Peng Lingwei came to speak on behalf of her brother. She waited until her sister-in-law had finished speaking and watched her leave before she tugged at her mother's sleeve and placed her head on her mother's shoulder. She sighed and said coquettishly, "My head hurts and my eyes hurt."
She took her mother's hand and shook it again and again, and then said, "My stomach hurts too."
She had been complaining about feeling uncomfortable lately, and Mrs. Peng became really nervous: "Where exactly is it hurting? She was fine earlier, why do you feel uncomfortable everywhere these days?"
He immediately made arrangements to invite people from the Imperial Hospital.
In the past, people naturally did not dare to go to the Imperial Medical Bureau to ask for a judge, but now, things are different.
With the face of Concubine De, which imperial physician could not be invited? Except for the Dean of the Court, what would be the value of inviting the rest, even if it was the Court Judge of Confucius
Peng Lingwei coquettishly burrowed into her mother's arms, and said in a muffled voice: "Mom, rub it and it won't hurt anymore."
Mrs. Peng then realized that her daughter was just being coquettish. She poked her daughter's nose with a smile. She was not angry at all, but relieved: "Don't joke about this. Wait until your father hears it and see if he will scold you or not."
Peng Lingwei had always been afraid of her father. Upon hearing this, she immediately sat up straight from her mother's arms, pouted and muttered, "I've already scolded him. My father never has a good temper."
Mr. Peng treats his children in a way that is opposite to that of Mrs. Peng. He is particularly magnanimous to his eldest son who can share his worries, but he can't help but frown at Peng Lingwei who only knows how to act coquettishly and foolishly.
Even Peng Caichen, who had passed the imperial examination at a young age and was about to take the autumn imperial examination, felt inadequate - he always said that he could write articles, but apart from them, he had nothing else to show for it.
It is said that he does not know how to read people's expressions, that he has ambitions but they are superficial, and that he will not be able to accomplish great things.
Whenever they talked about these things, the couple would go into a cold war for a while, probably because Mr. Peng always liked to drag Mrs. Peng into this, saying that it was because of her two spoiled children who did not know the warmth and coldness of human nature and were not good at dealing with people.
Mrs. Peng thought of her husband and frowned again, but she pretended to scold her daughter: "What are you talking about? It is natural for a father to scold his children. You can't hold a grudge against him."
Seeing her daughter lower her head and fiddle with the tassels on her belt, she asked her again, "What are they made of?"
Peng Lingwei leaned on her mother's arms, looked up and asked her, "Are you really interested in Wei An?"
She sniffed, her delicate chin still had some flesh, twisted the tassels in her hand and lowered her head: "I know what Li Gui Niang said is wrong, and what she did is wrong. But Wei An is a child raised by a concubine, and everyone knows this. People outside are making fun of this, saying that she has good luck, which is not good for my brother."
The loss of face is only temporary. Who doesn't respect clothes before people? When you grow up and know the benefits of money and power, you will gradually understand.
What's more, there are many things to gain from the Wei family.
We must first control Wei An before we can talk about other things.
These things couldn't be told to the children, but they couldn't be left unsaid, otherwise things would go wrong. Master Peng wouldn't let her children off lightly just because they were young. She hurriedly grabbed her daughter's hand and forced her to look up, saying coldly, "Since ancient times, marriages have been decided by matchmakers and parents. How can you have any say in this?"
"I'll just hear these words once, but if I hear them again, I'll punish the maidservants around you! What are they teaching you all day long?"
She paused, and seeing that her daughter was somewhat at a loss, she softened her voice and tone: "Let's not talk about the distant past. The truth is that trouble comes from the mouth. Just look at Li Gui Niang. She is a princess. She used to be in front of the emperor and empress, so she had face. But look, what face does she have now?"
Peng Lingwei was confused and aggrieved after a long pause, and then she looked at her mother in confusion: "What's so good about her?"
Madam Peng held her daughter in her arms and sighed, "No matter how good she is, after all, she is now the daughter of the princess of the Ming family. She is already good in every way and there is nothing bad about her."
He explained the pros and cons and the reasons in detail to his daughter, then comforted her and allowed her to pick out a guqin when the time came. Then he asked someone to call Peng Caichen.
The daughter had grown up and was still able to be close to her mother, but the son could no longer do so. Peng Caichen stood obediently beside his mother, bowed and greeted her, then lowered his head.
Madam Peng looked him up and down and asked him, "Are the servants outside capable? Are you satisfied living in the courtyard?"
The Peng family has a large population and has never split up. Whenever someone who has been sent away from home returns to Beijing, they always live in this big house.
But as the number of masters increased, the house became less and less large. However, Peng Caichen had his own small courtyard next to Peng Caiying, and the two of them lived much better than their other cousins.
Peng Caichen nodded.
The old man and the old lady didn't care about anything and trusted their eldest son and daughter-in-law. Mrs. Peng always had the final say in the backyard. The other aunts didn't dare to make a fuss, and he didn't have many problems getting along with his brothers.
Madam Peng nodded, and then asked, "Why did you say those things to your sister? It's understandable that she, a girl, doesn't understand these things, but you, a man who will set up a family in the future, don't you know how serious it is? Now only our family has this intention, and we don't even dare to let your uncles and aunts know about it. And you, you are so careless that you look down on others?"
"How can you despise me?" Madam Peng said, getting angry. "I am now a princess, and the title will be given soon. I am also the daughter of a marquis, and the old lady is personally raising me. How can I not save face? Do you think that with your status, I need others to beg you?"
Peng Caichen had a handsome appearance, and his smile was refreshing. But when he had no expression on his face, he looked gloomy and made people feel uneasy for no reason.
He stared at the soles of his feet expressionlessly for a long time before he suddenly hummed and said in a flat voice, "Son, I know."
But from his expression, it was clear that he didn't listen. Mrs. Peng was upset but helpless about her son, so she was about to say something else when she heard someone outside say that Master Peng had returned and asked Peng Caichen to go to the study to accompany him to meet the guests.
Since she was going to meet a guest, she had to change her clothes quickly. Madam Peng rubbed her brows and stopped talking. She told the maids to follow and serve her first, and then go to the outer courtyard after changing her clothes. She leaned against the south window and looked at the sunny day outside in a daze.
----Update.