Chapter 574 - 495: The Birth of a Great-Grandchild_3

Yang Zhenshan’s eyebrows raised; his great-grandson was born?

Our generation has finally grown!

Starting from today, I am a great-grandfather.

Without further ado, he strode towards Yang Chengye’s courtyard.

"The master has returned!"

He had not yet reached the courtyard when he heard a maid spreading the word.

Soon, the Yang family members were all coming out of the main hall.

"Dad!"

"Grandpa!"

"Greetings to the master!"

A large group of people shouted excitedly.

Yu Qingyi stood in the main hall, still holding a swaddle.

"Haha, come, let me see the child first!"

Yang Zhenshan stepped forward to take the swaddled infant.

The little one was curiously looking at this unknown world with his big eyes open.

The wrinkled little guy looked somewhat ugly.

"Master, it’s a boy!" Qingyi said with a smile.

Yang Zhenshan nodded slightly and carefully reached out to tease the little chap.

But the small fellow wasn’t giving face, refusing to pay attention to his great-grandfather and always looking away to see something else.

"Grandpa!" Yang Chengye came up close, smiling like a fool, completely without his usual composure.

Yang Zhenshan nodded at him, "Now you’re a father, you should look the part!"

Yang Chengye just scratched his head with a silly smile, without saying a word.

Yang Zhenshan then turned to look at Qingyi, "How is Mrs. Yu doing?"

"She’s doing well, she just drank a bowl of soothing soup, and now she’s resting!" Qingyi replied.

"Has someone been sent to the Marquis Dongping Mansion to share the good news?"

"We’ve already sent Wu Hai! He should have arrived by now!"

Yang Zhenshan nodded and then turned his gaze back to the little fellow.

The little one was probably tired, as he had already closed his eyes to rest.

Yang Zhenshan carefully touched the little fellow’s pulse, a strong pulse indicating a healthy child.

News of the Yang family’s addition of a great-grandson quickly spread throughout the Capital City, and on the day of the ’Wash Third’ ceremony, many people came to the Marquis Mansion to offer congratulations.

The ’Wash Third’ ceremony is on the third day after an infant’s birth when a bathing ritual is held, gathering relatives and friends to wish the child well, also known as "Three Morning Infant Wash."

The purpose of ’Wash Third’ is twofold: one is to wash away impurities and prevent misfortunes; the second is to pray for good fortune and luck.

However, the Yang family had never held a ’Wash Third’ ceremony for a child before, as it was very complicated, and in Liaodong, the ceremony wasn’t given much importance, unlike in the Capital City where it was highly valued.

As the saying goes, when in Rome, do as the Romans do. Since the Yang family had come to the Capital City, they held a ’Wash Third’ ceremony according to the local customs.

The little fellow’s ’Wash Third’ ceremony naturally included his maternal relatives.

A whole host of the womenfolk from the Marquis Dongping Mansion came to add water to the basin for the little one.

’Spoon feeding’ is when close relatives, according to seniority and age, take turns adding a small spoonful of water into the basin and place gold, silver, and coin-like objects in it.

After finishing the spoon feeding, the midwife took a rod and stirred the basin.

"One stir, two stirs, three continuous stirs, the brothers lead the little brothers to run. Seventy children, eighty children, naught ones, mischievous ones, they all come rushing in!"

The midwife, who is responsible for the ceremony, was hosting the ’Wash Third’.

While carefully washing the little one, the midwife murmured continuously.

"Wash the head first, become a king or marquis; then wash the waist, each generation surpasses the previous; wash the eggs, become a County Magistrate; wash the groin, become a Prefect."

When the washing was done, the gold and silver coins, jewelry, eggs, fruits, pastries, and the like from ’spoon feeding’ were all taken by the midwife.

Watching the midwife’s old face beaming like a flower, the corners of Yang Zhenshan’s mouth twitched slightly.

Darn it, that was hundreds of Silver, the midwife really made a fortune today!

Actually, the spoon feeding in ’Wash Third’ was more of a formality, and people would usually give only a little gold or silver coins, not a lot of money. However, today the Empress Dowager sent a court lady over, who not only brought a substantial amount of gifts but also placed a nugget of gold during the spoon feeding.

When the midwife saw the nugget of gold falling into the bath, her mouth twisted with joy, and she started speaking incoherently.