Upon learning that Old Madam Ning's illness could be cured, the atmosphere in the entire Ning Mansion suddenly became relaxed.
After seeing the old lady, Ning Xihua immediately went to pay a visit to several elders whom she had not seen for a long time.
It is said that the Ning family is very different from the ordinary dukes' and marquises' families. Although it is a prince's mansion, it does not have so many rules and etiquette.
Old Lady Ning gave birth to three sons in her lifetime. The eldest son, Ning Feng, died in the battlefield, and his eldest daughter-in-law also committed suicide for love, leaving behind only one son.
Ning Xihua's eldest cousin, Ning Yueqing, the eldest grandson of the Ning family, inherited his father's will and became the backbone of the Ning family army in the northern border. When there was no war, Prince Ning was confined to the capital, and the army relied on Ning Yueqing to preside over the overall situation.
The second son, Ning Yan, inherited the throne, but he had no children. Ning Yan wanted to pass the throne to his nephew Ning Yueqing, but was restricted by the edict of Yuan Shizong, the founding emperor of the Li Dynasty.
"The throne of the Prince of the Ning family can be inherited directly from the ancestors, and the title will never be reduced." This seems to give the title an eternal honor of being inherited from the ancestors, but it is firmly trapped by the word "direct line". Except for passing the title from father to son, nothing else is allowed.
The third son, Ning Chen, was born in a prince's mansion but he did not join the army or politics. Instead, he turned against the norm and started a business. Ning Chen was open-minded and tactful, and was the head of the Ning Mansion in Yizhou.
Ning Xihua respectfully met his third uncle and aunt, but before he could do the greetings, he was stopped by his aunt Qian.
"Good boy, although you are younger than me, you are still a princess. Your uncle and I are not of high rank, so how can we ask you to perform formalities?"
Ning Xihua, however, smiled and refused to give in. "After not seeing Third Aunt for a year, she has become unfamiliar with me. In the Ning family, there has always been a hierarchy of seniority. When has there ever been a discussion of status and inferiority? I have been in Yizhou for three years and have troubled you and Third Uncle a lot. How can you two not bear this courtesy!"
Qian felt very relieved to hear this. Although Xihua was a little erratic and lazy, he always respected them as his elders and never bossed them around because of their status.
"You are still so sweet, kid! By the way, your third sister got married a few days ago. She heard that you are back and will probably come back to visit her family in two days. Your second and fourth brothers are also clamoring to take you out to play."
Ning Xihua also smiled. She hadn't seen her brothers and sisters for a long time and missed them very much.
Ning Chen and Qian were childhood sweethearts, so they got married early, which resulted in their two sons and one daughter being older than Ning Xihua. Even the youngest, the fourth brother, is half a year older than Ning Xihua.
Ning Chen also said gently, "Thanks to Xihua for bringing back the imperial physician and medicinal materials, otherwise I don't know when my mother's illness will be cured. It should be Third Uncle who should thank you."
Ning Xihua looked at her third uncle's haggard face and knew that he must have been worried about the old lady's illness in recent days.
"Uncle, you are being polite. We are a family and we don't have any differences. Father is still at the front line, and the Ning family depends on you, uncle. I am just doing what I should do."
Ning Chen felt quite relieved. After going through the quagmire of the capital, his niece had not changed at all.
"I heard that the emperor has arranged a marriage for you with the crown prince. I don't know what kind of person the crown prince is and whether you can get along with him."
He didn't seem to realize how noble the prince was, he just worried about her feelings.
Qian also looked at her with concern, fearing that she would be dissatisfied with the arranged marriage and be bullied in the future.
Ning Xihua smiled.
Sure enough, true relatives don’t care how much glory you bring to them, they only care whether you can live a happy life.
"Don't worry, Third Uncle and Third Aunt. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is very considerate to me. The imperial physician who treated my grandmother this time and the herbs used were actually prepared by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
Ning Chen and Qian Shi felt relieved after hearing this.
"Since mother's illness can be cured slowly, Xihua, you don't have to stay in Songhe Courtyard all the time. As a young girl, you should go out and play more before you get married, instead of staying at home all day."
Qian kept nagging with concern, and Ning Chen nodded frequently.
Ning Xihua agreed with a smile.
…
Ning Xihua felt relieved that her grandmother's condition had been resolved. Then she remembered that she had not yet reported her safety to Su Bi since arriving in Yizhou.
She asked Song Yi to prepare pen and ink, but she couldn't put pen to paper.
This was the first time she separated from Su Bi after they confirmed their relationship.
I thought there was nothing to be reluctant about, but when I looked at the blank paper, I suddenly felt a sense of longing.
Xian Yuxi had never felt such a mysterious thing as lovesickness before, and now she felt a little melancholy.
Looking at the peony flower on the table, she sighed deeply.
Oh, falling in love is so frustrating.
In the end, she only wrote a dry letter about her grandmother's condition, thanked him for the imperial physician and the herbs he prepared, and mentioned her recent situation in Yizhou. She didn't write a single word about missing her.
When she was finally sealing the letter, she thought for a moment, rummaged through the boxes and found a maple leaf signature.
This was something Su Bi had specifically asked her to make for him when they were at Yandang Lake. After it was done, she kept it there and forgot to give it to him.
Ning Xihua picked up the dried red maple leaf that had been made into a bookmark, carefully placed it between the folded letter paper, and put them into the envelope.
The girl's thoughts were all on a small red leaf, and Ning Xihua felt a little embarrassed.
Su Bi should understand, right?
The mountains are far away, the sky is high, the water is cold, and the maple leaves are red.
Thinking of this, she quickly rubbed the corners of her mouth that were rising uncontrollably with her hands, secretly cursing herself for being too hypocritical.
"Fifth sister! Fifth sister!"
Ning Xihua was still entangled in her girlish thoughts when she heard someone calling her loudly in the yard.
She went out and saw that it was indeed her second and fourth brothers.
The second brother Ning Yueyan and the third sister Ning Yuexiu are twins, both 18 years old this year. The fourth brother Ning Yuehang is the same age as them, both 17, only half a year older than them.
As soon as Ning Yuehang saw her show up, he wanted to rush over to her.
Before Ning Xihua could hide, he saw his second brother Ning Yueyan grabbing him by the collar.
"Why are you so noisy all the time? I've been deafened by your shouting all the way here. Fifth sister is already a grown-up girl, how can you be so pushy?"
Ning Yuehang refused and struggled to escape from his brother's clutches, but he did not try to get back at him.
He just pouted and looked at Ning Xihua aggrievedly, "No matter how old she is, she is still my Ning Yuehang's biological sister."
Ning Xihua was amused by her fourth brother's funny behavior, "Yes, yes, I can testify that he is a legitimate son!"
Ning Yuehang smiled happily when he heard this.
Ning Yueyan shook his head helplessly and just looked at his two younger brothers and sisters lovingly.
"Oh, Fifth Sister, Grandma and Mother are worried that you're staying at home again, so they sent us two to take you out for a walk."
Ning Yuehang was very excited, "Yes, yes, Fifth Sister, do you want to go horse racing in the suburbs? The racecourse has attracted many beautiful horses recently, you will definitely like them!"
Ning Yueyan patted Ning Yuehang on the head, then turned around and said to Ning Xihua with a smile on his face, "Fifth sister has just arrived and must be tired from the long journey. Maybe you can go shopping in the city first. There are many new restaurants in the city, and the food is delicious."
Ning Yuehang covered his head and stared at the calm Ning Yueyan with dissatisfaction.
He said angrily, "Why are you pretending? It's as if it wasn't you who took us to the brothel to listen to music every time!"
Ning Yueyan: ...
It seems that this younger brother was not beaten enough when he was young.