Mistakenly recognized as a cousin, thousands of pampered

Although Shen Zhiyi and Tao Jiuxi had a very close relationship, Xie Shumei still followed them closely and called him "cousin" in her sweet voice whenever she had the chance.

Xie Shumei held a piece of plum blossom cake in both hands, approached Shen Zhiyi, and said with a smile on her face: "Cousin, please try it. This is the famous plum blossom cake in Jiangning Prefecture."

Shen Zhiyi glanced at the plum cake, his face expressionless as he coldly said, "No need."

Xie Shumei was not discouraged. She picked up a mask from the stall next to her, waved it in front of Shen Zhiyi, and said excitedly, "Cousin, look at this mask. As soon as I saw it, I felt that it suited you very well."

Shen Zhiyi frowned slightly and said with a look of disgust: "I don't like it."

Xie Shumei: "Cousin..."

Shen Zhiyi: "......"

Shen Zhiyi frowned even deeper, and simply turned his head away, ignoring it.

Xie Shumei didn't care about all this and continued to call out "cousin" out of the blue in her voice that could make a person's bones go soft.

After a long while, Tao Jiuxi was so angry that he clenched his fists tighter and tighter! He just wanted to separate from Xie Shumei as soon as possible and find a quiet place.

"Ayi, we've almost finished shopping. I want to go to the boat to see Fuya in the afternoon." Tao Jiuxi suggested softly.

"Okay, I'll go with you." Shen Zhiyi didn't have anything important to do today, so he was naturally happy to go with them.

"Cousin, I want to go with you too." Xie Shumei said hurriedly.

The annoyance in Tao Jiuxi's eyes was almost overflowing, but he was holding it back.

"I'm afraid it's not very convenient." Shen Zhiyi refused directly.

"Why...why?" Xie Shumei asked with a look of grievance.

"There are things I need to handle official business on the ship. Unrelated people are not allowed to board the ship at will." Shen Zhiyi made up an excuse.

"Mei'er understands." Xie Shumei said a little disappointedly.

"Then please go back and tell grandma and mother that we will go back after dinner." Shen Zhiyi said.

When Tao Jiuxi heard this, he was secretly happy. Now he didn't have to get along with Xie Shumei in such an awkward situation anymore.

In the end, Xie Shumei could only get on the carriage that the servants used to ride and returned to the Xie Mansion with her maid in a bad mood.

Tao Jiuxi came to the boat to visit Fuya, bringing with him a bunch of toys that children liked, which he had carefully selected at the temple fair - colorful spinning tops, windmills that turned in the wind, and lifelike straw grasshoppers.

As soon as she saw Fu Ya, she couldn't wait to take out these little toys one by one and played with Fu Ya for a long time.

On this boat, Tao Jiuxi seemed to be as comfortable as a fish in water. She nestled comfortably in the rattan chair inside the boat, stretched out her body, and shouted to Shen Zhiyi who was not far away: "I'm free again. Cousin, don't you think so?"

The word "cousin" came out of her mouth with a hint of joking.

She hadn't called Shen Zhiyi like this for a long time.

Shen Zhiyi was slightly stunned after hearing this, then pretended not to understand and said with a smile: "Then I will go back later today and let you have enough freedom outside."

When Tao Jiuxi heard this, he replied in a somewhat sarcastic tone: "Thank you for your kindness, cousin~"

Shen Zhiyi's eyes suddenly lit up, as if he had discovered something interesting. He asked with a playful look on his face, "Are you jealous?"

When Tao Jiuxi heard this, he immediately sat up straight and said angrily, "Am I jealous? I'm embarrassed!"

"Your real cousin is calling you in a gentle voice, you must be feeling very happy."

Shen Zhiyi smiled helplessly and stretched out his hand: "It's not beautiful, not beautiful at all. My hand is swollen from being squeezed by you."

But that slender, white hand was as smooth as jade, without any trace of being pinched.

At the temple fair, Tao Jiuxi couldn't help but get angry when she saw Xie Shumei's delicate behavior towards Shen Zhiyi. When no one was paying attention, she secretly squeezed Shen Zhiyi's hand hard to vent her dissatisfaction.

"What should I do? I can't pinch your cousin."

"Why not? She doesn't dare to act rashly with you." Shen Zhiyi stepped forward and held Tao Jiuxi's hand, as if he was going to go find Xie Shumei right away.

"I'll take you there, and you can pinch her as hard as you can! But we have a deal: if you pinch her, you can't pinch me."

Tao Jiuxi slapped Shen Zhiyi's hand away: "You are the best at coaxing people."

Tao Jiuxi also knew that this was not Shen Zhiyi's fault.

But that cousin is really like a dog-skin plaster, which makes people uncomfortable.

The two returned to Xie's house after dinner.

When they returned, Xie Ningqiu had not yet rested, so he sent someone to call the two of them over.

"Miss Tao, did you have fun today?"

Xie Ningqiu still addressed Tao Jiuxi as "Miss Tao". Although her tone was inquiring, she could not hear any concern in it.

Tao Jiuxi ignored the alienation in her tone and politely replied, "The temple fair is very interesting. Thank you for your concern, Madam."

"Then let Mei'er accompany you to Shangxin Pavilion tomorrow. Shangxin Pavilion is on the tower of Xiashuimen, overlooking the Qinhuai River. Standing in the pavilion, you can see the surrounding beautiful scenery at a glance. It's a great place."

Xie Shumei again? Tao Jiuxi was really reluctant to agree.

Before she could say anything, Shen Zhiyi directly refused: "Mother, there is no need for my sister to accompany me. Ah Xi and I can go alone."

Shen Zhiyi felt that Xie Shumei's chattering was very noisy, but more importantly, he didn't want anyone to ruin his and Tao Jiuxi's alone time.

Xie Ningqiu frowned slightly when she heard this. After Xie Shumei came back today, she told her everything that happened that day. It was she who suggested that they go out together again tomorrow, so Xie Ningqiu called the two of them over.

Seeing that his son didn't seem to understand what he was thinking, Xie Ningqiu thought, why not just say it out loud.

"Yier, your uncle's daughter Mei'er is a very gentle and sensible child. Mother wants to take her back to the capital..."

Xie Ningqiu hadn't finished speaking yet.

"If mother wants her sister to stay by her side, I will find a good marriage for her in the future." Shen Zhiyi instantly understood his mother's thoughts, interrupted her and said hurriedly.

"Mother means that she wants her to stay by your side forever and be your concubine."

Seeing that his son understood his thoughts, Xie Ningqiu stopped beating around the bush and spoke directly to the point.

Over the past year, Xie Shumei has been taking good care of Xie Ningqiu. She is a very sensible woman, and her every move is gentle and considerate, which Xie Ningqiu likes very much.

Tao Jiuxi felt as if cold water had been poured over her head upon hearing this, a chill spreading from the depths of her heart. She knew that in this era, it was common for men to have three wives and four concubines, but deep down she could not accept it no matter what, and Shen Zhiyi was clear about his attitude towards such matters.

Tao Jiuxi pursed her lips and said nothing, just looking at Shen Zhiyi quietly, with some uneasiness in her eyes, wondering whether Shen Zhiyi would tell this to her mother.

"Take a concubine? Mother, you have suffered so much injustice because of Bai in the past. How can you let your son take a concubine now?" Shen Zhiyi frowned slightly and said seriously, with a hint of regret for the past in his eyes.

Bai was Shen Yuquan's concubine, and she had brought so much pain to his mother. Shen Zhiyi had thought his mother would detest the idea of ​​taking a concubine, but he had never imagined that his mother would even entertain this idea before he and Ah Xi were even married.

"Mei'er has a gentle and docile temperament, completely different from Bai. If you marry her, you will never let Miss Tao suffer any grievances." Xie Ningqiu explained patiently, trying to make his son understand his good intentions.

"Mother wants you to marry Mei'er right now. It won't be too late to marry Mei'er after Miss Tao gives birth to her eldest son."

Xie Ningqiu felt that he had considered everything very carefully.

"Mother, I have no intention of taking a concubine. If I hadn't met Ah Xi, I might not have gotten married." Shen Zhiyi firmly rejected his mother's proposal without any hesitation.

Xie Ningqiu was a little annoyed, but she knew that her son was always stubborn, so she felt that this matter had to be resolved starting with Tao Jiuxi.

Then, suppressing her anger, she turned to Tao Jiuxi and said, "Miss Tao, Mei'er is a gentle girl who has always been peaceful and would never argue with you. As the mistress of the family in the future, you will naturally be able to control all matters at home. You can rest assured."

Tao Jiuxi knew that Xie Ningqiu wanted him to persuade Shen Zhiyi.

But she herself was firmly against this kind of thing, so how could she persuade Shen Zhiyi to take a concubine?

"Madam, since you like Miss Xie so much, why do you have to let her be a concubine..."

Xie Ningqiu didn't expect Tao Jiuxi to answer like this. An annoyed look immediately spread across her face. She narrowed her eyes and asked, "You don't agree?"

There was both questioning and threatening in her tone.

Seeing this, Shen Zhiyi immediately spoke up to defend her: "Mother, please don't make things difficult for Ah Xi."

He leaned forward slightly in his seat, trying to block Tao Jiuxi behind him and relieve the pressure brought to her by his mother's gaze.

Tao Jiuxi gently pushed him away from behind. Since Shen Zhiyi had made his attitude clear, she had no intention of escaping.

"Madam, Ayi and I haven't gotten married yet, so I shouldn't be involved in this matter. But since you've asked, I'll make it clear: if Ayi marries me, she won't have any concubines or maids. This doesn't apply to Miss Xie, and it doesn't apply to any other girls either."