Chapter 9, Family, Family Banquet

Xie Moru responded with a "yes," stood up, performed a bow, and then returned to the Dujuan Courtyard

Xie Moru nodded slightly and let her long hair down. Zhang Momo smiled and asked, "Did the young lady enjoy the meal at noon? Would you like to have some more? I had the kitchen set aside some food."

Mrs. Xie smiled as she sipped her tea, "Ah Yan is lively, which makes her even more likable"

Xie Mo You smiled, "How can I always take your things for free"

Today, the girls who came with the three elderly ladies are Xie Huan and Xie Pei, the legitimate daughters of Xie Nu, while Xie Qi is the illegitimate daughter of Xie Ji. Among these young ladies, Xie Huan and Xie Pei are older, aged thirteen and twelve respectively, while the others, Xie Qi is eight years old, and the younger ones, Xie Mo and Xie Mo You, are two years old. However, regardless of their ages, they are all of the same generation as their aunts.

The three old ladies are often seen with Xie Moru. Although the couple, the three old gentlemen and the three old ladies, belong to the older generation, they are not particularly old, being only a few years older than Minister Xie. They are the direct younger uncles of Minister Xie. It is said that when Minister Xie's father, Old Master Xie, passed away, he held onto his son's hand and asked him to take care of his younger uncle. Over the years, as relatives, the relationship between Old Master Three and the Minister's residence has always been good. Old Master Three has never held an official position, and he has two sons and one daughter. His eldest son, Xie Nu, works in the Hanlin Academy, while his second son, Xie Ji, has taken a position as a Tongpan. His youngest daughter, Xie Yan, has also married, and her husband is none other than Ning Zhuo, the third brother from the family of Concubine Ning. Therefore, there is a certain closeness between Old Lady Three and Concubine Ning, which may not be without reason. In the past, Xie Yan often accompanied Old Lady Three to the Xie family to chat, but today she has not yet been seen. It seems that after getting married, she is not as free as when she was at her parental home. However, on such occasions, it is unusual for her not to come.

Old Madam Zhang smiled and said, "The eldest lady used a bowl of rosy rice and a bit of each of the four side dishes, but the lotus leaf soup was light. I noticed that the eldest lady seemed to enjoy it, so I had a bowl."

After everyone had finished speaking, the three elderly ladies stood up to take their leave. Xie Yan, while supporting her mother, smiled at Xie Mo You and said, "A You, when do you have time to come over and play? I have something good for you."

The wisteria brought a cup of tea, which Granny Zhang received with a look of kindness and satisfaction, smiling, "Miss, have a sip of tea to soothe your throat. I can hear the commotion outside from our courtyard; there must be quite a number of young ladies visiting today. You must be tired from receiving guests and attending to matters." Little did she know that her young lady was not a popular figure in social circles.

Mrs. Xie stirred the bird's nest in her hand with a silver spoon and said, "Mo You is too lively, while Mo Ru is too steady."

Xie Jing is still very young, only six years old, and is followed by her wet nurse. Xie Mo You instructed someone to bring food to coax her into talking. However, Xie Mo You has significant responsibilities today; after the daughters of her maternal uncle's family, the Zhu family, arrive, she must attend to the Zhu family girls, so she can only instruct the maids and servants to carefully entertain Xie Jing.

As Xie Moru had just left, Su Lan brought in a bowl of bird's nest porridge and said with a smile, "There are many guests today, and I see that you have been busy attending to others. I fear that you may not have had a proper lunch. So I had the small kitchen prepare some bird's nest porridge for you, please do have some."

Everyone left early, and the last to remain were the three elderly ladies. They all gathered in Mrs. Xie's room to drink tea and chat. Although Xie Yan did not come with the three elderly ladies, she stayed behind as well, saying that she wanted to return to her parental home for a few days. Mrs. Xie smiled and said, "As a daughter-in-law, returning to one's parental home like this from time to time may raise some concerns with the in-laws."

Xie Ji's wife, Ms. Yu, was in her early twenties, possessing a beauty that resembled a painted portrait. She responded to her sister-in-law's words with a smile, saying, "There are few girls of our generation; apart from my sister, the only other is the elder sister who married far away. I have been married for a short time and have not met the elder sister, but I have heard my mother say that she was also a rare and spirited person when she was at home"

Mrs. Xie sighed, "Indeed, it has been so many years since we last saw each other, especially since my elder sister married so far away."

The Xie family is hosting a banquet, celebrating the joy of Xie Bai, the flower of the examination. The invited guests, apart from family members, are mostly close acquaintances. It is not overly grand, yet it is certainly not lacking in warmth, as every aspect has been meticulously prepared. The official guests have their designated areas in the front courtyard and the inner residence, and the young ladies also have their own space for conversation.

Xie Yanxiao, "I am willing to become or not."

The two young ladies are still quite young, and with the lady's careful guidance, they are naturally becoming more charming day by day. The lady need only to be at ease. Su Lan smiled and advised. She actually understood the subtlety in Madam Xie's words. Although today is a banquet at the Xie residence, it is appropriate for young ladies to be lively, yet they should also maintain a suitable demeanor. The second young lady is overly familiar with everyone, which the lady may not necessarily appreciate. As for the eldest young lady, Su Lan remarked that she is admirable in every way, but is somewhat burdened by her maternal family. Otherwise, she would truly be a remarkable figure. Just the fact that today she discreetly instructed her maid to convey a message to the kitchen to prepare a suitable lunch for Xie Jing shows that she is a meticulous person, acting with careful consideration and thoroughness, rather than being impulsive. However, the eldest young lady's demeanor is perhaps too imposing, and she does not seem to know how to endear herself to the lady. If she were a simpleton, it would be understandable, but the eldest young lady does not appear to be foolish at all; she is merely rather indifferent each day. The two young ladies are either too warm or too cold, so it is no wonder the lady has such sentiments.

At that moment, several young ladies from the relatives arrived, filling the room with the presence of Qiong Gui and Xiu Yu. However, there was not a single person among them who was truly familiar with Xie Moru. A few young ladies from the Ning family occasionally cast glances at Xie Moru, as if they had never seen her before. Nevertheless, with so many people present, Xie Moru's side was not lacking in warmth; as long as they were not from the Ning family, everyone would at least greet one another. In fact, even the young ladies from the Ning family had to muster the courage to come over and greet Xie Moru.

Xie Yanxiao said, "My mother-in-law loves me, and she will no longer find fault with me on this matter"

Xie Moru took the tea and asked Jingwei Zitong to go down and rest early. She alone took a book and quietly spent half a day sitting by the window.

Xie Moru asked the wet nurse a few questions about whether Xie Jing had any dietary restrictions, and then instructed Jing Wei to go down and convey a message.

The wet nurse felt even more embarrassed; after all, it was a gathering at someone else's home, and it was not appropriate to order dishes. Seeing that the wet nurse seemed to have concerns, Xie Mo, who usually did not like to speak much, decided not to say more. The wet nurse fed Xie Jing some water and expressed her deep gratitude, saying, "It is truly a bother for the young lady; if it is not too much trouble, a steamed egg custard would be sufficient." Although she felt somewhat embarrassed, anyone who could be designated as the wet nurse for the daughter of the Su family must be a trusted confidante. This was evident from the wet nurse's demeanor, as she was indeed keeping a close watch on Xie Jing. To care for her own young lady, the wet nurse steeled herself and mustered the courage to speak. It was her first time meeting the eldest daughter of the Minister's residence; had it not been for the recent exchange of greetings among cousins, she would not have known that this was the eldest daughter of the Minister's residence.

Mrs. Xie took a sip of bird's nest porridge and let out a barely audible sigh. Su Lan smiled and said, "On such a joyous day, why does the lady seem to be sighing?" Su Lan was Mrs. Xie's chief maid, twenty-seven years old and still unmarried. It was not that Mrs. Xie had not arranged a marriage for her, but Su Lan had previously been engaged to someone who passed away before the wedding could take place. Since then, she had resolved not to marry and to serve Mrs. Xie for the rest of her life. Among the maids, she was the oldest and had the most trust from Mrs. Xie, which allowed her to speak a little more freely.

The three elderly ladies looked at their daughter with affection and said with a smile, "I am worried about Ah Yan's temperament; even after getting married, she still behaves as if she is a young girl. Fortunately, her in-laws do not mind her."

Xie Jing needs to drink water after eating something. Xie Jing's wet nurse asked a maid to fetch some warm water and explained to Xie Moru with some embarrassment, "The young lady is still quite young and does not dare to ask for tea." This wet nurse is very responsible, fearing that the young ladies in the house might give Xie Jing inappropriate food, so she held Xie Jing and stayed in a secluded spot, which ultimately led to an encounter with Xie Moru.

The girls went to the Zhi Lan Hall to chat. Xie Huan and Xie Pei were very familiar with Xie Mo You. After greeting Xie Mo Ru, they began to chatter with Xie Mo You, mostly about clothing and jewelry. Xie Qi, being of a quiet and reserved nature, sat quietly drinking tea. After a while, the young ladies from the second master Xie’s household also arrived. Xie Shang Shu and the second master Xie were close blood relatives, having been brothers. After their parents passed away, they separated their households, and their closeness goes without saying. However, the second master and his wife, along with their young son and daughter, were serving in official positions outside the capital and were not in the imperial city. Their eldest son, Xie Jin, was also serving outside, while the second son, Xie Feng, and his family were currently in the capital. Therefore, it was Xie Feng's eldest daughter, Xie Jing, who was brought to the Zhi Lan Hall by the maidservants.

"I am not hungry after all"

Xie Nu's wife, Li, is of a similar age to Ning. Perhaps it is because the third madam, this mother-in-law, is not very easy to serve, that Li's features appear even more aged than Ning's. Upon hearing this, she also laughed, "I think so too. A girl should be like a younger sister, otherwise, she is just like a wooden post, silent for half a day without a word, what fun is there in that"

As Xie Moru returned to the Du Juan Courtyard, Zhang Momo hurriedly came forward. Jing Wei assisted Xie Moru in changing out of her outer coat. Sitting at the dressing table, Xie Moru removed her hairpins and turned to ask, "What did Mother have for lunch?"

Xie Mo You accompanied the three elderly ladies out of Songbai Courtyard. Xie Mo Ru, however, stopped at the front of the house with Madam Xie and returned to the main hall with her. Having entertained guests for most of the day, Madam Xie, being of advanced age, could not hide her weariness, yet it was indeed a joyous occasion, and her eyes still held a good spirit. Madam Xie looked at Xie Mo Ru and said gently, "Mo Ru has also been tired all day; you should go back and rest early."

Xie Moru, knowing that Xie Feng's wife, Su, came from the Su family in Huizhou and was always meticulous in raising children, nodded and said to the wet nurse, "A-Qiong is still young, so it is better for her not to drink tea. However, I am unsure if the dishes on the table will be suitable for a child. What does A-Qiong usually eat at home? I will instruct someone to go to the small kitchen and have them prepare a special dish that is suitable for her."

Regardless of their closeness or distance, everyone engaged in cheerful conversation until the meal began. The Xie family had invited two troupes of performers, creating a lively atmosphere filled with laughter throughout the day. As noon passed, relatives and friends began to take their leave. Xie Moru and Xie Moyi accompanied Mrs. Xie to see off the guests. Xie Moyi had many friends among the visitors, and there was a noticeable reluctance to part on their faces. Xie Moru stood beside Mrs. Xie, merely smiling gently as he observed.

Su Lan smiled, "Madam, please rest assured. The kitchen has prepared everything early this morning. Knowing that the master, the eldest son, and the second son might want to drink more today, we have also prepared some light porridge and side dishes."

Su Lan served her lady half a bowl of bird's nest porridge, gently and softly comforting her lady's mood

Mrs. Xie received the bird's nest porridge and asked, "Is the hangover soup ready?"