Chapter 118 Chapter 118 Fang Ying hasn’t been with Ji Yan for half a year…
Fang Ying hadn't slept in the same bed with Ji Yanlang for half a year. She felt very uncomfortable when they suddenly slept together. He was always close to her, making it uncomfortable for her to turn over. In the morning, Ji Yanlang had already gotten up, but Fang Ying was still half asleep.
Seeing that she didn't open her eyes and looked sleepy, Ji Yanlang said it was still early and asked her to sleep a little longer, while he went out to practice boxing.
Fang Ying stretched her arms and legs, turned over, and really fell asleep again. She didn't get up until the beginning of spring came and called her.
Ji Yanlang came in and saw her yawning with her hands covering her face. He asked casually, "Are you still asleep?"
Fang Ying didn't want to say anything to him in front of the maid, so she just glanced at him without saying anything.
Ji Yanlang was given such a sidelong glance, and thinking of last night, he felt a little guilty and turned around to wash his face.
After they had breakfast, Xiao Hong'er woke up. Fang Ying asked the wet nurse to hold the child and went to pay her respects to Mrs. Li.
After chatting with Li for a while, Fang Ying returned to her room and had just changed into her clothes for meeting guests when she heard from outside that Princess Zhou's carriage had arrived outside the mansion. She hurriedly got up and went to the Chuihua Gate to greet Zhou Congshan as he got out of the carriage.
When Zhou Congshan saw Fang Ying, he held her hands and looked her up and down. "Why did you come out again? Are you fully recovered?"
"Much better." Fang Ying smiled and answered the previous question, "I've been bored for a month and I was thinking of getting out and walking around more."
Seeing that she looked well, Zhou Congshan nodded and walked inside, holding Fang Ying's hand. He said, "I asked them to pass on the message, saying that they must not disturb the Madam to come and greet her. Did they get through?"
"The rumor has been passed on." But I'm afraid that Li has already come out to greet her.
Zhou Congshan sighed, "I came here so early just because I didn't want to trouble my elders."
Fang Ying naturally understood her thoughts, but Zhou Congshan had a high status after all. If Li did not come to meet him in person, if the news got out, it would be considered that the Ji family was arrogant and disrespectful.
Sure enough, as the two of them reached the Chuihua Gate, Li, Yue Qing'e and Gao had already arrived.
Zhou Congshan let go of Fang Ying's hand and ordered someone to support Li who was bowing and saluting, and said, "Madam, please stop bowing. It's embarrassing for me." He also asked Yue Qing'e and Gao to stop bowing as well.
Li asked Zhou Congshan to sit in the main room, but she declined with a smile, saying that she and Fang Ying would just find a quiet place to talk.
Everyone knew that she was good friends with Fang Ying, and that she came to the banquet today just to visit Fang Ying, so they didn't stick to the formalities and etiquette. After accompanying her for a while, they let Fang Ying accompany Zhou Congshan to the garden to enjoy the flowers and drink tea.
After they entered the garden, Zhou Congshan finally remembered to ask, "Where's Hong'er? Is he asleep?"
"Yes." Fang Ying nodded. "Just now, I took her to greet our wife. We played with her for a while, but she got sleepy and asked the nurse to take her back to sleep."
"I heard from the nanny that she is very fair and has a very beautiful complexion."
Fang Ying smiled and said, "They all said so, but I didn't notice it. You can take a look later."
"I don't need to see. The daughter you give birth to will definitely be a little beauty." After Zhou Congshan finished speaking, he remembered something and pulled Fang Ying to his side and said with a smile, "I heard the nanny's report and was very happy. I wanted to recognize her as my godparents, but I got a good daughter for free."
Fang Ying was naturally eager for this, but her friend's words seemed to have changed her mind, so she jokingly said, "I agree, and now you can't regret it."
"It's not that I regret it." Zhou Congshan waved his hand. "It's His Highness who said that his daughter will eventually marry into another family..." She paused and looked at Fang Ying, but saw her friend immediately looking at her abdomen. Zhou Congshan hurriedly said, "What are you looking at? There's nothing."
Fang Ying laughed: "You scared me."
Zhou Congshan said, "I also told him he was thinking too far ahead. Not to mention we haven't had any baby yet, even if we were pregnant, who knows if it would be a boy or a girl? But he said it wouldn't matter if the baby was two or three years older, so we should wait and see."
Fang Ying was surprised because the King of Qin's words didn't sound like a joke. "This... I'm truly flattered."
"What are you so scared of?" Zhou Congshan said with a smile, "Hong'er will be my daughter-in-law, aren't you worried about it?"
"It's not that I'm worried, it's only been a full month, isn't it too early to talk about this now?"
"It's a bit early." Zhou Congshan leaned closer and whispered, "It's not certain whether you can give birth to a son."
After saying that, without waiting for Fang Ying to respond, he asked about her delivery situation.
Fang Ying did not ask any further questions and followed her words to talk about various matters related to childbirth and confinement. The two of them talked as they walked, until they were tired and sat down in the pavilion. She took the opportunity to ask Zhou Congshan why he said that just now.
"Nothing." Zhou Congshan said calmly, "I'm just annoyed by how they keep calling me the little grandson of the emperor."
They had been married for nearly a year, so it was inevitable that more and more people would say such things. Fang Ying patted her friend's hand and said, "Don't pay any attention to it. Just let it go in one ear and out the other. When I was pregnant with Hong'er, people also liked to say such things, but when it turned out to be a girl, I was so happy."
"I see your wife is also very happy. The full moon banquet is held with such solemnity."
Fang Ying nodded and said that Li was going to Zhenzhou and Ji Yanlang was going to escort her personally.
"You're only a month old, and he's leaving?"
Lichun was the only one serving in the pavilion, so Fang Ying didn't shy away from the question and said directly, "I think it's better if he leaves now."
"Why?" Zhou Congshan was puzzled. "Wasn't he very considerate during your pregnancy?"
Fang Ying was too embarrassed to talk directly about what happened last night, so she just said, "I'm not fully recovered yet, so I don't want to sleep with him."
"If you don't want to sleep together, just tell him. He won't dare to force you, right?"
"Not really, but..." Fang Ying wanted to say that she seemed even more reluctant to go through with the rituals now than when they first consummated their marriage, but since it was broad daylight and they were outside, she swallowed the thought and said, "I still want to rest and recuperate for a while."
Zhou Congshan naturally put her first and nodded, saying, "In that case, it's the best of both worlds."
The two talked for a while, and then a servant came to report that the in-laws had arrived. Fang Ying asked a few questions and learned that several other relatives, including Si Niang Ji Lanjun, had already taken their seats. Then she and Zhou Congshan got up and went to the reception hall.
When the Princess of Qin arrived, everyone came out to greet her, and after paying their respects, they returned to their seats. Fang Ying saw Fang Quan standing behind her stepmother, so she waved to her, called her to her side, and introduced her to Zhou Congshan alone.
Although they had a connection with Chu Yin, it was the first time Zhou Congshan met Fang Quan. She called the little girl to her side, held her hand and looked her over, praising Fang Quan for being pretty and like her elder sister. At the end, she gave her a string of pearls as a gift.
At this time, the maid in Fang Ying's courtyard came to report that the young lady had woken up. Fang Ying hurriedly asked someone to bring Hong'er in to show him to the elders.
This hall was not far from her residence, and the wet nurse quickly brought Hong'er over.
Zhou Congshan was the most distinguished among the people present, so naturally he was brought to her first. The little baby looked at her with his big eyes like black grapes, and just one glance made Zhou Congshan's heart melt into a pool of water.
"I told you, you are indeed a beauty." Zhou Congshan looked at Fang Ying with a smile, asked the maid to bring the gold necklace and mutton-fat jade pendant he had prepared, and put them on Hong'er personally.
Afterwards, everyone looked at Hong'er in turn, said a lot of compliments, and gave him gifts.
Mrs. Li was afraid that her granddaughter was too young to tolerate the noise and crowds, so she asked the wet nurse to take the child back, and then invited everyone to move to the flower hall to sit down and have a drink.
Today is the last day of August. The weather is nice, with gentle breeze and beautiful weather. There are many blooming chrysanthemums inside and outside the flower hall, on the steps and on the steps, many of which are famous varieties. Li explained to the guests as she walked around, and everyone stopped to admire and praise them before going in and taking their seats.
Given Zhou Congshan's status, he naturally sat at the same table with Li and other ladies who were granted imperial titles, and Fang Ying had to sit at the last seat to accompany them.
After a few rounds of drinking, drinking games began to play at the table. Fang Ying thought that Fang Quan was young and it would be boring for her to stay at the table, so she asked Xing Niang to take her out to play and find some food for her.
Xingniang left in response. After a while, Lichun took the opportunity to report back while pouring wine, saying that Ji Lanjun had left with Fang Quan, and "Si Niang doesn't know how to drink, and she also wants to go out."
It would be better to have her with them, so Fang Ying nodded with confidence and stayed at the table to accompany the guests until the banquet was over and Zhou Congshan was sent away. Only then did she have time to bring her stepmother and Fang Quan back to the yard and talk to them for a few words.
But she hadn't drunk for some days, and today she drank a little more. She felt dizzy when she returned to her room. After chatting for a while about family matters, she learned that everything was fine at home, so she asked someone to send her and her daughter to the outer courtyard to meet their father.
Fang Ying changed into casual clothes, took off her hairpins, drank the sobering soup, and fell asleep on the couch before Ji Yanlang came back. When she woke up and opened her eyes, it was already dark outside.
"My husband hasn't come back yet?" She stood up and didn't see Ji Yanlang, so she asked Lichun.
"I came back and found my wife asleep. My husband changed his clothes and went out again, saying he was going to talk to Erlang."
Li had already decided to set off on the fifth day of the first lunar month. Ji Yanlang must have something to entrust to his second uncle. Fang Ying nodded, drank a glass of warm water, and asked Hong'er again.
"I just woke up, had my milk, and fell asleep again." Lichun finished his reply, then glanced at Xingniang and said, "Why don't you take this opportunity to report to my wife?"
Xing Niang looked hesitant. Fang Ying looked at her and asked, "What's the matter?"
"Second Lady asked me to pass a message to Madam," Xing Niang stepped forward and replied carefully, "Second Lady is learning needlework now, and Sister Chu Yin has nothing to do with her. She wants to know if the princess needs any help..."
Fang Ying knew it wasn't that simple, so she asked directly, "Didn't she tie knots with Chu Yin before? How come Chu Yin has nothing to do while learning needlework? Who did she learn from?"
Xingniang replied, "Madame Gai, she learned needlework."
Nanny Gai was the wet nurse of Fang Ying's stepmother, Pan. After her son died young and her husband also died early, she had been staying with Pan. She was a person with no special abilities, but she was very good at pretending, deceiving her superiors and bullying her subordinates.
When Fang Ying heard it was her, she understood, "What's going on? They still dare to exclude Chu Yin? Is it because of what happened with my second uncle last time?"
After all, Fang Quan was only ten years old, and even Xing Niang didn't think the excuses he came up with were plausible. She asked him the whole story in just a few words.
"Sister Chuyin, they didn't dare to offend, but Madam Pan wanted to discipline Second Lady and let her concentrate on her needlework, so Sister Chuyin couldn't say anything. Second Lady felt very sorry for Sister Chuyin. Seeing the princess being so gentle and kind today, she couldn't help but ask this servant to pass on a message to Madam."
"So, Mother still blames Second Mother for Second Uncle's matter."
She wasn't asking a question, but Xingniang said, "I asked, and Second Lady said no, saying only that she was old enough and it was time for her to learn needlework."
Fang Ying sneered and asked, "Anything else?"
Xing Niang hesitated for a moment, then said, "It seems to me that Second Niang has been wronged, but she dares not speak out."
Fang Ying nodded: "I understand."
It was too late today, so she put the matter deep in her heart and thought about it for a few times. The next day, she sent someone to see Zhou Congshan and asked him when Chu Yin usually returned to the Zhou Mansion. If she did not return in the next few days, she would send a message to call Chu Yin back and then ask her what had happened to the mother and daughter of the Fang family. After asking, she should not let her return to the Fang family and give her an answer first.
Although Zhou Congshan didn't know the reason, he handled the matter very efficiently. On the third day of the New Year, he sent someone to reply and said that he had found out clearly. It was because Chu Yin asked Fang Quan to tell Fang Ying that her second uncle had also come to Ji's house, which made Fang Ying angry. Later, Fang Chengxun also blamed Pan and drove Pan Lun back to his hometown. Pan was so ashamed that she took out all her anger on Fang Quan.
"The princess said that according to Chu Yin's statement, Madam Pan still thinks that Chu Yin is your spy arranged in her mother's family, deliberately teaching the Fang family's second mother to only recognize her sister and not be close to her. Now that things have come to this, Chu Yin is indeed not suitable to stay in the Fang Mansion."
Fang Ying nodded: "Please tell the princess for me and tell Sister Chu Yin not to go back. I will have someone pack up her belongings and send them to her."
After replying, she did not rush to inform the Fang family. Instead, she packed Ji Yanlang's luggage and arranged for Li and him to go through the formalities. On the fifth day of the New Year, she sent them off and then returned to her parents' home with her people.
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The author has something to say: The Lantern Festival is over in the blink of an eye... I have naughty kids in my hometown who make noise all day long, so it's too hard to write...
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