Upon learning that Yinzhen indeed intended to marry the eldest princess to the Ulanara family, Yihua decided to take the eldest princess back to the mansion as a simple meeting, so that she could express any dissatisfaction in advance, lest Yinzhen bring it up with great enthusiasm only to be met with disappointment.
After receiving the message from Yihua, the eldest princess was stunned for a long while. Her stepmother had visited her parents' home quite often over the years, always bringing either Honghui or Liuliu. This time, she wanted to take her along… Could it be…?
A guess arose in the eldest princess's heart, and a blush rose on her cheeks.
The next morning, Yihua saw the eldest princess dressed neatly come to pay her respects. She looked perfectly normal except for some dark circles under her eyes.
"Didn't you sleep well yesterday, Princess?" Yi Hua asked with concern.
Liu Liu, who was shoveling rice into her mouth, looked up when she heard this: "Big sister, you have dark circles under your eyes."
The term "dark circles under the eyes" was first used by Liu Liu by Yi Hua. Children's ability to learn to speak is top-notch. Yi Hua has also been paying more attention lately, no longer using words that Liu Liu would only understand in her past life.
The eldest princess wanted to reach out and touch it, but Yi Hua pulled her over to sit in front of the dressing table: "Yu Xiao, redo the eldest princess's makeup."
Yi Hua knew after a moment's thought that the child had probably been pondering this for half the night, and that it was her fault for not speaking out: "You are ten years old now, and your father is worried about your marriage. He feels sorry for you and doesn't want you to become a nun, but fortunately you are still young, so we can reach an understanding first."
“My family’s eldest son, Mingxuan, is twelve years old this year, two years older than you. He is strictly disciplined at home and has some talent in poetry and literature. He will take the imperial examination and enter officialdom in the future.”
“Although your father thinks he’s good, I think it’s still better if you approve of him.” As Yi Hua spoke, the eldest princess’s cheeks became redder and redder, until in the end she didn’t even need blush. “Don’t feel guilty today. If you think he’s pleasing to the eye, then take a look. If you don’t think he’s good, then let your father continue to look for someone.”
"My lady, a woman's marriage is like a second reincarnation; it cannot be taken lightly."
The eldest princess covered her eyes again, so that she no longer looked like she had stayed up all night. She said softly, "Daughter thanks her mother."
"Don't worry, I had you redo your makeup not so that Mingxuan would value you, but because I think we should always be in our best condition when we appear in front of outsiders." Yi Hua patted the eldest princess's shoulder. "You have another task today. I don't think I can keep an eye on that crazy girl Liu Liu. You'll have to keep an eye on her at the Ulanara residence."
Seeing that Liu Liu's mouth was greasy from eating, the eldest princess suddenly felt relieved: "Don't worry, Mother, I will take good care of Liu Liu."
And so, the group set off and arrived at the Ulanara residence.
The eldest brother Xinghui's youngest son, Mingyun, is four years old this year. He is at the age where he plays with Liuliu. The two quickly became familiar with each other. Liuliu took out a spider-shaped gummy candy from his pocket and used the same trick to scare his new friend.
Mingyun had never seen anything like this before and immediately burst into tears. Yihua was furious when she saw Liuliu clapping and laughing while stuffing the spider gummy candy claws into her mouth. She picked Liuliu up and gave her a few slaps on the bottom.
"What did you promise your mother that you would never use this to scare children again?"
Liu Liu was hit a few times, pouted, and sobbed, "Mother, this is candy. Liu Liu wants to give it to her brother."
"Stop crying!" Yi Hua could tell at a glance that the child was faking it, and immediately scolded him.
Liu Liu immediately stopped crying. She covered her face with her hands and peeked at Yi Hua through her fingers, muttering, "Liu Liu didn't expect this brother to be so timid. Big brother wouldn't be like this."
"You still have the nerve to talk back?" Yi Hua felt an itch to continue teaching Liu Liu a lesson, but was stopped by Ulanara Fujin.
"It's good that the children are naughty. Go out and run around." After saying that, the eldest princess understood, took Liu Liu from Yi Hua's arms, and led the children out of the front hall. Following the servants' directions, they went to the garden.
Yi Hua was so angry her liver hurt: "This little one is a devil, he's never quiet for a moment."
Princess Xinghui inwardly agreed, but said aloud, "The little princess is lively and adorable; you're overthinking it."
Yi Hua took a sip of tea and decided to go home and discipline her youngest daughter: "Speaking of which, we all know the other children in the family well, except for Ming Xuan, whom we usually only see briefly each time."
"This child is currently studying and plans to take the exam in two years. He is quite talented and hardworking." When Xinghui Fujin mentioned her eldest son, her eyes and brows were full of pride, with a hint of boasting.
"Such self-discipline, she really is a good child." Yi Hua nodded. "No wonder even our grandfather heard about it."
"Really?" Consort Xinghui was overjoyed. After her initial excitement, she suddenly thought of the eldest princess her sister-in-law had brought back and understood. "Speaking of which, the eldest princess has been raised under Consort Xinghui's care all these years, and her manners are truly impeccable."
"This is all thanks to Consort De in the palace. Now that the eldest princess is older and has grown up well, Prince Beile truly loves this eldest daughter." Yi Hua pointed out that the concubines and masters in the palace value the eldest princess highly and should not look down on her just because she is born out of wedlock.
“It doesn’t matter if you put in a little more effort to study,” said Consort Ulanara. “Go and call the eldest young master here; he hasn’t met Liu Liu yet.”
Consort Xinghui's eyes lit up, and she immediately agreed. Seeing that they all understood the purpose of her visit, Yihua changed the subject and started talking about everyday matters.
******
On the way back to the Prince's residence, Yi Hua noticed that the eldest princess had rosy cheeks and bright eyes, looking much happier than when she arrived: "Eldest princess, did you see Ming Xuan?"
"Reporting to my mother, we met briefly across the artificial hill."
"how?"
"The daughter will leave the decision to her father and mother-in-law."
Yi Hua understood; this meant she was willing. She sighed. The young girl had been raised in seclusion for ten years, and all she had seen and interacted with were her own father and brothers. Now that she had suddenly met a man from another family, as long as he wasn't an ugly duckling, she could easily be captivated.
This is how one's life is decided, and it's hard to say whether it's a blessing or a curse.
"Big Cousin won't do it." Liu Liu suddenly spoke up, her clear, childlike voice successfully igniting Yi Hua's anger.
"What's wrong?" Yi Hua tapped Liu Liu's forehead. "Do you know what Mother and Big Sister are talking about?"
"My older cousin isn't as good-looking as my older brother," Liu Liu suddenly said. "He's also not as strong as my older brother; he can't hold Liu Liu steady and keeps falling over!"
In the little girl's heart, her older brother is the best.
Yi Hua was amused and pinched the little girl's chubby waist: "Liu Liu, if you don't lose weight, not only will your older cousin be unable to carry you, but even your older brother and your father won't be able to lift you."
"Not fat! Liu Liu is just cute!" Liu Liu cupped her round face and retorted seriously.
The eldest princess was successfully amused, and a relaxed and peaceful atmosphere filled the carriage.
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