In the next few days, Wei Hanzhang resisted the urge to go next door. He either stayed in his room reading and practicing calligraphy, or went to Jiang's place to chat with his mother.

Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye it was the day of coming of age.

The weather was very good. Wei Hanzhang was woken up by Nanny Sun early in the morning. After getting ready, she went to Jiang's courtyard under the scorching sun. The mother and daughter talked about the things to pay attention to during the coming-of-age ceremony.

As the sun gradually rose, guests arrived one after another.

The main guest at the coming-of-age ceremony was Li, the mother of Wei Heng's long-time friend and colleague. She was a blessed elder with both parents alive and many children and grandchildren, and was also a fourth-rank lady of the current dynasty.

If the coming-of-age ceremony was held in the name of the Marquis' Mansion, the status of the main guest would naturally be more honorable, but this was organized by the Second House for their daughter, and they could only rely on the connections of Wei Heng and the Jiang couple.

Li is the most suitable elder that Wei Heng can find.

As Jiang had expected, not many guests came today. Not only were there few outsiders, but even the married girls in the Wei Mansion, except for the two eldest cousins ​​Wei Hanshuang and Wei Hanye who came back specially to watch the ceremony, the remaining cousins ​​from the same family, as well as the girls of the previous generation of the Wei family and Wei Hanzhang's aunts, none of them came specially.

Perhaps there are some who really cannot leave, but the vast majority probably think that a sister/niece who has been broken off and is destined to have difficulty finding a good match is not worth their trip.

Wei Hanzhang held the hands of his two cousins ​​who had returned early to watch the ceremony. Somehow, he suddenly thought of Wei Hanyu.

Before marrying and moving to Yuezhou, Wei Hanyu said that if she married such a poor man, her sisters would probably become increasingly estranged from her.

At that time, she thought Wei Hanyu was worrying too much and was too pessimistic...

Sure enough, the Eighth Miss, who grew up in the Marquis' Mansion, saw things more clearly than she did. She would rather complain to her cousin who had just returned to the mansion, and hold on to the jade gift from her as if it were a life-saving straw.

Wei Heng, the biological father, was standing by, looking at the guests gathered in groups of three or four, his face turning a little dark.

It was understandable for others to flatter the powerful and bully the weak, but even his daughter's biological grandmother, his biological mother Liu, only sent someone to deliver a gold hairpin and didn't even show up, let alone his grandfather. His father didn't take a leave today and hasn't returned home yet.

Wei Heng knew that his parents were quite dissatisfied with the fact that his little daughter's engagement was broken off, but how could he blame Ranran... It would have been fine if the elders did not show more love and protection, but he did not expect that even the most important coming-of-age ceremony for a girl was ignored.

Jiang had no idea that her partner was extremely disappointed with the closest relatives in the mansion. The mother and daughter did not care at all who did not come today. Instead, they kept every person who came in mind.

Greet guests with a smile.

The coming-of-age ceremony went smoothly. After Wei Heng solemnly announced the start of the ceremony, the guests took their seats peacefully. Wei Hanzhang slowly walked into the decorated venue and saluted the guests.

A praiser combed her hair, the main guest came forward to recite the blessing, and everything went on according to plan.

Meanwhile, over at Changji Palace, Xiao Junzhan was unusually nervous the entire morning. He had no time to deal with the government affairs at hand, as his mind was full of thoughts about what his little girl's coming-of-age ceremony would look like today.

Ning Hai came in with a plate of fresh fruit. He raised his eyes and asked, "How's Ran Ran doing?"

Ning Hai was well prepared. Hearing this, he whispered, "Changmen Hou sent someone to deliver the news. According to the time, the ceremony should have been completed."

Xiao Junzhan paused and said, "Have you presented me your gift?"

The word "offer" made Ning Hai stunned.

Even if I knew how deeply his Highness loved the girl from the Wei family, I still couldn't understand why a prince would call the reward he gave me a "tribute".

………………

Just as Xiao Junzhan had calculated, Wei Hanzhang wore a coming-of-age dress and a hairpin on her head to represent her adulthood. She knelt in front of Wei Heng and Jiang and listened to their teachings. After the coming-of-age ceremony was officially completed, a loud noise suddenly rang out from the distance of the venue.

It seemed like someone was coming this way. When everyone was wondering, a young man dressed as a servant of the Wei Mansion came jogging from the path on the other side.

Panting, he said, "The Marquis Changmen has come to the mansion on the orders of the Crown Prince to deliver the coming-of-age gift to Miss Nine. He will be here soon. The old lady asked me to remind the Second Master, the Second Madam, and the guests to get dressed to welcome him."

Upon hearing this, all the guests in the court fell silent.

Jiang was not surprised. She just glanced at the little girl beside her with an obvious smile.

Wei Hanzhang felt embarrassed by her mother's laughter, and she did not expect that the man would be so impatient. He specially sent her a gift right after her coming-of-age ceremony, fearing that others would not see his thoughts.

There were not many guests coming today, no more than twenty people in total, and they brought their families with them. They were led by Wei Heng and Jiang Shi, kneeling on the blue bricks and stones in the courtyard to receive the emperor's order.

Wei Hanzhang was about to kneel down when she was stopped by the long-term marquis Xie Li who had come close. He bowed slightly and said respectfully, "His Highness has said that Miss Wei, you may just stand and listen to his instructions."

Beside Xie Li was the Crown Prince Wei Huan who was leading the way for him. Upon hearing this, he was horrified, his eyes widened, and he looked at his little niece who had just come of age in a state of disbelief.

His biological father Wei Heng was not much better than his brother. He really had never thought that the current crown prince would be involved with the youngest girl in his family.

The only intersection was a casual support a few days ago...

Regardless of the jaws that dropped in shock at his words, Xie Li stood up straight and said in a gentle voice, "Today, Miss Wei, you are coming of age. His Highness knows that you are proficient in the zither, so he specially sent me here to present a gift to you."

He raised his hand backwards, and two eunuchs who came with him came forward holding a zither in their hands.

There were a few rapid breathing sounds around him, and Wei Hanzhang was slightly stunned.

She didn't know much about the guqin, but she knew enough about it to recognize that this vermilion guqin seemed to be the legendary "Ancient Sounds" guqin.

When I was learning the zither, I heard from my teacher that this zither was kept in the national treasury by the royal family. I never thought that it would fall into her hands today...

Wei Hanzhang bowed deeply to express her gratitude and asked Luzhu and Lulan to accept the zither.

Xie Li wanted to flatter the future empress, so he said with a smile, "Congratulations to Miss Wei. His Highness asked me to ask you if the date we agreed to date you tomorrow is OK?"

He said congratulations, was he talking about the congratulations of coming of age, or something else... everyone in the room kept guessing.

Not to mention the sentence that follows...'Maybe tomorrow'?

Can I ask what? Your Highness wants to do something tomorrow, and needs to ask for the opinion of Wei Jia Jiu Niang.

I have never heard of His Highness getting close to any girl. Could it be that this time...something good is about to happen? (End of this chapter)