Chapter 558 Aunt Asks About Filial Piety Late at Night; Zhao's Mother's Lost Hairpin Brings Good Fortune [Seeking Monthly Tickets!]
Okay, so you're all into pure love, right?
Ouyang Rong, who proclaimed himself the only one in the entire audience with a pure love, felt deeply offended.
He asked, speechless:
"You're copying me, but why don't you learn something good?"
"The eldest brother has admitted that there are some bad things."
"No, I'm fine, but there are some things I've learned that I can't use well in the future."
Ouyang Rong's expression was one of disappointment and frustration.
"Then what will you use it for?" Li Guo'er asked.
“Of course,” he said firmly.
Xie Lingjiang glanced at him, then turned her head away, her gaze reflecting the dark blue lake outside:
"Last time, when we teased Rongzhen together with Senior Brother, he was so skilled that it didn't seem like it was the first time. When I asked you if you had teased me before, you gave a vague answer."
"Now that Da Lang is asking about the past, I've thought about it carefully and realized that Senior Brother has a lot of tricks up his sleeve. Not only am I overjoyed, but other young ladies would be overjoyed too, don't you think, Senior Brother?"
Holy crap, what kind of review, revisiting, or learning from the past?
Ouyang Rong glared at Li Dalang, "It's all your fault, kid."
After a short while, he and Yan Liulang asked a few more questions, forcing out a small notebook from Li Dalang's arms.
Ignoring his urgent attempts to stop them, everyone opened it and took a look—good heavens!
This isn't just about the little tricks he learned from Ouyang Rong to coax his junior sister.
There are occasional analyses of women's thoughts by Li Guo'er and her mother at the dinner table.
There was a hero who rejoiced in his past glory, boasting about his days as a handsome prince famous throughout the imperial palace.
There's also Yuan Huaimin's calm, composed, and relaxed demeanor as he drinks and chats with courtesans in various restaurants after get off work.
He even remembered the eighteen details of how Yan Liulang could always easily avoid paying the bill after going out to eat or drink herbal tea with him, and then calmly pay the bill and leave as if it were perfectly justified.
Perhaps finding this kind of confidence quite attractive to women, Li Dalang also made sure to record it truthfully and ponder it carefully.
Moreover, he was very observant, not even missing the detail that Yan Liulang deliberately walked a few steps into the lobby at the entrance as if to get some fruit, but did not go out, and waited with his back turned for his companion at the counter behind him to pay.
Ouyang Rong held a small notebook, utterly amazed.
Li Guo'er walked over, pretending not to care, tilted her head to look at him, and then couldn't help but glance at her brother a few more times.
Xie Lingjiang sighed, "Dalang is really different now."
Yan Liulang's forehead was covered in black lines. He crossed his arms and muttered, "Big brother, I just don't believe it. I've gone out with you so many times, and I, Yan Liulang, have never paid the bill even once."
Li Dalang, who had snatched the notebook, paused for a moment, then spread his hands, counted on his fingers, and nodded: "Then, Liulang, you'll have to believe me from now on."
Yan Liulang: ...
A moment later, Li Dalang, his face flushed, snatched back the notebook. Fearing further persecution from his friend and sister, he hurriedly ran away.
Inside the waterside pavilion, everyone stared at each other in disbelief.
Ouyang Rong sighed.
Dalang is so humble and open-minded; he never misses an opportunity to enhance his male attractiveness and he summarizes all sorts of tips and tricks.
Well, a bad pen is worse than a good memory. Writing things down in a notebook is probably something I learned from Yuan Huaimin.
It seems that during Ouyang Rong's absence from the Jiangzhou main hall, Da Lang has grown rapidly, learning a lot from Yuan Huaimin, the master of slacking off...
Half an incense stick later, the digestion from the meal was almost complete.
The group tacitly headed to Li Xian's study.
Overwhelmed with gratitude, Zhen Shuyuan bid farewell to Wei Mei, who had personally seen her off, and returned to her residence in Huaiye Lane.
Inside the familiar study, as soon as everyone sat down, Li Xian asked somewhat impatiently:
"My love, this time the Empress has gone to great lengths to reinstate you and bestow so many important titles upon you, yet the Wei family has truly shown no reaction whatsoever, leaving us to fend for ourselves?"
"Otherwise, we've already set up Lin Cheng's place, which has slowed down the progress of the statue construction. The Wei family can't afford to wait any longer. The Donglin Buddha is one of the four Buddha statues and a part of the Great Zhou's Songde Tian Shu. In a sense, our interests are aligned."
"Your Highness, please wait a moment. Perhaps the Wei family will send someone to ease tensions in the next couple of days."
Li Guo'er asked:
"What exactly is the purpose of the Great Zhou Ode Heavenly Pivot and the Four Directions Buddha Statue that the Empress Dowager wanted? The court is so invested in it, and the Wei family is also doing their bidding."
Ouyang Rong remained silent.
Li Guo'er asked, "Didn't that Lady Rongzhen tell you?"
"No, but I did say I would introduce an old musician to me."
Li Xian asked with curiosity, "Is this Lady Rongzhen on good terms with Tanlang?"
Ouyang Rong said with a serious expression, "It's just a normal working relationship. The secrets of the Imperial Observatory are naturally not discussed with me."
Xie Lingjiang said thoughtfully:
"In fact, the fact that the group of Qi cultivators in the Tiannan Jianghu, led by Yunmeng Jianze, opposed this matter shows that it is definitely not conducive to the Tiannan Jianghu and at the same time threatens the interests of Yunmeng Jianze."
"That makes sense."
Li Guo'er calmly analyzed:
"Let's not worry about that for now. Anyway, once we finish building the Buddha statue, we can ask for credit and take the opportunity to return to the capital. Don't forget, that was our goal when we first arrived in Xunyang City."
"The process was a bit frustrating, but the current situation is very favorable to us. Father, Ouyang Lianghan, next we just need to focus on building the great Buddha of Xunyang Grottoes."
"Also, we can't let our guard down with the Wei family. We need to prevent them from discarding us after they've served their purpose."
"Guo'er is right."
Li Dalang is relatively optimistic:
"Fortunately, the city is now full of our people. In the current Jiangzhou officialdom, Tanlang has the final say. Miaozhen, the female official who has a personal grudge against the king, is not here. The female historian Rongzhen is familiar with Tanlang and can help keep that Deputy Supervisor Song in check."
“Actually, we also need to be careful of the Jianghu in Tiannan.” Ouyang Rong suddenly spoke up: “Now that we are creating the statue, we also have to face the risk of their obstruction.”
Yan Liulang interjected, "This is actually the responsibility of Deputy Director Song and Rong Zhen, the Qi Refiners of the Imperial Observatory."
"It's a good thing. The imperial court was able to quickly unify its voice. In Jiangzhou, the senior brother was appointed as the core because of this external pressure. Otherwise, the senior brother wouldn't have received so many benefits."
"That's true."
Ouyang Rong nodded in agreement:
"That's right, crisis and risk go hand in hand. In any case, compared to when we first arrived in Xunyang, the situation is now the best it can be for us."
Li Xian sighed softly, "I wonder if the merit of building the Donglin Buddha is enough for the Empress to summon me back to the capital.
"Everyone knows the relationship between Ouyang Lianghan and our Xunyang Prince's Mansion. The fact that the Empress Dowager has appointed Ouyang Lianghan as a scholar of the Xiuwen Academy, who can be promoted to the capital at any time, is already a clear indication of this. Otherwise, it would not make sense."
"That's excellent."
Soon, the meeting in the study ended amidst the mixed emotions of joy and sorrow among the participants.
Ouyang Rong got up and walked towards the entrance of the study, passing by Li Guo'er's seat.
A slender, white wrist stopped him and asked:
"I heard from Dalang that when you received the imperial edict, you asked if you could access some original manuscripts of famous ancient scholars from the Xiuwen Academy, and you even asked about Tao Yuanming. Is that true?"
"Um."
Li Guo'er rolled her bright eyes slightly upward as she looked at him: "What do you want this thing for?"
"Just out of curiosity."
Ouyang Rong brushed it off.
Li Guo'er looked at his back with suspicion.
Ouyang Rong had only taken a few steps out the door when he was stopped again by Li Dalang, who was sneaking around like a thief waiting on the corridor.
Looking at my friend's expectant eyes.
Ouyang Rong said in a serious tone: "I am truly innocent."
"Ahem, that's not what I'm asking about."
Li Dalang coughed and asked, "Could Lianghan send me a handwritten poem entitled 'On Chrysanthemums'?"
What are you going to do?
"Give it away," he said honestly, scratching his head.
"no."
Without asking any questions, Ouyang Rong decisively refused, and then turned to say, "It's not that you can't comfort Princess Anhui, but you need to be careful."
"Your husband already knows?"
"Anyone can see that. You go to see her every day. You even go to keep vigil for your cousin. If Wei Shaoqi knew this from beyond the grave, he'd probably jump out of his coffin."
"She's returning to the capital another day, and I'd like to give her a gift... I heard her say that the ladies of Luoyang all adore Tanlang, and his handwritten poems would be incredibly prestigious... Now I remember, Tanlang, perhaps you shouldn't let this slip by."
“There are ways to prevent leakage, but it’s unnecessary.”
"Okay, then I won't see you off."
“It’s a good thing that you have things you like to pursue. At least in my opinion, you haven’t neglected your main tasks these days, and you’ve also taken the time to improve yourself. You’re on the right track.”
After a pause, Ouyang Rong gave the instructions:
"But just in case, when you go there in the future, either Yan Liulang or Junior Sister must accompany you."
Li Dalang had no choice but to obediently agree, and couldn't help but say:
"She probably sees me as a distant cousin; she doesn't seem to have any hostility towards the Li family..."
"Whether it works or not, you need to be aware that her surname is Wei and yours is Li, so it's almost impossible for it to work out. Not to mention you, her father and brothers would definitely not agree."
"Then why isn't Tanlang stopping me?"
“You’re just pursuing her, not actually marrying her. You need to find something to do. Isn’t this great? You’re improving yourself. Why not?”
"..."
"What's wrong?"
"It's nothing, I just feel that what Tanlang said isn't pure love at all. Only I am truly in love."
"..."
Before leaving, Ouyang Rong went to see Xie Lingjiang and gave her some instructions about Li Dalang.
Xie Lingjiang nodded in agreement:
"Don't worry, Senior Brother, I'm keeping an eye on him. As for that Princess Anhui, I've been keeping an eye on her all along. She looks like an innocent little rabbit, but the Wei family is hard to say."
"As long as Junior Sister knows, that's fine."
"Wait, Senior Brother!" Xie Lingjiang suddenly called out to Ouyang Rong:
"What's wrong?"
"Senior Brother, do you know that back in Luoyang, the Empress originally planned to give you an additional reward..."
"What reward?" he asked casually.
Xie Lingjiang stared at his curious expression for a while, then suddenly answered:
"Reward...you big idiot." After giving his senior brother a flick on the forehead, Xie Lingjiang walked away with his hands behind his back.
"Why are you being so disrespectful today..."
Ouyang Rong returned to his residence in Huaiye Lane, looking completely bewildered.
When he got home, he saw that the living room was brightly lit, but Zhen Shuyuan was nowhere to be seen.
Logically speaking, Zhen Shuyuan would always wait for him to come back.
"Strange, where is Auntie?"
With a slight frown, Ouyang Rong entered the inner courtyard with practiced ease and began searching for someone.
To my shame, when I was the chief secretary, I was very busy. As the master of the house, apart from Yinbingzhai, I rarely visited the inner quarters where the female relatives, such as Zhen Shuyuan, lived, and they were quite unfamiliar to me.
But Rongzhen was right about one thing he said before. He did get a good rest during the Spring Festival and fulfilled his duties as the master of the house. He directed repairs every day, busy himself with making up for everything that was needed or missing in the house. He became familiar with the house, got to know the maids and servants, and even changed the names of several maids.
"Xiao Fang, have you seen your aunt?" he asked, pulling a maid aside.
"As soon as Madam returned, she went back to her room." The maid lowered her head and glanced at him with a blush.
"Could it be that she's tired?" Ouyang Rong muttered. Just as he was about to leave, a graceful and beautiful woman appeared in front of him, holding an oil lamp.
It was Zhen Shuyuan, still dressed in her finest attire, who called out softly, "My love, come with me."
"Ah, oh." Ouyang Rong obediently followed, looking around: "Where are we going?"
The beautifully dressed woman, her eyes red, lowered her head and remained silent. After a short while, Ouyang Rong was led to a Buddhist hall. She went in first and began to undress, taking off her gorgeous outer robe and removing her earrings and other jewelry.
Ouyang Rong paused for a moment.
"Tanlang, come in." She urged in a low voice.
"This, this is..."
Zhen Shuyuan couldn't wait any longer. She pulled him through the door, forcefully pressed Ouyang Rong's head down, and scolded, "Kneel down."
"Huh?" Ouyang Rong froze.
“You unfilial nephew, why don’t you listen to your aunt? I’ve raised you for nothing…” Before she could finish her sobbing, Zhao’s mother’s memorial tablet came into Ouyang Rong’s view. He instantly understood, knelt down with a thud, and kowtowed three times.
“You’ve made something of yourself now, but you mustn’t forget your mother. She and your aunt raised you together, but she passed away early and didn’t get to see you become successful. This set of clothes for a noblewoman should be worn by her, and tonight she should be attending the banquet, enjoying the glory because of her son…”
As she spoke, Zhen Shuyuan wiped away her tears, wiped the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief, folded her coat, and placed it in front of the memorial tablet.
Before the memorial tablet, Ouyang Rong stood solemnly, while Zhen Shuyuan, dressed in a white undergarment that accentuated her curvaceous figure, knelt and stood silently for a while. After a short while, Zhen Shuyuan turned and walked towards the bedroom, saying, "My love, come in with me."
"Auntie, it's not convenient for me to come into your room," he said with a troubled expression.
"You heartless, disobedient nephew! Where has your filial piety gone?"
"Auntie..."
"Is your aunt some kind of jackal or leopard that'll eat you up?"
"All right."
Ouyang Rong walked into this secluded boudoir, a place no man had ever visited before, with an air of faint scent of a widow, somewhat like incense, perhaps related to her Buddhist chanting and vegetarian diet... Upon entering, Ouyang Rong noticed his aunt with her back to him, bending over and rummaging through something in a cabinet. He turned his gaze away, avoiding looking at that particular spot.
"Come here," she commanded with a cold snort.
Ouyang Rong approached helplessly, his eyes lowered.
"Give."
He noticed a bundle being handed to him, and Zhen Shuyuan said in a sorrowful tone:
“These are some of your mother’s belongings. I was afraid that seeing them would remind you of her, but now that you’re all grown up, take them. It’ll save me from having to see them and be reminded of her.”
Just as Ouyang Rong accepted the message, Zhen Shuyuan, caught up in her sorrow, suddenly embraced her beloved nephew. Ouyang Rong quickly opened his arms, offering only a half-hearted hug. The beautiful woman in white blouses gently patted his back as if soothing a child, murmuring:
"My dear son, you've made something of yourself! You're already a very successful man. I heard from Princess Wei that you might even become a high-ranking official in the future. Your aunt will now enjoy a life of luxury with you and will only look after you..."
After a stick of incense had burned, Ouyang Rong, having appeased his aunt, returned to Yinbingzhai. He casually opened his bundle and found it filled with old items: a longevity lock, a rattle drum, a white jade hairpin, and a piece of withered yellow paper with his birth date and time faintly visible on it, as well as the marriage contract between Ouyang's father and Zhao's mother from back then...
Ouyang Rong picked them up one by one, inspected them, and after picking up the white jade hairpin, glanced at it and casually put it back.
In the next instant, his expression changed slightly, and the sound of bells rang in his ears.
I never expected this.
"Strange, can this really trigger good fortune?"
Ouyang Rong's expression was strange. After a short while, he dismissed Wei Lai and the others, closed his eyes, and entered the Tower of Merit...
————
(P.S.: Please vote for me!)
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
