Chapter 353: Chapter 236: The Son-in-law Has a Way with Words

That was what he was thinking, but Chen Yi didn’t let it show. He simply stood calmly to one side.

He did a quick calculation. The Mid-Autumn Festival was just over ten days away.

If he subtracted the three to five days since Pei Guanli had sent her letter...

The Mountain Race must have sent Pei Qian to Shu State Prefecture City the moment they received it.

That wasn’t slow at all.

Besides, the fact that Pei Qian had produced a letter from Xiao Jinghong suggested he had also stopped at the Wu Mountain Mutual Market for some time.

However, Chen Yi was more concerned about the Mountain Race’s stance on the Five Poison Sect, and how many people Pei Qian had brought with him this time.

Just then, Pei Guanli voiced the question on his mind. "Brother, did you come alone?"

Pei Qian shook his head. "No."

"Third Grand-Uncle, Uncle Li, and Aunt Chu came with me. And Little Sister is here too..."

He listed over a dozen names, bringing a look of delight to Pei Guanli’s round face.

"Little Sister came too?"

"Where are they now? Take me to them. I haven’t seen them in so long."

Pei Qian hesitated slightly, then turned to Xiao Wan’er and cupped his fist. "Thank you for taking care of my little sister these past days, Young Mistress."

Xiao Wan’er smiled and nodded. "It was no trouble at all."

After a few more pleasantries, she instructed Xie Tingyun to help arrange accommodations for Pei Qian.

Pei Qian thanked her again and accepted the offer.

He was about to offer a few more polite words when Pei Guanli grabbed his arm and started pulling him outside.

As she ran, she looked back at Chen Yi and called out, "Brother-in-law, I’m going to hang out with my brother now! I’ll come find you after you get back to the mansion."

Then, as if remembering something, she stuck out her tongue and added, "Oh, and teaching Xiao Wuge the Step Technique will have to be postponed for a day or two."

Chen Yi smiled and waved, calling after her, "Be careful."

"Don’t worry, don’t worry! My Third Grand-Uncle and Aunt Chu are very powerful people... um... and my brother is very powerful too."

Hearing this, Pei Qian seemed to stand a little straighter.

This couldn’t help but make Chen Yi chuckle a few times.

Seeing this, Xie Tingyun bowed to Xiao Wan’er before following the two Pei siblings out.

Xiao Wan’er watched them disappear into the distance, then smiled at Chen Yi. "We should get going as well."

Chen Yi nodded. He called for Liu Si’er to go on ahead, then he and Xiao Wan’er boarded the second carriage.

Juan’er and Cui’er took their seats on the side.

Once Shen Huatang saw they were all settled, she drove the carriage out of the Marquis’s Mansion, following Liu Si’er’s carriage.

After they had traveled a few miles, Xiao Wan’er finally remembered the letter from Xiao Jinghong. She took it from her sleeve and began to read.

As she read, she told Chen Yi, "Second Sister says she’s doing well."

Chen Yi glanced at her, his gaze falling on the letter in her hand, and nodded with a smile.

"With the Madam personally overseeing the Wu Mountain Mutual Market, nothing untoward is likely to happen."

With Xiao Jinghong’s current Cultivation and Technique Realm, forget common bandits—even masters of the Upper Three Grades Realm probably couldn’t get close to her.

Besides, the presence of the Mountain Race members there was enough to intimidate most of the Jianghu in Shu State.

Xiao Wan’er hummed in agreement. She quickly finished the letter and handed it to him, saying with a smile,

"Second Sister says that after the construction of the Mutual Market is complete, she still has to inspect the troops of the Three Towns. She wanted me to ask for your understanding."

Chen Yi took the letter. "Of course, I understand," he said with a smile as he began to read.

The contents were largely as Xiao Wan’er had said; Xiao Jinghong’s letter mostly detailed her recent situation.

For instance, the first phase of the Wu Mountain Mutual Market’s construction was expected to be finished before the end of the tenth month.

It also mentioned her plans to inspect the Three Towns, when she might return home, and so on.

But when he reached the end, the smile on Chen Yi’s face froze. He turned to look at Xiao Wan’er, who had half-hidden her cheeks in the collar of her cloak, and raised an eyebrow.

"The Madam wants me to inscribe a plaque for the Wu Mountain Mutual Market?"

Seeing that he’d read that part of the letter, Xiao Wan’er blinked and said,

"Second Sister wanted me to relay the message to you, but I thought it would be better if you saw it for yourself."

Chen Yi couldn’t help but laugh. "It’s a simple matter. There was no need to be so formal about it."

Since he and Xiao Jinghong were married, he wouldn’t refuse something that was part of his duty.

Especially for a small thing like writing a few words, there was no need to be so roundabout.

But from this, he could easily tell that Xiao Jinghong must feel a little guilty—being away from home for so long right after their wedding, she felt she was in the wrong.

Xiao Wan’er covered her mouth and chuckled. "Perhaps Second Sister was worried you might not agree."

"After all, you’re now an Instructor at Guiyun Academy, as well as a master of Calligraphy and a great poet famous throughout all of Great Wei."

Chen Yi shook his head. "That’s just empty fame."

He looked at Xiao Wan’er and said seriously, "Big Sister, you mustn’t learn from the Madam. If you need anything in the future, you must tell me directly. There’s no need to be so polite."

Hearing this, Xiao Wan’er’s eyes flickered. "I’ll remember that."

Perhaps feeling her words lacked conviction, she added,

"Like with this trip to choose the fiefdom location, I... I wasn’t being formal with you."

Chen Yi nodded. "That’s how it should be."

Meeting his gaze, Xiao Wan’er immediately shrank back into her collar, hiding the fair skin of her neck again as a faint blush colored her cheeks.

At this moment, silence spoke louder than words.

Inside, Xiao Wan’er was quite happy.

Although Chen Yi had only said a few perfectly ordinary words, to her ears, they were as sweet as morning dew.

She knew that Chen Yi already saw her as someone close to him.

Or even family.

A moment of silence passed.

Chen Yi folded the letter away. He lifted the curtain on one side to look outside. "The weather is nice today," he remarked.

The autumn sky was high and clear, without a single cloud.

After several days of rain, the weather in Shu State had become much cooler and more comfortable.

Most people on the road had switched to thicker clothing; even the Wandering Martial Artists, who typically didn’t fear the cold, had done the same.

Xiao Wan’er poked her head out to glance outside the carriage. "Yes, it’s already the end of the eighth month."

She paused, a thoughtful look on her face as she said, "Next month... Around this time in previous years, I would have already been preparing to go to Wumeng Mountain."

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