mtl008 Chapter 952: Good things keep happening in the General’s Mansion
Chapter 952: Good things keep happening in the General’s Mansion
This flower-viewing banquet was a bountiful success. The garden was awash in autumn colors: chrysanthemums were in full bloom, golden ginkgo leaves drifted in the wind, and persimmons were at their juicy red, perfect for picking. This meticulously planned banquet was filled with poetic charm.
The old lady sat in the main seat, looking at the laughter in the room, her eyes filled with satisfaction. After several observations and comparisons, she had already made up her mind - Ling Xiao, the gentle and generous girl of the Ling family, was worthy of her third son in terms of both character and talent.
Although the matter had not yet been finalized, it was already almost certain. All that was left was to send a letter to Sanlang, who was far away in Leizhou. If he agreed, we could begin arranging all the necessary matters for the engagement.
After the news spread, the sisters were very excited. They spread out paper and ground ink, and wrote letters to their third brother one after another. The words were full of sincere praise. They described Ling Xiao's elegance, grace, intelligence and reason in detail. Of course, they did not forget to write about the fact that she saved Yan Jie'er. They wished to make this marriage happen immediately so that they could call her third sister-in-law right away.
Now, there were more and more playmates in the mansion. In addition to the familiar few, there were also the lively and lovely Ayue, the innocent Tianbao, and the newcomer Lingxiao. Although they were of different ages, they had similar personalities. After just a few days, they became familiar with each other and often spent time together in the garden admiring flowers, painting, drinking tea, and reciting poems.
What is even more rare is that through this flower-viewing banquet, they also forged friendships with other noble ladies in the capital. They often made appointments to visit gardens and attend poetry gatherings. When they parted, they reluctantly agreed to visit each other often in the future. This increasingly deep friendship added a lot of color to their lives.
The only unhappy person among them was probably the eldest wife, Zhuang. She had put a lot of effort into this flower viewing banquet, personally doing everything from drawing up the guest list to arranging the tables, hoping to use this opportunity to find a good marriage for Erlang.
Who would have thought that after the entire banquet, she had met several girls, but she always felt that some of them were not good enough. Either their personalities were not compatible, or their family backgrounds were not suitable. Some of them seemed to be good in all aspects, but she felt that they were not worthy of Erlang in terms of talent and knowledge.
Seeing that Sanlang, who was more than a year younger than Erlang, was getting married, she felt more and more unhappy. She was anxious about her son's marriage, and even more worried about her son who had gone to the south and didn't know when he would come back.
Whenever she thought of Erlang running around alone outside, delaying even his lifelong event, she lost her appetite and couldn't sleep at night.
Second Madam Yin's birth was a truly joyous occasion. Her due date was originally set before the Mid-Autumn Festival, but unexpectedly, it was delayed by nearly ten days, not starting until the night after. Perhaps tempered by the years of exile, her body was stronger than that of an average woman, and the birth went exceptionally smoothly. From labor to delivery, she gave birth to a healthy baby boy weighing 6.12 jin (12.3 catties). Both mother and child were truly safe.
At this age, especially after experiencing life and death and being reunited with his family, and now unexpectedly having a son, Jing Changan was so happy that he didn't know what to do. When he heard the baby crying while waiting outside the delivery room, his eyes were red with excitement.
He went in before the delivery room was cleaned, held Yin's hand, and repeatedly said "thank you for your hard work". He then carefully picked up the baby in the cradle, his face full of kindness as if he had become ten years younger.
Sister Jin ran around the yard in great joy, saying to everyone she met, "Father said we'll host a banquet for our colleagues when Balang's full moon comes!"
Even Wulang and Liulang, who were studying at the academy, took leave and went home when they heard the news, and stayed by their brother's bedside to watch over him again and again.
When returning to the academy, the usually steady Wu Lang actually offered to bring a basket of red eggs, saying that he wanted to share them with his classmates to share in the joy. His shy yet proud look made everyone laugh.
Xu Zize's letters arrived regularly, seven or eight thick pages, each brimming with life. He wrote vividly and engagingly about his experiences in Leizhou, downplaying the hardships of flood control and instead recounting the local customs and interesting anecdotes from his work, as if it weren't a drudgery but a rare journey.
But no matter how lighthearted and cheerful the first two pages, the last two pages of the letter always held an unwavering longing. Those tangled concerns, those melancholy moments in the dead of night, were meticulously written down on paper. The final words, "Brother Xiaokang, who loves Xi'er," were always written with exceptionally deep ink, as if to condense all his deep affection into each stroke.
Jing Chunxi's reply was also once every ten days, without fail. She always used plain and elegant floral paper, and her handwriting was neat and elegant.
The letters mostly dealt with trivial matters in the palace - the second and third princes had grown taller and were very naughty. They did not accept the Empress's discipline, but were extremely wary of the Emperor.
Princess Anyang started learning needlework, but she was a little lazy and not very dexterous, not even as good as a six or seven-year-old beginner. Between the lines, Xu Zize was concerned about the current situation of his younger brothers and sisters.
As for her own family, she wrote down every detail: Grandma likes to drink rock sugar and snow pear soup these days, the triplets have started to walk with the help of the wall, the third brother and sister are crawling very fast, Zhao Zhao especially likes to fight with his noisy brother, and he will start fighting without saying a word, and always has several servants following him.
The sweet osmanthus in the garden had bloomed for the second time, and she had been urged by her mother to start embroidering her wedding dress... But she always downplayed her longing for him, for fear that the deep concern would distract the traveler and that he would really come back.
In October, the General's Mansion welcomed the cries of a baby. After a day and a night of agony, Feng Jiaojiao finally gave birth to a delicate and beautiful baby girl. She had none of Dalang's roughness and looked very much like Feng Jiaojiao.
Jing Chunxi stayed outside the delivery room, her heart tightening as she listened to the sometimes high and sometimes low moans from inside. When the midwife came out with the swaddling clothes to congratulate her, she was the first to take over the tiny life. Looking at the baby's rosy face, her eyes couldn't help but moisten.
This was the first child of the fourth generation (great-grandchildren) of the Grand General's family. Although a girl, she was adored. The old lady came to visit in person and rewarded her with many auspicious gold locks and jade plaques, as well as a large farm with hot springs in the suburbs of Beijing. Because of this, the eldest lady finally stopped worrying about Erlang's marriage and came every day to hold her in her arms, her heart and eyes filled with love.