Zhou Shuren looked at Jiang Sheng. Although he had come to Beijing, his son-in-law didn't come over often. He heard from his eldest daughter that his son-in-law put all his attention on studying. If Jiang Sheng hadn't encountered any difficulties, he wouldn't have spoken. After thinking for a while, he asked, "But has anyone contacted you?"
Jiang Sheng nodded and looked at his father-in-law with admiration. His father-in-law guessed it without him saying, "Someone wants to invite me to another academy?"
He was panicked; he had never experienced this before.
Zhou Shuren, "Since you have come to the capital, you will have to go through this sooner or later. Although your last name is Jiang, you are inseparable from the Zhou family. You don't have to think too much about it. Just refuse directly."
Jiang Sheng was not stupid. Why was he so panicked? Because someone close to him mentioned the King of Chu, and he was afraid of causing trouble for his father-in-law. "He mentioned the King of Chu. Will it embarrass you if I refuse?"
Zhou Shuren smiled and said, "No, it's because you are not decisive that I will be embarrassed. Just remember that the Zhou family is only loyal to the emperor and will not join any team. Don't feel too burdened, just don't be calculated."
Jiang Sheng exhaled and listened to his father-in-law's tone. That was because his father-in-law was confident. He was not envious. The more he got, the more he had to endure. His father-in-law worked too hard.
Zhou Shuren waited until his eldest daughter and her husband left, then said to Zhulan, "Sometimes a person's character determines his or her entire life."
"Are you talking about Jiang Sheng?"
Zhou Shuren nodded, "Although Jiang Sheng has made progress, his character has not changed at all."
Zhulan spread the quilt and said, "I think it's good. If it's really big, I'll be worried."
"You're right, this is good."
He could teach his grandson and his great-grandson, but he was powerless to teach his son-in-law who had grown up. First, he didn't have enough time to teach Jiang Sheng little by little. Second, Jiang Sheng was not his son. He could beat or scold him, and whatever he said was what he meant. It would be too tiring for him to take Jiang Sheng with him. It was possible that Jiang Sheng would not have achieved much after his death. He also didn't want to burden his sons after his death and have to worry about the Jiang family's affairs.
Time passed quickly, and in a blink of an eye it was Yujiao's full moon banquet. The Zhou family only had legitimate children, so the banquet standards were the same whether it was for a granddaughter or a grandson.
There were no relatives from the Zhou family, but Dong’s family from her own family sent gifts before the full moon. Although the Dong family was quite disappointed with their daughter, they still understood the importance of the gift.
Especially Dong's eldest brother. Because Dong Zhan's study was going better and better and he was living more and more comfortable in Zhou's family, Dong's eldest brother appreciated Dong's kindness and gave her a full-moon gift of nearly one hundred taels.
Some of the people who came to the full moon banquet were colleagues from the Changlian Hanlin Academy, but more of them came for Zhou Shuren. The Zhou family had not split up, and the wedding of the third branch was for the entire Zhou family.
Yujiao's full-month gift made a fortune. The capital was not as prosperous as Jinzhou. There were so many people coming that the prepared banquet was not enough.
After the event, Zhulan sent all the gifts to the third room. She did not keep any of them and asked Mrs. Song to tell them that they were all for Yujiao.
These full-month gifts were Yujiao’s first dowry.
There are actually no expensive gifts for a full-moon gift, because full-moon gifts are so common in Beijing, and Zhulan has participated in too many of them in Beijing. If all of them were expensive, she would go bankrupt, so the important thing is to be exquisite. Of course, there are some expensive ones, and they all have a purpose.
Chang Lian looked at the gift list and said to his wife, "Even though we received a lot, we also gave back a lot. This month alone, we have to prepare two gifts."
Dong was well taken care of during the confinement period and was in good spirits. Even though she was busy today, she didn't feel too tired. "I've prepared everything."
Chang Lian suddenly laughed and cursed, "These people want to take this opportunity to get me drunk so that I can arrange a marriage for my children. Bah, they are just dreaming."
Dong Chuchu smiled and said, "You don't even dare to order it even if you want to."
My parents will join forces to deal with my husband.
Chang Lian touched his nose and said, "But I'm under a lot of pressure. My colleagues have already proposed our daughter Yuyi as the dowry for our two daughters, but I rejected it."
People are already asking about his daughter at such a young age. As a father, he feels sad and pressured. Those who dare to ask him all have good family backgrounds.
Dong Chuchu knew clearly that Yu Lu was pregnant because the first wife had the eldest grandson and son. The first wife had the most boys, and Minghui was smarter than Mingteng. She envied her eldest sister-in-law for being so good at giving birth. The second wife was a commoner, and Mingrui was too young to be the eldest or the second. The fourth wife, Changzhi, was going to take the imperial examination. The whole family had seen his progress in the past year or so, but Changzhi did not take the exam, and the twins were too young.
So now the only one being focused on is the third wife, even though she has two daughters, one is still a little one and the other was just born.
In the main courtyard, Zhu Lan and Zhou Shuren said, "Yao Xin came today. I heard from Yao Xin that Shi Qing's son has had a weak constitution since birth and has been taking medicine all the time."
"I also heard from Chang Lian that the baby was held back for too long and is a little weaker."
Zhulan did want to send a gift, but Shi Qing was too close to the Fifth Prince, so she gave up the idea. "It's not easy for Shi Qing either."
Zhou Shuren, "Who has it easy in this capital?"
Zhu Lan lowered her voice and said, "I've always wanted to ask, has this child been tampered with?"
Zhou Shuren chuckled, "No one has done anything wrong. The Emperor won't do that."
The timing of this child's birth was good, as Shi Qing was being promoted to a high position. Since the emperor promoted him highly, he would not do anything about it.
Zhu Lan added: "Actually, after thinking about it, it doesn't matter if the child is a little weak, as long as he can be raised well."
Zhou Shuren curled his lips, "This child can be raised well, and Shi Qing will not tell others that the child is fine."
Zhulan sighed, "You're right, it's not easy for anyone in the capital."
Zhou Shuren helped his wife sit down and stretched out his hand to massage her shoulders. "You've been exhausted these days. You've been dealing with Mr. Wu Ming's marriage, then Wu Yong's, and now the full moon banquet. You've been working hard these days."
"It's not that hard for me. I basically just talk to the housekeeper, Mrs. Song, and I'm the only guest I worry about."
Zhou Shuren, "It's only been a short time since the beginning of this year, but there have been a series of happy events. This year has started off well."
"The biggest event in our family right now is your birthday."
Zhou Shuren sighed. He didn't want to have a very lively birthday, but unfortunately birthdays were social events, so he had to celebrate. "It's still a while before that, don't think about it."
The next day, in the Ministry of Revenue, Jinyan took something back from the carving shop, a large wooden box that was particularly eye-catching.
It was hard not to pay attention to what Wang Ju was reporting. She looked at it several times, and finally during the lunch break, she couldn't help but asked, "What did you buy?"
Zhou Shuren thought of what his wife said about Tao's envy, and opened it with a smile, "This is a surprise I prepared for my wife."
Wang Ju stared at the bamboo carvings in the box with a wooden face. Since coming to Beijing, her wife and Yang's friends had more opportunities to meet and chat more. Then she learned that Zhou Shuren liked to give surprises, and her wife always expressed envy in her words and asked for gifts in both words and deeds.
Wang Ju gritted her teeth and said, "How old are you? You've been a grandfather for eleven times, and you still want to surprise me!"
Zhou Shuren curled his lips, "This is romance, and you, who don't understand romance, don't understand."
Wang Ju looked at Zhou Shuren as if struck by lightning, "..."
No wonder Zhou Shuren can say so many flattering words!!