Governor Su was relieved to see that Su Rong was not asking any more questions.
As Su Rong observed his relief, she thought to herself, wondering what he was trying to hide from her. She wasn’t a child anymore. There were no more secrets to keep.
It seemed she could only pin her hopes on the Duke Residence.
Just as she was thinking about the Duke Residence, someone came running in to report. "Master, Miss Seven, the Duke Residence has sent a gift."
Governor Su was shocked and turned to look at the messenger. "What did you say?"
The messenger was panting, but his words were clear. "Master, it’s Li, the guard who Madame sent to the Capital city to deliver the letter to the Duke Residence. He said that Young Master Zhou has also come to Jiangning and brought two large carts of gifts; said they are for Miss Seven’s coming-of-age ceremony."
Governor Su sprang up, looking stunned. "Young Master Zhou has come to Jiangning?"
"Yes, he came with Guard Li."
"Where is he now? Has he come to our Residence?"
"Not, not yet. Young Master Zhou said to send the gifts first, and he will visit later."
Governor Su relaxed, "Another day will be fine."
He turned to Su Rong. "Your father is in no shape to receive guests. I’ll take a bath and you go ahead to...", he paused when his eyes fell on the scar on Su Rong’s forehead, then corrected, "No, you shouldn’t go either, let’s let your mother receive the gifts!"
At that moment, he felt that neither he nor his daughter could face the guests, even though it was not Zhou Gu who had come personally.
Su Rong, too, was astonished. She knew that the Duchess had sent someone to the Capital City, but she didn’t expect the Duke Residence to send Zhou Gu himself to Jiangning. Could this arranged marriage really be realized?
She was taken aback. "Father, you should go quickly!"
Governor Su nodded. He didn’t linger any longer, instead, he hurriedly left.
Su Rong turned to look at Wang’s mother and Yuewan.
Wang’s mother and Yuewan immediately understood. They put down the embroidery they were working on. "We’ll go and see for Miss Seven."
In the silence of the room, Su Rong was thinking about how incredible her mother really was. She had been dead for many years, yet the Duke Residence still had no plans to cancel the arrangement.
After all, for the illustrious Duke Residence, cancelling her marriage would be quite simple. There would be no need for Zhou Gu to come in person. His presence proved that the Duke Residence did not only acknowledge the marriage but was also planning to proceed.
She had thought that the marriage deal would fall apart after the storm Zhou Gu had stirred up by fighting over a woman.
In the front hall, even though Zhou Gu hadn’t shown up in person, the Duchess still personally received the manager, Zhou Xi, from the Duke Residence.
Zhou Xi, who was in his thirties, was a rather smooth talker. Seeing the Duchess greet him personally, he respectfully gave his salutations and then began sweet-talking. "My young master had just arrived in Jiangning. The journey was long and tiring, and as it is already late today, it’s not convenient to pay a visit. So, I was sent to deliver the gift that the Old Duke prepared. We apologize for the inconvenience, and my young master will pay a formal visit another day."
The Duchess wasn’t going to blame him. After all, this precious future son-in-law had come to Jiangning. If he had suddenly shown up today without the Residence being prepared, she would feel flustered. This way, with the visit due another day, it gave her some time to prepare.
Therefore, the Duchess smiled very graciously and nurturingly, "Manager Zhou, you are too polite. The young master just arrived in Jiangning, of course, he needs to rest. I wonder, where is the young master staying? We have a place for him to stay in our residence. How could we let him be inconvenienced by staying outside?"
Zhou Xi laughed and responded, "Madame, you don’t have to worry. The young master has already been settled in. He rented a courtyard on East Street, so there’s no need to bother you."
The Duchess nodded, "If he isn’t accustomed to where he is staying, let the young master come to our Residence. There are some vacant courtyards in our front yard."
Zhou Xi agreed, then took out two gift lists and handed them to the Duchess. "These are the gift lists. This one is for the Governor, the Duchess, and the other members of the Residence. This other one is for Miss Seven."
The Duchess took the gift lists. She had already seen the two large carts of gifts and was quite shocked. But she hadn’t gotten a chance to look at the gifts closely. Now, holding the gift lists in her hand, she took a quick look and was once again startled. "These, the gifts from the Old Duke are far too generous."
Zhou Xi still smiled. "The Old Duke said that for many years, he was afraid that his movement would disturb the tranquility of the Governor’s Residence. But now that Miss Seven is about to have her coming-of-age ceremony, the marriage plans with my young master should proceed. From now on, our two families will be relatives. These gifts are to makeup for the deficiencies of the past years, embodying the Old Duke’s intentions. Duchess, please do not refuse."
Naturally, the Duchess was never going to refuse. If she did, wouldn’t it be like slapping the Old Duke in the face? Thinking of Su Rong, it dawned on her that her daughter was not worthy the Duke Residence’s serious treatment. Luckily, Young Master Zhou had caused quite a ruckus recently, which evened the score, otherwise, she would have been terrified with such generosity and attention.
She thanked him with a smile, "Thank you so much for the Old Duke’s affection. In that case, I won’t refuse."
Zhou Xi, having accomplished his mission, politely excused himself and was seen out of the Governor’s Residence by Housekeeper Li Fu.
With the gift lists in her hands, the Duchess looked at the list of lavish gifts, her heart pounding. It was no wonder people say, "A good marriage can bring prosperity for three generations." Indeed, there was no exaggeration.
The Duke Residence was careful – the gifts were flawless. Everyone in the Governor’s Residence had a gift. Every gift had a name attached to it. There was even a gift for Su Xingze, who was studying at the Yunshan Academy.
As for the gift list for Su Rong, it was even more valuable. The dowry she had prepared for her stepdaughters was not nearly as valuable. But they said that these were just gifts for Miss Seven’s coming-of-age ceremony.
After reading the heartfelt letter from the Old Duke, the Duchess called Li Yan, who had been waiting for a reply. She asked, "Is the Duke Residence really as rumored?"
Li Yan nodded, "Yes, Madam, it’s quite illustrious."
"And Zhou Gu?"
Li Yan said, "I investigated the issue of Young Master Zhou fighting for a woman. This is the information I got when I arrived in the Capital City." He recounted what he had heard, then added, "Young Master Zhou is a decent young man. On the way to Jiangning, I observed him and he doesn’t have any bad habits like the typical young masters from influential families. He gets along well with others and does not treat the servants harshly."
After speaking, he added, "Also, when we left the Capital city, we ran into Young Master Xie from Rui’an Wang Residence. The two of them have reconciled. They traveled together for about a hundred li. I couldn’t hear what they were talking about because I fell a bit behind, but they were talking throughout and there were no fights."
The Duchess didn’t expect the two of them to reconcile so quickly. Indeed, they were young. With Li Yan’s reassurance, she also somewhat relaxed, "You must be tired from all the way to the Capital City. Go rest."
Li Yan acknowledged and withdrew.
After Governor Su bathed himself, he arrived immediately. Seeing the Duchess holding the gift lists, he asked, "What happened? Has he left?"
"Yes, he has." The Duchess passed the letter from the Old Duke and the two gift lists to him, repeated what Zhou Xi had said, then sighed. "It’s like a dream, just over ten days ago, I was still worrying that the wretch wouldn’t get married."
Governor Su: "..."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
