The lady hurriedly invited Luo Zhenxing in.

Luo Zhenxing bowed to the lady and presented her with a red lacquered and gold-painted food box containing a porcelain bowl of glutinous rice, two silver carps, and a plate of meat patties.

Mother Du answered the phone and served Xu Lingyi and Shiyi Niang with Yuan rice.

The lady invited Luo Zhenxing to sit down and talk.

Xu Lingyi and Shiyi Niang ate a little symbolically, then said goodbye to the lady and followed Luo Zhenxing to Gongxian Hutong.

Luo Zhenda, Yu Yiqing and Qian Ming were waiting at the gate. When they saw the carriage, they went to greet it.

After getting off the carriage and exchanging greetings, Xu Lingyi and Shiyi Niang went to the eldest master and the eldest mistress.

The Second Wife, the Third Wife, the Fourth Wife, the Fifth Wife, the Tenth Wife, the Greatest Wife, the Third Wife, as well as Luo Zhenkai, Luo Zhenyu, Wang Lang and others were waiting for them in the house.

Eleventh Lady was very surprised to see Tenth Lady, but seeing that she looked normal, she felt more or less comforted.

Wang Lang saw that Xu Lingyi had a somewhat uncertain expression, but he still stepped forward and saluted him.

Xu Lingyi smiled and nodded at Wang Lang with a very cold attitude.

The female relatives were different. They surrounded Shiyi Niang and talked a lot. The Second Madam laughed and said, "Our First-rank Lady is back." This made Shiyi Niang feel a little uncomfortable. After all, after being ignored for so long, it would take someone a while to get used to being in the spotlight. Fortunately, Shiyi Niang had encountered many strange things. She smiled and called everyone "Second Aunt" and "Third Aunt", which made the Second Madam's words sink in.

The Third Wife smiled and pulled Eleventh Lady over: "Come in quickly, Uncle and Sister-in-law are waiting for you!"

Xu Lingyi and Shiyi Niang went to the west room.

The eldest master and the eldest mistress had already been sitting on the big kang by the window waiting.

Xu Lingyi and Shiyi Niang knelt down and kowtowed to the two of them.

Luo Zhenxing and Grandma helped them up respectively.

The eldest master looked at them with a smile on his face and asked Xu Lingyi kindly, "Did Eleventh Lady cause any trouble to the Marquis?"

Eleventh Lady couldn't help sweating.

As a father-in-law, isn't the master's attitude a little too respectful?

Xu Lingyi's answer surprised her even more.

"Eleventh Lady is generous and polite, and everyone in the family likes her very much."

Eleventh Lady couldn't help but glance at Xu Lingyi.

His eyes were calm and his expression was solemn. He did not take this as a joke or a humble remark. However, because of his attitude, the master did not know what to say for a moment and showed some hesitation on his face.

The eldest wife looked at her and smiled, saying, "Master, you are worrying about nothing! The Marquis has always been magnanimous to others. He has said everyone is right!" As she spoke, she looked at Eleventh Lady, "When you were with me, I also told you to read "Instructions for Women" and "Biographies of Remarkable Women". If your husband is humble, you should respect him even more. If your mother-in-law loves you, you should be more cautious. You should not be arrogant because of your favor, and you should not be servile because of your love..." She actually started to lecture Eleventh Lady.

Eleventh Lady naturally listened attentively.

For a moment, the atmosphere in the room was a little depressing.

Xu Lingyi frowned slightly.

Qian Ming immediately interrupted the eldest wife with a smile: "Mother-in-law, we who accompanied the guests have been waiting for this meal with empty stomachs since yesterday, and our stomachs have been churning for a long time. If you continue to scold me, I can't stand it anymore."

The eldest wife looked slightly unhappy, but the others laughed. She didn't know what to say, so she just mumbled "hmm".

Qian Ming pulled Xu Lingyi and said, "Let's drink, let's drink!" He then said to Luo Zhenxing, "Today we are the most powerful son-in-law, so don't say you don't have good wine and good food."

This made everyone laugh again and the atmosphere became lively.

The eldest master, Xu Lingyi and others went to Luo Zhenxing's place, while Eleventh Lady stayed at the eldest wife's place with the female family members.

The maids placed a black lacquered table in the hall.

The eldest wife took Eleventh Lady and sat in the first seat: "Today is the day when my aunt comes back..."

The Second and Third Madams smiled and sat down at the lower table, one on each side. The Fourth Madam sat next to the Second Madam, the Fifth Madam sat next to the Third Madam, and the Third and Tenth Madams sat opposite the First and Eleventh Madams.

The eldest lady asked the maids to serve the dishes.

Wu Niang's beautiful eyes rolled around as she stared at Shiyi Niang.

Unlike her usual plain and elegant attire, Eleventh Lady was dressed gorgeously today. Her jet-black hair was combed into a peony bun, with a red gold headband inlaid with purple quartz, a tourmaline knot, a red gold phoenix hairpin with a ruby, a bright red shirt with full sleeves woven with gold, and an apricot-yellow skirt with plum, bamboo and orchid embroidery.

The purple emerald stones on the headband were each as big as a fingernail, and the tourmalines on the knot were of different sizes and shades, but stacked together they had an aggressive and gorgeous beauty. And the rubies held in the mouth of the phoenix hairpin were each as big as a lotus seed, sparkling and dazzling.

She couldn't help but reveal envy in her eyes.

Si Niang, who was sitting opposite her, couldn't help but smile and said, "Fifth sister, you are staring at Eleventh sister without blinking. Are you afraid that the Marquis bullied your sister?"

Wu Niang felt somewhat embarrassed when her behavior was exposed. She forced a smile and said, "I just wanted to see what a First Rank Lady looks like. After all, Eleventh Sister is the first among us sisters."

Everyone couldn't help laughing when they heard it.

The first one, the first one should be Yuanniang...but at this time, who still remembers her.

The eldest wife's eyes flashed coldly, but she smiled and raised her glass: "Come, come, come, everyone, drink."

Except for Shi Niang, everyone raised their glasses to respond to the eldest wife - she had already started eating her food.

The banquet has officially begun.

The eldest wife took the lead and put a piece of salted fish into Eleventh Lady's bowl: "This is brought from Yuhang. I'm afraid we won't have the chance to eat it in the future."

Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "With you, there is no need to worry about not being able to taste it."

The eldest wife listened, nodded with satisfaction, and put another crab meat and lion head into her bowl: "This is your favorite!"

Eleventh Lady smiled at the eldest wife and whispered, "Thank you, mother."

The eldest wife laughed lovingly.

There was a hint of loneliness in Wu Niang's eyes.

The third wife sighed, "I never thought that those little girls running around here would grow up and get married in just a few years. They even know how to feel sorry for their mother."

The second wife laughed and said, "Don't be envious. In a few years, you will be a mother-in-law. There will be people who care about you just as well."

The third wife smiled and shook her head: "How can a daughter-in-law compare to a daughter..." The topic turned to Luo Zhensheng's marriage. "... Brother Kai and Brother Yu are too naughty, I can't control them. It just so happens that my father wrote to say that he missed his two grandchildren. I asked Mr. Zhao for his opinion and planned to let Mr. Zhao take them back to Datong and hand them over to my father to study with my nephew. The two children will leave on September 18th, and I will go to Sichuan after them - there is no one to take care of the master, and I am worried. I am afraid that I will not be able to return to Yuhang when Brother Sheng gets married."

The third wife said this, looking at the first wife with an apologetic look on her face.

The first wife smiled and said, "Third uncle's matter is more important. Just remember to give a big red envelope to your nephew's wife."

The third wife said hurriedly, "Of course, of course."

The second wife complained after hearing this: "What do you mean by the Zhou family? I heard that the family's assets are only three acres of paddy fields, and they have four or five younger brothers." The second wife was quite disapproving, "If I had known that the eldest sister-in-law would agree to such a family, I would have come forward to find a marriage for Brother Sheng! Apart from anything else, there is a dowry of several thousand taels."

The second wife was also from Yu County, and had a half-brother who made a fortune in business. She had always wanted to marry her niece to Luo Zhenxing, but she had put it on hold because of the mourning period for the old man. Unexpectedly, the first wife quietly arranged such a marriage for Luo Zhensheng, so she naturally had to say something.

Everyone's eyes fell on the first wife.

The eldest wife smiled faintly: "You know what kind of personality Brother Sheng has. We need to find someone older to take good care of him. The Zhou family has a clean family tradition and is related to Mr. Zhou, the prefect of Hangzhou. I thought I could help him in the future, so I agreed to this marriage."

The second wife pretended to be sociable and said, "This is really not fate." She then sighed, "This is really a coincidence. As you know, Qi Niang's wedding is scheduled for the tenth day of the tenth month, and I can't leave. I'm afraid that Da Ge will have to go back to Yuhang on our behalf."

"Will Third Brother come back to Yanjing for the New Year?" Wu Niang suddenly laughed and said, "If he does, it would be a good opportunity to send me back!"

Everyone was slightly stunned, but a hint of smile flashed in the eldest wife's eyes.

Wu Niang looked at Shiyi Niang with some pride and said, "My husband asked me to accompany my mother back to Yuhang. At that time, my father and mother will stay in Yuhang, but I have to rush back to Yanjing to celebrate the New Year. If Da Ge returns to Yuhang, he can escort me back."

I didn’t expect Qian Ming would actually let Wu Niang return to Yuhang...Shiyi Niang was quite surprised.

The second wife's smile became a little forced: "Fifth uncle is really a caring person! Da Ge will naturally go back to Yanjing to celebrate the New Year. Otherwise, the house in Laojun Hall will be left unattended. When the time comes, let your third brother send you back." As she said that, she couldn't help but glance at the first wife.

It turned out that because she had been taking care of her parents-in-law, the three brothers of the Luo family looked at her differently. Now one of her sons-in-law is a juren, another is the prince of a duke's mansion, and another is a powerful marquis. She was afraid that she would be able to walk sideways at home.

"Sister-in-law is so lucky." There was a hint of sourness in her words, "Married daughters can still serve you. Unlike us, the fourth sister, we have parents-in-law above us and children below us."

It means that the first wife took advantage of Qian Ming's need for support from the Luo family and bullied Qian Ming to the point that her daughter only had her own family but no in-laws.

The first wife smiled, as if she hadn't heard what the second wife said, and kept urging everyone to eat: "...These mushrooms were sent by the Marquis when he proposed marriage. You can't buy them even if you have money. Everyone, try them!"

Everyone's topic turned to Eleventh Lady.

The second wife smiled and said, "I heard that the Marquis has foot paralysis. Is that true?"

News spreads so fast!

Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "That's what the imperial physician said."

"This is really a troublesome matter!" The eldest wife looked very worried and asked about Xu Lingyi's condition, "Which imperial physician diagnosed him? What prescription did he prescribe?"

Eleventh Lady told everyone what she knew, and everyone couldn't help sighing. The topic turned to a recent case in Yanjing - it was said that the imperial physician of the Imperial Hospital found out that an unmarried young lady was pregnant, and the case was reported to Shuntian Prefecture. In the end, the coroner confirmed that she was indeed pregnant. Then the topic turned to what medicines and clothes the Third Lady should bring to Sichuan...

After that, no one asked about Xu Lingyi's foot paralysis anymore.

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It's a bit late to add more! O(∩_∩)O~

Let’s get up and watch tomorrow morning!