The old woman then gave an order, and immediately several servants came in one after another carrying several boxes.
Everyone craned their necks.
When Madam Yun saw her son and grandson vying to make her granddaughter proud, she was delighted and waved her hand, saying, "Open them all!"
The servants then hurriedly opened the boxes.
The old woman understood the old lady's meaning, so she took the list and recited, "The Duke presents a white fox fur cloak, the General Who Conquers the North presents a set of silver headdresses for the Xiliang tribe, the Fourth Master presents a pair of glass bottles, the Second Young Master presents a hidden arrow, and Young Master Youchen presents a pair of exquisite jade bracelets to celebrate the Sixth Miss's birthday."
Then a servant carried out the items one by one from a box.
First, it was the snow-white fur coat that attracted everyone's attention.
"Hiss, such a large, spotless fur cloak, I wonder how many white foxes it took to hunt?"
"This stepfather is so thoughtful! He must have been planning this gift for his daughter for a long time, right?"
"Wow, the headdresses of these Xiliang people are made entirely of silver; they're quite unique."
"Although the materials are not precious, this style is unique in Kyoto."
"Wow, this pair of glass bottles are exactly the same height and thickness, and even their lines are identical. It's even more rare!"
"This hidden blade looks rare, but we ladies from respectable families have no use for it."
"Then you're mistaken. Even ladies from noble families face danger. They can save their lives in crucial moments!"
"Yes, this jade bracelet is also exquisitely crafted. It's only so wide, yet it's carved with openwork, and there are more than a dozen beads hidden inside. It's truly a masterpiece!"
"Tsk tsk, the young county princess is indeed loved by the Yun family!"
Praises were endless when someone suddenly remembered something and laughed, "Oh my, this looks like much more than what His Highness the Crown Prince gave us earlier!"
Some people sided with the prince, saying, "What's the use of quantity? It's only worthwhile if the price is high!"
"You don't even know what it is, yet you're so certain that anything His Highness the Crown Prince sends must be expensive?"
Yueyue gave Su Youran a push, "Youran, hurry up, open it, let everyone see what valuable thing it is?"
All the gifts that everyone had just given were put aside. Some people announced the contents of their gifts when they were presented, while others preferred to keep a low profile. However, under normal circumstances, they would not open the gift boxes in front of everyone, except for Old Madam Yun, who was eager to make her granddaughter look good.
Seeing the expectant looks from everyone, Su Youran didn't care about the gift from the Crown Prince at all, and naturally didn't hesitate to let people know. She nodded and asked Su Yue to find the large gift box that the Crown Prince had just given her and open it.
"Hiss—this must be an extremely rare Persian glass mirror?"
"No wonder they didn't care about the glass beads the princess of Nanyue gave them; this glass mirror, which is more than half a person tall, is worth a fortune!"
Su Youran's lips twitched.
Others might not know, but she did. The fact that her fourth uncle sent this glass bottle meant that the glassmaking method she had taught him had been successfully completed.
Soon, the prices of glass beads, glass mirrors, and the like will plummet.
What a sucker! I wonder where he got the money to buy such a huge mirror.
I should have asked my fourth uncle to trick him first.
But to outsiders at that moment, it was an absolutely priceless treasure.
Last time she caused a scene at the Yong'an Marquis's mansion, Gao bought a small glass mirror that was only the size of a palm and spent a thousand taels of silver. Such a large mirror, half the height of a person, could be worth ten thousand gold pieces.
Someone else said, "Hey, since the young county princess is so loved by her father and brothers, the remaining siblings of the Yun family must have given her quite a few nice things, right?"
Madam Su didn't want her daughter to be so high-profile, nor did she want outsiders to spy on the inner workings of the Duke's mansion, so she quickly smiled and said, "Of course, my youngest son and Manwan's children all came to wish You Ran a happy birthday. Now that you've seen them all, everyone, let's eat!"
Naturally, no one dared to pry any further, and the atmosphere at the banquet became lively again.
The exclamations and praises reached the male guests behind the screen, and Yun Tianbai's expression turned quite unpleasant.
He was not only penniless but also heavily in debt, so he couldn't afford to give any extravagant gifts. He only asked Wu Xinxin to spend some money to buy a hairpin as a small token of his brother and sister-in-law's appreciation. As for Shi Wenxia, he left it to her.
If someone were to compare the gifts given by the Yun family's older brothers, he would definitely be the one at the bottom.
I really didn't expect that even my fourth uncle, who is not always at home, would send me such an expensive glass bottle. What is so good about this Su Youran?
Less than half an hour later, another old woman came and whispered to the Princess that Xuan-ge'er in the mansion was feeling unwell.
As the banquet drew to a close, she quickly got up and took Yueyue to say goodbye and leave.
Yueyue probed indirectly from inside the carriage, "Mother, You Ran said that the Grand Preceptor has someone he loves. Do you know who it is?"
A sour feeling welled up in the eldest princess's heart again. "You child, how do I know which girl he likes?"
Yueyue chuckled and said, "Mother, so the Grand Preceptor and you have known each other for a long time? Last time he agreed to take my brother as his disciple, I thought it was because of You Ran, but I didn't expect it was because of his relationship with you!"
The eldest princess sighed softly, "He was a beggar when he was young, and was later rescued by your father and me. He was then led to Ghost Valley Mountain by your father. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that we are old acquaintances. However... I didn't think of having Xuan'er become his disciple before, but after Youran reminded me, I also think it's a good idea. Given our previous kindness, he will surely teach me everything he knows."
Yueyue tentatively asked, "Speaking of Father, he has been gone for several years now. Has Mother never thought about remarrying?"
The eldest princess gently pinched her nose. "You little rascal, you haven't even settled your own marriage yet, and you're already worrying about your mother? Your mother is already content with you two children. Whether I remarry or not is not important."
Yueyue shook her head. "But I see that Aunt Su is very happy after she remarried. Mother, you are still young. You have already wasted your youth for me and my brother in the past few years. How can we bear to see you still alone for the rest of your life?"
The eldest princess patted her on the shoulder and said, "You, I doubt you could find another daughter in the world who would advise her mother to remarry!"
"People generally believe that a woman should remain faithful to one man until death, and that remarrying would damage her reputation. But you are the eldest princess, what do I have to fear?" Yueyue affectionately took her mother's hand. "My younger brother will eventually marry and have his own family. To avoid leaving Mother alone and miserable, I think it's better if I don't marry either, and we can rely on each other!"
"That's utter nonsense!" The eldest princess pinched her ear. "The eldest grandson of the Grand Secretary Lin is taking the imperial examination this year. In my opinion, he has a high chance of passing. How about we try to find a son-in-law among the successful candidates?"
"Oh dear, I don't want to marry a pedantic scholar!"
"So, who exactly do you want to marry?"
"Hmm... Is there anyone with an otherworldly and ethereal air like the Imperial Preceptor?"
"What, you want to follow him to become an immortal?"
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