Chapter 462: Meeting the Zhou Family for the First Time

Zhou Da hurriedly waved his hand. “No. Although my last name is also Zhou, I’m not related to the Zhou Family. I think the only connection between us is the same last name.”

After he finished speaking, he carefully observed Baili Junyi’s and Shen Ninghua’s expressions, but he found that Shen Ninghua seemed to be asking the question casually as she lost her interest after hearing his answer and continued to stroll around the garden.

After a brief look, Baili Junyi nodded in satisfaction. “This courtyard is very good. Lord Zhou, ask the Zhou Family how much I need to spend to buy this courtyard?”

“It is the Zhou Family’s honor for you to stay in the courtyard. They won’t accept your money,” Zhou Da quickly refused.

Throwing a glance at him, Baili Junyi quipped with a faint smile, “Lord Zhou, you’re not from the Zhou Family. How can you represent them? Please go and ask them.”

“Uh… O-Okay. You’re so benevolent, Your Highness. I’ll ask them as soon as possible.”

“Good.”

Leading the two to the backyard, Zhou Da tactfully informed, “You must be very tired after days of traveling. Please take a rest. Tomorrow, I’ll hold a welcoming banquet for you. I wonder if I have the honor to invite you to the banquet.”

Baili Junyi nodded. “We have just arrived at Zhou City. We would be honored to go to the banquet if we have the chance to meet the officials here. You said that the Zhou Family is a famous philanthropist family, so I think the city’s officials also know them. I hope you can invite the Zhou Family to the banquet too.”

“Okay, I will. The Zhou Family is truly fortunate to be able to meet Your Highnesses.”

“Okay, you can leave now.”

After Zhou Da left, Baili Junyi instructed the guards to carefully inspect the courtyard. Then, he asked them to take turns guarding and resting while he accompanied Shen Ninghua to look at the resting place.

This courtyard was named Hundred Flowers Garden with many precious flowers and plants growing in it. They were blooming without fear of the cold autumn. At a glance, the exquisite house looked like it was built on a sea of flowers. It was beautiful and breathtaking.

Even the calm Shen Ninghua couldn’t help but reveal a trace of shock as she praised, “It really is a nice courtyard. They seemed to have taken a lot of effort in landscaping this place.”

Baili Junyi smiled. “Indeed. Let’s go in and see if the room is even more shocking.”

With a slight nod and a sweet smile, Shen Ninghua followed him into the room. As soon as he pushed open the door, he smelled an elegant fragrance of flowers. The room was decorated in an exceptionally elegant manner. There were many fresh flowers placed there, giving off a warm and comfortable feeling.

“It seems that the Zhou Family is very attentive in decorating this place.”

“Yes. We should thank them properly at the banquet tomorrow.”

After making sure that the room had not been tampered with, Shen Ninghua let the wet nurses carry Big Boy and Baby Girl in.

At this moment, Big Boy and Baby Girl were already awake, and they were looking around with wide eyes. When they saw the bright colored flowers, they happily stretched out their hands and wanted to take them.

Shen Ninghua suddenly frowned and took Baby Girl from the wet nurse. “Remove all the flowers here. Leave some in the yard outside and remove the rest.”

Hearing this, Baili Junyi hurriedly asked, his eyes filled with a trace of fierceness, “What happened, Ninghua? Is there something wrong?”

Shen Ninghua thought for a moment and shook her head.

“When I saw Baby Girl wanted to get those flowers, it reminded me that the flowers in the room and in the courtyard are similarly colorful and fragrant. It is nothing for us, but for children, it is not necessarily beneficial. They are still too young, so the strong fragrance of flowers is much more stimulating, not to mention the constantly drifting pollen and the bees and butterflies attracted by the flowers. I think it’s better to remove them.”

The tip of Baili Junyi’s brows moved slightly as he muttered in a low voice, “Is this a coincidence?”

There was no substantial problem with this courtyard. It was completely impossible to say that someone had deliberately set up a plot to harm his children, but to say it was a coincidence, he felt that it was not the case.

Because they brought a lot of guards with them, the flowers in the yard were soon removed. Shen Ninghua ordered people to open the window and clear the air. Then she put the two children on the bed that Bai Ruo had made again.

The two children were in a good mood after eating and sleeping, so they tossed and turned on the bed. Bai Ruo and Hong Ling quickly stood guard at the side, not daring to leave.

Because of the long travel, Shen Ninghua slept until the sun was high in the sky. When she opened her eyes, she saw Baili Junyi holding Baby Girl with one hand and Big Boy with the other, preventing them from crawling to her side.

The two children’s faces were red and they were still gasping for breath. It was obvious that they had been struggling for a long time.

Seeing Shen Ninghua wake up, Baby Girl was the first to call out in surprise, “Ah!”

Baili Junyi’s forehead was covered in sweat. When he saw Shen Ninghua woke up, he finally let go of Big Boy. “Ninghua, you’re awake?”

Shen Ninghua nodded, sat up, and looked at them, puzzled. “What are you doing?”

Baili Junyi reached out and patted Big Boy’s butt. As the chubby baby nimbly crawled onto Shen Ninghua’s lap and lay on it, laughing complacently, Baili Junyi pinched the baby’s nose playfully.

“They woke up early in the morning and insisted on climbing to your side, so I tried to stop them. But they were very obedient and seemed to know that they could not wake you up, and they just kept crawling without making a sound. I didn’t want them to disturb your sleep, so I stopped them.”

You are reading story Phoenix Reborn: the Prime Minister's Scheming Daughter at novel35.com

Hearing this, Shen Ninghua chuckled in amusement. She picked up Big Boy and kissed him. Then, she leaned over and kissed Baby Girl. “Oh, my darling babies. You’re so young, but you love your mom so much.”

“Ah.”

“Ya!”

The two children laughed and rolled around on the bed. Not long after, they climbed to the side to play with themselves.

Baili Junyi got up and put on his clothes. Then, he took Shen Ninghua’s clothes and said, “Zhou Da has already sent an invitation over to invite us to the banquet in the afternoon.”

“Alright. I’m very curious about the Zhou Family he kept talking about. Let’s meet them today.”

Baili Junyi smiled. “The Zhou Family is indeed a famous philanthropist family. At the very least, when I sent people out to ask around, no one gave any bad comments about them.”

“Oh? It’s not strange for a family to have a good reputation, but it’s rare that everyone thinks that they are nice. They must have done something beneficial to the country and the people. What special actions did the Zhou Family do?”

“I don’t know much about this. I only heard that the family is kind and charitable. They have donated to many poor students and helped many people in the rural villages.”

Shen Ninghua raised her eyes slightly, a trace of intrigue flashing across the sparkly eyes. “If that’s the case, we really need to get to know them.”

Not long after they had their lunch, Bai Ruo came to report, “Your Highness, Miss, Lord Zhou is here to see you.”

Baili Junyi replied, “Invite him to the flower hall first. Tell him we’ll be there in a while.”

Shen Ninghua told Bai Ruo and Hong Ling to take care of the two children. After dressing up, she left with Qing Que.

The banquet was held in Zhou City’s most famous Qilin Garden. It was said that this was a place where students gathered and socialized. Normally, there would be at least a hundred students coming here to exchange views and study. It was especially lively here.

Because there was a banquet today, the place was closed and cleaned up two days in advance, and only opened today.

Shen Ninghua followed Baili Junyi out of the carriage. When they saw the words “Qilin Garden” hanging above the gate, they were amazed by the dignified and majestic writing on the plague.

Zhou Da bowed and stepped forward. “Your Highness, Princess, this way, please.”

The others had arrived at Qilin Garden early in the morning to wait for them. When they heard the report, they immediately quieted down and bowed respectfully to Baili Junyi and Shen Ninghua.

“Greetings, Prefectural Prince Yi and Prefectural Princess.”

“Thank you. Please stand.”

Zhou Da led the two of them to the seat of honor. Only then did everyone dare to get up and stand with their heads lowered, their attitudes especially respectful.

Glancing at the crowd, Baili Junyi asserted, “My wife and I have just come to Zhou City, we may stay here for a long time. We have all the time in the world to communicate with you, so please don’t be too formal at this banquet. Just treat it as an icebreaking event for all of us. Please take a seat.”

Everyone sat down with a respectful smile on their faces. Although they tried their best to hide it, the caution in their movements was self-evident.

Baili Junyi’s and Shen Ninghua’s reputations were like thunder in their ears, especially the matters that these two had stirred up in the capital. Just the two of them dared to openly compete with most of the officials in the court. Moreover, they had even won, causing those officials to admit defeat. Who would dare to provoke them?

Everyone seemed to be reserved, and if someone had a relaxed expression, they would naturally stand out.

Shen Ninghua looked at the man sitting at the end of the table. He looked to be in his thirties with a handsome face and courteous manner. He was smiling elegantly, but he was nothing like the stiff officials around him.

“I have long heard that the head of the Zhou Family will come today. May I know where he is?”

Shen Ninghua asked, and Zhou Da quickly introduced her. To her surprise, it was the man that attracted her attention.

“Your Highness, Princess, my name is Zhou Ziqing, and I’m honored to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you, Patriarch Zhou.” Shen Ninghua smiled. “Thank you for your courtyard, or we would have to sleep on the streets.” It was unexpected that the head of the philanthropist Zhou Family was actually a young man who was full of elegance.

Zhou Ziqing hurriedly bowed. “You’re too humble, Princess. Many people volunteered to provide their yards. I worked hard for a long time to obtain this opportunity.”

“Are you here by yourself? I heard that you have a younger sister who is famous for her gorgeous appearance in the city. Do I have the honor to meet her?”

“She’s not famous for anything. It’s just some nonsense rumors. In fact, she is inferior in front of you. Actually, she prepared a show to liven the atmosphere up. I didn’t want her to embarrass herself at first, but since you’ve asked, I wonder…”

“Oh?” Shen Ninghua was intrigued. “This is wonderful. Please welcome your younger sister and show us Zhou City’s unique culture.”

You can find story with these keywords: Phoenix Reborn: the Prime Minister's Scheming Daughter, Read Phoenix Reborn: the Prime Minister's Scheming Daughter, Phoenix Reborn: the Prime Minister's Scheming Daughter novel, Phoenix Reborn: the Prime Minister's Scheming Daughter book, Phoenix Reborn: the Prime Minister's Scheming Daughter story, Phoenix Reborn: the Prime Minister's Scheming Daughter full, Phoenix Reborn: the Prime Minister's Scheming Daughter Latest Chapter