Linton came out with a broom and swept the snow outside the gate to both sides.
Then I changed the rag and bucket and wiped the door.
A neighbor's steward went out early. Seeing him busy, he couldn't help but smile and say hello: "Uncle Dun, it's so early today. Why don't you do all the work yourself and let the young people below do it?"
Linton chuckled: "It's not a troublesome thing."
The steward had an idea: "Hey, I thought about it, my new uncle is coming to pay New Year's greetings today, right?"
Linton was even happier.
The new uncle refers to Duke Fuguo.
It was decided before the year, and I will come to my door on the third day of the new year.
Linton was so excited that he got up at dawn to clean up.
The Duke of Fu must be allowed to see that Bo Chengyi attaches great importance to the Emperor. At the same time, he also attaches great importance to the Holy One. After all, this marriage is the decree given by the Emperor, and nothing can be done carelessly.
The steward said congratulations repeatedly.
Linton responded, cleaning up the inside and outside of the door again.
In the uncle's house, Grandma Zeng also directed the ladies in charge.
When Ms. Chen asked about it, she said: "All the servants are watching, so just don't worry, and let the old lady and the princess rest assured. This is the first New Year's greeting after the marriage, and it must be all thoughtful."
Everything was ready in the mansion. Someone came from the front and announced that Duke Fu had arrived. He had just entered the gate and was greeting his uncle.
Mrs. Chen quickly cheered up: "Go to Zai Shou Yuan and report it."
In the front yard, Xu Jian and Lin Yu saluted.
On the carriage behind him, boxes of New Year gifts were loaded down one after another.
From snack boxes to knick-knacks, it was the custom in the capital to give the new uncle a New Year greeting, and he had no shortage of anything.
Lin Yu said: "Go and see the old lady first, and we'll talk about other things later."
Xu Jian naturally listened to him.
In the Zai Shou Courtyard, little Duan was looking forward to it.
Lin Yunyan sat next to her grandmother, eating sweet glutinous rice porridge and listening to Grandma Ruan's words.
"The old lady got up early and even applied 30% more oil on her hair than usual, making it shiny."
"This outfit was newly made years ago. When my aunt came back yesterday, the old lady didn't even want to wear it. She prepared it just to meet her new uncle."
"There is also this turquoise stone forehead wiper on my head. I haven't worn it for a long time. I wiped it carefully last night."
Little Mrs. Duan pointed at Nanny Ruan and laughed and scolded: "Just expose my old ways! This is the first time I meet my grandson-in-law, and I am happy to do so!"
Lin Yunyan also laughed and teased: "You attach so much importance to me, what if you scare the Duke away?"
"Humph!" Xiao Duan said angrily, "He has even been on the battlefield, so he is very brave."
Xu Jian followed Lin Yu into the courtyard and heard the laughter inside.
Lively and joyful, the warm atmosphere that should exist during the New Year suddenly overflowed. Xu Jian lowered his eyes and couldn't help but curled his lips.
Lifting the curtain, he entered the secondary room and looked at the old lady sitting on the Arhat's bed.
The old lady's mood is written all over her face.
Xu Jian came forward to pay his respects to the New Year.
Xiao Duan looked at the young man in front of her.
In her early years, she met the old Duke Xu Mang and recognized his wife Guo. She was a handsome man and a beautiful woman, and her only daughter also had outstanding facial features.
She doesn't like Liu Jing's personality, but she still wants to praise him realistically.
With such a combination, the Xu Jian who was born really inherited all the advantages and strengths of her parents.
Who doesn't like beautiful children?
She liked it very much.
My Yun Yan is so outstanding, so of course my uncle also has the looks, talent, and character to be able to handle everything.
Thinking of this, Xiao Duan felt even more sorry for Xu Jian's leg injury.
"I bothered the Duke to take care of the business earlier." Xiao Duan found something to say.
Starting from Laoshi Alley, the two sides chatted smoothly.
Having said that, Xu Jian got up first and followed Lin Yu to the study.
Xiao Duan and Lin Yunyan lamented: "It's hard to fault the way you talk and behave."
Lin Yunyan laughed when she heard this.
She was sitting aside just now, listening to Xu Jian's serious conversation with her grandmother.
The tone of voice is calmer than before, and the speed of speech is neither fast nor slow.
No matter how grandma listened, she would never be able to hear the slightest bit of yin and yang in it.
When it comes to showing off, Xu Jian is really good at it.
Of course, she's not bad either.
In the other room, Xu Jian and Lin Yu closed the study door.
Xu Jian spoke first, explaining why he deliberately provoked the prince on the first day of the new year.
"My uncle should be able to see that regardless of the prince's talents, his thoughts are limited on government affairs. He prefers hunting and riding horses."
Lin Yu nodded slightly and said: "The prince is young and has not fully recovered his thoughts."
"The Holy Father asked me to follow him to observe the government, and he also wanted me to lead the way," Xu Jian sighed, "It won't work softly, so come on hard, the prince will definitely annoy me.
He has old and new grudges, and he will be annoyed whether I recruit him or not.
Let him know that I have a bad temper, so I won’t blindly follow him, and maybe I will behave better.”
Lin Yu was thinking.
Xu Jian's words are not unreasonable, but that person is the prince after all.
Having heard the Holy Father mention this matter before, Lin Yue secretly hoped that Xu Jian would turn it down and not take on such a thankless job.
If you don’t want to be idle, it is also feasible to find a yamen to order Mao.
But Xu Jian has already agreed, and it would be even more inappropriate to change his mind.
"I have been thinking these past few days that His Majesty would let the Crown Prince oversee the government, but I am not too eager to see any results," Lin Yu sighed, "His Royal Highness is young and not stable enough. Instead of forcing him to do what he wants, it is better to
Let him get used to Qianbu Corridor first.
It doesn’t have to be a big achievement, it’s enough for the Holy One to see his growth.
In a few years, when Your Highness becomes more stable, there will be more progress.
However, since you have your own ideas, then do what you want.
You must remember, after all, that person is His Highness the Crown Prince.
As ministers, no matter how dignified we are in front of the emperor on weekdays and how well we speak, His Highness is the most valued son of His Majesty."
Xu Jian listened attentively and did not interrupt Lin Yu's words.
As for those previous explanations, the antecedents are all true, and the consequences are all nonsense.
He didn't point the prince straight at all.
No matter how many opportunities he is given, Li Shao will not be able to straighten himself out. In the end, he, Lin Yunyan, and the entire Chengyi Mansion will be trapped and have no way out.
However, you still have to have reservations in front of your uncle.
At the same time, Xu Jian could also tell from Lin Yu's words that his uncle also considered and retained a lot.
My uncle almost always talks about "doing things around" and "as long as you can do business".
The words "Young and not stable enough" are all just words of a minister.
After all, Xu Jian was younger than Li Shao when he first entered the battlefield, and he was also younger than Li Shao when he went to court to express his views directly to the late emperor.
Having said that, there are indeed many people who don’t suddenly realize it until they are in their weak years.
The prince is still not interested at the moment, and the ministers can only place their hope in the future.
This is why the uncle suggested that he let him "hang out for a few years", and Sangu was there to teach him, so that Li Shao's foundation would be stronger so that he could build a solid building later.
This is also where the Holy One hesitated to make his choice before.
However, Xu Jian "persuaded" the Holy Emperor and directly confirmed Guan Zheng.
If he doesn't get along, Li Shao can't get along either.
Just mess around like this, stir up all the messy things in it, and ask the Holy One to see what the mess is.
Although Lin Yu had suggestions, he would not force Xu Jian to follow his suggestions.
Instead, he was enthusiastic and very interested in Xu Jian's thoughts.
"I would like to suggest to your Majesty that we start with the Ministry of Rites' inspection of government affairs," Xu Jian said clearly. "The scientific examination is the most important part of selecting talents for the imperial court. Although it is an encore, all the processes and arrangements are consistent with the three-year examination.<
/p>
What the uncle said makes sense, and it doesn’t necessarily require His Highness to have a deep understanding. He knows everything inside and outside the examination room.
Arranging all those processes is a matter for the officials below, not for the emperor or the prince.
The prince knows the process and has been exposed to it personally once. When he takes the next big exam two years later, he will understand a lot."
Lin Yu listened very attentively and nodded from time to time.
Even when the table was set up in the flower hall, I still had more to say.
After leaving the study, the court affairs were no longer mentioned.
Lin Xun and Lin Yao were at the table together, and the lunch was enjoyed by both host and guest.
In the afternoon, when Lin Yunyan took Wan Yue to the flower hall, everything had been tidied up.
The table was removed and replaced with tea and snacks.
Xu Jian sat alone at the table and ate tea slowly.
As for my father and uncles...
Lin Yunyan knew without asking that the two uncles must have had wine and went back to the house to take a nap. Her father went to the study, leaving her and Xu Jian to have a few words in the flower hall.
Originally, it was supposed to be arranged to take a few steps in a garden to see the plum blossoms, but Lin Yunyan refused directly.
On a cold day, she was not afraid of the wind, but Xu Jian had better forget her fear of wet and cold legs.
I didn’t get to come to pay New Year’s greetings, and it would be painful for a few days when I went back.
Lin Yunyan sat down and said with a smile: "Grandma praises you a lot."
Xu Jian laughed loudly: "You should be praised."
Shameless talk.
Lin Yunyan glared at Xu Jian.
Xu Jian added: "It seems that this is the first time I have seen her in such a good mood. As soon as I entered Zai Shou Yuan, I heard bursts of laughter in the room. No wonder the princess misses her."
Hearing this, Lin Yunyan was slightly startled.
When I asked Xu Jian to mention it, she actually remembered it.
In the past, when she was engaged to Xu Jian, the sisters all encountered obstacles that they couldn't overcome, so the atmosphere in the house could never be so relaxed and joyful.
When Xu Jian came to visit, my grandmother certainly paid great attention to it, but thinking about the hardships the eldest sister endured and the unknown future of the third sister, there was inevitably a layer of melancholy in my grandmother's smile.
Nothing like today when I smile so hard that my eyes narrow into slits.
Of course, the clouds at that time were stronger than the violent storm later. How could my grandmother still laugh after the accident in the uncle's house?
When she and Xu Jian recalled the time in her boudoir, especially the time in Yongjia twelve years ago, the words she used most often were "in good spirits", "laughing" and "missing".
Lin Yunyan sighed: "The Duke still remembers me."
Xu Jian said: "I'm just curious."
Lin Yunyan's eyelashes trembled.
She knew the meaning of Xu Jian's words without asking.
He has never experienced "a happy family".
He doesn’t have that many “family members” either.
It's not out of indignation or resentment, Xu Jian is more stating a fact.
When this topic came to an end, Xu Jian lowered her voice and talked to Lin Yunyan about the previous conversation in the study.
Lin Yunyan listened, her brows frowning and relaxing, and finally she smiled and shook her head: "Father tried his best to make the prince's unconventional temperament so refreshing and refined. Father really considered it again and again."
Xu Jian raised her eyebrows.
If Uncle Chengyi's words can be summarized in this way, how can the little princess's summary not be fresh and refined?
Of course, Xu Jian also agrees with what Lin Yunyan once said, that my uncle is a person with an extremely heavy sense of responsibility.
Despite what he said about letting the younger generation "hang out for a few years" and not contribute much to work, he himself had an attitude in the Hanlin Academy of doing more learning and asking less about government affairs, but his edge has not dimmed.<
/p>
Xu Jian regarded Bo Chengyi’s choice as hiding one’s strength and biding one’s time.
The uncle must have had his reasons for choosing silence, but he was used to carrying the burden on his shoulders and not telling his family.
Once the sharp blade is unsheathed, all the news brought to them by their uncle in the past will be a kind of circumstantial evidence.
And a few months ago, being able to find Wang Liuliu in the huge capital city was also a sign of ability.
However, now is not the time for them and their uncle to be honest with each other.
Lin Yunyan was also thinking about what her father said.
Suddenly hearing Xu Jian speak, she raised her head in surprise.
"What did you do with Yue Niang yesterday?"
Lin Yunyan blinked her eyes.
Now that I asked about it, it was indeed important, so I told Xu Jian the whole story.
Now, it was Xu Jian's turn to look surprised.
"I just felt that if I continue to search for the Jin-Shu line, I should be able to gain some unexpected results," Lin Yunyan lowered her voice, "But after listening to what you just said, I have thought of a few possibilities.<
/p>
There is no evidence for Li Shao's bastard affairs. He was too careful. Could Jin Shu have been harmed by him?
He has met Yue Niang, and maybe he is flirting with her. Maybe he just likes Yue Niang, and he mistakenly identifies Jin Shu as Yue Niang?"
After saying that, Lin Yunyan raised her eyes and saw Xu Jian looking at her for a moment.
Those eyes were deep and heavy, only revealing a hint of playfulness and a smile.
Lin Yunyan intuitively felt that Xu Jian was not ready to say anything nice, but she still asked, "Am I wrong?"
Xu Jian put down the tea cup and said: "There are many ideas and broad ideas, but..."
When the words came to his lips, Xu Jian clicked his tongue when he saw Lin Yunyan's bright eyes turned sideways, as if she had the ability to tell the truth.
To be honest, the little princess made it clear that she didn’t want to hear it.
That’s all, change it to something more convergent.
Who called this the Chengyi residence, the territory of the little princess?
She was so angry that she left the table and walked out. He had to make up some excuse to explain to his uncle.
He is not as easy to edit as the "Prince Observes Government". He is experienced in playing games with the Prince, speaks in an orderly manner.
"But the princess doesn't know enough about the prince's temperament," Xu Jian said in the calmest way, "The prince is noble and thinks highly of himself. He may like Yue Niang, but he doesn't like her. It’s not that he dislikes Yue Niang, he dislikes Liu Xun.
The prince's search for Liu Xun originated from me. He did not want to make a brother, he just wanted to find a follower who had a problem with me.
He is the master, and Liu Xun is the servant. If the prince gets involved with a woman who has been a servant for so long, in his mind, she will lose her status.
He might not care when he gets crazy, but he hasn't been that crazy in the past two years."
