The fact that Feng Yuheng was going to the fiefdom was no longer a secret in Kyoto. The news had already spread through Baicaotang. Now even the common people in the capital would sigh a few times when they had nothing to do. It was a pity that such a good princess was going to be driven out of the capital. I really didn't know what those people were thinking.
An was not surprised by Xiangrong's decision, but she still shook her head and said to Xiangrong, "I don't agree."
Xiangrong was puzzled, "Why?"
An told her: "You are my daughter. Although I am only a concubine, I do not want my daughter to marry into a wealthy family to help my family gain connections. I just want you to live an ordinary life and find an honest man to live a down-to-earth life in the future. The path your second sister is going to take is destined to be extraordinary. Rong, that is not something we can keep up with."
"Why do you have to think like this?" Xiangrong frowned and asked An: "Why can't we keep up with our second sister even though she is extraordinary? It's okay to run faster. I just want to follow her and help her do what she wants to do. Mother, I don't want to marry into a wealthy family. I just want to live a comfortable life like my second sister."
An shook her head. "Comfortable? Do you think she is comfortable? She is surrounded by calculations, and every step is bumpy. She seems to be free and easy, but you have to know how much effort she has put in behind the scenes to make the surface look so simple? Xiangrong, you are my daughter, and mother will never harm you."
Xiangrong looked at An and thought for a while, then suddenly smiled and said, "Mother, are you reluctant to let me go? Why don't you come with me? Second sister won't abandon us." The little girl's eyes lit up, and she pulled An's hand and shook it non-stop, "I've heard that Second sister's fiefdom is in the southeast, and the climate is better than that in Kyoto. It's already warming up now, and we can see green leaves over there. Mother, let's go together!"
She was full of hope, always hoping that An would agree to go with her. This capital city left her with too many bad memories, and the Feng Mansion had become a cage in her heart that she couldn't escape from. Xiangrong felt that if she stayed here any longer, she would go crazy sooner or later.
Seeing her daughter's expectant eyes, An's heart was moved for a moment, but it soon cooled down. She smiled bitterly and said, "Where can I go? I am Feng Jinyuan's concubine, and my personal contract is still in the hands of the Feng family. I am worse than a slave."
The system of concubines in the Dashun Dynasty was extremely harsh. It should be that the person who formulated the law despised the existence of concubines, so he stipulated in the law that concubines had a life contract like slaves. Once a concubine became someone's concubine, it was equivalent to handing the life contract to that person or that family. Her life and death were entirely decided by that person. There was no such thing as divorce or amicable separation. Once a concubine fell out of favor, she had no way out except waiting to die.
Rong was young before and could not think of these things, but it was not that he had never heard of them. Now that he heard An Shi mention the indenture, he was a little worried. Thinking about it again, he simply stamped his feet and said, "I will go to the Fourth Prince. It's just a piece of paper. He will always find a way."
As she was about to run out, she was stopped by An: "It's no use looking for anyone." She stroked her daughter's soft hair and said helplessly: "Feng Jinyuan has already run away. He must have taken the indenture with him. Even if he didn't take it with him, he might have hidden it somewhere. What's the point of finding the Fourth Prince?" She pulled Xiangrong to sit down, and then said: "Speaking of the Fourth Prince, I have something I want to ask you."
Xiangrong didn't know what was going on, so he blinked and asked, "Mom, tell me."
An waved her hand and dismissed the maids in the room. Seeing the door closed, she spoke: "How the Fourth Prince treats you, your mother has seen it all these years, but I don't know what you think, and I didn't dare to ask. To be honest, I still say that I don't want you to marry into a wealthy family, and I don't want you to have anything to do with the royal family. Maybe marrying into such a family seems glorious and enviable, but only you know the sadness behind it. There is no place to talk about it, so you can only grit your teeth and swallow it. Child, if you listen to your mother, don't worry, you are just thirteen years old, and you still have a good life. Let's take our time to choose, and we will always meet the right one."
An's words confused Xiangrong. She asked casually, "What can I think of the Fourth Prince?" Although she said so, her heart suddenly tightened, as if something suddenly grabbed her heart, so uncomfortable. Xiangrong frowned, and her attitude towards this matter was not as calm as before, but even so, she still insisted on her position and told An, "The Fourth Prince and I are just a master-disciple relationship. It was the emperor's order that I teach him embroidery, that's all, mother, don't think too much."
"Am I just imagining things?" An shook her head helplessly. "Then just treat it as my imaginings. But even without the Fourth Prince, there is still the Seventh Prince. What do you think of that person?"
Xiangrong was confused. She wanted to follow her second sister to the fiefdom, so how did she end up talking about the Seventh Prince? Her mother was the same. She knew that this person was a hurdle that she couldn't get over. She had finally forced herself not to think about it, but it was brought up again and she couldn't avoid it.
She didn't know what to say, but she couldn't say nothing. After thinking for a while, she shook her head and could only say, "I can't think of that person." Her eyes instantly turned red. She raised her head stubbornly, locking the tears in her eyes and forcing them not to flow down. Finally, when they dried up, she forced a smile and said, "Mother, let's talk about my desire to follow my second sister to the fiefdom! How about you just love me and let me go on a picnic with you? I'm just going to see the world and will be back soon..."
The last sentence was obviously said unwillingly, but Xiangrong was a filial child. If An asked her to go and see and come back, she would definitely come back. But An smiled and shook her head, telling her: "Go! How can a mother not understand her own child? I knew I couldn't keep you, but I also hoped that you could stay with me, but I also knew that you were not happy. It's so contradictory! The Feng family used to be like a cage, but now the Feng family is gone. You shouldn't have lived under the shadow of that poor boy at such a young age. I also hope that you can go out, escape from here, and live the life you want. But Xiangrong, you have to remember that no matter where you go, you must not forget your original intention and cannot be confused by anything in the outside world. Do you understand what your mother said?"
Xiangrong's tears fell all at once, and she hugged An and cried loudly, crying and saying, "Mother, I am always unwilling to live like this. I want to follow my second sister. You know, I have been willing to follow her since I was a child. No matter where she goes, as long as I can see her, I feel that life is full of hope. I know that everything she does is very important, so I want to be like her and want to follow her to do those right and meaningful things. When one day I grow up and have the ability, I can protect you. Mother, do you know? I am always afraid that Feng Jinyuan will come back and take us back to Feng Mansion and lock us up in a small courtyard. I have to look at his face every day and look at Fendai's face to survive. Mother, I don't want to live like that anymore. You must wait for me. One day I will come back and return to your side. Then I will let you see that your Xiangrong can also avoid the wind and rain for you."
She went from crying to being firm. An looked at the stubborn face of this little child and finally a loving smile appeared on her face.
Xiangrong said goodbye to An Shi, took her two bags with her, and went to the Princess's Mansion with her maid Shancha. The moment she opened the door, Feng Yuheng seemed to have known that she would come. He smiled and pulled her into the mansion, and then told her: "We will leave Beijing on the 14th day of the first lunar month. There is only one day left. You came at the right time. Help your sister prepare."
Wanting Rong to be surprised, Feng Yuheng said, "Don't think too much. Since you have decided, just follow me. I will always let you live a good life."
It was not until she was pulled into the third courtyard that Xiangrong was able to say a word. She asked Feng Yuheng: "How did Second Sister know my plan?"
Feng Yuheng smiled and said, "I'm not stupid. I can guess it by looking at your outfit." This sentence made the little girl burst into laughter. She knew that her second sister would not abandon her. From childhood to adulthood, she was her real safe haven.
They were leaving Beijing on the 14th day of the first lunar month. At this time, the Yao family, under the leadership of Xu, was busy preparing the necessary items for Feng Yuheng's trip. The clothes prepared for her alone filled three large boxes. Yao Xian grinned at the sight, thinking that there was no need for so many clothes, it was too exaggerated.
But women are more thoughtful. Xu knew that Feng Yuheng would not be able to come back in the short term. These three boxes of clothes can be worn all year round, including shoes and socks, and are very complete.
Qin went to search the warehouse and packed some items that she thought Feng Yuheng could use there, such as vases, teapots, teacups, and anything else that she thought looked good. She almost emptied half of the warehouse. In the end, she had eleven large boxes, but her son Yao Xuan was frightened. After a lot of persuasion, Qin finally reduced the number of boxes. But even so, there were still five boxes that she felt she had to take.
Miao's dim sum was delicious, so she went into the kitchen for half a day and didn't come out. When Xu went into the kitchen to see, she found that Miao's dim sum was almost good enough to open a dim sum shop. But she was happy and told Miao: "You are right, but you should bring more. It will take half a month on the road, and we can't let our Ah Heng suffer."
Yao Jingjun came over and took a look, then curled his lips and said, "It will break, right?"
"What do you know?" Mrs. Xu pushed the person out. "It's so easy to spoil in the middle of winter. Besides, if it's spoiled, you can just throw it away. But what if you don't make enough and it's not enough to eat? You don't understand women's affairs, so don't get involved."
The men of the Yao family expressed their genuine helplessness. They just looked at the boxes that had been packed up in half a yard and silently calculated how many convoys of cars their niece would need to bring to load all these things away.
The Yao family was very busy. At this time, Feng Yuheng was dragging Xiangrong to buy some necessities on the street. They were about to go to a snack shop to buy some snacks. When they turned the corner, they happened to run into the eighth prince Xuan Tianmo, who was riding a horse and strolling with his back straight.
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