An Dashan then remembered who the person in front of him was, and hurriedly invited him into the box, saying, "You are so polite, Duke of England. Please come in and sit down." Then he asked the Duke of England to sit down in the main seat.
Seeing this, An Ning and Gao also stood up and saluted. The Duke of England quickly said, "No need to be so polite."
Gao said, "My son An Yong said that he was very lucky in the military camp thanks to the care of Duke Ying. I would like to thank you on behalf of my son."
The Duke of England smiled and said, "Mrs. An is too polite. An Yong fought bravely and was diligent and studious. I just gave him some advice."
After a while of pleasantries, Duke Ying said to An Ning, "I heard that Princess Yongjia is very experienced in growing winter wheat. I wonder if we can grow winter wheat here?"
An Ning shook his head and said, "Duke Ying, it's bitterly cold here, and winter wheat doesn't survive easily. But I have a crop that can survive here, and it has a very high yield, about 2,000 kilograms per acre."
The Duke of England became interested and asked, "What kind of crop is this?"
An Ning said, "It's a crop called potatoes, but I don't have many seeds, so I can't plant it on a large scale yet."
The Duke of England asked anxiously, "Can you show me this potato?"
An Ning shook her head and said, "I don't have this potato with me."
The Duke of England thought that he was indeed rude. Who would carry food with them? So he said, "I am rude. Do you have time tomorrow? I will visit you tomorrow."
An Ning was in a dilemma. Although she didn't have to go to the Governor's Mansion tomorrow, in this era, it was inappropriate for a girl like her to meet a man outside her family alone.
The Duke of England saw An Ning's dilemma and said, "But you are not free tomorrow?"
An Dashan said, "Duke Ying, what a coincidence! I have an appointment to visit the governor tomorrow."
The Duke of England suddenly realized what was going on and said, "This is an important matter. When are you free so I can visit you?"
An Ning thought about going to the governor's residence tomorrow and Uncle Zheng's residence the day after tomorrow, so she said, "Let's wait for two days. We will be waiting for you at home in two days."
The Duke of England nodded and said, "Okay, I'll visit you in two days." Then he finished the wine in his glass, stood up and said goodbye.
After the Duke of England left, Gao said, "This Duke of England has a very good personality and appearance. I wonder if he has a wife?" As she spoke, she looked at An Ning.
An Ning's scalp tingled when Gao looked at her. She said, "Mom, don't let your fantasies fool you. For a girl like the Duke of Ying, there are so many girls lining up from the border to the capital to pursue her. How could she be interested in a nouveau riche like us?"
The British man who had just sat down next to him had excellent hearing. When he heard this, he smiled and thought to himself, "This girl is quite self-aware!"
Gao rolled her eyes at An Ning and said, "Although this is true, it's okay to fantasize about it!" For a moment, laughter came from the room.
After An Ning and the others finished their lunch, An Dashan went downstairs first to pay the bill, and An Ning helped Gao downstairs behind. The shopkeeper said to An Dashan, "Sir, the bill for your table has been paid. It was paid by someone sent by the British government."
An Dashan nodded, thinking that he owed someone a favor again. At this time, An Ning also helped Gao down the stairs, and An Dashan said, "The Duke of England has already paid for the meal."
After listening to this, An Ning nodded and said, "I'll repay the favor next time I have a chance." An Dashan didn't say anything else, and they went home.
Seeing his mother coming back, little Anrui pouted his aggrieved mouth and started to cry. Gao quickly picked up little Anrui and went into the inner room to feed him. Wang'er's mother said, "This little master is so easy to coax. He only cries when he's hungry or wet. Why is he so aggrieved when he sees Madam?"
An Ning smiled and said, "It's okay, this kid is just like that. You've been working hard all morning, go down and take a rest!"
Wang'er's mother said, "Yes." Then she turned and left the house.
The next day, An Dashan and Gao went to visit the governor's mansion with gifts. The governor was particularly enthusiastic today. He and his wife were at the door early to greet them. When they saw An Dashan and Gao get off the carriage, they walked forward enthusiastically. After the two sides greeted each other, Lord Yin said, "In just a few months, Brother An has been conferred the title of Earl of Rongchang. It's really a cause for celebration!"
Hearing this, the wife of the governor next to her was furious. An Yong's promotion was enough to make her angry. She didn't expect that Lord Yin would tell her yesterday that the An family is no longer the same as before. An Dashan was conferred the title of Rongchang Earl, and An Yong's sister was conferred the title of Yongjia County Lady. If it was said that Yin Wan'er married down before, now it has become her family marrying up. But she didn't dare to show it now, and could only smile.
An Dashan said, "Mr. Yin, you are too polite. They are all successful children in our family. The emperor conferred a title on me for the sake of his children. It is incomparable to your official jinshi background."
Lord Yin saw that An Dashan did not become arrogant because of the title, and was still the same as before. He was more satisfied with the character of the An family, so he smiled and said, "Marquis Rongchang, don't belittle yourself. This title was conferred to several people at the founding of the country, and you are the first one in this peaceful period. You can imagine how important it is."
After a few more pleasantries at the door, they were invited by Lord Yin to the reception room.
An Dashan said, "Master Yin, my wife wants to meet her future daughter-in-law. Is it convenient for Miss Yin?"
Lord Yin smiled and said, "That's convenient. Let my wife take Madam Ling to the backyard. We haven't seen each other for a long time. Let's catch up."
The governor's wife stood up and said with a smile, "Okay, you guys stay here to reminisce about the past, I'll take Madam An to see Wan'er."
Seeing this, Gao also stood up and followed the governor's wife to the backyard.
On the way, the governor's wife said to Gao: "Madam An, although Wan'er is not good at needlework and has no outstanding talent, she is indeed very beautiful. Otherwise, how could she have fallen in love with General An after meeting him twice?"
If Gao had not known in advance from An Ning that the governor's wife was a stepmother with a hypocritical heart, she would have thought that Miss Yin was a vixen after hearing what she said. Naturally, she would have looked down on Miss Yin. This governor's wife really has a vicious heart.
Gao did not follow the governor's wife's words, but said: "The talent of women's needlework is not important, the most important thing for marrying a wife is her virtue. I have heard that Miss Yin is both virtuous and virtuous, and she is the best. My An family must have burned incense in the previous life to marry such a good daughter-in-law."
The governor's wife was so angry that she wanted to say that Yin Wan'er was a seductive woman and had made An Yong fall in love with her.
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