That was right.

All of them somewhat knew who this lady from Hong jia would marry.

As there was only their Third Young Master who seemed to fit her stature.

Even if they were the capital's most successful merchants, in the end, they were only merchants.

Hong Shu Cao, on the other hand, was a respectable official. And his son, Hong Ting was also showing good prospects.

A few years from now, the Hong family might make a name for themselves in court.

But even so, they felt bitter as their San shaoye could have a better wife just based on his abilities.

What these cousins and aunts didn't know was even if their beloved third young master was so talented, it was still wiser to pick a wife that wasn't too high or too low in status.

The Old Madam was aware that their family didn't have a huge backing in court. So she put all her hopes on this third grandson, anticipating his bright future.

Marrying a daughter from the Hong family wouldn't make them look too ambitious. Therefore, her grandson's path wouldn't be blocked by the huge tigers in court.

Moreover, the lady's maternal family had scholars with a good record. And the father was a humble first-generation official.

This was enough.

Currently though, the females of her family were ignorant of these considerations.

Also, our Hong Chun wasn't aware of their thoughts. Even if she was, she wouldn't quite care.

Things of the future were for the future.

When women gathered, it was inevitable to talk random things over tea.

The topics have changed multiple times that Hong Chun didn't bother to keep up.

She only answered when someone talked to her or asked her about something.

Until one of Mao Zhen's aunts said, "Time really flows as fleeting as the wind. Children all grow up and then get married."

The chubby woman kept playing with her teacup while speaking.

"Even my FanFan's already having her marriage talks! And it wasn't long since her pinning ceremony!1 It's always us mothers who get sentimental."

The moment one mentioned the pinning ceremony, Hong Chun felt hot eyes on her.

It was because it had been years since her pinning ceremony and until now, she wasn't married.

This kind of talk about age, she knew she wouldn't escape it.

Who asked her to be married off at twenty instead of sixteen?

It seemed these would-be in-laws were unsatisfied with her old age.

"Speaking of ceremonies, weren't we there on A'Chun's hair pinning ceremony too?" One of the older cousins spoke.

"Ching still remembers that? I do recall the sweet music playing back then and how Yi-shi got teary-eyed."

"Aunt asks me if I remember when your memory's sharper than mine." The lady's tone was aggrieved.

"It was a happy occasion of course! Three years after that was our Zhen Zhen's turn. You were also there, right A'Chun?"

The spotlight shone on her.

Their words were automatically translated into her ears.

Your pinning ceremony was so long ago, it was hard to remember. You're too old!

"Yes, I was there." She confirmed like their insinuations just went passed her ears.

Her smile was reminiscent of that good day so those who were trying to stir trouble were disappointed. It was like hitting air while venting out their anger. Completely useless and suffocating!

In truth, Hong Chun didn't care about her age. She knew the decision for the marriage wasn't up to these girls and madams of the side branches. Why marry her if the family was concerned that she was an old woman?

She couldn't care less about these future in-laws' opinions because if they really didn't want her, they could just drop the wedding. Her father could still raise a spinster daughter.

On the other hand, the ladies had no choice but to shut up. How could they start a war when the other party was unresponsive?

The Old Madam who knew what was going on was inwardly smiling. Her shrewish daughters-in-law and granddaughters wouldn't stand a chance. They could learn a few things from A'Chun once she moved in.

Instead of picking up a fight when the madams pointed out her age, Miss Hong brushed it off and still answered them with her honest opinions. Who wouldn't want an intelligent daughter-in-law like this?

After a few more moments of unenthusiastic conversations, they heard a commotion from the front doors.

"Grandmother, your third grandson is here."

There were a series of 'San ge'2 and 'San shao' among the females.

"He's home!" The old Madam's eyes twinkled as a man of broad stature entered the main hall.

He paid respects to the elderly and when he lifted his eyes, was surprised to see Hong Chun among his cousins.

"Chun mei-... mei?3"

Upon seeing Mao Zhen's brother, Hong Chun gave a smile.

"Zhu gege, oh wait-- greetings to Lieutenant Colonel Mao." She curtsied a little after seeing the panther embroidered on his robes.

Mao Zhu who was bred in the military barracks full of shameless people grew a bit shy when it was her addressing him with his new title.

He was now second-in-command of their regiment. It wasn't considered high or low. To be specific, he was now a standard military officer of the sixth rank.

Upon hearing Hong Chun's words, the Old Madam exclaimed.

"Is it true? Our young third is promoted?"

Mao Zhu beamed at his grandmother.

"Yes!" He even clasped his fist as if saluting her.

"Oh, your grandpa will be so proud!" The old woman was close to tears while repeating this.

Qi-shi noticed her son's robes at the same time as Hong Chun. Not forgetting to give the Old Madam a handkerchief, she immediately ordered someone to get the masters who were out in the trading spots of Hanjing.

His cousins and aunts, some were tearing up while some were laughing in joy, endlessly praising him.

Hong Chun kept quiet, knowing how much this meant to their family who couldn't produce a single official in the past few decades.

Mao Zhu was surrounded by his younger cousins shouting 'San gege's great!'

He helplessly laughed along with them.

The celebratory atmosphere lasted for the whole day as a feast was prepared in the biggest courtyard of the villa.

There was singing and dancing and even the Mao family's co-merchants were hastily invited.

It was so unlike the formal festive dinners and banquets Hong Chun had been to.

She could see big grins everywhere and not the tight-lipped smiles underneath fans, handkerchieves, or sleeves that she was most familiar with.

There was no distinction between the genders, everyone was merry and wasn't the least bit modest in showing how happy they were.

Ale was pouring, even more so the food.

Children played among themselves but some kept pestering their mothers. Their movements were unhindered by their nurses.

Before, Hong Chun thought that her family didn't follow rules that much.

Now, she realized the big difference between families directly involved with the court and those who were not. And noticed how stiff the rules were.

Even if her father belonged to the middle ranks, the discrepancy was like this already. How much more if it was the family of a standard first-ranked official?

Her eccentricities would probably be squashed the moment she dared show them.

She was silently thanking whoever can hear her for the family given to her when someone approached her.

"Come, I'll take you home." The deep voice woke her up.

That was when she noticed the sun was about to sink on the horizon. So after saying goodbye to the elders, she followed Mao Zhu to the gates.

"You must be shocked."

"En?" Why would Hong Chun be shocked?

What followed was the man's amused laugh. "I don't know if I should be glad that you haven't changed."

Mao Zhu was referring to her random distracted looks. Since young, he noticed that his little sister's playmate always seemed like her thoughts were so far from this world.

Her faraway stares made him want to ask what she was thinking about. Even now, after not seeing her for five years, that desire stayed.

"Why shouldn't you?" Head tilted, Hong Chun asked.

The man looked at the horizon and glanced at her. "Because right now most probably, you don't even have a clue why they invited you here."

She nodded, feigning ignorance.

Hong Chun felt the person behind him stop walking and a hand settled on the top of her head.

"Forgive this good-for-nothing... For taking so long."

He left her when she was but a budding flower. Because the Southern war was too sudden, he didn't even have the chance to say goodbye.

The campaign that they expected to last 2 years extended more and more.

He stayed in the battlegrounds for five years having the lowest rank. But every day of his life, he kept thinking about the unannounced fiancé he had back home. The thoughts of her marrying another man while he was gone boosted his morale to fight even harder so he could go back quickly.

Now that he was here, he could only apologize for making her wait.

He knew how hard it was for a lady to be neglected. People probably kept talking behind her back. At her age, she wasn't betrothed nor was there a man named to be her fiancé.

That spoke of how much Uncle Hong trusted him and decided to wait for him even though there was a chance he wouldn't come back alive.