"That would be a good match. Our family used to have some dealings with the Duke of Fuguo's Mansion. But when is the wedding date going to be set?" Mrs. Lin continued.
Yu said with a smile: "We have to wait until they come to Beijing to formally get engaged. Now they have returned to Huguang. If the Wang family receives a letter of admission in the provincial examination next year, it will be double happiness. Even if they don't, we are ready to hold the wedding."
"That's a very kind thing to say." Lin praised.
Yu smiled but said nothing. She called Yu Yan's future mother-in-law, the eighth wife of the Lin family, to come over to discuss the marriage. Yao Niang, a little girl, was taken to visit the Lin family's garden. The one who took her around the garden was a maid named Peony. She was particularly beautiful and lived up to her name of Peony.
"Where do you serve?" Yao Niang asked.
How come she had no impression of such an outstanding girl in her previous life?
Mudan smiled and said, "I am serving the prince in the study. Because I am good at sewing, I have been sewing in the upper room these days."
This situation means that Mudan is Lin Weinan's concubine. No wonder she was sent here today instead of anyone else. It seems that Mudan is not only proficient in writing and can serve Lin Weinan well, but also very much liked by Mrs. Lin.
Yao Niang reasonably guessed that maybe this Peony was dealt with by Luo Jingrou in her previous life, otherwise why didn't she hear about it again. But she would not show these on her face, this was just her guess, without any real evidence, and this life was different, she couldn't rely on her previous life for everything.
"So, sister Mudan is very good at sewing? I also started learning sewing at the beginning of the year, but I'm not very good at it. I will need your advice in the future." Yao Niang followed her words.
Mudan was humble again. She knew that the more polite these daughters of officials were, the more respect they showed. In reality, how could they really ask her for advice?
Especially this lady Luo Wu, her great-grandfather was the chief academic officer of the Imperial Academy, her grandfather was the top scholar in the imperial examination, and served as the Minister of Punishments, known as Luo Dasikou, her great-uncle was the Minister of Public Security, and her father was the Director of the Ministry of Personnel, a person that high-ranking officials from other places would visit when they came to the capital. Her uncle was also the Shaoqing of the Taichang Temple, and her family was married to the Fenyang Palace.
People say that, how can Mudan really be so arrogant?
"Miss Luo, although our Lin family has always been far away in Datong Xuanfu, our family servants have also been in Beijing. The people who cultivate this garden don't pay much attention to it, but this cyclamen has been blooming since winter and has been so beautiful all the time until this spring."
"I think it's not just the cyclamen, the pansies and geraniums are also in full bloom. That's how it is in spring, with pink, white and red everywhere. Our garden is the same. But I planted a pot of iris in my garden, which is light purple."
Mudan said happily: "I like Iris too."
"If you like, I can send you a few pots. It's not a big deal."
Because of this pot of iris, the two felt closer. Yao Niang even gave an armlet she was wearing to Mudan, and Mudan gave Yao Niang a tourmaline hairpin.
"We are slaves, and we don't have anything good. This is a gift from the eldest prince's wife."
Yes, the Lin family now has an aunt married to the eldest prince as his principal wife, but when Yao Niang saw the tourmaline hairpin, she quickly declined: "Such a valuable item is not worth asking my sister for, so put it away and give me an ordinary item instead."
Mudan was adamant and refused, so Yao Niang had no choice but to accept it. However, she was also moved by Mudan's enthusiasm. No wonder she was just a little girl, but was valued by both Lin Weinan and Mrs. Lin.
After returning from the garden, Mrs. Lin called a troupe to perform a play, and they also had a meal together. Yao Niang always liked to eat the cypress seed mutton from the Zhongjing Marquis's Mansion. This mutton is only available in Zhongyang County, Shanxi. It is fresh, tender, fragrant, and not fishy or smelly. Many people call it "local ginseng."
Seeing that Yao Niang liked it, Mrs. Lin said with a smile, "It's rare that you like to eat this mutton. Several of our Nan brothers can't get used to it, but I like it."
"Mrs. Lin, I don't eat much mutton at home because I think it's fishy. But the mutton cooked in your house has no fishy smell at all. Instead, it's fresh and tender. I think it tastes good. My father is the same as me. I just regret that he didn't come today. Otherwise, if he had eaten it, he would definitely do the same as me." Yao Niang smiled.
Mrs. Lin laughed out loud: "You kid, you're here to ask your father for food. I don't believe that your family doesn't have anything."
Yao Niang said, "Ah, you figured it out. You're a good person."
Seeing her daughter able to socialize with adults without any instruction, Yu felt relieved. She was afraid that her daughter would not be able to adapt or would become too arrogant.
When the mother and daughter returned home, the Lin family actually sent them cypress seed mutton. Yao Niang smiled and said, "This is for Dad."
"Then your father must be very happy." Yu couldn't help but say.
Yao Niang's feelings towards Luo Zhizheng are too complicated. She knows that her father treats her well now, but that is based on the fact that she has become better. But if one day she is not what he expects, he may not be nice to her anymore.
This is different from mom. No matter what she becomes, mom will love her the most.
When he got home, Luo Zhizheng was at home, and Yu praised him: "Your daughter had a dish of cypress seed mutton at the Marquis's residence. It tasted delicious, and she insisted that you must like it, and she specially asked for it. Look how filial she is."
"Didn't I say I don't eat mutton? How did you get that?" Luo Zhizheng complained.
"Do you think I am like you, thinking about food every day?"
Knowing that her husband had a bad mouth, Yu didn't care. She just said that the meat was delicious and not fishy. She spoke softly and gently, and Luo Zhizheng only spoke to her.
Of course, Yao Niang didn't know all this. She returned to the east room almost immediately after paying her respects. The first thing she asked was how Jinghao was doing. Although the matter of Fan's family was resolved, no one knew how her brother Jinghao fell to the bottom of the lake.
Although Jinghao's wet nurse, Nanny Song, was not a loyal servant, she was an honest person with a courage smaller than that of a mouse. She was definitely not someone who would dare to harm her young son.
This matter lingered in her mind and she dared not take it lightly.
"The Third Young Master just came back from school and is doing his homework. I dare not disturb him." Yinrong said.
"Okay." Yao Niang felt relieved.
These days, there is no need to learn rules, so Yao Niang puts all her energy into studying. The same goes for Shi Yu. They can't play after school like before. Since they are already registered and ready to choose study partners, they don't want to be eliminated because of their academic performance, otherwise, others will think they are idiots.
Of course, because of the post, Luo Jingrou also knew about her marriage.
This was a bolt from the blue for her. Shi Zhen was jealous of her and said jokingly with a smile: "Third uncle and aunt have told you about a talented person."
Shi Zhen originally thought that the Shan family was no longer as powerful as before, but the Shan family was really generous. For just a small deposit, they gave a deposit of nearly one hundred kg, which made Shi Zhen very proud.
She was different from the others. The ladies in the mansion would not mention money easily, thinking that money was vulgar, but she thought that only yellow and white things were the most lovely. Those people were noble, but she was not.
The Shan family satisfied her on this point, but seeing that the man Luo Jingrou was engaged to was so prominent, she couldn't help but felt jealous again.
Luo Jingrou curled her lips and said, "Second sister, how can we girls talk about this all the time? I won't talk to you about it." Then she stood up and left.
When they were left, Zhenhe's maid Baozhu said indignantly: "She really thinks she is a fairy."
Baozhu smiled and said, "Maybe the third lady also wants to be like our eldest lady."
"She really overestimates her own abilities. The reason why our family was able to have an eldest sister is because my father was once the chief historian of Prince Heng, but my third uncle was banished for the sake of the eldest prince. My eldest sister had the support of Concubine Liao in the palace, so she was able to marry into the Prince of Fenyang's Mansion. Who would care about my third sister? The Marquis of Yanping's Mansion did have a concubine, but she has not been favored for a long time. How can she compare with Concubine Liao?" Luo Shizhen himself was unlucky, and of course he didn't want to see Luo Jingrou come to the fore.
Luo Jingrou put all her attention on choosing a partner. She hoped that she would be noticed by a nobleman through this. How could the Wang family dare to compete with the nobleman? In this way, she would be considered a success.
Shi Yu didn't understand, so she asked Yao Niang, "Fifth sister, you said that Third sister is already engaged, why is she still studying so hard? Anyway, even if she is chosen, she still has to come back to get married when the time comes. She can't study with me for many years like this."
"I don't know either." Yao Niang shook her head.
Shi Yu asked Aunt Qin again, and Aunt Qin sneered: "Our third daughter is so proud and arrogant. The old master and the mistress chose such a good in-law, but she is still not satisfied. She just wants to enter the palace and become the queen. She is very similar to her mother, with high aspirations."
Shi Yu didn't understand: "But the eldest sister can get married, so it's understandable that the third sister wants to marry someone better."
"That's not the way it is said. The eldest girl has been a companion for several years. To say she is a companion just sounds respectable. How is she different from the eldest maid beside you? Besides, your second uncle is the man of Prince Heng and has the support of Concubine Liao. Your father supports the eldest prince. Since ancient times, if there is no legitimate son, the legitimate son will be supported. Why do you think the madam only took the fifth girl to the Zhongjing Marquis's Mansion and even sent her own niece there? It's because the Zhongjing Marquis's Mansion gave birth to the eldest prince's wife. But the madam only wants to make plans for her own daughter. How could she make plans for the third girl?" Aunt Qin entered the mansion very early and had a very clear understanding of the place.
Moreover, she has a promising son, and the managers outside all give her some respect.
Shi Yu really didn't expect that his wife would be so thoughtful. No wonder his mother said that if a person doesn't work for himself, he will be punished by heaven and earth. It seems that everyone has their own selfish desires.
But it is said that on the Dragon Boat Festival, the kitchen cooked the cypress seed mutton that Yao Niang brought back. Yu served the dish to Luo Zhizheng, who took one bite and couldn't stop eating.
He didn't really like eating mutton, but this cypress seed mutton was extremely tender.
After the meal, he looked at Yu and said, "This dish is really good."
"Yes, otherwise the fifth girl would come over and ask to give it to daddy to eat. She even asked me the other day whether she had given it to daddy to eat. I was afraid that you would not like it, old man." Yu couldn't help but complain to Luo Zhizheng.
Luo Zhizheng laughed and said, "Come on, come on, come on. You keep telling me everything. You keep nagging me about it. You don't even remember the good things I did for you."
It's not Yu's fault that she only mentioned her own daughter. Everyone has selfish motives, but she didn't harm the interests of others. If it was a common relative of the Luo family, she would usually bring them along, but if she knew them personally, she would naturally only mention her own daughter. And the competition for favor was based on ability.
When your concubine Qin was at the peak of her glory when I came into the family, you held Jing Yuan and Shi Yu at your knees and mentioned them to me every day.
It's good enough that she treats Shi Yu fairly now. How could she treat him the same way as her own daughter?
After the Dragon Boat Festival, the weather became hot. Fortunately, Yao Niang and her friends were studying in the garden. The big trees in the garden provided shade and block out the sun, so it was not too sunny. Instead, there was an occasional breeze, which made it much cooler.
Because they might have to go to the palace to select study partners, naturally they can't do the same as before. Mr. Shen also teaches the Four Books to the greatest extent possible. After they learned Xun Gu last year, they started to learn "Di Zi Gui" this year, and then started with "The Analects of Confucius" and so on.
This month, Yao Niang has started to read books during the day, recite and write at night, and dares not rest for a day. She also has to learn needlework on weekdays. Fortunately, she had a foundation in needlework in her previous life, so her life is much easier.
As a result, Shi Yu's progress slowed down a lot, because she was a real seven-year-old child. Although Aunt Qin had been teaching her from an early age, she was always compared with Yao Niang, and her progress was too slow, so she became more and more worried and even fell ill because of it.
It was already July at this time. When Yao Niang heard the news, she felt that perhaps because of her rebirth, Lian Shiyu's fate seemed different in this life.
She went to see Shi Yu alone, and seeing that she was coughing frequently, she quickly said, "Although it is hot these days, you must take good care of yourself. The Ministry of Rites will send another official, otherwise it will be bad for you to enter the palace like this."
Shi Yu felt a little ashamed. She thought that her fifth sister would be gloating over her illness and might even persuade her not to enter the palace. She didn't expect that she would be so caring towards her.
But what the aunt said was not without reason. She could only be less extreme. She could not open her heart to the fifth sister, and she could never do it. She did not trust anyone, but she could be good to the fifth sister without harming her own interests.
Of course, Yao Niang and Shi Yu had a very ordinary relationship in their previous life. In this life, they were both children and had a very good relationship. They even slept on the same bed. But unless Yu always treated Shi Yu the same way as her, it would be impossible for the two of them to open up to each other.
"Fifth sister, the doctor said that if my cough gets better quickly, it will only take a few days. If it gets better slowly, I may even keep coughing for several months. If I can't enter the palace, please take care of yourself." The bed seemed to be shaking because of Shi Yu's coughing.
Yao Niang still said: "Sixth sister, take good care of yourself. You and I, sisters, can be together. Even if we cannot be the companions of Princess Zhaoping, there are other princesses who can be companions. In this way, we can be companions together and support each other in the palace. Isn't it great?"
Shi Yu, who originally had some reservations, finally opened her mind. Yes, there was only one Princess Zhaoping, but there were many daughters of kings. She suddenly realized that what Aunt Qin said was not always true.
For example, she used Aunt Huang as an example, but even without Aunt Huang, there are still Qingtang and Hongxiu. If Aunt had the support of Aunt Huang, as long as one of the two concubines was favored, mentioning the other one in front of Dad would be better than the current situation where Aunt Huang has passed away and Aunt is not favored.
Just like there was only one piece of snack and everyone was fighting over it, but it was obviously because there was not enough snack. If everyone had their own plate, she wouldn't be able to finish it.
Aunt Qin always felt that the relationship between her and the other sisters was life-and-death, and thought that there was only one snack. But in fact, they could each have their own plate as long as she and the fifth sister worked together.
"Okay, then I want to drink the white radish water that Fifth Sister and Hao Ge'er used to make to relieve my cough." Shi Yu pulled Yao Niang and acted coquettishly.
"No problem, but you can't drink randomly." Yao Niang scratched her nose.
She also combed Shi Yu's hair. Shi Yu pestered her to tell stories and make little butterflies. The two sisters chattered for a long time.
Aunt Qin waited for Yao Niang to leave and wanted to say something, but Shi Yu said, "Aunt, Fifth Sister treats me well. Just like you said, if Madam really finds a connection for her, then if I follow Fifth Sister, maybe others will pay more attention to me."
Aunt Qin couldn't say anything about her daughter's stubbornness. Her daughter had grown up and during the day she was either studying or in the upper room to pay respects, talk and eat. She and Luo Jingrou had the same idea.
If Yu was really biased and it was obvious, or if Yao Niang was a bit more evil and did something that she could clearly find wrong, it would be fine.
Fortunately, they really didn't have any bad intentions. They were pretty good, at least in terms of monthly allowance, daily socializing, clothes, and even the fact that Shi Yu often saw Luo Zhizheng was because Yu had someone invite Shi Yu to have dinner with him.
Moreover, as for her son's diplomatic expenses, his wife had already brought it up before her husband had even thought about it. She would go to the mountains from time to time to deliver cotton-padded clothes and food, so Aunt Qin could not complain about this.
Shi Yu's heart disease was gone and she recovered quickly, and Yao Niang was happy for her.
The Ministry of Rites sent people to investigate, and after carefully checking against the description from a few months ago, they issued relevant tags, which served as proof of their identity.
For example, Yao Niang wrote about the above three generations here. This is what a famous official family is. On the left, it says that her great-grandfather was specially awarded the title of Guanglu Doctor, the late Luo Yikui, the Imperial College Jijiu, her grandfather was promoted to Guanglu Doctor, the late Nanjing Criminal Department Shangshu Luo Shizhao, her father was Fengzheng Doctor, the Ministry of Personnel Wenxuan Division Langzhong Luo Zhizheng, and in the lower right corner, it says that her first mother was Gongren Wang, her mother was Gongren Yu, the second in line, named Shiwei, and no further birth dates are listed.
However, Jingrou and Shiyu have slightly different names for their mothers. Jingrou's mother is Gongren Wang, and her stepmother is Gongren Yu.
Shi Yuchu wrote that his ex-mother was Gongren Wang, his mother was Gongren Yu, and his biological mother was Qin.
Those who know the matter can probably tell at a glance who is the original wife's child, who is the second wife's child, and who is the concubine's child.
This is not a beauty pageant, and of course you don't have to live in the palace like the concubines. However, you need to have a physical examination. What if you have tuberculosis and infect the nobles in the palace?
Therefore, the first step is to enter the palace for inspection on the sixth day of August.
Yu invited Luo Shilan back just in time. Luo Shilan glanced at the three sisters and said, "This is your first time in the palace. Only the maids will be watching from outside, and there will be a doctor to check your pulse. So I'll prepare two envelopes of silver, one for the doctor and one for the maids."
"Only in the second round will you be asked to write, both large and small characters, and then you will be tested on the meaning of scriptures. I don't think it will be difficult, but the characters must be written well. Some ladies probably can't read, but they can tell whether the characters are neat or not."
Luo Shilan's words are golden advice.
The three sisters stood up and thanked Luo Shilan quickly. Luo Shilan smiled and said, "Also, some people who claim to be from a prominent official family are just pretending. Our girls don't need to worry."
Of course, the Luo family, with five Jinshi in the family, is no joke.
Luo Jingrou gained more confidence because she had an aunt in the palace whom she had never met. This aunt had once given birth to a little princess, but later fell out of favor. Later, she only brought back some gifts during festivals, and other than that, she didn't seem very familiar to her.
But no matter what, having someone in the palace is better than having no one, and it’s the main seat.
Of course, this last relationship will be discussed later.
Yao Niang looked at Luo Jingrou and found it strange. According to common sense, Luo Jingrou's conditions were actually very good. Even if she could not be chosen as Princess Zhaoping's companion, she still had other royal palaces, and she even had the support of the Wang family of Marquis Yanping.
How could she fail with such conditions? I still remember that she seemed to have failed very quickly in her previous life.
Luo Jingrou did not think that she would fail, and even thought that she could be the princess's companion. As long as she could coax people, she could hide the offer of marriage from the person in a high position, and then the Wang family would have to cancel the engagement. Therefore, this trip had to succeed and not fail.
As for Yao Niang, she would not completely count on the so-called eldest prince's wife. Perhaps the Yu family and even the Lin family thought that the eldest prince's wife was the eldest prince's wife and was very important. Little did they know that she had heard some things about the eldest prince's mansion in her previous life.
It is said that the beauties selected at that time were only from northern Zhili, southern Zhili, Shandong, Henan and the vicinity of Beijing, and Hong Yunxiu, a girl from Daxing Prefecture, stood out. However, because she was still young and the empress dowager had passed away, she was raised in the palace. Everyone regarded her as the eldest prince's consort and her marriage was arranged only after the mourning period was over.
However, unexpected events happen all the time, and the world is hard to predict. The eldest sister of the Lin family, who was born in Datong Prefecture, worked as a court lady in the palace. She once mentioned by chance that when her younger sister was born, it rained blessings from heaven, and Datong Prefecture won eight consecutive victories.
The current emperor happened to hear about it and asked Qin Tianjian to match the horoscopes again. As a result, Lin Shanggong's sister was chosen as the eldest prince's consort, and Hong, who was originally a sure thing, became the second concubine.
However, Hong was born smart and beautiful, and she had been close to the eldest prince and they had a childhood sweetheart relationship. On the contrary, Lin had taken a back seat. Outsiders did not know this, but Yao Niang, with her experience in her previous life, knew that the eldest prince's wife Lin actually had no power. The eldest prince was very fond of Hong and even gave her some of the housekeeper power.
It's just that she was afraid that outsiders would know about it, so she covered it up well, but Lin was just looking good.
Yu prepared a snow-white silk undershirt with gold edges for the three sisters, and the same lake-colored silk jacket with dark plum, orchid and bamboo patterns on the outside. The hair was decorated with delicate silk flowers. This was only the preliminary selection, so there was no need for anything too fancy.
Yao Niang told Yin Rong, "Iron the clothes today so they will be ready for wearing tomorrow."
"Yes, I obey your command." Yinrong was also very happy. Her daughter had made progress, and she, as a servant, had also made progress.
At night, lying on the bed, Yao Niang was still a little excited. This was something she had never experienced in her previous life. She even avoided it as much as possible and felt that she did not dare to do it. But no matter what, she had to challenge it once or twice in this life.
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