The Empress Dowager received the long-awaited statue of Laozi, and the Zhang family not only received gifts bestowed by the Empress but also a very precious piece of calligraphy, making everyone happy.
Even more joyful was that the birthday gift from Old Madam Liu, initially just of dium value, instantaneously gained significant worth.
Though the birthday celebration was two months ago, not only did she receive a greeting letter from the Zhang family in Longzhou, but she also received a hefty gift.
Even soone as seasoned and composed as she could not help but laugh out loud, saying, "This is truly an unexpected surprise."
Ms. Zheng glanced at the gift list in Old Madam Liu’s hands and continued sewing her clothes, "Mother, our in-laws say Zhou SiLang and the others are coming back. I thought since Shanbao and the others will also have so days off from the palace, perhaps we should get so fish to make fish balls. Last ti before entering the palace, he ntioned how delicious Aunt Rong’s fish balls were."
Old Madam Liu nodded slightly, "Go ahead, buy more, and once they’re made, send so to our in-laws."
Manbao in the palace learned about Zhou SiLang’s return from Mr. Zhuang. On their day off, she got up at dawn to wash up and prepare to leave the palace.
Bai Shan and Bai Erlang were still groggy when woken up, let alone the other students next door who were still sound asleep. Zhao Liulang, hearing the noise, couldn’t help but kick the blanket off and shouted, "Zhou Man—"
He lay in bed, kicking the bedboard, and called out, "Can you be a little quieter? We finally have a day off, can’t you let us get so good sleep?"
Manbao shouted, "The sun is already high in the sky!"
But then, it’s not a school day, so what difference does it make?
Manbao seed to realize this too and lowered her voice slightly, only urging Bai Shan and Bai Erlang, "Hurry up, you can sleep at ho if you want to."
Bai Shan got up silently and even gave Bai Er a hand.
Next door, Yin Huo also groggily got out of bed. He opened the window to see Manbao standing in the courtyard, sighing as if she was worried about the world.
When Manbao turned and saw him, she waved and greeted him, "Yin Huo, you’re awake too. My fourth brother is back, and he definitely brought a lot of good things. Do you want to co to my house and play?"
Yin Huo thought for a mont and then shook his head, "I’m afraid I can’t today; my sisters are all coming ho today."
Manbao imdiately thought of his six sisters and said, "Alright, then enjoy your ti at ho. I’ll invite you another day."
Because of Zhou Man, the three of them left the palace while most people in Chongwen Pavilion were still sleeping. By the ti they reached the palace gates, there wasn’t another soul in sight.
The guards inspected their belongings in boredom before letting them pass. After watching for a while without seeing a fourth student co by, they couldn’t help but turn around to seriously scrutinize the three of them, "Lord Zhou Junior, have you had your breakfast yet?"
Manbao waved generously, "Eating at ho is the sa."
Upon exiting the palace gate, they spotted Daji and the others parked the carriage to the side.
The three imdiately loaded their things onto the carriage, with another guard going to coordinate with the palace gate officers to bring out their horses.
Manbao excitedly asked Daji, "How much did my fourth brother bring back this ti?"
Daji replied, "Master Zhou Si hasn’t returned ho yet."
Manbao was stunned, "Didn’t he send word two days ago saying he’d arrive soon? How co he’s not here yet?"
Daji said, "A ssage ca yesterday saying they’ve reached Pu Village. They have a lot of things, so they planned to stay at the estate overnight. So items are not easy to bring back to the capital and will be left in Pu Village."
Daji paused, then added, "Because we heard they brought a lot, Old Master Zhou left for Pu Village early this morning to inventory the items together."
Manbao imdiately asked, "Did my sister-in-law go too?"
Daji replied with a smile, "Only Sixth Sister-in-law is at ho now; everyone else left early."
Their stomachs all rumbled simultaneously.
Daji heard it and couldn’t help looking at their bellies, suppressing a smile, "Miss Man, young masters, let’s get on the carriage. Old Madam prepared plenty of good food in the kitchen these past days."
The three had no strength to ride their horses anymore, climbing onto the carriage to sit back ho.
When Old Madam Liu heard they hadn’t eaten breakfast before leaving the palace, she was both frustrated and amused and then sent soone to the kitchen to prepare breakfast for them.
"We made fish balls at ho. I’ll have Aunt Rong serve each of you a bowl to eat."
Manbao nodded and then said, "Grandma Liu, we’ll head out once we’re full."
Old Madam Liu asked, "Are you heading to Pu Village?"
Manbao nodded, "We want to have a look."
Bai Shan and Bai Erlang wanted to go too.
Old Madam Liu nodded, let them finish breakfast, and then turned to instruct Daji to make arrangents to escort them shortly.
The fish balls made by Aunt Rong were smooth and tender. Bai Shan, seeing Manbao eating happily, took the opportunity, unnoticed by his grandmother, to add several more to her bowl.
Old Madam Liu saw it but pretended not to notice, only refusing when they wanted more after finishing a bowl, advising, "It’s autumn, so eat a bit less, or you’ll end up feeling itchy later on."
She said, "Having just eaten, it’s not good to ride imdiately. First, go pay your respects to your teacher, greet the gentlen, and then head out."
Bai Erlang suddenly rembered that his parents were also there and asked, "Great-Aunt, is my father still in the capital?"
Old Madam Liu couldn’t help but tap him, amused and exasperated, "Make sure your father doesn’t hear that, or he’ll have a go at you."
The three laughed as they ran off, first to pay respects to Mr. Zhuang, then to see Old Master Bai and Mrs. Bai.
Old Master Bai had co to the capital because of a letter from Old Madam Liu. Now that Bai Erlang’s betrothnt was settled, they planned to stay in the capital to see if they could secure so estate for the two children.
Old Master Bai’s idea was simple, "If Dalang eventually becos an official in the capital, having an estate nearby could provide vegetables and fruits; for Erlang, even if he becos the Princess’s husband, he can’t rely entirely on her, it’s good to have so assets of his own."
So recently, he’s been planning to buy so land.
However, autumn harvest ti isn’t ideal for selling land; he may have to wait a few months until winter makes purchasing easier.
Yes, land in the capital is always in high demand, and even in winter, it might not be easy to acquire. Haven’t you seen Manbao has already privately arranged with Princess Mingda to trade her dowry land?
Despite being in the capital, Old Master Bai’s impact on his two sons, especially Bai Erlang, was minimal; with Bai Er spending seven or eight days in the palace, they rarely saw each other.
So much so that Bai Erlang often forgot his father was around.
When Bai Erlang went to greet his parents, Old Master Bai couldn’t help but get excited, "I’ve always heard Manbao’s father boast about how large and wonderful their estate is, yet I’ve never seen it. Didn’t you and Shanbao also invest so money in it? Why don’t I go and take a look too?"
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