Chapter 82: Lifting Abstinence
Rong Yin originally thought that Zong Zheng Xiao was just angry because she said she wouldn't do more with him, and that she could just act coquettishly to comfort him.
But who knew that Zong Zheng Xiao was as hard-hearted as a rock this time, and he just wouldn't let him eat ice cream, no matter how much he begged for mercy, Zong Zheng Xiao wouldn't give in.
Even classmate Xiao Ai could occasionally chew a few pieces of ice to cool off, but Zong Zhengxiao issued a strict order that when he was not in the garden, whoever caught Rong Yin stealing ice food would be rewarded with ten taels of silver, and Rong Yin who was caught would face punishment.
After her buttocks were spanked several times, Rong Yin no longer dared to have sex in the palace.
Because Rong Yin made ice cream and popsicles and sold them in the milk tea shop, the business of the milk tea shop quickly took off. The fruit merchants who supplied them were so happy that they would wake up with laughter in their dreams in the middle of the night, saying that they could make a lot of money following Boss Rong and that they would definitely reserve the best fruits for his shop in the future.
Seeing the business flourishing, Rong Yin finally found an excuse to leave the palace, saying that she was going to check the accounts, but actually she wanted to sneak some ice cream in the store.
But what Rong Yin didn't expect was that, except for going to the toilet, from the moment he left the palace, no matter what he did, there would be a guard watching him, and they were so dedicated that they didn't even blink.
It was simply wishful thinking for Rong Yin to have an affair.
In order to regain Bingshi's freedom, Rong Yin endured the humiliation and crawled into the quilt in the middle of the night, hoping to bite Zong Zhengxiao once to tempt him to break the agreement.
If they did, then he could continue to eat his ice cream.
But Zong Zhengxiao's abstinence was incredibly strong. As soon as Rong Yin's hand touched his pants, he was pulled out and held in his arms, and his hands and feet were controlled.
"Don't make noise, be good and sleep well." Zong Zhengxiao's lazy voice rang in Rong Yin's ears.
Rong Yin asked, "Really not going to do it?"
Zong Zhengxiao said calmly, "You said once a month. We have already done it this month. For the sake of health, we can't do it again."
Rong Yin: "...You are just trying to piss me off on purpose, right?"
Zong Zhengxiao: "I fell asleep and couldn't hear you."
Rong Yin: “…”
Rong Yin cursed in her heart: You stingy guy, drink some cold water!
Zong Zhengxiao remained indifferent.
Since cold food was forbidden, Rong Yin could only drink cold tea with Zong Zhengxiao. It was a luxury for her to have a glass of iced sour plum juice occasionally.
In addition to prohibiting the use of cold food, Zong Zhengxiao also called the imperial physician to diagnose and prescribe medicine for the two of them. Rong Yin had to drink a bowl of medicine every day that was more bitter than his life. Although Zong Zhengxiao had to drink it every day like him, Rong Yin still accepted it helplessly.
But with Zong Zheng Xiao watching him, he had no choice but to drink.
Rong Yin asked what the medicine was, and Zong Zhengxiao said it was for health, so that they wouldn't end up like old man Li when they get old and have a stroke just by going to bed.
Rong Yin drank the bitter medicine, feeling extremely regretful. She wished she could go back to the day when she first heard Old Man Li's joke and shut her trouble-making mouth tightly.
I drank the bitter medicine for a month. After the imperial physician came to check my pulse, he felt that the effect was almost enough, so he changed the medicine into pills, and I only needed to take one pill every three days.
Upon hearing the news, Rong Yin was so excited that she almost cried. Finally, she didn't have to drink that stuff anymore.
In the evening, after the palace servants left, Rong Yin, wearing only a single layer of clothing, snuggled into the arms of Zong Zheng Xiao, who was still reading, hugged his neck, and rubbed against him like a kitten.
"Your Majesty, stop reading and look at me."
Zong Zhengxiao grabbed Rong Yin by the back of his neck and pressed him into his arms, but he did not get intimate with him. Instead, he continued to read with his head down.
"Abstinence and health preservation." Zong Zhengxiao said calmly.
Rong Yin leaned on his shoulder and said, "We agreed to do it once a month. It's been a month since we last did it."
Zong Zhengxiao's voice remained flat: "Next time."
Rong Yin: "When is the next time?"
Zong Zhengxiao: "When the time is right."
Rong Yin was furious. He supported Zong Zhengxiao's shoulders and sat up, staring at him fiercely, "You really won't do it?"
Zong Zhengxiao said nothing and acquiesced.
"Hmph, then just live your life with your books!" Rong Yin rolled to the side, pulled up the thin blanket and wrapped himself in it, turned his back to Zong Zheng Xiao, and didn't look at him again.
Looking at Rong Yin who looked like a cocoon, Zong Zhengxiao sighed helplessly.
In the following months, Rong Yin didn't mention going to bed again out of spite, and Zong Zheng Xiao also acted as if he didn't know about it, and just insisted on sleeping with Rong Yin in his arms every night.
Until the arrival of autumn, Zong Zhengxiao had been quite busy with the autumn harvest, so when the imperial physician came to Yinjiao Garden to take the pulses of the two masters at the appointed time, only Rong Yin was there.
After taking Rong Yin's pulse, the imperial physician checked Rong Yin's tongue and asked him about his diet in recent days, what he had eaten, how his appetite was, how his sleep was, and whether he had any discomfort in his stomach.
After Rong Yin answered all the questions, the doctor said, "You can stop taking the medicine. Eat some medicinal food regularly and rest on time. Don't eat spicy or cold food for a long time to avoid damaging your intestines and stomach. To protect your intestines and stomach, you still have to start with the small details in your daily life."
Rong Yin didn't quite understand: "What do you mean by protecting the stomach?"
The imperial physician was also confused when he heard his words: "My young master, you have been taking these medicines these days, and you have also avoided eating cold foods, abstinence, and resting on time. Aren't they all for the purpose of protecting your intestines and stomach? The last time you had a stomachache in the middle of the night, I was not in the palace, and it was my apprentice who came to treat you. Later, His Majesty asked me to come and see you again and prescribe medicine according to your specific situation."
Rong Yin asked, "Then is the medicine your majesty drank also for the stomach?"
The imperial physician nodded and said, "Your Majesty fought on the battlefield in his early years, and later he was busy with government affairs. It was common for him to have irregular diets, so he also had some stomach problems. However, he has been taking care of himself over the years, and the situation has improved a lot. In fact, it doesn't matter whether he takes medicine or not."
Rong Yin sent the imperial physician away in a daze, and only then did he find time to think about this matter.
A few days before Zong Zhengxiao forbade him to eat ice cream, he was making ice cream and ate a lot of it because he was greedy. One night, he had a stomachache, which made him pale and sweat broke out on his forehead.
Zong Zhengxiao called the imperial physician over overnight. After taking the medicine prescribed by the imperial physician, Rong Yin's pain was quickly relieved, and he was alive and well as usual the next day.
He didn't take it to heart, but he didn't expect that Zong Zheng Xiao still remembered it.
The reason why Zong Zhengxiao agreed to his casual request for abstinence that day was probably to take advantage of the situation and seize the opportunity to implement the stomach-nourishing plan.
Rong Yin also understood why Zong Zheng Xiao hid the truth from him. If Zong Zheng Xiao openly asked Rong Yin to abstain from certain foods and asked him to drink such bitter medicine just to protect his stomach, Rong Yin would definitely not do it.
Rong Yin was embarrassed. Her husband really understood her.
At dinner time, Chef Yu really served a dish of stomach-warming medicinal chicken soup. Rong Yin drank it obediently and also served a bowl for Zong Zhengxiao.
"You have already taken the medicine with me, so drink this soup as well. Your Majesty, you also need to nourish your stomach."
Hearing this, Zong Zhengxiao was stunned for a moment, and then said in a positive tone: "You know."
Rong Yin nodded: "The imperial physician came to take my pulse today, and I asked him."
Zong Zhengxiao looked at him and said, "I lied to you, are you angry?"
Rong Yin shook her head: "No, I know you are doing this for my own good."
Zong Zheng Xiao laughed: "I didn't do it with you before because it was for your own good, so why were you angry then?"
Rong Yin blushed: "We're eating, why are you talking about this?"
As he spoke, he looked at the palace maids beside him. Fortunately, they were all very tactful. When they heard the topic getting more and more inappropriate, they immediately lowered their heads and pretended that they heard and saw nothing.
Zong Zhengxiao was amused by his shy expression: "Okay, okay, I won't say anything more. Come, eat meat."
Zong Zhengxiao picked up the meat and fed it to Rong Yin's mouth. Rong Yin glared at him angrily, but at least he did not refuse his feeding.
At night, after washing up, Rong Yin handed the medicine jade box to Zong Zhengxiao and said, "Here, you come tonight."
Zong Zhengxiao was a little surprised to see this. Rong Yin was usually very shy, except for the occasional time when they were doing it and Rong Yin couldn't hold on any longer and fell asleep. Zong Zhengxiao would help him clean up and put the medicine jade in his pocket. The rest of the time when he was awake, Rong Yin did everything by himself.
Now it is self-evident what his action means.
Zong Zhengxiao took the box and asked Rong Yin, "Which one do you want to use, A Yin?"
In fact, Zong Zhengxiao knew which one Rong Yin had been using before, and he was deliberately teasing her.
Rong Yin was indeed embarrassed, but he did not avoid answering. Instead, he sat on Zong Zheng Xiao's lap, leaned closer to him, and his breath was as sweet as orchid.
"I want to try the one on the far right tonight, but I'm afraid I can't do it."
From left to right, from S to XXL.
Zong Zhengxiao held him, "I'll help you."
Rong Yin leaned close to Zong Zheng Xiao and asked in a low voice, "How can you help?"
Zong Zhengxiao raised his hand: "Besides this, there is also..."
He hadn't finished speaking, but Rong Yin understood what he meant.
"You are quite smart..." Rong Yin blushed.
"Do you want to try it?" The breathing of the two people gradually blended.
"Let's give it a try!" Rong Yin said without showing any fear.
The night is quiet and insects are chirping. It is a wonderful night.
Even though they hadn't been intimate for several months, Zong Zhengxiao still restrained himself and only did it once.
Before going to bed, he carried the tired Rong Yin to clean up, and then fulfilled Rong Yin's request to him.
Of course, the one on the far right was a joke between the two of them, and he chose the original one because he knew Rong Yin could only bear this one.
This year, more places used fertilizers, and more people had good harvests. In addition, with Zong Zhengxiao's deliberate publicity, now if you ask any citizen on the street what he thinks of the current emperor, he will sincerely and eloquently talk about Zong Zhengxiao's great achievements and how much he loves the people of Da Sheng.
"Hey, I heard that toilet paper is cheaper again, let's go buy some later and store it."
"Sure, I have a big family, and a roll of toilet paper will be used up in a few days. Fortunately, the price of this paper is not expensive, and there are often discounts. Otherwise, ordinary people like us can't afford it at all."
"This is all thanks to your Majesty. Not only has the price of toilet paper dropped recently, but also the price of writing paper used by scholars has dropped. I heard that it is a Mid-Autumn Festival promotion. My neighbor Lin bought a lot of it this morning."
"Yes, before, the Cui family was the only one selling paper in the city. Not only was it expensive, but the quality was also poor. My son had to spend a lot of money every month to buy paper. Now, the Xuan paper sold by Your Majesty is of better quality, forcing the Cui family to lower the price, which saves my family a lot of money."
"Auntie, you are lucky to have a son who is educated. Our Majesty attaches great importance to the imperial examinations. If he can pass the examination and become a scholar, your family will enjoy happiness for the rest of their lives."
"Haha, I still have to thank your Majesty. Without him, there would be no peace and prosperity, and no good life for us."
"Yes, our Majesty is the best Majesty."
A carriage drove slowly past the talking women, and the people in the carriage heard everything they said.
"Hmph, ignorant woman!" A sour male voice rang out.
This carriage belongs to the Chen family, and the person speaking is the second son of the Chen family.
Next to him sat the head of the Chen family, who was resting with his eyes closed. They were about to go to the palace to attend the Mid-Autumn Festival dinner.
Facing his angry son, the head of the Chen family showed little expression. He just said, "When we get to the banquet later, if you don't want the emperor to catch you and use him against the Chen family, remember to control your expression."
Now, Patriarch Chen finally understood how much benefit it would bring to himself and his family to have a normal offspring.
The He family was forced to join the rebellion because of the misconduct of He Lao Da, and ended up with the family broken up and their loved ones dead; the Li family was forced to take the blame for the crime and died in a foreign land because Li Ao offended the emperor, and the head of the Li family became seriously ill and was plotted against by his concubine, and now he can only lie in bed like a useless person.
The war between Zong Zhengxiao and the aristocratic families involves so many interests and lives, it is impossible and will not end well. In any case, it is either you die or I die.
The head of the Chen family does not want the Chen family to be sacrificed prematurely. Fortunately, although his sons do not have much talent, they are relatively obedient. As long as they do not make any mistakes, Zong Zhengxiao will not find any loopholes and thus defeat the Chen family.
Young Master Chen curled his lips and said, "Dad, I'm not a fool like Li Ao. I know when to say something and when not to say it."
Patriarch Chen said calmly, "You'd better really know. Otherwise, if you get into trouble like Li Ao, I won't think of a way to protect you."
Young Master Chen lowered his eyes and said, "My son knows."
Unlike the head of the He family who valued children and the head of the Li family who had few sons, the head of the Chen family had three sons with his first wife alone, and his other concubines also gave birth to several illegitimate sons for him.
Moreover, his three legitimate sons are also very outstanding. The eldest followed him into politics and has a bright future. The third likes to make money and manages the family business in an orderly manner. Although the second son is not very dedicated, he is generally honest and filial, and has not caused much trouble for the Chen family so far.
Perhaps it was because he had so many sons that it was not surprising, and also because of the character of the head of the Chen family, so he treated the children in the family fairly and justly, rarely favoring or treating anyone coldly. Even for the illegitimate sons, he still taught them seriously.
But if these children did something wrong that was harmful to the entire Chen family and were caught red-handed, he would not try his best to rescue them like the head of the Li family did. He would only abandon them and quickly distance himself from them.
Previously, a bastard from the Chen family had gone to a brothel with Li Ao to curse the emperor. After being reported, if Li Ao hadn't been there to take the blame, the head of the Chen family would have thrown the bastard out without hesitation.
My father is fair, but also cold-hearted.
This is something that all the children in the Chen family know very well.
The eldest son of the Chen family was sent out of the capital for training, the third son of the Chen family went on a business trip, and the Chen mother happened to be ill, so it was the turn of the second son of the Chen family to accompany his father into the palace.
Although Chen Ershao's initial scolding of the woman was intended to please his father, there was also some truth in his words.
Zong Zhengxiao originally let the Ji family open an ice shop. In the first year, the Ji family squeezed out most of the Chen family's market. In the second year, the Chen family simply could not continue the ice business and had to close down in disgrace.
Unfortunately, before the emergence of the Ji family ice shop, the Chen family ice shop's business was booming, so the second young master Chen asked his father to take charge of the ice shop business, thinking that even if he did nothing, he could still make a lot of money and have a good image in front of his father.
But who knew that problems would arise with the ice shop in his hands.
In fact, everyone understands that it is normal for the Chen family's ice shop to stop doing business once the low-priced ice from the Ji family's ice shop appears, because they do not have the confidence to compete with the Ji family in price reduction. Even the head of the Chen family can do nothing about it, not to mention the second young master Chen, a young man who knows nothing.
But after all, he was the one in charge of the ice shop during that time, so even if his family didn't blame him, he still felt ashamed.
Later, several aristocratic families began to study Rongyin's bread and milk tea. Seeing that these things made money, they also wanted to get a piece of the pie.
Young Master Chen took the initiative to ask for the job.
He couldn't figure out how to make bread, but milk tea and fruit tea were much easier. He opened a milk tea shop before several other shops. His business was booming at the beginning, even surpassing Rong Yin's milk tea shop.
This allowed his family's previously vacant ice storage to be put into use again.
Young Master Chen received a compliment from his father and saw that his store was doing well, so his mentality became a little high.
He appointed people based on personal connections, which resulted in those close to him receiving kickbacks when purchasing ingredients. Many of the fruits delivered by fruit vendors were rotten, and the employees in the store were relatives of his relatives. Relying on these relationships, they did not work seriously and did not pay attention to hygiene issues.
As a result, the milk tea had problems, customers became sick, the dirty and messy conditions in the store were exposed, and business plummeted instantly.
In the end, it was his third brother who helped him reorganize the store, fired the employees involved, compensated the customers for their medical expenses, and held promotional activities, which was enough to barely retain some customers. However, the revenue was far less than at the beginning, not to mention compared with Rong Yin's milk tea shop.
Young Master Chen did not deny that he had problems, but he felt that if it were not for Zong Zhengxiao and Rong Yin, he would not have been in such a bad situation. Now he could not even lift his head at home.
So when he heard the two women praising Zong Zhengxiao, he couldn't help but curse them.
At the banquet, Young Master Chen sat next to his father and saw that not only was there a piece of cream cake and a portion of ice cream as dessert on every table, but there were also a few sheets of paper in a box next to them that were as white as snow, soft to the touch, and exuding a faint fragrance.
According to the palace people, this thing is called a paper handkerchief, which can be used to wipe the mouth and hands and thrown away after use. It does not need to be washed like a handkerchief, so it is very convenient.
Later, Zong Zhengxiao, who was sitting on the platform, said that the food on the table, including the moon cakes, were all made from the new grains of this autumn, so that everyone could taste the joy of the harvest together.
All the ministers followed the trend and praised His Majesty for his wisdom, but the people from the aristocratic families felt bitter.
Zong Zheng Xiao's actions, plus everything that happened at today's banquet, were telling them how powerful and dominant Zong Zheng Xiao was now. If they continued to confront him head-on, they would only end up in defeat.
Different from the group of pale-faced nobles, Li Chu sat at the table, happily eating cake, ice cream and moon cakes, and other dishes as well. Afterwards, he had a glass of osmanthus wine, wiped his hands with a tissue, and enjoyed the dance and music performances on the stage. He could not be more comfortable.
At this moment, Li's mother was also in a happy mood.
She first ate the egg yolk mooncakes from Yunduo Bakery in front of Master Li, then drank some low-sugar milk tea from Rongyin Milk Tea Shop to relieve her greasy feeling. Finally, she did not forget to praise Master Li for how good the food tasted.
Before Patriarch Li fell ill, he had strictly forbidden them to buy anything from Zong Zhengxiao. So whenever Mother Li wanted to eat something delicious, she had to hide it. After all, she and her son did not have the same special privileges with Patriarch Li as did Mother Li Ao and her son.
Things are different now. The head of the Li family is lying in bed sickly, and it is difficult for him to even speak, let alone scold or punish her.
While Li's mother was enjoying the food, the head of the Li family glared at her viciously, but no matter how fierce his expression was, he could do nothing to her.
After eating and drinking, Li's mother sat closer to the head of the Li family, as if she didn't smell the foul stench coming from his bed.
The head of the Li family is now paralyzed and eats, drinks, defecates and urinates in bed. Even if he cleans up his bed, it is impossible for it to not smell.
Mother Li said as she rubbed her flowers, "Normally at this time, you would have been back from the palace banquet. As soon as you entered the mansion, you would be dragged to your own courtyard by Li Ao and his mother, and you would watch the moon and eat moon cakes with them, and the whole family would be reunited."
When talking about family reunion, Li's mother's tone was full of sarcasm.
He was not jealous, he just felt extremely relieved that his revenge had been taken.
The family of three who were once loving and harmonious are now separated and living in different places. It is really retribution.
The head of the Li family had not eaten or drunk anything for a day, and he no longer had the energy to even groan. He just looked at Li's mother with more and more hatred in his eyes.
It was only after his aunt was sent away that he realized that the filial piety and kindness of Li Chu and his mother were all an act. They hated him and Li Ao and his mother to the extreme. Now that he was paralyzed, his aunt was sent away, and Li Ao was dead, it was exactly what they wanted.
Patriarch Li wanted to kill them both, but unfortunately he was paralyzed and couldn't even commit suicide, let alone kill anyone.
Mother Li inserted the embroidery needle into the fabric, then slowly pulled it out, smiling and saying, "Do you think my son and I hate you just because you ignore us and favor Li Ao and his mother, and we are jealous?"
The way Patriarch Li looked at Mother Li seemed to be saying: What else could it be?
Mother Li smiled even more, looked him in the eye, and said, "Many years ago, you were drunk and mistook me for your concubine, and then you told me in person that you would get rid of me and my son and leave the Li family to Li Ao... So you said that my son and I wanted to take revenge on you and wanted you to die. Is that a problem?"
Upon hearing this, Patriarch Li's pupils constricted and his breathing became uncontrollably rapid.
He had indeed planned this a long time ago, when Li Ao was about two or three years old. He had always disliked his first wife and eldest son, so how could he be willing to leave the Li family to them.
After Li Ao's death, he began to get close to Li Chu, which was also a last resort.
He didn't even tell Li Ao and his mother about his little thoughts. He thought he was the only one who knew about it, and he thought he had hidden it well.
It turned out that due to a moment of negligence, his plan had already been exposed to Li Chu and his mother...
It was he who harmed himself and killed Ao'er!
In excitement, the head of the Li family rolled his eyes and fainted again. Only then did Li's mother put away her embroidery and asked someone to call the court doctor.
Rong Yin had no idea what was going on in the palace banquet or outside the palace. He was testing whether the newly built swing was sturdy.
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