Reborn as the Blissful Wife in the countryside

The Old Madam Qi from the Qi Family in Prefecture City sent her an invitation?

But she didn't know Old Madam Qi at all, even though she sold spices to Master Qi, the two families only had business cooperation, and in between was the Li Family that had once harmed the Gu Family, especially Gu Daya, and the biggest backer of the Li Family was precisely this Old Madam Qi.

She thanked the gatekeeper and took the invitation, asking, "When did the Qi Family send over the invitation?"

The gatekeeper replied, "Not long ago, just 30 minutes prior. The one who came was an old lady, who by her conduct, should be someone close to Old Madam Qi."

Gatekeepers are trained to have sharp eyes—they can tell whether someone moves about the outer courtyard or works within the inner quarters by their speech and behavior.

Gu Jinli nodded and said, "I understand, thank you for your effort."

After speaking, she gave the gatekeeper some broken silver.

The gatekeeper did not decline, accepting it with a smile, quite satisfied with the Gu Family People. Even though the Gu Family came from rural areas, they were generous in their dealings and gave them some tips, which they took as compensation for their hard work.

Old Uncle Cheng, who was nearby, said, "Miss Gu, you don't have to give tips, if the Old Master and his wife find out, they will blame me."

Miss Gu was the savior who had saved their young lady's life. The Old Master and his wife had specifically instructed them to take good care of the Gu Family, no matter how long they stayed, and not to neglect them.

Gu Jinli smiled and said, "If you work, you should get paid."

It was a favor that the Jiang Family had allowed them to stay; they couldn't consider themselves as the masters and when they asked the servants of another household for help, it was right to give some silver.

"This is the separate yard of County Captain Jiang's family in Tianfu County, right?" A servant dressed in a short grey robe stood below the steps of the large gate of the Jiang Residence, asking as they saw the crowd gathered at the door, wondering in their heart if they had gone to the wrong place.

After bowing to Gu Jinli, the gatekeeper took a few steps towards the person and said, "Indeed, this is the separate yard of County Captain Jiang's family in Tianfu County. With which household do you serve? What business brings you to the Jiang Residence?"

The servant smiled and said, "I'm a servant from the Qi Mansion. I am here on the order of the Second Young Master to deliver an invitation to Elder Gu and Miss Gu of the Gu Family."

He explained further: "Our Second Young Master heard that the Gu Family People have come to Prefecture City and was very pleased. He wishes to host the Gu Family People for a meal."

After finishing, he stepped up and handed over the invitation.

Gu Jinli laughed, what was going on with the Qi Family? The invitation from Old Madam Qi had just arrived not too long ago, and now Master Qi's invitation had come as well. What's the matter, did this mother and son have a falling out, or are they living separately now?

The gatekeeper, experienced as he was, did not mention that the Gu Family People were right there but instead took the invitation and said with a smile, "Rest assured, I will make sure to deliver the invitation to Elder Gu."

After hearing this, the Qi Family servant thanked the Jiang Family gatekeeper and as was customary, gave him a red envelope before turning to leave.

The gatekeeper handed the invitation to Gu Jinli.

Having accepted it, Gu Jinli said to Old Uncle Cheng, "Please trouble yourself to take Ah Jiang and the others down to settle in. Sister Li, Lianzi, and the others are still unwell; we need to find a place for them to rest, recover, and brew their medicine."

Old Uncle Cheng replied with a smile, "Miss Gu, rest assured, I will take them to settle in right away."

Old Uncle Cheng was a reliable and experienced worker; as soon as Gu Jinli and the others left in the morning to receive the people, he had already instructed the servants in the house to clean up two side courtyards. Now that everything was ready, he directly took them there—the boys in one courtyard and the girls in another—all was settled.

Third Grandpa looked at the two invitations in Gu Jinli's hand and asked, "Xiao Yu, what is written on the invitations?"

Gu Jinli opened the invitations, glanced at them, and said, "Old Madam Qi invites us to visit their mansion this afternoon. Master Qi says now that they know we're here, they invite us to visit tomorrow, offering to host us for a meal to thank us for selling them spice flavors in our workshop."

Third Grandpa became anxious upon hearing this: "Good heavens, it's almost noon now, and in another couple of hours, it will be afternoon. You have to hurry and get ready, otherwise, you'll be late."

Gu Jinli did not want to go: "I'm not going."

"Why not?" Third Grandpa said, "The Qi Family is a prominent family in the prefecture, and Old Madam Qi is a noble with an imperial decree; she is a person of great value. Her invitation is a sign of respect for us. Wouldn't it be disrespectful if we don't go?"

They were farmers; showing disrespect to a Madam Imperial Decree was a grave impertinence.

Gu Jinli said, "Third Grandpa, Old Madam Qi sending us this invitation is clearly a sign of disdain towards us. Why should we go and be humiliated?"

Third Grandpa was taken aback: "How can you say that?"

Ever since Gu Daya found out about the time Old Madam Qi invited them to visit, her face looked unhappy. Hearing this, she explained, "Uncle, when large households send invitations, they do so at least a day in advance. It is unheard of to invite someone to a banquet just an hour after sending out the invitation. This is not an invitation, it's an order."

Third Grandpa came from farming stock, and although he had worked odd jobs in the prefecture, he had never in his life attended a feast at a rich family's house and didn't understand the subtleties involved. Hearing this, he became so angry that his beard quivered, and he slammed the table, exclaiming, "Then we won't go! Our family isn't starving!"

He had wanted Xiao Yu to attend the banquet, thinking that if the child could forge a connection with a Madam Imperial Decree, it would elevate their status in future marriage talks and land a good match. But he didn't expect Old Madam Qi to be so heartless. On the surface, she seemed to be inviting them to a feast, but in reality, she was belittling them.

Gu Jinli smiled and consoled Third Grandpa, "Don't be angry, Elder. We don't rely on the Qi Family now, we have the Zheng Family and the Shangguan Family. And my brother will take the imperial examinations in the future. There will come a day when he will make a name for himself. We won't be looked down upon for the rest of our lives."

After hearing this, Third Grandpa felt somewhat comforted and then pointed at Master Qi's invitation, asking, "Then are we going to meet Master Qi's invitation tomorrow?"

"We're not going," Gu Jinli replied straightforwardly. "Our relationship with the Qi Family is purely business, nothing more. There's no need to complicate things. And we can stop selling the spice flavors to the Qi Family at any time; we're not short of customers."

The Zheng Family and Shangguan Family would probably be very keen to purchase her family's spice flavors.

And she wanted to take this opportunity to warn Old Madam Qi not to use the tactics of harem conflicts against her. She was not one to be trifled with using the schemes of the women in the backhouse. Selling spice flavors does not mean she had to engage in their power struggles. Just forget it.

Third Grandpa knew that Gu Jinli was decisive and said no more, only stating, "If anything comes up, just tell us, or tell San Lang, he can help you."

Qin San Lang said, "Don't worry, Third Grandpa, I will look after Xiao Yu."

Third Grandpa nodded in agreement, among the people who came to the prefecture city, he trusted San Lang the most.

After putting down the invitations, Gu Jinli stood up and said to Qin San Lang, "Brother Qin, let's go to the government office and see Aunt Lv to help us officiate the emancipation of Ah Jiang and the others' slave register."

"Okay," Qin San Lang nodded, called Ah Jiang, Ah Duo, Qiu Lang, Danian, and Ah Shi together, and went out to the government office.

Third Grandpa was frightened by last night's event and no longer felt reassured about letting Gu Jinli go out alone, so he sent Gu Daya to accompany her.

Seeing them visit again, Aunt Lv hurriedly came up with a smile and asked, "Little guests, you're here. Are you coming to buy more people?"

She asked cautiously: "Or is there something wrong with the people you bought back?"

She was worried they might be coming to return them.