Chapter 62 Chapter 62 Ji Yanlang: "You know I am...
I went out for a day yesterday and saw everything I needed to see. Today I should start preparing step by step. Fang Ying was busy for half a day and finally agreed with the two managers on the size of the area to be fenced off, how to arrange it, and what equipment to bring from the mansion.
"I see that most of the tourists are laying straw or bamboo mats. They travel for fun in the wild. Why don't we bring a few large mats and felt rugs, so that we can play cards together or let the children have fun. It will be convenient." After sending the steward away, Fang Ying went to discuss with Yue Qing'e.
"Okay, I'll have them take you to the warehouse later. If they don't have anything suitable, I'll send someone to buy some."
"Also, I don't know what the weather will be like that day. What if it rains..."
Yue Qing'e interrupted immediately: "Pfft, ffff, ffff, don't say that. How can we go out when it's raining? Wouldn't that ruin everything?"
Fang Ying smiled and said, "Normally, there's little rain in spring, and the wind has been quite strong these past few days, so it doesn't look like rain is coming. But just in case, I was thinking about putting up a awning to shelter us from the rain. It would also make it easier for the ladies to change clothes."
"Then let's build one. It's no big deal." Yue Qing'e said readily.
After the matter was settled, the two discussed what kind of tea sets, bowls and plates, and even dining tables and stools to bring. They made a long list and went to show it to Li together.
Li took it, glanced at it, and said, "Very good, very detailed. Bring a few big umbrellas with you, to protect you from the sun and rain."
Yue Qing'e couldn't help but exclaim, "Oh my!" "Mother is so thoughtful. My son and I only thought about building a tent just in case, and forgot about the umbrella."
Fang Ying agreed with a smile: "Yes, we all forgot that we need to protect ourselves from the sun."
"You have so much to worry about, it's inevitable that you might have missed one or two things." Li continued to look at the details. "I can't think of anything else at the moment, so I'll prepare it this way for now. As for the rest, each family can bring their own things. There's no need to prepare everything in public."
It was getting late, so after discussing this matter, Yue Qing'e took her leave.
Fang Ying was still worried about Zhou Congshan. Taking advantage of the quiet time around Li, she told her mother-in-law about Zhou Congshan's refusal to see the King of Qin yesterday. "Although Your Highness doesn't mind, if Sister Zhou can't change her mind, I'm afraid her future marriage will be..."
"You can't blame her for this." Li sighed softly, "After all, they are brothers. If she could marry someone from another family, perhaps she would let it go."
"I think so too, but unfortunately..." Fang Ying sincerely asked her mother-in-law, "Mother, how can I persuade Sister Zhou to be more open-minded?"
"The person who tied the bell must untie it. In this case, if you try to persuade him, I'm afraid it will have little effect." Li shook her head.
"You mean... the King of Qin? But Sister Zhou doesn't want to see him at all." Fang Ying really didn't think the King of Qin could be of any help in this matter. She even felt that the more she did, the more mistakes she would make. It would be best for the King of Qin to do nothing.
Li said, "They will eventually become husband and wife. How can they avoid each other then? Once they become husband and wife, they will spend a long time together and gradually change. Isn't it the same with you and Liu Lang?"
Fang Ying pursed her lips and smiled, but in her heart she felt that they could not be compared at all. The reason why Ji Yanlang could turn around was that she was willing to pretend to be affectionate and patiently coax him, and before that, she had already been recognized by the Ji family.
Can these Qin kings do this? Even if they can, there is still the murder of Crown Prince Zhaoyi in the middle!
"I know you are worried that the King of Qin is a member of a royal family and may not tolerate your wife, right?" Li asked again when she saw Fang Ying didn't say anything.
Fang Ying nodded. "Yes. And... Miss Zhou's behavior could easily lead people to believe that she's deeply in love with the late Crown Prince and is unwilling to marry the King of Qin."
"A misunderstanding?" Li was surprised. "Isn't that right? Is there another reason?"
"Uh..." Fang Ying quickly gathered her thoughts and answered carefully, "Ever since I've known Sister Zhou, although I haven't confirmed it with her, when I hear her talk about the late Crown Prince, there's not much romantic affection, more like brother and sister. So I've always felt that her reluctance to marry another prince is actually because she feels unfair for Empress Zhaomu and the late Crown Prince, and feels that they've usurped his throne."
Others might think Zhou Congshan was being rude and overbearing, but when Li heard this, she felt quite the same way and couldn't help but sigh, "She's quite the affectionate child."
Fang Ying was deeply moved by her mother-in-law's assessment and agreed, "Yes, if it were someone else, they would have happily waited to be married, waiting to become a princess. That's why I always want to persuade her, but the words are on the tip of my tongue, but I'm afraid they'd be unkind and even hurt her, so I swallow them back."
Mrs. Li nodded and said, "She has to figure this out on her own. As for whether their marriage will be harmonious in the future, it depends on whether they are willing to open their hearts and think more about each other. You worrying and fretting here is really of no use. Not to mention that you are just an outsider, even if they are my parents and relatives, just like I am to you and Liu Lang, or your second uncle and his wife, I can't control anything else, but I can't control whether you two are in love or not."
At this point, a maid came in from the door, and Li asked first, "What's wrong?"
"Liu Lang is back." the maid replied.
Li nodded to indicate that he understood, and finally said to Fang Ying, "Everyone has his own fate and destiny. Whether it is fate or disaster, you have to go through it yourself."
"Yes, Ying'er will learn from you." Fang Ying stood up and responded seriously.
Li smiled and nodded. Then the door curtain outside rustled and Ji Yanlang walked in. She asked with a smile, "Why are you back so late today?"
"The camp is training, so it's a little late."
The mother and son chatted for a while and then dinner was served. After dinner, the young couple took their leave and returned to their room. Outside, the sun was setting in the west and the sky was filled with rosy clouds.
The two of them walked back slowly, Lichun lagged far behind, not disturbing the two masters' conversation.
"Don't worry about His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin. He doesn't have the slightest intention of blaming me."
Fang Ying was surprised: "You met the King of Qin so soon?"
"I thought His Highness might not have been able to complete his inspection of the river yesterday, so I deliberately walked along the river on my way back, and sure enough, I met him again."
He really took this matter to heart and rushed to do it. "No wonder you came back late today. Thank you for your hard work." Fang Ying said sincerely.
Ji Yanlang laughed: "What's so hard about this? I'm just taking a leisurely stroll..." He suddenly felt something was wrong, "Hey, you've led me astray, why are we being so polite to each other?"
Fang Ying also laughed and said, "I didn't expect you to go today. I thought you would have a chance to meet the King of Qin sometime later..."
"I just thought that opportunities were hard to come by, and Kaifeng Prefecture wasn't a place anyone could go to, so I went along the river to try my luck."
"What did His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin say?"
"His Highness said that he was indeed a bit abrupt yesterday. It's no wonder that Miss Zhou was angry. After learning about what you told me, he still feels a little uneasy and asked me to ask you to help convey his apology."
"I'll help convey it?" Fang Ying couldn't help but laugh. "Why doesn't he go to the Zhou residence himself? I think it would be better for him to meet Uncle Zhou and say a few words for Sister Zhou."
Ji Yanlang said, "I have also advised you that. If Your Highness goes to see Uncle Zhou in person and tells him that he doesn't need to restrict Miss Zhou, then I think Uncle Zhou will not even forbid her from going out to play with you."
"Isn't he afraid to go?" Fang Ying asked in a low voice.
"Isn't he afraid?" Ji Yanlang laughed and shook his head. "His Highness seemed a little embarrassed, but he didn't explain why. He just thanked me and asked me to convey his apologies first. Perhaps the Kaifeng Prefecture was too busy with official duties and he didn't have time, or maybe he was trying to avoid suspicion."
"The imperial edict has been issued, so what is there to avoid? The status of father-in-law and son-in-law has been determined, but the government still won't allow the King of Qin to visit Zhou's uncle?" Fang Ying lowered her voice.
Ji Yanlang also whispered, "It's hard to say. Anyway, the King of Qin really didn't mean to blame me. I have made up for my sins with my merits."
Fang Ying laughed: "What's the point of talking about guilt or not? Who said you were guilty?"
Ji Yanlang glanced at her with an accusatory look in his eyes. Fang Ying immediately said seriously, "I have never done anything wrong. I thank you on behalf of Sister Zhou. Wait..."
"You're thanking me on behalf of others?" Ji Yanlang shook his head repeatedly, "How do you distinguish between close and distant relatives? I felt that what you said just now was not right, and now you are thanking me on behalf of others..."
He hadn't meant to say it, but Fang Ying had taken it to heart. Feeling a little guilty, she hurriedly tugged at his sleeve and coaxed him, "I know you were in such a hurry to go because of what I said. I was so moved that my words didn't express what I meant. Don't be angry."
Ji Yanlang was not angry, but rather enjoyed her gentle and considerate attitude, so he pretended to be serious: "You know I went there for you, so shouldn't you thank me properly?"
It was obvious that these words were not good, but Fang Ying was in the wrong at the moment and couldn't refute them. She could only respond, "Yes, thank you, my dear..."
Ji Yanlang immediately stopped him: "Let's go back to the room and talk."
Let's talk about it in the room? Can we talk about it in the room? This guy has been particularly restless these past two nights. Fang Ying is really a little overwhelmed. She just hopes that her period will come soon so that she can have a few days of peace and sleep well.
Of course, this wish was not fulfilled that night.
The next day was already the seventh day of the Lunar New Year. Her period, which was almost due, still hadn't come. Fang Ying couldn't help but mutter to Lichun, "Please don't let it wait until the tenth day. It'll ruin everything."
Lichun looked at her belly cautiously, wanting to say something but stopping himself.
"What are you thinking?" Fang Ying immediately glared at her. "That's impossible! He's only been back for a few days?"
"...I'm overthinking it." Lichun quickly admitted her mistake, "Perhaps it's because my wife has been busy these past few days, and her menstruation has been a little irregular."
It is also possible that women's menstruation is always unreasonable. It did not come, and Fang Ying did not feel any discomfort, so she had to wait patiently.
Fortunately, he had to go to Xiangguo Temple to perform a ritual the next day, so Ji Yanlang was in no mood to fool around that night. He just lay down with Fang Ying and talked about the two cavalrymen he missed the most: "One was called Xiong Dashan, and the other was called Sun Fengnian. They were of similar age and had similar personalities. They were inseparable in the camp on weekdays..."
Ji Yanlang's voice grew deeper as he spoke. "Dashan is a good rider, and Fengnian is an expert archer. The two of them often spar with each other, even sharing their specialties. Before we left for the battle, I even said, 'You two are so close, why don't you become sworn brothers?' But they said they'd already agreed to become in-laws in the future, so we wouldn't become sworn brothers anymore..."
Fang Ying reached out her hand, patted him across the quilt, and consoled him, "Maybe in the next life they'll be reborn into the same family and become brothers."
"I hope they can find a good family." Ji Yanlang whispered.
"Buddha bless, yes."
Fang Ying felt that it was almost time to go to sleep, so she retracted her hand and turned over.
Unexpectedly, just as she was about to fall asleep, Ji Yanlang suddenly said from behind her: "Come to think of it, Brother Deng also died in battle that day, but I never thought of holding a ritual to help him pass away..."
Fang Ying woke up with a start and mumbled, "My mother did it, at Xiangguo Temple."
"Ah... Mom is thinking about me again."
Fang Ying didn't respond, closing her eyes and trying to go back to sleep. However, Ji Yanlang showed no sign of wanting to sleep at all. He leaned towards her and continued, "But my thoughts back then were definitely different from what they are now. I used to think that a real man who fought for his country and died on the battlefield was a worthy death."
Yes, Fang Ying opened his eyes. Why did he suddenly lose his composure this time? It wasn't his first time on the battlefield. Before going out, he claimed to be accustomed to seeing mountains of corpses and seas of blood, and he didn't care about anything. Could it be: "Is it because we lost this battle?"
Ji Yanlang was silent for a moment before answering, "No, it's because this battle... shouldn't have been fought."
The exhausted army, having been on an expedition for months, had not received any rewards after the great victory, and it was the end of the year... all these disadvantages seemed like a death warrant, taking away tens of thousands of lives in one fell swoop. "It's not worth it for my fallen brothers."
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