On the morning of the eleventh day of the winter month, everything for the trip back to Beijing had been prepared. Chen Ahfu took Chu Hanyan by the hand and went to Luomei Temple accompanied by Song.
Liaochen was still chanting in the small Buddhist hall. The young nun who served her, Master Qingmiao, said that she had spent almost all her time chanting in the small Buddhist hall, except for going back to her room to rest for nearly two hours in the early morning.
Chen Afu waited outside the door for more than half an hour, but Lechen didn't come out.
Young Master Qingmiao came out and said, "Amitabha, the abbot asks the two donors to leave. She wishes you a safe journey."
Chen Afu was helpless. With Liaochen's character, it would be very difficult for Lord Chu to win her back and for Chu Lingxuan to take her home.
Chen Ahfu said, "In the future, I will have to trouble the young master to take good care of her."
Master Qingmiao clasped his hands and said, "Amitabha, this is natural."
On the way, Chen Ahfu asked Song to take good care of Lechen. Not only in life, but also in spirit. After a few days, Lechen's heart was not so sad, so he should take Wen Ge'er to accompany her more often. Children are the most capable of softening people.
Song nodded and agreed, "Don't worry, sister-in-law, we will take good care of your aunt."
When they arrived at the outer courtyard, Chen Shi, Chen Agui, Chen Yulan and Wang Xiaodi were already waiting there. The Fu, Qin and Wang families also sent people to see them off.
After saying goodbye to everyone, Chen Afu took Chu Hanyan to the carriage.
The little girl's mental state was still not very good. She was thinner and her eyes looked bigger. Chen Ahfu held her in his arms and hummed songs to her, including "Little Swallow in Flowery Clothes".
When the little girl heard the poem, her eyes lit up and she said softly, "Mom, whenever I listen to this song, my heart just..." She thought about how to describe that feeling and added, "My heart feels like it's bathed in the spring sunshine, warm but not too hot. Very, very comfortable."
Chen Ahfu smiled and said, "Yes, Mom feels the same way. When she sings this song, she can think of the past."
Fuyuan, Luyuan, and Tangyuan appeared before her eyes again, as did the clever little Dabao, the cute but silly little Yan'er, and the gentle little A'lu... This time, time was tight and that incident happened again, so she didn't have time to visit the countryside.
The next day, Chen Ahfu and his entourage arrived in the capital before sunset. When they returned to the mansion, it was already dark.
The steward who greeted them asked them to go directly to Yong'an Hall, saying that the whole family was already waiting there.
Chen Afu and the little girl took the sedan chair to Yong'an Hall again.
At the gate with hanging flowers, the little maid guarding the gate bent her knees and smiled, "My Lord, please ask the eldest lady and the eldest sister to go directly to the main courtyard."
Go to the third courtyard, not the fifth courtyard where the third master and the third lady temporarily live. So, Lord Chu has moved into the main courtyard? In other words, he left the princess's mansion and became the master of Lord Yong'an again?
Chen Ahfu was excited and walked back quickly with the little girl. When they arrived at the third courtyard, they saw many lanterns hanging in the courtyard, and the upper and side rooms were brightly lit. There were also laughter coming from inside, and the laughter of the old marquis and the noise of the two brothers and Xie Heng were particularly obvious.
Chen Ahfu and Chu Hanyan entered the upper room and walked around the twelve screens. They saw Old Lord Chu and Lord Chu sitting on both sides of the Eight Immortals Table. Both sides were also full of people, including Xie Ling and Chu Hua's family. Xiao Yu'er was riding a walker and walking in circles in the middle.
When Xiao Yu'er saw her mother and sister coming in, she did not rush over to kiss them. Instead, she slapped them on the back of their heads, staggered to Lord Chu, threw herself into his arms and burst into tears, feeling very aggrieved.
Yu Ge'er and Ming Ge'er, who were sitting on the brocade stool, also burst into tears, saying as they cried, "Mother only wants my sister, and doesn't want us and my younger sister anymore."
The three little people who felt they were abandoned cried and made a fuss as if they were going to blow the roof off the house.
Chen Afu was also very sad, so he went to the old marquis and the marquis Chu first and knelt down to greet them.
Lord Chu had already held Xiao Yu'er on his lap and sat down. He coaxed her softly and said to Chen Afu, "Daughter-in-law Xuan, you have worked hard. This time, Luojiazhuang was able to survive the disaster, and you have made an invaluable contribution."
Chen Ahfu quickly said modestly, "Father-in-law, you are too kind. Your daughter-in-law is also..." Before he finished speaking, Yu Ge'er and Ming Ge'er had already run up to him, hugging his legs and crying, "Mom, we missed you so much."
The old marquis laughed and said, "These little monkeys became like this as soon as their mother came back."
The Third Lady also laughed and said, "When their mother was not back, they either followed Grandpa or me. Now when they see their mother, they don't recognize us. What a heartless little thing!"
Chen Ahfu smiled and dragged the two brothers to sit down at their own seats, coaxing them in a low voice. Then he said to Xiao Yuer who was sitting on her grandfather, "Baby, come to your mother quickly. Your mother misses you very much."
Xiao Yuer pouted and looked at Chen Afu, then climbed into her grandfather's arms and turned the back of her head towards her.
When everyone went to the west wing to eat, Chen Afu took the opportunity to ask the third lady a few questions.
The Third Madam whispered, "Rong Zhao and Concubine Ma Shu have been convicted of colluding with the Second Prince and the deposed Queen Wang to frame important officials of the court, and helping the Second Prince and the deposed Queen persecute the Crown Prince and the Queen. Rong Zhao has gone to Huangjue Temple to practice, and Concubine Ma Shu has been demoted to a commoner and sent to the cold palace."
This crime is serious enough, especially the second one. Perhaps the emperor is also angry that they have frustrated his plan to suppress Lord Chu, so he is punishing them severely.
Madam Chu San added, "Now, the court has begun to purge the remnants of the Second Prince's followers..."
Originally, the emperor and the crown prince wanted to purge the remnants of the second prince's gang at a later stage, but the incident with Rong Zhao and Ma Shufei brought this matter forward. This time, many families will suffer again, and they will have a hard time for years.
No matter what, Lord Chu was finally freed.
Chen Afu looked at Lord Chu sitting at the other table. His face was not as joyful as that of the old Lord and the second Lord. He was lowering his head and smiling as he said something to Xiao Yu'er in his arms.
After the meal, everyone chatted and laughed for a while and then left one after another. The old marquis and Marquis Chu left behind the third lady and Chen Afu.
Chen Afu reported the affairs of Dingzhou Prefecture in detail, and especially pointed out that Lechen was in a very bad mood at the moment.
After hearing this, Lord Chu's eyes dimmed again and he said, "Although Luo was a little bit temperamental before, she was still gentle and virtuous. She suffered such a great blow and stayed in the Buddhist monastery for more than ten years, and her temperament and character changed. Alas, it was all my fault."
Afterwards, Lord Chu explained the situation in the capital. The capital was not peaceful at the moment, and two relatives of the Chu family were implicated in the Second Prince's party. One was Miss Chu's maternal family, the Ma family, and the other was Chen Afu's sister's husband's family, the He family.
Both families came to ask Lord Chu for help, but Lord Chu refused and specifically told Chen Afu not to get involved.
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