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Shen Qian was not willing to go to the place where the Eldest Lord was appointed. Although he knew that the Eldest Lord and Eldest Lady were his biological parents, he had never been close to them since he was young. Now, even though they always showed concern for him, he felt uneasy when he was close to them. If he had to go to where the Eldest Lord was appointed, he would rather stay with Imperial Doctor Shi.

Shen Qian also knew that his Sixth Brother would not allow him to stay long with Imperial Doctor Shi.

Of course, the best choice was to stay in Prefecture City. He was willing to live with his Sixth Brother, and there were familiar friends and companions here.

Shen Qian told Shen Liu that he did not want to go.

"With Sixth Brother at home, and other elders, literate and martial teachers are all here, I’m well at home, no need to go far to seek... Eldest Uncle and Eldest Aunt." At that time, Shen Qian said this to Shen Liu.

Usually, when he mentioned his biological parents, he referred to them as Eldest Lord and Eldest Lady—respectful, yet not close. This time, he deliberately called them Eldest Uncle and Eldest Aunt, clearly expressing his feelings. Moreover, from a logical standpoint, his words made sense.

If the Eldest Lord and Eldest Lady were his parents, it would be needless to say he’d follow them. But now, they were just Uncle and Aunt, and here in Prefecture City, he had other uncles, aunts, uncles, aunts, and brothers, no more distant than the other Uncle and Aunt. He had more reasons to stay here rather than go far south to reunite with those two.

Shen Liu didn’t say much at that time, just changed the topic to Lian Manman. Although they hadn’t formally betrothed, Lian Manman was already set to be his sister-in-law. Because of their childhood bond, there was no need to avoid it, but the necessary respect and etiquette could not be lacking.

Shen Qian knew in his heart that he still liked Lian Manman. Lian Manman liked him too, he could see it. Of course, it wasn’t the kind of liking she had for his Sixth Brother, but rather like how she liked Xiao Qi.

He and Xiao Qi would still be good friends in the future, and Lian Manman would marry into his family. In this way, it was great; they could stay together for a long time.

Calling Lian Manman sister like Xiao Qi wasn’t actually that difficult. He had already discussed it with Master Chu, asking him to speak on his behalf to let him stay. Soon, he planned to tell Lian Manman about it.

If Lian Manman could mention it to his Sixth Brother, surely his Sixth Brother wouldn’t refuse, right? He would certainly agree, Shen Qian thought to himself.

"Is there no class with Master Chu, and did the riding and archery teacher give you a break?" Lian Manman asked again.

"Sister, today we don’t have a riding and archery class. We have it tomorrow, and we’ll surely learn well then," Xiao Qi quickly replied, "Sister, we’ve been tired for quite some days. It’s rare to have a day to rest, so we’ll relax a bit."

"Alright, alright, I won’t say anything." Lian Manman saw Xiao Qi pleading and Shen Qian looking pitiful and couldn’t help but laugh. Of course, she knew that Xiao Qi and Shen Qian had a lot of homework every day. Having some free time to play wasn’t a big deal.

"...I said the flowers we grow at home are pretty, so bring Brother Xiao Jiu to see them." Xiao Qi, seeing Lian Manman relent, immediately relaxed and said with a grin.

"Brother Xiao Jiu, see which pot you like, I’ll give it to you." Xiao Qi then generously said to Shen Qian.

Indeed, Shen Qian followed Xiao Qi to look at the various flowers and plants cultivated in the warm room. Most of the flowers and plants here he recognized, except for the few pots in the corner with red round fruits and small peppers, which intrigued Shen Qian.

"Those are ’Watching Dates’ and ’Watching Peppers’ we brought from the countryside," Xiao Qi told Shen Qian.

"They really look like red dates and peppers," Shen Qian said, "You can only look at them, not eat them?"

"Yes, you can only look at them, not eat them," Xiao Qi nodded, "Brother Xiao Jiu, these pots are quite nice, whichever you like, I’ll give them to you."

In this warm room, the pots of ’Watching Dates’ and ’Watching Peppers’ were chosen to be the finest, carefully pruned, making them festive and pleasing as bonsai. Lady Zhang and Lian Manman’s rooms each had several pots of similar ones.

Shen Qian and Xiao Qi were close, so he didn’t pretend to be modest and really picked two that he favored. Xiao Qi then ordered them to be packed and sent to the Shen Mansion.

Meanwhile, Lian Manman had already picked a red and a white pot of sour roses to have them carried to her room. The sour roses were a type of rose with blooms smaller than other varieties, and their fragrance was sweet and tangy.