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The return gifts were prepared, and it was already midnight.
Just as Chen Feng had finished washing up and was ready to rest, she saw the return of the Golden Swallow, who had been missing for the day. She whispered, “You’ve been gone all day. Where did you go?”
The Golden Swallow, who had suddenly disappeared, hadn’t even taken his young attendants, Qiqi and Gray, with him.
The Golden Swallow flapped his wings and dropped two small copper pipes into Chen Feng’s hand, chirping, “Let’s talk in the space.”
Chen Feng got up, walked into a room, and then entered the space after closing the door.
The Golden Swallow said, “I followed the Seventh Prince to Lingyin Temple to see the excitement. The Seventh Prince asked Monk Guiling to confirm the authenticity of the tricolor ball, and when Monk Guiling confirmed it, the Seventh Prince asked him to prescribe medicine for his illness. Monk Guiling said he could treat the illness, but the Seventh Prince had to swear to behave in a moral and upright manner, refrain from coercing women, not go against a woman’s will, and perform twenty-five good deeds within three years to be cured. The Seventh Prince turned red but still took the oath…”
Upon hearing this, Chen Feng was greatly pleased and said, “Monk Guiling did well. We can’t allow that scoundrel to continue harming innocent girls. As for the twenty-five good deeds, I wonder what he will do.”
The Golden Swallow continued indignantly, “After watching the excitement, I went to visit that old bald donkey without wisdom. Mommy, we’ve been deceived by that old bald donkey. The Green Swallow’s Nest is indeed used for making medicine. I smelled those pills and found that they contain Green Swallow’s Nest but not a single leaf of Swallow’s Agarwood. The leaves he wanted were all used to make incense. When I got angry, I stole all the incense he made and even fed the remaining half-leaf to him like a lump of manure in his teacup.”
His bright eyes gleamed as he looked at Chen Feng, as if to say, “Praise me for avenging us.”
Chen Feng opened the copper pipes. One contained five pieces of Swallow’s Agarwood leaves, and the other contained four. She asked, “Did the old monk notice you when you went?”
The Golden Swallow chirped, “The old bald donkey was probably dozing off, leaning on the arhat bed and snoring loudly with his mouth wide open. I managed to put all the Swallow’s Agarwood from the table and stove into the copper pipes and brought them back.”
As the saying goes, small creatures are sometimes shrewd and sometimes innocent, but how could they outsmart the cunning old monk? With such big leaves, it would take a long time to make incense, and I wonder how many sticks of incense could be made from two and a half leaves. Moreover, the droppings the little creature left behind could also serve as excellent fertilizer for plants.
However, this couldn’t be said aloud to avoid upsetting the little creature and causing it to go looking for trouble with the old monk. Although the old monk was somewhat greedy and not entirely honest, he did indeed possess some real abilities, so it was best not to offend him. Nevertheless, she made a mental note to help safeguard the things in the space and not be easily deceived by the old monk in the future.
Chen Feng chuckled, “You’re really something. This time, the old monk will surely be beside himself with anger.”
The Golden Swallow, upon hearing this, became even happier and flapped his wings while trying to stifle his laughter.
Chen Feng was also delighted. Up to this point, she hadn’t been willing to use the Swallow’s Agarwood. With the addition of nine more pieces, she could finally make use of it. She brought the Golden Swallow close to her mouth, and the Golden Swallow, knowing that her mommy was happy and wanted to kiss him, quickly moved his wings aside to allow Chen Feng to give him a peck.
After leaving the space, Chen Feng broke off a small piece of incense and placed it in the wardrobe.
The next day, after seeing off Qing Feng, Chen Feng took Dabao to Luyuan.
The previous evening, Third Madam Chu had mentioned that they would come to Luyuan in the morning for the formal meeting with their future in-laws. The following day, Chu Lingxuan would be returning to Dingzhou, having taken a few days off already and unable to delay any further. Third Madam Chu also had to return to the capital, as she was worried about her husband and eldest son at home. Chu Lingzhi, however, would stay with the old marquis for a while longer, as he hadn’t had enough playtime yet.
The previous day, Chen Feng had already sent someone to inform Chen Ming and Mrs. Wang to prepare and arrange for the Chu family to have a meal. Early that morning, she had sent Mrs. Zeng and Summer to Luyuan to help with cooking and house arrangements.
Luyuan had been cleaned thoroughly, and all the fine ornaments were brought out and displayed. Chen Lu hadn’t gone to school that day, and he, Chen Ming, and Mrs. Wang were all dressed in silk clothes, looking very smart.
Leading Chen Feng into the western side room, Chen Ming pointed to a pile of items on the heated brick bed and said, “These are the birthday gifts sent by those families who wished you well yesterday…” He then explained which family had sent each item.
These items included silver bracelets, gold cloves, silk fabrics, vase ornaments, and other valuable objects, which, even for rural families, including landlords and local officials, were considered valuable. Chen Feng kept the silk embroidered shoes made by Mrs. Gao and a silk dress made by Mrs. Wei for herself, leaving the rest for Chen Ming and Mrs. Wang. She explained that she had accepted the gifts from those families and would reciprocate appropriately when the time came.
Around the eighth hour of the day, Lu and Dabao, two young boys, stood at the entrance of Luyuan to welcome the guests.
Curiously, Chen Lu whispered to Dabao, “Have you really started calling Mr. Chu ‘father’ and the old Marquis of Chu ‘grandfather’?”
Dabao sighed and said, “Yeah, I had no choice. Since my mother is going to marry into the Chu family, I had to start calling them that way.”
Chen Lu grinned and said, “When my sister officially marries into the Chu family, I’ll be able to call Mr. Chu ‘brother-in-law.’ Yesterday, when I went to school, all my classmates envied us.”
Dabao remained silent, thinking, “What’s there to envy when my mother is getting married…”
As they were talking, they noticed the Chu family members walking towards them.
Chen Lu called out to the gate, “The guests are here.”, he straightened his clothes, and helped adjust Dabao’s attire before they walked forward to greet them.
The entire Chu family of five had arrived. They were welcomed into the main hall, where the Marquis and Third Madam Chu of the Chu family were invited to take their seats. Third Madam Chu chose not to sit but instead made every effort to seat Chen Ming and the old Marquis on either side of the Eight Immortals table. Some polite conversation ensued, during which Chen Ming was visibly nervous and found it difficult to speak clearly. However, the old Marquis and Third Madam Chu were both conversational, which helped ease the tension, and gradually, Chen Ming and Mrs. Wang began to relax a bit.
Third Madam Chu presented Chen Lu with a jade pendant as a token of greeting, and Mrs. Wang gifted a purse she made to Chu Lingzhi.
Chu Lingxuan, not very talkative, often glanced at Chen Feng while others were engrossed in conversation, smiling quietly.
The children gathered at the side room door to play with Qiqi, Gray, Zhui Feng, and Wangcai.
Dabao whispered to Chu Hanyan, “Look at your father, he’s always sneaking glances at my mother.”
Chu Hanyan looked up innocently and asked, “Isn’t my father is now also your father? How can you tell if it’s really sneaking glances?”
Dabao was stumped by the question. He couldn’t explain it. Well, if he couldn’t explain it, he simply remained silent, lowered his head, and continued to play with the animals, no longer looking at the adults.
At the dinner table, the old marquis once again invited Chen Ming’s family and Chen Feng’s mother and son to have dinner at Tangyuan. Chen Ming’s family joyfully accepted the invitation. The next morning, Chu Lingxuan and Third Madam Chu were set to leave.