Brother Changbai is probably very popular among middle-aged and elderly women. Each letter from Mrs. Hai is more enthusiastic than the last. At first, the letter was a bit condescending, but later it became "father-in-law, father-in-law, mother-in-law". Seeing that Changbai lived alone in Shengzhai in the capital, Sheng Hong wished that Chang Bai could live in his own home. Thinking that his term of office was about to expire, Sheng Hong simply asked his servants to slowly take care of the house in the capital so that the whole family could live there when they returned to the capital.
After more than half a month, Changbai finally came back. He bid farewell to his mother-in-law and immediately greeted his biological mother with enthusiasm. Wang touched her son's head and felt that her ten-month pregnancy and more than ten years of emotional investment were not in vain. She was so excited that tears filled her eyes. In fact, she had prepared a tall white horse and a big red silk bouquet before, planning to let her son parade through the streets to show his glory. Changbai refused to obey, which made Wang family feel depressed. In fact, Minglan understood Wang family very well and married her. A husband is like a boss, and a son is like a father. Anyone else would be depressed.
As compensation, Sheng Hong chose a cool and warm day to hold a banquet in his mansion. It happened to be a holiday, so he could invite a group of colleagues to go up to the peak to have fun together.
At the end of spring and the beginning of summer, the scenery in the garden was full of bright red birds, majestic mountains and rocks, and the scenery was excellent. It was perfect for entertaining guests. Wang wanted to invite a group of opera performers to sing a few times, but Sheng Hong felt that it was better not to be too ostentatious. , there were only a few tables for the banquet. A group of male guests were drinking in the front, and the female guests had a banquet in the backyard. There were many people in Dengzhou City who were close friends with the Sheng family, and they arrived early because they were a little intimate. Unexpectedly, the first person to arrive was Princess Pingning.
It's not that Wang's personality is too charming, but that in Dengzhou, there are only a few female relatives who can match the level of the third-grade princess. The other female officials can only flatter and flatter. Princess Pingning has endured the compliments for a while. I can't help but feel a little bored. After all, Wang is from a well-known family. After all, he has been involved in the boudoir circle in the capital, and he is not ambiguous in socializing. Middle-aged women talk about the gossips of royal relatives, nobles, and wealthy clans, which is as enthusiastic as sex. Although Wang is a bit domineering, But he didn't dare to scoop it up in front of the princess, especially after Wang stopped promoting her daughter, her straightforward temperament got along well with the crooked princess.
Princess Pingning first congratulated Mrs. Wang, and then lamented that her son had failed the exam. Mrs. Wang was originally very happy today, but she couldn't be too happy when she was complaining to the princess. She racked her brains and finally came up with something. Let’s talk about a sad story: “…It is said that a daughter from a high family marries a daughter-in-law from a low-class family, but with a family like the Hai family and such a family tradition, how will I discipline my daughter-in-law in the future?”
Wang sacrificed herself to entertain the noble sentiments of the other party, and the effect was immediate. The princess burst into tears and smiled: "You too! You want to marry a daughter-in-law from a good family, but also want to discipline her daughter-in-law. How can there be such a good thing in the world!"
If someone had ridiculed her like this, Mrs. Wang would have flipped the table over long ago, but facing the princess, she could only pluck the veil secretly, then laugh and remove it.
After a while, more and more visitors came, and the room was full of green beads and jingling rings. Old lady Sheng was sitting at the top, and three orchids, dressed in new clothes, stood shyly aside to entertain the guests, allowing a group of aunties to pinch and touch them. Go, Minglan's face almost twitched with a fake smile, waves of perfume made her dizzy. Opposite to the old woman from Shiyuge's hometown stood a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl, wearing a bright purple narrow-sleeved tunic and lotus root. She was wearing a Xiangjiang dress with a green pattern. Seeing Minglan's fake appearance, she snickered and gave Minglan a playful wink. Minglan was furious and secretly bared her teeth at her.
After a few words of greeting, Mrs. Sheng took Mrs. Yu to the Jian'an Hall to talk. After Mrs. Wang had been intimate with the ladies for a while, she wanted to talk about the topic of marriage between men and women, but was worried about the girls on the side. , and let them go their own way.
Mo Lan was very skillful and had the most girlfriends. As soon as she walked out of the door, four or five girls gathered around her and started chatting. Ru Lan relied on her status and only had friends with Liu and Li, the legitimate daughters of the same family. Ming Lan was stopped by Mrs. Sheng. I had not seen many guests, and I had to pretend to be honest in front of Mrs. Wang, so I didn't know many girls. Only the old lady from Yuge's hometown often came to visit Buddha with Mrs. Sheng, so she and Miss Sun of her family were in love. Familiar with each other.
Yu Yanran was tall, slender and elegant. At one time, Mrs. Sheng wanted to marry her to Changbai. Unfortunately, Yanran's father, who was a minister of the fifth rank in the Ministry of Household Affairs, thought that she should marry her to Sheng Hong, the same rank. It's a waste, so I won't mention it anymore.
All the girls were led into Wei Ruixuan to have tea. The maids had already moved out various brocade embroidered chairs and coffee tables, and placed exquisite snacks and bowls. Rulan smiled and said: "This is my uncle's tea from Yunnan." I brought you white tea. Sisters, let’s taste it. How about eating it?” The girls were very interested after hearing this, so they took a few sips of the tea. Mo Lan raised her eyes slightly, covered her mouth and chuckled: “ Fifth sister, you are really scooping out such rare and good things to show off like a treasure, as if all the sisters have never seen the world! Not to mention this Yunnan white tea, it is Tibetan brick tea. The Wu family sister also scooped it up for us to eat last time. Pass!"
Rulan's face suddenly became worried and she tried not to get angry. The disagreement between their sisters was not a secret in the boudoir. The girls sitting around them all kept their expressions unchanged and just drank tea and talked. Wu Baozhu was the most knowledgeable and said with a smile: "Mo Sister, let’s forget about it. The last time I tasted the bitterness of my sister’s mouth, I really regret it. Today’s white tea is very good, elegant and gentle.”
Miss Liu Tongzhi's family also smiled and said: "Everything has a certain taste. If there is no good thing, I won't scoop it out and give it to the sisters to try. Sister Rulan is being hospitable."
Chen Xinya was the only daughter of the magistrate. She had always had an arrogant temper and was at odds with Ru Lan. As a legitimate daughter, she was happy to be supported by Mo Lan. She pouted and put down the tea bowl, saying: "I only eat like this. It's too bland and has no taste." It would be better for my father to bring Bailu from Mount Lu."
Rulan flat-mouthed, and suddenly said to Minglan, who was sitting in the corner: "Sixth sister, what do you think?"
Minglan was getting closer and closer to the door. She was about to sneak away without anyone noticing. Suddenly she was called by her name. She was stunned and said: "The taste is a bit bland, but the aftertaste is the fragrance. It has a different flavor. I am Thanks to all the sisters, Sister Wu has been hiding this tea for several days, even her own sisters are not willing to drink it. She only waited until today to entertain all the sisters!"
The courtesy was light but the affection was heavy. All the girls around him thanked her one after another. Ru Lan was very satisfied.
Over there, Yu Yanran was pestered by a concubine of the Tongpan family. She took the opportunity to stand up, walked to Minglan, tapped Minglan's forehead with her onion-like index finger, and said angrily: "You little girl, why did I see you today?" I didn’t say anything, so heartless!”
Minglan frowned and said: "Last month, I saw that the weather was getting warmer and the water was warm and the fish were alive. I asked you several times to come over to fish and drink fish soup. You just said that you didn't have time to call someone to come. You didn't even give me an excuse. No, I won’t care about you!"
Just after he finished speaking, he saw that most of the girls in the room had weird expressions and winked. Minglan was confused and looked at Yanran, but saw that she was a little uncomfortable. Chen Xinya turned around and joked: "Sister Molan, you little girl."
You girl is so clueless. My sister from the Yu family has caught such a big fat fish now, how come she has time to come to your house to catch those small miscellaneous fish!"
Most of the girls giggled, but said nothing. Only Hong Qingyu, the youngest, was still very innocent and clapped her hands and said: "I know, I know, the Yu family sister is talking about marriage to the second son of the Gu family, the Marquis of Ningyuan in the capital!"
"
Minglan was surprised: "Really? Congratulations to sister." There were real and fake congratulations all around, but Minglan felt that the atmosphere was a little strange, as if... something was not quite right, so she turned to look at Yanran, only to find that
Seeing that she was too shy to raise her head, she changed the topic with a smile: "Which Gu family? Isn't Princess Pingning's maiden name also surnamed Gu? Could it be that they are related?"
Rulan said quickly: "It's my family! The Marquis of Xiangyang and the Marquis of Ningyuan were brothers in ancestors. They fought for the Taizu together, and later they were knighted together!" Minglan was very happy for Yanran and said with a smile: "That's really true.
That’s a good thing, it will be great for people like this.”
Just as he finished speaking, Mo Lan suddenly interrupted: "But... I heard that the second son of the Gu family has a perverse temperament."
There were whispers all around again. Yanran hid behind Minglan, feeling extremely ashamed and not daring to say a word. Minglan laughed loudly and forcefully said: "Don't listen to my fourth sister's nonsense. Our sisters have never been to the capital since they were sensible. How do you know?
These?" While giving Mo Lan a fierce wink, Mo Lan pouted her lips contemptuously and said nothing.
There was a look of gratitude in Yanran's eyes, but Chen Xinya said coolly: "We don't know the inside story, but there is one thing. When I was in the capital when I was a child, I heard that the old Marquis Ningyuan almost tied him up and went to the clan house for questioning.
The crime of disobedience.”
Miss Liu pretended to be surprised and inhaled loudly, causing all the girls next to her to talk about it. Minglan was stunned, and looked back at Yanran, who looked embarrassed and angry. Then she looked at the girls around her who either gloated or stayed away. In the end,
She could only say a few lukewarm words of comfort, but she was furious in her heart: She knew why they were like this, it was nothing more than 'jealousy'.
Speaking of which, Yu Yanran has the most prominent background among the girls. Although her father was just a minister, her grandfather was the chief minister of the generation and was famous all over the world. The late emperor once personally inscribed the four words "Responsible Diligence and Prudence" as a reward, so
Only then was he qualified to discuss marriage directly with the second son of the Marquis Palace. It took a lot of effort for Hua Lan to marry the eldest daughter of the Sheng family to the down-and-out second son of the Marquis Palace.
Minglan wanted to save Yanran, so she pointed at herself and said loudly: "Boys are always naughty when they are young! Besides, most of the rumors are unreliable. Before Sister Liu met me, she 'heard' that I was lonely and weird, but look at it
I am so beautiful and kind-hearted!" Ms. Liu smiled awkwardly, and the other girls laughed out loud. Minglan shamelessly continued: "Is there anything wrong with me? Am I not beautiful? I am not kind-hearted.
?”
Rulan pointed at Minglan, "You, you, you..." She laughed and fell on the machine, holding her belly in her hands and speechless.
The low sneers in the room turned into loud laughter. Minglan saw that Yu Yanran was almost burning and her cheeks were fading slightly. She felt pity in her heart, so she simply tried her best and said: "Sisters are too weird. Sister Yanran, isn't it?
As for marriage, I also want to marry Xiaohong and Xiaobai in my fish tank!"
The crowd became more and more uproarious and burst into laughter. Minglan said with a serious face: "Xiaohong and Xiaobai have been with me for a long time. Seeing that they are not too young, I have to think about them for the rest of their lives when I make the decision."
ah!"
The girls were stumbling around laughing. Wu Baozhu was lying on one girl's shoulder, his face flushed with laughter, and he wiped his tears and said, "Is that done?" Minglan shook her head and said, "It's quite difficult."
Chen Xinya laughed at her stomachache and managed to squeeze out a few words, raising her voice and saying: "...Why is this?" Minglan looked cautious, shook her head and said: "Marriage is a matter of parents' order and the matchmaker's words, but
I, I... where can I find a fish father, a fish mother, and a great matchmaker for that pair of fish?"
Chen Xinya laughed: "You can just be their parents, and I will be their matchmaker! Let's get married now!"
The girls almost laughed like crazy. Rulan ran over with a smile and gave Minglan a hard twist: "Little girl, you are the only one with the most jokes. You made all the sisters laugh so hard. How do you explain it?!" Seeing Rulan like this,
The girls came over one by one and rubbed around Minglan. Minglan struggled hard, but she was pinched and ran around on the ground, but she still shouted loudly: "Be serious, be serious, we are talking about marriage here."
!”
The girls were even happier and started playing around the room. Seeing that everyone turned the focus to herself, Minglan breathed a sigh of relief and winked at Yanran who had moved to the door. Yanran nodded and looked at others without paying attention.
So he slipped away first. Minglan managed to break away from the girls. Her clothes were already tangled in a mess, so she excused herself to tidy up her clothes. Before she left, she heard Ru Lan still laughing: "My little sister is having fun, isn't she?
My father and brothers also love her very much..."
Then came Mo Lan's voice, with a hint of sneer: "That little girl is so sharp-tongued!"
Then I heard the voices of several other girls: "I think the little girl from the Sheng family is very nice, funny and kind."
Another girl said faintly: "...he is very nice,...cheerful and interesting..."
Minglan ignored them and let Danju go straight back to Mucangzhai. As soon as she entered the house, she saw Yanran already there. When Minglan saw her, she raised her eyebrows, pointed and cursed: "How dare you say that about me?"
You have no conscience! When I was with your sister, I asked you to go fishing but you didn’t come. I didn’t know about your marriage, and you were laughed at but you asked me to cover it up for you! Look at me, tell me, how can you compensate?!
"
As she spoke, she lifted up the hem of her wrinkled skirt, with an indignant look on her face. Yanran walked up to Minglan, clasped her hands together and bowed repeatedly, saying over and over again: "Good sister, good sister, it's all me. If I want to hide it from you, call me
I have a big boil on my face, and I’m here to tell you this today. My dear sister, it’s all thanks to you, otherwise I’m not sure how I would have let them tease me!”
While talking, Cuiwei had already scooped up a new onion-plated gold-colored embroidered cotton side-breasted jacket and an embroidered skirt. Minglan went behind the four-fold ebony carved embroidered satin screen and changed her clothes. She still said with a straight face: "Say
Well, what's going on? Tell me from the truth."
Yanran said with a bitter face: "That's all, my father went to the peak to protect the matchmaker..." He hesitated to speak.
Cui Wei and Dan Ju were very discerning. Seeing that their masters wanted to say thoughtful words, after Xiao Tao brought the tea bowls and snacks, they all retreated. Ming Lan glanced at the door, sat down next to Yan Ran, and said softly: "Sister Yan Ran
, I’m not talking about you, now we are just talking about marriage, and it has not been confirmed yet, how can it be spread throughout the city? If this doesn’t happen, what will my sister do? "
Yanran was moved and held Minglan's hand and said: "Good sister, no wonder my old lady always praises you for your honest character. There are many sisters who are close friends with me on weekdays, but you are the only one to say such thoughtful words! I can only hate my mother.
I left early, not even a single brother or sister was left behind. It is said that a stepmother will have a stepfather. My father got married and took his stepmother and a few younger brothers and sisters to his post, leaving me alone here.
Thank you, my grandparents, for taking pity on me, otherwise..." His voice choked up as he spoke, and tears filled his eyes.
Minglan was sad, lowered her head and gently rubbed the corner of Yanran's clothes, Yanran sniffed, and said: "This marriage was not intended by my grandparents. It was my stepmother who got married to an unknown relative of Ningbei Hou, so she
I urged my father to accept the matchmaker, but fortunately my grandfather said that he would consider asking more questions, so it was not decided yet, but that woman...that woman...everyone knew about it."
Yanran couldn't talk anymore and just cried softly. Minglan felt sad for her and couldn't say anything to persuade her. She only gently stroked the back of Yanran's hand and took out a new handkerchief to wipe her tears.
, After a while, Yanran put away her tears, took a breath, paused her head heavily, and said with a smile: "Look at me, your family has a prosperous life, but I look like this, it's a joke to my sister! I don't think my father will cheat me.
My own daughter always wants to get married, so I told my grandfather not to look around here and there, but to just marry her off."
"Don't bother me!" Minglan had been listening quietly, but when she heard these words, she was suddenly startled and shouted: "You can't get married in a daze! A woman can generally only marry once in her life, and she can only marry once.
Marry someone. If you don't have a good idea now, you won't regret it later! Ask your grandfather to check it out and check it carefully. If it doesn't work well, you must not marry!"
Yan Ran burst into tears and smiled: "You little girl, how can you keep silent about marrying? I dare you to think about getting married!"
This level of teasing was not enough for Minglan. Her expression did not change at all, and she said seriously: "Sister Yanran, I know you don't want your grandparents to compete with your father in the ring, but you should also think about yourself! Your stepmother, I
Although I have never met her, I have heard something about it, and it is not a good match. To put it bluntly, if you get married as you wish, she will definitely rush to take advantage of you. If you are wronged, you say she will give you something.
Do you want to show your support?"
Yanran's face turned pale, and her heart was in a mess. Minglan stood up, walked to the middle and smacked her palm with her hand, and said solemnly: "Sister Yanran, don't feel sorry for yourself in the future. Although you have lost your biological mother, you are still a legitimate child, and your grandparents are still alive."
, but what about me? I am a concubine and only have one grandmother! However, even though I am not as good as you in everything, if someone forces me to marry a bad man, I will still have to make a fortune and die!"
Yanran stared at Minglan blankly, her soft and bright face was calm, but there was a hint of perseverance and courage. Yanran suddenly felt a courage in her heart. She went over to hold Minglan's hand intimately and whispered: "Good sister, don't worry, I
I will definitely not take myself lightly! If you treat me sincerely, I will never forget you even if I die!"
Minglan told her to be sorry and opened her eyes to look at her. Seeing that she looked at ease, she reassured her and said, "Don't talk nonsense about life or death! In the future, you should avoid interacting with those gossips. My old lady won't let me out."
When socializing with them, they always say, 'You don't need to have many close friends, just a few are enough.' Now I know that she is really discerning!"
Yanran smiled and said: "Your old lady has more than that, my grandmother revealed to me that your old lady has already had an idea in her mind about your marriage. Unfortunately, they all have clam mouths, and I can't pry them open even if I die."
"
Minglan was very curious, but she couldn't help but feel a little fever on her face: "I'm only a few years old, you should worry about yourself first!"
In fact, Old Mrs. Sheng was attentive, and Minglan soon understood that there were only these marriageable boys in Dengzhou City. She knew everything about them in the past. There were two sisters of similar age there. Neither Wang nor Aunt Lin were vegetarians.
Fortunately, it's not Minglan's turn. We simply don't let Minglan show up and find another way.
It's just that Mrs. Sheng and Minglan talk about everything on weekdays, but once it comes to marriage, she doesn't say a word. Minglan is not in a hurry to ask. Hey - wait, I hope Mrs. Sheng sees her grandson-in-law.
Her vision is better than her choosing a daughter-in-law.