Zhang was kind-hearted and never treated her servants harshly, causing others to regard the tigress as a sick cat. Unexpectedly, this time the treatment was as fast as thunder and lightning; Su Cheng was there to help. Jia Gui was an outsider and just watched the fun.
After hearing the various tricks confessed by the maids, mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law, some of which were quite clever, I couldn't help but sigh: "Your family has so many things to do with such a small population."
Su Cheng said casually: "Wherever there are people, there are rivers and lakes~~"
Since three Taoist priests were arrested as thieves in the first place, and the Su mansion was so lively, it was inevitable that some news would spread outside. The Deng family knew about it immediately. However, they were still reluctant to break off the engagement, so the three of them gathered together to discuss it.
Mr. Deng thought about it again and again and sighed: "It's better to retreat."
Master Deng said: "That guy from the Wang family is just talking."
Mr. Deng said: "Many outsiders have come quietly in the past few days. They all come on horseback. They come from everywhere."
Mr. Deng snorted: "This is Jingzhou, who should we be afraid of?"
Mr. Deng said: "My ancestors warned me that day." He looked at Deng Ming again, "What do you think of Ming'er?"
Deng Ming was silent for a moment and said, "I met the prince yesterday."
The second elder was shocked: "King Chu?! He came to Jingzhou?"
Deng Ming nodded: "I also heard that Miss Su has a chocolate recipe in her hand. He was hoping that the marriage would come true, and he even went to visit Mr. Dong specially."
Master Deng hurriedly asked: "Is Dong Sheng willing to vote for him?"
"Dong Sheng is a member of Wang Ziteng, so why would he choose someone else?" Deng Ming said with a bitter smile, "It's just that a girl from the Wang family is living in the Su Mansion, and word came from inside that Miss Su herself is not willing to be the eldest daughter.
The wife feels that housekeeping and management are hard work, and her husband is too busy to spend time with her."
Mr. Deng was stunned: "What?" Deng Ming said it again. Mr. Deng was confused, "I don't understand. I don't want to be the eldest wife? Do you think it's hard to manage the house?"
Deng Ming said: "I'm afraid I still think the Deng family's family style is simple."
Mr. Deng became more and more confused: "Isn't it a good thing to have a simple family style? How many lives can a family with a luxurious family style survive?"
Deng Ming lowered his eyes and said, "The four princes and eight princes in Beijing all have extravagant family styles, especially Rongguo Mansion."
Mr. Deng frowned: "She has been raised in Beijing since she was a child, so it is inevitable that she will be dazzled by wealth. When she gets married, she will be well educated."
Deng Ming said: "She has a rich dowry, how can she not be allowed to wear it? Besides, she has made it clear that she does not want to get married."
Mr. Deng hummed: "Marriage has been dictated by parents since ancient times. Su Tao agreed. It's not up to her whether she wants to get married or not."
Deng Ming said: "Master Su agreed, but Rongguo Mansion did nothing."
Mr. Deng was also confused: "What's the matter with Rongguo Mansion?"
Deng Ming sighed: "There is something I haven't told anyone. The first King of Chu is the prince's brother. He has already quietly contacted the prince. He has contacts with the Rongguo Mansion."
Old man Deng asked hurriedly: "What does he have in mind?"
Deng Ming shook his head: "He doesn't want the throne, and he has no intention of taking it back. Because in the past two years, he has relied on the Zhonghua Bookstore in the capital to sell poems for him, and has become closer to the Rongguo Mansion. It turns out that the Rongguo Mansion
In the past ten years, he has become famous in the green forest, and has raised many bandits, water bandits, and pirates. This is the reason why the bodyguards of the Taiping Escort Bureau are so successful." He paused, "The world is so big, there are so many capable people, and the money is huge.
The root of all evil. Someone has known about Miss Su’s prescription for several months, and I don’t know how many people have made plans.”
Mr. Deng still didn't understand: "Ming'er, what are you talking about for a long time? Seven or eight merchants have come to our house to talk about this in the past few days."
Deng Ming smiled bitterly and said: "Rongguo Mansion doesn't say a word, but if someone secretly attacks the Deng family or me..." He took out a handkerchief from his sleeve, "This is what the people from the stable said to me this morning.
Found it under the saddle."
When the two elders saw that there were more than a dozen steel needles wrapped in the handkerchief, they were so frightened that they stood up. Master Deng shouted: "Check! Check quickly!"
Mr. Deng said: "Ming'er, please be more careful these days."
Deng Ming nodded: "Thank you for your concern, grandpa." He added, "We have already checked, but nothing was found." The two elders turned pale. Deng Ming sighed, "If Miss Su doesn't want it, the Rongguo Mansion will just sit back and do nothing.
The Rongguo Mansion is doing nothing - what Dong Sheng is saying is that it is very easy for the princes and big families in the capital to kill someone, and our family is very defenseless. We should call off the marriage."
Master Deng stumbled and said: "Do you think you will marry into their family if you don't have Su? Why haven't you seen so many people flocking to them before?"
Deng Ming said: "The Su family used to only have the identity of Su Zheng's granddaughter, and some people still wanted to avoid suspicion; now suddenly there is a way to attract wealth. Money can destroy people's sanity, and everyone is pouring out from all directions."
Mr. Deng was anxious: "It is clearly our family's benefit, why should they take it away?"
Old Master Deng coughed before he could speak, and then he heard someone making noise at the door. Deng Ming hurriedly ordered someone to take a look. After a while, the man said back and forth with panic on his face: "Master, Master, Master..."
Master Deng pointed at him and shouted: "Speak quickly!"
"A cat died in the kitchen!"
“What’s the fuss about a dead cat in the kitchen!”
"The cat stole half a piece of snack. The snack was prepared for the uncle to read in the afternoon!"
"Bang, clatter..." Mr. Deng broke the tea cup in his hand. Mr. Deng was stunned for a long time, and suddenly shouted: "Break the engagement, break the engagement, break the engagement - our small temple cannot accommodate the big Bodhisattva, who wants that hot potato?"
Take it away!”
Before he finished speaking, someone came to report: "The tablet in the ancestral hall suddenly fell to the ground again!"
Everyone looked at each other, and Old Man Deng sighed: "Back off!"
There was a bit of chatter all over the room, and no one dared to say a word for a long time. Deng Mingnai said: "Your Majesty wants to go to Lu country."
"Huh? Why did he go to Lu country?"
"Let's see what clever plan King Lu has to make the country prosperous." Deng Ming said, "My grandson wants to go with him."
Old Master Deng frowned: "The King of Lu sent a letter to King Yan to request an alliance of troops overseas. In fact, he meant to make King Yan the overlord."
Deng Ming nodded and said: "The foreign country is huge. With the power of the King of Lu, it is not a bad idea to send troops alone. Huo Sheng, the king of Nan'an County, and Shuirong, the king of Beijing County, both sent troops alone. The King of Chu wanted to see the King of Lu and ask him what he was thinking.
Furthermore, what King Lu did was probably ordered by the Rongguo Mansion."
Old Mrs. Deng thought for a moment: "That's fine. Your Majesty is ambitious and is much better than the previous one. You can help me." Deng Ming stood up and agreed.
The next day, Mr. Deng and Mrs. Deng visited the Su family. Mr. Deng and Su Tao went to discuss the divorce. Zhang entertained Mrs. Deng in the back hall. Mrs. Deng sighed softly and told Zhang the purpose of their visit.
Shi also sighed: "You guessed it. Our master is very sorry."
Mrs. Deng said: "My son is not blessed." Mrs. Zhang quickly complimented him.
Mrs. Deng then brought up the chocolate recipe. Mrs. Zhang said: "I don't know why there is so much trouble outside. Our master has no intention of doing business, and his life is pretty good at the moment."
Mrs. Deng smiled and said: "My wife likes bright clothes and items. If you don't have money, how can you buy these things?"
Mrs. Zhang smiled and said, "I can't control it. She can think of something on her own anyway." Then she said to a daughter-in-law beside her, "Ask the eldest lady, what should she do if she just sits there and has nothing to do?"
The daughter-in-law really went. After a while, she came back, smiled and saluted, and said: "The eldest lady asked my wife, but the family is going to be poor soon? If there is no money in the account, she will write to the Rongguo Mansion asking for pocket money."
Mrs. Deng was stunned: "There is such a thing!"
Mrs. Zhang thought for a moment and said, "The money is enough. I'll pay for the rest. Let them send you some fresh seafood. I've been staying in Jingzhou for a long time, and I don't know what's new nowadays." The daughter-in-law smiled.
He left. Mrs. Deng was dumbfounded again.
After a while, the daughter-in-law came back and said: "The eldest lady said that you don't need to remind me about the fresh seafood, someone will bring it to you. Miss Wang also said that most of the seafood comes from Lingnan, and she will pick the best ones and send them to my wife first."
"This child." Mrs. Zhang nodded with a smile, and then said to Mrs. Deng, "Not to mention that our master doesn't know how to do business at all. Anyway, good things are given to us, and we are given others when we have no money. What else are we going to do with all the trouble?"
Mrs. Deng smiled and said: "Who thinks it's too much money? Miss Su only provides the recipe, and the rest can be left to our family."
Mrs. Zhang said: "Our family is really not short of money right now. If my daughter wants to do something new, she can just eat some at home."
Mrs. Deng was stunned for a while: "It's spread all over the world! Businessmen from all over the country are coming to Jingzhou."
Mrs. Zhang waved her hand: "They can still force the prefect of Jingzhou to do business. Since ancient times, scholars, farmers, industry and merchants have been scholars, farmers, industry and commerce. Our old man is a great Confucian, how can he get involved in the stench of copper." Seeing her arrogant look, Mrs. Deng simply didn't know.
What should I say?
After a while, word came in from outside that the two gentlemen were discussing and planned to have Su Tao's third daughter take the name of Zhang and marry one of Deng Ming's direct cousins. Upon hearing this, Zhang immediately said: "No!
Then he said to Mrs. Deng, "This girl is cowardly by nature, has never seen the world, and has shallow eyesight. I am planning to marry her off."
Mrs. Deng said: "I met you three girls last time, and you are still young. Mrs. Su has no choice but to give birth to you."
Mrs. Zhang smiled and said: "I am too lazy to take care of these things. If the house was not in chaos, I would not be too lazy to do anything. As you know, I haven't taken care of things for many years." Mrs. Deng laughed twice.
Mrs. Zhang took a sip of tea and continued, "The government hired a female teacher to teach them, and it's still the same. Everyone has their own destiny, and their talents only give them so many ideas, and there's nothing I can do about it."
Mrs. Deng choked and forced a smile and said: "How can a female gentleman be as good as the madam? The madam doesn't teach me a thing or two? After all, she is your master's daughter, isn't she?"
Mrs. Zhang smiled more and more: "What? Otherwise, where can I find a female gentleman to hire? It is not cheap to hire a female gentleman. Our salary is not very high."
Mrs. Deng said hurriedly: "Isn't there still Rongguo Mansion?"
"In the Rongguo Mansion, some of my Cheng'er's junior uncles loved her and gave her pocket money. As a shameless mother, I just gave her a hand." Mrs. Zhang said with a smile, "What does this have to do with me, sir?"
.Since it has nothing to do with the master, it naturally has nothing to do with this house. That is my daughter’s body."
Mrs. Deng's expression changed, and after a while she tried to test: "Then... isn't there Mr. Su..."
Mrs. Zhang said casually: "Both the old lady and the master don't care about things. No matter who is missing, they will not be missing. Rongguo Mansion also has its own things to show filial piety."
Mrs. Deng choked again. After a long while, she sighed: "I understand." Mrs. Zhang smiled. Mrs. Deng sighed again, "You two are so enviable. Women can live so wantonly."
"Wantful?" Mrs. Zhang smiled bitterly, "My daughter just wants to be wanton. How old am I? How can I be so wanton?"
Mrs. Deng said: "If you don't discipline the concubine, aren't you afraid of people gossiping?"
Mrs. Zhang held up the tea cup and took a sip, and said leisurely: "People who have the ability will not notice this bad old woman like me. What can the incompetent people do to me if they chew their tongues? I don't like to hear compliments.
"Even if you like to listen -" she stretched out her hand to reveal a string of longan-sized pearls on her wrist, "will I not be able to listen when I go out wearing this?" Mrs. Deng was speechless.
But at this moment, someone brought snacks in and said: "Miss Wang lost a bet with our eldest daughter yesterday, so she sent people to Suxinzhai to order three hundred boxes of walnut cakes and three hundred boxes of melon seed cakes, which are being distributed throughout the house.
Woolen cloth."
Mrs. Zhang smiled and said, "I don't like this. You share it. Don't fight." All the maids and women thanked them in unison.
After the Deng family said goodbye and returned home, Mrs. Deng told what Zhang said. Mr. Deng couldn't understand it again. "You said Mrs. Su didn't take care of the concubines of the Su family? How come she didn't?"
Mrs. Deng said patiently: "It's not that I don't care. I hired a female gentleman according to ordinary people's practice. Mrs. Su said, don't some of the ladies in Rongguo Mansion also have concubines? They are all disciplined by female gentlemen. It's just that the ladies in that mansion are highly talented.
, or the female gentleman is more capable. Their wives don’t care either.”
Master Deng said: "As a legitimate mother, it is her duty to discipline the daughter of a concubine. How can she ignore it?"
Mrs. Deng said: "She just doesn't care. What else can anyone do? She hasn't taken care of things for many years. Otherwise, how could she have allowed that aunt named He to run up and down." Nai paused, "Let's go to Rongguo Mansion.
The benefits are not as good as those of the two concubines, so there is no benefit from marrying her. In my opinion, that's all."
Mr. Deng said anxiously: "The Rongguo Mansion is interested in Mr. Su, and the entire Su family should benefit from it!"
Mrs. Deng took a breath: "Didn't I tell you? Just give the things to Mrs. Su as a filial piety. What's the matter with others? Mrs. Su is also in charge of the money given. She is willing to give the concubine a few dowries based on her pleasure.
. She doesn’t care what others say, and there is nothing others can do to stop her. Besides, her son has attracted the attention of the Wang family in Lingnan, so Miss Wang is trying her best to please her. The Su family is unwilling to do business and dislikes the smell of copper. "
Master Deng stumbled: "Jealous woman! Don't let her ruin the Su family!"
Mrs. Deng said: "Master, you are worrying too much. The Su family relies on Mrs. Su, and there is also Uncle Su below. What use can Mrs. Su have? It will not be damaged anywhere."
Mr. Deng only felt that there was nothing wrong with Su Tao's wife. It was just as Mrs. Deng said, and there was nothing he could do to her. After thinking for a long time, he said: "So, even if the concubine is named in her name, she is still using it?"
Mrs. Deng nodded: "If you marry someone and get tutored by our own family, we don't know what your talent and temperament are. It's better to marry someone to the young master of the Su family. Mr. Su is currently idle at home, and his grandson will always discipline him, and he will be indispensable in Rongguo Mansion in the future."
Help me."
Mr. Deng frowned for a long time and sighed: "That's all, I'll just follow you."
Liu Xiaoqi, who was sitting on the beam, breathed a sigh of relief when he heard this. It took a lot of effort to get Su Cheng's mother to not have to recognize a daughter. The matters in the inner house were much more difficult to deal with than those outside.