Chapter 122 Auspicious Birthday and Happy New Year
Visiting relatives and friends becomes less common until the fourth day of the first lunar month. On the fifth day, those who hold official positions go to court or to take up their duties.
Shi Jianli drew clothes and read books at her desk every day. One day, she and Mingyuelin went to the palace to keep an appointment with Princess Kangning.
On the 11th day, the family held a birthday party for Shi Jianli's 18th birthday, and Qiao Ruoying personally dressed her up and put her hair in style.
She touched Shi Jianli's face lovingly and said with a smile, "In the blink of an eye, Auntie's Li'er has grown from a young girl to this tall. She is so beautiful and juicy."
Shi Jianli turned around and hugged her waist, saying coquettishly: "If it weren't for my aunt's care, I wouldn't be who I am today. My aunt loves me the most. My aunt is so kind."
Qiao Ruoying pinched her unpainted cheek and said, "If you want to coax someone, just say a few nice words and act coquettishly. Who wouldn't be soft-hearted?"
When she acts coquettishly towards others, her eyes are full of dependence, how can people not be happy?
Perhaps it's because her nephew, mother-in-law, and sister-in-law have truly loved her in the past few months, she seems less restrained than before, and her temperament seems to have become more lively recently.
Qiao Ruoying came over after breakfast. It was still early, so she stayed in the room to talk to Shi Jianli and asked the maid to give her the birthday gift that had been prepared early in the morning.
Qiu Shuang brought a bowl of longevity noodles. Qiao Ruoying handed it to her with a smile and said, "Eating the longevity noodles made by the elders will bring you good luck and a long life. I rolled the noodles early in the morning. Li'er, please eat them soon."
"Thank you, aunt." Shi Jianli curved her eyes towards her.
Qiao Ruoying sat beside her and watched her finish the longevity noodles gracefully, her eyes full of love.
She had only taken care of Li'er for a few years, and seeing her grow up to be an outstanding girl, she felt proud in her heart. Her sister raised her from a little girl to a grown-up girl, and she must have achieved a lot.
Shi Jianli finished the noodles in the bowl and handed it to Qiao Ruoying to see, "I'm done."
Looking at her well-behaved appearance, Qiao Ruoying's eyes were kind and she patted her shoulder gently, "May you be happy every year."
A head popped in from outside, "Sister Li, I'm here to give you a birthday present."
As he spoke, Mingyuelin came in and handed her the wooden box in his hand.
"Thank you, Sister Lin."
Afterwards, Mingyue Si, Mingyue Wu, Mingyue Liu and others came in one after another to give Shi Jianli birthday gifts, and stayed in the yard to chat with her. Ming Zhouqi, who was still at home, also came with a birthday gift, followed by Ming Zhoushi and Ming Zhouheng.
"Cousin Li, happy birthday." Ming Zhouqi handed her the birthday gift he had prepared.
"Thank you, seventh cousin." Shi Jianli thanked with a smile.
Ever since the refugee siege in Chaozhou, Ming Zhouqi had looked at her with admiration, and he would often come to her for guidance during riding and archery lessons.
Shi Jianli politely accepted the gift from Ming Zhoushi, and then looked at Ming Zhouheng.
Ming Zhouheng studied Shi Jianli with restrained courtesy and handed her a long, narrow box. "I just found out about my cousin's birthday the day before yesterday, so I was in a hurry to prepare the gift. I heard you're often sketching, and this pen produces finer lines. I hope you don't mind."
Ming Zhouheng was struck by her beauty and elegance when he saw her for the first time, but when he learned that she was engaged, he felt disappointed.
He shouldn't have any thoughts that he couldn't have. In two months, he would have to call her sister-in-law.
Shi Jianli smiled at him politely, "Second cousin Heng is so thoughtful, how could I dislike it? Thank you very much."
In fact, she did not fail to notice it, but just pretended not to know.
Ming Zhouqi said, "The gifts have been given, so we can't stay too long. Cousin Li, we'll come with my third brother and the others to celebrate your birthday after the banquet starts."
"Okay, I'll ask Lanxing to bring some food to you." Shi Jianli waved towards Lanxing.
Upon hearing this, Lanxing asked the maid to bring food and send the three of them out of Tangli Courtyard.
Soon, Yuan Yuhe came over with the old lady. Seeing the girls playing chess in the room, she smiled and said, "All the girls in our family are here."
"Madam, Auntie." Shi Jianli went to greet her. "I was thinking of inviting you to dinner later, but I didn't expect you to come first."
The old lady was helped by her to sit on the soft chair in the room, and she said lovingly: "Today is your birthday. I thought the little girls would come to your place to play, which must be lively, so I came to join in the fun."
"Don't worry about us. You guys can have fun while I talk to your aunt and uncle."
"Okay." Shi Jianli took the warm soup from Xianyue's hand and said, "This warm soup is suitable for all ages. It is perfect for dispelling the cold and replenishing energy in spring. You and your aunt should try some."
"Okay." The old lady stirred the soup bowl with a spoon. "When will Li'er return to the Princess's Mansion? Is there anything else you need? Just ask the housekeeper."
"I plan to go back and live there on February 1st. I won't need anything. If there's anything you want to buy, I won't hesitate to ask for permission."
After sitting with the elders for a while, Shi Jianli went to play chess with Mingyuelin and the others.
At the end of noon, the little maid in the yard brought Mingzhao in, followed by Tianfeng holding a long square box.
Mingzhao first greeted several elders, and then came to Shijianli.
Mingyuelin tactfully pulled Mingyuesi and the other two to play aside.
Shi Jianli looked at him and asked, "Aren't you busy today?"
"I wasn't very busy. I assigned military duties to my two deputies and came back early." Mingzhao took the box Tianfeng was holding and placed it on the table. He smiled and said, "This is a birthday gift for you. Do you want to open it and take a look?"
Shi Jianli nodded and opened the box. She saw a silver-white bow in the box. The workmanship was quite exquisite, and there were several silver feather arrows beside the bow.
She touched the bow's white tiger stepping on the cloud pattern with her fingertips and asked with joy, "Is it custom-made for me?"
Mingzhao smiled and nodded. "I asked the archery master how heavy your arrows are. I had the weaponsmith in the barracks make them and had the craftsmen carve patterns on them. Do you like them?"
"I like it very much." She liked everything he gave her.
Hearing the fondness in her tone, Mingzhao leaned over and looked her in the eyes. He raised his hand and pinched her face, saying with a smile, "Yaoyao, I wish you a happy birthday and may you be safe every year."
She tilted her eyes: "Thank you."
"I just got home and I'm a little thirsty. Yaoyao, can you pour me a cup of tea?"
Shi Jianli pointed to the chair behind him and poured him a cup of tea. "Would you like some porridge to fill your stomach? The banquet won't start for nearly an hour."
In the past few years, on her birthday, she only invited a few elders and Mingyuelin to have a meal with them. This year, Yuan Yuhe suggested that she send invitations to her good sisters. Shi Jianli then gave the invitations to Princess Kangning and Zheng Leyun.
"Okay." Mingzhao pulled her to sit on the chair next to him.
Seeing Lanxing bring the porridge, he reached out and scooped some for himself and asked, "Yaoyao, have you eaten yet?"
"No, but I ate the longevity noodles my aunt made for me, so I'm not very hungry."
Mingzhao poured another small bowl of porridge and placed it in front of her. "Would you like to eat some more with me?"
Shi Jianli glanced in the direction of the three elders and saw them chatting and laughing. The maids brought porridge over and nodded.
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