Chapter 7 [7] One family has a daughter, and hundreds of families seek her out.

【7】

That night, the men in the Marquis' Mansion were not surprised to learn that Yun Ran was invited to the Mid-Autumn Palace Banquet.

"Ranran is the only legitimate daughter in our family, and she has been living away from home for many years. Her return this time will inevitably attract attention."

Marquis Changxin polished his most treasured sword. "This morning I was thinking of setting an auspicious date to hold a welcoming banquet for Ranran, inviting many prominent families. Firstly, this would allow Ranran to show her face among the nobles in Chang'an. Secondly, since Ranran is new in Chang'an, she could take this opportunity to make some friends to avoid loneliness. Now, the Queen's invitation has saved us the trouble. An appearance at the palace banquet is better than anything else."

Zheng Shi disagreed after hearing this: "A palace banquet is a palace banquet, and a welcoming banquet is a welcoming banquet. We must follow the ceremonies that are due to Ran Ran, and none of them can be missed!"

Marquis Changxin choked and said hurriedly, "That's not what I meant..."

"Okay, I've already made up my mind. Let Ranran learn the rules from Wanniang for a while. Once the palace banquet is over, we'll hold a grand welcoming banquet to formally introduce Ranran's identity."

Zheng felt that this was a great arrangement, and without waiting for Marquis Changxin to say anything else, she took the list and started selecting guests for the banquet.

At the same time, in the main house of the Marquis's Mansion.

After hearing his wife's affirmation and praise for his sister, Yun Yi secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He looked at his wife again with a gentle look in his eyes: "Then I'll trouble you to teach my sister from now on."

Li Wanrong combed her hair with a toothbrush and squinted at Yunyi, "Why do I feel like you're just like my mother, afraid I'll treat my sister badly? Do you think I'm some kind of vicious sister-in-law?"

"How could that be?" Yun Yi said, "Everyone knows that my wife is virtuous, kind, and compassionate, and she cherishes the poor and the weak."

Li Wanrong refused to listen to the flattery and asked, "Then why did you secretly breathe a sigh of relief just now?"

Yun Yi's face stiffened slightly. "I'm not worried that my younger sister, who grew up in the countryside, doesn't know the rules and might offend you, just like my third sister-in-law..."

Yunyi stopped in time.

Li Wanrong paused, but without changing her expression, she continued slowly, "Sister and Third Sister-in-law are not the same kind of people. You always think I despise Third Sister-in-law's background... Yes, I admit that I do have some prejudice against merchants. But more importantly, Third Sister-in-law's character is flawed. How she blackmailed Sanlang is unclear to outsiders, but we, the family, don't know either."

Yun Yi didn't want to discuss the private affairs of her brother and his wife, and only said, "Sanlang has already said that my sister-in-law just slipped."

"Oh, I slipped and fell into Sanlang's arms among so many gentlemen. Not only did I fall down, but I also kissed him mouth to mouth. This kind of nonsense can only be used to fool outsiders. Who would really believe it?"

Li Wanrong had never seen a woman as unbridled and shameless as Qian Sijin in her entire life. "My sister-in-law is just an unreasonable, stubborn old-fashioned person!"

Inside the third room, Qian Sijin lay in Sanlang Yunze's arms, muttering, "If my sister hadn't been here today, I wouldn't have gone out with her! You don't know, if my sister hadn't protected me today, I would have been scared to death by those mice. Poor little sister, such a well-behaved child, has to follow that old-fashioned female teacher to learn the rules in the future. What bad luck."

Yunze said, "Sister, you will be attending a banquet at the palace soon. It will only benefit you if you learn some more etiquette."

Qian Sijin snorted: "I know. But I just don't like my sister and sister-in-law getting too close."

Yunze frowned: "Why?"

Qian Sijin: "...As the saying goes, 'Birds of a feather flock together.' If my sister stays with her for too long, she'll become like her. That would be so disgusting."

"Sister-in-law is an elder after all, it's not right to talk about her behind her back."

Yunze still respects his sister-in-law very much.

"Hmph, who knows what she'll say about me behind my back."

Qian Sijin said, pushing away the man's hand that was touching her waist, "Take it away! Otherwise, it will get out and people will say that I was shameless enough to seduce you, a lecherous person greedily eating swan flesh."

Yunze, who was inexplicably angered, said: "..."

After a moment, he once again embraced the slender waist in his arms and turned over to cover her: "Then tonight I will seduce Jin'er. Jin'er, will you let me eat a few more bites?"

"Bah, you shameless..."

"Ouch, be gentle."

The bed curtains swayed slightly, and the room was in commotion.

In Tingxiaxuan under the same moonlight, Yun Ran bit the tip of the pen and wrote down what happened today in the letter.

If Master and Senior Sister knew that she could go to the palace, they would definitely be very proud of her!

Suddenly, a young Taoist nun who was able to attend banquets in the imperial palace appeared in the unknown Shuiyue Temple. Perhaps the temple’s popularity would become even greater!

With this beautiful expectation, Yun Ran happily packed the envelope and fell into a sweet dream under the service of her maid Qing Ling.

*

When he woke up the next day, Yun Ran still maintained his previous routine, doing boxing and exercises as morning exercises.

Although Zheng said that there was no need to do these things anymore, Yun Ran felt that practicing boxing and martial arts were good habits. She was weak when she was young, and it was because she insisted on exercising with her master that she developed the good body she has today.

As for her morning and evening rituals, she had been a Taoist for many years, and although she had now returned to secular life, the blessings of her ancestors and the teachings of Taoism were already etched in her heart. She now recited sutras and prayed for repentance, not for a living, but solely for spiritual cultivation.

After Zheng learned about Yun Ran's insistence, she also felt that she had some truth in her words.

Anyway, doing these things wouldn't take up too much of my daughter's time, so I could just treat it as a hobby. Besides, there were many women in aristocratic families who enjoyed burning incense, chanting sutras, and collecting rice, though most of them were widows or elderly women. But since my daughter liked it, I'd let her do it.

So after finishing his morning lessons every day, Yun Ran would go to the eldest house to learn etiquette with Li Wanrong. After a short afternoon nap, he would either drink tea and appreciate flowers with Zheng and Qian Sijin, or catch cicadas and play with cats with his little nephew A Zong.

If it was a day off, her father and brothers would come to accompany her, or teach her how to do horse stance, or teach her how to play chess, or play backgammon or tou hu with her.

During this period, Zheng also took Yun Ran to the Duke of Huguo's Mansion to meet Zheng's grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins, etc.

With Zheng and fourth brother Yun Shang accompanying him, Yun Ran's trip to the Duke's Mansion was relatively smooth.

But compared to the Duke of Huguo's Mansion, which has many rules and a complex population, Yun Ran still prefers the atmosphere of his own home.

Simple and harmonious, it's more like what a family should be like.

Before we knew it, the scorching hot summer days had passed with the long and noisy chirping of cicadas.

Autumn arrived as promised with a drizzle of cold rain.

Yun Ran started to get busy early in the morning on the Mid-Autumn Festival.

In addition to sitting in front of the mirror and dressing up, they also have to accept the impromptu tests from the eldest sister-in-law, such as how to behave when meeting peers, how to address elders, what posture to use when answering dignitaries, how to use words... Every single thing is very particular.

During this period of time, Yun Ran has been learning from his elder sister-in-law every day. If he cram at the last minute, he will definitely have a headache.

Before noon, Yun Ran was dressed up by the maids' skillful hands.

"My lady looks so beautiful like this."

"Yes, just like the Ninth Heaven Fairy in the storybooks."

Hearing the maids' praises, Yun Ran stood in front of a bronze mirror as tall as a person, looking at the figure in the mirror with jade-like spiral bun, gorgeous clothes and heavy makeup, and felt dazed.

This... is this still her?

It is beautiful, but like the Mohelo sold in shops, it is too beautiful to be real.

She pursed her lips uncomfortably, and with the help of her maid, she slowly walked towards the front hall, holding up her intricate and exquisite skirt.

When we reached the front hall, the Marquis of Changxin and his wife were already seated, and his brothers and sisters-in-law were also there—

"Oh, my sister looks so pretty dressed like this!"

The first time she saw her sister-in-law coming towards her, Qian Sijin expressed her admiration without hesitation.

The little nephew A Zong also opened his mouth and exclaimed "Wow!", then walked straight towards Yun Ran on his two short legs: "Aunt, you are so beautiful today! Like a fairy from heaven!"

Yun Ran wanted to squat down and hug her nephew like she did before, but her corset was too tight and her hair was covered in jewels and emeralds, so she could only tense her shoulders and touch A Zong's head with a smile: "Is he really that beautiful? Don't lie to me, auntie."

"A liar is a puppy!"

A Zong tilted his head back, his black eyes sparkling: "Aunt is very beautiful, very beautiful, she is the most beautiful young lady A Zong has ever seen!"

"You little guy, how come your mouth is sweeter than your aunt's."

Yun Ran was amused, her eyes curved.

This smile is like adding eyes to an exquisite doll, injecting it with spirit and making it even more charming.

Marquis Changxin, who was sitting in front of the hall, was quite proud of Yun Ran's stunning outfit today. He thought that he could show off in front of his colleagues at the palace banquet later and let them see how smart and clever his daughter was, and not as dull, rude and rustic as they thought in private.

But when he saw his daughter's delicate appearance with painted eyebrows and lipstick, curved eyes and a gentle smile, he suddenly realized that his daughter had reached the age of marriage and was no longer the little girl he could casually carry out and show off.

A daughter is sought after by hundreds of families, let alone a daughter as beautiful as your own!

Marquis Changxin suddenly felt a huge crisis.

The three Yunyi brothers also realized this.

Men understand men best. They know very well what the moral character of the children of the noble families in Chang'an City is.

None of them is worthy of my sister!

The four of them exchanged glances silently. Marquis Changxin cleared his throat and looked at Zheng: "Madam, don't you think that the pearls and jade on Ranran's head are too much?"

Zheng was slightly surprised: "Really?"

Yun Shang nodded: "Yes! Not only the pearls and jade, but also the lipstick on my sister's lips is so red!"

Zheng: “……?”

What do you know, little brat? This is the most fashionable pomegranate this year.

Yun Yi also nodded: "The rouge is too thick, it loses its original nature."

Li Wanrong: "..."

That's a box of peach blossom powder weighing ten taels from Yanzhizhai.

Yunze: "The corset is too tight. It makes me look like a cone. It's better to loosen it up a bit."

Qian Sijin: “……?”

He often praised her privately, saying that she had a slender waist and was very charming.

After hearing his father and brothers' advice, Yun Ran looked down at the outfit he had spent nearly two hours putting together, and was bewildered: "Is it really that bad?"

"Just a bunch of ruffians, ignore them!"

Zheng curled her lips, took her daughter's hand and walked out: "The carriage is waiting outside the door, let's go."

Yun Ran was taken away without any explanation.

Marquis Changxin quickly followed: "Wait for me!"

In the hall, there were a number of people left who were not invited.

Li Wanrong and Qian Sijin rarely maintained the same view, each glancing at their husbands——

A bunch of tasteless men.

He turned around, took A Zong's hand, one on each side, and went to the kitchen to prepare a family dinner.

The author has something to say:

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Xiao A Zong (chest puffed out): I am the most tasteful man in the family! [starry eyes]