The Pampered Concubine Gu Jiao Niang

Chapter 40: Learning Characters

Xiao Liulang didn't just give advice to him because they were close. Since he didn't believe him, he decided to let it go.

Gu Jiao originally appreciated the painting, but as soon as she heard it was a fake, she lost all interest and returned the painting to Xiao Qinxiang.

Xiao Qinxiang looked at her disdainful expression and suddenly explained, "Don't listen to him! This painting is authentic!"

Gu Jiao decisively stated, "My husband said it's fake, so it's fake!"

"You..." Xiao Qinxiang was really angry.

In the past, he wouldn't have cared how a clown like her saw his painting, but he didn't want to embarrass himself in front of her today for some reason.

Xiao Qinxiang stood up straight and said, "It's real! He has no knowledge of painting!"

"You're the one who has no knowledge!" Gu Jiao wouldn't allow anyone to insult her family!

If the last time Xiao Qinxiang came to deliver a letter to Gu Jiao, Xiao Liulang had only heard about it afterward. But now, he witnessed firsthand the coldness Gu Jiao showed towards Xiao Qinxiang.

She even argued with him for her own sake.

Xiao Liulang took a deep look at Gu Jiao and generously reminded Xiao Qinxiang, "If you're planning to give this painting as a gift, I advise you not to make a fool of yourself."

After speaking, Xiao Liulang said to Luo Ershi, "Let's go back to the village, Luo Ershi."

"Alright!" Luo Ershi didn't want to meddle in the affairs of young people and drove the ox cart away with a smile.

Xiao Qinxiang watched the two of them eating scallion pancakes in the cold wind and was so angry that he wanted to curse them.

However, this incident left a thorn in his heart. When he returned the painting to the Qin family, his father eagerly greeted him,

"How was it? Did you find the painting?"

"Found it, and brought it back..." Xiao Qinxiang paused before continuing.

His father became anxious, "What happened? It's not broken, is it?"

"It's not broken... sigh." In the end, Xiao Qinxiang told his father what Xiao Liulang had said to him.

His father was more skeptical than he was, "You believe the words of a cripple?"

"He's a student from Tianxiang Academy." When Xiao Qinxiang went to visit Gu Jiao to pick up the letter, he had seen Xiao Liulang wearing the uniform of Tianxiang Academy.

"So what if he's a student of Tianxiang Academy?" His father sneered.

"They're all very skilled," Xiao Qinxiang said.

His father dismissed him, "Aren't you skilled too? I spent so much money to invite a teacher from the capital for you. How are you inferior to them? Besides, they're just a bunch of bookworms who haven't seen the world."

Xiao Qinxiang thought to himself, "I said the same thing back then!"

In fact, Xiao Qinxiang was a very proud person. If someone else had reminded him of this, he wouldn't have listened. But Xiao Liulang's gaze and aura at that time were inexplicably persuasive.

In the end, Xiao Qinxiang couldn't convince his father, and he watched as his father wrapped up the painting and had it delivered to a nobleman in the capital.

........

The heavy snow had been falling for three days straight, and the roads in the village were all blocked, so even the ox carts could not move. Many people in the village had originally planned to go to the market to do some business before the New Year, but due to the heavy snow, they had to reluctantly postpone their plans.