Chapter 283 My mother-in-law is a loyal servant (twenty-seven)
"Auntie, I can't bear to leave you!"
Feng Yanting was a little reluctant to go to the Hou Mansion.
It's not that he is so noble and self-sufficient, but he doesn't know how to face Ping Nanhou, Mrs. Zhang and others.
Although He Tiantian said that "the matter of child exchange needs to be investigated in detail," Feng Yanting knew very well that he was probably a bloodline of the Hou family.
Because only in this way can some things that he found ridiculous in the past have explanations.
For example, when she was young, Mrs. Zhang loved her even more, and even the eldest lady Wei Yuanniang wanted to give her a little love when she met him.
For another example, in recent years, Mrs. Zhang has always "exceeded her authority" in disciplining him, and she did not know how to do anything but follow the family rules.
It's not that Mrs. Zhang really likes the child of a slave or likes to meddle in other people's business, it's just that he, Feng Yanting, is Mrs. Zhang's biological flesh and blood.
But... Feng Yanting felt very awkward and even resented Mrs. Zhang.
idiot!
What a stupid idiot!
Just because he was afraid that his son would be sent to the capital to be used as a hostage, he secretly discussed with his confidant and secretly removed the bloodline of the Hou family.
Does she know that this is the crime of deceiving the emperor? If it is exposed in the future, it will implicate the entire Hou family?
Also, raising the eldest son of the Hou family in the house of an old servant is doing him a favor?
Separated from his real parents, he was unable to receive the elite education that belonged to the heirs of the marquis.
Even if there is a way in the future (finding a scapegoat) to save the Hou family from trouble and return the children to their respective places, can it really be safe and sound?!
Not to mention anything else, the fact that there is not much affection between Ping Nanhou and Feng Yanting, the direct father and son, is enough to affect his status in the Hou Mansion and his future prospects.
Feng Yanting was not making random assumptions, but things had already happened.
For example, at this moment, Feng Yanting's thoughts were very confused as her adoptive mother reluctantly said goodbye and sat in the carriage returning to the Marquis' Mansion.
Mrs. Zhang is doing better. Whether she likes or dislikes her, she has been in contact with her over the years.
And Feng Yanting bets that Mrs. Zhang will definitely treat him as her biological son. Because he is Mrs. Zhang's only hope and support.
But what about Ping Nanhou?
Not to mention that Marquis Pingnan was unfamiliar with Feng Yanting, Feng Yanting himself was also very unfamiliar with Marquis Pingnan.
Growing up, Feng Yanting had almost no time alone with Ping Nanhou.
Mrs. Zhang often boasted in his ears, saying how shrewd and brave Ping Nanhou was, and how loyal and courageous he was.
Aunt Zhao also helped with the compliments, praising that the Pingnan Hou Mansion has been rich and noble for generations, and that all the men in the Hou Mansion are good sons and daughters who protect the family and the country.
Feng Yanting was fascinated by what he heard, but he only regarded Ping Nanhou as a legendary figure.
But now, someone told him that the big shot was none other than his biological father.
As for the Pingnan Marquis Mansion, which has a glorious history of hundreds of years, is powerful and wealthy, he, Feng Yanting, is the most legitimate heir!
This... is so unreal!
In the most unreliable dream Feng Yanting had ever had, there was no such delusion.
However, Feng Yanting is the male protagonist after all, he is tough-minded and smart.
After he heard such "truth", after a brief period of panic and confusion, he quickly stabilized his mind and was able to adapt to changes.
However, the more he accepted his identity and guessed the truth of that year, the more he wanted to curse!
His biological mother, who is stupid but smart, and Aunt Zhao, who claims to be loyal but selfish and cold-blooded, the master and servant use "protection" as an excuse to push him into an embarrassing situation.
I remember when I was living in the Feng family's small courtyard, one frost and three concubine children made the family restless.
In order to compete for resources, Feng Yanting often played tricks and tricks with those people.
Where is Pingnanhou Mansion?
It is a hundred times more noble than the Feng family, and a thousand times more complicated than the Feng family.
The interests and struggles involved are beyond the imagination of people like Feng Yanting, who was born as a commoner and has never lived in a powerful family.
In the past, Feng Yanting felt that he had nothing to do with Pingnanhou, but after Pingnanhou returned to Beijing, he still heard many rumors about him.
One of the things that caught Feng Yanting's attention the most was that Ping Nanhou married another wife and gave birth to two sons during his disappearance.
Although now the barbarian woman has demoted herself to a concubine, and the two sons have become concubines.
However, Feng Yanting dared to bet that in Ping Nanhou's mind, the two sons who had known each other since childhood were definitely more important than his nominal "eldest son".
Also, from the fact that the barbarian woman knows how to "give in", it can be seen that this person is much smarter than Mrs. Zhang.
In the deep inner courtyard of the Hou Mansion, there is a mistress who is stupid and makes mistakes, and a concubine who is smart and loved by the male master, and is filled with guilt...
Tsk tsk, Feng Yanting is not very old, but because he has been in the market all year round and was forced to be too precocious by Mrs. Zhang, he can already imagine how chaotic and troublesome the future Hou Mansion will be for him, Feng Yanting.
And even if he, Feng Yanting, is the eldest son, he may not be able to inherit the Hou Mansion.
In addition, although Pingnanhou's Mansion has survived the "false accusation" crisis that year, as long as Pingnanhou continues to command the army, there is still the possibility of overthrowing the Mansion.
Unless Ping Nanhou really raises a rebellion.
But the question is, is rebellion so easy to create?
Feng Yanting did not receive the elite education of the heir to the Hou family, but he was also familiar with history.
And looking at the cases in history where rebellions were successful and dynasties could be changed, the reason why they succeeded was because the time was ripe——
The weather (natural disasters, foolish kings, treacherous ministers), the right location (their own troops and horses are strong), and the harmony (there are people to help).
Looking at the current Zhou Dynasty, the current sage Emperor Chengtai is indeed not a wise king, but he is not a real faint king or tyrant either.
Under his rule, the people were not very wealthy, but most of them had enough to eat and clothing to wear.
Since ancient times, these people at the bottom have been the most contented. As long as they are not allowed to go hungry, they can live peacefully.
There was no government forcing the people to rebel, no powerful enemy to invade. Even if Ping Nanhou had 200,000 elite soldiers, he would not dare to rebel easily.
Unable to rebel and unwilling to give up military power, Feng Yanting felt that the future of the Pingnan Marquis Mansion was worrying.
In the past, Feng Yanting was just a bystander, casually gossiping.
But now, he has become the eldest son and the proper heir of the Hou Mansion, so he plays a vital role in the rise and fall of the Hou Mansion.
Feng Yanting was only five years old when the Hou family members were escorted to Beijing, but he already had memories.
The once pampered nobleman became a prisoner overnight.
Whether it was an old lady or an infant, they were all driven by officers and soldiers to struggle under the scorching sun and heavy rain.
The scene of Wei Yuanniang being whipped away by a whip is deeply engraved in Feng Yanting's memory.
"..." Feng Yanting clenched his fists hard. He would never let himself suffer all kinds of suffering because of the Hou Mansion like Wei Yuanniang did back then!
Feng Yanting's idea seems a bit selfish, which is different from the concept of aristocratic families in this era where family interests are above all else.
However, there was nothing that could be done about it. Feng Yanting had not lived in the Hou Mansion for a single day until he was thirteen years old.
He has no feelings, and he has not received family education, so he has little sense of identification or belonging to the Pingnan Marquis Mansion!
And this situation will probably be anticipated by many old foxes and taken advantage of it.
Of course, these are all things for later.
After shaking in the carriage for half an hour, Feng Yanting finally arrived at Pingnan Hou Mansion.
"...Good boy, you, you are wronged!"
Ping Nanhou was filled with emotion when he saw Feng Yanting showing off his outstanding temperament despite his tender age.
The poor child fell in love with a stupid mother-in-law. He was obviously the eldest son of a noble family, but he grew up in a slave's house.
Fortunately, the children of their Wei family are born with a noble family. Even if they grow up in the mud, they can still become such good-looking young men with good temperament and outstanding abilities.
Although Feng Yanting devoted himself to studying and taking the imperial examination, it was not consistent with his family tradition of practicing martial arts in the Pingnan Marquis Mansion.
However, Ping Nanhou was very happy to see with his own eyes such a young boy who was as tall and tall as a green pine, and whose body and bones did not look as weak as that of a rotten scholar.
Looking at nothing else but Feng Yanting's thick eyebrows and big eyes unique to the Wei family, Ping Nanhou felt an inexplicable sense of intimacy.
"..." Feng Yanting felt the kindness and intimacy radiating from Ping Nanhou's eyes.
In fact, as early as on the road, he had already sorted out his thoughts and decided on the path he should take after returning to the Hou Mansion.
Therefore, when he saw Ping Nanhou, Feng Yanting did not hide it and deliberately showed a complicated expression——
There is the excitement of meeting a blood relative, and there is also the shock of hearing the truth;
There is admiration for the flesh and blood of the closest relatives, and there is also reluctance to let go of the adoptive father and adoptive mother.
Feng Yanting, the male protagonist, has perfectly mastered the complexity and layers of emotions. Many emotions are mixed, and the emotions progress layer by layer...
Sure enough, Marquis Pingnan was very satisfied with Feng Yanting's performance.
"I know that the Feng family and his wife have been very good to you over the years, especially the Feng family's wife, who treats you with utmost sincerity!"
"It's reasonable that you can't let her go. From now on, you can still have contact with the Feng family. As for the Feng family's wife -"
Marquis Pingnan has not forgotten the outrageous remarks made by "Gu Xiuniang" at the gate of Jingzhao Mansion in the morning.
Not to mention that this woman seemed to want to argue with Mrs. Zhang.
Humph, a woman from a small family just helped the Hou Mansion, but she really thought that she was the benefactor of the Hou Mansion. She could ignore her status and abandon the random behavior of her superiority and inferiority?
Putting aside others, Feng Yanting alone, Ping Nanhou did not believe that Gu Xiuniang really had no feelings for the child she raised with her own hands.
And Feng Zhongliang, no matter how bold Gu Xiuniang is, she is just a housewife.
Feng Zhongliang was close to the Hou Mansion and did not agree with Gu Xiuniang's nonsense, so Gu Xiuniang just——
Ping Nanhou was about to tell Feng Yanting that he could continue to be close to Gu Xiuniang in the future.
As a result, I heard Feng Yanting say somewhat depressedly, "My mother-in-law, she, she and her father have divorced!"
Ping Nanhou was stunned.
Immediately, he sneered in his heart: It's ridiculous, you think that if you are divorced and you are no longer the wife of the Feng family, you will be free from the control of the Hou Mansion?!
Even if "Gu Xiuniang" coaxes Feng Zhongliang to let her take away her daughter at this moment, the Hou Mansion will still have a way to make Feng Zhongliang run to fight for her daughter again.
Not to mention, the Hou Mansion is a noble person. As long as Ping Nanhou acts like he is reluctant to adopt a daughter and expresses his intention to recognize Wei Yuanniang as his adopted daughter, both Wei Yuanniang herself and public opinion will lean towards the side of the Hou Mansion.
After all, everyone knows that the Hou Mansion is rich and noble, and staying in the Hou Mansion is really good for Wei Yuanniang.
That is to say, Wei Yuanniang is now at Qingyun Temple. Otherwise, when Ping Nanhou brought Feng Yanting back, he would have ordered people to bring Wei Yuanniang back as well.
However, even if Wei Yuanniang is at Qingyun Temple, Marquis Pingnan cannot interfere in her affairs for the time being.
But Wei Yuanniang cannot stay in Qingyun Temple for the rest of her life. As long as she goes down the mountain and returns to the secular world, Ping Nanhou, the "adoptive father", will be able to arrange Wei Yuanniang's future.
As long as "Gu Xiunian" takes care of her daughter, she will not dare to mess around.
After Ping Nanhou returned to the Hou Mansion, the first thing he did was to interrogate Mrs. Zhang.
Faced with Pingnan Hou Sen's stern eyes and cold face, Mrs. Zhang did not dare to conceal anything, and told her and Aunt Zhao's plan in detail!
Among them was the fact that Gu Xiuniang originally wanted to have a son. When she mentioned this, she couldn't help but feel a little proud in her tone.
What are you proud of?
Are you proud that you can "take advantage of the situation"?
Ping Nanhou: ...I no longer want to call Mrs. Zhang a fool.
This is the fact, no matter how many times you scold it, it won’t change it.
Even Gu Xiuniang was wrong, but she worked hard over the years and gained a better reputation than her loyal servant Nanny Zhao!
Are you saying that people favor boys over girls?
But people treat the concubine and concubine in the family with a bowl of water.
Even in acting, Gu Xiuniang's acting skills are better than Mrs. Zhang's!
The thought of pretending or something made Pingnanhou feel angry again.
If only Mrs. Zhang knew how to restrain herself and treat Wei Yuanniang better, the Hou Mansion would not be so passive now!
However, through interrogation, Ping Nanhou still came to a conclusion that made him feel relatively comforted:
Although Mrs. Zhang was stupid back then, I don’t know whether it was because Mrs. Zhang was once again smart, or because Mrs. Zhang trusted Aunt Zhao too much.
When exchanging children, Mrs. Zhang was not involved in the whole process and all the details.
The person with full responsibility is always Aunt Zhao.
And the only one those evidences and witnesses can point to is Grandma Zhao!
Therefore, Mrs. Zhang is "innocent". The only thing she will be criticized for is that she does not know people well and is not strict in housekeeping, which allows unruly slaves to take advantage of her!
The blame for the child exchange was placed firmly on Aunt Zhao. Even if she regretted it and wanted to change her story, there was no way to prove her innocence.
"What a blessing among misfortunes! Although some people still doubt it, there is no clear evidence!"
Ping Nanhou secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
However, he still had to guard against "Gu Xiuniang" causing trouble. After all, she had a good reputation, and Mrs. Zhang was indeed mean to Wei Yuanniang.
Fortunately, the Hou family is noble, but "Gu Xiuniang" is just a commoner. The gap between common people and officials, respect and sorrow can not be smoothed out by embroidering a few pieces of embroidery or making friends with a few noble people.
I really don’t know where “Gu Xiuniang” got the confidence to threaten him, the dignified Marquis Ping Nan.
However, three days later, Ping Nanhou knew the reason——
"What? Yuan Niang contributed high-yielding and high-quality seeds, and she was named the Princess of Yonghe by the saint?!"
