Chapter 54
I stayed home for two quiet days, spending quality time playing with Luzhu, carefully nurturing our mother-daughter bond, and cherishing the time we spent together.
But Little Dewdrop felt that her mother had been clinging to her too much these past two days, and she was getting a little annoyed. Her little face fell, and she said to Li San Niang in a serious tone, "Mother, I know that you love me, but you should work hard like Grandma so that you can buy meat for me."
"Haha, you little ingrate! I only kept you with me for two days, and you already think I'm annoying."
Dewdrop's words made Li Sanniang laugh out loud, and she even pretended to chase after her and Xiao Huang all over the yard, trying to tickle her.
Li's mother, who was working with Li's sister-in-law, saw this scene and said to her, "Look at her, how old is she, still playing around with her son like this. If those doctors saw this, they would be shocked."
"Mother, Third Sister is just teasing the dewdrops. At home, Third Sister is always your darling. We daughters-in-law can't even compare to a finger of Third Sister." Sister-in-law Li said to Second Sister-in-law Li, who was holding Little Wulang for some fresh air.
"Nonsense, I love you and Lanniang the most, Mother."
"I don't know if Mother loves my eldest sister-in-law, but Mother definitely loves me," Li Ersao said mischievously.
Hearing this, Li's mother felt at ease. Now that the whole family was together, looking at Li San Niang, who was still running around in the yard teasing the dewdrops, and her two perfect daughters-in-law beside her, she truly felt that her life had been worthwhile.
"Alright, stop playing around and get ready. The Gao family is probably arriving soon."
Today is the day the Gao family sent out invitations a few days ago, so Li's mother didn't go out today and postponed all the midwifery jobs she could.
Apart from Brother Li, who was on duty, and the four little ones who went to the academy, everyone in the Li family who should be there was there.
The Gao family's post also mentioned that they were coming to express their gratitude in person, unlike the last time the Qian family came to express their gratitude, where they brought gifts and then ate at the Li family's house. This time, they wanted to bring gifts to the Li family's house and then invite them to a restaurant for dinner.
Therefore, Li's mother and sister-in-law did not invite Wang, the master chef from Changshoufang, to their home. Instead, they used the fine tea that the Qian family had given them last time to brew for their guests.
As if on cue, the young waiter Li Gui came in ahead of time to inform them that Li's father and his second brother had already begun entertaining the Gao family's guests in the front hall.
Mother Li then led Li San Niang and the others to the front hall to greet the guests.
As soon as Fu Yi entered the front hall, the first thing Li San Niang saw was a young woman wearing two gold hairpins. It was truly dazzling, and the golden color was undeniably beautiful.
The most beautiful shade of yellow in the world must be the yellow of gold.
Upon closer inspection, the woman next to the Golden Hairpin Girl was the lovely, plump, and jeweled woman that Li San Niang had seen when she rescued someone by the Yu River.
Besides these two, there was another man who looked very tall and strong. Li San Niang had only seen this height on Li Da Xiong before; he was indeed very tall and strong.
The tall, strong man was exchanging pleasantries with Li's father and second brother. Li San Niang thought that this was probably the eldest brother of the plump woman mentioned in the post, and the woman with the golden hairpin was probably her sister-in-law.
After a long exchange of greetings, the Li family welcomed the three inside. And that wasn't all; behind them followed a dozen or so servants, some carrying boxes and others in pairs, who were delivering gifts from the Gao family to the Li family.
Li Sanniang remembered this display of generosity from the last time the Qian family came to express their gratitude. Seeing the Gao family's manners, Li Sanniang couldn't help but be amazed. The Gao family, which started out as merchants, was indeed different; even their gifts were more impressive than those of other families.
Furthermore, you can't refuse this gift. It's a thank-you gift from the whole family. If you don't accept it, wouldn't it be like you're holding onto the matter of saving someone? Do you intend to use this as leverage to threaten the Gao family into doing something in the future?
Therefore, we must accept this gift, but we must also make it clear that this is a one-off deal. I did what I could and it unexpectedly helped your family, so our business ends here. From now on, the Li family will never use this as leverage to force the Gao family to do anything for them.
Li Dasao and Li Sanniang brought up the tea tray. Li Ersao handed Xiao Wulang to Li's mother and went to help Li Dasao direct the servants to the side room to store the gifts sent by the Gao family.
After a while of busy work, Li's father and his second brother had already exchanged names with the eldest brother of the plump woman from the Gao family. The plump woman's name was Gao Ya Hui, and there were only two people in their branch of the family: her eldest brother Gao Chang Sheng and herself.
The Gao family's affair has consistently topped the entertainment gossip charts in Chang'an for years.
Gao Shangshu was the eldest son of the local Gao family. By chance, he went from being a merchant to an official and rose step by step to the position of Shangshu.
Gao Shangshu had four sons and two daughters. Gao Changsheng and Gao Yahui's father was Gao Shangshu's second son. However, he was unlucky enough to encounter bandits in his early years while doing business in the south and north and died. He left behind only a son who was not yet a child and Gao Yahui who was still in his mother's womb.
The mother struggled to give birth to Gao Yahui, but passed away before her postpartum period was over, leaving behind only nine-year-old Gao Changsheng and Gao Yahui, who were not even a month old, to depend on each other for survival.
Gao Shangshu could not stand by and watch his two sons' descendants go uncared for, so he took them in to raise them.
It was alright for Gao Changsheng, an old man, to be raised, but how could Gao Yahui, who was just a baby at the time, be taken care of?
It was just that they gave her a name and instructed the matriarch to find a kind-hearted woman, who was actually a maidservant from her mother's side.
Therefore, although Gao Ya Hui was born into the noble family of the high-ranking official, she was not favored by the noble ladies in Chang'an. Many of them looked down on her. Moreover, because the old woman who had been taking care of her was from the countryside, she only knew how to feed her and believed that it was best for a child to eat well and grow strong. As a result, Gao Ya Hui was much fatter than those noble ladies, which gave them more reason and excuse to bully her.
This is also one of the reasons why, when Li San Niang saw the woman with the golden hairpin constantly pressuring Gao Ya Hui by the Yu River, none of the other noble ladies spoke up for her.
The other reason, of course, is that the noble ladies also know that the Golden Hairpin Maiden, who is related to the Duke of Liang's mansion, is much more difficult to deal with than the orphaned daughter of the Minister Gao's family.
In fact, Gao Ya Hui was only slightly plump, not fat. Li San Niang looked at her elder brother's figure and figure. It must be because his family had a large frame and he was well-fed. Compared to the thin and frail noble ladies of the civil officials' families in Chang'an, she naturally thought he was fat.
The Gao couple were quite eloquent. Li San Niang felt embarrassed listening to them, while Li's father, mother, and second brother were overjoyed. It was hard to imagine that Li's father, with his face beaming with pride, was the same serious physician Li from the herbal medicine shop.
The eldest sister-in-law of the Gao family also had Gao Ya Hui pay her respects to Li San Niang separately, expressing her sincere gratitude. In addition to the gifts for the four children, she also gave Lu Zhu'er a purse separately. Li San Niang took it and felt that it was hard, probably containing gold or silver ingots. Wealthy families love to do this kind of thing.
Fortunately, Li San Niang was prepared and sent over the jewelry she had bought in advance from the gold and silver shop.
"Hey, is this Kogoro? Let me hold him, my family wants to have a big, chubby baby."
Sister-in-law Gao was straightforward and honest, Sister-in-law Li was also fine with it, and Xiao Wulang was also quite impressive. He didn't cry even when he was in the arms of a stranger. No wonder he was so likable. He was really fair-skinned, chubby, and cute. Whenever a woman came to the Li family and saw him, she couldn't help but want to hug and tease him.
Last time, when Xiao Wulang turned one month old, Li's eldest son's wife kept holding him. It was quite a coincidence that a few days ago she sent someone to deliver a message saying that he was three months pregnant and that after many years of marriage, she was finally pregnant!
Not only did they send a letter, they also sent a bunch of things that Kogoro could use, saying it was to thank Kogoro as the fairy who brings children.
Judging from Sister-in-law Gao's appearance, she is probably anxious to have a child. She said, "Sigh, I've been married to Ya Hui's older brother for three years, but I still can't have a baby. I'm so anxious. I want to hold any chubby baby I see, hoping that if I do, I can have one too. I don't care if it's a boy or a girl."
Kogoro was very popular, and Dewdrop was not forgotten either. Gao Yahui was patient; she was already a teenage girl, but she was still willing to accommodate Dewdrop, who was not yet three years old. When Dewdrop took her to see Little Yellow, she did not complain.
Li San Niang thought to herself, "My daughter is my son, and my husband is also my son. They are both my precious darlings."
Then, he hooked his arm around his mother's and said in a coquettish tone, "I am the least favored child right now, Mother, please love me a little more."
"You, how old are you, still jealous of your own son and nephew."
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