Chapter 056

Chapter 056

Since the Xiao family resided at the end of the northernmost street in the village, Tong Sui and her two companions were the first to arrive at the riverbank.

The Xiao family had chosen the widest section of the riverbank for the villagers to line up. Each row consisted of fifty people, making a total of fourteen or fifteen rows, with each villager standing about nine feet apart from their neighbors.

Tong Sui and Liu Chu stood in the center of the dirt path connecting the riverbank to Lingshui Village, watching from a distance.

Xiao Yuchan teased them, "If you want to see, come closer. Acting so shy, do you think you're ladies of high birth?"

Tong Sui: "…Where do you usually watch from?"

Xiao Yuchan pointed to the top of the slope that separated the farmland above from the riverbank below, where Xiao Zhen was standing. "See that row of stones next to Second Brother? We moved them there. I wanted to get even closer, but Grandfather scolded us and told us to keep our distance. Otherwise, we'd have to go home and no one would be able to watch."

Tong Sui noticed that those stones were still about twenty feet away from the edge of the formation and felt relieved. After all, when she watched the villagers practicing spear drills from above, they could also see her, which would be awkward if she were too close.

After walking for a while, Xiao Yuchan picked out three stones and gestured for her sisters-in-law to sit down.

Liu Chu: "Is this okay? Do these stones belong to someone else?"

Xiao Yuchan: "They've been mixed up long ago. Whoever comes early gets to sit on them. If you come late, you'll have to find your own stone on the riverbank or stand and watch."

The sisters-in-law then sat down.

Tong Sui was in the middle, and to see Xiao Zhen, she had to look over Xiao Yuchan's shoulder. She didn't really want to watch, but she could hear Xiao Zhen's commands carried by the wind as he stood higher up. When he called out "left," the seven hundred villagers below would respond in unison, thrusting their sticks to the left.

Tong Sui observed the sticks; they were all brought by the villagers themselves. Some looked like freshly cut branches, slightly bent, while others seemed to be handles from shovels, roughly the right size and length.

Suddenly, there was some commotion in the middle of the formation. Someone had misunderstood the command and thrust their stick to the right instead of the left, colliding with the stick of the person next to them.

Tong Sui instinctively looked at the face of the person who made the mistake…

It was Sun Dian.

At the same time, several dozen villagers near Sun Dian turned to look at them.

"I'm leaving."

Liu Chu's face flushed red, and before Tong Sui could say anything, she had already run off, heading straight through the nearby farmland towards the dirt road.

Xiao Yuchan glared in Sun Dian's direction. "Men who forget their orders because of women. He's lucky Grandfather isn't here today; otherwise, he would have been scolded."

Just then, Xiao Zhen spoke up: "Sun Dian, go to the river and do ten rounds of head-dunks, then continue practicing!"

Clearly, the old man had established a set of "military laws." Even those who didn't obey Xiao Zhen, like Sun Dian, went to receive their punishment without a word. The other villagers stopped looking around and continued following Xiao Zhen's commands.

It was early summer, and the river was still shallow. At its deepest point, it only reached Sun Dian's calves. However, as he squatted and jumped, splashing water quickly soaked his chest and back, revealing a strong and muscular physique.

When Tong Sui noticed this, she quickly looked away, but saw that Xiao Yuchan was still watching intently.

Not only was Xiao Yuchan watching, but she also asked, "Second Sister-in-Law, do you think Second Brother's physique is better, or Sun Dian's?"

Tong Sui: "…"

Voices came from the dirt road, and the sisters-in-law turned to see groups of girls, wives, and children arriving. Among them, the closest to them were Wang Shi and her daughter Pan Yuerou, who lived at the eastern end of the same street.

Their eyes met, and Wang Shi smiled and waved at the sisters-in-law.

Tong Sui returned the smile, but Xiao Yuchan forcibly turned her around, pouting with an unhappy expression.

Tong Sui asked, puzzled, "Did they offend you?"

Xiao Yuchan: "Not exactly. I just don't like how they act. The mother's smile is fake, and the daughter, despite being a village girl like us, tries to mimic the behavior of a wealthy young lady. But she doesn't have the natural grace of our Lin Ningfang."

Lin Ningfang's cold demeanor made it seem like she kept herself separate from everyone else, whether they were common villagers or city nobles. She didn't seek to socialize with anyone.

Pan Yuerou, on the other hand, had a sense of superiority, behaving as if she were above everyone else, despite having fallen from grace and living among the villagers.

Tong Sui thought to herself that village girls were not all the same.

To city dwellers, all girls from villages and towns were considered village girls, but there were distinctions. Townspeople were generally wealthier than villagers. If a family was well-off in town, their children might adopt the manners of city-born young masters and mistresses, doing everything more refinedly.

In the village, the Tongs and the Xiaos had different backgrounds. Like Xiao Yuchan, whose family was wealthy, educated, and had a grandfather who was once a fifth-rank military official, she could have grown up like a noble lady. Although Xiao Yuchan could sometimes be arrogant, she still acted like a village girl overall.

In short, noble families might look down on commoners, and wealthy villagers might look down on the poor, but it wasn't always absolute. Ultimately, it depended on individual character.

Lin Ningfang was the highest-born person Tong Sui had ever interacted with, and she never felt any sense of superiority from her. In contrast, the He family initially looked down on her humble origins.

Noticing that Wang Shi and her daughter were getting closer, Tong Sui whispered to Xiao Yuchan, "Even if you dislike them, don't show it. If you do, when they greet you with smiles, your coldness will make you appear rude."

Xiao Yuchan wanted to argue but, meeting Tong Sui's clear eyes filled with sincerity, she reluctantly held her tongue.

At that moment, Wang Shi stopped and smiled at Tong Sui. "Are these stones taken?"

Tong Sui smiled back. "No one else has come yet."

Wang Shi: "Then we'll sit down. By the way, we've seen Miss Yuchan a few times, but this is the first time we've seen Second Lady, right?"

Tong Sui: "I had something to attend to before."

Wang Shi arranged for Pan Yuerou to sit next to Tong Sui, taking the seat at the edge herself. She praised the Xiao family for teaching martial arts to the villagers for free and then pointed towards Pan Dai. "Yuerou's brother has always wanted to learn martial arts. He's thrilled now and practices every day after coming home. I tell him he's doing great, but he insists we come and see how much better the other villagers are compared to him."

Tong Sui: "Second Master and his brothers have practiced for years. Everyone is just starting, so they shouldn't rush."

As they talked, Tong Sui finally found Pan Dai's position. Seeing his determined gaze and swift movements, she acknowledged that he was indeed more skilled than the other villagers and complimented him.

Pan Yuerou seemed to notice Sun Dian in the water and quietly asked, "Second Lady, why is that person in the water?"

Tong Sui smiled and explained to her, only mentioning that Sun Dian had been distracted, without revealing that he had seen Liu Chu.

Pan Yuerou smiled, her lips curling slightly.

Tong Sui indeed felt the lightness of spring night moonlight in this smile, including the grace of a lady that Xiao Yuchan had mentioned.

It wasn't a flaw; it simply indicated that Pan's family must have been quite well-off originally, and they had raised their daughter very well along the way.

More and more women gathered around, and Tong Sui had already seen what she wanted to see. Seeing more wouldn't be interesting, so she said to Xiao Yuchan, "Shall we go back?"

Xiao Yuchan replied, "We've just arrived. Let's stay a bit longer."

Tong Sui said, "Then I'll go first. My throat is dry; I need to get some water."

Xiao Yuchan glanced at Pan Yuerou and her mother nearby before standing up.

The sisters-in-law walked side by side.

As soon as they left, the women immediately began discussing Tong Sui, the new bride who had been married into the Xiao family for only a month. Since Tong Sui rarely went out, they knew little about her and could only comment on her appearance and background. Most of the comments were complimentary, but there were also some unkind remarks, such as saying that the Tongs were merely hunters from a small mountain village, and Tong Sui marrying into the Xiao family was a step up. Xiao Er, being the most capable among the four brothers, had chosen a wife who might come from the poorest family.

Someone sneered, "That sounds so sour. Could it be because Xiao Er didn't choose your daughter, so you're jealous of his wife?"

The person naturally retorted.

Pan Yuerou and Wang Shi listened silently. Although they had been in Lingshui Village for a short time, these idle talks gave them a good understanding of many families, especially the Xaos.

Xiao Er, the most capable?

Pan Yuerou looked at Xiao Zhen standing atop the slope, towering above the crowd, and then compared him with Xiao Ye and the other two brothers instructing the villagers below. In terms of appearance, Xiao Zhen was indeed the handsomest, and the stories the women praised him for proved that he was a remarkable figure.

Pan Yuerou withdrew her gaze and looked at the stone where Tong Sui had been sitting, now occupied by others after her departure.

A hunter's family—what did the Xiaos see in Tong Sui? Or was it that Xiao Zhen wanted a beauty, and Tong Sui was the prettiest among the local unmarried girls?

Wang Shi suddenly nudged her daughter.

Pan Yuerou looked up and saw Xiao Ye approaching, standing near their side of the queue.

A tall, strong, handsome, and valiant man—how could anyone not find him appealing? Unfortunately, he had an even better brother above him, the future head of the eastern courtyard and possibly the entire Xiao family.

It was like admiring a beautiful piece of silk, finding everything perfect, only to discover another one beside it, even more vibrant and softer, already held by a girl who seemed inferior in every way.

"Mother, let's go too."

Pan Yuerou spoke as if asking, but she had already stood up.

Wang Shi thought her daughter was trying to attract Xiao Ye's attention. Seeing Xiao Ye glance over, she was secretly pleased and grabbed her daughter's wrist. "My leg is numb; help me up."

Others couldn't tell, but Pan Yuerou instantly understood her mother's intention. Thinking about how she would eventually marry and that there was no better choice than Xiao Ye, she quickly put aside her unpleasant feelings, bent down slightly, seemingly focused on helping her mother, but actually presenting her slender figure to Xiao Ye.

Xiao Ye actually only knew that his second sister-in-law had come today and subconsciously wanted to take a look after stepping out of the formation, as a way of greeting her. However, he didn’t see his easily blushing second sister-in-law; instead, he saw Mrs. Wang’s legs go numb, causing her daughter to help her.

At dusk, most of the people who came to the river to watch the spectacle were women who didn’t need to cook at home. Like Yuchan, it was her turn to cook today, but her second aunt, doting on her daughter, took over all the cooking herself and let Yuchan come out.

Xiao Ye stared at Mrs. Wang’s back. Goodness, she ran over to keep her daughter company in watching the spectacle, leaving dinner to the old lady at home—she’s not even as considerate as the second aunt!