In November, Jiankang received its first snowfall, and snow particles rustled down, officially announcing the arrival of winter.
In the Shen family in Jiankang, there were two fire pots placed in Mrs. Shen San's room. The room was as warm as spring, and two pots of daffodils were in full bloom on the table.
Mrs. Shen San was wearing a brown double-breasted coat, leaning on a large pillow with her eyes closed and meditating. A little girl was kneeling in front of the soft couch, gently beating her legs.
A maid hurried in. The little girl waved to her. The maid nodded, turned around and tiptoed to leave.
"What's the matter?" Mrs. Shen San said slowly without opening her eyes.
The maid hurriedly turned around and came back, "Madam, someone from Hengyang said..."
"Are you tired of the long journey and want to get married before the end of the year? By the way, how many boxes can I give..." Mrs. Shen San asked casually.
"No, ma'am..." The maid looked embarrassed and boldly interrupted Mrs. Shen San, "It's just a matter of marriage..."
"What?" Mrs. Shen San opened her eyes suddenly.
The servant girl was glanced at by her, and she was so frightened that she lowered her head, "...my uncle said that Miss Min fell ill since her engagement, and she went to the temple to ask for a fortune..."
"Is it offensive to talk about this marriage?" Mrs. Shen San raised her eyebrows and shouted.
"Yes..." the servant girl lowered her head and said.
Mrs. Shen sat upright angrily and said, "I've taken care of everything before getting engaged. Why should I be in a hurry?"
She knew that the couple, including the girl, were not happy with this marriage, so they rushed to hear about the news in the East Palace, which was arousing their thoughts.
"This idiot..." Mrs. Shen San gritted her teeth and said, "This idiot..."
The servants and girls in the room lowered their heads and dared not speak.
"But, that's okay..." Mrs. Shen San calmed down and sneered, "After this incident, that girl is enough to worry. I want to see if she wants to pick up what others don't want..."
The maid hurriedly poured the tea and gave it to Mrs. Shen San. She smiled and said something that made her happy. Mrs. Shen San was obviously not bothered by this matter.
"Madam, madam..." a hurried male voice called outside the door, and the person stopped behind the curtain.
"What's the matter?" Mrs. Shen San asked.
"Master..." the boy outside gasped, "Master is ready..."
"What's wrong, young master?" the maid shouted in a low voice.
"It's Mr. Lin from the capital. His leg is healed," the boy said loudly.
With a bang, the teacup in Mrs. Shen's hand fell to the ground.
"Prepare a car to go to Beijing"
The order was passed down not long after, and two luxurious carriages galloped out amid falling snow particles.
Xin Chaoyang, wearing a luxurious fur coat, walked up the steps of his medicine store in three or two steps, avoiding the slush and water splashed by the speeding carriage in the street.
"Really, why are there so many carriages running around..." He muttered and flicked the corner of his clothes.
As soon as he stepped through the door, he saw Master Xin hurried over.
"Dad..." Xin Chaoyang bowed and saluted.
"Follow me." Master Xin shouted with a stern face and walked out without stopping.
Ever since he let Xin Chaoyang go away that day, Mr. Xin has never given his son a good look. He has ignored him and never seen him if he could. Even if he did, he would not say a word.
Xin Chaoyang followed with a smile, and the father and son got into the carriage and walked into the house without saying anything.
After entering the study room, they retreated, and the father and son faced each other again, but this time Master Xin was sitting and Xin Chaoyang was standing.
"Then the Zhao family's divorce was your fault, right?" Master Xin asked solemnly.
"Yes, that's what they have in mind, I'm just going with the flow..." Xin Chaoyang said with a smile.
"It's a shame your mother's eyes are red from crying for you..." Mr. Xin glared.
Naturally, this matter had to be kept hidden from the family. Master Xin was the only one who knew Xin Chaoyang's true intentions.
"My son is unfilial." Xin Chaoyang gave him a facelift and said, "I'm going to explain to my mother..."
After saying that, he turned to leave.
"Stop," Master Xin shouted at him, "What are you talking about? Tell your mother, do you want to marry Mrs. Gu?"
"Yes." Xin Chaoyang nodded and smiled.
"I think you'd better save some money." Mr. Xin snorted, picked up the teacup and took a slow sip, "I think you've just failed to draw water from the bamboo basket this time..."
"Please give me some advice, Father..." Xin Chaoyang smiled and bowed to his father.
Perhaps it was a rare occasion to see his son disgraced, but Master Xin couldn't help but feel a little happy.
"Then Mrs. Gu, don't even think about it..." He lifted up his clothes, crossed his legs, and said slowly, "I have already inquired about it. This time, Mrs. Gu is also included in the selection of good girls..."
Xin Chaoyang was slightly startled.
"Chaoyang, you jumped up on the branches as soon as you entered the palace gate. I don't treat you as a noble lady, so why should I have to quarrel with you?" Master Xin said with a smile.
Xin Chaoyang laughed, took the teapot and refilled Mr. Xin's tea.
"Dad, I don't dare to vouch for whether she will follow me or not, but I understand that this woman will not act like a noble lady." He smiled.
Mr. Xin snorted, "Do you understand? Do you understand that you will still be tricked?"
Xin Chaoyang laughed, but said no more.
His confident look made Master Xin feel very breathless and he grabbed the tea bowl again.
"Dad, I'm going to see my mother, and then I'm going to the capital..." Xin Chaoyang hurriedly backed away, bowing to leave, and said with a smile.
Xin Chao Lingle walked in, passed by Xin Chaoyang, and shouted a few times, but Xin Chaoyang just waved to him and walked away without stopping.
"Dad, what's wrong, brother?" Xin Chaoling asked, and was startled when he saw Mr. Xin's dark face.
"I'm sick." Master Xin said with a snort.
"Is the eldest brother sick?" Xinchao Lingxin thought it was true and shouted, while lamenting repeatedly, "No, it's the first time in my life that eldest brother has encountered such a thing, so it is inevitable that he will get angry... Dad... eldest brother is feeling uncomfortable." Well, why are you showing him such a face...Dad...Oh...Dad...Why are you looking at me like this..."
Master Xin looked at his concubine son with a rare kindness on his face.
"Chaoling, I heard you have a wife?" he asked.
Xin Chao Ling chuckled and said with a proud look on his face, "Not only do I have a wife, but I also have two concubines... Dad, just wait until you have your grandson..."
Master Xin nodded, and suddenly felt that it was good for his son to be stupid, at least it would save him worries.
"Chaoling, is the monthly money enough?" he asked.
The Xin family was in business and would not waste too much money on useless people, so as an idler, even though he was the son-in-law of the main wife, he received the lowest monthly salary.
"Why don't you go to the shop and do something..." Master Xin thought for a while and said, preparing to meet his son's excited expression.
"Dad" Xin Chaoling was shocked, "What are you going to do? Dad, I haven't been to a casino or a brothel recently... Okay, I have been... I've only been there once... At most five times... Dad... .Please let me go...I will never go there again..."
Looking at his son who was hugging his legs and almost crying loudly, Mr. Xin finally raised the tea bowl again: "Give it to me..."
Although there was no snow in the capital at this time, the weather was still cold.
The news of the selection of good girls has been informed to the Gu family, and Mrs. Cao was surprised and happy.
What surprised her was how a craftsman like Gu Shiba Niang could be selected. What she was happy about was that for women waiting to be married in the world, this was the first-class marriage they dreamed of, and the knot that had made her worried and uneasy day and night was finally resolved.
"Is this wrong?" Ms. Cao said this sentence for the umpteenth time.
Gu Shiniang, who was sitting in front of the brazier and picking the burrs on her hands with a needle, had to speak again, "Mom, I told you, it must be wrong..."
"Then...that was selected by the officials, how could it be wrong..." Ms. Cao frowned.
"Yes, of course I will be selected in the primary election of the Ministry of Civil Affairs. Didn't I mention it above? My grandfather has served as the magistrate of Yong'an County, the magistrate of Guangping County, and the magistrate of Xianren County. My father was a tribute scholar of Tiansheng for ten years, and my brother He was a tribute scholar in the seventh year of Jianyuan, and served as magistrate of Nanzhang County and Lizhou County... The third generation of tribute ministers can be said to be the lintel of an elegant family of officials... Naturally, he is among them..." Gu Shiba Niang continued to pluck out the burrs and answered.
"Yes, yes..." Ms. Cao felt more confident. Their family was not a Qingming family.
"It's just that the next step is to check me..." Gu Shiba Niang said with a smile, "Then you will find that I am not suitable...and then eliminate me, so you won't wait for someone to invite me to the palace to be selected. That’s the end of it.”
Mrs. Cao said, "Yes, my little girl Gu Shiba Niang is already a craftsman, so she can't be considered a good girl."
"This can't be done..." She sighed softly.
"Mom, that's the prince..." Gu Shiba Niang said with a smile, taking the soup and tea from Lingbao, a hint of self-mockery appeared immediately, "Is it possible that people in the imperial court are not as transparent as a merchant..."
Ms. Cao didn't know about Xin Chaoyang, so she didn't take it seriously after hearing it. She sighed softly and was worried about her daughter's life-long events. However, Lingbao knew about it and looked after Shiba Niang with some worry.
But the news spread quickly. Through Gu Shen'an, the Gu family in Jiankang naturally got the news. Although the official selection process was still underway, this undoubtedly made the originally speculated news officially confirmed, and the entire Gu family was Boiling.
Gu Changchun hurriedly led a group of people to prepare cars and horses to go out, and the chatter of the servants and women on the roadside reached his ears.
"What?" He was a little surprised, "You mean that Eighteenth Mother?"
"Yes, Grandpa..." The boy on the side hurriedly recounted the news he had heard, "Miss Eighteen is going to enter the palace and become a queen..."
Gu Changchun glared at him and shouted with a stern face, "Stop talking nonsense."
The boy was so frightened that he shrank his head.
Gu Changchun stopped, thought for a moment, and turned to the steward, "This is a serious matter, go tell everyone, don't make a mistake, lest... lest it spoil the good thing..."
The butler responded cheerfully.
Gu Changchun stepped on the stool and got into the car. He looked in the direction of the capital, and an unspeakable meaning flashed across his face. That family was really going to be very different...
"Grandpa, please hurry up..." A woman's crying voice sounded from behind.
Gu Changchun looked over displeasedly and saw Mrs. Guo from Gu Leshan's family covering her mouth with a handkerchief and anxiously opening the curtain to urge.
Sensing Gu Changchun's dissatisfaction, Mrs. Guo lowered the car curtain, feeling anxious and angry in her heart, and what came out of her mouth was not anger but fire.
"Madam, madam, listen, Miss Eighteen wants to..." the little girl couldn't help but say.
"Shut up," Madam Guo shouted, staring at the little girl, "That's not your head girl, what are you worried about? If your lady does anything bad, I'll let you be buried with her."
The little girl's face turned pale after being scolded. She lowered her head and didn't dare to say another word. The carriage swayed forward.