Not only was the entire new village in an uproar, but guests from the hot spring valley also lined up early to buy melons, and villagers from Dahuaishu Village, Dawangzhuang, and Xiaowangzhuang all came to see what was going on.
The leading eunuch, perhaps having received instructions, treated the Li family members with great courtesy.
He refused when the Li family wanted to set up an incense table, only asking the Li family and the villagers to kowtow and express their gratitude.
Li Lao Er went to Luo'an Town, but Li Zhensheng, Li Lao San, and Li Lao Si were not there.
Only Grandma Li, Jiayin, and the village chief could greet the guests.
Old Madam Li had someone cut a piece of the jade melon from the well. The leading eunuch didn't stand on ceremony and ate three pieces in one go. Finally, he laughed and said, "Madam, Princess, you don't know, the jade melon sent to the palace yesterday was extremely popular!"
"His Majesty gave a few to the Empress Dowager, and the rest were distributed to the various palace ladies. All the ladies were pleased. Today, the Empress sent a servant to deliver the rewards, and the ladies of the palace, upon hearing this, also added some to their gifts."
Everyone smiled and thanked them. No wonder there were six carriages; it turned out that the Empress was just the leader, and there were others among those receiving the rewards.
Soon, all the goods from the six vehicles were unloaded.
Most of the items were silk fabrics, along with some small ornaments, the most eye-catching of which was a full-length mirror.
Perhaps it came from overseas, the dressing mirror is half a person tall, the mirror surface is bright, and a wooden frame is inlaid behind it. It can also rotate and adjust the angle. It is carved and hollowed out, and looks very exquisite and noble.
This was something completely new; no one had ever seen it before, and they stared in astonishment.
Occasionally, someone would be startled by the reflection in the mirror and scream and run away in fright at their own clear image.
The leading eunuch not only didn't laugh, but was actually quite satisfied, hoping to tell the Empress when he got back and make her happy.
When the Empress gave up this dressing mirror, she looked pained, and everyone could see that she didn't want to give it away.
However, because of what happened yesterday, the Emperor not only removed the Third Princess from Kunning Palace, but also found a strict nanny to discipline her.
The Empress, on the other hand, was treated with decency and was not punished.
However, under the pretext of praying for blessings, the Emperor ordered the Empress to copy thirty Buddhist scriptures within a month.
This is equivalent to being confined to one's home for a month!
The concubines in the palace all secretly laughed at the Empress. This time, they took the initiative to add rewards, firstly to show off in front of the Emperor, and secondly to annoy the Empress.
Therefore, the Empress's grand gesture of sending gifts to the Li family, while only using her own name along the way, was simply a matter of mutual calculation and back-and-forth...
The villagers were unaware of all the twists and turns, and even Old Lady Li was unaware that the Empress had bullied her granddaughter. This gift was mostly an apology; otherwise, she probably would have smashed the dressing mirror on the spot.
But the village chief knew that when he got home last night, he was angry that the empress was being unreasonable, and he also felt sorry for the children who were suffering. He couldn't vent his anger and couldn't sleep most of the night because he was feeling so frustrated.
Even after seeing so many rewards, he wasn't particularly happy.
The leading eunuch said a few more words, then returned to the palace with the money Li Jiasai had given him for his hard work.
The villagers wanted to stay and see what they had won, but the village chief shouted, "Don't watch the excitement yet! We're still busy in the melon field. We can't be short-handed. Hurry up and start opening for business and collecting money!"
"Put these things aside for now, they can't grow legs and run away! Besides, most of them were bestowed upon the princess by Her Majesty the Empress. Let the old lady see what can be distributed among everyone, so that we can all share in the joy."
The villagers all agreed with smiles and then went to the fields.
They weren't actually after these things; they were just gifts from the palace, and everyone felt honored and proud, always wanting to look at and touch them more.
But as the village chief said, the Broken Gold Beach belongs to the princess, and it was the princess who presented the melons. I heard that she pleased the emperor and empress very much, which is why they bestowed so many gifts upon them.
Logically speaking, it wouldn't be wrong for the Li family to leave everything behind.
But Aunt Li wasn't stingy; she would always share some with everyone.
Sure enough, as soon as the men left, Old Lady Li led the old women to open the box.
Needless to say, the full-length mirror and small ornaments are definitely reserved for Jiayin.
There was also a box containing small pieces of jewelry that the Queen had specially given to Jiayin.
After asking her granddaughter, Grandma Li took out most of the fabric and distributed it to the families in the village.
Anything that comes from the palace is of high quality, after all, the entire nation's resources are used to support this family.
The several boxes of cloth bestowed this time were of excellent quality. There were also several bolts of bright red silk, the color so vibrant it was almost blinding.
Half a bolt of cloth was enough to make a wedding dress, so families with young daughters or those preparing to marry off their sons happily received a share, their faces immediately beaming with joy.
The remaining dark-colored cotton fabric was used to make new clothes for the men in the family, while the women kept the brightly colored fabric to sew new jackets for themselves.
The soft cotton fabric was set aside to make clothes for families with young children...
Finally, everyone looked at each other and realized that each family had received three or four pieces of cloth, so many that they could barely hold them all.
Old Mrs. Li watched as the village girls stared intently at the brocade in the box, their eyes shining.
She patted the hair of the little maids and said with a smile, "This is brocade. It looks nice, but the clothes made from it are not as comfortable as cotton. Even Fu Niu'er doesn't wear it on ordinary days. She only wears it to show off when she goes out to visit guests."
The maids' mothers quickly pulled their children away, saying, "Auntie, don't mind them. Children just love novelty. Fu Niu'er is a princess, so she can wear brocade. They are just ordinary maids; they're lucky to have a coarse cloth skirt."
Old Mrs. Li smiled and called for Granny He to open the storeroom. She took out three bolts of floral fabric and gave half a bolt to each of the young maids.
"The girls are at the age where they love to dress up. Take this fabric back and don't just leave it at the bottom of your trunks. Make new dresses for each of the children," Old Mrs. Li instructed the women. The women blushed a little, realizing that she had indeed been planning to do so.
Even though life is better now, they just can't let go of the concept of thrift.
There's always the idea that if you have a piece of clothing, the eldest will wear it until it's finished, then the second child will wear it, and after that, the youngest will wear it...
These girls were the youngest in the family, and they rarely saw each other wearing new clothes, sometimes not even once every three to five years.
But now, with Old Lady Li adding extra fabric, they gritted their teeth and made up their minds.
One of the women took the lead in responding, "Okay, we'll listen to you, Auntie. We'll cut it when we get home tonight, and they can wear it in a few days."
The little girls were overjoyed; they were practically jumping up and down, clapping and cheering.
Grandma Li invited the women to rest under the eaves for a while, then called to Jiayin, "Take a box of pastries and eat with your girlfriends."
Jiayin was eager to see what good things the Empress had given her as compensation, but since her grandmother had spoken, she could only comply.
So, Old Lady Li led the women to chat under the eaves.
Jiayin spent time with the little girls, eating snacks and playing together.
Jiayin had no prejudice against the village girls. They didn't usually play together, so they were indeed quite unfamiliar with each other at this moment.
But it's not difficult for her, with her "old auntie soul," to make the young girls happy.
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