Chapter 87, Exclusion
After the seat-changing incident, Daohua and the other two resumed their classes as normal.
Unlike Master Qin who only knew how to read from books, Master Shen paid great attention to the combination of knowledge and life, and often told stories from life to deepen the girls' understanding.
Therefore, her classes are relaxed. Even Yan Yile, the most active student, no longer sounds as bitter and resentful as before when talking about classes.
In addition, under Master Shen's hands-on guidance, Daohua's needlework progressed rapidly. In addition, she was able to calm down and practice more. Now, the small items she embroidered, such as handkerchiefs and purses, were no worse than those of the other three girls.
Old Lady Yan and Madam Li breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that Rice Flower finally stopped having her fingers pricked by needles while embroidering.
Old Lady Yan: "I was saying it, our Daohua is so smart, how could she not learn needlework? It turns out that the teacher didn't teach her well enough."
Madam Li: "Isn't it? No wonder every lady is willing to lower her status and ask for a good teacher for her children. A good teacher is so important."
Before we knew it, the Dragon Boat Festival was here.
The Yan family did not have a very good first Dragon Boat Festival in Xingzhou. The reason was simple: Yan Zhigao was too busy. It was also at this time that Daohua realized that her stepfather's government affairs in the state government did not seem to be going smoothly.
"Mom, why do I feel like Dad has lost a lot of weight?"
Mrs. Li's brows were a little worried. "How can I lose weight? I'm so busy every day, getting up early and going to bed late."
Daohua looked puzzled. "It's true that being a prefect does involve more government affairs than being a county magistrate, but a prefect also has more staff than a county magistrate. Logically, father shouldn't be so busy."
Madam Li sighed, "Xingzhou's officialdom is a complex web of connections, with numerous powerful families, all connected by marriage, and each one incredibly influential. Your father is new here, with no one to rely on, so naturally, he's reluctant to assign orders to some of his subordinates."
"Your father is a man who cannot stand to see trouble, especially when it comes to the livelihood of the people. Once he encounters a problem, he wants to solve it immediately. If others are lazy and unwilling to do it, he will do it himself."
Daohua frowned, "These officials are so arrogant, aren't they afraid that my father will give them a bad review during the year-end evaluation?"
Madam Li: "One or two people are naturally afraid, but if the whole government is like this, will your father still dare? The officials under his command are all badly reviewed, which indirectly reflects that your father is not strict with his subordinates. When the time comes, others may be fine because of their connections, but your father will be the first to suffer."
Daohua opened her mouth wide in surprise, "The entire government doesn't obey my father? Why? I heard from Mr. Xiao that my father is very capable."
Madam Li looked helpless: "Silly girl, your father has been promoted three times in a row, which has aroused people's envy. This has nothing to do with his ability to do things."
Daohua frowned, "What should we do? There are so many things to do in this state. We can't put all the pressure on father, right?"
Seeing Daohua's worried expression, Madam Li smiled with relief. This girl had a sharp tongue but a soft heart. Although she was usually reluctant to get close to the master, she couldn't help but show concern when she heard that the master was being ostracized in the provincial government.
"Don't worry, your father will take care of it. He encountered similar things before when he took over as county magistrate. Over time, your father slowly dealt with it."
Rice Flower: "That's too tiring."
Madam Li: "What can we do? Our Yan family's foundation is really too weak."
At this moment, Wang Man'er came over with a bamboo basket, smiling: "Girl, this is the Dragon Boat Festival gift from Miss Zhou."
Daohua was a little surprised and took it curiously: "What is it?" and started to look through it.
There was a box of rice dumplings and a few exquisite sachets.
The gift wasn't much, nor was it expensive, but it was the first gift she had received that was given to her alone.
Looking at the things, Daohua thought for a moment and asked Wang Maner, "Has the Zhou family's delivery person left yet?"
Wang Maner: "Let's go, but they shouldn't have gone far."
Daohua: "Hurry, ask the doorman to stop them. I also want to bring something back for Miss Zhou." No matter what, they sent her something, it was a gesture of friendship, and she had to return the gift.
Mrs. Li watched Daohua leave quickly and did not stop her.
Although the Yan family also sent holiday gifts to the Zhou family, it was only according to custom and was just to maintain the relationship. It is hard to say how much friendship there is.
However, the private exchange of gifts between Daohua and Miss Zhou can bring the two closer together.
She came from a merchant family, and even though she was now the wife of a prefect, she could still sense the contempt in the eyes of some of the other female relatives.
After arriving in Xingzhou, although she attended some banquets, most of these banquets were hosted because her master was the prefect. During the banquets, the ladies of the various families were polite to her on the surface, but they did not hide their alienation.
Even the wife of the Tongzhi, with whom she had the most contact, only complimented her verbally and was not close to her.
Unable to make friends with the wives of officials, she could not often take her daughter to visit other families, which was not good for her daughter's growth and experience.
Miss Zhou comes from a prominent family. If Daohua can make friends with her, she can also have a sister in the boudoir.
Zhou family.
Mrs. Zhou took a look at the gift that Daohua gave to Zhou Jingwan, and seeing that it was just some rice dumplings and two boxes of rouge, she signaled the maid to accept it.
Mrs. Zhou smiled and said, "Let's spend the Dragon Boat Festival and see how many gifts our Jingwan has received."
The nanny beside him smiled and continued, "The Zhou family is a prominent family in Xingzhou, and the old master is the former Prime Minister. His students and former officials are spread all over the country, so naturally, every family wants to curry favor with him."
"If this gift is given to the Zhou family openly, if it's too expensive, it will be seen as bribery; if it's too insignificant, it will be too shameful to show it off. Now, our fifth daughter will become a stepping stone for some people."
Madam Zhou glanced at the old nanny and scolded her with a smile, "You are the only one who sees it clearly."
The old nanny said, "It's not just me who can see clearly. The fifth young lady is smart and astute. She has long known the attention of the other families. Isn't she maintaining a good distance from the other young ladies?"
Hearing this, Mrs. Zhou smiled and said, "People are all made of flesh and blood. You will naturally be able to tell who is real and who is fake after seeing them many times." Then she sighed again.
"Jingwan grew up in such an environment. I don't know whether this is good or bad for her."
After saying this, he thought of the flower basket hanging in his daughter's room and instructed, "When Jingwan and her sisters come back from watching the dragon boat race, you should personally hand Miss Yan's gift to her."
The old nanny hesitated for a moment and said, "I heard that Master Yan doesn't seem to be having a good time in the provincial government. Does the fifth lady need to be close to Miss Yan?"
Madam Zhou: "Let's not get involved in men's affairs. It's rare for Jingwan to like someone, so it's okay to let her get closer."
"yes."
The home of Tongzhi.
Qian Zhuo glanced at the rice dumplings sent by the Yan family and sighed, "Take them." He wanted to work hard under Master Yan, at least do his part. But Wang Tongpan's exclusion of Master Yan was so obvious that he had to avoid suspicion.
Madam Qian hesitated a bit: "President Wang is not a reckless person, so why is he so rude to Lord Yan?"
Qian Zhuo's eyes were deep. "Don't forget, behind Judge Wang stands Senator Du. I heard a rumor that Lord Yan once offended Senator Du. I wonder if it's true?"
Madam Qian: "Isn't it said that Lord Yan has a powerful figure behind him? How dare Councillor Du do it so openly?"
Qian Zhuo: "Why else? Maybe that nobleman can't threaten Councillor Du, or maybe that nobleman is forgetful and has long forgotten about the Yan family."
Mrs. Qian: "In that case, let's stay away from the Yan family. Councillor Du is not someone you want to mess with."
Qian Zhuo pondered for a moment and said: "We should maintain the relationship between Bilan and the eldest daughter of the Yan family." Who knows, will the so-called noble person appear again?
Tongpanjia.
Mrs. Wang looked down on the simple rice dumplings sent by the Yan family and gave them directly to the servants.
Wang Hexi saw it but didn't say anything.
Madam Wang said, "If you ask me, there's no noble person behind the Yan family. Otherwise, how could he resist asking for help when he's stuck in the state government office?"
Wang Hexi glanced at Mrs. Wang and said, "Of course there is, but the relationship between the Yan family and the noble is not as deep as we imagined." He sneered.
"That's right. With the Yan family's wealth, even if they were lucky enough to make friends with a noble person, I'm afraid they wouldn't be able to maintain a good relationship with them."
Mrs. Wang was a little worried: "Master, you are targeting Lord Yan so much now. What if, I mean what if that noble suddenly thinks of Lord Yan, you will..."
Wang Hexi was very calm: "I am nothing. I have always followed the rules in the provincial government. Even if Lord Yan is dissatisfied, he can't find any fault."
He really thought that he had been an official for nothing all these years. It was Councillor Du who ordered him to exclude Lord Yan. If he wanted to climb up, he had to rely on Councillor Du, so there were some things he had to do.
But this does not mean that he wants to block all roads.
He still knows that there is always a way out.
(End of this chapter)
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