Zhou Shaojin hesitated after hearing this and said, "I want to go with you..."
Cheng Chi knew that she wanted to help him, so he smiled and kissed her forehead, saying gently, "No need. Look at Elder Song, Madam Song doesn't go out for social events very often. Every couple is different, there are those like my mother, and there are those like Madam Song. Just do what you like. A wife is honored by her husband. If it weren't for my father, even someone like my mother would be useless. Even someone like Madam Song would still be respected by others if she went out."
"But if I could be like mother, some things would surely be easier, right?" Zhou Shaojin hesitated, "I want to be with you, and I don't want to hold you back."
"That's different." Cheng Chi smiled, "Sometimes the more you talk, the more mistakes you make, and not saying anything is not a bad thing. If you can help me take care of my mother at home and give birth to a few more babies, it's the same."
Zhou Shaojin's face turned red again.
Cheng Chi thought of how Madam Song had always liked Zhou Shaojin, and said with a smile: "If you want to come with me, then we can go to the Song family together. After seeing Old Master Song, I will go talk to Lord Song, and you go see Madam Song, and we will go visit each other."
"Then forget it!" Zhou Shaojin said embarrassedly, "You went to the Song family for business!"
"It won't delay anything." Cheng Chi smiled and hugged her, saying, "Go change your clothes quickly, and we'll go to the Song family together."
"Is it really possible?" Zhou Shaojin was still a little worried that he would become a burden to Cheng Chi.
"It's really possible!" Cheng Chi said with a smile, "If not, I definitely won't take you there."
Then she should just get along well with Mrs. Song.
The two of them went to say hello to Old Madam Guo, fed Yun'er, set a time to return, and went to the Song Mansion together.
The Song Mansion had already received the news, and Lord and Madam Song personally greeted them at the gate.
The two went to see Old Master Song.
Old Master Song coughed badly, but he was very excited. He knew everything about the dredging of the Yellow River. But he only remembered a rough outline of the Kaifeng government affairs, which showed that Old Master Song was completely devoted to river engineering.
After everyone talked for a while, Old Master Song looked tired, so Zhou Shaojin and Cheng Chi stood up and said goodbye.
Song Ge Lao's face fell all of a sudden, and he said to Cheng Chi: "The memorial requesting merit has been submitted, and I have to be prepared for you tomorrow morning. As for the old master, you should come and walk around more often if you have nothing to do. The imperial doctors in the Imperial Hospital said that the old master had a hard life when he was young, and he didn't care about anything when dredging the Yellow River. He has been overworked and has become ill. Now he is just spending his last days in a state of rest!"
When Zhou Shaojin saw the appearance of Old Master Song, he already had a vague feeling.
Cheng Chi had taken Old Master Song's pulse before, and the pulse coincided with that of the imperial doctors in the Imperial Hospital, so he was prepared. Despite this, he still looked gloomy after hearing this, and whispered, "I will come to see the old master often when I am free."
Elder Song nodded, with tears glistening in the corners of his eyes.
Zhou Shaojin and Madam Song both looked very uncomfortable. No one was in the mood to talk and they returned to the flower hall in silence.
Song Ge Lao and Cheng Chi went to the study to talk, while Madam Song and Zhou Shaojin went to the banquet room in the main house. Song Ge Lao asked about Cheng Chi's plan, while Madam Song chatted with Zhou Shaojin about family matters: "... Da Lang has set the date on September 1st. You must come early for the wedding. Da Lang is the eldest son, and the Song family hasn't held a wedding for more than ten years. Madam's relatives will come. I'm afraid I won't be able to handle it by then, so you must come to help me."
The "Madam" that Mrs. Song mentioned was referring to Lord Song's first wife, who was a relative of Song Mu's biological mother.
Zhou Shaojin responded promptly and asked about the two cousins over there.
Mrs. Song curled her lips and said, "They both got married. One married a minor official, and the other married a businessman. The master has always had a cold face, and now he comes home less often..."
Before she finished her words, there was a commotion outside.
Mrs. Song frowned and was about to ask who it was when the beaded curtain rustled and Song Sen, who was already thirteen years old, rushed in: "Sister Shaojin, Sister Shaojin, when did you come? Why didn't you tell me earlier? Did Yun'er come with you?"
"Asshole!" Mrs. Song's face darkened. "How can you talk like that?"
Song Sen pouted, her pretty face full of grievance.
Zhou Shaojin couldn't help but smile, thinking about how her relationship with Song Mu didn't work out, and how he came to her and said, "Brother won't marry you, wait until I grow up and then I'll marry you." She smiled and said, "Asen, I'm your 'aunt' now, you can't call me that!"
Song Sen raised his eyebrows and called out "Aunt" reluctantly.
Zhou Shaojin couldn't help laughing.
Mrs. Song also patted Song Sen on the head: "Why don't you bow to your aunt? You are so dirty. Where did you go crazy again?"
"I'm not crazy!" Song Sen opened his mother's hand in dissatisfaction and said, "I helped Madam today."
He is now studying at Shuanghe Academy. He is taller than Zhou Shaojin, but very thin, like a willow branch. People are worried that he is too thin and will collapse suddenly.
Madam Song said, "Okay, okay, go and rest! We will have dinner together with Auntie later."
Song Sen left happily.
Mrs. Song said to Zhou Shaojin embarrassedly: "This child is a bit stubborn. I told him several times but he didn't listen..."
"It's okay, it's okay." Zhou Shaojin said with a smile, "Although he looks tall, he is still a child, so how can he not be naughty sometimes?"
The two chatted and laughed, and when Song Mu came back, the men and women had dinner at the table respectively, and then Zhou Shaojin and Cheng Chi hurried back.
Yun'er was crying at the top of his lungs, while Mrs. Guo, the wet nurse, the maids and the old women all surrounded him and tried to cheer him up.
Seeing Zhou Shaojin coming back, everyone in the room breathed a sigh of relief. Old Madam Guo wiped the sweat from her forehead and said, "Shaojin, we can't do this anymore. We need to let him get used to being with his wet nurse."
Zhou Shaojin's heart was broken by his son's appearance. He didn't know how much he regretted staying at the Song family for dinner. He hurriedly took Yun Ge'er and coaxed him while saying, "I saw him feeding at this time before, so I came back at this time..."
"It's okay, it's okay." Mrs. Guo smiled, "Boys just need to cry loudly and with great strength. Look at his spirit, he's just clamoring for you." After saying that, she proudly touched Yun Ge'er who was lying obediently in Zhou Shaojin's arms and said, "But this child is really smart. He knows that we are not you, and no matter how we coax him, it won't work. Ordinary children will not recognize people until they are four or five months old!"
"Really?" Zhou Shaojin's eyes lit up as he listened.
Cheng Chi smiled and said, "I think he is just naughty, right?"
Old Madam Guo was unhappy and said, "I raised you three. I raised Zheng Jie'er and Xiao Jie'er. Even Sheng Jie'er came to my room when she was one year old. How are the children? I don't know."
"That's right!" Zhou Shaojin said immediately, "Mom has experience, so she must be right."
Mrs. Guo's face brightened up.
When they returned to the house, Cheng Chi pinched Zhou Shaojin's nose and said with a smile: "You are really a person who never reveals his true colors. It turns out that you are a little flatterer. No wonder my mother likes you so much!"
Zhou Shaojin was holding the child, unable to hide, and said angrily: "What a flatterer, didn't you say that I should be filial to my mother? This is not a big deal, can't I just follow my mother's words? Why do you have to go against my mother and make her unhappy?"
Cheng Chi burst out laughing and said, "Shao Jin, you are a lucky person! If someone had answered my mother like this ten years ago, my mother would have glanced at you and immediately dragged you to the group of people who flatter and flirt with you and never associated with you again. Now she is really old, like an old child, and you can really coax her."
Zhou Shaojin said shamelessly: "Otherwise, why would I marry Silang?"
Cheng Chi laughed loudly, leaned over and whispered in her ear, "It's better to call you Uncle Chi!"
Zhou Shaojin glared at him, carried the child back to the inner room, and sat down to feed Yun'er.
A figure appeared in the mirror, with charming eyes and eyebrows, which made her blush again and she dared not look at it for any longer.
After Yun'er had eaten and drunk his fill and was coaxed to sleep, the wet nurse came in and took the child to the next room.
Cheng Chi held Zhou Shaojin in his arms and tossed and turned in the quilt until he was satisfied. He washed up and went to bed after the third watch.
As a result, the next morning Zhou Shaojin slept soundly until noon, and when he woke up he was greeted by Fan Liu's happy smile.
I think everyone knows what she did yesterday
Zhou Shaojin hid in the tent for a long time, trying to cover his ears and steal the bell before he got up embarrassedly. After feeding Yun'er, he went to Old Madam Guo.
Mrs. Guo was happy to see her daughter-in-law and son so loving. She smiled and asked Zhenzhu to bring a bowl of skimmed black chicken soup: "Drink it quickly, it's the best for your body." Then she took Yun'er in her hands.
Zhou Shaojin drank the chicken soup with a red face.
Old Madam Guo said to Yun'er, "Your father is back, and you will soon have a brother or sister. Are you happy? Does our Yun'er like a brother or a sister? According to grandma, it is better to have a sister. One son and one daughter, good things come in pairs..."
Madam Lu and others laughed.
Zhou Shaojin's face turned even redder.
Mrs. Guo smiled and said to her, "Si Lang is back. I was thinking of inviting your second uncle, your eldest brother's family, and your second brother's family to have a meal with you. This can be considered as a welcome dinner for Si Lang."
Zhou Shaojin also felt that they should get together, so he agreed with a smile. He discussed tomorrow's date with Old Lady Guo, and sent someone to invite the two families to send invitations, while calling Biyu in to discuss the menu for the banquet. In the blink of an eye, it was afternoon, and those who sent invitations came back saying they would come. Zhou Shaojin also instructed Chunwan to take the key to the storehouse and give it to Biyu, so that she could open it and take out the cake molds, as well as the bowls and chopsticks for the guests. Huaishan also came back to report the good news: "The emperor has asked the Ministry of Travel to write an imperial edict, saying that the fourth master has made great contributions to dredging the Yellow River, and asked the cabinet to promote him to the fourth rank of Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate. The Imperial Household Department has used the seal, and only needs to wait for the clerk to issue a document tomorrow so that the fourth master can go to the Ministry of Personnel to receive the fourth rank title. Several officials from the Censorate and the Ministry of Works are clamoring for the fourth master to treat them. The fourth master will not be back for dinner tonight, so they asked me to come back and tell them."
"That's great! That's great!" Although they were aiming for this position, when things were settled, both Mrs. Guo and Zhou Shaojin couldn't help but feel happy for Cheng Chi. Mrs. Guo even told Zhou Shaojin: "Write a letter to your father-in-law quickly to make him happy."
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Hey guys, today's update.
O(∩_∩)O~
※(To be continued)