The banquet was held in the Main Hall of the Earl's Mansion.
Five large round mahogany tables packed the spacious hall to the brim.
The relatives raised their cups in turn, exchanging toasts amid clinking goblets. Laughter and flattering remarks blended together, ringing out from dusk until the moon stood high in the sky.
Lin Mo sat in the main seat, wearing a courteous smile. Every so often, he drank a few cups with the elders or dealt with a few questions from the relatives.
He barely touched his chopsticks, while Su Wanqing, seated to his right, occasionally served him food and poured him wine.
Her movements were natural and her manner intimate, clearly something she was used to doing.
Ma Xiaoling sat beside Su Wanqing, quietly eating. Every now and then, she secretly glanced at Lin Mo before quickly lowering her head again.
Lin's mother sat opposite them. Watching this scene, she could not suppress the smile on her lips.
She truly liked that girl, Wanqing.
She had stayed by her son's side since before he was anything, working tirelessly without ever complaining.
Xiaoling might have come later, but she was sensible and obedient too, quiet and never fighting for attention.
Now that her son had been granted a title, more and more women surrounded him. Yet none of them had ever fallen out with one another; instead, they all helped arrange this and take care of that.
Girls like them were hard to find even with a lantern.
Lin's mother's gaze moved away from Su Wanqing and settled on Shen Weiwei, who sat at another table.
The girl was gentle and quiet, speaking softly with the two close friends beside her.
Every so often, she glanced this way. Whenever her eyes met Lin's mother's, she lowered her head