Chapter 1604 - 322: The Grand Finale (Part 3)

He was his youngest legitimate grandson, fearless from a young age and always the closest to him.

Bai Jinzhi stood at the back, saw Lu Yuanqing and Lu Fenglang, but did not see Lu Yuanpeng. She wondered if Lu Yuanpeng’s injuries had not healed yet, and planned to visit the Lu Mansion with Sima Ping in the evening after the family reunion.

Mrs. Dong scheduled the grand banquet celebrating the unification of the world for the 8th of May during the Mangzhong festival. Today, the Bai family’s children returned from the battlefield, having accomplished their ancestors’ ambition of unifying the world. They just wanted to close the doors and celebrate privately as a family.

The national celebration could be discussed later.

The first day of May seemed to have become a day of reunion.

Murong Li had reunited with the Crown Prince of the Yan Kingdom and Murong Ping, and Xie Xun’s parents had also come to Dadu City to join the gathering.

At the family banquet, besides the members of the Bai family, there were also the two sons-in-law, Xiao Rongyan and Qin Lang...

Qin Lang was so shocked to see Xiao Rongyan at the banquet that he nearly slipped.

Now that the world was at peace, Xiao Rongyan, who had been friends with Qin Lang, had no reason to conceal his identity and offered a toast to apologize.

Only then did Qin Lang realize, "No wonder, I always felt Brother Xiao, though appearing as a merchant, carried an air of nobility. It turns out... he’s the Ninth Prince of Yan."

Hearing this, Xiao Rongyan raised his glass again, "Apologies, Brother Qin..."

"No problem, no problem! Now we are family!" Qin Lang quickly smiled and raised his glass.

"Oh dear! You two should drink less. Qin Lang’s stomach has just gotten better..." Mrs. Liu smiled and instructed the nanny, "Replace their drinks with plum juice!"

In Jinxiu’s absence, Qin Lang took good care of the Second Lady Mrs. Liu, more than a son would...

He knew that his mother-in-law was troubled because other branches of the Bai family had sons return, but the second branch did not. He comforted Mrs. Liu, saying that he married Jinxiu and called Mrs. Liu his mother, thus he was Mrs. Liu’s son. Until Mrs. Liu’s own sons returned, he was willing to look after Mrs. Liu on behalf of his brothers-in-law, which eased Mrs. Liu’s concerns.

During the family banquet, Xiao Ba prevented Wang Geer from pulling Kangle and Xile to find Bai Qingyan.

The family had a lively meal, only dispersing when the sky was completely dark.

Bai Jintong and Bai Jinzhi escorted the slightly tipsy Third Lady Mrs. Li, who had drunk some plum wine, back to her bedchamber. Only after a long conversation did they manage to extricate themselves.

Bai Jinzhi stretched her arms, smiled, and left the bedchamber with Bai Jintong, saying, "Ah! That’s great, now that you’re back, Third Sister, Mother won’t just catch me to dress up and then urge me to get married! With you around, she won’t have the energy to pester me!"

Bai Jintong knocked gently on Bai Jinzhi’s head, "You should go back and rest early!"

"I still need to leave the palace to check on Lu Yuanpeng! Third Sister, you rest early!" Bai Jinzhi said, ready to sneak away.

"Little Four!" Bai Jintong called out to Bai Jinzhi, remembering that Fifth Brother had asked her to tell Bai Jinzhi about Lu Yuanpeng, but she still hadn’t figured out how to say it.

"Third Sister?" Bai Jinzhi waved her hand in front of Bai Jintong’s eyes.

Bai Jintong gently grasped Bai Jinzhi’s hand, looked up into her clear eyes, and slowly began to speak amidst the rustling of the leaves in the wind...

Bai Jinzhi’s face gradually lost its color.

·

Mrs. Dong summoned Xiao Rongyan to her palace, asking Nanny Qin to bring out the clothes she had ordered for Xiao Rongyan to try on each one and see what needed altering to promptly get them sewn.

Bai Qingyu and Bai Qingyan sat by the high table under the lamp, drinking tea.

Bai Qingyu held a teacup, watching Xiao Rongyan cooperate dutifully, allowing the mother holding Xile to arrange him as she wished, changing whatever she wanted, and even thoughtfully asked Mrs. Dong if she wanted to match the outfit with the jade crown she prepared.

A Yu turned to his sister and said, "Sister, this Xiao Rongyan knows how to keep Mother happy!"

Since the passing of Empress Ji, no one had taken the trouble to make clothes for Xiao Rongyan. He genuinely felt warmth and joy, greatly appreciating the instructions Mrs. Dong gave to Nanny Qin for making alterations after he tried on the clothes.

"If you could cooperate with Mother like this, she would be happy too!" Bai Qingyan said with a smile.

"Sister..." Bai Qingyu put down the teacup and told his sister, "With Xiao Rongyan’s identity, how do you plan to arrange things? The Bai family knows he is the Bai family’s son-in-law, but outsiders only think the Zhou Emperor is deceased. It needs to be properly arranged. Why not let him marry you again as the Ninth Prince of Yan? That way... the two children would have a rightful father."