Agate Pavillion, Li Manor
The Lis ate dinner as if nothing had happened at all. Cashing in on her sister's distraction, Li Silan, who had started eating by herself, stuffed her cheeks full with almost every dish on the table. Li Zhenming kept urging his wife to eat more, and she kept declining with a shy smile.
"About that," she turned towards her daughters, the elder one sipping lemon tea and the younger one wolfing down food as if there was no tomorrow "mother has something to tell you both,"
Li Sihan raised her head. Ren Ziming took a deep breath.
"That-- you girls are going to have a little brother or a sister soon,"
Li Sihan raised her eyebrows and immediately turned in her seat to look at her mother's belly, which seemed normal. She glanced at her father and he too nodded with an embarrassed smile.
"Oho?" Li Sihan grinned, "another little cute fatty for me,"
"Big Sis, Big Sis!" Li Silan started clamouring, "I'm your fatty! I am! Bun bun is!"
Li Sihan ignored her sister, who started beating chopsticks against her plate. She glared at her and the toddler pouted and stopped at once. She got up from her seat and traipsed over to her mother.
"..."
Li Sihan put out her hand and rubbed the slightly bloated tummy. Ren Ziming smiled. Li Sihan's eye were deep, and her thoughts were unsearchable. After patting her mother's belly, she turned around and returned to her chair.
"Tao He,"
"Present," Tao He went down on one knee at once.
"Get my mother some nourishing tonics,"
"Roger, Grand Chief,"
"Ah--?" Ren Ziming waved her hand, "Sihan, there's no need to trouble him. Granny already send me some. About that, Granny and some other extended family members will be visiting --"
"Let him be troubled," Li Sihan interrupted concerning Tao He, who had left the gazebo at once, "and you both," she stared hard at her parents, "can't tell me you're going somewhere without proper guard again,"
"Yes, yes," Li Zhenming agreed immediately, "we'll listen to you on that one. I had no idea the people after you were so ruthless. Many of our Li family's guards were killed mercilessly. I had Butler Wang to send things to all their families,"
Li Sihan shrugged.
"If that's what you want to do, no problem."
"Sihan-- your mother was saying something--" Li Zhenming pointed out.
"Ah, yes. I was saying that my mother and siblings will be visiting the Li Manor tomorrow." Ren Ziming said, putting down her chopsticks, "if not for the trouble that happened, your father and I would have gone and come back from the summer house; that was why I set tomorrow as the date for them,"
"I don't mind," Li Sihan pursed her lips, "as long as they don't mistreat mother,"
Ren Ziming glanced across at Li Zhenming, who spread his hands helplessly. As for him, the only surviving member of his family was the exiled Consort Ruang, and by extension her children. But that was not the case for his wife. The whole Ren family seemed to be visiting this time, and while he was not exactly going to be annoyed if they wanted to ride on his daughter's coattails, it was up to them to behave properly in a way that would not irritate the yama.
The following morning three carriages pulled up in front of the Li Manor. A sagely looking matriarch was helped out of the first. She scanned the surroundings and then gazed upon the opulent gates of the Li Manor, with uniformed guards manning the entrance. More people descended from the other two carriages, and surrounded the matriarch, Shu Wenyi.
"Looks descent," said a man next to her, the eldest son and currently the head of the Ren family, Ren Hongyu, "ah, won't that boy come welcome us?!" He frowned. His mother turned towards the lady beside him.
"Yuwan, I've always told you to restrain your husband. And you too, Hongyu, be careful. If those people slice your throat and pretend it's a mistake, all we'll do is weep for a few days before we all forget about you entirely,"
Ren Hongyu shivered as goosebumps rose on his neckline.
"Mother, with the way you talk sometimes," the second son, Ren Honglei, sudden laughed, "you should be a mercenary yourself!" He chuckled as he pulled his own wife's hand, "let's enter!"
All in all there were seven adults from the Ren family who had come to visit their in-laws (not counting the servants and maids they'd come with). Shu Wenyi, the matriarch, Ren Hongyu and Ren Honglei, her sons, their two wives, and then Ren Ziyan and Ren Aiming, the misses of the Ren family, Ren Ziming's sisters. Except Ren Aiming, the other three had been borne by the matriarch. Ren Aiming was born of the Second Madam of the Ren family. There were also three young ones in the party; the Ren brothers' children.
Li Zhenming met them in front of the main hall. He bowed formally.
"Welcome, in-laws. I apologize for not receiving you properly," he did not, however, give an explanation.
"You're too courteous. I just came to see how my Ziming is faring, and these annoying ones decided to tag along," Shu Wenyi waved her hand.
"This way, please," Li Zhenming led them into the main hall. They followed him in. Chairs had been arranged in the main hall (just like the time the Mercenaries had visited, but without the long table) and three were currently occupied. A maid helped Ren Ziming up. She beamed widely at seeing her family.
"Mother," she called out. She hadn't really seen them in a long while. Shu Wanyi hurried over to get daughter.
"Ahh, don't rise, don't rise! Careful, now," she helped her back into her seat. Li Zhenming smiled a little. He showed the others into their seats. Then he turned to his daughters.
"Here, Sihan, Silan-- this is your mother's family,"
Li Sihan waved an unbothered hand.
"Hi," she drawled. Li Zhenming was speechless.
"Ahh-- my granddaughter!" Shu Wanyi moved over and reached out to pinch Li Sihan's cheeks, "I haven't seen you since you were this small!" She cupped her hand to show how small, and pinched the yama's cheek again. Li Sihan's face turned dark. Li Zhenming gulped.
"Ah, mother in law, you've had a rough journey! Why don't you take a seat?" He put his arm on Shu Wanyi's shoulder and quickly steered her away to the seat of honour. It wouldn't be good if the matriarch's arm was suddenly chopped of, ah!
"Serve tea!" Li Zhenming hollered to the butler, and the servants scurried off. He decided to introduce the little ones instead.
"Ahh, here are your cousins!" The Ren children were two boys and a girl, ages ranging from ten to four. If only Li Sihan had been a normal kid, Li Zhenming thought privately, she would really have been excited to meet--- ah?
Li Sihan had got up. She stalked towards the little girl in her eldest aunt's arms. Her lips curled upwards, sending chills down everyone's spine for no reason.
"Cute,"
Li Zhenming held his chest as he heaved a sigh of relief. That--! That had been too scary!! She looked as if she would suddenly gobble up the little girl, ah! He had seen Qiao Yuwan, his sister in law, tense and flinch!
"Give her to me," the yama demanded. Sweating profusely, Qiao Yuwan could only oblige. Ren Aoyu, the little girl, on her part, happily jumped into her cousin's arms.
"Play with me!"
Meanwhile, a certain fatty's face had turned dark. She jumped off her chair and waddled over to her sister and the "sister-stealer", so fast that even her parents blinked in surprise!
"Get off my big sis!" Li Silan cried loudly, "get off, get off! My big sis no like you!!!"
"Li Silan, behave!" The yama snapped, but this time, the fatty wasn't having it! She grabbed the ends of the pretty blue hanfu her cousin wore, and riiiiip!!!!
"Silan!!" Ren Ziming cried out in shock! What kind of oddballs had she given birth to?!?!?! One was a yama, the other one was showing signs of being a yandere! Who knew what this one she was carrying would turn out to be?!?!?
A couple of minutes later all was well again; Ren Aoyu had been given a change of clothes, Li Silan had been reprimanded, and the children had all gone to play in the hot springs! The women sat in the main hall and talked among themselves; the men had headed off to sightsee the capital with Li Zhenming as their guide.
"Sister in-law, this one must be a boy," Qi Meimei, the wife of Ren Honglei, patted Ren Ziming's stomach as she 'advised'.
"It doesn't matter," Ren Ziming replied with a smile.
"Yes it does!" The oblivious Qi Meimei frowned, "you need to have an heir for the Li family!"
"Sihan is the heir; Zhenming said so,"
"Pah; that's because you didn't have a boy yet. Who makes a girl an heir? How can she manage the Li family's businesses? And she will marry away too--"
"You really believe that?" Tao He snorted. It was like that now; Tao He was in charge of the madam's security, while Jun Ru was Li Zhenming's guard. The women hadn't even noticed he was in the room until he spoke. Qi Meimei and Qiao Yuwan blushed immediately; they had said so many womanly matters in his hearing!
Ren Ziyan and Ren Aiming, however, were pleasantly shocked to discover a handsome man in the room! They had been getting bored silly with the older women's talk and Aiming had even wanted to suggest them going to join the other children at the hot springs as well. However! That was now out of the question! This guard was so handsomeeee! She wasn't engaged yet, ah! Perhaps -- perhaps her cousin could matchmake them!
Unfortunately for her, her half sister, Ren Ziyan, was thinking the exact thing! Ren Ziyan was the legitimate second young miss of the Ren family and if anything, she would have more courage to broach this to her sister, the 'mother of the matchmaker'!
But Ren Aiming was smarter. Getting everything being delivered to her on a silver platter made Ren Ziyan entitled and quite bratty. Ren Aiming, on the other hand, knew how to flatter, how to coerce, and how to sweet talk, to get what she wanted. Already hatching a plan, she poured a cup of the fragrant plum tea held by the servant next to her and got up.
"What should I call you?" Ren Aiming flashed a charming smile upon arriving in front of Tao He, who was now standing half concealed behind one of the many pillars inside the main hall. Ren Ziyan's face turned white upon seeing her sister's plan and she clenched her fists under her sleeves as she formed a counter plan of her own. She was the legitimate second young miss! She would have whatever she wanted! She had her mother, her brothers, and her sister; even her niece now, as her support!
Tao He blinked. When had this girl suddenly appeared in front of him?
"My name is Tao He," bashing the skull of a family member of the Grand Chief was not acceptable. Besides, she was beautiful. The genes for prettiness was quite strong in the Ren family. Their Grand Chief seemed to have gotten her raven black hair from that side. Ren Aiming, though she hadn't known she was going to see any fine looking men here in the Li Manor, however had spent quite some time on her get-up. The hanfu she wore accentuated her curves, and the peach rogue on her face, as well as the fragrant pouch that hung on her waist, could enchant any hot-blooded man.
"You must be thirsty standing guard like this all day," Ren Aiming smiled meekly, blushing a little, and held out the cup, "here, have a drink,"
Tao He was forcefully reminded of another person who had once offered him a drink. Though, if he wasn't wrong, except that that one didn't have expensive make up and jewellery, that one was more beautiful than this one.
Tao He reached out and took the cup. Ren Ziyan, over in her chair, paled even further. She-- she had thought he was going to reject it?
"Thank you, young miss," Tao He downed the cup in one.
"Umm-- my name is Ren Aiming,"
"I know," Tao He replied. Ren Aiming was startled.
"Oh? You -- you do?"
"My line of work has me periodically digging up people's identities. It's become sort of an occupational disorder for me," Tao He flashed a smile.
Ren Aiming covered her mouth as she chuckled elegantly. She was already in love!!! Ahhh-- he was so fine!!!
"So,--" however, at that moment Ren Ziyan decided to call out loudly.
"Sister Aiming!"
Ren Aiming frowned deeply in her heart. How dare her half sister interrupt her moment with Tao He! Nevertheless, she turned slightly, choosing to use this distraction to her advantage and deliberately displaying her flawless side profile to her intended.
"Yes, Ziyan jie-jie?" She flashed a triumphant smile. Ren Ziyan got up and came over.
"Let's go view the plum blossoms in the garden. Eldest Sister said they're in bloom." She pulled Ren Aiming's arm with an equally fake smile. Annoyed, Ren Aiming pulled her hand back.
"I'd rather remain here. You go on, Ziyan jie-jie,"
But the other girl was relentless. She turned to the matriarch at once.
"Mother! I said we should go view plum blossoms--"
"Let's all go," Shu Wanyi rose, "and let your eldest sister show us around,"
"Is it okay for her to walk around so much, though?" Ren Ziming's principal maid declined at once, "let me show around you the manor instead,"
"Haofei, it's alright," Ren Ziming rose, "come, everyone,"