Chapter 186: Dark and Blurred
It's not April yet, but the weather is already quite hot. As the peach blossom petals are blown by the wind, the official road is also filled with the smell of the fading spring.
This time on their return to the east, they were accompanied by the Qiang tribe and often had to go through routine inspections in the prefectures and counties they passed through, so their travel speed could not be much faster; however, the entire team was mostly using carts pulled by horses and oxen, so it was not much slower.
Talking to the Han Chinese among them, I could only recall the cruelty and desolation of the Party Imprisonment in those days, which really didn't bring me any good feelings, but I had to ask. And I had to finish asking before entering the mountain road.
But I haven't found a talent that can impress me yet. At most, a few old officials who are not too old can be used as clerks, and a few Qiang teenagers can be promoted to military lieutenant colonels. This matter still needs to be arranged by the court that I will hand over to after returning. I don't know if they have found any real talents, but since they are doing it, I will hand it over to them. At least I know that there are brothers Xu Ying and Xu Wei. After all, I asked Yinling to keep those two beautiful memorials for official positions for me.
I wonder how the children's studies are going. Have they hired more talented teachers? Is that yellow-haired girl still pestering Kong Ming
Who will be the successor to General Zhang? I will only know this after I arrive in Luoyang, but I am really interested in seeing who will take the vacant position at the west gate of Sili.
Yinling lay quietly in my arms, sleeping and waking up from time to time as the convoy slowly moved forward.
When she wakes up, I share my thoughts with her and chat with her. When she falls asleep, I quietly think about the topic for the next time she wakes up.
Yinling would make some comments here and there, but since I was always talking to her and making her happy, she was in a good mood.
On the way back, I was always thinking about things, so I felt like I was walking fast.
A few days later, they passed Hangu Pass again.
This time, the general named Xu Huang came with a very young boy in the uniform of a school lieutenant to greet me. The cavalry captain was not there this time, so I was the one to deal with him. Xu and Song were civil servants and were not suitable, Ge Liang was new and was not suitable, and Yuan was too young and was not suitable. After thinking about it, I always felt that I had missed someone. After thinking for a long time, I remembered that there was indeed someone coming. I just thought about his name in my mind, and I felt that the word "what" followed by the name seemed inappropriate, and then he disappeared without a trace.
I was doing routine business with them, but the main problem was the identities of these Qiang people. I could understand this, and it was not the first time that the conscientious people in front of me stopped me, so I tried my best to cooperate.
Although they were surprised that I had no proper garrison escort, and were very respectful to me, just like the county guards before me, they still did not intend to easily let go of this Qiang caravan that seemed to be fleeing and had some sheep and horses in it.
Naturally, I have no objection. It is not a bad thing to have rules in everything, so I am quite satisfied with Mr. Xu and think he is worth recommending.
It was the look on his face when that young man, who looked like a lieutenant, looked at me that made me feel uneasy.
He seemed to look at me from time to time, as if he was trying to recall something.
I remembered the two axes I saw last time, and the two men in front of me seemed somewhat similar. I suddenly thought: Could this general be your brother? (One is Xu Huang's son, but the history books doubt this.)
Your Excellency has good eyesight, which is exactly the quality of my younger brother.
Have you ever met me
The general named Zhi was nervous, and his brother asked for me: Zhi, have you ever seen Lord Yuehou? When Lord Junhou entered Hangu Pass, you hesitated and said that Lord Yuehou looked very familiar.
But... I have seen him before. Even if I haven't, he looks too much like me. Lord Yuehou, please allow me to report that on a rainy night that year, a bearded official from Jingzhou was returning to Jingzhou with his wife and children. I met him and my party in the village community. His figure and voice are exactly the same as Yuehou's, except that he is slightly hoarse and his tone is quite mercenary. Does Yuehou have a brother
My heart tightened: it turned out that the horse team that chased Yu and his mother back then was from the Xu family.
Is there such a coincidence? I felt a little troubled. The reason I felt troubled was because there was Yinling in the car behind me. What should I do if she had any random thoughts
Zhi was an orphan and grew up with his wife. I have never seen this person before, so I need to go back and check. When did you see this gentleman
Xu Zhi gave me a date from more than a year ago. Even though Yinling didn't know where I was exactly at that time, she should be able to calculate that I was on the way from Luoyang to Xiangyang at that time.
But I am Xie Zhi, and I can be safe in this situation with just one sentence. The previous question was just to lay the groundwork, to avoid the following question being too abrupt and suspicious. As for my safety, it is not about me facing the people in front, but when I face Yin Ling. You know, her mood is not particularly stable after she got pregnant, and she likes to lose her temper from time to time. If she suspects something, my life will not be very good, after all, I will be in the car with her for a long time.
Oh, I was on my way home that day. It rained heavily... It seemed like I was living in Yecheng. How old was that man? How old were his wife and children
The man was about 30 years old and mentioned his wife and children, but his wife avoided him and the child was about 11 or 12 years old.
The most important thing is the age of the man and the child. I must not look haggard after running around for several days, and I must be much younger. And they have already mistaken the three people for a couple, and they only need the age of a child to let me get away with it.
"How come I don't know about such a person?" I pretended to be deep in thought, but I was actually in a very relaxed mood.
"Marquis Yue, there is no need to think too much about it. I am just asking casually. We will go and make a register and then let the team go." General Xu Huang also felt that this scene was inappropriate, so he said goodbye to us.
"You two Generals Xu have worked so hard."
The matter was eventually left unresolved. I only asked the officials sent to serve us about the two generals' native places and courtesy names. It was strange that the two brothers did not grow up together. The elder brother was from Hedong, while the younger brother was born at the junction of Yuzhou and Jingzhou. Based on their ages, I guessed that the elder brother was already born during the Party and Prison Rebellion, and was left in his hometown to be taken care of by others when he was young, while their family moved to the countryside at the junction of Jingzhou and Yuzhou to avoid the chaos, and later the younger brother was born.
Before leaving, I specially thanked Xu Zhi for the clues he provided and said I would go back to investigate.
Not far away, Yin Ling, who had been silent during the checkpoint, suddenly asked, "Is it Yu and his son?"
"Yinling also knows about them mother and son?" He suddenly felt still a little unsafe.
"Yes, Sister Pei told me that they thought you were extraordinary just because you saved their lives when they didn't know them, so they followed you secretly. When they found out that you were actually the Marquis of Ping An Fengyun, they decided to come and follow you."
I felt relieved, at least I didn't make Yinling angry when I pretended to be someone else's husband that night. Of course, for safety's sake, I still had to say a few more words.
Alas, a mother in her twenties raising a child in his teens, an orphan and a widow, how bad could she be? Who would steal things if they didn't want to survive? Being chased by dozens of men on horseback in the middle of the night, what good could she get out of being caught
Yin Ling didn't say much, just continued to lie in my arms, touching my cheek with her hand, "My good baby. If I wasn't afraid of causing you trouble, I really want to let the whole world know how many good things you have done without considering the consequences and without asking for anything in return. Fortunately, God is kind to you. You should know that you were almost killed by Qiu Luan because you did something for Meng De. Because of your soft heart, Sister Pei and I haven't even had children yet, but you already have three children whose fathers you don't even know."
"If I'm really good, isn't it all because of your teaching?" I said flatteringly with a smile.
"Don't really think I'm praising you. You have to be careful and don't let others take advantage of you." Someone pulled my ear unexpectedly, and it seemed that this person was not going to let go for the time being.
"I am happy to be used by you, please take your time." In this regard, I can only continue to act like a good boy.
Yinling finally changed her hand and pinched my nose, snorting softly: "Slippery tongue."
Yiren suddenly broke the silence again: "Zirui, why don't you go out and ride your horse? I've been pressing on your legs, don't they feel sore?"
Actually... I'm worried that someone might attack me.
Oh, you're still thinking about this. Actually, I've been worried about this since Shangsi. But I don't think they will do it on the official road in the Great Plains. Once they are found and traced back to the real owner, as long as he hasn't left Sili, it will be difficult to end well. And this time the plan is so detailed that they didn't kill you. They must be very nervous. Maybe they are afraid that you will cause trouble for them. I'm afraid you have already slipped back to Luoyang.
I definitely can't do that, it's not the time for chaos. But I still have to be careful of assassins who might be trying to kill me somewhere. It's open outside, I can go out for a walk; in this valley, you stay with your husband.
Zirui has really grown up. I had thought that after you came back, you would go to Qi Gong to cause trouble intentionally or unintentionally, and put on gorgeous clothes to continue to provoke those assassins outside. It seems that I worried for nothing. In fact, when I came here, I heard your arrangement behind you, and I was really surprised. Zirui has really grown up.
Then, he leaned into my arms a little more.
If I don't have time to dodge and the arrow is poisoned, it will be troublesome. Now I have to show weakness and go back to discuss with my father and others who we should torment this year.
You think so
My head.
No wonder you and I only took an ordinary car, but you loaded the original car with all kinds of sundries. When we were approaching Hangu Pass and the road was narrow, you didn't go out anymore. If you had thought about it long ago, why didn't you go with me
"I'm afraid you'll worry about me." To avoid further trouble, I kissed her directly, and she continued to kiss me, and really stopped asking. Slowly, we both seemed to have an impulse. But Yinling was still relatively calm, and suddenly pushed my chest and pointed at her abdomen, which prevented the situation from escalating further.
It seemed that both of us felt a little lost.
After a long time, I finally remembered that I could still say something.
"I couldn't sleep that night and figured out some things."
"Well, that night I was lying on your pillow and I realized you couldn't sleep. But you didn't move, and I didn't want to disturb you. Then you seemed to be feeling uncomfortable, so you turned slightly to the side and coughed. That's when I spoke to you."
How did Ling'er know that I couldn't sleep
If Zirui falls asleep on his back he will snore, but if he falls asleep on his side his breathing will become much slower and heavier.
"I really can't hide anything from you." He kissed her again.
Yiren suddenly curled up her body and hugged my thighs with her arms: "Zirui's thighs are so thick."
Then he stretched out his right hand and made a circle. "Your legs were probably this thick back then. How did you grow so tall? Even though I was watching all the time, it still feels miraculous when I think about it."
"People always grow up."
"The flowers smell so good." Yiren suddenly smelled the scent of the wind, took a breath greedily, and hugged me tightly again: "It's so good to be with Zirui all the time"
The voice carried an indescribable joy and a hint of coquettish sweetness.
Actually, it is a good thing to live with the one you love all the time. It can let me know many things. Due to the bumpy ride and some morning sickness, Yinling’s appetite is not good and she changes quickly; she wants to eat this now and that now. However, she tries to eat all kinds of things. I think she must be doing it for the child.
I suggested that she shouldn't force herself, but Yiren just tried her best to force a silly smile while eating, and she even asked me to wipe the oil stains from the corners of her mouth.
That night we stayed in Gucheng, and nothing happened that night. But the girl was talking and laughing with the maid and was noisy, so I gave her a beating as usual.
I had been sitting in the car for the past two days and my body felt inexplicably constrained. After I finished cleaning up, I felt much more relaxed and fell asleep quickly.
The next day, near dusk, he finally rushed back to Luoyang. After settling the Ehe and Shaoge families outside the city for a few days, he returned to Yuehou Mansion with his accompanying officials and subordinates. After giving a few instructions, he took Yinling back to his father's house.
That evening, the wind was warm, and summer was approaching faster and faster. My mind was full of various things, so I went back to my room and lay down, and my mother followed me and asked me questions.
I fell asleep without having dinner that night. The only memory I have is that Yinling rested her head in my arms and seemed to have stroked my face.
In the next few days, I still had to do what I needed to do: seeing off those who were leaving, meeting those who would not leave for the time being. I followed my father, remained silent, and tried to remember what I needed to remember.
I just felt groggy and there were many things I didn't like to do, but I had to force myself to do them.
Both His Majesty and Empress He asked me to stay longer, and the Empress even said that Yinling's daughter-in-law could stay to give birth. She said that it would be fine if the imperial doctors and palace maids took care of her.
This old lady definitely regarded me as her own son, and her eyes were the same as when my mother found an excuse to keep Yinling. She knew that I couldn't bear to part with Yinling, so she kept a hostage and forced me to run to Luoyang from time to time.
I had to muddle through the situation on the field and had to suppress the thought of going home for the time being.
A few days later, in early April, we held a banquet at home to entertain all the ministers. My father introduced me to the entire Shangshutai and told me that I had to get familiar with this team and build good relationships with them when I came here.
God knows how many of these people will still be in the Shangshutai after seven or eight years. My father might just want to take this opportunity to win over these Shangshu and Shangshu's assistants to show his respect for them. But I always feel that my father is not thoughtful enough. If he doesn't promote them for seven or eight years, won't the Shangshu feel uncomfortable? But how dare I speak carelessly in public.
But relatively speaking, I paid more attention to the empty space next to Brother Zhongdao.
I wanted to ignore it, but I kept looking there. To avoid Yinling getting angry, I mentioned it frankly and added a sentence "I don't know why". Yinling didn't blame me or make a fuss about it, but just explained that maybe the wedding date was set, so it was not appropriate to come now.
There was a lot of drinking and toasting at the scene. Fortunately, I had indeed climbed high enough, so I only had to stay where I was and wait for others to toast me. It was not too troublesome. Finally, Brother Zhongdao came to celebrate my birthday. While the singing and dancing were going on, it was inconvenient for him to return to his seat, so he sat next to me temporarily. Of course, it might be intentional.
"Why is she not here? Have you set a date for the wedding?" he asked with a warm smile. I didn't feel too sad and seemed to be really relieved.
"Sister Yi is going to travel to the south again and forget about you." Brother Zhongdao seemed to be relieved: "I really envy Brother Zirui... for meeting her first and going through so many things with her."
I didn't know how to respond, so I could only smile.
"Of course, if I were in that place, I probably wouldn't be able to do it like you." Brother Zhongdao looked at his hands and said self-deprecatingly, "I'm not as strong as you, brother."
"She wanted to forget you, but she couldn't get you out of her heart. She didn't want to marry me when she always thought of you in her heart, which was unfair to me... For this, I am very grateful to her, but I can't do anything."
Brother Zhongdao seemed to be drunk and kept talking, while Yinling and I just kept listening.
That night was noisy, I was very tired and a little bored. I couldn't help but miss the clouds, rain and quiet dusk in Guangxin.
I really can't bear the dull days here. Tomorrow I must propose to them the matter of returning south to my country, using the reason that the rebellion needs to be quelled as urgently.
But in fact, things had just begun that night. I went to bed to catch my breath, and was about to change clothes and go to bed, but I found Yinling sitting next to me in her clothes.
"Yinling, go to bed early. You will have many social events tomorrow."
"No, you should rest for a while, don't take off your clothes, you will get up soon, you must have something to do tonight."
"Father told you? Why didn't he tell me?"
"You have people toasting you tonight, how can you be free?"
Sure enough, after a while, my father called me softly from outside the window: "Shan... Zirui, my son, did Yinling tell you? Come out... Well, my daughter-in-law, you can come if you don't mind."
It seemed that my father had drunk a lot too.
A moment later, the four of us, the regents and Yin Ling, met in the secret room. I thought that Brother Meng De, who was drunk, was now looking at me and Yin Ling with a lively smile.
"You two have been disturbed by us all night, your brother-in-law is sorry for you. Oh, there is another baby, I am sorry to disturb your rest." He also bowed to Yinling's belly.
The teacher also sat there and looked at us with a smile: "Well, we didn't intend to call you, but we thought you should know something."
My heart skipped a beat and I looked at Yinling. She seemed to have expected this.
"All our previous disagreements in memorials and disputes in the court were for show to others." My father's plain words made my chest skip a beat.
"But based on our understanding of you, we don't want you to know for the time being. We want you to be unaware of the situation and have your father tell you about it. We want you to spread false information and let all the princes see it. Your teacher has thought about it again and again and thinks you may be able to do something better."
"Well, the emperor has chosen the crown prince, and finally decided on Prince He." My father said worriedly, "After a commotion in the court, most of the officials of the crown prince's lineage were indeed given to people related to the Yuan family. The Yuan family is indeed full of students and former officials. It is difficult to move them, and it is difficult to avoid them. I am afraid that there will be great obstacles for us to reduce the power of the vassal states."
"Zi Rui, do you still remember the school in the forest?" I naturally remembered it, so I nodded to Brother Meng De, and Brother Meng De continued: "I wanted to take this opportunity to keep a few smart and reliable officials as palace guards so that I could follow the prince. But they all died within a year, and the one you saw was the last one. Even though my father-in-law controls the inner court, most of the officials and palace guards in the outer court are related to them."
"Back then, we were able to control the inner court by taking advantage of the Luoyang Rebellion. Although we looked very powerful, our influence in the court was still far less than that of the Dong and Yuan families. But you were young and impulsive from time to time. You acted on impulse and angered the Dong family. Although we found a reason to persuade His Majesty to destroy the Dong family, we were unable to let the Dong and Yuan families fight each other when choosing a successor. It was a pity. After the Dong family was abolished, the Yuan family naturally became stronger. So when the fiefdoms were divided, several branches of the Yuan family were given fiefdoms, and all the lucrative positions of the Sikong lineage in the court were also given to them. We had to quarrel deliberately, even in front of His Majesty, and we frequently quarreled. We also frequently showed goodwill to him, which was a sign of weakness... "My father seemed a little angry, but he calmed down quickly. "But your performance was within the expectations of your teacher and Meng De. So, before you came, we decided to let you do whatever you want and use you to make a plan for them to see. It was as if you were the key to our joint efforts, but we didn't expect that you would be the one who got killed. We took the risk and agreed to let you go to Chencang to quell the rebellion, just to highlight your willfulness. The reason we took the risk was that if you failed, I'm afraid we would be in real trouble."
"Zi Rui may not know that we deliberately found some people to stand on our side and support Lord Dong... In fact, we have long been eyeing Crown Prince He. The Second Prince is much smarter. If he becomes the Crown Prince, we are afraid that he will be difficult to control in the future. If he is taken advantage of, our efforts to reduce the power of the vassal states will be even more constrained. Although the Crown Prince's subordinates have been determined, there is still a lot of time, and we can slowly find a way to replace the many Yuan factions of the Crown Prince's lineage."
"I have only one request for you, to hold back Yuan Shu and Sun Jian. It is a foregone conclusion that Sun Jian will replace Zhu Jun, but we will downgrade Wu from a duchy to a marquisate, and we will also place Dongye County, the southernmost part of Kuaiji County, under your jurisdiction."
"In fact, we really planned not to tell you, for fear that you might not be able to figure out some things, and your personality is really worrying. But we are very satisfied with your performance in Shanglin Garden this time. Although we know you very well and have basically predicted your responses, you have given us too many surprises... This time, there is the idea of marrying the two families in the northwest and northeast, which has caused trouble for Meng De. However, the establishment of the two chief officials' mansions has also hindered the hands and feet of the princes in the north. This... can be considered a balance. Zirui can decide major events, and the more dangerous the situation, the easier it seems. But Yinling needs to take care of those daily matters for him."
I wasn't really surprised, and I didn't know why. Maybe it was because Ge Liang had just told me that I would be used by people close to me, but since I still trusted my elders and didn't feel too hurt, and I had done the same thing with Ge Liang at the beginning, there was nothing to be depressed about.
"That's why we also want your Lady Yinling to come and listen. You praised your Lady Yinling so much in the court that time, and we know you were sincere. We also hope that Lady Yueping will discipline your husband and stop causing trouble for the elders."
I looked at my wife, but Yinling lowered her head, respectfully accepting the instruction.
I didn't say a word and followed the elders' instructions without saying anything back. But Yinling's glances from time to time really made me feel uneasy. It wasn't a look of affection, but as if she disliked my nonsense and would punish me when I got home.
I have waited so long, but you don't seem surprised. Why is that? Come and listen to me.
Father, teacher, Brother Meng De, I am relieved to hear this. What Zhi is worried about is that there are strong enemies outside, and there is already a rift inside. He is always worried about how to mediate, but he can't resolve it. Now that I know the design is like this, I have no more worries.
The three elders all laughed. The master pointed at me and said, "This is really true, Zi Rui'er. It's us who are meddling in this matter. I'm afraid that you would have known about it earlier and stood by and watched as if nothing had happened, which would have aroused suspicion from outsiders. From this point of view, we were worrying too much."
"My son is able to achieve what he has today, thanks to the proper instruction and encouragement from his teacher." The father has already begun to bow to the teacher to express his gratitude.
There was more casual chatter, and only at the end Brother Meng De added a few words, which seemed to be what they had already discussed: In the future, we may have to rely on you for things that need to be done. No one is surprised if you take action, and the emperor also condones it. Benchu and Gonglu haven't left yet, and they probably want to wait until we leave before leaving. You have to give him a little color before he leaves. We have often tried to make peace. If you show too much weakness, some fence-sitters will completely fall over... You also have to show your Ping An Fengyun Hou energy from time to time.
The elders left one after another, leaving only Yinling and I. My father asked us to go to bed early, but Yinling didn't seem to want to leave, so he said with a wicked smile: "Son, I'm sorry." Then he closed the door, leaving only the two of us. When Yinling saw the entrance was closed, she stood up and started looking for something.
I was very nervous: Yinling, what are you doing
Find something handy to discipline you.
I was panicked: Why
"Follow the teachings of the elders. If I don't teach you, I'm afraid you won't learn your lesson." Although the tone was not fierce, and even had a sense of playfulness, it was serious. Although Yinling had never hit me, she only scolded me or made me kneel, but she used almost the same tone. So I only dispelled some of my panic, but I was still very nervous.
"I'm a father now, can you please not lecture me like this in front of the child?" I admit that I was a coward, so I had to call for help from those who had not yet shown up.
"We need to set rules for the children and tell them what punishment they will receive when they see adults being disobedient or talking nonsense. Only then will they behave well in the future." Yiren was still searching for the murder weapon seriously.
Fortunately, either she couldn't lift it, or it was not suitable as a tool for admonishment or intimidation, or her anger was temporarily suppressed; in the end, Yiren just stood in front of me, smiling and pointing her finger at me.
"Sit up straight and pinch your ears with both hands. What's wrong?"
"Whatever you did wrong, it's just what you did wrong." I have always been very well behaved, especially when facing Yinling.
"When you make mistakes, I never hit you. Have I spoiled you? How come you are still so worrying even though you are so old?"
I, the Marquis of Ping'an Fengyun, one of the four regents, the Marquis of Yue, the so-called general of the Han Dynasty, was taught a lesson for half an hour without any dignity or dignity by my relatively delicate and lovely wife.
If anyone dares to spread the news that she taught me a lesson, I will tear him to pieces. But at present, it is only me and her who have the possibility of doing so, so I will definitely not do it. Yinling seems to be quite generous to me in front of outsiders, but of course she never does it behind my back. So it seems that I am still safe.
In addition, I also think that scolding me helped her mood. At least after scolding me, she was in a good mood and didn't seem tired, so she asked me to help her go back to the room to sleep. Although I was relieved, I still felt a little upset about her mentioning me wetting the bed when she had nothing to do tonight. I suspect that it was because she didn't get a good rest that Yinling, who was pregnant, was not emotionally stable, which led to the tragedy tonight. She was just making small talk afterwards, including that her wife was pregnant, someone went out to drink with others, was thinking about other women, and even ran out to find other women.
But I didn't dare to refute. I calmed down and thought about it. Even if she allowed and asked me to do so, there were some things I did not do well.
I was very careful, not arrogant or impatient, and I helped our most honorable Lady Yinling go back to rest. I didn't feel relieved until I helped her lie down first and then I rested beside her.
Yiren seemed to think that she had gone too far today: "Am I too fierce today?"
I nodded cautiously.
Yiren's mood changed instantly: "I'll give you another chance. Was I fierce today?"
I shook my head vigorously without question.
"Okay, take a rest." Yiren finally fell asleep in my arms with a satisfied smile.
Suddenly I really wanted to make trouble for Yuan's family, because I always felt that the suppressed emotions recently needed to be vented a little, and ** didn't live in the same yard with me recently.
It was not easy to mess with the Yuan family. In view of what happened last night, I decided to report to the elders. So the next day, I reported my idea to Yinling, who thought it was feasible. Then I reported it to my father, who was one level higher. After going through many levels of scrutiny, my father thought it was just right and happily agreed.
Ask me when it will happen. I still have to do some preparations. To sum up the explanation, even a dandy boy needs a domineering backer.
So I went to see the emperor alone. As one of the four assistants, I will be in charge of the inner court for some years. In addition, the emperor and the empress favored me for some special reasons, which was a good condition for accumulating the resources of a flatterer.
But I was lucky that day and there was a situation that allowed me to improvise.
On this day, a group of wives of officials were invited into the palace in the name of the Queen to select a concubine for the Prince.
Jin'er has been engaged to the second prince. Now that the crown prince has been decided, the matter of the crown princess is imminent.
Naturally, the status of the Yuan family members is obviously much more respected among the crowd. Thinking of this, I can't help but sigh, the teacher didn't give birth to a girl; my father didn't adopt a few more sisters; my eldest daughter Yi Yue was weaned not long ago, and she is not my biological daughter, even if she is old enough, it is not easy to send her to the palace; Meng De even got married later than me, but it seems that it was because I stole his fiancée.
I thought of Zi Yu's sister, and felt that this sentence still made some sense.
Of course I still had to make an appearance, so when I was summoned to the side hall to meet the Emperor and Empress, I still completed various etiquette under the gazes and whispers of the wives of officials on both sides.
Most of these official sisters have seen me. But today I dressed up a bit, and now I have reached the level of being a silver bell, and must be of the highest quality. When she helped me in the morning, I praised her, but it didn't work. It wasn't a big problem, but when I opened my eyes and said the first compliment, Yiren said angrily: I haven't started yet.
That day I was wearing the typical attire of a successful Han official. When I looked at myself in the mirror at home, I felt a little embarrassed and wanted to ask the well-dressed man in the mirror: Who are you
Naturally, this image of me caused a lot of gossip. When there are more women, the scene is lively. If there were no emperor sitting above, it is estimated that the place would have gone from humming to chirping.
After the formalities of the visit, the two elders seemed quite happy and even asked me to go in and ask the prince to come out.
I was just about to improvise when someone set up a stage for me.
But I stayed behind the screen for a while longer, at least because I needed to know where the Yuan sisters were.
Prince Bian and I obviously have a good relationship. I don't know why. He seems to admire me very much. He also wanted to kill the enemy in battle, so he practiced archery. After chatting for a while, he seemed to be easy to get along with.
I asked him if he knew why we had to go to the side hall.
He really didn't seem to understand.
I seem to be choosing a concubine for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.
He didn't try to hide it, and started complaining directly, and even told me: Jin'er originally liked him.
I thought to myself: You are wrong, but in a good way.
I decided to continue and told him: Jin'er was adopted by my father and was not my parents' biological child, so the princes used this as a reason to criticize me.
Then he took him to the side hall and hid behind a screen, pointing at a few girls: I just went to the hall to pay my respects, and saw that the emperor and empress seemed to want you to choose one of them.
Next, according to etiquette, the prince was brought out.
Okay, you've stopped making trouble and continue sitting here. Your Majesty's description of the prince was correct: he is frivolous and has no dignity.
But I think he is quite straightforward and what he says is what he wants.
When he was born, the entire palace was the only precious male child in the royal family. After Dong Hou was born, he has been with his grandmother. Since he was born, the entire palace, except for the emperor and the empress, has basically been his world for him to wreak havoc.
Am I not actually taking advantage of others? The prince was obviously very resistant to the girls from the Yuan family.
When the ladies' affairs were over, they went back. I bowed my head again and said I was a good child. I said that I suddenly felt a little hot last night and kicked off the quilt. This morning I felt a little cold. I thought that Your Majesty had also had typhoid fever a while ago, so I came to see you to comfort you.
The emperor suddenly became too clever, but failed to understand the filial piety I wanted to show. He asked slyly, "My son, do you want anything from here?"
I thought: Why not take advantage of the opportunity
I started to smile foolishly. When the queen thought I had some ulterior motive and asked me what I wanted, the emperor became even more proud: "I knew it, right?"
"Is that musician Ren still in the palace?"
"My son Zirui, what are you thinking?" The emperor had a treacherous expression on his face, and put on a rather unkind smile: "Could it be that Yinling is pregnant and you can't hold it back? Hmm, hmm... humph."
I was "extremely ashamed" and "hastily" explained: "Your Majesty, you have misunderstood me. Master Ren and a general under Marquis Qin love each other and have decided to spend their lives together. Originally, my sister and brother-in-law should have come to ask for her..." I felt a little embarrassed, and the next words were meant for the Queen to hear: "But the two of them couldn't speak because they didn't want to compete with your Majesty for your love."
This is a bit of a frame-up of my father, so I need to change the subject quickly: "I am a dumb person and said the wrong thing, but I know that my brother-in-law is not in a position to speak, and he is afraid of being suspected of taking a concubine, so I am willing to take the blame for being unfilial. Please appoint me as the music teacher of Marquis Qin, which is also a favor to others."
I always feel that if I had a previous life, I would have been a world-famous entertainer.
Finally, my wish came true and I was able to fulfill my old promise.
The sun was still early, so I decided to go find my brothers. But after thinking about it, I realized that there was only Zishe left to discuss things with.
I first told him about today's selection of concubines and the matter of asking for Ren Jie on behalf of Qin Xiaowei. Then I discussed with him the matter of my sister going to select concubines and asked him if it was feasible. Although Zishe was a bit frivolous and unruly, he imitated Ziyu's calm tone: His father only has one biological daughter, and Ziyu must ensure the happiness of his sister. Seeing that he was able to escape the princess's marriage for the princess, you should know it.
I nodded to indicate that it was my brother's fault and I would not mention it again.
"You really like being a matchmaker, don't you?" This guy's old self finally returned.
I don't know when my brother's wife heard that I was coming, so she came in to greet me and asked me what I was doing here.
But I suddenly noticed something, "My sister-in-law is pregnant again?"
The sister-in-law was a little shy: "Well, Yuying has grown up. Give her a sister-in-law to play with her. A brother is the best, and it can be considered as giving your husband a boy."
I looked at Zishe proudly, wondering how he would talk to me in that tone again.
He didn't use any special tone to talk to me, but there was a kind of happiness on his face. It made me want to go home.
But for the time being, I could only go back to my home in Luoyang. Before I reached the door, I noticed that there were many carriages and sedan chairs outside, stretching directly from my father's house to the door of my house. Judging from the shape, they seemed to be women's carriages and sedan chairs. Could it be that they came out of the palace and then moved to my house? How could this be possible
I asked someone and found out it wasn't that group, but a gathering of wives of officials. My mother and Yinling were entertaining them, and my father had avoided them.
I think it would be better for me to stay away as well, so as to show that my father and I share the same stance on this issue.
But there is no need to consider where to avoid. The fifth house to the south is my residence in Luoyang. Going there is at least a good choice for now. There is Ping'an Fengyun Marquis Mansion on the door, and there are two "I"s on the left and right of the door. It is very easy to recognize, and there is no need to count the storefronts in the middle. But it was not clear that night. Today, I was bored and felt something was wrong, so I went to the two "I"s to take a closer look, but found that the two front paws were polished to a bright shine, and the single horn on the head was also unusually smooth.
I was puzzled and had to go in to ask someone. When I entered the door, I saw my father and his girlfriend in the front yard doing something.
Naturally, I would greet my father first.
"Zi Rui, why are you not at your father's house? What are you doing here?"
"You've already come out, why should I stay there?" I saw that my father had a sly look on his face, so I knew he had a question: "Father, what's with that look in your eyes?"
"Because most of these people also want to meet you and get a touch of your aura."
"Fairy spirit?"
"I don't know who spread the word that wiping the horns of the Xiezhi can ensure pregnancy with a boy; touching the hands and feet of the Xiezhi can ensure careers for your children and grandchildren." The father finally couldn't hold back his laughter and said, "You saw the two stone statues outside, right? And what about going there at midnight or twelfth hour for it to be effective? I was woken up by the tossing and turning a few days ago, and saw this scene through the crack of the door, so I almost chased after him."
It suddenly dawned on me.
"So, I'm afraid some people want to see you in person. They might even ask you to go back with something." My father still said it in a joking tone. But I don't think it was a joke.
"Then I'll go to the back and sleep for a while. I'll go back after they leave."
"Don't you have the habit of taking naps?"
"Your daughter-in-law taught me that."
"Have you eaten yet?"
"Oh, is there any food?"
The father shook his head and asked, "What happened to you today?"
To be honest, I was a little annoyed. But the lunch that day was good. My mother was not at home, and my father had unscrupulously bought a whole cow. He found a big pot and cooked it all morning, and most of it was still in the kitchen. When I saw this scene in the backyard, coupled with the fragrance, I was immediately very happy.
When I was almost full, I saw Yuan looking at me with admiration and asked why.
He exclaimed sincerely: "I never thought someone could really eat a whole leg of beef."
I suddenly felt nauseous, probably because I remembered the earth-brick-like ox leg in Changsha.
"Don't mention beef legs in the future, just mention beef." I swallowed the sour water in my throat.
"But it was a whole leg of beef? I watched it being cut up and served on this big wooden plate."
"Okay, okay, don't mention it." My whole stomach felt uncomfortable.
"Zi Rui, since you like to eat so much, there is still half a cow. I will have it roasted tonight and the hind leg will be left for you."
I almost vomited, so I quickly told everyone that I was going to rest for a while.
I finally suppressed all my thoughts and lay down. But Qiu Luan knocked on the door and asked if I was awake.
I had no choice but to stand up and let her in. Seeing that she was holding a pair of scissors in her hand, I asked her why.
Qiu Luan quickly put away the scissors and explained with a smile that the old lady and the young lady asked her to take some of my hair. They heard from the officials that using it to make soup can keep the fetus safe. The two ladies couldn't bear it, so they agreed. Then the young lady whispered to her that I should be here.
I shook my head helplessly, turned around, pulled out the hairpin, and let my hair down: "You can take it now."
As the girl carefully cut some of her hair, she asked curiously, "Can Lord Yuehou really transform into a Xiezhi? Can you show me how you transform? I'm not afraid. Xiezhi is a sacred animal that can distinguish right from wrong, and Lord Yuehou is a good man who cares about the people."
"You believe it too? When have you ever seen me change?" I was angry and anxious.
"Oh, oh, Qiu Luan is wrong." The girl softened immediately.
"I hope I didn't hurt you?" I also felt that it was inappropriate to shout at a girl in such a vicious way.
"No, no." After all, it wasn't Yinling. If it was Yinling, I would have been a serious criminal waiting to be punished.
This time I finally fell asleep, but was in a daze when Qiu Luan woke me up again. Just as I was about to get angry, it was the young lady who asked me to go back.
I calmed myself down, put on my clothes, combed my hair, and put on my crown. I wiped my face and finally felt more energetic.
The car queue at the entrance was almost gone, only a few cars were still there, and it seemed that there was one of ours. At most, the closeness of a few mothers was still there, no big deal, at most, those aunts and uncles would comment on it and make a fuss.
When I turned around, my mother was waiting for me at the door with a bright smile on her face. She looked very happy and asked, "Why is your mother waiting for you here?"
"Come in, there's someone else who wants to see Yinling. They'll talk for a while, and Yinling wants you to go and listen, too."
When I went in, my mother was still tidying up my clothes and was in a surprisingly good mood.
However, the place I was led into was a side wing, and on the other side of the curtain was a blurry silver bell and a slightly older woman.
Yin Ling obviously knew I had come in, and she said happily: "Sister, behind this curtain is my husband. If you have any requests, please speak up."
The woman quickly bowed, but made a strange request: please let me meet her husband.
According to various rumors, the stone statue of "me" is about to have problems. A lot of her hair has just been cut off, but how can she see her husband
Seeing Yin Ling nodded slightly, I had to agree to it seriously and told him to come here to find me anytime. The woman was very grateful and left.
As soon as the woman left, Yinling laughed out loud and had to lift the curtain to ask the reason.
"This woman also stayed with her husband because of the party ban. But she seemed to be older than her husband, probably seven or eight years older. She was vague and seemed a little embarrassed. This man was not bad. He married her according to the agreement and did not take a concubine. Uh, I don't mean to blame you... Our situations are different."
"But the man is almost twenty, but he can't have sex. When his wife looks at him, the husband becomes weak. The woman blames herself for being too strict with him. Sometimes he is too playful and doesn't want to study, so she even ties him up and beats him."
After saying this, we took a deep breath together.
"Unlike you, I can't bear to hit you." These words made me look at Yinling with dissatisfaction. Yinling seemed to have said it on purpose and still looked at me with a bright smile.
I know why my mother had that expression. If women spend the whole afternoon listening to bizarre and funny family gossip, they should be very happy.
"What should I do then?"
"Teach the child. Aren't you always brave? My big naughty baby." Yiren smiled even more happily.
I was confused. Should I teach this kind of thing? How should I teach it