Chapter 184 Chapter 184 Decision
After the noise on the street died down, Fu Wenxiao took the two packed ducks and left.
Along the way, many people were discussing what had just happened in low voices. They did not dare to speak too loudly, as they were more or less afraid of those powerful people.
However, most people had expressions of uncontrollable excitement and a hint of relief on their faces; there was really no sympathy.
The capital is the imperial city, where the emperor lives and there are many dignitaries.
No common people would like the sons of powerful and wealthy who ride their horses arrogantly on the streets like this. Such behavior is really dangerous and it is easy for them to hit pedestrians on the street. Even if they are injured, killed, or disabled, they can only blame themselves for their bad luck.
How can ordinary people fight against those powerful people?
If someone has a conscience, they might even compensate you with some money. But if someone is cruel, they might even consider you unlucky after you die and drive you away.
At this moment, seeing the man riding his horse in the street suffering the consequences, they felt that he deserved it. If the person with a broken leg was not the emperor's grandson, it would have been an innocent pedestrian on the side of the road.
All we can say is that he deserves it and God has eyes.
Everyone felt extremely angry about what happened today.
Moreover, for those powerful people, even if they become disabled, there will be people to take care of them for the rest of their lives, which is much better than ordinary people like them who have to struggle for a living every day.
When Fu Wenxiao walked to the pastry shop, he saw Yu Li comforting Zhou and the two children.
Zhou held the two children's hands tightly. The faces of the three children looked bad, and they were obviously frightened.
Seeing Fu Wenxiao, Zhou subconsciously called out, "Brother Xiao..."
Fu Wenxiao smiled at her reassuringly and said to Yu Li, "Mother Li, it's your turn over there."
Yu Li reacted and asked him to stay with them first and go to the store to buy pastries.
Because of what happened, she was not in the mood to buy any cakes. She just bought a few and went home with them.
On the way back, Zhou and the two children were silent.
Yu Li had been paying attention to them. Seeing that Zhou was still in a bad mood, he pursed his lips and couldn't help but look at Fu Wenxiao.
He shook his head at her and patted her hands to reassure her.
When they got home, the servants brought them hot soup to warm themselves up.
With earth dragons burning in the room, calming incense in the air, and steaming hot soup in their mouths, Zhou and the two children gradually relaxed, and their faces looked relaxed.
Seeing Yu Li staring at her, Zhou smiled at her and said, "Mother Li, I'm fine. I just felt uncomfortable after seeing... earlier." Then she reached out and touched the heads of the two children, "Yan Hui, Yan Sheng, are you scared?"
The two children shook their heads at first, then said hesitantly, "Grandma scared us."
Fu Yansheng leaned into Zhou's arms, hugged her with her soft hands, and said in a baby voice: "Don't be afraid, grandma, I'm here!"
Fu Yan nodded, "Yes, my aunt is very powerful!"
Perhaps it was because the experiences before the age of four were really bad, and their personalities were raised to be timid and sensitive. Although their personalities have changed a lot in the past two years due to Yu Li's arrival and Fu Wenxiao's recovery, their essence has not changed much.
The slightest disturbance will still scare them.
Not to mention what happened just now. Although Zhou covered their eyes in time, they could still hear the terrible screams and the discussions of the people around them, which frightened them to some extent.
Zhou's reaction also made them worried.
Zhou didn't expect that the two children would comfort her in return. She held the brother and sister in her arms with some guilt.
"I'm sorry, it's grandma's fault." She tried to put on her usual smile, "I won't do that again. Actually, grandma isn't afraid, and you shouldn't be afraid either! Your uncle and aunt are here, there's nothing to be afraid of."
The two children looked at Yu Li and Fu Wenxiao, then smiled to show that they were not afraid.
The children were easily soothed and soon returned to normal.
However, Yu Li felt that her mother-in-law seemed to still be in a bad mood and a little depressed.
Later, Yu Li and Fu Wenxiao went to look for Zhou.
Zhou was a little surprised to see them coming together, and said with a smile: "Li Niang, Xiao Ge'er, why did you come here suddenly? It's cold this day, you can go back and rest if you have nothing to do."
"Mom, we came to see you." Yu Li said.
Zhou was somewhat helpless and asked them to go inside and not stand at the door to avoid being cold.
It was very cold in Beijing at the end of October, and it started snowing in the evening. This kind of weather is not pleasant, and it is very hard to endure every winter.
Fortunately, the house they live in now has floor heating, so the house is warm.
Zhou asked them to sit down, poured them a glass of water, and said, "It's late now, you can't drink tea, you won't be able to sleep."
There was a small yellow clay stove in the room, with a kettle on it boiling hot water.
Such a small yellow mud stove is very convenient. Every winter, one will be kept in the ear room. It can be used for heating or warming water, but you must pay attention to safety.
Yu Li had no objection to drinking tea or water. The room was indeed warm, but after staying there for too long, his body felt hot and his mouth was dry. He just wanted to drink more water.
She drank the water and asked, "Mom, are you okay?"
Zhou knew that the child was worried about her, so she smiled and said, "Don't worry, Li Niang, I'm fine."
Yu Li looked at her and asked again: "Mom, do you hate the guy who broke his leg today?"
Hearing her ask so directly, Zhou laughed. Knowing that this was her personality, she was not surprised.
She nodded, not hiding her thoughts, and said directly: "I really don't like him. He is the grandson of the Third Prince's Mansion. Those princes... I don't like them very much."
Thinking about the possibility that those princes had interfered and even added insult to injury when the Fu family was in trouble, she became more and more disgusted.
Putting all this aside, Zhou was a kind-hearted person, and it was unbearable for her to see those imperial grandchildren riding their horses arrogantly in the streets, not taking the lives of ordinary people seriously.
It's a pity that she has no ability and can't do anything even if she hates it.
Upon hearing this, Yu Li said he understood.
She also learned from the discussions of those around her that the person whose leg was broken by the horse was the emperor's grandson, the third son of the third prince, and his mother was actually a woman from the Kang family.
After the Kang family was convicted, they were sentenced to beheading, confiscation of property and exile. However, the crime was not committed as severe as that of married daughters. For example, several concubines of the Kang family in the palace and the concubine Kang in the third prince's mansion were all fine.
Thinking of something, Zhou said, "It was the grandson of the emperor who was injured in the leg this time. The others are not a big deal, but I am afraid that the sage in the palace will be angry, and I don't know how many innocent people will be implicated. And the third prince, if he cares about it..."
When she said this, she felt a little uncomfortable.
The third prince is not easy to deal with.
"Mom, don't worry." Fu Wenxiao said, "The saint has many grandchildren. He won't care how his illegitimate grandson broke his leg. He probably doesn't have the energy to care."
"As for the Third Prince, you don't have to worry about him. He has been very busy recently and has no mood to seek justice for his son with a broken leg. He is in a lot of trouble right now."
Zhou was stunned for a moment, then thought of something and nodded, "You are right, the saint should still be busy refining the elixir, how can he have the time to care about those imperial grandchildren."
As for whether the Third Prince was in any trouble, she didn't know, but Xiao Ge'er said it so affirmatively, so it must be the case.
So she felt relieved.
After being relieved, Zhou was puzzled again, "I don't know what happened to the horse. Why did it suddenly fall down?" She lowered her voice and said, "Could it be done by some prince?"
Yu Li reached out and took a piece of dessert to eat, looking very righteous.
Fu Wenxiao picked up the water and drank it, smiling and said, "It's possible."
After confirming that Zhou's mood had recovered, the two did not sit for too long and said goodbye and left.
Back in the room, it was still warm, and Yu Li went to get some water to drink.
Fu Wenxiao walked up to her and saw that she had drunk several glasses of water in a row. He said, "Ali, why don't you burn the earth dragon tomorrow?"
"That won't do." Yu Li said, "The floor heating in our room is connected to that in mom's room. The weather is so cold, we can't let mom, Yan Hui, Yan Sheng and the others get cold."
Indeed, Fu Wenxiao suggested: "Do you want me to move with you to a room without a ground dragon?"
"No need." She thought it was too troublesome to move around. "Just live here. At worst, I can hold you in my arms when you sleep at night."
He smiled, "Okay, I'll hold you."
Yu Li glanced at him and thought that he had a very nice smile and seemed to be in a good mood.
Seeing that there was no water in the pot, Fu Wenxiao called the maid to add some water to the pot so that she would not have to get up in the middle of the night without water to drink.
After the maid finished adding water and left, he suddenly held her hand.
Yu Li looked at him in confusion, asking him what was wrong with his eyes.
"Ali." Fu Wenxiao held her hand and said, "It's nothing. It's time to rest."
Yu Li nodded, "Alright."
**
After they settled down, Fu Wenxiao sent invitations to Mr. Wang and his wife and Chu Shaoyu, inviting them to come over for a gathering.
When we parted that day, we left each other our addresses, so it was easy to send them invitations.
The three people who received the post all came and brought gifts.
The gifts prepared by Chu Shaoyu were particularly generous. In his words, thanks to Yu Li's help on the way back to Beijing, he was able to enter Beijing smoothly. His parents at home were extremely grateful.
"In fact, my parents wanted to come here in person to thank you." Chu Shaoyu said a little embarrassedly, "But I told Brother Fu that he was going to take part in the imperial examination next year and that he should concentrate on studying. They didn't want to come and disturb him, so they said they would treat you to a banquet after the examination next year."
He thought to himself that with Brother Fu's literary talent, he would surely pass the examination next year, and then he wouldn't have to worry about affecting his reputation by associating with them.
Although he did not spend much time in the capital, Chu Shaoyu also knew that before the imperial examination, if the news spread that a candidate from other places was close to the powerful people in the capital, it would definitely affect the reputation of that candidate and even affect his ranking in the imperial examination.
In short, at this time, it is best to avoid suspicion to avoid unnecessary trouble.
Mr. Wang agreed, "That's right. The examination is only a few days away. Brother Fu should stay at home and study."
He guessed that Chu Shaoyu's status should not be low, perhaps he was a member of the royal family.
No matter what it is, as a scholar, it is most taboo to deal with the powerful at this time. It is better to pretend that you don’t know.
Everyone present was well aware of this and had no objection to Chu Shaoyu's statement, and they communicated harmoniously.
The weather outside was cold, so everyone sat in the house, drinking hot tea and snacks and chatting.
As he spoke, he couldn't help but mention the incident a while ago where a certain grandson of the emperor had his leg broken by a horse on the street.
Because this incident happened in public, the injured person was a grandson of the emperor, and the process of injury was really coincidental, the news spread quickly. In just a few days, it spread throughout the capital.
Mr. Wang had also heard about this incident and said with emotion, "In fact, it was the grandson of the emperor who had it all his own way. Who allowed him to ride his horse in the street? If the horse had not suddenly fallen over, he might have knocked down innocent passersby, or even had their legs broken by the horse."
He has always been disgusted by this kind of thing and is extremely disgusted by certain actions of those powerful people.
It was precisely because of his hatred of evil that the Wang family felt that he was not suitable to be an official.
This time he decided to go to Beijing to take the exam. The two elder brothers of the Wang family were very worried and wrote several letters to Mr. Wang, advising him to be more restrained, especially in the capital, where he must be sensible.
When Mr. Wang received the letter, he was speechless. He was already in his thirties, how could he not have such a sense of propriety?
Chu Shaoyu said, "I heard that the Third Prince's mansion invited more than a dozen doctors, but unfortunately they all said that the leg of their grandson was completely broken and there was no possibility of recovery. He can only walk with one leg in the future." At this point, he also said gloatingly, "The Third Prince thinks his son was framed and asked people to investigate the matter thoroughly, but there is no news now..."
Seeing Chu Shaoyu smiling so happily, everyone understood that it seemed that he and the third prince were at odds.
In other words, he was at odds with the emperor's grandson who had a broken leg.
At his current age, he is about the same age as those older imperial grandchildren. As people of the same age, they will always have some contact with each other. It is understandable that some conflicts may have occurred in the past.
Everyone treated this as a topic of conversation. After talking about it for a while, they quickly put it aside and talked about other things.
It was getting late, so they finally said goodbye and left.
Before leaving, Mr. Wang said, "Brother Fu, there is a plum blossom viewing party the day after tomorrow. Do you want to join? Those who come here are all candidates who will take part in the imperial examination next year."
At this time, almost all the candidates from all over the country had arrived in Beijing, so everyone started to contact each other.
This will naturally help to gain fame in advance for next year's imperial examination.
Fu Wenxiao apologized, "It's such a coincidence. We have guests at the mansion the day after tomorrow, so I really can't leave."
Mr. Wang looked regretful, but he didn't force it.
Anyway, there are still several months before the imperial examination, and there are plenty of opportunities to become famous. He believes that as long as Brother Fu is willing, it will be easy to become famous.
After seeing the guests off, Yu Li looked at him curiously and asked, "We have guests at home? Who are they?"
"There are no guests." Fu Wenxiao said calmly, "I just don't want to go."
So he was just making up an excuse to fool Mr. Wang.
Yu Li said "oh", suddenly looked at his face and said, "Xiao brother, there should be a lot of people in the capital who know you, right?"
He nodded, "Yes, so I don't want to go out now, so as not to run into old friends on the road."
"You don't want to see them?" she asked curiously.
"Of course." Fu Wenxiao sighed, "After all, in those people's minds, I'm already a dead man."
These words were so sad that Yu Li couldn't help but feel some sympathy. She held his hand and comforted him, "It doesn't matter. You are not Fu Xiao now, you are Fu Wenxiao. You just look like Fu Xiao."
Fu Wenxiao was amused by her serious tone and leaned his face on her shoulder, laughing uncontrollably.
As they were chatting and laughing, they saw Zhou coming over.
Zhou looked a little apprehensive, and asked anxiously, "Xiao'er, we have been in the capital for a few days, is there any news from your mother?"
She has been worried about this matter ever since she came to the capital.
The smile on Fu Wenxiao's face fell, and he said, "There is indeed some news."
"What is it?" Zhou asked nervously.
He said softly, "Mother is still alive, but her health is not very good. What happened back then was a big blow to her, and on top of that... But mother is in good condition. She has enough food and drink in the palace."
As Zhou listened, her eyes suddenly turned red and tears fell.
She choked up and said, "Xiao brother, please don't lie to me. His Highness must be in a bad condition now."
She knew Fu Wenxiao's personality very well, and knew that he said this just to comfort himself.
Having enough food and drink doesn't mean you can live comfortably. With the princess's personality, saying she was going there to recuperate was actually a disguised form of imprisonment in the palace, which made her more uncomfortable than killing her.
Yu Li was slightly surprised to see that she was crying, and said, "Mom, don't cry."
Zhou wiped away her tears with a handkerchief and said reluctantly, "I'm sorry, I just feel a little uncomfortable! Li Niang, actually Xiao Ge'er's mother is my master. After I sold myself into slavery, I actually had a very hard life. I was often beaten and scolded. I couldn't stand it, so I ran away by myself. Unexpectedly, I ran into Princess Yuan'an who was traveling south. Her Highness took pity on me and took me back to the Princess's Mansion..."
It can be said that if there was no Princess Yuan'an, there would be no Zhou Suniang today.
The princess was really good to her. She had people teach her to read and write, and asked embroiderers to teach her embroidery. As long as she wanted to learn, everyone in the princess's mansion let her learn, and the princess also respected her very much.
When the princess's child was born, she went to be Fu Wenxiao's wet nurse to repay the princess.
In fact, Fu Wenxiao had mentioned these things to her.
Yu Li was not surprised, and even couldn't help thinking that since her mother-in-law cared so much about her master, it showed that Fu Wenxiao's mother was really a good person.
After Zhou finished speaking, Yu Li suddenly said, "Mother, since you are worried about Xiao Ge'er's mother, I will go with him to see her."
"ah?"
This time, not only Zhou was stunned, but even Fu Wenxiao looked at her in surprise.
Yu Li didn't think there was anything wrong with what he said, so he turned around and asked Fu Wenxiao: "Brother Xiao, do you know where the palace is?"
"I know, I know..."
Yu Li made a decision quickly: "Okay, let's go there tonight."
Zhou: “…”
Fu Wenxiao: "..."
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