In the afternoon, Zhang Yang almost tore up the account book several times. The more he calculated, the more confused he became, and the more annoyed he became. Finally, he finished calculating when he left the office.
Zhou Shuren didn't look at it, motioned to put it down, and then said: "Your Highness can go back now."
Zhang Yang turned and walked out. He didn't want to see Zhou Shuren, but as soon as he reached the door, he heard, "Zhang Jinghong's calculations are good, but I don't know who is better between him and Your Highness."
Zhang Yang turned his head, Zhou Shuren still lowered his head, as if the words just now were not said by Zhou Shuren, but he heard it clearly, pursed his lips, "Of course I am better."
Zhou Shuren raised his head, "Your Highness, are you not leaving yet?"
Zhang Yang was so angry that he repeated, "I will do better than Zhang Jinghong."
Zhou Shuren smiled deeply, "I am waiting for your Highness's proof."
Zhang Yang clenched his fist. He would prove that he was better than Zhang Jingyang. "Okay."
After Zhou Shuren and Zhang Yang left, appropriate stimulation was necessary to prevent him from becoming passive and giving up. Zhang Jinghong was a particularly useful card.
At Zhang Jinghong's house, Zhang Jinghong was curled up on the small kang, wrapped in a blanket, watching Yao Xin eat meat, dried fruits, etc. He secretly stretched out his hand to grab a handful on the table, but was beaten. He rubbed the back of his hand, "You really hit me!"
Yao Xin didn't even raise her eyelids and continued to eat the dried fruit. "The things that my elder sister sent were all carefully selected and very rare."
Zhang Jinghong remained silent. "Okay, okay, I won't eat. I won't eat anything except medicine and normal meals."
How come he found that Yao Xin was becoming more and more petty
Yao Xin snorted, "I'm doing this for your own good, so you don't get angry."
She didn't understand why Yao Yao sent such gifts, but she knew that if Yao Yao could do this, it must be because her husband agreed. Yao Yao was such a smart woman, she would not affect her marriage.
So she has long ceased to be petty, but she still feels a little awkward.
Zhang Jinghong didn't believe what the woman said. He just lay down and read a book. Suddenly he laughed again.
Yao Xin asked, "What are you laughing at?"
Zhang Jinghong said cheerfully, "I think the life I'm living now is quite interesting. This is how life should be lived."
Yao Xin couldn't help but curl up the corners of her mouth, and finally chuckled, pushing the dried fruit plate over, "Eat it, it smells good."
Zhang Jinghong, "Help me peel it."
"Oh, you still want me to serve you? Forget it. Just peel it yourself."
Zhang Jinghong pulled over the dried fruit plate and said, "If you don't help me peel them, I'll peel them for you."
Yao Xin stared at Zhang Jinghong as he peeled the dried fruits seriously, and her brows softened. Indeed, this was how life was, but the more they lived like this, the greedier she would become, and she would want more.
The next day, Zhulan went to the Du family, which was on the border of West City. If it weren't for the support of the Du family, the Du family would have left West City long ago.
Zhulan arrived relatively late, but today's birthday banquet was still quite lively. Most of the guests were relatives of the Du family, and there were not many officials' wives and children.
Over the years, the Du family has already lost the reputation of Mrs. Du, the Crown Prince's wife.
Zhulan was the highest-ranking among all the officials' wives. Because of Zhulan's arrival, Mrs. Du gained face and was particularly enthusiastic towards her.
Zhulan understood everything after seeing today's scene. The invitation sent to Zhou's house would definitely benefit Mrs. Du. She also looked at the families of Mrs. Du's two daughters-in-law, and they all had to come.
The old lady of the Du family had a birthday party, and it was very festive, because she had a daughter who was the wife of the prince of a duke's mansion, and she was very arrogant.
The old lady raised her eyes and said, "This must be Yang, I have often heard of you. You are a distinguished person in the capital's banquets. I heard that the invitations to you can be placed until after the New Year."
Zhulan felt that the old lady didn't like her, and smiled faintly, "We are not noble people, but husband and wife are one. This is the glory brought to me by my master. Old lady, do you think I am right?"
She would not indulge the old lady. She did not fight back firmly the first time. Just wait and see. In the future, the Du family will dare to visit the Zhou family, and it will definitely not be with the attitude of begging. The Du family has fallen into decline, but they still maintain their ridiculous arrogance and have never seen themselves clearly. This is what she dislikes the most.
The old lady is also a master of house fighting. The backyard of the Du family is very exciting. Although she is old, she is still able to fight. Yang's implicit meaning is that the women of the Du family were not invited because the men of the Du family are incompetent!
For a moment, the room fell silent.
Mrs. Du's face changed. From the moment her mother opened her mouth, she knew that something bad was going to happen. As a little daughter-in-law, she had no idea that Mrs. Yang was not someone to be trifled with. But although Mrs. Yang's words were not directed at her, she felt particularly painful on her face.
Mrs. Du was very upset. "Mother, look what gift I brought you?"
The topic change was a bit abrupt, but in order to avoid a dull moment, some people still continued the conversation.
Zhulan didn't say anything either. She was just expressing her opinion. She didn't want to disrupt the birthday party. She just sat there and watched quietly.
The old lady finally smiled as she looked at the headgear her daughter had given her. "Good, good, my daughter is still filial."
Zhulan covered her mouth with a handkerchief. Mrs. Du was filial and made the old lady proud, but the faces of the Du family's daughters-in-law were unhappy. They thought that some gifts were difficult to give. She looked at the clothes and accessories of the Du family's women. She knew more about jewelry and could tell that the gold jewelry was refurbished. The Du family was just as she had inquired about, and each branch had been spending the family's savings.
Sitting below Zhulan was the sister-in-law of Du's eldest daughter-in-law. Song's sister-in-law felt the gaze and smiled back gently, and Zhulan nodded.
She had met Song's sister-in-law several times. This Bai was really gentle. She spoke gently and had a gentle tone, but when it came time to be tough, she was not polite at all. She was the type of person who was gentle on the outside but strong on the inside.
The gifts given to Mrs. Song and Mrs. Yu, the two daughters-in-law of Mrs. Du, were also the best.
Zhulan and other guests would not bring in gifts, but would hand them over to the Du family's housekeeper when entering the mansion.
Bai asked quietly, "Shu Ren, would you like to leave first?"
Zhulan lowered her voice and said, "I do have this plan."
Bai said softly, "Sister, please wait for me for a while. I know a good teahouse and I would like to invite you to have tea."
Zhulan understood that something was wrong, "Okay."
Song looked over, Bai nodded imperceptibly, and Song smiled.
The birthday banquet was about to start. Zhulan didn't have much appetite. It wasn't because the food was bad, but she was wondering why Bai was like this and when it would be appropriate to leave early.
After waiting for a while, Zhulan saw that the old lady's face was full of fatigue. In ancient times, the old lady was considered to be very old. She was sixty-seven years old. She didn't say much this morning and was also tired.
When the old lady stood up, Zhulan also said goodbye, and Bai also stood up and said goodbye.
Zhulan and Bai left together. Du looked at them a few more times and asked her eldest daughter-in-law, "Is your sister-in-law familiar with Yang Shuren?"
Song had a good relationship with her natal family and was also friendly with her sisters-in-law. She did not hide it from her mother-in-law, "I met my eldest sister-in-law and Shuren at banquets several times."
Mrs. Du was a little embarrassed. Although her eldest daughter-in-law's family did not have anyone in a high position of power, they all held important positions as a whole. In addition, with their background, the women of the Song family often appeared at banquets.
Song lowered her head and didn't look at her mother-in-law, so as not to irritate her further.
Zhulan soon arrived at the teahouse, which was very elegant. The private room had already been booked. Zhulan jokingly said, "If I hadn't come today, wouldn't it have been a waste of time?"