The matter of Jia Hu was temporarily put to rest.
With a few letters sent out, the position of border army lieutenant was easily obtained.
Only then did Jia Mu find an opportunity to hold a small feast on March 9th, the birthday of Jia Lian.
Then, until April 4th, Jia Mu seized another opportunity.
This day marked both the birthday of Li Xuan and the birthday of Xi Chun.
One was the younger brother of the eldest daughter-in-law from the in-law family, and after this birthday, he would be able to inherit his position.
The other was the eldest daughter of the Eastern Mansion, the younger sister of the patriarch, in Jia Mu's eyes.
Wasn't this an excellent excuse for a grand celebration?
There was no need for any other reason; she simply ordered Wang to invite a theatrical troupe to host a grand feast for the entire mansion in celebration!
Initially, everyone was seated at two separate tables.
However, at Li Xuan's table, this time, there were no elders like Jia She and Jia Zheng, but instead, fellow peers like Jia Lian and Jia Huan, drinking together.
After presenting gifts to the birthday celebrators, Jia Bao Yu, acting spoiled, said,
"Grandmother, Xuan is still young, he's family from our in-laws, he doesn't count as an outsider, let him come and join us for fun!"
Today, Xuan was the last pure soul.
Tomorrow, when he takes over the military post, he'll become a traitor and a corrupt official.
Such a pity!
Wang, thinking about how Xuan, at such a young age, would soon be a high official, perhaps even able to help her own Bao Yu, did not object.
And Jia Mu, with her love for Li Wan, would be even less likely to oppose.
She glanced at Yuanyang, sending a signal with her eyes. Yuanyang, who had served Jia Mu for years, understood immediately and went behind the screen to invite Li Xuan over.
Xi Chun pointed at the gift Li Xuan had brought and asked curiously,
"Fourth Brother Xuan, what did you get me? Why is the box so big?"
China has always valued subtlety and beauty.
When someone gave a gift, as long as it was wrapped, they would open it privately later.
This avoided comparisons between the value of gifts, whether expensive or cheap, which could hurt feelings.
"Fourth Miss, you can't say it."
"If you say it, there'll be no surprise when you open it."
Li Xuan shook his head, choosing to remain mysterious.
Before Xi Chun could object, Tan Chun laughed.
She covered her mouth and chuckled,
"You two, one Fourth Brother Xuan, one Fourth Miss, even your birthdays are the same, how come you're more like siblings than Second Brother Bao?"
Xi Chun was too young, otherwise, she would look even more like a pair of twins.
The little girl puffed out her chubby cheeks, her eyes full of confusion: "Isn't Fourth Brother Xuan my brother?"
"Look, there's First Brother Zhen, Second Brother Bao, Second Brother Lian, Third Brother Huan, Fourth Brother Xuan."
"Yes, Fourth Brother Xuan is my brother!"
Let alone the fact that you have this whole bunch of direct descendants, how did Jia Huan, a bastard, get in there?
Just with those two "Second Brothers," don't you find it strange?
The sisters and Jia Bao Yu all burst into laughter.
Jia Mu raised her eyebrows at them, saying nothing.
She favored the second branch, she couldn't stop a bastard from striving for advancement, could she?
Zhao, secretly calling him "Third Master Huan," did she really think I didn't know?
Wang's face twisted in anger.
Third Brother Huan?
Fine, fine, you dare call him the same as my Bao Yu, huh?
Looks like I'll have to put Zhao back in her place tomorrow!
Xing: I don't know, I didn't see anything, didn't hear anything. The eldest master hasn't said anything, I'm just a piece of wood!
The theatrical performance was lively above, while the sisters chattered below.
They were not very familiar with each other, even when Jia Hu visited and they hid behind the screen together, they didn't speak much.
So after a lively gathering around Li Xuan, they all shyly started chatting amongst themselves.
Li Xuan couldn't be like Jia Bao Yu, who could be humble and ingratiating, and fit into the girls' circle. Besides, his status was low, it was not appropriate to be overly expressive and draw their attention to himself.
He turned his attention to the opera, which he couldn't really focus on.
Then, his mind gradually drifted.
Occasionally, he would respond to the elders or sisters, and time passed.
The next day, after morning practice and sparring with Lin, Li Xuan called out to her.
"Miss Lin, have you noticed that since Jia Hu appeared, the world seems to have undergone a new change?"
"This sister has also had the same doubts."
Lin Daiyu planted her spear in the ground, its tip pointing straight up: "I've made significant progress in martial arts lately, it can be said that it's due to sparring with my brother."
"But my progress is twice as fast as before."
"Could it be that we're about to return to the ancient times when immortals and gods coexisted?"
Oh, Li Xuan didn't know much about that.
You see, the Li family of Jinling was a family of scholars, they didn't pay much attention to cultivation.
Li Xuan, due to his age, couldn't go out on his own, so he could only rely on a box of martial arts manuals left by his "father."
And Lin Daiyu was a reincarnation of a divine flower from a celestial garden, with extraordinary talent.
Though she seemed as delicate as a willow in the wind, she was actually strong and healthy.
Because she was a spirit of the plants, she was sensitive enough to detect poison in the house, and called upon military and martial arts experts to defend the family. She saved her mother and brother without knowing it, and began practicing martial arts.
She learned much more than Li Xuan did, from martial arts experts, even a grandmaster from a major martial arts sect.
Though Li Xuan didn't know the details, he still bowed and said,
"Miss Lin, please enlighten me. I truly know nothing about this, I'm not even as knowledgeable as a street urchin."
"Fourth Brother Xuan, you're being unreasonable," Lin Daiyu said, her eyes that seemed to weep yet didn't were bright and distinct. "They say you're close family, yet you're so distant."
"Yes, it must be that this sister constantly bothers you, making you unhappy."
"I was relieved that in this mansion, we two could practice martial arts, it would be nice to have someone to move around with, but I've upset you."
"Fine, fine, from tomorrow on, this sister won't come anymore, lest you get annoyed when you see me."
Her little mouth went on and on.
Even though her pose, leaning on the spear, looked like a gentle lady, it still made one involuntarily shudder.
But with that "brother" and "sister" talk, Li Xuan realized he had made a mistake.
He had been trying to avoid suspicion.
He always called the three Spring sisters "Miss," and he also called Lin "Miss."
It was understandable with the three Spring sisters, he wasn't familiar with them, but with Lin, he was sparring with her almost every day.
If he was any more polite, he would just be being polite for politeness' sake.
Suppressing his expression, Li Xuan bowed formally and said, "Miss Lin, please forgive me, it was my oversight. Here, I solemnly apologize to you, please forgive me."
The little girl looked at Li Xuan for a long time before finally saying with satisfaction,
"Alright, alright, I was just joking, why do you take it so seriously, Fourth Brother Xuan?"
"I heard a Taoist from Kunlun say that the cultivation world develops in a state of both regression and progression."
"Oh," Li Xuan didn't understand, "what do you mean?"
Lin Daiyu said, "The records in the Taoist scriptures state that immortals and gods once coexisted, but then the heavens collapsed, the earth shattered, and the world broke apart. Our Great Qian is just a corner of it."
"The immortals and gods retreated, leaving only cultivators. After countless years of recuperation, a dynasty unified the nine continents and gathered the troops of the world to cast twelve golden men. I don't know what happened, the emperor died, and the dynasty collapsed after two generations."
"Cultivators gradually disappeared along with the dynasty, and what arose in their place was the Qi and Blood martial arts, which has been passed down to this day, but became a legend, and the Qi cultivation martial arts, which had disappeared earlier."