Chapter 79 Don't Say Anything: It won't be a wasted effort, how could it be a wasted effort? Shi Qionghua previously said to wait half a...
It won't be a wasted effort; how could it possibly be a wasted effort?
Previously, Shi Qionghua said she would go to the main courtyard in half an hour, and Zhishu thought it was because her eldest daughter was not dressed up properly.
Not only did she think so, but the Aisin Gioro clan also thought so. After hearing Zhishu's reply, they even felt that they shouldn't have sent someone to urge them. Their daughter was about to become a true phoenix, so what was wrong with everyone waiting a little longer?
It wasn't until Shi Qionghua appeared with Shen Wanqing that those who paid attention realized that it wasn't that the eldest daughter of the Shi family was putting on airs and refusing to see anyone, but rather that someone had already beaten her to the punch and won the favor of the future Crown Princess before anyone else.
The Eight Banners were neither small nor large; there were only so many people coming and going in the capital. Shen Wanqing, as the eldest mistress of the Hesheli family, had been in this circle for half a year. Among the people who came today, there were neither too many nor too few who knew her, just enough for those who didn't know who she was to quickly find out whose family she belonged to.
Lady Shen, the Lady Shen who married into the Hesheli family. Some of the ladies-in-waiting who focused on the women of the household had a similar first reaction to Fu Xuan back then, the one from the Han Banner who married into the Hesheli family. Unexpectedly, she was quite the schemer, managing to get close to the Shi family as soon as they returned.
Some women who had heard their husbands talk a lot about what was going on outside had even more complicated expressions. Everyone knew that Yuqing Palace had a new second-class guard named Yulang, who was handsome, skilled, and even more conspicuous and eye-catching than ordinary guards when wearing a cloak.
Yu Lang is from the Empress's maternal family. According to seniority, Yu Lang is a generation older than the Crown Prince. Despite his status, he doesn't put on airs at all and treats himself as a second-class guard. If he had someone he could trust more than someone from another family, he would be more willing to give him important responsibilities.
“Mother, didn’t you say a few days ago that the furnishings in your side room weren’t as good as mine? I’ve brought someone here for you today. Just ask Granny Shen what to do.”
"Nonsense, I was just saying. You invited them here to admire the plum blossoms and drink wine, not to do housework. Take them to the plum garden to play today. After the New Year, when they have some free time, you can pester Grandma Shen however you want."
Aisin Gioro also had a long face. Her great-grandfather was Prince Li, Daishan, and it is said that her facial features resembled those of her great-grandfather.
Whether this was a good thing or a bad thing for her was hard to say, since looking like a big, burly man meant she wasn't the kind of woman who would be considered particularly beautiful. But precisely because her features resembled those of her ancestors, her family doted on her from birth.
After marrying Shi Wenbing, although life was not easy due to the constant travel between the north and south, fortunately, the Shi family had a good family tradition. Shi Wenbing was a man more ambitious than philandering, so the entire inner quarters of the Shi family were under the control of Aisin Gioro clan.
Shi Wenbing had several concubines, but this was not a big deal for the Aisin Gioro clan. Although they had been married for decades and their relationship was not particularly loving or affectionate, they were certainly respectful to each other.
Such a life was not tiring. Even though Aisin Gioro's appearance was average, her overall temperament was exceptionally good and peaceful. In Shen Wanqing's words, she could tell at a glance that this person was not the kind of person who lived a particularly competitive life.
This was a reassuring thing for Shen Wanqing, after all, she would be the Crown Princess's mother in the future. If she really helped Yulang and the Crown Prince defy fate, she would then become the Empress's mother, the Lady of Cheng'en.
If someone with too many thoughts and a competitive nature were to sit in such a position, there would be no shortage of troubles coming from the Shi family. I and Yulang would be caught in the middle, and I don't know how much we would have to worry about.
With Shi Qionghua's friendly attitude as a precedent, Shen Wanqing's side became particularly lively after taking her seat. Even though Shen Wanqing did not sit at the main table after taking her seat, but instead sat with Xu Shi and her two cousins-in-law, other ladies and grandmothers kept taking the initiative to talk to her.
Having embarked on this path, there's no need for her to be coy, reserved, or aloof anymore; she's now officially the future Crown Princess.
When others approached her, Shen Wanqing naturally accepted them all. She was merely a conduit for Shi Qionghua; at times like this, she shouldn't act like a person, but rather like a machine that announces a welcome to anyone who comes into the convenience store.
You don't need to figure out who's sincere and who's not. There's still a long road ahead, and we'll eventually see who's truly on your side. Right now, all you need to do is provide these people with an outlet for their flattery.
"Mom, where is my sister-in-law?"
"Eat something quickly. Everyone says that Shaoxing wine that's been heated isn't intoxicating, but it's still wine. I've seen you talking and drinking with people and haven't eaten much. Can your stomach handle it?"
She exchanged pleasantries with wave after wave of people who couldn't squeeze in to get to Shi Qionghua's side. Only when the banquet was halfway over did Shen Wanqing finally find a moment to sit down and eat something in peace.
The speaker was not Madam Xu, but Madam Zhou, Shen Wanqing's second cousin-in-law. After Shen Wenyuan met with the Shi family, he sent someone back, and Shen Wenyuan, the second son of the eldest branch of the Shen family who remained in the capital, naturally became the contact person.
Shen Wenyuan possessed exceptional martial arts skills, but for the past few years, his father, Shen Hongji, had been pressuring him to study for the imperial examinations and pursue an official career. Shen Hongji meant well, but Shen Wenyuan was trapped in the Four Books and Five Classics, feeling so frustrated that he wanted to die, yet he had no clue how to resolve the situation.
It wasn't until he stayed in the capital to run errands and handle various matters that he finally understood and felt relaxed and happy.
Three days ago, he had already discussed it with his wife, Zhou, and they would write to Shengjing after the New Year. Either Shen Hongji would agree to let him get a military position in the Commander's Office or the Green Standard Army, or he would take his wife and children back to Shengjing to dig for ginseng. It was better than wasting his time like this.
Zhou had no reason to object to this. As the eldest daughter-in-law, she had lived an easy life these past few years, but it was far too easy. She had plenty of money, but that was all she had.
Every time a large sum of money needed to be spent, he either had to discuss it with his sister-in-law, Helan, or he had to specifically ask Xu. After a while, this kind of life became quite boring.
Shen Hongji is still in his prime, so there's no way he'd split up the family property. Besides, apart from money, which isn't a big deal, Zhou Shi isn't that foolish to split up the family property.
The best solution would be to let Shen Wenyuan find a job. With a job, he would have a way to make money, and he wouldn't have to consult anyone or listen to other people's opinions when he wanted to buy something. How comfortable would that be?
The imperial examinations were not easy to pass. Why would someone with such excellent skills choose to obsess over something that had no basis in reality? Isn't that just plain crazy?
With this hope, Zhou was in an exceptionally good mood throughout the Lunar New Year. She was even more determined to treat her capable and clever sister-in-law, Shen Wanqing, who had come up with the idea of going to the capital to pick up the Shi family ahead of time, well. She thought that if her husband really went to work in the government office in the future, she might need Yulang's help.
"Your sister-in-law is pregnant again. We just found out the day before yesterday. It's too cold right now, so my second aunt won't let her go out. She'll stay home and rest until after the New Year."
The inner courtyard was filled with female guests, and the tables were set with warm Shaoxing wine and rose syrup. Shaoxing wine is not very strong to begin with, and after being heated, it hardly counts as wine for someone like Helan, who has a high alcohol tolerance.
Seeing Zhou's recent cheerful demeanor, she couldn't help but feel uneasy. The eldest branch of the family had always been the one in charge in the capital, and she considered her relationship with Zhou, her sister-in-law, to be quite good. Zhou's current happiness made it seem as if she had wronged her.
"Sister-in-law, look at your face, it's almost falling to the ground."
“My second sister-in-law is happy that my second brother is about to achieve great success. It’s not like he’s going to leave his eldest sister-in-law and start his own household. You should stop acting like this. If you keep doing this, my second sister-in-law will think that you don’t want my second brother to be successful.”
Shen Wanqing knew her family's situation perfectly well. The sisters-in-law Helan and Zhou were different from the Hesheli family. Helan felt that her best friend had suddenly had another plan behind her back without telling her. She was unhappy and uncomfortable, but it didn't hurt their relationship.
"Go to hell! If the second brother really gets into the commander's office, I'll buy him several baskets of firecrackers and set them off for him all morning."
Why should she be unhappy if her brothers are successful? In Helan's opinion, she would love for her whole family to be successful and rise to prominence, so that if she were to fall on hard times, she would still have someone to turn to. If everyone only cared about the family's possessions, then the family would be truly doomed.
"Then sister-in-law should prepare the money for buying firecrackers in advance. My second brother will definitely be able to get in."
Shen Wanqing took the fattest and most delicious piece of fish belly that Zhou had specially placed in her bowl and gave it to Xu Shi. She then picked up a piece of meat near the fish head and the triangular bone and ate it herself.
"The meat inside the fish belly is the best."
"Just ignore her, she won't eat fish."
The original owner of this body never ate fish heads, tails, or bellies from a young age; she only liked to eat the tender parts of the fish that adults talked about. Shen Wanqing also didn't eat the fish belly or tail, but she liked to eat the fish head. In Xu Shi's eyes, this meant that her daughter still didn't like to eat the most delicious parts, just like when she was a child.
"Is the son-in-law really confident about the second son's matter?"
“My eldest brother and my brother are going to take the imperial examination, and Yulang can’t get involved in this. It’s not difficult to get things done at the Commander’s Office, but my eldest uncle has been insisting that my second brother take the imperial examination and enter officialdom. If my eldest uncle agrees to write this letter, everything else will be fine.”
Yu Lang's advantages are twofold: firstly, he is already more familiar with the people in the Infantry Commander's Office because of his background; secondly, he is now a favorite of the Crown Prince. Shen Wenyuan cannot go to places like the Imperial Guard or the Vanguard Battalion, but there are plenty of people in the Infantry Commander's Office willing to do him a favor if he is willing to ask.
The family sat at the table talking quietly, and no one was deliberately eavesdropping. However, Shen Wanqing was very observant and noticed that someone in the distance was glancing at her several times. She quickly finished the fish in her bowl and got up to go over to her.
Xu looked at her daughter's back with a complicated expression. Zhou and Helan followed her gaze and looked back at Xu's face. They both felt that she didn't look very happy.
"I don't know if this marriage is a good or bad one."
"What are you saying, Second Aunt? Fifth Sister is living a very good life now. Not only does her husband have a lot of influence with the Crown Prince, but she still doesn't have any concubines in the courtyard. If it were any other family, they probably wouldn't be doing so well."
“But isn’t she working too hard? She has to take care of everything at home and outside. We never let her worry about this when we were at home.”
As pleased with her son-in-law Yulang as much as she was with her in-laws, the Hesheli family. She was dissatisfied with every single one of them, starting from the old lady herself, and had grumbled about it to Shen Hongshi more than once behind his back.
"Whether she's tired or not depends on whether Fifth Sister is willing to do it. Look at her, she seems tired and unhappy."
Helan herself was a fiery and impulsive person, so of course she could tell whether Shen Wanqing was doing well or not.
"What's there to be afraid of when you're tired? You can just have a good meal and a good night's sleep and you won't feel tired anymore. In a family like your son-in-law's, the problem isn't being tired, it's not having anything to do."
Helan's words were all reasonable, and no matter how much Xu felt sorry for her daughter, she could only let her do as she pleased. Shen Wanqing had no idea that Xu was thinking about these things. After the plum blossom viewing banquet, she was only slightly better off than the other ladies of the Shi family, but she was still quite exhausted.
Most of the guests left one after another after noon. Yu Lang was quite drunk by the second master of the Shi family in the front yard, while Shen Wanqing was taken back to her courtyard by Shi Qionghua to change clothes and comb her hair. After all that fuss, she really needed to tidy up.
Shi Qionghua gave Shen Wanqing a great deal of face. From now on, the person who would be ranked first in terms of prestige when she, as a member of the Shen family, went out might not be the wife of the second-class guard Yu Lang, but rather the current favorite of the eldest daughter of the Shi family, and in the future, she might very well become the favorite of the Crown Princess.
Since the other person did such a good job, Shen Wanqing, who came out of the dressing room, naturally could no longer pretend to be stupid. She returned to Shi Qionghua's room. The side room was bright and clean. The winter sun shone through the glass window and there was a floor clock in the room, the kind that would chime on the hour.
This made Shen Wanqing, who was standing at the door, momentarily lose her senses. The room now resembled a top-tier Chinese-style room from a later era, with warm colors and genuine antique decorations. There was even a clock, something mechanical, and most remarkably, the glass in the windows made her feel as if she had returned to where she came from, inexplicably stirring up a sense of longing.
However, this only lasted for a moment. When he came to his senses, the woman in front of him was still Shi Qionghua, and today's mission was not yet completely completed.
"My master is supposed to go to the palace for his shift tomorrow. Is there anything you need him to take you in?"
"It used to be there, but now that you've asked, it seems it's gone."
Shi Qionghua observed Shen Wanqing's shrewd and charming demeanor throughout the banquet, but she didn't care much about Shen Wanqing's personality. However, the fact that Shen Wanqing had only asked if she had any messages to convey from the morning until now, just before leaving, made Shi Qionghua wonder if such a shrewd person thought she shouldn't be passing on a message to the Crown Prince at this time.
Shi Qionghua thought this to herself and asked the question, since she had already decided to use Shen Wanqing, so there was no point in hiding it from her.
“If you ask me honestly, I will answer you honestly. I don’t think it’s necessary to have someone relay my message at this time.”
Shi Qionghua's differential treatment of her from the beginning of this morning must have had a reason, half for the future and half for the present. She wanted to act as a mouthpiece between herself and the Crown Prince, but Shen Wanqing was unwilling.
"It is said that secrets should not be passed on to six ears. I think this saying is not only to prevent secrets from being leaked, but also because if something is passed on many times, it will lose its meaning."
Even when we speak face-to-face, we have to be careful and deliberate, afraid of saying something wrong and causing misunderstanding. How much more so when it reaches my ears, it has to pass through another person before it reaches the Crown Prince's ears; how can I feel at ease?
These words stunned Shi Qionghua for a moment. She had wanted to say that Lord Yu was her husband, and she couldn't even trust him? Then she realized that the focus of the matter was not Yu Lang and Shen Wanqing at all.
It's not about me. It's easy to ask Shen Wanqing and Yulang to relay messages, but can I really trust them after they've been relayed? And will they really convey the meaning I want?
Thinking about it this way, there really isn't anything worth passing on. What's the rush? If she really marries into Yuqing Palace, she'll have a whole lifetime to say whatever she wants.
Seeing that Shi Qionghua had given up the idea, Shen Wanqing also breathed a sigh of relief. The young girl had been preparing to become the Crown Princess for several years, and since she had finally managed to strike up a conversation, she must have wanted to pass on something. Even if she wanted to say something, it wasn't really a big secret.
But Shen Wanqing felt that this matter could wait. Putting everything else aside, at least it should be the Crown Prince who takes the initiative between the two. Or perhaps it should be Yinreng who sets the tone. What if the Crown Prince wants a particularly proper and rigid Crown Princess? In that case, the two of them shouldn't exchange a single word before the wedding.
After leaving the Shi family, Yu Lang was already leaning slumped against the carriage. His strong smell of alcohol made Shen Wanqing feel like she'd been left alone to have her hair recombed at Shi Qionghua's place. Yu Lang clung to her like a big dog, ruining her newly styled hair.
"The next time you leave the palace will be for the New Year, right?"
"Um."
How many days off can you take during the Chinese New Year?
"Seven days, specially given by the Crown Prince."
It's true that being a trusted confidant comes with preferential treatment. Back when the last shift was being scheduled, the Crown Prince had He Yuzhu deliver a message to the retiring minister in charge of the guards of Yuqing Palace, asking them to give Yulang a few extra days off when scheduling shifts for the New Year.
The reason is that Yulang just got married this year and started working at Yuqing Palace after the wedding. How can he stay in the palace all the time and never go home? So, we'll give him a few more days off during the New Year to prevent him from talking badly about us behind our backs.
"So, what's the future Crown Princess like? I just came out of their residence and overheard two old women gossiping, saying that their eldest daughter and Madam Shen hit it off immediately. Could it be that I am Madam Shen?"
"What do you mean, 'what'? She's just an unmarried girl, what right do you have to ask? If the imperial decree comes down in a few days, she'll be the Crown Princess. Are you sure you want to ask, sir?"
When Shen Wanqing said this, she had a half-smile on her face. Yu Lang immediately realized that he shouldn't have asked that question, and he immediately raised his hand and gently patted his face twice.
"I won't ask again next time."
"If the Crown Prince asks me about this when I go to the palace tomorrow, just say that I refuse to say anything. Don't get involved in these kinds of things, even if you're not married yet."
“I told you I didn’t know anything. I didn’t know anything to begin with. I’ve never even seen what the eldest daughter of the Shi family looks like, so what could I possibly know?”
Shen Wanqing refused to say anything, but she had nothing to hide about Yu Lang's affairs.
Yu Lang leaned on Shen Wanqing's shoulder and whispered everything Shi Wenbing had told him to her, making Shen Wanqing's eyes light up. Shi Wenbing was a shrewd man; if this matter succeeded, perhaps the future of Crown Prince Yinreng would truly be different.
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