Chapter 588: Unfairness of Blessings and Gifts
Thousands of auspicious things are gathering and the lucky star is shining brightly.
This year's Reunion Festival will be held in Ning Mansion as usual, with a family banquet.
In previous years, Ning Yunxi did not accept a penny from the gifts, and used all of it as birthday gifts for his parents. In recent years, he has changed this and gives all of it to his mother after the reunion party, without waiting for her birthday.
This was Mu Rong's suggestion.
On the surface, they acted righteously, saying that their parents didn't care much about birthday gifts and couldn't bear to see their child go through the trouble of choosing one, so they racked their brains every year; but in fact, they were just guarding against Ning Yunxi, fearing that the older she got, the more thoughtful she would be. If she took the gifts for herself, the Ning Mansion's treasury would suffer a huge loss.
Ning Yunxi understood what he meant, but did not say anything and just obeyed.
As long as mother is happy, these are all small things.
At midnight, the Ning family members bid farewell to the Mu family members and returned home.
Ning Fengzhe and his two siblings followed their mother to Xianyi Residence.
Mu Rong took her seat first, following the order, showing concern.
"Bong-chul."
Ning Fengzhe was gentle and polite, and bowed.
"The child is here."
Mu Rong smiled widely and spoke in a gentle tone.
"Do you like the food? Are you full? You are weak, so you need to eat more."
Ning Fengzhe bowed according to etiquette.
"Thank you for your concern, mother. I am well fed."
Mu Rong motioned to her eldest son to sit down and rest for a while, then turned to look at her youngest son.
"Feng'er."
Ning Xuanfeng smiled brightly and bowed.
"The child is here."
Mu Rong had kind eyes and smiled back warmly.
"You've kowtowed so many times, do you feel tired?"
Ning Xuanfeng nodded.
"Well, a little bit."
The youngest son was honest and simple, so Mu Rong asked one more question.
"Did you hurt your knee?"
Ning Xuanfeng answered truthfully.
"Kneeling on a cushion won't hurt your knees."
Mu Rong was worried about her beloved son and her brows were frowned with sorrow.
"I heard that someone took out the cotton from the cushions and replaced them with sawdust?"
Ning Xuanfeng was very pleased with himself and was very satisfied with his masterpiece.
"My brother and I are cushioned and intact."
"Only the third sister's cushion was removed. I guess it's retribution for her evil deeds."
Mu Rong's heart dropped and she blurted out.
"That's good."
Ning Yunxi suddenly felt a pain in her heart and her eyes filled with tears.
Ning Fengzhe was furious, but he gritted his teeth and endured it.
Realizing that what she said was wrong, Mu Rong calmly gestured for Feng'er to take a seat before changing her words.
"Don't worry, Xi'er. Mother is definitely not gloating over other's misfortunes. I have more to say."
She acts like a loving mother.
"The rest is... well, it's just some words of concern for you, you're already tired of hearing them."
"Mother knows that you, as a child, hate your parents' nagging the most."
"In that case, mother will keep silent."
Ning Yunxi clenched her fists and tried hard to hold back her tears.
"Thank you for your compassion, mother."
Mu Rong pretended to be pitiful and bit back.
"You'll know once you try it. You really don't like it."
"Okay, I won't tell."
"In the future, when we meet for the reunion festival, I won't tell you anything. I will just follow my daughter's wishes."
A hint of bitterness appeared on Ning Yunxi's lips.
"Thank you mother."
Ning Xuanfeng was very angry and started complaining.
"Why should mother listen to her? You are deliberately favoring my third sister. It's so unfair."
Mu Rong pretended to scold her son.
"Xi'er is the youngest. As her elder brother, you must give in to her and not complain."
Ning Xuanfeng pouted in anger.
"Humph."
Ning Fengzhe couldn't bear to watch it anymore and urged him angrily.
"It's too late, please hurry up, mother. I'm sleepy."
Mu Rong was kind and gentle, and doting to him endlessly.
"Okay, okay, then let's skip the tedious formalities and hand in the gift quickly."
Ning Fengzhe spoke coldly and presented the gift he received today.
"It's not a token of respect, but please accept it, mother."
Mu Rong took it happily and gave praise in return.
"Okay, Fengzhe is filial."
Ning Xuanfeng bowed.
"It's not a token of respect, but please accept it, mother."
Mu Rong was delighted.
"Well, Feng'er is well behaved."
Ning Yunxi presented it respectfully.
"It's not a token of respect, but please accept it, mother."
Mu Rong's mouth became stiff and her smile gradually disappeared.
"okay."
She paused for a moment and thought quickly, but couldn't find a new word and had to repeat the praise.
"Xi'er is both filial and well-behaved."
Hearing the perfunctory tone, Ning Yunxi forced a smile.
Ning Fengzhe was furious.
Ning Xuanfeng was extremely indignant and complained again.
"Why does she deserve double praise?"
"Mother is so unfair!"
Ning Fengzhe took the opportunity to vent his anger.
"Shut up, second brother."
"How dare you teach your mother a lesson? You have no manners at all."
Ning Xuanfeng lost all his arrogance.
"Yes, I know I was wrong."
Mu Rong was obviously distressed when her beloved son was scolded, but she was helpless and could not say anything, so she was in a dilemma.
There was nothing she could do, so she could only pretend she hadn't heard it and continue with her business, giving the order solemnly.
"Xiangzhuyuan is a long way to go, Xier, take the carriage back and go to bed as soon as possible."
"Fengzhe, Feng'er, stay and continue to listen to the teachings."
Ning Yunxi bowed to express her gratitude.
"Thank you, mother. I'll take my leave now."
After confirming that Ning Yunxi had left, Mu Rong returned the gifts to her two beloved sons, keeping only the one for Ning Yunxi and put it into her own pocket.
"Here, put it away."
Brother Ning Fengzhe, take it with both hands.
Ning Xuanfeng held the gift in his hand and curled his lips in displeasure.
"As for Third Sister's share, Mother is going to pray for the blessings of the immortals, so shall we send it to her?"
Mu Rong spoke shamelessly to maintain the image of a loving mother.
"That's natural."
"Xi'er is sensitive and thoughtful. She always tells others that her parents are too harsh on her. As a mother, I should cherish her even more since she has complaints. I can't just watch her being sad, can I?"
"Good Feng'er, please understand your mother."
Ning Xuanfeng poured all his resentment onto his third sister.
"Humph."
"What do you mean by sensitive and thoughtful? I think she is just scheming and trying to win favor."
Ning Fengzhe saw through Fu Li's matter but didn't say anything. He was too lazy to say more and looked at Ning Xuanfeng angrily.
"Second brother, what did I teach you? You are not allowed to talk about others behind their backs."
Ning Xuanfeng felt depressed and aggrieved.
"It was Third Sister who made things look bad first. Is it not okay for me to just say a few words to vent my anger?"
Ning Fengzhe gave him an answer indifferently.
"No."
Ning Xuanfeng asked unwillingly.
"Why not?"
Ning Fengzhe's eyes were stern and he rushed away.
"You really want to know why not?"
The scene of his elder brother killing innocent people flashed through Ning Xuanfeng's mind, and he stepped back in fear.
"No...don't want to."
Ning Fengzhe raised his eyebrows and said goodbye to the deer.
"Then obey me."
Ning Xuanfeng responded tremblingly.
"Yes."
Mu Rong felt particularly distressed.
"Fengzhe, don't be so strict with your second brother."
"He is your biological brother."
Ning Fengzhe stared at her calmly.
"That's not funny, mother. What did I do?"
"He is my biological brother, so who among the Nings is not a relative?"
Mu Rong was speechless for a moment.
"This...I..."
Using Ning Yunxi's way of making money was a little shady, and she was unwilling to tell her youngest son, fearing that Feng'er was young and naive and would misunderstand his mother's character.
Ning Xuanfeng kindly answered.
"Of course, what mother is referring to is my fourth sister."
"Look at Aunt Liu. She walks like a willow branch. You can tell at a glance that she is a fickle person. It is possible that the man Fourth Sister is biologically related to is a man she kept outside."
Mu Rong immediately gave instructions.
"Don't say that in front of her."
Ning Xuanfeng was not convinced.
"Mother, don't you look down on me? My child understands the ways of the world."
Mu Rong coaxed.
"Okay, Feng'er is really smart."