Zhou Shaojin was so angry that he didn't want to talk and returned to Wanxiangju in silence.
Zhou Chujin was waiting for her in her inner room. Seeing that she looked unhappy, he hurriedly asked, "What did Cheng Lu say to you?"
Zhou Shaojin was too embarrassed to tell his sister again what Cheng Lu had said.
She directly told me the result: "Cheng Lu found out that I knew about the Guanjie house, so he came to me and told me that he bought the house by accident and wanted to give it to me. Because there was no suitable opportunity, he never told me about it... Then he came to test whether I knew about the feud between the Cheng and Zhuang families..."
Zhou Chujin was also shocked.
Looking at her sister's suppressed anger, she vaguely guessed Cheng Lu's intention.
Although she had felt that the Cheng family was not a good match before, she felt that she was being overly suspicious when she saw her sister becoming more lively every time she saw Cheng Lu. Now that her sister and Cheng Lu did not end up together as she had worried, it was the best thing for her. She naturally would not spoil the mood by asking her sister for details.
But what she discovered these days always made her feel uneasy.
She pondered and said, "Shao Jin, you asked Ma Fushan to find out who owns the Guanjie house. It's natural that he knows about the Guanjie house. But why would he test you to see if you know about the feud between the Cheng and Zhuang families? Has he not given up yet? Why would he test you? Even if you don't take this matter to heart, how could father and grandmother marry you to the Cheng family?"
If people who knew the inside story heard this, they would probably secretly mock that the girl from the Zhou family couldn't get married and had to blame the Cheng family!
Although Zhou Chujin did not say this explicitly, Zhou Shaojin understood it.
Her heart skipped a beat.
In his previous life, Cheng Lu successfully concealed the truth from his grandmother and aunt.
In other words, my grandmother and aunt were either unaware of the situation or were persuaded by Cheng Lu.
Cheng Lu met the old beggar two years ago, and started to approach him two years ago.
The old beggar once said that Cheng Lu's mother, Mrs. Dong, knew nothing about this matter.
Did he do it on impulse at that time? Or did he start to act after he found out that his grandmother and aunt didn't know about it
Zhou Shaojin thought about her grandmother's previous life, when she arranged for her to marry into the Cheng family. Her father was strongly against it. Later, she didn't know what her grandmother said to her father. Although her father didn't object anymore, he wrote to her and asked her if she was willing to follow him to take up his post. She had never lived with her father. At that time, her stepsister Zhou Youjin died young. Tinglan, the maid her mother left to her father, took advantage of her father's urgent need for an heir and successfully got pregnant and gave birth to a child. However, her stepmother left the child behind and the mother was gone. She was afraid of her stepmother and was unwilling to follow her father to take up his post... As a result, Cheng Lu got engaged to Wu Baozhang before her father agreed to the marriage between the two families.
In the previous life, everything had a traceable history.
But she didn't notice.
Did Cheng Lu get engaged to Wu Baozhang because she knew her father would oppose her marriage to Cheng Lu? Or was Wu Baozhang involved in the marriage
Zhou Shaojin decided to get to the bottom of the matter.
Otherwise, the so-called saving yourself is simply a joke.
This also caused her to feel a little resentful.
Cheng Lu, you've gone too far!
Zhou Shaojin said a few perfunctory words to his sister.
Seeing that she was insincere, Zhou Chujin thought that she was temporarily unable to accept Cheng Lu's affairs and was secretly sad, so he pretended to be confused, chatted with her casually for a few words, and went to see Mrs. Mian.
On the way, she asked someone to bring a message to Ma Fushan's family, asking her to come to the mansion immediately.
When Ma Fushan entered the house, she pulled Ma Fushan aside and whispered, "From now on, whatever the Second Miss tells you, just follow her instructions. But afterward, whether it's buying a flower or a needle, you must tell me in detail." Then she solemnly warned Ma Fushan, "Don't let the Second Miss know about this."
This matter concerned the reputation of the Zhuang family and Zhou Town. Ma Fushan was a tight-lipped person, and Ma Fushan's family didn't know what had happened. Although she was confused, she still passed the message to Ma Fushan without missing a word or changing a sentence.
Zhou Shaojin, who was alone in the inner room, became restless after doing needlework for a while.
She wanted to know whether her grandmother knew about the feud between the Zhuang and Cheng families.
Zhou Shaojin asked Chunwan to find out what Old Lady Guan was doing.
Chunwan came back and told her: "… Lao An was talking to some wives of farm heads."
Zhou Shaojin waited patiently until noon, and finally, Old Lady Guan invited the wives of the farm owners to have lunch with her, telling them that the sisters did not need to come and serve her, and also invited a few old ladies to play cards.
The sun was hanging brightly overhead, the bluestone-paved courtyard was filled with heat, and the cicadas were chirping louder and louder.
Although Chunwan helped to fan him, Zhou Shaojin still felt too hot and couldn't sleep, tossing and turning.
Chun Wan said: "Second Miss, let me bring you a bowl of iced bayberry!"
Jinling is not like the capital, where ice is stored in the winter and ice cubes are available to cool down in the summer. Zhou Shaojin spent the last ten years of her life in the capital, and she was not used to the heat in Jinling.
Or maybe it's not that he's not used to the heat in Jinling, but that he's just feeling irritable
Zhou Shaojin pondered and asked Chunwan: "Is there any lotus seed soup? It has not been cooled with well water."
Later, her health deteriorated and she had long since stopped eating foods like bayberry and mung beans.
Chunwan went to the kitchen, brought over a bowl of lotus seed soup which was still a little hot, and fanned it vigorously with a fan.
Zhou Shaojin became more and more agitated and decided to go to Hanbi Mountain House to copy scriptures.
Chun Wan looked at the scorching sun outside and said hesitantly, "Now?"
Zhou Shaojin nodded.
Maybe if she walked under the hot sun and worked up a sweat, she would feel better.
Chun Wan called a little maid, holding an umbrella, and brought Pa Nuer, Ren Dan, Jin Yin Shui, etc., to accompany Zhou Shaojin to Hanbi Mountain House.
Although there are green trees providing shade, the sunlight still shines through the branches like golden arrows.
Zhou Shaojin's body gradually became warm, and her heart seemed to be gradually warmed by the sunlight.
By the time she reached Hanbi Mountain House, she was already covered in sweat, but she felt extremely refreshed.
The shade of trees covers the entire ground in Hanbi Mountain Villa, and the sound of cicadas fills the ears, but there is no human voice.
At this time, I guess everyone is taking a lunch break.
Zhou Shaojin went to the Buddhist temple with familiarity.
A little maid ran out rubbing her eyes. When she saw that it was them, she yawned, bent her knees, squatted and saluted, and said incoherently, "Second Miss, you are here," and then rubbed her eyes as if she was about to fall asleep.
Zhou Shaojin smiled and said, "You can go and have a rest! I'll go to the Buddhist temple to copy scriptures. When Biyu comes over, you can tell her. There's no need to disturb Old Madam Guo."
The little maid nodded.
Suddenly there was a crackling sound of porcelain falling to the ground from the upper room.
The little maidservant was startled and woke up, looking at Zhou Shaojin with his eyes wide open.
Mrs. Guo's cold and somewhat sharp voice came from the room: "He dislikes Silang's association with eunuchs, but why doesn't he think about it? Without Silang, would he have the comfortable life he has today? Go and tell him that it's up to him whether he wants to live this life or not! Anyway, the ancestors have divided the ancestral property a long time ago. If he wants to take charge of the family tree, that's fine. We can divide the clan in the eldest branch. Otherwise, let him hand over the family tree. Don't think that the Cheng family can't live without him, Cheng Xu! If he wants to give up the responsibility, it depends on whether the eldest branch agrees..."
Do not look at what is improper, and do not listen to what is improper.
Zhou Shaojin and the little maid fled in panic, one went to the Buddhist temple and the other hid in the tea room.
Even when he sat down in the Buddhist temple, Zhou Shaojin's heart was still pounding.
She told Chun Wan and the maid, "You must keep your mouths shut. If I hear any gossip, I will not ask anyone but you."
The two of them swore to heaven.
Only then did Zhou Shaojin realize that he was hiding in the wrong place.
She should go back to Wanxiangju, why is she running to the Buddhist temple
If someone from Hanbi Mountain House asked her, how should she answer
Zhou Shaojin couldn't move around at this time. Fortunately, she often copied scriptures in the Buddhist hall, and she had all the necessary things for washing and dressing, as well as a few regular clothes. Chunwan and the little maid brought water in, and Zhou Shaojin quickly washed and changed into a small dress. The cool breeze blew through the room, and she calmed down.
She didn't have the heart to copy the scriptures for a moment. She sat there enjoying the breeze, planning to wait for a while. Madam Guo should be done with her work, and it wouldn't be too late for her to go back to Wanxiangju then.
But as she sat there, the words she had just heard seemed to drill into her mind like a drill, making her unable to help but imagine all sorts of things.
The "he" that Mrs. Guo mentioned was obviously Cheng Xu, the ancestor of the second house. Mrs. Guo, as her niece's wife, called him by his name without any hesitation, which shows how deep her resentment was... "Silang" should be Uncle Chi. He is the fourth child. Last time on the Buddha Bathing Day, when Mrs. Guo invited my grandmother to worship Buddha, she also mentioned a title, and asked Uncle Chi to exchange copper coins... What is the grudge between the first house and the second house? The genealogy of the Cheng family is actually in the hands of the second house... Cheng Xu dislikes Uncle Chi's association with eunuchs, which should be Wan Tong... Most scholars look down on eunuchs, unlike those nobles and relatives in the capital who like to associate with eunuchs... But Wan Tong guards Jinling, and the Cheng family is known as the first family in Jinling. Uncle Chi is in charge of the Cheng family's affairs, so it is impossible for him not to associate with Wan Tong! Cheng Xu was once a nine-minister official, so he should know all this, so why would he dislike Uncle Chi's association with eunuchs
Did Uncle Chi do something that damaged the Cheng family's reputation or interests
Zhou Shaojin thought of him lazily leaning on the big pillow drinking tea!
Not like it!
However, appearances cannot be judged, maybe something really happened...
Mrs. Guo is so arrogant that she dares to shout about dividing the clan... What does it mean that Cheng Xu has given up his responsibilities? Hasn't Cheng Xu stopped caring about things a long time ago
Zhou Shaojin felt as if he had seen something... and felt very uneasy.
The Cheng family in Jiuru Lane, which seemed to be harmonious, was actually in turmoil and undercurrents.
Can I really save the Cheng family with just a few words from me
For the first time after his rebirth, Zhou Shaojin realized how naive his previous thoughts were!
She was a little overwhelmed.
I decided to copy a few pages of scriptures.
In the past, whenever she felt upset, she would copy scriptures.
This time is no exception.
Her heart slowly calmed down amid the chirping of cicadas.
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Sisters, it looks like if I add one more chapter, I can just update it separately... o(∩_∩)o haha
※(To be continued)