"But fortunately, Brother An is good. That child has lost his parents, and even though he has relatives, itās not the same as having parents. In the future, you must treat him well."
"Mother, I understand."
Ms. Wang nodded and said, "If you have any issues with Brother An in the future, feel free to tell your father and me about it. Even though you are getting married, weāre still there for you. You also have two younger brothers, so youāre not without support. Donāt put yourself down."
"Hmm, mother, rest assured." Yang Chuxia nodded and seeing that Ms. Wang was about to cry again, it made her feel sad, so she impulsively hugged Ms. Wang, "Mother."
"Good girl." Ms. Wang patted her and then said, "Sit up straight, donāt cry. Otherwise, it would ruin the makeup, and crease the clothes. It wouldnāt look nice. My daughter has to be the prettiest bride."
Ms. Wang gently wiped away her tears, "I will ask Xiuāer to keep you company." When she was leaving, she tucked a little notebook into her hand.
Yang Chuxia was momentarily stunned. As Ms. Wang left, she flipped through it casually and found that it was that little book.
She suddenly remembered a time when she was having breakfast at the inn and Brother An mentioned that he had never seen Spring Palace Pictures. She secretly laughed, yes, sheād look at them together with her dear Ziāan after this. Evidently, Yang Chuxia was completely unreserved.
After a while, the Land Officerās wife, Ms. Liu, and Ms. Luo, Auntie Caixia and Aunt-in-law Gen came over, each bringing gifts to fit out Yang Chuxiaās trousseau. The Land Officerās wife gave her a pair of gold bracelets, a gold hairpin and a gold ring.
These past few years Yang Dayong had been workig with Yang Chuxia and his annual dividends alone amounted to thousands of taels of silver. He could easily afford these gifts. As for Ms. Liu, she gave her a pair of silver bracelets. Ms. Luo was surprisingly generous and also gave her a pair of silver bracelets, which were quite heavy. Yang Chuxia figured that they must have made a good living these past few years from farming and additional work they did for her family, affording them some spare cash.
After they left, Yang Ruoqiu and their sisters as well as Yang Jinling and their sisters also came over.
Late, even the wives of Constable Hong and Shopkeeper Li came in turn.
The most curious of all was Mu Shaoling who had actually sent a box over, which contained a pair of jade hairpins. In ancient times, if a man sent a jade hairpin to a woman, it would indicate a commitment of love, which was completely different from giving a set of jewelry.
Yang Chuxia found it strange, and she couldnāt help but remember what she and Ye Ziāan had discussed. She thought to herself, could it be that Mu Shaoling really had feelings for her. But she quickly dismissed this thought, thinking that it was just part of fitting out her trousseau without any hidden meanings. Things were going well as they were currently.
The matchmaker had set the auspicious time for the groom to arrive and pick up the bride between 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., and the time for the wedding ceremony was scheduled between 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Soon, it was time for the groom to arrive.
Xiuāer ran in, laughing, "Miss, our son-in-law is here to collect the bride."
Yang Ruoqiu and the others in the room laughed and teased Yang Chuxia. They could faintly hear Yang Qingruiās voice outside.
"Son-in-law, Iāve been waiting to call you this for a long time." Yang Qingrui laughed, "But I will not break the rules easily."
"Yes, yes, yes." Yang Qingtong also said, "Everyone says our son-in-law is very talented, we must test him."
Luo Linhao rolled up his sleeves gallantly, "Tell me, what do you want to test? Thereās no need for my cousin to undertake such trivial matters, I can take care of it."
"Get out of the way." The one who said this was one of Yang Qingruiās closer classmates who had been invited. He said to Luo Linhao, "Itās not your wedding, we want to test the groom."
Ye Ziāan, dressed in celebratory attire with a big silk flower hanging on his chest, looked happy and handsome.
He was in high spirits and said, "Go ahead and test me."