Chapter 577 A Dream of Youth 109
Before we knew it, the Dragon Boat Festival was upon us.
Xie Ning applied paste to the back of Zhang Tianshi's portrait, then handed it to Xie Qi, who was standing on a chair. He then took a few steps back and said, "It's crooked. Move it up a bit! Not to the right, but to the left!"
"Okay, okay, I know!"
After Xie Qi pasted the portrait squarely on the lintel, Xie Ning nodded in satisfaction, then handed over the tiger-headed Bai Ze noon talisman for Xie Qi to hang up.
"Is it pasted up?" Xie Yun came out with a clay statue, placed it in front of the door to ward off evil spirits, and then pulled the two children inside. "The hot water is ready, go wash up!"
The servants in the mansion cleaned everywhere, and after they finished cleaning, they would take a bath.
Unlike regular washing up, on Dragon Boat Festival, everyone takes a bath in hot water that has been boiled with fragrant orchids.
Xie Ning felt the water was a bit too hot and wanted to wait before putting the bucket in, but Chen Wanniang pressed her down.
"Mother! I can wash myself!" Xie Ning almost jumped up, her face flushed, whether from embarrassment or from the heat.
Chen Wanniang threw some more flower petals into the bathtub and added a few drops of her homemade flower dew before stopping. "Mother knows, Bao'er has grown up and knows shame now."
Xie Ning felt like a boiled shrimp, since the bathwater was really hot.
But the adults all thought that was the right thing to do.
When she came out after taking a shower with her hair still slightly damp, Xie Qi was sitting cross-legged on the tatami in the east suite, his face also flushed red, probably half of it from being burned.
"Come here, let your mother put it on you."
Xie Ning obediently walked over. Chen Wanniang first rubbed Xie Ning's temples, and then slowly said, "I hope my son will be immune to all poisons and have a healthy body."
As she spoke, she tied a colorful rope, also known as a hundred-knot rope, around Xie Ning's wrist. Although such ropes could be found everywhere on the street, the ones for her family were all carefully braided by Chen Wan Niang herself.
Xie Qi had a small pouch tied to his upper garment, containing realgar, while Xie Ning had a small tiger head made of cloth tied to his lapel.
"Alright, go dry your hair and comb it properly. We have guests today."
On the day of the Dragon Boat Festival, both scholars and common people would host banquets for each other.
Xie Ning had Chen Wanniang help her braid her hair when she was little, and Qingli took care of her when she grew up. Her hair-tying skills never improved, but she was still very skilled at tying small buns, so they were never uneven.
The adults who came to the banquet greeted each other, and Xie Ning and Xie Qi also stood upright and greeted each other respectfully.
"This must be Sister Ning?" An old man with a white beard looked down at Xie Ning, then took out a hundred-knot rope from his sleeve and put it on Xie Ning's wrist.
"He is a bright and intelligent child; I hope he is in good health." This conveys a very affectionate sentiment.
Although she didn't know why she was particularly close to her, Xie Ning still smiled and said, "Thank you, Uncle Qiu. I also wish Uncle Qiu good health and longevity."
After dealing with the adults, Xie Ning and Xie Qi couldn't rest. Xie Qi had to sit down with the young men the adults had brought, while Xie Ning stayed by Chen Wan Niang's side to greet the women who had come with them.
The group consisted of young ladies who could have chosen not to come, but for some reason, they all showed up.
After chatting with Chen Wanniang for a while, one of the ladies turned her attention to Xie Ning. "I heard that Miss Xie's medical skills have improved again. Yesterday, she even diagnosed the Empress's pregnancy?"
Xie Ning was naturally modest. What did she mean by saying that she had detected the pregnancy pulse? It was as if she had brought the child with her.
However, everyone's enthusiasm was very high, so Xie Ning had to pick out some medical principles to talk about, and revealed that the old doctor Gu, whom she was learning from, was an expert in leukorrhea.
In short, as a junior doctor taught by Dr. Gu, she is also very skilled in gynecological diseases.
The women at the scene had even brighter eyes. They had originally thought that since Xie Ning had gotten close to the Empress, it wouldn't hurt for them to befriend him as well.
But as Xie Ning talked more and more, they were still very shocked, even though they were embarrassed.
A lady glanced at little Xie Ning, then lowered her eyes. When almost everyone had left, she lingered until the very end and handed over an invitation.
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