"Are you saying that because the concubines of Prince Cheng's Mansion were buried alive, the girls of the Duke's Mansion are sick and dizzy and therefore don't enter the palace?" asked Second Madam Ding.
Mi Niang nodded: "I heard that the second concubine gave birth to two sons! Princess Cheng is the younger sister of Lady Hanhai. She has such a prominent family background, but she was not spared. Therefore, they were frightened."
"Tsk tsk, how cruel! Those little girls only saw the prosperity of the royal family and thought they would be above everyone else after being favored. Little did they know that they might die before they even reach that position." Second Madam Ding sighed.
Mi Niang nodded. Being a queen mother in the palace was just a way to save one's life, and one was not free to move. In this dynasty, the emperor and the literati shared the country, and the emperor was often oppressed by the civil officials, not to mention the empresses.
The mother and daughter had already turned back because Lady Hanhai was going to attend a funeral, the fourth and fifth daughters were sick, and Fan Yuzhen was also not feeling well, so they returned.
Mi Niang smiled and said, "It's better to see it clearly earlier, otherwise you will think it's a good place."
Thinking back to her past life, when she had to eat less in order to maintain her figure, and when she couldn't bear it anymore she ate cotton, she was always worried that she would die young.
Because I ate little and had to dance, I often bled after sex, but I didn't dare tell anyone.
It's really frustrating to think about it.
Unlike now, she lives such a good life.
Mrs. Ding Er agreed: "That's exactly what you said."
Cheng'en Mansion
The fifth girl has been ill for several days and has started talking nonsense, which has frightened the wife of Duke Cheng'en very much.
"Fifth girl, what's wrong with you? Even if someone is buried alive, it won't be your turn. Your sister will take care of you, and the emperor is so handsome. When you give birth to a prince in the future, won't you be fine?"
She had to comfort her daughter. Concubine Cui was now extremely powerful and made it difficult for the Empress to take a single step in the harem. If she did not secure the Empress's favor, what would happen to the Ruan family?
Even though the Nguyen family is now flourishing and has no real power, the previous emperor still used them to guard the country and borders. Even when the present emperor was young, the Nguyen family were important officials in the court.
But now, since the emperor has taken power, things are very different. The nobles have gradually faded away, and even many civil officials are unwilling to marry into the noble families.
In order to protect the entire family, a prince must be born, and this prince must be from the Ruan family.
Otherwise, once the empress fell out of favor, the palace would fall into decline, and she would never allow that to happen.
But the fifth girl was already terrified. She hid under the quilt and sobbed, "But the Queen Mother Wei also buried Concubine Lu, who gave birth to three princes, alive with the emperor. I don't want to enter the palace!"
Lady Cheng'en said angrily, "That's because Concubine Lu once wanted to seize the throne and was an enemy of Queen Mother Wei, so Queen Mother Wei would definitely wipe her out. But your sister is the Queen, she is usually the most kindhearted and treats you well, do you think your sister would harm you?"
After saying this, she realized that her tone was too harsh, so she calmed down and said, "Think about how good your sister is to you. Can't you help her?"
The fifth girl still disagreed and just shook her head: "Mom, please let me go."
Seeing her daughter was so useless, she had no choice but to go to the Hanhai Mansion to discuss countermeasures with her mother-in-law, brothers and sisters-in-law.
Maybe Si Yatou and Fan Yuzhen would still be willing?
But to her disappointment, Fan Yuzhen and the fourth lady were unwilling to do so. She went to see Old Lady Ruan, who also said, "They are the kind of people who would fall down over such a small matter. Even if they enter the palace, can they handle Concubine Cui?"
"What should we do?" Lady Cheng'en was worried.
But then I heard Old Madam Ruan say, "Don't worry, I'll send someone back to the Jiangling clan to look for him when the time comes."
"What good seedlings can the tribe find? I think the previous girl Mi Niang is pretty good. We might as well choose her!"
Madam Ruan waved her hand: "She has her own parents, and her family doesn't agree. We can't force others, so just forget about her."
Helplessly, Lady Cheng'en had to agree with Old Lady Ruan and go back to the Jiangling clan to look for someone else.
It was a rare day off for Ruan Jiading, so he prepared to take his family to climb the mountain. Mi Niang saw her mother carrying a basket and laughed: "Mom, why are you carrying a basket? Are you going to pick mushrooms?"
Mrs. Ding shook her head and said, "Of course I am useful. There are many wild flowers on this mountain. Although wild flowers are not as precious as domestic flowers, they have a more wild charm. It would be even better if they could be transplanted into the courtyard."
"Yeah, that's right." My family is not rich and can't afford expensive flowers.
It was still daylight, and Mi Niang had already changed into Hu clothing with narrow sleeves, which made it very convenient for her to walk.
Ruan Jiading really enjoyed climbing mountains. He was in very good shape and was the kind of person who could swim in the water to exercise even in winter.
It was Mi Niang's first time climbing a mountain, and she was very energetic at the beginning. Second Mistress Ding reminded her: "Don't use up all your strength at the beginning. If you use up all your strength now, you will be exhausted when you reach the top of the mountain later."
"I understand." Mi Niang climbed up tirelessly, feeling extremely happy.
The mountain is not very high, and there are maple trees all over the mountain. Autumn is the best time to enjoy the maple trees. When we were halfway up, Ruan Jiading suddenly said, "Mi Niang, Shiyilang, let's write a couplet together."
"Dad, I haven't read as many books as you and Eleventh Brother, so please don't make fun of me."
Although Mi Niang was considered to be quite talented among the girls, she was still far behind those who had actually participated in the imperial examinations and obtained official titles.
Ruan Shiyi smiled and said, "Mi Niang, please don't be modest! I have read your poems and they are very spiritual."
"Since Brother Eleven said so, I will take the responsibility."
The father and his daughter composed poems along the way and did not feel tired at all until they reached the top of the mountain.
Ruan Jiading sighed, "It's a pity that you only studied for three years, otherwise you would have great talent. Oh, by the way, I see you want to learn Chengwen, but you are getting older now, and it's not good to ask an outside teacher to teach you. I am busy with official duties now, and your eleventh brother has been doing my clerkship all the time, otherwise we can teach you."
Mi Niang dreamed of learning to write eight-part essays, but she also knew that this was unrealistic, so she couldn't help but say, "My daughter is doing well now, daddy, don't worry about me."
"I do have an idea. I have a friend who writes very well and can solve problems very quickly. I will write to him and ask him to teach you. You just need to prepare a good article." Ruan Jiading said.
"This is not a good idea..." Mi Niang was a little afraid of being discovered. Even if the article inside was serious, it could easily be misunderstood.
She was used to being cautious, but Second Mistress Ding smiled and said, "It's okay. It's only natural for him to teach you in the future."
Ruan Jiading and Ruan Shiyi laughed loudly after hearing this. Mi Niang couldn't help stamping her feet and said, "Laughing again and again, always laughing like this, I don't know what it means."
The mountain they climbed was called Xiaoxi Mountain. When they reached the top, the servants had already prepared tea in a nearby pavilion.
This is an octagonal pavilion, the largest pavilion in Xiaoxishan. After we sat down, the waiters came down to serve us cakes, boiled peanuts, chicken feet, goose feet, etc.
Mi Niang turned around, faced the mountains, took a deep breath, and immediately felt refreshed.
This is a feeling I have never had before.
"It's a pity that I didn't bring a paintbrush, otherwise the morning glow would have been so beautiful!"
Chuntao and Xia Lian also felt it was a pity.
The master and his servants watched the group of people coming up the mountain on sedan chairs. Xia Lian couldn't help but say, "It must be so tiring to carry them like this. I think the best way to climb a mountain is to climb up."
"You can't say that. If everyone goes hiking, what will happen to the sedan chair business?" Mi Niang laughed and said, "It can be seen that many things have advantages and disadvantages."
Soon, when the group of people approached, Ruan Jiading and Ruan Shiyi hurriedly went to greet them, "Your humble servant, Ruan Jiading, the head of the Ministry of Revenue, is here to see the Grand Minister of Agriculture (an elegant title for the Minister of Revenue)."
It turned out that this family was the Minister of Revenue and his family.
Ruan Shiyi quickly reminded Ding Erniang and Mi Niang: "This Jian Da Si Nong has just been transferred back from his post as Salt Transport History. The emperor has entrusted him with an important task and rewarded him with the title of Da Si Nong."
It turned out to be Dad's boss. Second Mistress Ding and Mi Niang suddenly realized what was going on.
Although Minister Jian is about fifty years old, he is very handsome, with a long beard hanging down on his chest. It can be seen that he was a handsome man when he was young.
But wait, could it be that the Jian family is the family of Mrs. Zhang who wants to harm their family?
Just as she was thinking about it, she saw her mother taking Mi Niang to pay her respects to Madam Jian.
When Madam Jian was flattering the Empress in her previous life, she served as a lady-in-waiting beside the Empress. Because she was not as favored as Zhou Furou, Madam Jian treated her coldly on the surface, but secretly gave her money to do things for her.
Of course Mi Niang refused. Later, she was targeted by Concubine Cui. Madam Jian, a wife of an outsider, came to present gifts to Concubine Cui to plead for her. Wasn't this clearly a blatant accusation that she was colluding with the wife of an outsider? She almost drank the Hedinghong.
If she hadn't managed to escape death in the end, she would have died long ago.
But she earned her favor later on by herself. What did it have to do with Mrs. Jane?
She just doesn't believe that there is any good thing in this world that happens without reason.
In her previous life, she came out of purgatory. She doesn't need anyone to help her, and at the same time, she doesn't sympathize with anyone.
Her standard for employing people is that those who obey me will prosper, and those who disobey me will perish.
"You are the wife of Master Ruan, you are so young. You masters are also young and promising!" Mrs. Jian said with a smile.
She looked very pretty and slim. Women of her age were either extremely skinny or extremely fat. It was rare to find someone as slim as her. Although there were wrinkles around her eyes, she was still as charming as ever.
Besides, Second Mistress Ding knew that this was official language, so she just replied respectfully, "No, no."
"Are you here to climb the mountain too?" asked Mrs. Jane.
Grandma Ding Er nodded: "Yes, we were just hiking."
Over there, Ruan Jiading had already finished talking to Minister Jian, so Second Madam Ding and her family naturally gave up the octagonal pavilion to Shangguan, and they went to the other hexagonal pavilion.
After the Jian family sat down, they brought all kinds of delicious food, even the biggest and fullest peaches were chosen before being served on the table.
Next to Madam Jian sat a little girl, who was wearing a magenta floral skirt and a gold necklace. She said to Madam Jian in a somewhat unpleasant tone, "Grandma, why did you bother to be so polite to that insignificant official's wife?"
Madam Jian fiddled with her teacup and said calmly, "Yuehua, don't be rude."
Jian Yuehua admitted her mistake quickly: "It was my granddaughter who was reckless."
"There's no need to talk about the past. In the future, grandma will find a good match for you in Beijing." Mrs. Jian also felt sorry for her granddaughter.
It turned out that Jian Yuehua had been engaged in Yangzhou, but the man changed his mind and broke off the engagement, which made her lose all face. She was a very face-conscious person.
She came from a family with a long history of officials, but her marriage was rejected, which was a great shame and humiliation.
When Jian Yuehua heard her grandmother's comfort, her eyes suddenly turned red.
Mrs. Jian held her in her arms and said, "Don't worry, we will go to your great aunt's house tomorrow. You are still young, only ten years old, and there will be many opportunities in the future."
The morning glow came out, and the sky was like a blazing cloud.
Ruan Jiading and his group were also preparing to go back. After taking a shower and changing clothes, Mi Niang's legs were extremely sore.
"When I came down the mountain just now, I didn't feel anything. Now, strangely, I feel even more sore after returning home and lying down."
The two little girls she bought earlier had also learned the rules for a long time. They were massaging her legs and laughed when she said this: "When you are in the mood to climb the mountain, you naturally don't feel tired. But when you are no longer in the mood, you will definitely feel tired."
Mi Niang suddenly realized: "You are right. Although my legs are sore now, it still feels good. If I can climb the mountain again, I will go again."
Chun Tao was ironing clothes for her. When she heard this, she said in panic, "My dear, Miss Fang from the Bo's Mansion wants you to go to her wedding in a few days. Don't make a fuss. It will hurt your legs and stomach. It will be bad if you can't walk."
"Why would I go to their house for no reason? She's engaged, but I'm not. Everyone who sees me will pull me aside and ask me questions. It's really annoying." Mi Niang held her chin with her hand. She didn't want to go!
Unexpectedly, in the evening, Second Mistress Ding came to tell the whole story. She smiled and said, "Mi Niang, you are already thirteen years old. Your father and I remember all your important events. Look, there are already some clues."
Mi Niang's heart skipped a beat: "What's the point of this? I don't know."
"Parents' orders and matchmaker's words are what we should worry about. Don't you know that this is the ethics that a daughter of a noble family should have? But your father and I love you, so let me tell you first that this marriage is very suitable for you." Second Madam Ding was also worried about her daughter.
Mi Niang couldn't help asking, "What about him? I don't want to be ugly, and I don't want to be someone's concubine."
Second Madam Ding was so angry that she laughed: "Don't worry, I have inquired about it. This boy is five years older than you, and his family is rich and well-connected. Your father has asked his teacher about his talent and he knows it all. The most important thing is that his mother likes you, and his sister likes you too."
"Mom, you wouldn't be fooled by a liar, right?" Mi Niang expressed her disbelief. How could a mother-in-law like her daughter-in-law?
"Don't worry, I've asked the old lady in the Duke's Mansion to inquire about our family. There won't be any problems." Mrs. Ding was really worried about her daughter.
Her husband had just become an official. He was an honest man and would not go after anyone for money. No wealthy family would be interested in their daughter. A poor family was afraid that they could not protect their daughter, and their daughter did not have much dowry. Some talented scholars and sons of successful candidates in the imperial examination did not even think highly of her family, thinking that her father-in-law could not offer any support.
Thinking of this, Second Madam Ding said, "Do you still remember the wife of the Marquis of Dong'an whom we met when we entered the capital? I'm talking about the young master of her family."
It turned out to be him.
On the other hand, the Dong'an Marquis Mansion welcomed a guest today. This guest is the old lady's younger sister, Weng, who is also the wife of the Minister of Revenue, Jian.
Mrs. Jian specially brought her granddaughter Yuehua here. She originally wanted to marry a civil official, but her granddaughter's reputation of breaking off an engagement was too loud, and many people disliked this.
She looked down on those who were inferior to her, and when she came to Beijing, she thought of her sister's grandson Fang Weiyan.
Upon hearing that Fang Weiyan was not yet engaged, Madam Jian gained confidence. Although there were two girls living in the Marquis' Mansion, one was an orphan and the other followed her widowed mother here. She only had a younger sister and a posthumous child born to a concubine. They still had to rely on Madam Xu, the Marquis. If Xu was satisfied, they would have been engaged long ago.
"elder sister."
"younger sister."
The two old sisters hugged each other and cried. Xu said hurriedly, "Auntie, our old lady has always been thinking about you."
Mrs. Jane wiped her tears with a handkerchief: "Yes, my sister has always been very good to me."
Xu simply chatted a few words and asked Fang Yaqing to greet the guests. Fang Yaqing was already preparing to get engaged. She was going to marry her uncle's youngest son, which was a marriage between cousins, a closer relationship.
Therefore, people were in high spirits when good things happened, and they treated Jian Yuehua very appropriately.
Mrs. Jane couldn't help but nodded secretly.
Although their family had a bit of a mix-up between legitimate and illegitimate children, and they were a noble family, they were just rich and idle people, but the Marquis of Dong'an was also in the emperor's favor. His original wife was from the Ruan family of Jiangling, and Fang Weiyan's uncle had a smooth career.
People often say that all the wealth in Wu lies in the Xu family.
When Xu went down to arrange the banquet, Madam Jian intended to find a husband for her granddaughter. As she was the woman, she couldn't force herself. So, she said, "My dear sister, I have been away from the capital for a long time. If you have any concerns, you must worry about my Hua'er. Yuehua is the only granddaughter in our family. It doesn't matter if her family is ordinary, as long as she has good character, everything will be fine. In the future, our master and Yuehua's father will take care of her."
The old lady of Dong'an Marquis was originally drinking tea, and suddenly she understood the meaning of it.
It is also said that after Xu had served her mother-in-law and Mrs. Jian, she returned to her room, and a little maid came and whispered something quickly in her ear.
Xu sneered, "Bah! A girl whose engagement was cancelled wants to be forced into our family. Even the Wang family doesn't want her, so why would our Fang family want her? Besides, how can she compare to the one I picked?"
As soon as he finished speaking, he heard someone outside say, "The fourth young master is here."
"Please let him in." When Mrs. Xu heard that her son had come in, her expression changed immediately.
Fang Weiyan understood that they were probably talking about his marriage. Since his mother returned to Suzhou to visit relatives, she quickly arranged a marriage for his younger sister, and his marriage would probably be soon as well.
"Mother." Fang Weiyan saluted.
Xu smiled and said, "Please sit down. I have something good to tell you."
Fang Weiyan pretended not to know: "I don't know what it is. Please tell me, mother."
"Your sister is about to get engaged, and I have already prepared everything for you. I will invite a matchmaker to come on the 18th of this month. This girl is also from a prominent family, and her father is a Jinshi. Although she did not bind her feet, her beauty can be said to be brilliant, and her beauty is not exaggerated. Moreover, she is not like the girls nowadays, whose ambitions are written on their faces."
"She is well-read in poetry, good at music, able to write and paint, and considerate..."
Fang Weiyan thought to himself that not many people could receive such praise from his mother, and he was actually looking forward to it.
Of course, Xu said, "Your grandmother wanted you to marry your aunt's cousin, and recently she brought in a cousin from your uncle. I don't think that's appropriate. Especially, I heard that she was broken off from engagement. Of course, it doesn't mean that it's necessarily her fault, but that girl is not suitable for you."
After that, he smiled and said, "If it weren't for this encounter with this girl, your grandmother would have done this. Compared with the two, Dong is better. But Dong is too obedient and virtuous. This is good for men who are not strong-willed, but for a talented man like you, it is better to have a mutual understanding and be able to talk to each other."
Fang Weiyan was deeply moved upon hearing this, and could not help but say, "I am truly grateful for everything that mother has done for me."
In the previous life, it was the old lady who promised the Jian family, and my mother hastily decided on the Dong family.
He had originally planned to directly express his feelings towards the Jian family when the Jian family asked him to come to their house, and then there would be no matter about the Dong family.
But it was difficult for a man like him to get to know a girl, so he had to go through her mother. If she was really carefully selected by her mother and praised her so much, he thought it must be great.
Then I heard her mother say, "Don't worry. Your sister will get engaged in a few days. I will invite her to come to our house. How about you two meet each other then?"
Fang Weiyan nodded, and then he said to Xu: "Mother, my cousin has been looking for a beautiful woman recently. You should also tell aunt about it. He is a man who is used to taking advantage of others. It would be bad if he caused any trouble."
Although he knew that Ruan would enter the palace in the future, he didn't know what would happen if he noticed her and she fell into his hands.
Of course, he should be more ruthless. After all, with Nguyen around, the emperor could not rule the country. But Nguyen was still a little girl at that time, and he could not regard her as unforgivable just because of what she did in her past life.
Xu said, "Your cousin is like a wild horse. Even if I tell her, your aunt can't control her."
"Then your son should send someone to stop him. It would be fine if I didn't know, but now that I know, I can't bear to watch innocent people suffer." Fang Weiyan said.
Xu thought that this was her son's good side, but also his weakness. Although he was very cunning, very good at political tactics, and very smart.
But he has a very low line in what he does.
Such a person is indecisive and cruel, especially for a woman he doesn't know, he actually offends his cousin. This is really unwise.
But from the woman's perspective, if Fang Weiyan hadn't protected her, she would have been taken into the mansion by He Tinglan to be used as a plaything, which would have been a good thing for her.
"What if you offend your cousin? He is our relative after all."
Fang Weiyan said indifferently: "Then my son can only regret it."
Fang Weiyan turned around and walked out. Looking at her son's back, Xu couldn't help thinking that she should have found a woman who was more decisive in killing for her son. Now the girl she chose was too cute and adorable. She, as the mother-in-law, would have to worry about him more in the future. Alas.
After going out, Fang Weiyan called the servants and ordered: "Go to the gate of Ruan's house and guard it secretly. If you encounter your cousin robbing, go out and drive away the people from the Bo's house. By the way, go to the infantry office. The current commander of the infantry is the Ruan family."
"Yes, sir."
"Don't reveal our identities, just solve it quietly and don't ruin her reputation."
After giving the order, Fang Weiyan went to the study, read a book for a while, and then leaned back in his chair, wondering how good his future wife would be. She must be as good as his mother described her to be, cute, innocent, beautiful, and adorable. He really couldn't wait to meet her.
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