It was of the finest Imperial Green, procured with great effort, and later personally carved by the Old Patriarch of the Gu Family in the Imperial Capital as a token of engagement, worn by Great Grandma for decades.
Only after her death did Old Master Qin collect it.
Unexpectedly, it was given to Gu Qiaoqiao.
At that moment, Qin Xuan and Shen Manru could finally let go of the anxiety they had been holding on to, with Shen Manru's eyes shining astonishingly bright.
No matter what, this gesture by Old Master Qin had seriously slapped the face of the second younger sister-in-law, and she found it extremely satisfying.
Qin Xuan felt the same way. Gu Qiaoqiao's gaining of Old Master Qin's approval was unexpected, but he was pleased to see it happen.
He straightened his somewhat bent back right away.
Gu Qiaoqiao was surprised and quickly declined, "Great Grandfather, this Jade Pendant is too valuable, and it holds extraordinary significance to you, keeping it with you is also a memory."
Old Master Qin was even more satisfied.
Although she came from a small place, she was not shallow-minded and knew how to speak without offending the elderly.
His laughter was hearty, yet he deliberately said loudly, "If it's given to you, you keep it. What, do you think the Jade Pendant is not good enough?"
"Of course not." Gu Qiaoqiao hurriedly denied.
She wouldn't dare take on that accusation.
Haven't you seen how covetously the people from the second and third uncles' families are looking?
Gu Qiaoqiao also happened to know the history of the Jade Pendant and naturally understood the significance of her receiving it.
Grandma Qin was smiling warmly, "Qiaoqiao, this is your Great Grandfather's intention, accept it."
For the sake of the face of the Qin family's main branch, Gu Qiaoqiao then looked to Qin Xuan with an inquiring gaze.
Qin Xuan, satisfied, also nodded with a smile.
Only then did Gu Qiaoqiao take the Jade Pendant, thanked Old Master Qin again, and left the living room carrying the tray.
The others exchanged glances.
It had been a long time since they had heard such happy laughter from the old master.
The few in the Qin family who mocked Gu Qiaoqiao were not looking very good.
While Shen Manru finally felt at ease.
She followed Gu Qiaoqiao into the kitchen.
Soon after, Qin Yize's second aunt, under Old Master Qin's cold gaze, also scurried to help in the kitchen.
Originally wanting to say something snide, Gu Qiaoqiao picked up a tomato and began carving.
One had to admit, the hands of the new daughter-in-law of the Qin family's main branch were truly skilled.
The second aunt's plan to ridicule her fell through.
When the dishes were gradually placed on the specially made large dining table, everyone couldn't help but look at Gu Qiaoqiao with complicated eyes.
Even Qin Lang and Qin Song, who often frequented high-end hotels, were somewhat dumbstruck.
Old Master Qin sat contentedly at the head of the table.
Waiting for Qin Yize to serve the last dish.
It was chicken chunks in a clear broth made from watermelon.
What Qin Yize brought to the table was a watermelon; the Qin family's dining room was also very large. As he came from the kitchen, Qin Xiaona couldn't help but sneer and, pulling on the old master's hand, cooed, "Great Grandfather, it's not appropriate to serve the family with an entire watermelon, that's just lazy, at least you should slice it and put it on a plate, this looks so unsightly and shameful."
Shen Manru glanced at Qin Xiaona, wondering how she had never noticed just how annoying the girl's mouth could be.
However, she knew the mystery behind it, so she remained silent, simply helping Xiao Yu set the table.
Seeing that no one paid attention to her, Qin Xiaona continued to act spoiled with Old Master Qin, "Great Grandfather, make big sister-in-law work a little harder and slice the watermelon, it's too ugly like this, it's also embarrassing."
While she spoke, Qin Yize, carrying the watermelon, stood by the dining table, and the Qin family members who had sat down finally saw that the outside of the watermelon was carved with a landscape painting, with lush green mountains and leisurely flowing waters, a lone boat, and clusters of bamboo by the lake.
In the white sky above, there was an eagle soaring high.
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These people were all stunned.
They had heard that carving masters could etch a variety of patterns into watermelons, but hearing about it was one thing—seeing it in person was another.
Qin Xiaona was slapped in the face by the reality, so she stood up, pointed at the watermelon and said angrily, "A perfectly good watermelon has been carved into a mess, can it still be eaten? This is really a waste."
Qin Xiaoyu was unhappy, "Qin Xiaona, mind your manners. Are you short-sighted? Can't you see that this is a landscape painting? If you don't appreciate it, better keep quiet or you'll make a fool of yourself."
She and Xiaona were never on good terms. She had tolerated her petty quibbles today for half the day already.
Then she thought—why should she tolerate it?
They were both children after all. If Xiaona could rant and rave, why couldn't she fight back?
"Qin Xiaoyu, who are you saying is making a fool of themselves?" Qin Xiaona pointed at Qin Xiaoyu and asked loudly.
"Enough." As soon as Old Grand Master Qin spoke up, the room immediately fell silent for a moment, and neither Qin Xiaona nor Qin Xiaoyu dared to argue anymore.
Qin Yize, on the other hand, lifted his hand and in one swift move, removed the lid from the watermelon.
A light fragrance of watermelon mixed with the delectable aroma of chicken wafted through the air.
Old Master Qin nodded with satisfaction and looked up at Qin Yize, "Where's my great-granddaughter-in-law?"
"She'll be right over," Shen Manru said with a beaming smile.
Qin Yize rose and walked towards the kitchen. Seeing Gu Qiaoqiao washing her hands, he spoke leisurely, "We're just waiting for you now."
The Qin family's dinner on the first day of the New Year was perfect, without a single flaw to pick at.
Gu Qiaoqiao let out a sigh of relief.
When Grandma Qin was leaving, she taught her the recipe for the Drunken Lustrous Fragrance, and Grandma Qin departed satisfied.
When Bai Yun arrived at the Qin Family home, Old Master Qin had already left.
The upheaval she had imagined had not occurred; Shen Manru and Qin Xuan were smiling.
So was Qin Xiaoyu.
Qin Yize was not at home.
Grandma Qin was beaming with joy.
Bai Yun couldn't understand what exactly had happened.
She had come prepared to see a comedy unfold, and also to stamp hard on Gu Qiaoqiao.
But could someone tell her what was going on here?
Could it be that Old Lady Qin had actually tolerated Gu Qiaoqiao's outrageous accusation?
She pulled Qin Xiaoyu aside and asked, "Xiao Yu, did your sister-in-law cry hard today?"
"Cry? What for?" Qin Xiaoyu looked at Bai Yun with surprise, "No, she didn't."
"So, Gu Qiaoqiao didn't kneel on the floor, crying and complaining to Old Lady Qin?"
"Me, kneeling on the floor?" Gu Qiaoqiao crossed her arms and leaned against the doorframe of the hall, looking at Bai Yun with a laugh, her voice tinged with faint mockery, "I need to complain to Old Lady Qin?"
Bai Yun was about to speak when, at that moment, the door outside was opened.
Qin Yize's tall frame stood at the doorway, his brows furrowed as he looked towards the three women in the hall.
Bai Yun stopped talking.
Qin Xiaoyu was confused.
Gu Qiaoqiao was smiling but not quite smiling.
Qin Yize only paused for a moment before continuing towards the living room. As he passed by Gu Qiaoqiao, his cool voice rang out, "Come back to the room with me."
Gu Qiaoqiao was taken aback.
Bai Yun's face turned pale as she clenched her fists, staring intently at Gu Qiaoqiao. Brother Ze was actually speaking so intimately with Gu Qiaoqiao.
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