At first, Shen Lian thought Shen Fang and Shen Zhan were having a conflict and wanted to listen to what was going on and try his best to mediate the dispute. After all, they were brothers. But the more he listened, the more he felt something was amiss.
It turned out that he was the target of the two brothers' condemnation.
"After I became a Gu Master, my expenses increased sharply and it has attracted the attention of my family."
Shen Lian sighed and was about to walk out. At this moment!
"You two guys are sneaking around. What bad things are you saying about Brother Lian again?"
A green shadow swayed in the bamboo forest and a lively girl appeared. She was not yet of marriageable age but her appearance was extremely beautiful. Her skin was whiter than snow and her delicate face was white and delicate as if it was carved from jade. There was also a water droplet beauty mole under the corner of her eye.
She was wearing a white jade dress with a thick velvet draped over her delicate shoulders. She suddenly jumped out and appeared behind Shen Fang and Shen Zhan, causing them to tremble in fear.
"I was wondering who it was. Isn't this Shen Lian's follower? Why aren't you with Shen Lian? He doesn't want you anymore! "Shen Fang sneered with an abnormal expression.
Shen Zhan was also flustered and taunted, "Shen Xiaoshu, as a woman, you must abide by the virtue of a woman. Don't slander others and don't gossip behind others' backs. Do you understand?"
Shen Xiaoshu said angrily, "You two big bad guys. I'm going to tell Brother Lian and ask him to deal with you."
"Don't, don't, don't." Shen Zhan panicked.
"Stupid girl, if you dare to say a word, I'll beat you to death." Shen Fang's expression darkened and he clenched his fist to threaten.
Shen Xiaoshu chuckled and said arrogantly, "Shen Fang, don't try to be unreasonable with me. I, Shen Xiaoshu, am not scared. If you dare to lay a finger on me, I'll make you die a horrible death."
Shen Fang was trembling with anger and stomped his feet, "If you act like this now, you'll definitely be a shrew in the future. You'll ruin the family's reputation and no one will want you."
Shen Xiaoshu was calm and sneered, "Shen Fang, Shen Fang, you still have the nerve to talk about me? Why don't you check your own reputation? In everyone's eyes, you, Shen Fang, are good at eating, drinking, whoring, and gambling? What else is worth mentioning? I feel embarrassed for you. "
Shen Fang clutched his chest, unable to breathe. He had the urge to vomit blood.
Shen Zhan roared, "Shen Xiaoshu, don't be so sharp-tongued here. Don't forget that we are also your brothers. Have you forgotten the rules of seniority? Watch out for my family's punishment! "
Shen Xiaoshu put his hands on his hips and laughed heartily. "Shen Zhan, look at yourself, holding a fan and pretending to be refined. Can you compose poems? Do you have a poem that is famous for thousands of miles?
Look at Brother Lian. His words were eloquent and he could compose a poem in seven steps. Sigh, they were both born from the same father. Why was there such a huge gap between them?
Also, let me tell you, don't talk to me about the rules here. When you were talking bad about Brother Lian, where did the rules go? "
"Shut up!" Shen Zhan flew into a rage out of humiliation. He lost control of his emotions and roared, "Who spoke ill of him?"
"Oh, who are you talking bad about?"
Suddenly, Shen Lian walked out from the side with a smile. There was a hint of a playful smile at the corner of his mouth.
Seeing him, Shen Fang and Shen Zhan looked at each other and their faces turned pale. They hurriedly turned their heads and pretended to look at the scenery, not daring to look over.
"Shen Lian!" Shen Xiaoshu's eyes shone and she jumped in joy as she ran over.
Shen Lian raised his hand and lightly flicked her forehead.
Shen Xiaoshu cried out and rubbed her forehead. She said angrily, "Flicking my forehead again. Shen Lian, I am breaking off all relations with you!"
Shen Lian raised his eyebrows and said, "Little girl, how did I offend you?"
"Hmph, you tell me yourself, how long have you ignored me?" Shen Xiaoshu turned her head away angrily.
Shen Lian thought about it. Since the day he became a Gu Master, he had been desperately cultivating and risking his life to gain experience. He did not have a single day of entertainment, not to mention playing with Shen Xiaoshu. He could not help but feel guilty.
He patted her head and laughed, "Father gave me a task to complete. I have been so busy these days that I have no time to play with you. But the good thing is that the matter is almost done. After today's family banquet, how about I accompany you to go shopping?"
"Really?" Shen Xiaoshu turned around and was pleasantly surprised. Her watery eyes flashed with starlight, as if the stars in the sky had fallen into her eyes.
"I am a dog if I lie to you." Shen Lian vowed solemnly.
"Alright then, bring me to buy Daughter's Golden Face Powder, Floating Fragrance Pavilion's Rainbow Rouge, Master Huang's new dress, and …"
Shen Lian: "…"
He did not know whether to laugh or cry. He quickly turned to Shen Fang and Shen Zhan, "Are you guys free today? How about going shopping together? We have not played together for a while. "
Shen Fang and Shen Zhan were extremely embarrassed. One said that he still had homework to do, while the other said that he had a date with a friend.
Shen Xiaoshu snorted at the side, her eyes filled with deep disdain.
"Let's meet again next time."
Shen Lian smiled slightly and looked amiable.
The boat arrived and the four of them boarded.
The boatman immediately propped the pole and rowed the boat to the center of the lake.
Shen Lian pondered for a while and began to bewitch them, "Second Brother, Third Brother, there is something I want to discuss with you."
Shen Fang and Shen Zhan tensed up.
"Big Brother, what is it that you can't decide and need to discuss with us?"
"It's like this. After the Zhu family was annihilated, some of their businesses were taken over by our family. Our family income is much higher than before. So I was thinking, should we give everyone some benefits, such as … increasing our monthly allowance?"
Hearing this, Shen Fang and Shen Zhan looked at each other and suddenly became excited.
Shen Lian sighed and said slowly, "That's what I was thinking, but in the end, we still need Father to make the decision. Of course, if you support me, it will be easier to talk to Father. But if you object, then this matter will be dropped and you can pretend I didn't say anything. "
"Yes! We will support you with all our strength! "
How could the two of them object to such a good thing? They hurriedly nodded.
"Successfully bewitched Shen Fang. You have gained 1 point of bewitchment."
"Successfully bewitched Shen Zhan. You have gained 1 point of bewitchment."
Shen Lian smiled slightly and squinted at them, thinking, "My two ignorant and incompetent brothers, you actually want to increase your monthly allowance. How can it be so simple? Dream on!"
"Then let's go look for Father later and mention this matter."
"Okay, we will listen to Big Brother."
The boat soon arrived at the island in the center of the lake.
The four of them got off the boat and went ashore. Soon, they arrived at the restaurant in the center of the lake.
In the hall on the first floor, there were thirty-six round tables, enough to seat three to four hundred people.
More than a hundred servants and maids were busy working nervously.
Undoubtedly, Shen Wanquan had invested a lot in this family banquet. Other than the Shen family, other friends from all walks of life would also be invited to the banquet. It was livelier than the family banquets during festivals. It could be said to be extremely grand.
Cuilan immediately came out and half-squatted to greet them, "Greetings, Young Master Lian, Young Master Fang, Young Master Zhan, Miss Shu."
Shen Lian nodded.
"Ah!" Shen Xiaoshu's eyes lit up and his gaze flashed at the aqua blue moonlight dress on Cuilan. He exclaimed, "Cuilan, your dress is so beautiful. Where did you buy it?"
Upon hearing this, Cuilan could not help but feel nervous and her face turned pale.
She looked around and indeed attracted a lot of attention. For a moment, she cursed silently and really wanted to find a hole to hide in.
This aqua blue moonlight dress was bought by Shen Lian. After buying it, she did not dare to wear it at all. She only wore it in Shen Lian's courtyard and quickly changed into simple clothes after coming out. After hiding for almost a month, she finally could not hide from today's family banquet.
Cuilan panicked and scared at the thought of how terrible it would be if Third Mistress saw her wearing this dress. She only wanted to escape as far as possible.
"This is … a gift from … Young Master Lian!" Cuilan stammered and said with a trembling voice.
Shen Xiaoshu immediately glared at her and pouted, "Shen Lian, you are biased!"
Shen Lian was speechless for a while. This little girl was simply the real-life version of Crayon Shin-chan. She had a special ability to drive people crazy.
He hurriedly changed the topic and asked Cuilan, "Where is father?"
"Old Master is on the second floor. He is having a discussion with a few ladies," Cuilan answered.
As expected, father should be in the living room welcoming guests from all directions. Instead, he was having a discussion with a few ladies? What was the discussion about?
He squinted at Shen Fang and Shen Zhan. With their intelligence, they would never think of checking his expense account in the accounting room. It should be their respective mothers who were behind this.
"Second Younger Brother, Third Younger Brother, let's go find father now." Shen Lian walked away. "Cuilan, you come too."
"Yes," Cuilan answered. Her heart was in her throat. She knew that Third Mistress was also on the second floor.
Shen Fang and Shen Zhan were beaming with joy as they followed suit. Shen Xiaoshu, who was enjoying the show, also followed suit.
They walked up the stairs and came to a door on the second floor. Cuilan was about to knock on the door but was stopped by Shen Lian.
Sounds of quarreling came from the room. They could hear it clearly from the door.
"Old Master, both of them are your flesh and blood. Lian is your flesh and blood. My Fang and Fourth Sister's Zhan are your flesh and blood too."
In the room, Sanniang was almost choking with sobs as she complained.
"Lian 'er's mother passed away when he was young. It was Second Sister who brought him up with all her might.
He was a smart and good boy, but the future head of the Shen family had not been confirmed yet. But now, he had started to act recklessly and spend a lot of money. If this continued, he would lose all the family fortune sooner or later.
If the Shen family falls into his hands, it will be over sooner or later. Everyone will have to go hungry! "
Fourth Mother nodded in agreement, "Third Sister is right. Master, you have to discipline Lian Er. Take away the authority in his hands, you can't continue to let him do as he pleases."
Fifth Mother and Sixth Mother did not say anything but they did not object either. It was obvious what they meant.
Shen Wanquan's brows furrowed.
Second Mother gripped her handkerchief tightly and kept kneading it. Her expression was full of anxiety.
She did not expect that Third Sister and Fourth Sister would join forces with Fifth Sister and Sixth Sister to attack Lian 'er on such a festive day.
Shen Wanquan had six wives and concubines.
The first wife, Shen Lian's mother, died early.
Second Mother was gentle and had been infertile for many years. She raised the Shen Lian as her own son. She considered herself as the first wife and managed the family accounts.
It was because of Second Mother's care that the Shen Lian could go to the accounts room and withdraw expenses at will.
It was said that a woman in her thirties was like a tiger. Second Mother was not pregnant until she was thirty years old.