A life of ups and downs is pure joy

The bustle in Jinhan City ended after Ning Junze accompanied Princess Dakun Fan Yitong back to her parents' home to visit them, but the bustle in the Lin Mansion continued. Today was a big day, the eighteenth birthday of the Lin twins, and the mansion was decorated with lights and colorful lanterns.

"Big sister." Lin Qinghuan never dreamed that in order to surprise her, Lin Qingyao actually brought her one-year-old eldest son Zheng Xushen and a five-month pregnant belly to Jinhan City accompanied by her husband, King Yinan Zheng Linfeng.

"My little Huan'er is eighteen years old now and has grown into such a pretty girl. You look so much like your aunt." Lin Qingyao said while hugging Lin Qinghuan tightly.

"Big sister, why are you traveling so hard with such a big belly? Just write a letter and we will come to see you." Lin Yuzhi said from the side.

"I miss you and grandma." Lin Qingyao said to her brothers and sisters.

"Big sister, how long are you going to stay this time?" Lin Qingwan also returned to Jinhan City with her mother-in-law a few days ago. She sat next to Lin Qinghuan and asked.

Lin Qingyao glanced at Zheng Linfeng and said, "Your eldest brother-in-law will go back to Yinan with Daddy and Ancai after Huan'er and Ancai's birthdays. I won't go back yet. I'll talk about it after Luo'er is born."

"I'm leaving your elder sister in your care for the time being." Zheng Linfeng took a robe and walked over to put it on Lin Qingyao.

"I will take good care of big sister." Lin Qinghuan said confidently.

"The little girl is so sensible now." Zheng Linfeng smiled.

"Why do Daddy and Ancai want to go together? Is Nanbang not behaving well again?" Lin Qingyi asked curiously, and the others also looked at Zheng Linfeng curiously.

"My second uncle was injured in the raid in Nanbang two months ago." Lin Qingyao said seriously.

"How is he now? Is he seriously injured?" Lin Yuzhi stood up excitedly. No one wrote to Jin Han about such a big thing.

"Yuzhi is fine. If it was very serious, I would have written to you urgently. Second uncle was shot by an arrow, but fortunately the wound was not deep. However, Nanbang is still restless. My father-in-law and I went to the palace yesterday to report the matter to the emperor. This battle is inevitable." Zheng Linfeng said.

"There's going to be a war again! Daddy... I don't want Daddy to go to the battlefield again." Lin Qinghuan thought of Lin Muchang's old injury and said with lowered eyes.

"Don't worry, fifth sister. With An Cai and I here, daddy will be fine. But with the commander-in-chief here, the morale of the army is stable." Zheng Linfeng said, and Lin Qingyao also patted Lin Qinghuan's little face.

"Huan'er, where is Xiao's younger brother? How is your health now? Does your good husband still need to listen to your heartbeat every day?" Lin Qingyao asked, and everyone fell silent.

Lin Qingyao didn't know that Lin Qinghuan was not marrying Xiao Yu, and was looking at her silly sister happily at this moment.

"Huan'er is in good health now and no longer needs to take medicine or have his pulse checked." Lin Mo said when he saw the situation.

"Oh? I saw that Xiao Huan'er's face looks rosy now. It seems that the medical skills of my fifth brother-in-law are well-deserved." Lin Qingyao pinched Lin Qinghuan's face and said.

"Big sister, my husband is Brother Yu's biological brother. His name is Xiao Yi, and he doesn't know any medical skills." Lin Qinghuan saw that everyone was very unnatural, so she spoke.

"What...you are marrying him?" Lin Qingyao looked at Lin Qinghuan in shock, then looked at Lin Yuzhi.

Seeing this, Lin Qinghuan told her elder sister Lin Qingyao the whole story, and then she leaned quietly in her arms. Now, when she mentioned her brother Yu, she no longer felt as heartbroken as before, but was very calm. This calmness came from the company of her relatives, and the rest was due to Xiao Yi's favor for her. Yesterday, great news came from the east. Gong Heyu had ascended the throne as the new emperor, changed the country's name to Xuan, and married the foreign empress Wei Lan from Shenzhou, a woman of the same age as Lin Qinghuan.

"Xiao Yi is Jinhan's most famous young talent. Many of my close friends admired him very much back then. I never thought that he would actually marry my own sister." Lin Qingyao murmured while touching Lin Qinghuan's head.

"He is good at martial arts. I have fought with him." Lin Qingyi suddenly said, and Lin Qingwan looked at her with a frown.

"Wan'er, how does your husband treat you?" Lin Qingyao looked at Lin Qingwan and asked.

"Respect each other like guests." Lin Qingwan said softly.

"Mo'er, I don't need to ask. Xiao Jia even accompanied you to Yinan before. He was so thoughtful." Lin Qingyao smiled at Lin Mo.

"What about you? Why did mother say that she couldn't find a suitable one after counting all the families in Jinhan?" Lin Qingyao finally looked at Lin Qingyi and asked.

"I...I...I don't want to marry the reckless men chosen by my mother, huh!" Lin Qingyi said with a pout and a sullen face.

"A reckless man? I heard they were all from military generals' and marquis' families." Lin Qingyao asked back.

"They are just a bunch of illiterate people."

"Mother said that if you don't behave, I will take you to the Xu family in Yinan." Lin Qingyao deliberately frightened her.

"Ah? I...I don't want it." Lin Qingyi said unhappily.

“Hahahahahahahahaha…” Lin Qinghuan, who had been leaning on Lin Qingyao’s arms, laughed loudly, and then said, “Big sister, don’t scare Sister Yi anymore.”

"However, Qingyi, you will be nineteen years old in two months. You must stop being willful and naughty. You like to study and go to a family of scholars. Then I will talk to mother and ask her not to say "I won't get married" anymore." Lin Qingyao reached out and pulled Lin Qingyi to her side and said.

Lin Qingyi nodded obediently.

"When will Xiaoqi be born?" Lin Qingyao looked at Lin Yuzhi again.

"I guess it will be in the next few days. The midwife and the imperial physician have also moved in." Lin Yuzhi said.

"I went to see my sister-in-law yesterday. She seemed to be in good spirits, but a little scared," said Lin Mo.

"I'll go see her later and talk to her in detail. Giving birth is not that scary." Lin Qingyao touched her belly and said. Lin Qinghuan also looked up at her, then looked at her belly and unconsciously reached out to touch it.

"Why didn't I react?" Lin Qinghuan unconsciously said what was in her heart, and everyone looked at her in surprise.

"Huan'er, what did you say?" Lin Mo asked with a smile, covering his face.

"Ah? I didn't say anything!" Lin Qinghuan shyly buried her head in Lin Qingyao's arms again, blaming herself in her heart for being so embarrassing.

"Silly girl, why are you so embarrassed in front of your brother and sister? What's wrong? Did the Xiao family urge you?" Lin Qingyao asked with a smile. Lin Qingwan looked at Lin Qinghuan with a complicated expression.

"My mother-in-law is worried every day that the second wife's concubines are getting pregnant one after another. She is so anxious that she can't sleep or eat well. Moreover, if I am not pregnant, my husband's concubines will not be able to get pregnant either. Alas! It's really annoying." Lin Qinghuan said helplessly.

"You are in good health now, you will get better." Lin Mo said.

"I'm not in a hurry, but I go to pay my respects every day. Whenever I see my mother-in-law, I feel like... like I'm really sorry for her, and she treats me so kindly."

"If that's the case, I can prescribe some medicine for you, which may be effective," said Lin Mo.

Lin Qinghuan looked at his brothers and sisters, especially the silly boy Lin Ancai, and blushed instantly.

"Sister Mo, please tell me this kind of thing in private!" Lin Qinghuan said embarrassedly, and everyone burst into laughter when they saw this.

"Miss, the brother-in-law and the eldest daughter are here." Chu Xia ran in and said.

"My husband is here." Lin Qinghuan happily let go of Lin Qingyao and looked outside.

"Oh, you look so happy!" Lin Qingyao looked at Lin Qinghuan with a smile.

Xiao Qiannan came in first, skipping and jumping, and Xiao Yi followed behind her.

"Sister-in-law, happy birthday." Xiao Qiannan walked straight towards Lin Qinghuan and handed the carefully prepared birthday gift to Lin Qinghuan.

"Thank you, Nan'er." Lin Qinghuan said happily, and then opened the brocade box in her hand, "What a beautiful hairpin."

"Although Nan'er's hairpin is not as unique as my elder brother's mermaid tear hairpin, it is also a treasure that my aunt and I asked for." Xiao Qiannan said proudly.

"I like it. I like it very much." Lin Qinghuan said happily.

Xiao Qiannan looked at Lin Ancai and quickly stuffed the brocade bag in her arms into his hand.

"I have a gift too!" Lin Ancai said.

"You are also the birthday boy today, how come you don't have a gift?" Xiao Qiannan said curiously.

"No, this is the only birthday gift." Lin Ancai said pitifully.

"Hey, is this true? You have so many brothers and sisters but no one prepared a gift for you?" Xiao Qiannan looked at everyone strangely.

Lin Ancai nodded sadly.

"It's mainly because they were gifts prepared for him by his brothers and sisters, but he doesn't like them." Lin Qingyao said, pointing to a pile of books and picture albums next to her.

"Brother Ancai will definitely not like these things. It is more appropriate to give them to the eldest brother of the Lin family and my eldest brother." Xiao Qiannan said with disgust after taking a look.

"Hurry up and open the gift for you and let us see what kind of gift Miss Xiao has prepared for you that is suitable for our An Cai." Lin Qingyao said curiously.

"Ah...no, no...open it when you go back to the yard!" Xiao Qiannan hurriedly stepped forward and held Lin Ancai down and said.

Lin Qinghuan stood beside Xiao Yi, smiling the whole time. Then, as if remembering something, she pulled Xiao Yi and said, "Husband, come with me to meet my elder sister."

"Long time no see." Xiao Yi said.

"Yes, it has been almost seven or eight years." Lin Qingyao said.

"Ah?" Lin Qinghuan and several other sisters looked at the two in surprise.

"Have you little confused kids forgotten that your elder sister grew up in Jinhan?" Lin Yuzhi said. He and Lin Qingyao have known each other since childhood as well as the Xiao family and the royal family's peers. Lin Qingyao and Xiao Yi are childhood friends of similar age.

"Husband, you have never mentioned this to me." Lin Qinghuan complained.

"I forgot." Xiao Yi said innocently. After all, Lin Qinghuan rarely mentioned Lin Qingyao in front of him.

When the group went to Tengjing Pavilion, Lin Mutang and He Su had already returned from the palace, and Jia Xu and Wang Xing had also arrived.

Lin Ancai stepped forward and chatted with Jia Xu about what happened in the patrol camp today. Wang Xing also walked to Lin Qingwan's side. Lin Qinghuan noticed that the two of them were indeed quite unfamiliar with each other.

"Grandma is here." Lin Qingyao and Lin Yuzhi took Cheng Ping over, and Lin Qingru and Lin Zhichuan followed them over holding the hands of their older brother and sister.

After the firecrackers exploded and everyone sat down, Lin Mutang spoke.

"Eighteen years have passed in a blink of an eye. I still vaguely remember the joyous time our family had when Yulan was pregnant with twins. Unfortunately, Lan'er was beautiful but had a tragic life. She passed away after giving birth to you and your sister at the risk of your life. As her husband, I was far away in Yinan at that time. If it weren't for your mother's love, it would have been difficult for my two children to survive, especially Huan'er. She has been weak and sickly since childhood due to damage to her mother's womb. It's all your father's fault that you two were born without a mother and never knew what a mother is." Lin Mudang knew that it was Chang Xinrui who killed Zhang Yulan, and now he felt even more sorry for her.

"Dad, although Ancai and I have never seen our biological mother, we have been loved by our grandmother, Dad, Aunt Xue, Aunt He, and our brothers and sisters since we were young. We grew up in a honeypot." Lin Qinghuan stood up and held the wine cup and said. Seeing this, Lin Ancai also stood up.

"My son has grown up." Lin Mutang drank it all in one gulp with great satisfaction.

After Lin Qinghuan sat down, Xiao Yi patted her hand gently, then held it tightly.

Xiao Qiannan refilled Lin An's empty cup. Cheng Ping looked at the Xiao family's eldest daughter, then at her grandson, and understood everything. Lin Qingyao was also paying attention. She was very curious about the shy look on Xiao Qiannan's face when she gave her the gift just now.

"An Cai is already eighteen years old. After returning from the Yinan War, your father and mother will start arranging your marriage. I wonder if my son has someone in mind?" Lin Mutang asked.

Xiao Qiannan's hand, which was pouring the wine, shook inadvertently, and the wine spilled out. She then looked up at Lin Ancai who was sitting next to her.

"I'm not in a hurry. I still have a few more years of fighting for victory with my father and second uncle. Now my favorites are my sister and my Mei Ling." Lin Ancai said heartlessly.

"Silly boy, when daddy asked you if you had someone you loved, you named two at once, one was Qinghuan and the other was the sword she gave me. How could I have such a silly brother?" Lin Qingyao shook her head helplessly and glanced at Xiao Qiannan who was beside her with some thoughts in her mind.

"Grandma, Daddy, An Cai has always wanted to become a great general with numerous military achievements like Daddy, so as his... ahem... most beloved sister, An Cai's future marriage will be left to me." Lin Qinghuan glanced at Xiao Qiannan and spoke to Cheng Ping and Lin Mutang.

"My Huan'er is the most sensible. When your father and mother and I pass away, you brothers and sisters will be the only ones left in the world. You must work together and take care of each other. Remember that family harmony is the key to success." Cheng Ping said slowly.

"Big brother, what does it mean to leave the earth?" Lin Zhichuan asked Lin Yuzhi curiously.

"Hahahaha...my dear grandson." Cheng Ping touched the little round head of the grandson whom she had watched grow up.

Lin Zhichuan looked at his brothers and sisters with confusion, but still didn't understand what they meant, so he asked again.

"It means that someone has passed away." Lin Qingyi said upon seeing this.

"That's the same as my mother. I don't want it. I don't want my grandmother to pass away. I don't want it." Lin Zhichuan put down his bowl and chopsticks, ran to Cheng Ping, hugged her tightly and said coquettishly.

Lin Qinghuan suddenly felt very sad, and her eyes couldn't help but become moist. The same was true for Lin Mo.

"Okay, okay... Grandma promised Chuan'er that she would always be with you and watch me, Chuan'er, grow up, pass the imperial examination, get married and have children, okay?" Cheng Ping also said, hugging the little guy in her arms tightly.

"Okay, come back and eat." Lin Yuzhi waved to his youngest brother, and Lin Zhichuan returned to his seat obediently. Lin Qingru considerately picked up a large piece of goat meat for her younger brother.

"Zhichuan, eat more and grow up quickly to protect your grandmother, father, and sisters."