Qingheng and especially Qiren, did not find too much fault in Little Zhuqin. They had both thought that since Little Zhuqin was their niece who was born and raised in a different clan's mindset, her actions were to be let off simply as playful. However, Qiren still wanted his little nephew to properly apologize the right way.
"Zhan er...why are you not apologizing to your cousin? You, as a little man of your words, said some hurtful things to her and you do not intend to apologize? Is it that you really want to get 50 lashes?" Qiren asked.
"Huh, shufu," Huan began, obviously concerned about his younger brother getting physical punishment.
Little Zhan looked down at the ground and as everyone stayed silent in Lanling Jin's main hall, the boy turned around and gestured his hands in front of his chest. The young lad had pride as a little man of Gusu Lan...but even he had to let go of his own ego and as much as he did not want to apologize to Little Zhuqin just YET, Little Zhan slightly lowered his head.
"Eei, bu yong le (Hey, no need)!" Little Zhuqin cheerfully began then immediately grabbed onto Little Zhan's sleeves, not wanting to be rude and touch his bare hands. "There is really no need to apologize!"
Little Zhan noticed her one hand on his sleeve and immediately, he lightly pulled it away, leaving some wrinkles. He made direct eye contact with Little Zhuqin and lowered his head again...
"Tinngggggg (Stopppppp)!!!!"
...to only be stopped by Little Zhuqin...again (lol).
As predicted, she was going to put on another show to swiftly get Little Zhan, his cousin, out of trouble.
"Zhuqin a," "Bie dong (Don't move)!!" Little Zhuqin playfully interrupted Qiren.
"Wait, you knew my name? Why didn't you say so earlier?!" She cheerfully said and purposely hugged Qiren's leg, sending some niece-uncle electricity bond for a second (lol).
"Uh, Qin er a," "Die, ni men bie dong a (Father, don't you guys move)!!" Little Zhuqin shouted out and as careful as she could, she walked around all of them.
One by one, the young girl observed them altogether with her small eyes and placed her hands behind her back. Then as if she was a young magistrate in charge of a county in ancient China, she playfully ordered for everyone to look her way and as they did, Little Zhuqin smiled contently to know that she was in control at the moment.
Then naturally, a young male attendant sneezed to himself.
"Wo shuo bie dong a, we he ni dong le (I said don't move, why are you moving)?!!" Little Zhuqin shouted as the young male attendant quickly stood still again.
"He, he...heeee!" The young girl chuckled and circled back to Little Zhan.
"..Qin er...what is happening? Is there something wrong?" Guangshan asked his daughter.
"That is right Qin er. It is not good to be treating our guests like this," Baoqi added.
"Father, there IS something wrong!" Little Zhuqin firmly responded.
"...My, I wonder what could be so serious that you are directly standing in front of my younger brother. Could it be that these spring flowers will continue to bloom until winter?" Huan inquired with a soft voice as he was also standing as still as he could.
"...Ni cai a (You guess)," The young girl playfully asked and quickly turned around to stick her tongue out at Huan again.
He let out another small breath like laugh and could not help but keep his child like gaze on his cousin.
"Anyway...there is something REALLY wrong here father, and mother." The young girl began and leaned in closer towards Little Zhan who slightly started to lean backwards from Little Zhuqin.
As everyone stood still, she lowered her head down towards Little Zhan's chest...then slowly, Little Zhuqin lowered her head down to the young boy's stomach. Of course, she made sure to keep her head at a distance, just close enough so she could potentially 'hear' what was wrong with Little Zhan. For a minute or so, everyone stood still and could only hear the chattering of several Jin disciples training from the far end of the palace.
Then as surprising as the young girl could get...
"AIYAAAA!!!" Little Zhuqin screamed out loud, sending everyone out of their mannequin like positions.
Little Zhan had fallen backwards just as Huan caught his brother in time before they fell on the floor together.
"Mother, and father! There is something really wrong!" The young Jin mistress screamed.
"Uh...Dao di zenma la wo de hao haizi a (Uh, just what exactly is wrong my good child)? Making everyone jump in fear like that..." Baoqi said as she helped Guangshan stand up.
"...Uh..." Little Zhuqin began and looked down at Huan then at Little Zhan who looked quite displeased at the moment.
She helped the two Lan siblings stand up then turned to see that even uncle Qiren and Qinheng was on the ground, partially covering their ears with wide eyes.
"Aiya, wo de ma ya (Oh my goodness), uh...hehe, ruguo wo men shi biaoqin, na ni men shi a...ni men shi wo de...jiu jiu ba (If we are cousins...then you guys are uh...you guys are my uncles)." Little Zhuqin laughed then squatted down to help her uncles stand up.
"Hehe, dui bu qi a jiujiu (I am sorry uncle). Wo zhen da bu shi guyi de (I really did not mean to do it on purpose)." Little Zhuqin cheerfully said as her uncles stood back up.
Although she said so, she totally did it on purpose (lol).
"Duo xie a Zhuqin a (Thank you Zhuqin)," Qiren said as he patted his clothes from wrinkles.
"No need to...Oh dui la (Oh right)." Little Zhuqin began. "I was so caught up with my act that I almost forgot what the fake trouble was." She thought and quickly turned around to face Huan and Little Zhan.
"Aiya...what were their names again?" Little Zhuqin quickly thought to herself and looked hard into the two Lan siblings soul (lol). "HmmmmmMM????!"
"...What do you want?" Little Zhan asked.
"Qin er," Baoqi lightly said.
Qiren fixed his forehead ribbon and slightly cleared his throat. Of course, the strict uncle did not forget that Little Zhan needed to do what a little man needed to do as part of the Gusu Lan sect; apologize to the young lady.
"Zhan er, where is your apology?" The strict uncle asked again.
"...Mm," Little Zhan quietly mumbled and gestured his hands up in front of his chest again.
"LAN ZHAN! Right, his name is Zhan. Uh, then the other one has to be..." Little Zhuqin thought and crossed her arms together then squinted her eyes at Huan.
Huan smiled and only let out a small breath like chuckle. The elder Lan brother could easily introduce himself as it was only part of a courtesy act that anyone had to do. He only partially regretted that he and his younger brother did not properly introduce themselves yesterday when they first met her. With the young girl staring straight into his soul with such a determined face (lol), Huan did not want to interrupt her train of thought. He simply began to cheer for her mentally...
"...is Huan...My name is Lan Huan, Zhuqin guniang. It is Huan...Lan Huan."
...and mentally did Little Zhuqin hear.
"Zhan," "LAN HUAN!!" Little Zhuqin shouted out loud, purposely interrupting her uncle Qiren again.
"Huan and..." Little Zhuqin started then turned her attention back to Little Zhan who still had his hands up to apologize to the young girl.
"...Lan Zhan...It is Lan Zhan. You have ben hearing my uncles and brother call me so many times, how can you be forgetting it? Get it right...cousin," Little Zhan mentally thought and sighed then looked away from Little Zhuqin.
"Zhan er," "LAN ZHAN!!" Little Zhuqin shouted out again, interrupting uncle Qiren once again.
"Tsk, ni (You)!" Qiren irritatingly said and squatted down, placing his hand on Little Zhuqin's head. "Just what do you want huh Zhuqin a?"
"Meishenma jiujiu (Nothing uncle)!" Little Zhuqin cheerfully responded while shaking her head and quickly took his hand off her head then playfully embraced it. "Uh, uncle, the trouble that I saw was..."
The young lady glanced over to Little Zhan and Huan then looked back at Qiren.
"The trouble that I saw and heard was that they are hungry," Little Zhuqin firmly said and hastily looked at the two Lan siblings to facially tell them to just go along with the act.
"Shufu, Brother and I are no," "AIYA, BIAOQIN A, ni kan ni, ni shuo shenma ne (Oh my goodness cousin, look at you, just what are you saying)? Didn't you say you were a man yesterday? When a man is hungry, they have to eat too right? If a man does not eat, how will they grow up to be a proper man? Also, I heard some pretty loud noises coming from your little stomach just now. How is it possible that you are not hungry when I clearly heard your stomach huh? Your stomach is begging for food and you're not even going to feed it?" Little Zhuqin abruptly interrupted Little Zhan with nonsense-like sentences.
Little Zhan simply gave Little Zhuqin the cold death glare and put his arms down to his side, knowing that even if he attempted to properly apologize to the young girl, Little Zhuqin was not going to listen at that point. He sighed again and looked at Huan who again, let out a small breath like chuckle then looked at his younger brother.
"Zhan, how can you say that we are not hungry? Are you really going to have your older brother starve?" Huan asked with a smile so gentle, even Little Zhan immediately shook his head to his elder brother's request.
"No, I didn't mean that. I just..." Little Zhan quietly began.
"Ni kan (Look), Huan ge ge (Older brother Huan) is hungry. You must be too." Little Zhuqin quickly said and stuck her tongue out at Little Zhan who only returned her mischevious act with another death glare.
However, childish death glares did not scare Little Zhuqin and she simply chuckled to herself then quickly ran to Baoqi and Guangshan's side as Qiren stood up from squatting down. Zixuan rejoined with his family and only crossed his arms together then leaned in towards Little Zhuqin.
"...You said they are hungry? Are they really hungry?" He quietly asked.
"Ni shuo shenma ne (What are you saying)? As a fellow host to our guests, how can you be asking if they are hungry or not? Am I right mother?" Little Zhuqin quickly responded.
Of course, every special guest deserved good quality food and since Baoqi had thought the true trouble was the fact that the children of Gusu Lan was hungry, even the mother had her own maternal instincts.
"That is right. How can we just be standing around here? You all must be hungry." Baoqi hurriedly said, not knowing that it was just a fake act by Little Zhuqin.
"Uh zhe (Uh this)..." Qiren said and looked at Little Zhan then back at Little Zhuqin.
Qingheng slightly chuckled to himself then patted his younger brother on the shoulder.
"A Qi a," The Lan leader began. "Why don't you just give up?"
"Give what up?" Qiren confusingly asked.
"Just give up." Qingheng said then looked at Little Zhuqin with a happy grin while Qiren also looked at the young girl. "Our little niece...she won't be letting you do what you want with our Zhan er that easily."
If anything, Qingheng had secretly observed Little Zhuqin's way of acting and saying things to distract his younger brother. It was only obvious to the eye that the girl was trying to put up an act to have her way of getting Little Zhan out of trouble...and Qingheng, the Gusu Lan leader, saw it all. He was obviously not the first though; Wei Ying was the first to notice Little Zhuqin's way of getting people out of trouble and Jiang Fengmian was the second.
"You mean she...was purposely doing and saying all that to get me to stop giving Zhan er trouble?" Qiren explained. "But I am only doing it for his own good. Brother, think about it. We cannot be letting Zhan er get his way with how he talks to young girls, especially her. Zhuqin is Zhan er and Huan er's cousin, it only makes sense that they both treat her nice. But Zhan er is going against our ancestors rules and someone has to properly teach him how to treat others. If not me, then who will?"
"...Me?" Qingheng jokingly pointed to himself while he received a light smack on the head by his younger brother.
"You can't even be here half the time. Listen, if Zhan er does not apologize to Zhuqin today, I will be sure to give him 50 lashes when we return home." Qiren noted and cleared his throat then looked at Little Zhan who only blankily stared up at his strict uncle.
"What is it?" asked Qiren.
"Shufu, even if you want me to apologize, I can't." Little Zhan responded while Huan nervously smiled, thinking that they were going to have another argument that was going to go nowhere.
"Fangsi (Impudent)! How dare you say that you can't!" Qiren loudly said, catching the attention of Little Zhuqin again.
Little Zhan immediately looked down and while it was obvious that he was upset at this point, the young lad could only squeeze both his fists together. Little Zhuqin's plan to have Little Zhan escape trouble was going a little out of place and even her cheerful smile was beginning to fade since she could feel the pressure that the young boy was having. However no matter how problematic the young six-year-old felt, Little Zhuqin forced her way into the Gusu Lan Sect's problem again and quickly ran to uncle Qiren with the same bubbly voice.
"Jiujiu, ni bie shenqi le (Uncle, do not be angry)," She began and held onto Qiren's left hand.
"You," "Uh, wo kan kan (Uhm, let me see)," Little Zhuqin interrupted Qiren again and playfully placed her right ear on her uncle's stomach.
"Uh..." Huan and Little Zhan both said as an imaginary sweat rolled down both sides of their heads.
Baoqi was about to go to the kitchen but as much as she adored her step child to have her fun freely among the palace, even the ferocious lady of the Lanling Jin sect had some sense of humbleness.
"Qin er, to be doing that to your elders," "Eeii, jiusao (Hey sister-in-law), no need to be too formal. It is only natural for our niece to be curious about us. Let her play a little." Qingheng immediately interrupted with a smile.
He knew that Qiren did not really appreciate physical contact since he was also strict on himself with the clan's regulations. However, because Little Zhuqin was just a small child, what else could the strict uncle do? Besides, with that bubbly smile and puffy cheeks of hers, how could the strict uncle easily push the young child away (lol)? Baoqi just stood where she was and carefully looked on to make sure her step daughter was not going to do anything too reckless.
A minute or three passed and Little Zhuqin finally moved away from Qiren's stomach, still holding onto his hand.
"Ha, ha! Zhuqin a, what did you find?" Qingheng asked with a slight chuckle.
"Uh right, what did you find? And Qin er, to be doing that to your own uncle..." Guangshan said and flared his fan open.
"AIYA!" Little Zhuqin said loudly. "Jiujiu jiujiu, mofei...ni e ma (Uncle, uncle, can it possibly be that you are hungry)?"
"...Ah?" Qiren questioned the young girl while Qingheng began to quietly laugh to himself.
"Let me tell you uncle, I heard that when people are angry, they are hungry. So you might actually just be hungry." Little Zhuqin cheerfully informed and let go of Qiren's hand then looked at the two young Lan siblings.
Out of absolutely nowhere, she quickly reached over and grabbed onto both of their hands then pulled them close to her. She obviously did not have any other intentions as she was still a young six-year-old at heart but was it a different story for Little Zhan and Huan?
"Let's go ea," "Let go!" Little Zhan immedietley said and forcefully swung their hands apart as Huan continued holding onto Little Zhuqin's hand.
"What..." The young girl confusingly thought to herself and had forgotten to not get too close to Little Zhan's personal bubble, to which she already did....so there was no going back (lol).
"Zhan er," Qiren hastily said as Little Zhuqin quickly grabbed onto Little Zhan's hand again and squeezed it tighter,
"Ni, ni (You, you)!" Little Zhan stuttered as he tried shaking off the young girl's hand.
Huan looked at his younger brother who was only struggling to get free and let out a small breath like chuckle then only happily sighed to himself. It was obvious that the elder Lan brother could easily be polite and tell their cousin to respectfully back off like what he did yesterday. But because of Little Zhuqin's innocent intentions, Huan simply let the girl do what she needed to do...and wanted to do.
"Fang shou, ni kuai fang shou (Let go, hurry and let go)!" Little Zhan continued to struggle just as Little Zhuqin stubbornly held onto the young fellows hand with a grinning face.
"Wo-bu-fang-shou (I-am-not-letting-go)." Little Zhuqin mockingly said with a smile and only stuck her tongue out at the young boy as Huan gently laughed at the young girls sense of humor.
"Ni, Qin er (You, Qin er)!" Zixuan irritatingly clenched his teeth together and was about to again, run to interrupt Little Zhuqin.
However THIS time, Guangshan stopped his son in his tracks and as Zixuan questioned his father with his eyes, the Jin leader simply fanned himself with his fan. On his face...was quite the grin. His eyes...sharp.
"Father...you...can't be..." Zixuan asked.
"Can't be what son?" Guangshan questioned and placed his hands on Zixuan's shoulder then forced the boy to look at the small trio of Little Zhan, Huan and Little Zhuqin.
"Can't you see son? There are flowers everywhere." The Jin leader whispered with excitement.
"Flowers? Hmph, where?" Zixuan arrogantly replied and shook off his father's hands just as Baoqi heard their conversation.
"Flowers, son, flowers. Do you not see flowers blooming over there?" Guangshan asked his son again and folded up his fan then pointed it at the little trios. "So...SOOOO many flowers!"
"Fang shou, wo shuo fang shou (Let go, I said let go)!"
"Woooo buuuuu fannnnggg shoouuu (I will not let goooooo),"
"You, Zhuqin!"
"Zenma la, ni shenqi a (What, are you angry)? Aiya, ni bie shenqi le (Hey, don't be angry). Ruoguo wo fang shou, fanzheng ni dao di qu nar ne (If I let go, where exactly are you going to go anyway)?"
"Nowhere, now let go!"
"Na wo bu fang shou (Then I will not let go)!"
"Ha, ha. I am glad you two are having fun."
"Brother, help me please."
"Zhan, you should be honoured to have this young miss hold your hand. Not only that, she is our lovely cousin too."
"But she," "Huan is right. How many times have a young girl held your hands huh?"
"...None."
"See? Then it's decided. I will not let go!"
"Ni, (You)!"
Realizing that his father was comparing flowers to the passionate interactions Little Zhuqin, Little Zhan and Huan was having, Zixuan let out an angry breath like sigh and crossed his arms together then turned away from the trio only to see Baoqi talking with an attendant.
"Before we came, did the guests have anything to eat?" asked Baoqi.
"Reporting to Jin furen," One of Guangshan's attendant began. "The guests did have something small to eat earlier this afternoon before you, the young master and the young miss came home."
"Something small? Hmph, of course, my husband would not know how to properly treat his guests to a proper feast. Not to mention, they are direct relatives from mei mei's (Lan Yunlin) side of the family." Baoqi thought.
"Something small?" She asked Guangshan's attendant.
"Shi (Yes)," Guangshan's attendant replied.
Baoqi looked at the Jin leader who continued to pester their son about 'flowers' (lol) then looked back at the attendant, and gave order for him to go to the kitchen to inform the ladies to cook a special feast for their in-laws from Gusu. She turned her attention back to her husband and son then began to walk their direction. As Little Zhuqin saw her step mother approaching her father and Zixuan, the young girl took the random chance then ran to Baoqi just as she reached Guangshan and Zixuan. Of course, Little Zhan, Huan and Little Zhuqin ran hand in hand together to Baoqi while Qiren could only follow the children with his gaze. The Lan leader could not help but laugh at the many failed attempts Qiren had in order to get Little Zhan to properly follow Gusu Lan's etiquette rules.
"Niang (Mother)!" Little Zhuqin said out loud as they reached Baoqi.
As a fellow boy and step cousin to each other, it was only natural that Zixuan, Little Zhan and Huan greet each other again to get more acquainted with one another. Little Zhuqin knew Huan and possibly Little Zhan needed or wanted to properly greet her elder brother so she had let go of their hands for them to do so. Huan smiled at Little Zhuqin and raised his hands up, gesturing a respectful greeting to the male princess. With the same gesture, Little Zhan also rose up his hands to his chest and bowed his head in respect to his elder cousin.
For Zixuan though, he simply kept his arms crossed and did not bother to even gesture an act of courtesy back to his step cousins.
Seeing this, Little Zhuqin immediatley tugged on her elder brother's left sleeve.
"Xuan ge, I understand that you are known as the princess of our Lanling Jin. But to be this way with our cousins...is there something more that you are not telling us?" She playfully asked and happily smiled at Zixuan, her teeths slightly showing.
"What is there to tell?" Zixuan arrogantly said.
"Xuan er, such manners will not be accepted. Hurry and greet your fellow cousins," Baoqi instructed as she looked at the two Lan siblings.
"Uh that is right son. You need to properly greet our guests. What more, they are your cousins." Guangshan added in with a nervous smile.
Zixuan looked at Huan then slowly panned his gaze to Little Zhan and he irritatingly clicked his tongue at him then looked away again. Little Zhan and his elder brother confusingly looked at each other while Little Zhuqin tilted her head to the side then tugged on her brother's sleeve again.
"Wai (Hey), weren't you more considerate yesterday when we met them? You even introduced yourself like a polite boy would. Why are you not greeting them like yesterday?" She asked.
Zixuan looked at his younger sister and sighed then only shrugged of her questions. Little Zhuqin was just as confused as her Lan relatives and father.
"Oh? Doesn't this look familiar?" Baoqi silently laughed to herself.
she had definitely seen a familiar scene just two days ago.
With that being said, the mother elegantly cleared her throat and walked over to her son, then squatted down in front of him.
"Xuan er, are you perhaps jealous of the two Lan young masters?" Baoqi openly whispered, doing it on purpose to catch the attention of everyone who was listening.
"Je-jealous? Who would be? Why should I be?" Zixuan immediately asked, feeling embaressed as his mother was able to totally see through him once again.
"Ahhhh? You're jealous? You're not jealous of...Xuan ge, are you...jealous that our cousins are more beautiful than you?" Little Zhuqin openly asked.
"What?!" Questioned Zixuan.
The young girl then placed her hand behind Huan's hair and slowly combed it, feeling the soft silkiness of his hair. Huan's heart beated for a moment and he did not know what the exact feeling was, but he just simply...liked it. Then Little Zhuqin slightly ran her fingers through Little Zhan's hair as he quickly moved to the side, disabling the young girl from reaching to the bottom portion of his hair.
Feeling as if she did go overboard again, Little Zhuqin just nervously laughed and looked at her elder brother.
"I know. Are you possibly jealous that their hair are more beautiful then yours?" She randomly asked with the same bright smile.
"Why-would-I," "Hao le, hao le, niang zhi dao le a (Ok, ok, mother understands)." Baoqi interrupted Zixuan then stood up.
"How...how would you understand?" Zixuan irritatingly asked.
"Xuan er, when the time comes, mother will properly explain it to you." His mother simply said then quickly turned her attention to Little Zhuqin.
Little Zhuqin found her elder brother's situation to be somewhat interesting and hilarious at the same time so she began to giggle to herself. Her innocent and fun-like laughter resonated inside the main hall, and made Huan smile at her as the elder Lan siblings approached the family.
Even the young male attendant who accidently sneezed earlier found her laugh to be amusing but only kept a straight face.
"Qin er, you said the two Lan young masters are hungry right?" Baoqi questioned, still thinking the children to be hungry.
"Mm, dui a (Yes, that is right)!" Little Zhuqin responded with a lighthearted smile as her laughter came to a stop. "Uncle is also hungry."
The girl obviously did not forget to add in the fact that Qiren was also 'hungry.'
"Na hao ba (Ok then). I assume the ladies in the kitchen are already beginning to cook a meali for us all. Very soon, I will make sure they cook a special meal just for the two young Lan masters." Baoqi kindly said and patted both Little Zhan and Huan's head softly.
"Zhan er...wo de hao hai zi, ni zhang da le (Zhan er, my good child, you have grown up)."
To Little Zhan, the kind warmth of Baoqi felt very similar...
"Brother, brother," Little Zhan began after Baoqi had taken her hands off their heads.
"Heshi a (What is it)?" asked Huan.
"Just now, did you feel something?"
"Uhmm...Jin furen's hand?"
"Of course we felt her hand. But did you feel anything else?"
"Uhmm...no," Huan replied.
"Really? That is weird. Was I the only one who felt it?" Little Zhan asked.
"What did you feel Zhan?"
"...When Jin furen patted our heads just now, I felt like it was mother who was doing that."
Huan slightly froze in his spot just as his younger brother finished speaking.
"Brother, are you ok?" Little Zhan asked, catching the attention of his elders and Little Zhuqin.
"Zenma le (What is wrong)?" asked Little Zhuqin and she also looked at Huan.
"Huh?" The elder brother asked and the first one he turned to was Little Zhuqin.
"Ah? Uh...are you ok?" The young girl quickly questioned, eyes blinking in and out.
For a moment, Huan had felt nervous about the fact that his younger brother did not know their mother had passed away a few days prior and to have Little Zhan remind him of their mother again was just a little random...and sad.
However, there was a specific time for a specific reason and Huan was not going to ruin everyone's afternoon just because of himself.
"I'm," Huan started with a smile. "I am just hungry like Zhuqin guniang said."
"As expected," Baoqi smiled.
"GUNIANG (Young miss)?! Ni jiao wo 'guniang' (You are calling me 'young miss')? Aren't we the same age? Bu shi (No), I meant, don't we all know each other well to be calling each other by names only?" Little Zhuqin curiously asked.
"...Zhuqin," Little Zhan openly said with a monotone-like voice.
"Pft," The young girl choked herself into laughter after Little Zhan surprisingly did what she asked even though he was the one who would most likely not do it.
"Uh...Zhuqin...guniang," Huan gently said, still adding quite the humble honorific to Little Zhuqin's name.
"Just call me A Qin...Qin er...Zhuqin...A Ling...Yeah, that seems to be about it." Little Zhuqin optimisticly said.
"A Ling?" Guangshan, the two Lan elders and the two Lan siblings questioned at the same time.
"Oh sorry, you all wouldn't know!" Little Zhuqin said then turned back and ran to get her lacquer box that she had left on the ground a while ago.
"This!" She introduced and held out the lacquer box as the two purple-silver bells slightly jingled with the red ribbon still neatly folded.
"Bells?" Guangshan and the two Lan elders asked.
"Was it...?" The Jin leader began and turned to ask his wife, knowing the Yunmeng Jiang sect to be the only clan to have such detailed ornaments.
Baoqi looked at her husband and proudly smiled at him, somewhat mocking his puzzled face.
"Shi a (That is right). These bells were specially requested by Yuan jie jie's son and given to her by him before we came home today." Baoqi replied.
"They're really pretty and sound really beautiful! Look, this red ribbon is also..."
As Little Zhuqin talked about Jiang Cheng's bell ornaments, she also introduced the beauty and silkiness of Wei Ying's hair ribbon to her Gusu relatives while Baoqi told Guangshan who the souvenirs belonged to.
Zixuan...just stood there, with his arms crossed as usual.
"Then...what about the red ribbon?" Asked Guangshan.
"The red ribbon? It was given to Qin er by the adopted son of Fengmian and Yuan jie jie." Baoqi simply replied.
"Adopted son of Jiang zong zhu and Jiang furen? It was THAT boy?" Guangshan asked, not specifying that Wei Ying was the adopted son of Jiang Fengmian and the true son of Wei Changze.
"What do you mean 'it was THAT boy?' Even you need to learn your manners." Baoqi corrected.
"Uh yes, yes, yes. But...those are not tokens of marriage right? I mean...our Qin er is still," "What do you mean 'tokens of marriage?' What are tokens of marriage when those things are simply gifts from their children to our child? What are you even thinking about?" Baoqi interrupted her husband.
"Uh yes, yes. But...the thing is, to have that adopted child give things to our Qin er...doesn't that make you feel embaressed? I mean, I don't feel anything in particular when it comes to Jiang zong zhu's son, but that adopted child..." Guangshan quietly whispered to his wife.
"Why should I feel embaressed? You're asking me to feel embaressed for a child who only has good intentions? Look at you, where has your head gone to? You're the leader of our Lanling Jin sect and cannot even think straight." Baoqi quietly lectured.
"But that boy, he was," "We," Baoqi abruptly interrupted Guangshan again. "...will talk when our children and guests are gone." She finished and turned her attention back to the children.
Guangshan immediatley closed his mouth and let out a long sigh.
"...ribbon dance, I think it would look really beautiful! The bells too!"
"Qin er," Baoqi began with a smile and squatted down to place her hand on Little Zhuqin's face. "It seems to me like you are having fun."
"I am!" Little Zhuqin honestly said with quite the grin.
"Well, I understand that your two little friends and uncle are hungry, but we have to wait for the food to get ready. How about this? Why don't you take your little friends and go play for a while? We will come look for you when the food is ready." Baoqi explained then stood back up.
"Hao ya (Ok)," Little Zhuqin agreed then realized that since her Gusu relatives were dressed in Lanling Jin's clothings, was there probably something going on?
"But mother, is it really ok for me to go play with them? They were dressed differently yesterday and now they are dressed in our Lanling Jin's disciple clothes. Is there...."
Baoqi had forgotten and widened her eyes at the thought that there was something going on then turned to look at her husband who flared his fan open. Qingheng and Qiren both cleared their throats then pretended to fix their forehead ribbons, trying to wrap the ribbons around their head twice or three times to make it shorter.
"Father...is there," "Uh Qin er ah, the reason why your uncles and cousins are dressed in our Lanling Jin's clothes is because they wanted to know how it felt like to be part of our lovely sect thus was the reason why they wanted to wear it and they said the would only wear it for a while so I am sure they will be taking it off real soon." Guangshan quickly said, not even bothering to pause inbetween his words.
"That is right. A Qin a, your cousins, uncle and I wanted to know how it felt like since this was our first visit. Don't you think we have to take pride as being part of the Lanling Jin sect through your mother?" Qiren made up, trying to deceive Little Zhuqin....to no avail (lol).
"Jiujiu, did I do anything wrong for you to lie to me?" Little Zhuqin cheerfully asked.
...If the young girl thought hard, yes, she did do a couple things to potentially make Qiren lie to her. However, both uncle Qiren and Little Zhuqin only had good intentions to lie to one another.
"Hah?" Qiren thought and whispered to Qingheng. "Did it not work?"
"Of course it didn't. Like I said, she won't let us mess with her that easily. She is not an easy target." Qingheng jokingly chuckled as Qiren only gave him a blank facial expression.
"Will it be safe?" Little Zhuqin suddenly questioned.
"U...of course it will be safe. What are you talking about?" Guangshan reassured and pushed for Zixuan to have Little Zhuqin take the two Lan brothers elsewhere.
Baoqi hurriedly grabbed onto her son's left shoulder and slightly shoved him towards Qiren and Qingheng.
"As a host, husband and Xuan er, you should show some courtesy and show our special guests around instead of having them stay here. As children, Little Zhuqin will accompany the two Lan young masters and I will go check with the ladies in the kitchen to see how the food is going." Baoqi directed.
Seeing that her questions were obviously getting directed towards something else, Little Zhuqin just sighed and looked up at her mother with a reassuring smile.
"But I," "Xuan er," Baoqi interrupted Zixuan again. "Take them to the big side pavilion next to the main dining hall."
The look on Zixuan's face told his mother that even he wanted to tag along with his younger sister and in Zixuan's own words, other potential cultivation partners for little sister. However even the young male princess had pride in being the son of the Jin leader and finally rose his hands up to gesture the common respect towards his uncles from Cloud Recesses. Of course, he did not forget to remind his little sister to be careful (lol).
"What do you mean 'be careful?' You think they would bite?" Little Zhuqin laughed.
Before turning away to lead his uncles to Lanling Jin's big side pavilion, Zixuan gave one last side glance to Little Zhan and Huan. Not realizing what his true problem was, Huan only smiled at Zixuan while Little Zhan simply blinked his eyes in repond to the male princess's glare.
"Hmph," Zixuan began then quietly cleared his throat. "Please uncles, follow me this way."
As the young male princess was going to lead Qiren and Qingheng to Lanling Jin's big side pavilion, Guangshan was just about to go along as that was what Baoqi had directed. However, Baoqi quickly held onto her husband's sleeve and motioned for the Jin leader to stay for a few words while the three of them left without noticing that Guangshan...had been left behind (lol). Little Zhuqin watched as her elder brother and uncles left the main hall with a few attendants then looked up at Baoqi.
"Then...until the food is ready, I will take my cousins to the small side pavilions." Little Zhuqin cheerfully suggested and again, grabbed onto Little Zhan and Huan's hand.
"Ni (You)," Little Zhan noticed and tried to shake off the young girl's hand.
"Zhan," Huan quietly called out.
Little Zhan stopped shaking their hands and only sighed one deep heavy sigh (lol).
"Hao de (Ok). But be careful of the big rocks. Don't climb them either." Baoqi affectionately suggested as the small trio began to back up towards the main hall's entrance door.
"Ok," Little Zhuqin complied, knowing that she will end up climbing them anyway.
The only difference between Zixuan's exit with Qiren and Qingheng versus Little Zhuqin's exit with Little Zhan and Huan were bodyguards versus no bodyguards. Zixuan had attendants while Little Zhuqin seemingly did not have any attendants following her. Her elder brother was usually her only bodyguard but for that day, he was separated from Little Zhuqin and even Guangshan felt weirded out.
"Uh," Guangshan began and panned across the room where only a few servants were left.
He noticed one unfamiliar male attendant yet that male servant looked quite familiar to the blurred memories in his mind. Why was he unfamiliar yet so familiar? If anything, most of Guangshan's trusted attendants were not handsome or beautiful as he would call it. This male attendant, however, had quite the beautiful feature and had two short neck length bangs on each side of his head. The Jin leader could already tell that this young male attendant did not fit the title of a servant but instead, a young master who belonged to a different sect other than the Lanling Jin. Heck, what was that young male attendant even doing there as a 'servant?'
"Hmm...you!" The Jin leader called out to the young male attendant on the side.
"Shi Jin zong zhu (Yes clan leader Jin),"
Qin Zhongxin, direct disciple from the Laoling Qin sect, eldest son to Qin Cangye who is the current leader of the Qin sect and is Qin Baoqi's younger half-cousin. Currently 14 years old and is the only young master in the main Laoling Qin household. Known to be dedicated, serious, and extremely loyal to his clan. Was forced to join the Lanling Jin sect two days ago as an attendant under his 'father's' order and properly serve the main branch, in hopes of slowly gaining recognition for the Laoling Qin clan. He had actually gone into the Jin sect under his mother's order.
As Guangshan pointed his fan at Zhongxin, Baoqi also looked at the young boy.
"You...are you new here?" The Jin leader asked.
"To answer Jin zong zhu's question, yes I am." Zhongxin bluntly replied with a straight face.
"Then...are you really supposed to be a servant, servant SERVANT?" Guangshan continued to ask.
"Yes," Zhongxin responded.
"He makes it sound as if this young boy was made to serve people in other ways," Baoqi thought and sighed then elegantly approached Zhongxin. "But...why does he look so familiar?"
"Uh haizi a, ni jiao shenma (Uhm child, what is your name)? Judging from your looks, you do not look like a disciple of our Lanling Jin sect. Which sect did you come from?" Baoqi straightforwardly questioned with a smile.
"My name is Qin Zhongxin...Laoling Qin Zhongxin." Zhongxin responded.
"Laoling Qin?" Baoqi inquired and looked at Guangshan.
"Laoling Qin Sect?" Guangshan thought.
As he closely observed Zhongxin again, he realized the young boy's feature, or at least his face, looked extremely similar to none other then his own subordinate, Qin Cangye, the current leader of the Laoling Qin Sect. Not only did the young boy looked like Qin Cangye, Zhongxin also beared the same resemblance to a...woman.
"OH! Are you...perhaps the son of Qin Cangye?" The Jin leader loudly asked.
"I apologize if I was not clear but that is correct. I am the eldest son of Qin Cangye." The young boy replied.
"Qin Cangye? Laoling Qin Cangye? I thought I he looked familiar. Bu what...is my half-brother's son doing here?" Baoqi thought. "Why would...they send their eldest son in as a servant and not just a disciple?" She slightly hesitated to ask Guangshan.
"Right...why would your father send you in as a servant and not a general guest disciple of my Lanling Jin sect? We are always welcome to take in guest disciples." Guangshan added.
Zhongxin quietly stood in his place and did not know how to exactly reply to the leader's logical theory. If Guangshan had noticed the young boy earlier, the boy would have become a guest disciple. But it was not the Jin leader's fault; Zhongxin had intended to come into the Lanling Jin sect as a general servant by the order of his 'father' afterall.
"Zhongxin...is just doing as my father ordered. I was told to come into the Lanling Jin sect as a servant and not a potential guest disciple." The young boy answered.
"Your father...ordered for you to come in as just a servant?" Baoqi asked then let out a small breath like scoff at such a strange idea. "Wouldn't it have been more ideal for you to come into our Lanling Jin sect as a guest disciple since you ARE the young master of your household?"
"...I was...asked to come in as a servant." Zhongxin stubbornly said.
Baoqi and Guangshan studied the feature of the young boy again. He seemed to be the type who could fight and according to what they have seen and heard so far, Zhongxin seemed like the type to stay true to his words under an elders order. The young boy obviously did not deserve to just be a 'servant.' It was only natural that any young masters from a sect became a disciple, if not, a guest disciple.
"Uh...you don't say son. Why don't I just make you a guest disciple?" Guangshan asked again.
"...That will not happen and as long as I am here, I will not make it happen." Zhongxin immediately responded, staying true to his duty.
"You," "Aiya, dear, if the child is not interested in becoming a guest disciple, we cannot force him." Baoqi suggested, knowing that even if they continued to press on about the matter of being a servant versus being a guest disciple, the young boy was not going to change his mind according to what his 'father' had given him as an order before coming to Lanling Jin.
"But he," "He what? The child has a unique mind of his own. We cannot make him do something that he does not plan on doing." Baoqi lectured then turned to smile at Zhongxin.
"We can also only hope that he...or my half-brother, is not planning anything weird since servants do tend to follow us everywhere we go and hear almost everything we say." The mistress thought quietly to herself then walked back to her husband's side.
"Duo xie Jin furen (Thank you madam Jin), for being considerate." Zhongxin bowed in courtesy to the lady.
"Are you saying that," "No need for formal speech," Baoqi interrupted Guangshan with a smile.
"Are you saying that I, as the Jin leader, was not being considerate?" Guangshan quietly whispered to himself.
"You and I come from the same clan so it only makes sense that I also treat you as close family member."
For a moment, the young boy had forgotten that the woman or the mistress standing in front of him was Laoling Qin Baoqi who was also from the same sect. He only slightly bowed his head in response to his fellow clansman.
Baoqi looked at Guangshan then slightly motioned her head at Zhongxin, wondering what the Jin leader had in mind earlier to be calling on a random servant who turned out to be a family relative to the Jin mistress. He was reminded of the fact that his Little Zhuqin was in 'need' of a bodyguard since Zixuan was busy and had wanted to ask Zhongxin to go after the small trio who left not too long ago.
"Even though you're her father, you do know that Qin er will not like the idea that you are sending a potential bodyguard to be with her right?" Baoqi questioned, knowing that her step daughter have begun to practice not having servants with her all the time.
"It's only natural that she has at least somone to protect her. Think about it, Xuan er is with the in-laws and there is no one with Qin er." Guangshan argued.
"...Do you really think those two Lan youngsters will do anything to her?" Baoqi irritatingly asked.
"What? No...I mean,"
At the moment, Baoqi only knew that there was a contrast to what Guangshan was saying earlier about flowers versus Little Zhuqin being alone with the two Lan siblings. Also, Little Zhuqin being alone with the two Lan siblings was not that big of an issue versus Little Zhuqin being alone with her elder brother Zixuan. The mother knew her son was not the type to force his way into someone's heart but it was only proper for Baoqi to teach her son before he does so.
"If anything, your Xuan er is the bigger issue here." Baoqi began and walked back to Zhongxin.
"Our Xuan er? What could be so bad about him? He has been doing great as Qin er's protecter." Guangshan claimed, obviously making no sense to Baoqi.
As the Jin mistress got close to Zhongxin, she asked the young boy to go look for their daughter and the two Lan siblings. As expected, the young lad quickly obeyed the Jin mistress and said his temporary farewell to Guangshan then hastily left to the small side pavilions. With only Baoqi, Guangshan and the a few servants left in the room, as the main lady of the sect, even she had the right to dismiss the attendants. As they left the main hall to go outside, Baoqi gracefully walked her way to Guangshan's side and lightly crossed her arms together. She let out quite the long sigh and her eyes obviously communicated 'trouble' as Guangshan's key word to be aware of that afternoon.