Chapter 10 All Guests Are Welcome

On the 18th day of the fourth month of the 21st year of the Jingyuan era of the Dayu Dynasty, the capital city seemed to be a little more lively than usual.

The Duke of Dingguo's mansion is not quite the same as before.

The entrance was spotless, and even the two stone lions at the entrance were adorned with red ribbons.

Everyone in the Duke of Dingguo's mansion was in high spirits, and even the guard dogs wagged their tails more enthusiastically than usual.

There was no other way; Shangguan Jin held a meeting with the entire family yesterday.

The theme of the meeting is today's Madam's birthday, and we must make sure that all guests feel at home and are surrounded by everyone's warm smiles.

All who come are guests.

After all, they're here to give gifts. Regardless of any past conflicts, you should put on a sincere smile for the sake of the gifts.

As for the dogs at home that bark at strangers.

Dongmai was also specially brought over and given a thorough explanation.

"No squeaking today, and wag your tails loudly, or I'll give you an extra chicken...feast tonight!"

Of course, Shangguan Jin was well aware of the great power of rewards, and even more so, he knew that if you want a horse to run, you have to feed it more grass.

She also promised everyone in the manor that as long as the old lady's birthday celebration went smoothly, everyone would receive an extra month's salary.

And so, everyone in the Duke of Dingguo's mansion was filled with enthusiasm.

Starting at 9:00 AM, the Duke of Dingguo's mansion welcomed its first group of guests.

Madam Shangguan arrived with congratulatory gifts.

When Shangguan Jin saw that the servants carrying the loads were all covered in sweat, she knew that the gifts must be quite substantial.

“Mother, this is too much of a gift,” Shangguan Jin said with a smile.

Madam Shangguan took Shangguan Jin's hand and slowly walked towards the inner courtyard.

"The preparations were a bit rushed, so I only picked out some items that your household can currently use."

"Just have Chun Tao and the others take me to see the old lady. You stay here and take care of things. Most of the guests today are women, so as the host, you must be attentive."

After speaking, he took another look at Shangguan Jin.

Not bad, although she's lost some weight, her eyes are very bright, unlike before when they were calm and expressionless.

It seems the old man was right; something must have happened to cheer her up.

Seeing Chun Tao accompany Madam Shangguan to Old Madam Shen's inner courtyard, Shangguan Jin breathed a sigh of relief.

Here it comes, time to receive gifts.

Let this country bumpkin see how wealthy families give gifts these days!

Carrying loads of congratulatory gifts, one after another, they entered the gate of the Duke of Dingguo's mansion.

The area outside was also crowded with onlookers.

The Shen family's butler was also standing at the door. As gift lists were delivered to the inner courtyard, Shangguan Jin's mouth was practically crooked with a grin.

Of course, she had to pretend not to care.

He gestured to his servants to take the gift list and the congratulatory gifts to another courtyard.

The winter wheat is waiting there for verification!

The nobles who came all knew that the Duke's mansion was now run by only one wife, and since it was the old lady's birthday celebration, the people who came were mostly female members of the family.

However, before they all arrived, the men in their families gave them all some instructions.

You must be observant, ask questions, and learn as much as possible about the situation.

The Duke of Dingguo's mansion suddenly held a grand banquet; there must be something planned behind it, something more.

Therefore, the first thing these ladies did was to observe Shangguan Jin's expression.

It didn't seem like a forced smile; the smile in his eyes seemed genuine.

However, the young lady of the Shangguan family, who has been carefully trained, must be more skilled than those from ordinary families!

The ladies exchanged glances, each seeing something in the other's eyes.

Let's all take turns asking questions. If we ask enough, we'll eventually find something out.

And so, around 9:45 AM, it seemed that all the families who had sent out invitations had arrived.

Shangguan Jin sat down in the courtyard with the ladies.

Madam Shangguan also came from Madam Shen's inner courtyard.

Oh, the Duke of Anguo's family didn't come, but they sent their steward with congratulatory gifts.

The ladies glanced at Shangguan Jin's expression.

It seems she had no dissatisfaction with the fact that the Duke of Anguo's mansion only sent a congratulatory gift and did not send anyone to personally offer birthday wishes.

The Duchess of Dingguo still seemed to have a proper smile on her face.

Everyone started to feel uneasy.

This is quite different from when I used to attend banquets at various homes.

Does this mean that the Duchess of Dingguo has truly found someone to rely on? Or has someone reassured her?

Everyone remained silent and looked at each other.

But what Shangguan Jin was thinking was...

Look how well the Duke of Anguo's family knows how to get things done. They sent the gifts but didn't even show up. How much trouble did that save them?

She likes people who don't need to be polite to others.

Also, the gift list from the Duke of Anguo's mansion seems quite long, and the load of those gifts looks quite heavy.

Shangguan Jin felt no discomfort whatsoever.

The other ladies, however, thought differently.

It seems that the Duke of Anguo still doesn't take the Duke of Dingguo's mansion seriously!

It was the old lady of the Duke of Dingguo's mansion's birthday. Logically speaking, since everyone was a Duke, it was one thing if the old lady of the family didn't come, but the lady of the house should at least come to wish her a happy birthday!

However, considering that the Duke of Anguo's family was the Empress Dowager's maternal family, everyone felt it made sense.

The most honored woman in Dayu is from the Duke of Anguo's mansion. Even the imperial family has to respectfully call the Duke of Anguo "uncle"!

It seems normal that they wouldn't give face to the Duke of Dingguo's family, who are now missing.

"The Duchess of Dingguo looks much better lately. Is there some good news?" Lady Xu, the Duchess of Qi, suddenly asked.

Seeing Madam Xu fanning herself with a round fan even though it was only April, Shangguan Jin smiled.

"Really? It seems the new rouge I recently changed is quite nice."

Madam Xu, for a woman to have a good complexion, going to bed early and waking up early is essential for nourishing her spirit!

Of course, the rouge I applied early in the morning was also quite good; it was the new rose rouge from the rouge shop on Qianmen Street.

It's smooth, melts easily, and looks natural. You should try it too.

Shangguan Jin also took the round fan from Xia Zhu behind her and slowly started fanning herself.

Everyone was speechless after hearing Shangguan Jin's words.

They're practicing Tai Chi here!

Isn't it clear what the Lady of Qi's meaning is?

You look great, is there some good news in your family?

The greatest joy for the Duke of Dingguo's mansion must be news about the Duke of Dingguo!

But you actually brought up going to bed early and waking up early and rouge?

Haha, they just don't want to take the bait!

Or rather, what are you trying to hide?

Madam Xu suffered a defeat in her first battle. She could only nod and smile before picking up the teacup beside her.

After glancing at the tea in the teacup, Madam Xu paused for a moment.

There was no tea aroma as I had expected; it seemed to be just ordinary tea leaves.

It must be the kind of teahouse outside where a big bowl costs ten coins...

But since the teacup has already been picked up, it wouldn't be appropriate not to drink it.

After taking a small sip, Madam Xu wiped her mouth with a handkerchief and quietly spat the tea she had drunk onto the handkerchief.

Lady Wuding, who was sitting next to Lady Xu, quickly noticed Lady Xu's little trick.

She also picked up her teacup, glanced at it briefly, and then put it down.

“Sister Jin, our two families are future in-laws, so I still have to say this.”

The household is far too frugal.

This tea must be leftover tea from last year!

Is there no new tea this year?

"Look at you, there's no need for such formalities between our two households. If you don't have it, just go to our Marquis's residence. We have quite a few of the best teas."

Looking at the fake smile on Lady Wuding's face.

Shangguan Jin's mind was filled with thoughts of her family hosting five banquets in a year, and the congratulatory gifts they had sent out.

Haha, before she even started to make a scene, this woman took the initiative to come to her!