Chapter 401 Coming and Going

The British Mansion today is like a sieve. The more so-called "secrets" there are, the faster they spread.

Naturally, Song Han could not hide the fact that he wanted to marry Jiang Xiexiu from Song Yichun.

But Song Yichun remained strangely silent.

Song Mo was very confused: "Don't tell me that father doesn't object to Tianen marrying cousin Xiexiu?"

For him, he would be happy to see his cousins ​​have a stable home, whether they married into a Duke's mansion or into another family.

He was afraid that his father would think the same as Song Han, and that his cousin Xiexiu would end up getting hurt.

Dou Zhao didn't believe it.

Song Yichun's attitude now is very clear. He will never let Song Mo have an easy time, but he also doesn't want the Duke of Ying's Mansion to be cut off. He must keep one of his two sons in his hands, so it has become inevitable to find a powerful wife's family for Song Han.

She said, "Second Master wants to marry cousin Xie Xiu, but that depends on whether the Jiang family agrees. Why should Duke Guo jump out and be the bad guy? Moreover, if this matter gets out, people will only say that Duke Guo respects his deceased wife and would rather marry the daughter of a criminal for his second son for the sake of his wife's family. He has both face and money, so why not do it?"

Song Mo couldn't help but nodded.

He understands the Chiang family.

If the Jiang family was still in its heyday, my father would ask for Song Han's marriage, and the Jiang family would reluctantly agree to the marriage even if they were not very satisfied with Song Han. But now that the Jiang family has fallen on hard times, agreeing to the marriage would inevitably be seen as trying to curry favor with someone who is rich and powerful, and the Jiang family would definitely not agree to it.

Dou Zhao had another worry.

In the previous life, the reason why the Liao King used Song Mo was largely because Song Mo was the nephew of the Duke of Dingguo. He could use the connections that the Duke of Dingguo had cultivated for generations to control the assassins that the Duke of Dingguo had raised. In this life, Song Mo is destined to not be able to do his best to help the Liao King rebel. Will the Liao King turn to use Song Han, who is also the nephew of the Duke of Dingguo?

If Song Han married Jiang Xiexiu, in the eyes of those who had received the favor of Duke Dingguo, Song Han might be closer to them than Song Mo.

Of course, if Jiang Xiexiu really married her, she would definitely feel uncomfortable seeing him every day.

So the next morning she urged Song Mo to go to Fourth Madam Jiang's place early: "We slept well tonight, but I don't know how Fourth Aunt spent the night. There are many things to do today. We should go there early. First, we can help, and second, we can also tell Fourth Aunt that she can send cousin Lizhu out of the pavilion with peace of mind."

Song Mo felt that what Dou Zhao said made sense. Although the wedding was scheduled for the evening at 9:00 p.m., they went to the fourth wife of the Jiang family before 11:00 a.m.

Dou Zhao told Jiang's Fourth Madam about Song Yichun's attitude, and tactfully tested her: "Song Han is young, and has been studying and writing with the Duke for the past few years. He is also very sincere to you, so please don't blame him for not thinking things through. Fortunately, he has good intentions, and Fourth Aunt should be relieved."

The fourth wife of the Jiang family thought for a moment and smiled, "I appreciate your kindness. The more this is the case, the sooner we should return to Haozhou. A few years ago, Liuzhou Guard Commander Liu once asked for Xiexiu for his eldest son, but because our second grandfather treated him well, the old ancestor was afraid that others would say that we were repaying a favor, so she did not agree to the marriage. Later, the old ancestor passed away, and the marriages of several children were delayed. Before I came to Kyoto, I heard from your aunt that now Liuzhou Guard Commander Liu is asking for Xiexiu for his eldest son again. She thinks that the Liu family is too far away from us, and she is afraid that Xiexiu will not be able to get married. "I don't know how to talk to you about this matter. I was so focused on Lizhu at the time that I didn't have time to pay attention to her. Now that Lizhu is married, I have time to discuss the marriages of the children with my eldest sister-in-law. I'm afraid I will disappoint the good intentions of the Duke." After saying this, as if she was afraid that Dou Zhao would suffer a loss, she said to her meaningfully, "I know that as a daughter-in-law, I have to take care of both my father-in-law and my husband. But your father-in-law is a widower. Given his age, if he doesn't remarry now, he will remarry in the future. You just need to take good care of Yantang, and you just need to be able to deal with the Duke's affairs on the surface."

Dou Zhao felt both amused and confused.

The fourth wife of the Jiang family must have thought that she was sent by Song Yichun to test the marriage!

She felt both amused and annoyed, and at the same time, she couldn't help but feel grateful to the fourth wife of the Jiang family.

Anyone who was a little bit distant towards her would not be so open with her.

From this, it can be seen that Song Yichun's attitude towards Song Mo made the Jiang family very uncomfortable.

She nodded with a smile and reminded Jiang's fourth wife: "As for the second master, I have already sent someone to watch him. But after all, the Duke of Ying's Mansion is still headed by the Duke, so some things are hard to say. I am now afraid that this matter will be spread out, and the Duke will be regarded as a man of affection and righteousness, and the Jiang family will be said to be innocent and serve as a stepping stone for the Duke."

Mrs. Jiang understood Dou Zhao's meaning after a brief thought. She smiled and said, "I understand. I will take precautions against some things."

Since the Jiang family could send the fourth wife to escort the bride, it can be seen that the fourth wife is capable of standing on her own. Dou Zhao felt relieved, smiled and talked to the fourth wife of the Dou family, and went to the main hall.

The curtain leading to the retreat was lifted, and Jiang Xiexiu walked in.

She looked at the fourth wife of the Jiang family boldly and said bluntly: "Mother, are you going to marry me to Liuzhou?"

"How is it possible?!" Jiang's fourth wife chuckled, took Jiang Xiexiu's hand, and sighed, "I don't know how many girls in the Jiang family married soldiers and became widows at a young age. Aren't there many such examples? It's just that we are supported by the Dingguo Mansion and work hard for the Dingguo Mansion. This is what we should do, and there is no reason to complain or blame. Now the Jiang family has survived the catastrophe. We have done our best to fulfill the wishes of our ancestors. In the future, we have to live for ourselves. Let's not talk about the children who were engaged before. As for you guys, your aunt and I have the same idea. She wants to keep you all by her side."

Jiang Xiexiu's eyes turned red, and then tears fell. It was unclear whether she was aggrieved or relieved when she called out "Mother".

"Silly child!" Jiang's fourth wife stepped forward and put her arm around Jiang Xiexiu's shoulders, whispering, "When you handed the things to me, I knew your intentions. Although our family is in a state of decline, your aunt is here and will not let you suffer any loss."

Jiang Xiexiu nodded, smiled with tears in her eyes and said, "And my mother!"

The fourth wife of the Jiang family laughed and said, "I can't compare to your aunt in terms of courage and strategy." She took out a handkerchief and asked Jiang Xiexiu to wipe her tears. "There are many guests today, so don't let anyone see any clues."

Jiang Xiexiu nodded, and waited until he felt there were no traces on his face before leaving the banquet room.

Jiang Xieying was leaning against a pillar under the receding eaves, staring at the blue sky in a daze.

Hearing the noise, she raised her head and nodded to Jiang Xiexiu.

Jiang Xiexiu paused, walked over, and leaned against the pillar with Jiang Xieying shoulder to shoulder. He looked up at the sky like she had just done, and whispered, "What are you looking at?"

A flock of pigeons flew across the sky, and the sharp sound of their whistles broke the tranquility of the courtyard.

Jiang Xieying looked at the sky and murmured, "I wonder if I will have the chance to see the sky of Kyoto again in the future..."

There are still people.

She said silently in her heart.

Her fingers gently stroked the string of agarwood beads on her wrist.

Jiang Xiexiu turned around and his eyes lingered on her bracelet for a moment.

She still remembered that it was the Lantern Festival four years ago when they were still young ladies of the Duke of Dingguo's Mansion. Song Yantang, the prince of the Duke of Ying's Mansion, came to congratulate their grandmother. In addition to the gifts presented to the elders, each of them received a string of agarwood bracelets.

Sister Hanzhu threw it into the mirror case, and she happily put it under her pillow. But Fourteenth Sister wore it on her wrist, never taking it off day and night.

So when their house was searched, all their bracelets were lost, and only Fourteenth Sister's bracelet was preserved.

But even so, what can we do?

She looked up at the sky and whispered, "My cousin's wife is beautiful and a very kind person... From the look of my cousin, he loves my cousin's wife very much... He used to be the kind of person who would leave at the drop of a hat and would be very happy if he could send a servant to come and ask about things... But now he comes to pick up my cousin's wife every day after leaving the government office... He is living a very good life..."

But a layer of mist appeared in his eyes, and a sour feeling arose in his heart.

Jiang Xieying remembered that she and her sisters were discovered hiding behind a holly tree while secretly watching their brothers shooting arrows. She and her sisters laughed and hid in the rockery. Thirteenth sister ran the slowest and was caught, but she stood still without panic, staring at her cousin Song with her big eyes, saying, "I saw that my brothers shot arrows well, so I came here specially to cheer for them."

She couldn't help but smile.

All the things in the past are like beautiful dreams. Why bother about them now?

"Yes!" she said sincerely, "Now that I know my cousins ​​are doing well, I don't have to worry about anything anymore."

There was a faint sound of laughter coming from somewhere.

Jiang Xieying stood up straight with a smile, lightly brushed her clothes, and said, "Thirteenth sister, there must be guests coming. Shall we go out and entertain them?"

Jiang Xiexiu smiled and said "OK", and the two sisters went to the main room affectionately.

※※※※※

Jiang Lizhu returned home on the third day, and the female members of the Jiang family left Beijing on the fourth day.

When leaving Beijing, everyone who had attended Jiang Lizhu's wedding knew that the fourth wife of the Jiang family decided to leave the other girls in Haozhou so that her younger brothers, who were still in their childhood, would have someone to rely on.

Despite this, Song Han did not stop.

He knelt in the main courtyard of the Duke of Ying's mansion and begged Song Yichun to help him marry the daughter of the Jiang family.

In his words, being able to become closer to his maternal family would make his mother in the underworld feel gratified and nod in agreement if she knew about it.

In a short time, Song Han's reputation for filial piety spread like wildfire.

Song Yichun called Song Mo and his wife to the study room, and said to Song Han with a smile, "It's a pity that Xiexiu and Xieying have already been betrothed. If you want to marry your cousin, I'm afraid you have to wait a few more years."

The other daughters of the Jiang family are all still young.

Song Han said, "As long as my father agrees to let me marry the daughter of the Jiang family, I would rather wait for a few years."

His decisive tone made Dou Zhao feel confused.

Song Han admired Jiang Xiexiu and wanted to marry her, which was understandable. But the Jiang family had clearly rejected him, and he had earned a reputation as a "filial" man. Why did he insist on marrying a daughter of the Jiang family? And from his tone, it seemed that as long as she was a daughter of the Jiang family, it would be fine. So did he really admire Jiang Xiexiu or was it just because Mrs. Jiang had wanted to marry Jiang Xiexiu to Song Mo?