It was too cold outside, so she held Heng'er in the room and played with him for a while in the afternoon. After she coaxed him to sleep, the nanny came to take him away. Mother Wang and Cui Xi rushed to tell her what happened yesterday after she got drunk. Mother Wang was particularly worried, saying that she had brought the ladies to destroy the old lady's forest and offended the old lady, and she was afraid that she would be punished.
Ning Rulan asked her maid Hongye to bring some balsam and scented tea. Hongye said that the housekeeper led the convoy to bring fresh meat and vegetables back to the mansion at night last night. The old lady already knew what happened. She could no longer blame the eldest and third grandmothers. She just felt sorry for Linzi and did not eat dinner. The third grandmother fell ill in bed after what happened yesterday and would no longer be in charge of things from today.
Mei Niang knew that she had escaped the blame because she was drunk, but Ning Rulan must have been scolded badly. She felt very sorry and asked Hongye:
"Is your grandma okay? Have you asked a doctor to see her?"
Hongye lowered her head and said, "It's just a minor cold. The Third Master invited a doctor to come and give me some medicine. I'm taking it now!"
Mei Niang said, "Lead the way, I'll go see your grandma, she got sick because of me!"
Hongye smiled and said, "Third Madam knew that the eldest Madam would think so, so she asked me to tell the eldest Madam that she is fine and will be fine after two days of rest. But the eldest Madam was so drunk yesterday, so she needs to be taken care of. There is no need to go to the old lady too quickly, just say that she has caught a cold, and it will not be too late to pay respects to her in two days when the old lady has calmed down. It was windy all night last night, and it snowed heavily until this morning. It is not easy to walk in the yard. The eldest Madam and Heng Ge'er don't have to go out!"
Every word she said was full of concern and care, fearing that Mei Niang could not bear the old lady's scolding. Mei Niang was very touched. In this mansion, except for her personal maids who came with her as a dowry, perhaps her husband could not treat her as well as Ning Rulan did
She looked at Mother Wang and said, "Mom, do we have something better? Third Grandma gave me balsam tea, so I should give her something in return, right?"
Mother Wang said awkwardly, "Grandma has been ill for a long time and has not interacted with the outside world. There is nothing new and fresh about her personal belongings!"
Hongye said hurriedly, "Third Madam knows Grandma. The balsam and scented tea were originally sent by Grandma's family. They were not bought with money and are not worth much. Grandma, you don't have to be polite!"
Mei Niang was a little stunned. Her sister-in-law, who was like a good friend to her, was sick, but she didn't even have any valuable gifts to send her!
Hongye bowed to her and said goodbye, but she saw the curtain at the door was lifted and Xu Junying stepped into the room. His tall and straight body blocked Hongye's way.
Hongye was startled and quickly bowed: "This servant greets the Lord!"
Xu Junying nodded, waited for Hongye to leave, and waved to Cuisi, "Go find Baoju and ask him for the red cloth bundle in the study in the east wing. Bring it over here."
Cui Si responded and walked out.
When Mother Wang, Cui Xi and Cui Lian saw Xu Junying come in, they quickly bowed and followed him out.
Mei Niang and Xu Junying were the only ones left in the room. Mei Niang bowed to him and said, "Master Hou, please take a seat!"
She once estimated that Xu Junying was about 1.8 meters tall, with a standard golden ratio body. She stood in front of him only up to his shoulders and looked up to talk to him. No wonder she felt oppressed.
She picked up the small teapot on the table and poured a cup of hot tea for each of them, while trying to find a conversation with him: "Have you had lunch, Lord Hou?"
After asking this question, I felt very sad. It shouldn’t be as simple as asking “Have you eaten yet?” when a couple meets.
She quickly added, "Brother Heng came over to play for a while, then fell asleep again. I asked the nanny to take him away!"
Xu Junying didn't respond to her. His handsome face was expressionless. He picked up the teacup and took a sip of tea. He said to himself, "What you and Rulan did yesterday was not appropriate. It's over. Next time, remember: tell your husband about this kind of thing!"
Mei Niang lowered her head, and Xu Junying looked up at her: "You play around like that and don't know how to restrain yourself. Now everyone knows that the wife of Weiyuan Marquis can drink a lot. When you go out to visit others in the future, you may get drunk again!"
Mei Niang blushed: "I won't get drunk again!"
Xu Junying pursed his lips gently. He couldn't believe the news he heard yesterday. Could the cowardly Qin Meiniang have such courage and ability? A good cook cannot cook without rice. Ning Rulan couldn't hold a banquet, but she used a hundred pounds of beef and some vegetables, snacks and wine to entertain the ladies to their satisfaction, and they all got drunk. Thinking of the court officials who came to visit yesterday, they were all laughing and crying, and each of them carried their wives home, and it was funny.
The Emperor summoned him this morning, and together with the Empress, he repeatedly questioned him curiously about the reason why Mei Niang came back to life. He was almost unable to answer. The Marquis of Changle, Marquis of Anyuan and others who were chatting with him laughed and said:
"Brother Xu, are you embarrassed now? Now everyone in the inner courts of the capital is praising Brother Xu's good name!"
Xu Junying asked curiously, "What good reputation do I have to pass on?"
"Of course, it's not about how bravely you killed the enemy, but about how deeply you love your wife! My wife woke up from her drunkenness last night and cried to me, saying that she was sick a while ago, but I ignored her and was not half as good as Weiyuan Hou. Weiyuan Hou's wife was sick for a month, and Weiyuan Hou accompanied her day and night and took good care of her. When she "died", Weiyuan Hou was still able to stay with her and put her in a coffin, but did not allow the lid to be closed. He stayed by the coffin every day and talked to her, hoping that she would come back to life. As a result, the wish came true..."
Marquis Anyuan continued, "Yes, yes. My wife was still nagging me this morning. It gave me a headache! Brother Xu, you have become a gentle and loving man in the eyes of all the women in the capital, but it's hard for us. We are criticized by the wife every day. We didn't do this well, and we didn't do that enough. In short, we are not as good as Marquis Weiyuan. Alas!"
The emperor laughed out loud, and the queen looked at Xu Junying with approval.
Xu Junying was overwhelmed: he just told Mei Niang not to talk nonsense, but who allowed her to praise him to the sky in front of all the ladies
In fact, how could he have been good to her? After she died, he symbolically went to her bedside to take a look, and left the burial and other matters to Rulan and the housekeepers. He only ordered that all her good and expensive jewelry and clothes be worn by her as much as possible, and many jades and treasures were buried with her. Everything was done solemnly and luxuriously, just for the sake of face. The dead are gone, and the living have to continue to live, and they have to earn a good reputation for themselves.
Last night, Mei Niang was drunk and unconscious. He went to greet the old lady. The old lady blamed Mei Niang from beginning to end for being heartless and doing things without thinking. It was not even a hundred days after her husband's brother's death, but she dared to bring everyone to have fun in the mansion, destroying her purple-leaf forest and her plum forest... Did she still have her grandmother in her eyes, and did she care about her sick mother-in-law? Xu Junying had no choice but to admit the fault and take the blame for Mei Niang in front of the old lady. What else could he do? Mei Niang was his wife anyway. She solved a problem for the family in a unique way as a woman. To be fair, after the heavy snow blocked the road, no one in the city's vegetable market operated and traded. In that case, with so many old and young masters in the family, who would be willing to lose face and borrow meat and vegetables from everywhere to hold a banquet? If that were to be spread out, the Xu family would not look good. Instead, Mei Niang was smart. She took advantage of the snow scene of the plum forest that had just bloomed in the courtyard and made a unique and interesting banquet for guests. The host and guests were happy and avoided embarrassment.
Noble ladies are the best at competing and imitating each other. After Mei Niang started this, today several noble families in the city are preparing to hold such an open-air banquet, to enjoy the plum blossoms and winter peonies, and to cut their own meat and barbecue it in the beautiful scenery of the courtyard and forest. It is said that it is endless fun and the meal is comfortable and joyful.
That is to say, the officials and noble ladies in Beijing were locked up in the deep courtyards all day long, and had never seen the hardships and freedom of life in the wild, so they felt fresh and curious. Sitting leisurely and eating barbecue, drinking fine wine, eating, playing and enjoying the scenery, they looked like children playing house. Military officers like Xu Junying, who came from the military, had experienced all kinds of situations? It was comfortable to eat barbecue with fire, but it was not so fun when there was no fire and no water, drinking horse blood and eating raw meat!
Cui Si came in holding a bundle. Xu Junying motioned her to put it in front of Mei Niang and said calmly:
"This old mountain ginseng was given to me by a friend from the Northeast. It is of very rare and excellent quality. It was originally meant for the old lady. You damaged her purple-leaf forest and plum blossoms, which made her unhappy. So you can take it. Send it to her before dinner. Let her scold you a few words to relieve her resentment. At least she can eat more food!"
Mei Niang quickly responded: "Yes, I understand!"
She was just thinking about how to solve this problem. The old lady of the Xu family smiled kindly, but in fact she was a very cunning old woman. If she hadn't been so shameless and stuck to her like a rubber band, the old lady wouldn't even look at her. Mei Niang used to be disliked by her, so she was so neglected. There were very few things to eat and use in her room. No one came to visit her when she was alive, not to mention when she was dying. Who would remember her
Although she inherited Qin Meiniang's body, her soul and thoughts were very different. First, she didn't want to be bullied. Second, no matter what, she had to live a comfortable and affluent life. She couldn't let herself down in this regard. Third, in order to live a comfortable life, she had to strive for the best! In this big house, she had an identity, but not a high position. She had no power and no money. As Cuisi said, she had a meal and two sets of clothes, but too little money to move. Heng Ge'er had to ask the housekeeper several times if he wanted to find some extra milk to cook porridge. Thinking about her son being wronged and the maids being embarrassed, Meiniang felt like a cat scratching in her heart - she had to fight for her own money and let her son enjoy the best things. This dynasty was the same as the previous life. Without power, money and connections, it would never work!
The gift Xu Junying sent was just the stepping stone to win back the old lady's favor.
Mei Niang was lost in thought, and Xu Junying didn't say anything either. There was a moment of silence, and he couldn't sit still any longer, so he got up and left.
Mei Niang then realized that the teacup in front of him was already empty. She had even forgotten to refill it for him. No wonder he didn't want to leave.
What kind of love did the couple have? Why was it so cold? She didn't remember the past, so wouldn't he take the initiative to express something to her
Mother Wang and Cui Xi came in. Cui Si opened the red silk bundle, and inside were five neatly wrapped wild ginsengs. They looked really good. Mei Niang didn't know how to identify them, but Mother Wang was knowledgeable and praised them highly, saying that such old wild ginsengs were rare and must be hundreds of years old.
Mei Niang thought to herself: Xu Junying gave her five of these rare items at once! Should I just listen to him and buy all of them to send to the old lady
Hundred-year-old mountain ginseng, if it is in modern times, it is worth millions. She can't bear to give it all to the old lady. If the old lady eats so much old mountain ginseng, she will either die of thirst or turn into a fire-breathing monster. If she doesn't eat it and gives it as a gift, it will still be a loss. No, she can't give it all away!
He told Madam Wang to pick out two ginsengs, tie them up with red silk ribbons, and put them in a brocade box. He also tied the others up with red silk ribbons, put them in a brocade box, and stored them away. Seeing that it was almost time, he asked Cuixi to hold the two wrapped ginsengs, and the master and servants went to the old lady's room. (To be continued)