Chapter 130 Inquiry
They were going to have dinner at Jinhua Hall. Mei Niang said, "As for what happened last night, as soon as I received the double reward from the Queen, I knew what was going on. The Queen wanted to use me to send some things to Lin Runan, but the old lady had other ideas. What should I do now? You are her grandson, and she can't do anything to you. If I don't want to hand over those things, I will definitely be ignored and resented by her. Otherwise, find an excuse and I won't go. In the future, I will try to go to Jinhua Hall less often. Just go there occasionally to say hello. Anyway, I will leave in three months, so it's just right..."
Xu Junying's face was slightly bitter: "I am willing to discuss this with you in the long run, can't you be more patient? You were able to do so well before, making the old lady happy and the sisters happy, and you didn't seem to have put in much effort. It can be seen that if you really regard yourself as a grandmother, it is not difficult to do it! Come on, the old lady is not confused, she knows in her heart that if you don't go now, it will be even more difficult to meet in the future!"
Mei Niang had no choice but to follow him to the door and asked, "What if the old lady brings up this matter again? If I don't give it to her, I'll offend her. If I give it to her, it's obviously mine!"
"Don't worry, I'm here!"
Xu Junying opened the curtain and let her go first. He then walked out and took Cui Xi, Cui Si and the others to Jinhua Hall.
After all, they were grandparents and grandchildren, so they had something in common. Xu Junying guessed that the old lady was right. The old lady was indeed sensible and did not mention the Queen's reward again, as if nothing had happened. When she saw Xu Junying and Mei Niang coming, she smiled and waved them to come over and sit down as usual. She asked them lovingly if they had any snacks in the afternoon, but were they hungry? She also asked Mother Ji to urge them to eat again, so that the grandchildren would not complain about waiting too long. The old lady's calm attitude made Mei Niang sweat. She felt that she was a villain in vain and had misunderstood the old lady.
Mei Niang and Bai Jingyu washed their hands first, set up the bowls and chopsticks, and served soup to the old and young. Zhuang Yulan also helped. One more person helped fewer people, saving a lot of time. Xu Junying said to the old lady, "Grandma, drink more soup. This soup is very good. It will be cold soon!"
The old lady smiled and nodded: "This is golden pheasant and shark fin soup, fresh and refreshing, don't you think it's sweet when you drink it? This golden pheasant was sent by the farm today, it ran out from the mountain in spring, and there were only two or three in total, all of which are here, you are in for a treat!"
Mei Niang and Bai Jingyu looked at each other inadvertently. Bai Jingyu's eyes were full of gratitude, but Mei Niang lowered her eyes: she did that not to vent her anger, but just to make herself feel better.
The golden pheasant was delivered almost at noon. Mei Niang knew about it, and the second wife was also well-informed. She asked Madam Zhao beside her to ask: Aunt Xiangrui has not been in good health since giving birth to Wei'er, and Wei'er's wet nurse has been producing less milk recently. The pheasants caught in spring are fat and tender, and are the most nourishing. Should we take two to give to Aunt Xiangrui and Wei'er first to supplement their diet?
Mei Niang said at that time: "Please go back and tell the second wife: these pheasants are indeed fat and tender, but they must be kept in Jinhua Hall so that the old lady can also taste them. Jinhua Hall sets up a large table of food every day, and filial sons and grandsons come to accompany the old lady to eat together. The old lady is very happy. If Xiangrui and Wei'er want to supplement, they can go to Jinhua Hall in the evening. As long as she enters Jinhua Hall, she will have a bowl of soup!"
Mother Zhao left with a gloomy face, and the housekeepers in Ziyun Hall who were waiting for what happened all covered their mouths and laughed.
After Zhuang Yulan had served the soup, she saw that Mei Niang and Bai Jingyu had not been seated yet, and she was too embarrassed to sit back next to the old lady, so she stood on Xu Junying's left and served him the food. Xu Junying smiled and said, "Lan'er, please sit down, otherwise the soup will be cold and not tasty!"
The old lady also looked at Zhuang Yulan and said, "I don't remember, Junying is still caring! Come on, sit down, all of you, Mei Niang and Jingyu, come and have a bowl of hot soup!"
Xu Xiaomin had already stood up and dragged Mei Niang along: "Sister-in-law, come and sit here. I've saved a little chicken drumstick for you..."
Xu Xiaorong handed over a plate: "I ate one chicken wing and left one for my sister-in-law. This golden pheasant is really sweet and tastes better than in previous years!"
Mei Niang said thank you with a smile and picked up the chopsticks without hesitation. Her eyes met Xu Junya who had been silent all the time. Xu Junya gave her a grateful smile. Mei Niang quickly retracted her gaze. She knew that pheasant was delicious and particularly nourishing, but she did not fully believe it. However, she still asked Mother Cai to leave some chicken soup for Rulan and let her try it to change her taste.
The grandparents and grandchildren had eaten and drunk their fill. Zhuang Yulan was in a good mood and started to practice tea art again. Mei Niang felt depressed thinking that she would have to sit for a long time. Xu Junying talked to the old lady about the illness of cousin Zheng from Qiuhua Courtyard, saying that she became like that because she went to the East Courtyard early in the morning, and that they should go and see her.
The old lady's face darkened slightly, and she said, "It has nothing to do with the East Courtyard! It must be that she got up too early. In the spring, all kinds of flowers and trees in the garden sprout branches and leaves, and the shadows are dim. In the early morning, before dawn, the fog and humidity are heavy. It is possible that she was possessed by evil spirits. Once such a disease breaks out in spring, it is easy to pass it on to others. Alas! I don't know how your mother taught this child... It's also because she didn't learn enough rules! You don't have to go and see her, just ask Mei Niang to tell me again: send her back tomorrow. It's not a good idea to keep her in our house. If something really happens, it will ruin the feng shui of the Xu family. If the disease spreads, won't it bring trouble to the whole family?"
Xu Junying said: "Mei Niang, as the daughter-in-law, may not be able to win the argument with the eldest wife, so let the grandson go with her!"
The old lady thought about it and nodded in agreement, but she was still worried: "Leave as soon as you have understood. Don't sit there for too long! When she leaves tomorrow, I will ask someone to help Qiuhuayuan get rid of the bad air!"
Mei Niang breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that she could leave. She stood up with Xu Junying, bowed and left, and walked out of the upper room. Knowing that Zhuang Yulan would send her to the corridor, she was too lazy to look behind her. She waved to Cui Xi and Cui Si to follow her, and walked forward without looking back. After walking about ten steps away, she said to Cui Xi who was holding a lantern beside her, "Master Hou said he wanted to go to Qiuhua Courtyard, so let's go that way. While they are talking, let's leave quickly to avoid him following us and making everyone uncomfortable!"
Cui Xi responded and said, "Grandma, watch your step!"
Mei Niang turned around and looked at Cui Si: "Cui Si, don't be too anxious, don't step on my skirt..."
Her eyes widened and she almost stumbled. Xu Junying reached out and helped her up, saying, "Cui Si is behind me. I've been following you. I don't see you feeling uncomfortable!"
Mei Niang stood up and said embarrassedly: "I didn't mean anything else, I just wanted to say that you walked too fast and I was afraid we couldn't catch up!"
Xu Junying smiled and said, "I can also walk very slowly. You can walk as long as you want!"
Mei Niang was silent. This guy walked so lightly that she thought it was Cui Si. Cui Si was usually quite clever, but why was she so quiet today? She didn't even remind him.
When they arrived at Qiuhua Courtyard, Mei Niang was unable to see Heng'er. The eldest lady didn't need them to waste their words. Although she loved her niece, she dared not disrespect the old lady's words. Seeing Zheng Meiyu's look, she was somewhat worried. She had already arranged for Heng'er, the wet nurse, and Xia Lian to sleep in the small side courtyard on the left, far away from the main courtyard. She would wait and feed Zheng Meiyu another dose of medicine before going over there to accompany Heng'er.
He only asked Mei Niang to make arrangements tomorrow, pack various items, and pack more good medicinal materials, inform the doctor who had paid the deposit, and go to the Zheng family's manor outside the city to do acupuncture on time every day, send her cousin home, and tell her uncle to take her back after she recovers.
Mei Niang agreed to all the requests. Since she couldn't see Heng'er, she had nothing to say to Madam Zheng. Xu Junying didn't even mention going into the room to see his cousin. Mei Niang took her leave, and he followed her and bowed.
After walking for a while, they returned to Tsinghua Courtyard. Xu Junying saw Mei Niang walking with her head down and not saying a word. He knew that she did not get enough rest last night and must be very sleepy at this moment. So he did not say anything, and asked Cui Xi and Cui Si to help the eldest lady wash and rest, and then he went to the East Courtyard.
Mei Niang was indeed very tired. As soon as Xu Junying walked into the moon-shaped gate, she turned back to her room, took off the hairpins and pearls on her body and head, went into the inner room to wash up, took off her outer robe, climbed onto the bed and lay down, closing her eyes. No matter how bad her mood was, it did not affect her sleep. She felt sleepy and fell into a deep dream.
The next day, Mei Niang was busy all morning. When it was almost noon, she was going to see Ru Lan, but Xu Jun Ying came back early and asked Cui Lian to go to Zi Yun Tang to invite her back to Qing Hua Yuan for lunch. Mei Niang was very puzzled. What happened to him? He became weird and abnormal.
After coming back and having lunch with Xu Junying, they sat around with nothing to talk about. Mei Niang sat on the couch reading a book, while Xu Junying sat on the other side and suddenly said, "There will be guests coming soon."
Mei Niang raised her eyes to look at him: "Your guest?"
Xu Junying said: "It's Zhang Jingyun and Lingxuzi."
Mei Niang was startled: "What are they doing here?"
"I came to see you," Xu Junying smiled reluctantly, "They turned out to be my friends. They came to your house today to see if you were okay! Do you think they were too much? Or did you say something to them that made them think I would hurt you?"
Mei Niang hurriedly shook her head: "No! I didn't say anything to them. I'm not a child, I know the importance of things... I run Xiankelai, Zhang Jingyun and Lingxuzi often come here, I just told them that I like doing business and want to have my own career, so that I can legitimately support my family. They are not ordinary people, and they don't look at me with worldly eyes. They understand and promise not to tell you about this. Anyway, I wear a mask when I go out, so they think I am Cen Meimei, not Qin Mei Niang, the wife of Xu Junying. The initial help to me was also for your face. Zhang Jingyun gave me the mask to prevent the King of Qi from recognizing me and disturbing our lives. It was also I who asked him first... The day before yesterday at Xiankelai, the King of Qi told me about the old lady's request for marriage. Maybe it was because you recognized me and couldn't tolerate me doing business secretly outside. And because I was about to marry someone else, I was afraid that you would dislike your old wife and use family rules on me. Out of concern for my friend, I came to see you."
Xu Junying looked at her with a bitter smile: "They actually... don't trust me! In the past... in your country, could you be friends with a strange man like this?"
Mei Niang nodded: "My country is very open-minded. Boys and girls study and learn to read in the same college since childhood and become classmates and friends. When they grow up and reach the age of marriage, they must be cautious in treating friends of the opposite sex. Men can propose to the women they like. Of course, brave women can also propose to the men they like in return - such things are rare, after all, there are not many brave women. If the proposal is allowed, they will get married and live together for the rest of their lives, without cheating or abandoning each other, and grow old together; if the proposal is rejected, they will have to find another good partner and not complain!"
As Mei Niang spoke, she sighed softly. This summary was somewhat idealistic, so she might as well treat it as a self-compiled textbook to teach the ancients.
Recommended in full: ,,,,,,,,,
Latest full version:、、、、、、、、、
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
