Third Miss hurriedly comforted him.
With lotus flowers in the pond, rowing a boat to the middle without spoiling the flowers wasn’t easy unless the rower was nimble enough to steer the boat’s direction.
But the garden boys were not around, and the maids couldn’t row, with the kite nearly slipping from the lotus leaves into the water, making Tuan extremely anxious.
"I can row; I’ll go get it," Ren Hua said.
"Are you sure? Don’t force yourself," Qu Fulan whispered, knowing she was good at swimming but hadn’t rowed before.
Ren Hua said, "Relax, I rowed boats for fun back home in the city. There are a lot of lotus flowers in this pond, which is indeed troublesome, but if you’re careful, it’s doable."
With that, Ren Hua boarded the boat alone, maneuvering the oars to avoid the flowers efficiently. She finally reached the center and retrieved the kite.
Seeing this from the shore, Tuan clapped joyfully.
"Sister Ren Hua, you’re amazing!" Tuan praised.
Ren Hua handed the kite to Tuan with a bit of embarrassment.
Other girls watched, particularly Miss Tan, jealousy burning within her. She couldn’t help but say, "It’s just what servants do. Real girls from good families wouldn’t do such things."
Noble girls indeed didn’t row boats; they were born to enjoy the service of others. Tasks like rowing were naturally for servants.
Fang Yuan, bold as always, retorted, "Servant or not, what matters is retrieving the kite. It’s a good deed and deserves praise."
Miss Tan feared Fang Yuan’s status; being a rightful cousin from the Marquis Mansion, if she were to marry into the Pei Family, it would require maintaining the relationship. Thus, she couldn’t speak further.
However, Miss Tan didn’t realize her earlier comment had already made her detestable in Tuan’s eyes.
Children cherish their belongings, and being spoken to like that wouldn’t make them happy.
In the evening, Tuan complained in front of his father, "I don’t like that Tan Family girl. My kite fell into the pond, and she couldn’t help but kept making sarcastic comments."
Pei Yuan never liked the Tan Family girl; even if he did, if he wanted to remarry, he wouldn’t disregard his son’s wishes.
"Then who do you like?" Pei Yuan asked, stroking his son’s head.
Tuan replied without hesitation, "I like Sister Ren Hua and Sister Fulan. They played with me, and I was very happy."
Naturally, Pei Yuan knew Qu Fulan, but as for Ren Hua...
Ever since he saw her dressed as a girl, Pei Yuan had dreamt about her several nights, feeling perplexed yet embarrassed. When had he become like those rake men, harboring such indecent thoughts about an innocent young girl...