After lunch, my aunt took the portrait and went back home.
In the summer, he simply went to the study to paint portraits of Lady Wang and Lady Li.
These two have been dragging on for a while.
She quickly finished the painting and decided not to take any painting jobs for the time being.
When Chen Nian came back in the evening, Xia Tian told him that the old man of the Cui family was going to celebrate his 60th birthday.
"Brother Shen, you must make time that day. You must go to Grandpa's place. According to my aunt, everyone in the Cui family will be back by then."
"Yeah, I understand." Shen Nian put his arms around Xia Tian's waist.
"Is he still good?" Shen Nian leaned against Xia Tian's shoulder, one hand gently placed on her belly.
"Very well behaved." Xia Tian replied with a smile, "I don't have any pregnancy symptoms at all. I enjoy everything I eat!"
"You still feel sorry for your mother!" Shen Nian patted Xia Tian's belly gently.
It’s like saying hello to the baby in my belly.
Xia Tian laughed. It’s only been more than a month, it would be strange if he could feel it!
Time passed quickly, and soon it was April 19th.
Early in the morning, Xia Tian and Shen Nian packed up, took the birthday gift for Mr. Cui, and went to Cui's house.
They came early, and there weren't many customers at the moment.
Cui's fifth uncle took the person directly to the old man's house.
"Chu Xuan is here, come and sit down." When the Cui family's third uncle saw Shen Nian, he quickly asked him to sit next to him.
Today is Mr. Cui’s 60th birthday, and all five of his sons are here.
My fifth uncle was welcoming guests at the door just now.
Led Shen Nian in, the five uncles were gathered together.
Shen Nian bowed one by one and greeted all the uncles and grandfather.
The eldest aunt came over and called Xia Tian, "Xia Xia, come quickly and meet your uncles and aunts."
The eldest aunt brought Xia Tian and introduced her to her second uncle, second aunt, fourth uncle and fourth aunt.
The other three uncles and aunt have all met him.
"That's Xia Xia!" Second Aunt took Xia's hand and praised, "The portraits you drew of father and mother are truly amazing. This is the first time Second Aunt has seen such realistic ones."
"Yes, Xia Xia's painting skills are really superb!" Fourth aunt also echoed.
Yesterday, when their eldest sister-in-law took out the portrait, they were all shocked. The main reason was that Mr. Cui and Mrs. Cui had no idea about it.
That portrait also showed how they looked when Xia Tian first saw them.
"Thank you for the compliment, my two aunts!" Xia Tian said modestly with a smile.
With so many people here, she felt embarrassed by the compliment.
"Xia Xia, this is the first time we meet. This is a gift from your second aunt." The second aunt took out a pair of jade bracelets and put them directly on Xia Tian's wrist.
Xia Tian was about to speak when her fourth aunt took out a gift and stuffed it into her hand. "And here's a meeting gift from your fourth aunt."
"Thank you, my two aunts." Xia Tian saw that there were so many people around, so she accepted it without refusing.
Seeing that it was almost time, my aunt started to invite everyone to prepare for Xia Tian to draw a family portrait.
No one else has come to congratulate me yet, and basically everyone who comes is our own family, so it would be best to take a portrait now while there are no outsiders around.
"Xia Xia, how do you think we should stand properly?"
My aunt looked at the whole family and didn't know how to draw a family portrait.
Xia Tian didn't hesitate and directed everyone to stand in several rows. She took out a charcoal pencil and started outlining.
In addition to the old man, the old lady, five uncles, aunts, and more than twenty younger generations of the Cui family, Xia Tian spent more than half an hour to memorize the image of each person.
I wrote a quick draft and then let everyone go.
"Aunt, this painting may take some time to finish." Xia Tian took the draft and explained to his aunt.
Although these portraits of more than 30 people are all painted on one picture, there are too many people and it does take some time.
"There's no rush. Xia Xia, take your time and finish it anytime." The aunt patted her hands and told her not to worry.
By the time we dismissed the party here, it was almost time and customers started arriving one after another.
Several uncles and aunts of the Cui family went to the door to welcome the guests.
Xia Tian took Ningxiang for a walk in the garden of Cui Mansion.
"Madam, there is a pavilion over there. Let's go sit there!" Ningxiang said, looking at the pavilion behind the winding corridor.
"Well, let's go." Xia Tian saw that the scenery over there was nice, so he walked over there.
Before they got close, they heard people talking in front of them. Xia Tian originally thought that since there were people there, they should not go over there and just go for a walk somewhere else.
Just as he was about to turn around, he heard a female voice, "The governor is here today too. I didn't expect him to be the Cui family's nephew."
"Yeah, she looks so young!" another female voice continued.
When Xia Tian heard that someone was discussing her daughter Chen Nian, she secretly thought to herself, could there be another girl who has taken a fancy to Chen Nian?
I originally thought it was just a girl's admiration for good-looking men, so I didn't take it seriously and wanted to leave first.
As a girl, it is understandable to see an outstanding man playing crickets together, so she did not take it to heart.
Unexpectedly, the girl who spoke first then said, "I heard that the governor only has one wife and no concubines. Isn't that a perfect opportunity?
Your family is planning to marry you to an old man as a concubine anyway. If you can become the governor's concubine, it would be a step up to the sky."
"But how could the governor like me?" sighed another girl.
When Xia Tian heard that she really fell in love with her Shen Nian, she had to hear what they were going to do next!
"If you don't fight for it, how do you know the governor won't like you?" the persuasive girl suggested. "I heard the governor's wife hasn't given him a child yet. If you could marry him and have a child, would your family still dare to treat you like that?"
"Alas, it's because my mother died early, and my stepmother is always good at blowing pillow wind. They say that if there is a stepmother, there will be a stepfather. My father is now the stepfather."
"Please think about what I said carefully. I think the governor's wife is a kind person and will definitely not make things difficult for you."
"Oh! I have accepted my fate. How could a man like the governor marry a merchant's daughter as his concubine?" The girl sighed, as if she had given up.
Xia Tian listened in the corner for a long time, but in the end he did not stand up and speak out.
After all, they were just discussing it behind her back and didn't mention it to her, so there was no need for her to break up with the girl.
Besides, today is the 60th birthday of the old man of the Cui family. Those who can come to attend the banquet at the Cui Mansion must be prominent figures in Sangluo City.
If she goes out rashly, what if she scare the girl and then ruins the birthday party of Mr. Cui? Wouldn't that be too disrespectful to the family?
After listening for a while, seeing that the two girls were no longer discussing Shen Nian, she quietly withdrew.
Because the rockery blocked her view, she didn't go to see which girl it was.
But from the sound of it, the girl whose father wanted to marry the old man as a concubine should be a merchant. This is actually quite easy to find out.
She'll know if she asks indirectly later.
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