Chapter 80 - Meeting New Faces (1)
"And lastly…" Xiao Yan hesitated for a moment before saying, "Nan Family also send their children here."
Nan Family?
Nan Luo narrowed his eyes. He knew for sure that Xiao Yan wouldn't be so tactless as to mention the two of them since it was plainly obvious. Thus, the only one he could think was his two siblings from his father… wait, step siblings.
Tsk.
"To think that we're going to meet again. How annoying," Nan Luo muttered under his breath.
Nan Hua kept her calm and lightly watched Nan Luo. "Who accompany them?"
Not all children would be entrusted to their servants like Nan Luo and Nan Hua. Some of them would have their elder accompany them, usually it would be the madam or the concubine.
Considering Nan Family's condition, Nan Hua could guess that the one who come should be one of the concubines.
"It's Concubine Qu."
Concubine Qu, who has been elevated to be Madam Qu, was one of the several concubines Nan Shu Cheng had. Her full name was Qu Fei Jiao and known for her beauty and elegant temperament. It was due to her low family status that she ended up as a concubine rather than the main wife of some other officials.
If she wanted, it was not impossible to match her to an official but her husband's status would be much lower than her current one.
"If it's her, then Nan Hou Xiang should be quite smug." Nan Luo's face darkened when he talked about his half-brother.
Nan Hou Xiang was Concubine Qu's only child and also the second son of Nan Shu Cheng. He was just a few months younger than Nan Luo and Nan Hua, which meant that he was the third child. It was said that he had inherited his father's talent as scholar as he had begun his study slowly but surely.
In total, Nan Shu Cheng had 4 children. Nan Luo was the oldest followed by Nan Hua with only a few seconds' differences or perhaps a few minutes. The third one was Nan Hou Xiang who was a few months younger than them since his birthday was in Summer. The last one was Nan Xin who was a year younger than the twins, reaching the age of 8 just right after New Year.
(Nan Hua and Nan Luo's birthdays are in early Winter)
Nan Hua had never met with Nan Hou Xiang and Concubine Qu after coming to this world. Her eyelids lowered slightly, no longer paying attention to the other families Xiao Yan mentioned.
Those people were coming from the lower ranked ones and probably would not even get close to them unless they were scheming something.
Time passed.
The sky was starting to turn dark when they reached Yi Shang Temple. General Chi's entourage was not far in front of them as the people had started to get inside. They didn't bring any children nor women, so it was not hard for them to settle down quickly.
On the other hand, it would take much longer for Nan Family group to settle down.
Nan Luo didn't even bother to greet the other group when they alighted. "Yi Shang Temple is big, where do you want to go first, Hua'er?"
"Young Master, it's already late. It's better for you to rest," Xiao Yan reminded.
Xiao Yun also nodded. "Young Miss, it's better to rest. You must be tired from the journey here."
Tired?
Both Nan Luo and Nan Hua looked at each other. They were actually not feeling tired in the slightest bit since they did nothing but sit and talk. Compared to the harsh training they had to endure every single day, this was nothing much.
But they had to act their age….
"Right, Hua'er must be tired!" Nan Luo nodded heavily. "In that case, how about if you take rest first, Hua'er? I'll accompany you."
"Mhm." Nan Hua nodded.
Hou Liang was the one in charge of talking with the abbot for their place to stay. There were several other families in Yi Shang Temple, so it was not easy to arrange their residence. Thankfully, the temple itself was pretty big.
"Xiao Yan, ask Hou Xiang when they settle the location."
"Yes, Young Master."
Nan Luo stretched his body lightly. Honestly, he was itching for some exercise right now. However, he knew that there wouldn't be anyone to accompany him since it would be hard for Nan Hua to even spare more time to train.
Looking into the distance, the two of them noticed a group of people, no, it's a group of women, coming to their direction. The one leading the entourage was a woman dressed in light pink dress, which make her look beautiful but it didn't seem to suit her age that much.
"Concubine Qu," Nan Luo said through gritted teeth.
Nan Hua raised her head to look at the woman in front of her. Qu Fei Jiao was only in her mid twenties but with makeup, she looked even younger. Unfortunately, her face shape was not one that could hide her real age easily.
When one was young, they could easily wear light colored dress without looking out of place. But when they were older, it looked a bit mismatch, which was what Concubine Qu currently looked like in their eyes.
It didn't match her age at all.
She looked like someone who was trying to wear children clothes even though one had to say that she was pretty.
"Ah, it turns out my children are all here," Concubine Qu greeted them with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.
Your children?
Nan Luo sneered internally when he heard what Concubine Qu said. "What do you want here?"
Concubine Qu didn't seem to care about Nan Luo's rude remark. "Since you're all part of the Nan Family, come and join me in the Western Courtyard. Ah Xiang and Xin'er would be happy if you could join."
"There's no need." Nan Luo shook his head.
"Are you still angry at Mother, child? There's no need to be so angry with me, is there? The one who make the decision is my husband," Concubine Qu said with brilliant smile on her face.. It sounded as if she was coaxing a child but in truth, she was warning him to not act out of place.