Chapter 121 Yi An: I'm so angry! : Yi An is five years old this year. Ever since he was one and a half years old and could speak fluently, Shen Wanqing had a vague feeling that this child…

Yi An is five years old this year. After he was one and a half years old and could speak fluently, Shen Wanqing vaguely felt that something was wrong with the child. He was too damn noisy!

The Hesheli family produced more military generals than civil officials. Even though Yulang is currently working in the Ministry of Revenue with his tail between his legs, he started his career by riding horses.

The Shen family's ancestral home is in Liaodong. Shen Tieshan was a military officer. Although Shen Hongji has been either staying in the capital or guarding Hami or Zhangjiakou for the past two years and rarely travels with his caravan, Shen Wanlan said that the old man still eats a pound of meat and a pot of wine with every meal, and he can't do without any less.

Shen Wenyuan is now not only the garrison commander of the Central Patrol Battalion, but also the instructor of the entire city's five patrol battalions. Shen Wanqing doesn't know exactly how good his kung fu is, but Yu Lang and Shen Wanlan definitely can't beat him.

The child born from the marriage between these two families was as strong as a calf. After weaning the boy, he didn't eat cow's milk, goat's milk, or rice cereal for long before transitioning directly to eating meals with Shen Wanqing and Yu Lang.

As for eating, Yi'an, who had just grown his tenth tiny tooth, clearly didn't know how to chew meat very well. Every time he ate, his eyes would be wide open, staring at the meat and vegetables on the table. He would be happy when Shen Wanqing and his nanny put meat on his plate, but he would wish he couldn't open his mouth when they put vegetables on his plate.

One- or two-year-old children live entirely on instinct. Although they can instinctively sense whether their mother is happy or not, for An Xiaoye, the most important thing is still eating meat, regardless of whether his mother is happy or not.

He went from being willing to eat a bite of vegetables after eating a bite of meat, to only being able to eat a bite of meat after eating a bite of vegetables, to hiding vegetables under meat for him to eat, and finally to being able to use chopsticks to pick out the vegetables he didn't like, all by the time he was only two years old.

The first time Yulang discovered that his son was like a hamster, pulling out all the vegetable leaves and piling them up at the bottom of the bowl without touching them, he was amused and thought his son was very cute. He picked up his son and spun him around in the room.

Yu Lang was already tall, and when he tossed his son up and caught him, Xiao Yi'an felt like he was flying. The whole room was filled with the sounds of children screaming and giggling.

Enraged, Shen Wanqing slammed her fist into Yulang's shoulder. "Your son is only two years old and already has a bad habit of being a picky eater. And you're still coaxing him like this. With this kid's cleverness, he'll be flying high tomorrow!"

That very night, Shen Wanqing sent her husband and son to sleep in the study. The next day, Yu Lang left his son in the study for the care of the nanny and wet nurse, while he fawned over Shen Wanqing like a lackey, begging for forgiveness.

Shen Wanqing couldn't be bothered to look at him like that. Yu Lang was extremely soft-hearted towards his family, and Yi An was their only child, conceived after three years of marriage. She could understand why he was a little too fond of her.

But two- or three-year-old children are the most important to manage. If you don't discipline them now, it will be difficult to correct their temperament later.

Besides, this kid is really lucky. He was born into a life of wealth and prosperity. Now that he and Yulang are on the rise, Yi'an, as their only son, will surely enjoy the most precious privileges in the world.

He doesn't even need to grow up to think that everyone around him is a good person, that everyone is kind to him, and that most people will fawn over him and go along with him. If his parents don't curb his so-called 'smart' nature when he grows up, they'll be crying when he does.

It would be good enough if he could be a good-for-nothing playboy. The real fear is that when he grows up, he will still rely on his little bit of cleverness to get along with others, and he will be too arrogant and ignorant of the world. On the other hand, his family is too close to the top of power. In that case, he will be able to cause more trouble than others.

When Yu Lang first heard Shen Wanqing say this, he didn't quite believe it. At that time, he was in a phase where his mind was clouded by paternal love, thinking that his son was good in every way and could not possibly cause trouble.

Shen Wanqing didn't argue with him at the time. She just took some time later to let Yi'an, who hadn't been bridled yet, run around in his study and Yulang Happy Hut in the courtyard. After he was done, the wet nurse and attendants would coax the child and say that he had done a good job.

When Yulang returned and saw his study, which was in such a mess, he didn't say anything. He took his son from the nanny, carried him into Shen Wanqing's study, which she hadn't yet cleaned, and slapped him ten times while he was downstairs.

Yu Lang's horsemanship and archery skills hadn't suffered, so even when he held back while hitting his son, the little guy's bottom quickly swelled up. Shen Wanqing had always been fierce in scolding her son but lacked practical skills; now that Yu Lang had filled that gap, it was practically flawless.

The child had never been beaten like this before, and his first reaction wasn't to cry, but to stare blankly at his father. It wasn't until the wet nurse, who was being held back outside the study, knelt down and pleaded for the young master, coupled with the burning pain in his bottom, that the young master finally let out a loud wail.

Yu Lang had seen blood; his anger and beating of children were different from Shen Wanqing's in terms of both perception and aura. For children who were still driven by instinct and not yet adept at reading expressions, this was true suppression.

That one beating was enough for Yi An to remember for a lifetime. From then on, Shen Wanqing and Yu Lang tacitly divided the work. Usually, Shen Wanqing would discipline the child more, and when Shen Wanqing felt that she could not control the matter or it was time to take action, Yu Lang would take over.

In this family, there was no such thing as one playing the good cop and the other the bad cop. Yi'an knew from a young age that his father and mother were on the same side, with his mother making the decisions and his father taking care of the chores.

That's why, when the two of them, who were hiding outside the hanging flower gate, heard Shen Wanqing's faint voice in the courtyard and saw their aunt waving at them from afar, Yi An immediately chickened out and turned to look at his father, wishing that his father would take him away as soon as possible.

"Father!"

"Go in. You really thought you could hide forever?"

Yi'an returned earlier than his father. When Yulang came back, he saw Yi'an with his butt sticking up high, lying on the steps next to the hanging flower gate, not knowing what he was doing.

I tiptoed closer and saw that the kid was sculpting clay figures. The clay he was using was the kind that street vendors who specialize in making clay figures used; I had no idea where he got it from.

While the boy was kneading and flattening the lump of clay in his hand, no one knew what he wanted to make, and he kept talking, asking the old woman guarding the gate what his mother was doing and whether she could see if she looked well.

Upon hearing this, Yu Lang knew that his son had gotten into trouble again. Standing behind his son, he lifted his leg and gently tapped his bottom with the toe of his boot, startling his son so much that he fell to the ground. Before the little devil could react, Yu Lang quickly asked.

"What trouble have you gotten yourself into? Tell me quickly."

"He skipped class and even locked the teacher's door from the inside."

Even dogs would avoid a seven- or eight-year-old, but Yi'an was well-fed and raised by his parents, who were both tall and strong, which caused him to enter the physiological cycle that even dogs would avoid a year or two earlier than usual.

"So what's the reason today?"

"My husband said he wanted to rest at noon, but I was worried that the family would disturb his rest..."

Yi An spoke without hesitation, and Yu Lang just watched without refuting or questioning him, but his expression gradually turned cold.

If officials from the Ministry of Revenue were to see this expression and demeanor, the ministers and vice ministers would pretend to be completely at ease and quickly avoid Yu Lang.

If the officials, clerks, and their subordinates couldn't avoid it, they would usually just say whatever came to mind. The worst thing they could do was to argue with Lord Yu at this time.

With the physique of a military officer, Yu Lang was able to perform the duties of a civil official. What made him stronger than a purely civil official was that he had more capable Manchu bannermen and personal attendants under his command than his colleagues.

He can speak well to people and perform his duties properly, but if anyone tries to outsmart him and refuses to back down, then Lord Yu has no choice but to take action.

He wouldn't actually kill those civil officials. They would just choose to visit them in the evening after they had finished their shifts, eaten dinner, taken a bath, and were preparing to rest with their wives and concubines, to discuss work.

He wasn't going alone; he had to take Akdun, Suhe, and the others with him. Each of these men was already a mid-level officer in the firearms battalion, but they were also bannermen under Lord Yu's command. It was perfectly legitimate for the commandant to summon them to work, so they couldn't refuse.

Applying the same tactics used by spoiled young masters to these officials is incredibly effective.

Some people impeached Yu Lang for being arrogant, but Yu Lang neither threatened nor took action. As a captain, he was simply discussing official business with his colleagues when he was off duty. Was that wrong?

This kind of tough guy, the military version of Yu Lang, is really suffocating. Even the civil officials who don't get along with Yu Lang know that he's just bluffing, but after all, swords have no eyes, and who would risk their life? They can only grit their teeth and obey his orders.

Afterwards, the Fourth Prince Yinzhen would step in to appease him, and sometimes he would even put on airs and reprimand Yulang. Yulang would then reluctantly lower his head and admit his mistake, and the matter would often be glossed over in this muddled way.

For this reason, the people in the Ministry of Revenue secretly gave Yulang and the Fourth Prince a nickname: the Black and White Duo. Nobody's a fool; everyone can see that behind the two of them stands the Crown Prince, and behind the Crown Prince stands His Majesty.

The Crown Prince is no longer the same Crown Prince he once was. He had already undergone a transformation when he actively handed over the old Crown Prince faction to His Majesty.

Shi Wenbing is not only the Crown Prince's father-in-law but also the Emperor's confidant. Shi Qionghua's sister has already been betrothed to Baotai, the son of Prince Yu, Fuquan. This is equivalent to providing double insurance for both the Crown Prince and the Emperor.

As long as Emperor Kangxi is on the throne, Shi Wenbing will definitely support the emperor, because his daughter has married into Prince Yu's household. No matter which prince Prince Yu sides with, he will definitely side with his own brother first. After all, it is obvious who is closer to the emperor, his own brother or his nephew.

When Kangxi passed away and the Crown Prince ascended the throne, he could support the Crown Prince in the name of his maternal relatives. At that time, Prince Yu would not only be the Emperor's uncle but also a relative by marriage of the Duke of Cheng'en. This roundabout way was actually Kangxi bringing Prince Yu, a close relative of the imperial family, to the Crown Prince's side.

With these two brakes in place, if His Majesty wants to be a benevolent ruler, then the Crown Prince is the one who is upright, incorruptible, and decisive. But anyone with a little sense knows that the Crown Prince can really make the decisions. This is exactly the result His Majesty wants.

In this way, the most fundamental and irreconcilable differences between the emperor and the crown prince will be eliminated. When the emperor and the crown prince are on the same side, even if the court officials re-form factions, they will not be able to gain much influence, and the issues they are fighting over will not shake the foundation of the country.

As for Yu Lang and the Fourth Prince, this so-called "Black and White Duo," there was a hint of mockery in their names. Everyone could see clearly that when the Crown Prince ascended the throne, one of them would represent the imperial family and the other would represent the emperor's close ministers; both were destined for the highest positions in the court.

Yu Lang thus gained considerable influence in the Ministry of Revenue, but Yi An was unaware of this. Seeing his father's increasingly cold expression, he realized he had said the wrong thing.

But he just thought he had said something wrong, and that as long as he confessed honestly, everything would be fine.

“Father, I understand what the teacher says in class after listening to it once, but he always makes me read it ten times and write it down from memory ten times.”

“I told my husband that I didn’t need to memorize the words anymore, but he wouldn’t listen. The words we just memorized yesterday afternoon, I wrote them out, but he wouldn’t learn anything new. He wanted me to copy them ten more times.”

"I felt that this gentleman was deliberately making things difficult for me, so I locked his door while he was sleeping at noon."

“Father, I didn’t do anything else. I also had Zhuzi stand guard at the door. When the master woke up, he couldn’t open the door. He just had to knock twice more before I opened it for him.”

Yi An didn't intend to cause any harm to the elderly gentleman with his white beard; he was just putting a sense of reassurance on his own mind.

With the door locked, he could skip class with greater peace of mind. On the way to the Shen family's house, he felt reassured as long as he knew his teacher was still locked inside.

“Father, I know I was wrong.”

"Okay, it's good that you know you were wrong."

The little brat had no idea that his father was about to sacrifice him to fill a hole. He was still looking up at Yulang with a bright smile when his father picked him up with one hand and carried him into the yard.

Fangyi turned around when she heard the noise and saw her nephew being carried back by her older brother. She immediately covered her face with a handkerchief.

"Sister-in-law, I'm going to check on Mother in the west courtyard first. I won't be coming back later."

"Go ahead, just make sure Madam doesn't hear what's going on here."

Last year, He Yi was transferred to the position of Salt Commissioner, which is the same rank as Grain Commissioner. However, one is in charge of grain and the other is in charge of salt and salt permits. It is obvious who is more important and who is the most lucrative position.

Therefore, Shumulu, who had been staying in the capital, could not be retained. He Yi had so many things to do in his post, and it was really not good to not have a wife who could manage the household affairs.

Fortunately, she had already found a wife for Tu Nan, and her second son Hui Zhong was also engaged. Her second and third daughters were both around ten years old, so they didn't need anyone to watch over them every day.

After she left, Tu Nan and Hui Zhong took the initiative to suggest moving back to the small house that Erhe and He Yi had been allocated when they separated their family property.

Yu Lang didn't stop him, after all, Tu Nan was already married and had joined the Imperial Guard two years ago. Although he was currently just a Blue-feathered Guard, anyone could see that his future couldn't be too bad.

Yu Lang is no longer just the eldest son of the Hesheli family; he is the person with the best future in the entire Hesheli clan, and he has become the leader of the Hesheli clan.

As a cousin, Tu Nan certainly knew that the best option was not to completely rely on the eldest son's family. He had to take the initiative to back down first. Many relationships need to be neither too close nor too distant to last. If you get too close, it becomes difficult to say anything, and there is no room for compromise.

But Yulang kept the second daughter Fangzhi and the third daughter Fangling. Tunan and Huizhong, you two brothers, one is married and the other is engaged, but you are both newly married and haven't even figured out your own lives yet. How can you take good care of your two half-sisters?

Furthermore, before leaving the capital, Shumulu had made all the necessary arrangements, except for her two illegitimate daughters. Aside from leaving them some silver, they received nothing else.

Since that's the case, the two young girls should stay and move from the west courtyard to the main courtyard to live with the old lady. The two old aunts should not go with her either; they should stay in the main courtyard as a way of fulfilling their filial duty on behalf of He Yi, who has been away from the capital for many years.

They left because their future was bright. Leaving the manor meant they could enjoy the protection that Yu Lang provided and make their own decisions, which was better than having everything under the watchful eyes of Yu Lang and Shen Wanqing.

Fangzhi and Fangling stayed for their own future. If they went with them, they would be living under the care of their half-brother and sister-in-law. If they stayed, they would be raised by the old lady. In a few years, when they reached marriageable age, they wouldn't even need to think about which option sounded better.

With the second wife moving out, the west courtyard naturally became empty. Yu Lang's official rank wasn't particularly high, but he wielded immense power. He kept several advisors and staff members at home, and even Bao Shan moved to the guest courtyard in the mansion.

The Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Revenue were both extremely busy and complicated departments. Sometimes, even if they were separated by a courtyard, let alone several alleys, you would have to run to them. Living at home all the time meant you wouldn't have time to report or discuss many things, which was really not feasible.

This meant that one small courtyard was no longer enough. For the past few years, Shen Wanqing had always adhered to the principle of not provoking Niohuru, and avoiding her as much as possible. As long as she wasn't given the opportunity, Niohuru wouldn't be able to cause trouble. However, this time she still took the initiative to go to Niohuru and bring up the matter of moving the courtyard.

Not only was she moving, but Pusabao was also moving. From then on, the main courtyard of the West Wing would be occupied by Niohuru, while the West Courtyard, which was parallel to the East Courtyard, would be occupied by Pusabao.

The vacated front courtyard of the east wing can be used for Baoshan and several advisors, while the central courtyard can be used as a study for two people to receive guests and for Yi'an to attend classes during the day.

Then the East Courtyard will be completely vacated for living quarters. Yi'an is still young and will live in the East Courtyard with Shen Wanqing and Yulang at night. In a few years, when he grows up, he will move to the back of the garden.

When she was granted the title of Viscount, Shen Wanqing had already taken advantage of the family's change of regulations to build two additional detached courtyards next to the main courtyard. One was for Yi'an, and if they were to have another child in the future, the other would be for that child.

Shen Wanqing made good arrangements, but Niohuru was unwilling. It was Pusabao who, upon hearing about it, moved his own belongings to the west courtyard that very day.

Pusa Bao is twelve years old this year. He is not outstanding in academics or martial arts, but one good quality is gradually becoming apparent: he really knows how to advance and retreat. Perhaps some people think that he is not sharp or assertive, and he does whatever his brother says, but for Shen Wanqing, having such a younger brother-in-law is very reassuring.

If Bodhisattva Bao had to move, Niohuru would have to move too, whether she wanted to or not. Over the years, she hadn't been very close to her eldest son, Yulang; she always felt that Yulang had forgotten his mother after getting a wife.

But now that they've moved to the west courtyard, she's started thinking about them again. Since Yu Lang and Shen Wanqing are busy, she's been spoiling her eldest grandson, Yi An. Fang Yi is now keeping Niu Hulu in check to prevent her from being tactless and interfering with Shen Wanqing's punishment of the child.

That's the gist of the matter. The old gentleman was indeed unharmed, but he felt insulted. He'd spent his life studying Confucian classics, and here he was, a mere brat, locked in his room like a prisoner. What was that all about?

Anyway, the gentleman was lying beside Shen Wanqing's carriage, full of righteous indignation. After listening, Shen Wanqing had the accountant give the old gentleman a red envelope containing twenty taels of silver, and also packed a lot of health-preserving medicinal herbs to send him back. Only then was the matter considered closed.

But the matter with the child isn't over yet. Putting aside whether the old man's words were right or wrong, the most important principle in Shen Wanqing's education of her son is that you must have a sense of awe.

Shen Wanqing knew she didn't have it, or rather, she didn't have it at all in this era, but she could pretend, and no matter what, she could fool people.

But Yi An is different. He was born in this era, and his identity, his father, and everyone he has met in his life all require him to have a sense of awe.

Only with reverence can one know fear; only with fear can one know what one can and cannot do. In this world, failing to do something can lead to the execution of one's entire clan. It would be pointless if the entire Hesheli clan ended up with no one escaping beheading or exile after all the benefits they had received.

So, Yi'an said he doesn't want to copy the words ten times, right? Then copy them fifty times. For every rebuttal, add fifty more. If you argue again, add a hundred more. As long as you, Yi'an, aren't afraid of not finishing copying, feel free to argue and explain.

The child had no chance against Shen Wanqing, and in the end, he was so angry that he sobbed and obediently went back to his room to copy characters.

Yu Lang was left standing there even more obediently. Shen Wanqing gave him a disgruntled look and got up to go into the room. Seeing this, Yu Lang immediately followed. If he didn't follow now, he probably wouldn't be able to get in the door again tonight.

————————!!————————

Yi'an: Father, what are you doing! Why aren't you taking me away yet?! [Crying][Crying][Crying]