"...I won't hide it from you. The reason why I deliberately hinted at her position as a concubine was to see if I could get out any other information?" Qiu Yilan told the story and said, " But then there was something wrong with my grandfather’s grave, and then there was the Gu clan’s execution. With so much work going on, how could I care about it?”
Xin Fubing squinted his eyes and said with a smile: "What's so difficult about this? Anyway, Princess Qi has been recuperating in the village outside the city all her life. Prince Qi's palace always needs someone to preside over it. Ni Jin is the Queen Mother's favorite person. , although she is a palace maid, she has seen big scenes, and her relationship with the Queen Mother is extraordinary. If she is the concubine, it will be too late for Prince Qi and the concubine to be happy!"
"It's just because she is the favorite of the Queen Mother. Isn't this poaching the Queen Mother?" Qiu Yilan peeled an orange, pulled off the orange veins, divided the orange petals into three parts and handed them to them, saying, "Otherwise, the Queen Mother will treat me badly." It’s not bad either, I’ve already spoken!”
"Wait a minute!" Zhuang Man took the orange and reminded, "Didn't this Ni Jin say that if you could become Prince Qi's concubine, he would get rid of Ni Guang for you? Now it is said that Ni Guang is still working as an errand for the Queen Mother. ? Then how can she be the concubine? Of course she should do it first and then ask Aunt Jiang to intercede for her!"
Qiu Yilan pondered: "Maybe she wants to wait for me to give accurate information?"
"Can you leave this matter to me?" Xin Fubing suggested, "My mother is planning to take me to the palace frequently to say goodbye to the Queen Mother. Ni Jin and I have many opportunities to meet each other, so she should not doubt my promise. "
"You are the future Lord of the Middle Palace, and your promise is much more reliable than mine!" Qiu Yilan said with a smile, "Then I'll leave this matter to you. It's really worthwhile. Wearing a formal dress to attend the banquet, just It solved a long-standing problem for me!”
Xin Fubing said nonchalantly: "It's my mother who has to tell her anyway, I'm just telling her!"
"So you should have persuaded Aunt Jiang Wu to come back a long time ago!" Zhuang Man said in an old-fashioned way, "Look at my cousin's room. My aunt and uncle are not in Beijing all the year round, so what a big room, Ms. Lin,... Everyone wants to reach out to them! If my aunt were there, how dare I lend them ten more courage?"
"You make it easy, that's your biological aunt! No matter how fierce she is, she won't be fierce to you, but I am her daughter-in-law who has no blood relationship with her, okay?" Qiu Yilan didn't think so. She thought to herself, "She is so powerful. Mother-in-law, it’s okay if you like me, but if you don’t like me, you’ll be beaten and scolded every day? I can’t stand this kind of anger! What will happen then?”
Thinking of this, I remembered that Jiang Yashuang had said before that the Duke of Qin wanted him to hang out in the court for three years, and he would probably be sent to report to the Zhenbei Army at the beginning of the next year - and by then, regardless of whether he had children or not, he would definitely not She is willing to be separated from her husband for a long time, just like Princess Ruan and Qiu Zhongyan before, who have been married for almost ten years and have not spent much time together.
But if I go to Northern Xinjiang with my husband, I will live directly under the hands of my father-in-law and mother-in-law...
"I hope this mother-in-law is the kind of person who is as ruthless to her enemies as the autumn wind sweeps away fallen leaves, and is as warm as spring to her family, instead of being someone who treats no one except her husband and biological children!" Qiu Yilan carefully looked at the village. Man, "Well, just like Man'er!"
At this time, Xin Fubing and Zhuang Man had a few words, and the three of them finished an orange. Xin Fubing glanced at the copper leak in the corner of the room, and was about to call someone to hold a banquet, when he suddenly remembered: "Where's Xing?! Why haven't you arrived yet! ?”
Qiu Yilan and Zhuang Man were also a little surprised, but because they were all in the capital, and Jing Bo'ou family was the confidant of Duke Qin when he started his career, not even the children of the Jiang family dared to bully their family for no reason, so Not too worried, they both suggested: "Send someone to visit Uncle Jing's Mansion?"
Just as he was talking, the servant led Ou Qinglan over.
She has always liked the color red, but today she was wearing a dark dress with the main color of pine flowers. Her whip was still wrapped around her waist, and her face seemed a little gloomy when she came in.
"Axing, you're late!" Zhuang Man shouted as soon as he saw her, "Don't give us any explanations, just give us three cups to apologize!"
"What's three cups?" Ou Qinglan smiled a little at her shouting, and said with her hands on her hips, "If you have the ability, let's fight for wine! I'll give you three cups!"
Hearing this, Zhuang Man, who had always been afraid of chaos in the world, immediately raised his head and raised his chest, assuming a sanctimonious attitude that was sacred and inviolable, and shouted angrily: "Absurd! We are ladies, how can we compete for wine?!"
Xin Fubing kept nodding at the side, with a lingering fear on his face. It seemed that both of them had been raped by Ou Qinglan together, and they still have psychological shadows to this day...
Seeing this, Qiu Yilan laughed out loud, and a sense of superiority arose spontaneously. She slapped the table and shouted: "Okay! If we fight for wine, let's fight for wine. What should we do if we lose first?!"
"Sister-in-law, please ignore her!" Zhuang Man and Xin Fubing didn't know Qiu Yilan's drinking capacity, so they quickly dissuaded her, "A Xing was born in Northern Xinjiang. It's cold there, and it's said that both men and women can drink a few drinks. Strong wine to keep away the cold! Just a few days after she was born, her father fed her wine with toothpicks. When she was three or five years old, she drank several glasses of wine with her father every day... We didn't know last time, but she got her drunk. It’s like something, I’ve had a headache for several days and I can’t get up!”
Ou Qinglan said hurriedly: "Isn't it okay if I give up the three altars?"
"It doesn't matter!" Qiu Yilan waved her hand magnanimously, full of confidence, "I don't need you to let us have a fair fight!"
"Cousin-in-law, are you Hailiang?" Knowing that Qiu Yilan is not unreasonable, Zhuang Man and Xin Fubing's eyes lit up. They looked at each other and untied their wallets at the same time, "I will win over cousin-in-law!!!"
...Then Zhuang Man and Xin Fubing yawned, and Ou Qinglan and Qiu Yilan fought against each other, and it was still hard to tell the winner!
"How long do they have to drink?" Xin Fubing said quietly, "The dishes are already cold!"
"I said, why did we have a headache for several days last time?" Zhuang Man also said quietly, "With Ah Xing's drinking capacity, he is not human at all!"
Xin Fubing said even more faintly: "Don't you think my cousin is more terrifying - she hasn't even blushed even now! Ah Xing is blushing at least!"
"Let's eat it ourselves!" Zhuang Man picked up the toothbrush, "otherwise we'll just have to watch it today!"
They were jealous and jealous. Ou Qinglan and Qiu Yilan became more and more energetic as they drank. Finally, Ou Qinglan threw the wine jar away: "No more competition!"
"No way?" Qiu Yilan asked doubtfully, "I see you can continue drinking?"
"We are here for a banquet today. Fu Bing and Man'er will hate us if we compare!" Ou Qinglan made a face at her with a smile and praised, "I always thought you were delicate, but I didn't expect you to be so cute after drinking." Awesome! Not to mention nineteen, even my brother is not as good as you!"
Wen Yan, Xin and Zhuang both breathed a sigh of relief: "You have remembered us!"
Xin Fubing kept calling for hot soup, and then handed the hot handkerchief over: "The dishes are already cold, I'll ask for new ones!"
Because the wine fight was delayed, even though it was only a banquet for four people, it was almost dusk when it ended.
It gets dark early in winter, and the carriage is only halfway there, and it's already dark.
Seeing that she was no longer traveling with Zhuang Man and Ou Qinglan, Qiu Yilan asked Su He, "May I ask why A Xing was late for the banquet today?"
Su He agreed and asked again: "Young madam, do you think Miss Ou is in trouble? But with her family background, who dares to bully her?"
"Something must have happened!" Qiu Yilan rubbed her forehead, "She looked wrong when she came in just now - and then she told Man'er that they would have a drink together. It was just a cover-up, and she wanted to drink away her sorrow!"
Although it seems that the possibility of Ou Qinglan becoming her sister-in-law is not very high at present, over the past two years, the two of them have been dating and have developed a relationship. Qiu Yilan couldn't help her when it came to marriage, but those who could help her in other areas would not be stingy in their efforts.
When we returned to the Duke's Mansion, it was completely dark.
Mrs. Tao has been very considerate of An'er since she left her to be raised by Qiu Yilan. She will send someone to wait at the second door, telling her that the winter nights are long and she should go directly to her room when she comes back. Greetings from the old lady.
Qiu Yilan thanked the maid and asked Xia Ran to reward her with a piece of broken silver. She returned to her yard. As soon as she entered the corridor, she ran into Jiang Yashuang: "You want to go out?"
"Seeing that you haven't come back yet, I want to pick her up." Jiang Yashuang held her hand and complained, "It's not like I can't go to Cousin Xin's place once, so why did I come back so late? Carefully check the wind cold!"
At this point, he smelled the smell of alcohol on his wife's body and said speechlessly, "How much alcohol have you drunk? You still smell so strong of alcohol all the way back!"
"... Ah Xing seems to be in a bad mood, so I drank a few more drinks with her!" Qiu Yilan said one sentence, and when she was about to say something, Jiang Yashuang sighed: "You call her over tomorrow and I will follow Let her speak!"
Qiu Yilan was still unsure whether Ou Qinglan's gloomy look when she came in was because of Qiu Jinglan or because of other reasons, so she responded vaguely.
"There is a reason why I urge you to come back early today." Jiang Yashuang said again, "Ling Zui is back!"
"Him?!" Qiu Yilan was stunned, and then said in surprise, "Did he just come back? Is he here? Or did he send someone to report it?"
"I just came back. I didn't even go to Princess Maode's mansion. I just came over to see how you were doing. I heard you weren't here, so I tricked me for a long time. I said I would go to Li's house to see Sister Ruan, and then I would consider going back to Princess Maode. Mansion!" Jiang Yashuang snorted, "I don't know if the eldest princess will hang up this unfilial son and beat him!"
Qiu Yilan said with a smile: "Are you annoying him for suspecting that you treated me badly? You can't blame him. When my brother left, he was asked to take care of me and my eldest cousin. However, he was forcibly sent to the south by Princess Maode and his wife. , I just came back now, isn’t it because I want to fulfill my original promise?”
Jiang Yashuang had a gloomy face: "But am I someone who would treat my wife badly?!" He glanced at her and said, "You treat me badly!"
"Why have I treated you badly?!" Qiu Yilan was stunned.
"Look, you speak for him, but you don't understand your husband's grievances!" Jiang Yashuang said confidently, "Isn't this considered unfair treatment?"
Qiu Yilan rolled her eyes at him: "Since I missed his arrival today, let's go and invite him tomorrow. I think he also wants to know how his brother is doing! How can it be more convenient to send messages in the south than in Beijing?"
Unexpectedly, he invited Ling Zui over in the afternoon of the next day. As soon as they met, he first told Qiu Yilan some news that surprised Qiu Yilan: "Sister Qiu, I heard that that bitch Xue Fangmi bullied you several times before? You Why didn't you send someone to the south to tell me earlier? And you sent her away from the capital with Jiang Jiu's plan earlier? I could kill her in Beijing—of course she's going to die soon!"
Qiu Yilan looked at her husband in surprise: "Didn't you say you wouldn't hurt her life?!"