The little girl was hit so hard that she staggered forward a few steps and almost lost her balance.
She raised her head subconsciously, and her peach blossom eyes seemed to be shrouded in a layer of black gauze, making them dim and lifeless.
A hint of anger flashed across Jiang's pretty face, and she snorted irritably, "Bad luck."
The old lady said impatiently, "That's enough. Don't you even look at where you are?"
Jiang gave up her hand and said, "Mother, what should we do if Miss Shengda refuses to see us? You are so young, yet you are so arrogant. You are the biological grandmother of the prince!"
"So what if she's my grandmother?" Old Madam Jiang said unhappily, "She's surnamed Chu, and she's not on the same page with us."
Jiang said hesitantly, "What should we do now? Brother Ting was injured so badly and was chased out. The Zhenbei Palace was really too cruel. I knew it, the princess is arrogant and aggressive."
"Brother Ting was injured like this, my heart, really is..." She took out a handkerchief and wiped the corners of his eyes gently, as soft as a willow in the wind.
Old Mrs. Jiang said nothing. She just walked forward by herself, her steps becoming heavier and heavier, as if she was venting her frustration.
The Zhenbei Palace is going too far. After their Chu family was extinct, the Jiang family gave them two boys. Now they want a divorce and drive them away. This is simply too much.
Thinking about how the Zhenbei Palace had suddenly sent people to take over their shop and house a few days ago and drove them out of the house, Old Lady Jiang was furious.
Over the past twenty years, she had been accustomed to the treatment of the old lady. She was suddenly driven away, leaving her at a loss for a moment. She had no choice but to rush to the capital. When she asked Jiang Ting, she found out that he and Jingle had divorced.
Old Mrs. Jiang was simply in disbelief. After asking a few more questions, Jiang Ting stammered and said that Jingle had driven him out as well, and that the two-story house where Jiang Ting lived now was his only private property, and it was given to him by someone who did him a favor. Everything else belonged to the Zhenbei Palace, and he couldn't even take a piece of clothing with him.
Old Madam Jiang was furious. She discussed with her son before deciding to come and look for Miss Shengda today. She heard from her son that Miss Shengda often visited the palace and was as close to the princess as mother and daughter. She thought that maybe she could ask Miss Shengda to help persuade her. After all, her parents-in-law had divorced her before she even got married, which was not a good thing for Miss Shengda.
She didn't expect that she would be sent away without even meeting him, and she even got a gift for nothing.
All the fields and shops in the family were taken away by the Zhenbei Palace. Even if there was some silver left, it was not enough to spend. Her ginseng soup cost one or two taels of silver every day.
If it were an ordinary family, if the daughter-in-law dared to be so uneducated, the engagement would have been cancelled long ago.
"Let's go back first." The wrinkles on Mrs. Jiang's face deepened, and she said dully, "Go and call a broker later, and we'll hire a few people. This two-story house is still too small, and it's not even spacious enough to live in."
Jiang responded, then pinched her handkerchief and said, "Mother, Brother Ting is so badly injured. Do you think we should go find a good doctor? If he is left with a disability, he won't be able to keep his job."
Officials appointed by the imperial court cannot be disabled.
Mrs. Jiang nodded: "Go ahead. There should be many good doctors in the capital. Ask a few more to come and take a look. Also..." She glanced at the little girl following them with a cloudy look and said, "You have to take good care of this little girl."
Jiang immediately responded and shouted impatiently, "What are you dawdling for? Hurry up!"
The little girl was afraid of being beaten, so when she saw her raise her hand, she subconsciously shrank back.
"The Zhenbei Palace is administering the medicine."
At this moment, someone suddenly ran past them and said to a woman, "It's at the East City Gate. Didn't your grandson catch a cold a few days ago? The Zhenbei Palace has invited a doctor to see him. The line is very long. Hurry up and go."
The woman's eyes lit up with joy, and she said quickly, "I'll go call my grandson right away. The princess is such a kind person."
"Yes. The princess said that it was to accumulate blessings for Miss Shengda. Miss Shengda is so blessed..."
A light flashed in the little girl's eyes, like envy, but soon dimmed again.
After the entire capital city had been praising the marriage proposal from the Zhenbei Palace for a few days, an imperial decree was issued, announcing that the Northern Yan prince Yelu Qi would present a letter to Da Qi on behalf of Northern Yan, expressing his willingness to be a vassal state for generations to come.
Darong and Northern Yan were hereditary enemies, and they had been fighting for hundreds of years since the time of Emperor Taizu. Northern Yan had killed countless people on Darong's territory, and had almost broken through the pass and approached the capital several times.
Finally, Northern Yan surrendered.
Is there anything better than this?! Of course not!
The capital city was instantly in an uproar over the news, and the people rushed to tell each other, filled with joy.
Although they could not witness the grand ceremony of presenting the letter of credence with their own eyes, it did not prevent them from imagining it in their minds.
What? The envoys from Northern Yan bowed down to the emperor.
When Prince Yelu saw the Prince of Zhenbei, he was so frightened that his legs started shaking.
What about the people of Beiyan crying and shouting that they would never dare to invade again...
Not only that, the emperor will also hold a banquet for the Northern Yan envoys in a garden outside the capital that day, and "test the new crossbow" to show the national prestige of Dayong. For a time, the streets and alleys were talking about this matter, and students wrote articles praising the national prestige of Dayong.
For several days, the capital was filled with a joyful atmosphere.
On October 23rd, just after the hour of noon, Jingle came to Sheng Mansion to pick up Sheng Xiyan to go to the garden together, and Chu Yuanyi followed on horseback.
Sheng Yan also went with them.
Northern Yan was conquered by Chu Yuanchen, a great achievement that even the emperor could not erase, so he planned to use the crossbow test to enhance the country's prestige, so that the people would not be deceived by Chu Yuanchen and think that the Dayong Dynasty depended entirely on Chu Yuanchen.
Therefore, the emperor generously allowed noble officials to bring one or two of their children with them. He even personally selected several students from the Imperial Academy and scholars in Beijing who were good at writing essays and invited them to go to the garden to broaden their horizons.
After the two sides exchanged greetings, Jingle said, "Achen and the emperor should go together."
After presenting the letter of credence in the Golden Palace today, the Emperor will go to the garden with all the civil and military officials and envoys from Northern Yan.
Jingle and his companions will go ahead and wait for the Holy Chariot to arrive in the garden.
Sheng Xiyan agreed with a smile and got on the carriage directly.
The carriage started slowly, with Ji Mingyang, Han Qianzhi and a group of guards guarding it.
Sheng Xiyan handed the enamel hand warmer in her hand to Jingle and said seriously, "Princess, you are wearing too little."
Jingle had been tortured by the erosion grass for four years and was still taking medicine. She could not stand the cold, but she had never liked wearing heavy clothes since she was a child. Thinking that the weather was good today, she did not listen to Nanny Lan.
The hand warmer is pumpkin-shaped, very warm and very comfortable to hold in the palm of your hand.
Sheng Xiyan couldn't help but show off, "I knew the princess wouldn't be obedient." She was really smart.
Jingle's beautiful peach blossom eyes looked at Shenghui, and she followed Nanny Lan and said with emotion: "I told you, the girl is really the most considerate, much better than the boy!"
"Yes, yes, yes!" Nanny Lan responded a few times, "You no longer listen to me, but only to Miss Shengda."
Nanny Lan showed a timely look of resentment on her face, causing Jingle to laugh out loud.
Jingle held the hand warmer in her arms and leaned back comfortably, her beautiful peach blossom eyes half-closed, looking a little lazy.
Sheng Xiyan asked Xigui to pour her a cup of fruit tea. She sipped it and said casually, "Princess, the old lady of the Jiang family came a few days ago, on the day of the engagement. She said she came to give a gift."
Jingle raised her eyebrows.
When Jiang Ting married, the Zhenbei Palace had to give a betrothal gift, a total of sixty-four taels. Taking into consideration the poverty of the Jiang family, Jingle gave them two additional shops and a farm, which was enough for their family to live a prosperous life without worries about food and clothing.
Even when Jiang Ting occasionally withdrew some money from the account and sent it back, Jingle never cared.
The Jiang family is related to the Zhenbei Palace. Although Jingle did not deliberately publicize it, the officials appointed by the court are all smart people, and the local officials are also quite caring towards the Jiang family.
It can be said that we have not treated them unfairly over the years.
If it was just a divorce, the betrothal gift would not be taken back, just like what she and Jiang Ting said at the beginning, the glory and wealth given to the Jiang family by the Zhenbei Palace would be regarded as the exchange of two children, and it would be written off from then on. Who would have thought that Jiang Ting would not even let Achen go, and even deliberately leaked the secrets of the Northern Frontier, causing countless casualties to the Northern Frontier Army.
Jingle really couldn't swallow this humiliation and wanted to kill him alive, but he endured it for the sake of the overall situation.
If you endure it here, you will certainly have to get it back from somewhere else.
Jingle didn't hide it from her and said casually, "I've returned all the things I gave to the Jiang family."
Sheng Xiyan: “…” How amazing!
Jingle sent someone to collect all the betrothal gifts, and then told the local officials that the Jiang family was no longer relatives of the Zhenbei Palace.
She smiled and said, "They probably couldn't stay here any longer, so they came to the capital to look for Jiang Ting."
Jingle touched her soft hair, avoided the pearl pins on her hair, and said, "Don't pay attention to them. They will stick to you if you show them a good face."
Jingle sneered and said, "Rice is expensive in the capital, and it's not easy to live here."
Sheng Xiyan nodded obediently.
Jingle was about to say "You're so good" when suddenly an idea came to her mind. She opened the window curtain and looked outside and asked, "Brother Yi, has anyone from the Jiang family come to look for you recently?"
Chu Yuanyi was riding a horse following the carriage. Hearing this, he shook his head and said, "No."
Jingle reminded him, "If they come looking for you, ignore them. Your last name is Chu, not Jiang."
Chu Yuanyi quickly responded: "Yes."
The curtains were lowered, and the carriage passed smoothly out of the city gate and headed towards the garden.
When they arrived at the garden, it was around 9 p.m., Xigui stayed in the carriage outside, and only Nanny Lan followed him in.
The palace maid led them to the viewing pavilion and Sheng Xiyan saw from a distance Zhao Yuanrou leaning on the beauty's chair and feeding the fish.
The two looked at each other. Sheng Xiyan didn't go over, and she didn't come over either.
"Brother Yi, Brother Yan, go by yourselves."
Chu Yuanyi hesitated for a moment, and Sheng Yan smiled and said, "Yuanyi, come on, come on, you are not a girl, don't be so quiet, we saw them playing standing shooting, let's go too."
Chu Yuanyi followed him hesitantly.
Jingle sent the two of them away to play, and sighed, "I don't know who this child looks like..."
To Jingle, it's fine to go or not to go, and it's not a big deal. But he just said nothing, was indecisive, and had no ideas of his own.
"Sister Yan, do you think we should send him to the army to train him?" Jingle had thought so a long time ago, but was worried about arousing the emperor's suspicion.
The recent situation of Zhenbei Palace is much better than a few years ago, but we are still walking on thin ice and every step cannot be wrong.
"Princess, you should ask the prince." Sheng Xiyan said, "The prince may have other plans."
She was right. Jingle nodded silently, and the two of them walked into the waterside pavilion together.
The wind in late October was getting cooler. A heater was lit in the waterside pavilion, and white smoke was rising from the incense. A singer from the Jiaofang Bureau was telling stories while playing the pipa. Her voice was graceful and the sound of the pipa was melodious, which was very pleasant to listen to.
Jingle listened casually, chatting and laughing with Sheng Xiyan, asking her about the novels she had read recently, and talking about how the rouge from a new rouge shop in the capital was very beautiful.
Soon, more and more people came. Jingle was of noble status, so many people came to greet her and sat next to her.
Today, Northern Yan presented a letter to the country, and this great achievement must go to Chu Yuanchen.
"Princess." The wife of the prince of Jingguo said flatteringly, "The prince will definitely be promoted to the title this time."
The old prince has passed away for four years. Even if Chu Yuanchen was unable to take care of the title before due to the tense war in the northern border, he should be awarded the title this time after his great contribution.
Jingle smiled slightly and did not comment.
This sentence actually opened the mouths of many people, and they all joined in with a few words, and the conversation became lively for a while.
Sheng Xiyan sat obediently, with her hands folded on her knees, and did not interrupt.
Almost everyone believed that Chu Yuanchen would be able to obtain the title this time. After all, it was impossible for him to abandon his eldest grandson and give the title to the underage Chu Yuanyi, right?
The singer was singing a passage while playing the pipa. Then Cheng Chuyu came and after greeting each other, he took Sheng Xiyan out to play.
As soon as Sheng Xiyan left, Lady Cheng'en said with emotion: "Ms. Sheng is so lucky. She is virtuous, eloquent, beautiful and capable." She first praised Sheng Xiyan, and then said, "She looks a little young. After she gets married, I'm afraid she will have to wait two or three years before she can have a child. Oh, this is really..."
The Cheng'en Mansion is the maternal family of the current Empress Yuan, and the current Cheng'en Duke is the eldest brother of the Empress Yuan.
As soon as these words were spoken, many people exchanged glances with each other. No one was stupid, so of course they understood what the wife of Duke Cheng'en meant, and their expressions were somewhat subtle.
Some people even regretted that they were a step slow and let the wife of Duke Cheng'en get there first.
The prince of Zhenbei has not married yet, nor has he any concubines. Although he is now the prince, once he is granted the title, the prince can ask for two concubines. Concubines also have imperial decrees, and are not ordinary concubines. Moreover, the Zhenbei Palace is the only prince in the Great Sheng Dynasty, and it is very powerful. Even if he is reluctant to give up his legitimate daughter, it is still a great profit to exchange a concubine for a prince with a concubine.
Unfortunately, the wife of Duke Cheng'en got there first!
However, even if the Cheng'en Mansion gets a concubine, there is still one... Some people are ready to make a move and are ready to find an opportunity to interrupt.
Lady Cheng En continued, "My third daughter is here today, too. I'll have her come to pay her respects to the princess later."
Jingle raised her eyes, held the pumpkin-shaped hand warmer in her hands, and rubbed her rouge-painted fingers slowly on the hand warmer, smiling and saying, "Madam, is there a bastard who succeeded to the throne in your house?"
Lady Cheng En was stunned for a moment, then said with a smile, "Princess, you are joking, right?"
Jingle asked slowly, "Isn't it?"
The wife of Duke Cheng'en said solemnly, "According to the ancestral rule of Darong, only the legitimate son can inherit the title."
Jingle raised the corner of his mouth and said calmly: "Since only legitimate sons can inherit the title, what's the point of having illegitimate sons?"
Madam Cheng'en: "..."
She hesitated for a moment and said awkwardly, "You can't say that... There are also mediocre and incompetent legitimate sons, and there are also outstanding and capable illegitimate sons. There have been precedents in our dynasty..."
Jingle chuckled and said, "It seems that the concubine's son should be more outstanding than the legitimate son. Otherwise, how could he be so insightful? Since he has talent, don't waste it. I will ask the emperor for an order. How about the emperor reappointing the crown prince?"
Madam Cheng'en: "..."
She looked a little embarrassed, and didn't know what to say. In the end, she could only laugh dryly and said, "Princess, please stop joking."
"You are the one making fun of me, Madam." Jingle sneered, "The third young lady from your house doesn't need to come and pay her respects. This princess is not worthy of that."
Madam Cheng'en: "..."
Her mouth was pursed.
Most people care about offspring, not to mention that the Zhenbei Palace has few offspring to begin with, and the Zhenbei Prince is already over 20 years old, so isn't Princess Jingle anxious? !
Jingle never liked beating around the bush, so in front of so many people, she came straight to the point: "Although our Zhenbei Palace is wealthy, we don't want to support useless people for nothing.
She said this without any mercy, which dispelled the little thoughts in some people's hearts.
Some people secretly rejoiced that the wife of Duke Cheng'en had taken the lead, otherwise they would be the ones who would be embarrassed.
The wife of Marquis Yongning had just arrived at this moment. As soon as she entered the waterside pavilion, she heard Jingle's words and felt very unhappy.
She used to look down on Sheng Xiyan, but now, Sheng Xiyan is held in the palm of someone's hand and treated as a treasure. It won't be long before she can only kneel down to greet her again. She originally thought that without Sheng Xiyan, her son could find someone better, but she didn't expect...
Because of Zhao Yuanrou, the Yongning Marquisate has now become a laughing stock in the capital.
She took it easy and walked over silently, pretending nothing had happened, and greeted people with a smile. However, there were always subtle glances cast at her from all around, which made her feel very uneasy.
She really couldn't sit still, so she used the excuse of being hot and went out of the pavilion to get some fresh air.
The autumn sun is warm, and the wind is just right, neither too cold nor too hot, perfect for releasing paper irises. Several paper irises are already flying over the garden, as are butterflies and wild geese. From time to time, laughter like silver bells can be heard all around.
Sheng Xiyan was also holding a spool of ox-horn thread in her hand, and she was releasing a paper iris in the shape of an eagle into the blue sky. It stood out among the paper irises in the garden full of birds and butterflies.
She was holding the rope and chatting and laughing with Cheng Chuyu beside her, both of them had smiles as beautiful as flowers.
It's just releasing a paper eagle, are you so happy? You really have never seen the world. The wife of Marquis Yongning felt heavy in her heart. She wanted to ignore her, but her eyes always fell on her uncontrollably.
Suddenly, her eyes moved and she noticed the mutton-fat white jade pendant hanging on Sheng Xiyan's waist. As Sheng Xiyan ran back and forth, the jade pendant swayed on her waist, and her heart beat along with it.
How could she just casually wear such an important thing?! She wasn't afraid of dropping it.
The wife of Marquis Yongning stepped forward subconsciously, then stopped immediately.
She didn't know what to say to Sheng Xiyan. After the last incident, she hadn't had a good sleep for almost a month because of the thunder. As soon as she closed her eyes, she would hear the sound of muffled thunder in her ears and wake up.
She was going to give up and just think that it was not her destiny. However, in recent days, the Yongning Marquisate was like a plague god. Everything went wrong, whether it was Zhou Jingxun's marriage or his job... From the Imperial Guard to the Five Cities Army, Zhou Jingxun's future was almost ruined. This made her think of the jade pendant again. If she could get it, maybe everything would get better... No, it would definitely get better.
She thought about paying a large sum of money to ask Sheng Xiyan to buy it for her, but she had just been cheated out of 20,000 taels of silver by Sheng Xiyan, and she was afraid that Sheng Xiyan had already fallen in love with the jade pendant, so even if she wanted to buy it, Sheng Xiyan might not be willing to sell it.
The current Sheng Xiyan is no longer someone she can offend casually.
"ah!"
At this moment, Sheng Xiyan suddenly let out a soft cry, and her paper eagle brushed against a branch. The string broke, and the paper eagle flew away with the wind, flying farther and farther.
Sheng Xiyan watched it fly away in annoyance, and handed the spool in her hand to Cheng Chuyu: "I'll pick it up."
Cheng Chuyu: "I'll go with you."
"No need." Sheng Xiyan smiled and shook her head, "I saw it flying that way, and it will be back soon."
As she spoke, she lifted her skirt and ran away with light steps.
The wife of Marquis Yongning stood where she was, hesitated for a moment, and then followed quietly as if possessed by a ghost.
Sheng Xiyan walked quickly in the direction the paper ibis flew. She remembered that it flew towards an octagonal pavilion.
She walked around the water pavilion and along the lake for a while. Sure enough, she saw a eagle hanging on a rockery near the pavilion.
She ran to the foot of the rockery, breathed lightly, and looked up with some worry.
This rockery was quite high, at least ten feet high. There were no palace servants around, and no branches that long could be found, so it was obviously impossible to take it down.
The wife of Marquis Yongning saw her in a dilemma for a while, and then she went around to a rockery at the back.
This rockery is taller, more than twenty feet high, and there are stone steps on it for climbing up and looking out into the distance. The protruding rocks on the two rockeries are less than three feet apart at the closest point, barely enough to reach the paper ibis.
Seeing Sheng Xiyan climb the stone steps without thinking, Lady Yongning Marquis's mind moved and she realized that this was a good opportunity.
If Sheng Xiyan fell from the rockery...this jade pendant.
The wife of the Marquis of Yongning's heart beat faster. She told herself that the rockery was only so high that she would not die if she fell down. She just wanted the jade pendant. It didn't matter if the jade pendant broke.
Thinking of this, her mind was completely bewitched by the jade pendant. She slowed down her pace and quietly followed Sheng Xiyan up the stairs.
Then Sheng Xiyan stopped at the mountainside, leaned out, and tried to catch the paper ibis hanging on the rock of another rockery.
The wife of Marquis Yongning's hands were shaking, and without thinking, she pushed him hard behind her.
At the critical moment, Sheng Xiyan suddenly and quickly turned sideways, and the wife of Marquis Yongning lost her balance and fell outward, with half of her body hanging outside.
Sheng Xiyan grabbed her arm, but she didn't pull her back, nor did she let her fall, but just maintained a weird balance. A concave rock took up most of her weight.
Sheng Xiyan played with the jade pendant on her waist with one hand and said meaningfully, "Madam, what a coincidence."