Chapter 20 The Little Beggar
"Aunt Yu."
Before Shen Anan spoke, Madam Shen's face darkened first, "If the imperial concubine ordered Anan to enter the palace as an imperial concubine, please bring the imperial edict from His Majesty."
"This..." Aunt Yu's face was different, "The Chen Mansion is the mother's family of the queen, there is no need to be so troublesome."
"Since you know it's my mother's family, don't talk about the difference between the noble and the humble, the monarch and the ministers." Madam Shen's eyes were cold, "Even the imperial concubine has never spoken like this. Aunt Yu has been raised noble in the palace for these years."
Aunt Yu was once a slave girl from the Shen residence. It was only after she followed Concubine Shen that she was promoted to an official position.
Her face gradually turned pale and ugly, but she didn't dare to say anything. After all, it was true that the imperial concubine was favored, but she also had to rely on the powerful mother family of the Shen Mansion.
"It was the old servant who spoke without restraint at the time, madam, please don't be angry."
Madam Shen snorted and said nothing.
Shen Anan's lips curled into a smile, and only now did she softly answer, "It's not that Anan doesn't want to go with Aunt Yu, but my grandmother asked me to choose some interesting things from the capital to send to Jiangnan for her. The Mid-Autumn Festival is in a few days, so how dare I delay? I really don't have time to go to the palace to accompany my aunt."
There are differences between the superior and the inferior, but filial piety is the most important. Even the emperor has to pay his respects to the empress dowager every day, let alone the imperial concubine.
Hearing Shen Anan bring up the old lady again, Aunt Yu's mouth moved a few times, but she didn't say anything in the end.
"My cousin is right. The old lady asked to be the first one. Please go ahead and I will come back in a few days."
"Well, I'll trouble Aunt Yu to make the trip."
"It's okay. It's okay."
She came in high spirits, but returned in defeat. Aunt Yu said goodbye to the mother and daughter with a stern face and left. This time, Mrs. Shen didn't even see them off.
It was also because she had been too polite before and gave her face that she dared to lecture her daughter like this.
"Mother." Shen Anan took Madam Shen's hand and sat down, "Were you too harsh just now? If you offend your aunt, will she cause trouble for you when you enter the palace in the future?"
Naturally, she would not do anything to her father and brother, after all, they were related by blood, but the same could not be said for her mother.
Madam Shen sneered, "Don't worry, she won't. Although your aunt is the imperial concubine and looks so glorious, the harem is very complicated. If your father wasn't so powerful and supported her, how could she be a noble concubine?"
"She is not a fool. She knows it clearly and will not destroy her own foundation."
Shen Anan nodded, "Yes, the palace is a cage. Even staying alive depends on Jiying's calculations. I don't know why she had to marry there in the first place."
Madam Shen shook her head, and it was hard to comment on this sister-in-law.
"She has been married for so many years and still has no children. Now, in order to gain a firm foothold and spend her old age in peace, she will definitely not give up your marriage easily. An'an, why don't you settle down for you earlier so that she won't worry about it anymore."
She and her husband had long made it clear that they did not approve of their daughter marrying into the royal family, but her sister-in-law was stubborn. She was not afraid of what she would do, but she was afraid that she would ask the emperor for help. After all, in the current situation, the emperor intended to let the Shen family and the prince marry and tie them together.
Shen Anan exhaled, somewhat helplessly, "Just listen to mother's arrangements."
"Okay." Madam Shen smiled, "I'll send someone to let the princess know right away."
Shen Anan bowed and left Madam Shen’s yard.
She lowered her eyes, thinking about something, and just as she stepped into the corridor, she was called by a concerned and anxious voice.
"Brother, why are you here?"
Shen Changhe looked unhappy. "I will take a day off tomorrow, so I will come back early today. I heard that my aunt sent Aunt Yu to take you to the palace?"
"Yeah." Shen Anan nodded, and then said, "But my mother refused on my behalf and didn't agree."
"You shouldn't have agreed." Shen Changhe breathed a sigh of relief, "An An, it's not easy to enter the royal family, and it's not easy to be a royal daughter-in-law. You must not agree to your aunt."
"Yes, I know, don't worry, big brother."
Shen Changhe then revealed a smile and walked back with Shen Anan.
"I'll accompany you out of the house tomorrow."
"good."
Shen Changhe tilted his head to glance at his sister's profile, and felt that it would be unfair for such a beautiful An An to marry anyone, let alone Xiao Yuan.
"You have not been in the capital for a long time, and you don't understand many things. I don't want you to marry the Fourth Prince not only because of his identity, but also because the things behind him are too complicated."
Shen Anan raised her eyes. She knew that Xiao Yuan had ambitions, but she didn't know the details. In her previous life, her eldest brother had never mentioned these to her.
"What's complicated?"
Shen Changhe stopped and looked at Shen Anan deeply, his voice was very low, "For example, the death of his mother, for example... his maternal grandfather's home."
Shen Anan was stunned.
Shen Changhe continued, "He is destined not to be an idle prince who does nothing. If you follow him, you will probably have to live in fear and fear for the rest of your life."
…
Until returning to Begonia Garden, Shen Anan was still thinking about what Shen Changhe said.
She recalled that there used to be a tablet of the late Consort Shu enshrined in a small Buddhist temple in the Fourth Prince's mansion. At that time, she didn't understand and thought he was just missing his mother.
But later I found out that he would often stay in the small Buddhist temple for several hours at a time, and when he was in a very bad mood, he would not come out for the whole day.
At that time, she would make a fuss if she couldn't see him. The worst incident, which also led to their complete separation, happened in the small Buddhist temple.
That day, he returned home drunk and went to the small Buddhist temple.
She waited for a long time for the dishes that she had prepared in advance but he never showed up. Finally, she sent someone to call him, only to find out that a maid with a slim figure and charming appearance had already brought him the meal, and the person had been inside for half an hour without coming out.
She exploded in an instant, anger surrounded her like a fire snake with a body, and she lost all her rationality.
In the dead of night, she ran to the small Buddhist temple without caring about her image and made a big fuss, saying a lot of nasty things.
Today, she can still remember how embarrassed Xiao Yuan was when he walked out and the sharp look he gave her.
But if there was something fishy about Concubine Shu's death, then all his actions in his previous life would have traces to follow.
"Girl, be careful on the steps." Mo Xiang brought her back to her senses.
Shen Anan lifted her skirt and went up the stairs, and Mo Ran helped her remove her makeup and change her clothes.
She closed her eyes gently. It was all over. What was there to think about? From now on, his affairs would have nothing to do with her.
The next morning, after greeting Mrs. Shen, Shen Changhe accompanied her out.
"Brother, do you know which shops have things that girls like?"
Shen Changhe was startled, “Didn’t you give it to your grandmother?”
"Yes." Shen Anan curled her lips and smiled softly, "Our grandmother has a girl's heart, younger than a girl."
Shen Changhe had never dealt with his grandmother before, so he smiled when he heard this.
"I'm afraid you can't bring food, so you can only pick some interesting gadgets, or clothes, or jewelry."
"Grandma likes gold. Let's go and look at a headpiece made of pure gold. The heavier the better."
Shen Changhe looked at his sister's bright almond eyes and was stunned.
In the capital, the wives of officials mostly regarded jade hairpins as beautiful, because jade was pure, elegant and refined. Even if a lady liked pure gold, she would hide it secretly and never wear it on her body, for fear that people would say she was obsessed with money and was no different from a merchant.
If I said it so carelessly like my sister did, I would definitely be laughed at by those people.
But it doesn't matter, he is her brother, whatever he likes is good.
"There are a lot of gold, silver and jade artifacts on West Street. You can go there to take a look." After saying that, he lifted the curtain of the car and instructed Uncle Zhong.
A quarter of an hour later, the carriage stopped in front of a jewelry store. Shen Changhe met an acquaintance but did not go in. He chatted with him outside.
As soon as Shen Anan entered the shop, the waiter immediately came up to greet her.
"I want a red gold headpiece. The heavier the better."
The waiter was stunned. This shop was not one of the best in the capital, but it was quite big. It did business with wealthy families, but this was the first time he had seen such a request.
Seeing him in a daze, Shen Anan frowned and said, "Just take it out. Money is not a problem."
"Oh, okay, okay." The waiter quickly led her in to wait.
"Young lady, you came at the right time. Our shop just received a set of headgear. It is made of pure gold and inlaid with the finest oriental pearls. It is so beautiful."
After a while, the waiter carefully brought the box to the counter and opened it.
“…” Shen Anan tilted his head.
It’s hard to say that it’s beautiful, but it’s not completely ugly either. Anyway, at first glance, it’s dazzling and eye-catching.
If she wore it on her head... an image of an old lady with a large gold ingot on her head swaying back and forth in front of her eyes spontaneously emerged in her mind, and she couldn't help but twitch the corners of her mouth.
The waiter scratched his head embarrassedly and said, "This is the heaviest one. If the girl doesn't like it, there are others."
Shen Anan didn't say anything, raised his hand and weighed it, well, it was indeed heavy.
"No, just this, wrap it up."
The waiter was stunned. It’s sold just like that?
Fearing that Shen Anan might go back on her word, he quickly agreed to put the headgear back into the box and pack it up.
Mo Xiang paid the silver and took the brocade box, "Miss, isn't this headpiece a little too exaggerated?"
"It's no exaggeration. Grandma likes this. She doesn't wear it anyway. She just takes it out from time to time to touch and admire it."
The master and servant left the shop, but Shen Changhe was nowhere to be seen.
"Hey, where's the eldest son?"
Shen Anan frowned and looked around the crowded street, finally fixing her eyes on a tall figure coming out of a preserved fruit shop.
"Why did Young Master buy so many preserved fruits?" Mo Xiang asked puzzledly.
The two watched as Shen Changhe carried three paper bags and walked towards the two disheveled beggars opposite.
No, it looks like it should be a mother and son.
Shen Anan asked Mo Xiang to put the things on the carriage and walked towards Shen Changhe.
That mother and son seemed somehow familiar to her.
"Brother, what are you doing?"
Shen Changhe was squatting and gently rubbing the little beggar's head. He looked up when he heard the voice. The sunlight shone on his handsome and resolute face, and his smile was like a spring breeze.
Shen Anan didn't think anything of it, but the dishevelled beggar next to him stared blankly.
"This child has been hungry for several days and has not eaten anything. I bought some preserved fruits for him."
Shen Anan lowered his eyes and glanced at the little beggar. "There are so many refugees in the capital, how can my brother take care of them all?"
Shen Changhe smiled and said, "If you can't see it, forget it. Now that you have come to me for help, there is no reason to turn a blind eye."
"Brother is right." Shen Anan smiled, "It's getting late, let's go."
"Okay." Shen Changhe stood up, but before he could take a step, the little beggar grabbed one of his legs.
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