Chapter 105 Sending Betrothal Gifts (Part 1) Priceless

How can you get back what's in Mu Chuan's pocket?

Besides, even if Mu Chuan stood there without moving, Lin Daiyu wouldn't dare to go up and tug at his belt—

At least not now.

She returned to the Empress's side, feeling wronged. The Empress smiled and said, "Male and female guests are separated. Look at them, even if they get married, they can't eat with their husbands. Don't feel wronged."

Even after being laughed at so many times that morning, Lin Daiyu still blushed. However, she was also glad that she was wearing a floral dress today, and since she was missing the red sachet at her waist, no one would notice.

Just then, Lin Daiyu saw the Empress beckoning to her. When she came over, the Empress gestured for her to come closer and then whispered in her ear, "Where is your embroidered sachet? Did you give it to the Earl of Zhongyong?"

"Your Highness," Lin Daiyu called out, "I'm going to wash my hands."

The Empress laughed heartily and gave a very righteous excuse: "You child, if a girl's accessories go missing, I have to ask about them, don't I? If they were accidentally lost, I have to send someone to look for them, lest they be picked up by a stranger. If you had just said that the Earl of Zhongyong picked them up, I wouldn't have asked."

However, this was not the end of the story. Lin Daiyu went to wash up with several unmarried young ladies.

Song Qingfu: "Did you give the sachet to your third uncle?"

Li Yixiang: "Did you give the sachet to my fourth uncle?"

Lin Daiyu was almost in despair: "It wasn't given to me, he stole it!"

Song Qingfu: "Oh~ Marquis Zhongyong stole the little girl's things, let's go to the Empress to complain about him."

Li Yixiang: "My fourth uncle is a big, burly man. I hope he didn't hurt you."

“It was given to me,” Lin Daiyu said numbly.

After dinner, they strolled around the West Garden for a while before Mu Chuan escorted Lin Daiyu back home.

Lin Daiyu said sweetly, "Third Brother, are you tired? Don't see me off anymore, go back and get some rest."

"How can this be considered tiring?" Mu Chuan laughed. "When I was a scout, I would be out for half a month at a time, eating in the wind and sleeping on the ground. Later, when I drove the chariot for my godfather, I would be out for at least a day at a time. Our nephew Li Chengwu, when he went out as bait to lure out the chieftain, I would lead the troops to chase after him, and I wouldn't be able to get a proper rest for more than ten days."

Lin Daiyu felt a pang of sympathy and told herself she would comfort him properly in the future, but today she wanted to do something else.

"I want to eat zongzi, Third Brother. We had sweet zongzi this morning, but I want meat zongzi and Yunnan ham zongzi."

Mu Chuan chuckled: "What's so special about this?" Even now, with the dowry to be delivered soon and the wedding just two months away, he still wanted to put the Jia family down.

"It's clear you've suffered countless injustices in the past; you're even eating zongzi with extreme caution. Let's go to the Wu-Yue Guild Hall first," Mu Chuan instructed, leading the convoy eastward.

This time it really isn't...

Lin Daiyu was a little embarrassed: "Third Brother, tell them to go to the Dianchi Guild Hall. We can wait at the Wuyue Guild Hall."

After late afternoon, when it was getting dark, Lin Daiyu finally returned to the Rongguo Mansion.

She didn't think much of it at first, but when her third brother said she felt wronged and someone was comforting her, she actually felt a little sad. So instead of going back first, she went straight to Grandmother Jia's room.

Although Yingchun was getting married in a couple of days and had stopped going out, and Jia Baoyu had been sent back to study, Grandmother Jia's room was still the liveliest place. It was just that Lin Daiyu had been coming less often before, using the excuse of preparing for her wedding, so the room was quiet for a moment when she came over today.

Madam Wang glanced at her, her face smiling but her tone anything but kind: "Is this a new outfit? I've never seen it before, it's too flashy." And it was made with her money.

Madam Wang was furious when she thought about how all the good things she had accumulated over the years would end up going to this consumptive man.

She really wanted to strangle her to death.

"Liao Ji's new clothes," Lin Daiyu said with a smile. "Since we're going to the palace, we need to find something new."

Tan Chun beckoned: "Sister Lin, come sit next to me and let me take a good look at your dress so I can learn some new styles."

The mention of entering the palace reminded Grandmother Jia of Yuan Chun, who was still confined there. It was fine before, as she was a palace maid; now that she was a concubine, it should be time for her to help the family. Why was she confined?

Grandmother Jia was also not very happy. She earnestly advised Lin Daiyu: "Although it is not a big deal for our family to have a new dress every day, you are going to get married after all. Given the circumstances of the Marquis of Zhongyong's family, we should probably be more frugal."

Lin Daiyu smiled and said, "It's alright, I have a dowry. He can't say anything if I spend my own dowry."

What do you mean by your dowry? That's my personal wealth!

Madam Wang glared at her fiercely.

"You'll be getting married soon too." Madam Wang suddenly had another idea. "Putting everything else aside, you should learn some manners. You have to serve your mother-in-law, don't you?"

Grandmother Jia hesitated for a moment, then remained silent.

Lin Daiyu refused, sighing, "I've been watching Sister Feng and Sister-in-law Zhu serve me all day, I've already learned how. Besides, every family has different rules, what if my mother-in-law thinks I'm trying to set rules for her?"

Sitting in the corner, Wang Xifeng almost burst out laughing. She knew how sharp-tongued Lin Daiyu was, and now she had no restraint at all. Her good aunt had learned her lesson more than once, so why hadn't she learned her lesson?

Most people learn from their mistakes, but this good aunt of hers only remembers to learn from her mistakes.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Lin Daiyu said, "Do you know what happened in the West Garden today?"

Everyone present, from Grandmother Jia to the maids, was curious. However, the maids were not qualified to speak, and Grandmother Jia, Lady Wang, and the others felt that if they answered her questions, they would be considered inferior. In an instant, the room fell silent.

"What's wrong?"

"What's new this time? It's a pity Second Sister isn't here; we should let her hear it too."

Wang Xifeng and Tan Chun both spoke at the same time.

That's enough," Lin Daiyu said with a smile. "Today, the Marquis of Zhongyong won first place in the dragon boat race."

What is this? Even Grandmother Jia couldn't help but scoff, but she quickly covered it up with a smile and said, "It seems like you're getting married."

For some reason, Lin Daiyu felt that Jia Mu's laughter was not as pleasant as the Empress's laughter.

"This is just the beginning. The Earl of Zhongyong got all wet rowing, and his clothes were soaked. The Empress said it was improper and told us to turn around." Then she told me to turn around, but I was too far away and couldn't see anything.

Speaking of decorum, that's the Rongguo Mansion's specialty. Madam Wang said, "Indeed, a first-class earl shouldn't act like this."

"As a result, His Majesty summoned him for questioning again."

What, there's another twist?

Grandmother Jia frowned and said regretfully, "His Majesty should have said a few words."

"I don't know about that." Lin Daiyu spread her hands and spoke very quickly. "It's just that His Majesty later appointed him as the Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince, and he will be entering the palace tomorrow to teach the princes martial arts. Grandmother, Second Aunt, you don't need to worry about me. The Earl of Zhongyong is clearly favored by the Emperor. Although His Majesty has not appointed him as the Crown Prince, the princes have all formed a master-disciple relationship with the Earl of Zhongyong, and the Earl of Zhongyong's family will continue to prosper."

Madam Wang felt choked up.

Grandmother Jia laughed as if to cover up her embarrassment: "That's just right."

Xue Baochai's heart was bleeding. She used to compete with her for Jia Baoyu, but now she might become the wife of the imperial tutor.

However, Lin Daiyu hadn't finished speaking when she sighed, "It's a pity that Brother Bao isn't fortunate enough. The Earl of Zhongyong finally agreed to teach Brother Bao martial arts, but unfortunately, he neither prepared tuition nor performed the apprenticeship ceremony. Otherwise, he would be a fellow disciple of His Highnesses now. Although the relationship wouldn't be as close as that of his grandmother, he could still be of some help."

A single, decisive blow, and the air in the room suddenly felt sour and bitter.

"I also brought back some zongzi (sticky rice dumplings)." Lin Daiyu stood up. "These things don't keep well, let's eat them all tomorrow morning."

She left in high spirits, leaving a room full of people looking at each other in bewilderment.

Grandmother Jia couldn't hold back any longer, her smile forced and strained: "Go back, everyone. Wang Shi, stay. I have something to tell you."

This was clearly not a call for herself, so Wang Xifeng was the first to leave.

"Grandma." After everyone had left, Madam Wang leaned over and called out in a trembling voice.

Grandmother Jia slapped him across the face: "Is this how you take care of Baoyu? You didn't even prepare tuition? How did you raise this child? He doesn't know how to perform the proper etiquette when he becomes a disciple? Is this the rule of your Wang family?"

Lady Wang felt wronged; was Baoyu someone she was in charge of taking care of?

The old lady used to look down on people, both openly and secretly, and even said it was all a joke. Now, it's all her fault.

"What kind of look is that!" Grandmother Jia scolded sternly. "Second son has been away for three years, and what have you done in these three years? The house is getting more and more chaotic every day, and the children are becoming more and more useless. The girls don't learn to manage the household, Baoyu doesn't study properly, and all you do all day long is make money, make money, make money! You've ruined my once-prosperous Rongguo Mansion!"

Lady Wang's eyes reddened: "How can the young ladies be under my supervision? Baoyu has always been raised in your room—"

Grandmother Jia threw another cup at him: "Get out! Don't bother coming to pay your respects morning and evening anymore. I get angry just seeing you. I want to live a couple more years!"

Madam Wang covered her face and went out, while Aunt Xue was still waiting for her in the courtyard.

Seeing Madam Wang's appearance, Aunt Xue felt very pleased. Her own sister, whom she had humbled herself to serve for so many years, was now her sister.

Even though Madam Wang is not good, and she suffers as a result, can't she even be happy?

"Hey, let's hurry back, or it'll get swollen. Watch your step, don't fall."

The next morning, Mu Chuan, dressed in light armor, led seven sub-adult horses into the palace.

These horses are the same breed as his famous tall horse that everyone in the capital knows. Although they are not yet two years old, they are already much taller and bigger than ordinary horses. Although they haven't built up much muscle yet, judging from their skeletons, they have a promising future.

His Majesty has five princes in total, and Mu Chuan has met them all.

The two youngest are barely able to run and are just learning to walk; it's too early for them to practice martial arts.

The remaining three, the oldest eleven and the youngest seven, were the ones he primarily taught. The seven-year-old prince was the son of the Empress.

As for the horse, it was a gift for the princes to meet.

Everyone, regardless of age, has one. And if it was given to the princes, why not His Majesty? If His Majesty has one, why doesn't the Emperor Emeritus have one?

So Mu Chuan eventually led seven horses into the palace, and everyone got a share.

When the emperor heard this, he was delighted and went to the training ground to join in the fun.

Mu Chuan instructed the eunuchs: "Let them rest for another six months, until they are a little more familiar with the place, before we start training them. I also brought two grooms with me; you can arrange for people to learn from them first."

Upon seeing the emperor arrive, Mu Chuan came over and bowed: "Your Majesty."

The emperor had heard about this horse for a long time, and now that he finally had it, he was happy, but he couldn't help but feel a little resentful: "If I had known, I should have appointed you as the Crown Prince's Grand Tutor earlier."

Mu Chuan laughed and said, "Your Majesty, it will be another six months before we can ride this horse."

The emperor waved his hand: "Teach them what you need to teach them. I just came to see the horses."

Mu Chuan used to teach the three princes basic skills.

The emperor circled the horse again and again, feeling immensely pleased: "The fourth and fifth princes are too young. By the time they can ride, the horse will be too old. The retired emperor is too old; he can't even walk properly, let alone ride a horse."

After calculating this, the emperor smiled and said, "Four of these horses belong to me."

One of the eunuchs felt that something was not quite right.

The emperor was satisfied, and then went to see Mu Chuan, the prince.

The three princes were eleven, ten, and seven years old, respectively.

Mu Chuan teaches PE separately, as you can tell from the age. The PE classes for fourth and fifth graders might not be too different, but the PE classes for first graders will definitely focus on fun and games.

Of course, games like "Eagle Catches Chickens" or "Drop the Handkerchief" are also not allowed.

However, the first lesson was just to look at the basics, which meant teaching how to stretch, then running and jumping, and then checking flexibility.

The emperor watched with great interest, wishing he could try it himself.

The children's physical education class lasted only fifteen minutes each. Afterwards, the emperor was quite satisfied, and the princes also felt it was alright. They could all do it, and it wasn't tiring.

After all, Mu Chuan's tall stature makes everything he does very convincing.

The seventh prince led the way and came over to the emperor, saying, "Father, we would like to send some return gifts to the Earl of Zhongyong."

The emperor smiled and asked, "What would you like to give as a gift?"

“White yaks,” the Seventh Prince said. “There are five in total. We’ll keep three and give one male and one female, one big and one small, to Earl Zhongyong, for a total of two.”

The emperor smiled and said, "I grant your permission."

Mu Chuan came over, bowed, and thanked him, then said, "I still need to send the horses to the Daming Palace."

The emperor was both displeased and impressed by his honesty: "Which horse is for Father?"

"This one is the most docile." Mu Chuan led the horse out, bowed again, and headed towards the Daming Palace.

It was almost lunchtime, so the emperor said, "Alright, you go ahead and come back in a bit. I have some instructions for you."

Mu Chuan led the horse to the Daming Palace. The Emperor Emeritus took a liking to it at first sight, but then felt a pang of regret: "Such a fine horse, but I am too old to ride it. It is suffering by following me."

Mu Chuan then said, "I enter the palace once every five days. Why don't I train the horses for the Emperor?"

The retired emperor became happy again and said, "Excellent!"

He thought for a moment: "I remember you sent the betrothal gifts on the ninth day?"

Mu Chuan nodded: "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty."

The retired emperor chuckled a few times: "Besides the usual betrothal gifts, the rest are nothing more than food, clothing, shelter and transportation... Dai Quan, go and get the land deeds for two thousand acres."

After giving his instructions, the Emperor Emeritus said to Mu Chuan, "Everything else is meaningless; only the land can produce a continuous supply."

The fact that they were willing to donate land was truly touching. Mu Chuan bowed and said, "Your Majesty, rest assured, I will cultivate this land well. When the grain is harvested next year, I will be the first to deliver it to Your Majesty."

"Do I need your two bites?" The Emperor Emeritus chuckled a few times. "I love black rice, I want fragrant black rice."

On the ninth day of the fifth lunar month, betrothal gifts were sent. On the morning of the eighth day, Mu Chuan went to the palace again, this time to deliver gifts as well.

He had a rather large coral tree, which he originally intended to leave to Lin Daiyu. However, this was considered a top-tier luxury item, and to display it publicly, it would be best to have it passed through several hands first. Just like pearls, some grades were reserved for royalty.

Mu Chuan simply chopped the tree into three parts, one part to be given as a betrothal gift tomorrow, and the remaining two parts to be presented to His Majesty and the Emperor Emeritus respectively.

Mu Chuan placed the coral tree in the Imperial Study and said with some regret, "I searched for a long time, but unfortunately there were no large ones, only three small ones. These are for His Majesty."

The emperor chuckled helplessly: "Should you send me a betrothal gift as well?"

"And what about the Emperor Emeritus's share?" Mu Chuan said matter-of-factly. "We have something good, and it happens to be three portions. How else would we divide it?"

"Qiao Yue," the emperor laughed again, "Alright, I'll accept it."

Mu Chuan was still not entirely at ease and said, "When I received it, the soil underneath was piled with pearls. However, I felt that this stuff was already good enough. Adding more pearls would be superfluous. So I removed all the pearls. What does Your Majesty think?"

The emperor felt inexplicably guilty. He had quite a few coral trees in his collection, some larger and some smaller than this one. He even had a potted one in his bedroom.

Not only are there pearls below, but the tree is also adorned with various gemstones that serve as fruit, and even the pot is made of the finest sandalwood.

The emperor had initially thought it was quite magnificent, but after hearing Qiao Yue's words, he suddenly felt that the coral tree was a bit tacky.

It's not only tacky, but it also reeks of nouveau riche.

"I understand," the emperor replied seriously, then explained guiltily, "This thing is not suitable for the imperial study, so I'll put it in my bedchamber." It's a good replacement for that nouveau riche.

With everything prepared, on the morning of the ninth day of the fifth month, Mu Chuan led a large group of people to deliver betrothal gifts to Lin Daiyu.

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Author's note: One of the biggest mysteries of the Great Wei Dynasty: the tomb of the Duke of Loyalty and Bravery was found in four consecutive imperial mausoleums. Which emperor was he buried with?