HLnovel Chapter 406
Chapter 406
At this moment, the Li residence was filled with jubilation. The faces of the maidservants bustling about were brimming with joy."They're here, they're here!"
An excited voice rang out from an unknown source.
Everyone eagerly craned their necks to look outside the gates.
Inside the Banyue Pavilion,
Li Zhiwei wore a water-blue stand-collar ruqun today. The fabric was made of top-grade Yun brocade. A large ruffle was specially designed at the shoulders, and a circle of intertwining lotus vines was embroidered along the hem of the skirt, looking incredibly lifelike as she walked.
At this moment, she sat properly before the mirror, her cheeks flushed.
Xu Heming was coming to the manor today to present the betrothal gifts. She felt both nervous and somewhat bewildered.
"Oh my, this dress looks absolutely stunning on our Sister Li," Cheng Qingli said, looking at Li Zhiwei's attire with immense satisfaction.
"Of course. Just look at it, this is the signature piece of our Jinhua Hall," Wen Xiu added with a hint of pride.
"Oh right, where is the jewelry from Master Yan?" Cheng Qingli asked in dissatisfaction, noticing that Li Zhiwei's hair was still quite plain.
"Let's just use these for today's jewelry, shall we?" Li Zhiwei said, pointing to the jewelry box on the table.
"How can that do? They say a good horse deserves a good saddle. If you wear these, wouldn't it be a waste of this beautiful outfit? Besides, you are going to see Prince An later. You must dress up beautifully so he will be utterly captivated by you," Cheng Qingli said unhappily.
Hearing this, Wen Xiu, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but chuckle secretly.
"Prince An and I are not what you think," Li Zhiwei lowered her head shyly as she said this. After all, the reason she and Prince An were granted a marriage by imperial decree was that Prince An wanted to help her break free from the Marquis of Ru'an's residence.
Now, the Marquis of Ru'an's residence was no longer a threat. As for Prince An's feelings for her, she was actually not entirely sure.
"If it's not what I think, then what is it? You're marrying Prince An in just a few days, what else could I possibly think? Hmph, back then, when he found out I took you to the Qingfeng Pavilion, he was so anxious. In my eyes, he is completely smitten and wrapped around your little finger," Cheng Qingli said with an 'I know it all' expression.
"You're still bringing that up!" Li Zhiwei felt annoyed the moment Cheng Qingli mentioned the Qingfeng Pavilion.
"Oops, my mistake. I just wanted you to have some good food," Cheng Qingli quickly shrank her neck back.
She genuinely thought that incident was amusing.
However, recently, after discussing the affairs of Jinhua Hall with Li Zhiwei and Wen Xiu, her temperament had indeed changed a lot.
"Zhiwei, I think Qingli is right. Today, making a name for our Jinhua Hall all depends on you," Wen Xiu quickly reminded her from the side.
"Miss, this is the jewelry Master Yan had someone deliver," Qinghua quickly brought out a box of jewelry.
Cheng Qingli couldn't wait to open the box, revealing a complete set of camellia-themed hair ornaments inside.
Without a second thought, Cheng Qingli took them out and adorned Li Zhiwei's hair with them.
Then she nodded in satisfaction. "There, this looks much better."
"By Imperial Decree, Prince An's Manor presents the betrothal gifts! The envoy has arrived!"
Outside the Li residence, Princess Consort Rong arrived with a grand procession and stood at the entrance.
Hearing this, the Li family hurried to open the main gates. Li Tianyou, accompanied by his wife, Lady Yao, quickly stepped forward to welcome the guests.
"Greetings to Princess Consort Rong!" Li Tianyou and Lady Yao hurriedly bowed.
"Lord Li, Madam Li, please rise quickly. Today, I have specifically come on behalf of Prince An's Manor to present the betrothal gifts for your esteemed daughter," Princess Consort Rong said with a gentle smile.
"We have troubled Princess Consort Rong," Li Tianyou said hastily.
"Since that is the case, shall we begin?" Princess Consort Rong looked at the couple and said with a smile.
Li Tianyou nodded quickly, thinking to himself that he had never seen such a grand spectacle before.
For a moment, he was afraid he might make a mistake.
Even Lady Yao was extremely nervous.
"Sister Yao, don't worry. The herald will speak shortly, just follow his instructions," Madam Cheng quickly comforted Lady Yao.
"Lord Li, quickly lead the herald and Princess Consort Rong to the main hall!" Madam Cheng urgently reminded him.
Madam Cheng looked around. There was no one else in the manor to do it, so Li Tianyou had to handle this himself.
She thought to herself that if she had known, she would have called her own husband over to help.
"Right! Right!" Li Tianyou quickly walked up to the herald and Princess Consort Rong, inviting them into the main hall.
After Princess Consort Rong signaled to the herald behind her.
The two entered the main hall in order. After exchanging pleasantries and taking their seats,
The herald shouted loudly toward the outside, "Guests and hosts are in position!"
Outside the Li residence, many curious onlookers had gathered.
After all, Prince An's Manor was delivering the betrothal gifts to the Li family today. Everyone was very curious about how much Prince An's Manor would offer, especially considering the Li family's previous dowry of over one thousand six hundred chests.
Li Tianyou and Lady Yao sat somewhat stiffly in the main hall, keeping Princess Consort Rong company.
The herald took out the imperial edict granting the marriage and read it aloud on the spot. After the reading was finished, everyone stood up and then sat back down to the side.
Seeing that everyone was seated, the herald continued, "Bring forth the wild geese!"
As soon as the herald finished speaking, a servant boy stepped forward carrying two live wild geese.
"These geese were caught by Heming himself. They happen to be a pair. In the future, the two children will surely love and trust each other," Princess Consort Rong said with a smile, seemingly noticing the Li couple's nervousness.
"Oh my, who would have thought that a man with a cold and aloof temperament like Prince An would personally go catch wild geese," Madam Cheng chimed in with a laugh from the side.
The herald then continued to loudly read from the list of gifts.
Every single item was clearly of immense value.
Li Tianyou and Lady Yao were a bit dumbfounded as they watched.
"Princess Consort Rong, isn't this too much?" Li Tianyou asked cautiously.
His heart felt full. The first time, during his daughter's engagement to the Marquis of Ru'an's residence, there were no such grand procedures.
During the betrothal, they had only given thirty chests of gifts.
They had returned them completely untouched.
But now, the grand courtyard of the Li residence was almost overflowing.
Li Tianyou couldn't help but feel a bit ashamed.
Was this what it truly looked like when a noble family in the capital took a bride?
"Lord Li, rest assured. The Old Princess Consort said that our girl must not be wronged. It was not easy for you to raise this child; these are all tokens of Prince An's Manor's sincerity," Princess Consort Rong said with a smile.
"Lord Li, this shows that Prince An's Manor highly values our Weiwei," Madam Cheng said, nodding in great satisfaction as she watched.
She didn't think there was anything inappropriate. After all, the Li family had done their son-in-law a huge favor, and they only had one daughter. Naturally, they hoped she would marry well.
Furthermore, regarding Prince An's Manor, Prince An was the sole heir of his lineage. What good things could they possibly lack?
This was simply a demonstration of Prince An's Manor's sincerity toward the Li family.
"Princess Consort Rong, Madam Cheng is right," Li Tianyou felt a bit embarrassed. He still knew too little about these great aristocratic families in the capital.
Otherwise, back then, how would he have ever dared to suggest to Xu Heming the idea of becoming a live-in son-in-law for their family?
Fortunately, they hadn't gone through with it.
Otherwise, the Li family would probably have been cursed and poked in the spine by the people of the capital.