Tears welled up in Shen Yuning's eyes instantly. It was Xue Zexuan, the Marquis of Qiyang.
With teary eyes, she called out, "Uncle."
Then she wiped away her tears. When she was a child, she used to stay with her grandparents. In fact, she saw her uncle more often than her own father. However, she was a bit afraid of her uncle back then. She thought his eyebrows and eyes resembled those of her grandfather, but there was always a coldness on the corners of his mouth. Sometimes when she was naughty, her uncle's look would be as sharp as a knife, scaring her into being obedient.
After not seeing each other for many years, there were streaks of white in her uncle's temples. His face was even more like that of her grandfather in her memory. The sharpness in his eyes had diminished, replaced by kindness and amiability.
She sniffed, as if acting coquettishly, "My Lord Marquis."
The Marquis of Qiyang stepped forward and touched her head as he used to do when she was a child. Then, with a straight face as before, he said seriously, "Since you've called me uncle, why do you change your address? Don't do that again."
Shen Yuning gave a hearty laugh. Boldly, she stepped forward and took his arm, ready to walk inside with him.
A middle - aged woman's voice sounded from behind, "Well, Yuning, do you only remember your uncle and forget about your aunt?"
Shen Yuning looked back happily. Sure enough, she saw her aunt getting off the carriage and standing behind. She immediately rushed over and took her aunt's hand. Actually, she had seen her aunt at the banquet hosted by the Princess Jiayang, but there were so many people at that time that she could only pay respects from afar. Moreover, with Mrs. Xiao around, it was really not convenient for her to talk much with the Xue family.
Unexpectedly, the entire family of the eldest branch of the Xue family had come today.
She quickly looked around, eagerly staring at the carriage, hoping that the old lady, with whom she had always been close, would get out.
Mrs. Shao, the eldest mistress of the Xue family, naturally knew what was on her mind. She just patted her head and said, "Your grandmother was afraid that if she came, the commotion there would prevent us from getting out. So she only asked me to bring the congratulatory gifts. She can't come herself."
Then an old and familiar maid stepped forward. It was Maid Yan, who served beside the grandmother of the Xue family. Maid Yan bowed and looked at Shen Yuning carefully. Only then did she say reassuringly, "Your Ladyship, don't worry. When I get back to the mansion, I will tell the old lady exactly how well you are."
Shen Yuning knew that her grandmother was worried. Afraid that her aunt and the others might deliberately say good things about her, she sent her most trusted maid to check.
Besides her uncle and aunt, Xue Yusong had brought his wife and their son and daughter. Chen Wenpo and his second wife had also brought their younger siblings and children.
Shen Yuning felt touched. With them here, today's banquet would not be cold and cheerless.
Zhang Rong, in a flurry, rushed to the kitchen and said that one table of dishes was not enough and they needed another one. When she learned that the cooks were too busy and was suggested to buy ready - made dishes from Binghonglou Restaurant, she hesitated.
The ready - made dishes were more expensive. Adding another table would cost more than double the money. Although Yuning seemed to be in a good situation on the surface, in fact, she didn't have much money.
Why not buy some similar dishes from a small shop?
Fortunately, Weirui heard her muttering and quickly stopped her, "Sister - in - law, don't come up with such a bad idea. They are here to give us face. If we act shabbily, it will be so embarrassing. After all, they are also aunt's relatives. A little more expense is not a big deal. It's only for today, not every day. Why be so stingy?"
Zhang Rong then remembered how arrogant the second daughter of the Xue family was that day. She thought Weirui was right. If she showed her stinginess and let others know their situation, wouldn't it prove what the second daughter of the Xue family had said? She should at least fight for some dignity.
So she spared no expense and asked someone to quickly buy ready - made semi - finished dishes from Binghonglou Restaurant. She also hired more cooks to prepare two tables of banquets.
Old Man Zhang asked Shen Yuning to accompany the guests in the main hall. He also told Zhang Rong, Shen Fugui, and Weirui to help serve tea and water. Then he took a few little kids to the backyard to play.
However, when he saw the well - behaved children from the wealthy families, even the little ones of just a few years old, Old Man Zhang sighed. In contrast, his grandson Huzi was really as naughty as a monkey.
He secretly made up his mind that when the time came, he would ask Shen Yuning to find a tutor to discipline Huzi properly.
Although Shen Yuning's family had moved to the mansion bestowed by the emperor, the mansion was spacious, but there were no servants. They had to do everything by themselves.
The Marquis of Qiyang felt rather sad seeing his delicately - raised niece serving tea for them in person. If he had insisted on bringing Yuning to his own family for upbringing back then, regardless of his younger brother and sister - in - law's feelings, Yuning wouldn't have suffered so much. And his mother wouldn't have fallen ill from missing her and been bedridden for so many years.
Xue Yusong and Chen Wenpo said some auspicious words to congratulate Yuning on her new home, which dispelled the sad atmosphere in the main hall.
Chen Wenpo then asked, "Yuning, I see your nephew is chubby and cute. How old is he? Has he started his schooling?"
Shen Yuning shook her head with a faint smile, "Huzi is already five years old. Originally, when his sister was learning calligraphy with my adopted brother, she also taught him to recite the Three - Character Classic and the Thousand - Character Classic. But later I moved around a lot, and Huzi became lazy in his studies. He only relied on his sister's teaching. Now he probably can't even recite the Thousand - Character Classic completely."
Chen Wenpo laughed, "Five years old is still young. Don't worry. My eldest son is six years old this year. I've invited a tutor, and he has just started his schooling. He doesn't know many characters either. I was thinking of finding a playmate for him, but I haven't found a suitable one yet. If you're willing, Yuning, could you let Huzi be a playmate for my son?"
Although Chen Wenpo was the same age as Xue Yusong and got married in the same year, he didn't have his first child until three years after marriage. So Xue Hao, the eldest grandson of the Xue family, was already eight years old, while the eldest grandson of the Chen family was only six.
Shen Yuning looked up at him with her mouth half - open, then at Xue Yusong beside him. She understood what they meant. It was Xue Yusong who came up with the idea, but it was not convenient for him to take Shen Yuning's relative back to the marquis's mansion, so he had to ask his old friend for help.
She quickly stood up and bowed solemnly, "If it weren't for you brothers' help, I, Shen Yuning, would never be where I am today. Your kindness, I will surely repay in this life or in the next life."
Chen Wenpo quickly helped her up and said with a smile, "Yuning, in our eyes, you are just like our own sister. Why say such polite words?"
However, while they were chatting happily, Chen Wenwei just lowered his head and sipped his tea without saying a word.
Among the people present, Shen Fugui only knew Chen Wenwei. As the host today, he couldn't just ignore the guests. But he didn't dare to talk casually with the others. So he just managed to be polite to Chen Wenwei, "Your Excellency Chen seems to have lost some weight. I wonder how you've been recently."
Chen Wenwei quickly replied, "Thank you for your concern, Second Master Shen. I'm doing fine."
Maybe he knew that he couldn't hide the sadness between his eyebrows, so he forced a smile and said, "I used to be used to drinking bitter tea when I went to the Shen family. Now that I've changed to fragrant tea, I'm not quite used to it."
Shen Fugui laughed, "Actually, we don't drink much tea. It's Yuning who can't stand plain water. She always wants something, so we bought some tea. There weren't good teas in the countryside. We didn't entertain you well before."
When it was time for the banquet, Old Man Zhang rushed in and pulled Shen Yuning, saying, "Yuning, there's someone outside. He says he's the young master of the Zhu family, here to congratulate you on moving to your new mansion."
Shen Yuning instinctively thought of Zidu's face with the silver mask. She was in a daze. Maybe because she missed Xuanzhi and always thought Zidu was like Xuanzhi, that's why she couldn't forget him.
However, she didn't expect that although they didn't usually have much contact, Zidu would come to congratulate her on such an occasion. He was really considerate.
Even Shen Yuning herself didn't notice a happy smile on her face.
When she went out to greet the guest, she saw Zhu Bin standing at the porter's lodge, but there was no sign of Zidu.
Shen Yuning looked around. After confirming that Zidu wasn't there, she asked blankly, "Young Master Zhu, are you the only one today?"
Zhu Bin was a bit confused. He asked his servant to present the congratulatory gift and then asked in return, "Your Ladyship, who do you think would come with me?"
Shen Yuning realized she had said something wrong. She quickly shook her head and said in a low voice, "It's just... I always saw Young Master Zhu with Young Master Zidu before. I'm a bit surprised to see you alone today."
Zhu Bin just said "Oh" but didn't answer further.
Seeing that he had no intention of explaining, Shen Yuning didn't dare to ask about Zidu's whereabouts. She had no choice but to brace herself and invite Zhu Bin in.
On the day when Lady Shen moved to her new mansion, people from the Zhu, Xue, and Chen families all came to congratulate her. This news spread among the noble families in the capital, and everyone started to make their own calculations.
The current situation in the court was not clear. The Crown Prince's grandson was growing up, and the power of the Second Prince's faction could not be underestimated. In recent years, the emperor's health had been poor, and many court officials had secretly taken sides. Coincidentally, among the Zhu, Xue, and Chen families, the Xue and Chen families were of noble lineage. They had always adhered to the Doctrine of the Mean for generations. Because of their high - ranking families, they would never covet the merit of supporting a new emperor.
Although the Zhu family was the maternal family of the Crown Prince, since the Zhu family had been military generals for generations and only focused on defending the country and didn't interfere in the court affairs, they could barely be considered neutral. Most importantly, these three families were all highly regarded by the emperor.
After that, when Lady Shen went out and met other nobles again, the coldness and impatience in their eyes were replaced by enthusiasm.
A few days later, Shen Yuning heard that the eldest daughter of the Xue family was betrothed to a young man from the Zhu family. Moreover, both of them were not young, so the wedding was going to be held by the end of the year.
Zhang Rong whispered to Shen Yuning after hearing the news, "I wonder if the second branch of the Xue family will cause trouble."
Shen Yuning laughed. Xue Yuxin had been tricked last time because she didn't expect Xue Yujiao to ruin her reputation regardless of the family's honor. Now that she was on guard, with her intelligence, she wouldn't let herself be wronged easily. If Xue Yujiao dared to do something secretly, it would only be a self - defeating move.
Now, Shen Yuning didn't have much time to care about those things. Besides managing the various shops, she now had fields to take care of. And for such a large mansion bestowed by the emperor, she couldn't just leave it empty. She had to buy some servants.
Moreover, Huzi would start his schooling at the Chen family's house every day in autumn. He needed to be accompanied by a pageboy. Even every few days, the Princess Jiayang's mansion would send someone to pick up Weirui for a visit. It wouldn't be proper if Weirui didn't have a maid.
Shen Yuning found a servant - broker and carefully selected some servants before making proper arrangements.
Zhang Rong calculated the monthly salaries of these servants and felt a bit pained. The income from the fields bestowed by the emperor was barely enough to support these servants. She wondered how large an estate those wealthy families needed to maintain a large number of servants.