Chapter 599

Chapter 606: Confusion (Part 1)

Without elaborating, Lord Xu remarked, "We just went for a hike together."

"Did he say anything at all?" Eleven Miss probed.

"Nothing at all," Lord Xu replied. "He didn’t pass the imperial exams—wouldn’t it be inappropriate for me to question him about his studies?"

Xu Siyu asked for so little. The tiniest gesture from Lord Xu could boost his confidence tenfold.

Eleven Miss gazed at Lord Xu, shook her head and sighed.

Seeing the flicker in his wife’s eyes, Lord Xu couldn’t help but chuckle. "What’s going through that mind of yours now?"

"I was just thinking how impressive you are," Eleven Miss said, her tone teasing. "All our lecturing and advising is nothing compared to you silently taking a walk outside the city!"

She was probably teasing him, reminding him to show more care for the children.

Lord Xu laughed and lay back down. "Get some rest—who knows what tomorrow will bring?"

Eleven Miss smiled and blew out the lamp.

In the darkness, she was drawn into a warm embrace.

"Mo Yan," he murmured against her ear, his lips blazing a trail of kisses down her neck, "let’s have another child. A little girl just like you..."

An image flashed in Eleven Miss’s mind—a little girl with phoenix eyes, tilting her head and blinking just like Jin Geer. Her body burned like kindling, and she gasped softly, holding onto his muscular frame as her vision grew hazy.

Lord Xu gently caressed her face. "What do you say?" His deep voice, slightly hoarse, held a seductive heat in the intimate air between them.

"Alright," Eleven Miss whispered in his ear, her long legs wrapping around his waist.

Exhausted as she was, habit had Eleven Miss waking at dawn.

Every muscle ached, and the weight of his arm across her chest made breathing difficult, yet she didn’t want to move.

She turned her head and saw Lord Xu sleeping soundly.

She studied him quietly.

In slumber, his expression was serene, making him appear years younger. Two unusually long hairs stood out at the peak of his left eyebrow.

Suddenly, she recalled dormitory gossip from her school days—someone had said that guys with long eyebrow hairs were henpecked. The thought made her bite back a smile.

Perhaps sensing the change in the air, or perhaps simply well-rested, Lord Xu suddenly opened his eyes.

Seeing Eleven Miss smiling at him, he paused, as if discovering something wonderful, his face brightening.

"Are you alright?" His hand slid down her slender waist, dipping lower.

Eleven Miss flushed and quickly caught his wrist. "I’m fine!"

"Really?" He grinned at her.

"Really!" Flustered, she sat up as if to hide something.

The shimmering sapphire-blue bedding slipped away, revealing her still-youthful figure, darkening his gaze.

Eleven Miss hastily turned to put on her undergarments. The pale yellow satin made her snow-white skin glow, so delicate it seemed fragile.

Lord Xu propped his elbow and his warm lips landed on her back.

Shier Niang’s body stiffened, her hand pausing as she tied the sash.

Lord Xu chuckled softly, gently sucking on the delicate skin like condensed rouge, occasionally nibbling at it.

“Wait...” Shier Niang’s voice was somewhat fragmented, “the maids will come in soon... to help... with washing...” “It’ll be quick!” Lord Xu’s tone carried a hint of amusement, his body already intimately pressed against hers!

This man, always like this. If he does something, he does it thoroughly...

Shier Niang bit her lip, but couldn’t stop a moan from escaping.

When she went to greet the Grand Lady, her limbs were still a bit weak.

The Grand Lady thought she was tired from handling Xushi Yu’s wedding preparations and hurriedly had Du Mama serve her a cup of ginseng tea: “If you’re too busy, let Dan County help you. She’s the best at receiving guests. There aren’t many people in the house, so you need to support each other.”

Shier Niang responded with a somewhat guilty smile, “Yes, I was thinking the same thing. I was just wondering how to bring it up with my sister-in-law. Shengge hasn’t reached the same age yet, so it’s a bit awkward to ask.”

She wasn’t lying.

The number of guests and their complex identities far exceeded her expectations. With Steward Bai taking care of things outside, she didn’t have to worry, but the inner courtyard needed her to manage everything. Not to mention, Minister Chen, Grand Secretary Liang, and Grand Secretary Dou’s families all sent gifts, and several ladies came, whom she had to personally entertain. While she was with these ladies, who would accompany Madam Huang, Madam Tang, Lady Zhou, and Lin Dama? And there were the banquets, tea, and snacks in the inner courtyard... Even if she didn’t have to do everything herself, she still needed to sit there and issue instructions for the managing mothers to follow. Originally, Third Lady helped with this, but now that Third Lady has moved out, it wouldn’t be right to burden her again. If she didn’t involve Fifth Lady, even with three heads and six arms, it might not be enough.

Before Shier Niang could finish speaking, a silver-bell-like voice came from the door: “Although it’s Fourth Sister-in-law getting married, it’s also me getting a daughter-in-law. I’ve long wanted to help Fourth Sister-in-law, but I was afraid you’d think I’m crude and didn’t dare to suggest it. Since Fourth Sister-in-law doesn’t mind, I won’t be shy!”

“Fifth Sister-in-law!” Shier Niang smiled and stood to greet the newcomer, “With your words, I feel much more at ease!” Then, the two of them sat down around the Grand Lady, discussing that Shier Niang would receive the wives of the grand secretaries and ministers, while Fifth Lady would receive Lady Zhou, Lin Dama, and others. As for those like Lord Huang and Zheng Tai Jun, they would be led to sit with First Lady. The tea would be handled by Zhu Xiang, and the banquet by Song Mama. At this point, Fifth Lady exclaimed, “Which troupe did you invite to perform?”

By custom, if a troupe was invited, someone should be assigned to oversee the performance.

“I invited the Xiangxiang Troupe,” Shier Niang said, intentionally keeping a distance from the Deyin Troupe, “they have many new plays.”

"The wedding banquet is not a leisurely gathering for guests to admire the scenery and seek novelty," the Grand Dowager smiled. "There must be performances that celebrate marital harmony." She paused, then said, "I think we should invite all three major opera troupes! Let one perform in the Qianchun Hall, another on the stage set up in the outer courtyard. We'll invite young performers like Xiaofenfang and Xiaolianzhu to sing in the Qianchun Hall, while famous actors like Baijushuang and Xiangsanwan will perform in the outer courtyard. The steward should prepare dozens of silver chains; whoever sings best will be rewarded on the spot, making it a competition among the three troupes. Let everyone have a good time!"

"Mother, what a great idea!" the Fifth Lady nodded in approval. "This way, they will surely put their hearts into the performance to uphold the reputation of their troupes." She grew more excited as she spoke, "It's bound to be lively."

"It should be lively!" the Grand Dowager laughed. "Even though Yuge failed the examination, his wedding must still be celebrated with grandeur and splendor! We cannot let outsiders look down on him because of us!"

In this world, people lift each other up.

If so, we can find an excuse to keep Xu Sujie in the inner court when the time comes.

Eleven Lady nodded.

"You always think of everything, Mother," she smiled at the Fifth Lady. "Shall we ask Mama Shi to help arrange these young performers? What do you think?"

Both she and her husband loved opera, and Mama Shi, influenced by them, knew more about the troupes than most people.

The Fifth Lady readily agreed.

They discussed some details further, and as the midday approached, the Grand Dowager invited the two to stay for lunch.

As they stepped out, they encountered Qiuyu.

"Lady..." she bowed, "Seventh Uncle and Seventh Aunt from Gaqing have brought their son to congratulate Second Young Master!" Eleven Lady was surprised.

She hadn't mentioned it when sending invitations for Xu Suyu's wedding to Zhu Anping, assuming they wouldn't come because Bao'er was too young.

"Seventh Sister has arrived!" the Fifth Lady was also surprised. "She wrote to me a few days ago saying Bao'er had started to recognize people, but didn't mention coming to Yanjing." She laughed, "I often hear her talk about Bao'er in her letters, but I haven't seen him yet. This time, I can take a good look." The two hurried to the main hall.

Seventh Lady, now a mother, still retained her light and graceful figure, with no trace of her former restlessness in her brows. Her every movement exuded the joyful spirit of a young girl, much like she was before her marriage.

She held in her arms a baby who looked to be about half a year old, and beside her was a little boy around five or six years old.

Lady Shiyi was quite surprised. Though she had guessed the identity of the little boy, she still wanted to confirm it. She pointed at the boy: "This is?" Lady Qi smiled and said: "This is my eldest son, Jige." Then she instructed the child to say, "This is your Eleventh Aunt, this is Fifth Lady!" The child clung tightly to the hem of Lady Qi's dress, calling out softly.

Lady Qi apologized, saying: "He grew up in the countryside, not used to seeing people, so he’s a bit shy. Please don’t mind his rudeness, Eleventh Sister, Fifth Lady."

"Why are you being so formal with us?" Fifth Lady laughed as she examined Lady Qi's adopted son, Jige. "Children are often afraid of strangers. He’ll grow out of it. This isn’t some other place, and we aren’t strangers. There’s no need to worry about manners."

Lady Shiyi stepped forward and took Bao’er into her arms.

The child was plump and heavy.

"Looks like an uncle," she smiled. "He’s seven parts like Wangge, three parts like Seventh Brother-in-law."

Bao’er, once in her arms, began to cry, twisting his body and looking at Lady Qi.

Lady Qi hurriedly took him back, saying: "I’ve been holding him since he was a baby. No one else can hold him, not even Seventh Brother-in-law."

Fifth Lady noticed that Jige also had a slight resemblance to Zhu Anping and said, "Then wouldn’t even your mother-in-law be unable to hold him?"

Lady Qi glanced sideways at Fifth Lady with a smile, as if to say, "Do I even need to ask?"

Fifth Lady chuckled.

Old Lady Zhu was all about her grandchildren. If Lady Qi raised her son to the point where he wouldn’t even want his grandmother, Old Lady Zhu would surely be heartbroken.

Lady Shiyi smiled and invited the two to sit on the large kang by the window in the western room. She gave gifts to Jige and Bao’er. Knowing that Lady Qi’s family had only arrived in the afternoon and were staying at their residence in Yanjing, she asked about their plans for the next few days and called the children to greet Jige and Bao’er.

Chengge insisted on following his sister Xingge to play with Bao’er, while Jingge and Shenge, who had been playing cuju before, found it tedious to sit and listen to the adults talk. They pulled Jige along to go play outside.

Ji Geer turned pale with fright and hid behind Seventh Miss, refusing to come out.

Seventh Miss laughed and came to his rescue: "He can't play football!"

Jin Geer dismissed this with a wave: "I'll teach him—even my mother learned it!"

As if Eleven Miss was some kind of slow learner.

Hearing this, Eleven Miss couldn't help but clear her throat lightly.

Seventh Miss and Fifth Madame burst into laughter.