Li Xia leaned in and whispered in Li Yao's ear, "Let me give you some advice: don't talk to yourself out loud. You're revealing all your cards." Li Yao stared at Li Xia with wide eyes, his mind racing: "She knows, she knows everything."
Li Yao wanted to say he was just babbling nonsense, that it wasn't true. But looking into Li Xia's eyes, he couldn't utter a word.
"Don't worry, I won't say anything," she said. If such matters were to spread, it would bring disaster to the Li family. Of course, she also wouldn't give Li Yao the chance to tell others.
"Qiu Chan," Li Xia called.
"Miss," Qiu Chan quickly approached from behind.
"Take the fourth young master back," Li Xia said, pinching Li Yao's cheek gently. "Be a good little brother."
Li Yao was dazed as Qiu Chan picked him up. He looked up to see Li Xia standing there, smiling at him. Seeing Li Xia like this, for some reason, all his previous hesitation and unspoken words suddenly vanished.
"Sister, I promise I'll study hard and become the top scholar, bringing honor to our family. I'll be your support. No one will be allowed to bully my sisters, Li Yao's sisters." Whether it was Li Shan or Li Xia, he would protect them both.
Hearing Li Yao's words, Li Xia smiled and waved at him. She hadn't experienced the previous life Li Yao had mentioned in his mutterings, so she refrained from commenting on many things.
In this life, Li Yao had always been restraining Aunt Wang and Li Shan. Li Xia saw this and knew he wasn't bad at heart. It was just that Li Yao's nature was too timid; in his previous life, he had been easily swayed, and in this life, he wasn't much bolder.
Li Yao's proclamation was heard by others in the Li household. Mrs. Lu remained noncommittal about it. Li Yao was still young, and wanting to become the top scholar was a matter for more than a decade later. By then, Li Hui's son would be born, so there was no rush.
Auntie An gnashed her teeth in frustration. Why should he be the only one? She had two sons who would surely be even more impressive.
Aunt Wang felt both happy and angry. Happy that Li Yao had ambition, but angry that he said it in front of Li Xia instead of her and Li Shan. After all, Li Shan was Li Yao's real sister.
Li Shan was also angry, but now the most important thing was to protect the child in her belly. This was her bargaining chip. As long as she could safely give birth to the son in her womb, she would be able to secure her position in the Zhao family. The Zhao family would be hers in the future. Li Shan conveniently forgot that Zhao Decheng was the second son, and it was the eldest son who would manage the Zhao family.
After that day, Li Yao told Mrs. Lu that he also wanted to study. Mrs. Lu sent Li Yao to an enlightenment class, where the teacher, fond of the precocious Li Yao, taught him earnestly.
Regarding Li Shan's matter, Mrs. Lu had written to Li Ming about it before Li Hui returned. Li Ming had originally planned everything for Li Shan to live a peaceful life.
Li Shan's willfulness and lack of self-respect had ruined everything. If not handled properly now, it could ruin the entire Li family. Li Ming sent back two letters: one to Mrs. Lu, instructing her to handle everything, and another to Aunt Wang, reprimanding her for not taking proper care of the children. He told her to keep a close eye on Li Shan and to follow Mrs. Lu's arrangements without disobedience.
The Zhao family wanted Li Shan to marry quickly; they couldn't let the child in her womb be born in the Li family. But Li Shan hadn't even reached her coming-of-age ceremony yet, and she had three older brothers and two older sisters who weren't married. Li Hui still had to observe a year of mourning for his fiancée, so things couldn't be rushed.
They needed to find a good solution. The Li family wasn't in a hurry; if necessary, they could terminate the pregnancy and send Li Shan to a countryside estate to fend for herself. But the Zhao family was unwilling. For this reason, Old Mrs. Zhao swallowed her pride and went to Qingan Temple to request a divination from an eminent monk for Zhao Decheng. The divination revealed that only a girl from the south, born in the year of the rabbit, could bring good fortune to her grandson and turn misfortune into blessing. In this way, the Zhao family calculated that the Li family's third daughter was the most suitable.
Old Mrs. Zhao personally went to seek help from the Grand Empress Dowager. The Grand Empress Dowager and Old Mrs. Zhao had been close friends for many years. She issued an imperial edict, and thus the two families managed to smooth things over. Li Shan's wedding was set for June. The weather would be quite hot, but there was no choice – Li Shan was already showing, and if they delayed any longer, it would be impossible to hide.
Li Shan was very happy and proud. Her confinement was also lifted. But among the Li family members, only Aunt Wang was happy. The way Li Shan had acted had offended her entire natal family; she would have a tough time in the future.
Li Xia came to Fuqing Courtyard and saw Li Xin looking upset while searching for something.
"What are you doing?" Li Xia asked curiously.
"Li Shan is getting married in half a month. I'm looking for something suitable to give as a gift," Li Xin said, picking up a piece of jade. "How about this? It would make a nice jade bracelet."
Li Xia, skilled in carving, had considerable knowledge about jade. She looked at the stone and saw it was indeed of good quality.
"Here, take it," seeing Li Xia's approval, Li Xin pushed the jade into her hands and continued searching.
Mrs. Lu had later told Li Xin about the disgusting things Li Shan had done. Li Xin already didn't have much affection for Li Shan, and now she despised her even more. She didn't want to give anything truly valuable to Li Shan.
Li Xin planned to give Li Shan something that looked good on the surface but had little actual value.
Li Xia didn't refuse the jade and carefully examined how to carve it efficiently. The piece was quite large; it could make two bracelets.
"Why aren't you happy?" Li Xia put the jade stone aside.
"It's all because of that Li Shan. She's relying on..." Li Xin paused for a moment before continuing, "Mother has prepared a dowry of 2,000 taels of silver for her, plus some fields and shops worth over 5,000 taels in total."
"That's quite a lot," Li Xia nodded. Mrs. Lu's generosity exceeded Li Xia's expectations. The Li family didn't have much left after their previous ordeal. If it weren't for Mrs. Lu's capable management, they wouldn't even have been able to afford this residence in the capital. Even among noble families, few could provide such a substantial dowry for a concubine's daughter.
After Li Shan's disgraceful behavior, having this much was already a sign of Mrs. Lu's magnanimity. But Aunt Wang and Li Shan thought Mrs. Lu was being stingy and that the dowry was too small.
When the Zhao family came to discuss when to send the betrothal gifts, Aunt Wang actually brought out a list she had prepared herself, expressing gratitude to Mrs. Lu for providing such a generous dowry.
Li Xin became increasingly angry as she recounted this. Aunt Wang was deliberately putting on a show in front of the Zhao family. Mrs. Lu couldn't refute her at the time, allowing Aunt Wang to get away with it. Thinking of this, Li Xin grew even angrier, feeling indignant on behalf of her birth mother.
As Li Xin described the general contents of that list, Li Xia realized that it included the shops she and Li Xin were currently managing. Li Xia couldn't help but comment sarcastically, "Quite an appetite."
"Indeed, the situation at that time... It made Mother lose face, and there was no way to refuse," she said. This marriage arrangement was decreed by the Grand Empress Dowager, so it couldn't be too shabby. Some things Li Shan wanted were given to her. This was Li Shan's leverage, and also Mrs. Lu's concern.
"It's just a shop. We can open a new one," Li Xia said, not caring much about a bookstore. "We can withdraw our staff and reopen in a different location."
"That's right, I was so angry I forgot about that. We'll give her the shop, but we'll take our people with us," Li Xin realized. As long as they had their staff, it wouldn't be difficult to open a new shop elsewhere. Everyone was experienced, and Li Shan only asked for the shop, not the people.
