"Inverted!"
The porcelain cup fell far away, and the shattered fragments and scalding tea splashed all over the ground.
There was no sound in the lobby, except for Master Ji's rapid panting and the woman's shrill weeping.
"It's really the other way around - when the old man gets old, he doesn't care about things?!"
Third Aunt knelt in front of the hall with disheveled hair, her makeup was all over her face from crying, she was so frightened by Master Ji's anger that she couldn't speak, she was trembling blindly.
Ji Yong begged for mercy by her side: "Father, mother has served you wholeheartedly for so many years, and she has worked hard without credit! You can't listen to the villain's slander, and mother is just in a daze for a while, and she will never do right Ji Yong." What a bad thing for the family!"
"Brother, do you mean distorting the facts for your brother?" Ji Bei said lightly while patting Master Ji's back to calm his breath.
"Jinyufang is the shop that father gave you to try. It's because of father's trust and high hopes for you; not to mention the third aunt who intervened in us, I just want to know, who is responsible for the accounting? The outflow of money To whom? Why is there a letter from the fourth prince in the aunt's room?"
"That's mother... Mother wants to do something for Ji's family!"
"Oh, what do you want to do for Ji's family? Ji's family is an imperial merchant, and has a deep connection with the royal family. When the whole court is staring at us, what does it mean for my aunt to do this?" Ji Bei She laughed and raised her voice, "It means forming a party for personal gain! Who doesn't know that Ji's family is loyal to Dalong, loyal to the emperor, and also loyal to the current prince. I'm curious, does my aunt think that the situation of Ji's family is not dangerous enough?!"
The third aunt trembled all over, she climbed up and pulled Master Ji's trouser legs and cried, "Master, Master... I was confused for a moment, Master..."
Master Ji waved his hand wearily, and the servants in the hall immediately came over to pick up Third Aunt and dragged her outside.
It's not that he doesn't talk about the affection he has served him for decades, but these things are insignificant in the face of the rise and fall of the Ji family, and it is absolutely impossible for him to keep this hidden danger—in any case, the family business of the Ji family must be handed over For Ji Bei——Three Auntie's petty actions over the years, he naturally saw them, and because they were harmless, he regarded them as leftovers to hone his son.
Unexpectedly, the most poisonous woman's heart, after all, he owes Ji Bei a point; fortunately, the root cause of the disease can still be cured, otherwise he would have no face to face his wife.
"Just kill it with a stick."
Seeing the third aunt crying and being dragged out of the lobby, Ji Yong rolled and fell to the ground, crying bitterly: "Father, father! Son, please bypass mother!"
Ji Bei didn't speak, Master Ji glanced at him, and sighed: "I'll take back the Jinyufang for now, you mourn your mother well these few days, so that you can take care of yourself."
"Father—why!" Ji Yong shouted with red eyes anxiously, "Father, you are old and dizzy! The fourth prince is much better than that cowardly prince. If you follow the ancestral precepts, you can only be as mediocre as you!"
"Snapped-"
Ji Yong was slapped over his head by that hard and heavy slap, and he covered his broken mouth and looked at Master Ji who was shaking his hands in bewilderment.
"Niezi... Niezi!"
"Father, don't be angry..." Ji Bei supported him, and comforted him in a low voice, "My brother was in a hurry and said something rude."
Master Ji let out a deep breath, patted his hand, called his servant to help him, picked up his crutches and went out without saying a word.
Seeing the figure of Master Ji disappearing at the door, Ji Yong sneered and said: "Do you think you have won, Ji Bei, one day, I want you to kneel and beg me!"
"I'll wait for my brother." Ji Bei replied indifferently, picked up the tea on the table and took a sip.
The matter of the third aunt did not cost him much effort. Master Ji turned a blind eye to the hands and feet on the books, but he thought that the woman's family was in the bottom of his mind; and the amount of gold and silver leaked was beyond Master Ji's expectation , The flow direction is actually linked to the prince, how can it be tolerated
In this end, the woman did it on her own. He thought so, but he still felt that his hands seemed to be stained with blood and sticky, with a fishy smell.
Either you die, or I die, such a struggle, he can't avoid it in this life.
Before lunch, Zi Yuan brought medicine as usual.
The prescription was changed, but the taste was still the same bitter.
Ji Bei gulped it down without changing his expression, took a handkerchief to wipe off the remaining juice from his lips, and asked casually, "Is the person in the southern courtyard buried?"
"Yes, it is said that he died of a sudden illness at night, and died immediately because of the immune disease." Ziyuan put away the medicine bowl and replied calmly, "Does the eldest son have any orders?"
"When the other side asked, they said that I couldn't get over my health," Ji Bei knocked on the table, and said, "Let's have dinner."
Lunch is always a light dish, but today I saw a plate of dim sum. The skin of glutinous rice is white and crystal clear, and the inside is covered with fine sand fillings. They are all the size of two fingers. A dozen or so are neatly stacked side by side, making them more compact and delicate. .
The taste is refreshing, sweet but not greasy.
Ji Bei doesn't like sweets, so he ate a few.
The cook at home didn't have such skills, Ji Bei stared at the snacks on the plate, somehow he thought of Fengxiang Tower, and then thought of the little prince.
It has been more than half a month since Xiao Xiangnan was sent back to the palace last time.
He was busy dealing with rats, and he didn't have time or thought to think about a thirteen-year-old child, let alone they didn't know each other well. Thinking about it another way, the little prince may not still remember him, with such a personality, such an identity, the sentence "From now on, I will protect you."
It's just that no matter what he said, he owed the little prince a favor. Not to mention intentional or not, the little prince did find a reason for him to get rid of the fourth prince's dancer, saving himself a lot of work.
"My lord, do you think the dim sum is good?" Seeing him staring at the dim sum, Zi Yuan pursed her lips and said with a smile, "This plate of dim sum was delivered by King An Le himself."
Xiao Xiangnan? Ji Bei was taken aback, and asked, "Where are the others?"
Ziyuan pouted out the window: "My lord is admiring the flowers in the Young Master's yard."
Ji Bei got up immediately.
This little prince is so casual that it makes people feel helpless. If one day he heard that he traveled to Beidi, he would not be surprised.
The weather was fine, the little prince was still dressed in a red brocade belt, his black hair was casually draped behind his back, covered with a thin layer of gold; when he heard the sound of footsteps, he turned his head, his hair brushed against his cheeks, Yuzhuo's face exuded A circle of soft light suddenly makes people afraid to look at it too much, for fear that if they look too much, they will want more and want to monopolize it.
Ji Bei was in a daze for a moment, just for a moment, and then said with a smile: "Caomin has seen His Highness."
"My lord came here to see if you died. Why are you not happy at all?" Luo Shutu looked at him with slanted eyebrows, and said with a flick of his sleeve, "How about some dessert?"
"His Royal Highness is concerned, the dim sum is very delicious."
Luo Shutu looked at him silently for a moment, then turned his head away: "Hmph, I want to eat candied haws."
"... Forgive me for taking the liberty, Your Highness, where is the ingot?"
"Father doesn't like this king to eat folk snacks, Yuan Bao always listens to father's words." The little prince said with red ears and raised his chin, "This king remembers the way from the palace to Jifu."
Rather than remembering, why not just remember? He didn't defend himself, he seemed to have completely forgotten about being molested, with such a look, he wondered why Emperor Chong'an didn't discipline him well, and he might be sold into a small hall someday.
"Candied gourds are rough, just a comfort for ordinary children, and they are not comparable to the delicately prepared desserts in the palace."
"I want it if I want it!" Luo Shutu insisted, "Are you going to defy me!"
Ji Bei watched him quietly, until he felt guilty.
After a long time, he gave orders to Zi Yuan who was standing not far away: "Zi Yuan, send someone to buy it."
Jifu ran errands swiftly. Luo Shutu didn't wait long and got a bunch of candied gourds whose syrup was almost melting. The sticky syrup flowed down the bamboo sticks to his hands. Skewers thrown out.
The ancient candied haws were not as good as imagined. The syrup poured on them was thin and not solidified. The biggest saving grace was the pure natural hawthorn, but unfortunately it was very sour.
He only took one bite and wanted to spit it out, but facing Ji Bei's eyes, he swallowed it back viciously, his beautiful face was sour and distorted, but it was still pleasing to the eye.
"Your Highness, is it delicious?"
"...Ji Bei, do you want to laugh at me?" Luo Shutu glared at him, raised the candied haws in his hand and wanted to throw them over, but the tilt was too far back, and the bunch of candied haws inevitably stuck to his hair , red syrup dripping on the ears.
What kind of personality is this? Luo Shutu bit his lip speechlessly and shouted, "Ji Bei!"
"Caomin is here." Ji Bei sighed softly, stepped forward and took out a handkerchief to wipe the syrup on his ears, "Ziyuan, prepare hot water, just say I want to clean myself."
"yes."
After Ziyuan walked away, Luo Shutu said sullenly: "...This king just wants to taste what the taste of candied haws is. Before, this king saw that those ordinary children got candied haws better than... ...I am happier than the king eating the dim sum in Fengxianglou, but I feel that the palace and Fengxianglou are getting less and less tasteful... It is obviously just a coin, why is it like that magic?"
"Ji Bei, if you want to say that this king is so dissatisfied, this king cannot agree. This king's identity is destined, but this king's identity also means more things. Although ordinary people have simple food and drink, they never need Always be vigilant for the safety of your life," he said, "If you don't put yourself in the situation, you can't understand each other after all. My arsenic, your honey."
Ji Bei slowly followed the strands of hair stuck together, without answering.
Zi Yuan quickly brought an empty basin and a bucket of hot water. Ji Bei asked her to move a bench, and he mixed a basin of warm water with the well water in the courtyard, and motioned Luo Shutu to lie on the bench and put his hair on his back. lay down.
"Go and look at the yard, don't let anyone in." The little prince doesn't care, but he needs to be cautious. This behavior may be disrespectful if small, or if it is big... He looked at the face with squinted eyes basking in the sun , Smiling slightly, Xiao Xiangnan may or may not understand these things, but he is here, so there is no need for him to understand.
The little prince's hair grew to his waist and spread out in the water basin. The enchanting black color wrapped around Ji Bei's fingertips, inexplicably ambiguous.
Ji Bei's movements were gentle and meticulous, combing his beautiful black hair like a human, rubbing the acacia carefully, his eyes focused.
"What is that?" Luo Shutu glanced at the thing in his hand and asked, "There is soap in the palace."
"Acacia is also a raw material for making soap ointment, grass people are used to it." Ji Bei said, "How is the water temperature?"
"Um... ... "
Although Ji Bei's technique was not proficient, he was very gentle. The little prince lay on the bench a little drowsily, and said vaguely: "Ji Bei...you really look like my elder brother, um, No, the prince's elder brother has never washed the king's hair."
"That Caomin is really lucky." He chuckled lightly, "Okay, Your Highness, Caomin will dry your hair for you."
"snort."
The little prince sat on the stool half-supported, and let Ji Bei comb his hair while drying it with a face towel.
"It's alright, Your Highness." Ji Bei put away his face towel, pinched his ears, and said.
Luo Shutu did not resist his actions as before, but curled his lips and said: "In the future, if the Jifu is defeated, this king will take you into the palace to serve."
Ji Bei laughed and said, "Thank you Cao Min first..." He was interrupted by a male voice before he finished speaking.
"Nan'er!"
This voice... Luo Shutu immediately turned his head to look at the entrance of the courtyard, and sure enough, he saw a bright yellow robe, and the ingot beside him was still grinning at him: "Master, I'm so sorry, but I found it." You!"