O43novel Chapter 465: I Want So Much to Go and Find Xiao Mo to Play
Chapter 465: I Want So Much to Go and Find Xiao Mo to Play
The hour of chen.At the entrance of the Mount Tu residence, the crackling of firecrackers and the booming of gongs and drums had already begun.
"Oh my, oh my! City Lord, you have arrived! How did you come so early? The firecrackers have only just finished going off!"
Steward Xiong saw the City Lord Ying Dayuan step down from his carriage and hurried forward with a smile to receive him.
"Ha ha ha, this official promised the Lady of Mount Tu he would be the first to arrive." Ying Dayuan said with a laugh. "How is it? Am I the first? There should not be anyone who came earlier than this official, should there?"
"Yes, yes! You are indeed the very first. Please come in, please come in. Our Lady is already receiving guests in the courtyard."
Steward Xiong immediately had a maidservant escort City Lord Ying Dayuan into the residence.
"Oh, Proprietor Hu! Welcome, welcome! Please come in, please come in. I do hope you find today's banquet to your liking."
"Madam Yue! It has been so long. You look as young and lovely as ever. Our Lady has been wanting to invite you for tea."
"Master Long, please take your time, take your time..."
"Goodness! City Lord Huang! I cannot believe you truly came. Your young lord is truly impressive in bearing!"
After Ying Dayuan's arrival at Mount Tu, more and more carriages began pulling up at the entrance.
Distinguished officials and nobles of Immortal Fox City, as well as sect masters from various sects and city lords from other demon cities, arrived one after another.
Steward Xiong's back was bent in constant bowing, barely straightening up between greetings, and the smile on his face never once paused.
A good number of the independent city lords and sect masters had brought their own children and most prized disciples with them.
The youngest of these young ones was five years old, and the eldest was no more than ten.
Steward Xiong had been managing the Mount Tu residence for a thousand years. How could he not understand? These people were not here merely to celebrate the Young Miss's birthday. In all likelihood, many of them had come with hopes of arranging a childhood engagement.
In less than half a stick of incense's time, with the arrival of guest after guest, the Mount Tu residence had become thoroughly lively.
The Lady of Mount Tu stood in the courtyard with her daughter to receive the guests.
Tushan Jingci greeted one after another with a sweet, "Hello, Uncle Ying," "Auntie Hu, you look so beautiful," and "I pay my respects to Elder Bei, Jingci has missed you so much!" Her little mouth was sweet without end.
Even when facing great figures she had never met before, Tushan Jingci greeted them all with warmth and enthusiasm.
And Tushan Jingci, who was naturally a great beauty in the making and a member of the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox clan to boot, was the kind of child that anyone who laid eyes on could not help but adore from the bottom of their heart.
So the more these elder figures looked at Tushan Jingci, the more they liked her. Every single one of them was charmed into beaming smiles by her.
"His Majesty arrives!"
Just as all the guests were chatting happily, Steward Xiong's voice rang out through the residence.
Shortly after, the ruler of the Celestial Demon Kingdom, Chen Bing, walked into the courtyard with his eldest son and two palace attendant cultivators.
"Your servants respectfully welcome His Majesty!"
Throughout the courtyard, every official and subject of the Celestial Demon Kingdom rose to their feet and greeted the ruler together.
"Ha ha ha, no need for formality! Today I am just like everyone else, nothing more than an ordinary guest come to celebrate the birthday of the Young Miss of Mount Tu. Please do not let my presence make anyone uneasy."
Chen Bing said with a laugh, appearing thoroughly approachable.
"Of the Tushan clan, Tushan Xinhua pays her respects to His Majesty."
Tushan Xinhua gave a respectful bow.
"Jingci greets Imperial Uncle." Tushan Jingci also gave a sweet little bow.
"Greetings to the Lady of Mount Tu."
Even as a ruler, Chen Bing was courteous enough to bow toward Tushan Xinhua in return.
After all, setting aside the fact that this Lady of Mount Tu was an Immortal realm great demon with a bloodline no less noble than that of the true dragon or phoenix clans,
Chen Bing would need to be on his most respectful behavior even before her father-in-law, serving him tea with the utmost deference.
"This must be the Young Miss of Mount Tu? Truly beautiful. As expected, every woman of the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox clan is a matchless beauty."
As he spoke, Chen Bing turned to his eldest son beside him.
"Chen Jue, you are about the same age as the Young Miss of Mount Tu. You should spend some time with her in the future and become better acquainted."
"Understood, Imperial Father." The seven-year-old boy named Chen Jue gave a nod, glancing at the small girl before him who was two years younger than himself.
Tushan Jingci, seeing the other boy looking at her, simply gave him a polite smile in return as courtesy required but very quickly, Tushan Jingci's gaze drifted in the direction of the kitchen courtyard.
"When is this birthday banquet going to end?"
Tushan Jingci muttered to herself.
She wanted so much to go and find Xiao Mo to play.
And Xiao Mo had said he had a gift for her but she had not caught a fish last night. What was to be done about that?
"His Majesty and the First Prince, please take your seats. Our simple food and drink are hardly worthy of His Majesty's palate, and we hope His Majesty will not find them lacking."
Tushan Xinhua invited them to be seated.
"The Lady is too modest. Please attend to your guests, my Lady. There is no need to look after me."
Chen Bing gave a nod and followed a maidservant to his seat.
"Greetings and gifts from the ruler of the Ten Thousand Demons Kingdom!"
"Greetings and gifts from the ruler of the Floating Cloud Kingdom!"
"Greetings and gifts from the Sect Master of the Thunder Beast Sect!"
However, not long after the ruler of the Celestial Demon Kingdom was seated, yet more rulers of demon kingdoms and sect masters arrived to attend the birthday banquet.
Listening to Steward Xiong call out one name after another, though Chen Bing had already anticipated something like this today, he could not help but furrow his brow.
"Jue, do you think that little girl Tushan Jingci is beautiful?" Chen Bing composed himself and asked his son.
"Mm, she is beautiful, Imperial Father."
Chen Jue gave a nod, unable to help sneaking another glance at the little girl who was two years his junior.
For a young child like Chen Jue, the meaning of love and romance was entirely beyond him but Chen Jue felt that the little girl was even more beautiful than a porcelain doll.
"He he he, then Imperial Father had better make every effort... and so must you. You will need to make a good impression."
Chen Bing smiled, though inwardly he let out a quiet sigh.
This childhood engagement was clearly not going to be easy to arrange.
"Imperial Father, your son does not understand. Why are you so courteous toward this Lady of Mount Tu? And why have so many demon kingdoms and sects come to bring gifts?"
Chen Jue was deeply puzzled.
This was the first time he had ever seen his Imperial Father act so deferential, and also the first time he had ever seen so many kingdoms and sects bring gifts to a single event. His own birthday had never been celebrated with this kind of grand scale.
"You do not understand?" Chen Bing shook his head. "You are still young. It is normal not to understand. But you only need to know this: Tushan Jingci's grandfather is someone our Celestial Demon Kingdom must strive to win over."
"Her grandfather?"
And just as Chen Jue's bewilderment was growing all the more,
Steward Xiong's voice carried into the courtyard. "From Gulishan, Elder Gui arrives!"
As Steward Xiong's voice settled, an old man leaning on a walking stick made his slow way into the courtyard.
"Grandfather!"
Seeing the old man, Tushan Jingci opened her arms wide and ran toward him happily.
In the next instant, Chen Jue was pulled to his feet by his Imperial Father.
By the time Chen Jue realized what was happening, within the Mount Tu residence, whether ruler or sect master, whether young or old, every single person had bowed toward the elderly man, and together they said in unison, "We younger generation pay our respects to Elder Gui!"