The first of December.
It snowed a few days ago, and these two days are the cold time. Hong Wanqing sat in the carriage, and the maid added charcoal to the gilt-bronze hand stove and handed it over to Hong Wanqing to warm her up: "Miss San, it's cold, so hurry up and warm your hands."
Hong Wanqing took it, and she glanced at the gap in the curtain. Although she didn't speak, the maid saw Hong Wanqing's thoughts and immediately answered: "It's agreed that when it's time, why isn't Zhenyuan Hou's mansion still available?"
Today, the Marquis of Zhenyuan and the Marquis of Yongping have an appointment to offer incense. The two family members knew this incident well, it was fake to accompany Zhenyuan Hou, and it was the real thing to take the opportunity to meet Hong Wanqing.
This was originally deliberately facilitated by the two parents. The marriage has been set, and the two juniors are in private contact with each other. Hong Wanqing only met Fu Tingzhou once. It was a few months ago when Fu Tingzhou came to visit Yongping Hou's mansion and went to the backyard to greet her mother. Hong Wanqing sat behind the screen and glanced at it from a distance. She only swept a figure and her cheeks were flushed. Everyone around her was making fun of him. She didn't dare to look at him again. She only remembered that he was tall, broad-shouldered and long-legged.
Since then, Hong Wanqing has lost half of her heart. When her mother talked about her marriage, she blushed and half pushed her back. Hong Wanqing knew that she was going to live with this man in the second half of her life. In fact, she didn't know what Fu Tingzhou looked like. It's just that I heard from my cousins and elders that Fu Tingzhou looks very good, and he is the favorite appearance of the soldiers in the army.
This time, the elders got in touch and arranged for them to meet again in private. Hong Wanqing was so excited when she learned that she was going to see Fu Tingzhou, she couldn't sleep for two consecutive nights. After finally getting to the day of Shangxiang, she was ready to go out early, but when she arrived at the appointed place, she waited left and right to see Fu Tingzhou.
Hong Wanqing's restless heart cooled down a little. She couldn't help thinking, did Mrs. Fu dislike her, or that Fu Tingzhou changed his mind and stopped coming? Hong Wanqing suppressed her wild thoughts, squeezed the hot stove, and said in a low voice, "Maybe Mrs. Zhenyuan Hou has something to do, so she's going out late."
The maid suddenly approached and said mysteriously, "Third girl, I heard that the adopted daughter of the Fu family is coming today."
Hong Wanqing's eyes moved, she pretended not to know, and asked, "adopted daughter?"
In fact, Hong Wanqing had long known about the existence of the Wang girl. There was an adopted daughter in Zhenyuan Hou's mansion, who was raised by Mr. Fu himself. Her appearance was so outstanding that it was spread all over the Xungui circle. Hong Wanqing didn't know her name, but only knew that her surname was Wang, she was good at martial arts, and she seemed to have a good relationship with Fu Tingzhou.
When the brothers at home mentioned her, their tone was very regretful, and when they saw Hong Wanqing coming, they immediately stopped talking. Hong Wanqing knew that most of this was her future enemy.
What does it mean when a man keeps a beautiful woman by his side for ten years, hides it from outsiders, and doesn't let it go out to marry when he is seventeen? My mother had probably heard those rumors too. My mother talked to Hong Wanqing privately, saying that the marriage between her and Fu Tingzhou was personally nodded by Mrs. Fu, and Mrs. Fu promised that there would never be a scandal of favoring a concubine and destroying his wife in the future. The Hong family is not at ease, Madam Fu can bring people and let them take a look in advance.
The mother agreed, and this is what happened today.
The maid nuked her mouth and said, "Who else could be, not the one who was adopted by Mr. Fu. It is said that her father rescued Mr. Fu. In order to repay the kindness, Mr. Fu took her to the Marquis of Zhenyuan. I have lived here for ten years, and my treatment is on an equal footing with that of Lord Hou, and even the Fu family’s own young lady can’t compare. Now that Lord Fu has gone, Miss Wang doesn’t know where to go.”
Hong Wanqing was quiet for a while, and said lightly, "The Marquis of Zhenyuan is a family that knows grace and courtesy, and Marquis Zhenyuan will not treat the righteous sister badly."
The maid pouted and said with a yin and yang aura: "Isn't it true? Girl, don't worry, with Mrs. Fu here, those little fish and shrimp will not be able to turn the tide. Besides, the uncle always said that Mr. Fu was conscientious and reserved, but Mr. Zhenyuan did not. He will be the kind of person who can't handle it clearly. With the support of the old lady and the wise man, you will have a long time to enjoy yourself in the future."
Hong Wanqing blushed at these words, and scolded the maid, either lightly or seriously: "Don't talk rashly, shut up."
The maid sold it well, and she went away talking about begging for mercy. After this interruption, Hong Wanqing's anxiety was much more stable. Yes, she is the daughter-in-law of the Hou family. She will be the wife in the future. How can she care about her concubine? An adopted daughter is nothing more than a climate.
Just as he was talking, the Marquis of Zhenyuan came. Hong Wanqing's spirit was shocked, she and the maid stopped talking for a while, and put up their ears to listen to the outside world. The sound of grunting wheels approached, vaguely mixed with the crisp sound of horse hooves. The sound of horses' hooves stopped in front of the motorcade in Yongping Hou's mansion, and then a clear and steady voice sounded: "Junior is late, please forgive Mrs. Yongping Hou."
Hong Wanqing's heart thumped, she knew that this was Fu Tingzhou, her future husband-in-law, who was just a wall away from her at the moment. Hong Wanqing quietly lifted the curtain of the car, and saw a dark purple figure not far away. He was tall and tall, but his shoulders and back were thin. He was sitting on a horse and was slender and straight. Playboys are different.
When Hong Wanqing saw Fu Tingzhou's face, her cheeks immediately turned red. Knowing that she was being rude, she quickly lowered the curtain. At this time, Hong Wanqing raised her eyes unintentionally, and saw that half of the curtain was opened on the opposite side, and the people inside were watching her quietly.
The two of them looked past each other, and both lowered the curtains. Hong Wanqing pinched her fingers on the tassel and exerted force unconsciously.
Is that Fu Tingzhou's adopted sister, Miss Wang? Sure enough, as rumored, she is a beauty.
Seeing Hong Wanqing staring at the curtain without speaking, the maid thought Hong Wanqing was shy. The maid called softly and whispered, "Girl, we have to go."
Hong Wanqing returned to her senses and nodded lightly. Fu Tingzhou acted as if he hadn't noticed the snooping just now. He instructed the guards to clear the way, the carriage moved, and the female relatives of the two houses joined together and set off under Fu Tingzhou's escort.
Dajue Temple is located in the western hills of the suburbs of Beijing. It enjoys royal worship and is one of the favorite places for officials and officials in the capital. Hong Wanqing looked around before seeing Fu Tingzhou, but when she did see someone, she calmed down.
Hong Wanqing suddenly realized that what she was about to face might not be an ordinary concubine.
There were no twists and turns all the way, and more than an hour later, Dajue Temple arrived. Dajue Temple was used to receiving dignitaries and relatives, and the carriages of the two houses parked at the inner gate. When Hong Wanqing got off the car, he subconsciously looked to the other side.
Wang Yanqing was also getting out of the car. She was wearing a pure white fox fur, with fluffy fur on the hood, hugging her chin, really deceiving Shuang Sai Xue, Zhaojun was born again. Fu Tingzhou stopped by her carriage, saw Wang Yanqing get off, and reached out to help. Wang Yanqing smiled and shook his head at Fu Tingzhou, who then went to see Mrs. Fu.
Hong Wanqing was clearly holding the heater, but she felt extremely cold in her hands. Mrs. Yongping Hou also saw it. She froze when she saw Wang Yanqing's figure and appearance. When she saw Fu Tingzhou's attitude towards Wang Yanqing later, her heart became heavier.
After entering the meditation room where the Marquis of Yongping was resting, Mrs. Marquis Yongping immediately called Hong Wanqing over and instructed: "Wanqing, have you seen that woman named Wang Yanqing?"
Hong Wanqing responded in a low voice, weak. Mrs. Yongping Hou held back her temper, and pointed out that she hates iron and steel: "Well, what, is it time for you to pretend to be generous? You are the main room, the future Mrs. Zhenyuan Hou, you have to show the bearing of the main room. Come on, you will calm people down at the first sight. When you go back in a while, you have to talk to Mrs. Fu more and talk smarter, you know?"
The Marquis of Yongping was also one of the famous generals of the Zhengde Dynasty. Military generals were in better health than civilian officials, and one of them was that he had many children. Yongping Hou has many concubines, and the children in the backyard have never been broken. However, Mrs. Yongping Hou's methods are excellent, and her concubine and concubine daughters are submissive and obedient by her. No matter how much favored women in the backyard are, no one can shake her position. Mrs. Yongping Hou has achieved remarkable achievements in fighting women in her life. Seeing that her daughter is about to get married, she can't wait to instill everything she has learned in her life into Hong Wanqing.
Hong Wanqing was brought up by her mother's ears, and her heart was slowly lifted. With so many sisters and sisters in the Hong family, she has never lost a foothold in the competition for favor. Now she has the backing of her family, and the other party is just a girl from a military household who is beautiful and has no family background. She doesn't believe that she will lose.
After Hong Wanqing was encouraged by her mother, she went back to the place where she was entertaining guests. This time, as soon as she entered the door, she found that Fu Tingzhou was also there.
Mrs. Fu, Mrs. Chen sat in the middle, Fu Tingzhou sat next to Mrs. Chen, and Wang Yanqing moved an embroidered stool and sat quietly at the back. Seeing Yongping Hou's mansion coming in, Chen's and Fu Tingzhou both stood up. With a smile on Mrs. Yongping's face, she strode up to meet her, and said with a smile: "It turns out that the Zhenyuan Hou is here, sit down. My concubine didn't bother you. Are your mother and son talking?"
Fu Tingzhou smiled and said, "Where, Mrs. Hong and Miss Third, please take a seat."
Everyone took their seats, Hong Wanqing followed her mother, and couldn't help but look at Fu Tingzhou one after another. Mrs. Chen noticed Hong Wanqing's movements and smiled, "Mrs. Hong and the third girl Hong are back. The third girl said just now that she is not feeling well, are you alright?"
Mrs. Yongping Hou said with a hearty smile: "It's okay. This girl was raised by us and she couldn't bear it for a long time. It's not like Lord Hou, who has been in and out of the military camp since she was a child. Even my brother praised him well."
"Madam is very praised." Fu Tingzhou said, "I encountered something when I went out today, which delayed the time and made Mrs. Hong and Miss San wait for a long time. It's my fault, Miss San, please forgive me."
The people from the two houses have been meeting for a long time. Until now, Fu Tingzhou has only turned his attention to Hong Wanqing, and he has passed by, very respectful. Hong Wanqing's heart was beating faster and faster. He only called her "Miss San", which was a very formal title. But these few words came out of his mouth, as if with a unique magic power, making her blush and dazzle.
Because of Fu Tingzhou's presence and her mother's suggestion just now, Hong Wanqing became much more lively in the second half. Sitting beside Chen and her mother, she knew how hot and cold she was, and she was full of witty words, and it didn't take long for her to coax Chen to laugh. Hong Wanqing quietly went to see Fu Tingzhou in the gap between joking and laughing, and found that he was looking at them with a smile, but the smile on his lips was not deep, and he seemed to have other thoughts.
Hong Wanqing was a little disappointed. She remembered that her father had mentioned that Fu Tingzhou and Jin Yiwei had some friction recently. Maybe he was thinking about things outside. Hong Wanqing doesn't understand court affairs, but just with the three words Jin Yiwei, it is already very difficult.
Hong Wanqing seems to have lost something, but Fu Tingzhou didn't pay attention to Hong Wanqing's sight at all. Part of the reason for his distraction was really Jin Yiwei, but the other part was because of Wang Yanqing.
She is too quiet. The way she lowered her head and did not speak made Fu Tingzhou inexplicably flustered.
Wang Yanqing sat in the back, quietly listening to the chat and laughter of the Chen family and Yongping Hou's mansion. The family is indeed a family, Wang Yanqing curled her lips and smiled sarcastically, she was the only outsider.
Wang Yanqing felt that it was a mistake for her to come to Dajue Temple. It was not enough to be abandoned by others. Maybe people need to be slapped to wake up. Now Wang Yanqing is very calm, she thinks, when she goes back today, she will be able to pack up and leave.
Grandpa Fu had raised her for ten years, and she could not avenge her kindness. Since she called Fu Tingzhou the second brother, then leave quietly without distracting him from his future sister-in-law, which is probably the last thing her sister can do.
Dajue Temple and his party are considered to be the guests and the host. The winter days are short, the sky is dark in Shen Shi, the lead clouds are layered down, and it looks like it will snow again. Fu Tingzhou saw that the weather was not right and proposed to go back to the city. Mrs. Yongping Hou's goal has been achieved, and naturally there is nothing wrong. The two parties quickly packed up, and set off slowly as if they were Tathagatas.
When they reached the mountain pass, the wind gradually picked up. Fu Tingzhou, wearing a black cloak, rode in the wind on horseback, and spoke to Wang Yanqing through a curtain: "What's wrong with you? How long are you going to be angry with me?"
After a long time, a woman's voice came from inside: "No. How can I be angry with my second brother?"
She was always like this, never making a fuss or making a fuss when she was angry, never getting angry. In the past, Fu Tingzhou liked Wang Yanqing's calmness and measure, but now, he hates Wang Yanqing's measure.
Fu Tingzhou seemed to hit the cotton with a fist. He intended to have a good word with her, but she was neither cold nor cold, as if staying out of the way. Fu Tingzhou kept accumulating fire in his heart. This was the first time the two of them had a conflict. Intuition told him that he must speak up in time.
Fu Tingzhou was going to say something, but suddenly there was a noise in front of him, and then the team stopped. Fu Tingzhou frowned and sent his entourage to ask questions. After a while, the entourage ran back and said, "Master Hou, Miss Hou San of Yongping's carriage somehow broke down and could not move forward. Master Hou, look..."
Fu Tingzhou frowned, how come it happened at this time? When Wang Yanqing heard it, he said without waiting for Fu Tingzhou to speak: "Second brother, Miss Hong San's carriage is broken, you can go over quickly."
Fu Tingzhou is the only male protagonist in the team, and as the future son-in-law of Yongping Hou, he should come forward. Now the timing is not right, Fu Tingzhou held back the words in his heart and said to the curtain: "This section of the road is dangerous, you stay in the car and don't move, I'll go ahead and take a look."
Fu Tingzhou waited, but didn't hear the reply from inside, and the car curtain didn't move. The entourage had already urged him in front, so Fu Tingzhou could only leave it temporarily and dismount and leave.
This is a narrow road with cliffs beside it, so you have to be very careful. Fu Tingzhou walked to the front and found that Hong Wanqing's axle was broken. Fu Tingzhou quickly flashed doubts in his heart. Yongping Hou's house would not fail to check the carriage of the female family. When it came, it was fine, why did the axle happen to be broken on the most dangerous section of the road
Fu Tingzhou realized something was wrong, and at the same time, there was a cracking sound from behind. The arrows carried the cold light and shot at Fu Tingzhou in unison. Fu Tingzhou's beatings when he was a child were not in vain. He reacted very quickly and immediately fled. The arrow missed Fu Tingzhou, but shocked the horse next to him. With a neigh, the horse suddenly pouted and rammed. One of the wheels of the carriage was still broken. Hong Wanqing in the carriage was caught off guard. The back of her head slammed into the carriage, her whole body was overturned, and she fell out of the carriage in embarrassment.
Seeing that Hong Wanqing was about to roll down the cliff, Fu Tingzhou's face was cold and he immediately stepped forward to catch Hong Wanqing in time. And the cold arrow behind was like long eyes, taking the opportunity to attack Fu Tingzhou behind. Hong Wanqing was stunned, grabbing his clothes and not letting go, Fu Tingzhou's movements were blocked, and he was about to be hit by a sharp arrow, when a thrust suddenly came from his side.
Fu Tingzhou was pushed by this force and staggered two steps, narrowly dodging the fatal blow, only his arm was scratched. When he turned back and saw the figure behind him, his face changed greatly.
"Qingqing, be careful..."
Wang Yanqing pushed Fu Tingzhou away, but he was in danger. In order to avoid the arrow, she had to step back, her feet slipped suddenly, and her back was hanging in the air.
Before Wang Yanqing fell, she saw Fu Tingzhou pushing Hong Wanqing behind and rushed towards her quickly. Fu Tingzhou tried his best to stretch his arms, but his fingertips brushed Wang Yanqing's hand, Fu Tingzhou clenched his fingers hard, but only grabbed a handful of air.
Wang Yanqing fell off the cliff in front of him.
·
Wang Yanqing didn't think much of it when he pushed Fu Tingzhou away. In fact, with his skills, if it wasn't for Hong Wanqing, he wouldn't have been trapped by the arrow at all. He could take his life to protect another woman, but Wang Yanqing couldn't just watch him die. Wang Yanqing sacrificed his life to save Fu Tingzhou, but he also stumbled and fell off the cliff.
During her fall, she hit several dead trees. Although she blocked the momentum, the back of her head did not accidentally hit a rock. There was a buzzing sound in her head, and her eyes were whitish for a while, and soon her back came into contact with something meshed. She was pocketed by the net and landed smoothly.
Even so, when she touched the ground, her whole body was in severe pain, and her internal organs seemed to be displaced. She lay on the ground, weak, not even the strength to move her fingers.
There seemed to be footsteps sounding all around, and her consciousness became more and more blurred. Before closing her eyes, she saw a bright red dress with four-clawed flying fish embroidered on it.
A pair of clean soap leather boots stopped beside her.
Wang Yanqing was no longer able to support her eyelids, she tilted her neck to the side and fell into a coma.