Chuntao and Xilian are Mi Niang's trusted maids. They have served her for a long time and naturally understand Guan Huiqing's character and her affair with Li Guan. Now that they heard that she was coming, they were both unhappy.
Xia Lian's temper flared up, so she said, "Our family has nothing to do with her, and the Li family is closer to us. It would be bad if she upset the Li family. Miss, you should pretend you don't know anything about this. I'll go out and tell them."
Mi Niang smiled and said, "That's what you mean. You don't have to go. Just let the little girl at the second gate go and tell her that I'm not home. You can quietly watch her from the side and find out something."
If her personal maid goes out, she will be hated no matter if she is seen or not. If she is rejected, it will be Li Guan who will bear the grudge in the future. If she is not rejected and has sympathy for her and gives her some extra advice, then Mrs. Wu and Madam Li will probably regard her as a thorn in their eyes and whatever she does will be wrong. So she will not get involved in the Li family's affairs.
After hearing what Xia Lian said, the little girl at the second gate hurried out to make excuses, while Xia Lian quietly followed behind and watched.
Outside the Ruan Mansion
A blue woolen carriage stopped here, and at the door stood a graceful young woman, wearing a plain light blue dress, a silk flower of the same color on her hair, and a jade bracelet loosely worn on her hand, the bracelet was of very good water content.
This young lady was none other than Guan Huiqing. The girl with a bun next to her was very young, and looked to be no more than eleven or twelve years old. If Guan Huiqing was wearing a silk dress, the girl's clothes were washed so hard that they turned white. Although they were not patched, the clothes were too big for her, and on her, she looked like a child who had stolen adult clothes.
Not to mention Xia Lian, even the little girl who was delivering messages at the second gate could see that Guan Huiqing and her servant were in a bad situation. However, the first rule of Second Madam Ding in managing a household was not to look down on others, especially in the capital. One had to be polite to others, even to hostile guests, and not show them a cold face.
So the little girl named Dancao came out and just smiled and apologized: "I'm sorry, young lady, our young lady is not at home today."
Guan Huiqing gritted her teeth, took out a few dozen large bills from her sleeve and handed them to Dancao: "Sister, please ask your young lady to come out. I have something very important to tell her."
Dancao did not take the money, but said: "It is the same if you tell me what you want to say to me, our young lady is really not at home."
"I really have something to do." Guan Huiqing has always been proud and arrogant, and never asks for help from others. Today, she has tears in her eyes and looks pitiful.
It's a pity that I'm flirting with a blind man. Dancao thought to herself, I was bought in Jiangling. My mother is the second mistress's concubine. Although I'm young, I know about your affairs.
Therefore, Dancao still shook her head and said, "Miss, our young lady is really not at home. I have something else to do, so I will go in first."
Dancao turned around and said goodbye. The little girl next to Guan Huiqing was so angry that she jumped up and down: "Aunt, look at how slippery she is. It's obvious that she looks down on us and doesn't want to come out to see us."
"Pan'er, don't talk too much. We've been through a lot, you should at least learn your lesson." Guan Huiqing sighed.
Her parents died two years ago, and her fiancé broke off the engagement because he couldn't wait for her to observe the mourning period. Her elder sister was also unlucky and fell ill this year. Before she died, she gave her private money to her, so that she could escape with her younger sister. However, her money was stolen by the servants on the way. Fortunately, she had some jewelry that Li Guan had given her before, which she hid close to her body, so she was able to take a boat to Beijing.
Now she has nowhere else to go. Her brother-in-law is not a good person. If he goes home, he will definitely sell her and Pan Jie'er, especially after his business went bankrupt. He will sell whatever can be sold at home. If her sister hadn't died, she would have sold them.
Naturally, the first place she wanted to look for in Beijing was the Li family. Unfortunately, she didn't even know which way the Li family's door faced. It happened that she saw Ruan Jiading here yesterday, so she followed him here, and also wanted Mi Niang to give her more help for the sake of their past.
But I didn't expect that Mi Niangsi was so unemotional.
At least they know each other.
Xia Lian followed all the way and found that Guan Huiqing lived in a very simple place, with only an old mother to take care of her, and she was living beyond her means.
If Mi Niang would have been happy to watch the joke in the past and deliberately let Guan Huiqing come to her house to make trouble, now she thinks Guan Huiqing is not a pitiful person. She has come to this point because, on the one hand, her parents indulged their children and did not educate them strictly. When the Li family did not believe in her, they actually allowed their daughter to make private transactions. On the other hand, she trusted Li Guan too much.
"Let's just leave it as it is from now on. I'm not a compassionate person. It has nothing to do with me."
She wouldn't kick someone when they're down, but she wouldn't help them either.
Little did she know that her situation in her previous life was thousands of times more difficult than hers. Sometimes she was so hungry that she even went to the woods to look for food. There were many snakes in Huguang, and she was almost bitten by a poisonous snake once. Later, she actually learned to distinguish snakes, which ones are poisonous and which ones are not. She even ate grilled mushrooms once, but because she didn't know how to distinguish them, she was poisoned at home and fainted for several days, but fortunately she didn't die.
At least Guan Huiqing still had servants to serve her, and she probably had some money in her hands.
Even going to Li Guan would be more suitable than going to her.
Guan Huiqing had a very difficult life. She was a weak lady with no survival skills. On the contrary, her niece Pan Jie'er, who had followed her father, a traveling merchant, since childhood, was more capable than her and actually found out about Li Guan's residence.
"Aunt, it would be nice if we could meet that man."
"Well, I will never let anyone look down on me in the future." Guan Huiqing secretly decided that all the insults she suffered today came from her loss of favor with Li Guan.
She will not let go of Ruan Mi Niang and her brother-in-law, any of those who have bullied her.
June is the birthday celebration for Mrs. Shen. The eldest of the Shen family is 28 years old this year and has already taken up his turn as the inner cabinet member. He has a bright future ahead of him. Moreover, he is the grandson of the prime minister and his father is also a high-ranking official. The Shen family is always crowded with visitors.
Mi Niang originally planned not to go, but Si Niang and Wu Niang came to her house to call her, so she had to go.
After getting on the carriage, Wu Niang felt a little depressed. She thought to herself: No wonder people say that getting married is a second reincarnation. What was the Third Miss before? She was just a concubine's daughter of the second wife. Her mother died early, and her elder sister didn't like her. But this girl has set her sights on the second brother-in-law, the golden turtle son-in-law.
The second sister was the eldest daughter of Lord Hanhai. Her status was more noble than that of the eldest sister who was the empress. It was no exaggeration to say that this marriage was carefully chosen. However, the elder sister was unlucky and died a few years after her marriage.
Even if he remarried, there were countless famous ladies waiting for his second brother-in-law Shen Muqian to choose, but the elders of the Shen family chose the Ruan family as stepmother for the sake of their grandson.
It's really a good deal for Sanniang.
Wu Niang's eyes were dark and unclear. She had heard that her husband had a very gentle personality and was well-educated. She was originally very happy about him, but he was far inferior to Shen Muqian.
Moreover, Zhang Jingzhi had had an affair with her third sister, which she only found out about later. Now that the marriage could not be annulled, she didn't know how to feel hatred in her heart.
But she had no way out. The nobles were increasingly just rich and idle people, while civil officials became the mainstream.
Si Niang was very happy and said in a cheerful tone, "You have been staying at home recently. I wonder if you know anything new in the capital."
"I'm not as well-informed as you are. Just tell me."
"Princess Rongxi wanted to marry the son of Marquis Jinxiang. Guess what, the prince rejected her. I heard that the princess wanted to commit suicide but was rescued. Now Marquis Jinxiang has no choice but to let his son go out to hide."
The Marquis of Jinxiang? Wasn't that Zhou Furou's husband in her previous life?
Was it at this time that she was saved by Zhou Furou? But Fan Yuzhen had already entered the palace in this life, would the Ruan family send someone else in?
In fact, the reason why Zhou Furou was able to marry the prince of Jinxiang Marquis in her previous life was all because of the empress's unremitting help. But if she did not enter the palace in this life, would the Jinxiang Marquis's Mansion still marry Zhou Furou in a formal ceremony?
So many things have changed in this life, like in her previous life, Guan Huiqing successfully married into the Li family, but in this life, it is very difficult for her to become a concubine in the Li family.
While they were talking, they arrived at the Shen's house. Ruan Sanniang was no longer the lazy and indifferent person she had been in the Ruan's house before. She always had a faint smile on her face, and greeted who came slowly.
Here Wu Niang's eyes brightened a lot. At least Zhang Jing's family had a good tradition. A man could take a concubine when he was forty. She didn't have to be scared by so many little goblins when she entered the house.
Mi Niang secretly sat aside with her sisters in the clan. Mrs. Jian also brought Jian Yuehua with her today. When Jian Yuehua appeared in the social circle again, she looked very different. Not only was she much calmer, but she also had a more gentle and charming look like a young girl.
This must have taken a lot of effort.
This Mrs. Jane is really a capable person.
Many people care a lot about what others think. Once they are talked about, they become unbalanced and crushed. However, they do not realize that as long as you have changed a lot, people will not remember much about your past. No one will keep harping on your past, unless they are your mortal enemy. Otherwise, most people will just follow the crowd.
With Madam Jian's face, Jian Yuehua was a guest of honor. Madam Shen and Madam Jian also had a very good relationship, and the two spoke very familiarly. Madam Shen also deliberately praised Jian Yuehua, saying, "Such a good girl, such a good needlework, even better than when I was young."
Everyone praised again. Jian Yuehua just wanted to show some pride, but seeing her grandmother's face, she didn't dare to make any mistakes.
Wu Niang couldn't bear to see this, so she whispered to Mi Niang, "Let's go out for a walk."
Although Wu Niang and the Queen are sisters, they are two extremes. Wu Niang's emotions are all on her face. She will say it when she doesn't like something and be happy when she likes something. It's probably like you are her enemy and the whole world knows that you and her don't get along. Compared with the Queen, who always talks about being sisters, she is much better.
Perhaps it was because Mi Niang and Wu Niang were not from the same pot and had no conflicts of interest, so they could speak their minds.
Wu Niang walked away and said, "I thought Third Sister enjoyed a good life, but I never thought she didn't have a good life either. I heard Second Sister say that there was a girl named Lan Cui in Second Brother-in-law's room who was different from the others. She was the apple of his eye, and Second Sister was very angry about it but could do nothing about it. Today Third Sister brought out four girls from behind, and I don't know how many girls she didn't bring out. I don't think about the past anymore, I just hope I can be safe and happy in the future."
After she finished speaking, she looked at Mi Niang again: "But, I have to remind you, I'm fine, but the Xu family didn't dare to make too much trouble when they took a concubine at the age of 40 without a child. But you are going to marry into the Dong'an Marquis's Mansion. You don't often hang out with nobles, so you don't know that the head of their family is the wife of the prince, Shen. They come from such a jealous family, and they have to put on a show. Not to mention the second and third sons of their family. I've been to the Dong'an Marquis' Mansion before. The fourth son of the Fang family has Pixiu and Bishang by his side. They are top figures."
"Really?" Mi Niang said with a chill in her eyes.
Fang Weiyan happened to be passing by the rockery and shuddered. He naturally knew not to look at or listen to anything indecent. But when someone mentioned the fourth son of the Fang family, he couldn't help but stop.
Just then he heard Mi Niang say "Really?", which made him cry out in injustice.
Then she laughed and said, "Even if he is pregnant, what can I do? I am of low status, I have no teeth, and I am stupid, so I can only endure it. In the future, I have no other thoughts, I am just afraid of being bullied, then please save me, sister."
These words made Fang Weiyan's hair stand on end.
Empress Dowager Ruan was known for being a ruthless character. Although Concubine Cui looked aggressive now, she was nothing compared to her.
She was not the kind of person who would show off her power. By the time you reacted, you would not even know how the person who had offended her died. This person was very able to hold back. She would not speak out loud until the emperor passed away and she was in charge of government affairs. She never lost her composure when the previous emperor was still alive.
Even tigers take naps, but she doesn't.
Fang Weiyan really wanted to come out and explain a little, but when he came out, the two girls had already walked far away.
Wu Niang heard Mi Niang say this and couldn't help but say, "Don't worry, I'm different from the fourth girl. She's a confused person. As for the third sister, you've seen that she's not very quiet like us. If I can help you, I will definitely help you."
Mi Niang didn't take this seriously, and Wu Niang was just saying it casually. The two of them were just casual acquaintances, and girls are good at distinguishing the difference.
For example, Mi Niang can complain to Guo Yaoyu, but she cannot complain in front of Wu Niang.
But if she gets married, she can’t even tell people around her, otherwise everyone will think she is too awesome.
The Shen family hired a chef from somewhere, but he was very skilled. The ordinary shou noodles turned out to be very delicious. Mi Niang whispered to Second Madam Ding: "Let's cook like this when we go home."
Tang heard this from the side. She was a person who liked to show off. She was fine in front of Old Madam Ruan, but she liked to show off her ability in front of others. So she came over and said, "Auntie, Sister Mi Niang, this soup is not ordinary. The soup ingredients are very simple, hen bones, trotters, eel bones, but the most important thing is the time. It needs to be stewed for at least a day. When the soup turns white, add the sauce cooked with secret pork belly."
"So that's how it is. We usually just eat noodles with chicken soup, it's not that complicated." Second Grandma Ding said with a smile.
She had no shyness at all.
This made the ladies present nod their heads. They all knew that Ruan Jiading was the head of the Ministry of Revenue and had only been in office for a few years. The Ruan family must not be well off, but the fact that he openly admitted his family wealth made everyone think he was simple and lovable.
Mrs. Shi looked at Mi Niang, who was eating in very good manners, and thought to herself that it was a pity.
On the other side, Fang Weiyan sat together with several young masters from aristocratic families. Fang Weiyan was a very good person and all the yamen admired him very much. When the men got together, they sat upright at first, but later on, they either talked about which girl in the brothel was good or which handsome man in the Xianggu Pavilion was good, which was quite unrestrained.
When he was here before, Fang Weiyan listened with a smile, which was also his self-restraint, but now he is a little impatient, especially with Mi Niang.
He hadn't seen her since the New Year, and at a glance he was surprised to find that she seemed to have grown a little taller than before.
His feelings towards her are very complicated now. They were a king and his subject in the previous life, and they were husband and wife in this life. He knew clearly that she was definitely not as she appeared to be, but he was attracted by her every move.
"Hey, hey, hey, I heard that Old Madam Shen likes the sound of stringed instruments the most. Many young ladies are preparing to play music to celebrate her birthday. Let's go and listen when the time comes."
Although some people were tempted, they still said, "I'm afraid this is not a good idea."
Although the princes usually like to sleep with prostitutes, they are still very respectful to the daughters of officials, just like the difference between wives and concubines, wives are to be respected, while concubines are to continue the incense and can be played with, the two are of different natures.
One of them was brave enough to say, "We don't even know what she looks like. There is a Qingyinxuan next to the flower hall where the old lady celebrated her birthday. We can just go there."
Everyone thought it was a good idea.
Although marriages in Dayong are all arranged by parents and matchmakers, some families love their children, and if a yamen official thinks a candidate is suitable, they may send a matchmaker to inquire.
After the feast, the girls gathered together. Ruan Sanniang smiled and said to Old Lady Shen, "The girls who came today are all national players. Some of them are good at Yueqin, some are good at Guzheng, and some are good at Pipa. But I have a request. How about you, the old ancestor, assign the repertoire? If anyone wins, the old birthday star will have to bring some valuable prizes today."
Mi Niang finally understood why Si Niang and Wu Niang had tried so hard to get her here. She looked at the two of them. Si Niang smiled awkwardly, while Wu Niang said, "Our Ruan family depends entirely on you."
Si Niang is not interested in music, chess, calligraphy and painting, and Wu Niang cannot bear hardship. Both of them know a little, but neither is as proficient as Mi Niang.
"You guys..."
Si Niang smiled and said, "I heard from your mother that you never fall behind. You have been playing for many years. Why are you afraid of what they will do?"
Mi Niang was of course very confident in her pipa. The girls came forward together to draw lots, including Jian Yuehua. Jian Yuehua grew up with her parents in Yangzhou and was very good at playing the pipa.
She had worked really hard to get ahead this time. After seeing Mi Niang, a flash of contempt flashed across her eyes. How dare a country bumpkin compete with her?
The first person to come out was a round-faced girl. She was a little nervous, but after she sat down, she played very fluently. She played "Yang Chun Bai Xue". As soon as she finished playing, Old Lady Shen smiled and said, "You play very well."
The second one was also "Yang Chun Bai Xue". It was full of fancy moves and the postures were nice, but they were just fancy moves and several notes were played wrong.
Li Guan, who was also quite knowledgeable about music, could not help but say, "It's five keys wrong."
But Old Madam Shen still encouraged her, and the girl thought she was pretty while holding Yueqin.
After that, three more people started to perform. Their level was pretty good, but in Mi-niang's opinion, it was not very advanced. It was already very little if they could only perform at the level of "Ducks Playing in the Water".
It was Mi Niang's turn to come up. She bowed first, and Ruan Sanniang smiled and said to Old Lady Shen, "This is my cousin."
Everyone realized that she was from the Ruan family. They took a look at her and immediately felt that she was dazzling, like a bright moon, approaching slowly. Her dress today was not as gorgeous and exquisite as the girls present, but her temperament and beauty could not be ignored. The simple moon-lit skirt made her look like a fairy from heaven.
Jian Yuehua knew that her appearance was not worse than hers, and she was wearing a long red skirt with golden crabapple flowers and a phoenix tail. Although she only had three jade hairpins on her head, each of them was priceless. Therefore, when she saw Mi Niang like this, she felt disdainful and said, "I was going to play "Ba Wang Xi Jia". I'm afraid that even Madam Shen herself can't play this song. She specially invited a famous teacher to teach her, so she played it as the last piece."
Who knew that Mi Niang tuned the pipa and started playing. She started with "A Hundred Flowers in Competition for Beauty". Jian Yuehua thought it was not good. Then she immediately changed the tune to "Autumn Moon in the Han Palace". Old Madam Shen immediately became energetic.
She said to the people around her, "I never thought I could still hear the lost ancient music of the Chen and Sui dynasties."
Mrs. Ding looked at her daughter with great pride, and watched Mi Niang end the song with another song "Song of the Frontier".
The sound of her piano was blended with her strong personal emotions, which made all the officials in Qingyinxuan intoxicated. Fang Weiyan couldn't help but applaud in his heart, saying that she played really well.
As a result, the response to "Ba Wang Xi Jia", which Jian Yuehua had been looking forward to as the finale, was good, but not as good as the previous song.
"Congratulations, Brother Wei Yan, you have found a beautiful woman." After asking around for a while, Master Shi found out that the woman was already taken. She was Fang Wei Yan's fiancée. Although he was a little unhappy, he still congratulated Fang Wei Yan in a very graceful manner.
Everyone praised him for his good fortune. Even though they didn't know what the girl looked like, the fact that she played the pipa so well showed that she was very intelligent. I wonder what kind of smart and kind-hearted girl she was.
Fang Weiyan had never expected that Mi Niang was so good at playing the pipa. Of course, he had heard from his sister Fang Yaqing that Mi Niang was very good at playing the pipa, but he had never expected her to be this good.
Every time he thought he had understood her, he would find that she would bring him surprises again.
Jian Yuehua lost again, and Mi Niang won the prize, but she still praised Jian Yuehua sincerely: "You played "Ba Wang Xi Jia" very well."
This time, Jian Yuehua did not make a scene. Although her face looked a little unhappy, she was able to keep calm and said, "Thank you." She turned to look at Mrs. Jian, and only breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Mrs. Jian nod slightly.
Her grandmother was really cruel. If she got angry again today, she would probably be locked up for life and would be married off when she reached the age of 15. Therefore, she did not dare to act rashly.
Mi Niang received a purple lotus with kingfisher feathers, which was a piece of jewelry worn on the forehead and was very gorgeous.
"Mom, please keep it for me."
Mrs. Ding said proudly, "Okay."
Her daughter won this award with her real talent, and everyone could see it. She didn't have any prominent background, nor did she have any permanent assets to hire a famous teacher, but she still played the pipa beautifully.
The mother and daughter came out happily. Even Tang teased Mi Niang: "You are such a wonderful person. It's a pity that you are so busy that you never come when I invite you. You came at the right time today, right? You are really the best among all the others."
Mi Niang smiled and said, "My dear sister-in-law, please don't look down on me. There are always people who are better than you."
But after a few jokes, after getting on the carriage, Mi Niang suddenly remembered the girl with black sleeves and green clothes next to Fang Weiyan that Wu Niang mentioned. The name was quite nice.
He looks very decent, but if he is a playboy, she will, she will...
Mi Niang thought so, and just as she got off the carriage and sat down, she heard Dancao, a little maid at the second gate, said, "Miss, Aunt Fang is here."
Speak of the devil, and he will appear. But why did he come at this time?
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