Chapter 274: Chapter 274

Liu Da Niu laughed, "Aunt Li, to be honest, Shuangcheng is actually here to freeload. My grandpa and my dad, along with my second uncle, second sister, and third sister went to the Chai family to help out. Everyone else from our family came to Aunt Li’s house. If he didn’t come, he’d have to cook for himself, but he can’t cook."

Hu Shuangcheng scratched his head in embarrassment.

Princess Consort Luling suddenly understood and laughed, "That’s true, indeed. Why bother cooking alone at home? He should come here, we have food, drinks, and it’s lively."

Hu Shuangcheng was very diligent, always offering to help wherever things needed to be lifted or moved.

Li Lixing, sleeping in the guest room, was woken up by the lively noise in the house.

He yawned and stretched as he went to the kitchen to find something to eat, discovering people bustling both inside and out.

There was food everywhere, yet nothing was ready to eat.

Plates of beef, ribs, and chicken were all half-cooked.

Someone pushed him aside, "Hey, you’re in the way, go play somewhere else."

Li Lixing was seeing this kind of rural feast for the first time and was quite intrigued, looking here and there.

The more people told him to leave, the more he stayed put.

Si Niu, who was Second Princess’s little follower, stayed with the Li family before the wedding was prepared, and was familiar with Li Lixing’s temperament.

Knowing he wasn’t one to be trifled with, she ran to find Li Yuzhu.

Li Yuzhu heard Li Lixing had gone to the kitchen and immediately went there.

"Li Lixing! Why are you here in the kitchen? It’s busy here, don’t block the way and cause trouble." Li Yuzhu pulled Li Lixing outside.

Li Lixing protested, "I came to find my toothbrush and washbasin, I haven’t freshened up yet. I’m not here to cause trouble, and also, I’m really hungry, where’s the food?"

He stretched, yawning as he spoke.

He had slept well last night, sleeping till broad daylight without even dreaming.

In the past, at the Li family, he was made to sleep on wooden boards in the woodshed with no mosquito nets. Although mosquito repellent was burned inside, without window paper, mosquitoes kept coming in to buzz and bite him.

He couldn’t sleep well at all.

But this time, the Li family let him sleep in the room next to Li Xing’an and his brother’s, on a bed, with a curtain over it.

He slept very comfortably.

Li Lixing stretched again.

Li Yuzhu said, "Go freshen up first, come to the front gate later, there’ll be food there."

Worried he would wander around and disrupt the work in the kitchen, Li Yuzhu added, "Never mind, I’ll take you there."

Li Lixing nodded enthusiastically, "That’s even better." Everyone in the kitchen keeps chasing him away, how annoying, he’s not being destructive, why are they so fierce?

Li Yuzhu brought Li Lixing back to the kitchen.

Because everyone’s cups and toothbrushes were placed on the shelves in the kitchen’s outer room.

Seeing Li Lixing return again, the Liu family members were surprised.

"Sister Yuzhu, why did you bring him back again? He’ll cause trouble!" Liu Si Niu glared at Li Lixing, coldly said.

Previously timid to speak, Liu Si Niu had been selling grilled cakes with the Second Princess for some time, bargaining daily, becoming bolder, and with her clumsy mouth honed into being very sharp-tongued.

Seeing Li Lixing return, she unceremoniously scolded him.

Li Lixing blushed and retorted, "I’m not causing trouble, I’m here to fetch water to wash my face."

Liu Si Niu sneered, "Weren’t you here before? Why didn’t you wash your face then? You just wandered around looking for food, right? Well, if you don’t work, there’s no food!"

Li Lixing was embarrassed, he indeed had been looking for food earlier, but it was just a craving in his heart, he could hold back his mouth.

"You’re talking nonsense, you’re wrongfully accusing an innocent person!"

"Are you innocent? If you’re innocent, then there would be no bad people in the world! You’re just a lazy, destructive brat!" Liu Si Niu snorted coldly.

"I, I, I... I’m not a bad person! My dad, who is locked in jail, is the bad one." Li Lixing argued defiantly.

"Oh, your dad is amazing, how come he has a jail? Your dad..." Liu Si Niu suddenly froze, staring wide-eyed at Li Lixing, "How does your dad have a jail?"

"My dad is the County Magistrate, so of course, he has a jail." Li Lixing said proudly, "He has ten cells!"

Hearing the title of County Magistrate, everyone in the kitchen was startled.

Liu Si Niu was also frightened, "You, you, you... You’re the County Magistrate’s son?"

"Yes, without a doubt. A few days ago, Third Brother Li, Li Yuzhu, and Mu Yuanxiu came to my house, and Li Yuzhu even cured my mom. My mom heard Mr. Li was getting married and throwing a feast, and sent me here to deliver gifts." Li Lixing was not running away from home this time; he was here by his parents’ orders to deliver gifts, so he spoke openly.

Liu Si Niu, who stayed with the Li family, happened to be away during the days when the County Magistrate’s wife visited, so she didn’t know Li Lixing was the County Magistrate’s son.

Now that she knew his identity, Liu Si Niu was really taken aback.

She was rendered completely stunned, not knowing what to do.

Lady Liu nudged the dazed Liu Si Ni, "You dead girl, who gave you the guts to argue with the son of the County Magistrate’s family? Quickly, kowtow and apologize!"

Liu Si Ni snapped out of it, and with a pale face, walked towards Li Lixing, "Li-Li-Li-Li...Mr. Li, I’m sorry." As she spoke, she was about to kneel down.

This gave Li Lixing quite a scare.

He knew his status was different from others, but he never used it to oppress or command others. When he made mistakes at home, he was even afraid of the servants scolding him.

This was the first time someone was going to kneel to him; he was so frightened he hurriedly said, "Hey, why are you kneeling to me? Get up, get up."

Li Yuzhu stopped Liu Si Ni, "It’s not a big deal, no need to kneel."

Lady Liu, however, said, "She offended the son of the County Magistrate’s family, she should kneel and admit her mistakes."

"Li Lixing already said there’s no need to kneel, so don’t force it, ma’am," Li Yuzhu laughed.

"Yes, I said it, no need to kneel," Li Lixing waved his hand and walked to the partition outside the kitchen to get a cup for brushing his teeth, "I’m just here to get my toothbrush, not to cause trouble. You all carry on, carry on." Follow current novels on novel⚑fire.net

He chuckled awkwardly.

But everyone was staring at him, making it awkward for him. Holding his toothbrush, he was too embarrassed to brush his teeth.

Li Yuzhu sighed inwardly, knowing that in the stringent hierarchy of ancient times, a County Magistrate held untouchable authority, even his family had to revere it.

She said to everyone, "Let’s continue as we were. Li Lixing is just a guest, treat him as you would a guest, no need to be so formal."

Li Lixing also disliked being watched and repeatedly said, "Yes, yes, I’m just a guest, you all continue with your work, no need to mind me."

With seven or eight pairs of eyes on him, he simply couldn’t brush his teeth.

After Li Yuzhu and Li Lixing persuaded them, everyone resumed their tasks.

However, with Li Lixing present, everyone refrained from speaking freely, and no one dared glare at him anymore.

Feeling uneasy, Li Lixing hurriedly brushed his teeth, fetched some water to wash his face, haphazardly hung the towel on a wooden rack, and awkwardly gathered his robe before rushing off.

Li Yuzhu shook her head with amusement and followed suit.

Watching his panic-stricken departure, Liu Si Ni couldn’t help but chuckle.

Lady Liu patted Liu Si Ni’s arm, scolding her, "Si Ni, that’s the County Magistrate’s son; you can’t laugh at him to his face."

Liu Si Ni quickly stifled her laughter, waving her hand, "Mom, I know, I wouldn’t dare do it to his face."

Once he left, everyone felt more at ease and resumed their tasks.

The Liu Family was large, and besides the child Liu Si Ni, the second family had brought two ten-year-old sons.

The two juveniles would not sit quietly in the kitchen like Liu Si Ni.

Instead, they frequently found excuses to run to other parts of the house to watch the commotion.

A wedding, whether it was marrying off a daughter or bringing in a daughter-in-law, was always the most exciting event for village children.

They found everything about the wedding banquet fascinating.

They could stay entertained for hours just watching the hosts put up banners, set off firecrackers, or exchange pleasantries with arriving guests.

By this time, the sun was high, and the house had gradually filled with some guests, all villagers, and the two young boys from the Liu Family had already taken to chatting with everyone, eventually revealing Li Lixing’s identity.

Everyone was surprised at first but then realized, no wonder the impoverished Li Family could marry a girl from the Chai Family.

Apparently, Landlord Li must be related to County Magistrate Li.

See, they all share the same surname, Li.

The County Magistrate’s son has been staying at the Li Family for several days, and now he specifically came for the celebration; if that’s not a relative, what is?

The news spread quickly throughout the village.

Soon, everyone coming to the feast knew that the Li Family was related to County Magistrate Li.

Some even spread the word throughout the village, causing families who never had any interaction with the Li Family and initially didn’t plan to come, to now pack up gifts and head over.

Even the village chief from the neighboring Qinghe Village was alerted and quickly brought his family to the celebration.

Sitting at the entrance, recording gifts, Second Young Master Li, Li Xingsheng, watched the guest list grow longer and longer, his eyes wide with amazement.

They were planning the wedding, notification of which was done through the village chief, and with the kitchen helpers and their own people, they initially expected fewer than six tables of guests.

Calculating eight people per table, it shouldn’t exceed forty-eight people.

But now, the list has grown to ten tables.

What’s going on, why are there suddenly so many guests?

More guests make the celebration livelier, but the problem is, there’s not enough food and drink prepared!

Second Young Master Li put down his pen and hurriedly went to discuss with Prince Luling.