Full House Spring

Chapter 92: Unruly Things
Shunzi saw Shi Mi enter Fang's house but did not leave immediately. Instead, he found an inconspicuous corner and waited there.

In fact, in addition to asking him to deliver the hairpin, Kuang Chengrui also asked him to deliver a letter to Shanchang Fang, instructing him to give both the letter and the hairpin to Shanchang Fang.

Before coming, he was still wondering what kind of girl would be worthy of his elder brother. After seeing the prominence of the Fang family, he was a little hesitant. He deliberately sent the letter and the hairpin separately, just to see if this Miss Fang had his elder brother in her heart.

Shi Mi had no idea what Shunzi was thinking. If she had been more cautious, she probably would not have handed the dragonfly hairpin to Xia Li.

At this moment, Xia Li was doing needlework in the house. She had promised to make clothes for her second brother. As the weather was getting warmer, it was time to prepare summer clothes. When she heard the noise, Xia Li looked up and saw Shi Mi coming in with a brocade box in her hand. She asked in confusion, "Where did you come from? Did someone give you a gift?"

Seeing that there was no one in the room, Shi Mi lowered her voice and said, "Miss, you guessed wrong. This is not a gift for you. Someone carved a hairpin for you. Please take a look."

Xia Li frowned, she put down the embroidery frame, rubbed her swollen eyes, and looked into the brocade box. She saw a pair of dragonfly hairpins inside. As Shi Mi walked, their wings fluttered gently.

She reached out her hand expressionlessly and picked up the hairpin. The connection of the hairpin had a spring-like design, so it would tremble slightly when she walked. The hairpin was not gorgeous, but very delicate and elegant.

Seeing Xia Li remained silent, Shi Mi asked softly, "What's wrong, young lady? Is this hairpin not to your liking?"

Xia Li put the hairpin back into the brocade box, looked at Shi Mi sharply and asked, "Is the person who came to deliver the gift still waiting outside?"

Shi Mi nodded in confusion and whispered, "I asked that person to wait. Miss, do you want to return the gift or..."

Xia Li said in a cold tone: "Please return this thing. If I accept it, it will be against the rules. Not only will others look down on me, but they will also not respect me in the future. This matter can be a big deal or a small one. Do you understand?"

Shi Mi immediately thought of the secret transaction. She closed the brocade box with a pale face, knelt straight down, and said in a trembling voice: "Miss, it was my fault for not thinking carefully. I didn't expect the consequences to be so serious. Please punish me."

Xia Li looked at her for a while with a scrutinizing look in his eyes. Seeing that she was indeed repentant, he said in a deep voice: "You have served the old lady for many years. It is understandable that you were negligent in this regard. This time, I will only fine you two months' salary. Don't do it again in the future."

Shi Mi's back was covered in cold sweat, tears sparkled in her eyes, and she said with relief: "I will remember your teachings!"

After this incident, Shi Mi became more cautious and careful in her actions. When she went to return the hairpin, Xia Li picked out a butterfly hairpin from her dressing box and inserted it into her hair.

That hairpin was even more gorgeous and eye-catching than the dragonfly hairpin, and it made her look particularly noble. Qiao He, who was carrying the bird's nest into the room, saw it and couldn't help but praise it, "This butterfly hairpin looks really good on the girl!"

Xia Li didn't dress up too much in the past, but that didn't mean she didn't love beauty. When she heard the compliment, a smile spread across her eyes and brows. She looked at herself in the mirror a few more times before taking it off.

Qiao He handed the bird's nest to her and asked puzzledly, "Why did you take it off, young lady? It will be so beautiful if you wear it."

Xia Li tasted the bird's nest and said softly, "I'm going to play with Shuo Ge'er later, and I'm afraid the hairpin might get damaged. Do you want to go with me or stay in the yard?"

Cuihua Court's small kitchen, Qiao He, had the final say. She had found a new recipe book from somewhere and had been researching new dishes with great interest these days. Upon hearing this, she smiled and said, "I won't go there. I'll stay in Cuihua Court and cook delicious food for you, okay?"

Xia Li raised the corners of his mouth and said happily, "It's up to you. Let Du Ruo and Bai Ying accompany me."

Although Xia Li is closer to Shi Mi and Qiao He, he is also willing to give opportunities to newcomers around him. Du Ruo is more outstanding, and Bai Guo and Bai Ying manage Xia Li's assets clearly, which makes Xia Li less worried.

Before she knew it, a few days had passed and the craftsman's shop finally sent her news that the extraction equipment she wanted was ready. Xia Li finally had something new to do.

Xia Li reported to his sister-in-law and took Shi Mi and Bai Guo out of the house. Bai Guo was lively and chattered all the way, making Xia Li smile, and they soon arrived at the craftsman's shop.

Xia Li was very satisfied when she saw the extraction equipment in front of her. Although it was not as perfect as the modern ones, it was sufficient. She ordered the guards to carefully move the equipment onto the carriage, and asked Baiguo to give the craftsman a generous reward before turning around and leaving.

She walked to the door and was about to step into the carriage when a man suddenly rushed over. If the guards had not been quick-witted, Xia Li would have been knocked down by him. Shi Mi stood in front of Xia Li and said angrily:
"What an unruly person! Are you blind? You don't even look at the road when you walk. How can you offend our girl?"

He Wenhan was pushed to the ground by the guards. His hair was disheveled and his eye sockets were sunken. He staggered to his feet, clasped his hands and bowed, saying:
"Forgive me, young lady. I am He Wenhan, who sold handwritten books in the bookstore a few days ago. I wonder if you remember me."

Shi Mi narrowed her eyes and recognized the person. She said defensively, "Why did you bump into my girl? Could it be that I helped you once, and you still want to blame me?"

He Wenhan hurriedly shook his head. He had a lot of grievances in his heart but couldn't say them. After Zou came back from the Fang Mansion, she told him that the Fang family did not agree with their daughter marrying down from their family. Previously, they had only chosen a son-in-law for a girl from a branch family. He Wenhan knew that this was not a good thing.

Sure enough, Master Fang called him out of the lecture hall the next day and told him that the matter was over. Although Master Fang did not speak harshly to him, the look in his eyes was cold, which made him uneasy.

It happened to be the quarterly exam time, and He Wenhan had never reviewed properly in order to make a living. In addition, the fact that he married into the wife's family made him distracted from his studies, so naturally his ranking dropped.

Dongli Academy has always implemented the last-in-first-out system, and He Wenhan was expelled as a matter of course. This was like the sky falling down for He Wenhan. Although the academy returned all his tuition fees, that little money was not enough for him to continue his studies.

He Wenhan was in great pain, so he thought of waiting here to find Xia Li to plead for mercy. He didn't know whether he was lucky or Xia Li was unlucky, but he really ran into him. He Wenhan didn't dare to have any improper thoughts. He pleaded:

"Miss Fang, I hope you can be kind enough to speak to the teacher on my behalf. If I am expelled from the academy, I'm afraid I will have no hope for the future..."

He Wenhan was clear about his own abilities. He did not have the money to hire a great scholar, and Dongli Academy was his only hope. If he lost even this, he would have no hope of a career in politics in this life.

Xia Li said indifferently, "I am a female member and I don't understand the affairs of the academy. Since the young master was expelled, there must be a reason for his expulsion. You have time to tangle with me, why not go find someone who can make the decision."

He Wenhan grovelled and said, "Miss, you don't know that Master Fang wanted to choose me as his son-in-law, but...but my mother said something stupid. I think she offended the headmaster's wife, so..."

Xia Li knew nothing about this matter. She subconsciously retorted, "Young Master, please be careful with your words. My mother is not an unreasonable person. You were dismissed because you are not capable enough. Otherwise, why didn't my father and brother dismiss others?"

He Wenhan had never expected that his academic performance would plummet if he slacked off. His expulsion was in accordance with the rules of the academy. Now it was useless for him to regret it, so he could only find another way. He Wenhan was unwilling to give up and said, "I was distracted by the matter of marrying into the family, so my studies were affected. In addition, I made Master Fang unhappy, so he naturally couldn't keep me."

Xia Li had never seen someone who was so confident in passing on the blame. She sneered:

"Since my brother is so narrow-minded, why do you continue to stay in Dongli Academy? Did my brother alone decide to rank you last in the evaluation of your studies?"

Bai Guo followed up with a sneer, "You blame others for your own incompetence. Do you really think that we girls are easy to fool?"

Xia Li was kind-hearted at the moment and helped him once because Xia Li was a student of Dongli Academy. He then concluded that Xia Li was naive and easy to manipulate. This was really unreasonable.

He Wenhan had no other choice but to bite the bullet and said, "Miss, aren't you afraid that I will spread the news of your marriage? If that happens, your reputation will be ruined and it will be hard for you to find a better husband."

Xia Li looked at him with a look of extreme contempt, and said mockingly: "You may not know that I have been engaged since I was young, and the other party is a military officer of the fourth rank. If you are dissatisfied, you might as well make up rumors and cause trouble, and experience the consequences."

He Wenhan was stunned. Could it be that Master Fang was really looking for a son-in-law for his sister from a branch family? He had misunderstood it. For a moment, he could not accept it and stood there in a daze.

Xia Li was too lazy to argue with him and simply stepped past him and got into the carriage. The guards kept a close watch on him, fearing that he would get infected again.

He Wenhan knew that Xia Li was a very opinionated man, so he dared not humiliate himself. He could only watch the carriage slowly drive away.

Bai Guo opened the curtain and saw He Wenhan standing there motionless. He couldn't help but ask, "Is he really going to make a big deal out of this?"

Shi Mi sneered and said, "This is Laizhou. If he still wants to seek fame, he will definitely not dare to cause trouble."

After that, she looked at Xia Li again and asked softly, "Miss, are you going to tell the master and his wife about this when you go back?"

Xia Li shook her head and said nonchalantly, "There's no need to alarm them about this little thing. My brother was doing it for my own good, he just didn't pick the right person. No wonder he gave me a box of jewelry that day. I guess he felt bad about it."

Shi Mi suddenly realized. Although she didn't say anything, she couldn't help but compare He Wenhan with Kuang Chengrui. So what if he was a military officer? He was not only more responsible than the weak guy, but also better at making girls happy than him. One has to compare people to see their strengths and weaknesses.

After returning home, Xia Li went straight to Cuihua Court and asked the maid to tell her sister-in-law that she was back. Then she went to set up her laboratory as she was going to make perfume.

Cuihuating covers a large area, so not only can it accommodate one laboratory, but even three or four can be spared.

Xia Li cleans the freshly picked petals, then puts them into the extraction equipment, adds water, and extracts the condensate from it. She then uses a repeated extraction process to increase the concentration of the perfume. She then uses a customized ceramic oil-water separator to extract a mixture of essential oils and hydrosols to improve the quality of the perfume.

She was busy for a long time, and the maids serving her were also busy. When the whole room was filled with the smell of perfume, Du Ruo said excitedly: "I have never smelled such a good fragrance. I guess there is no female family member who would not love it."

Xia Li filled the perfume in a glass bottle and chuckled when he heard this:
"In fact, this extraction equipment can also be used to extract high-purity wine. That wine is good for wound healing. I'll extract it someday, and you'll know if you try it."

Du Ruo has been studying medicine since she was young and is particularly interested in this aspect. She couldn't wait to say, "Miss, please don't forget this matter. I'm waiting for you."

Xia Li nodded and said with a smile: "Don't worry, I won't forget it. I'm going to the main courtyard for dinner. Let's send perfume to mother and sister-in-law first and let them try the scent."

Ever since Xia Li returned home, Rong and Sun Fuya would give her a share of any good things they got. In return for their kindness, Xia Li naturally kept them in mind all the time. She first changed into clean clothes and then took the maid away.

Fang Qizhen and Fang Fuya had already brought Shuo Ge'er to the main courtyard. Rong was playing Cuju with her eldest grandson. Even standing outside the courtyard, one could hear the laughter inside. Xia Li's mouth corners unconsciously rose.

As soon as she stepped into the yard, Shuo Ge'er saw his aunt. The little guy rushed to Xia Li with a ball and said happily, "Aunt, the ball..."

Xia Li touched Shuo Ge'er's rosy little face, held him in his arms, and coaxed him softly, "Shuo Ge'er is already sweating, he can't play anymore, let's take a break and have dinner, okay?"

The little guy's eyes sparkled, and he nodded obediently. Sun Fuya said with a smile, "This brat listens to his aunt. It's useless for me to talk to him. Come and sit here, sister. He's too heavy."

Xia Li hurriedly held Shuo Ge'er and sat on the armchair, and whispered, "Why hasn't Dad come back yet? Isn't he having dinner at home?"

Fang Qizheng stretched out his hand and pinched Shuo Ge'er's nose, and said calmly: "The prefect is holding a banquet, and Dad has gone to attend the banquet. He will be back later, so we don't have to wait for him."

Xia Li looked up at him and asked, "Why didn't you go with us, brother?"

Fang Qizheng waved his hand and explained softly, "The people who went there today are all the heads of various families. I guess what they talked about is not ordinary. Dad will tell me when he comes back."

Xia Li understood, she turned to look at Sun Fuya, and said with a smile: "Sister-in-law, my perfume is ready, you and mother can try it to see how it smells."

Sun Fuya's face was full of surprise. "So soon? Show it to me."

Shi Mi hurriedly brought the perfume to the two of them. Sun Fuya opened the glass bottle cap, and the scent of roses immediately filled the air. The rich smell seemed to be intoxicating and magical.

Rong seldom uses perfume on a daily basis, but she really likes the scent of this rose perfume. This unique fragrance is rich and long-lasting, with a mysterious and elegant charm, which suits her temperament very well.

Sun Fuya's eyes sparkled, and she sighed, "If my sister sells this perfume, I'm afraid she will make endless money in her lifetime."

Xia Li kissed Shuo Ge'er's chubby face and said cheerfully, "That's great. When you make money, buy candy for us Shuo Ge'er. We also have perfumes of other flavors. You can all try them."

(End of this chapter)