Chapter 085 Chapter 85
After Gong Cifu resigned and returned home, the Shen family seemed to be doing just fine. Even on the Dragon Boat Festival, Mrs. Shen took out to watch the dragon boat race. Shen Linfeng was more excited than anyone else. He pointed to a boat not far away and said to Yao Niang, "Look, that boat is made by Lu Long. There is a shuttle wheel under the pointed toe. I plan to tell my uncle about this, and the boat will sail faster. Then my husband and I can invest in the everyone boat."
"Ahem." Yao Niang was really impressed by Shen Linfeng. He was able to make money and hold an official position at the same time.
She smiled and handed him a plate of fresh fruit. "Look at you. You talk about these things very well. Come and eat some fruit to moisten your throat. When we are done, please invite this Mr. Lu to come over. I will treat him well."
Shen Linfeng said with a smile: "Lie Long loves fine wine the most. Yao Niang, you don't have to prepare anything else, but you must prepare the wine."
"Okay, don't worry. One of my father's disciples came to visit my grandfather and brought him some fine wine. My grandfather was reluctant to drink it, so he gave me two jugs. You know I don't drink, so you and him can drink it. But you are not allowed to drink alcohol or cause trouble. I will also ask the kitchen to roast a suckling pig, okay?" Yao Niang knew that Shen Linfeng loved to eat roasted pig with milk.
The two of them were talking as if no one was around. They saw Mr. Shen standing by the river with his hands behind his back, watching the dragon boat race. Yao Niang said to Shen Linfeng, "Dad is not usually the type to join in the fun. Why is he standing in the crowd? This way he's most likely to be knocked off the boat by the dragon boat racers. Go take someone to look after them."
Shen Linfeng immediately stood up and took his people over.
Over there, Madam Li, the assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue, sent over a few plates of five-poison cakes. Yao Niang and Madam Shen apologized and went to Madam Li to pay their respects, because her sister-in-law, Madam Li, gave birth in the Li family and she often went there.
Han Ruohua and Shen Mo watched Yao Niang shuttle among them, and secretly envied her. No matter what, the Yan family had many relatives, and Yan's grandfather was the Minister of Industry, so it was no wonder that they were very arrogant. Especially Shen Mo, in the past, the Shen family was more powerful than the Yan family. She followed her brother to various occasions. Now that she was older, she didn't want to be pointed at by others, so she rarely went out.
"Cousin Han, since you're out to relax, you should be happier too." Shen Mo said with a smile.
Han Ruohua looked around with wide eyes: "Sister, Shangjing is so lively."
Shen Mo was surprised: "Jinling is not bad, why did my cousin say that?"
Han Ruohua shook her head: "Normally my family doesn't let me go out."
This reminded Shen Mo of the time when she was in Jinling. Her cousin Han seemed to seldom go out. Everyone said she was a real lady from a wealthy family, and she never left the front door or the back door.
Just as I was thinking about it, there was a "thump" in front of me, and someone shouted, "General Shen fell into the water, General Shen fell into the water."
Mrs. Shen immediately felt dizzy and felt unable to stand up.
Yao Niang's father-in-law, Mr. Shen, fell into the water. Although he was rescued by Shen Linfeng in time, he was also exhausted and needed to rest for a while. Therefore, Mr. Shen submitted a letter of resignation due to health reasons.
This time, Madam Shen impressed Yao Niang. Originally, Shen Linfeng was going to take leave to take care of the patient, and Yao Niang thought that Madam Shen would torture her. Little did she know that Madam Shen said to them, "You just need to come and see her sooner or later. I'll take care of the rest."
"Mom, please let your son take care of you. Your health is not very good." Shen Linfeng said.
Mrs. Shen waved her hands: "I just have some minor problems, which have been cured long ago. Your father is the most important here. Good children, you just need to take good care of the family."
Yao Niang glanced at Shen Linfeng, and then said to Mrs. Shen, "Madam, I should come over earlier to replace you."
"Really, there's no need, Brother Feng, your taking good care of Linfeng is the biggest benefit you can do for me." Mrs. Shen looked at Shen Linfeng and his wife, and somehow she remembered the scene when she was a child watching Romance of the Three Kingdoms and there was no one left in Shu after Zhuge Liang's death.
She had no more ideas now. Her eldest son, Yi Ge'er, died early, and her second son, Lin Feng, finally got married but the marriage was not consummated and they had no children...
If something happened to Lin Feng again, she would not be able to survive. The past conflicts and the mother-in-law's intolerance of her daughter-in-law had even disappeared.
After Yao Niang and Shen Linfeng left, Madam Shen sat on the edge of the bed. Her tears fell on Shen Zongxian's eyelids. Shen Zongxian couldn't help laughing and sat up again and said, "I told you everything was fine, but you were still crying."
"Master, I really didn't expect that you would resort to such a desperate measure just to resign. If it wasn't for the emergency, what would you have done?" Mrs. Shen was still worried.
Mr. Shen waved his hands and said to his wife, "Have you forgotten that I was the one who saved you when you fell into the river as a child? I have been able to swim since I was a child, so I am not afraid."
Seeing that Madam Shen was old but still had the same temperament as before, he could not help but say, "Let's pick a date as soon as possible for your niece's marriage. We will go back to Wuxing after the ceremony. We have been busy with paperwork for so many years, so we should step down now and let Linfeng no longer be tied to the Gong family and me."
Mrs. Shen tucked in the thin blanket for him and said, "Master, why is Second Uncle fine? You are the only one who wants to leave."
"Second brother? Second brother is a tough and courageous person. He is reluctant to give up high position and wealth, unlike me. We don't care about others. A big tree needs branches. Our three families should have separated long ago." Old Master Shen coughed a few times.
Mrs. Shen patted him on the back again and said, "Master, I will listen to you."
Old Master Shen smiled and said, "You have been feeling unwell for the past few years. It is better to go back home and let us focus on raising you. This official family has been up and down. You see, the old minister Yan looks powerful on the surface, but in fact, he has implicated so many people. The emperor will not be able to protect him. Everyone wants revenge. I am afraid it will be difficult for him to stay out of trouble in the future. However, the Yan family is like our Shen family. There are talented people in the next generation. The old minister is supporting Yan Yingqi now, and Yan Yingqi has also given birth to a good son."
"We are not bad in Linfeng either." Mrs. Shen said dissatisfiedly.
"Lin Feng is a weak person. Weak people are often rich but don't worry about money because they don't have or have little seal. You see, when he got married for the first time, his future was almost ruined. That's the reason." After Mr. Shen finished speaking, he saw that Mrs. Shen was anxious and stretched out his hand to stop her, saying, "However, I think my daughter-in-law is a strong person, but she is too strong and easily broken. If she were a man, it would be a little better. The two of them are a match made in heaven, so you should be nicer to my daughter-in-law."
Mrs. Shen was speechless: "I didn't do anything to her, but she was scolded several times."
Mr. Shen held her hand and said, "As parents, we all do things for the good of our sons. It doesn't matter if we suffer a little for our sons. Besides, our daughter-in-law is stronger, and we can rest assured that she will protect our son."
Mrs. Shen also laughed: "Yes, the old minister said that my daughter-in-law is like him, with such an air. She helped to arrange the wedding, and she was not afraid of what people said. No matter how many people said about her, she did not change her expression. However, she did not touch a single cent on the account. The money she reported to me every day was one-fifth or two-fifths of what my second brother and his wife reported."
As the old couple talked, they actually felt relieved.
Yao Niang followed Mrs. Shen's advice and speeded up the marriage for Shen Sanlang. Only Lu Shan'er was confused about whether to be happy or sad. She approached Guan Shi, but Guan Shi died. She wanted to get close to Mrs. Shen, but Shen Zongxian fell into the water.
Lu Shaner had never believed in gods or ghosts, so she went to the temple in person to pray devoutly.
On this day, Yao Niang had just come out of the Qingyi Garden and saw Lu Shan'er coming in. She hurriedly greeted her, "Third Aunt."
Lu Shaner paused and asked, "How are the preparations going?"
"Now the date has been re-set, the invitations have been sent out, and I have called all the four departments and six bureaus over. The stage is ready, so there is no need to set it up. I will just have to trouble Third Aunt to welcome the guests when the time comes." Yao Niang said with a smile.
Lu Shaner nodded hurriedly.
In fact, Yao Niang is not completely confident, but she always does things according to her own steps, as long as she doesn't make a mess.
After leaving the Qingyi Garden, she said to Qingdai beside her: "Look, Han Ruohua went to complain about me. Now it's even worse. Originally, there were still several months to prepare, but now the wedding has to be held within a month. With the excitement I arranged for her, everyone will praise me for my ability to handle things."
Qingdai supported Yaoniang and said, "The master and the mistress are going back to their hometown. You will be the mistress in the future."
"Yes, although this is a bit troublesome for us, we don't have to be controlled by others everywhere." Yao Niang said.
With the elders around, they can deal with all kinds of interpersonal relationships and difficult matters. In the future, the couple will have to face more things together.
Han Ruohua had never expected that her wedding would be held within a month, and Wang, who had spoken for her before, had lost her voice. However, her uncle had resigned, and her aunt was going to go back with him. Her parents were also working far away, and she didn't know what would happen if she married there.
She had briefly met Sanlang Shen once. Sanlang Shen was actually quite good-looking. Her aunt said that he was a kind-hearted, honest man.
He was the legitimate son of Xunfu and was born into a family of scholars. What else could she complain about?
This is the fate of this group of people. Perhaps many people envy her.
Emperor Qianyuan quickly approved Mr. Shen's resignation and naturally sent a doctor to visit him, which was considered to be a respectful gesture. Even Minister Yan came to visit him once. After Mr. Shen resigned, he seemed to be much more relaxed. He said to Minister Yan, "Old man, I'll leave Linfeng to you while I'm gone."
"Your son, why do you have to worry? Just be a noble Hanlin and study peacefully. My granddaughter and daughter can also enjoy a peaceful life." Yan Mai himself was a restless person, but for his grandchildren and sons-in-law, he wished they lived a stable life, which was more important than anything else.
Mr. Shen also nodded, but he was still anxious.
Yan Maiqi asked, "Your second son is the Imperial College's chief academic officer, and your third son is a patrol officer? They are slightly better than my family now, why are you so worried?"
Old Master Shen waved his hands. He was not in a position to express his concerns for his brother. He only said, "To be honest, your grandson-in-law has been considered a weak person since he was a child. He lacks a positive seal, so his relationship with his family is shallow."
Yan Mai knew Mr. Shen. He had heard that he was also very capable when he was young. He cleared up all the unjust, false and wrong cases within three years of taking office. He also had maintained very good relationships in the court over the years and had an extraordinary reputation. But he had heard from others that Mr. Shen was good at face reading. Hearing him say that, he couldn't help but laugh and said, "You don't have to rely on me. I'm already a dying man. His father-in-law highly praised him."
Only then did Mr. Shen feel relieved.
These days, she was often called by Madam Shen to teach her about the interpersonal relationships in the family and how to prepare for the four seasons and eight festivals. She was told in great detail. When Yao Niang didn't know what kind of snacks and pastries to make, Madam Shen asked people to make them, and Yao Niang drew them and compiled them into a book.
"Madam, since you and the old man are preparing to move back home, we will be the husband and wife of the first wife in the future. You are the most senior person in the capital, and you are the eldest sister-in-law, so naturally you have the final say in everything and you can manage the household. But how can I be compared with you? When the time comes, I will be managing the household over the elders, and this..." Yao Niang didn't really want to manage the second and third wives. Anyway, the three wives had already divided the property, so it would be a good opportunity to divide the family.
Mrs. Shen thought so too. Moreover, she looked at Yao Niang's body. Although it was exquisite, the most urgent thing was to have a son. Taking care of too many things would only make her exhausted. She only had this one son.
"Okay, I'll talk to your father about this. The Qingyi Garden is far away from our two families, so it's important to talk to your aunt in the second house. In fact, your aunt is very easy to talk to. If you don't understand something in the future, just ask her more." Mrs. Shen said.
Yao Niang nodded.
Old Master Shen also agreed to the division of the family. Madam Shen asked someone to call Second Madam Shen over. However, Second Madam Shen did not come over as quickly as before. Instead, she sent someone to say, "Today, our Second Madam went to the Hanlin scholar's house for a drink and said she would have time to come over tomorrow."
In the past, Second Madam Shen was almost always available upon call, but Madam Shen finally realized something was wrong.
She said to Mr. Shen: "When people leave, the tea gets cold, that's all."
Mr. Shen said, "Why do you have to say this? No wonder my daughter-in-law wants to divide the family, otherwise she and Linfeng may be controlled by the elders of other families. They are not like you, who treat them like your own children by giving them money and things for being nice to them. When they were young, every time you came back from outside, they were the happiest. You bought them a lot of food, drinks and toys, not leaving out a single thing."
"Master can understand me, which is better than anything else." Mrs. Shen was comforted at once.
Han Ruohua's marriage to Shen Sanlang was quickly arranged. Yao Niang specially asked someone to drive Han Ruohua's sedan chair around the street for a few laps before entering the Qingyi Garden.
After Sanlang Shen got married, Old Master Shen also became aggressive and discussed with Second Master Shen, and also called the three nephews from the third room to come over to discuss the matter of dividing the family property.
Old Master Shen said to everyone, "Now even Sanlang has started a family. As the saying goes, when a tree grows big, it branches out, and when people grow up, they have to separate. After this separation, I don't know when we will meet again. While I am still here, our third branch has separated into different branches in Beijing. The third branch is fine, as they all live in Qingyi Garden. I will listen to everyone's opinions on how we and the second branch will divide up."
Shen Linfeng, who was standing by, knew that it was Yao Niang who proposed this matter, so he could only support her. They were both young people, and they should live their own lives behind closed doors in the future. Especially since they were about to consummate their marriage, it would be too restrictive for them to be bound by the elders.
Little did he know that in the eyes of others, he was too unfathomable.
…
This house in the capital was bought by Old Master Shen when he was still alive. The old master gave Qingyi Garden to his youngest son, and the first and second wives lived in the main house. Naturally, several families also invited witnesses to come. Old Master Shen and the second master had almost discussed it, and they were still polite before announcing the result to Old Minister Yan and Marquis Xinning.
Yan Mai had another idea: "After you go back, why not let Linfeng and his wife come to my house to accompany me? Now my son is in my hometown and my grandson is sent out to work, so it's a good opportunity for the youngster to accompany me."
Now that Mr. Shen has stepped down, he has returned to his original character and is very easy to talk to: "Okay, they can live wherever they want."
Xin Ning Hou also joked with Yan Mai: "Old man, if you have time to drink with me in the future, I will drink with you. You can drink as much as you want."
Yan Mai laughed loudly and didn't say much, because he took a look at the document about the division of the house and the people, and saw that his granddaughter did not suffer any loss, so he laughed a few times.
When the men were dividing their families, the women gathered together. Madam Shen was talking to Madam Shen II: "If Linfeng and his daughter-in-law are not considerate in the future, you, the second aunt, will have to trouble them."
Mrs. Shen nodded: "Don't worry, sister-in-law, we are all family, why are you talking about different families?" She didn't expect that her eldest brother and sister-in-law would resign and return to their hometown, but it was also a good thing that the eldest master resigned. Those who wanted to use the Gong family to get ahead would not cause trouble for their husbands if they saw that one of the Shen family had passed away.
The second branch of the Shen family was saved, and from then on, Bi had the highest status in this house.
Yao Niang said, "Madam, you should bring more people back. We are the only ones in the main room, and it would be bad if there were too many people."
"Those who stay here are all family-born children. They are better than those bought from outside. You don't lack manpower now, but it's hard to say what will happen in the future." Mrs. Shen warned.
Shen Mo felt that her sister-in-law and mother had become closer, but she was going home this time. She heard that her mother wanted to keep her in Beijing and let her sister-in-law find a marriage for her, but her sister-in-law refused. Now, she was going back to Wu Xing's hometown.
When everyone was having the separation dinner together, Yao Niang felt deeply that whether in the Yan family or the Shen family, the separation between people often came unexpectedly.
This was the last time Yao Niang served food to Mrs. Shen, and this time she was very serious.
Wang from the second house also cooked a few dishes herself. The other three, Grandma Qing, Grandma Jiang, and Han Ruohua who had just come in, felt very awkward with Lu Shan'er. After all, Lu Shan'er was younger than all three of them.
Therefore, these three people all came to serve Mrs. Shen and almost squeezed Yao Niang out. However, from an objective point of view, although Mrs. Shen was confused and naive, and sometimes she wanted to control her daughter-in-law, she was still quite popular.
In fact, Mrs. Shen is good at speaking, smart in conversation, and thoughtful in handling affairs. Moreover, they are very close to their confused mother-in-law, which can be regarded as another kind of personal charm.
After their young daughter-in-law served the dishes, they sat down to eat at another table. Second Madam Jiang was pregnant, her morning sickness was gone, and her appetite increased greatly. However, Second Madam Jiang had previously suspected that Han Ruohua and Shen Linjiang were having an affair, but now the two seemed to have a good relationship, which Yao Niang felt strange.
But this was no longer something she had to worry about. In the future, their first house would be Shen Hanlin's house, the second house would be Shen Jijiu's house, and the third house would be Shen Xunfu's house.
Yao Niang also found that Han Ruohua was very nice to Shen Sanlang. When everyone left, she was still holding hands with Shen Sanlang. However, no matter how you looked at it, they looked more like an older sister treating a younger brother, not a couple.
Han Ruohua didn't know Yao Niang was watching. She just said to Shen Sanlang, "You must study hard today and don't go out to drink. They think you are a money bag. The ten taels of silver I put in your pocket yesterday are gone in an instant."
"I understand, good sister." Shen Sanlang said with a smile.
Han Ruohua didn't say much, but she was still a little worried: "You said your father told you to listen to me, so after we go home, we can come to the main room in the evening to send some gifts. I have prepared the gifts, you can just bring them over."
Sanlang Shen nodded. His father had said that he was not smart and should listen to his wife more after getting married.
No one expected that Han Ruohua was quite attractive before marriage, but after marriage, she was very practical. Although Shen Sanlang was not smart, he was right to have a good relationship with the first wife. Yao Niang thought that Shen Xunfu was right in this marriage. Han Ruohua seemed to be a capable person, but she was not very good with herself, but she could play with Grandma Fu Qing and Second Grandma Jiang.
Maybe it was too early to say this now, so she turned around and went back to her room.
After a while, Shen Linfeng also came back. She was still awake, but Shen Linfeng had already fallen asleep. She stayed by his side. What happened in the Shen family these days was actually the same as what happened in the Gong family at the beginning of the year. Yao Niang suddenly wondered why some people were willing to retire to the countryside. It was indeed true that the life of an official might be successful at this time, but in a few days, he would be demoted or dismissed.
If you are not of an ordinary character, you will be easily hit.
In the past, when Shen Linfeng woke up from a nap, he always felt dizzy and depressed. But after Yao Niang got married, he never told her about it, but she always protected him.
So, now every time he wakes up from a nap, he becomes full of energy and alert instantly when he sees Yao Niang.
"My dear~" he murmured.
Yao Niang turned her head and looked at him: "What's the matter? You always act like a spoiled child with me. Is it because your parents are leaving tomorrow and you are reluctant to let them go?"
Shen Linfeng nodded slightly, and said with red eyes: "Yao Niang, from now on we two will be a real family, we must support each other."
As the saying goes, a man's tears can easily excite a woman, especially a handsome man like Shen Linfeng. He looked even more pitiful and wet like a puppy. Yao Niang immediately hugged him in her arms: "I have always loved you the most. How can a man cry? I am not crying."
Shen Linfeng thought that it didn't matter whether he was a man or not, but it would be better if he had a woman holding him.
The next morning, the couple saw Mr. and Mrs. Shen off from Beijing. Mrs. Shen quietly pulled Yao Niang aside and handed her a rectangular wooden box.
Yao Niang opened it and saw that it was actually a phoenix-tail auspicious cloud hairpin with a pair of peacock hairpins on each side. She hurriedly looked at Mrs. Shen.
Madam Shen smiled and said, "I originally wanted to give it to you on your coming-of-age day, but now we can't wait for that day, so I'm giving it to you in advance."
"Thank you very much." Yao Niang was very surprised that Mrs. Shen would make hairpins for her.
Mrs. Shen said to her, "I'll leave my son in your care."
Yao Niang said quickly: "My husband passed the imperial examination at a young age, and everyone praised him. It is because he takes good care of me."
Mrs. Shen said angrily, "I used to be angry that you could control me. You deliberately kept me hanging and didn't give me your face cream. You also let everyone know that I deliberately made you stand in line. Even my son sided with you. But now I think it's good. If you can fight your mother-in-law, other people will be even more unable to deal with you. In this way, I won't worry about you and your wife being bullied."
"Madam, I didn't mean to bully you." Yao Niang laughed.
Mrs. Shen said something private to Shen Linfeng before getting on the carriage, opening the curtain and waving to them: "Go back."
The carriage left in a cloud of dust. Yao Niang held Shen Linfeng's arm and asked, "What did your mother say to you just now?"
Shen Linfeng had a strange look on his face. "Why do you say I am weak and you are strong? I want you to protect me in the future. Don't you think it's weird? I, Shen Linfeng, learned to use the Jingchu long sword when I was young. I am a first-rate archer and I am also in good shape. I can usually lift you up with just one arm. My mother is really something."
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