After lunch, Chu Hanyan took a nap for 35 minutes, so Chen Afu asked someone to wake her up and help her dress up. Hearing that Zhang Ziqi liked the buttons on Chu Hanyan's clothes, Chen Afu took out five pairs of buttons, packed them in a purse, and asked Chu Hanyan to give a pair to each of the girls.
At the same time, Qiqi and Huihui were dressed up. Not only were they given beautiful foot rings, but also bows were tied around their necks. Because Qiqi's feathers were bright, the bows were moon-white. Huihui's feathers were monotonous, so the bows were colorful.
He also repeatedly warned the naughty Qiqi not to swear or curse. If he behaved well, he would let Jinyanzi take him and Zhuifeng's family to the Xiangshan Mountain in the suburbs of Beijing to play for a few days. If he didn't behave well, not only would he not be able to play, but he would also be tied up with an iron chain and starved.
Qiqi wanted to play but was afraid of being hungry, so she quickly promised, "I won't talk nonsense. I promise Father Chu."
Afraid that the big dogs would scare the little girl, he had someone take them to the old marquis's yard in the outer courtyard.
The little girl's living room was also tidied up, and on the table were some building blocks and puzzles suitable for such a big girl. The building blocks and puzzles were made of smooth small wooden blocks and small wood chips, with relatively complex animals, flowers, trees, and beautiful fairies painted on them, with bright and diverse colors, and exaggerated and cute pictures.
Seeing Chu Hanyan who was both happy and nervous, Chen Afu held her face and said with a smile, "It's okay, mother is in the upper room."
Around the end of the afternoon, several beautifully dressed little girls arrived at the bamboo pavilion. They first went to the upper room to greet Chen Ahfu. Yinghui once again apologized to Chen Ahfu and Chu Hanyan on behalf of her grandmother Princess An and her mother Princess An, reflecting on her own negligence as the host and causing the guest Miss Chu to suffer injustice. She also presented a basket of imperially bestowed milk grapes.
When all the little guests arrived, they were taken by Miss Chu to her west courtyard to play.
Seeing those excited figures and the laughter like silver bells, even Chen Ahfu's mood was lifted. She did not join in the fun, but let Miao'er lead Luo Mei to serve there.
The little girls seemed to be having a lot of fun; their cheerful laughter could be heard even over here.
The two brothers were so jealous that they kept shouting, "We want to go to our sister's place to play."
When Chen Afu was having a headache, someone from the outer courtyard came to report that the marquis had returned home and asked them to send the children to his courtyard.
When Chen Ahfu heard that the male aunt had returned, he was overjoyed. He quickly asked someone to push Xiao Yu'er and take the two little brothers to the outer courtyard.
Chen Afu thought that Rong Zhao had made a big fool of himself this time, and someone would definitely impeach Rong Zhao for having a bad fate and bad morals. When the war in the south was fierce, Rong Zhao, who had offended the "Bird Immortal", should not be allowed to continue to stay in the royal family.
During dinner yesterday, the Third Lady quietly told Chen Ahfu that the old marquis had received a letter from the Marquis Chu, forbidding the Chu family to take any action. In other words, no one from the Chu family was allowed to follow suit and submit a memorial.
The emperor is already wary of the Chu family and Lord Chu. It would be best for Lord Chu to do nothing and just be like meat on the chopping board, allowing the emperor to slaughter him.
I wonder how the emperor will deal with Rong Zhao this time. It would be great if he could send her to a nunnery...
Chen Afu was sitting on the kang, thinking about his problems, when Qiuyue came.
Now that Qiuyue is a lady-in-waiting in the palace, Chen Afu has to show her some courtesy. He quickly invites her to sit down and serves her tea.
Qiuyue smiled and said a few polite words, then picked up her tea and said nothing. Chen Afu knew that she might have something to say that was not suitable for public speaking, so he winked at her, and Hongfei led the servants to retreat.
Seeing that no one was around, Qiuyue smiled softly, "His Highness said that he has a big happy event, and asked me to tell Grandma and let Grandma and my sister be happy." Her voice was so low that only Chen Afu could hear it, and she smiled again, "Congratulations to Grandma, congratulations to Grandma. His Highness has already asked the Emperor and the Empress to grant him and my sister a marriage. The Emperor agreed, saying that he would grant them a marriage when good news of victory came from the south, and that they would get married when they turned 15."
Chen Ahfu was so surprised by the good news that she almost jumped up. She had never dreamed that the emperor would agree to grant marriage to the young Xiao Shiyi and Chu Hanyan. If so, not only would Miss Chu be happy for the rest of her life, but Xiao Shiyi's life would also be better. She had been worried for so long, and now she could finally let it go.
She was a little suspicious again. This was not in line with the emperor's personality. This emperor was rather cold and untrustworthy, as could be seen from the way he treated the great hero, Lord Chu. It was best not to take his promise too seriously. As long as he did not issue an order, he could change his mind at any time.
Thinking of this, Chen Afu's previous surprise suddenly decreased a few points.
Qiuyue saw that the surprise in Chen Afu's eyes only flashed for a few seconds, and then he regained his composure. She was a little puzzled and asked, "Grandma doesn't like them to get engaged as soon as possible?"
Chen Afu smiled and said, "No, I like it very much. Your Highness and Yan'er grew up together and know each other very well. It will be good for everyone if they live together in the future. However, this good thing should not be made public before it is finally settled. If people with bad intentions find out, I'm afraid they will make trouble." She didn't dare to say that she didn't believe the emperor's words.
Qiuyue suddenly realized and nodded, "That's right."
When Qiuyue left, Chen Afu brought some snacks back for Xiao Shiyi.
The girls wanted to go home early, so they had an early dinner. At 2:00 pm, the servants brought dishes to the west courtyard. These dishes were all made in the small kitchen of Zhuxuan, mainly braised food and desserts. The dishes were also beautifully carved with cucumbers and radishes, which attracted the girls' praises.
The girls had a good meal, a good drink, and a good time. When they left, they wore beautiful and unique buttons. They were so happy. They went to the upper room to say goodbye to Chen Ahfu, saying that they would come here to play next time and would also invite Sister Chu to play in their house.
Chen Afu smiled and welcomed Chu Hanyan, and was willing to let her visit their home. Yinghui once again said that next time Chu came to her home, she would not invite Feng Miaohua, and she would ensure that Chu would not get hurt again.
Chu Hanyan, Qiqi and Huihui saw the guests out of the yard.
Zhang Ziqi whispered, "Sister Chu, your mother is very kind. I heard that stepmothers are not really kind to stepdaughters, but your mother treats you as well as her own daughter."
Chu Hanyan really didn't like people saying in front of her that her mother was a stepmother or that her stepmother was bad. But Zhang Ziqi said her mother was good, so she was a little confused and didn't know how to explain it. She could only pout and say, "My mother is very good to me, and everyone says my mother is good."
Yang Qian also said, "You can't generalize. My current mother is also a stepmother, but she is also very good to me and my brother. For us, she didn't even have a child of her own."
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