One could say that Wenren Ying did intend to spy on people by casually leading Xiao Cao into the front courtyard, but in reality, it was more about taking a chance. Before Wenren Ying had been reborn, everything she knew about Cheng Wenzheng came from others’ mouths. As the saying goes, “seeing is believing and hearing is unreliable.” She wanted to get close to him herself. Due to the differences between men and women, her means of “getting close” was naturally premeditated and careful.

But now there was another motive at play — to observe her fourth sister’s demeanor upon seeing Cheng Wenzheng in person. Would Xiao Cao remain as indifferent as she had pretended to be before?

Caught between the fear that Xiao Cao might really get involved with Cheng Wenzheng and the need to confirm whether there was any possibility at all, Wenren Ying found herself almost masochistically torn.

There were quite a few people in the pavilion. Aside from Wenren Taibo, who sat alone with a wise, serene demeanor, stroking his fine mustache and sipping wine like an elegant gentleman, all the others were young men.

“The one sitting opposite our fourth brother is Scholar Cheng. The unfamiliar faces are just our family’s brothers,” Wenren Ying whispered.

Xiao Cao nodded. She had originally planned to leave but paused when she saw her normally slow-witted younger brother, Wenren Yang, facing Cheng Wenzheng with a serious expression. He was debating with fervor, his normally innocuous demeanor completely transformed.

“You told me before what Little Four looks like when he debates with someone. Though I didn’t disbelieve you, it was hard to imagine. Now that I’m seeing it myself… it’s really something else,” Xiao Cao chuckled softly. “You really can’t judge a book by its cover.”

“Right? Right?” Wenren Ying’s voice sparkled with excitement. “Sometimes, Fourth Brother can be really annoying, but when he gets like this, it’s amazing! It’s that feeling of just overpowering everyone—it just makes you feel—”

“Your heart pounding, face flushing, and all keyed up with excitement.”

Wenren Ying nodded vigorously, her face full of pride, her eyes almost glimmering with admiration.

Wenren Taibo, noticing the girls standing there with cheerful expressions, glanced back at his second son, who was so different from his usual self, and felt a similar surge of pride. To be honest, he quite enjoyed this dynamic, which was why he had chosen to stay with the younger men despite being the only elder present. His gaze fell briefly on Cheng Wenzheng, and after a moment’s thought, he smiled and gestured for the two sisters to come over, “What are you two girls standing over there for? Come join us.”

Naturally, upon hearing this, everyone else, including Cheng Wenzheng, who had been seated with his back to the girls, turned to look at them.

Although there were several people present that Xiao Cao hadn’t met before, Cheng Wenzheng was the only true outsider among them. After a quick—and polite—glance, she immediately averted her gaze, paying no further mind to him. Cheng Wenzheng stood up promptly and moved aside to make space by shifting his position politely.

The sisters approached, arm in arm, and greeted Wenren Taibo. “Father, since I am still unfamiliar with our home after having just returned, I asked Seventh Sister to show me around a bit. I didn’t mean to interrupt your gathering,” Xiao Cao said, taking the blame upon herself.

Wenren Ying was a little surprised, glancing sideways at her fourth sister. She had unexpectedly taken the initiative to shift any possible blame onto herself, although it was a small matter that their father certainly wouldn’t make a big deal out of.

Cheng Wenzheng lowered his eyes demurely, thinking to himself, So, this is the second daughter of the Wenren family that was recently found. Don’t ask him how he knew so quickly—it could only be said that Wenren Taibo had been in an excellent mood lately. Everyone who met him had asked about it, and he hadn’t bothered to keep it a secret. As a result, it wasn’t a surprise that quite a number of people already knew Wenren Taibo’s long-lost daughter had returned.

Meanwhile, the other young men, especially the cousins who hadn’t seen her before, openly studied Xiao Cao. She truly bore a strong resemblance to her mother, with no one ever suspecting her bloodline wasn’t of the Wenren family. After all, apart from her appearance, her parents must have confirmed her identity through other means as well.

Wenren Taibo waved his hand dismissively, “No worries. Only Wenzheng hasn’t been scared off by your fourth brother yet. We’re just enjoying ourselves.”

Xiao Cao’s gaze fell on Wenren Yang. Smiling, she commented, “Yes, Little Four really is quite remarkable.”

Unexpectedly, Wenren Yang blushed slightly, a rare sight, and muttered, “Fourth Sister…”

This made everyone around take notice, as it was highly unusual. Having grown up basking in the praise of others, Wenren Yang was long since used to such compliments. So why did he suddenly blush from just this one remark from Xiao Cao? It was entirely due to what had happened that morning. Xiao Cao had chastised him so thoroughly, making him feel utterly inadequate. Now that she offered even a single word of praise, it felt completely different from anyone else’s compliments.

Wenren Taibo had intended to tease him with a few quips, but seeing that Wenren Yang paid him no mind and the blush on his face quickly faded away, he let it drop.

With pride, Wenren Taibo briefly introduced the other young men to Xiao Cao. Aside from Wenren Yang’s older brother Wenren Xu (the eldest son and grandson), the third and fourth sons from their extended families were also present. The second branch had no male heir, and their illegitimate sons were still too young. Wenren Yang was fourth in line, while the two between the second and fourth sons were the legitimate firstborn sons of the third and fourth branches of the family, both born in the same year. The fifth, sixth, and seventh in line were also present—they were all born in the same year: one was the illegitimate son of the third branch, and the fourth branch had one legitimate and one illegitimate son.

Xiao Cao’s face remained calm, but inwardly she felt a bit peculiar. So… the third and fourth branches are basically in competition to see who can produce more sons?

It seemed that all of the Wenren family’s children were closely spaced in age. There had been so many auspicious announcements, including the birth of several girls who were also closely spaced in age, and there seemed to be another boy born around the same time. With so many joyous announcements year after year, one would become numb to it all. Of course, outsiders might be envious, especially families struggling with fertility, as it was commonly believed that having many children brought great fortune.

In any case, the second branch seemed to have drawn the shortest straw. While everyone else had sons after sons, the second branch had no son and their daughters were spaced far apart in age. This surely must have fueled Wenren Zhong’s obsession with continuing his line and, paired with his fixation on status, had driven him to madness. He was desperate to produce a legitimate heir to regain some face.

It wasn’t hard to imagine how difficult things must have been for his wife, Du. Shi. With two younger illegitimate brothers-in-law generally not measuring up to her husband, their wives were able to implicitly and sometimes explicitly mock and ridicule her. Yet she could only endure it silently, not even daring to complain to her own husband.

As for the younger siblings, Xiao Cao had met most of them yesterday, and combined, their total number already exceeded twenty.

The fourth branch had the most children—a total of seven—and the most sons. The first branch had only five children in total, with only one legitimate son. It was no wonder that husband and wife were always fighting—the man being amorous and the woman struggling to maintain control over the household. She lacked the skills necessary to manage the household and could only resort to crying and causing scenes. The fifth branch was the quietest, having the fewest children—only two.

With so many siblings, Xiao Cao could only sigh helplessly… Heh… heh… heh…

Better to focus on her own little world and not worry about everything else.

After the formal greetings were exchanged, resulting in a flurry of “Fourth Sister” and “Fourth Younger Sister” from all directions, it was finally time for Cheng Wenzheng’s introduction.

Cheng Wenzheng behaved with proper decorum throughout, never once looking directly at the sisters. When it came time for his introduction, he was extremely courteous.

However, as he bent forward for a formal bow, his gaze unintentionally fell upon Xiao Cao’s wrist, where her sleeve had ridden up slightly. Instantly, his entire body froze, then suddenly, he looked up sharply, staring straight at Xiao Cao. His behavior immediately drew discontent from those around them, with Wenren Taibo, Wenren Yang, and Wenren Ying being the first to feel displeased. Of course, the two elder men’s reasons for annoyance differed from Wenren Ying’s.