"Miss..." Lingbao shook her hand and begged softly.
"You don't have a brother, and he is not Lingyuan," Gu Shiba Niang held Lingbao's hand with her backhand and looked at Lingyuan with focused eyes, "There is only the young master of the Zhu family here."
Lingyuan's face turned pale and he clenched his hands tightly.
Lingbao looked confused and couldn't help turning her head to look at her brother.
Gu Shiba Niang's eyes fell outside the door, where the dazzling red lantern swayed in the autumn wind.
"In front of the lady, there is always only Lingyuan." Lingyuan said in a deep voice.
Gu Shiba Niang looked at him, her face still cold and solemn.
"My spirit essence was harmed by gold thieves, and my family was ruined and I was forced to live in exile. I dare to ask this young master Zhu, can you understand the pain of being homeless in the rich clothes and fine food?"
"My Ling Yuan has a great wish in life, to kill thieves with iron horses and golden swords to avenge them, and to practice good marksmanship. I am only willing to serve as a soldier for General Ye. I dare to ask this young master Zhu..."
When she said this, she threw her hand away. Lingyuan subconsciously reached out and caught the slender medicine knife, "Do you dare to kill the golden thief and collect the old soil?"
"Although my Ling Yuan has some cowardly courage, he is by no means a heartless and ungrateful person. He clearly knows that his relatives Wan Xun is worried and suffering and avoids them..."
"Although my Ling Yuan is a little unworthy, he also knows loyalty, filial piety and righteousness, and will never consider a thief as his father..." She said word by word, "I dare to ask this young master Zhu, how dare you call yourself Ling Yuan ?”
After these questions were thrown over him, Lingyuan's expression changed drastically. He stepped back a few steps and dropped the medicine knife in his hand.
"Brother..." Lingbao finally understood something and looked at Lingyuan in surprise, "Master Zhu? How did you become Master Zhu?"
The noisy words of those people just now were replayed in her mind again.
"Yes...which young master of the Zhu family?" She grabbed her clothes and asked as if mumbling to herself.
"There are seventeen adopted sons and twenty-eight virtuous grandchildren. One person is worth more than ten thousand people. The young master of the Zhu Chunming family, the chief minister of the court," Gu Shiba Niang said solemnly, while looking at Lingyuan, "Mr. Zhu, what I said is terrible. right?"
Lingyuan's expression was complicated, and he moved his lips but made no sound.
Lingbao had already screamed and rushed over to shake him, "Brother, is what the lady said true? What the lady said is not true, right? You are not, you are not..."
Lingyuan just looked at her with sadness on his face.
"You're not, you're not, you are... By the way, you must be Mr. Zhu's servant..." Lingbao shook his hand and said eagerly, with pleading on his face, "Brother, is that so? ?Is it this way?"
"No..." Lingyuan finally spoke, his voice hoarse, "Miss is right... I am Mr. Zhu's adopted son... one of the eighteen adopted sons..."
Lingbao looked at him blankly, as if he couldn't believe it, and big tears rolled down his face.
How ridiculous. When the young master was sent to prison, everyone knew it was because he offended the very powerful Mr. Zhu. She was guarding the door of the prison of the Ministry of Punishment. Everyone told her that the top official in the Ministry of Punishment was Mr. Zhu’s brother. The young master will definitely not be able to escape. When his family was destroyed and everyone was on the way to escape, the displaced people all knew that it was General Ye who blocked the golden thieves from the south like a god. Everyone looked forward to the day when General Ye would regain their home for them and return to their hometown. However, General Ye, the god-like and invincible general, died, and he died in the hands of Master Zhu. She still remembered that she and her brother listened to people talking about General Ye's heroic deeds with admiration on the way to escape, and her brother continued to talk about it day and night. Gun, in order to one day follow General Ye. . . . .
How ridiculous, General Ye is dead, and the brother who once wanted to follow General Ye to kill the enemy has recognized the man who killed General Ye as his father. . .
How ridiculous, she was standing outside the prison of the Ministry of Punishment, cursing Mr. Zhu's family every day to have no descendants, but her brother was the son of Mr. Zhu's family. . . . .
Seeing his sister's expression, Lingyuan felt a sharp pain in his heart and reached out to hold her, "Listen to me..."
Lingbao had already thrown him away and screamed, "You are not my brother, you are not my brother"
"Bao'er, listen to me..." Lingyuan reached out and hugged her, shouting loudly.
Lingbao raised his hand to hit him, but he raised it high and did not fall down. He covered his face and cried loudly.
"Miss..." Lingyuan raised his head and looked at Gu Shiba Niang, his expression dark and unclear, "Listen to me..."
"Say." Gu Shiba Niang stretched out her hand and looked indifferent.
Her reaction was so indifferent, Lingyuan's heart felt like it was falling into an ice cave. He couldn't wait to speak, fearing that if he didn't say something, she would immediately turn around and leave, and he would be like a passerby from then on.
He has done so much, does he want this result
"I left Jiankang at that time..." He took a deep breath and adjusted his thoughts to the best to avoid saying the wrong thing, "...I don't know where I was sold to... "
He seemed to have returned to being tied up and locked in the cabin, watching the rushing river water passing by, his heart filled with despair. As for the future, he no longer cared about it. Living was no different from dying.
"...I don't know whose house it is...I'm just responsible for walking a dozen dogs every day, eating as they please and sleeping as they please..."
"Master Zhu's seventeen adopted sons and twenty-eight virtuous grandchildren are either ministers in the court or leaders in talent and fashion. Mr. Zhu, it's not that easy for him to become a son just by walking his dog." Gu Gongzi said. The Eighteenth Niang said calmly.
As the saying goes, "When a father and son fight against a tiger, they are brothers." Lord Zhu, who was in a high position and was well aware of the darkness and cruelty of the officialdom, knew this even more. It was very common for important officials in the court, especially the generals who led the army, to consider themselves to be relatives. After all, The closeness between people is maintained by blood or marriage. The most at ease is one's own son. For example, General Ye, in addition to his two biological sons, he also has three adopted sons, all of whom are selected talents in the military. It is very handy to use in battle.
But this Mr. Zhu, I don’t know whether it’s because he doesn’t have a biological son or because he feels less sure the higher he stands, he is particularly enthusiastic about adopting an adopted son and recognizing him as his biological son. This is also in line with the wishes of many people, and some people want to Taking shortcuts, some wanted to avoid disaster. In short, until Mr. Zhu fell, there were twenty adopted sons who passed the Ming Road, and among these twenty sons, many grandsons were naturally derived, so that after Mr. Zhu fell, , the new emperor cleaned up the court and went to court the next day without more than half of the ministers.
Naturally, these adopted sons and grandsons who recognized their godfather did not do so because of a lack of fatherly love and care, but just to obtain benefits. However, there is no good thing in this world that only gets something without paying for it. They use their godfather and godgrandfather to be domineering and enjoy everything they want. Although they are rich and powerful, they must also suffer the fate of falling trees, scattered grandchildren, fires at the city gates, and fish in the pond. Therefore, after the fall of Mr. Zhu, these adopted sons and grandsons met a tragic end. For example, Gu Shiba Niang heard one of her grandsons in her lifetime. On his way back to his hometown after leaving office in despair, he was beaten to death by the angry people.
These people deserved to die for their crimes. Master Zhu raised them not because he lacked the love of his son, but because he needed them to come forward and work together to eliminate the dissidents and deceive the superiors and subordinates. He is not dim-sighted. Anyone can call him daddy and grandpa with a smiling face. Don’t refuse anything.
Among these adopted sons, there are those who are good at playing with the pen and confusing right and wrong just to slander their mortal enemies and dissidents, there are those who are dedicated to corruption and bribery to provide for Mr. Zhu’s family’s enjoyment, and there are those who are dedicated to spying on intelligence and network information. In short, they do not have the glory that a son raised in vain can have in vain. Wealth and a bright future.
"Then, how did Young Master Zhu win Master Zhu's favor?" Gu Shiba Niang asked again, with a chill in her eyes.
Lingyuan's heart felt cold. How could he forget that this girl who looked young had a state of mind that could see through the world and understand human feelings.
When asked by this sentence, the experiences he originally wanted to tell, the grudges between Master Zhu and Gu Hai that he wanted to talk about, those reasons that he once thought were reasonable and normal, were so ridiculous and pale, Gu Shiba My mother didn't mention the grudge between the two families at all. She only asked about the interests, only about his interests.
"...I accidentally saved the lives of Master Zhu and Mrs. Zhu..." He said directly and straightforwardly, "Someone was trying to assassinate Mrs. Zhu and Master Zhu. I happened to follow that day, and I easily repelled the strong... . . . I feel sorry for you.
"The assassins are probably General Ye's old subordinates or other indignant people." Gu Shiba Niang suddenly asked.
Lingyuan's face froze again, he moved his lips, lowered his eyes and said yes.
"You refuse to say that he is a strongman or a bad person, which shows that you still have some conscience in your heart." Gu Shiba Niang said lightly, "Also, you must have concealed your life experience from the Zhu family."
"Yes..." Lingyuan replied in a low voice.
"So you knew Lingbao was looking for you, but you avoided seeing him." Gu Shiba Niang said.
She used a statement rather than a question, and she was obviously determined not to need an answer.
Lingbao's tears suddenly welled up. She thought about how she went from door to door like a beggar, how she begged for help in a low voice, how she endured the naughty words and teasing of those boys, and how she couldn't sleep day and night when she heard about someone's family. The house was so frightened that the servant was killed, so he stuffed all his money and just asked for the place to secretly take a look at the dead body, wild dogs and vultures in the barren mountains and ridges. . . . .
"I have no choice..." Seeing his sister swaying, Lingyuan felt guilty, "I..."
"You don't have to." Gu Shiba Niang raised her hand to interrupt him, looked at him and said word by word, "This is your price, this is the price you have to pay in exchange for what you want."
Lingyuan looked at her, helpless to refute.
Yes, at this moment, when he was torn open by this girl and asked about his inner thoughts, he realized that the words he used to convince himself were really just self-deception.
It turns out that this is the price. . . . .
"Master Zhu, this price is just the beginning. The more you get in the future, the more you will have to pay..." Gu Shiba Niang looked at him, slowly approached, and stopped in front of him. He stretched out his hand to pull Lingbao, who was holding his arm and crying, "So, you can't even think of taking away Lingbao today, and you can't even think of leaving Lingbao in the same situation as you..."
Lingyuan looked at her with a sad expression.
"Eighteenth Mother..." He suddenly murmured, "No...don't, don't, don't want me..."
Gu Shiba Niang's frightened and angry mood was suddenly aroused by this expression, and she took a few deep breaths.
"When you were adopted as an adopted son, didn't you know who their family was?" She finally relented and asked this question that she shouldn't have asked to convince herself.
Lingyuan looked at her, obviously understanding the true meaning of her question. It was the first time he looked at her so closely and directly, looking at the face that lingered in his dreams every night.
"I... know." He replied hoarsely.
Gu Shiba Niang closed her eyes slightly, then opened them immediately.
"Very good, at least you didn't lie to me again." She whispered, stretched out her arms to hug Lingbao, turned around, "Let's go."
"Brother..." Lingbao couldn't help it anymore, turned around and threw himself into Lingyuan's arms, shaking him, "Brother, come back. You don't want to be the son of that bad guy. Come back. As long as you come back... ."
Lingyuan looked at his sister's painful face, his face was also full of pain, but his eyes were filled with determination.
"Your brother can't come back..." Gu Shiba Niang didn't look back and murmured, "Ever since he wanted to make a fortune through gambling, he can't come back... There is nothing he can't bear to do for the sake of glory and wealth. .
"No, I'm not here for glory and wealth..." Lingyuan suddenly raised his head and said tremblingly.
"Oh? So there is something more important than glory and wealth?" Gu Shiba Niang turned her head slightly and looked at him with neither happiness nor anger, "What is that?"
Lingyuan looked at her with burning eyes.
"I'm doing it for you, for Gu Shiba Niang." He said every word.
Gu Shiba Niang was slightly startled, and Ling Bao also stopped crying and raised his head to look at him.
“I don’t want to get ahead, and I don’t care about glory or wealth. I just want an opportunity to earn, an identity, an identity that can stand with you without being ridiculed, and can protect your identity when others insult you. . . . "Lingyuan looked at her and said in a deep voice.
Gu Shiba Niang looked at him with a trace of shock on her face.
This child is a proud person. It seems that Gu Luoer's public humiliation greatly stimulated him. Wanting money to gamble was just an inducement. The deeper reason was that he could not accept being so insignificant.
Men are all bloody. Being insulted by a woman and being protected by a woman would be unbearable for anyone else.
If it was really because of this, it would be much easier to wake him up and prevent him from ending up like those righteous sons and grandsons after Mr. Zhu's downfall in the future. "You are wrong. A mountain is always higher than a mountain. No matter how high you stand, you will always be scolded by others. The only thing that can protect us is our own state of mind, not our identity..." She turned around Shen said.
"But, I need this identity..." Lingyuan looked at her and shook his head, "I need an identity worthy of you..."
When Gu Shiba Niang heard this, she was startled again. Looking at the flush on his face and the eagerness in his eyes, she suddenly realized.
"You mean..." She didn't believe it, "You..."
"I am happy with the Eighteenth Mother, and I would like the Eighteenth Mother to be my wife." Lingyuan took her words and said solemnly with a trembling voice.
He must say this. If he doesn't say it now, it seems that he will never have the chance to say it again.
The girl just turned around with an expression of indifference. He had seen this kind of expression before. When Gu Shiba Niang faced Shen Anlin, it was a kind of indifference of old age and death. He didn't want to, and he couldn't. When we finally get the chance to meet each other, we become passers-by again, and we never have to taste the sadness of having no hope of seeing each other again in this life.
Lingbao's eyes widened and she covered her mouth. In this short moment, her mood was extremely complicated. She was so complicated that she didn't know whether she felt sadness, joy, love or hate. But at this moment, she heard her brother suddenly say this. In short, my heart couldn't help but beat faster.
Her brother has not changed, her heart has not changed, he is still her brother. . . .
Gu Shiba Niang stared at him blankly, then suddenly raised her head and laughed.
"Miss..." Lingbao was a little scared and couldn't help but say, "What my brother said is true, Lingbao, Lingbao testifies..."
Gu Shiba Niang ignored her and stopped laughing.
"Okay," with a smile on her lips, she stretched out her hand and clapped, "Okay."
The two siblings looked at her with uneasiness on their faces. Her reaction was really strange, neither ashamed nor happy nor angry.
"Children's love is human nature, there is nothing inappropriate about it," Gu Shiba Niang looked at Lingyuan and said in a clear voice, "However, marriage matters, parents' orders, matchmakers' words, Mr. Zhu, if you intend to I, please go and ask your father, if you want to hire me as a craftsman's wife, I will marry you."
Ever since he said those words, Lingyuan felt his heartbeat stop. When he saw her laughing suddenly, his heart suddenly sank. When he suddenly heard the next words, his heart skipped a beat and stopped. As for him, he felt like he was hanging in mid-air.
"Is this true?" he heard himself ask.
"How can a marriage be a trivial matter?" Gu Shiba Niang replied.
She must think Master Zhu doesn’t agree because she is a member of Gu Hai’s family, right
The matter has been discussed, and Mr. Zhu has also stepped forward to rescue Gu Hai. Naturally, this will not cause any problems for Gu Hai's family, and he is even more happy to turn the hostility into friendship.
Compared to this, Lingyuan was more worried about Gu Hai's opinion. It would be very difficult to convince Gu Hai, but Gu Shiba Niang was a person who always said what she said. As long as she made up her mind, whether it was Gu Hai or Cao, she would be the one to decide. I will never object.
Lingyuan took a deep look at her, turned around and strode away. He heard a burst of excitement outside the door, and in a moment, the carriages and horses were all moving away.
"Miss..." Only then did Lingbao say tentatively, "You...are you telling the truth?"
Gu Shiba Niang smiled and did not answer.
"Miss..." Lingbao felt mixed emotions in his heart and whispered softly, "Brother has always been pleased with Miss..."
"I know." Gu Shiba Niang said.
"Then... the lady... can... can..." A trace of surprise flashed across Lingbao's face, and he raised his head and asked stammeringly.
"Now it's not what he or I want..." Gu Shiba Niang looked towards the door, a faint smile flashed on her face, "As the same saying goes, if we gain something, we will definitely lose something. This is the price. , the more you want, the more you lose.”
A trace of confusion flashed across Lingbao's face, but looking at the tiredness that flashed across Shiba Niang's face, she knew that today's events were also worrying for her. She knew how much trouble their brother and sister had caused her since they got acquainted. He held Gu Shiba Niang's hand and walked towards the inner hall.
"He understood quickly." Gu Shiba Niang looked back at the door and said to herself.
After listening to his son Zhu Xuan read several memorials, all of which were very satisfactory, Master Zhu looked happily at Zhu Xuan, who had been waiting aside.
"Have you found out the whereabouts of those stubborn scholars?" he asked.
Lingyuan nodded.
"Then tell your uncle and let the Ministry of Justice arrest the person." Zhu Yan said.
"He's so frizzy..." Mr. Zhu glanced at his son with a bit of reproach.
Zhu Yan looked unconcerned.
Master Zhu no longer paid attention to him, but looked at Lingyuan again.
"You just barged in like a madman, and you were hesitant to say what to say?" he asked, sitting up from the rocking chair.
"Father," Lingyuan knelt down on one knee, bit his lower lip, raised his head and said solemnly, "I want to get a wife."
Zhu Yan was picking up the tea cup to drink tea, and when he heard the words, he spurted it out. Fortunately, he turned around quickly to avoid getting all over me.
Master Zhu was obviously very surprised, "You want to get a wife?"
Zhu Yan coughed and came over to pat Lingyuan on the shoulder, "...Brother, you are really good. Just as a sister appeared, a daughter-in-law appeared...and what else, mother, father, uncle, uncle, etc. Yes, let’s talk about it... Our family is not afraid of ten or eight people.”
Lord Zhu waved his hand to stop Zhu Yan from talking, and looked at Lingyuan with a loving smile on his face.
"Xuan'er is seventeen this year," he said with a smile, "It's time to get married. Xuan'er is already a father at your age..."
He stretched out his hand to twist his beard and said, "Tell me, which family's daughter do you like? Dad will ask someone to arrange a match to help our Zhu family flourish as soon as possible."
Lingyuan couldn't express the surprise on his face. He kowtowed heavily and said thank you to his father.
"Why should we be so polite as a family? It's totally out of character..." Mr. Zhu smiled and motioned to Zhu Xian, "Why don't you help your brother up?"
Zhu Xun smiled and stretched out his hand to help, but Lingyuan didn't dare to let him help him. He said he didn't dare to help, brother, and stood up.
"Tell me, which family's daughter you are?" Lord Zhu asked.
A trace of hesitation flashed across Lingyuan's face, "Gu family..."
"Which one?" Mr. Zhu asked with his ears slightly back and his body leaning forward slightly.
Lingyuan knelt down again, "Gu Hai, Gu family..."
"What?" Zhu Yan immediately lowered his face, "Is there something wrong with your mind?"
Lingyuan's figure trembled.
Master Zhu glared at Zhu Yan, "Why are you talking to your brother? You don't apologize like a brother."
Although Zhu Yan was pampered, he had not yet dared to contradict his father. He was reluctant to hear this, but he still handed over his hand and said, "Brother Xuan, brother made a mistake."
Lingyuan hurriedly lowered his head and said he didn't dare.
"Is he from the Gu Hai family?" Master Zhu asked, twirling his beard, a trace of thoughtfulness flashing across his face.
After Gu Hai was released from prison, he once summoned him specifically for the sake of Prince Wen, hinting in his words that he would try his best to release him regardless of previous suspicions. But this kid was just like a stone in a latrine. Standing there expressionless like that, not saying a word of thanks, it was really boring to have the same virtue as the remonstrating ministers in the court. No wonder the emperor wanted to send him far away, not only to preserve his reputation for generosity, but also to avoid unnecessary trouble. Make yourself uncomfortable.
Such a family is really not suitable. Although it seems that there is an old relationship with Prince Wen, it seems that Prince Wen is not very close to him, otherwise he would not wait until the moment of life and death to come forward, just to save his life.
"How is that girl's character?" he asked casually, picking up the words.
"She is very good..." Lingyuan said, remembering what Gu Shiba Niang mentioned, he hesitated for a moment, and then said, "She is a pharmacist and makes good medicine. She is the apprentice of the great pharmacist Liu Gong. She is very good at making medicine." famous......"
Before he finished speaking, Master Zhu's face darkened, he patted the armrest and stood up.
"How can a craftsman like me be worthy of my family?" he shouted.
Lingyuan was startled and looked up at Master Zhu with a look of shock on his face.
"Scholars, farmers, industry and commerce, the hierarchy is strict, and the family is clear. Our Zhu family has been a scholar, poet, and poet for generations. No matter what your status was before, you are now the son of my Zhu family. How can you marry a craftsman? It is really ridiculous." Mr. Zhu said with a serious face. shouted.
"That's right, if you take her in as a concubine, you will lose your status. At most, she will be raised as an outhouse," Zhu Xian hurriedly introduced her to his brother.
Concubine? Outer room? Lingyuan shook his head quickly, it was impossible, impossible.
"Father...she is really a good woman..." He couldn't help but kneel down for a few steps and begged.
"Don't say any more." Mr. Zhu interrupted him with a wave of his sleeves. "Your mother and I have the final say on important matters such as marriage and parents' orders. Don't say any more."
After that, he turned around and went into the inner room.
"What kind of girl?" Zhu Yan said with a smile, "Brother, you are still too young. There are so many girls in the world that you can't even look at them. It's not worth making your father angry over a girl. Come on, come on, take care of your brother." Open your eyes and save yourself from the world."
Lingyuan didn't hear what he said at all. He just knelt down in a daze, his ears echoing Master Zhu's words: "How can you marry a craftsman's daughter? How can you marry a craftsman's daughter?"
When he was a slave, she was the noble lady that he could only look up to. When he just stood up and wanted to protect her, Gu Luoer's arrogant daughter insulted him and her with disdain. Lose your identity.
Now that he has finally earned a significant enough status, when he can finally ask her to marry him, she has become a craftsman, and in turn, others will use this to slander her and stop him.
Is this a trick of the world, or is it the price Gu Shiba Niang said
He gained glory and wealth, and gained a status that everyone respected, but he lost the qualification for independent marriage and the opportunity to stay with his beloved.
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I have to make up for what I missed yesterday. I am so tired after this National Day. I will never travel again this year. Seeing the scenery is not as good as listening to the scenery, and listening to the scenery is not as good as living in peace. . . . . I'm exhausted. . . I've been in a rough place for the past half month