When the congratulatory gift sent by Su Rong arrived at Daliang Capital City, Duanhua had already mastered all the mannerisms, pleasing Qingping greatly with her drastic transformation after becoming the potential Crown Princess.
During the period, Duanhua didn’t go over to the Eastern Palace to disturb Yan Huisheng, even on her rest days.
In the blink of an eye, more than two months have passed.
One day, an urgent messenger sent by the housekeeper reported that the Nanchu Princess had sent a grand gift by carriage and requested Miss Jiangning to personally receive it.
Duanhua instantly stood up, her manners all but forgotten in her eagerness to see what Su Rong — no, the Princess — had sent her.
Qingping was surprised but couldn’t help but laugh, "This child, anytime she hears Su Rong’s name, her true nature shines through."
Saying so, she ordered her maids to assist her, following behind Duanhua.
At this moment, the housekeeper was having an enthusiastic conversation with the messenger. Seeing Duanhua rushing out, he said hastily: "Miss, slow down. The gift will not run away, I am watching it for you."
Panting for breath, Duanhua stopped in her tracks. "Is it Su Rong...no, the Princess sent me something?"
"Indeed, Miss. These items are gifts from the Princess, along with a letter," replied the messenger. "These are personally handpicked by the Princess from His Majesty’s private warehouse."
Duanhua was initially about to unfold the letter but hearing this, she instead inspected the gift list first. Looking at the list, she gasped in astonishment, "So many wonderful things, are they all for me?"
"Yes, they are all for you." The messenger responded.
Tears welled up in Duanhua’s eyes. "Wu-wu-wu, Su Rong is so good to me."
"Miss, please calm down. Let us first get the gifts inside so the Princess’s men can rest," the housekeeper hurriedly suggested.
Duanhua nodded, handing the gift list to the housekeeper, "You check, then store everything in the warehouse. I will have a look later."
The housekeeper confirmed with a nod.
Holding the letter, Duanhua turned to the messenger, "You’ve worked hard. Please rest at the Princess Residence for a couple of days."
The messenger shook his head, "We are staying at the Guest House. Our caravan will be staying in the capital for four or five days. If you need us after reading the letter, you can find us there."
Duanhua seemed confused, "The Guest House, is it really Su Rong’s?"
The messenger nodded, "Yes, our young lady is the Seventh Miss of Jiangning County."
"That’s still Su Rong," Duanhua muttered.
She brightened up though, "I have frequented the Guest House many times. Alright, I will look for you all at the Guest House after I finish reading the letter."
After saying this, she went back indoors with the letter.
She had an unexpected encounter with Qingping, "What brought you back?"
Holding a thick letter in her hand, Duanhua replied, "Mother, I am going back to my room to read the letter. I’ve handed over the gifts to the housekeeper for tallying. If you are free, you can assist me to check."
Qingping nodded her agreement.
She arrived at the entrance and the housekeeper along with others promptly greeted her.
Seeing a carriage full of gifts, Qingping was astonished even before the housekeeper had the chance to show her the gift list, "These are all gifts sent by the Princess via her own caravan to congratulate Miss Jiangning."
Taking the list from the housekeeper, Qingping exclaimed in surprise, "There are so many wonderful things. How can she give away all these? Doesn’t she need them? Oh, this child."
Handing the list back to the housekeeper, "Have people handle it with care, don’t damage anything. Quite a few of these are invaluable treasures."
The housekeeper of Princess Residence, who was naturally knowledgeable, kept nodding his agreement. Even though he had instructed the workers several times, with the Princess’s order, he reiterated his instructions.
Qingping then turned to the messenger, "You are the Princess’s servants? From Nanchu?"
"Yes, Your Highness."
"When will you be leaving?"
"In about four to five days."
Qingping nodded, "What is the current situation in Nanchu? Is the Princess in good health?"
The messenger relayed, "Nanchu is currently arranging for spring planting. When we left, the Princess was sick due to the change of weather. It took her about seven to eight days to recover."
Concerned, Qingping exclaimed, "What hard times she has been facing."
Afterward, she inquired further and was answered accurately by the messenger. Qingping then offered, "Maybe you should rest here in the Princess Residence instead of the Guest House. We have plenty of room here."
Despite her offer, the messenger shook his head, "We wouldn’t want to inconvenience Your Highness. We come and go a lot which could bother the residents. If the Princess and Miss have responses, you can pass them to us at the Guest House right before we leave."
Qingping nodded, "As you wish."
She saw that the housekeeper was still verifying the gifts, then personally invited the messengers to have some tea and dim sum before leaving. They gratefully accepted her offer and followed her inside.
After about half an hour, the housekeeper had finished tallying. The staff from the caravan left the Princess Residence, each carrying two boxes of dim sum from the Princess’s kitchen. They all had happy smiles on their faces because they knew that their young lady loved the dim sum from the Princess Residence. It was once a cause for Su Rong and Master Feng to move into the Princess Residence and stay there for several days.
Duanhua read Su Rong’s letter over three times then held it close as she visited the warehouse.
The housekeeper was directing people to carefully move the gifts inside. Once everything was inside, he accompanied Duanhua as she inspected each gift. Among the gifts, there was a dagger which confused the housekeeper. He asked Duanhua: "There’s even a dagger, quite unusual. Maybe it’s for you to defend yourself?"
Duanhua laughed, "No, it is meant to be forwarded to my cousin, the Crown Prince."
The housekeeper had a sudden realization, "Oh, I see."
Of course! Their Miss, who will marry into the Eastern Palace, has no need for a dagger. What could she possibly need to defend herself against, the Crown Prince?
Duanhua continued to admire the gifts, thrilled with each one. She then picked up a pair of mandarin duck jade pendants in their brocade box, "This pair was also carefully chosen by her, to gift to Cousin Crown Prince and me. She wished us happiness saying our match was made by heaven."
The housekeeper quickly agreed, "The Crown Prince and Miss are undoubtedly a match made by heaven. It is a blessed match which will surely bring happiness."
Duanhua nodded contentedly, "I will keep these jade pendants. I will tie them up and send them to the Eastern Palace along with the dagger for Cousin Crown Prince. I haven’t seen him for a while anyway."
The housekeeper readily agreed, "Although the Crown Prince has not visited recently, he sends presents and food to miss every now and then. He must be thinking about you, Miss. The Crown Prince is too busy to meet frequently."
"Hmm...true. That’s why I do not disturb him unless necessary. But now, there’s this," with that, Duanhua held the brocade box in her hands.
The housekeeper nodded, and with a broad smile, offered to help carry the box containing the dagger. They then left the warehouse.
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