During the New Year, Jinghao also came back from the academy. Yao Niang looked at her brother who had suddenly grown a lot taller and was wolfing down his meal. She said with some emotion, "Do you eat very badly in the academy? Why did you need everyone to coax you to eat at home before, but now you actually eat so much."
"Sister, the food in the academy tastes the same every day. No matter how much I eat, I get tired of it. My classmates and I sometimes buy snacks from outside at the corner. Last time, I ate three big meat buns in one go." Jinghao himself felt that he ate too much.
Yao Niang laughed and said, "You little brat is eating me to death." Thinking of this, she remembered that when her son Cheng Yun was practicing martial arts, he could never feel full. At that time, she got up early in the morning to make small steamed buns specially. Chengze was also very sensible. He knew that his brother was practicing martial arts, so he didn't eat any of the food and saved it for his brother.
Seeing Yao Niang looking depressed, Yu Shi was confused and asked, "Yao Niang, what's wrong with you?"
"No, no." Yao Niang felt very sad. Even if she had children in the future, they would not be Cheng Yun and Cheng Ze. She should just be filial to her mother now.
Because Yu had been working hard recently, her skin had turned slightly yellow, and she had been staying in the warm room for a long time, so her face was extremely dry.
Yao Niang personally ground pearls, white jade and ginseng into fine powder, mixed it with high-quality lotus root powder, and blended it into a paste to apply on Yu's face. Yu was reluctant at first, and she even felt that if she put on makeup like this, people would think she was an old witch.
"Mother Yao, please don't put those sticky things on my face. Is it effective?"
"It's effective. It makes your face white, tender and soft. Don't worry. Look at my face. I take care of it every three days. Otherwise, my face would have been dry and flaky." When Yao Niang had nothing to do in her previous life, she studied these things and looked about 20 years younger than her peers.
Mom looks a little younger, and from now on only Dad will be worried about her.
When Yu was applying the facial mask, she stuffed a piece of fructose into her mother's mouth, and Yu felt very happy.
After applying it for a while, Yao Niang patted her face with rose water and then applied Yurong Powder finely. Yu looked at her face in the bronze mirror and still felt a little embarrassed, but it felt very smooth to the touch.
Now Yao Niang has an additional task. In addition to embroidering her mother's portrait every day, she also takes care of her mother's face and takes this opportunity to tell jokes to her mother.
During their break, she and Shi Yu picked flowers and made some flower cakes.
Luo Zhizheng has been very busy these days because he will be inspecting the capital next year. He usually comes home to rest at night. But when he came back after the government office was closed, Yao Niang was accompanying Yu to eat fresh flower cakes.
There was not a single bit of makeup on Yu's face, which was as white as jade. Her hair was light and pale in color, and she and Yao Niang really looked like sisters.
"You are the one who has so many creative ideas. This flower cake is made in this pink color and is filled with rose filling. It looks very beautiful." Yu took a bite and felt that it was not too sweet and was very good.
The worst thing about snacks is that they are too sweet, otherwise they will not taste good.
Yao Niang was about to speak when she saw Luo Zhizheng coming back. She smiled and said, "Daddy is back. I'll pour tea for him and he can have some of my fresh flower cakes."
Seeing her busying around, Luo Zhizheng suddenly felt that the towel he usually used to wipe his face also had a kind of plant fragrance, and he felt much better. After eating some snacks and drinking tea, even Luo Zhizheng said, "It's better to have a concubine."
My daughter is very considerate. She thinks of everything about her parents and is very filial.
Yu nodded: "Of course."
Luo Zhizheng looked at Yu and noticed that her face was glowing and she looked much younger.
Yao Niang looked at him with a smile and said deliberately: "Dad, do you think my mother has become much younger? I apply facial mask to her every day."
"Ahem." Luo Zhizheng lowered his head slightly and did not answer.
Yao Niang laughed secretly, covered her mouth and went out.
At this time, Shi Yu also gave the flower cake he made to Aunt Qin. After taking a bite, Aunt Qin couldn't help but eat another piece before saying, "This must be the idea of your fifth sister. Since she came back, your father has become more and more inseparable from the wife."
In the past, my husband would go to other people's places when it was inconvenient for my wife, but now he accompanies my wife for meals every day. People with my husband's temperament are really rare.
I said this to Shi Yu to remind her not to trust others easily.
Shi Yu said, "Aunt, no matter what, this is your business." She is not a child anymore. She has been watching from the sidelines for so many years. It seems that the mistress has never dealt with her aunt. As for framing the concubine, it is even more impossible for her to do so. She can understand that it is not easy for her mother.
Being a concubine is not easy, but being a wife is not easy either.
The fifth sister said that she thought a line from Bai Juyi's poem was very well written, "Don't be a woman in your life, for your happiness and sorrow will be determined by others."
All women suffer. Concubines complain about the wife, and which wife wants a concubine? In fact, everyone is pitiful. Do they still have to give in to each other?
If it was as my aunt said, what harm did my fifth sister do to me? My wife taught me everything, even her wedding dowry was bought together with my fifth sister, and even the bed was made together.
Could it be that she was helping her aunt to be jealous? She couldn't do that.
Yao Niang didn't know about Shi Yu's little troubles. During the New Year, because she was already the Princess of Chen, it was not appropriate for her to go out, so she stayed at home. Although she felt a little bored, she didn't have to worry about any unexpected things.
But once she complained, Luo Zhizheng personally promised, "Spring is coming soon, and the imperial examination will be over. Many tourists will leave their ink pens beside Jinming Lake. Your brothers-in-law will also take part in the imperial examination. Then we can go to Jinming Lake together to have fun."
Only then did Yao Niang smile happily.
Now it was Yu who said, "Your father loves you too much. How can a girl who is engaged to a royal family run to Jinming Lake? Look at the girls from the Wang and Xu families, they are hiding at home embroidering their dowries."
"Mother, why should I be like them? The purses I made in the palace are enough to give to countless people. I don't want to do it. Father won't say anything. You should come with me to Jinming Lake."
"Oh, there's really nothing I can do with you."
My daughter is so willful by nature. Although she is caring and filial, she has her own opinions and never changes her mind.
On the eighth day of the first lunar month, Mrs. Cao, Marquis of Dongyang, came to visit her. They used to have a very good relationship with Yao Niang, but now that she had become the wife of the prince of Zhongjing, the two sides could not be too close. After all, Concubine Lin and Concubine Hong belonged to two different factions. Although they did not appear to be incompatible, everyone knew it in their hearts.
But Wei Feng was still the woman who could see through everything. She smiled and said, "Congratulations, you got what you wanted. Among the few of us who studied together, I am the least promising. You should marry the Prince of Le'an, and you should marry Chengwei. Now I am just the wife of the prince of a marquisate."
If someone else said this, it would inevitably sound sarcastic, but when Wei Feng said this, Yao Niang just smiled and said, "Sister Wei, you are already on board, you have secured your position as a mother and a child, and you are laughing at us. Sister Cheng will go to her fiefdom after getting married, and as for me, you also know that it is difficult to get out of the palace once you are in it, and it is not like being outside, where you can see your parents all the time."
Wei Feng knew that Yao Niang had a close relationship with her family. Unlike herself, she could escape the Wei family anyway, so it didn't matter who she married. But she married into the palace, which had strict rules, and it would be very difficult for her to return to her parents' home.
"Yes, you are right. However, this Prince Chen..." Wei Feng was a little hesitant about whether to tell Yao Niang the real Prince Chen.
As good sisters, of course they should tell each other everything they know, but Yao Niang is about to become someone's wife, and it is not a good thing for her to say bad things about someone else's husband.
Yao Niang smiled and said, "Sister, what is the relationship between you and me? There is no need to hide it. Just tell me if you have something to say."
Wei Feng nodded: "Then I'll tell you, I heard that the Prince of Chen is very ambitious, and the path he wants is not a smooth one. We women want a harmonious family and healthy children, but as for power and wealth, it's easy to experience ups and downs. It's just like a gambler, Yao Niang."
Of course Yao Niang knew this, but is there any smooth road in the world?
She held Wei Feng's hand and said, "I am really happy that you are willing to speak your mind to me, but I have already been betrothed to him, so I will not think of anything else. By the way, where is your sister? I heard that the son of the Marquis Zhongjing treats you very well."
"That's not the case. We are just treating each other with respect. He likes beautiful women, but unfortunately, beautiful ones are of low status and he thinks they are not worthy of him. I am so mediocre that I have never caught his eye since I gave birth to a child. But he still wants me to maintain the status of the Marquis' Mansion." Wei Feng is very satisfied now. She is born into a legitimate family and is valued by her husband. It is good for her to have rights as the prince's wife.
Yao Niang hesitated for a moment, but still didn't mention Zhong, because Wei Feng was not Luo Jingrou in this life, so Zhong didn't have that chance, so there was no point in saying anything more.
"Sister Wei, only useful people can live long. Don't be modest. In fact, there is no such thing as true love between husband and wife. Men love themselves more." Yao Niang was also very emotional.
Wei Feng laughed: "I really like this."
The two chatted for a while, and Yao Niang took her to watch an opera again. This time, Mrs. Cao saw that Yao Niang did not dare to intercept on behalf of Wang Yuanshuang. She was very polite, but she was also very regretful in her heart.
Originally, Madam Cao was very fond of Yao Niang as her daughter-in-law, but now she has decided to marry the third daughter of the Lu family. There is a huge difference. Although the Lu family is already a member of the Ministry of Revenue and the dowry is rich, how can the Lu family compare with the Luo family?
But when Yu heard this, she quickly congratulated her: "Look at you, I have seen the third daughter of the Lu family before, she is a good girl."
Mr. Lu and Luo Zhi were of the same age and had some interactions with each other.
曹夫人卻小聲道：“若是品貌，她們家四姑娘倒是更出衆，只可惜是庶出。”
這樣的話也能說出來，看來曹夫人對陸家頗不以為然，否則，哪有人會對未來兒媳婦家裏這麽評價，正常人都會遮掩的。
郁氏不是多事的人，就沒多問，反而是魏鳳在她耳邊道：“高門娶婦，低頭嫁女，唉。”
這未嘗不是在提醒她，她要嫁的是皇子，還不是一樣的。
瑤娘在外一貫都挺直了腰肢，體态端方，羅家今日來的婦人們也是忍不住偷偷看瑤娘，都想知道羅家被選為皇子妃的到底是何人？
當然，也沒有讓她們失望。
羅家這位五姑娘看起來面相極善，相貌更是傾國之色，真如傳言中的是個絕色美人，千金貴女，也難怪被皇上賜給最心愛的兒子宸王了。
而衆人送給瑤娘的禮物是一件比一件珍貴，郁氏還在踟蹰要不要退回去，羅至正卻大手一揮，“她們送了就收下吧，你這麽退回去，反而小家子氣。”
“既然如此，我就聽老爺的。”
“嗯。”
元宵節
羅時貞親自送湯圓過來，瑤娘見到羅時貞時，她微微發胖了一些，人倒是看起來很病弱的樣子。
此時，瑤娘正和郁氏在一起調湯圓的餡兒，見她過來不由得對視一眼。
眼前的羅時貞一襲月白色的襖裙，頭發梳着一絲不茍，身上帶着柔弱，很難把她和那個要六萬兩銀子的人聯系在一起。
“二姑奶奶怎麽過來了？走，我們去堂上坐，我讓她們斟茶過來。”郁氏依舊非常友好。
羅時貞感動道：“我一時上火，做了那樣的錯事，三嬸還待我這般好，我都不知道如何是好了？今日我是來送湯圓的，我們單家決定過些時日就返回山東原籍。”
郁氏點頭：“這樣也好，單家在山東也是著姓之家，你叔叔說了，等過幾年皇上的氣消了，他會替玉京說好話的。”
誰讓三叔說好話了？羅時貞心裏無比憤怒，若非是三叔把帖子拿走了，她早和離成了，單家的錢也歸自己所有。她要的并不多，不過是六萬兩，而單家有百萬之富。
單玉京這種人，天生是個沒什麽成算的，跟着這樣的人又能如何。她在他身上難道要耗一輩子嗎？而且單玉京對她又沒有半點忠誠，她為何不能改嫁？
現在她來這裏，依舊是想要三叔的帖子，有了這張帖子，她遲早會在山東和離，到時候 再嫁一家。
“三嬸，你們對我們單家的大恩，我們無以為報。”羅時貞抿着唇，眼淚都留下來了。
郁氏是個心腸軟的婦人，多少也明白羅時貞的心思，這年頭沒有官身庇護，男人都受欺負，更何況是女人。
她對羅時貞道：“你日後有什麽為難之處，只管找人說一聲就是了。”
羅時貞搖頭：“我有什麽為難的呢？我只要我的哥兒好就是了，其他的我是都不會管了，這個孩子是我一手帶大的，無論如何，我只心疼他。現在那個有了身孕，我和離又未離成，遭受些冷言冷語我能忍受，就怕孩子無法忍受。”
郁氏只在旁邊聽，她一貫如此，不怎麽說人是非。
倒是瑤娘聽羅時貞訴苦，就立刻截住話頭：“二姐姐，單家說起來也是我祖母娘家，也是有規矩的人家，你莫要多想。”
單大太太當年在她姐妹中挑選，的确是太拿自己當盤菜，現在遇到一個羅時貞，明顯是不能忍受一點差日子的，也算是旗鼓相當了。
但你羅時貞自己要和離或者要折騰，請和你嫡母去說。
“五妹妹，是我多嘴了。”羅時貞一味認錯，她對瑤娘道：“是了，我還忘記恭喜你，在宮裏你也辛苦了，回家了好生歇息。”
這話說的居然十分妥帖，別人都是恭喜她做皇子妃，唯獨只有羅時貞才讓自己歇一歇。
從這裏就能看出羅時貞其實非常擅長揣度別人的心思，比羅敬柔要厲害多了，羅敬柔純粹是一直用手段損人，一個勁兒的壓着別人。
而羅時貞要的就是富貴，除此之外她對所有阻擋她富貴權勢的東西都不願意等待相信，所有人告訴她單玉京總有起複之日，但是對于她而言，等待的時日，她又能成為官夫人了。
瑤娘點頭：“多謝二姐姐記挂，這是單家家中的湯圓嗎？我聽絮絮表姐提起過，說單家的湯圓與別處不同，裏面是用的流沙的。”
羅時貞本想哭訴一番，趁機再屢次上門，到時候順利讨一封叔父的帖子。可看看這位比她小了不少的小妹妹，一直出言轉移話題，就是不讓她哭訴，羅時貞也只好咬牙離去。
回到二房，蔣氏和小蔣氏對她是避之唯恐不及，生怕她再提起什麽和離的事情，她們也不好應答。
正好她出來時，看到郁嫣了。
郁嫣此時已經很出懷了，身子骨卻不是很好，羅時貞輕蔑的看了看她，上前喊了她一聲：“這不是郁表妹嗎？我聽說你和我二哥哥成一家了。”
郁嫣臉一紅，當年在羅家住的時候，她也知曉羅時貞，嫁的是姑父的侄子兼弟子單玉京，單家不僅是宰相門第，還有百萬之富貴。當年，她還曾經和單公子有一面之緣，十分羨慕羅時貞，就是不知道她為何要和離？
如果是她，她肯定不會的。
“是二姑娘，你回來看太太她們嗎？”郁嫣随口一問。
羅時貞點頭，她生母雖說是姨娘，但在家裏消息靈通，她也知曉小蔣氏怕是要對付郁嫣了，因此羅時貞笑道：“郁表妹，你知不知道，你的命将不久矣？”
郁嫣一愣。
金明池
二月還未開春，瑤娘同爹娘還有三位兄弟并時雨一起在附近散步，都是做尋常打扮，并未像平日那般穿着考究。
時雨臉有些微紅，因為會試名單已經出來了，時雨的未婚夫已經中了，會試中了，殿試就是看排名而已。
難得這樣出來走一回，已經有不少士子在前面題詞了，羅至正指給瑤娘看：“這上面都是不少今科士子題詞。”
“原來如此啊，爹爹當年是不是也在此處題詞過呢？慈恩寺下題名處，十七人中最少年。爹爹肯定是最年輕的。恩塔”瑤娘笑。
走在前面的羅敬淵平素很少和這位五妹妹來往，平日就知曉她在宮中很有能耐，聽聞洪貴妃本有意選憲國公的女兒，卻反而選了家世比憲國公低的她，可見她的厲害。
爹爹面前誰都不敢放肆，都知道羅至正非常嚴肅，非常狂狷，一般人在他面前是怎麽也不對，可五妹妹居然在父親面前這般吹捧，不怕爹馬上怼她嗎？
果然，羅至正立馬道：“不是，詹事府左庶子兼翰林院侍講朱大人是十九歲中的進士，比我年輕。”
瑤娘也不生氣，直接道：“那我爹爹肯定是最英俊的。”
“說什麽呢，拿你爹爹打趣。”郁氏趕緊出來打圓場。
羅至正咳嗽一聲，但臉上還是很高興的，瑤娘也不覺得尴尬，反而道：“娘親，說實話怎麽叫打趣呢。”
要堅信一點天下間幾乎大部分的人都喜歡聽好話，有少數人不愛聽好話，只是你沒誇對地方。
爹爹比娘大十幾歲，又因為她日日給娘保養，娘更年輕了，不誇誇爹爹怎麽成？
“你這孩子。”
“本來就是，爹爹這樣翩翩男子，機巧若神，世間罕見呢！”瑤娘小聲在她娘耳畔道。
郁氏臉一紅：“小心被人聽到。”
“聽到就聽到，我才不怕呢。”瑤娘嬉笑。
而羅至正則轉過頭來：“瑤娘跟上，平日你多讀李賀，怎麽現在又讀白居易了？”明顯就是想和瑤娘說話。
羅敬淵在旁覺得非常驚訝！
爹爹幾時變得這麽啰嗦了，居然還願意和五妹妹說話，要知道他爹可不是那種誰日後身份高，他就捧着的，他不喜歡的人，都只用鼻孔哼一聲。
瑤娘則仰着頭，和爹爹娘親說話，她對外面的一切都很好奇，如果自己嫁一個士子，是不是也和時雨一樣，可以在這裏看到自己的未婚夫呢？
她以為自己在看着四周的一切，不曾想已經有不少人呆呆的望着她，有的人幾乎是一動不動。
瑤娘之前只覺得自己容貌還不錯，至少在羅家來說還成，但沒想到這麽多人看着自己，她立馬把帷幕戴上，但即便戴上，也無法遮掩住身段。
羅敬淵生怕出什麽事情，連忙道：“老爺太太，不如我們先去附近廟宇燒香，這裏人太多了，若是沖撞了就不好了。”
羅至正捏須點頭：“好，我知曉了。”
上了馬車之後，時雨看着瑤娘道：“姐姐，今日我才算知道羅敷之美了。”
《陌上桑》中曾經說羅敷之美是行者見羅敷，下擔捋髭須。少年見羅敷，脫帽著帩頭。耕者忘其犁，鋤者忘其鋤。來歸相怨怒，但坐觀羅敷。
Yao Niang pinched her face and said, "Nonsense, I think I'm looking at you."
Shi Yu laughed out loud: "Sister always teases others, but now you are teased by me too."
Without the fat face, she was so beautiful. Yao Niang couldn't help stroking her slightly hot face. At this moment, Yao Niang heard someone shouting, "Help! Is there anyone who can save my Xiao'er? Lu Xiao, hold on, I'll take you to see a doctor..."
Lu Xiao? Her husband in her previous life.
Although the two had no feelings for each other and Lu Xiao died young, she couldn't just sit back and watch. After all, without Lu Xiao, she wouldn't have been able to give birth to Cheng Yun and Cheng Ze.
Thinking of this, she called for the carriage to stop: "Butler Sun, stop the carriage."