"Isn’t that so!" Lady Zhang also smiled and asked, "When is Sixth Master coming back?"

"The messenger arrived this morning, saying he won’t be back until the day after tomorrow," Grandma Shen San replied. She then invited Lady Zhang and Lian Manman to a family gathering on the Double Ninth Festival.

Lady Zhang and Lian Manman naturally nodded in agreement. Lian Manman also personally handed over an invitation, inviting Grandma Shen San and her daughters Shen Yi and Shen Shi to their home for wine and theater. Grandma Shen San, not well-versed in reading, asked Lian Manman about the date and smiled as she agreed.

"I haven’t congratulated Mrs. Lian yet; you surely have double blessings with two such promising sons, unmatched by anyone." Grandma Shen San smiled and said to Lady Zhang.

"Speaking of fortune, how can I compare to you, Grandma?" Lady Zhang replied with a modest smile.

"Not only are your sons outstanding, but your daughter is exceptionally rare. Not just me, but everyone in this Prefecture City admires your family," Grandma Shen San said while smiling and looking at Lian Manman.

"Oh, Grandma, please don’t praise her like that. This child merely has a good character, is considerate, understanding, and empathetic. Her coarse hands and feet can’t compare to our city’s delicate daughters, let alone your two girls who are far superior. At home, I often tell her to learn more from your daughters." Lady Zhang said, smiling quickly.

Having socialized often, Lady Zhang spoke these courteous and complimentary words naturally and fluently. Moreover, Lady Zhang had a kind nature and rarely disliked anyone. Additionally, the two daughters of Grandma Shen San were fair-skinned with elegant brows and eyes and treated others with great courtesy. Being daughters of a distinguished family, they carried themselves gracefully, something Lady Zhang, accustomed to seeing bold country girls, found fascinating. Lady Zhang genuinely liked these two young ladies.

"Those should be my words," Grandma Shen San said. "I often tell my daughters to learn more from Manman."

Speaking thus, Grandma Shen San had two exquisite jade flower pots brought in and placed in front of Lian Manman.

"These are recently sent from my family. How do they look to you?" Grandma Shen San asked Lian Manman with a smile.

Lian Manman looked closely and saw two pots of jade-carved orchids; their green leaves and white buds so realistic that one might mistake them for real orchids without close inspection. Lian Manman looked them over carefully and, of course, praised them repeatedly.

"As long as you like them," Grandma Shen San laughed, "these two pots are prepared especially for you."

Hearing this, and knowing they were from her family, Lian Manman naturally felt it inappropriate to accept them and quickly demurred.

"There are only six in total. I think with such delicate things, keeping them with us would just be wasteful. I earlier gave two pots to my eldest daughter. The other two, one each for my daughters; these two are specially reserved for you," Grandma Shen San continued. "This is not just my wish but theirs too. If things are good between us, who else would these be for? Don’t refuse, they are not anything precious or rare, just ornaments. Now that it’s winter and everything is dull outside, these will add some brightness in the house."

Shen Yi and Shen Shi both quickly chimed in, urging Lian Manman to accept them no matter what.

"...if you don’t accept, it would mean you don’t consider us friends," Shen Yi and Shen Shi both insisted.

At this point, Lian Manman could no longer refuse and had to thank them and accept. These two jade orchids were a special gift aside from formal festival gifts from Grandma Shen San, Shen Yi, and Shen Shi to Lian Manman. She understood the gesture of camaraderie and reciprocated similarly toward Lian Zhizhi and Lian Yeye, or Wu Jiayu.

Lian Manman instructed her attendant to carefully take care of the jade orchids, while also thinking about what special items they might have at home to gift Shen Yi and Shen Shi in return, fostering goodwill.

"How long are you planning to stay in the city this time, and where will you celebrate the New Year?" Grandma Shen San and Shen Yi, Shen Shi asked Lian Manman.

"This time, I plan to stay longer," Lian Manman said. "Firstly, because my brother has many matters to attend to, and secondly, I haven’t been to the Prefecture City for over half a year, and I miss everyone, wanting to have proper gatherings. As for the New Year, nothing is set yet; we’ll see when the time comes."

Because Lian Shouxin harbored deep attachment to his homeland, and also due to the imperial archway being in Thirty Mile Camp, he planned to celebrate New Year there. Of course, Lian Shouxin made it clear that while he and Lady Zhang couldn’t part from their birthplace, he had no strict expectations for Wu Lang and Xiao Qi. Lian Shouxin understood that Wu Lang and Xiao Qi’s world was vast, not confined to Thirty Mile Camp, or even Liaodong Prefecture. His only requirement was that no matter where his sons went, they should never forget their roots.