Chapter 329 The Spoiled Guest

Chapter 329: The Cherished Guest

Chang Jinhua changed her clothes but couldn't sit still indoors. She walked out to the courtyard and gazed toward the main courtyard, with Meng Wan accompanying her as they waited for their guests.

Huang Ye led people through the corridor and approached, bowing to Chang Jinhua and Meng Wan. "Old Madam, Young Master, the aunt and young cousin..."

Before he could finish, Auntie Chang had already pushed past him to greet Chang Jinhua warmly. "Big Sister, finally I get to see you! Dalang has really made something of himself, living in such a big house!"

"How many people would it take to fill this place?"

"And all those trees you've planted in the front courtyard—what a waste of money! Why didn't you just dig some up from the hills back home?"

She rattled off a string of comments, then turned her attention to Chang Jinhua's attire.

Ever since Meng Wan had started making more money, he no longer bought silver pieces for Chang Jinhua—only the most expensive items. Full sets of gem-studded headdresses, and two boxes of gold bangles, all different styles.

There's no woman who doesn't love to dress up. Chang Jinhua had gotten used to it during her years of widowhood, and after opening her own shop, she'd stopped worrying about those rules. But to make it easier to work, she didn't like wearing jade either.

Today she wore a gold bangle engraved with cloud patterns on each wrist, and two gold hairpins inlaid with sapphires stuck in her bun—heavy and finely made. The lower pin had wheat-ear style tassels hanging from it, ending in small pieces of yellow gemstones that gleamed with a crystalline glow in the light.

Her earrings were the same—gold wheat ears with yellow gems. This was just an ordinary set she wore at home, yet one could see it was not cheap.

Auntie Chang's eyes nearly popped out. She affectionately hooked her arm through Chang Jinhua's, rubbing her plain cotton dress against Chang Jinhua's brocade. "Big Sister, just look at you, all dressed up so fancy! You've gotten fairer and plumper too, nothing like how you used to be."

"I haven't gained much weight, but you've gotten rounder and look younger," Chang Jinhua said, looking at her sister-in-law's plump round face. She remembered when she'd left home, Auntie Chang had a thick head of black hair with only faint lines at her eyes. These years she must have been living comfortably—she'd indeed put on weight, though the wrinkles on her face had multiplied.

Yuge'er, imitating Huang Ye's earlier manner, twisted his slender waist and bowed slightly to Chang Jinhua and Meng Wan. "Aunt, cousin-in-law."

He did better than his mother—despite his inner excitement and nervousness, he managed a proper bow, though his waist twisted a bit too much, making it look neither one thing nor another.

Meng Wan smiled and responded, "Ah, you two must be tired from the journey. Let's go inside and talk."

Chang Jinhua was happy to see family. More than her sister-in-law, she liked her nephew. "Yuge'er, come sit with your aunt. The small courtyard beside mine is empty—tonight you and your mother can either stay in my rooms or use the small courtyard, whichever you prefer."

Yuge'er nodded shyly. "Okay, Aunt."

The layout of Chang Jinhua's quarters was similar to the main courtyard. Entering, one found the central hall where everyone ate when they had meals here.

In the middle of the hall stood an eight-immortal table with chairs, and against the north wall was a daybed with side tables, with a huge screen in between.

The hall was big, but the screen was even bigger—like a wall placed in the middle. Painted on it was a residence different from northern ones, with a courtyard and small building, sugarcane planted all around. A middle-aged woman sat on a bamboo chair with a small child, basking in the sun, and looking closely, she also held a baby in her arms.

Beside them, a young man in blue led a white wolf while grinding medicinal powder, the wolf's fluffy tail emitting a rainbow glow under the warm sun.

Behind them, in the house, the couple were huddled together reading the same letter.

At the doorway stood a man looking up at the sunlight—plain-featured but with gentle eyes.

The sun wasn't painted in the whole picture, yet sunlight fell on everyone, peaceful and warm.

"Is this you in the painting, Big Sister? Behind, is that Dalang and Wan Ge'er? Good heavens, how is it painted so realistically?" Auntie Chang exclaimed in genuine awe, then changed the subject. "But why is everything gold here? It's not that gold powder those rich gentlemen talk about, is it?"

Knowing her sister-in-law's character, Chang Jinhua flatly denied it. "Who would sprinkle gold powder on a painting? It's just pigment Wan Ge'er made."

The screen was purely painted by Meng Wan for Chang Jinhua to keep up appearances—and it was indeed real gold.

Meng Wan had used an entire box of gold, having craftsmen repeatedly hammer it into gold leaf paper. This painting-grade gold leaf was even thinner than ordinary gold leaf paper, lighter than a feather when blown.

Craftsmen had to carefully, sheet by sheet, stick the made gold leaf paper onto the screen, leaving no gaps, for Meng Wan to paint.

The screen was pure luxury. Marquis mansions or prince mansions might have things painted with gold leaf, but definitely not as exquisite as Meng Wan's painting skill.

And those with better painting skill than Meng Wan might not necessarily be richer than him.

Auntie Chang eyed the gleaming gold with doubt and wanted to reach out and touch it, but Chang Jinhua hurriedly pulled her inside. "We've prepared canned fruit and pastries inside—you and Yuge'er, come in and taste them."

The room on the left side of the central hall was unused—Chang Jinhua enshrined her husband's memorial tablet there, where during festivals the family would go in to offer incense and change the offerings.

On the right was Chang Jinhua's bedroom, divided into inner and outer rooms. The bed in the inner room was almost unused—A Yan sometimes slept there when sleepy. Chang Jinhua usually slept on the kang in the outer room.

The kang in the outer room was laid out very large, against the south window, with sunlight streaming in especially bright.

Weiying and Zhuque waited inside to hold the curtains for everyone, which startled Auntie Chang and Yuge'er—they hadn't expected anyone to be inside.

"Old Madam, Young Master."

"Aunt, young cousin."

The servants of the Song household bowed very simply and crisply, without too much clever talk.

Yuge'er's eyes were still staring at the gorgeous screen in a daze, while his ears heard the servants respectfully bowing and greeting. He couldn't describe the feeling in his heart, only felt a sour, swollen sensation in his chest.

In such a short moment, he had made up his mind: he must stay in Shengjing City and never go back to that small town of Quanshui!

Auntie Chang, however, didn't stand on ceremony. Without needing to be invited, she took off her shoes and was about to climb onto the kang. But she and Yuge'er had come straight to the Song residence after entering the capital, not yet having time to wash up. Even though the weather wasn't hot, on the journey to the capital it wasn't convenient to wash up anytime, so their bodies were sour and smelly, and taking off her shoes made the smell even more obvious.

Before others could react, Yuge'er first blushed with shame. "Aunt, I want to take a bath first."

Zhuque quickly said, "Young cousin, don't be anxious—this servant will go fetch water right away."

Seeing her son's embarrassment, Auntie Chang could only put her shoes back on. Chang Jinhua personally led them to the inner room, letting the mother and son wash up inside.

The household had plenty of new clothes that had never been worn. Chang Jinhua found an outfit for Auntie Chang. Meng Wan looked cheerful, but he wasn't willing to casually give away his clothes, whether worn or not.

So he sent Huang Ye to get a set of A Xun's clothes for Yuge'er to wear for now. A Xun didn't like wearing too luxurious clothes, and didn't like bright colors either.

Yuge'er somewhat disliked that the clothes were old and the fabric wasn't as good as his mother's set. He felt Meng Wan was being perfunctory, having found a servant's set.

But then Meng Wan's next words were, "Today Aunt and Yuge'er came suddenly, with not much luggage, probably not bringing many changes of clothes. In the afternoon I'll take Yuge'er to a ready-made clothes shop to pick out a few outfits to wear first, and have the people at Lanyue's shop make a few outfits for Yuge'er and Aunt."

This made Yuge'er feel embarrassed instead. "No need, cousin-in-law—this is already very good."

His mother pinched his waist and glared at him. "Your cousin-in-law's kindness you should accept; wearing ragged clothes would embarrass them."

Yuge'er then didn't speak again. He actually also really hoped Meng Wan would buy him new clothes. When the young lads in town played with him, they'd often mention which wealthy family's son was wearing the latest style from the capital.

He secretly looked at Meng Wan's clothes—clearly not very bright, but why did they look so fitting and good on his cousin-in-law?

Chang Jinhua didn't like hearing her sister-in-law's words. "Don't talk about embarrassing or not. Yuge'er, come sit by your aunt."

Yuge'er climbed onto the kang. On the long kang table were six plates of pastries.

Auntie Chang's eyes went straight, not knowing where to start eating. Worried about her son, she reached out and first grabbed a light pink cake for Yuge'er. "At your aunt's house, no need to be shy—eat up."

Yuge'er felt her behavior was embarrassing in front of Chang Jinhua and Meng Wan. His eyes grew moist with shame, and he couldn't bring himself to take a bite.

Chang Jinhua set a bowl of canned lychees in front of him, her voice gentle and kind. "You must be hungry from the journey. Have something to tide you over—at noon, your aunt will prepare a proper feast for you."

Yuge'er set down the pastry and took the lychee bowl from Chang Jinhua. He wanted to ask what this food was, but feared being laughed at, so he carefully scooped up a lychee with his spoon and took a bite.

The next second, sweetness and the fragrant aroma of lychee filled his mouth, and Yu-ge'er's eyes lit up. "This is so good!"

After saying this, he couldn't help but regret it, afraid that Meng Wan would secretly laugh at him for not knowing any better, so he fell silent again. Before he knew it, he had eaten half a bowl, and no matter how much he craved more, he stopped.

Chang Jinhua chatted with her aunt-in-law for a while, then asked about her own mother.

Song Tingzhou's maternal grandmother was already over seventy, having lived to a ripe old age. Chang Jinhua had often worried while in Lingnan, afraid she wouldn't be able to see her one last time.

Her aunt-in-law continued to speak with a smile, "She's doing well, just that she's getting older now and has some trouble getting out of bed. Don't worry, big sis. Your nephew and his wife are at home taking care of her, so there's no need to fret."

Meng Wan noticed that Yu-ge'er slightly lowered his head while his mother was speaking, hiding his expression from view.

"Yu-ge'er, I see that your hairpins and ornaments are a bit old. How about I take you to the jewelry shop this afternoon to pick out some new ones?"

Yu-ge'er was indeed pleasantly surprised. The moment he instinctively looked up, he hadn't had time to hide the guilty look on his face.

Meng Wan had a nagging suspicion, but on reflection, it wasn't too unexpected.

Chang Jinhua was finally reunited with her relatives, so it was best to let her feel comfortable and happy first. Other matters could be dealt with later.

At noon, Chang Jinhua personally went to the kitchen to prepare the meal. She didn't prepare anything elaborate, mostly meat dishes—roast lamb leg, braised pork hock, pig's trotters, roast chicken, steamed shad, and a few stir-fried vegetable dishes, covering the table to the brim.

After the meal, Meng Wan indeed took Yu-ge'er out, heading to Lanyue's ready-made clothing shop.

"Meng Fulang, why have you come in person?" Lanyue was swamped, but it was the young male attendant at the door who spotted Meng Wan and went to the back courtyard to fetch Lanyue.

Meng Wan loved seeing young men and women running their own businesses, diligent and shrewd. "You go on about your business. I've come to pick out some ready-made clothes for my younger cousin, and also to order a few custom pieces."

"There are plenty of hands in the back, so they don't need me for now. We also have new ready-made clothes in the back—I'll have the shop assistants bring out a few fresh ones for you to look at." Meng Wan had largely supported Lanyue's shop in its early days, so when Meng Wan came to patronize his business, he wouldn't dream of not accompanying him even if he was swamped.

Lanyue's shop had expanded its offerings considerably by now, with a variety of styles—some leaning toward Lingnan-style ethnic clothing, and others featuring the latest trends from Shengjing.

Yu-ge'er's eyes only lingered on the bright and beautiful garments. After picking out two skirts, he said that was enough.

Lanyue personally took Yu-ge'er's measurements, saying that once the new clothes were made, he would send someone to deliver them to the Song residence immediately. Meng Wan then said goodbye and left with Yu-ge'er.

Having promised to buy Yu-ge'er jewelry, Meng Wan made a detour to a jewelry shop on another street. It wasn't the expensive Baoguang Studio, but it was a decent mid-to-high-end shop, also quite spacious, frequented mostly by young men and women from moderately wealthy families.

Meng Wan wasn't short on money, but he wasn't the type to throw money around. The jewelry in his own collection was rare and exquisite, and Yu-ge'er was just a relative's child—buying him clothes and trinkets was fine, but spending hundreds or thousands of taels (a unit of silver currency) was out of the question.

Even so, the dazzling array of jewelry in the shop had already captivated Yu-ge'er's eyes. He still had some restraint, hesitating between two silver hairpins and a gold one before choosing a double-butterfly-and-chrysanthemum gold hairpin weighing one tael and six qian.

The butterfly wings had an openwork design, with a few rice-grain-sized jade beads set along the edges, lifelike and quite beautiful. Many young women and men were admiring it.

Meng Wan bought it for him without a second thought, then picked out two or three pairs of jade earrings and a pair of twisted emerald jade bangles. "Wear these for fun—think of them as a little welcome present."

Yu-ge'er was overjoyed. At sixteen, he was at an age where he loved to look good. Clutching the boxes, he affectionately called Meng Wan "sister-in-law."

When they returned, Yu-ge'er couldn't wait to slip the bangles Meng Wan had given him onto his wrists. Her aunt-in-law was pleased that Meng Wan had bought things for her son, but she also thought he had bought too little.

She compared Yu-ge'er's gold hairpin with the one Huang Ye (a servant) wore, feeling that her son, as an honored guest of the Song family, was wearing something no better than a servant's—losing face. She made hints both direct and indirect that Meng Wan should add a few more hairpins and ornaments for Yu-ge'er, and she also wanted some for herself.

Yu-ge'er was afraid that his mother's words would anger Meng Wan, yet he also felt that his sister-in-law, with her ever-smiling and easygoing demeanor, might actually buy more for her.

Torn and miserable, unable to reason with his mother, he simply blushed and fiddled with his new clothes.

Chang Jinhua had long known what kind of person her aunt-in-law was. She picked out two gold bangles weighing two taels each from her own jewelry box and gave them to her, silencing her.

When Song Tingzhou returned from his official duties, he learned from Gui Cheng at the front courtyard that his aunt-in-law had brought her son to visit. He went back to the main courtyard to change out of his official robes before heading to Chang Jinhua's place to meet his aunt-in-law.