As soon as they reached the main road, Gu Sinian reined in his horse, and Zhang Xiaoniu, following behind, tightened his reins in confusion.
"Give it here." Gu Sinian extended his hand towards Zhang Xiaoniu.
Give it here? Give what? Zhang Xiaoniu looked at Gu Sinian blankly, not understanding his meaning.
"Persimmon cakes." Gu Sinian uttered three words.
"Ah?" Zhang Xiaoniu clutched his chest, his face etched with pain. The persimmon cakes were something he had shamelessly asked Zhenzhen for. If the young lord liked them, he should have asked for them himself. Why was he snatching his now? If he gave them, he would be reluctant. If he didn't? That was impossible! He couldn't beat the young lord anyway.
"Didn't you say you were taking them back for your roommate? I'll give you money, you can buy any you like from Yipin Tower. Miss Qi's persimmon cakes are made well, and Madam hasn't had a good appetite lately. I'll take them back for her to try." Gu Sinian brought up his mother.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Xiaoniu no longer hesitated and handed the persimmon cakes to Gu Sinian. The Duchess was exceptionally gentle, with a faint smile on her face. Seeing him injured, she had even called a maid to bring him medicine. Madam's appetite wasn't good, and she wanted to eat persimmon cakes. It would be too unreasonable for him to withhold them.
Gu Sinian tucked the persimmon cakes into his embrace, squeezed his horse's belly, and galloped away like the wind.
They did not delay on the way and managed to enter the city before dusk.
Zhang Xiaoniu headed straight for the martial arts field, while Gu Sinian returned to the Duke's mansion.
After changing his clothes, Gu Sinian sat by the window and asked Gu Qing to find a box for snacks, arranging the persimmon cakes one by one.
"Doesn't the young lord dislike sweets?" Gu Qing asked in surprise.
Gu Sinian glanced at him indifferently, "Just changing my taste."
Changing his taste? Gu Qing muttered to himself. When the young lord was five years old, he came to serve him. Children all loved sweets, but the young lord didn't eat a single bite. Thirteen years have passed, and the young lord truly never ate sweet snacks or preserves. He even rarely ate sweet fruits.
His taste hadn't changed in so many years, and now it changed after just one outing?
Gu Qing was extremely curious. Knowing that the young lord had gone out with Zhang Xiaoniu today, Gu Qing decided he had to ask when he had the chance.
There were twelve persimmon cakes in total. After thinking for a moment, Gu Sinian asked Gu Qing to find another box, picked out six, put them in, and walked out. He had used his mother as an excuse when asking for the items, so he should send some over.
Gu Qing did not follow. When walking within the mansion, the young lord never liked to have people accompany him.
"Nian'er is here." Madam Qin said with a gentle smile, "Have you eaten? If not, I'll have someone from the small kitchen prepare something for you. Mother is having clear shrimp noodles tonight, which are refreshing and delicious. Would you like to try some?"
Gu Sinian paid his respects to Madam Qin and sat on the couch opposite her. "Mother, I remember you like to eat persimmon cakes. Try them and see how they are."
Madam Qin was delighted. Her head maid opened the snack box, and Madam Qin picked up a piece. "It's soft yet firm, and the sweetness is just right. It's quite delicious. Nian'er, which shop did you buy them from? Mother will send someone to buy more later."
"I didn't buy them from a shop. Today, your son went out and passed by a farmhouse. These were made by the daughter of that family herself. I found them delicious, so I asked for some to bring back. If Mother likes them, I'll ask again if I pass by." Gu Sinian said calmly.
Madam Qin smiled softly, "Okay."
These persimmon cakes were indeed delicious. Madam Qin ate two pieces. It should be known that Madam Qin had always been restrained in her eating habits and would not overeat. After dinner, she definitely would not eat snacks or preserves, fearing indigestion. When she ate the first persimmon cake, it was because Gu Sinian brought them back, and they were so delicious that she unconsciously ate a second one.
When the clear shrimp noodles were served, looking at the clear broth in the bowl, Gu Sinian inexplicably thought of the hot and sour soup noodles made by Qi Zhenzhen. He had always been a person with a light appetite, but eating those soup noodles, he found the rich hot and sour flavor to be quite palatable.
In comparison, the noodles he had previously found delicious now tasted bland.
"Don't they suit your taste?" Madam Qin asked. She remembered that Nian'er used to like them quite a bit.
"I ate a few more persimmon cakes, and I feel a bit full now. If I finish the noodles, I won't be able to sleep tonight."
Madam Qin chided him, "You're all grown up, and you still get full from eating snacks."
"Mother, did anything happen in the mansion today?" Gu Sinian asked. As soon as he entered Lanzhi Courtyard, he noticed that the servants' expressions were different from usual. Also, the moment he entered the room, he clearly saw his mother with a happy face, and only after seeing him did she change her expression to a smile.
Madam Qin knew she couldn't hide it from him and said with a wry smile, "Someone from the Dong family came today."
"Dong Huan? Or someone else?" Gu Sinian's brows furrowed. "Aunt Dong Huan?"
Besides that woman who looked exactly like Concubine Dong, who else could upset his mother?
"A widow not staying honestly at home, and the old Madam Dong allows her to go out so casually?" Gu Sinian's eyes were filled with an unyielding disgust.
"You also know the intentions of the entire Dong family. They wish your father would take her in just by looking at her face. They wouldn't stop her from bothering others, but they definitely wouldn't stop her from coming here. If she doesn't come here, how will she have a chance to get what she wants?" Madam Qin rubbed her forehead, saying helplessly.
"From now on, if she comes, just have people stop her."
"Dong Huan's hand was broken. Although it was reattached, it was still affected, and she can no longer hold a brush." Madam Qin frowned. "The Dong family is counting on Dong Huan to achieve fame and fortune. How can they give up? They haven't been causing trouble recently because Dong Huan was making too much of a fuss, and the whole family was appeasing her. Now that they have free time, won't they come to seek some benefits?"
"Can such a person achieve fame and fortune? Then the entire world would be full of scholars." Gu Sinian's lips curved into a mocking smile. Let alone achieving fame and fortune, Dong Huan's scholarship was only comparable to a child who had just started learning. How could such a person achieve fame and fortune? In private, Dong Huan was probably overjoyed. It wasn't that she didn't want to achieve fame and fortune, but her hand was injured, so she couldn't.
"This time, your father did not blindly defend the Dong family. Gu Siya also said that Dong Huan was in the wrong first." Madam Qin's brows relaxed slightly. "I don't know how your father appeased them in the end and sent them away. Afterwards, he just mentioned it, telling you not to be too impulsive in the future."
Gu Sinian's expression remained unchanged, and he nodded gently.
"As for Aunt Dong Huan..."
"Don't worry about the affairs of the inner chambers. Mother knows what she's doing." Madam Qin interrupted Gu Sinian. "As for you, when will you get married? Gu Siya's marriage has already been settled with Miss Lin Duoruo, the legitimate daughter of Minister Lin of the Ministry of Personnel."