In Jiangzhou, the sky is filled with dark clouds, and the early winter wind is a bit cold. Passers-by wrap up their clothes tightly and speed up their pace.
The woman who was beating her clothes by the river put her somewhat stiff hands to her mouth to warm them, and watched the seven or eight servants and women hurrying past on the bridge.
"Is there someone at home today in the north?" she asked the woman beside her.
"Yes, it was very lively early in the morning." The woman said, with a bit of envy, "I can entertain guests every day and hold banquets every day."
"Then let's go over there later and see if there's anything we can do to help," the woman said earlier.
Beicheng has so many servants that he doesn't need or know how to use their help. Beicheng only has the two brothers and the children, a total of more than ten people. They can eat as much as they can, and many banquets are neatly placed and taken down.
If you make good friends with the ladies in charge of the kitchen, you can pick up some noodles, which will be enough for the family to eat for two days.
When they thought of this, the two women stopped caring about laundry and hurriedly packed up. They walked along the river through a corner gate and entered a wide alley.
If viewed from the air, this alley divides the large house by the river into distinct left and right sides.
To the north is a black tiled roof, which is five or six deep, with connected courtyards, nine winding corridors, and rockeries, flowing water, towers, pavilions, etc. It is very delicate and delicate.
Looking at the other side, there are mostly low-rise buildings with no particular emphasis on symmetry and center. There are also sheds made of various materials mixed in, making them look increasingly cramped.
The two women were chatting and laughing and naturally turned to the south.
There is no corner gate here. Just walk on a road and walk inward along the low and uneven road. From time to time, children of all sizes run past with their noses dragging and playing, and their ears are filled with the sounds of unknown high-end families.
A low voice, and the crowing of cocks and the barking of dogs.
In order to avoid several running children, the two women leaned to one side, but unexpectedly someone behind them made an ouch.
"Ouch, my foot is going to break..."
A male voice shouted.
The two women looked back and saw a young man in his twenties. He was wearing a slightly thin green cloth shirt in the early winter. He looked more and more skinny. He had delicate features and eyes that made people feel good. But when they looked at him again, he saw a gaudy flag.
It was blown up by the wind, causing the two women to wave their hands to avoid it.
The flag was carried on the young man's shoulders, and the flags were flying randomly on his face and head, which looked very funny.
He put the flag away in a hurry.
"You little sissy little liar...what are you hiding here for?" the two women shouted.
"Why are you scolding people? Auntie, you stepped on my toes first." The young man said with a smile.
The two women sighed and walked away.
"Hey, auntie, the shed I built has been hit by a gust of wind again. Can I borrow your thatched shed to live in..." the young man asked with a flattering smile.
The two women even made a sound.
"Go, go, you're here, where can we put our belongings?" they said, ignoring the young man and going straight away.
The young man groaned behind him.
"I really have no eyesight. I am worth much more than my family. Sooner or later, I will become rich. I will pay for every favor. You are really losing money..." He said with a smile, shaking his head and shaking his head, raising his feet and swaying
Went outward.
The two women returned home and chased their children to dry their clothes, while they themselves changed into clean clothes and headed north together.
We arrived at just the right time. The lunch banquet had just been cleared. The two women immediately took advantage of the situation to help clean up and wash the dishes. They were busy for a long time before they stopped.
"Thank you ladies for your help."
The kitchen stewardess, who had been sitting on the small table chatting and joking for a long time, stood up and said with a smile, waving her hands.
The two little girls held two clay pots and handed them over.
The two women looked surprised, but hurriedly shied away.
"How good is this? How good is this? Get the things from home." They waved their hands and said.
"We are all members of the family. Why can't we take it? It would be a waste if we leave it alone." The lady in charge said with a smile, "Ladies, don't be polite."
He was obviously a little impatient after saying these two polite words.
Are they all family members? If they were family members, how could they, the ladies in charge, dare to treat them like this...
The two women were talking to each other, but they didn't dare to show it on their faces, so they hurriedly continued and thanked them again and again.
"Who is coming today?" they asked, looking for something to say.
"The eldest lady's maiden sister-in-law." said the lady in charge.
"It's Mrs. Wang, but she hasn't been here for a while." The two women said with a smile.
"He's here to pick someone up." The lady in charge said casually. "The young master of the Wang family has returned from the capital. He will arrive almost today."
As a member of the family, although I have never even set foot in the main courtyard here, I know all the relatives of the Cheng family very well.
"Seventeenth Prince Wang has gone out?" the two women said with a smile, but then they were a little confused. The young master of the Wang family came back, why didn't he go back to the Wang family and come back here?
"...The young master is really like my aunt, and he even came to our house specially..." they said with tentative smiles.
The lady in charge smiled and said nothing.
That's obviously not the case...
If so, the lady in charge will definitely praise the young master of the Wang family to the heavens...
But I don’t deny it. It can be seen that there are some reasons that are difficult to express...
The two women looked at each other, their eyes sparkling with excitement, and it seemed they had another story to tell.
"... Mrs. Fu... Madam said that the small kitchen over there should still be prepared according to the old rules..."
A woman hurriedly came over and said. Before she could finish her words, the lady in charge gave her a wink and she stopped talking.
The two women excused themselves and walked away.
The lady in charge then asked the woman what was going on.
"Which kitchen?" she asked.
"Which way?" The woman said with a smile, "It's the fool's."
The lady in charge looked slightly surprised and pulled the woman aside.
"Still at home? Aren't they sent directly to the Taoist temple?" she asked.
The woman smiled.
"Do you want to get married from a Taoist temple?" she said in a low voice.
The lady in charge looked stunned.
"Is that thing serious?" she asked.
"Of course it's serious."
In Mrs. Cheng's courtyard, Mrs. Wang put down the tea bowl in her hand, faced Mrs. Cheng and said with a smile.
Mrs. Cheng said oh and also smiled.
"It seems that it is fate." She said, "The Seventeenth Lang personally brought people back from the capital, so I am naturally very satisfied."
Falling in love with a fool? Is this a compliment or a scold?
Mrs. Cheng suddenly became unhappy.
"We Seventeen are very sensible and know how to relieve others' worries." She said, "Unlike some people who only make trouble for others."
"Hey, who are you talking about, sister-in-law?" Mrs. Cheng Er asked in a nonchalant manner.
Now that the relationship between the two sisters-in-law has almost been brought to light, Mrs. Wang coughed lightly.
"What does the second lady mean?" she asked.
As the eldest lady's natal family, they naturally have to support the eldest lady.
"Isn't this marriage serious enough?" Mrs. Wang said with a smile, "Yes, we haven't seen the dowry yet, so it's a bit unserious."
Nowadays, the practice of marrying off a daughter is becoming more and more exaggerated. It is said that in some places, it has reached the point where the husband's family is invited to come to the house to view the dowry before the wedding.
Dowry was Mrs. Cheng's weak point, and she smiled when she heard this.
"Forget it, it's all in vain for me to worry about it." She said as she stood up, "I have a sister-in-law at home and an uncle outside the family. As a stepmother, I can't say that."
"I can't say it, but I can do it." Mrs. Cheng said, "She is about to come in. Are all the things she needs to stay in ready? That house has not been inhabited for more than a year. It needs to be smoked. Don't be afraid if you say it is good or not. Do it?
It’s not good, but you have to tell people the truth.”
Mrs. Cheng Er's face turned blue.
"Thank you, sister-in-law, for the advice." She said, curtly saluted, raised her feet and left.
The maid in the corridor hurriedly followed him.
Mrs. Cheng snorted after watching the people in the yard go.
"Why, do you two quarrel now when we meet?" Mrs. Wang asked, "Isn't this bad?"
Mrs. Cheng picked up the tea bowl.
"How could it be?" she said, "She is not sensible, am I not sensible? In other words, when it comes to that child...there is nothing to see about other things."
Mrs. Wang smiled.
"It seems that I really can't keep this child at your house." She smiled.
It is true that she cannot stay. She should not have stayed in the first place. Mrs. Cheng nodded and looked at Mrs. Wang again.
"But is this marriage really serious?" she said, sighing, "I have really wronged my son, I can't even think about it."
"As long as he's happy at Seventeen," Mrs. Wang said with a smile, "Besides, you can marry again after you're married, what's the big deal."
After all, he is a fool, which can be regarded as a serious disease. If he doesn't like it, he can just retire and recuperate. Marrying again to the man's family is no big deal.
Mrs. Cheng nodded.
"My son has been wronged so much, so it's an advantage for them." She said, and the more she thought about it, the more she felt dissatisfied. She raised her head and called a servant girl, "Go to those two farms, tell the farm owners, and hand over the harvest account books as well.
Come from public service."
Those two Zhuangzi have been taken over by Madam Cheng half-darkly for nearly half a year. Now they are suddenly coming back. How can Madam Cheng give up? Isn't this going to cause trouble again?
The maid looked complicated and hesitant.
But I didn't dare to say that the answer was to get up and leave.
Sure enough, as long as this fool is involved, the family will never have peace.
Look, it’s going to be lively again.
Before the servant girl could leave the yard, someone hurried in.
"Madam, madam, here it comes, here it comes."
Coming?
Mrs. Wang and Mrs. Cheng both stood up with surprise on their faces.
"Seventeen Lang is back?" they shouted in unison.
The maid looked hesitant.
"It seems so..." she said.
Mrs. Wang and Mrs. Cheng were stunned for a moment.
What does it mean?
"I mean, our lady Cheng is back..." the servant woman stammered.
That’s it!
"Why didn't the person who picked me up come to report first?" Mrs. Wang said, raising her feet and walking away happily.
Mrs. Cheng glared at the servant girl.
"You don't know what to say anymore? If you're not used to the door, then go to the back door." She said angrily, and hurriedly went out.
The maid looked embarrassed.
"No, no, it's just..." She wanted to explain, "It just looks weird..."
"arrive?"
On the other side, Mrs. Cheng Er also heard the news. After thinking about it, she got up and looked at Cheng Qiniang, who was playing with the little girl on the side.
"Qiniang, let's go and pick up your sister."
"Which sister?" Cheng Qiniang asked, keeping her eyes on her, "Liu Niang and the others are all at home."
"That idiot sister of yours." Mrs. Cheng Er said.
Cheng Qiniang immediately dropped the rope in her hand.
"Mother, don't let her in!" she shouted.
Mrs. Cheng Er reached out and poked her on the head.
"Don't let her in, and you won't be able to leave the house in the future!" She said, "Come with me quickly, why should our family members get the benefit of being nice to them!"
After saying that, she couldn't help but pull Cheng Qiniang away.
There were already people standing in front of the door.
"Why are there so many people?" Mrs. Cheng Er asked in surprise.
Seeing that she was coming, the servants and women hurriedly moved out of the way. Mrs. Cheng took Cheng Qiniang, who was covering her face with her hands, and walked out. At a glance, she saw Mrs. Cheng and Mrs. Wang standing in front of the door. They looked a little surprised.
What an incredible thing.
"Is that the Wang family's little baby? Why don't you go forward and pick it up?" Mrs. Cheng's second wife curled her lips and said, looking at the door, and then she was also stunned.
Two large black-painted carriages with flat heads were parked in front of the door. Under the cloudy sky in early winter, there was no dust from the journey. Instead, they were shining brightly like fresh oil. Look at the fat horses on the left and right, and the shiny coats of the horses. Ten people standing beside the horses
The five followers are all generally tall and strong, and they are carefully selected at first glance.
They stood in two rows in unison, wearing fine clothes on the water, and the big gold-rimmed cloak they were wrapped in billowed in the wind, shaking the onlookers' eyes so much that they couldn't open their eyes.
"So majestic..."
"It's more majestic than the prefect's patrol..."
"It's not just the flag and official badge..."
"Who is this?"
"Is there another big relative coming to the Cheng family?"
More and more people were watching from across the river in the alley, pointing and talking.
"Seventeen?" Mrs. Wang finally came back to her senses, stepped forward and shouted, not forgetting to look left and right, feeling a little strange in her heart.
Yesterday, she sent someone to pick her up on the road. Why couldn't she see not only the person she just sent, but also the old servant and others?
Who are these people? Did you hire an escort?
"Madam, madam..."
An entourage squeezed in from behind. His face was dusty and sweaty. He walked past the dozen or so entourages, looking very embarrassed.
Mrs. Wang recognized it at a glance. This was her family's attendant. She didn't think anything of it before, but now she seemed a little embarrassed.
"Young Master has gone home first." He said hurriedly.
Mrs. Wang and Mrs. Cheng were both stunned.
"Are you going back first?" they asked in unison.
"Yes, I received the young master early in the morning, but he insisted on going home and refused to come here." The attendant said.
I have to go home...
Mrs. Wang and Mrs. Cheng looked at each other and then looked at the carriage in front of the door.
So, who is this?
"Mrs. Cheng." Manager Cao shook his robe and stepped forward to salute.
Mrs. Cheng was stunned for a moment and looked at him, she seemed familiar.
"Are you..." she asked.
"I'm from the Zhou family." Manager Cao said, smiling slightly.
From the Zhou family!
Well, in that car, this is...
The car curtain was opened at this time, and Banqin got out of the car first. She raised her head and looked around, and couldn't help feeling a little emotional.
"I escorted Mrs. Cheng back." Manager Cao said, turning sideways and pointing backwards.
Following his actions, the Zhou family's followers also turned back.
Banqin opened the curtain and helped Cheng Jiaoniang down.
The originally noisy and chattering crowd suddenly became quiet, and all eyes turned to the little lady wearing a cloak.
People from the back can see the wide and floor-length cloak, people from the side can see the smooth forehead and high bridge of the nose, and people from the front can see the long eyebrows and deep bright eyes.
No matter which direction everyone looks at, the same thought flashes through her mind, this is a beauty.
Cheng Qiniang, who was forcibly pulled by her mother, kept covering her face with her hands, never letting that fool scare her again. It seemed that this was the only way to avoid being disgraced because of this fool in public, but soon she heard the noise around her.
The sound disappeared, as if everyone was holding their breath and silent at the same time.
What happened?
"What is it?"
In the silence, a male voice came from outside the crowd. A flag was waving here and there in his hand, pushing the crowd around until he was finally pushed to the front. The people in front were almost pushed into the river.
"What are you doing!"
There was a commotion by the river, and the young man was punched indiscriminately several times before it calmed down.
"What are you looking at?" The young man didn't care even after being beaten. He shouted and looked towards the opposite side, his eyes suddenly widened, "Wow, she is beautiful!"
Cheng Qiniang secretly opened her hands to sew, and a small swaying figure appeared in front of her eyes. The hem of her brocade skirt swayed, revealing white socks wearing wooden clogs...
It looks so good when you walk...
Her fingers couldn't help but open up again, and a woman taller than Cheng Liuniang appeared in front of her.
Her hair is darker than Cheng Liuniang's, her eyes are bigger than Cheng Liuniang's, and her skin is whiter than Cheng Liuniang's...
Much more beautiful than Cheng Liuniang, no, much more beautiful than all the ladies she knew...
Who is this beauty?
She couldn't help but take a step forward.
"Who are you?" Mrs. Cheng looked at the woman standing in front of her and asked subconsciously.
"Cheng Jiaoniang, I have met my aunt." Cheng Jiaoniang bowed and said.
Cheng Jiaoniang…
Cheng Jiaoniang!
A figure appeared in front of Mrs. Cheng's eyes. Under the twilight lamp, the pretty woman raised the power fence and finally reunited with the woman who bowed down at this moment.
"Are you Cheng Jiaoniang?" Mrs. Wang took a step forward, pushed aside the stunned Mrs. Cheng, and looked at Cheng Jiaoniang up and down with a bit of joy.
No wonder, no wonder...
"It's much more beautiful than in the painting..." she smiled.
She knew that her son's vision was definitely right, and there was no trace of stupidity in his eyebrows! It was indeed good, not even a little bit good!
"It's good to be back. It's good to be back. Come on in, it's cold outside." Mrs. Wang smiled and walked forward to lead the way.
Cheng Jiaoniang saluted again and took a step forward.
Seeing them, a foreigner and a junior, come in first, the host, Mrs. Cheng, came to her senses and hurriedly followed.
Cheng Qiniang turned around and ran forward without waiting for her mother to hold her, while looking at the woman in front of her who was following Mrs. Wang.
On the other side, Cheng Liu Niang, four mothers and five mothers who came from the courtyard after hearing the news also stood still.
"Look, look..." Cheng Siniang said, standing by the roadside and looking through a clump of wintersweet in bud.
A woman hugged by Mrs. Wang and Mrs. Cheng walked slowly, her dark green cloak fluttering as she walked.
They have never seen such a beautiful woman who can walk. They didn't even need to look at this woman's face to recognize that she was a beauty. When they saw her face clearly, she was indeed a beauty...
"Who is she?" Cheng Liuniang asked, holding the wintersweet branch in her hand, looking surprised.
"She is my sister." Cheng Qiniang, who was running with her skirt up to follow, shouted loudly, with a bit of pride.
elder sister?
When the Cheng family members entered the door, the stunned crowd in front of the door woke up and suddenly there was a crash.
"Look at that beauty..."
"Say who?"
"...I don't know..."
Seeing the bustle in front of the door, Manager Cao was very proud.
"Master Cao, no wonder you were able to arrive overnight yesterday, but you insisted on us finding an inn to stay, wash up and change into new clothes. This feels really good." The two attendants laughed in a low voice.
"That's right, our wife will naturally be in a good mood when she returns home." Manager Cao said, coughing lightly, looking at the Cheng family servants who came forward respectfully, waving his hands to greet everyone to come in.
Quietness returned in front of the Cheng family's door, but the crowds on both sides of the river had not dispersed yet and were still talking about it.
The young man by the river rubbed his nose, looked away, looked at the crowd around him, his eyes lit up, and he waved the flag in his hand.
The iron mouth broke straight, and the four words flew in the wind.
"...Does anyone want a divination? Divination for one coin will help you solve the disaster for free..."
****************************
Thank you all for your support. I am number one in the pink vote in May. Thank you. Thank you.
It’s the holiday today, so I’m updating, and there are a lot of words. I still ask for a guarantee at the beginning of the month, sorry for the trouble, thank you. (To be continued)
