Because of the matter of the Fourth Prince's Mansion sending incense, on the Buddha's Bathing Festival, Cheng Lu decided to go to burn incense with Chen.
Chen was very happy. This was the first time she and Cheng Lu went out together after getting married, so she talked to Cheng Lu and said, "The abbot of Daxiangguo Temple is a good friend of my father. Why don't we go to Daxiangguo Temple?"
Cheng Lu said, "When the day comes, everyone will flock to Daxiangguo Temple. Will they burn incense or see people? I think it's better to go to Hongluo Temple in the suburbs. I heard that it is the dojo of Guanyin Bodhisattva and it is very effective for praying for children."
Chen blushed at these words, and couldn't help being delighted. She said hurriedly, "Then let's go to Hongluo Temple. I've heard that the temple is very popular, but it's a little far away, so it's not very convenient to go there."
Cheng Lu disagreed and said, "Then let's stay there for one night. We rarely go out. When we come back, I will study behind closed doors and take part in the next provincial examination."
This means that even something as important as offspring has to be put aside!
Chen was anxious.
She was already old, and the couple was harmonious, but for some reason, it was difficult for her to have children. If she still couldn't get pregnant after three years, she would have to help Cheng Lu take a concubine. What would the child born by the concubine have to do with her Chen family? What was the point of recruiting a son-in-law
Chen was particularly careful in preparing for the trip. Not only did he bring five hundred taels of silver notes, he also fasted and bathed a few days in advance, and copied several volumes of scriptures to offer to the Bodhisattva in Hongluo Temple.
I never expected that when I arrived at Hongluo Temple, the monk in charge of reception told me: "… the wives of Yuan Gelao, Cheng Gelao, He Tongzheng, Wu Hanlin and other families are all here to burn incense, and people have been sent to clean the courtyards of several guest houses."
The implication is that there is no place to put her.
Chen was shocked and looked back at her steward with sharp eyes.
The steward couldn't hide his surprise and said, "The monk in charge of reception in the temple said the same thing before. I told my uncle and he said it's okay and he will take care of it."
As he was talking, Cheng Lu, who had just ridden away on horseback, suddenly came back from a small path nearby and asked, "What happened?"
The steward didn't dare to speak.
Cheng Lu understood what was going on and said with a smile, "So it's about this matter." He asked the monk in charge of reception, "Do you have any other guest rooms in your temple?"
"Yes, there is." The monk in charge of reception hesitated, "but there is no separate courtyard."
"Then just give us a few rooms." Cheng Lu said indifferently, "Just help us pick out a few clean and secluded rooms." After saying that, he winked at the servant beside him, and the servant immediately stepped forward and stuffed a purse into the monk who was in charge of reception.
The monk accepted it calmly and found them a three-room south-facing wing in the corner of the western courtyard, but it was still not as good as a separate courtyard. Chen couldn't help complaining: "My son-in-law is the same. If you had told me earlier, I would have taken my father's letter and asked the temple to reserve a small courtyard for us."
Cheng Lu said, "Since you are here to pray for a child, you should be sincere. When I came, those families had already reserved the courtyard. Not to mention that there is a first come first served rule, those families are all scholars, not ordinary people. If they feel uncomfortable, they can just drink a little wine to get over it. If they are not careful, their father will be impeached. It is better not to come. What's more, the women of those families also came to Hongluo Temple to pray for children, which shows that the incense in this temple is really effective."
Or maybe it’s because the more people fight for something, the better it seems.
Chen was overjoyed when she heard this and asked, "Really? Are the women from those families also here to pray for children?"
"Why would I lie to you?" Cheng Lu said, "You might meet the women of these families later."
Chen nodded and said hesitantly, "Isn't the Cheng family your family?"
She remembered that Cheng Lu was expelled from the Cheng family.
Cheng Lu looked unhappy and said, "There are some things you don't know. I was successful at a young age, and the Cheng family was afraid that the side branch would suppress the main branch, and they were also afraid of being criticized by people in Jinling City for not supporting me. I was quite unhappy about this, so I fell out with my family. But I will go back one day, and I can't avoid them just because of this."
It had been some time since they got married, and Cheng Lu had always been very proud. Chen was born into a poor family, and she thought that those noble families in the south of the Yangtze River were just like the local rich men in their village, who were afraid that their relatives and friends would take advantage of their one-third acre of land. In addition, Chen Li helped Cheng Lu restore his reputation, and Cheng Lu was her husband, so she did not think much about it. She washed and changed her clothes, washed her hands, burned incense, called the servant to invite the monk in charge of guests in the temple, and took two personal maids to the main hall dedicated to Guanyin Bodhisattva.
Cheng Lu smiled, went to the back mountain, and jumped from the path in the back mountain to the vicinity of the release pond.
Min Jia was being served and released by a group of maids and old women.
The guards nearby spotted Cheng Lu and shouted, "Who is sneaking around there? There are women here, please stay away!"
Cheng Lu walked out of the woods with a smile.
His tall stature, gentle smile, scholarly attire, and generous temperament made the guards lower their voices: "The women of the Yuan and Cheng families are here to burn incense. Please step aside, sir!"
"The Cheng family in Xinglin Hutong?" Cheng Lu was surprised. He looked at Min Jia who was surrounded by maids and servants and said loudly, "Are you the great grandmother of the Cheng family? My name is Cheng Xiangqing. You ignored me several times when I sent me letters. I didn't expect to meet the great grandmother here! This is really fate! I came to you to talk to you about Cheng Jiashan. Can you ask the maids and servants around you to step aside for a while? Of course, if you think Cheng Jiashan has nothing to hide, I can also tell them in front of these maids and servants."
Min Jia's face turned pale and she couldn't help but regret secretly. If she had known that she would meet Cheng Xiangqing here, she should have come here with Xie and the new young lady of the Wu family. However, the monk in charge of reception said that sincerity is the most important thing and it would be best to release them one by one so that the Bodhisattva would know who is showing filial respect... But if they really followed her, with Cheng Lu's persistence and insistence on seeing her, who knows what he would say... It's better not to come.
She secretly breathed a sigh of relief and said, "I am a woman. Even if it is related to my husband, you should go to my husband or my father-in-law. What's the point of you looking for me?"
Cheng Lu bowed to Min Jia and said, "If Grandma doesn't mind, I will tell her this."
Min Jia was so angry that her fingers were shaking, but she managed not to show any strangeness in her expression. She smiled and said, "You are a guest. Mr. Cheng, please come to the pavilion for a cup of tea."
The guards and maids all dispersed and stood far away around the release pond.
Cheng Lu smiled as he stood in front of the pond and said, "You're too polite, ma'am. I just have a few words to say and will be leaving soon." He knew that what happened here would soon reach the ears of the men who came with him, so he didn't dare to delay and got straight to the point, "Cheng Xu and I were classmates, but I was framed by the Cheng family and lost my title, while Cheng Xu passed the imperial examination smoothly. Cheng Xu is not only better at studying than me, but also better at reincarnation than me. He is the one I have hated the most since I was a child..."
He did not hide his hatred for Cheng Xu at all, and Min Jia knew that what he was going to say next would be unpleasant to hear, and even disadvantageous to her, but she inexplicably wanted to listen.
She remained silent.
Cheng Lu smiled slightly.
These famous and wealthy families only want fame and face.
As long as you grasp this point, you will usually be successful.
"Grandma should know Chi Si's wife Zhou, right?" His face darkened, and his voice became low, and he said, "I am from the side branch of the Cheng family, but because I was young and smart, I often went in and out of the Cheng family's inner house. I grew up with Zhou, who lived with her sister in the Cheng family, and we grew up together. We were in love with each other, and my mother also liked Zhou very much. She originally planned to go to the Zhou family to propose marriage after I passed the imperial examination. Who knew that Cheng Xu also fell in love with Zhou... He is the grandson of the eldest son, and I am from a poor side branch. Zhou is lonely and helpless, and Yuan has always doted on him... How can we fight him
"Not long after, I was driven away by Yuan to study at Yuelu Academy, in an attempt to break us up."
Min Jia felt as if she was struck by lightning.
She knew that Cheng Xu liked Zhou Shaojin, but she didn't expect that Cheng Lu also liked Zhou Shaojin...
Min Jia looked at Cheng Lu's expression.
Cheng Lu looked sad, angry and helpless.
How did Zhou Shaojin marry Cheng Chi
Min Jia thought of what he had just said and suddenly felt some sympathy for Cheng Lulai.
"That would be fine." Cheng Lu said, his eyes red with anxiety, "I'm not as good as Cheng Xu to begin with. I'm fine as long as Zhou can be happy marrying him. But Yuan despised Zhou for not having a mother. She looked down on her. She wanted to marry Cheng Xu to the daughter of a wealthy family so that she could help him in his career. She was afraid that Cheng Xu would make a fuss and delay his career, so she used Zhou as bait, saying that as long as Cheng Xu passed the imperial examination and got the title of Li Yuan, she would propose marriage to the Zhou family for him. At the same time, she secretly proposed marriage to the Min family. When the fourth house knew that our marriage was not going through and wanted to betroth Zhou to her cousin Cheng Yi, Yuan was able to use means to destroy Zhou's marriage... Although Zhou and I are not destined to be together, I can't just watch the eldest house bully Zhou like this!
“In anger, I went to question Cheng Xu.
“I thought Cheng Xu would let it go once he knew about it.
"In the end, Cheng Xu not only did not let go, but also intended to bully Zhou, hoping to make it a done deal, forcing Zhou to marry her and forcing Yuan to agree.
“Yuan is your mother-in-law, you must be very clear about her temper.
“How could she compromise
“At that time, the elders in the family were not around, and Cheng Chi was the only one who could make the decision in the eldest house.
"When Cheng Chi went to deal with the matter, he saw Zhou. He was fascinated by Zhou's beauty and forced Zhou to marry him regardless of the difference in seniority and the fact that his nephew liked Zhou.
"Although Zhou's beauty is a disaster, Cheng Chi and Cheng Xu, the uncle and nephew, and Yuan, the Cheng family's matriarch, are too shameless..."
Min Jia could not hide her horror.
"How could this happen?" Thin beads of cold sweat broke out on her forehead, and she felt scared more than once. Fortunately, she acted prudently and did not let him shout it out. If he had said such nonsense in front of the people from the Wu family, the He family, and the Yuan family, the reputation of Cheng Chi and Zhou Shaojin would have been ruined, and the reputation of the Cheng family would have been ruined as well.
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Hey guys, today's update.
O(∩_∩)O~
※(To be continued)