This was a trivial matter for Jiang Jiuniang, and she readily agreed, telling them to tell the maids and servants in the courtyard the next morning that they could do it according to their preferences.
The two were naturally delighted and full of anticipation for their future life here.
After settling the two of them in, Jiang Jiuniang followed Lu Baichuan back to the main courtyard. On the way, she asked, "What did the Emperor say about the war we talked about before?"
"They didn't say much. The island nation and the East haven't caused any trouble for the time being. The information we received earlier came from my father-in-law, Qianfan Pavilion. It's estimated that the two sides are still aligning and haven't reached an agreement yet, so we don't need to rush."
The emperor is very receptive to advice now. Lu Baichuan mentioned it to him in the palace, and the emperor immediately agreed. In any case, anything that is beneficial to the country's development is easy to talk to the emperor about.
Jiang Jiuniang was quite satisfied with the emperor's current attitude, and then asked, "Tell me, how am I supposed to explain Ruozheng and Zhuzhu's origins to the emperor? These people who appeared out of nowhere, without even an identity tag, won't they be considered spies from an enemy country?"
"No, I mentioned this to the Emperor beforehand. The Emperor said that anyone who can befriend you is definitely not a vicious person. He will arrange an identity for you so that you can easily smooth things over."
Jiang Jiuniang looked at him with some surprise. She hadn't expected him to be so thoughtful, having already arranged all the troublesome things she needed to consider.
"It has to be you; you always arrange things in advance for me."
Jiang Jiuniang clung to Lu Baichuan. Since it was late at night and there were no people around, it wouldn't hurt for the two of them to be affectionate.
Lu Baichuan held her in his arms, gazing into her bright, sparkling eyes, and was deeply moved.
Fortunately, Jiang Jiuniang still retained a sliver of reason and did not completely succumb. Before entering the room, she pushed Lu Baichuan away and went to see Gou'er and Xiangxiang first.
The two little ones were sleeping soundly. Overwhelmed with maternal love, Jiang Jiuniang kissed each of them on the cheek before Lu Baichuan led them back to the master bedroom.
The next morning, Jiang Jiuniang was awakened by the chattering and commotion in the courtyard outside, but she wasn't grumpy at all because she heard familiar, long-lost voices.
For the first time, I didn't stay in bed; I got up, dressed, and went out.
In the courtyard was a group of family members led by Ms. Sun. When they saw her come out, the chattering crowd immediately quieted down, and they all looked at her with smiles, their eyes full of joy and relief.
"Mother, eldest sister-in-law, second sister-in-law, and little sister, why are you here so early in the morning?"
Jiang Jiuniang was very happy and rushed forward to hug everyone. For the first time, she couldn't hold back her emotions and her eyes welled up with tears.
She completely belonged to this world and became true family with these people.
“We were all worried about you while you were gone for so long. We heard you came back last night, so we came to visit you early this morning.”
Ms. Yu explained with a smile that she originally planned to come at noon, but Ms. Sun couldn't wait and insisted on coming early in the morning to make sure that it was really her who had returned.
"The two friends you brought are still sleeping. We didn't disturb them, thinking we'd go see them after they'd had a good rest. I don't know what they like to eat, so I asked the kitchen to prepare some. We can send them over when they wake up."
"It's good that you're back safe and sound, Third Sister-in-law. We were just too anxious. We didn't mean to disturb your sleep."
After everyone chattered for a while, Sun, who hadn't said a word, waved her hand like she was shooing away flies: "Alright, alright, now that we've seen them, let's go back first. Let the third son's wife continue sleeping. I told you to come back at noon, but you wouldn't listen. You've been making so much noise this morning that my ears hurt."
As he spoke, he urged everyone to leave.
Everyone looked incredulous. Who was it that insisted on coming so early in the morning? Why are they blaming them now?
However, everyone was quite considerate of Ms. Sun's feelings, and they just smiled without exposing her.
Jiang Jiuniang laughed heartily and threw herself into Sun's arms, saying, "Ms. Sun, you miss me, so why make up these excuses? I've been missing you too lately, so much so that I can't sleep!"
Sun was grinning from ear to ear, but she couldn't hold back her words: "Go away, who misses you? Your face is filthy, you haven't even washed it yet! Let go, let go!"
Yu and the others laughed until their stomachs hurt. These past few days, their mother-in-law had lost her appetite. If she hadn't been taking care of Xiangxiang herself to maintain her strength and energy, she would have become incredibly thin, which was heartbreaking to see.
Now that my third sister-in-law has returned, she has returned to her former self, with renewed energy and a radiant smile.
This is what a home should be like.
Jiang Jiuniang refused to let go and accompanied the group to Sun's courtyard. A maid brought water for her to wash up, and the group sat together to eat breakfast, talking about interesting things and gossip that had happened in the capital.
No one asked her where she had been or what she had done during that time.
Those were not questions they should ask; after all, these were their sister-in-law's secrets, and they knew their place.
Jiang Jiuniang was touched and grateful for their understanding. She kept piling food into everyone's bowls until they were full.
Yuya suddenly asked, "There's a lie I can't seem to keep going..."
"What?"
Everyone looked at her, their eyes filled with questions.
"It's about my third aunt's pregnancy, that we talked about before. Now everyone's starting to speculate about whether it's a boy or a girl. How are we going to explain this?"
"Harmful!"
Everyone thought it was something serious, but it turned out to be just a small matter, leaving them somewhat disappointed.
Madam Yu said, "What's so difficult about that? These are just wild guesses from outsiders. We have never admitted that my third sister-in-law is pregnant. As long as she goes out for a walk, these rumors will be dispelled on their own."
“That’s true. But when does Third Sister-in-law plan to go out for a stroll? Xiao Yang recently bought a few more shops, which are currently under renovation. If you’re interested, you can go and take a look.”
Jiang Jiuniang nodded repeatedly: "We're going. My two friends are new here and probably want to look around. How about we go out for a walk together after lunch?"
"That would be perfect, we could also get to know those two young ladies!"
Everyone chatted happily, each offering their own opinion.
Ruozheng and Zhuzhu didn't get up too late, they got up at the beginning of Chenshi (7-9 AM). They thought that this was an ancient place with many rules and regulations, and they were staying at Jiang Jiu's husband's house, so they couldn't make things difficult for Ajiu. After they got up and tidied up, a little maid brought them breakfast.
The two had originally planned to go find Jiang Jiuniang to eat together, but the maid told them that Jiang Jiuniang had gone to the old lady's courtyard early in the morning. So the two ate in their own courtyard, explained what they wanted and the decorations, and waited patiently for Jiang Jiuniang to come find them.
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