Chapter 131 Chapter 131 The couple had a few drinks
Fang Ying went home and told Ji Yanlang that the King of Qin had proposed marriage again. Just like last time, he didn't take it to heart.
"The princess herself said she was just trying to cheer her up," Ji Yanlang said, pinching his daughter's chubby hand. "She's only just gotten pregnant. How could she be engaged so soon?"
"I originally thought so, but His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin has mentioned it repeatedly, and he's not the kind of person who makes random promises..."
Ji Yanlang said: "Even if it's sincere, there's nothing wrong with it."
Fang Ying looked at him and asked, "Do you think it's a good thing for your daughter to marry into the royal family?"
"Well, do you think it's bad?" Ji Yanlang asked back.
Fang Ying shook her head: "I don't know." She paused, then whispered, "I just thought about how Crown Prince Zhaoyi died in such an unclear manner, so..."
Because she wanted to tell everyone that Zhou Congshan was pregnant, she sent all the servants to the outer room. Now, there were only the three of them in the inner room.
When Ji Yanlang asked her to talk, he recalled many stories from the past dynasties. But then he thought about it and realized that those were turbulent times after all, so he said with relief, "Isn't this a peaceful and prosperous time? Besides, the princess is still here."
"That's true, but... never mind. Why worry about it now?" Fang Ying laughed to herself. "It's obviously a happy event. I can't wait to be happy."
He also told Ji Yanlang that King Qin and Zhou Congshan did not want to make the matter public for the time being and should not tell anyone about it.
Ji Yanlang teased her deliberately: "Then shouldn't you tell me too?"
"I asked the princess, and she said it was okay. She wouldn't hide it from you."
Ji Yanlang: "...What if the princess doesn't ask you to tell me?"
Fang Ying smiled and said, "Then I'll just have to hold it in for now and talk about it when the time comes."
"Hold it in for now?" Ji Yanlang was a little unhappy. "If I ask you what you talked about with the princess, and why you're so happy, how will you answer?"
"I haven't seen you for two months. It's nice to just chat about family matters."
"..." Given his personality, he certainly wouldn't ask any further questions, and it wasn't appropriate to do so anyway.
Ji Yanlang thought for a moment and then asked, "When I find out, I'll ask you why you kept it from me."
Fang Ying blinked: "I didn't hide it from you, I just found out too."
Ji Yanlang was so angry that he grabbed Fang Ying and tickled her waist twice. Fang Ying dodged while laughing, saying, "Didn't I tell you?"
Hong'er beside him also uttered a few "ah ah" sounds and waved her hands. Ji Yanlang glanced at his daughter, let go of her hands, and said angrily, "I'll settle the score with you tonight."
Fang Ying finally got her period at the end of last month. This time, she was no longer as reluctant to let him get close to her as before. They could even be intimate with her before bed at night, but they didn't get serious in the end.
He wants to give it a try tonight.
"It was just a joke," Fang Ying said, not knowing what he was thinking. She sat up straight and glanced at him, "You took it seriously and now you blame others."
There was a smile in the corners of her eyes and eyebrows, and she looked at people with the corners of her eyes, which was very lively. Ji Yanlang felt even more itchy. After going to bed at night, he put in a lot of tenderness and finally made Fang Ying nod.
He remembered the previous lesson and moved very gently. He asked Fang Ying from time to time if she was comfortable. He also paid close attention to her reactions and found that she was still a little tense at the beginning, but gradually, her body relaxed like a willow leaf in spring.
But what Fang Ying was thinking at this moment was: It turns out that this thing can really make people feel comfortable.
Not only did her body feel comfortable, but her heart also felt particularly comfortable, because Ji Yanlang's unprecedented tenderness made her feel cherished and loved. She felt that not only were their bodies close to each other, but their hearts were also closely attached.
Before she got pregnant with Hong'er, Ji Yanlang had indeed made her experience pleasure, but those pleasures were very short-lived, so short-lived that by the time she washed her body and lay down to sleep, most of them had already disappeared.
Unlike tonight, when the two of them had packed up and were about to go to bed, they were still reluctant to separate and hugged each other tightly.
This night was so wonderful that there was no need for too many words. Ji Yanlang also understood that this was the real secret that could make Fang Ying as happy as he was.
This made him savor the memory till the next day. Seeing that there was nothing to do in the camp, he slipped away early and went out to buy some of Fang Ying's favorite food. He rushed home eagerly, but he saw Fang Ying with her hands full of the scent of ink.
"I wanted to copy out my pregnancy notes," Fang Ying explained with a smile, "I should have done it a long time ago, but I've been too lazy."
Ji Yanlang knew that it was copied for Princess Zhou, and said with a smile, "It's not too late to copy it now." Then he raised his hand holding the food, "Pan rabbit and fried quail, wash your hands and have some."
Fang Ying agreed and asked Lichun to wash the brush, Xiliu to make tea, Xingniang to put the food on the plates, Xiuzhu to fetch some water, and she and Ji Yanlang washed their hands together, then sat down opposite each other across the low table.
"Your camp is becoming more and more free." He bought these things and came back earlier than he would go home on time after finishing his shift, which shows how early Ji Yanlang came out of the camp.
Seeing that the maids were all far away, Ji Yanlang chuckled softly and said, "Isn't this because I miss you?"
He thought Fang Ying would give him a sidelong glance as usual, but unexpectedly she just lowered her head and smiled, picked up a piece of quail for him, and told him to shut his mouth quickly.
Ji Yanlang ate the quail meat but didn't stop talking. He continued, "There's a rumor going around that the government is planning to reduce the army. Now the morale of the Imperial Guards is unsettled, so naturally they've relaxed their training."
"Disarmament?" Fang Ying was surprised. "Why are you thinking of disarmament? What about the barbarians in the north?"
"The troops stored in the north are all elite, and there's no way to cut them off. I think the intention is to cut down the imperial guards in the capital, eliminating the weak and retaining the strong." Ji Yanlang took two sips of tea and continued, "If you ask me, it should have been cut down long ago. Not to mention other places, even those surrendered soldiers in Shuzhong, seven or eight out of ten should have been cut down."
Fang Ying, who knew nothing about military affairs, asked, "Are there still many soldiers in the capital who originally surrendered from Shu?"
"Yes, not only in Shuzhong, but also in Nanliang, Wuyue, Jingchu, and even in Fujian."
"Why do I vaguely remember that tens of thousands of soldiers from Shuzhong surrendered and were sent to reclaim wasteland and incorporated into the garrison army?"
Ji Yanlang nodded. "Yes, but only 20,000, and most of them are in the Imperial Guards. The deputy commander I told you about last time—that's the King of Han's uncle. He came to me today and told me that the disarmament is 80% certain."
Fang Ying smiled and said, "I'm not going to tell you that it was the King of Han who told him, am I?"
"It's not that stupid." Ji Yanlang also laughed, "But that's what he meant."
Fang Ying laughed and shook her head. "Yesterday, the princess told me that everyone from the Imperial Concubine to the King of Han looked down on Princess Cui's family. She also said that Princess Cui's brothers were also not up to the task. Princess Cui's father and the Emperor's family were childhood friends. If only one of them had the ability to support the family, things wouldn't have ended like this."
"Really?" Ji Yanlang really didn't know. "I only heard that Feng Jue was originally a close neighbor of the official's family and had known them since childhood. Unfortunately, his daughter was promised to the son of the deposed King of Chu."
Fang Ying sighed: "And the Princess of Chu, she had only been married for a few years when she suffered such a disaster..." The King of Chu committed a sin and implicated all the children in his family.
"It's not just her. Even Wang Jichong is disliked by the emperor now." Ji Yanlang felt that drinking tea was still lacking in interest, so he asked the maid to bring them the green plum wine they brewed in spring. He then said, "Feng Jue had to speak to the emperor himself to avoid being implicated."
Fang Ying whispered, "These two marriages were originally arranged by the government, right?"
Ji Yanlang said, "But Wang Jichong is indeed close to the deposed King of Chu."
Talking about this matter inevitably made people lose interest, so Fang Ying asked about the military reduction: "The military reduction will not include you, right?"
"Logically, it shouldn't happen. These new cavalry units we've established are all elite troops, but soldiers are soldiers and generals are generals. If we lay off people elsewhere and reorganize them, wouldn't the generals at all levels above us become redundant?"
Fang Ying laughed: "So that Deputy Commander Cui was trying to curry favor with you."
Ji Yanlang looked disdainful: "Does he think that I am an official just like him, relying on my father's influence?"
He has indeed made two military achievements, and this time he saved the emperor. I don't believe anyone can take his position.
At this time, the wine was also brought. Ji Yanlang didn't need the maid to serve him. He poured a glass for Fang Ying and himself respectively.
It was not yet dark, but there were no elders at home and he did not go out to see people, so Fang Ying accompanied him for a few drinks and asked the kitchen to prepare a few more hot dishes.
The couple had a few drinks, chatted and talked happily, and after dinner they played with Hong'er for a while.
After the child fell asleep, Ji Yanlang thought of the time when he lived in the bamboo house and suggested, "Seeing you writing reminds me of this. It's a rare year of peace and tranquility, and I have some free time. We should continue reading military books."
"Okay." Fang Ying replied with a smile, "It just so happens that I only have a few pages of paper, and I have nothing to do after copying them."
"Don't they have anyone who can write?" Ji Yanlang looked at the maids, "Find someone to copy for you."
"I just wanted to practice calligraphy. I haven't picked up a pen for a long time, and my hands are getting stiff again."
The days are short in winter and the window paper is thick. Ji Yanlang was originally worried that she would tire her eyes from copying and reading at the same time, but seeing that she insisted, he didn't say much.
But later, when he got off duty and returned home, when the two of them were reading, it was getting a little dark, so he asked someone to light the candles.
"If you don't know, you would think we are studying very hard and preparing for the imperial examination." Fang Ying patted the book and joked.
"Whenever there is a military scholar, I will definitely take the exam." Ji Yanlang followed her words and said with a smile.
Fang Ying sighed, "What a pity there are no female Jinshi."
"There's no military scholar, isn't that hypothetical?" Ji Yanlang asked her with a smile, "If there were a female scholar, would you take the exam?"
Fang Ying shook her head: "I'm a mediocre person, so I'm sure I won't pass the exam. I have to study really hard."
Ji Yanlang said, "If it really exists, and you've studied very hard, will you take the exam?"
"Of course I want to try it."
"Do you want to be an official if you pass the exam?"
Fang Ying laughed: "Who doesn't want to be an official?"
Ji Yanlang then asked, "What kind of official position do you want to hold? In the government offices in the capital, or be sent out to govern a region?"
"Do I still get to choose?" Fang Ying laughed. "But what kind of officials do the second and fifth uncles hold in the various government offices in Beijing? What do they do on a daily basis?"
"My second brother is in charge of the clerks in the Ministry of Revenue. The Ministry of Revenue is in charge of the household registration and taxation of the whole country. There are two to three hundred clerks under his jurisdiction and he is very busy. As for my fifth brother, he is just a tribute official appointed by imperial patronage. He doesn't have much to do, just report for work."
Fang Ying said, "When my sisters-in-law and I go out to visit friends, we often hear people talking about what official this young man is, and what that young man is. We are all confused and no one can figure out which government office is in charge of what."
Ji Yanlang laughed and said, "Don't mention you. Sometimes I can't figure it out either. It's probably because officials in our dynasty are officials, and their duties are duties. Some even have extra officials on their payroll. If I really want to find someone to do something, I have to ask around before I can find the person in charge."
"Why? We weren't like this when we were in Shu, right?"
Ji Yanlang laughed: "I dare not say that."
Fang Ying looked puzzled. Ji Yanlang thought for a moment and finally said, "Perhaps this is the mindset of an emperor."
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