Chapter 73 Chapter 73
She had seen Zhou Lingguang when she was a child. He was extremely handsome and the young ladies of the Yan family had even fought over him. Later, something happened to his family and Zhou Lingguang lived with her. She no longer had any impression of him.
My brother's reminder was correct, but what if Zhou Lingguang came to Beijing now? Even if he entered the government, it would be very difficult to compete with the Shen family, which was full of officials.
What could she do? Shen Linfeng had never mentioned Zhou Lingguang to her. It would be bad for her to ask him so bluntly. Her brother only told her and not the Shen family. He wanted her to be on guard and warn Shen Linfeng.
"Grandma, Madam said that she wants to prepare things for the ancestor worship and asked me to invite you over." Ze Lan, who was beside Madam Shen, came over to pass on the message.
Yao Niang stood up and said with a smile, "I see. Why did Madam send you, Sister Zelan, to tell me whether you would like to have a cup of tea with me?"
Zelan said, "Grandma loves you so much that I shouldn't refuse, but the Madam is waiting for you to come over."
Gradually, Yao Niang could actually feel some of Madam Shen's pulse. Her mother-in-law was naive to a certain extent. She was not as cunning as her own Zhen, and even less patient and able to take advantage of the situation than her mother. She might have been the youngest daughter at home since she was a child, and her husband was a few years older than her, and he was also well-mannered and polite because he respected her very much.
Such people are, to some extent, of a different temperament. They do everything based on their own preferences, and do not really consider the pros and cons.
For example, now Madam Shen asked her to come over to teach her some things for sacrificial ceremonies, not because of her honor of entering the palace to paint, nor because she was the wife of Shen Linfeng, but it was very likely because she visited him every morning and evening which made her feel that she was honest.
Yao Niang followed Ze Lan over, and Madam Shen said, "It's almost the Little New Year. We must check the sacrificial utensils and offerings repeatedly the day before and on the day of the sacrifice. We cannot use unclean utensils and food for offerings. Our ancestral home is in Wuxing, but Linfeng's father and his second uncle have been officials in Beijing in recent years, and some of our clansmen are also here, so we all worship our ancestors here."
"Madam, what kind of food should we prepare for the ancestor worship?" Yao Niang usually followed Xie to the main room during the New Year, so Zhen would certainly not be so kind as to tell her.
As for Xie, although she was in charge of the family, the head of the Yan family was Yan Yingqi. His father always brought his brothers with him to offer sacrifices, and it was usually Zhen who took care of the affairs. Yao Niang only had a vague understanding of sacrifices, which was why she was so docile in front of Madam Shen.
Firstly, it was the bride's fault, and secondly, she was too young when she got married and knew nothing about the Shen family. How could she hear more information than from Mrs. Shen?
When Madam Shen heard Yao Niang asking about it, she continued, "We in the Shen family still adhere to Wu Xing's ancestor worship practices. We usually use freshly beaten polished rice and glutinous rice. Remember, they must be fresh."
"My daughter-in-law understands." Yao Niang nodded obediently.
Mrs. Shen really teaches. She said, "Steamed dumplings and rice balls are a must for sacrifices. When our chefs were in Huzhou, they knew that Shangruo Township and Xiaruo Township in Changxing would bring back bamboo leaves from the Ruo River to steam dumplings. This way, the dumplings would have a light aroma of bamboo leaves, which is very pleasant."
"Madam, let me write it down with a pen. I'm afraid my memory is not good." Yao Niang pretended that she couldn't remember.
Mrs. Shen nodded, thinking that her daughter-in-law's attitude was still correct, and continued, "Before these dumplings are taken out of the pot, there is another process. Cooked and cooled vegetable oil is applied to the surface of the couch. The oil will flow into the gaps between the bamboo leaves and the dumplings, and they will not stick. This is especially true for green dumplings that have been coated with vegetable oil. This is the famous jade dumpling. There is also yellow rice dumplings. I don't need to say more about this. You know, they are made of yellow rice." [1]
Yao Niang nodded: "When I went to my grandparents' house, I often ate yellow rice cakes."
"There is also a kind of wine called the Three Whites Before the Lantern Festival. It is made by counting from the day of the winter solstice, Jia, Yi, Bing, Ding... until the third day of the Shu Festival, which is La. If it snows before the La Festival, this kind of wine made from snow is very delicious. We usually use the Three Whites Before the Lantern Festival to worship our ancestors."
Three whites before wax? Yao Niang secretly noted it down.
Mrs. Shen also said, "Qingming flower cakes are not only used during the Qingming Festival, but are also an indispensable offering for various activities of worshiping and ancestor worship. We make a total of eight kinds of flower cakes at home, and they all have molds for each of them. You can take a closer look when they are served to you."
Yao Niang smiled and said, "Madam, since you are managing the family like this, why don't your daughter-in-law draw a picture of you preparing Qingming flower cakes for you? Although it is cold now, I think if it is passed down, my descendants and future generations will see it and know how good you are, Madam."
"You have such a sweet mouth, but Lin Feng is not good at speaking." Mrs. Shen said meaningfully.
Yao Niang knew that Madam Shen was scolding her for being slippery in disguise, but so what? What you learn is the real skill. Shen Linfeng and his friends were scolded like grandsons by the president of the Hanlin Academy. Who would remember these things when they became high-ranking officials in the future?
Therefore, she only said: "Since ancient times, silence is golden. Noble people talk little. On the contrary, we talk a lot. We have to hope that Madam Xu will not dislike us."
Mrs. Shen actually thought that Yao Niang was sincerely praising Shen Linfeng, and said how smart, clever, and good at talking and doing things Shen Linfeng was. Although Yao Niang might not agree with all of this in her heart, she nodded along with it.
After a busy day today, Yao Niang gained a lot. In the evening, Shen Linfeng was massaging Yao Niang's legs. While massaging, he found that Yao Niang had fallen asleep. He looked at Yao Niang with heartache, leaned over and kissed her on the forehead, but was afraid of desecrating her, so he tiptoed to put her into the quilt.
The couple slept until dawn. Shen Linfeng was on a rest period at this time, so he wanted to sleep a little longer. However, Yao Niang woke up before him and pushed him, saying, "We have been busy worshiping our ancestors these days. You are the eldest son, so you are the one who is in charge of the worship."
A large family like the Shen family had a lot of red tape, even more than the Yan family. Not only did they have to summon the officiants of each branch temple, but the eldest son also had to set up an account and arrange the duties of each person during the sacrifice. At night, they also had to send people to live in the ancestral temple. Even the ceremonial staff during the sacrifice process were selected from young scholars, called "Zhu Sheng". in the ancestral temple a few days before the sacrifice so that they could use them proficiently during the sacrifice. [2]
The sacrificial utensils had to be arranged by a special person, and the music, slaughtering, and incense burning stove had to be fully prepared. Yao Niang heard Mrs. Shen mention that the sacrifice should be made with wine warm in the stove, soup boiling in the pot, and rice fragrant in the basket.
After burning incense, one must offer wine and invite the ancestors. After the three offerings, it is the food offering ceremony. After tea is ordered and everything is done, the food is removed and distributed to everyone.
This is the end.
Even though Mrs. Shen has prepared so much, women are not allowed to enter the ancestral hall and can only kowtow outside it.
Shen Linfeng stretched out his finger and said, "Let me sleep for another cup of tea. Just one cup of tea. We will go our separate ways soon."
It is an indisputable fact that they are both busy with their own things. They are not ordinary couples, but the son and wife of the clan. Yao Niang complained: "You only care about your own sleep and don't care about me. Now that you have married me, you are like a different person. I was thinking about you coming back so that we can have breakfast together."
When Shen Linfeng heard the words "he becomes a different person after marrying her", he quickly sat up from the bed. He had just woken up, and his skin became even smoother than jade.
Yao Niang's heart seemed to have skipped a beat when she saw this, but Shen Linfeng didn't know it yet. He said, "My lady, don't worry. I'll get up right away and have someone tell mother about it."
In fact, Yao Niang also knew that he usually felt like his life depended on getting up early, so when he finally got a chance to rest, he naturally wanted to sleep more. However, there were many things to do during the New Year holidays, so he definitely wouldn't do that.
"Yeah." Yao Niang sat on the edge of the bed, just looking at him.
Shen Linfeng quickly covered his face and said, "I'll go wash up now." He had just gotten up and was not in good shape, so he had to wash up first. He couldn't let Yao Niang see him in such an ugly state.
Yao Niang pulled him back, leaned over and kissed him. Seeing that he was stunned, she smiled and asked, "What are you doing? Are you in a daze like this since you woke up this morning?"
"You did what I wanted to do but didn't dare to do." Shen Linfeng whispered.
Yao Niang didn't know what was going on, but every time she saw him, she wanted to bully him.
She also said that Madam Shen was dressing up. Usually Yao Niang would have arrived at this time, but today Shen Linfeng's maid Xianhong came over and said, "Madam, the eldest master said that he and the eldest lady would come here to pay their respects today. After paying their respects, he would go to the ancestral temple, so he ate at home before coming here."
"I understand." Mrs. Shen said.
In fact, men don't really care about what's going on in the rear house, and it's normal for daughters-in-law to visit their parents every morning and evening. Even she, who was already middle-aged at that time, still paid her respects to her mother-in-law.
Who doesn't know this trick? She believed that Yao Niang was cunning and her son was honest, so she was afraid that he would be bullied.
But it is natural for a daughter-in-law to serve her son. Mrs. Shen can certainly use filial piety to force her daughter-in-law to come and serve, but that is what a street woman would do, not something someone of her status would do. If it gets out, others will inevitably say that she deliberately prevents her daughter-in-law and son from getting close.
When Yao Niang came back, it was almost an hour. After paying his respects, Shen Linfeng went to the ancestral temple. Yao Niang continued to learn from Madam Shen about matters related to ancestor worship. Naturally, Madam Shen didn't explain it in as much detail today as she did yesterday. She was probably punishing her for not coming to serve her today.
But Yao Niang is not a soft persimmon. Even if she needs help from others, she will not let others know that she needs help from others.
There are very few mothers-in-law like Xie who do not make things difficult for others. Even so, Guan, the daughter-in-law, would still be very dissatisfied. It is almost impossible for a daughter-in-law to be completely equal to her mother-in-law.
So the relationship should not be too soft, making people feel that you are someone who can be manipulated at will, nor should it be too hard, leaving no room for maneuver.
Today, someone sent gold and silver ingots to Madam Shen. They were prepared to be given as rewards during the New Year. These ladies knew that her family gave these as gifts during the New Year. They were nothing more than peony-shaped, twin lotus-shaped, top-ranking scholar-examiner-in-the- imperial ...
Mrs. Shen said, "These peony and crabapple flowers are good for ladies and girls, the lotus flowers are good for newlyweds, and the top scholar flowers are good for young scholars."
"Yes." Yao Niang nodded.
Mrs. Shen talked about a lot of household matters, and Yao Niang couldn't help but ask, "Is your sister coming over today?"
"Why let her come over in such a cold day?" Mrs. Shen looked at the deep snow outside and asked Mother Zhou to send some ginseng soup over.
Yao Niang thought, "I am younger than your daughter, why should I come here in the snow?" But she could only keep this complaint in her heart and could not tell Shen Linfeng much. Shen Linfeng himself could not help himself. He wanted to sleep all day and could not sleep for a while.
Mother Zhou felt that this was inappropriate, and seeing that Yao Niang did not show any displeasure on her face, she was convinced by this grandmother. She had met the grandmother before, and she knew that she was definitely not incomprehensible. In fact, this grandmother was young, but she was a very smart person. The more she endured, the more powerful she would be in the future.
Yao Niang naturally wouldn't vent anything now. She hadn't spent the past ten years in the Yan family in vain. After she reached the age of 15, she would take care of her body. If she could give birth to a boy or a girl, she would have someone to rely on. After she had someone to rely on, it would be natural for her to manage the household.
Now let’s first eliminate the negative impact brought by Yan Ningxin.
It was also said that the egret beside Qianniang came to announce the good news, saying that Qianniang was pregnant. Yaoniang said that she had asked someone to hire a carriage to visit her second sister and brought some supplements.
The Wen family is different from the Shen family. The Shen family are all from Wuxing, and their houses are mostly exquisite and they are used to paying attention to details. The Wen family's house is open and spacious, and the beams are particularly high.
Yao Niang walked around the corridor on the right, walked to the front and passed a screen wall, and saw another small courtyard, three small main rooms, a corridor on the east side, and a wing on the west side. The flowers and plants in the middle were well cultivated, and in winter there were big camellia flowers, which looked very festive.
When the two sisters met, Yao Niang saw that Qian Niang looked much thinner, and hurriedly said, "My dear sister, I should have congratulated you, but you should also take care of yourself."
Qianniang's only close friends in Beijing now were Yaoniang and Yan Jingzhao. She was not familiar with Li at all. Seeing Yaoniang in an orange skirt and looking very happy, she envied and said, "Sister, you are much better than me. After my father passed away, I was the youngest daughter-in-law. I had to listen to the instructions of the sisters-in-law above me in everything. They would criticize me if I did something wrong."
"Second sister, it's a good thing that you are pregnant now. Taking care of your health is better than anything else. My life is not easy either. I have to visit my mother-in-law every morning and evening. I am the only daughter-in-law to my mother-in-law, and no one else can take over all the household chores and pay respects." She couldn't even talk about the series of reactions that Yan Ningxin had caused by running away from her marriage.
Qianniang smiled and said, "Sister, the Shen family is actually very well off, and your husband is already an official. When we were at home before, I thought there were too many people, but when I came to the Wen family, I knew what a prosperous family was. Look there."
Yao Niang looked over and saw a large black wooden box. She asked again, "What is this?"
"These are all New Year's gifts for my nephews and nephews at home. They were all bought by your brother-in-law. The money is not worth anything. It's the birthdays of my uncles, sisters-in-law and younger sisters-in-law. We have to be careful about everything. If the gifts are not right, gossip will fly everywhere. And my mother-in-law likes to pull this and beat that. She fell ill a few days ago, and we took turns to take care of her. Otherwise, I wouldn't have fainted and then I found out I was pregnant." Qianniang could only talk about these things with Yaoniang.
Yao Niang spread her hands and said, "Why are all mothers-in-law in the world like this?"
Qianniang patted her belly and apologized, "You've come so hard, why am I telling you all this? We have a dish of stewed lamb in the Wen family, and the little kitchen makes it very well. You can try it here today."
Yao Niang shook her head and said, "I would like to stay, but the sacrifice will start soon. If I go back too late, I'm afraid my in-laws will blame me."
Even though Qianniang complained a lot about the Wen family, if she really said something bad about the Shen family, she would be ridiculed for the rest of her life.
The relationship between sisters is very delicate, there is that kind of close support for each other, but Qianniang and her are not that kind of relationship. Yaoniang still has to focus on her own affairs. Although Qianniang is a little disappointed, she can also understand.
After Yao Niang left, she said to Bai Lu: "Everyone says that my eldest brother is like my father, but I don't think so. My third sister's personality is actually most like my father's."
Bai Lu was a little confused.
Qianniang thought that her father Ding Xun had gone home, and before he left, he directly recommended Du Xueshi, just to allow him to return to Beijing to serve as an official in the future. Du Xueshi did not have a deep foundation, and it was heard that he was constrained by many parties in the position of Minister of Rites. When the time came, Du Shangshu would definitely recommend her father again.
Gong Ci-fu is now being targeted repeatedly by Wen Shou-fu, and his prestige is no longer as strong as it used to be.
My father did this without caring about how his elder brother was doing in the capital. He only cared about his own official position. He even married my third sister to the Shen family to temporarily prevent the Shen family from taking action against the Yan family. It could be said that he killed two birds with one stone.
The same goes for the third sister. She doesn't have a deep friendship with me. She came to visit for her own reputation. She also told the Shen family that she has a close relationship with Wen Shoufu's family, but she still has to put her own interests first. Look, she has to go back and learn how to sacrifice now.
Yao Niang left quickly and came back quickly as well. After coming back, she took off her cloak and continued to serve Madam Shen. She had a complete understanding of the duties of a clan wife.
On the day of the sacrifice, all the men, women, young and old in the clan gathered together. Mrs. Shen had the sacrificial supplies delivered before she spoke with the other women in the Shen family.
Probably because of the medicines Yao Niang prepared for treating facial eczema, Second Madam Jiang had a good impression of Yao Niang and took the initiative to say to her, "My uncle's family sent some early spring tea. I heard that you always like tea. I wonder if you have ever tried this?"
"I've eaten it at home before. The early spring tea leaves are thick and fresh, and the most impressive thing is the aroma. I like it." Yao Niang said with a smile.
Mrs. Jiang said happily, "In that case, I'll give you some."
Yao Niang tilted her head and said, "Thank you, Second Sister-in-law."
Second Madam Jiang said, "Stop talking like that. We should get to know each other more often in the future. The eighth day of the first lunar month is my birthday, and I don't plan to make a big fuss about it. Grandma, you'd better come when the time comes."
"Whatever you say, second sister-in-law, I will go there myself." Yao Niang said happily.
As the two of them were talking, Wang felt that she was isolated. She was young and energetic, and had a high status. However, after she entered the family, there was Yan who was no weaker than her, and the two sisters-in-law from the third room also seemed to isolate her and almost stopped interacting with her.
In fact, she didn't know that although the two women from the third house were not as high in status as her, they were also daughters of officials. They didn't rely on her for anything, so there was naturally no need for her to get involved. Even Yao Niang was ignored at the beginning, and they only became familiar with each other slowly.
This was Yao Niang's first New Year spent in the Shen family. After dinner on New Year's Eve, they went to watch fireworks and firecrackers. The fireworks were so bright that it made people realize how fleeting time was.
Then it was an endless cycle of visiting relatives and friends. I originally planned to go back to my mother's home on the second day of the New Year, but my brother and sister-in-law wanted to go to the Li family. On the fifth day, I went to the Jinghai Marquis Mansion, and on the eighth day it was Second Grandma Jiang's birthday.
Second Madam Jiang's parents were not in Beijing, so her uncle sent a load of silver noodles, six plates of longevity peaches, two roast ducks, two Shujin horses, and two Huanhuajin horses. Yao Niang heard that Second Madam Jiang's brother-in-law was the one her mother had introduced, so she treated Second Madam Jiang's niece as her own daughter. This marriage was arranged by her uncle's family to marry Shen Xunfu's second son.
Yao Niang didn't know what others gave her, so she chose two gold-plated handkerchiefs, two boxes of top-quality cotton rouge, and two rolls of colorful satin.
These colorful satins were originally part of Yan Ningxin's dowry. Although some time has passed, they are well preserved and look very bright. Second Madam Jiang was very happy to see them.
Also at the same table were Second Grandma Jiang's cousins and relatives. They sat together, but Wang was not there.
"Sister-in-law Jiang Er, why don't you see Erlang's wife?" Yao Niang was puzzled.
Second Madam Jiang said, "I went to invite her, but that day there was a banquet at the Xinning Marquis's residence, so she went home."
It turned out that she had returned to her parents' home. Yao Niang had a normal relationship with Wang, so she didn't remind them much and continued to chat and laugh with Jiang Er Niang and the others. After three rounds of drinking, Jiang Er Niang called Yao Niang in privately and said, "My face is like this. The doctor also asked me to eat light food, but I was in a good mood today and had some wine. Please ask my sister-in-law to pack some more rose salt for me."
Yao Niang naturally agreed with a smile.
Unexpectedly, Second Madam Jiang looked at Yao Niang and asked a very strange question: "Sister-in-law, do you know that the cousin of the Han family has been promised to someone else?"
"Probably not. She is not very old." Yao Niang said.
Second Madam Jiang forced a few laughs and said, "I always think that men should get married when they are old enough and women should get married when they are old enough."
In fact, Han Ruhua was Mrs. Shen's niece, and whether she got married or not had nothing to do with her family. But Second Madam Jiang cared so much about her, and Yao Niang guessed that she might want to be a matchmaker.
I wanted to ask more, but Second Madam Jiang avoided the topic and said, "This is the beginning of the year. My father-in-law and his family returned to Beijing to report on their work. I heard that Xuxian is younger than us, and I don't know what he is."
Speaking of Lu Shaner, Yao Niang originally wanted to go back to her parents' home to ask Xi Que, Guan's former personal maid. Now she is Yan Jingzhao's roommate, but she did not go home on the second day of the Chinese New Year. Besides, Li seemed a little worried. If she went to find her former sister-in-law's maid, she was afraid that she would misunderstand something, so she delayed it.
However, it was obvious that no matter how she married Shen Xunfu, her road would be very difficult. With her stepson who was as ferocious as a wolf and her sisters-in-law who were much older than her, she was in dire straits.
As the saying goes, a deer rises on the left but does not blink. Her first goal was to learn almost all the duties of the clan woman. She also won over some people in the house with her homemade spices. As for the rest, she would have to wait until she reached the age of 15 to realize them slowly and finally take control of the entire Shen family.
Just set this goal. People like Lu Shaner and Zhou Lingguang are not what she should consider now.
Putting all these behind her, she still felt a little bloated after returning from Second Madam Jiang's birthday party, so she simply stood up and talked to Shen Linfeng, who was lying on the couch with his eyes closed.
"Why did the second sister-in-law mention cousin Han? It doesn't seem like she was trying to be a matchmaker for her?" Yao Niang asked.
Shen Linfeng opened his eyes and looked at Yao Niang: "Don't you know?"
Yao Niang was puzzled: "How can I know?"
This girl has no clue at all. The Yan family did teach her a lot of other things, but most of them were about the good and the bad. She seemed to know nothing about these private matters.
Shen Linfeng whispered, "Brother Jiang and cousin Han are having some ambiguity."
"What? No, I heard that Second Brother Jiang and Second Sister-in-law Jiang have a very good relationship, and Madam is always teasing them." Yao Niang was surprised.
Shen Linfeng said unhappily, "My dear sister, Jiang Er's sister-in-law's uncle is the Dali Temple Minister, Jiang Er Ge has no official title now, and his third uncle has many sons, so he naturally wants to have a good relationship with Jiang Er's sister-in-law. But love doesn't consider status or anything else. In his heart, he still likes girls like Han Cousin, not someone like Jiang Er's sister-in-law who is too straightforward and illiterate."
"No, I didn't even know about it in the inner palace. You are in the Hanlin Academy every day, how did you know?" Yao Niang shook him and asked.
Shen Linfeng smiled: "Do I even need to ask this? If a man in this world likes someone, how can he hide it? Just like I like you, I will marry you no matter what."
Although she should be happy that Shen Linfeng confessed his love to her, she felt a little uncomfortable for a moment when she thought of Jiang Er's sister-in-law. Then she thought of her father's words and cheered up immediately.
Shen Linfeng was surprised: "You were so gloomy just now, but now you are full of energy so quickly."
"My father said that it is a good thing to understand other people's difficulties, but we should not carry other people's coffins to our own home and cry." Yao Niang said with a smile.
Shen Linfeng thought that his father-in-law was quite good at teaching children.
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