Ah Zhu's brother
Zhu Kun, Zhu Pengju
But what does this have to do with them
Zhou Shaojin, Zhou Chujin and Gu Shiqigu looked at each other.
Madam Gong smiled bitterly and said, "Our eldest daughter originally planned to take this opportunity to go to the Drum Tower. If she gets together with the prince, she will definitely not be able to go to the Drum Tower..."
I see!
Zhou Shaojin, Zhou Chujin and Gu Shiqigu couldn't help laughing and quickly chased after Ah Zhu. But just after they took a few steps, the guard's voice came from behind them: "Miss, please stay! The prince is over here."
Upon hearing this, Ah Zhu not only did not stop, but ran even faster.
A few guards came up and stopped in front of Ah Zhu and Cheng Ji, bowed their heads, and said in a deep voice: "Miss, the prince asks you to stay!"
Ah Zhu put her hands on her waist and stamped her feet unwillingly.
Cheng Ji laughed out loud, and his face, which was red from running, showed a naughty expression like a child.
Maybe she thought it was fun
Zhou Shaojin smiled and shook his head.
Ah Zhu, accompanied by Nanny Gong, was taken by the guards to see her brother. Zhou Shaojin and others were waiting for her under a tree beside Mochou Lake.
After a while, a middle-aged man with a white face and no beard came over to greet them.
Zhou Chujin and Gu Shiqigu were shocked.
Cheng Ji looked at him curiously.
Zhou Shaojin knew that these should be the eunuchs around Zhu Pengju. Seeing that the three of them were silent, he had no choice but to step forward and thank them with a smile.
The eunuch was quite surprised and said with a smile: "My surname is Yang. You should be the second lady of the Zhou family. Your cousin, Master Chi Si, is visiting the temple fair with our young master!" As he said that, he looked up at Zhou Chujin and others and said, "I wonder which one is the eldest lady of the Zhou family? Which one is the seventeenth lady of the Gu family? The sixth master of the Gu family is also visiting the temple fair with our young master. Our young master has a gift for you!" He spoke fluent Mandarin.
Zhou Shaojin didn't expect Cheng Chi to visit the temple fair... Shouldn't a person like him sit on the top of a mountain, drinking tea in the cold wind, all alone and isolated
However, if he really ran to the top of the mountain to enjoy the cold wind, since it was already the transition period between late summer and early autumn, and the summer heat was gone at night, I wonder if he would be shivering from the cold...
When Zhou Shaojin thought that Cheng Chi would fall from the fairyland to the mortal world, he couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Everyone's eyes fell on her in confusion.
Finished!
Zhou Shaojin blushed, and quickly stood up, saying quickly: "I didn't expect there would be a gift..."
Eunuch Yang just smiled and said nothing, but Cheng Ji cast a contemptuous look at her, as if to say "Who are you kidding?" However, Gu Shiqigu of the Gu family, who had a deep family background and many marriages with children from aristocratic families, had reacted at this time and intended to explain for Zhou Shaojin, and hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Eunuch, my surname is Gu, and I am the seventeenth child in the family."
As soon as she said "father-in-law", Zhou Chujin and Cheng Ji also understood.
Zhou Chujin smiled and knelt down to salute the eunuch, imitating the tone of Sister Gu Shiqi and said, "My last name is Zhou, and I am the eldest in the family."
Cheng Jia looked at Eunuch Yang for a while before saying, "My last name is Cheng, and I am the fourth among my sisters. Master Chi Si is my great uncle."
Zhou Shaojin wanted to rush forward and cover Cheng Ji’s eyes.
In her previous life, she had dealt with eunuchs in the palace. They all looked normal, some were handsome and well-mannered, but privately, they had all kinds of hobbies. People like Cheng Ji, who knew their identities and looked at them curiously, would most likely be hated.
Eunuch Yang disagreed. He smiled and waved his hand, and a servant came up with a small tray carved with red lacquered crabapple flowers.
Zhou Shaojin looked at it and felt very nervous.
For some fathers-in-law, the more resentment they hold in their hearts, the calmer they appear on the surface.
I don't know what kind of person this eunuch Yang is? I'll talk to Azhu later and see if I can get past this... Or should I tell Uncle Chi? After all, it's related to the Cheng family. Who knows if this eunuch will be nosy and try to smear the Cheng family in front of Duke Liang? Uncle Chi has a good relationship with Zhu Pengju, so he should be able to have a say.
She thought about it and glanced at the tray. She saw that the tray was covered with crimson velvet, on which were neatly placed four jade pendants, each engraved with a plum, bamboo, orchid, and pine pattern. The jade was ordinary, but the carving was done with a craftsman's touch. One could tell at a glance that it was bought from a shop just for the occasion.
But after all, Zhu Pengju had good intentions, so they thanked him.
Zhou Chujin is the oldest, so logically she should choose first. However, she thought that she, Zhou Shaojin and Cheng Ji are a family, so she let Gu Shiqigu choose first.
Gu Shiqigu didn't push it back and forth, but thanked Zhou Chujin quite straightforwardly, and picked a jade pendant engraved with pine, and then Zhou Chujin asked Cheng Jia to choose, and Cheng Jia didn't say much, looked at it, and picked a piece engraved with plum blossoms. Zhou Chujin gave the one engraved with orchids to Zhou Shaojin, and kept the one engraved with bamboo.
During this time, Eunuch Yang had been watching from the side. When he saw them pick out the jade pendants, he smiled, bowed, and left with the servant.
Gu Shiqigu whispered to Cheng Ji: "Those eunuchs are all physically disabled. You shouldn't look at him like that, or he will bear a grudge against you."
"There is such a thing!" Cheng Ji said in surprise, not taking it to heart.
Zhou Chujin was a little worried when he heard this, and asked Gu Shiqigu: "Is it serious? Is there any way to resolve it?"
Gu Shiqigu and Zhou Shaojin had the same idea and said, "Why don't we tell the elders at home? Fourth Uncle Chi has a very good relationship with the prince of the Duke of Liang's mansion. If anything... we can ask him to come forward."
Cheng Ji, however, had no sense of causing trouble. Instead, she said, "Oh, no matter what, he is just a servant. I will tell Ah Zhu later. It's okay!" Then she pulled Gu Shiqigu to ask about the Duke of Liang's Mansion, "... Isn't there a Duke in their family? How can they use eunuchs?"
Gu Shiqigu could see Cheng Ji's personality and knew that it was useless to say more, so she didn't bother with her and said, "The Duke of Liang's Mansion was the former Prince of Liang, the brother of Emperor Taizong and a legitimate royal relative. Later, he was involved in the Liu Lanyu case and was demoted to a Duke, but he still enjoyed the prince's allowance..." At this point, she glanced at Zhou Shaojin, "Those eunuchs who serve closely were all sent from the inner court. It seems that they are replaced every three or six years. I can't remember clearly. I have to go back and ask my sixth uncle."
It took Zhou Shaojin a moment to react.
Gu Shiqi was telling them about the awkward position of the Duke of Liang's Mansion in the royal family, right? And those eunuchs were here to serve the Duke of Liang, but in fact they were here to supervise the Duke of Liang...
She nodded towards Gu Shiqigu, indicating that she understood.
Gu Shiqigu breathed a sigh of relief.
Cheng Ji was still unaware and said, "I didn't expect these eunuchs to be so awesome..."
Zhou Shaojin was so confused that he didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and he thought about telling Uncle Chi as soon as possible.
Ah Zhu came back with her head down. She said to Cheng Ji apologetically, "I'm sorry, I'm afraid we can't go to the Drum Tower... My brother has sent someone to follow us. If he tells my mother about it, I won't be able to come out before the Chinese New Year. I was thinking of inviting you to my house for a crab feast in September!"
Cheng Ji said hurriedly: "It's okay, it's okay. If we can't go this time, we can go next time. There will always be a chance!"
What are you talking about
Zhou Shaojin and others couldn't help but touch their foreheads.
Ah Zhu immediately perked up, took Cheng Ji's hand and said with a smile: "Yes, yes, yes! You still know me best."
These two are really in cahoots with each other...
Zhou Shaojin even felt a little sympathy for Nanny Gong.
Ah Zhu asked Cheng Ji: "Where shall we go next?"
Cheng Ji pondered and said, "I heard that Shengqi Tower has the handwriting of Emperor Taizu. I don't know if it's true or not?"
"It's true!" Ah Zhu laughed, "I went to see it with my grandfather when I was little... Sister Jia, do you want to see it? Then let's go to Shengqi Tower!"
"No!" Madam Gong stopped Ah Zhu without thinking and advised, "Miss, today is the Ghost Festival, and there are many scholars out visiting the temple fair. Shengqi Tower is a must-go place for them, and it's not appropriate for us to go there. Why don't we tell the Duke's wife another day and ask those idle people to stay away, and you and Miss Jia can go around Mochou Lake carefully. What do you think?"
Zhou Shaojin just wants to go home now.
She also saw through Ah Zhu's personality to some extent, and said, "What Madam Gong said makes sense. There are too many people today. Even if we go, we can only look at the plaque. Why don't we go there specially one day to take a look. Besides, the 15th day of the seventh lunar month is also the Ghost Festival. It's not good to go back late."
There is no girl who is not afraid of ghosts.
Ah Zhu and Cheng Ji shuddered at the same time and said in unison: "Then we will go another day."
Nanny Gong looked at Zhou Shaojin with gratitude.
Everybody prepare to go back.
Someone in front asked, "Excuse me, is it the eldest daughter of the Cheng family from the third branch of Jiuru Lane who is here to cruise the lake?"
Looking for Cheng Ji
Everyone looked at Cheng Ji in surprise.
Cheng Ji himself was also confused.
Ah Zhu asked the guards to let the people in.
The two who came were a master and a servant. The master was about twenty years old, tall, wearing a bamboo green silk gown, a green ramie belt around his waist, and a green multicolored purse on each side. His facial features were very ordinary, but his nose was straight, slightly hooked, revealing a bit of boldness. The servant was fifteen or sixteen years old, wearing a short brown rag, black cloth shoes, and tied legs. His eyes were rolling around, and he looked very alert.
Who is this
Zhou Shaojin looked towards Cheng Ji.
Cheng Ji's face was full of confusion, and it was obvious that he didn't know the man either.
The man stood far away, smiled and saluted Cheng Ji, saying: "Cousin, I am your cousin from the Li family. Don't you remember me? I went to your house to say goodbye this morning..."
Li Jing!
He turned out to be Li Jing.
He actually chased me here.
Zhou Shaojin couldn't help but stick his head out from behind Nanny Gong.
Under the dim light, her face was as beautiful as a flower, dazzling and bright, and Li Jing's eyes could not help but sweep over her. But he only stayed for two breaths, then shifted his gaze and placed it on Cheng Ji, as if he suddenly saw something very beautiful and took a closer look... But it was just a closer look.
Zhou Shaojin immediately had a favorable impression of Li Jing.
Too many people couldn't take their eyes off her, their eyes full of greed...
If Cheng Ji could marry him, that would be a blessing!
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Sisters, today’s extra update!
O(∩_∩)O~
PS: I wrote this chapter last night. When I woke up in the morning, I realized it was not good enough and needed major revisions. The next chapter may also need major revisions. Tonight's update may be postponed to around ten o'clock, but I will try to update it earlier.
※(To be continued)