Chapter 894: Chapter 894: Farewell Approaching
The father-in-law and son-in-law talked for a while longer, then Lian Changhe, with a serious expression, walked out. It felt like he was stepping on cotton, his legs floating in the air, without any sense of reality. Inside, he felt anxious and uneasy, yet proud and hopeful, hoping his daughter would have an even better future.
The Emperor, fearing his presence would make their family feel constrained and uncomfortable, did not follow them out.
Su Ran saw Lian Changhe come out alone and asked in a low voice what was wrong? By rights, he shouldn’t have looked like this.
Lian Changhe shook his head and said it was nothing, that he would be fine after thinking it over himself.
So Su Ran let him think it over alone.
At that moment, Lian Changhe’s heart was stirred with many waves, unable to calm down no matter what he did.
He became much more silent afterwards, looking at Lian Hua from time to time, appearing deep in thought, worried his own daughter might not be able to suppress her destiny. Can she really manage in the future? Maybe it’s better to forget these wild thoughts, and talk to His Majesty about bringing her back home with him.
Yet, in moments of firm conviction, he believed his little daughter was the best in the world, unmatched by anyone, and of course she was worthy!
In a moment of distraction, Lian Changhe vaguely recalled the old monk who once named Lian Hua. While naming her and predicting her fate, the monk said she had a complete set of Five Elements, destined for wealth. However, there was a significant hurdle in her life, but once she crossed it, the latter half of her life would be smooth and prosperous beyond words.
The old monk’s words have now all come true, so the latter part should be believable as well?
Also remembering the bits and pieces he observed since entering the palace, Lian Changhe’s heart gradually settled down, and the more he thought about it, the more at ease he felt, with the uneasiness also dissipating.
Involuntarily, he looked back in the direction he had come from, his emotions clearing like clouds parting to reveal the sun, being completely satisfied with this son-in-law, not because of future promises, but because of the true and sincere affection this powerful son-in-law showed towards his daughter.
He asked for nothing else, but hoped the Son of Heaven would protect his daughter and the child in her womb in the future, and that would be enough.
Lian Changhe felt a sudden clarity in his heart, seeing everyone in the hall talking energetically, each smiling like a blooming flower. At this moment, Su Ran was redoing Lian Hua’s simple bun, trying on that set of jade headdress, with Lian Wan Zhen beside them shouting in excitement.
Cao De, being a perceptive person, went to find the Emperor, leaving the Lian Family and Lih Qingshu and others to talk in the hall.
Seeing this scene, knowing they were all his family, Lian Changhe immediately squeezed in and loudly complimented his little daughter’s beauty, looking good in anything she wore, and of course, the style of the headdress was excellent too, chosen by someone with great taste.
This made Lian Hua’s eyes squint with laughter, also praising the headdress, saying she had never worn such heavy jewelry before, and the weight of it made her extraordinarily happy.
Additionally, she liked the painting her master embroidered for her, a large piece full of birds and flowers, so vivid and lifelike. She planned to find a prominent place to hang it, where she could see it often.
Su Ran playfully tapped her forehead: "Still as unrefined as you were when you were a child, only recognizing birds and flowers, wasting your master’s hard work. This was embroidered over many days and nights by the light of candles."
Lih Qingshu smiled gently: "No need to blame yourself, as long as the disciple likes it, nothing else matters."
Lian Wan Zhen was greatly amazed, bluntly saying, "Mother, Sister Lih, I am just like little sister, thinking Sister Lih’s embroidered painting is extremely good, but I cannot see the subtleties in it."
Lian Changhe, Lian Bingcheng, Lin Yuejuan, and others also couldn’t discern much because they didn’t have much knowledge in this area.
Su Ran, feeling a bit helpless, began to explain.
This embroidery used the extremely rare double-sided embroidery technique, with the most remarkable feature being that the embroidered patterns on both sides were different, drawing inspiration from "The Zuo Zhuan" with the phrase "The phoenix flies, singing in harmony."
One side is a garden full of blooming lotus and a phoenix standing on a strange stone, with a luan bird flying in the sky. The phoenix and luan bird sing to each other from afar, forming a "Firebird and Phoenix Singing in Harmony" scene, expressing wishes for the newlywed couple to be loving and harmonious, and their descendants to thrive and prosper.
On the other side, the luan bird and the phoenix extend their wings, circling around a pearl, with a brilliant and dazzling embroidery surface, symbolizing "Phoenix Morning," heralding the couple’s mutual affection and a full house of descendants.
Lian Bao, upon hearing, came to Su Ran’s side, cautiously asking in a low voice if gifting this painting to his little sister was inappropriate. He only knew that there were many taboos in the palace, with only the Emperor and Empress allowed to use motifs like phoenixes and dragons.
Su Ran shook her head, explaining that this was considered beforehand. In this dynasty, a nine-tailed phoenix in jewelry is reserved for the Empress, while a seven-tailed phoenix can be used by the Imperial Noble Consort, and five-tailed phoenixes can be used by the principal consorts of other palaces. But the founding Emperor bestowed such grace that, in common weddings, women can wear a Phoenix Crown and Cape to marry gloriously, as long as the phoenix crown follows the proper regulations.
She pointed to the embroidery, where both the phoenix and luan bird have a single long tail, trailing a splendid tail as they gracefully fly, which complies with regulations, causing no problem.
Only then did Lian Bao feel relieved, joining everyone in the lively discussion, during which they naturally praised Lian Hua for her progress in writing, causing Lian Hua’s cheeks to flush red and show off a row of small teeth as she smiled, with Lian Changhe and Lian Bingcheng even competing to boast about the things Lian Hua wrote for them.
In such an atmosphere, the group drank tea, sampled snacks, talked, laughed, and enjoyed themselves greatly.
However, the time to be together is always short, and amidst laughter and joy, the time for farewell soon arrived.
This time, although Lian Hua still felt reluctant, she didn’t hold on to people and refuse to let them leave as before.
She said to Lih Qingshu: "Master, after you finish your affairs and return, will you come back to the Capital City again?"
Lih Qingshu patted her head: "Yes, I will."
Lian Hua smiled: "Then Master, be careful on the road, the path over mountains and ridges is difficult, do not rush, take your time going back, and leisurely come back. I’ll wait for you in the Capital, and by then, you’ll be able to see my little baby, and have Brother Qian Chen play with him."
Cao De moved close and interjected: "Little Beauty, rest assured, with Master... me by your Master’s side, nothing will happen to your Master."
Though Cao De privately called Lian Hua’s master "Master" with every breath, in front of Lih Qingshu, he never dared to reveal his intentions too openly, being only more anxious about gains and losses because he cared more.
Lian Hua exclaimed: "Master, is Little White Face going with you?"
Lih Qingshu’s eyes gleamed with a slight smile, saying to Lian Hua: "Indeed, Xiao De and I will go together."
Cao De’s fox-like eyes lifted, smiling radiantly, even ignoring the nickname, in a very good mood.
He winked at the Emperor, implying that Little Beauty knew about it, so now could he be allowed to go?
The Emperor smiled slightly and nodded.
Cao De was overjoyed but then heard Lian Hua say worriedly: "But Little White Face doesn’t know anything. Master, are you sure it’s okay to take him along?"