Chapter 133 Queen Mother, you were the dream girl of many young men in the capital!
The Fu family, as the Queen Mother's maternal family, has been passed down for several generations and has always been known as a scholarly family.
Although its power and status cannot be compared with the Queen Mother's maternal family, the Duke of Rong's Mansion, it still enjoys a high reputation in the capital and is regarded as a place where talented people emerge.
The current head of the Fu family, Fu Wenhao, the Queen Mother's cousin, is a learned and talented scholar. He has now resigned from his official position and retired to live in peace at home.
Since the Queen Mother's mother passed away, the exchanges between the Fu family and the palace have gradually decreased.
Due to the inconvenience of leaving the palace, the two sides were limited to sending people to give each other gifts during festivals and occasionally exchanging letters. As for the Fu family entering the palace to pay homage to the Queen Mother, it was even rarer.
At this moment, the Queen Mother was suspicious: Why did the cousin's wife suddenly come to visit? After careful calculation, they had not seen each other for decades. Could it be that something happened to her family?
However, as far as she knew, her cousin had always been strict in managing the family, and none of his children had ever been involved in officialdom, but instead taught at the Imperial Academy and other institutions.
In this case, the Queen Mother really couldn't imagine what was so urgent that the cousin's wife had to come to the palace in person to tell her.
Although she had a lot of thoughts in her mind, the Queen Mother had no choice but to suppress her inner confusion and wait for the cousin's wife to arrive, and then she would ask clearly.
So, the Queen Mother opened her red lips slightly and said, "Announce!"
Eunuch Li had some guesses in his mind at this time, but he did not speak rashly. How could he tell the Queen Mother casually without making any final conclusion? If the result was not what he wanted, then telling the Queen Mother would only add to her unwarranted expectations.
So, Eunuch Li chose to remain silent and stood quietly aside without leaving.
He was also curious about what the wife of the great scholar Fu wanted to see the Queen Mother for, so that when the matter was over, he could also report to the emperor.
Not long after, an old woman with silver hair and a kind face, carefully supported by a middle-aged woman, slowly walked into the palace.
Behind them followed a young girl, holding a wooden box in her hands.
When the Queen Mother saw the old woman, tears immediately moistened her eyes.
She quickly walked down from the high platform, walked quickly to the old woman, and held her wrinkled hands tightly.
Several decades have passed, and the once beautiful and graceful woman has now become so old and haggard. The Queen Mother couldn't help but feel sad. At the same time, she thought of herself, who is also getting older and more beautiful?
Time is really ruthless!
"Cousin!" The Queen Mother shouted these two words with a slightly trembling voice and a little sob.
The old woman was the wife of Master Fu, Mrs. Fu, Tao Lanru.
Mrs. Fu tried hard to open her dim eyes, trying to see who was in front of her.
Although the years had left deep and shallow marks on the Empress Dowager's face, when Mrs. Fu saw the person clearly, she immediately recognized this cousin who was once innocent, lively and active - now the extremely noble Empress Dowager.
After recognizing the identity of the person in front of her, Mrs. Fu hurriedly prepared to kneel down and pay homage.
However, the Queen Mother called out to her in time: "Don't bow, cousin!"
Hearing the Queen Mother's call, Mrs. Fu stopped, but still insisted: "Thank you for your kindness, Queen Mother, but I think etiquette cannot be abandoned. Please accept my bow,
Queen Mother!" Mrs. Fu's eyes were firm, because the Fu family has always attached great importance to the inheritance of etiquette, and she must not lose her proper etiquette in public, especially in front of the younger generation of the Fu family. As the elder of the Fu family, she should set an example.
Seeing Mrs. Fu's firm attitude, the Queen Mother stopped obstructing her.
She knew very well that the Fu family had always been like this. Otherwise, her grandfather would not insist on wearing a thick hat regardless of the extreme cold or heat, even though his hair was so sparse that he was almost bald. He was even unwilling to take it off when he returned home. He attached great importance to etiquette to the extreme. So, the three of them respectfully bowed to the Queen Mother. "Cousin, please get up quickly without
the formalities ." The Queen Mother said with a smile, "I haven't seen my relatives for a long time. I really miss them! I wonder if my cousin and other people in the mansion are in good health?" With the help of Aunt Liu, Mrs. Fu slowly walked to the front of the hall and sat down. She only sat on one-third of the stool in a very polite manner. The middle-aged woman and the young girl stood respectfully beside Mrs. Fu. The Queen Mother then returned to the high platform and sat on the magnificent seat. Mrs. Fu said softly, "Thank you for your concern, Queen Mother. My husband is doing well recently. He is old, so he occasionally has some minor problems, but they are not serious. Please rest assured, Queen Mother." After hearing this, the Queen Mother nodded slightly to show that she understood. She thought that her cousin was ten years older than her and was now over 67 years old. It was not easy for him to live so long and be healthy. It was normal for him to have some minor illnesses. Then, the Queen Mother turned her gaze to the other two women in the hall and asked, "I think these two should be my cousin's daughter-in-law and grandchildren, right?" The middle-aged woman bowed and replied, "Your Majesty, I am indeed the eldest daughter-in-law of the Fu family, named Yao Yuzhen; and the one next to me is my daughter, the youngest daughter of the Fu family, named Fu Rong." As soon as she finished speaking, Fu Rong walked out with lotus steps, and then She then bowed to the Queen Mother meticulously and said respectfully, "I, Fu Rong, pay my respects to the Queen Mother. May the Queen Mother be blessed with good health." The Queen Mother looked at Fu Rong's face and could not help showing joy. She whispered softly, "This child's eyebrows and eyes are indeed somewhat similar to my cousin's." Then , with a smile on her face, the Queen Mother said to Fu Rong, "Rong'er is so beautiful and refined, just like my cousin in his youth, who is so charming." "Looking back, my cousin won the admiration and love of countless women in the capital with his handsome appearance and outstanding talent! In the end, it was my cousin's wife who won my cousin, haha!" As soon as the voice fell, the queen mother teased Fu Rong again: "Such an outstanding Rong'er, there will definitely be many famous young men vying to marry her in the future!" Fu Rong was so embarrassed that her face turned red, and she was even embarrassed to look up at the queen mother. Madam Fu continued: "Queen Mother, please stop making fun of our Rong'er! In terms of handsome appearance, although the old man back then was a handsome man, he can never compare to you, Queen Mother!"
"You, Queen Mother, were the dream girl of many young men in the capital! Many young men were jealous of you and even fought with you! Haha! At that time, I would go to see the excitement from time to time!"
Mrs. Fu's words were also joking. For a moment, the Queen Mother and Mrs. Fu seemed to have returned to the leisurely and comfortable time of their youth.
The Queen Mother laughed heartily and responded: "Hahaha, my cousin is getting more and more humorous! She is even making fun of me!"
For a moment, the originally somewhat restrained atmosphere in the palace suddenly became relaxed and joyful.
After Mrs. Fu finished introducing the recent situation of the Fu family, she did not delay any longer and directly explained her purpose: "Empress Dowager, I came to see you today for this thing."
As Mrs. Fu spoke, she trembled and stretched out her right index finger, pointing at the wooden box in Furong's hand.
Fu Rong understood, walked to the center of the hall, held up the wooden box with both hands and presented it to the Empress Dowager.