Chapter 154 Chapter 154 It turns out that the Crown Princess was also pregnant last year...
Ji Yanlang and his entourage did not return to Luoyang Prefecture until mid-February. By then, the Crown Prince had already arrived in Luoyang with the officials who stayed in Tokyo.
"Why have you lost so much weight?" Fang Ying couldn't help but ask with concern as soon as the couple came out of Li's courtyard.
Ji Yanlang touched his face. "I wouldn't have noticed if you hadn't told me." It was indeed sunken, with no flesh left. "Maybe it's from all that traveling back and forth, over three thousand miles. It's okay, it'll grow back after some rest."
"I think my third sister-in-law has become very thin." Mrs. An originally had round cheeks and a round face, but now she is so thin that her chin is pointed. Her clothes are so empty that people can sigh when they see her.
Ji Yanlang nodded: "Third sister-in-law has been holding on all the way."
The two of them returned to the room while talking. Fang Ying helped him bathe as usual and talked about everything that had happened since they last met.
"The Crown Prince has entered the capital, and you and the Crown Princess can finally communicate the news, right?" Ji Yanlang asked.
"Yes, the news is finally out. Did you know? It turns out the Crown Princess was also pregnant last year. She gave birth on the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month. It was a little princess."
Ji Yanlang was surprised: "Such a big happy event, how come we didn't hear anything about it during the New Year?"
Fang Ying said, "She gave birth on the 28th of the twelfth lunar month, and the next day is New Year's Eve. How could the news come so quickly?"
Ji Yanlang suddenly realized: "Yes, we received the funeral letter on the fifth day of the New Year."
Speaking of this, Fang Ying suddenly remembered and asked, "Fourth Uncle didn't make a fuss when he saw Third Uncle's coffin, did he?"
"No, didn't father specifically tell him to do that?"
Ji Yanlang heard from his second brother Ji Yanshou that his father waited for his fourth brother to come home before leaving, because he wanted to personally warn him not to cause trouble and let his third brother rest in peace.
"Yes, but I didn't expect Fourth Uncle to be so obedient. After all, Third Sister-in-law was unwilling to accept it and still felt that Third Uncle was harmed by someone."
"It's understandable that Third Sister-in-law thinks this way. Fourth Brother knows Third Brother's temper best. Besides, Xiazhou has already made a decision, and Father has also spoken. He himself didn't go to Xiazhou, so what's there to make a fuss about?"
Ji Yanlang paused for a moment before continuing, "Fourth brother is much more sophisticated than third brother. He used to be very affectionate with everyone, and this time he was even more so. He would often drag us down memories of the past, wiping away tears as he talked about how he was as a child."
Although he was dissatisfied with his two half-brothers, one of them was gone suddenly, and he couldn't help but feel that life was impermanent. The remaining one took the initiative to show goodwill, and there was no point in holding on to the past.
"After all, we are still brothers." Ji Yanlang said finally.
"Yes." Fang Ying had never gotten along with An before, but now she still felt sorry for her and the children.
"Let's not talk about this anymore. Has there been any letter from my father-in-law?"
After hearing this, Fang Ying finally smiled: "Not only is there a letter, but I'm also asking you to do something."
"What's worth asking me for? Just tell me and I'll do it."
"Wipe yourself first, put on your clothes, and then go out to read the letter." Fang Ying wrapped his wet hair, washed her hands, and went out first.
Ji Yanlang was very curious. He quickly dried himself, put on his clothes and went out. Fang Ying had already found the letter and put it on the small table in the outer room. He went over and sat down, unable to wait to open the letter.
"Is Second Mother already old enough to get married?" Ji Yanlang asked in surprise as he read the letter.
"Ah, I'm already fourteen this year."
"The magistrate of Kaifeng Prefecture has worked with my father-in-law for several years, and we know each other well. When my father-in-law takes up an official post outside the capital, we will no longer be superiors and subordinates." Ji Yanlang nodded as he looked at her. "It's rare to find such a suitable family. Why do we need to go and see them?"
Fang Ying laughed and said, "Why don't you think about it? Kaifeng Prefecture has such strict rules. How could Judge Wang and my father have the guts to even think about getting married for no reason?"
Ji Yanlang suddenly realized: "Is it His Royal Highness the Crown Prince?"
Fang Ying smiled and nodded. "The Crown Princess sent someone to tell me that His Royal Highness has resigned as the prefect of Kaifeng Prefecture. He heard that Judge Wang has a son who is intelligent and studious, and has already gained a reputation for talent at the age of sixteen. She asked if he was married. Judge Wang said no, and His Royal Highness then mentioned that we seem to have a daughter of similar age."
Judge Wang came to Kaifeng Prefecture after the Chu King's treason case that year. Although he was quite trusted by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, he was not as experienced as Fang Chengxun in Kaifeng Prefecture. At this time, he heard the music and understood the elegant intention. Taking advantage of the New Year's visit, he met with the Fang family.
"Although my father is satisfied, they are still in Kaifeng Prefecture. If we arrange the marriage right now, it will definitely give people something to talk about. It just so happens that the young man from the Wang family is coming to Xijing to take the exam, so my father wants you to meet him."
Fang Ying paused for a moment, "The Crown Princess also said that it's not too late to take a closer look at my character before making a decision."
"Okay, let me ask around. It would be best if we could meet together."
"No rush, I need to prepare for the exam, you should take a break first."
Just then, the maid came to announce that Shi Lang had woken up. Ji Yanlang hurriedly said, "Hurry up and bring him here. I haven't seen He Er since I came back."
"Ibis" was the nickname Li gave to Shilang - she used the word "Hong" to think of various flying birds, which had good meanings and sounded pleasant, and she thought of the red-crowned crane she had seen in Yangzhou before.
The child was brought over, but when he saw his father, he became shy and refused to be held by him. Fang Ying took him first and let the child sit on her lap. Only then could Ji Yanlang get closer to take a look at his fat son.
"His hair has grown back, but it's still not as pretty as his sister's." He pinched Ivy's chubby little hand as he spoke. "He must have gained a lot of weight in the forty days I've been gone, right?"
Fang Ying said with a half-smile, "You still think he's fat? But mother said that He'er looks exactly like you when you were a child."
Ji Yanlang defended himself, "Mother was just saying that because I said the ibis was not pretty, she did it on purpose."
"They also said that when you were five or six months old, you were fatter than an ibis."
Ji Yanlang: "...My mother was bullying me, but I didn't know about it, and no one testified for me."
Fang Ying held Ivy's arm, lowered her head and kissed him, and said with a smile: "Don't you know that you are bullying our Ivy?"
"You're being too protective now. Who was the first to dislike the baby when it was first born?"
"I didn't, I just said Hong'er was fair."
"That's not me either. I just said Hong'er was born beautiful."
The couple bickered with each other, and the maids in the room couldn't help laughing. Little Ibis didn't understand what they were saying, so she just stretched out her fat hands, trying to reach the letter on the small table.
"I can't give you this."
Ji Yanlang folded the letter back and asked Lichun to put it away. After his hair dried, he combed it into a bun again and went to Li's courtyard with Fang Ying to have lunch with his mother.
Hong'er did not fail to recognize her father this time, but Ji Yanlang was exhausted when he first arrived home, so Li kept her in the room just like last time.
Seeing his parents coming over, he looked at them eagerly. Seeing this, Ji Yanlang's heart melted. He quickly squatted down and stretched out his hand, "Come, Hong'er, let daddy hold you."
Hong'er smiled and threw himself into his father's arms.
Fang Ying, who was standing nearby, saw that only the two of them were in the room. Neither Uncle Ji Yanshou nor her three nieces were there, so she smiled and asked, "Aren't Uncle Ji and the children coming over for dinner?"
Mrs. Li nodded and said, "I told them not to come over and to come back in the evening."
Since Yue Qing'e was not at home, it was indeed a bit inconvenient for both families to have dinner at Li's house, especially since Ji Yanshou had to rush back to Tokyo early the next morning. The nieces were probably like Hong'er, reluctant to leave their father and unwilling to sit at a separate table.
But if it is not divided, Fang Ying will not be able to sit down. The arrangement made by the mother-in-law is the best of both worlds.
So in the evening, it was a rare occasion for their little family of four to have dinner together - although He'er couldn't eat anything yet, he happened to be awake, so Fang Ying asked the wet nurse to put him on the couch and let him lie down and watch the fun.
Hong'er likes her younger brother very much. She tells her father that her younger brother can turn over, and then praises her younger brother for being able to lift his head high. She also teases her younger brother with food and asks him to lift his head to show his father.
Ji Yanlang was very pleased. When he went to bed at night, he pulled Fang Ying aside and sighed, "I hope they can be as close as this when they grow up."
"We can't just hope for this; we as parents need to be impartial and fair."
"Of course." Ji Yanlang responded quickly, but then realized that it might not be that easy. "This time when we went back, we also went to visit our eldest brother's grave."
He squeezed Fang Ying's hand and continued, "As you know, my eldest brother and I are eight years apart, and I've lived in the Shu Palace for a few years. I haven't really spent much time with my brothers, so my second brother told me some of my eldest brother's past."
At this point, Ji Yanlang suddenly asked Fang Ying, "Have I ever told you that the thing I remember most vividly about my elder brother is the year I first returned home. He carried me on his shoulders and took me to see the lanterns?"
Fang Ying nodded: "I have said that, and I also told Hong'er."
"Yes, but I didn't know he had been there that time until I heard my second brother tell me about it at my eldest brother's grave this time."
"Maybe you were so busy watching the fun that you forgot."
Ji Yanlang shook his head. "No, my second brother said he got separated from us as soon as we arrived at the Lantern Festival. He was so busy looking for us that he didn't even look at the lanterns properly. As for my eldest brother, my mother had told me to bring me home early, and she thought if we got separated, my second brother would return on his own, so she didn't look for him. As a result, my second brother was the last one to return home, and even got scolded by my father."
Fang Ying vaguely heard some of the hidden meaning in his words, so she didn't say anything and listened to him continue.
"When Second Brother said this, he actually wanted to say that Big Brother was free and easy and didn't care about trivial matters. But as I listened," Ji Yanlang paused, thought about the wording, and then continued, "I realized that Second Brother had suffered a lot of grievances when we were not paying attention."
Fang Ying consoled him, "With so many brothers and sisters in a family, it's inevitable that everyone will be wronged sometimes."
"Yes," Ji Yanlang agreed, "so let's not push ourselves too hard and insist on being fair in everything."
“…”Waiting for her here!
Fang Ying pushed his hand away: "Do we really need to go through so much trouble just to say this?"
Ji Yanlang laughed. "No, I just thought of it because of what I just said. And although my second brother felt a little aggrieved at the time, he didn't blame my eldest brother at all. He said that he had always admired my eldest brother since he was a child. He was good at both literature and martial arts, and had a heroic spirit."
"Well, I've also heard that my uncle is both civil and military, and has outstanding character. Every time he goes to war or returns victorious, many young ladies flock to the streets to see him."
When Fang Ying went to the Ji Mansion, her uncle Ji Yanzong was still alive. The servants sometimes talked about it, saying that they didn't know what kind of lady from a noble family could be worthy of Dalang.
When Ji Yanlang heard this, he asked curiously, "Have you met my eldest brother?"
"No, apart from paying respects to mother, when has uncle ever been to the backyard? Even you, if you hadn't been hiding from others and plotting at that time, I wouldn't have met you."
Ji Yanlang smiled and said, "That's right." Then he sighed, "Mother often regrets that she shouldn't have let eldest brother do what he wanted. If he had been like second brother and married at the age of sixteen or seventeen, maybe he could have had a child."
As the eldest son of the eldest princess and the governor was so outstanding, there were naturally many powerful people in Shu who wanted to marry into the Ji family. However, Ji Yanzong was young and talented, and he was inevitably arrogant. At that time, he did not take a fancy to any of them, and the marriage was not settled until he died on the battlefield.
"After my eldest brother passed away, many families sent matchmakers to express their desire for posthumous marriages. Mother said that when he was alive, he made all the decisions about his marriages, and there was no reason for him to suffer such an injustice after his death. So she rejected all of them."
Fang Ying listened quietly, thinking there was more to come. But when he got to this point, he yawned and said, "It's getting late. Go to bed. You have to send your second brother off tomorrow morning."
She couldn't help laughing, agreed, asked Lichun to blow out the lights, and turned over to sleep.
Early the next morning, Ji Yanlang sent his second brother out of the city and went to the camp to report for leave. Although the Ministry of Revenue was still in Tokyo, it would move to Luoyang in March or April at the latest, and the family would be reunited then. Therefore, the two brothers did not feel any sadness about parting.
On the contrary, Ji Yanqing showed some sadness of separation. He was going to set off to return to Sanjiao tomorrow, and he didn't know when he would be able to return to Luoyang. Although Ji Yanlang's grudge against him had faded a lot, he still felt at this moment that he was more reluctant to leave the prosperity of Luoyang than to leave his brothers.
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The author has something to say: I will revise the previous article recently, especially the name part. I discovered before that the generation names of the younger sisters of Hong'er's generation were inappropriate - the word Jing comes from Jing'er's childhood name, but Jingwan's mother is Yue Qing'e. When I first wrote it, I don't know why I didn't realize that the word "Qing" should not appear in her name, haha.
Originally, the easiest way to change it was to change Yue Qing'e's name, so that I wouldn't have to think of names for the sisters. However, I like the name Yue Qing'e so much that I don't want to change it. So I thought about what to name the sisters for a long time. Now I finally decided to use the "Huai" generation name like the boys. The new names are as follows:
Ji Huaiyun (Quiet)
Ji Huaizhi (Jingchan)
Ji Huairong (Quiet Rao)
Ji Huaidi (Jingjuan)
Ji Huaizhen (Jingshu), nicknamed Honger
I will modify the names mentioned above chapter by chapter. If you see the prompt, you can ignore it.
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