There was a lot of snow this winter, but fortunately it did not cause a snow disaster. Instead, it satisfied snow lovers, who wrote many poems about the snow scenes.
Zhulan could not enjoy poetry, but she did feel a little emotional about clearing the snow in the capital. After the roads were repaired in the capital, it was more convenient to clear the snow and avoid the mud caused by the melting snow in the spring. It made her sad to think about it. In previous years, when the snow thawed in the spring, she tried not to go to the streets because there were mud spots everywhere.
Snowflakes began to fall this morning. Zhulan did not plan to study and was ready to take the children to change their minds. She took out the colorful dried flower petals she picked in the summer and asked her granddaughters to crush them to create colors.
The grandchildren took basins and the servants outside to smash ice cubes.
By the time Zhulan was done, the smashed ice cubes had been carved. Zhulan took her granddaughter to pour color on them and was having fun with the children.
Qingxue brought a woman in. Zhulan saw the person. This was Mingshan's wife from the clan. She stayed in the capital for imperial examination and had frequent contacts with Zhou's family. Zhulan became familiar with Mingshan's family.
Zhulan stood up and said with a smile: "It's so cold to go out. Why don't you wear more clothes?"
Mingshan's wife, Wang, looked pale from the cold. She gathered her cloak and whispered, "I was in a hurry to go out and didn't pay attention."
Zhulan saw that something was wrong. In the past, Wang always came with her mother-in-law, but today she was alone. After thinking for a while, Zhulan signaled the children to play by themselves and went into the house with Wang.
Back in the house, Zhulan took off her gloves and motioned Wang to warm her hands, "Drink some ginger tea later to get rid of the cold. It's easy to get sick in the cold winter."
Wang hummed softly and waited for the ginger tea to come up. She didn't know if her eyes were a little red from the heat or if she felt wronged, but she kept her head down while drinking tea with pursed lips.
When Zhulan saw that Wang was wronged, she felt that she could do something about it. Zhou's status in the Zhou family was no longer just the representative of the first person in the Zhou family, but because of its relationship with the royal family, it had become a transcendent existence in the Zhou family.
Zhulan asked softly, "But what difficulties did you encounter?"
Her heart was still biased towards women. Life was difficult for women in ancient times. Wang came to the capital with her parents, and without her, she seemed even more vulnerable.
Wang came here on impulse. A few days ago, her husband wanted to take a concubine, but she refused to give in. There was a rift between her and her husband. Yesterday, her mother-in-law put pressure on her, and she couldn't hold back her anger. She also thought that Mr. Zhou had no wife or concubine, so she came here today.
Zhulan saw that Wang was still lowering her head. "Since you are here today, even if you don't say anything, your mother-in-law won't believe it."
Wang raised her head, her eyes red, "Madam, I feel sad. The oath you made when you asked to marry me is still ringing in my ears, but today there is one more person among the two of you. I don't quite believe it, but I can do nothing about it."
She is tough now, but she also knows that she can't delay it for long and she still has to take the person into the family. She just can't get over the hurdle in her heart.
Zhulan guessed it, as for Mingshan, a young man from the Hui tribe, how should she be treated? Everyone has their own life, but she is not too close to Mingshan's branch, so she just lets them call her old lady, and also lets them know some attitudes. Tribe members are tribe members, and helping is allowed, but nothing too much.
Zhulan looked at the sadness and unwillingness in Wang's eyes. The beauty of the Zhou Mansion made Wang more hopeful. Unfortunately, the reality was cruel. The Zhou family only had her and Zhou Shuren, while the Mingshan branch was made up of pure ancient people.
Zhulan can actually take care of it, but she can only do it for a while, not for a lifetime. Now that this precedent has been set, won't all the tribesmen in the future come to her? Moreover, she knows that there are countermeasures from the top and policies from the bottom, and she has to rely on herself to establish this matter.
Wang said with hope in her heart, and Zhulan saw it all, "Have you ever thought about it? You came to me for help, and I stopped you. What about the future? What about you and your husband?"
Although the imperial court allowed divorces, not many people actually did so. In ancient times, unlike modern times, the divorce rate was really high.
Wang was stunned by the question and her face turned pale, but she was unwilling to accept it. She moved her lips and said, "I."
Zhulan raised her hand, "You are not young anymore, you already have several children, you need to think about what you want, what a truly smart person would do, you need to be independent first."
After a pause, he continued, "I will tell your mother-in-law that I asked you to come get your things, and I will send someone to take you back."
Wang Shi is not stupid. If she was stupid, she would not have taken over the power of housekeeper from her mother-in-law. She stood up and saluted, "Thank you, old lady."
Zhulan hummed, "Go back, your mother-in-law will think too much if you wait too long."
She didn't say the rest, Wang knew what to do.
When Zhou Shuren came back in the evening, Zhulan told him about this matter, "Mingshan is very quick to take in a concubine, but I don't know whether he took the initiative to take in a concubine or if she came to him."
Zhou Shuren really didn't know, "Is this true?"
"Mingshan's wife came today. Since we both have only one legal wife, she wanted me to take care of her. After she left, I thought about Mingshan. With the new emperor taking the throne, he has become a member of the clan, and his status has risen a lot with our family."
Zhou Shuren asked, "Have you checked?"
Zhulan waved her hand, "I'm too lazy to check. This matter is inevitable in the future. I just feel a little emotional."
Zhou Shuren narrowed his eyes and said, "I'll ask Changyi to knock on it tomorrow."
Zhulan stopped her, "When Wang came today, you asked Changyi to go and beat her up. This is not good for Wang. Since I helped Wang today, I will help her to the end. When you really take in a concubine, you can ask Changyi to beat her up again."
Zhou Shuren nodded, "Then remember these."
"Um."
In Xuzhou, Xuemei sat next to her brother and sister-in-law, "I will start my journey back in a few days."
Dong likes the family to be lively. As for her elder sister-in-law who has the best temper in the family, Dong likes her very much. "It's still some time before the Chinese New Year."
Xuemei smiled and said, "We walk slowly, so we want to leave early."
We have visited all the places to visit in Xuzhou, and my husband also wants to return to the capital as soon as possible to review what he has seen along the way.
Dong felt a little disappointed. Mrs. Song could help her manage a lot of things, but she couldn't communicate with her. After coming to Xuzhou, there was no one she really interacted with, no one to whom she could speak her true feelings. Only when her elder sister-in-law came could she tell her true feelings, and she felt much more relieved by her elder sister-in-law.
Xuemei smiled and said, "Don't be disappointed. After the spring plowing next year, we will go along Xuzhou Road again and stay in Xuzhou for a few days."
Mrs. Dong smiled and said, "Okay, then Big Sister must stay for a few more days."
The next day in the capital, the sky was clear. Today was Mingyun's day off, and he was preparing to go study with his grandmother. As he pushed the door open with his book in hand, he almost bumped into Mingteng.
Mingyun said coldly, "Where are your rules?"
Ming Teng touched his nose and admitted that he was unlucky. "Brother, I was wrong."
Mingyun saw Mingteng standing properly, and then asked with satisfaction, "Why did you come to me so rashly?"