Liu Yongsheng and his wife were about to leave, so Grandma Xu hurriedly asked Aunt Xu to buy more specialties from the capital to take back for them, and also prepared a farewell banquet. At this time, the Dou family wanted to join in the fun and took the lead in holding a banquet for the guests.

Mr. Dou has been discharged from the hospital and is recuperating at home. Mrs. Dou and his eldest son and daughter-in-law have also returned from other provinces. In order to thank relatives and friends for their attentive visits and condolences during Mr. Dou's hospitalization, the Dou family specially prepared a banquet on the occasion of the birthdays of twin granddaughters Dou Qianqian and Dou Nannan, inviting everyone to get together and have a few drinks to liven up the atmosphere.

Mr. Dou specially asked his eldest son Dou Xinmin and eldest daughter-in-law Yu Mei, that is, the parents of Dou Qianqian and Dou Nannan, to come to the Shen residence in person to invite Liu Yongsheng and his wife and Shen Yumengtao and their couple. When Mr. Dou was in the hospital, he asked Dou Qianqian to visit Liu Jianli and also sent some fruits and nutritional supplements. When Liu Yongsheng knew about it, he naturally went to visit Mr. Dou. The two chatted in the ward and played chess for a long time. Liu Yongsheng was really embarrassed to refuse Mr. Dou's sincere invitation, so he had to agree.

Meng Tao didn't want to go. She looked pretty good during her first pregnancy. She usually wore loose clothes and walked with a light gait. If you didn't pay attention, you couldn't tell that she was pregnant. But now the fetus has grown bigger and her belly is bulging, and no matter how loose the clothes are, they can't hide it.

It's not that I'm afraid of people seeing that I have a bad image, but at a time like this, it's best not to go to crowded places if possible. First, there's the air problem, second, there's a lot of noise and gossip when there's a lot of people, and who knows if that will affect my mood, and third, as Shen Yu said, be prepared for that one in a million chance of an accident.

Of course, she couldn't say these words directly. Meng Tao only told Madam Dou that she was not feeling well and had a lot of things to do. She was afraid that it would spoil everyone's fun if she went to such an occasion, so she decided not to go. She thanked her for the invitation this time and would visit again when she had the chance.

Madam Dou smiled and said, "Our Xixi likes you very much. She said Taotao is a unique beauty. Now I see that it is true. I also like girls like you. Your Grandpa Dou and Grandma Dou asked me to invite you to our house. Just go. It's okay. There will be two guests like you on that day. They are the daughter-in-law of the Wei family and the granddaughter-in-law of the Fang family. They are older than you. Xixi and Nannan invited them for their birthday last year. They agreed to come again this year. They should come even more since you are pregnant, because your Grandma Dou can make delicious snacks, and they love them very much.

"When we host a dinner at home, we must be well prepared in every aspect to ensure that we can take good care of you precious young wives. Besides, there are no outsiders. They are all families that interact with each other on a daily basis. The relatives will take care of each other, so don't worry!"

Having said that, it would be hypocritical to refuse further, so Meng Tao accepted the invitation.

Then she thought that this kind of gathering was actually what Tian Zhigao said, a way for the dignitaries in Beijing to communicate with each other, and ordinary people would have to try their best to get in. If she didn't go, Shen Yu would not go even if he had to accompany her. But no matter whether she was in the officialdom or doing business, it was better to show up in the circle frequently.

The Xu family also received an invitation, but Uncle Xu, Uncle Xu II, and the aunts all had their own things to do, so only Grandpa Xu and Grandma Xu attended the banquet as representatives.

Two days later, Shen Yu, Meng Tao, Liu Yongsheng and his wife brought Xiao Mingming to the Dou Mansion with Grandpa Xu and Grandma Xu. Before they came, Shen Yu told Meng Tao that this was also a large courtyard house. It was the same size as the Xu Mansion, and the layout specifications were similar.

Although it was called a small gathering, there were quite a few guests, both adults and children, and it was very lively. There were groups of three or five standing and chatting in the courtyard, and the several halls were also full of people. Before Meng Tao had time to see if there was anyone familiar, she saw Old Lady Dou, her eldest son and daughter-in-law, and granddaughter Dou Qianqian coming up quickly, followed by three or four middle-aged women. Meng Tao saw Meng Lijun among them, and knew that they should all be close relatives and friends of the Dou family.

The elders exchanged greetings and then it was the turn of the younger generation. Shen Yu presented the gifts he had brought, some for Mr. and Mrs. Dou, and some birthday gifts for Dou Qianqian and her sister. Mrs. Dou kept saying that she was too polite, and handed the gifts to her daughter-in-law. Smilingly, she took Meng Tao's hand and led them into the main hall. Mr. Dou was unable to move, so he sat there, drinking tea and chatting with Mr. Meng and a group of old friends. When they saw Mr. Xu and his family come in, some of them stood up, some raised their hands, and greeted them.

Meng Tao followed Shen Yu to greet the seniors one by one. After chatting for a while, Old Lady Dou asked Ding Mei and Dou Qianqian to take Meng Tao to the small side hall in the east wing, where the men stayed. They thought it was too noisy to talk loudly, and some people even smoked, and they were afraid of getting smoked.

The side hall is full of young wives and girls, and there are many snacks prepared. Meng Tao can also make some friends there.

Shen Yu walked Meng Tao to the door and said, "How about I accompany you to get familiar with it first?"

Meng Tao said it was no problem: "I can do it, you can go in."

Shen Yu returned to the living room, and Dou Qianqian enviously said, "I didn't expect Shen Yu to be so considerate. You two have such a good relationship."

"It will be the same when you marry Han Chaoyang." Meng Tao said with a smile.

"Thank you for your good wishes." Dou Qianqian's face turned red when she thought that the Han family would come to discuss the engagement as soon as her parents came back.

Ding Mei looked at Meng Tao with a smile, but secretly sighed in her heart: Shen Yu is an outstanding young man among the many young men in the capital, and her daughter Nan Nan has long had her eyes on him as a marriage partner. She has liked him for so many years, and has been fighting openly and secretly with Wen Xin from the Meng family, becoming enemies with each other. As a mother, she also thought that persistence would lead to victory, and her daughter would eventually get what she wanted, but who would have thought that this would be the result in the end?

However, when she saw the wife chosen by Shen Yu, Ding Mei felt relieved. She couldn't say that her daughter was not as good as this girl. Appearance and facial features are in the eye of the beholder, just like no one can tell who is more beautiful between Xi Shi and Diao Chan. Just looking at their temperament and character, she had to say that the girl in front of her was more suitable for Shen Yu.

The old saying is still right: Don’t force marriage, the matchmaker has already tied the red string, there is nothing you can do about it.

With the introduction of Ding Mei and Dou Qianqian, Meng Tao got to know many women in this circle, some of whom were acquaintances she had met in the Xu Mansion. They sat together chatting and eating. The snacks in the Dou Mansion were made with old lady Dou's private recipe and were indeed very delicious.

Ding Mei also took Meng Tao to meet Fang family's granddaughter-in-law Su Meiling and Wei family's eldest daughter-in-law Fu Yuting, so that they could exchange their experiences as expectant mothers with each other, so that they would not have to worry about being bored due to lack of topics to talk about.

Su Meiling, Fu Yuting and Meng Tao were all in the same month of pregnancy, and each had their own physical changes. Su Meiling had butterfly spots on her face, Fu Yuting also had spots, and their feet were a little swollen. They saw that Meng Tao only had a more prominent belly, but everything else was the same as a normal person, especially her skin, which was whiter and more rosy than that of an unmarried girl, and there was nothing growing on her face. They were all very surprised, but not envious. The two of them even exchanged glances, as if they had reached some kind of tacit understanding.

As the three chatted, they felt like acquaintances and friends. Su Meiling and Fu Yuting couldn't help but tell Meng Tao some of the "old experiences" they had heard: "The old people said that if the mother becomes ugly during pregnancy, she must be pregnant with a boy; on the contrary, if her skin is moist, pink and tender and prettier than usual, she is pregnant with a girl. Yours may be a girl."

Meng Tao smiled: "Really? That's great. It's a new era now. Girls and boys are the same. Our family likes both."

Meng Taozhen didn't have the idea of ​​favoring boys over girls. In fact, she didn't know whether the baby in her belly was a boy or a girl. She always told Shen Yu "my son". This was completely influenced by her mother in her previous life.

After her biological mother remarried, she came to see her pregnant, holding her big belly and kept saying "my son". Meng Tao was speechless. She didn't expect that when it was her turn, she would subconsciously imitate her biological mother. This is really... I don't know what to say.

Fu Yuting nodded: "As long as you like it, it's good. We gave birth to our own child, so we will love it equally regardless of whether it's a boy or a girl. I'm just worried about what the elderly at home will think."

Su Meiling said: "Our family has been a single-line family for four generations. Since I became pregnant, everyone hopes it will be a son."

Meng Tao: "It doesn't matter. Even if this one isn't a son, we can just have another one."

Nowadays, every family has two or three children, and it is very common to have both a son and a daughter.

Su Meiling sighed with a bitter face: "We, we have been married for more than five years, and it took a lot of effort to get pregnant, who knew..."

Will I be able to get pregnant with the next one?

Meng Tao: “…”

It was just a casual chat, but she overheard other people's privacy again? Fortunately, someone joined them at this time, and the topic of having children did not continue.

Han Dongdong came, accompanied by two girls. Meng Tao didn't know her, but Su Meiling and Fu Yuting knew them and greeted them familiarly.

Han Dongdong sat next to Meng Tao, called her Sister Tao Tao, and introduced the two girls to her: "These are Xia Moli and Yan Baozhi, they are about the same age as us."

Yan Baozhi smiled and said to Meng Tao, "You are so pretty. No wonder my brother went home after attending your wedding and sighed that he might never get married in his lifetime."

"Why?" Han Dongdong asked.

Yan Baozhi: "Because my brother and Shen Yu have been competitors since they were young. Whether it's studying or other things, if Shen Yu can do it, my brother can do it too. But when he saw Shen Yu marry Tao Tao, he felt that he was finished. He was afraid that he would never find another Tao Tao in his life."

Everyone couldn't help laughing after hearing this.

Meng Tao greeted Yan Baozhi and Xia Moli respectively, and looked at Xia Moli twice more.

Among the women present, when she was reading the novel, she only paid attention to Xia Moli because her name felt very poetic. The jasmine blooming in summer is white, fragrant, elegant and pleasant.

This is the case with Xia Moli in front of us. When her eyes met Meng Tao's, she smiled with a bit of shyness. She was a very beautiful girl, but her ending was very tragic.

Like Meng Taohua in the book, she was also framed and lost her virginity, but she did not succumb to fate and lived on, and finally died.

The novel describes the scene of her death, and she finally uttered three words: Feng, Liu, Yun...

This should be a woman's name. Meng Tao didn't have the patience to read the full text carefully. After flipping through more than ten pages, she couldn't find the three words "Feng Liuyun". It can be seen that Feng Liuyun, like Xia Moli, is a supporting character who appears less frequently in the book.

Now, perhaps I could ask them indirectly who Feng Liuyun is.

(End of this chapter)