The topic finally turned to this matter.
Although Mrs. Guo said she would not be angry with Mrs. Guan, Zhou Shaojin still couldn't help but worry about his grandmother.
Madam Guo smiled and said, "Didn't the third daughter-in-law ask you to come over and speak for her?"
Didn't they say that Mrs. Tang from the second room was extremely embarrassed? How did it involve Mrs. Li from the third room
Zhou Shaojin was puzzled.
Old Madam Guan blushed and said, "That's what I meant. A harmonious family is the root of everything. If there is any rift between you and your second sister-in-law, we, your younger sisters, will always be a little worried."
Mrs. Guo thought for a moment and said solemnly, "Fourth brother's wife, shall I tell you the truth? According to etiquette, the eldest branch should be the patriarch, but you see, the second branch has been unwilling to take out the family tree, and they also suppress us everywhere. I don't know what they are doing. Do you think I feel resentful? A few decades ago, I didn't feel resentful. Because without the second branch's ancestor, the two old men in our family would not have been able to enter the officialdom - they would have to leave one at home to guard the ancestral property, right? My two sons would not have been able to participate in the imperial examinations smoothly. Now one is appointed as a prime minister and the other is idle. But in the past few years, I have felt resentful.
"Since Silang gave up the opportunity to enter the government and took charge of the menial affairs, why did the ancestor of the second branch still hold on to the family tree
"You know, Fourth Sister-in-law, that I am a straightforward person. If I have anything to say, I will just say it clearly face to face. If it is possible, I will say it is possible. If it is not possible, I will say it is not possible. I will think of ways to solve the problems. If the ancestor of the second branch wants to continue to be the patriarch, that's fine. Gather the branches together and talk. Our eldest branch will hand over the sacrificial land, and Shige'er and others will take care of the family business in the future. Our Silang can also go to the Ministry of Personnel to register and seek an official position. Maybe he can even earn a longevity tortoise-shaped stele after his death. If the ancestor of the second branch is just afraid that his descendants will not be able to make it, he should let Silang slowly get familiar with the family affairs. Apart from anything else, Silang should try to manage the Cheng family's clan studies.
"How can you just leave it there without saying anything? What's the point of leaving it there without any justification
"You should have heard clearly what the ancestor of the second branch of Tingyuxuan said that day. Is our Silang unfilial? It's ok that he asked Geng'er to recite the "Book of Filial Piety", but what did he mean by those words afterwards? How could he not allow us to think more
"What does the second daughter-in-law have to be ashamed of
"If you want to talk about shame and anger, it's me who is ashamed and angry.
"I am also a grandmother at an old age. The second house's ancestor always says something that hurts people's hearts. I know it clearly, so why did I go to Ting Yuxuan? Don't you think I am embarrassed enough
"I think the old ancestor of the second branch is getting old and has begun to get confused. He is just like the grandmother of Nawen. Our elder generations have their own grievances, while the younger generations have their own friendships. Otherwise, the clan members cannot be united, and this family will sooner or later fall apart. He actually used Geng'er as a raft. It would be fine if he just recited the "Book of Filial Piety", but he also used Geng'er's recitation of the "Book of Filial Piety" to make a fuss.
"Go and tell the third son's wife that I have kept this in mind and will make it clear to the second son's wife sooner or later. She'd better figure it out as soon as possible, whether she's on my side or the second son's side. Don't flatter the horse, or you'll only get kicked."
Mrs. Guo's veiled and covert attacks left Mrs. Guan speechless for a long time, looking embarrassed.
In the past, the ancestor of the second house had great respect for Madam Guo. When he just retired, he once said in front of Qu Min, the chief minister of the cabinet, "Our Jiuru Lane can be what it is today, thanks to my eldest niece's wife." On the contrary, Madam Guo acted as she pleased, and the ancestor of the second house never said anything. According to Li Laoan, the third house, the last incident of Tingyuxuan was probably because the ancestor of the second house saw that the eldest house was powerful, and he was old, and his students and old friends were either no longer alive or no longer in office. He was afraid that when it was Shi Ge'er's turn, the eldest house would ignore him. In addition, Madam Guo did not attend the family dinner of Tingyuxuan for no reason, so he acted hastily in anger.
Mrs. Guo is old, and Silang should go and apologize to the old ancestor.
Silang's indifference will only exacerbate the conflict between the two families.
But Old Lady Guan felt that the ancestor of the second branch would not live long anyway, and it would be unwise for the first branch to fall out with the second branch at this time. That's why she came to persuade them.
But what Mrs. Guan didn't expect was that Mrs. Guo turned the tables and said that the ancestor of the second house shouldn't have said that in a veiled way.
But if Mrs. Guo had not attended the family dinner, how could the ancestor of the second house have hinted that the eldest house should be filial to their elders
Now even if Old Lady Guan had a thousand words to say, she had no words to say.
It's obvious that Madam Guo is trying to make trouble!
She could only smile helplessly and said, "We are just afraid that you will quarrel?"
Fortunately, Mrs. Guo did not continue to speak, and sighed: "I appreciate your kindness, but don't worry about their messy affairs in the future. Some things are not as simple as you think."
Now that things have come to this, it is difficult for Mrs. Guan to say anything more.
"Your words have lifted a heavy stone from my heart. I have long wanted to stop caring about these things. Sometimes it is really a nuisance." She changed the subject and said with a smile, "I am very happy today. You can come and taste the cooking skills of the kitchen master."
Cheng's kitchen was only responsible for the meals of the first and second houses, while the other three houses had their own small kitchens. If there were guests and the kitchen was needed to prepare the banquet, they would have to ask for a pair of cards from Madam Yuan of the first house or follow the orders of Madam Tang of the second house.
Come to think of it, the Cheng family is a bit messy.
No wonder Mrs. Guo is unhappy!
Old Mrs. Guan smiled bitterly in her heart and winked at Zhou Shaojin as she left.
But before Zhou Shaojin could speak, Mrs. Guo said, "Shaojin, go see your grandmother off."
Zhou Shaojin agreed with a smile and helped Old Lady Guan out of Siyi Building.
Mrs. Guan then asked, "Do you know why Mrs. Guo got angry?"
Zhou Shaojin shook his head instinctively. Seeing some confusion in his grandmother's eyes, he pretended to be ignorant and said, "Didn't Mrs. Guo just say that it was because the ancestor of the second house said something bad about the first house?"
Old Mrs. Guan looked at her young face and shook her head in her heart.
Shaojin is still too young!
The conflicts between the first and second houses will surely get even bigger in the future, so it is better to settle the marriage between this child and Yi Ge'er as soon as possible and send this child to Baoding Prefecture, so that he won't be caught between the two houses and have a hard time.
Old Lady Guan gave Zhou Shaojin a few words of advice to "be obedient" and then left, surrounded by maids and servants.
Zhou Shaojin went upstairs with embarrassment.
Madam Guo didn't ask her anything, but just smiled and said, "Do you want to go back or continue to have dinner here?"
It was the best time of the day outside.
Zhou Shaojin smiled and said, "Can we just stay in Siyi Building?"
There are two small rooms separated by the stairs on the second floor, which are used for the female family members to rest or organize clothes during banquets.
Upon hearing this, Madam Guo said, "Then let's have dinner before going back."
Zhou Shaojin nodded with a smile, and he and Madam Guo each took a nap in Siyi Building.
When they woke up in the afternoon, they played mahjong again.
This time, Cheng Chi didn't say anything when he came over for dinner.
However, whenever Zhou Shaojin thought of Cheng Chi's words, "I'll make up for whatever you lost," he felt a warm current flowing through his heart.
It was as if he was her towering tree, and no matter what she did, he could shelter her from the wind and rain.
She smiled, thinking about what her grandmother said when she came, and figuring that Mrs. Guo must have something to say to Cheng Chi. She took the tea from the little maid and placed it in front of Cheng Chi, then went downstairs to prepare dinner with Biyu.
Madam Guo looked at Zhou Shaojin's slender but not delicate back and said with a smile, "This child has grown up so quickly and has become more obedient and sensible than before."
Cheng Chi followed his mother's line of sight and answered absentmindedly, "Yes," but in his heart he was thinking, when she knew that they could go out to watch the dragon boat race during the Dragon Boat Festival, he would be so happy!
Then he greatly admired the knowledge and taste of Magistrate Wu.
He just started the idea, and Prefect Wu took it over. In the end, he solved the problem with only 500 taels of silver.
Magistrate Wu is not a very good person, but he is very reliable when it comes to helping with things.
It seems that he can still hold the position of Jinling prefect for a few more years...
Madam Guo told Cheng Chi about the purpose of Madam Guan's visit, and finally said: "... I am old, and I am too lazy to be hypocritical with them."
Cheng Chi could see that his mother was still a little uneasy.
Probably because he was afraid of affecting his arrangements.
He has been running around these years, and his mother vaguely feels what he is doing, but she doesn't know that he is planning to leave the Cheng family.
Cheng Chi suddenly felt guilty and couldn't help but pull his mother's hand to comfort her: "Don't worry, family matters won't affect me."
Mrs. Guo finally felt relieved. Thinking about Cheng Chi's promise to her yesterday that they would get married, her mood improved and she happily had dinner with Cheng Chi and Zhou Shaojin.
Afterwards, Cheng Chi walked in front, and Zhou Shaojin held Madam Guo's arm, and they returned to Hanbi Villa chatting and laughing.
When Tang Laoan heard the news, he gnashed his teeth in hatred and sneered, saying, "I wonder how long she can laugh?"
The maids and old women serving around pretended not to hear and kept their heads down doing their own things.
Jiang scolded Li Laoan: "No one else said anything, why did you take the lead?"
Li Laoan said aggrievedly: "Tang Laoan came to me, how can I not agree?"
Jiang's teeth were sore from biting them.
How could the Li family produce such people? Even if they marry their daughter to a poor man, they cannot let her have anything to do with Li Jing
Li Jing, who had suffered an unexpected disaster, kept sneezing in the inn.
Zhou Shaojin took the opportunity of sending Cheng Chi out of the upper room to talk to Cheng Chi about Siyi Tower.
Cheng Chi pondered and said, "Do you want to know why those things happened in your previous life?"
“Not really?” Zhou Shaojin himself couldn’t explain it clearly, and hesitated, “I also know that it’s impossible to pursue the things in my previous life... but my heart... is a little complicated... I want to talk to Uncle Chi.”
※
Sisters and brothers, luckily I wrote half a chapter last night, otherwise I would be in big trouble~~~~(>_