There are guests coming from afar, as the rightful lord of the Xu family, naturally he can't neglect the guests, and Xu Yingluo hasn't come home for many years, Shen Jingting has already made up his mind to accompany the two of them to visit the capital these days. Unexpectedly, it was only the first day, and he got up late. After tidying up, the servant came back and said: "Master, don't worry, the son and the young lady drank too much yesterday, so they just got up."
Shen Jingting then ordered someone to cook hangover soup so that the two of them could sober up from the hangover, so they will not go out today, let them have a good rest for a day before talking. On the next day, Shen Shifang took the prince of Qi and the eldest lady of Xu's mansion to tour Shangjing in a carriage.
The cabin is spacious and can accommodate as many as five or six people. In addition to them, there is a maid accompanying them. There are fringed curtains hanging on the car, incense is burned, and snacks and candied fruit are placed on the small case beside it, which is very comfortable. Seeing this, the son couldn't help thinking that people in this capital really know how to enjoy themselves. He looked around and his eyes fell on the man sitting opposite him.
Today's outing, Shen Shi is wearing a deep sky blue dress, covered with a plain gauze robe, and her shoulder-length green silk is coiled up with a hosta, looking elegant and quiet.
"Hong'er, Hong'er—" Xu Yingluo suddenly patted his arm and said, "That's the Qinghe Square that I told you about before. Look, are there many people?"
After all, Li Hong was a half-grown child, and when he heard that there was excitement, he couldn't help stretching his neck and leaning towards him.
People from all corners of the country gathered in Shanghai, and even a small alley was very lively. Although Yunrong is rich, it is also remote. The population of the whole prefecture is less than one-fifth of the capital city. Besides, there are all kinds of people in the capital city. The son is more able to understand why the father asked him to escort Xu Yingluo to the capital all the way. He only thought that Yunrang was the number one state in the southwest, but if he had never been to the capital in this life, he would not know that there is such a prosperous place in this world.
The carriage slowly drove to the North Lane of the capital, and stopped in front of a restaurant by the river. When the three of them came out, the shopkeeper heard the news early and came out to greet him with a smile: "Master Shen, young master, miss, please come here quickly." They walked from another staircase to the private room on the second floor, separated from other guests. , the scenery outside the window is also very pleasant.
"This restaurant was previously managed by your third uncle. The third uncle loves to listen to operas and would come here in his spare time." Shen Jingting explained, "In the past, the clans were strict and the gentry and ordinary people did not interact with each other. Don't be so particular." Having said that, those who can step into this sky building, no matter how bad they are, are wealthy businessmen, and those who can go to the private room on the second floor not only have enough money, but also have many extraordinary identities.
After sitting for a while, the waiter brought some famous dishes. One after the other, all of them are delicate and cute, but Master Shen of the Xu family can also speak well, he can say something well while holding a piece of crabapple cake. Xu Yingluo looked at the small pastry in the palm of her hand: "Yuanjun knows a lot, unlike me, he only knows how to taste."
Shen Jingting said with a smile: "All of this was told to me by your third uncle, I was just showing off."
Then they heard applause coming from the stage on the first floor, they looked down and saw Hua Dan on stage. That is the most popular Huatai champion nowadays, known as "Lan Xian'er", who once entered the palace and sang on the stage during the Longevity Festival. It is said that he looks seven or eight times like the deceased Empress Chen, and it is also rumored that he served In the past. Most of the people sitting in this seat, whether they are princes or nobles, are people who come to listen to the opera because of their fame.
Shen Jingting has always only picked good things to say about the first ones, leaving the rest for others to figure out for themselves. Li Hongduan looked at the opera singer, she sang well, but she didn't feel how amazing her appearance was, only felt that she was full of daughter's spirit, but she was a bit yin and yang. Thinking of this, subconsciously looked ahead. Shen Jingting was sitting upright, with a graceful demeanor, but his eyebrows and eyes were picturesque, and his breath was blue. I saw him holding the cup, and when he raised his head slightly, his slender neck was exposed. The son wanted to look away, but he was so sharp-eyed. Suddenly caught a glimpse of an abrupt mark on that fair neck.
Although the young man doesn't know lust, he also understands the origin of the mark. In an instant, his face climbed into a red cloud, and he became panicked and at a loss.
Xu Yingluo looked back and saw that Shizi's ears were red, she thought he had fallen in love with Lan Xian'er, and said with a smile: "This is Hong'er's enlightenment, let your father know, and don't ask uncle to break your leg .”
"You, don't talk nonsense, I am such a fool!" When Li Hong said, he couldn't help but look at the man secretly. But seeing Shen Jingting looking at the stage with great interest, he didn't even look at it, for some reason, he felt both lucky and slightly disappointed.
This small episode did not dampen the young man's interest. There are fun things to do in the capital, not many to say the least, but actually quite a few to say the least.
Shen Jingting took the young couple to several places in two or three days. When the lanterns were first lit, Xu Yingluo wore men's clothing and went on a cruise on the river. This is also common in Beijing. The source is that during the time of Emperor Gaozong, there was a talented woman who disguised herself as a man and made friends with talented scholars in Beijing. She wrote many poems and passed them on to future generations. In today's world, the control over her daughter's family is a little looser than in the previous dynasty. Back then, Empress Chen was also dressed as a scholar, and she met the present majesty who was still a prince.
The three of them went on a cruise to watch the lanterns, and the lanterns along the river looked like stars in the sky, so Xu Yingluo took Prince Qi's son on the deck and put the lanterns on the river. Seeing the girl in common clothes holding a pen and a note, she pondered, "Let me think about it, what should I write?"
Li Hong sat on the deck with her arm in arm, looking at the night sky, wondering what he was thinking. In the past two days, for some reason, Shizi frequently lost his mind and was absent-minded when playing. Xu Yingluo yelled a few times, and when she couldn't wait for a response, she glanced at him, but seeing Li Hong holding his legs, she sighed inexplicably, feeling amused in her heart, and quietly dipped her pen in the ink.
"Hey! You!" Unexpectedly, his face was smeared with ink, and Prince Qi woke up instantly. Xu Yingluo pointed at him and laughed, the young man chased him angrily, the two of them ran after each other on the boat, but they didn't know that the movement here fell into the eyes of the other.
"Yuanjun, Yuanjun!" Xu Yingluo ran back into the boat and hid behind Shen Jingting, "Hurry up and take care of Hong'er! He bullied me!"
Li Hong chased into the boat with a pen, just in time to hear Xu Yingluo complaining first, but met those warm eyes again, "You" and "You" pointed for a long time, and only choked out a sentence: "You...with blood Spray people!"
Shen Jingting saw the ink marks on his face clearly, couldn't help shaking his head with a long smile, and said to the servants: "Go get clean water and wash your face." Then he pretended to teach Xu Yingluo a lesson, "Jun'er, don't bully your son so hard, be careful He doesn't talk to you anymore."
"Hmph." Xu Yingluo sat down next to the man, curling her hair and said, "Don't talk to me, don't talk to me, I wish I could."
Shen Jingting smiled and said nothing, he observed for a few days, he could see that this couple was just childhood sweethearts and had no other thoughts, so he felt relieved. While Li Hong was washing his face, a servant held a plate and said, "Master, someone gave you wine."
Shen Jingting asked: "Does anyone say who it is?"
The servant shook his head: "I never made it clear."
Shen Jingting was feeling confused, the jug came before his eyes, he poured a glass, put it in his nose and smelled it. Then he raised the curtain and looked outside. But looking at the river, another boat not far away is slowly passing by, and the sound of silk strings can be heard from the other end, as well as the soft singing of the singer. The singing is sad and melodious, the lights on the water are bright, and there are shadows. A man stands on the deck with his hands behind his back, his black sleeves fluttering in the wind, and a golden dragon is lifelike.
Xu Yingluo poked her head curiously, and asked, "Who is that?" Compared with the boats of Xu's family, the boats were even more luxurious. May I ask, is there any other company in Beijing with such craftsmanship...
Although Shen Jingting didn't dare to make a rash assertion, he vaguely guessed who it was.
At night, when several people were exhausted, they went back home.
Today is different from the past, whose yard to stay at night is all the Lord's own idea. Sometimes I stay in this house for two or three days, and sometimes I sleep alone in my own yard, but the family house is peaceful, and the three husbands have never quarreled over this matter.
For a while, because Xu Yingluo returned to the residence, the court masters stayed at the big room for the night.
Tonight, when he opened the door and entered, he saw Xu Changfeng guarding the child. Huanhuan is holding a wooden sword in his hand, and is gesticulating in a dignified manner. The man sat next to him, correcting his posture from time to time: "No, it should be like this."
Huan Huan had a serious face and studied very seriously. The man looked at the child, his resolute face softened in the dim candlelight.
When the door was closed, the father and son heard the noise and looked over together.
"Father!" As soon as Yuanyuan saw him, he ran over joyfully, raised his head and said, "Father taught me a few tricks, and in the future, Yuanyuan can also protect Dad."
Shen Jingting lovingly wiped the thin sweat on his forehead, and said softly, "Wuanyuan is so powerful."
After teasing the child for a while, Yuanyuan became sleepy, and the servant woman picked up the young master and took him back to the small courtyard. There were only two people left in the room.
Xu Changfeng took a look at the wooden sword in his hand, and said reminiscingly: "I also practiced with this sword when I was a child." He smiled and said fondly, "Wu'er is more powerful than I was back then." You have a lot of talent." Then, he put the wooden sword away.
"I have selected a few young men of similar age, whether it is appearance, background or future, they are all good, it depends on which one is right for Jun'er." Just like ordinary couples, the two chatted with each other. , most of the topics revolved around Xu Yingluo's marriage. While gossiping, Shen Jingting inevitably told Xu Changfeng that he happened to meet the prince during the cruise just now.
Unexpectedly, when this matter was mentioned, Xu Changfeng fell silent. Shen Jingting thought he was good at observing faces, so he asked: "What's wrong?"
Xu Changfeng glanced at him and said, "Today, I summoned me and mentioned the matter of choosing a side concubine for the crown prince."
When Shen Jingting heard this, his heart skipped a beat.
The crown prince of the current dynasty was the son of the sinful concubine Xie. Back then, based on Xie's poisoning of Xiao Chen's empress, the Holy One liquidated the whole family of Xie's family, even Xu's family was almost affected.
Since ancient times, although the crown prince is a wedge, before marrying his wife, he will definitely choose the noble daughter of the family as his concubine. In the future, when he ascends the throne as the emperor, these concubines will naturally be named concubines, but the position of the queen is undoubtedly the wife of the wife. . The reason for accepting other noble daughters is to have more children, and the second is to recruit the power of various families. Therefore, for several dynasties, the crown prince married his first wife very late, mostly after ascending the throne, and then the scorpion of the aristocratic family chose one of them and directly made him queen.
Even though they know that they are not destined to be queens, there are still many aristocratic women who want to marry into the palace, especially the side concubine, which is different from ordinary concubines. In the future, if the crown prince ascends the throne smoothly, the side concubine will be crowned as imperial concubine. In the harem, she will be under one person and above ten thousand.
Xu Changfeng said: "The crown prince is eighteen this year, it is indeed time to marry a side concubine. Not only Jun'er, the prime minister and several other daughters of ministers are also in the Holy Majesty's plan."
Hearing this, Shen Jingting's high-pitched heart sank slightly, and said: "Then according to what I mean today, it doesn't have to be Jun'er."
"It's true on the surface." Xu Changfeng sighed, "The Sacred Heart is unpredictable. Today, I summoned me alone. I think it's because I like Jun'er more than the ladies of other families."
After the Xie family was overthrown, the prince no longer had a powerful family behind him, and could only rely on the emperor's favor. However, among the four princes today, only the four princes born by Xu Xiurong are the wedge. Although Xu Xiurong had converted to Buddhism three years ago, the fourth prince still had the Xu family as his backer. The Holy Lord intentionally let the crown prince accept Xu's daughter as a concubine, in order to link the Xu family and the crown prince's faction together, in case the Xu family will help the four princes compete for the throne in the future.
Today, he was thinking of his wishful thinking, but Xu Changfeng didn't want to be the uncle of this country.
If you marry the prince, even if you can become a royal concubine in the future, your husband must be more kind to her than affection. Thinking of this, Xu Changfeng let out a long sigh: "Leaving aside Jun'er's temperament, she is not suitable for marrying into the palace. As a father, I only hope that she will live a lifetime of peace."
Shen Jingting held his palm quietly, the two looked at each other, even if they were speechless, they understood what the other was thinking.
After a long silence, Shen Jingting said: "So, Jun'er's marriage should be settled as soon as possible."
Xu Changfeng also had the same intention: "It should be finalized before the spring of next year at the latest."
"En." Shen Jingting nodded and said, "I will pay more attention."