Two swaddling clothes, one embroidered with the character for “fortune” in bright red and the other with “health” in royal blue, each wrapped around a tender baby. Their round eyes were wide open, and they giggled at the people around them.
Old Master Jiang swallowed hard and asked, “Whose children are these? How did they end up here?”
Li Huaiyu replied with a mischievous smile, “We found them on the road.”
Jiang Xuanjin shot her a look and said seriously, “Father, don’t listen to her nonsense. These two children are our own. We didn’t have the chance to tell you before, so we brought them here for you to see.”
The old master’s eyebrows twitched, and he almost lost his balance. “Whose children?”
Jiang Xuanjin repeated earnestly, “Ours.”
In other words, they were his legitimate grandchildren.
The old master’s eyes widened in shock. “When did this happen? How come I didn’t know at all?”
“I only found out later,” Jiang Xuanjin said, casting a deep look at Huaiyu. “She was already pregnant when she was in Yinping, but she was upset with me and didn’t tell me.”
Old Master Jiang was speechless.
His face turned red as he looked at the little bundle in Huaiyu’s arms, swallowing hard. He reached out his hand but then pulled it back.
She was pregnant in Yinping, which meant she was carrying a child while he was scolding her. This, this…
Seeing the old master’s embarrassed yet eager expression, Huaiyu generously placed the little one in his arms. “Here. This is the brother.”
“Oh, oh, oh!” The old master hurriedly took the child, afraid of dropping him. He even threw his dragon-head cane to the ground, urgently calling, “Steward, steward, help me sit down! It’s better to hold them while sitting!”
The steward quickly responded, helping him into the grand chair. The old master cradled the little rascal in his arms, his eyes shining as he looked at him.
The little rascal stared back at him, blowing a bubble of saliva.
“Look at those lively eyes! That delicate nose! That full forehead!” Overjoyed, the old master forgot all decorum, proudly showing off to the steward. “Isn’t he adorable? Look, he’s not even crying. He’s smiling at me!”
“Yes, yes,” the steward replied with a mix of amusement and helplessness. “The child is indeed adorable.”
“Oh, oh, you did well, you did well!” The old master praised Huaiyu repeatedly, his eyebrows disappearing into his smile, his gums almost showing. “And they’re twins? Let me see the other one!”
Jiang Xuanjin brought the little troublemaker closer. “This is the sister.”
“What?!” The old master was even more surprised. “Dragon and phoenix twins?!”
“Yes.”
The old master gasped, too delighted to speak. He carefully placed the little rascal in his lap and reached out to take the little troublemaker, holding them both, looking left and right, his eyes moist.
“Old Master, you’ll tire yourself out like this,” the steward said considerately. “Let me hold one for you.”
“Go away, go away!” The old master waved him off, his voice choked. “I can hold them, I can hold as many as there are. No one else can touch them!”
With that, he stretched out his arms, holding the two babies securely, murmuring, “We finally have a little girl in the family, finally a little girl!”
Huaiyu found it curious and asked Jiang Xuanjin, “Is a girl better than a son?”
“I don’t know about other families, but here, girls are spoiled, and boys are disciplined,” Jiang Xuanjin said expressionlessly. “It’s the Jiang family rule. Girls are punished by copying scriptures, boys by family law.”
Li Huaiyu sympathetically glanced at the little rascal in the swaddle. Son, good luck to you!
The old master played with his grandchildren for a while, then whispered something to the steward. Soon, the steward came out of the main house with a box.
“This is something left by Xuanjin’s mother,” the old master said, nodding at the box with his chin since his hands were full, indicating for Huaiyu to open it.
Huaiyu took it and looked inside. It was a pair of exquisitely crafted purple jade bracelets, quite heavy.
Jiang Xuanjin gave the old master a deep look. He hadn’t even taken these out for his wedding; they were his mother’s only keepsake.
The old master smiled at him. “It’s meant to be given. Let her wear it; it’s good for her health.”
Huaiyu didn’t know the significance of the jade bracelets to the old master, but she understood his sentiment. So she generously extended her wrist to Jiang Xuanjin, smiling as he put them on her.
The old master smiled kindly and asked, “What are the names of these two children?”
Jiang Xuanjin paused, instinctively wanting to cover Li Huaiyu’s mouth, but it was too late. She quickly answered, “The brother is Little Rascal, and the sister is Little Troublemaker. We haven’t decided on their formal names yet!”
The courtyard fell silent for a moment.
The old master’s smile froze, his face stiffening as he turned to scold Jiang Xuanjin, “What kind of ridiculous names are those?!”
Jiang Xuanjin’s eyelid twitched. “I didn’t name them.”
“I did,” Huaiyu blinked. “Aren’t they… good?”
How could names like Little Rascal and Little Troublemaker be good? The old master wanted to roar, but looking at her, he held back, trying to use a gentle tone. “They’re not auspicious. How about we change them? I’ll look through some books.”
The stark difference in tone made Jiang Xuanjin squint.
His father wasn’t like this before. He always said he treated all juniors equally. Why scold him and not Li Huaiyu?
Huaiyu thought for a moment and said, “Why don’t you give them formal names?”
“Good, good!” The old master eagerly agreed, carrying the two children to the study.
“Father, the children…”
“I’ll hold them, I’ll hold them. You young people go have fun. I’ll take care of them tonight! Just send the wet nurse to me!” Originally needing a dragon-head cane to walk steadily, the old master now moved swiftly with the two swaddles, as if afraid someone would take them, quickly disappearing into the study.
The steward bowed to the two of them and hurried to follow, half-supporting the old master.
Huaiyu was dumbfounded. “Is this even possible?”
“You’ll get used to it,” Jiang Xuanjin said calmly. “When Yan’er was born, he also stayed in Hongyuan Pavilion. Father is more experienced in taking care of children than you. Don’t worry too much.”
“I’m not worried about the children, but isn’t he too old to be doing this?” Huaiyu asked.
“If he gets tired, the steward will let us know,” Jiang Xuanjin replied, turning to her. “Let’s go back and rest.”
“Okay.” Since he was at ease, she had nothing to worry about. She pulled him along, skipping towards Moju. As soon as they entered the main house, she turned her eyes, hooked his belt, and led him upstairs.
Jiang Xuanjin thought she was going to the second floor and was about to say it wasn’t tidied up yet, but she flipped him over, pinning him in the hallway. She licked her lips lightly and asked, “Want to kiss?”
Jiang Xuanjin was speechless.
For some reason, even though it was something normal between husband and wife, hearing it from her made his ears turn red.
“Can you speak properly?”
Thinking seriously, Huaiyu pushed him against the wooden railing, trapping him in her arms, then stood on a higher step. She leaned close to his ear and said, “Properly speaking, I want to kiss you.”
Jiang Xuanjin gritted his teeth, but before he could scold her, she leaned in, biting his lips, her body pressing against him, forcing him to catch her.
His calm breathing was disrupted. He let out a low hum, pinching her waist, resting his forehead against hers, and took a breath. “Why suddenly do this?”
“To please you,” Huaiyu said with a mischievous smile. “Otherwise, I’m afraid you won’t sleep with me tonight.”
“You’re overthinking it.”
“Really?” Raising an eyebrow, Huaiyu pulled him along, continuing upstairs. “You said it, so you’ll stay with me on the second floor tonight.”
What’s the big deal about staying on the second floor? Jiang Xuanjin thought nothing of it, following her step by step, glancing around.
The lavish decorations, the lightly fluttering pink curtains, the pink bed sheets and quilts, and the colorful sachets hanging by the bed, the air filled with the scent of rouge, it was a boudoir.
He looked around silently, then cupped his hands to Huaiyu. “Sorry to intrude.”
With that, he turned to go downstairs.
Li Huaiyu grabbed his sleeve, raising an eyebrow. “A gentleman’s word?”
“Like a fleeting flower,” he replied expressionlessly.
She laughed out loud. Huaiyu pulled his sleeve, hugging his arm, and coquettishly said, “It’s quite nice. Let’s rest here.”
“No.”
“I’ll tell you a story!”
“No.”
“Then, kiss a bit more?”
“……”
Regardless of the process, in the end, the reluctant Jiang San Gongzi still stayed on the second floor and even had a nightmare, dreaming he became a girl, wearing a pink embroidered dress, sitting in a boudoir embroidering.
And he was embroidering a pair of clever mandarin ducks!
The next morning, Jiang Xuanjin woke up with a gloomy face, in a foul mood.
“Uncle, uncle!” Jiang Yan came over early in the morning, looking pitiful. “You have to stand up for your nephew!”
“What happened?” Jiang Xuanjin asked coldly, his tone unfriendly.
Jiang Yan paused, suddenly feeling he might have come to the wrong place. Standing by the door, he clasped his hands behind his back and cautiously said, “Grandfather sent me to the street to buy some trinkets. I haven’t been back to the capital for so long. How would I know where to buy rattles? But he wouldn’t listen and insisted I go.”
“Is that all?” Jiang Xuanjin said coldly. “Let the household servants buy it.”
Jiang Yan wanted to cry. “Grandfather said I must go personally. The servants don’t have a good eye…”
Who knew buying a rattle required an eye for quality?
Li Huaiyu came downstairs, yawning, to see Jiang Xuanjin sitting with a cold expression and Jiang Yan looking miserable.
“Morning!” She greeted them with a bright smile, waving her hand.
“Auntie,” Jiang Yan replied, lowering his head.
Seeing her come down, Jiang Xuanjin’s expression softened. He turned to Jiang Yan and said, “Let the steward take you. Orders must be followed. If you really can’t find it, think of another way.”
“Yes.” Jiang Yan bowed to him, then to Li Huaiyu, and left looking pitiful.
Huaiyu raised an eyebrow. “Are you bullying him?”
“It’s not me,” Jiang Xuanjin said. “It’s Father. He wants to buy toys for the two little ones and sent Yan’er to run errands.”
“Oh, it’s a small matter.” Huaiyu waved her hand. “Should we have breakfast first?”
Jiang Xuanjin nodded, reaching out to straighten her crooked collar, and led her outside.
They hadn’t gone far when they saw Jiang Er Gongzi hurrying by.
“Where are you going, Second Brother?” Jiang Xuanjin asked.
Jiang Shen turned back, walking as he spoke. “The old master asked me to go to the fabric shop to order some small clothes.”
“So early?” Huaiyu asked. “Aren’t you having breakfast?”
Jiang Shen shook his head. “No time.”
Is it that urgent? Huaiyu wondered, watching him disappear before pulling Jiang Xuanjin along to Hongyuan Pavilion.
As soon as they entered the gate, Li Huaiyu jumped back in surprise. “What is this!”
The once solemn and proper Hongyuan Pavilion was now in chaos. Maids and old women bustled in and out, carrying all sorts of toys. A thick Persian carpet stretched from the entrance to the main house, looking particularly extravagant. Servants were setting up a swing in the yard, and carpenters were working on woodcraft. If she hadn’t seen Old Master Jiang inside, she would have thought she had entered the wrong place.
“You’re here? Have breakfast in the main hall; you’ll be on the way here,” the old master said cheerfully, holding Little Troublemaker. “We have a little girl in the family now; it’s different from before!”
What’s so different? Li Huaiyu’s mouth twitched as she whispered to Jiang Xuanjin, “Won’t your father spoil the children rotten?”
“Not the boys,” Jiang Xuanjin said, pursing his lips. “The girls, maybe.”
When Yan’er was little, the most they did was lay a carpet. Now, the children couldn’t even speak, and they already had a swing set up.
“Old Master… no, Father,” Huaiyu tried to persuade him. “You don’t need to make such a fuss. They’re still so young.”
“You can’t say that!” The old master said earnestly, cherishing Little Troublemaker. “A girl should be spoiled from a young age, so she’ll have high standards and won’t be easily deceived by some scoundrel in the future!”
Huaiyu was taken aback.
“My princess is meant to be spoiled, so she’ll find a husband who loves her more than I do and won’t be deceived,” her father had said, holding her in the Feiyun Palace, smiling. “I only have one princess.”
Sunlight streamed through the carved windows of Feiyun Palace, illuminating her giggling face. Her father looked at her as if she were a rare treasure.
Her throat tightened, and Huaiyu blinked, her nose tingling.
“Third daughter-in-law?” The old master noticed her expression and quickly said, “Did I do something wrong? If so, just say it, and we’ll discuss it!”
Jiang Xuanjin frowned, stepping forward to hold her hand. “What’s wrong?”
Sniffing, Huaiyu grinned. “Nothing’s wrong. It’s just… nice.”
Since her father’s passing, she hadn’t heard such words in a long time. She hadn’t realized it before, but now she understood that being loved wholeheartedly by elders was a rare blessing.