Chapter 37: The Banquet (Part 2)

  Eleventh Girl heard something between the lines.

  Xu Jia Wuya Xu Lingkuan is only eighteen years old this year, serving as the battalion commander of the Tianyi Camp in the Imperial Guard, a fourth-rank military officer. Three years ago, he married the eldest daughter of Dingnan Hou Sun Kang as his wife. In the words of the elder lady, Xu Lingkuan was an ignorant and untalented young master who relied on his ancestors' reputation and only knew how to indulge in falconry and horseback riding...

  Is Mrs. Qiao referring to Xu Lingkuan?

  The old lady just smiled and didn't answer, leading everyone into the flower hall.

  There is a kang in the flower hall, warm as spring. The table was set up in the west wing of the flower hall, and the dishes and chopsticks had already been laid out. The serving maids and old women were standing solemnly on one side.

  The three madams warmly invited everyone to sit down.

  After you made way for me, Madame Tai, Madame Dai, Madame Qiao and Madame San sat at one table.

  Lao Da Nainai, Wu Niang, Qiao Jia Liu Xiao Jie and Shi Yi Niang sat at one table.

  The aunt then retreated to outside the hall.

  The maids brought out basins of water scented with osmanthus flowers for everyone to wash their hands, and then served Lady Wang a dish of silver needle noodles from Mount Jun, and Lady Luo a dish of cloud and mist chicken from Mount Lu. Then the maids brought in an endless stream of dishes: snacks, platters, small plates, cold dishes, hot dishes, and simmering stews...

  The third lady poured Huanghua wine for the elder lady and the others on the side.

  The lady of the house politely said to the madam, "It's just a simple meal at home, please don't despise it," and then raised her cup to toast everyone.

  Mrs. Dai and Mrs. Qiao returned the courtesy.

  The banquet officially began.

  Eleventh sister, this side dish is plentiful, but no one dares to stare at it from a distance - the person helping to serve the dishes next to them will definitely stretch out their chopsticks and pick some up, inevitably giving people the feeling of being greedy... so everyone eats the dishes in front of them in an orderly manner.

  As for the elder lady, she excused herself on account of poor health and had a small cup more, then put down her wine cup and stopped drinking, letting the third lady take over. Although the elder lady looked about the same age as the first lady, in reality she was already past sixty years old, so no one dared to persuade her much. The first lady fixed her gaze on Mrs. Qiao. After several cups of wine, Mrs. Qiao's face was flushed and her ears were red, but the first lady remained calm and composed.

  Who would have thought that the lady has such a good capacity for liquor!

  The eleventh girl sat on one side watching the show.

  Before long, Mrs. Chiao could hardly speak coherently.

  The elder lady saw that the situation was not right, and she repeatedly made eye contact with the third lady. The third lady held up her wine cup to toast Mrs. Qiao on behalf of the host, and the eldest lady also didn't want to cause trouble at her own family's banquet, so she stopped.

  After dinner, it was already late, so everyone moved to the living room to have some tea.

  Maybe it was because she had been drinking, but Mrs. Qiao's words were especially numerous.

  "...can be a close family with you, are blessed. Don't mention others, just talk about the Sun family. If it weren't for you as the mother-in-law, her daughter who got married, how could she stay at her husband's home for half a month and her natal home for half a month."

  The old lady chuckled and saw the big wife's puzzled face, explaining: "Dingnan Hou has only one daughter under his knees, like a treasure, who can marry our family is because we have many sons. In the future, daughters and sons-in-law can often visit their mother's home. I am also a person who raises children. Poor parents' hearts are all the same. Let them live at home for half a month and go to Hongdeng Hutong Dingnan Hou Mansion for half a month. Both sides will be fresh. You came at an inopportune time, it is the second half of the month, they are still in Dingnan Hou Mansion. When they return, let them come to you to pay their respects!"

  "Impossible, impossible!" The old lady hastened to say, "The Fifth Lady is the former emperor's appointed Countess of Danyang, a noble identity, how can she be made to pay her respects to me?"

  The younger sister of Dingnan Marquis was the favorite concubine of the previous emperor, and she had no children. When she was alive, she often summoned Sun Shi to enter the palace to accompany her, and the previous emperor also liked her, granting her the title "Countess of Danyang", which was a top rank among the families of marquises, earls, and high-ranking officials.

  "Mrs. Qiao smiled and said, 'The Emperor still has a few poor relatives, let alone you and me? Besides, our county master is a virtuous and kind person, since marrying into the Xu family, she no longer allows people to call her "County Master". Relatives and friends have always been generous, everyone likes..."

  The lady listened as she spoke more and more preposterously, her heart seething with anger, yet restrained from erupting in the matriarch's home, merely sneering inwardly.

  They are truly frogs at the bottom of a well, self-aggrandizing. From the founding of the Great Zhou dynasty to the present, over a hundred years have passed. The so-called meritorious founders of the country had all been either killed or demoted or stripped of their titles by Taizong in his later years, and their family properties were mostly confiscated or sold off. Only a few families remained, trembling with fear like dogs that had lost their homes, unable to survive for long. It wasn't until the time of Xianzong that a few families managed to recover their titles, but they were already like frightened birds, only hoping to preserve their lives and not daring to achieve any merit in the imperial court. Over a hundred years, most of them became strong on the outside but weak on the inside, barely maintaining their daily expenses by relying on their ancestors' properties. How could they compare to those families of officials who had produced talented descendants? Not to mention setting up estates and opening shops, some even used the imperial household's funds to do business... If Prince Cheng hadn't made some money in the northwest military a few years ago, the Qiao family would have been just another one of them. And yet, they dared to boast shamelessly in front of her...

  The more she thought about it, the worse her complexion became.

  The old lady saw it clearly, sighed silently in her heart, and stood up with a smile: "Why don't we go take a look at the newly built theater, and digest our food!"

  The lady knew that Mrs. Tai was helping her out of this difficulty, and she looked at the lady with gratitude, and they all went to the newly built opera stage.

  The stage is very small, with two rooms, powder walls and gray tiles, the eaves of the four corners are high and raised like a swallow. The screen wall of the stage is painted with five colors and filled with large peony flowers, which is very luxurious. Behind the stage is a row of seven-winged houses, on the left is a three-winged house, on the right is a corridor, opposite is a seven-room main house, with corridors and pavilions built around it.

  The three ladies laughed and said: "It's a great idea of the Fifth Master. In summer, hang a fan on the eaves of the veranda, listen to opera while fanning yourself, feel the gentle breeze, and relieve the summer heat. In winter, you can hang a curtain or roll it up, light a brazier, roast sweet potatoes and beans, play and have fun, carefree and at ease..."

  Old Lady Luo repeatedly praised: "It's really a wonderful idea."

  Everyone also said "good".

  Wu Niang's eyes sparkled with envy, Qiao Liu Xiaojie smiled faintly, while Shi Yi Niang carefully examined the surrounding decorations.

  The door and window frames are all made of five-colored gold, either carved with flowers, or carved with birds and beasts, or carved with hundred children, or carved with ancient objects. They are quite different from the usual patterns of five bats holding longevity or five sons passing the imperial examination. Amidst the bustle, there is a sense of solemnity. It can be seen that a lot of effort has been put into it.

  Madam smiled and said, "I don't know how much effort was spent on this theater stage." She pointed to the seven rooms behind the stage: "If we hadn't built this row, it would have led directly to the garden." She also pointed to the corridor, "And Xiao Si's study was also demolished by half. Fortunately, he has a good temper; if he had encountered Old Master Hou, I'm afraid he would have been scolded severely."

  "Mrs. Qiao uttered an 'oh' and shifted her gaze: 'If they start singing opera over here, won't that disturb the Duke?'"

  "What's the fuss about!" The old lady laughed, "It was moved long ago. When Xiao Wu got married, it was moved to 'Half Moon Pond' in the back garden. Otherwise, even if I borrowed Xiao Wu's courage, I wouldn't dare to make such a big construction project on this side."

  Everyone burst out laughing.

  The old lady led them into the reception hall.

  Inside, there is a small courtyard with only three rooms in the main house facing south and north. The roof is covered with gray tiles, the walls are painted white, and the pillars are black lacquered to the ground. White paper windows are pasted on the windows. In the courtyard, several pieces of Taihu stone are paved, a few stalks of bamboo are planted on the left, and a few banana plants are planted on the right, quiet and elegant.

  The lady praised "good place".

  "It's not possible." Madam Tai smiled and looked at Third Madam, "If it weren't for Little San stopping her, she would have said that if there were any noble guests coming, they could come over here to rest their feet, Xiao Wu would have torn it down long ago."

  The three madams covered their mouths and smiled: "Our old master came out to intercept because he saw the color of Lord Hou's face turn green."

  Everyone laughed and walked out of the courtyard, out of the backstage dressing room, and onto a path paved with bluestones. On the left side of the path was a wall with lattice windows, built in various shapes such as round, square, or plum blossom patterns, through which could be seen the layered green hills, clear springs, and strange rocks in the garden. As they walked along, there was a strong flavor of Jiangnan gardens, with each window framing a different scene.

  "Mrs. Qiao smiled and said: 'Fifth Master really put in effort, even this wall has been changed.'"

  The old lady smiled and pointed to a few green branches stretching out from the pink wall on the right side: "That's where Old Five lives."

  Eleventh Sister looked over and saw a five-level platform, where two or three little maidservants with their hair not yet styled were playing at tossing sandbags.

  Seeing Mrs. Tao walking over, they all came forward to pay their respects to Mrs. Tao. A fifty-year-old woman with a light pink complexion and a plain dress standing next to Mrs. Tao took out some candies from her bag and gave them to the little maids as a reward. The little maids all ran away with joy. Mrs. Tao pointed to a section of powder wall in front: "That is Yuan Niang's courtyard."

  Bamboo shoots protrude from the wall.

  The third lady pointed and laughed at the pink wall at the end of the corridor: "I live there!"

  Behind the house of Mrs. Tai is the flower hall, next to the flower hall lives Xu Lingkuan, next to Xu Lingkuan is Xu Lingyi, and further away is Xu Lingning... The Xu family should also have a widow sister-in-law, I don't know where she lives?

  Eleventh daughter thought for a moment. Following the path, they passed by Yuan's courtyard and saw that the wall with the leaky window had three main doors, each with a side door on either side. The main door and the left side door were closed, while the right side door was open. Two old women were sitting on the threshold of the spring bed in front of the door, chatting. When they saw Madame, they immediately ran over to pay their respects.

  The old lady said a few words to the two women in a gentle tone, and then the third madam smiled: "It's not worth walking around for so long, why don't we go inside and have a cup of tea!"

  The old lady looked at the big wife, and the big wife was afraid that the old lady would be tired, so she smiled and replied: "Good!"

  They followed the path pointed out by the Third Mistress and headed south until they reached the Third Mistress's residence.

  The residence of the three wives had five rooms and four courtyards, larger than the Luo family's house in Bowstring Alley. The walls were painted with powder, the tiles were gray, and the gate was made of black lacquer. The main hall was divided into a study and a flower hall, facing the entrance hall. Inside the entrance hall, there was a stone path in the shape of a cross, lined with banana trees and apricot trees, and a flower stand. The three main rooms had ear rooms, connected by a corridor to the east and west wings, where Xu Shiqin and Xu Shijian lived. In the third courtyard lived Xu Lingning and his wife, surrounded by magnolia trees and cypress trees. The fourth courtyard was the rear wing.

  They were drinking tea in the main hall where the three madams lived.

  A clear and bright light golden tea soup, with emerald green leaves scattered throughout, wafting threads of fragrant osmanthus scent.

  The eleventh daughter was slightly stunned.

  Take a small sip.

  The unique bean flower fragrance and sweet osmanthus flavor are intertwined, rich and mellow, with a lingering aftertaste.

  It's osmanthus tea.

  Although it has a unique flavor, she doesn't like it.

  Eleventh girl likes clear tea —— each tea has its own character, with other things mixed in between, always feels less of the original purity.

  She thought for a moment, and someone had already praised: "What good tea!"

  Eleventh Young Lady looked in the direction of the sound and saw it was Sixth Miss Qiao.

  "This is indeed the new flower tea released by Lingxiu Building this year!" She narrowed her eyes, looking satisfied.

  The third lady smiled and said, "Sister is indeed a refined person. However, this isn't the tea from Lingxiu Building, but rather the tea made from the flowers of the hundred-year-old osmanthus tree in our garden, personally picked by Second Sister last autumn."