“Wait until it’s hung up before discussing!” He directed the servants to hang the plaque and then faced the astonished crowd. “Upper verse: Strange world, mysterious transformation of past and present emotions; Lower verse: Five elements of love, passionate repayment of endless romantic debt. Horizontal inscription, the manor name: Phantom Emotion Manor!”
Complete silence followed.
“Of course,” she said, “A godmother is like a mother to you.”
“I don’t want to!” Yangyang protested, shaking his little head and muttering, “I don’t want to call you godmother, no!”
Huo Lingyun laughed heartily. “It seems Little Ai’s charm doesn’t work on children.”
Looking at everyone struggling to suppress their laughter, Ai’er felt embarrassed.
“Ai’er, I’m sorry,” Hua Qiao apologized, pulling Yangyang aside. “Ai’er’s aunt is so beautiful. Wouldn’t it be nice to have her as your godmother? Don’t be unreasonable, child!”
“No!” Yangyang stubbornly pouted.
Hua Qiao’s face darkened.
“Forget it, children don’t mean it. It’s not a big deal,” someone said, trying to pacify Hua Qiao.
“Woo…” Yangyang started crying, pointing at her, “I don’t want Ai’er’s aunt to be my godmother, Ai’er’s aunt is so beautiful…”
woo… Yangyang wants to marry Ai’er’s aunt, woo…”
“…” Everyone was stunned, then burst into laughter.
“Yangyang, be good! Don’t cry!” she wiped away his tears, “Ai’er’s aunt likes men. Real men don’t cry!”
“Really?” Yangyang stopped crying, “Can you be my bride?”
“…”
“Yangyang!” Du Ziliang suddenly scooped him up, pulling Hua Qiao away as well.
“Ying, you’re wrong,” Leng Ao Hun sighed, “Ai’ai’s charm is growing; even children can’t escape!”
“What are you talking about!” She rolled her eyes, staring thoughtfully in the direction Yangyang had disappeared.
“What are you looking at?” Nan Gong Mo asked curiously.
“Don’t you think Yangyang is cute? He’ll definitely be a handsome guy when he grows up!” A sly smile crossed her face, leaving everyone bewildered, “I’m planning an arranged marriage. If I have a daughter, we’ll be in-laws. If it’s a son, they’ll be sworn brothers!”
“You’re planning this before the child is even born!” Xie Ying looked dissatisfied, “If it’s a son, fine. But if it’s a daughter, she’ll run away!”
“This is decided!” She was determined to secure a handsome match for her future daughter.
“Little Ai’ai, you promised to find a man who truly loves her if it’s a daughter,” the little rascal seemed to see through her scheme.
“I know, I know!”
“Ahem…”
Tang Yingying subtly signaled to Leng Ao Hun.
“Hun, where are the other three?”
“Oh, they’ll come,” he replied, glancing at her worriedly. “Some things are better left unsaid; he might get angry…”
“My Lord! My Lady!” Jinglei and two others arrived.
“That’s Jinglei in the middle,” she whispered to Tang Yingying. She smiled nervously at Jinglei’s puzzled look, “Long time no see, everyone! Please, sit!”
Huo Yuran commented, “Wang’s sister-in-law indeed has good eyesight,” while presenting a small box with a string of white jade beads. “This is a gift for my future nephew. As his uncle, I’m really looking forward to his arrival!”
“Thank you!”
A servant entered and asked, “Madam, it’s almost noon. Should we set up the banquet?”
“I think everyone has arrived, right?” she said, unsure who might be missing. “Go ahead!”
“We haven’t even arrived, and you’re starting the banquet?” Qiao Ruos said as she entered, fixing her eyes on Tang Liuli.
“Second Sister-in-law!” Qiao Ruolan stood next to her handsome husband.
As the banquet began, a comical scene unfolded: Qiao Ruos and Tang Liuli were seated together, while Tang Yingying was next to Jinglei, whose temples throbbed as he struggled to maintain his composure.
At the table were the ‘Cold Belly’ family, Sudden Rain, and Lightning, who were watching the drama with glee and making sarcastic remarks, which made the atmosphere lively.
Our table had seven husbands, plus Tang Yiyou, Huo Yuran, and Mo Li. I felt comfortable watching a table full of handsome men eating.
“Little Ai, how can we start the banquet before we’ve even arrived?”
“Brother!” I was surprised to see Jiang Qin and Bai Yuchan at the door. “How did you come? You didn’t give me a heads up.”
“We wanted to give you a surprise. There are quite a lot of people today,” Jiang Qin said, greeting everyone. He paused slightly upon seeing Tang Yiyou. “Master Tang…”
“Master Jiang, what a coincidence!” Tang Yiyou replied, appearing quite familiar. Seeing our confusion, he explained, “We have some business dealings, so we’re old acquaintances.”
“It’s best if everyone knows each other, no need to be formal,” she said, inviting them to sit. “Brother, sit here. I’ll sit with Yuchan at that table.” Leaving the table of handsome men, she pulled Bai Yuchan aside and asked, “Why didn’t you bring the children? I wanted to see them.”
“It’s inconvenient for a long journey. We’ll have a chance another time.”
Bai Yuchan looked outside and pouted, “Second Brother doesn’t know what’s happening. He clearly said he would arrive before us, but he’s still nowhere to be seen.”
“Yueqing is coming too?” Mentioning Bai Yueqing made her laugh, “Thinking about past events is quite interesting.”
“Yes, I miss those times too.”
“I don’t believe that. Now you’ve achieved your heart’s desire, living with your beloved, yet you want to go back to the past?” Seeing Bai Yuchan blush shyly, she stopped talking, “Let’s eat. You must be tired from traveling. Stay for a few days before leaving; the mansion is spacious.”
“Little Ai,” Jiang Qin suddenly turned, “Aren’t you going to ask how we found this place?”
“Oh yes, I almost forgot to ask. How did you know?” She had told no one where she lived, yet every gift-giver seemed to find this place.
“Do you even need to ask?” Huo Yuran laughed, “Your mansion’s name and couplet are unprecedented. Nowhere under heaven can you find a second one. Apart from you, who would come up with such a unique name?”
“You actually thought of ‘Phantom Love Manor’… hehe…” Jiang Qin smiled.
“Hehe… Isn’t it quite good?” Laughing embarrassedly, she said, “Thankfully I chose such a special name, or you’d have had trouble finding this place.”
“That’s true!”
“Exactly!” She habitually reached for a cup from the table.
“Ai’er!” Qiao Ruofeng called out sternly.
Blinking in confusion, she sniffed and realized she had picked up a wine cup.
“Hehe… Just a mistake! Pure mistake!” She quickly put the wine back, and a maid brought her a bowl of clear soup. While drinking, she suddenly heard Tang Yingying’s voice, which made her both laugh and worry.
“Once I realize my target’s heart has died for a certain woman, I will decisively withdraw.” Tang Yingying continued with a faint smile, “After all, I like his personality. There will always be others.”
“Do you still have a target?” I felt she definitely had a second target.
“As expected, Sister Xiao Ai understands me,” Tang Yingying smiled. “I’ll go through this one, and the other one won’t be allowed to escape.”
“Who is it?” I was curious about who had caught this young lady’s eye.
“Second Brother!” Bai Yuchan suddenly stood up and looked towards the door. Then she saw Bai Yuqing running in, looking disheveled.
“Quick! Find me a place to hide!” Bai Yuqing panicked, just as a petite figure jumped in.
“Husband! Husband!” The small person called out and pounced towards Bai Yuqing, causing an uproar in the room. Bai Yuqing’s face turned pale with shock.
[Text: Chapter Eight – Tang Xiaomeng]
“Stop! Don’t come near!”
Bai Yuqing’s terrified expression matched the fear he felt facing Mo Shuiyan.
“Husband…” The woman looked aggrieved, her small mouth pouting, mischievous yet cute.
