At the entrance of the courtyard, the servants saw Li Hao and quickly bowed, knowing that this young master was favored by the madam.
At this moment, the bright moon had just appeared, and the stars were twinkling.
In the courtyard, the lanterns were lit. Inside the main hall, warm light shone through the window curtains, and cheerful laughter could be heard, suggesting a joyful gathering.
Zhao Bo and Qing Zhi followed Li Hao to the steps of the main hall, standing quietly with their hands at their sides, waiting for the dinner to finish. They would only be called in if needed.
The Li family had strict rules, and the servants dared not overstep their boundaries.
Inside the main hall.
As soon as Li Hao walked in, he noticed a striking unfamiliar young girl.
She looked about sixteen, the age of budding beauty.
The girl was around 1.7 meters tall, with a graceful figure that was slender and elegant. Her eyes were as clear as a frosty lake, showing a calmness not typical for someone her age.
Faintly, Li Hao could see hints of her childhood round cheeks, but now, as she had grown, her facial features were more refined and beautiful, like a flower about to bloom.
She wore a dress of oyster white, pure and elegant, with the fabric shimmering as if embedded with crystals. Although the style was casual, it was clearly very expensive. Coupled with her refreshing aura, she looked like a fairy emerging from the mist.
This was clearly Li Wushuang.
Additionally, Li Hao saw that beside his long-lost cousin, sat Li Yun and Li Zhi Ning, the siblings.
At that moment, they both had their heads lowered, hands neatly resting on their laps, wearing silly smiles on their faces. Amid the praises and laughter from the adults, their eyes occasionally darted towards their older sister.
That dazzling figure sparked hope and admiration in their eyes, filled with envy and joy.
This scene reminded Li Hao of five years ago when they first arrived at the Shanhe Courtyard, listening to stories with their little hands propped on their cheeks, just as obedient.
"Truly worthy of being Shuang'er, achieving the Spirit Travel realm at such a young age. At fifteen, with such talent, she ranks among the top geniuses. It's very likely she will reach the Three Immortal stages in her lifetime."
At the end of the table, the ninth madam, Jiang Xian'er, with her hair styled lightly, spoke softly.
She was the fiancée of Li Junnight, the ninth son of the Li family, and also a princess of the royal family.
Seeing the ninth madam, Li Hao couldn't help but show some respect in his eyes.
The ninth madam was the youngest among the wives, only thirty-two this year. He heard from the second master that she had once lived in the Li family for a while when she was young due to some incident, and that was when she met the ninth uncle.
They were somewhat childhood sweethearts, separated as they grew up. However, later, when the ninth uncle was wandering and gaining experience in the world, he met the ninth madam again, and they developed feelings for each other, deciding to be together for life.
The ninth uncle was exceptionally talented, also regarded as the true dragon of the previous generation of the Li family. Therefore, Emperor Yu did not oppose their marriage and allowed them to be wed.
Unfortunately, even though the marriage was set, the ninth uncle wanted to achieve great things before the wedding. Who would have thought that he would die on the battlefield just two years after joining the army, causing the marriage to abruptly end just before the wedding, leaving people feeling regretful.
Originally, with the ninth uncle's death, the marriage would naturally be called off.
After all, one couldn't expect a royal princess to remain a widow, right?
But this ninth madam was deeply devoted, declaring that she would only marry Li Junnight for life.
Thus, after causing a scene in the palace with the emperor, she eventually came to Qingzhou, holding the ninth uncle's armor, completing the marriage that the man could not fulfill, and becoming the ninth madam of the Li family.
This story was well-known among the people of Qingzhou.
In the household, all the madams respected the ninth madam Jiang Xian'er. Even the second and fifth masters spoke of this royal princess with affection, not concerning status but simply out of friendship.
When Li Hao first heard the second master recount this story, he felt a deep sense of emotion.
In this era, travel was slow, and one could only love one person in a lifetime.
One could only remember one person in a lifetime.
Unlike his era, where a simple swipe could change hearts eighty times in one night.
"Ninth madam, you are too polite," Li Wushuang smiled at Jiang Xian'er.
She was usually indifferent to others, but she held a deep respect for the ninth madam, the beloved of her ninth uncle.
"Hao'er has arrived."
At that moment, He Jianlan, sitting in the center of the hall, spotted Li Hao and her previously smiling face lit up even more. She waved and said, "Come, sit over here."
Only then did the others notice Li Hao. Jiang Xian'er glanced back at him, giving a gentle smile, quite friendly.
Li Hao returned the smile. Over the years, he had interacted with many madams, but only the eldest and the ninth madam made him feel the most at ease.
Walking to the table, he saw two plates of delicious food that he had asked Yuan Zhao to buy earlier. Li Hao smiled and then handed a gift box to his cousin.
"I heard that Sister Wushuang is back, so I prepared a little gift. I hope you like it."
Li Wushuang's gaze swept over the gift box. She reached out to take it, her expression calm: "Thank you."
As she spoke, she was about to pass the gift box to the gift table behind her.
Sitting beside He Jianlan, Liu Yue Rong, with keen eyes, smiled and said, "Shuang'er, why don’t you see what Hao'er gave you? He hasn’t given anything to anyone else besides food over the years."
He Jianlan said lightly, "We don't lack anything. The food that Hao'er makes himself is the most precious."
"That's true," Liu Yue Rong nodded with a smile.
Jiang Xian'er turned to Li Hao, smiling, "Hao'er, come sit. It’s been a long time since I had your pastries."
"If the ninth madam likes them, I’ll make some for you tomorrow," Li Hao said as he took a seat, smiling.
While they were talking, Li Wushuang frowned slightly. She had no interest at first, but since the second madam had brought it up, it seemed she should at least take a look to avoid seeming indifferent.
She casually opened the gift box and saw a porcelain bottle and a dragon horn comb.
Indeed, just some ordinary items. Li Wushuang shook her head secretly, losing interest and about to close it.
But Liu Yue Rong chuckled, saying, "Hao'er is really thoughtful. This dragon horn comb is finely crafted; he must have put a lot of effort into it. I wonder what’s in that porcelain bottle?"
"Divine Casting Pill."
Li Hao smiled at her as he replied.
Li Wushuang raised an eyebrow slightly, closing the gift box and placing it on the side gift table, saying lightly, "Do you think I need this kind of pill?"
Her voice was soft, but the atmosphere suddenly grew cold.
That question was hard to respond to.
Need it? Wasn’t that implying she had poor talent and needed to rely on pills?
Not need it? Then why send it?
Li Hao was taken aback for a moment, feeling somewhat helpless.
Indeed, giving gifts could be quite troublesome.
"Shuang'er."
Fifth Madam Gao Qingqing noticed her child's tone was off. This was a family gathering meant to celebrate, and she naturally didn’t want any unpleasantness. She smiled and said, "Hao'er means well. You two haven’t seen each other for many years, and he doesn’t know what you like. That dragon horn comb looks great, as for the pill, you can just keep it if you don’t want it."
Li Yun, who had been sitting quietly, suddenly became a bit unruly upon seeing Li Hao. It seemed he felt embarrassed to show such obedience in front of Li Hao.
Seeing Li Hao in an awkward situation, he leaned back a bit, trying to mimic Li Hao's usual calm expression, and said, "Li Hao, do you know my sister is a ninth-grade battle body, a top genius! She doesn’t need any pill assistance; taking pills would actually harm her. Are you looking down on my sister?"
After saying that, he looked at Li Hao proudly, feeling that with his older sister backing him up, he wasn’t afraid of Li Hao anymore.
Where did this foolish son of a landlord come from… Li Hao looked at him speechlessly. This dinner was for your sister; if I were to lose my temper, it would be your sister who would look bad, not me, you silly boy.
As expected, upon hearing Li Yun's words, Gao Qingqing's expression changed slightly. She quickly tugged at Li Yun's back, reminding him that they were family, and with the eldest sister present, they couldn’t let others feel uncomfortable.
Li Yun felt a pinch and looked up to see his mother’s angry gaze. Mother and son had a tacit understanding, and he immediately realized he might have said something wrong.
But what did I do wrong?
Wasn’t I just speaking the truth?
While Li Yun was lost in thought, Li Hao smiled slightly, naturally not getting angry over it, nor did he feel the need to explain anything.
"Sister doesn’t need this pill, but it seems my younger brother might need it. You can give it to him."
Li Hao said with a smile, "As for that comb, does Sister not like it? Then it can be given to Sister Zhi Ning."
Li Wushuang's expression darkened slightly. How could she not understand the sarcasm in Li Hao's words? Did he think her brother was incapable?
"What do you mean by that?" she said directly, not one for beating around the bush. As for face-saving, she didn’t care.
"Did Sister not hear clearly?" Li Hao feigned surprise, thinking to himself how these siblings seemed a bit slow-witted.
Li Wushuang narrowed her eyes, wanting to explode, but Gao Qingqing coughed lightly to interrupt, saying, "Shuang'er, Hao'er is still young and doesn’t know your situation. Sending you the Divine Casting Pill is a kind gesture; why are you holding it against your younger brother?"
Jiang Xian'er, sitting beside Li Hao, smiled sweetly and said, "Shuang'er, if you don’t like it, I’ll make it up to Hao'er later."
"Yes, Shuang'er, after all, Hao'er means well," Liu Yue Rong quickly added to comfort her.
Li Wushuang stared at Li Hao for a moment, saying nothing more, just casually putting the gift box away on the gift rack behind her.
At that moment, footsteps approached from outside, followed by Li Yuan Zhao's voice calling, "Brother Hao!"
Li Hao turned to look and saw Fourth Madam and Yuan Zhao had also arrived.
Hearing Li Yuan Zhao's call, Xiao Yu Jing, who had just calmed down, felt her temper flare again. This brat, who are you calling first upon entering? If one didn’t know better, they’d think you came to congratulate Li Hao!
Anger aside, with so many people in the hall, she couldn’t scold him publicly, so she quickly walked up, smiling, "Sisters and brothers, I’m late. Is this Shuang'er? Oh my, it’s been years since I last saw you. You’ve grown so tall and beautiful. Qingqing, you’ve really raised a good daughter."
With just a few words, the atmosphere brightened, and everyone’s attention shifted, covering up Li Yuan Zhao’s rudeness.
Li Hao sat at the table, smiling. These ladies were all quite clever.
Li Yuan Zhao greeted Li Hao, and the two brothers exchanged glances, knowing that the earlier incident hadn’t caused any misunderstandings. Li Yuan Zhao relaxed and smiled as he handed a gift to Li Wushuang.
"What is this?" Liu Yue Rong asked with interest.
"Just have Sister open it and see," Li Yuan Zhao said, not knowing what his mother had put inside but smiling.
Li Wushuang frowned slightly, feeling a bit helpless, but still opened it to find a sharp short dagger.
"Is this the famous dagger 'Han Xiang'?"
Gao Qingqing immediately recognized it, looking at Xiao Yu Jing in surprise, "Fourth Sister-in-law, this is a well-known divine weapon! It’s said to pierce the bodies of the Immortal Kings!"
Xiao Yu Jing smiled, "This is Yuan Zhao's intention. As long as Shuang'er likes it, that’s all that matters."
Gao Qingqing came back to her senses and said to her daughter, "Aren’t you going to thank your cousin?"
Li Wushuang's eyes lit up a bit, clearly fond of the dagger. Although she used a sword, she still had another hand.
Carrying it with her, in close combat where a sword couldn’t be used, the dagger would be very convenient.
"Thank you, cousin."
She said gently, expressing her gratitude.
Li Yuan Zhao waved his hand with a smile and then sat beside Li Hao.
Before long, the remaining Third Madam and Eighth Madam also arrived one after another, and soon everyone was present.
He Jianlan knew that Li Wushuang was back in the house and didn’t like crowds, so she didn’t let the other concubines come over. Thus, everyone present were direct relatives. Although not many, it suited Li Wushuang’s preferences.
Besides the madams, Li Wushuang’s father, Li Xuan Li, also returned from his retreat in the inner part of the estate.
He looked to be in his forties, exuding a scholarly aura. Many years ago, he had been seriously injured on the battlefield, but luckily, compared to other brothers, he managed to return mostly intact.
To escape from the jaws of the monsters while heavily injured was no easy feat, as the Li family’s sons were usually targeted for extermination on the battlefield. Once injured, they would be relentlessly attacked by the monsters.
After all, the Li family had guarded the borders for many years, slaying countless monsters and accumulating many grudges.
For the monster clans, aside from the Wang family, the four great generals' houses were their sworn enemies, wishing nothing more than to devour their flesh, drink their blood, and sleep on their skins!
(End of Chapter)