When Tian An returned to the main hall, the glazed eternal life lantern had already been moved in and was placed in the middle of the hall.
The red silk on top was still untouched, and everyone was pointing at it and whispering. Seeing the different expressions on everyone's faces, Tian An didn't rush forward, but watched the show first. She had a premonition that there would be a big show today.
Sure enough, the next second, an annoying voice came from the crowd, "I heard that this thing was given by that peasant girl from the general's mansion. In my opinion, it's probably just a broken jar!"
How dare they send such junk to the Gu family? They even pretended to be mysterious and covered it with a piece of red silk, not afraid of ruining the red silk.
Alas! They say that the General Zhongyong's Mansion is the poorest in Tianling. I think Miss Mud-Thighed should keep this red silk to make clothes."
After she finished speaking, she even started laughing, but unfortunately no one at the scene agreed with her, so her voice seemed extremely abrupt.
Some ladies had mocking expressions on their faces, and a few whispered to those they knew, "A bastard's daughter is a bastard's daughter. She's truly unworthy. These words have offended so many people without even realizing it. No wonder the Duke's Mansion has become increasingly corrupt."
"That's right! What an idiot!"
Seeing that no one paid any attention to her, Zhao Qianhua calmed down a little, turned her eyes, and walked towards the gifts in the middle of the crowd, "Let me show everyone the true appearance of this rag."
As a result, just as he raised his foot, he heard a clear and beautiful female voice with anger: "Is this the family rule of Miss Zhao's family? If I remember correctly, you were not invited today! It's okay if you come uninvited. Since you are a guest, we will also welcome you with a smile and treat you as a guest of honor.
But you want to open the host's gifts as soon as you reach out, speak nonsense at the host's banquet, insult the host's regular guests all the time, and disrupt the order of the banquet. How can this be justified?
Are you acting this way in other families too? Or are you just acting this way in my Gu family? Do you look down on our Earl's Mansion?"
Zhao Qianhua's face turned pale, and she immediately retorted, "If you don't want to look at it, then don't look at it. You are the only ones who treat this junk as a treasure."
"You..." Gu Jinyan was so angry that she almost died. Today was her coming-of-age ceremony, but now Zhao Qianhua had messed it up. If there weren't so many people around and it would have a bad influence, she would have wanted to throw her out of the Gu family.
Seeing that Gu Jinyan was embarrassed to say more, Wu Yufei said, "No matter how good or bad the gift is, it is a token of respect for the host. Miss Zhao is always complaining about it. It's not a gift for you, so why do you care?"
Wei Lingran also tilted her neck and said, "That's right. If I have a coming-of-age ceremony in the future, as long as Sister An An is willing to come, I would be happy even if she picked up a stone from the roadside for me."
Song Zhiyun turned around and muttered to Zuo Yunshu, "Sister Yunshu, my family isn't very wealthy. I won't dare attend the Duke's Mansion's banquets in the future, lest people dislike my small gifts and look down on me."
The sound was neither loud nor soft, but just loud enough for everyone present to hear clearly.
Zuo Yunshu pretended to be in deep thought, and after a while he said, "I think the Duke's Mansion also looks down on my Zuo family, so I won't go there to embarrass myself."
Suddenly, the crowd was bustling with people, many ladies were talking about it, and finally came to a conclusion that the Duke's Mansion had high standards and even looked down on the Earl's Mansion. So everyone should not embarrass themselves by going there from now on!
Zhao Qianhua looked here and there, and was stunned when she saw that everyone had the same opinion. Her father was going to hold a birthday party next month, and if no one went, her father would beat her to death if he found out!
Unfortunately, no one at the scene paid any attention to her. She looked pitifully at Jiang Wanmeng who was standing beside her, but Jiang Wanmeng didn't even glance at her and stood aside without leaving any trace.
The Gu family, whom she had offended, was even less likely to care about her. Who would like someone who stole the limelight at their own banquet? Not kicking her out on the spot was already enough to save face for the Duke's Mansion.
By chance, Gu Jinyan saw Tian An behind the crowd and said with a smile, "An An, you're finally back. Everyone is curious about what good things you brought me! Come forward and uncover the red silk to satisfy everyone's curiosity!"
Everyone followed Gu Jinyan's gaze, and the crowd automatically parted to make way for Tian An. Tian An wore a proper smile on her face, and she walked forward slowly with light lotus steps. Every gesture was exemplary, not the slightest bit like a "peasant girl".
Tian An had fair skin, decent makeup, and was wearing clothes made of fine materials, in the most fashionable styles in the capital. She didn't look like a girl who was raised in the countryside at all. It seemed that the rumors were not credible!
Tian An greeted the ladies first, then took Gu Jinyan's hand and walked to the gift. "The gift has been given to Sister Jinyan, and it should be Sister Jinyan who opens it."
Seeing Tian An's proper manners and thoughtful words and actions, everyone nodded in agreement. Then, looking at Zhao Qianhua, who was still standing there, they sighed and shook their heads. The contrast was too stark.
Gu Jinyan thought for a moment and said with a smile, "Why don't we reveal it together!"
Tian An smiled and nodded, "Okay!"
Then the two of them stepped forward, one of them grabbed a corner of the red silk, and with a force of their hands, the red silk was peeled off, and the glass eternal life lantern was instantly exposed in front of everyone.
Suddenly, time seemed to stand still. Everyone stared at the glazed eternal life lantern placed in the middle of the hall in shock, unable to recover for a long time.
Even Gu Jinyan was stunned. After a long while, Tian An finally asked, "Sister Jinyan, this is the glazed eternal life lantern I gave you. How do you like it?"
Gu Jinyan swallowed her saliva before speaking: "An An, is that really Liuli? Is it this big?"
Tian An nodded. "It's just colored glass. That's not the point. The point is the flower! This is the everlasting flower, also known as the flower that never fades. I wish you eternal youth, and it also means that our friendship will last forever!"
Gu Jinyan was stunned and said, "A flower that never withers? Will this flower never wither?"
Tian An nodded again, "Yes! These flowers have been specially treated with fresh flowers, and will forever be frozen in the moment when the flowers are at their most beautiful."
Kristy Wu said in disbelief: "But these flowers have fragrance, they look like fresh flowers!"
Everyone present nodded. The fragrance was not obvious just now because it was covered by the red silk, but now that the red silk has been uncovered, the fragrance is more obvious. It is a very refreshing smell, making people feel as if they are surrounded by flowers.
Tian An explained: "This is the smell of aromatherapy. It is extracted from fresh flowers, so it is naturally a floral fragrance."
A sweet-looking young lady in the crowd asked, "Miss Tian, may I ask why this gift is called a lantern? Could it be a lamp?"
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