After scolding the princesses, the princes came back one by one.
Emperor Wen Zhao asked eagerly: "Is there a girl you like?"
The eldest prince didn't go. That was his ex-in-law's house. Why did he go there? He left the palace, then found a teahouse to relax for half a day and then came back. He didn't see the young lady. Where did he go?
Therefore, he was very honest: "It's not appropriate for me to go."
And what about the second prince? The second prince moved uneasily at his feet, "The mastiffs raised by the Marquis of Chengen on Zhuangzi are very good..."
So, you left the girls alone and went to watch the mastiffs?
Yeah!
Emperor Wen Zhao leaned back, beat his chest hard twice, and pointed at Prince Ping.
What can Prince Ping say? "The wind was strong last night, and I felt sleepy after walking. Today I went to rest on the Guanyun Pavilion, thinking about it, but who knew that I would fall asleep once the sun was shining."
Sleep until the banquet is over?
Then... no one else dares to wake you up?
It makes so much sense! Emperor Wen Zhao called King Ping: "Go to the other side!" It's better for my Shiro to save his worries! He jumped over the good boy and looked at the fifth child, "You haven't found him either?"
"I met a few students from Taixue, and I think they are very insightful..." Taixue can't run away! I want to meet someday? It's the only time like this, instead of watching the ladies playing piano and painting, I go to meet Taixue
The student went to discuss Taoism, "Rokuro, what about you?"
Rokuro looked confused: "I have a brother and a sister above you, and your marriage is the last thing... I'm not in a hurry!"
so what?
"I went to the pond with some young men to fetch water..."
Hmm? It went down the drain?
Aang! That’s fun.
Emperor Wen Zhao pointed at them one by one, "What can I point at you for? Each and every one of you, if you are not a prince or a princess, just wait to die alone!" Then he raised his hand, as if slapping flies, "Go away, go away! Give them all.
I’m going to go back and reflect.”
The fourth master then said, "Then... I will send Tongtong out of the palace first."
Emperor Wen Zhao immediately shouted: "Study! Study! Study well!"
Fourth Master: "..." Can you learn this? If the person is wrong, you can't teach him. If the person is right, there's no point in trying to stop him.
Tongtong pulled the fourth master: "Let's go! Go quickly. Don't you see that he is angry?"
With a hook of the little finger, the two intertwined their fingers and left.
Have you seen it? Have you seen it? You have to find one like this. If you hook your little finger, you will follow him, do you understand?
Concubine Gao felt that with such a request, her children would have to be singles for the rest of their lives. This was not acceptable for marriage!
After the children went out, Concubine Xiao knelt down and said to Emperor Wen Zhao and the Empress: "I think it's better to marry someone with the right temperament. If you choose someone with the right temperament, you won't be able to make a big deal. But the children are here.
If you look outside, there will always be people with ulterior motives! In this way... it is actually good not to be influenced by others! If you really meet someone with ulterior motives and fall in love one by one, then it will ruin the big thing."
Objectively speaking, does it make sense?
In fact, it makes a lot of sense! If you want to make your children's marriage as perfect as possible, that's a fool's errand. If you can make the couple suitable, it will be good if they can live their lives together.
Princesses...if they are not suitable, they don't have to marry, but if the sons don't get married, the courtiers should talk. This has always been more than just a family matter. Besides, when starting a family and starting a business, is a man considered an adult? Can he be independent and go out?
It makes people think that he is an adult, and starting a family is really a prerequisite.
The queen sighed and said to Concubine Xiao: "Get up, why do you have to kneel here and there to talk to me? Let's do this, if someone is having a banquet again, you can go out and have a look, and you will be impressed. If you take a look,
I’ll look at it again…and then ask His Majesty to check it…and then ask the children for their opinions before looking at it again.”
That’s fine!
The queen raised her hand and dismissed the two of them. Now she was the only one left in the hall with the saint. She then said: "Parents always hope that their children can play the piano and the harp in harmony, but no one can guarantee that the couple will go all the way to the end."
It changes as you walk. This is the most difficult thing to arrange! I can only say, respect the children’s wishes, what do you think?”
Emperor Wen Zhao held the queen's hand and said in a low voice: "It's true, I want to save that boy, I want to give him the honor."
Matching to the third princess? A very suitable marriage. If it is matched to the third princess, it is risky but not stupid, how can you not be happy?
The queen sighed: "Now...De Feng said that he is interested in her. Regardless of whether the marriage can be successful or not, Shengrong and Maodu are not suitable for her anymore."
Isn’t that the truth, so, “How about marrying Shengrong back to the Marquis Cheng’en Mansion?”
The queen was stunned for a moment, "Ration Bo Cun?" She hesitated, "Bo Cun is not as capable as Mao Du."
Emperor Wen Zhao shook his head, "It's not that Bo Cun is not as capable as Mao Du. It's because Bo Cun considers himself a relative. He always abides by his duties and never exceeds them in the slightest. This is a limitation of his status. He doesn't want to stand out, and it's not easy to stand out. It's not him who might as well be risking
Du. Besides, this child has a kind and steady temperament, which is much better than Mao Du, who has a bright personality. Shengrong wants peace, stability, and peace of mind. These things Mao Du cannot give her, but Bo Cun can."
The queen said 'hmm', "Then...I'll go back and talk to my sister-in-law. I'll be fine now. I'll ask Shengrong to help me send something to my sister-in-law and send a message, and ask the two children to have more contact in private. After a period of contact,
If Shengrong thinks it's okay, let his younger siblings take a look, and then grant him the marriage."
Ah! That's it.
"Silang, we don't have to worry about it. As for Sanlang, this marriage is also difficult." The queen said, "Sanlang... I thought about it again, but I prefer one family... The girl from that family had met a few years ago. At that time
The child is young and can't see anything, but now I don't know what he looks like. I want to take a look. If it is suitable, it is suitable. "Oh? Whose family?
The queen then smiled: "It's Mr. Andao from Funiu Mountain, his granddaughter."
Ah! It's him! This man was a civilian scribe whom he met during the war. He gave lectures to poor people in Funiu Mountain and never stopped cultivating. The land around his house was cultivated by the people around him.
He taught the children to read and everyone helped him farm the land. He was a strange person.
This person has a high reputation among the people, but he has no utilitarian intentions.
As expected, Emperor Wen Zhao clapped his hands and said, "Why don't I send Sanlang to have a look at Mr., I can ask him to stay in Funiu Mountain for a while. I can ask Mr. Sanlang to see Sanlang, and I can also ask Sanlang to meet other girls..."
The queen kept nodding her head, and then she talked about Siyuan, "My second brother has specially requested this boy's marriage. I've been going through everything I can think of in my heart these past few days... What do you think of the Liu family?"
"
Liu family?
The queen nodded, "Can the Liu family... be successful? This matter requires the younger siblings to come forward. If there is a suitable girl in the family, pick her up first and keep her with her for a while, and ask her younger siblings to keep an eye on her."
The Liu family is the natal family of the Queen Mother, and also the natal family of her younger brother and sister Liu Nande. The Liu family was a wealthy family in their hometown back then. In the troubled times, the purpose of the Liu family is that no matter what career their children are in, no matter how high or low they are, as long as they are alive
.At that time, there happened to be a disaster in his hometown, and there were frequent military and bandit attacks. The head of the Liu family at that time proposed to marry the girls in the family, regardless of their family background and wealth, and only looked for capable sons. At that time, the Liu family
Some of the girls married into the families of minor officials, some married into the martial arts of the escort agency... It was under such circumstances that my aunt married my uncle who, although he was poor, looked like a dignified man at first glance.
It was precisely because of this decision at that time that I later learned that the Liu family's daughters, regardless of whether they were rich or poor, had settled down in troubled times.
Later, my aunt became a queen, and she was supposed to enthrone her natal family. But her grandparents were gone, and her biological parents were gone too. She only had one brother, but he also died of illness. Her brother left only an orphan girl, who was
sister-in-law Liu Nande.
When Liu Nande saw the emperor's sister-in-law bringing Tongtong to the Taoist temple and talking about the marriage of the younger generation, he also told Tongtong about the Liu family, "...Back then, I lived with my great-uncle. The Queen Mother and I were both from the second family.
There is no male in the second house. Duke Chengen gave it to my great-grandfather, and Marquis Chengen gave it to my grandfather... My father died early, who will give this title to? At that time, the Queen Mother only had one daughter, the princess.
Taizu did not take concubines because he had no prince, nor did he have stepchildren because he had no prince... My great-uncle said that it was lucky to have a noble daughter in the Liu family, and how dare he give a second wife to the Liu family just for the sake of title.
Adopted step-heir?"
She gave up her family title to support the Queen Mother.
"So, although the Liu family is a relative, they do not have a title." Liu Nande said, "Every year they send some things, and they are all local specialties brought by the nephews of the family, and nothing else. I was an orphan back then.
Even if the world is not good, my uncles and uncles have never been treated harshly by my great-uncle. Over the years, the Liu family has certainly been treated poorly by everyone in their hometown, but... I have never heard of any bad deeds. Many people in the family have
Marrying a daughter is the same as in the past. There is no need for family status, but only how capable the son is. Therefore, the Liu family... has been criticized by many people. Many high-ranking families who are unwilling to join are not willing to marry the Liu family. This is because
The backgrounds of the Liu family’s in-laws are too mixed.”
Especially when the aristocratic family was still very prosperous at that time, even if they had two queens, they were still looked down upon.
And the Liu family looks down on people who cling to them.
What Liu Nande means is: If you marry the Liu family, you must be mentally prepared like this.
But the queen felt it was great. This was exactly what she liked about the Liu family, "Siyuan is different from other children. If he can't settle down well, I can't help his mother."
Liu Nande sighed, that's fine! You don't have to worry about your own son, and you don't have to worry about your concubine or concubine, but for this child, you really have to put some thought into it: "I'll send someone there later."
After saying that, he sent Tongtong away: "There are some dead trees on the edge of the forest, and fungus grows every year. There is a lot of rain this year, and the fungus grows especially well. Go and pick it, and I will bring it back to you. Your father likes oak trees the most.
, the fungus on the birch tree, I looked at it, the dead wood is birch."
Really? I really don’t know about this! Not only are you so particular about what you wear, but you are also so particular about what you eat?
Tongtong really went.
After leaving, Liu Nande said: "Can the marriage between Silang and Tongtong be mentioned now? Will the third child be unhappy?"
The Queen smiled and said, "The two children are fine... The third child is awkward, but he won't forcefully break him up. What's the rush?"
That's true!
Tongtong knew that we had been laid off, but she still loved doing this job. The fungus was so fat and thick, with such big flowers, that she picked all the ones she could. When she looked up at the sky, she felt uncomfortable.
Let's go, it will be even harder to leave when it rains.
"Is it going to rain?" When the queen heard Tongtong's cry, she stood up and said goodbye to Liu Nande, "Then the matter is settled. I will send the girl here later and I will see you again."
good!
After walking down Mingcui Mountain, Tongtong felt that the queen felt relaxed all over. Tongtong said that he would send the queen back to the palace first, but the queen never agreed, "I will send you back to the palace first, be obedient."
So, the carriage first stopped in front of Lin's house.
The rain had stopped, so Tongtong didn't dare to delay. He quickly got off the carriage and urged Eunuch Guo: "Hurry back to the palace, the rain is probably going to be heavy."
Ai!
The queen waved to Tongtong from the car window, and Tongtong had to stand under the eaves at the door to say goodbye to the queen.
Watching the queen and her entourage go away, she turned around and saw Zheng Yuanniang sitting under the porch.
Large families have stone benches at the door. Some guests are not seen by the host, or some guests are waiting to see the host, so sometimes they have to wait outside the door. Therefore, there are long stone benches under the porch for
The guests take their seats.
Seeing her sitting here, Tongtong was surprised, and then asked: "Why do you ask guests to sit here?"
I asked him to sit inside, but the girl refused to let him.
Zheng Yuanniang stood up and saluted Tongtong, "Princess, I don't blame you, it's good for me to wait here."
Lin Yutong looked at the rain and took her home, "You must have gone out because the sky was gloomy. There must be something unavoidable. Are you in a hurry to use the money? I discounted the guqin and will give you the money now.
you."
"The princess has misunderstood." Zheng Yuanniang looked at the rain falling from both sides of the verandah and said hurriedly, "I just want to ask if anyone from the uncle's house has gone to the northwest recently. If so, can you take me with you?
"
Didn't you say we won't leave until spring? Why are you so... in such a hurry? The Wang family can't afford to stay here?
Zheng Yuanniang smiled bitterly but said nothing.
Lin Yutong didn't want to ask about other people's personal affairs, "I must give boxing gifts before the New Year, and it will be half a month at most, and then it's time to leave. It's just a little while, and I have a lot of things to bring, so the journey must be very slow.
"
Zheng Yuanniang was very pleasantly surprised: "It doesn't matter if you take it slow, I'll go get ready." After saying that, she was about to leave.
It’s raining so heavily, “Wait until the rain subsides and ask someone to take you back.”
It's okay! I brought an umbrella.
Lin Yutong looked at Liu Yun and said, "Call a car and deliver it safely."
yes!
After the guests left, Tongtong went to the yard and met Uncle Kuan who came out to greet him, "Daddy hasn't come back yet?"
"I just sent someone to send a message back, saying that I was out of the capital with the Holy One...it was raining heavily and I had to go see the river embankment."
Tongtong looked at this day, it would rain for at least three more days, and it was muddy outside the city. Isn't this suffering?
She originally thought that if she couldn't come back tonight, she would have to come back tomorrow anyway. It was raining like this, let alone three days, even thirteen more days, it would be fine! She looked at the river outside the city.
, it shouldn't matter.
But who knew, something might happen.
It wasn't the saint or anyone else who had an accident, but Mr. Zhou, the general manager of the river, something happened to him.
The saint went to see it. After seeing it, it was impossible to live so close to the river at night. He wanted to go back to the capital. The rain was too heavy, so he naturally stayed in a posthouse outside the city for one night.
Then Lord Zhou didn't know whether he was afraid that the saint would blame him for failing to do a good job, or he wanted to show that he was more diligent in front of the saint, so he took people to inspect the dike in the heavy rain at night. The old dike was so hard that it was stepped on.
When it rains, the water goes to the river, and the dams do not accumulate water, so the dams become slippery. It rains and the wind is strong. With such a wind lantern, it can't even illuminate the bottom of my feet. What can I see? On normal days, at night
Wherever there is light, that is water. But if there is no moon, and there is no light, walking along the river embankment, you don’t even know whether you are walking on a straight path.
No, he went astray. He felt that he was in the middle of the embankment, but the further he walked, the more he deceived him. As soon as he took a step, he suddenly felt that it was empty below. Before he could scream, his body lost balance and fell directly into the river.
The subordinate officers he brought with him rushed to save him. In order to save him, two of them were washed away by the water. When they fished him out, they were filled with not only water but also mud. Without resuscitation, he died immediately.
When this happened, Emperor Wen Zhao was so angry that he lost his temper. "Who asked him to go? Two hundred and five!" If the water level rises, it will be really dangerous. It is our duty to inspect the dams and ensure safety. This is just water level.
When it rains, go and check the quality of the dam. It won't overflow and it's not dangerous. "Why is he running there at night?" It's better to go to the construction site to supervise the quality than to ask for performance at this time.
But this can be said behind closed doors and cannot be mentioned to the outside world! After all, he died for the sake of official duties. If it were not for him, who would die for the sake of official duties in the future?
Okay! Hold your nose and admit it, and you will be given mourning and honor after death.
Then he ordered Wu Lang, "You go and pay homage to me, and that's it."
yes!
When Tongtong heard about it, she was really dumbfounded, or she said it was killing people!
Even the palace had to ask people to pay homage, so of course the Lin family had to go and show their respect. If Link goes there, it won't work! We can't advocate Master Zhou's stupid things. Then let Tongtong go!
Han Siyuan came to pick him up, and the two of them went to express their condolences together.
We are all strangers. We just need to burn a stick of incense, give a sacrifice, say our condolences to the family members, and then we can go home.
Since it was still raining, the two of them came back without any delay.
But then she turned around and heard that Concubine Xiao was begging the Queen for a marriage, and the person she wanted to marry was Master Zhou's daughter. She wanted to marry the daughter to the fifth prince.
This was not said to the empress alone, but in front of seven or eight court ladies when the empress met her concubines.
That was a minister who died in the line of duty. In front of outsiders, how could the queen say it was inappropriate?
Concubine Xiao knelt down in front of the queen and said: "Master Zhou died for the court and died for loyalty. I think, there is someone and something that Master Zhou can't let go of... The court should do it for Zhou."
Sir, I thought about it. My concubine asked, Mr. Zhou's original wife gave birth to four sons, but they died early. After the marriage, he got another daughter, and then, his mother died again. Now, the child has no father, although he has a brother and sister-in-law.
, but how can Master Zhou ever be at ease?"
Such a profound understanding of righteousness, such a caring attitude toward me and others... If the queen does not agree, wouldn't it mean that there would be no Concubine Xiao who can be a mother to the world?
The queen said at that time: "It is not appropriate to propose marriage rashly during the period of mourning. After observing mourning for one year, I will give you the title of Country Lord... It is not too late to discuss the marriage." After saying that, she had to wait.
Explain to the concubine: "The imperial concubine's heart is good, but she is newly bereaved, so she must be considerate of her mood."
That is! That is!
After sending her destined wife away, Concubine Xiao looked at the queen's face as sinking as water. She lowered her head and said, "Mother, I also want to share the worries of the Holy Lord and you. I have no selfish motives at all. The girl from the Zhou family is the daughter of the stepmother.
, I don’t get along with the four brothers and sisters-in-law from my original wife..."
This means that for a woman who has no father and is not close to her brothers, becoming a princess does not count as giving Wu Lang power.
I really didn't have any selfish thoughts.
The queen understands that she wants to make up for her previous mistakes! But you might as well be selfish.