Cheng Chi smiled and pinched Zhou Shaojin's nose, and said, "When did you become so smart?"
Zhou Shaojin leaned back to avoid Cheng Chi's hand.
Cheng Chi laughed out loud.
The two of them hugged each other on the kang and talked for a long time. Cheng Chi saw that it was getting late and was afraid that he would be addicted to the gentleness and would not be able to leave. So he kissed Zhou Shaojin's cheek and whispered, "Hurry up and finish embroidering the pocket, and marry me as soon as possible."
Zhou Shaojin's face was so embarrassed that blood seemed to drip out of it. He spat at Cheng Chi and pushed Cheng Chi out of the room. However, he could not help but climb onto the kang and looked at Cheng Chi's leaving back through the glass window inlaid on the window frame with reluctance.
Cheng Chi seemed to sense her reluctance, so he turned around and waved at her before walking out of the Chuihua Gate.
Zhou Shaojin's heart was pounding, and it took a while for him to calm down. Looking at the half-embroidered pocket beside him, he asked Chunwan to open the box and find a piece of purple plain silk. He took off his coat and tried it on himself, and whispered to Chunwan, "Is this color okay for me?"
Chun Wan smiled and said, "It looks good. It matches your skin which is as white as the first snow."
Zhou Shaojin blushed again, and cut a bellyband out of the material. After thinking for a while, he found a piece of pink plain silk material and cut a bellyband out of it as well...
Zhou Zhen, on the other hand, was in the spotlight because Song Jingran, the Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion and the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and Zhang Hui, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, came forward to propose marriage for Cheng Chi. Song Jingran even linked Cheng Chi's wedding date to the dredging of the Yellow River in winter when there was no farming work to do. Zhou Zhen had no choice but to respond for both moral and logical reasons.
Zhou Shaojin and Cheng Chi's wedding date was set for the day after Zhou Shaojin's coming-of-age ceremony, which was the sixth day of November.
Mrs. Guo was so happy to hear that the wedding was confirmed that she couldn't stop smiling. Together with Qin Shouyue, the chief steward of Qin, she called back Qin Zi'an and Qin Ziping and asked them to help write the invitations.
Qin Ziping and Ji Ying were like a pair of bickering lovers, fighting and quarreling all the time. Their wedding date was just set on October 4th a few days ago.
Therefore, Mrs. Guo was happy when she saw Qin Ziping, and said to Qin Dachang: "We will be able to hear the noise of children by this time next year."
That means there is a successor.
The two people of the same age couldn't hide their smiles when they thought about it.
Mrs. Guo asked, "Will Ziping return to Sichuan after getting married?"
Qin Shouyue smiled and said, "I went back there once with my father when I was a child. This time I'll go take a look."
Madam Qin advised, "I didn't like living in the capital before because my relatives and friends were all in Jinling, but later their father passed away and the children were in the capital, so I wanted to move to the capital to be closer to the children. After all, where you live is secondary. It's important to have people we know and relatives and old friends there. You might as well go back and have a look. For so many years, you have been delayed because of our Cheng family's affairs. But if you really don't get used to living there, don't be obsessed with the idea of going back. It's better to move to the capital! Our two families will have someone to help each other."
Qin Shouyue nodded with a smile and said, "Don't worry, old lady. I am not the kind of person who sticks to one's own opinion. Ziyou's family wants to continue to stay in the Cheng family, so let them continue to stay in the Cheng family. Ziping married the eldest daughter of the Ji family, who is very skilled, so I plan to take them back to Sichuan. As for Zi'an, he wants to stay in the capital, so I will let him do that."
After reading about the grievances of the Cheng family, he suddenly felt that life is short and that being able to live as he pleases is a blessing.
In this way, regardless of whether Qin Ziping and his wife follow Qin Shouyue to stay in their hometown Sichuan, the relationship between the Qin family and the Cheng family will not be broken.
Mrs. Guo laughed with relief.
Qin Zian, who was writing the invitation, suddenly raised his head and said in a deep voice: "Old Madam, Grandfather, I want to ask for a favor from you."
Madam Guo hurriedly asked, "What's the matter? Just tell me."
Qin Ziyue also looked at his grandson with some curiosity.
Qin Zian said: "Let me think about it. The old lady and grandfather agree to let me marry Nanping!"
Madam Guo and Qin Shouyue looked at each other in astonishment.
Even Qin Ziping looked up in shock.
Qin Zian's resolute face was covered with red clouds, and he said in a rough voice: "I have liked Nanping since I was a child. Later, Nanping and my brother got engaged, and I treated her like my sister-in-law. But now my brother has passed away for several years. I can't bear to let Nanping be alone like this. She is either making clothes for the Fourth Master or hiding in the small Buddhist temple to chant sutras..."
Madam Guo was not a conservative person. She quickly adjusted her mindset after hearing this and said, "You have to ask Nanping about this matter. If she agrees, there is no reason for me to disagree."
Qin Shouyue said nothing.
Qin Zian hurriedly said, "Grandfather, I want to marry Nanping. Don't you want us to have a family to return to our hometown? Why don't you let Nanping and I return to our hometown?"
There, no one knew Nanping's identity.
They can live happily.
Qin Shouyue thought for a long time, nodded gently, and said: "I think the same as the old lady. The child has a hard life, but she should not be neglected. This matter needs her consent."
Qin Zian stood up suddenly and kowtowed to Mrs. Guo and Qin Shouyue.
Qin Ziping couldn't help but curse his brother in his heart.
Originally, the Fourth Master wanted to arrange for him to go to the Xishan camp, but this has disrupted the Fourth Master's plan. When the Fourth Master knows this, he must be furious!
He laughed with a certain gloating attitude.
Cheng Chi did encounter some difficult problems.
In his farm in Daxing, Huo Dongting stood solemnly in a candlelit secret room and said in a deep voice: "The news is reliable! I personally squatted at the back door of the Imperial Hospital's doctor's house and found the drug residue. Then I divided the drug residue into three parts and took them to Cangzhou, Tianjin, and Jizhou to show them to the doctors. The prescription I got just matched the one in the doctor's house. I personally went to Baoding Prefecture with the prescription, and the doctor said it was for heart disease."
"Heart disease?!" Cheng Chi frowned, his mind racing.
The Crown Prince has a heart disease, but no one in either the Zhanshi Mansion or the Eastern Palace seems to know about it.
But since the Imperial Hospital has prescribed a prescription for the prince's treatment, the emperor must know about it.
According to the law, a person with a hidden illness cannot be appointed as the crown prince.
The Emperor knew that the Crown Prince had a hidden disease but still appointed him as the Crown Prince... Was it because he loved the Crown Prince very much? Or was it because the Crown Prince could be his target? He could avoid the issue of appointing a Crown Prince and appoint a new one at any time
Cheng Chi thought about what Zhou Shaojin had said about his past life. He walked back and forth in the secret room with his hands behind his back. His thoughts gradually became clearer. He instructed Huo Dongting, "Your people should continue to monitor the East Palace and the Imperial Hospital to see if there is any pattern to the Crown Prince's illness. Then, the Emperor's eldest grandson. Find out if he knows about his father's hidden illness."
Huo Dongting left immediately.
Cheng Chi sat in the secret room for a while before leaving the alley and told Lang Yue, "Take my invitation and go to the Fourth Prince's residence to meet Shi Kuan and tell him that I'll treat him to a drink tomorrow at noon."
Lang Yue agreed respectfully.
Cheng Chi took a carriage and left the farm through the main gate.
※
Jiuru Lane in Jinling City. This is the first time that Old Lady Guan has traveled far away since she married into Jinling City.
Mrs. Miao stood in the corridor of the main room, watching the maids and servants carrying the boxes and baskets of the old lady Guan. Gu Shiqigu, who had her hair done in a woman's style, stood in the yard, telling the maids and servants who kept passing by to "be careful," and said, "These boxes and baskets are filled with porcelain."
He Fengping stood behind Mrs. Mian. Her slightly protruding belly made it obvious that she was pregnant.
She looked at Gu Shiqigu with some envy, and smiled gently, "Don't worry, mother, I will take care of the family affairs. Even if there is something I don't understand, there are precedents before, and there are experienced maids to guide me, so nothing will go wrong."
Zhou Shaojin is going to marry Cheng Chi.
Like a firecracker, it exploded the entire Jiuru Lane.
It took Mrs. Guan several days to come to her senses and ask Mrs. Mian what was going on.
Mrs. Miao took the letter from Zhou Zhen and told Mrs. Guan: "… It said that Shao Jin happened to be in the capital to take care of Chu Jin during her confinement. Mrs. Guo went to the capital, and Shao Jin went to chat with her from time to time. Mrs. Guo happened to be worried about Uncle Chi's marriage, so she thought of Shao Jin."
Old Madam Guan smiled bitterly and said, "How will the generations be calculated in the future?"
Mrs. Miao smiled and said, "Master Gu wants you to go to the capital to preside over Shao Jin's coming-of-age ceremony?"
"Really!" Mrs. Guan immediately perked up after hearing that.
Mrs. Miao pointed to the northeast where the second wife lived and whispered, "Master said that mother should take this opportunity to go to the capital to have a look... If it is a fight between gods, the little ghost will suffer. If we can avoid it, it would be the best."
After the division, the second and third branches started to compete with each other. Apart from other things, the income from Yutai stocks changed from quarterly settlement when Cheng Chi was in charge to annual settlement. The fourth branch was not bad. In addition to the old savings, there were some other properties. Life was quite simple and there was nothing to worry about. The fifth branch, however, relied on the income from Yutai box office to make a living. Cheng Wen went to the second branch several times to ask for money, but he got nothing. There was no peace at home or outside. He felt like he was in a frying pan. The fifth branch was restless and there was no peace for a day.
Old Lady Guan immediately decided to accept Zhou Zhen’s invitation and go to the capital to preside over Zhou Shaojin’s wedding.
But Cheng Gao's wife He Fengping was already pregnant. After discussing it with Mrs. Guan and Mrs. Mian, they decided to leave He Fengping and her husband at home and take Cheng Mian and his wife and Cheng Yi and his wife to the capital.
As soon as He Mianzhi's mourning period was over, he was recommended by Cheng Jing to work for the Tongzhengsi, and was promoted to the Tongzhengsi this spring. He Fengping wanted to go to the capital to see her parents.
Gu Shiqigu has an ordinary appearance, a gentle personality, and is good at observing people's expressions. She gets along very well with He Fengping.
Seeing her envy, he smiled and stepped forward to take He Fengping's arm, saying, "Sister-in-law, do you have anything for me to bring? I heard that you grew up in the capital, so you must know a lot of the customs and habits of the capital. If you have time, can you tell me about it, so that I won't be embarrassed when I go to the capital!"
He Fengping also wanted to get along with Gu Shiqigu, and hurriedly said with a smile: "Although I grew up in the capital, I rarely go out on the streets. My family still lives by the river. To be honest, I really don't know much about the customs and habits of the capital!"
Mrs. Miao looked at her two daughters-in-law talking affectionately and nodded secretly.
The old lady was wise and let Yi Ge'er marry Seventeenth Aunt.
She is gentle but independent, tolerant but not cowardly. Having her at home avoids many conflicts.
The more Mrs. Miao got along with her, the more satisfied she became and the more she liked her.
She turned to the main room, but heard the voice of Wu Baozhang, the daughter-in-law of the fifth room, behind her: "Sister-in-law Yi, are you going to the capital to attend Shaojin's wedding?"
※
Dear, today’s update.
The update will be tomorrow morning, please check it out around nine o’clock!
O(∩_∩)O~
※(To be continued)