Ye Shiqi washed her face and brushed her teeth, no longer wearing the bright red outfit from yesterday.
After being perated by the smoke of fireworks for two full nights, it had acquired a sowhat unpleasant odor.
Today, Ye Shiqi wore a pink cotton dress. In ancient tis, not only did people wear skirts, but so also wore trousers for convenience. Wealthier won would wear skirts, only putting on underpants beneath them.
The maid combed her hair again, creating two small buns tied with floral ribbons, and also inserted a silver hairpin.
She wore pink embroidered shoes on her feet, as there was no snow here, and today the sun was shining outside the window.
While Ye Shiqi was dressing, her elder sister quietly sat beside her.
Then, three other sisters ca over to watch. After Ye Shiqi was dressed, all the sisters looked at each other and realized they were all wearing matching outfits.
The five sisters were dressed in pink skirts and jackets, and pink embroidered shoes.
However, the accessories on their heads were a bit different, but that did not affect their matching appearance.
When the sisters, hand in hand, ca to the hall for breakfast, their father was seated, their mother holding their brother was there too, and even their grandparents were present.
"You don’t have to go to your mother’s ho so early. Can’t you go in a few days? Today your sisters and brothers-in-law might co!" Mrs. Lai said to her son and daughter-in-law, sounding more like a command than a suggestion.
The five sisters hadn’t yet seated themselves. They had originally planned to visit their maternal grandparents’ ho today.
The grandmother made this disruptive suggestion, and they hesitated for a mont before silently taking their seats, settling down to eat breakfast peacefully.
Today’s breakfast was quite lavish, still featuring rice cakes and pastries, but no at porridge, perhaps out of a belief that eating porridge during the New Year was sothing poor people did.
"Mother, the second sister sent a ssage saying that the fireworks business is good this year. They’ve restocked twice, and today she can’t co because she has to go buy more stock," Ye Shiqi announced.
"Then your elder sister and your younger sister might co to our ho today," Mrs. Lai responded with the sa expression, clearly prioritizing her daughters’ visit over her son going to his father-in-law’s ho.
"Mother, I already spoke to my elder brother-in-law yesterday. Today we go to the father-in-law’s ho, and they’ll co over tomorrow. As for the younger sister, her health is frail, and the brother-in-law said she won’t co, but he will visit on the sixth day of the Lunar New Year," Hongji said.
Mrs. Lai, having been rebutted twice by her son, was still undeterred and insisted, "Then, since you are free today, co with to my parental ho!"
Hongji, seeing his mother’s persistence, and to prevent her from venting her frustration on his wife during the New Year period, looked to his father for help.
Hongji’s father, who had been silent and eating breakfast, was unwilling to voice his opinion and was reluctant to accompany his wife to her parental ho.
Yet, catching his son’s pleading look, he spoke up to help him, "Isn’t it enough that I accompany you to your parental ho?"
Mrs. Lai was montarily speechless at her husband’s words, stymied from voicing her plans in front of so many people.
Mrs. Lai was determined to have her son and family accompany her to her parental ho, harboring the notion of introducing her son to her young niece prior to the New Year, hoping he would take her as a concubine.
Mrs. Lai still concealed this plan after a previous instance where her husband had undermined her, and not wanting to confront him unless things were settled, she was upset to be undermined once again.
"Alright then!"
Mrs. Lai decided to take this opportunity to visit her parental ho and clarify everything with her husband. If he supported her, they could settle the betrothal gifts for the girl this ti, without needing any matchmakers.
After all, as long as the betrothal gifts were given, the lack of a dowry didn’t matter; a simple sedan chair would suffice to bring her into their ho.
Seeing his mother drop the matter, Hongji sighed in relief and gave his wife an apologetic smile.
Mrs. Li reciprocated with a look, indicating it was alright as long as they managed to visit the maternal ho together without issues.
Little did the couple suspect that Mrs. Lai would sche against them at this ti.
Ye Shiqi was enjoying a cup of sheep’s milk and a couple of pastries arranged by the maid with her sisters.
From the grandmother’s initial command to her eventual smooth agreent, Ye Shiqi felt there was sothing off about her grandmother’s expression, but she couldn’t quite decipher her thoughts.
At that mont, she rely figured that her grandmother maybe wanted to bring her son and daughter-in-law, along with their family, back to her parental ho, to show off to her relatives.
Competing with her mother to visit her parental ho today might have just been about outdoing her mother.
Ye Shiqi could never imagine her grandmother harboring such intentions, as it had been a strategy reprised from two years ago.
As a granddaughter, Ye Shiqi wasn’t very close to her grandmother and disregarded her hint about considering her father taking her aunt as a concubine. Her second aunt and third aunt had been married off; even if there was such a girl, she would have been married by now after two or three years!
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