Chapter 69
◎Two chapters in one◎
When Li Cheng came back, it was already the end of the year. Huiyin had been spending less time with him than with her since they got married, and she even had someone sleeping beside her, which made her feel uncomfortable.
In the middle of the night, she sat up in surprise, and only lay down when she found out it was Li Cheng.
Li Cheng thought Huiyin was having a nightmare, and asked with concern: "What's wrong? Did you have a nightmare? Dreams are always the opposite~"
"No, I didn't dream. I'm just not used to it. I usually sleep alone. You know I'm afraid of ghosts." Huiyin leaned into her husband's arms and told him her troubles.
Li Cheng said emotionally: "I am back now, right? You don't have to be afraid."
It must be very difficult for a wife to take care of the palace and deal with social relations when she is alone at home. She is also a human being, not a god. I don't know how many times she has pondered those things that seem to be easy.
"But you still have to leave." Huiyin told the truth.
Li Cheng said awkwardly: "If possible, I would naturally like to take you with me, but women are not allowed to go to the military camp."
She was just talking about her worries, but she didn't expect that he really wanted to go by himself. She was even thinking of a way, but Huiyin quickly stopped him: "I don't want to go to the army at all. That's not the place for me. I can neither charge into battle nor do I know martial arts. I would be a burden if I went there. I just want to spend a few days with you to get used to it since I have no one to accompany me on weekdays."
Every time she has to speak so clearly.
Li Cheng felt a little embarrassed and quickly changed the subject: "I never thought that the Guo brothers would take advantage of others' misfortune. They are really courting death."
"That being said, we probably spent a lot of money to defeat Wei Duo and completely take over Yanzhou this time, so we should rest and recuperate." Huiyin fully realized the importance of money and food in this battle.
We can't always rely on these merchants in the future.
It is not a good thing to have everything in the hands of others.
Li Cheng nodded: "Of course, but we have reclaimed a lot of land. You see, the land we occupy is from large grain producers. I will also build a few grain warehouses this time so that we can allocate them when the time comes."
"You know more about what's going on outside than I do, namely the Cao family and the Jiang family. I've thought of a way to reward them. What do you think? The Cao family is most concerned about their daughter now. In fact, I have met Miss Cao once. She is pretty and smart. She has even had her engagement broken off before. It will be difficult to choose a good husband for her that will satisfy the Cao family completely. I think we might as well make a list of three people and let the Cao family choose by themselves. They can choose by themselves, and even if the marriage goes wrong in the future, it can't be blamed on us." She is well versed in human nature. If you give her a candidate and she still feels that the person is not good enough or even has some problems, she will blame the person who promised her the marriage. But if you let them choose by themselves, no matter what, they will never blame others.
Li Cheng disagreed: "I have already given the profits to the Cao family, why do you have to do this?"
Huiyin shook her head: "I have always helped when I can. If I find it troublesome, I will not ask. This time, the Cao family gave 100,000 dan of grain without saying anything. Mrs. Cao was overjoyed when she heard that I wanted to help Miss Cao find a marriage. If I go back on my word, she will probably be even more angry. As the master, we don't need to care about other people's feelings, but as the saying goes, water can carry a boat, but it can also overturn it."
"Come on, come on, come on. I just said one sentence, but you retorted so many times. Let me ask you, which three people do you plan to choose?" Li Cheng said quickly.
Huiyin smiled and said, "I have a girl who wanted to marry an ordinary man and take care of her husband and children. But she regretted it after getting married. Since ancient times, Chang'e has loved young men. If a girl wants to get married, firstly, the man cannot be too old or ugly, and secondly, the conditions in her husband's family cannot be worse than those in her family. Only in this way can she be satisfied."
Li Cheng's eyes lit up with interest: "There is such a saying." He made random comparisons, saying that his appearance and age were just right, and his title was higher than that of the Zheng family. It seemed that he was a good candidate for a son-in-law.
"So I feel that the marriage that the Cao family wants must be one that will bring them honor, so I actually found a few people. One is the local wealthy family, the Liu family. This young master Liu's ancestors were royal family of the previous dynasty, and the great-grandfather and empress of this dynasty were also from his family. Later, his family fell into poverty and became a student of the Imperial Academy. He is the only son in his family. His family owns two shops facing the street and 50 acres of paddy fields."
Li Cheng thought to himself that this was a family whose ancestors had been wealthy in the past, and who were now barely living off their ancestors' glory, but whose fortunes were already on the decline.
Then Huiyin said, "The second one is the younger brother of Xie Qian, the governor of Wu County. Although he is from the Xie family of Chen County, he is a concubine's son. You also know that although the law states that all sons should share equally when a concubine's son divides the family property, in reality they don't get much. If he can marry a rich daughter-in-law, he won't have to worry about his next life."
A bastard's son and a merchant's daughter, who should not be disdained or abandoned? The woman married into a noble family and gained status, and the man married the woman and gained practical benefits, which was indeed good.
"The last one was also a concubine. His status was not as high as Guo Zhao's. He was a judicial officer in this state. His mother and I got along well, but Madam Miao told me that he killed his two wives."
Li Cheng nodded: "If I'm not mistaken, the one you really want to introduce is the one in the middle."
Seeing Li Cheng's words, Huiyin nodded secretly: "It all depends on what the Cao family thinks."
Mrs. Cao came here at Huiyin's invitation, so Huiyin and she certainly wouldn't tell her everything, but she also talked about the strengths and weaknesses of each of the three people. Mrs. Cao would of course discuss it with her family when she returned.
But he said that the Cao family was rich and was better at finding out about people than Huiyin. Soon, the information of the three people was presented.
The head of the Cao family said to Madam Cao, "These three marriages are indeed not bad. The first one, Young Master Liu, is a descendant of the royal family of the previous dynasty. He is very handsome and talented. His academic achievements are outstanding in the Imperial College. His uncle is a military officer in Xuzhou. However, his family only has two small shops and a few acres of thin land."
"If Young Master Liu is so handsome, it wouldn't matter if we give him a larger dowry." Mrs. Cao remembered that her daughter's engagement was broken off, so it was good for her to find a first marriage partner.
Then the head of the Cao family said, "The second one is the younger brother of General Xie, who became famous in the battle in Wu County. He is only eighteen years old. The Xie family is from a large family in Chen County. Young Master Xie is a child of an aristocratic family. He is very good-looking and is known as the Beauty of Wu County."
Mrs. Cao's smile deepened. Mr. Xie's conditions were better than those of Mr. Liu.
Finally, the head of the Cao family said, "The other one is a judicial officer of this state, also from a wealthy family, but he killed two wives, which is not good."
Madam Cao counted on her fingers and said, "The princess also told me that these few are not the best, but she can only choose these few."
Marriage is a union of two families. At least the three chosen by the princess are almost all sons of noble families. They are not like Jiang Bibo, who married into a poor family and became someone else's concubine.
The Cao family patriarch said, "I think the judicial officer is fine. I've had a drink with him before, and he's very free and easy to talk with. He's a decent person, but he's unlucky with his wife."
Mrs. Cao wanted to find one herself because Huiyin told her not to think that the introduction from the palace was necessary, as it was related to her daughter's life. She didn't consider the judicial officer anymore, so what about Mr. Liu and Mr. Xie? She said without thinking, "I think Mr. Xie is good."
"I think so too. The Xie family is stationed in Wu County. The Hu family of Wu County made such a generous move this time, isn't it all for business? If we marry into the Xie family, it will be easier for us to do business in Wu County. What's more, with our daughter's current reputation, she can marry into the Xie family of Chen County, which can be regarded as a slap in the face of Xie Jiuyi." The head of the Cao family was still a little angry when he mentioned Xie Jiuyi.
Madam Cao thought that although her daughter was a virgin, Master Xie was good-looking, a son of an aristocratic family, and a first-time bride, so her daughter had the upper hand. This was probably arranged by the princess. Otherwise, they would most likely marry into a poor family like Master Liu, and might not be as talented as Master Liu.
After Mrs. Cao made her selection, Huiyin sent someone to pass the message to Xie Qian's wife, Mrs. Zhao, and then she selected a pair of jade ruyi, and an official sent them over with an ice mirror for Miss Cao to add to her makeup.
Both sides were very happy. Madam Xue said to Xue Huanhuan at home, "This princess is really smart. I heard that Xie Qian's wife, Mrs. Zhao, always felt that her younger uncle spent too much, but Xie Qian didn't say anything because of the brotherhood. But Mrs. Zhao was very dissatisfied. Now that the second son of Xie is getting married and has a rich wife, she can't spend as much money as them. Although She is not very happy. Miss Cao's previous marriage was broken off and it had nothing to do with her, her reputation is still bad. Now she can marry the younger brother of General Xie, who is talented and romantic, which can be regarded as a good marriage."
Xue Huanhuan couldn't help but say, "That's true, but the daughter of the Cao family used to be someone's concubine, but now she's the wife. Isn't that a pity?"
"Who made the Cao family rich? The last time the prince attacked Yanzhou, the Cao family made great contributions several times. Our princess is just returning the favor. Besides, if she gave Miss Cao to the prince as a marriage, or married her to her brother, it would be unworthy of the position. But the one in question is the second son of the Xie family, who is a concubine's son, and no one else would be biased." Mrs. Xue analyzed.
Jealousy is a bad thing. Often the person involved doesn't think it's a big deal, but people around her think she has a problem.
The princess also has a group of people around her who would be dissatisfied if they saw her being too friendly with a merchant girl.
Xue Huanhuan said: "Then I would like to thank our Xue family for taking me here."
If the Xue family wasn't a big local family, how could she have come from Jianye.
Besides, Miss Cao met Mr. Xie through the screen and saw that he was indeed worthy of the title of handsome man and had the bearing of a son of a noble family. She was very satisfied. This time she was going to be his legal wife, and the humiliation of the concubine being rejected was still a pain in her heart.
Second Young Master Xie was somewhat reluctant at first. No matter how rich Miss Cao was, the Cao family had been granted the title of official merchants by the King of Huaiyin, which was flawed after all. But when he saw Miss Cao holding the white silk fan from a distance, his bones softened. Then, seeing the generosity of the head of the Cao family and the style of the Cao family, he agreed.
The two families were celebrating the marriage with great enthusiasm and were very satisfied with the event. Huiyin went horseback riding to relax with Li Cheng's company in spring after the Chinese New Year. Unexpectedly, she hadn't ridden for a long time and her waist was twisted.
"Gently, gently, I can't move." Huiyin lay flat on the bed and it hurt when she stood up.
Li Cheng originally wanted to have a happy horse riding with his wife. After all, he saw Huiyin riding a horse that year, but he didn't expect an accident to happen. While baking the plaster, he also felt that his wife was actually very weak, but she seldom showed weakness around him. People often say that there will be no filial son in front of a long-term patient's bed, so he had to show his weakness.
Oh, that’s not right, he is not a filial son, he is a good husband.
After the plaster was applied, Huiyin pinched her nose and said, "It stinks. Normally, if someone in my room applies a plaster, I won't let them get close to me to serve me. It's because of this strange smell. It's especially irritating."
"You have to put the plaster on. I asked a doctor to come and fix your bones, but you didn't want to." Li Cheng pressed the plaster that was already tightly applied.
Huiyin knocked his hand away: "You're too strong."
Li Cheng was in a rare good temper. Just as he was about to speak, he heard from outside that Pei Shuo was coming. He patted Huiyin's hand again and went out immediately to see his brother-in-law.
Pei Shuo had been here for about a year, and he always tried his best to complete every task assigned by Li Cheng. He never damaged his own reputation, nor did he put on airs. He also got along well with Yu Wendang and other former subordinates of Li Cheng.
"Please sit down. What brings you here?" Li Cheng asked.
Pei Shuo picked up a letter and said, "This is a letter from my father, Jizhou is in urgent need."
Li Cheng raised his eyebrows.
Zheng Fang did not expect that the person behind these bandits was Shi Chong. The bandits have been rising and falling, connecting everywhere, and they can't be eliminated. He guessed that Shi Chong was behind it, but the prince was partial to Shi Chong, and Zheng Fang was now a little exhausted.
"I always think it was Shi Chong, but how did he instigate those bandits?" Zheng Fang couldn't figure it out.
Zheng Wuheng was young and bold: "Dad, you are in charge of the affairs in Jizhou now, and your son will go to suppress the bandits himself. I don't believe that I can't deal with these people."
Zheng Fang did not want his son to take risks: "Your brother's departure has made him a great success with your second brother-in-law, who has taken over Yanzhou. He has his own future, but you are my only son. Dad will go again."
"Dad, how can I let you grow old? I'm not a porcelain doll. If you keep acting like this, I'll be looked down upon in the future." Zheng Wuheng has grown a lot since Pei Shuo left. He is proficient in both household affairs and martial arts.
Zheng Fang always had an idea in his mind: "Son, why don't we go to your brother-in-law as well?"
Of course he was ambitious, especially after killing Lu Wei, he seemed determined to rule the world, but now he was unable to do so.
That's why he could blurt out these words. After all, Li Cheng is indeed capable and he even drove Wei Duo away. Moreover, Li Cheng is also a royal family member. The emperor may not be able to deal with him well. It is unknown whether the crown prince can keep his position after he succeeds to the throne. He has to strike first.
Zheng Wuheng said with shame: "Father, we own such a good land of Jizhou, but we abandon our people and go to be their vassal? How can this be justified? We are in Jizhou to support my sister. If we all go there at once, it is inevitable that my brother-in-law will look down on us."
Zheng Fang was not annoyed by his son's words. He said, "Your brother-in-law is the son of King Wu and holds real power. The current emperor is already dying, and it is unknown whether the crown prince can sit firmly on the throne. Instead of this, we might as well find someone else."
Zheng Wuheng always felt that what his father said was inappropriate. As the saying goes, it is better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix. If his brother-in-law is in trouble and needs help, he is willing to help. But these people are fine, but they insist on relying on others. It is just like a person with good hands and feet who still goes to beg for food.
So he ignored his father's advice and specially ordered soldiers to strangle these people.
Zheng Fang had no choice but to go along with his son because he was worried about him. Fortunately, although Zheng Wuheng was young, he was a brave, resourceful and careful man. He deliberately lured the enemy deep into the city and brought back a few survivors for interrogation, only to find out that they were Shi Chong's men.
Thinking of this, Zheng Fang took people to see Shi Chong. Shi Chong dared not admit it and insisted that Zheng Fang was grudgeful for Shi Chong taking his job and deliberately framed him. Zheng Fang and Zheng Wuheng went to see the crown prince Li Heng again. Li Heng pretended to be deaf and dumb. He had already learned that Zheng's father and son were disturbed by bandits and even lost their troops. He had long wanted to seize Jizhou. Although he comforted him, he was actually ready to act in his heart.
At that time, Zheng Wuheng was under house arrest. Zheng Fang took a breath to break out of the siege, wrote a letter, and asked his personal guards to deliver it to Xuzhou.
He blew the whistle again, and the Jizhou army came over, rescued Zheng Wuheng and took him back. The war was about to break out, and Li Heng ordered Shi Chong to seize Jizhou. Shi Chong had already jumped up and down to try, but Zheng Wuheng felt that it was a great humiliation, so when he faced Shi Chong, he fought hard.
…
As for Deyin, Yunzhi was an old servant of the Zheng family, who were very kind to her. She was pregnant and had heard about what was going on outside, so she came to tell Deyin secretly.
Deyin was upset when she saw Yunzhi coming over: "You are pregnant now. If something happens to you here, I can't bear it."
Yunzhi didn't get angry when she heard her say that. She just said, "I came to tell Liang Di that the Crown Prince has sent people to attack Jizhou. Liang Di must be more vigilant these days."
"What? Are you kidding me?" Deyin couldn't believe it. In his previous life, his father and brother helped the prince beat Li Cheng. How come everything is reversed now?
When Yunzhi saw the maid from Deyin coming in, she smiled and said, "Thank you very much for your advice, Liangdi. I will take good care of the baby in my belly."
Deyin actually already believed Yunzhi's words. In the second half of the afternoon, Wei Liangdi found an excuse to reprimand her two palace maids. The sarcastic and critical words made Deyin completely numb, and she could only pretend not to hear them.
Now her life is even worse than Yunzhi's. Yunzhi has a daughter with Empress He, who is pregnant, but she herself has no children. Now she has lost her family background to rely on, and even her favor.
She suddenly remembered that in her previous life, her father and brother beat Li Cheng. It seemed that Li Cheng had never let anyone bully him. He just didn't pamper her, but he didn't target her.
She thought it would be great if she had a biological brother. If not, she should not marry the prince. It would be better for her to marry a suitable young man from a noble family. Unfortunately, it was too late to think about this.
…
It is also said that when Huiyin was recuperating, Jing'er was very filial and often came to visit her. Her youngest son Zhan'er also came to play with her.
Jing'er is almost six years old this year. He has already started learning to ride a horse. He said excitedly, "Mom, Daddy taught me how to ride a horse, and Uncle was protecting me. I thought I was going to fall, but I rode it so smoothly."
"Are you scared?" Huiyin broke off an orange and gave it to Jing'er.
Jing'er immediately shook his head: "I'm not afraid, I'm going to ride well and fight with you in the future."
"Good son, you have great ambitions." Li Cheng came in, touched his son's head, and said to the wet nurse beside him: "Take the prince away, the princess and I have something to talk about."
She sprained her waist and had to lie down for three days. She was actually almost recovered. During this period, Li Cheng really served her and was more considerate than a servant. He even served her food and drink and helped her go to the toilet. She was embarrassed, but he was happy to do it.
At this time, Li Cheng looked a little more solemn, and Huiyin couldn't help asking, "What's wrong with you?"
Li Cheng had no choice but to say, "The prince said that your father was ineffective in suppressing the bandits, causing the people to suffer, and asked your father to hand over power, but your father refused and let Shi Chong attack Jizhou."
"What?" Huiyin was a little worried. She looked at Li Cheng and asked, "How did you know this?"
Li Cheng said that it was Zheng Fang who sent the personal soldiers to Pei Shuo. He said, "I have a good relationship with your family and I should have gone to your family when they were attacked. But if I did not tell your father and brothers and went with the soldiers, others might think that I was greedy for land and deliberately drove straight in under the guise of rescue."
"Why don't I write a letter? If they need help, it won't be too late for us to send someone over." Huiyin knew what he meant.
At this time, Li Cheng had no idea that Zheng Fang had long wanted to join him. He did have enough money and food, as he still had a lot of food from the three wealthy families who bought it last year.
But his help was in vain once, and in the future, he could not always fight for other people's land.
After listening to Huiyin, Li Cheng came back to his senses and said, "Okay, go ahead and write it. I'll have someone deliver it quickly."
Jiahu Pass is now open to doing business in Xuzhou. After all, the two families are in-laws. Unlike other families, Huiyin asked her personal soldiers to take her letter and deliver it to Zheng Fang or Zheng Wuheng.
Zheng Fang soon received the letter from Huiyin. Seeing that his son-in-law was kind and righteous, and also saying that he had brought his own food and asked where he needed support, he immediately showed the letter to Zheng Wuheng.
Zheng Wuheng took the letter and said, "Father, does my sister mean that my brother-in-law should come to help us?"
"Yes, Prince Huaiyin is truly a benevolent and righteous man. I was right about this son-in-law." Zheng Fang said.
Li Heng had been eyeing Jizhou for a long time. Now he sent Shi Chong and colluded with bandits to cooperate with him. Zheng Fang and Zheng Wuheng thought that the enemy was too powerful. The father and son could fight hard, but casualties of soldiers and civilians were inevitable. Zheng Fang didn't care about these, but he heard that Wei Duo was also coming to help the prince. After the father and son made some plans, they led their troops to meet Li Cheng directly.
Li Cheng originally planned to go to Qingzhou from Xuzhou very quickly, and he specially sent Pei Shuo to be the vanguard just to help. However, he did not expect to meet Zheng Fang and his son on the way, and behind him were the family of Madam Xu of the Ji family and many soldiers.
Before Li Cheng could say anything, Zheng Fang dismounted and knelt, saying, "My lord, I, Zheng Fang, am willing to offer Jizhou to you. I wish you to achieve your great cause soon."
This father-in-law seemed too savvy and too skilled at this. Li Cheng seemed to have not yet reacted.
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