Chapter 714: Chapter 676: Establishing Rules (Fifth Update)

"Hmm, go ahead." Song Wei rubbed his chin against the top of her head.

Wen Wan turned to him, "Isn’t Father’s birthday coming up? When writing the invitations, I want to send one to the Kangding Bo Mansion."

Upon hearing this, Song Wei was taken aback, "The Kangding Bo Mansion?"

"Yes." Wen Wan nodded, "Today, Aunt Xie mentioned it casually, and I suddenly thought of Sanyang. That girl has been at the Li Family for too long. I’m afraid she’ll develop feelings and won’t want to come back. Lady Kang Ding has met me, and she knows I’m Li Huairu’s third aunt. If I send an invitation to their family, she’ll surely bring Sanyang along when they attend, right?"

Song Wei asked, "What if Sanyang hasn’t remembered anything yet and our parents or Second Brother and Sister-in-law see her, what then?"

"That’s why I want to discuss it with you." Wen Wan was quite troubled, "Should we send this invitation or not?"

Song Wei thought for a moment and ultimately told her to send it.

Wen Wan looked at the man, "Aren’t you afraid our parents might see her?"

"We can simply say she looks similar." Song Wei said, "Besides, Sanyang has been at the Li Family for so long; her appearance and habits will have changed somewhat. As long as Second Brother and Sister-in-law don’t overreact, our parents won’t do anything inappropriate on the spot."

Wen Wan nodded, "Since you said so, I’ll really send it then!"

"Hmm."

——

Three days after Song Jiao’s marriage, she returned with her husband Liang Jun, the once tender young girl now had her black hair styled up, wearing a brand new long robe with golden threading, her brows full of spring, her face flushed like peach blossoms.

Song Jiao first went to the West Courtyard, where she had a meal with her parents before coming to the East Courtyard.

When Wen Wan saw her, she didn’t recognize her at first, staring for a moment before smiling, "Isn’t this my niece who just got married? It’s only been three days, and I almost didn’t recognize you."

Liang Jun saw Wen Wan and saluted, "Third Aunt."

Wen Wan pointed to a seat, "We’re family, no need for formalities, please sit!"

After the young couple sat down, Wen Wan asked about their married life, and not long after, Liang Jun was invited to the outer courtyard by a boy by Song Wei’s side, and Wen Wan sent Yun Cailong and the others away, waiting until only Song Jiao and she were left in the room, then asked how things were at her in-laws’.

Song Jiao said it was quite good.

Wen Wan asked about the attitude of her parents-in-law.

Song Jiao considered, "We haven’t been together long, so saying they’re wonderful would be a bit fake. After all, a new bride just over the threshold, even a shrewd mother-in-law wouldn’t act until after the return visit, but so far, everything is fine."

"Rest assured." Wen Wan reassured her, "Even if your parents don’t match up to his, you still have a third uncle here. Even if they’re not concerned for your third uncle, they would respect the considerable dowry you brought, and won’t be too harsh on you."

Song Jiao nodded, her heart full of gratitude.

When she married, she had a total of sixty-eight dowry items, exactly in the style of Wen Wan’s own daughter. On the wedding day, the streets were crowded with people, and she was quite the sight, making many people envious. When she arrived at her in-laws’, her sister-in-law restrained her pettiness due to the impressive dowry and strong family support, not daring to openly oppose her.

——

In the main hall of the outer courtyard at this time, Liang Jun sat on a round-backed chair, Song Wei presiding at the head.

Song Wei hadn’t spoken for a while, and Liang Jun appeared quite uneasy.

To be honest, he wasn’t even this nervous meeting his legitimate in-laws for the first time; now, facing Song Wei alone, he didn’t dare to speak, merely calling him "Third Uncle" without further words.

Song Wei looked at him with lowered eyes and a silent manner, giving a faint smile, "Did you do something guilty, otherwise why would you fear me like this?"

Liang Jun forced a smile, "With you here watching over, how could I dare do anything wrong? It’s just that my status has changed, and I haven’t adapted yet."

Song Wei asked about Song Jiao’s situation at the Liang Family. Liang Jun said his parents quite liked Song Jiao, especially his mother, who told him privately to be kind to her since it wasn’t easy for her coming from such a distance to marry.

Song Wei poured himself tea, his voice leisurely, "I don’t know if the Liang Family has any rules, but since you’re here today, I must establish some."

Upon hearing the word "rules," Liang Jun immediately straightened his back.

Song Wei said, "The rule of taking a concubine only if a new wife has not borne any children within three years, I think you should know it even without me saying so. If within three years you have a change of heart, or do anything to wrong Jiaojiao, the Song Family will initiate a divorce, and the list of Jiaojiao’s dowry, of which your family has a copy, her family kept a copy, and the government has a copy as well. Upon divorce, everything must be returned without missing an item, and you will have to compensate her with a sum of silver."

Liang Jun listened with an awkward expression, "Third Uncle, we’re newly married and visiting home, why are you bringing this up?"

Naturally, it was for prevention. Song Wei said, "Last year, a relative of ours got married, and within a month they divorced. I won’t go into details, but it was bad. I’m just giving you a heads-up. After all, you young people like to fool around, and if something happens, it’s the woman who suffers. Although Jiaojiao is my niece, I, as her third uncle, won’t ignore her because she’s married. So you should weigh your actions carefully in the future."

Liang Jun roughly guessed who Song Wei was referring to. Tang Yuan had worked with him at the Hanlin Academy before taking leave to get married, and shortly after, the divorce became widely known.

Liang Jun had heard about it. It seemed to be related to his sister-in-law somehow. Regardless of how they cleared it up in the end, the reputation had already spread, foul and rotten.

And that girl seemed to be a relative of the Song family.

Liang Jun suddenly understood Song Wei’s concern and promised, "Rest assured, Third Uncle. Though I can’t promise a lifetime, at least within the next three years, I can ensure no other women will appear in the household, and she will not be wronged in the slightest."

——

On the day Song Yuanbao returned, he drove his carriage directly outside the hanging flower gate, where the coachman helped unload several large boxes.

Seeing this, the servants rushed over to help, asking Song Yuanbao what good things he’d brought back from Jiangnan as they carried them inside.

Song Yuanbao snorted, "Even if there were good things, they wouldn’t be for you."

As he spoke, he yawned. He hadn’t slept well last night and was feeling a bit tired.

Wen Wan, upon hearing that Song Yuanbao had returned, came out immediately and saw the servants carrying large boxes inside.

Wen Wan’s mouth twitched, "How much did you buy?"

Song Yuanbao waved his hand wearily, "Since I’m not spending my own money, might as well buy as much as I want."

Wen Wan said, "Did you cause His Highness to lose terribly?"

Song Yuanbao wanted to say that since he healed him, spending some money wasn’t too much, but he swallowed the words and simply said, "His Highness is my uncle, my elder. Since he’s taking me to Jiangnan, it’s only proper that he gives me some rewards."

"What did you buy?" Wen Wan asked.

"Gifts for Grandpa and Grandma, paintings and calligraphy for Dad, Su embroidery silk for Mom, toys for Jinbao. All are specialties from Suzhou and Hangzhou. There are a lot of them, you can see for yourself. I’m exhausted and want to rest in your room."

"Go ahead!"

Wen Wan signaled to Linglong, who quickly said, "Young Master, please come inside."

As soon as Song Yuanbao went in, he collapsed onto the Arhat Bed. Linglong went to the inner room, took a brocade quilt out of the double-doored redwood top box cabinet, and covered him.

Afraid to disturb the young master, Linglong didn’t stay in the room and quietly tiptoed out.

When the boxes were carried to the storeroom, Wen Wan had them all opened. Just as Song Yuanbao said, there were many things, and they were all high-quality items.

Wen Wan’s eyes lingered on one box, which contained beautiful Su Jin Hang Chou, so captivating that she couldn’t look away.

"These must have cost a lot, right?" the servants asked while moving, "The young master indeed has money."

Wen Wan just smiled.

Yuanbao left in such a hurry he didn’t even have time to take money. Where did he get the silver to buy these? Surely, it must have been because of the Crown Prince’s generosity.

After inventorying the items into storage, Wen Wan returned to Qingteng Residence and found that Song Yuanbao was already asleep on the Arhat Bed, so she simply went to the west wing.

Nanny Zhou was doing embroidery, occasionally glancing beside her. On the floor, there was a soft cushion where Qi Bao lay. She had a small bell bracelet on her wrist which would ring with movement, and each ring made her smile. To keep the bell ringing, the little child rolled around on the cushion, playing joyfully.

Wen Wan stood outside the window, her heart softening. She then stepped inside.

Seeing Wen Wan, Nanny Zhou quickly put down her embroidery frame and stood up to salute, "Madam."

"Has Qi Bao been good today?" Wen Wan bent down to pick up her daughter.

"Very good!" Nanny Zhou smiled and said, "Maybe because the weather is getting warmer, the young lady has been very energetic these days and loves to roll over. She does it very well."

Wen Wan nodded with gratitude, "Thank you for your hard work."