In Ningguo Mansion, Jia Zhen was strolling around the house holding his little sister.
"Calculate the time. Mom will be back soon. You can't cry to me at this time~"
Jia Zhen chatted with the little guy, "If you cry now, my whole day will be wasted."
In my mother's eyes, I have no credit at all.
“Ah~”
Jia Yue uttered a word to him, as if he understood.
Jia Zhen laughed, "Does this 'ao' mean that you understand? You can't play dumb with me now, I will assume that you understand. Hey, even if you understand, you still have to be obedient and listen to your brother, understand?"
“Oh~~”
It was obvious that Jia Yue liked listening to people talk. Her big black and white eyes were clear and bright, which made people happy to look at.
Jia Zhen tapped her little nose and said with a smile, "You have to say 'hmm', hmm, understand?"
"When she says 'um', it's either to pee or to poop."
Yu Shi held a fan and fanned them from time to time, "Master, are you sure you want her to say 'hmm' now?"
"Hahaha, now she wants 'hmm', I'll leave it to you."
“Ahh~~”
Jia Yue waved her hands and kicked her feet, as if to say, don't stop, keep going!
Jia Zhen understood, and he carried her around the hall again, "Hehe, you know how to order people around. Wait, when you can crawl, I will definitely send you to school."
The hardships he endured in his childhood must not be allowed to escape this little girl.
"If you can't read well, be careful~"
Jia Zhen bared his teeth at his little sister, and the result was a toothless smile from her. "Don't think I can't bear it just because you smiled at me. Father is not at home, so I beat him for him."
"Ha, then you better be careful, mother might chase you with a feather duster."
It would be funny if I caught up with all the beatings my mother gave me when I was a child because she couldn't bear it.
"Hey, hey, where are you from?"
Jia Zhen was very dissatisfied with Youshi's gloating over other people's misfortunes, "Why do you want to see me suffer misfortune?"
His mother is really strict with him.
On several occasions, Jia Zhen felt that his mother was planning to beat him.
The time she wanted to beat him the most was at school, but she was not feeling well at that time and she fainted from anger first.
But things are different now. My mother’s health is getting better. If she really gets angry, she will definitely give him the beating she had promised him for a long time.
"Do I?"
You Shi refused to admit it and teased Jia Yue who was blowing bubbles at her, "Look how well behaved our little sister is. Your brother is a bad guy who always wants to beat you up. You won't complain to mother, so can your sister-in-law help you?"
Oh! Jia Zhen was startled and said hurriedly, "I was wrong. Grandma, please forgive me. Yue'er, help your brother to beg for mercy from your sister-in-law."
As he spoke, he held his sister close to him and said, "Come on, put it on, and we'll call this a thing of the past."
"Hmph~"
Yu-shih took Jia Yue in her arms, smiled and said, "Give me one of the two jade pendants that the Grand Emperor gave you."
"Give!"
What if you don’t give it to me?
The jewelry awarded by the retired emperor, one gold and one jade, were given to his mother, and a set of gold jewelry was given to Youshi. He only had a pair of jade pendants left.
Jia Zhen thought that this could be his, but he didn't expect it!
"The jade pendants come in a pair. I was planning to give you one tonight."
"Really?"
"Heaven and earth are my conscience!"
“Ahhhh~~~”
Jia Yue also joined in the conversation with his brother and sister-in-law, and Jia Zhen and Youshi couldn't help laughing.
At this time, the little maid came in to report, "Master, Madam, the old lady of the West Mansion, the second master, the second wife, Master Zhu, and the two uncles of the Wang family are here."
Hmm? Jia Zhen frowned, "Take Yue'er back first, I'll talk to you in the evening."
"...Then I'll have someone send over a few more ice basins."
You Shi knew that there were some things that she could not know openly, so she said this and quickly left along the corridor holding Jia Yue.
Here, Jia's mother got off the sedan chair, and Jia Zhen came over to help her, "Old lady, it's hot, if you need anything, just tell me."
"...Zhen'er, you are the head of the Jia family, so don't say such things in the future."
What order? Her silly son took it seriously.
If her stupid son had not been taken advantage of, Grandmother Jia would have been very happy with Jia Zhen's behavior, but it was obvious that both of her sons were a little stupid.
She'er is fine, she doesn't go out to socialize, so nothing will happen to her, but Zheng'er...
The old lady's teeth itched, "Where's your mother?"
"Mother has gone out and will be back soon. Uncle, aunt and two uncles, please go to the flower hall and sit down!"
For the sake of the old lady, Jia Zhen finally greeted this group of people.
Although they looked very embarrassed, it was far from enough to calm him down.
However, after entering the cool flower hall from the hot world, Wang Zisheng couldn't help but say happily, "Oh, it's comfortable!"
Everyone's steps couldn't help but pause.
Jia Zheng glanced at his second uncle and lowered his head.
Wang Ziteng gritted his teeth in anger. They came to apologize, not to enjoy themselves. "What are you still standing there for?" He shouted at Wang Jin, "Tie him up."
Although Shen hasn't come yet, Jia Zhen is here!
"Nephew, your uncle Wang was reckless in the Lu family's affairs."
Wang Ziteng felt that Shen was hiding and not showing up just to leave them alone.
Before his second brother was injured, he thought it was normal, but now he just felt anxious. "I rushed here as soon as I heard the news. Please consider the friendship between our two families and don't bother with this bastard."
"The friendship between the two families?"
Jia Zhen smiled and said, "I have no say in this matter."
People said his mother was a tigress, but his father was happy with it. People also said he was as timid as a mouse, and when his mother told him to go east, he didn't dare to go west.
He wanted to say, that's right.
What is courage? Is that something you should use at home in front of your own mother? "Wait, wait until my mother comes back and see what she says."
He smiled and said, "If you two can't wait, you can come another day."
As for whether his mother would let them in when they come again next time, that was not his concern.
“…”
“…”
The flower hall fell silent again. The Wang brothers had not expected Jia Zhen to say this. They could not help but all look at Grandmother Jia.
It seemed as if she was asking whether Jia Zhen was worthy of being the head of the Jia family and the person in charge of Ningguo Mansion. However, the old lady seemed to have heard something good and actually looked at Jia Zhen with a loving face.
Huh~ Wang Ziteng knew about it. This was aimed at their second brother.
They just want to leave them alone and give them a warning.
But what can you do when you are under someone's roof? Wang Ziteng could only laugh dryly, "No, no, I am unemployed now. I have nothing but plenty of time."
Jia Zhen is not easy to mess with, and the old lady is even harder to mess with. It doesn't matter if he doesn't mention his brother-in-law and his wife. He can only look at Jia Zhu and say, "Zhu'er, you came back from the Imperial College. Do you know that Ningxia may have another war?"
"…I heard the teacher say something."
Jia Zhu was still slowly tying the brambles for his father.
After all, his second uncle had been tied up, so it would be embarrassing for his father not to be tied up here. "The Tatars have gone too far, and it's time for me, Dazhao, to fight back."
Fortunately, the emperor emeritus was not confused this time, and the emperor remained calm.
"Yes, that's right."
Wang Ziteng smiled and looked at Jia Zhen again, "Nephew, I remember that Jiang Yu, the general of Ningxia, was once under your grandfather's command?"
“…”
Jia Zhen glanced at him and said, "Yes, Ningxia has a lot of connections with our family. The Lan family of Ningxia Erwei is the in-laws of my aunt in the West Mansion."
"Alas~"
The old lady next to him sighed, "That's right, that child is also unlucky."
Because Jia Lan was the first girl in the Jia family's literary generation, she was well taken care of at the beginning.
After marriage, she gave birth to two sons and a daughter. She even said at home that the child was very lucky.
However, she didn't expect that she died not long after the Duke passed away.
"There was a war in Ningxia."
Jia Zhen suspected that his mother was going to take the cousin Lanzhi back home, so he asked, "Madam, do you think we should send a letter to them?"
This? Grandmother Jia frowned, "Let's find someone to find out about her personality first!"
The Min family is not a good family, and the Lan family is probably the same.
Otherwise, why would Jia Lan die so early?
"What if the child follows his father..."
Before Jia's mother could say anything, a maidservant outside called out, "Madam has returned home."
Jia Zhen was overjoyed and stood up quickly, "Old Madam, please sit for a moment."
When he hurried out to greet them, the carriage had already arrived at the entrance of the flower hall. "Mother, are you feeling hot? From now on, let your son do such things."
"It's not hot."
When Shen Ning was helped down by Jia Zhen, she saw Wang Ziteng and Wang Zisheng at a glance, "Aunt, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. Please wait for me for a while, I'll be back after washing."
Then she said to Jia Zhen, "Lian'er has probably returned home too. Ask someone to ask him to come over."
Huh? "Yes!"
For some reason, Jia Zhen's heart trembled a little.
His mother looked expressionless. Why did she seem even angrier than when she was at Lixiang Courtyard? Hiss~ He waved his hand hastily at the servant, signaling him to hurry up and call for help. Then he ran to the side hall next door, "Mother, but Cousin Lan's..."
"Pack some more medicine and brown sugar." Shen Ning instructed as she washed her face, "Bring one of the hundred-year-old ginseng that the Lu family gave as an apology." At this point, she thought of something else, "Oh, Qingzhu, bring another 1,000 taels of silver notes, and some of the snacks."
"yes!"
Qingzhu went, but Jia Zhen was reluctant to go, "Mother, what's wrong with being a cousin?"
"Children's words are fearless, but they are blown away by the wind."
Shen Ning rolled her eyes at Haodaer and said, "Why are there so many questions? Hurry up and get everything ready."
“…Hey~”
Even though he is so old, his mother still says that he is a child who speaks without restraint.
Jia Zhen realized that he had said the wrong thing, and hurried to prepare things.
With Qing Ping's help, Shen Ning washed and dressed, then went to the flower hall.
At this time, Jia Zheng and Wang Shi were in a particularly difficult situation.
Time and time again, they had no power to resist this sister-in-law.
It’s simply…
Jia Zheng moved uneasily, and many of the thorns on the bramble broke through his thin clothes and stabbed him again.
Seeing his look, Wang Zisheng couldn't help but move, and the result was naturally the same.
His expression couldn't help but become distorted.
"What's wrong with you, Master Wang Er? What's the matter? Do you think I'm late?"
Shen Ning sat directly at the main seat and said straightforwardly, "That's great. I don't want to see you two here either. Come on, show us out!"
Before he finished speaking, there were footsteps outside. Wang Ziteng knew something was wrong and said hurriedly, "Sister-in-law, sister-in-law, look, I really hit him."
He used a fierce look to stop his second brother from yelling, and said in an indescribably sincere tone, "He is just a scoundrel. If you have any problem, tell me and I will punish you. I will punish you until you are satisfied."
“…”
Shen Ning did not speak immediately, but looked at him expressionlessly, until Lady Jia at the side even breathed more lightly, and then she said, "Punishment? Are you kidding, Master Wang? It won't be long before you are still the governor of the Beijing camp, and your nephew-in-law is the doctor of the armory department. Your Wang family will rise again soon, and what is our Jia family? You can come as you please, and bully as you please."
Ah? Wang Ziteng knew that the situation was more serious than he thought. He swallowed hard and said with a smile: "Sister-in-law, you are joking. Lian'er is a member of the Jia family. Besides, my leg... It won't get better in a short time."
If this woman disagrees, Jia Lian probably won't say a word to help him.
"You beast."
In front of his own official, his beloved younger brother was nothing. Wang Ziteng roared at his second brother, "Why do you always do stupid things? Why don't you kowtow to Shen Dasao to apologize."
He signaled Wang Jin to force his second brother to kowtow, "Sister-in-law, we are all old relatives, Feng'er still calls you aunt, don't give in to the monk, give in to the Buddha, if you want to punish me, just say it, and don't say those heretical words again."
"…I'm sorry! Please forgive me, sister-in-law."
Although Wang Zisheng usually behaves mischievously, he still knows his elder brother's micro-expressions that do not allow disobedience.
If you go against them at this time, you will really be beaten.
However, after he kowtowed, he waited eagerly to be called, but Shen just looked at him coldly.
This? Wang Zisheng was stunned.
Although he is not an official, and although Shen is a first-rank imperial official, they are relatives! This apology...
"Master Wang, it seems that your brother still doesn't know who he should apologize to!"
What? Wang Zisheng was going crazy. He knelt on the ground, stiffened his neck and said, "Please give me some advice, sister-in-law."
"You recognize your son's concubine's family as your in-laws. Where does that put your sister and niece?"
Shen Ning said coldly, "Where do you put our old lady, and where do you put your brother-in-law? Tell me yourself, is that piece of chicken blood stone a gift or a humiliation?"
As she spoke, she flicked the teacup off the table, and the porcelain and tea splashed everywhere.
"Master Wang, do you think my advice is correct?"
Wang Ziteng: “…”
He looked at Mrs. Jia, whose anger was rising again, and then at his brother-in-law Jia Zheng, who looked sad, and his nephew Jia Zhu, who looked shocked. He could only nod, "Yes! Second brother..." He tried hard not to grind his teeth, "Quickly, apologize to the old lady, and apologize to your brother-in-law and sister."
Shen, he remembered it.
"… Old lady, I am a jerk. I have done something wrong. Please forgive me."
Wang Zisheng was going crazy, but what could he do?
"Brother-in-law..."
When he turned to Jia Zheng, he kowtowed twice and said, "Please forgive me, brother-in-law and sister."
Because of the continuous movements, many of the thorns on the bramble pierced his delicate back. Wang Zisheng was angry and in pain, and almost cried, "Is it okay now?"
"Second brother, get up quickly!"
Wang couldn't help herself, so she stepped forward to help him up and sent him back to his seat. Then she bowed deeply and said, "Old lady, sister-in-law, I am also wrong in this matter! I was just happy that my nephew, who was going to inherit three families, had a good concubine. I was wrong. I am willing to enter the ancestral hall with the master. I will be a vegetarian for another three years and pray to the Bodhisattva to bless the whole family with peace and prosperity."
Grandmother Jia: “…”
She didn't dare to be alone and looked at Shen Ning.
"Are you talking about the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara who saves people from suffering?"
"……yes!"
Wang was a little frightened. Her sister-in-law's tone seemed wrong!
She pleaded with her son with her eyes.
Jia Zhu swallowed lightly.
In the past, he was not afraid of his aunt. Even though he was punished and locked up in the ancestral hall for so many days, he still felt that his aunt was trustworthy and reliable.
But at this moment, there seemed to be murderous intent in the aunt's eyes.
It felt like if he dared to step forward, that ruthless murderous knife would be coming towards him.
Hiss~ Jia Zhu took a breath secretly again and didn't dare to move.
"So, do you think the Jia family is having a hard time?"
Shen Ning looked at Wang, wishing she could go up and slap her a few times, "Wang, can you sleep in the middle of the night?" (End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
