The Wealthy Eldest Sister Rules Supreme

“Who is it?” Zhuang Qingning asked.

“Miss Zhuang, it’s Banqing.” A familiar voice came from outside the door.

Zhuang Qingning opened the door, and indeed, Banqing was standing outside.

“Why are you here so late? Is there a matter?”

“Mr. Fan and the Third Young Master sent me to inform Miss Zhuang that Mr. Fan will not be able to come and teach for the next two days. At the earliest, he’ll only be able to return after three or four days.” Banqing answered.

“Oh?” Zhuang Qingning raised an eyebrow.

Fan Wenxuan has always been very punctual in coming to teach, even in windy and rainy weather, he never missed a session. But this time he suddenly couldn’t come, and for three or four days at that.

“Mr. Fan is fine, right? He’s not unwell?” A worried look spread across Zhuang Qingsui’s face.

“Mr. Fan… his health is fine.” Banqing helplessly lowered his eye-lids.

It’s just that he was a bit mentally distressed.

After all, any man would find such a matter somewhat hard to accept.

“Miss Zhuang and Miss Sui need not worry.”

“That’s good.” Zhuang Qingning saw how Banqing seemed to be at a loss for words. She said, “If Mr. Fan is preoccupied, let him handle his own matters first. I’ll make sure Qingsui and Mingli study diligently here. Please relay this to Mr. Fan and reassure him.”

“Yes.” Banqing responded, bringing out a neat stack of book scrolls, “Mr. Fan said these are the texts that need to be studied these days. Please ask Miss Sui and young master Mingli to read and learn them first. If they have any confusion, they should mark it and wait to ask Mr. Fan when he comes.”

“We appreciate Mr. Fan’s concern.” Zhuang Qingning received the scrolls, “Thank you.”

“Miss Zhuang, you’re too kind. I won’t disturb you any further. I shall take my leave.” After saying this, Banqing mounted his horse and headed back.

Zhuang Qingning and Zhuang Qingsui secured the door and proceeded back with the stack of papers.

“I wonder what has happened to the teacher…” Zhuang Qingsui was still somewhat worried, “He didn’t explain clearly, which makes us speculate and fear what could have happened.”

“If Banqing said it will only take three or four days, then it shouldn’t be a major issue. However, given that Mr. Fan isn’t coming to teach in the coming days, it can’t be a trivial matter either.” Zhuang Qingning responded.

“Hearing sister say it like this, now I am even more confused…”

If it’s not a big issue, and it’s not a small issue, then is it a serious matter or not?

A puzzled Zhuang Qingsui looked at Zhuang Qingning.

“Whether it’s a serious or minor issue isn’t important. What’s important is that, since Banqing didn’t say and also said not to worry, then it’s likely something inconvenient to be spoken of. We should avoid prying too much. If it’s comfortable to talk about and can be said, Mr. Fan would tell us without us needing to pry.”

Zhuang Qingning said, “Sometimes, it’s better to be a bit confused.”

“Now that you say it like that, sister, I understand.” Zhuang Qingsui nodded, revealing a bright smile, “Then sister, let’s hurry to bed so we can get up earlier tomorrow.”

“Since Mr. Fan won’t be able to teach us for the next few days, I need to work even harder to read and review the previously learned texts. So that when Mr. Fan returns, he could be more relieved.”

No matter if it’s a big issue, a small issue, or an inconvenient issue to talk about, the fact that it’s an issue at all would inevitably worry people.

Zhuang Qingsui felt that, as a student of Mr. Fan, she absolutely must not let Mr. Fan worry any more.

“Alright.” Zhuang Qingning cheerily agreed, picked up the lantern, and returned to the house with Zhuang Qingsui.

The moon was shining, but the stars were sparse, the leaves had fallen, yet a few sparrows were hopping around on the bare branches, causing the branches to sway in the air.

“Unbearable, absolutely unbearable!”

Shouts of fury came from inside the house, scaring the sparrows on the branches into flying away.

Even Banqing, who had returned to report, stopped in his tracks, catching hold of Ning Feng, who had come to the courtyard to deliver things. “Butler Ning, is Mr. Fan still angry?”

“I’m afraid so.” Ning Feng shook his head, then let out a long sigh, “Imagine, Mr. Fan is a respected scholar in the capital, a towering figure. And now, he lost a chess game to the point of only having his trousers left. His face must really be losing its shine.”

Not just losing its shine, probably feels like he has lost his entire face…

Banqing smacked his lips, touching his nose thoughtfully, “But that’s true, although Mr. Fan is indeed skilled in chess, everyone knows that our Young Master was taught by the best chess master in the palace. With his natural talent, even the best chess master Mister Ye can only end in a stalemate against him. Mr. Fan could have played chess with anyone, but he chose to play with the Young Master. It’s like he was asking for trouble…”

“What nonsense are you saying! It wasn’t Mr. Fan who eagerly challenged the Young Master to play chess, but the Young Master who pulled Mr. Fan into playing after dinner. He even said that if Mr. Fan could win, even just one game, he would give him the treasured painting of Frosty Snow and Cold Plum from his study.”

Ning Feng said, “Mr. Fan has always wanted to have this painting. He asked the Young Master several times, without success. Now that the Young Master was willing to part with it, of course Mr. Fan hurriedly agreed, only to find…”

Only to find that he didn’t get the painting, and due to having nothing else to bet with, he went all in and said that he would give Chu Jinnian a piece of his clothing for every game he lost. In the end, he was left only with his trousers. His shoes and socks had all been taken off too. He had to leave Chu Jinnian’s study room with bared feet.

“Hold on, why does this situation seem all wrong to me?”

Banqing scratched his ear, saying, “Knowing that Mr. Fan couldn’t beat him at chess, the Young Master still used the Frosty Snow and Cold Plum painting to entice Mr. Fan to play chess. It seems like the Young Master intentionally let Mr. Fan make a fool of himself?”

“You only realized it now?” Ning Feng rolled his eyes.

“But, why would…”

Banqing was a little confused.

It wasn’t unusual for him to see his Young Master deliberately making things difficult for Mr. Fan in the past.

However, those instances were mostly provoked. Essentially, they were triggered by Fan Wenxuan, the old troublemaker, taking things too far and being unable to control himself. He bullied Chu Jinzhou or placed Chu Jinzhou in danger, and that’s when Chu Jinnian would lose his temper.

But these past few days, Fan Wenxuan had been behaving very decently. He would either go to Zhuang Qingning’s house in Enji Village to teach or wander around the farm fields. The most he would do was tease a chicken or herd a goat, roast sweet potatoes and peanuts in the field, and he didn’t do anything out of the ordinary.

“You think carefully?” Ning Feng’s rolling eyes nearly reached the skies.

“Think carefully…” Banqing’s eyebrows knitted into a “V” shape. No matter how much he thought, it seemed he couldn’t figure out what inappropriate things Mr. Fan had done recently.

Moreover, Chu Jinnian had just returned today, and they had only eaten dinner together.

Dinner?

Suddenly, Banqing’s eyes widened.