Chapter 669: Chapter 671: Cousin Brothers

Gu Le Ping looked surprised. "Luo Luo, I never would’ve guessed you were into this sort of thing."

"We saw someone selling these at the market earlier and thought it was pretty strange."

"When we heard they were considered delicacies for cooking, I was thinking about how much courage it would take to eat them. I have to say, Luo Luo, you’re really something else."

After saying his piece, Gu Le Ping gave him a thumbs-up. Then, his tone shifted, and he asked with brimming curiosity, "So tell your big brother, how is it? Is it tasty?"

The crowd of onlookers was also curious. They didn’t have the courage to try the insects themselves, but here was a trailblazer who could satisfy their curiosity.

Gu Benluo said, "All of you brothers are curious, aren’t you? Why don’t you sit down, and I’ll tell you all about it."

"Uncle Jiang, it’s not often I run into my brothers like this. It’s okay if I invite them to try some with me, right?"

Gu Lexi, rubbing his round belly, began to quietly back away.

He might be a foodie, but he simply couldn’t stomach things like this.

Besides, he wasn’t an idiot. ’Luo Luo is inviting them to eat, so why did he have to ask Jiang Shiniu? There’s definitely something fishy about this.’

Before he could warn the others, some of them had already foolishly taken a seat.

Jiang Shiniu smiled and said, "It’s up to the young masters. I just need to make sure no food is wasted."

Luo Luo understood. He enthusiastically pulled out stools for his brothers and called for the waiter to set out more bowls and chopsticks.

This enthusiastic display only made Gu Lexi’s sense of foreboding grow stronger. He wanted to flee, but he had no excuse.

Gu Benluo then picked up the serving plate and scooped a portion into everyone’s bowl, moving so quickly that they had no chance to refuse.

"My father had these specially prepared. Everyone, please, don’t stand on ceremony."

"Uncle Jiang is watching right here, so we can’t waste any food."

The young men of the Gu family froze, bowls in hand. After he’d put it like that, how could they possibly dump the food back onto the plate?

"Don’t be shy! Eat, eat, go on and eat!" But no matter how enthusiastically Gu Benluo urged them, none of them could muster any appetite.

To them, this was no gourmet dish, and the revulsion was plain on their faces.

’That little brat,’ they thought. ’He shows no mercy, even when he’s setting up his own family.’

Gu Benluo actually felt a little guilty. He had only meant to play a small prank on his mother; he never expected his father to take it so seriously.

He really didn’t want to stuff so many insects into his mouth, so he naturally sought to have his brothers share in his suffering.

"Luo Luo, you truly are our ’good’ little brother," Gu Le Kai said through gritted teeth. "I see your bowl looks a bit empty. As your older brother, I can’t just hog all the good stuff for myself."

With that, he snatched the bowl from in front of Luo Luo and swiftly dumped more than half of the contents from his own bowl into it. He would have emptied his entire bowl, but Gule Shun, who had lightning-fast reflexes, grabbed it from him.

Gule Shun also poured in most of his portion until the bowl was nearly overflowing. Only then did he push it back in front of Gu Benluo. "You’re just a kid, and you’re still growing. I heard the locals say these are very nutritious. You can’t miss out."

The other members of the Gu family were now filled with regret. ’Why couldn’t I have been faster?’

Gu Lexi, who was sitting right next to Gu Benluo, forced a smile and said through clenched teeth, "Luo Luo, you’ve spent all these years away with Seventh Uncle and Aunt Seven. As your big brother, I feel like I’ve never done anything for you."

"So today, I’m going to make it up to you. Come on, open wide. Big brother will feed you."

As he spoke, he picked up several insects with his chopsticks and moved to stuff them right into Gu Benluo’s mouth.

Gu Benluo cursed his luck. With so many people watching, he couldn’t possibly refuse to eat.

He opened his mouth, trembling, intending to say he didn’t need help, but Gu Lexi seized the opportunity and shoved the chopsticks in.

"Mmph!" Gu Benluo’s eyes widened, his expression a silent accusation.

Gu Lexi said, "Don’t waste it. This is a token of Seventh Uncle’s goodwill. How about it, is it tasty?"

Gu Benluo opened his mouth, wanting to spit everything out, but Jiang Shiniu was watching him from the side with his arms crossed. Fighting back his nausea, he could only try to swallow it all down in one go.

But that was impossible. His teeth inevitably touched the food, and soon, a unique, savory aroma seemed to blossom in his mouth. As he tasted it more carefully, he realized it wasn’t so unacceptable after all.

’Since there’s no escaping my fate today,’ he thought, ’I might as well give it a proper try. If the locals can eat it, there’s no reason I can’t.’

Once he came to this realization, his expression became composed.

Seeing Gu Benluo’s seemingly delighted expression, the others looked on with a strange mix of curiosity and bewilderment.

"How is it?" Gu Xue’er asked, looking from the insects in her bowl to Gu Benluo. "Does it taste weird?"

Gu Benluo’s face lit up with pleasant surprise. "I have to admit, it’s actually pretty good! Don’t believe me? Try some for yourselves."

"Don’t even think about tricking us," Gu Le Ping retorted, pursing his lips. "Finish everything in that bowl of yours first, and then you can tell us how delicious it is."

"Brother Le Ping, we’re brothers! How could I, your little brother, possibly trick you...?"

"Little brother Luo Luo, can you really say that with a straight face?"

Gu Benluo: "..."

...

It wasn’t long before Jin Qianqian and Ancient Wen Heng heard about what had transpired.

Jin Qianqian rubbed her stomach. "Is this what they call reaping what you sow? Luo Luo tried to pull a prank and got pranked right back."

She felt not a shred of pity for her eldest son’s plight.

’That boy is getting more and more mischievous,’ she thought. ’It was one thing when he was plotting against others, but this time he dared to target me.’

Ancient Wen Heng snorted. "I think he’s had too much free time on his hands. If he thinks he can handle two tutors, then I’ll just add a few more lessons to his schedule."

Jin Qianqian replied, "He’s still young, so don’t add too many. You know, just a few extra lessons in music, calligraphy, painting, and etiquette should be enough."

Ancient Wen Heng turned to look at her. "You think that won’t be too lenient?"

Jin Qianqian gave an exceptionally sweet smile. "In that case, let’s just add all of the Four Arts—the zither, Go, calligraphy, and painting. That way, when we have a spare moment, I can sit in the courtyard and listen to our son play, and he can even paint a few pictures for us."

Ancient Wen Heng: "..."

***

After a period of rest and settling in, Ancient Wen Heng had fallen into his new routine, and Jin Qianqian began to take on the responsibilities of a household’s Madam.

She attended several banquets and began to network with the wives of local officials and gentry.

However, after just a few of these meetings, she could already tell that the people here had personalities completely opposite to those in Lu City.

The people of Lu City were generally forthright, whereas the people here were more calculating. They seemed to turn every word over in their minds before daring to speak.

Furthermore, the political scene here was not as peaceful as in Lu City. On the contrary, it was divided into several factions.

Jin Qianqian and her family were newcomers. Even with the information Cao Xiangqian had provided beforehand, he had been gone for many years, and much had changed.

For the time being, Jin Qianqian neither befriended nor antagonized anyone. Instead, she quietly observed, slowly feeling her way forward as she refined her knowledge of the various prominent families.

One day, she received an invitation to be a guest at the Liang Mansion.

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