Chapter 295: Good Raising

Kuang Xingyuan had been back in Beijing for a while, and his injuries had almost healed. At the end of April, the palace held a celebration banquet for Kuang Xingyuan. In this battle with the Oirat, Kuang Xingyuan had won many military merits. Even with a broken hand, he led his troops to sneak attack the camp behind the Oirat army at night. It can be said that he made an indelible contribution.

The three members of the Kuang family, father and son, are all in the army, guarding the northwest for Dazhao Town. If Kuang Xingyuan had not been injured this time, they would not have returned to Beijing.

"My son, you are so strong and handsome. If you dress up nicely, there might be a girl with bad taste who will take a fancy to you tonight. I can find you a wife while you are in the capital. Otherwise, you will have to go to someone else's house and get bribes."

Kuang Qianfan said, "Mom, girls nowadays like handsome guys. A guy like my second brother can be used to stop a baby from crying at night. Which girl is so blind as to like him?"

As the saying goes, "Fragrance comes from afar, but stench comes from near." Originally, Kuang Qianfan always thought that he was his mother's favorite son at home. He didn't expect that his second brother, who had not returned to Beijing for a long time, had returned and threatened his position as the most favored son, which made him feel very unhappy.

As expected, he was scolded after he finished speaking, "Stop being so shady to me. You look more like me than your father. Have you found a wife?"

"I don't want to find one. A man should build a career first and then start a family. Why are you in such a hurry?"

Mrs. Kuang rolled her eyes and said, "They are just good at telling lies. None of them makes me worry."

In fact, Kuang Xingyuan looks quite decent, except that he is tall and big. In addition, he has been beaten by the wind and sand of the northwest for many years, so he looks rough. Even after returning to Beijing and wearing the fashionable long gown, he still can't hide the wildness of the border area. Whenever he stands there, he feels very oppressive.

…

"Manman, sit with your mother today, and you can go with your father someday."

Men and women were in the same hall for today's palace banquet, but they were standing on separate sides. Outside the hall, the princess took Shen Yuan's hand, waved to her son, and told him to go find his father by himself.

"Sister-in-law, aunt, have you been here for a while?"

Today, the princess specifically instructed the palace maids to arrange seats for the women of the Shen family next to her own seat.

"No, I just got here a while ago."

After sitting down, Princess Kang Le asked, "Has the kid Shanshan come today? I haven't seen him for a while. I miss him so much."

"No, I didn't bring him here because I was afraid he would make trouble."

"Shunshun is very well behaved and will definitely not make any noise when he comes."

He Ying said helplessly: "Now it's time to be naughty. Sometimes when I am naughty, it's really annoying."

"Children of this age are all the same. At three or four years old, some are quiet."

When all the people attending the palace banquet arrived, the emperor and the crown princess also came. Since Princess Zhaoyang was appointed as the crown princess, the emperor would always have his daughter by his side when he reviewed memorials or discussed matters with ministers. He officially began to teach his daughter step by step to become a qualified crown prince.

At the beginning of the palace banquet, the emperor first praised Kuang Xingyuan, and then asked Deqing to read the imperial edict to reward the Kuang family.

"Let's raise our glasses together and toast to General Kuang."

After finishing speaking, the emperor said: "Although today is a palace banquet, there is no need to follow so many rules. Everyone, eat and drink well."

In a normal palace banquet, the emperor, empress and others would not stay until the end, but would leave in the middle. For the people below, now that the emperor, the "top man", has left, everyone can eat more comfortably.

"Father, the second son of the Kuang family looks good. I like him very much."

The emperor had just sat down to drink a sip of tea. Before he had even swallowed the tea, he heard his daughter's words and was so shocked that he spat out the tea in his mouth.

"What did you say? Xuan'er, are you kidding me, father?"

"I'm not kidding, but I just said it casually. Now I think it's not appropriate, so forget it."

"No, Xuan'er, do you really like him? Then why didn't you like the third son of the Kuang family before? Isn't the third son more handsome than the second son?"

"Father, I understand. When I was a princess, the Kuang family was fine. Now I am the crown prince, so the Kuang family is not fine, unless they do not hold military power. Father, I just said it casually. The second son of the Kuang family looks fertile. I still have to find a man like that. Good looks are secondary."

After hearing what his daughter said, the emperor frowned even more tightly. He picked up the teacup and wanted to take a sip, but then he remembered that he seemed to have vomited in it just now, so he put it down in disgust.

"Is it because of what happened with Xu Heng before that made you... Xuan'er, this man really can't be judged by his looks alone, but can he give birth to this... this..." The emperor thought for a long time but couldn't find the right words to say it.

"Father, you worry too much. I have long forgotten about Xu Heng's matter. The Kuang family is indeed not suitable. I just said it casually. The father and son of the Kuang family are brave and good at fighting. Such talents should be more suitable to be generals to protect our Great Zhao Kingdom."

"Ah, yes, what you said makes sense. This...Xuan'er, if you like strong men, there are many of them in the imperial guards. How about father find two for you?"

Zhaoyang quickly refused, "That's not necessary, Father. I don't miss a man anymore."

After the palace banquet, Princess Kangle and Xie Yuan really decided to leave Beijing. If they didn't leave, another half year would have passed. So they might as well not leave.

Before leaving Beijing, the couple went to Shen's house for dinner. After all, they were leaving Beijing this time and it was uncertain when they would return. However, they had agreed with Xie Hui and Shen Yuan that they would send a letter back once a month, but they did not have to reply. They might not stay in one place for a long time, so they would not receive the letter even if they sent it.

On the first day of May, before going to work, Xie Hui and Shen Yuan saw the two off at the city gate.

"When I went to the northwest before, my parents also saw me off outside the city gate. I didn't think it was a big deal at that time, but now that it's my turn to see them off, I feel that perhaps the one who sees others off is the one who is most reluctant to let go."

Shen Yuan held Xie Hui's hand and said, "Dad and Mom are just going out to visit. They will be back in a few months. Besides, time flies. In a blink of an eye, a year will have passed."

“You are right.”

In May, the sun rises very early. By now, the roadside is already filled with various stalls of all sizes. Some of the stalls on the roadside have already started selling colorful ropes, and Shen Yuan even went up to buy some.

"Look, time really flies and it's almost Dragon Boat Festival. But don't even think about it, you definitely won't be free."

"What do you want to do on Dragon Boat Festival? There will be a dragon boat race this year, do you want to go and watch it?"

Shen Yuan shook his head. "Nothing about the Dragon Boat Festival this year has anything to do with me. I'm not going anywhere. I'm just staying at home, getting up early every morning to go to work. I must sleep a whole day on that day."

"Thank you for your hard work, Master Shen."

"Master Shen, don't be tired. Master Shen still has a case to review. Goodbye."