In the courtyard, Liu Yanqing thought about the money he had hidden earlier that Lin Xiaowan had discovered. A few coins were still money, but he couldn't skimp on food. Liu Yanqing didn't want to eat and drink less all day long; his life was already difficult.
As soon as Lin Xiaowan saw her husband, she knew that he couldn't possibly eat less.
"You haven't been going out much lately?" Lin Xiaowan said.
"Aren't I afraid that you will break my legs?" Liu Yanqing said.
"Tell the truth." Lin Xiaowan didn't believe Liu Yanqing's words at all. This man was not afraid that she would break his legs. He knew that he couldn't really break his legs. If he broke his legs, he would have to find a doctor, which would cost money.
"It's still that widow at the end of the village. She's married now... They're having a lot of trouble." Liu Yanqing said, "I didn't even look at her much. She's not pretty... After all, I came from a marquis's mansion. Those maids are prettier than her. They even had the nerve to stop me, saying I looked too much and asking me to pay."
Liu Yanqing got angry when he thought about this. "They thought I didn't dare to tell you. It's not like I really slept together, so you don't care. Haha, there's no way I'm going over there."
"..." Lin Xiaowan really didn't expect those people to be so troublesome.
"But it's okay. Her husband got beaten up." Liu Yanqing laughed. "Do they think others are fools? If they get together, they can definitely beat him up. They are all hiding at home now and dare not come out. The widow is pregnant and needs to be carefully taken care of."
Liu Yanqing thought that the man was unwilling to resign himself to marrying the widow. He thought that the widow might have slept with many men, so he was naturally unhappy. The man could have married a virgin. They say that a wife is not as good as a concubine, and a concubine is not as good as a secret lover. The man originally found the affair with the widow exciting, and later he liked the widow very much, so he married her.
The widow got pregnant with the man's child, and after some sweet talk, the man married her. But when he came to his senses, he thought the child in the widow's belly might not be his, so he started to make trouble again.
Tsk tsk tsk, Liu Yanqing thought that man was stupid, leaving his good fiancée to recognize the widow's child. Regardless of whether the child was his or not, the man had already recognized the child and they had married, so he could only grit his teeth and persevere.
"Just keep him." Lin Xiaowan said, "Don't gloat over his misfortune. I asked you to do something, not just stand there and play."
"I'm coming right now." Liu Yanqing picked up the bucket. "Why is this bucket so heavy?"
"Do you mean you eat less?" Lin Xiaowan asked.
"No..." Liu Yanqing wanted to say that he was not as strong as Lin Xiaowan, and it would be better for him to just carry the bucket.
With just one look from Lin Xiaowan, Liu Yanqing didn't dare to delay any longer. It was just fetching water, he could do it.
Aunt Zhao watched her son watering strawberries in the next yard and wished her daughter-in-law would get pregnant soon. If she did, they might be able to get some benefits from the eldest wife.
But forget it. If they get in front of the eldest wife, they probably won't get anything. The eldest wife will at most give Lin Xiaowan a few chickens, and Aunt Zhao thinks she can buy them herself.
Forget it, don’t think about the first wife.
Aunt Zhao thought they should just continue to be quails. It was good to be quails, as they would offend fewer people. Although they wouldn't gain anything, there was no harm either. If they really encountered a crisis later, it would still be useful for them to ask for help from the people in the first house.
The third wife, Concubine Chai, became more and more angry and ran to the county town to find Concubine Qing. Concubine Chai thought Concubine Zhao was useless and only knew how to hide in the village. She had talked to Concubine Zhao several times, but Concubine Zhao refused to run to the first wife's side.
This made Concubine Chai very dissatisfied, and she thought it would be better to find Concubine Qing.
"Just think about what kind of life our daughter has been leading." Aunt Chai had heard that Madam Mei II wrote to the Second House, who then went to the First House. She thought Madam Mei II must be having a hard time. "They have the same father, so how could there be such a huge difference?"
"The gap is huge." Aunt Qing was helpless, she also wanted the best for her daughter.
However, Father Liu only cares about his daughter Liu Yulian, and probably doesn't care much about other daughters in the capital.
This is true. The culture medium researched by Liu Yulian allowed Liu's father to restore his title.
Concubine Qing didn't dare to go to the main house casually. She wasn't Concubine Chai, and she wasn't that shameless. If she really did that, how would her son and daughter-in-law look at her? Her son and daughter-in-law both liked to be self-reliant. If she went there, she would be laughed at and her son and daughter-in-law would be ashamed.
"There's nothing we can do about it. There's a difference between legitimate and illegitimate children." Aunt Qing said.
"Second Miss isn't living well," Aunt Chai said. "She used to live so well at home. After she got married... we left the capital, and those people can't be so kind. Has the Marquis asked about it and taken any action?"
"That's it." Aunt Qing couldn't possibly say how good Marquis Jingning was. She believed that Marquis Jingning didn't care about them at all. "Don't think about anything else. It's useless."
"Of course I don't miss it," Aunt Chai said. "When I sleep at night, I lie there and feel very uncomfortable. Tears stream down my face. I go to my son-in-law, but he won't even look at me, as if I'm some troublesome thing."
"Oh?" Concubine Qing had long known that Zhen Wenze was attracted to Liu Fang because she was the Marquis' daughter. It was perfectly normal for Zhen Wenze to behave that way. But thinking that her own daughter wasn't living such a good life, Concubine Qing couldn't possibly mock Concubine Chai any more.
After the Jingning Marquis' Mansion was raided, Aunt Qing also knew that the Mei family was attracted by her daughter's status as the Marquis' daughter.
"I went to talk to my daughter, but before I could even say a few words, he kicked me out and told me to stop talking nonsense." Aunt Chai said, "I think he's just after the eldest wife. If I had known this would happen, I would never have betrothed my daughter to him."
"It's good that my daughter is still on your side." Aunt Qing said, "We live closer, so I can help you occasionally."
"That's all it's good for." Aunt Chai felt unhappy when she thought of her son-in-law. "How's your daughter-in-law? Her family is so rich, and her grandfather treats her well. Has he sent anything?"
"I did receive some things." Aunt Qing nodded.
No matter how much money the shop makes, it is impossible to make so much money all at once. The reason why they were able to buy a shop in the county town was because of the things sent by Su Qiuya's grandfather.
The Su family didn't send anything at first. It was only after Liu's father's title was restored that the Su family sent something. The Su family was very stingy, and all they sent were some fancy things that actually had no use at all.
They wanted to sell the things for money but couldn't. When Aunt Qing saw those things, she knew that the Su family didn't value Su Qiuya that much. If it weren't for Liu's father's restoration of his title, Aunt Qing thought that the Su family would never send those things to Su Qiuya.
"Her stepmother is the head of her family, what can happen?" Aunt Qing said, "It's almost like our daughter living under the care of her stepmother."
Aunt Qing looked down on the Su family, but she wasn't afraid of offending them. It was the Su family who was afraid of offending them; they had nothing to fear.
In the town, Feng Guanjing stood at the door of the third wife's shop for a long time, but did not see Aunt Chai. She wondered if Aunt Chai would not come back today.
"Mom isn't coming back today? It's so late." Feng Guanjing said.
It was so dark that they couldn't run to the county town to pick up Aunt Chai, so they could only wait for Aunt Chai to come back.
"Maybe I'll stay at the second room for one night." Liu Yanyuan said, "Clean up the table. Someone will come to buy food soon."
"Okay." Feng Guanjing nodded. Although their shop's business was not as prosperous as when the second wife was there, there were still many customers.
Liu Qingyun returned home a little late today. He was sitting in the carriage, and when he opened the curtain, he happened to see the people from the third house entering the shop. Liu Qingyun did not get off the carriage. He did not necessarily see the people from the third house when he went to school. Sometimes he would see them if he changed the route.
In Liu Qingyun's eyes, there was nothing good about the people in these branches. They left when the eldest branch was in great trouble, and Liu Qingyun would always remember that. He wouldn't seek revenge on them, but he also wouldn't approach them and affectionately call them uncle or aunt.
"Sir, would you like to have some noodles?" asked the servant.
The servant knew Aunt Chai and others, and knew that Liu Yanyuan was Liu Qingyun's third uncle.
"Go home and eat." Liu Qingyun glanced at the servant. "If you like, I'll give them your indenture, and you'll work for them from now on."
"No, I dare not." The servant said hurriedly when he heard this. He said that just to make his master happy. He thought his master wanted to see his uncle or something. Who could have imagined that not only did his master not feel happy, but he also wanted him to leave.
? "Tomorrow, go clean the yard first." Liu Qingyun said.
Even at a young age, Liu Qingyun knew that he couldn't pamper the servants too much and let them trample over their masters. The servants were already speculating before their masters even spoke, which wasn't okay either.
"Yes." The servant lowered his head, not daring to say anything else. It was all his fault. He thought his master valued family ties, the so-called Third Uncle, so he spoke too much.
These people have no idea what happened to the eldest wife of the Liu family, and some of them just assume things. When they know what happened to the eldest wife of the Liu family, they won't say these things.
When Liu Qingyun returned home, the meal was already ready.
There are only a few people in the family, and they often sit together to eat.
"Why did you come back so late today?" asked Liu's mother.
"A classmate sprained his ankle, so I sent him home," Liu Qingyun replied. "We took a detour, so we'll be back late."
"It's time to send it off." Mother Liu nodded.
Even though those children haven't achieved anything yet, who can guarantee that they won't be great in the future? As a human being, if you can do some good deeds, you should do them.
"Fortunately, he lives in town. I'll pick him up for class tomorrow." Liu Qingyun said, "I've already told him everything."
Liu Qingyun's classmate didn't originally live in town, so his family rented a house there to allow him to study. His mother also did laundry and other chores, which was not easy for a mother to do while taking care of her son.
This reminded Liu Qingyun of his biological mother, who would never do that.
Just as Liu Qingyun thought, in her previous life, Mrs. Huo washed her, her children's, and Liu Yanjing's clothes, but she was reluctant to do so and didn't want to cook. Mrs. Huo thought everyone else had it easy, and she didn't want the family's main source of income to be Liu Yulian's.
Liu Yulian is filial to her parents and is nice to her brothers, nephews and nieces. How could she be nice to a sister-in-law who always speaks sarcastically about her?
Da Huo wanted to control Liu Yulian but failed.
"Okay, go get it," said Liu's mother, "and bring some more cakes."
Mother Liu didn't know what kind of person her grandson's classmate was, but many of Master Li's students were relatively poor. The students in town also had their share of hardship, so Mother Liu didn't mind her grandson helping them a little, even if it meant building some good relationships.
"We have some medicinal wine at home, you can take it with you." Liu Yulian said, "Let's eat."
"Aunt." Liu Qingyun respected his aunt Liu Yulian very much. It was because of his aunt that he could study and his family was so well off.
"Eat." Liu Yulian looked at her little nephew and waved to him, telling him to sit down and eat first without saying so much.
Liu Yulian wasn't a teacher in her previous life, nor did she know how to teach children. She just wanted to be nice to her nephews and nieces. She knew that her nephews and nieces didn't have a mother to care for them, and they might also be longing for it. Liu Yulian also knew that she couldn't replace her mother, so she just tried her best to be nice to them.
"Did my sister break a pot?" Liu Qingyun had just returned home and asked people how his sister was doing today. He found out that his sister had broken a pot of strawberry plants.
"Yes, it doesn't matter much. Children, it's good to be a little noisy and lively occasionally. She is not hurt." Liu Yulian said.
"Brother wants to say something bad about me." Xiao Liujia curled her lips. Her brother just wanted to teach her a lesson.
"It's your fault for breaking the pot." Liu Qingyun said, "It's good that you weren't hurt, but the pot also costs money."
"Money..." Xiao Liujia didn't dare to say anything more when she heard the word "money".
Xiao Liujia knew that her family had been very poor for a while, and that without money, their lives were very difficult. She didn't want her family to be without money. She would be more careful in the future and not throw things around carelessly.
Seeing that her little niece was silent, Liu Yulian wondered if she was a little afraid of her brother.
"Drink soup." Liu Yulian served a bowl of soup to her little niece.
"Auntie, I'm going to make a lot of money in the future." Xiao Liujia gestured.
"Okay, you will make a lot of money in the future." Liu Yulian said with a smile, "That's what my niece said."
It depends on what my niece likes to do when she grows up. Daughters of noble families rarely go into business. At most, they own a shop and let their subordinates manage the shop.
Liu Yulian didn't think business was that easy. She simply opened a few shops and let others manage them. She was fine looking at the account books herself, letting others record them in their own way, but she couldn't negotiate business with others.
In the military camp, He Xiyuan took off his gloves and was carving. He had already eaten dinner and was sitting by the fire.
This was not the first time Liu Yanjing had seen He Xiyuan carve something. He Xiyuan carved one after another.
"Why carve so many?" Liu Yanjing asked.
"Carve more, and you'll be able to carve more beautiful ones in the future." He Xiyuan said, "You don't understand, every time is progress. It will also allow Sister Lian to see it. Carve one every ten days, one a month, and when you're done, put it aside and carve the next one. The next time you see Sister Lian, give it to her."
"I..." How could I not understand? Liu Yanjing wanted to be married before, but his wife wasn't that good. "You can carve it."
"Sister Lian is getting more and more beautiful." He Xiyuan said again.
“…” Liu Yanjing certainly knew that his sister was very pretty.
"Since Sister Lian has been named a princess, there must be many people who want to see her." He Xiyuan said, "I have to make Sister Lian remember me."
"I think I can remember it." Liu Yanjing thought that no one had given up literature to pursue martial arts for their sister. "No need to say so much. Just carve yours."
Liu Yanjing didn't want to hear what He Xiyuan said. He had known for a long time that He Xiyuan was his sister's fiancé, and He Xiyuan didn't need to keep reminding him. He didn't disagree with them being together. No, Liu Yanjing suddenly turned his head and looked at He Xiyuan. Could it be that He Xiyuan wanted them to agree to let He Xiyuan and his sister get married earlier?
I heard that some scholars were particularly cunning. He Xiyuan studied so much and still got admitted to the Imperial College. In this dynasty, students of the Imperial College could directly take the imperial examination and directly become Jinshi, without having to pass the examination step by step from Tongsheng.
After all, except for some people with connections, most people in the Imperial College have real talents and knowledge, and they were able to enter the Imperial College by passing the exam.
He Xiyuan did not use his family's connections to enter the Imperial College directly, but entered based on his own strength. He Xiyuan's grades were pretty good at the time, ranking among the top. Liu Yanjing stared at He Xiyuan, wondering if this person was trying to trick him or if he had other intentions.
He Xiyuan didn't say anything else. If he said too much, it would make Liu Yanjing impatient, which would be bad. He had to stop at the right time.
"Huh." He Xiyuan blew away the debris on the wood and continued carving.
"..." Liu Yanjing waited for He Xiyuan to say something else, but he didn't hear He Xiyuan continue.
Liu Yanjing wondered if his thoughts were wrong. Was He Xiyuan just saying a few words?
"There shouldn't be anything going on recently, so maybe I can get a few more days of rest then." Liu Yanjing said deliberately, "Do you want to go back to Beijing to take a look? You didn't go back for the New Year last year, did you?"
"I'll be able to go back sooner or later." He Xiyuan sometimes misses his family, but he has to stay on the battlefield for a while longer, so he won't go back easily.
Going back and forth, staying at home for a while, two or three months passed like that.
A year is twelve months, and He Xiyuan still has no intention of returning to Beijing this year.
"My eldest brother is getting married," He Xiyuan said. The family could now hope for his sister-in-law to get pregnant soon, instead of constantly thinking about him. He wasn't the center of attention; he was just an ordinary person.
When Liu Yanjing heard this, he felt something was not right, but he couldn't figure out what was wrong.
"Brother, you can get married sooner too." He Xiyuan said, "I heard that Princess Zhaoyang has arrived in town."
Even without going to the town, He Xiyuan could still get some news about the town. Sometimes when he saw his uncle, he would hear some news. These news were not confidential, so there was nothing he couldn't hear.
"Princess Zhaoyang?" Liu Yanjing asked in confusion.
"She's divorced." He Xiyuan added that Princess Zhaoyang was divorced and had gone to stay in the town where the people from the Jingning Marquis's mansion were staying. He Xiyuan thought the emperor might want Princess Zhaoyang to marry into the Jingning Marquis's mansion. Princess Zhaoyang and the Jingning Marquis had both divorced their respective spouses, and both of them were of high status, so they were indeed suitable for each other.
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