"Father, Mother!"
Gu Qingyan deliberately didn't drink much today, and after the banquet, he hurriedly ran towards Zhaoning Palace.
"It's over so quickly?" Gu Qingyan saw Gu Lin and Jiang Yu cooking and eating, and quickly joined in. "You two are having so much fun eating hot pot here, I want to eat with you too."
"What? Didn't you eat enough?"
Gu Lin glanced at Gu Qingyan, "Didn't you eat enough in the palace just now?"
"I want to eat with you all." Gu Qingyan snorted, picked up the chopsticks that had been prepared in advance on the table, and accurately picked up a piece of mutton from the pot. "Hehe, I'm happy to eat here with Father and Mother."
"That kid."
Winter and hot pot are a perfect match. You can eat hot pot while listening to the cold wind whistling in your ears without feeling cold. Instead, you feel warm all over.
"Mother, you should stay up for a little while tonight and then go back to rest." Gu Qingyan glanced at Jiang Yu's belly. "I'm afraid the baby in your belly won't be able to handle staying up all night."
"This is the first time the child has stayed up with us to celebrate the New Year."
Jiang Yu smiled and shook her head. "I'll have Wanji bring over a recliner in a bit, and I'll stay there with you all to keep vigil for the New Year. How about that?"
Gu Qingyan nodded upon hearing this, and counted on his fingers for a while, "It's been almost four months now. Ten months of pregnancy, there are still six months left."
"It's been a long time."
“Of course, a woman’s pregnancy is a sacred and long process.” Jiang Yu was radiant with maternal love. Then, as if remembering something, she added, “Tonight is a big night. You two are not allowed to go against each other.”
"Alright, I won't stoop to this kid's level tonight."
Gu Lin smiled and took the piece of mutton that Gu Qingyan had already picked up. Gu Qingyan was not to be outdone, and in no time the two of them had devoured all the mutton in the pot.
"Granny, look at this father and son. Go and bring some more mutton. Let them eat their fill tonight."
Immediately, everyone in Zhaoning Palace, even the palace servants, burst into laughter.
On the other side, at the Marquis of Dingyuan's residence.
"Mommy, Yao Yao misses you so much."
"Your mother has been back for several days now, and you still haven't had enough?" Jiang He spoke up from the side, a hint of jealousy filling the air. "And, you only think about your mother and not your father anymore?"
"I miss my father too."
Bai Qian smiled and picked up Jiang Yao, then kissed Jiang Yao's little face. "After the New Year, our Yao Yao will be five years old, another year older."
"On her birthday, Yao Yao can eat what she likes, and she likes celebrating her birthday."
Jiang Yao's childish words made both Jiang He and Bai Qian burst into laughter. Jiang He even took Jiang Yao from Bai Qian's hands and lifted her high above his head, causing Jiang Yao to shout loudly.
"Father, higher, higher!"
After an incense stick had burned, inside the ancestral hall of the Marquis's residence.
Jiang He and Bai Qian kowtowed three times to the memorial tablets in the ancestral hall, and then turned around to look at Jiang Yao together.
Jiang Yao strode over to the prayer mat and knelt down with a thud.
"Hello, Grandpa and Grandma, I am Yao Yao."
Jiang Yao, imitating Jiang He and Bai Qian, kowtowed three times to the memorial tablet, saying, "Yao Yao has come to see you again."
"Yaoyao will be five years old next year. Grandparents, what kind of birthday gift do you think Yaoyao should have for her fifth birthday?"
Hearing Jiang Yao's sudden change in demeanor, Bai Qian's lips twitched violently. "Jiang He, I wasn't like this when I was a child."
"I don't believe it. I'll take Yaoyao to ask my father-in-law tomorrow."
"you!"
"This is the ancestral hall, the ancestral hall." Jiang He quickly reached out to beg for mercy, and Bai Qian laughed when she saw this. "Let's go back and keep vigil for the New Year."
......
"Miss Qin, Miss Sun, this is what Her Majesty the Empress Dowager instructed me to bring to you."
Several eunuchs carried over a pile of things, and soon the sound of a pot bubbling came out. Qin Ke'er and Sun Shu were both a little taken aback.
"The Empress Dowager gave the order?"
"Ladies, today is New Year's Eve, and we're supposed to stay up all night. Her Majesty says this kind of weather is perfect for having hot pot together. Don't worry, Young Master Qin and Young Master Sun have some too."
For some reason, Sun Shu suddenly felt a little envious.
"Please thank the Empress Dowager on our behalf."
"This pot of food is meant to be eaten outdoors to really enjoy it, but Her Majesty said that both young ladies are in poor health, so she had the servants move the food inside. Well... it's getting late, let's eat quickly."
After saying this, Wanji smiled and left the house, leaving Qin Ke'er and Sun Shu looking at each other.
"Sister Shu, she doesn't seem like a bad person." Qin Ke'er pursed her lips, looking at the bubbling pot. "We also sit together and eat hot pot when we're at home."
“Ke’er, she is indeed not a bad person, but she is the Empress Dowager of Dayu, which means she is destined to be at odds with us.” Sun Shu helped Qin Ke’er up. “Come and eat, and we’ll stay up together to celebrate the New Year after we finish eating.”
"If we hadn't had a conflict, would the aristocratic families and Dayu have remained at peace as before?" Qin Ke'er had been asking this question from time to time since she cut her wrists. Sun Shu would just smile when she heard it. "Dayu is so powerful, how could it tolerate the existence of aristocratic families?"
This was the most Qin Ke'er had eaten that year; she hadn't eaten so much in a long time.
“Ke’er, I didn’t think life was that easy before, but now I realize that once you get involved in war, you can lose your family and your life in the blink of an eye.”
Sun Shu looked at the pot in front of her and said, "Anyway, I want to thank her tonight."
We are grateful that she was still willing to offer them this glimmer of warmth even when they were at odds with each other.
At the same time, Qin Zheng and Sun Cai were also eating hot pot.
The two had already been secretly taken back to the capital and imprisoned in a secluded courtyard.
"Do you have any wine?" Qin Zheng asked Ling Ku, looking at the pot in front of him.
"Young Master Qin is really not being polite." Ling Ku's lips twitched. "The Empress Dowager didn't specify the wine, so there isn't any."
"How can we celebrate such an important day without wine? What about my sisters?" Qin Zheng's temper had subsided considerably. "They're locked up in the palace. Will they have any food tonight?"
"have."
Only after hearing the affirmative answer did Qin Zheng pick up his chopsticks.
"Alright, once you've finished eating, just stay up all night and don't cause any trouble." Ling Ku patted the snowflakes off his sleeves; he still had to go back and drink with his brothers.
Thanks.
Qin Zheng offered Ling Ku a cup of tea instead of wine, and then buried his head in his food.
"Just don't cause me any trouble."
Ling Ku quickly left the place. Hiss, the brothers must be getting impatient waiting for him.
He had to finish eating quickly and go back to celebrate the New Year, otherwise his father would definitely give him a beating.
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