Luo Xiuxiu and Xu Yuzhi talked nonsense for a while and then left. Such a rare opportunity, of course, should not be wasted on comforting the "weak". At any rate, they should get to know more ladies from various prefectures and broaden their social circle.
Fu Wan told her interesting stories about her children for a while, and then she was called away by her natal sister-in-law.
Not long after those three left, wives from other mansions came to say hello to Shen Xinyan. Among them, there were many who wanted to inquire about Jing Anbo and Li from her, but she pretended to be stupid and evaded all of them. up.
Seeing that they couldn't find any useful information from her, those people felt rather bored, and after a few polite words, they walked away one after another.
"Second sister-in-law, why did you come here? Let me find it easier!" Wei Qiongshu walked over at some point and said with a smile.
"I just met a few familiar ladies and chatted for a few words. It took so long before I knew it, and my sister laughed." Shen Xinyan replied with a smile.
"Second sister-in-law follow me, I will take you to meet a lady." Wei Qiongshu stretched out his hand to hold her, and pulled her forward without waiting for her answer.
Shen Xinyan followed her helplessly, and naturally guessed that the wife she was talking about was not the wife of an ordinary family, and she was afraid that her background was not small.
"Where's Miss Fang? Why don't you see her?" She asked without words.
"It's not that Tao'er was naughty, she actually splashed water on Bi Rong's skirt, I asked my servants to take her in to change clothes." Wei Qiongshu said helplessly.
The Tao'er she was talking about was her five-year-old son.
"Children are not restless, and Miss Fang is not an outsider, so she doesn't care about it." Shen Xinyan said disapprovingly.
Fang Birong had to rely on Wei Qiongshu to take her to get acquainted with Mrs. Xungui more, not to mention that Tao'er just accidentally splashed her skirt wet, even if it was dirty or damaged, she would not care about it.
"It's also thanks to Birong's good temper. Second sister-in-law, come..." Wei Qiongshu pulled her towards a lady who was like a star-studded lady, and introduced to her in a low voice, "Then This is the empress's direct sister-in-law, the second lady of the capital, and the wife of the chief minister and the empress hold high esteem."
The second daughter-in-law of Zhou Shoufu? Shen Xinyan naturally knew, and she also knew that Mrs. Zhou had always been at odds with Zhou Guanning's mother, Wen, but it was not surprising that she married the "eldest son" of Mrs. Shoufu, so logically she should be called Mrs. The "big master" of the auxiliary mansion crawled out of the belly of a concubine, and married a wife who was also a concubine, but she was firmly in the "big lady", so she had to condescendingly call her "second lady".
The most terrible thing is that the Wen family, who was born as a concubine, was born with a thousand charms, as beautiful as peaches and plums, and made all the wives in the mansion look like vulgar fans. For Mrs. Zhou, who has always had a negative appearance, this is no less than putting a knife in her heart.
Shen Xinyan even thought that the second lady's reputation as "virtuous" was so resounding, could it be because she deliberately competed with Wen's "good reputation"? After all, when virtue speaks for merit, virtue always ranks ahead of capacity.
"Princess, Mrs. Shizi." The wives who were surrounding Mrs. Zhou saw their aunt and sister-in-law coming together, and hurriedly greeted them.
"The princess and Mrs. Shizi have a really good relationship. Could it be another pair of sisters-in-law like the empress and Mrs. Zhou?" Mrs. You said with a smile.
There was a tinge of shame on Mrs. Zhou's face. The Queen's Empress' support was her greatest reliance on gaining a foothold in the Zhou Mansion. No matter what, she couldn't get on top of her.
Wei Qiongshu didn't dare compare herself to the empress, so she quickly said politely: "Ma'am, you are joking. Everyone in the capital doesn't know that the empress and Mrs. Zhou are as close as sisters when they are still in the boudoir. This has become a sister-in-law... Oh, it's true that they are real sisters." But that's all!"
"The princess is really good at speaking." Even though Mrs. Zhou said so, the smile on her face couldn't be hidden from everyone, and Wei Qiongshu naturally knew that what she said meant her heart.
"In the past, it was rare to see Mrs. Shizi, but today I finally saw it." I was satisfied with Wei Qiongshu's intentional or unintentional flattery, and even to Shen Xinyan she brought, Mrs. Zhou was also a little kind to Mrs. Zhou.
"I should be the one to say that, it's rare to see Madam once." Shen Xinyan replied with a smile.
Everyone came and complimented each other, and the atmosphere was quite harmonious for a while.
"Please forgive me for a moment." After a long while, Mrs. Zhou said politely.
Everyone heard the string song and knew the elegant meaning, Wei Qiongshu hurriedly called the maid, and led Mrs. Zhou to the backyard.
However, when Mrs. Zhou came out of the bathroom, her personal maid had already handed over a clean handkerchief and waited for her to wash her hands.
"Let's bid farewell to the princess later and go back to the mansion. It's a full ceremony to come here and there."
The maid nodded: "Yes."
When the maid who led the way saw their master and servant coming out, she quickly stepped forward and bowed to salute: "Madam, please come with your servant."
On the way back to the flower hall, there are many exotic flowers, plants, and strange mountains and rocks. Mrs. Zhou couldn't help thinking: Everyone said that the garden of Kangjun Prince's Mansion is a must in Beijing. If she is allowed to see it, this Duke of Wei The mansion's garden is no less impressive.
"Who is that girl next to the princess? How could she be so flattered by her!"
"It is said that she is the younger sister of the princess's natal sister-in-law, and I think she came to congratulate the princess instead of her sister."
Suddenly, a voice came through the branches of flowers and trees. Mrs. Zhou paused her steps and frowned slightly. She wanted to speed up her pace and leave, but she stopped when she heard the other party's next words.
"That's right. I remembered what you said. I seemed to have seen her last time at the Hundred Flowers Banquet. There were girls in the room, but she was the prettiest. I still remember Mrs. Shoufu on the first day of the junior high school." When I saw that girl, my eyes lit up, tsk tsk..."
"You actually went to the Hundred Flowers Banquet?"
"I went to help temporarily, but it was a pity that I didn't stay for long before I was kicked out by some dogs who saw people as inferior. That's all, let's not mention these things, after all, I have seen the world. Oh, yes, Mrs. Shoufu is not Is there a son who is not yet married? Could it be that he has taken a fancy to this girl and intends to form a marriage?"
"This girl has a good appearance, and she is related to the princess, so she must be from a low family background. She is a good match with that first assistant son, she must be a good-looking man."
"See what you said..."
…
The two women's voices became farther and farther away, until they could not be heard at all. The maid leading the way turned pale with fright when she heard the "Shoufu" mentioned in the other's words.
Where did these two get mixed up? It doesn't look like a servant of the mansion, nor like a guest, it's really damn it, it's nothing more than talking nonsense, but it's still overheard by the distinguished guests!
Cursing secretly in her heart, she secretly looked at Mrs. Zhou's face, seeing that pretty face was already flushed with anger, she cried out inwardly.
"The right family? How dare a daughter from a poor family say that she is right with the chief minister?!" Mrs. Zhou sneered.
The two of them didn't know Fang Birong's identity, but she knew it perfectly. How dare the daughter of such a poor family think about their capital!
"The princess is soft-hearted after all. Anyone who dares to criticize a distinguished guest behind his back, if he was in the capital, he would have been beaten and sent out!" She glanced sideways at the maid and said coldly.
"Madam, please forgive me. I will definitely report this matter to the Princess, and I will give Madam an explanation!" The maid hurriedly knelt down and pleaded guilty.
Mrs. Tuesday held her own identity, so naturally she would not talk too much with her servants, she just left this sentence, and walked away with her personal maid without looking back.
The maid frowned, seeing that the pair of master and servant turned back the way they came, and convinced that they had not gone the wrong way, she sighed and walked quickly along the path, hoping to settle the matter before Mrs. Tuesday returned. Report to the princess in detail.
When meeting Birong above, Mrs. Zhou frowned and said 'unlucky'.
It's true that the more you hate something, the more you want it. Just now I heard two stupid women talking about the 'prettiest looking' Miss Fang, now it's all good, and I met the real master right away.
She had to wonder, could it be that Princess Qiongshu arranged all of this? The purpose is to use this girl Fang to catch up with the capital.
When she thought of this possibility, she felt disgusted for no reason, and Birong looked down on Fang Birong even more, especially when she saw her graceful figure like a weak willow Fufeng, which was somewhat similar to that of the Changfang's Wen family, the disgust in her heart returned. add.
"Mrs. Zhou!" Naturally, Fang Birong also saw her, and rushed forward to greet her.
"Young lady has good eyesight." Mrs. Zhou sneered in her heart.
She came late, and Wei Qiongshu didn't have time to bring Fang Birong to her. Logically, Fang Birong, a girl who came to Beijing for the first time, could not recognize her, but the other party called her out accurately.
How could he be so clear if he hadn't set his sights on the Shoufu Mansion early in the morning!
Wanting to understand this level, in her heart, Fang Birong in front of her has been completely equated with a "shameless woman who wants to cling to the capital and auxiliary mansion". Of course, she will never do anything good to such a woman complexion.
Seeing her disgusted face, Fang Birong's heart skipped a beat, wondering why the other party would show such an expression to her.
"Girls should also think about their own identities, and don't think that they can cling to nobles just because of their looks. A pheasant is a pheasant, even if it flies up a branch, it can't become a phoenix. No matter how degraded my son is, I can't do it. I won't marry such an ignorant thing!" After speaking, she gave Fang Birong another look of disdain, and then walked away with the maid.
Fang Birong's face turns blue and red and white, it's really wonderful.
Looking at Mrs. Zhou who was showing a bit of arrogance from her back, she clenched her hands tightly, her eyes full of hatred.
"That madam is too much! After all, Miss Fang is still a girl who hasn't left the court, yet she speaks so badly about her!" Until the surroundings fell into silence again, Chunliu behind the rockery said in a low voice.
Shen Xinyan took it for granted, and felt a little sympathy for Fang Birong who was humiliated for no reason.
As for Mrs. Tuesday...
Such a woman whose eyes are higher than the top and has no dust under her eyes, no wonder she was suppressed by the Wen family and had no chance to stand up.