Dong handed Yuyi in her arms to the maid, and helped her mother and said, "Today, the elder brother of the second son of Yuan is on vacation. The second son of Yuan invites you to the teahouse for tea and introduces you to the eldest son of Yuan. You are going to the teahouse."
Zhulan arrived three days late. Zhulan asked, "How are you these days?"
Mrs. Dong felt particularly relieved to see her mother-in-law today. She walked and replied, "I spent the past two days packing my luggage. Yesterday, a message was delivered to my door. My husband wanted me to hold a banquet. He wanted to invite people he knew well to come to our house."
Zhulan said, "We should prepare a banquet in our house. What plan do you have in mind?"
Mrs. Dong knew it in her heart. Even if she told her mother-in-law, she would not interfere. At most, she would give advice from the side. She said the idea she had in mind, "My daughter-in-law thinks that since my husband has not reported yet, the banquet does not need to be so serious. The scenery of the garden in Ruchun Mansion is nice. I want to hold a banquet with spring as the theme and prepare some special spring food and snacks. We can enjoy the scenery and taste wine at the same time."
Zhulan thought it was good. "Get ready first. If you don't understand something, tell me."
Dong's brows relaxed, and her mother-in-law approved of her idea. "Mother, this is my first time to hold a banquet. I felt uneasy when you didn't come, as if my feet were always floating. Now that you are here, my feet are finally on the ground. Mother, thank you for coming."
Zhulan felt the sincerity in Dong's tone, and her heart was warmed. "It would be strange to say thank you. I am a mother, and this is what I should do. Now that I am here, you can just go ahead and do it. I will cover for you."
Dong supported her mother-in-law affectionately. Her mother-in-law was so kind to her. What mother-in-law would treat her daughter-in-law like this? "Mom, in the next life, I will still be your daughter-in-law."
Zhulan thought, there is still a next life, this life is not over yet, "Nonsense, your life has just begun, this life is still long."
Mrs. Dong knew that this was a taboo, "Mom, I was wrong."
Zhulan went to the main courtyard and now she is back. This time she brought a lot of luggage, mainly some unused clothes. Chang Lian's idea was right. After she talked with Zhou Shuren, they knew in their hearts that they would not stay in Jinzhou for long.
Mrs. Song had already instructed the servants and maids to move the luggage.
Zhulan washed up, and the meal prepared by Mrs. Dong was served. Zhulan changed her clothes and came out, "I thought something seemed to be missing. Where is Xuehan?"
Mrs. Dong pointed out the window and said, "My little sister and Rongchuan are talking at the stone table in the yard!"
Zhulan didn't go to the door, but opened the window and looked out. Xuehan's cheeks were a little red. Rongchuan said something again, and Xuehan was about to take action.
Rongchuan dodged for a moment, and the two looked at each other and laughed out loud. Rongchuan's face turned red, and he didn't know where to put his long hands. He clenched them behind his back, showing how nervous he was.
Zhulan sighed, "It's good to be young."
Dong snickered, "Childhood sweethearts are different."
Zhulan curved her eyes and said, "So, when Yuyi grows up, when you choose a husband for her, you must make sure to check if there is a childhood sweetheart, cousin or something like that."
When Dong was chatting with her sister-in-law, she learned from her sister-in-law that this was how her mother investigated He Shu. She couldn't help but laugh out loud, "Mother, you are so insightful."
Seeing her daughter and Rongchuan looking over, Zhulan closed the window and said, "This is all based on my experience. The learning here is very serious. If you are not careful, you will ruin your daughter."
Dong took note of this in her heart, but then she felt something was wrong, "Mother, why did you ask us to choose a husband for Yuyi?"
Zhulan smiled and said, "I just said that."
Mrs. Dong didn't think much about it, as her mother-in-law said what she meant.
Xue Han and Rong Chuan entered the house. Zhu Lan didn't even look at her daughter. This girl and Rong Chuan were still shy. "Come and have dinner."
Xue Han was so busy chatting with Rong Chuan that she didn't even change her clothes. It would be too obvious if she went back to change now. She quickly washed her hands and sat down. She looked at the table and saw many of her favorite dishes. "Thank you for your hard work, Third Sister-in-law."
Mrs. Dong smiled and said, "It's not hard. I'll try what the chef has prepared to see if it suits your taste."
Xue Han waited until her mother started to eat before she picked up some food and tasted it. She said, "The chefs in the Beijing family are really good at cooking. They are better than those in Jinzhou."
Mrs. Dong explained, "The chef in the kitchen used to run a restaurant, and he has been practicing cooking since he was a child."
Zhulan was eating the food. Hmm, it tasted just right. But here comes something sad. She found that her taste had become heavier. It was really sad. Her body was getting older.
Rongchuan felt that today's lunch was especially delicious. There was only one seat between him and Xuehan. Before, at home in Jinzhou, even when the whole family ate together, they always sat at two separate tables. It was rare for them to have the opportunity to eat at the same table.
Rongchuan pressed his lips together, trying not to show it so obviously, but the joy in his heart seemed to be about to burst out. He had been looking forward to Xue Han coming to the capital for several days.
Rongchuan suddenly wanted to get married. He was a little greedy. Especially after he talked about getting married in front of the emperor, his relationship with Xuehan became closer. In the two months since he returned to Jinzhou, they met more often than before and often chatted together. He also listened to Xuehan playing the piano.
Zhulan saw Rongchuan only eating, "Rongchuan, what are you thinking about? Why are you only eating?"
Rong Chuan felt uncomfortable. He couldn't say that he wanted to get married. However, he felt that his thoughts were seen through. His face was as red as fire. "I was just thinking that I should take office the day after tomorrow. I was thinking about the Imperial Academy."
Zhulan didn't expose Rongchuan, "Don't think about it while you're eating now, or you'll get upset in your stomach."
Rong Chuan eased the heat on his face and said, "Yeah."
Xue Han felt like Rong Chuan was looking at her, and her face turned red.
Zhulan's sitting position was particularly good, so good that she could see what was going on at the entire table. There were only four people at the table. Zhulan looked at the young couple who looked at each other from time to time, and felt that the food on the table no longer smelled good.
Zhulan put down her chopsticks after eating until she was only 60% full. "I'll go out for a walk to digest the food and come back to rest later."
Mrs. Dong didn't want to stay at the dinner table. It was fine when her mother was here, but now she was alone and she couldn't eat. "Mom, can I go to the garden with you?"
Zhu Lan looked at Rong Chuan and Xue Han, who were almost touching the table with their heads, with a smile in her eyes, "Okay, when I left, there was still ice in the lake in the garden, but now it's all melted. I don't know if there are any fish in the lake."
In the past few days, Dong was not only busy packing her luggage, but also cleaning up her sister-in-law's yard. She was also thinking about the invitations, so she didn't go to the garden for a walk. "Mom, I don't know either. Let's go and take a look."
Zhulan smiled and said, "Okay, let's go see where in the garden we can hold the banquet."
Dong: "Yeah."
Zhulan walked to the door, one foot had already stepped out, paused and said, "You two, eat slowly!"