Unlimited estates for rural beauty-Chapter 494: Why Don’t I Have a Sister in This Life? (4)

"Thank you, Crown Prince." Several people got up and quickly walked away.

Mei Lenglei and Baihe walked shoulder to shoulder, with Di An following behind, listening to the conversation between the two ahead.

"Sister Baihe, thank you. If it wasn’t for you, I would have been dead today." Holding Baihe’s hand, she said gratefully. Everyone was aware of the kind of person the emperor was, beyond any doubt. If the emperor knew about this, she probably would be having tea with the King of Hell right now.

Baihe chuckled and shook her head, "Why thank me, Sister Mei? It was the Empress who sent me because you hadn’t returned for so long. By the way, what happened just now with you all?"

Mei Lenglei gave a wry smile, "This... we... just now... never mind, it’s too complicated to explain."

"There’s nothing too complicated to explain!" Di An muttered under his breath in defense.

Baihe stopped walking, looking at Di An behind her with surprise, waiting for him to continue. Mei Lenglei, afraid that Di An would say something inappropriate, turned and glared at him, "Have you truly forgotten what happened just now?"

Di An pursed his lips tightly, glanced at the two women, then briskly walked past them, heading off alone to see his mistress.

Seeing this, Baihe decided not to say anything more. There would be time to ask in the evening when they were free.

Feng Xuxu was idly flipping through the ancient account books in the room, thinking about the modern accounting methods that are clear at a glance. Looking back at these accounts, she couldn’t bear to watch. It seemed best to teach Di An the modern way of bookkeeping, thus making future audits much more convenient for herself.

"Mistress."

Feng Xuxu was lost in thought when suddenly a voice came through, disrupting her musings.

"Get up. Where are Lenglei and Baihe?" she asked, noticing he was alone and the other two were absent, slightly frowning.

"Reporting to mistress, Lady Baihe has gone to pour tea, and Miss Mei is outside waiting," Di An said, standing upright at the side after getting up, glancing at the account book next to his mistress and instantly knowing why she had called for him.

"Hmm, these account books span three years and are quite troublesome to look through, not to mention they are not clear at a glance. Today I will teach you a method that will not only detail these accounts, but also make them clear at a glance. Once you’ve learned it, teach the accountants under you. This will save time, effort, and trouble when it comes to balancing accounts," she explained.

After hearing this, Di An was taken aback and humbly accepted, "Thank you, mistress."

Feng Xuxu smiled, "You are the head accountant, after all. I am counting on you to check the accounts for me."

Although Di An knew the mistress was joking, he still knelt down, "This is what your servant ought to do."

"Stop kneeling every time. Although you are a servant, you have never been treated as such in my heart. These past few years, you should know that," she told him.

Hearing this, Di An’s expression became emotional, and he choked up as he spoke, "Although Master and Mistress have treated us as siblings, as servants, we must not overstep our bounds. Your kindness is forever etched in my heart."

Feng Xuxu looked at him, seeing tears in his eyes, decided it was best not to speak of other matters and changed the subject.

Approaching noon, Dugu Chen finished dealing with a difficult memorial submitted by the Prime Minister, and seeing the people around him had been gone for a long while, he called for Tian Yi, "Where is the Empress?"

"Replying to Master, in the front hall," was the response.

"Hmm." He stood up and went over to wash his hands.

Tian Yi handed a towel to Dugu Chen, who wiped his hands and then walked away. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Entering the front hall, he saw his wife quietly perusing the account book, while Di An was jotting down notes in another book at her side.

"Husband, you’ve finished with your work," Feng Xuxu said casually, noticing her husband standing in the doorway.

"Yes, I’ve just finished. Are you checking the accounts?" He walked over, took the account book from her hand, and browsed through it briefly.

"Yes, I haven’t looked at them in years, and now there’s a pile of them waiting for me," she said somewhat helplessly, glancing at the thick stack of account books on the table.

"Teach Di An and the others, there’s no need for you to do everything yourself," he said, gently massaging Feng Xuxu’s forehead.

Sitting in the chair, Feng Xuxu enjoyed the VIP treatment, closing her eyes and murmuring with a smile, "Once Di An has learned the new accounting methods, I can be the hands-off shopkeeper."

Dugu Chen paused, somewhat startled by her words. He looked over at Di An and approached the desk to examine a newer account book.

Di An snapped back from his absorption in the account book as he realized his master was standing in front of him. Just as he was about to stand, a light voice floated over, "No need for formalities, just carry on with your work."

"Yes, Master." Di An went back to using the abacus, the crisp sounds filling the air.

After watching for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Dugu Chen set the account book aside and, taking Feng Xuxu by the hand, left the front hall to stroll into a small courtyard, enjoying the sight of flowers not pruned too neatly in their little garden.

"I just looked at those new accounting methods; they are indeed very good," he remarked.

"Of course, this is the result of a history that spans over five thousand years," she said smugly, flashing a smile that revealed her small canines.

Qiqi and Yueyue held hands, watching from behind a tree as their father and mother conversed, "Brother, that Wang Xinghua has sisters and a brother, why don’t I have any?"

Qiqi turned to see his sister pouting her lips. Wang Xinghua? He seemed to recall the third daughter from the Wang Changgong family, the scrawny girl who played with his sister while helping their father the day before. Remembering the girl, he gave his sister a white look, "Don’t ever expect to have a sister in this lifetime; maybe a brother or a sister is still possible."

Yueyue, blinking her big innocent eyes, asked with puzzlement, "Why can’t I have a sister in this lifetime?"

Qiqi’s mouth twitched erratically. How could he explain that? Was he supposed to stuff her back into their mother’s belly and wait for her to be born after a sister? The thought alone was horrifying.

"Brother, what’s wrong with you, and you haven’t answered my question?" Seeing his mouth tremble, she asked out of concern.

"No... nothing. That... your question... I’ll go and ask Mother and then come back to tell you," Qiqi said, twisting his little body and running off.

Yueyue blinked her large eyes, watching her brother run away, and chuckled mischievously, ’Looks like someone’s shaking. Keep practicing, little one.’