"Madam, there is something I want to tell you. Today..."
Zhou Chen told Caihan that he went to the study to find him today. He didn't make it so obvious, but Hualan wasn't stupid, and women are naturally sensitive to this kind of thing, so Zhou Chen just mentioned it, and she understood immediately.
Already.
Hualan's face turned extremely ugly. Caihan had been following her for many years, and it had been two years since she married into the Hou family. Before that, she had thought about finding a good family for Caihan.
As a result, she never expected that she would secretly seduce her own officials while she was not at home.
She was extremely angry, but she was somewhat comforted because her officials directly rejected such a thing and did not hide it from her.
"My lord, I will take care of the hairpin. After tomorrow, I promise not to let her appear in the Hou Mansion again."
It is true that she is kind-hearted, but Caihan did such a shameless betrayal, which no master would tolerate. She did not kill him on the spot because of past kindness.
.
The most important thing is that Caihan actually did such a thing during Zhou Chen's mourning period. How could a lady like her tolerate it?
Zhou Chen didn't care about this, and just said casually: "Just handle it, let's rest."
After a while, Zhou Chen fell asleep, but Hua Lan didn't fall asleep. She was still thinking about the hairpin.
In ancient times, there were dowry maids. Strictly speaking, the dowry maids were also dowries. When they arrived at the male master's home, they became his private property.
Do you know that the dowry maids in this world are slightly different from the dowry maids in normal history? They still have some human rights. The body contract is a living contract and is in the hands of the mistress. If you can get the mistress's permission, you can marry someone else.
.
This is the case for Minglan's maid in the plot, and Mo Lan's maid. If Mo Lan hadn't pushed her too hard, she wouldn't have hooked up with Liang Liulang.
There are also several families that appear in the plot, such as the Sheng family, the Gu family, etc., who did not turn their dowry maids into concubines. Instead, many of their dowry maids eventually became their steward mothers, just like maids.
Continue to serve the mistress.
Just like Mrs. Wang’s mother Liu, Mrs. Qin’s mother Xiang, etc.
Although this does not represent everything, it can also be seen that in this fictional world, the maid who is married is not necessarily the maid who is married to the bride.
Cuichan and Caihan are both Hualan's dowry maids. If Hualan allows it, and if they themselves are willing, they can certainly serve Zhou Chen without even being promoted to concubines, just like maids who are married to each other.
But Zhou Chen had never mentioned it before, and Hua Lan had never told Cuichan and Caihan that she, being kind-hearted, actually had plans for these two dowry maids.
If they want to leave, as the master, she will eventually agree to return their deeds and give them some dowry, which can be regarded as consummating the relationship between master and servant.
If they are unwilling to leave, she will not object. If officials need it in the future, she will also be willing to let them serve Zhou Chen. After all, they are her own maids, and they are easier to control than taking concubines outside.
But all this was done with her permission, but Caihan secretly seduced Zhou Chen without her permission and without her knowledge. This was something she could not allow.
How could she tolerate a maid who was disobedient and uncontrollable?
Early the next morning, after Zhou Chen left Chaoyun Pavilion, Hua Lan immediately ordered Feng's mother to lead someone to take down the hairpin and bring it to her.
In front of the Arhat's bed, Hua Lan sat upright, assuming the posture of being the mistress of the house and the eldest lady of the Hou family, with a stern face.
Looking at Caihan who was tied up and kneeling on the ground, she spoke coldly.
"Caihan, you should know why I took you down, right?"
"Girl, spare your life, girl, spare your life, I, I didn't mean it, I really didn't mean it."
Caihan was so frightened that she trembled all over and hurriedly begged for mercy. She knew that she was a kind-hearted girl, and if she behaved more pitifully, she might be able to save her life.
But she didn't know that her behavior offended Hua Lan. She was the housekeeper for two years and the hostess of the Marquis Mansion for another year. The aura of being the heroine of the house was naturally developed.
She was willing to let Cai Hao accompany Zhou Chen, so Cai Hao could do it. If she didn't want to, Cai Hao would never allow her to do that. If Cai Hao did this, she would never forgive her.
And the most important point is that before the one-year period of filial piety for our officials, Caihan dares to blatantly seduce them, which is even more unacceptable.
"Spare you? I usually treat you well, why do you do this?"
"me……"
Mother Feng went up and slapped her in the face, shouting loudly: "Madam asked you to answer, why are you hesitating? Reply quickly."
Caihan replied in panic: "I just saw that the Marquis had not consummated the marriage for a long time and was too lonely, so I thought of sharing the burden with the girl and serving the Marquis for the girl. Please spare your life, girl."
Hua Lan said coldly: "According to what you say, I still need to thank you?"
Caihan shouted loudly: "Girl, I am the girl's dowry maid. If the girl is inconvenient and the Marquis needs it, I can serve the Marquis."
Cuichan couldn't listen anymore and yelled: "Shut up, you have made a big mistake and you still have the nerve to quibble."
Caihan shouted: "I have no excuses. It has been more than two years since the girl married into the Marquis's house, but the Marquis has never taken a concubine. When the girl was inconvenient, the Marquis has never found another woman. He is also very energetic."
, I did this because I thought about the girl and the Marquis."
Hua Lan's face turned ugly: "You mean I'm jealous and won't let the Marquis take concubines, right?"
The colorful hairpin kowtowed to the ground: "I don't dare, I don't dare."
Hua Lan silently looked at the hairpin that kept kowtowing. She admitted that she was a little selfish. She missed the official's kindness to her and longed for the official's full love, so she never mentioned the matter of taking concubines.
But of course she couldn't show it now. Caihan's behavior was betrayal of her master and unethical.
"It seems that you still don't really realize where you are wrong. Don't worry, I won't kill you. Mother Feng, gag her, tie her up, and take her with you. I want to go back to my parents' home."
Hua Lan moved very quickly. He took Mother Feng, Cui Chan, and a few guards to the Sheng Mansion, and went straight to Wei Ruixuan, and ordered several guards to guard Wei Ruixuan and not allow anyone to come in.
"Madam, the eldest lady is back, and she has led people to surround our Wei Ruixuan."
The eldest lady was having a drink happily in her room, when she suddenly heard the maid Caihuan running in to report, and she suddenly looked shocked.
"Hua'er is back and has fenced in the yard? What's going on?"
During the questioning, she stood up, but before he could walk out, she saw Hua Lan walking in aggressively.
"Hua'er, what are you..."
Before I could ask, I saw the colorful hairpin that was pulled in by the guards and thrown on the ground.
"Colorful hairpin? Hua'er, what are you doing?"
Hua Lan ordered the maid Cai Huan: "Go down. Once you are out of the yard, don't come close."
Although Caihuan was the eldest lady's maid, she didn't dare to say a word when she saw Hualan being so aggressive and left in a hurry.
Wang Ruofu and Liu's mother both looked puzzled and looked at Hua Lan curiously.
"Hua'er, what's wrong? You look so scary."
Although she was Hua Lan's biological mother, it was the first time she saw such an imposing Hua Lan. The pressure came to her face, and she felt a little nervous unconsciously.
Hua Lan said in a deep voice: "Mom, I should have directly beaten this ungrateful bitch, but after all, she is the dowry maid given to me by your mother. After much thought, I decided to send her back for you to deal with.
"
"It's unethical to betray one's master? Who, the hairpin? Does she have the courage?" Wang Ruofu looked unbelieving.
Hua Lan didn't say anything. He walked to the chair next to him and sat down: "Cui Chan, tell my mother what she did."
Cuichan immediately told Wang Ruofu what Caihan had done. Wang Ruofu listened and became furious. He rushed over and slapped Caihan.
"You little bitch, I asked you to be Hua'er's dowry maid, and I asked you to take care of Hua'er. How dare you seduce the Marquis when Hua'er is not around? It's during the Marquis' mourning period that I hit you
Damn you little bitch."
After one slap, I felt annoyed, so I slapped him twice more. After the slap, my hands began to shake.
"Mother Liu, beat me and beat this little bitch to death."
Without thinking, Mother Liu rushed over and slapped her a few more times, causing the hairpin to scream, but her mouth was stuffed with cloth, so she couldn't make much sound.
"Okay, okay, mother, I will leave this hairpin to you. The official is still observing the period of filial piety, and there must be no rumors that are detrimental to him."
Wang Ruofu understood what Hua Lan meant. In this era where filial piety is more important than heaven, if it is rumored that Zhou Chen had an affair with the maid during the period of observing filial piety, and the officials get hold of it, even if Zhou Chen cannot be brought down, they will definitely
Make a mess.
"Okay, Hua'er, leave it to me. Mom promises you that there will never be any gossip about it."
"Well, mother, then I'll go to my grandmother's place to say hello."
Seeing that Hualan was about to leave, Caihan struggled to crawl from the ground, crawled in front of Hualan, grabbed Hualan's clothes with her tied hands, and begged her face.
Mother Liu was not used to it at all, so she went up and pulled away the hairpin's hand.
As soon as Hua Lan left, Wang Ruofu ordered: "This little bitch, beat her to death, beat her to death for me..."
Hua Lan came to Shou'an Hall and told the old lady about it.
The old lady praised: "You did the right thing in this matter. If it were normal, it would be fine. But Sanlang is still observing filial piety. This matter is not big or small. Although Sanlang is not a civil servant, if he is used by someone with intentions, it will be a big deal."
Trouble, this is the best way to solve it."
"That hairpin is dead when it dies, but what she said still makes sense."
Hua Lan's face turned pale: "Is grandma talking about taking concubines for officials?"
The old lady sighed: "You are smart, kind, tolerant, and tolerant. I know that Sanlang didn't even have a maid in the same room before, and after getting married, you will be the only one, but you still have inconveniences."
It's not convenient for Saburo to take concubines in the past two years. Then, in the future, if it continues like this, there will always be some villains who will make trouble and spread rumors that you are jealous, which will also be bad for you."
She has lived for many years and has an open mind about many things, so she doesn't understand her granddaughter's thoughts, but as a grandmother, she still feels it is necessary to remind her.
Hua Lan whispered: "Actually, I have considered it before. When I was pregnant with step-brother, I also considered letting Cui Chan and Cai Hairao serve the Marquis, but I didn't make up my mind, and I didn't ask Cui Chan and the others.
, and seeing that the Marquis didn’t mention it, I didn’t do it. It’s true that I have selfish motives.”
The old lady patted her hand: "How can this be called selfishness? Which woman doesn't want to be on the same page with her officials and depend on each other for the rest of their lives, but this is not realistic, you should understand."
People who live in this era understand that monogamy is unrealistic. It is still possible for ordinary people at the bottom, but it is difficult for ordinary wealthy families to achieve it, let alone a wealthy family like the Marquis Zhongjing Mansion.
Take Sheng Hong as an example. When he was a ninth-grade official in a bitter cold land, he already took concubines. It was really rare for a person like Zhou Chen who was born in a marquis mansion without even a maid to live in the same room.
"But you don't have to think about it so much now. Saburo is still in his filial piety period. You can ask him first. This kind of thing still needs to be discussed between you and your husband."
From the old lady's point of view, taking a concubine for Zhou Chen is not a big deal. A concubine is a concubine at best, but a slave at worst. Life and death are in the hands of the mistress.
Hualan is the head lady of the Hou Mansion and is in charge of the backyard. Zhou Chen is also different from his concubine Sheng Hong, who will not spoil his concubine and destroy his wife.
Therefore, she felt that even if she gave Zhou Chen a concubine, it would not shake Hua Lan's position in the Hou Mansion, but would instead reduce the pressure on Hua Lan.
On the way back, Hua Lan and Cui Chan were sitting in the carriage.
Cui Chan was not happy to see Hua Lan and asked with concern: "Girl, are you still angry about the hairpin?"
Hua Lan shook his head and said: "It has passed. I was wondering if I was too selfish. What Cai Hairpin said is right. The official is in his prime and full of energy, but I think about occupying the Marquis alone."
, it’s too inappropriate.”
Cui Chan said in surprise: "I think the Marquis loves the girl. The Marquis must feel that the girl is a hundred times more important than his own temporary happiness."
She is Hualan's personal maid and knows Zhou Chen and Hualan's affairs best. She also knows how strong and capable Zhou Chen is, but even so, Zhou Chen has never mentioned the matter of concubinage, which can only mean that Mr. Hou
Deeply in love with the girl.
Hua Lan looked at Cuichan in surprise, and then sighed: "The official is thinking about me, so I should serve her well and take concubines for him."
Seeing Hua Lan's troubled expression, Cui Chan suddenly said: "Girl, if you agree, I am willing to serve the Marquis."
"ah?"
Hua Lan looked at Cui Chan in surprise.
Cuichan hurriedly explained: "Girl, don't get me wrong, I think differently from Caihan. I just want to share the burden for the girl. I don't need a status or anything else. I am willing to serve the girl all my life.
I will be a maid for the rest of my life."
Hua Lan was silent for a while and then said: "Don't you want to get married? In fact, I have already thought about it. When you get married, I will return your body deed to you and prepare a generous gift for you.
The dowry will allow you to marry in style."
Unexpectedly, Cuichan said: "Girl, I have never thought about getting married. I have thought about it a long time ago. Even if a person like me gets married, I can only marry those traffickers and lackeys. It is absolutely impossible to be a good family."
If you want me, let me be the right lady."
"Even if you get married, you still have to serve someone. Even if you meet a mother-in-law or an elder who is difficult to get along with, you will not only serve one person, but a whole family. Even if you give birth to children in the future, you may not have any future, and you will be useless for the rest of your life.
Instead of struggling to make a living at the bottom, it is better to stay by the girl's side and serve her."
"I'm not coveting wealth, I just feel that if I stay with a girl, she is so good and she will definitely not treat me badly. And what I need to do is to serve the girl and the Marquis well, so I am willing to serve the Marquis for the girl without asking for anything.
I don’t ask for fame, wealth, or having children, I just want to be by the girl’s side all the time.”
"Really, girl, I don't want to leave your side. If you are such a good master, I want to serve you for the rest of my life."
"Green cicada."
Hua Lan hugged Cui Chan with a look of emotion on her face.
People are afraid of comparison. For her own sake, Caihan secretly seduce Zhou Chen while she was away, but Cuichan spoke her true feelings in front of her. Although they ended up serving officials, their purposes were completely different.
Naturally her views are different.
"Cuichan, if you are really willing, I will always let you stay by my side to serve you."
"girl."
When Hua Lan told Zhou Chen in the evening that he asked Cui Chan to serve him when it was inconvenient, Zhou Chen was immediately startled, thinking that Hua Lan was testing him.
But looking at Hua Lan's expression, it seems normal in today's society.
With his status, who doesn't have several concubines?
He hadn't looked for it before, not because he was pretending to be aloof, but because he felt it was unnecessary. He could completely control this kind of thing. Rather than enjoying it himself, he still felt that the peace in the backyard was better.
But now Hua Lan took the initiative to bring it up. He thought about it and asked, "Do you really think so? Are you not jealous?"
Hua Lan rolled her eyes and said coquettishly: "I'm not really jealous. I also know that since we got married, you have always tolerated me when it was inconvenient. You still care about me so much. For my sake, I, as you,
My wife, of course I have to think about you, the official."
"Cui Chan is willing to do so. You can let her accompany you during this period. After the mourning is over, I can help you recruit any girl you like, but the premise is that prostitutes such as Goulan Washe will never be allowed.
"
Although Zhou Chen has experienced the life of three wives and four concubines several times, he still has to sigh at this time. Life in ancient times was so good. The wife of the wife took the initiative to help take in concubines. If it were in modern times, she would really not dare to
Imagine.
"We'll talk about the future later. Now I just want to hold you well."
Zhou Chen's filial piety period had not passed for a year, but something big happened suddenly in Xixia. Li Liangzuo, the young emperor of Xixia, planned to kill Wu Zangyao Pang, wiped out the Manchu clan of Wu Zang, and officially took control of Xixia.
Of course, this is not the main thing. The main thing is that the young emperor of Xixia, Li Liangzuo, actually wrote to the Song Dynasty, willing to pay tribute to the Song Dynasty with a thousand good horses and some treasures, requesting the return of the two states seized by the Song Dynasty, and promised to return the land to the Song Dynasty.
During his reign, he would never start a border war and was willing to sign a peace treaty with the Song Dynasty.
Over this matter, the court was already quarreling fiercely. Some people thought that the land of the two states had already been the land of the Song Dynasty. How could it be returned? They couldn't agree to it.
But some people think that Xixia is just a barren land between two states. Xixia is willing to pay tribute to a thousand good horses and some treasures, and is even willing to sign a peace covenant. In this way, the Song-Xia border will have peace for at least several decades.
, this is definitely the best choice for Da Song Dynasty, and I can agree to it.
The two parties have their own opinions and refuse to give in to each other. The official also has a headache. He neither wants to return the land of the two states, but also wants a peace treaty, but there is no such thing as such a good thing.
When Zhou Chen heard about this, he was also very surprised. Did Li Liangzuo solve the Zang clan so quickly? It seems that he captured the two states of Xixia, which brought quite a butterfly effect.
Li Liangzuo, the young emperor, actually asked for peace from the Song Dynasty. It seems that he has capable people around him.
Although he is now keeping his filial piety at home, he is still really curious about what choice the court will make in the end.
Of course, as far as Da Song was concerned, he would not be surprised by any choice he made.