Chapter 24: The Swallow's Capital (Part 2)

  Old Master Luo had a four-compound mansion in Huanghua Alley, Laojun Hall, East City, Beijing when he was an official in the capital. Later, Second Master Luo stayed in Beijing as a high-ranking official and lived in this house all along.

  Later, the three brothers returned to Yanjing together to report to the Ministry of Justice, and this house naturally couldn't accommodate them anymore.

  Third Master moved there to live because Third Mistress had a three-section house with a dowry in Renshoufang, Qiantang Hutong, Yanjing.

  In this way, the old master will have to squeeze together with the second old master.

  The second master and his wife not only had to move out of the main house to live with their daughter in the back wing, but also the third master Luo Zhendong and his wife and young son had to vacate the outer courtyard for Luo Zhenxing's family to live in. It sounds troublesome, let alone moving. The old master thought that his son would bring his daughter-in-law and still study at the Imperial Academy, and if he failed the exam, it was common to stay for five or six years, so living with the second house was not a good idea. So he asked the second master to buy a three-entrance mansion in Gongyuan Hutong, Baodafang.

  So, the madam who got off the horse carriage looked at the two Chinese scholar trees in front of the mansion gate, which were as thick as a man's hug, and her face didn't look good.

  "How much did this house cost?"

  The house of Huang Hua Fang Lao Jun Tang is public, everyone has a share. Originally, the second house was an official in Beijing, so they gave this house to them for residence. Now that several houses are gathered in Beijing, the second house should vacate the house... How can they still buy a house outside? Does the second house think that the house is their own?

  Lu Zhenxing knew his mother's thoughts and softly advised: "Mother, wealth is an external thing. As long as we ourselves live comfortably, that's enough."

  The old lady looked at her son, her face beaming with joy: "A good son doesn't ask his parents about their property. Xing Ge, this is the demeanor of a real man who stands tall and upright. With such a son, wealth is indeed an external thing."

  Luo Zhenxing's face turned slightly red: "Sons are not as good as their mothers say!"

  The lady smiled but didn't speak, looking at her son's expression with a few proud looks, and was led by him into the house.

  Lu Zhenxing's wife, Mrs. Gu, held her son Rongge and led the six madams, maids, daughters-in-law, and mothers-in-law to wait in front of the hanging flower gate.

  When she saw her grandmother, she hurriedly went up to greet her. Xiao Ge was even more excited and opened his arms wide, shouting "Grandma, Grandma".

  A smile could no longer be concealed from the corner of Madame's eyes and eyebrows.

  She took quick steps forward, stretched out her hands and hugged Xiao Ge into her arms: "Good Xiao Ge, do you miss your grandmother?"

  "I've thought of it!" Four-year-old Xiao Ge replied in a soft and gentle voice, hugging the waist of Madame Wang and pressing his face against her chin.

  "Good boy." The old lady gently patted her grandson's back, with a smile all over her face.

  Sixth Aunt and others came forward to pay their respects to Madame, who responded with a good mood, then hugged Brother Rong and lifted her feet to enter the house.

  The old lady hurriedly stretched out her hand to take the child: "Mother, you're tired from the journey, let me hold him!"

  "I'm not so old that I can't even hold a child!" The big madam held Brother Huan tighter, with an expression as if she was afraid someone would snatch him from her arms.

  The old lady stretched out her hand and grasped the arm of the mistress: "Let me take you in, daughter-in-law." As she spoke, she walked shoulder to shoulder with the mistress into the main courtyard.

  Goldfish bowl, flower stand, stone table and chairs, trees taller than the roof, and red window stickers... Although it's winter, the courtyard exudes a warm and cozy atmosphere.

  Looking back again, a man wearing a navy blue jacket with a bundle of flowers on his waist stood under the eaves of the main house with his hands behind his back.

  His hair was black, his skin was fair, his eyes were bright, and he had a straight figure. From afar, he looked majestic and refined, like a man in his late thirties, extremely handsome.

  Seeing the lady, he nodded slightly and smiled in greeting: "Here!"

  The madam's eyes fixed, handed the child to the wet nurse, walked slowly to the steps, knelt down and paid respects to the old master, calling out "Master".

  This man was none other than Luo Huazhong, the old master of the Luo family.

  Eleventh Sister still remembered the shock of seeing him for the first time - she thought she would see a timid old man... who knew it was a middle-aged man with an exceptional temperament.

  The old man politely asked his wife: "Was the road safe?"

  The lady curtsied and replied respectfully, "Yes." She smiled and said, "With the name card of my elder brother-in-law, we didn't encounter any mishaps on the way."

  The old master nodded slightly and seemed unwilling to talk about it, casting his eyes on the fifth daughter-in-law and eleventh daughter-in-law behind Madame.

  The two of them hurried forward to pay their respects to the old master.

  The old man looked at their expressions and flashed a hint of surprise: "How did they grow up so big in the blink of an eye!"

  With just this one sentence, Shíyīniáng immediately categorized him as an irresponsible playboy.

  The madam listened, her eyes cold, and saw the look in Mrs. Xu's eyes, silently shouting "oh no", immediately stepped forward to pay respects to the old master: "Old master is well!" and shifted the attention to herself.

  The old master looked at Mrs. Xu and nodded slightly, saying to the madam: "Everyone is tired, let's go inside and rest!" He then turned around and entered the house.

  The crowd followed him into the house.

  Everyone took their seats in order of precedence, and it was only then that Eleventh Sister had a chance to take stock of the furnishings in the room.

  Black lacquer furniture, green velvet curtains, a tea table with bright yellow and fresh peach blossoms, a lush and vibrant wealth tree in the corner of the wall, and an eight immortal crossing the sea ceramic screen on the wall, decorating the house full of vitality and interest.

  Several young maidservants quietly brought up tea.

  The old master suddenly asked: "Why didn't Shi Niang follow you?"

  The air in the house is stale.

  The lady smiled humbly: "Her asthma has acted up again, so I didn't bring her along!"

  The old master slightly frowned: "Didn't we agree on this? How could you do it again?"

  "These past few years have been up and down, and this time I came to Yanjing, I was also thinking of finding a better doctor for her," said the lady with a calm and natural expression. "It can't go on like this forever. To say nothing of the fact that she's already fifteen this year, it's about time we started looking for a husband for her. If people find out she has this illness, who knows what kind of trouble might arise."

  The old man nodded and stopped mentioning Shining, instead asking Wu Niang: "How's your calligraphy practice going?"

  The girl stood up and said respectfully: "Father, mother has been guiding me in practicing calligraphy."

  The old master looked at the old lady and smiled: "Your mother followed your grandfather to read books since childhood, and her handwriting is better than mine. You can get your mother's guidance, but you must learn to cherish it."

  The Fifth Daughter replied in a respectful tone, "Yes."

  A faint smile flashed across Madame's face.

  The old master asked Shier Niang again: "Are you still cooped up at home doing needlework every day?"

  The eleventh girl stood up like the fifth girl and respectfully replied with a "yes".

  "What's wrong with your face? Seasick?" The old man sized up Eleven.

  Eleventh girl nodded: "Yes!"

  "It's okay if you get seasick, you'll be fine once you're back on land!" The old master burst out laughing, "Then another day, make me a pair of shoes and let me see how your needlework has improved!"

  The eleventh girl responded solemnly with a "yes".

  The old master looked at her and shook his head, laughing: "At such a young age, you don't know who you're like? So serious and solemn, so stiff!"

  The eleventh girl's face turned bright red, and she muttered incoherently.

  "Alright," said the mistress, intervening, "the children haven't seen you for a long time and everyone is scolding them. Who can let it go!"

  The old master smiled and was about to say something, when a little maid came in and reported: "Master, mistress, the eldest brother, second brother's wife, and eldest sister have sent someone to pay their respects to you!"

  Everyone in the house was stunned.

  The old lady arrived at the front foot, and the back foot of the elder sister's family arrived... Was it the old master who sent someone to inform the elder sister?

  Everyone's eyes fell on Luo Zhenxing.

  Luo Zhenxing was also surprised and said to his wife: "Mother, I didn't send anyone to inform sister."

  The madam looked at the old master.

  The old man also shook his head: "I reckon you'll still need four or five more days to get there..."

  That's the scene that has been going on over here!

  The lady's expression was slightly stern, and she hastily instructed Mrs. Xu: "Quickly, go and welcome them in!"

  Mrs. Xu left at the sound, regardless of whether it was Master, Madame, or Grandpa and Grandma, their faces all showed a few degrees of solemnity, without any joy of reunion, and the room began to subtly diffuse a sense of unease.

  The little boy was most sensitive. As he was held in his mother's arms, Xiao Ge looked at the old master and then at the old lady, revealing a timid expression.

  The fifth daughter looked on and smiled softly: "Mother, elder sister is really filial... wholeheartedly waiting for you to come!"

  "Big wife's mouth corners slightly raised: 'She has been sticking to me since she was a child!'"

  "I don't even know what Big Sister looks like now!" Wu Niang laughed and chatted with Da Tai Tai, "Speaking of which, I was still young when Big Sister got married..."

  Before she had finished speaking, Mrs. Xu led in a woman wearing a pink ten-flower embroidered jacket.

  The woman was only thirty-five or thirty-six years old, with black hair neatly combed into a bun, revealing a smooth forehead. Dignified and elegant, with a hint of capable efficiency.

  The fifth daughter stopped and didn't finish what she was saying.

  The woman had already knelt down on the ground and kowtowed: "Madam... I, your servant Tao Shi, wish you and Master a good day."

  The old lady sat up straight with a soft "ah" and said with some excitement, "So it's Old Mother Tao!"

  "It's the slave!" The Tao mother got up, then knelt down again and knocked her head three times on the ground for the old master and mistress, saying: "The slave is kowtowing to the old master and mistress on behalf of the madam."

  The old lady got up and came forward, personally carrying Tao's mother: "Is my yuan niang okay?" Before she finished speaking, her eyes were already filled with tears.

  "Good, good, good." Mrs. Tao's eyes were brimming with tears as she tightly grasped the hand of the elder lady, "Madam, everything is fine! It's just that it's been many years since I last saw you, and my heart has been anxious."

  Madam heard this and tears fell down like rain, causing Tao's mother to hurriedly apologize: "This servant has misspoken, allowing Madam to be heartbroken."

  Mrs. Xu then persuaded from the side: "This is a great joyous event, why did the madam start crying?"

  The old lady handed the baby to a nearby nurse and took out her handkerchief to wipe the mistress's face: "Overjoyed to tears, overjoyed to tears. You're happy, but you can't scare us like this."

  The Fifth Daughter and the Eleventh Daughter, as well as the Sixth Aunt, also came forward to persuade: "Madam, don't cry anymore!"

  The old lady took over the handkerchief from the elder grandma with some embarrassment, wiped her eyes and smiled: "I'm getting older, but I've come to like sentimental feelings."

  Everyone burst out laughing.

  "Ah, I've been entrusted by the mistress to invite you, esteemed lady, to visit our manor tomorrow afternoon for a chat. Would that be convenient for you? Or would you like to reschedule?"

  (Today continues to update... those who have voted for my sister's work, please continue voting too! O(∩_∩)O haha~)