“Since he is a benevolent ruler, then we can breathe a sigh of relief.” Su Bai’s expression softened slightly.

For ordinary people, attending a birthday banquet is optional depending on the closeness or distance of the relationship. However, if an invitation from the emperor of a country is sent and they do not attend, it is considered disobeying an imperial decree.

Since we're already here, we might as well make the best of it. We might as well do as Hua'er suggested and go to the palace for a feast. We can just eat and drink and ignore everything else. That should be fine.

However, since it's a birthday banquet, the birthday gift needs to be carefully considered. It can't just be like a banquet in the village where you bring a piece of meat and a basket of eggs and call it a day!

Su Dalang and his brother were young, and when they heard that they were really going to pay their respects to the emperor on his birthday, they immediately started whispering to each other.

"Big brother, I heard that the emperor's palace is made entirely of gold, which is why it's called the imperial palace. Will we turn into little golden statues when we go there this time?"

"Idiot!" Su Dalang put his hands behind his back and flicked his finger to knock him on the head. "If there were really that much gold, would my aunt need to go to such lengths to empty the pockets of those rich people to build the canal?"

Why not just go to the palace and break off some gold bricks?

"Hiss!" With a crisp sound, Su Erlang cried out in pain and covered his forehead. "You're right. It seems the emperor must be quite poor."

Then we should bring more dried meat to eat, so we won't go hungry at the banquet..."

Su Hua, with her sharp ears and keen eyesight, heard this and her lips twitched. She beckoned to the two men, "Eldest brother and second brother, come with me to the village."

"Okay!" The two little ones paused for a moment, then nodded quickly. "What is Auntie going to do in the village now?"

Su Hua smiled and led one of them out, saying, "Of course, let's go find Chunhua."

"Looking for Chunhua?" Upon hearing this, Su Dalang's eyes lit up instantly. "Auntie, do you mean to take Chunhua with you to the capital this time?"

Su Erlang paused slightly, gazing expectantly at Su Hua.

Since the establishment of the branch, spring flowers have rarely come to the end of the village.

Every time they went to look for her, she was always busy with chores, either cooking, feeding chickens, picking vegetables, or taking care of her second aunt.

But they couldn't interfere in her family's affairs, so they could only occasionally bring her some food or fruit when her aunt wasn't looking.

"You two are so clever!" Su Hua smiled and nodded. "The whole family will be going to the capital this time, and I want to take her with me to see the sights."

"Great! Chunhua can be with us again." Upon hearing this, the two brothers jumped up and down with joy.

But the thought of his second aunt made his smile fade a little. Would she be willing to let him go?

The ancestral home of the Su family.

Chunhua was bending over, weeding in the vegetable garden in the front yard. The hailstorm had ruined all the vegetables, but her father had replanted a new batch after he came home. Now the vegetables were starting to sprout, but as they were growing quickly, the weeds were growing wildly as well.

Every day, I have to pull out all the weeds.

Suddenly, footsteps were heard. Looking up, they saw an adult and two children walking towards them. Their dark eyes suddenly lit up with laughter. "Auntie, eldest brother, second brother, what brings you here!"

As he spoke, he quickly wiped the mud off his hands, opened the courtyard gate, and headed inside to make tea.

“We’re all family, Chunhua, there’s no need for you to go through all this trouble.” Su Hua reached out and pulled her back, saying gently, “My aunt and the eldest and second sons came today to ask you if you would like to come with us to the capital in seven days?”

The reason it was seven days was because Su Dahu's provincial examination in mid-August was approaching, while the Emperor's birthday was on the first day of September. After finishing the provincial examination, he could set off in time.

However, the original plan to enjoy the scenery along the way had to be temporarily put on hold.

Chunhua was taken aback. "To the capital?"

Su Erlang nodded, "That's right, I heard there are lots of delicious food and fun things to do in the capital, and that if you smash a plaque, you can attract a whole bunch of young masters and ladies. You absolutely have to come with us."

"Don't you love eating fruit the most?" Su Dalang chimed in with a smile. "There must be even more fruit in the capital. We can buy some and plant them, then we can eat as much as we want!"

Chunhua listened with great anticipation, and subconsciously wanted to nod, but stopped halfway and turned to look at the west room—

Inside the room, the person who was taking a nap on the bed was woken up by the chattering noise. Just as they were about to throw a tantrum, their expression changed immediately when they heard Su Hua's voice. They quickly put on their shoes and ran out.

Full Moon's face was beaming with joy. "So it's Hua'er! Chunhua, your aunt's here and you didn't even make tea. What have I been teaching you all this time..."

"No need to bother." Su Hua waved her hand, interrupting the conversation. "I'm here to take Chunhua to the capital. I just wanted to let you know in advance."

"Go to the capital?!" Upon hearing this, Madam Qian instantly woke up, her phoenix eyes shining brightly. "The capital is wonderful! If Chunhua goes, I'll go with her!"

Hua'er, what day are we planning to leave? I'll go back to my room right away to pack my things, and make sure I bring all the clothes and food..."

Su Hua coughed lightly, "You misunderstood. I'm only here to bring Chunhua with me."

"What? You're not taking me?" Madam Qian's joy faltered. "Why aren't you taking me? Second Sister-in-law knows that you were blinded by greed before, but you've already realized your mistake."

Second Sister-in-law promised that she would never do it again, nor would she act recklessly. She said, "If you tell me to go east, I will never go west. Is that alright?"

Su Hua shook her head, her face expressionless. "It has nothing to do with this. It's your body that can't take it."

The doctor had said before that you were weak and needed to rest properly. The journey from Shanghe Village to the capital is over four thousand li, a bumpy ride that even if you could endure, the baby in your womb wouldn't be able to.

Upon hearing this, Ms. Qian subconsciously rubbed her belly. The baby was already more than three months along, which should have passed the danger period, but for some reason, she was still feeling nauseous and weak, and she was sleeping a lot. It was much more uncomfortable than when she was pregnant with her first child.

Going to the capital would indeed be dangerous.

The woman nodded hesitantly, “Hua’er is right. My health is not suitable for long journeys. But as you know, your second brother works in a restaurant all day long, and I can’t be left alone to take care of myself. If Chunhua goes to the capital, won’t there be no one to look after the family?”

As she spoke, she secretly glanced at Chunhua.

Chunhua pursed her lips, the light in her eyes dimming little by little, "Mother, I'm not going..."

“You don’t need to worry about who will take care of you.” Su Hua squeezed Chunhua’s hand and looked up at Madam Qian.

"I've already hired a maid for you. She comes from a wealthy family, is quick and efficient, cooks excellent dishes, and knows a lot about medicinal cuisine. She'll take much better care of you than Chunhua."

"You hired a maid?" Madam Qian was taken aback. "This, this is so embarrassing, it must have cost a lot of money, right?"

“You don’t need to worry about that. I’ll pay for the old woman’s monthly allowance.” Su Hua’s lips curled up. “When we separated the family, Mother wanted to keep Chunhua at home. You said you’d only let her stay if we bought you an old woman to serve you. Now that we’ve bought her, Chunhua can come back, right?”