In the evening, Mrs. Qu called her two sons and Luo over.
After hearing what the lady said, Qu Zhilin was the first to disagree. He didn't know about this matter yet. He looked up at Luo and said dissatisfiedly: "Nonsense, how can you hold a banquet at this time?"
The Qu Mansion has been pushed to the forefront because of Yu's affairs. Whenever there is a dispute between wives and concubines in the family, the Qu Mansion will be involved. Speaking of Xiao Yue, who was killed by Yu, at this time, they should first worship Xiao Yue, and all things should be based on Xiao Yue's rituals.
As for other things, they have to give way.
What could be more important than this? The reputation of the entire Qu Mansion depends on this.
Qu Zhilin is the censor and he understands better what it means to be afraid of what people say. Because of this incident, he, the uncle from the next room, has been ridiculed many times by his peers, let alone his own younger brother.
"But... but Minghui said that the young lady from that family wants to go on a blind date. If he doesn't settle down quickly, he'll ruin his life!" Without Qu Moying around, Luo didn't hide her feelings and cried with red eyes, "I know it's not the right time, but... Yue's family is long gone. This was done by Yu's family. It has nothing to do with us. Besides, we just need to invite a few young ladies so that no one will find out."
Mrs. Luo was really unwilling to accept this, as she was also worried about her children's marriages.
My daughter is unable to do anything for now, and my son has been reluctant to get married before. Now he finally has a target, and the conditions are not bad. Why can't he get married early
Xiao Yue has been dead for more than ten years. It's not a new funeral. Why can't people hold a banquet? The living are more important than the dead! The most important thing is, what does the incident of that year have to do with the East Palace? If there is any fuss, it should be the people of the West Palace.
Of course, Luo didn't dare to say the following words in front of the lady, so she could only cry out of grievance.
Qu Zhizhen said nothing. He looked at Luo seriously, then turned to his elder brother. If he was not a fool, he would not make such a request at this time.
Qu Zhilin slammed the table so hard that the teacup on the table almost fell down, making a tinkling sound.
Luo was frightened and dared not cry out loud anymore. She quickly took a handkerchief to wipe her tears.
The lady looked at her eldest son unhappily and said, "Speak properly!"
"Mother, why didn't I speak nicely? But did she understand what I said? At this time, why do we still need to hold a blind date banquet? In order to prevent people from calling it a blind date banquet, we have to invite more people, not just those young ladies, but perhaps all the families. With so many people, it will cause a big uproar in the city, and the emperor will definitely reprimand my second brother and me. Do you think we have had it too easy?"
Qu Zhilin became more and more annoyed as he spoke, and felt that he had been blind to marry such a foolish woman like Luo.
She was born into a wealthy family, so how could her vision be so narrow? Speaking of this so-called wealthy lady, of course, she was from a local family, and was completely different from those ladies from the capital's aristocratic families.
"Mother, I only invite a few families." Luo looked at the lady for help, and it was obvious that she had not given up her previous idea.
"How many families are you inviting? A large family is coming, with young ladies, young men, wives and masters. One family is already a lot of people, and adding a few more families, you are afraid that others will not know that you are holding a big banquet in your mansion, holding a big banquet at this time, Luo, do you really think so?"
Seeing that she was still stubborn, the lady became angry.
He coughed softly and scolded harshly.
“But… but Minghui…” Luo couldn’t help but shed tears again, saying aggrievedly.
"A real man will never have trouble finding a wife. Minghui can marry anyone he wants after he gets married. As long as he passes the exam, he will have all kinds of options. Why does he need such a family?" Qu Zhilin said unhappily.
"But Minghui said he only wanted to marry this young lady... and not anyone else." Luo said timidly. She was actually a little tempted, but now she thought about it, she was a little anxious. This young lady's conditions were actually average. Compared with Qu Minghui now, she was really not a good choice. But her son just liked her, as if he was possessed by a demon.
What if her son gets into high school? There are many people who have better conditions than her, and there may even be better ones.
But seeing her son kneeling in front of her and begging, Luo felt distressed.
"If you don't want to marry, don't marry. If there is destiny, it will come naturally. If there is no destiny, what's the use of forcing it!" Qu Zhilin said impatiently, "Okay, this matter ends here. In the next few days, you should prepare for the ritual. Hold a ritual for the Yue family. You should contact Qingyun Temple and prepare well. We must let people see that we are sincerely holding the ritual for the Yue family."
The current public opinion does not have anything good to say about the Qu family.
The two brothers Qu Zhilin and Qu Zhizhen were often ridiculed by others. Qu Zhizhen was even more worried that it would affect his career. Although Qu Zhilin was not that close to them, two "Qu" characters could not be written with one stroke. Of the two brothers, Qu Zhizhen was more promising. If Qu Zhizhen could not be promoted, the Qu family would be doomed.
"I'll talk to Minghui, just focus on Yue's ritual." Afraid that Luo would still pester him, Qu Zhilin said more bluntly, "Don't think about those trivial things. Taking care of Yue's affairs is the most important thing. Other things in the mansion are trivial now and can give way to them."
The Yue family's affairs were a big deal, while the affairs of one's own children were small matters. Luo was so angry that her face looked very ugly, but she had to swallow her anger and agreed.
Since Luo had already agreed, the two brothers talked about some matters in the court and things to pay attention to in the future. The lady listened to what the two brothers said, and although she did not say anything, she nodded repeatedly. She felt that what they said made sense, and what the Qu family had to do now was to keep a low profile.
Help the Yue family with sincerity and let the people in the capital see the sincerity of the Qu family.
As for other things, don’t think about them or do them at this time. The more you do, the more mistakes you will make. This is what Qu Fu is talking about at this time.
Luo was also listening, and seemed to be listening carefully to what the two brothers said, but in fact she did not hear anything. She just felt depressed and uncomfortable. She was the eldest lady of the Qu family, so why was she suppressed by the Yue family after Yue's death? It would be fine if she was suppressed by the Yue family, but why should her own children also be suppressed by others
She was planning to host a matchmaking party for her son, so she had no time to attend the Yue family's funeral.
It was clearly a happy event, but she was asked to take care of a funeral. Luo felt sick to her stomach.
He listened in depression. After listening to them finish talking, he followed Qu Zhilin back to the East Mansion. When he went to bed at night, he tossed and turned and couldn't sleep. He just felt that the breath in his heart could neither be swallowed nor spit out.
The next day, Qu Zhilin was not at home, so Luo took a trusted maid to see her daughter.
After Qu Xuexin was brought back, she did not live in the same courtyard as before, but in a small courtyard near the back door.
The house was tidied up to look like a small Buddhist temple.
When she was brought back, Luo had promised the lady, only that she should be kept in peace in the backyard.
This place was chosen by Qu Xuexin herself.
Luo didn't dare to send anyone to serve, so Hongmei was still the only one there. Baimei was sent away and was not at home at the moment, leaving Hongmei alone by Qu Xuexin's side.
Hearing the sound at the gate, Hongmei came out and saluted Luo: "Madam."
"How is the eldest lady?" Luo pointed inside the house and asked in a low voice.
"It's the same as always. The young lady is still not feeling well." Hongmei whispered.
Luo nodded and turned to go into the house. There was an incense burner on the small Buddhist temple in the main room, but Luo didn't even look at it and went straight from the main room to the side room.
"Mother!" In the side room, Qu Xuexin was embroidering a sachet. Seeing Luo coming in, she hurriedly put the sachet in her hand under the pillow and came forward with a slightly red face.
Luo only caught a glimpse of red from the corner of his eyes, which should be a red sachet.
"Why did you embroider such a colorful sachet? If your grandmother sees it, she will be angry again." Luo said angrily, "Why are you so ignorant? You are practicing in seclusion."
“Mother, I… I only dare to embroider here, I… I like this bright color, and don’t want to see this plain… moldy color.” Qu Xuexin’s tears fell, hanging on her face, looking extremely pitiful. Her expression was not that good to begin with, and the tears made people feel even more distressed.
Luo's heart ached with pain. She reached out to grab Qu Xuexin, hugged her, and cried loudly: "My poor child, it's your fault that I can't protect you."
"Mother, why do you say that? You are already protecting me!" Qu Xuexin cried, tears falling in strings.
"Don't cry, if you keep crying, I... I can't help it either." Luo Shi also didn't sleep well that night. Now seeing her daughter, whom she held in her palm, so sad, how could she hold it back? She patted Qu Xuexin's back and said with sobs.
She really did something wrong. Why did she have to give in to the West Mansion in everything? Now her own children have to give in again and again because of the West Mansion’s affairs. She really couldn’t accept this.
"Mother, has something happened? Does father not agree with eldest brother's matter?" Qu Xuexin sensed that Luo was in a bad mood, so she reached out her hand and clumsily patted Luo's back, saying anxiously.
This touched Luo's sore spot, and she shed more tears: "Your father... he is a fool, and he is devoted to the West Mansion. For so many years, although our East Mansion is the largest, no one outside takes us seriously. They all talk about how great the West Mansion of Qu Mansion is, but he is still devoted to the West Mansion..."
When Luo talked about hatred, she only felt wronged and uncomfortable, and the grievance was so extreme that she felt resentful and indignant.
It is obvious that the East Palace is the bigger one, so why should the affairs of the West Palace be the priority
"Mother, don't be sad. Sit down first and listen to what I have to say." Qu Xuexin knew something had happened. She put her hand on Luo's shoulder and pulled her to sit down in the chair. She personally made a cup of tea and brought it to Luo, blowing on it deliberately. "Mother, drink some tea first and calm down before we talk!"
Such a caring look made Luo Shi even more upset! Why should such a well-behaved daughter of hers be locked up in a deserted courtyard to cultivate...