If you don't cut the Gordian knot quickly, there will be endless troubles. For example, what happened today cannot be told to Luo Jingxi. Things in this world are so unreasonable. Even if you are the victim, if your reputation as a concubine is problematic, your husband will think you have a problem. Yao Niang hates these things, but she can't do anything about it.
Mother Jiang was tied up and taken to the garden, where there were few people and it was convenient to deal with her.
Yao Niang whispered in Yu's ear, "This thief bribed my sister-in-law's maid and stole my sister-in-law's underwear to steal it. I just happened to find out. Mother, you must not let her go."
"Okay, I understand. You can go back first." Yu looked at her daughter. She didn't want her daughter to get involved in such things. But she was still surprised by her daughter's sharpness. There were many evil spirits in the house, but she never thought that her daughter would catch the person in the act. And she was afraid that she would shout, so she blocked her mouth and accused her of theft.
It can be said that it was done in a crisp and decisive manner.
Yao Niang knew, of course, that if she asked about anything romantic, it would be inappropriate for her to be here, and even the matter itself was not her business.
Fan also said to Yao Niang: "Fifth sister, thank you very much today. I will discuss the follow-up matters with my wife. It's a rare day off for you, so you should take Third Brother out to have fun."
"Okay, mother and sister-in-law, I'll go out first." Yao Niang pushed the door open and walked out.
There was not much commotion in the family, as everyone thought that the wife was going to punish the theft. Some of the thieves who were usually not clean felt guilty. However, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law Ren and Zhou from the second room felt puzzled.
Ren said to Zhou, "I'm afraid it's the eldest branch who's doing this. For no reason, Aunt Jiang is a master of needlework and has a field and a shop. How could she steal things from Brother Xi's daughter-in-law?"
"Then your daughter-in-law will go and ask." Zhou still couldn't bear to leave Jiang.
She is now lending money and taking shares through this person. If something really happens to Jiang Mu, her affairs will be exposed.
In fact, she guessed right, and Jiang Yu almost told her everything.
Yu was different from Fan. Fan and Luo Jingxi were nominally married and neither of them would speak out their true feelings. But Yu was different, especially after Fan mentioned Chen Ziheng to her, Yu realized that this was not a simple matter of extortion, but someone was plotting against the Luo family behind the scenes.
When facing Mrs. Yu and Mrs. Fan, Mrs. Jiang could say half of the truth and hide the other half, but after Luo Zhizheng sat there, Mrs. Jiang told everything.
"It was Chen Ziheng, the great merchant in your house. He made up a lie and said he had an affair with your eldest lady. I was unwilling to do so at first, but he -"
Luo Zhizheng replied: "He gave too much."
Aunt Jiang lowered her head in shame and recounted how she came to the eldest house through Zhou, but was caught off guard and gagged and tied up by the maid sent by the Fifth Miss and brought here.
"Master Luo, I don't really have any intentions. I just want to tell Grandma the truth."
Luo Zhizheng smiled faintly: "A man who came to my house to blackmail my family dares to make excuses. I have no intention of arguing with you. Officials' families should not allow anyone to do anything unjust."
"Please spare my life, Lord Quan Cao!" Jiang Ma still held out a glimmer of hope.
The Langzhong of the Ministry of Personnel, also known as the "Quancao", was responsible for selecting officials for promotion.
"Don't mention it. I have already sent someone to send your grandson to a childless couple. You don't have to be implicated by your son in the future. Otherwise, if he stays with you, not to mention the imperial examination, even his family background will be tarnished. Now that you are involved in such a private matter of my family, you know what to do."
Mrs. Jiang's face turned pale, but she knew what to do. Luo Zhizheng's implication was that she should commit suicide as soon as possible, otherwise, her grandson would be in danger and it would be too easy for the officials to deal with her.
Mrs. Jiang walked out of the garden with no injuries on her body. She heard about the noble character of the Luo family, but she no longer had the face to stay in Beijing. She entrusted the shop to the agents to sell it, and told everyone that she wanted to return to her hometown.
On the way home by boat, he was drowned because the boat capsized.
This was done perfectly, and Fan heaved a sigh of relief when she heard the news of Jiang's death. Fan's maid Linglan was said to have fallen into a well, and her father took 20 taels of silver from the Luo family for the burial fee.
As for Chen Ziheng, he had already left the house and even Yao Niang didn't know why. Why did Chen Ziheng dare to do such a thing? Wasn't he afraid of being exposed?
Luo Zhizheng understood, and he said to Yu: "It is just that she is extremely lustful. Since ancient times, gambling is close to theft, and adultery is close to murder. Many people have committed murder for the word 'lust'. Since this matter has been resolved, there is no need to mention it again. Although those scoundrels in the second house are also problematic, the daughter-in-law should be made more powerful, like Yao Niang."
Yu Shi didn't know what Luo Zhizheng was praising his daughter at the end. Yu Shi laughed and said, "Why did you praise her, old man? I thought she was just a child making a fuss. Fortunately, she was right this time. What if she causes trouble next time? What should I do?"
"That's not the case. Nowadays, everyone wants perfection and wishes they could never do anything out of line in order to preserve their own reputation. Just like officials, everyone is talented, but why are there so many mediocre officials? It's because they are afraid of taking responsibility and losing their reputation. There are still too few people in the world who dare to take on responsibilities. If it were someone else who encountered this today, they would definitely not have handled it so cleanly and neatly, and would not have cared at all. They would have just pretended not to hear it. It is because she dared to take on responsibilities that the innocence of our family and my daughter-in-law was preserved." Luo Zhizheng himself has been an official for many years, so of course he has his own judgment.
He was not a pedantic person, and he despised those who were pedantic and irresponsible. The bad things in the world were caused by those mediocre officials.
Yu had another idea: "But the more you do, the more mistakes you make, and the less you do, the fewer mistakes you make."
Not to mention other families, even in their own family, they would choose a docile daughter-in-law. It would not be a good thing if their daughter was too strong-willed.
Luo Zhizheng raised his eyebrows when he heard Yu's worry: "It's nothing. Doesn't Yao Niang's face look so gentle?"
"Cough cough." Yu, who was drinking water, was choked.
Yao Niang, who knew about this, was learning the rules from Aunt Xu. Aunt Xu was about fifty years old and had an ordinary appearance, but she acted in an orderly manner, which was incomparable to ordinary people.
Because she only taught for one month, Madam Xu taught her more about etiquette and palace taboos: "When you walk, you can't sway from side to side, and you must use your heels to lead your forefoot. Don't hold your head too high to appear arrogant, but don't be timid and shrink either."
This is the balance to be struck in between, and Yao Niang experienced it seriously.
Nanny Xu saw the five girls in front of her. The older second girl Shi Zhen and the third girl Jing Rou were both ruthless people. The second girl was ruthless to herself and good at talking big, which made it easy for her to deceive others, but she was actually uneducated and talented. The third girl was always trying to maintain her reputation, but she was easily constrained by her reputation.
The fourth girl is even more unreasonable and always careless.
The two younger girls, Shi Wei and Shi Yu, are different from the others, especially the fifth girl, Shi Wei, nicknamed Yao Niang. Although she is young, she has fair skin, beautiful appearance, clear manners, and a sense of righteousness.
But with such a personality, it would be difficult to be chosen as the royal companion. The most important thing to be the princess' companion is to be patient and serve the princess carefully, as it is not really a chance for you to show off your talents.
Yao Niang was of course very clear in her mind that in her previous life she had to be the wet nurse of the prince of Zhou because she had no choice but to do so, and that was why she was so humble. It was not because she was born to be a lowly person and wanted to serve others and be inferior to others.
However, Madam Xu thought again, this girl has a gentle aura and is very kind. It is rare to see someone with such a different personality and appearance.
On this day, Yu was invited to Luo Zhizheng's master's house, so Fan invited her sisters to have dinner at her place. Luo Jingrou, Yao Niang and Shi Yu mentioned the second house: "They are making a fuss about dividing the family. The old lady Jiang who stole from our family is said to have lent money for the eldest aunt and sister-in-law there. No, the old lady is very angry."
"I've heard about that, too. I don't think the family will be divided. But recently, it's better to let Sister-in-law Fa take charge of the household." Yao Niang felt that the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law Ren and Zhou from the second house were really messing around.
If we send them back to their hometown, we are afraid that they will bully the locals and cause trouble beyond our reach.
Shi Yu looked disgusted and said, "Yeah, they messed up the second room for a few days, and everyone is complaining."
The girls just chatted a few words and stopped talking when they were with Fan. They just talked about other things during the meal. Fan ate a few mouthfuls and felt a little stuffy in her chest. Seeing her like this, Yao Niang felt something in her heart.
After dinner, the three sisters had tea together. They heard that Luo Jingxi had returned, so they hurriedly said goodbye.
It was also said that Luo Jingxi had gone to play with Chen Ziheng, but when he heard that Chen Ziheng was missing, he returned in a huff. He also complained to Fan: "I don't know where this brother Chen has gone. A few days ago, he asked me to introduce him to someone from the Marquis of Yanping's mansion."
Fan was glad that the bastard had left. She had thought that he would make a scene and that everyone would perish together. She was very scared. But in this case, because Yao Niang had stopped it early, her parents-in-law had handled it for her and didn't even tell her husband, Fan felt that she was really lucky.
She smiled, pulled Luo Jingxi and said, "I want to tell you something important."
Luo Jingxi looked at her in confusion, while Fan bit her lip and whispered something in his ear. Luo Jingxi couldn't help but be overjoyed: "Really?"
Fan nodded: "Although it's early days, I'm afraid I won't be able to keep stable, so I didn't mention it to anyone."
Luo Jingxi had been married for several years but had no children. Now that he heard that Fan was pregnant, he became a little more considerate.
Of course, this thoughtfulness was just a few soft words, but Fan had already put all her thoughts on her belly, hoping to give birth to a child so that she wouldn't be so lonely.
In her previous life, Fan, who should have died suddenly this month, was not only fine but also pregnant. Yao Niang breathed a sigh of relief, as she had finally changed Fan's fate.
As for Shi Fang, the troublemaker of the second house, she was also eliminated by Nanny Xu. After a month of learning the rules, only Shi Fang failed. Her academic performance was poor, and even her needlework skills were mediocre.
If it weren't for the elder man of the mansion begging, it is said that Old Madam Dou wanted to divorce Ren, which frightened Ren and she now dares not go out.
There is also Shi Fang, whom Old Madam Dou keeps by her side. Perhaps, Old Madam Dou is afraid that Ren will get too fond of Shi Fang and treat her badly in the future. Now the only person she can take care of is Shi Fang.
After the Cold Food Festival, the Ministry of Rites sent officials to compile a list of children to accompany their parents. It was said that the age of the children to be considered as companions should be between eight and twelve years old, and those older than that should not be accepted. Thus, Shi Zhen was the first one to be eliminated.
Because she was already over thirteen years old, Shi Zhen felt that she was unlucky.
One competitor was eliminated, and the other competitor was older than her. Luo Jingrou smiled instantly. She was the oldest and had learned the rules the best. Yao Niang and Shi Yu were far inferior to her.
But she also wanted to be prepared. If she was not selected, she should have a good place to go.
Coincidentally, Luo Shizhen's marriage was arranged at this time. Shan Yujing had passed the county and provincial examinations successively and was already a student. He was preparing for the academy examination in August. His knowledge was obvious to everyone, not to mention that he was only fifteen years old.
The second uncle admired her talent, and the Shan family also wanted to marry the girl from the Luo family, so the two got engaged.
Mrs. Fan was also talking to Luo Jingrou about this matter: "It's hard to find a man of similar age and appearance nowadays. The Shan family is our in-laws after all, and they are also officials and wealthy. Mr. Shan is a disciple of my father-in-law. He is very knowledgeable and has a good character. He is much better than those people outside who don't know their background."
"Sister-in-law is right." Luo Jingrou breathed a sigh of relief. She asked Fan again, "Why has Madam been busy with social events these days? Where did she go? I'm just learning to behave myself, so I didn't pay much attention."
Fan smiled and said, "She went to the Marquis Zhongjing's residence. Madam had some connections with their family in the past. Also, Miss Yu is not young anymore. She will be fourteen soon, just like the second young lady."
The Mansion of Marquis Zhongjing? Luo Jingrou knew about it. She heard that their family had just returned from Datong. That day when she was at her maternal grandfather's house, she also heard that his family had a princess who was the eldest prince of the emperor and had a special royal status. How come no one mentioned this matter?
At that moment, Luo Jingrou went to ask her brother again, and Luo Jingxi explained clearly: "The Lin family got rich through military merit. I heard that they came back to Beijing this time to ask for the title of Crown Prince Lin Weinan. This young master Lin is not very old, but he has rare martial arts skills, inherited from his grandfather."
In the end, Luo Jingrou didn't feel comfortable asking whether they were getting married. After all, she was a woman and couldn't ask too many questions.
This is probably Luo Jingrou's shortcoming. Yao Niang thought that the person that Yu brought to the Marquis Zhongjing's Mansion in the previous life was Luo Jingrou, not Yu Yan at all, and she began to understand a little.
In her previous life, Yu initially thought that Luo Jingrou really had the best relationship with her, so she was fully prepared for Luo Jingrou and took her to the Mansion of Marquis Zhongjing.
Luo Jingrou was able to marry into the Marquis's mansion because of her family background, character and appearance as well as Yu's connections.
But many things have changed in this life. Yu knew Luo Jingrou's character in advance and would definitely not fight for her.
After this rebirth, many things are indeed different.
As Yu Yan was from the Yu family, she only wanted good character and not wealth, so Mrs. Lin intended to marry Yu Yan to a member of the Lin family's side branch, who was a captain of the Jinyi Guard. However, because he had a widowed mother, younger brothers and sisters, and his family was not well-off, he was neither up nor down.
Although Yu Yan was an orphan and in poverty, she had a good aunt, Yu, who was gentle and polite. She even promised to prepare half of Yu Yan's dowry. Moreover, Yu Yan was literate and knew needlework, had a clean family background, and with Madam Lin as the matchmaker, the marriage was quickly arranged.
Yu Yan quietly complained to Old Lady Yu: "I heard that Captain Lin has to support my widowed mother and also arrange the marriages of my younger brother and sister in the future, but I can't choose my aunt."
"This is your fault. You little bitch, you think I don't know that you yearn for wealth and honor. But how can you keep wealth and honor without an official position? You only see people's shortcomings and not their strengths. A centurion is a sixth-rank official and has the support of a marquis's mansion. If you marry him, you'll be an official's wife." Old Lady Yu disliked her abandoned granddaughter for having low standards.
That’s right, their parents died early, and Yu was warm on the outside but cold on the inside to them. Now that she can help them find a marriage, they are already grateful a thousand times.
Of course, Yu Yan only dared to say a few words behind their backs, and expressed her gratitude profusely in front of Yu and Yao Niang.
But Yu became strict in disciplining her. First, she took out a few account books for her to read, which made Yu Yan come with dark circles under her eyes every day.
"Cousin Yu, you must be very tired lately?" Yao Niang said with a smile.
In this life, cousin Yu, who had already been engaged, was no longer in the mood to take care of things for her because of Yu's death like in her previous life. Instead, she wandered around and was almost molested by Luo Jingxi.
Yu Yan shook her head: "I know that my aunt is doing this for my own good."
"My cousin will be in charge of the household when she gets married. If she learns in advance in our house, she will be able to handle it easily in the future with her intelligence."
Yao Niang was also very moved. In just one year, the fate of many people has changed.
When Yu Yan got engaged, Yu also brought Yao Niang to visit the residence of Marquis Zhongjing. This time, she had a legitimate reason not to bring Shi Yu and Jing Rou, because the Lin family was a relationship she had established herself.
Yao Niang is not ready for what it feels like to revisit an old place.
"Mom, can I not go?" Yao Niang said coquettishly.
Seeing her daughter lying in her arms and acting coquettishly, Yu pointed at Luo Zhizheng who was reading a book not far away and said, "Your father is here, and you are still acting coquettishly with me. Then your father will say that I am a loving mother who spoils her son. Why don't you want to go?"
"It's just that I don't recognize their family." Yao Niang knew that what she said was unreasonable, but the pain in her previous life still made her feel a little homesick.
Yu smiled and said, "Who can recognize it naturally? You will recognize it after seeing it many times. Besides, Madam Lin specifically invited you to come and play."
"Okay, okay, I'll listen to you."
This time she went not as the sister of the wife of the Crown Prince of Zhongjing, but as the daughter of a doctor in the Ministry of Personnel.
Luo Zhizheng suddenly interrupted, "Lianlian, I have a pair of Hetian jade narcissus hairpins left by Yao Niang's grandmother. You can wear them to the Lin family."
Even so, when Yu was called by her husband's nickname in public, her face instantly turned red.
It was the first time that Yao Niang knew Xiao Niang's name. She smiled and said, "So my mother's name is Lian Lian."
"Silly girl." Yu poked her daughter on the forehead, but Yao Niang's skin was too white and the poking left a red mark. She hurried away but felt so distressed.
Luo Zhizheng also felt that the truth he had just revealed was not in line with his strict father image, so he coughed lightly and left.
Yao Niang was very jealous of Yu Shi. In fact, Daddy was very considerate to Mom. He even said, "This is really good" when she was choosing a hairpin. It was rare to see a couple like this. Look at my eldest brother and his wife. They were not like this.
On that day, Yao Niang and Yu Shi were refreshed and were preparing to take a carriage to the Mansion of Marquis Zhongjing. Luo Jingrou was so tired that her teeth were broken.
Although her maternal grandparents treated her very well, the most they could guarantee was to let her marry her cousin, and her cousin's place was not a good place to go. Now, Prince Cao of Dongyang Marquis and Prince Lin of Zhongjing Marquis were people she could fight for, but her stepmother ignored her.
Of course, Ren had also heard about Yu's marriage for her niece. She spat inwardly and said to Zhou, "I think she is doing it for her niece on the surface, but in her heart she is doing it for her daughter."
Such strange talk was of course just from jealousy on the part of Ren. Shi Fang was publicly criticized by her foster nanny for not being very successful, and Jiang Ma, the money bag of Ren and Zhou, died, which happened after the eldest wife left. Both of them inexplicably had a prejudice against the eldest wife.
When they were in trouble, they heard that Fan was pregnant and Yu wanted to visit wealthy families for her daughter, so she was naturally jealous.
The Marquis Zhongjing's Mansion at this time was different from what she had remembered. Perhaps it was because the Lin family had just returned from Datong, and it had not yet reached the level of having multi-tiered terraces and pavilions, red pillars and carved rafters, and flying pavilions with flowing red lines as in the future.
The vermilion lacquered door opened, and a middle-aged servant girl greeted them at the door. Yao Niang recognized her. She was the most capable housekeeper beside Mrs. Lin. Because she was married to Zhu Qi, she was known as Zhu Qi's wife.
Zhu Qijia was a person who liked to hear flattery from others. Whenever someone asked her for something, just a few more words of flattery would be better than anything else.
Yu knew that she could not ignore the so-called seventh-rank official of the prime minister's family and the maid who was favored by the marquis' wife. Therefore, when she saw Zhu Qijia, she was very polite: "Sister Zhu, please come and pick us up."
Zhu Qijia smiled and said, "I don't dare to be addressed by Madam Luo. Our Madam Hou is waiting for you to come over!" He saw Yao Niang again and said quickly, "This is the young lady, she is indeed the daughter of a scholarly family."
Yao Niang quickly bowed and thanked her: "Mother Zhu, thank you for your compliment."
This made Zhu Qijia feel that the Luo family was really well-behaved. Although this Lady Luo Wu was young, she had a gentle face, a graceful figure, and looked elegant and generous.
Yao Niang was not worried about marrying into the Lin family in this life. She was more than ten years younger than Lin Weinan, so she did not have any big burden this time.
The last time they met was a quick one at Fenyang Palace, but this time it was a formal audience. Yao Niang raised her eyes to glance at Madam Lin, then knelt on the mat and kowtowed three times.
Mrs. Lin smiled and waved to her: "Good girl, come here and let me see you."
Seeing Mrs. Lin's kind face, Yao Niang remembered that she had never liked her in her previous life, because there were always rumors in the mansion that she tried to seduce Lin Weinan when Luo Jingrou was on her sickbed, and some people said that she killed Luo Jingrou and wanted to marry Lin Weinan herself.
Although she finally got married, Mrs. Lin never liked her very much. She even often looked down upon her and found fault with her. This was also the reason why Yao Niang, who was forced to marry, became even more unwilling to stay in the Lin family after Lin Weinan's death.
Now she is the descendant that Mrs. Lin likes and values, and Yao Niang walked over.
"Has Miss Luo ever been to school?"
"I have started reading the Four Books now."
"You come from a family of scholars and officials, and you are truly well-educated." Madam Lin said to Yu while holding Yao Niang's hand.
Yu waved her hand quickly and said, "She just knows a few words. Needlework is more important for a girl."
Mrs. Lin saw that Yu was so young and kind, and she couldn't help but like her. She had dealt with Yu several times and felt that she was a very good person. Not to mention this little girl, whether it was etiquette or speech, she was very proper. It was a pity that she was too young, otherwise, it would not be impossible for her to be the match for her son.
However, Madam Lin has also picked out a few more suitable families. Since she has not yet decided, she naturally refuses to say more. Instead, Madam Lin asked Yu: "I heard that the third daughter of your family is going to marry the son of the Lord of Ruixi?"
"Yes, the invitation has been sent and the horoscopes are compatible." Yu nodded.
Yao Niang had never expected that Luo Jingrou's marriage had been arranged, and the man was the son of the Lady of Ruixi. She remembered this Prince Wang Zongmu, whose grandfather was the governor of Huguang, his mother was a Lady of Ruixi, and his father was also knowledgeable and talented.
This Prince Wang Zongmu was called a true celebrity by later generations. He had a carefree and unconcerned personality, was straightforward, and disliked pretense. For example, he once said that he wrote and read poetry out of his own love, without any purpose. In order to oppose others' pursuit of him, he sometimes even burned paper after writing.
However, everything Luo Jingrou did was just disguise. She told nine truths just to cover up one lie. She was not very happy as a person. She always came up with some low-brow tricks to appear dignified.
It just so happens that these two are extremely intelligent people. It is truly like a straightforward gentleman meeting a hypocritical gentleman. It is unknown what will happen in the future.
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