May 23rd is Dingxihou’s forty-sixth birthday. It’s not a birthday celebration, so it’s not something big to do. But thinking about the new wife’s filial piety, and the lack of festive activities in three years, the family was so depressed that they still wanted to have some fun, so
Not only the theater troupe was invited, but also relatives and friends were invited to come and get together.
Since it was the Marquis's birthday party, the wine menu was personally reviewed by the Marquis's wife.
Rongan Courtyard is the living room of Mrs. Dingxi Hou. It is located in the main courtyard in the southeast of Dingxi Hou Mansion. It has carved beams and painted columns that penetrate the mountain, verandahs and side rooms, making it magnificent and majestic.
The entire Dingxihou Mansion was originally the residence of a vassal prince from the previous dynasty. The vassal prince committed an offense before the previous dynasty was overthrown, and the house was taken back to the imperial court. Because of the high regulations, no one dared to buy it. No matter how good the house is, once it is left empty.
However, as it lost popularity, the house fell into decline. In addition, the imperial court changed and wars took place for many years. By the time it was handed over to the Marquis of Dingxi, it was already dilapidated. After two generations of repairs and expansions, the vassal palace was as beautiful as it was at its peak.
Mrs. Xiao Xie, the Marquis of Dingxi, does not like liveliness by nature, so she seldom speaks loudly in the courtyard. But at this time, outside the back porch, a woman with slender shoulders and waist was scolding something loudly. She knelt down in front of her.
There were three little girls who were all fighting.
When Zhou's mother walked over, she happened to see this scene. She recognized that one of the little girls was the daughter of one of her women, so she stopped.
"...Tear this mouth to pieces, go get a meal, call your mother over, get out of here with me immediately, and never enter Ronganyuan in this life..." the woman gritted her teeth and shouted.
The little girls were so frightened that they kowtowed and cried for mercy.
Upon hearing the inquiry, the woman turned around. She was sixteen or seventeen years old, with a long and thin face and delicate features. She was wearing a crimson coat that was shorter than her nails and white teeth, and tied with a green belt.
Mother Zhou recognized a third-class girl in the courtyard and called her Jin Chai.
"What are you doing, young lady? The marquis' official debut is coming, how can you get so angry?" she said.
Mother Zhou has a calm temperament and rarely speaks out. She is inconspicuous among Madam Hou's servants. However, she has been in charge of Madam Hou's affairs since the first day she married into the eldest Xie family.
It has been ten years since Xiao Xie's marriage, and she is still in charge of the two sisters' warehouse. After the old lady died, she gradually took over the large treasury in the mansion, which shows how much she is relied upon.
Jin Chai didn't dare to show off in front of her, and his elongated face was immediately filled with smiles, and he saluted and said hello.
"Mother Zhou is here." She said, looking at the little girls lying on the ground crying, "These little hooves are not just playing around and being lazy, but they are also gathering together to talk nonsense. Naturally, mother knows, Madam
I don’t like this kind of chattering and causing trouble the most…”
Mother Zhou nodded and glanced at the kneeling girls as if inadvertently.
"Sister, sister, we don't dare anymore, sister, please spare us this time..." One of them immediately grabbed a straw and cried while kowtowing.
"So are you. Since you are here to work as an errand, you still don't know the rules?" Zhou's mother said.
The three girls immediately kowtowed to her and raised their hands to slap themselves in the face.
"Madam is in the house, don't make trouble. If she hears it, you will make trouble." Zhou's mother said with a frown.
"Get down quickly." Jin Chai was reminded and said hurriedly.
The three girls kowtowed a few more times as if they had been granted amnesty before they got up and ran.
"I will never let you off next time." Jin Chai said again, watching the three people run away.
"How busy is Madam?" Zhou's mother asked with a smile.
"Yes, I'm looking at the menu. Mother Liu, Mother Su, and the others are all here." Jin Chai smiled. Looking around at no one, he took Mother Zhou's hand and walked a few steps, whispering, "Mother Zhou, you
But have you heard about that person?"
The first one even taught the little girls not to talk nonsense, but she couldn't wait to talk. Mother Zhou pursed her lips and smiled.
"Who?" she asked.
"That's it..." Jin Chai looked around and whispered, "The one from Qiutongyuan."
Mother Zhou's heart skipped a beat, and she guessed what she was going to say.
It seems that inadvertently, people in the corners of Dingxihou Mansion began to talk about a rare thing, whether it was staying up all night and feeling sleepy or lying in bed to rest after a hard day's work, the story about the resurrection of the young lady of Qiutongyuan.
They are all the most popular and refreshing topics of conversation.
Mother Zhou closed the incense burner with a gentle and silent movement, and the curls of white smoke dispersed in the room, dispelling the dullness of the summer afternoon.
Lifting the partition curtain made of all pink pearls, Zhou's mother walked into the east wing. A woman in her mid-thirties was leaning on the kang with her eyes closed and seemed to be asleep. Her cheeks were slightly high and her figure was plump.
Wearing a homely gray-blue poplin, round-neck cardigan with black satin trim, and a pea green satin skirt, maybe because she took a nap, she took off her hairpin, leaving only a red gold dotted emerald pressed hair.
A little girl who had just grown her hair was fanning seriously at the side.
Mother Zhou walked over and took the fan from the little girl's hand, waved her hand, and the little girl tiptoed out.
"What did you say?" she suddenly asked.
The suddenness of these words can startle people, but Zhou's mother was not surprised at all, as if the two of them had been chatting just now.
"Madam." Zhou's mother said while continuing to shake the fan, "There are so many things at home that we are worrying about, so this little trick and trick should not be ignored."
This is Mrs. Xie, the Marquis of Dingxi.
"First he hanged himself..." She said slowly with her eyes still closed, "The girls died all over the yard crying and screaming, and then they came back to life when people came to see them, and they said they went to the underworld and drank Meng Po soup.
Old madam, I didn’t know that she was just like a dull person in the past, but it turns out that she still has this ability to make up lies.”
As she spoke, she opened her eyes and was about to stand up. Mother Zhou smoothly and promptly placed the big pillow under her hand so that she could sit reclining.
"It was said that the old rascal pushed her back. That's a beautiful thing to say. Since it was the dead old rascal who allowed her to come back, shouldn't she be respected in this family?" Mrs. Xie
A smile appeared on his face. This smile was looming on his lips. It was very gentle and kind. But if the words coming out of his mouth were heard by outsiders, they would be scared and think they were dreaming.
The old lady of Dingxihou, her mother-in-law, said it in her mouth, she turned out to be such an old thief.
Zhou’s mother still looked calm.
"No matter what she says, let her say it. It's just a gust of wind, and it will pass away." She held a cup of tea and whispered, "Madam, don't pay attention to it."
"It has been silent for three years, and now it suddenly starts singing." Ms. Xie took the tea and ate it, picked up the handkerchief and wiped her mouth gently, with a half-smile on her face, "Could it be that he was looking at what Brother Cheng was going to do?
Do you want to give it a try again when you come back?"
Mother Zhou was silent for a moment.
"If you have anything to say, just say it." Mrs. Xie noticed that she was hesitant to speak, so she said.
"I happened to be passing by Qiutong Courtyard that day, and I saw the little girl running away. I asked Sumei that Sumei in Aunt Zhu's courtyard was being punished by the young lady to kneel down." Zhou's mother said.
"Su Mei?" Ms. Xie pressed her hand on her hair, "Is she the one who dressed up all day like a witch and was dangled in front of the Marquis by Aunt Zhu?"
"Yes." Zhou's mother said with a smile.
Mr. Xie didn't speak any more, and a slight smile appeared on his face.
"We are very familiar with Miss Qi's temperament. Let alone asking her to kneel down, she wouldn't even dare to say harsh words to her. So after I heard about it, I shouldn't have bothered with it at first, but I still couldn't bear it.
Come and have a look." Zhou's mother continued. Although she didn't mention it these days, for some reason, the woman leaning against the door and smiling that day flashed in front of her eyes from time to time, which made her feel a little panicked.
"What do you think is wrong?" asked Xie.
Mother Zhou raised her head and glanced at her.
"It's like...like a different person," she said.
Mrs. Xie looked at her with a strange expression on her face, as if she wanted to laugh and lose her temper.
"You mean, she really drank Meng Po soup, lost all her past, and was reborn as a new person?" she asked.
Zhou's mother was a little embarrassed and didn't know how to express herself. To be precise, she really didn't know what she was going to say, she just felt that way.
"It seems that what our young lady said is not a lie." Mrs. Xie smiled again, stood up and stretched her shoulders, "For an old man like you, Mother Zhou, to believe these rumors, it shows that this kind of trick can also
Only ghosts can teach her, and she really went to hell and met that damn old thief."
She laughed as she spoke, so much so that she couldn't help but bend down.
"Madam, this old slave is ashamed." Zhou's mother lowered her head in embarrassment and said.
"Go and check." Ms. Xie suddenly stopped laughing and her eyes narrowed slightly, "It's never ghosts who cause trouble in this world, but only people. Go check it out and see who is behind it. It's really a different way.
, actually picked up this piece of trash and used it as a gunman."
Zhou’s mother responded with a solemn yes, and at the same time she felt even more ashamed. She was really confused. She had never thought of this in all her life. However, there was still a trace of confusion and hesitation in her heart...
The young lady I saw that day, the aura she exuded, the taste of her words, and everything else, it seems that it is not something that can be taught by anyone. Cheng Bujian, the old lady personally took care of her for two years, and the result was...
no……
"Why don't you go quickly?" Xie frowned, interrupting Zhou's mother's trance.
Mother Zhou didn't dare to think too much and hurried out.
Mrs. Xie looked at the swinging bead curtain for a while before sitting down.
"The old thief woman has always been good at calculating..." she said slowly, "but as the saying goes, people are not as good as God. No matter how good the calculation is, it can't be worth a moment if the sky doesn't spare her. If the sky doesn't spare her, she has been dead for three years.
Well, there are still people who want to stir up trouble in her name. It’s really overestimating their own capabilities..." (To be continued)
