Chapter 39 Chapter 39 Ji Yanlang smiled evilly and approached her...

In fact, Fang Ying has always felt that the sayings that menstrual blood and the delivery room are unlucky are nonsense, and she doesn't understand why people believe them so much, especially men, who avoid them as if they were not born in the delivery room.

Even if we don't mention themselves, let's take a step back and say that their children were also taken out of the delivery room. Why don't they think it's unlucky and say they don't want them?

And then there's menstrual blood, which is clearly related to childbirth. How can it be considered something unpleasant to mention? If childbirth is inherently linked to bad luck, then why not just not have children? Why wouldn't you just give up on having a son?

But no matter how much she thought about it, Fang Ying knew that these ideas were shocking and could not be spoken out, so she never talked about them with anyone. She never thought that one day the person she would marry would say that there was nothing unlucky about menstrual blood, and that they had no taboos.

Because of this sentence, Fang Ying's opinion of Ji Yanlang changed. She could turn a blind eye to some of his usual faults and refrain from finding fault with him.

Of course, this is also related to the fact that Ji Yanlang comes home later and later. Their cavalry camp is busy with military training. On the tenth day of the lunar month, he goes to the camp and works for half a day before coming back, not to mention other days.

Compared to him, Fang Ying had nothing to do at home. When Mrs. Li heard she had her period, she immediately excused her from the morning and evening visits, explaining that it was cold and asking her to rest in her room until her period was over. But Fang Ying only experienced severe pain for the first two days. By the third day, the pain had subsided, with only heavy bleeding. She waited until the afternoon, when it was warmer outside, to visit Mrs. Li and recount her experiences at the Deng family's house.

"Sister Lotus insisted on making shoes for you and me, and she wanted your shoe pattern. I said I'll pick her up after I send Liu Lang away and everything's fine at home, and let her ask you for it herself."

Mrs. Li said, "This child is quite sincere. Shoemaking is the most labor-intensive process. You can tell whether the soles are well-made by just putting them on."

"That's right, that's why I kept declining. But seeing how sincere Sister Lotus is, I was afraid of hurting her feelings if I declined too much."

Li smiled and said, "You are always so soft-hearted towards the young lady. I heard that you sent a lot of gifts over the other day."

Fang Ying said, "Nothing much. I just saw that their room was dark, so I sent some candles. And since I saw Sister Hehua was learning to tie knots, I took some of the colored thread I had lying around. They were all little trinkets."

"A little gadget? Didn't you say you were going to bring a basket of charcoal?"

Fang Ying smiled and said, "Nothing can be hidden from mother. After Liu Lang came back, my second sister-in-law gave our courtyard an extra portion of charcoal. There happened to be a basket left over from last month. I saw that Aunt Deng was reluctant to buy more charcoal, so I took it all away."

"Is this really leftover from last month? Not from this month?"

"Really." Fang Ying knew that Li was concerned about her, so she asked with a smile, "Do you think I'm the kind of fool who would sacrifice myself for others?"

Li smiled and said, "That's hard to say."

"mother……"

Li continued, "Perhaps you won't involve Liu Lang in other things..." She sighed softly and turned to call Xinmei.

Xinmei agreed and quickly brought a wooden box to Fang Ying. Li Shi also said, "Liu Lang has given money to the Deng family again, right? He's been going out to dinner with old friends lately, so I'm sure he's been spending quite a bit. Take these back and use them first. If it's not enough, come back and tell me."

Fang Ying opened the box and took a look. It was filled with copper coins. She then understood that Li had asked her to send something to the Deng family because she was worried that she and Ji Yanlang would always support the Deng family and she would have no money to spend. She quickly declined, saying, "When Liu Lang came back, mother gave us a special amount. We still receive our monthly allowance. How can we ask you for more..."

"Just take it if you give it to me. Liu Lang is short of money, so don't let him leave you without any money later."

"I don't have much use for money..."

Li said, "If you don't need it right now, just save it. You'll need it sooner or later."

Fang Ying couldn't refuse, so she had to let Lichun accept it. Li also taught her: "If anyone asks, just say that I brought it for Liu Lang to go to war."

In the evening, Ji Yanlang came back and Fang Ying told him about this. He smiled and said, "Mom is worried about you. She's afraid that you'll be short of money and feel wronged. Keep it."

"But now that you're gone, I have nothing to do at home and no place to spend money."

"...Why do you make it sound like I'm spending money like water?"

Fang Ying smiled and said, "That's what you said, not me."

Ji Yanlang had no choice but to continue what he had said before: "While I'm not at home, you don't have to stay at home all day. When you have free time, you can go back to your parents' home or meet your close friend. The King of Qin has received the imperial decree these past two days and has been visiting our camp frequently. He even mentioned the encounter at Xiangguo Temple."

"Really? What else did you say? What do you mean by looking at the King of Qin?"

"I think he was curious about your connection with Miss Zhou. Remembering that you asked me before whether the King of Qin was interested in Miss Zhou, he paid close attention to it." Having said this, he suddenly stopped, picked up the tea and slowly drank half a cup.

Fang Ying was anxious: "What did you notice?"

"I can't tell you this easily." Ji Yanlang smiled evilly and leaned close to her ear, "My lady, you have to give me some benefits, right?"

Fang Ying glared at him - the good things this man talked about were nothing but things that were not to be seen by others.

"Forget it, I don't want to know." She pushed Ji Yanlang away, "Sister Zhou doesn't have to be the King of Qin."

Ji Yanlang: “…”

He was so annoyed that he gave a wry laugh and said, "I was just joking with you. I think he really is interested in Miss Zhou, but he's restricted by the saying 'three queens in one family'. He can neither ask the emperor for his blessing nor show his goodwill to Uncle Zhou..."

"What's the big deal? Isn't it because of that prophecy that he wants to marry Miss Zhou? It's something that everyone knows, so why should we be so restrained?"

"That's true, but no one knows what the emperor is thinking. If we speak rashly, we might end up making things worse and losing the emperor's favor... Besides, I think His Highness the Prince of Qin isn't just motivated by those vague fortune-tellers' words."

"Of course, there's also the Zhou family's power."

Ji Yanlang laughed: "Why are you only thinking about this? Don't you think that maybe His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin is interested in Miss Zhou?"

"...If he really said that, that would be terrible." Fang Ying shook her head repeatedly.

"Why?"

Fang Ying glared at him and asked, "Have you forgotten? Sister Zhou was engaged to Crown Prince Zhaoyi and almost became the Qin King's sister-in-law! And you're still asking me why?"

Ji Yanlang: "...Yeah," he patted his forehead lightly, "Forget about it!"

It is indeed impossible to say that the King of Qin has taken a fancy to the young lady of the Zhou family. She has been in mourning at Xiangguo Temple for three years and has never seen outsiders. To say this is equivalent to admitting that he has long coveted his sister-in-law who has not yet married into the family...

"The King of Qin didn't say that. I just misjudged him," Ji Yanlang explained. "But I do think that if their marriage can be successful, it will be the best for both the country and the family."

Fang Ying asked, "Do you think the Prince of Qin is the most capable of shouldering this responsibility among all the princes?"

Ji Yanlang whispered, "It's not just me. My father also thinks the King of Qin is good." He added, "At least he's better than the King of Yan."

That was nonsense. If Fang Ying had said that, even bringing a dog here would be better than the King of Yan. But he couldn't say that, so he just said, "This matter probably depends on who will satisfy the emperor more in this expedition against Northern Zhao."

"Of course. I just want to tell you that you don't have to worry too much. If you want to talk to her, or have her come home, or visit her, it's up to you—and it will cost money, won't it?"

With his words, Fang Ying no longer restrained herself. On the 15th, after the government offered sacrifices to the Taimiao and the army set out for battle, she made an appointment with Zhou Congshan to meet on the 16th when he went to Xiangguo Temple to burn incense.

On this day, Li brought all the female members of the Ji family to pray for the four of them, father and son, who were going to the war. Zhou Congshan came with her maid to burn incense, so she first met Li, sat down and talked for a while, and then left with Fang Yingci and went to the quiet room where she rested to talk.

"My stepmother was going to come too, but Dalang caught a cold yesterday and had a slight fever when he woke up this morning, so I came by myself," said Zhou Congshan.

The Dalang she was referring to was her stepmother's half-brother. Fang Ying asked, "Have you seen a doctor? Is it serious?"

"I've checked it out. It's nothing serious. Just take a dose of antipyretic and heat-relieving medicine and sweat it out." Zhou Congshan watched the maid serve tea and send her away. He smiled and asked, "Now that she's gone, do you have some free time?"

Fang Ying exhaled: "Yeah, I finally feel relaxed, the room is spacious, and I feel very comfortable."

Zhou Congshan laughed: "It's been so long, haven't you gotten used to it yet?"

"Well, I still prefer to be alone." Fang Ying was a little troubled, but couldn't talk about it with her unmarried friend. She put it aside and asked, "What have you been doing these days?"

"I killed two potted flowers, broke three strings on my zither, and secretly drank two jars of my father's hidden fine wine."

Fang Ying was very envious: "You seem to be living a comfortable life."

"What's so comfortable about this? I'm so bored." Zhou Congshan sighed, "I might as well live in this temple than at home."

"That's about right. Don't you have a pond and rockery in your house? If you get bored, go out for a walk."

"There's nothing much to see at this time of year, not even snow has remained, so I'm too lazy to go."

"Then if you feel bored again, send me a message and I'll invite you to my place. I'll have someone go to Fengle Tower to buy some dishes and bring them back. We can have a drink and chat."

Zhou Congshan was curious: "Fengle Tower? Is it a restaurant?"

Fang Ying nodded and told her about Ji Yanlang buying food from the restaurant to entertain the women in his family, and how he took her there later. "It was very lively there, noisy and bustling, with people talking about all sorts of things. At first glance, I thought it was quite interesting."

Zhou Congshan said with a smile: "Your Ji Liulang is quite good at coaxing people. He knows how to take you out to play."

"What? I just stopped by." She went on to talk about her previous visit to the Deng family. "It was also a mother and daughter with a miserable life."

Zhou Congshan had never met anyone from such a poor background, and he had no particular opinion of the mother and daughter. He simply said, "Hearing you say that, Ji Liulang is truly a man of affection and righteousness."

Fang Ying agreed: "That's his greatest benefit."

Zhou Congshan looked her up and down with a smile. Fang Ying felt a little embarrassed and annoyed by her scrutiny: "What are you looking at?"

"Let's see how long you can keep being stubborn." Zhou Congshan replied with a smile.

Fang Ying glared at her, but before she could say anything, the maid outside suddenly called out, "Madam."

"What's the matter?" Zhou Congshan asked seriously.

The maid hurried in, glanced at Fang Ying, and walked over to Zhou Congshan, as if she wanted to whisper something in his ear. Zhou Congshan frowned and stopped her, saying, "Don't be so sneaky, just say it directly."

"Yes. Madam, there's a woman outside who claims to have served the late Crown Prince and wants to see you for something important. I went out to take a look, and she looks like a servant who once worked as a clerk in the Eastern Palace..."

An old slave from the Eastern Palace came to ask to see Zhou Congshan at this time? Fang Ying also frowned, having a hunch that this was not a good thing.

Zhou Congshan said, "You didn't ask her what it was?"

"I asked her, and she said it was a serious matter and she only dared to tell you."

Zhou Congshan hesitated and looked at his friend.

Fang Ying frowned and asked, "Under what circumstances could a palace maid leave the palace? How many people knew you were in Xiangguo Temple? This quiet room nearby is for the ladies of high-ranking officials to rest. How could a palace maid who left the palace easily find her way here, and even find the right door?"

Zhou Congshan thought for a moment and told the maid, "Bring her in."

"Do good..."

Fang Ying wanted to stop him, but Zhou Congshan urged the maid to leave. Then he approached his friend and said with his head down, "Actually, I've always had doubts about my cousin's death."

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The author has something to say: I'm back! I'll start updating daily~

Although it's a bit late, I still want to wish everyone all the best in 2021, be safe and healthy, and pay attention to protection~

Then this chapter starts to protect against theft, and then send everyone a small New Year red envelope, everyone who leaves a message will get a share, muah~

Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or provided nutrient solution between 2020-12-23 23:55:05 and 2021-01-02 02:17:14~

Thanks to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: 668810 38 bottles; Xue Xiaomiaomiao 5 bottles;

Thank you very much for your support. I will continue to work hard!