The eldest princess raised her eyes, rubbed her forehead, and told the maid to put away the brocade box containing "Ningxi Palace". Then she asked someone to invite Fang in.
"Why are you here? Where's Brother Qi? Why don't you bring him here too?"
"Brother Qi has been studying for quite a while today and just had some snacks, so I let him go back and have a rest. I think he is still sleeping in the room now!" Fang replied with a smile.
"It should be so! He is still young and it is the time for him to grow up. Although studying is important, he should not neglect his health. That would be a loss without gain." The eldest princess has always loved this eldest son and her only bloodline. Upon hearing this, she gave him this warning with concern.
Fang agreed, and chatted with her for a while about family matters. Then she pretended to be casual and asked, "I seemed to have heard yesterday that my second brother's wife had upset mother, but I don't know what happened?"
The smile on the eldest princess's face froze for a moment, her eyes narrowed slightly, and her gaze became sharp.
Fang felt uncomfortable under her gaze and was about to say something to smooth things over, but the Grand Princess slowly replied, "It's not a big deal. She was young and ignorant and said something wrong. I scolded her a few words and let her go back to reflect on it."
Fang's heart skipped a beat.
It's not a big deal? It's already gotten to that point, so it's not a big deal?
But she was only concerned about the final result of the matter, and didn't care about the process at all. Now, hearing the Grand Princess' answer, her heart sank and she immediately realized that she had been thinking too rosyly.
Looking at the attitude of the Grand Princess, it seems that the plan will not succeed.
It would have been fine if she didn't know about this, but now that she knew about it and didn't get the expected result, she couldn't help but feel a little resentful towards the Grand Princess.
What do you mean by taking care of the eldest house in everything? But when the time comes, isn't it the second house that you side with? It's true that when people are gone, the tea gets cold. My husband has been gone for so many years, and I'm afraid few people still remember the good things he did.
She tried hard to suppress the resentment in her heart, and patted her chest pretending to be relaxed: "That's good. I was shocked when I first heard the servants talking like that. I just thought it was impossible! My second brother and his wife are very gentle people, and they are very filial to mother. How could they do such an unfilial thing?"
However, she still had resentment in her heart, and even if she tried hard to restrain herself, she could not hide it from the shrewd Grand Princess.
The eldest princess looked at her quietly, a trace of disappointment flashed in her eyes, but she quickly covered it up and did not want to mention it again, so she changed the subject and asked: "Do you have a favorite candidate for Bi Rong's marriage?"
Although she felt sorry for the daughter of an old friend, she could also distinguish between the inside and the outside. Fang Birong was not Wei's daughter after all, and it was not appropriate for her to interfere in her marriage, so she just tried to find a way to make it clear for Fang.
Fang calmed herself down, and when she heard her mention her sister, she couldn't help but think of what happened between Fang Birong and Qi Liuxiu at the Hundred Flowers Banquet earlier, and she couldn't help feeling upset.
Neither of these two makes her worry-free.
"The youngest son of the Prime Minister's wife is eighteen this year, and is about the same age as Birong. I'm just afraid that their family is too high-class, and they may not look down on the Pingliang Marquis's Mansion. The third son of Minister Xu's mansion is only seventeen years old, and has a good character. If it can be successful, it will be a good marriage."
"There is also the Sixth Young Master of the Duke of Li's Mansion. He is now twenty-two years old. Although he is a little older, he is also a handsome man and a good candidate."
She took a deep breath and told the Grand Princess one by one about the candidates she had chosen earlier.
The Grand Princess frowned slightly after hearing this.
The Mansion of Prime Minister Zhou, the Mansion of Shangshu Xu, and the Mansion of Duke Liguo are all popular families. There is no need to mention the Prime Minister and the Shangshu. One is the Prime Minister of the current dynasty, and the other is the Shangshu who is in charge of the promotion and appointment of officials.
Although the power of the Duke of Liguo's Mansion is weaker than the previous two mansions, the Duke of Liguo's illegitimate daughter was conferred the title of Consort Shu three months ago, and now she is pregnant with the heir, so she is in great favor.
"You picked out some good families," she said calmly.
Fang didn't realize the implication of her words. She just thought about it and said hurriedly, "Mother, do you also think these three are good candidates? If so, why not ask someone to find out what they think? After all, Birong has been delayed for so many years, and this marriage can't be delayed any longer."
Are you planning to let her come in person?
The Grand Princess could no longer conceal her disappointment and finally refused to listen to her anymore. She said directly, "I also have a candidate. Please listen to me."
Fang was stunned: "Does my mother also have a candidate?"
"He is the eldest son of Liu Jijiu, the Imperial College Supervisor. He is only 20 years old and is now the new editor of the Hanlin Academy. The Liu family has a clean and upright family tradition. Madam Liu is kind and gentle. Although Mr. Liu is only a young man, he has a reputation for talent and is a calm, diligent and noble person. Given time, his future is limitless."
Another editor from the Hanlin Academy? Could it be that the Pingliang Marquis's family had offended the editor from the Hanlin Academy in their previous lives? Why are both of them coming after them?
She had already lost a lot of interest when she heard that the other party was just the chief academician of the Imperial College. Then she heard that the young master of the Liu family was actually an editor of the Hanlin Academy, which immediately touched Fang's pain point. If it was not the eldest princess who proposed this candidate, she would have lost her temper on the spot.
Despite this, her complexion still looked a little ugly.
"This Liu Jijiu... could he be the one who came from a poor family and cursed Zhou Shoufu in person?" Shao Yu, not knowing what she had thought of, asked hesitantly.
"It's that one." The Grand Princess nodded and did not hide it from her.
"This is absolutely inappropriate. Lord Liu has offended the Prime Minister. If we become relatives with their family, won't we be implicated?" Upon hearing this, Fang shook her head and waved her hands.
What a joke, with a family like this, it would be hard for ordinary people to avoid them, how could they possibly come to your doorstep!
"Although Liu Jijiu is upright in character, he is not a fool who does not know the importance of the situation and has no brains. He dared to criticize Zhou Shoufu to his face, but was able to escape unscathed. The Liu family has also been going smoothly over the years, which shows that he is very capable. How can it be said that they were implicated after becoming relatives?" The eldest princess patiently explained.
There is another thing that is not convenient to tell Fang, and that is her nephew. The current emperor is not someone who can be easily manipulated. The current hiding may not be for the purpose of a thorough settlement in the future.
After all, the emperor and the Zhou family are still entangled in the grudge of murdering his wife!
Princess Rui, Zhao, died at a young age of splendor. She didn't believe that after all these years, her nephew, the former Prince Rui, could have completely forgotten the passionate times they had.
When a person dies, her good deeds in life will be infinitely magnified, not to mention that the death of Princess Rui itself is related to many unknown private matters.
But it’s such a pity for such a peerless beauty!
"No, no, this marriage with the Liu family is absolutely not possible." However, Fang did not understand her painstaking efforts and was determined not to agree.
The Grand Princess was very disappointed, but she was unwilling to force herself, so she stood up and said, "In this case, you can make up your mind!"
Fang was just annoyed by the recent misfortunes and didn't pay attention to her attitude for a moment. She took her leave, leaving Aunt Xu shaking her head.
"I never thought that one day Bizhen would play tricks on me." After Fang left, the eldest princess sighed, looking a little unhappy.
"Your Highness, you are worrying too much. The eldest lady treats you like her own mother, so how could she treat you like that?" Nanny Xu comforted.
The eldest princess shook her head: "You don't have to cover up for her. Although I am old, I am not foolish. It's not anyone else's fault for what Shen did to anger me. She has been in charge of the mansion for many years. There is no way she can hide anything in the mansion. If she asked me directly, how could I not tell her directly? But she just tried to test me and pretended to be stupid in front of me. It's really..."
"Listen to what family she picked for Birong? Prime Minister Zhou, Minister Xu, Duke Li? As the saying goes, everything that rises must fall. Prime Minister Zhou has been trying to undermine the emperor for many years, which has already displeased the emperor. Add to that the Zhao Mansion case... The Xu Mansion is a good family, but the third son of the Xu family is weak and sickly, and he doesn't look like he will live long. And as for the Duke Li Mansion, why doesn't she think about Qiao Liu's reputation as the 'devil in the world'?"
"The Madam is still young and inexperienced, so she still needs Your Highness's guidance." This was all Nanny Xu could say to persuade her.
The Grand Princess sighed again but said nothing more.
***
Although the process was a bit conflicting and intense, in the end a satisfactory result was achieved. Shen Xinyan was in a relatively happy mood and relaxed. As she relaxed, she began to feel sleepy.
Qiutang and Chunliu, who were helping her take a bath, didn't see any response from her for a long time. When they looked again, they saw that she had fallen asleep with her eyes closed.
"She can even fall asleep in the bathtub. It shows that Madam has suffered a lot." Chunliu looked distressed.
"What should we do now? The water is getting cold. If Madam doesn't get up, she will suffer again if she catches a cold." Qiu Tang frowned, looking very distressed.
She should wake up the lady. It was rare to see her sleeping so soundly. How could she bear it? If she didn't wake her up, wouldn't she be in pain if she caught a cold?
"What's the big deal? Can't you see the prince is outside?" Chun Liu touched her arm, pointed his mouth towards the outside, and smiled ambiguously.
Qiu Tang suddenly realized what was going on, slapped his forehead, and laughed, "I was confused!"
The two looked at each other and smiled, looking very proud.
Outside, Wei Junhang's handsome face was being rolled and pinched like a dough by his daughter. The little girl was giggling with joy, but the poor prince couldn't even speak clearly.
"Good lady, good lady..."
"Hmm, this is a little pig. Hehe, Sister Xia He, do you think it looks like a pig?" The lawless Fourth Miss Wei pushed the tip of her father's nose with one hand and pinched his mouth with the other hand, pulling it outward, and managed to turn the handsome face that could make young girls and sisters-in-law's hearts flutter into the look of a piglet.
Xia He laughed so hard that she held her stomach and nodded repeatedly: "It's exactly like her. It's exactly like her. The fourth girl is amazing!"
This was the scene Qiu Tang saw when she came out.
She pushed Xia He, who was laughing unruly, with both anger and amusement, then walked forward with a smile and hugged Xiao Yingzhi, who was smiling with sparkling eyes and red face, and rescued the poor prince from the clutches of her daughter.
After Xia He took Xiao Yingzhi out, Qiu Tang cleared her throat and told her about Shen Xinyan falling asleep in the bathtub.
Wei Junhang got anxious when he heard this: "How can this be possible? What if he catches a cold?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Qiutang felt a flash before his eyes, and he disappeared in an instant. A moment later, Chunliu flashed out of the clean room with her mouth covered.
The two of them smiled at each other slyly, walked out quietly, and closed the door considerately.
However, Wei Junhang was only concerned about his wife and did not think much about it. With Chunliu's help, he wiped the water stains off Shen Xinyan's body, wrapped her in a clean cotton towel, and then picked her up with a strong force, and strode to the bedroom, unaware that Chunliu had already slipped away with a smile.
"Chunliu, go get something clean..." After carefully placing the sleeping Shen Xinyan on the bed, he turned around and wanted to ask Chunliu to help her get dressed, but found that there was no one behind him.
He was stunned and subconsciously looked at his wife on the bed. Looking at the white and smooth arms sticking out from the quilt, his chest tightened and he suddenly felt a little dry-mouthed.