Time passed quickly, and the three letters and six ceremonies between the Zhou and Ning families went smoothly. The re-engagement between the Zhou and Ning families was also talked about with great relish in the capital, and of course, there was also the luxurious betrothal gift sent by the Ning family.
On that day, the Ning family's betrothal gifts filled the Zhou family's front yard. Not only the gold and silver, but also the antique jewelry opened the eyes of those who came to watch the ceremony.
The date for this ceremony has also been set, and it will be held in the winter of next year.
During the three days after the engagement, Zhulan was still very busy, busy with packing her daughter's dowry. Several daughters-in-law also came to help, and it took nearly three days to completely pack everything.
Li looked at the thick dowry list in her mother-in-law's hand and breathed a sigh of relief. "Finally it's done, mother. I've been dreaming about sorting out my dowry every night these past few days."
When she woke up, she felt tired. Her sister-in-law married into a wealthy mansion, and the dowry dazzled her eyes. Yu Lu also married into a wealthy mansion. The Wang family had a deep foundation, and Master Wang was a first-rank official. Her daughter was the eldest daughter-in-law of her great-grandson, so she was worried about her daughter's dowry.
Zhulan touched the dowry list and said, "Mother, it's the dowry all the time. Fortunately, it's finally been ordered."
The betrothal gift sent by the Ning family was too expensive. She had told Shu Ren that Xue Han should take all of it away. Now, plus the dowry she had prepared, Xue Han's dowry was too much, already one hundred and twenty loads.
Back then, the Crown Princess married the Crown Prince for 140 units, and the several princes' wives for 120 units. Although Rongchuan was the real Fifth Prince, he was not recognized as such.
Zhulan had no choice but to reduce the dowry, but every item was carefully prepared by her for her daughter, and even if it was compacted, it would still be more than enough.
That's why I reorganized the dowry, deleted some of the things that would not be used in the future, and finalized the final dowry list.
Zhao's help these past few days has really opened her eyes. Back then, she had to carry a few taels of silver with her every day, but now her purse rarely contains silver, but only banknotes. "Mother, should I prepare my aunt's wedding dress?"
Zhulan, "It is indeed time to prepare, but we need to choose the material."
Su Xuan continued, "Mother, the material my daughter-in-law used to make her wedding dress was quite good, but it needs to be ordered in advance. How about my daughter-in-law helping my sister-in-law to order it?"
Zhulan smiled and said, "That's good, otherwise I would be worried!"
Seeing that her mother was a little tired, Li stood up and said, "Mom, you should rest first. Your daughter-in-law will be home first."
Zhulan was indeed a little tired, "Okay."
The daughters-in-law all came back. Zhulan stood up and went back to her room to rest. She paused and said to Mrs. Song, "You should divide the selected dowry into five equal parts and send them to the different families. These parts are for Yushuang and the others."
Mrs. Song asked, "Why don't you wait until the Miss Suns get married before sending them over?"
Zhulan smiled and said, "They still have some ideas about getting married. These jewelry will be old, so why not divide them now?"
Mrs. Song: "Yes."
In the eldest house, Li couldn't sit still after returning to the yard, so she took her mother-in-law to the storehouse. In the storehouse was the dowry she had saved for her daughter. The dowry was really incomparable. There was a huge difference. The good things that could be shown off were also distributed to each room by the mother-in-law.
Li only hoped that her husband would go home, yes, it should be Butler Ding who would go home quickly, so that she could know how much money she had earned and buy more for her daughter.
When Li came out of the warehouse, she saw Mrs. Song coming with a maid, carrying cloth and a box. Li asked, "What is this?"
Mrs. Song explained, "These are what the mistress gave to the young ladies. Miss Yulu and Miss Yushuang are old, and it's the right age for them to wear jewelry. The things given to the two young ladies are things like cloth. The other young ladies are young, so most of them are unpolished gems."
Li waited for Mrs. Song to leave, then opened the box, which was filled with jewelry suitable for her daughter. She sighed, "Mrs. Song is so thoughtful."
The maids around her thought to themselves that Mrs. Song was very strict and they were most afraid of her.
Zhao, the second wife, received two portions and looked at her little girl playing with the gems. She thought to herself that it was fortunate that the little girl was much older than Yu Shuang, so she could have a few more years to save up for her dowry.
Because Dong's daughter was young and she was pregnant, she put the picture away after reading it.
Su Xuan has too many good things, so she put them away for her daughter to use when she grows up.
In the Hanlin Academy, the weather was getting a little colder. Shi Qing was sick and felt extremely uncomfortable all over. He felt dizzy after taking a few steps.
Chang Lian supported him from behind and said, "I'm not saying anything, but if you're not feeling well, why don't you ask for leave?"
Shi Qing had a lot of troubles. Recently, the emperor asked him to keep a close eye on the capital, and he dared not relax. In addition, the more he came into contact with them, the more he knew about what the Yao Hou Mansion had done in the past. Although he didn't know much, he understood that the emperor hated the Yao Hou Mansion to the core.
Shi Qing recalled that after Yao Yao became pregnant, the emperor hinted to him that the death of both mother and child was a good outcome. He then understood that the emperor regretted arranging the marriage and did not want to let anyone from the Yao family go.
He was completely confused at the time. He said that he and Yao Yao had a deep love, but he himself didn't believe it. He and Yao Yao could only be said to know each other. There was affection, but it was not deep. Neither Yao Yao nor he was someone who could give their true love. They both had reservations in their hearts.
Later, he didn't know how long he knelt, he only knew that he couldn't be so heartless. If he really did that, the emperor would not trust him anymore. Even a tiger won't eat its own cubs, so he protected Yao Yao and the child.
Now is the price, he has to bear it even if it is painful. The only regret is that Yao Yao can only give birth to a girl. This is the emperor's last concession.
Shi Qing had no idea that he couldn't let the emperor give in yet. The only reason he let the emperor give in was because he had helped Rongchuan in the past.
Chang Lian saw that Shi Qing didn't say anything, so he sighed and said, "Sit down first, I'll go get you some hot water."
Shi Qing said hoarsely, "Thank you."
Chang Lian went out to pour hot water. There were many scholars in the Hanlin Academy, but no one served him. It cannot be said that way, because he was also a scholar, but he had never poured hot water by himself. There was always someone to help him.
He used to rely on having a good father, and later with the addition of Rongchuan, he felt like a fish in water during his time in the Hanlin Academy. Chang Lian looked at the servant who helped him pour hot water. He was indeed not suitable to stay in the capital, where he would always have his father to protect him. He had to think about where he would go to hone his skills in two years.
Chang Lian went to the kitchen and brought back a pot of hot water and ginger tea. He handed the ginger tea to Shiwu and said, "Drink it. Put this pot of water aside for now. Drink it when it cools down. Drink more hot water and you will feel better."
Shi Qing, "Thank you."
Chang Lian patted Shi Qing on the shoulder. He had heard from his father that Shi Qing had a hard life.
Ministry of Justice. Zhou Shuren followed the prince to the Ministry of Justice yesterday. Zhou Shuren rubbed his neck and looked at the files on the table in front of him with a wooden face. It was probably because the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Works were too idle, so all the files were piled up in the Ministry of Justice waiting for him.
The prince was still confident and used his own words to choke him, saying that he was in charge of the government of a state. Anyway, just let him look through the volume, hoping that he could find some problems.
Zhou Shuren sneezed and regretted why he didn't open the window when it rained last night. If he was sick, he could just take a leave. Why bother fighting with the files in the Ministry of Justice