The barbecue at the Star-Gazing Pavilion was excellent.
Perhaps because it was filled with the high technology of this era.
Senior Brother Zheng's messenger.
They already knew Mianmian was coming.
In this era, distances were far and travel was inconvenient.
If there was truly important content to be delivered,
There would usually be several messengers, sending it in turns.
Mianmian brought letters written by the star-gazers of Jingzhou over many years. Mianmian thought that after not being sent for so long, they might no longer be just letters, but could be insights, theories, or ideas - in any case, something rather important.
He had also arranged for someone heading to the Capital City to send a letter, saying someone would deliver a letter.
A messenger for the messenger.
So when Mianmian arrived, the people at the Star-Gazing Pavilion were not surprised.
They ate barbecue, then everyone read the letters together.
Mianmian and Cong Brother were also granted the right to read the letters.
There really were a lot.
Some letters had very short contents.
"Today my body aches unbearably. The weather is cold. There are rebels, and the common people are fleeing."
"Today my body feels slightly better, inside and outside the city is quiet."
"Headache. This evening a bird stopped at my window for a long while."
"The stars look very different today, I must record it. After finishing the diagram, it was already noon, I fell asleep immediately, and when I woke up it was dark. I rushed in a panic to observe the stars."
...
Dates, day after day.
The people of the Star-Gazing Pavilion sorted them together.
In chronological order.
Only after helping to sort them did Mianmian learn that all star-gazers had this tradition.
Star-gazers from various places would record their daily lives, meaning they felt their time was coming to an end and needed the people of the Star-Gazing Pavilion in the Capital City to send them new replacement star-gazers, or they had found suitable successors themselves.
These records were for the people of the Star-Gazing Pavilion to see, also to inform them what issues there might be in their area, and what kind of person would be best to choose.
Trivial, touching, and also valuable.
Like a very, very good book.
Mianmian felt it could definitely be compiled and published.
It felt like she had found a little something to do.
She still had a shop, but hadn't decided what to do with it.
If used to publish books, Grandma's tea said, beauty manuals, postpartum care, various practical content like this could all be published. People's sources of knowledge were too limited at this time, and they kept their knowledge to themselves. If there were books, useful books, everyone would cherish them very much.
They read letters at the Star-Gazing Pavilion until evening, then strolled home leisurely.
It felt like a day with some gains.
...
...
Jiang Changtian returned home from his shift.
He said to his wife: "I've already written to Feng, telling him to return quickly. I've found a good marriage prospect for him. You should bring gifts and pay a visit tomorrow."
Qin Luoxia hadn't yet told her husband about meeting her aunt.
She thought she'd wait for her husband to see her, it should be a nice surprise.
She didn't expect her husband to give her a surprise first.
She had been worrying about Feng's marriage for a long time.
Elder Sister Yu was already married with children, while Feng as the elder brother was still single.
But she wasn't the nagging type. Though she worried, she didn't constantly bring it up.
She believed her husband must have a plan.
And indeed, her husband had found a good family.
A family her husband approved of must be very good, after all her husband was quite clever.
Having received instructions, Qin Luoxia quickly sent someone to invite Aunt Yin back.
For such an important matter, it was still best to have Aunt Yin in charge.
It wouldn't do to ruin Feng's good marriage prospect because she performed poorly during the visit.
And as for what gifts to prepare, there should be a plan. After all, they weren't familiar with the customs of the Capital City.
"Miss Dong, who broke off her engagement with the Liu family? Oh, I've heard of her," Qin Luoxia nodded.
"It's a good thing. If she hadn't broken off the engagement, it wouldn't have been our son's turn. What a good family background, what a good girl."
So, the next day.
Minister Jiang went to work.
Qin Luoxia brought Aunt Yin and a string of gifts to visit the Dong family.
Meanwhile, Mianmian and Bug Brother went to the temple to watch the Buddhist ceremony.
...
Zi Congheng felt that his daily life now was extremely fulfilling and busy.
There was a reason to go out every day.
Today they were going to the temple to accompany his father's soul (assuming it existed).
Both were wearing white robes.
Perhaps from eating too many meals at Mianmian's house, their movements had become somewhat synchronized.
There was a kind of carefree, lazy feeling.
The two took a carriage together to Tai'a Temple.
Early in the morning.
The temple bells rang melodiously.
Arriving at the temple, the incense smoke was thick.
The smell was actually quite pleasant.
Watching the monks in their robes, busy, going in circles, striking wooden fish, it was indeed very lively.
Zi Congheng looked around and was somewhat surprised. The number of senior monks had increased a lot compared to the first day. Had Aunt Qin added more money?
Probably not. Based on his understanding of Aunt Qin, she wouldn't spend extra on this.
He was actually quite wealthy too, but living together, it didn't seem appropriate to keep clear accounts. Calculating everything clearly like that would feel very distant.
Aunt Qin always said to save where you should save and spend where you should spend.
Aunt Qin was very frugal in some aspects, but quite generous in others.
She didn't care much about outward appearances, but cared a lot about the comfort of her family members.
Although it didn't look luxurious on the outside, everyone wore extremely good clothes inside and used first-rate things.
All kinds of difficult things Mianmian requested, Aunt Qin would have people do, and do well without complaint.
So after living there for just a few days, it felt suitable and comfortable everywhere, putting one's mind at ease.
After watching the Buddhist ceremony with Mianmian for a while, and finding that they hadn't skimped on monks but had actually added many more, and that they were chanting very earnestly, Zi Congheng led Mianmian out.
The two went together to see the eternal lamps, seeing the flames covering the entire wall. They carefully searched through the characters on the entire wall, found the two characters for Zi Lu, and felt it was quite good.
Ghosts remembered by someone are still ghosts.
Ghosts remembered by no one will disappear.
After seeing the eternal lamps, the two continued to stroll.
This time, they very naturally walked into that back courtyard.
Mianmian and Bug Brother walked for quite a while without encountering the old lady from last time, proceeding unhindered all the way.
Zi Congheng was somewhat surprised.
The scenery inside was too beautiful.
All kinds of trees, colors in distinct layers, red, yellow, green.
Every path they walked seemed to have exquisite scenery, every angle looked like a painting.
As they walked, they came to the shore of a huge lake.
Looking at the emerald surface of the lake, it felt like a jade mirror.
Then Mianmian saw a very tall swing by the lake.
There was someone on the swing.
It seemed to be the old lady from last time.
The old lady was in a very elegant mood, actually swinging.
But before she could finish marveling, she saw the old lady's body fly off the swing, flying very high, at least higher than the swing frame, then flip 360 degrees, and finally dive headfirst into the water, with a thin column of water bubbling up on the surface.
...
Mianmian's mouth fell open. Could someone tell her why she was seeing fancy diving in ancient times? My goodness.
What on earth was this?
Zi Congheng was already starting to feel a headache.
This was "water swinging" - flying off the swing to land in the water.
After a while, the old lady swam to shore.
She was wearing very professional swimwear.
But it wasn't strange. In this era there were professional pearl divers. These people not only knew how to swim, but could dive deep, going to the depths to collect pearls.
But the risks were very high, and many people died.
Pearl divers wore professional swimwear.
It's just that ordinary noble ladies wouldn't dress like this.
At the shore, maids came over to wrap Princess Huiyun in a cloak.
Her hair was wet, but she had a smile on her face, clearly enjoying the process very much.
But coming out of the water was actually very cold. When the wind blew, it made one shiver involuntarily.
Princess Huiyun was a bit embarrassed. It was rare for her to play on the water swing and she happened to be seen by juniors.
She would probably be nagged again.
How did the formation fail again today?
Could it be that it didn't work on relatives? That didn't make sense. Even her royal brother couldn't enter without her permission.
This mother and son were too bizarre.
Princess Huiyun looked at the two people in white clothes, one big and one small.
Looking closely, the boy somewhat resembled her nephew the crown prince. The girl looked more like her, and seemed even prettier.
Mianmian excitedly came over and said: "Grandma, you're so amazing! You actually flew up several circles before jumping into the water. You jumped so well, you controlled the splash so beautifully, there was hardly any water splashing up. Champion! Grandma, next time you jump, can I come keep you company?"
Princess Huiyun found it a bit strange. This little girl really did look a lot like her. Others who saw this would be shocked and afraid, but she had a face full of admiration, eager to try it herself, looking excited.
Zi Congheng stood to the side with an expressionless face and said: "You cannot learn this. Mother will beat you."
Mianmian explained: "No, no, no, I'm not learning. Diving is very difficult, and I'm scared too. I'm accompanying you because this is a high-difficulty move. When diving, the head touches the water surface first, and the eyes often rub against the water surface, which can easily cause retinal detachment."
She made a gesture of an eyeball falling out and continued: "Diving can easily injure the waist, break legs, or twist the neck. If you're not careful and your stomach hits the water surface first, your internal organs might even shatter. If I'm here, I can provide immediate medical treatment."
"Grandma, trust me, my medical skills are excellent. Even if your internal organs are shattered, I have a way. I can cut open your belly to examine, ensuring you won't die immediately."
Princess Huiyun: ... Someone come and fork this little brat out of here...
...
