It's past three o'clock at night, and even in a city that never sleeps like Bianliang in the capital, the streets are already deserted by this point. Except for the bustling brothels and singing houses, every household has closed its doors and gone to sleep in silence.
In the middle of the quiet Tianshuijing Hutong, there was a sudden knock on the door of Zaoyuan, Lin Jue's residence. This sound was extremely harsh in the quiet night, and it made people feel panicked.
Lin Hu and Lin Youde were sleeping in the wing room in the front yard. Both father and son were awakened by the knock on the door. Lin Hu jumped up, put on his shirt, grabbed a wooden stick and went out to the courtyard door to check.
Lin Youde hurriedly shouted: "Hu'er, don't open the door first, let's see who it is."
Lin Hu turned around and said, "I know."
Lin Hu quickly came to the door of the courtyard. The knocking on the door continued, and everyone in the front yard was awakened. Several maids looked towards the door in panic. Xiao Hu was panicking, so he leaned closer to the crack of the door and looked outside. .I saw a few dark figures standing at the door, and someone was knocking hard.
"Who are you? Why are you knocking on the door in the middle of the night?" Lin Hu shouted.
"Is it Lin Hu? Why don't you open the door yet? The owner of the house is here," someone shouted.
Lin Hu was stunned and said in astonishment: "Master? It's so late, what can I do..."
"What nonsense are you talking about? Do you want to report the family master's affairs to you? It's becoming more and more unruly. Open the door quickly and report to Mr. Lin Jue of the third room. The master wants to see him." The person at the door shouted.
Lin Hu had no choice but to step forward and open the door. Two big men came in and pushed Lin Hu. Lin Hu stumbled and was pushed aside. Then, Lin Bonian, who looked serious, stepped into the yard.
"Master!" Lin Hu shouted.
Lin Bonian snorted from his nose and said coldly without even looking at Lin Hu: "Go and ask Lin Jue to come see me. I have something important to tell him."
"It's so late..." Lin Hu muttered.
Lin Bonian turned to glare at Lin Hu and said, "Are you all so unruly now? When did our Lin family become so unruly? If I tell you to call, you can call me. What are you talking about? Our Lin family has no family law now. What? What a bastard."
Lin Hu frowned and was about to retort, but Lin Youde arrived just in time and said hurriedly: "Hu'er hasn't gone to report yet." Lin Hu then threw away the wooden stick and ran back.
"The master of the house is here, Xiaohu is ignorant. Don't be offended. Why is the master of the house here so late? Go and sit in the flower hall." Lin Youde said hurriedly.
Lin Bonian looked at Lin Youde and said solemnly: "Your son is not sensible, so you are sensible? You would rather live here than in my house. Do you look down on me? It seems that I, the head of the family, are right You guys are so nice, you guys don’t have any rules anymore. It seems like the family tradition of my Lin family needs to be straightened out."
Lin Youde was stunned and speechless, and just stood aside with his hands down. Lin Bonian walked past him with his head held high, went straight into the front hall, and sat down on the big chair with his big buttocks, his face as sinking as water, and full of dignity.
…
After informing Green Dance about the top pick in high school last night, Xie Yingying, who came back in the evening, naturally knew the news. The two girls were happier and more excited than Lin Jue, so they held a banquet to celebrate for Lin Jue. Lin Jue drank a lot of wine, and then hugged After being intimate with Xie Yingying for a while, Lin Jue was woken up by the cry of the maid outside. She had just fallen into a drowsy state and had not slept for long.
Lin Jue frowned and sat up, while Xie Yingying beside her also leaned forward and lowered her head of black hair to ask questions vaguely.
"What happened? What's going on in the middle of the night?"
"Miss, Lin Hu came to report that the head of the Lin family is here and wants the young master to meet guests in the front hall." The maid outside called.
"Second uncle? Why is he here at this time?" Lin Jue said blankly.
Xie Yingying frowned and said, "It couldn't be that something happened."
Lin Jue was lifted up and said: "There should be nothing wrong. I'll go take a look. You can go to sleep. There's nothing to worry about."
Xie Yingying quickly put on her clothes, covering her naked upper body, and said softly: "I'd better get up, after all, you are the head of the Lin family, in case you want to ask me anything."
Lin Jue smiled and said, "It probably has nothing to do with you. You don't have to get up."
Xie Yingying refused to listen, so Lin Jue had no choice but to let her get up, while helping him comb his hair and change his clothes.
Not long after, Lin Jue came outside dressed neatly. Xiaohu was waiting in front of the courtyard gate. When he saw Lin Jue, he hurriedly stepped forward and said in a low voice: "Uncle, the master of the house seems to be very angry. You have to be more careful."
Lin Jue was stunned for a moment, frowned and said: "I didn't offend him, why is he angry? Don't worry, the front is illuminated."
The two of them quickly came to the front hall. In the front hall, Lin Youde had already finished what he needed to say. Lin Bonian didn't pay much attention to him, so he froze in the hall, which was very embarrassing. Seeing Lin Jue come in, Lin Youde stood up.
He breathed a sigh of relief and said "Thank God" secretly.
"Second uncle, why are you here so late? I have already fallen asleep." Lin Jue hurriedly stepped forward and saluted.
Lin Bonian frowned and looked at Lin Jue. He smelled the alcohol on Lin Jue's body and said in a deep voice: "What? Can't I come? This is your house, I can't come in, right?"
Lin Jue noticed that his tone was wrong and hurriedly smiled and said: "Why do you need to say such things, second uncle? If second uncle comes, he can come at any time. Second uncle is the head of the family and can come at any time. My nephew is always waiting for you."
"Hmph! Do you still think of me as the head of the family? Do you still know that I am the head of the Lin family? Or your second uncle?" Lin Bonian shouted coldly.
"Second uncle, what's wrong with you?" Lin Jue frowned.
"What's wrong?" Lin Bonian said angrily: "I'm afraid you don't take me seriously anymore. Now you are doing your own thing, and you are also doing the same with them. Do you still care about the Lin family? Do you still have me as the head of the family?
?" Lin Bonian pointed his finger at Lin Youde and Xiaohu and shouted.
"...Where did Er Bo's words come from? What happened? Er Bo, please give me a clear explanation." Lin Jue was confused.
"Do you need to express it clearly? You are the children of the Lin family. You came to the capital for the Spring Festival Examination and refused to live in my house. It's okay for you to come out and live on your own. If you are virtuous, I will learn from you and come to live with you. You teach me
What do others think of me as the head of the family? It’s as if I’m not good to you and you keep a distance from me. My house is so small that I can’t tolerate you two Buddhas?” Lin Bonian said angrily.
Lin Jue frowned and said nothing. He felt that Lin Bonian was very strange today and these words were obviously unreasonable.
"Second uncle, this was all agreed upon by you. Why did you make your own decision? It was you who nodded when I came to live here. It's rare for cousin Youde to come here to reunite with Xiaohu and his son. We have no other intentions. Why are you saying these things? What?
Wouldn't it be a disservice to us to call the temple small and unable to accommodate our two Buddhas?" "Am I wrong? You have the ability now, but you don't care about the life and death of the Lin family. Do you think your wings are strong and you can stop relying on them?
Is the Lin family going solo? Lin Jue, although you are capable, and I have seen your ability, you must not forget that you are the Lin family, you cannot forget the favor given to you by the Lin family, and you cannot ruin the reputation of my Lin family.
." Lin Bonian shouted.
"Second uncle, what are you going to say? Just say it. My nephew really doesn't understand what you mean. Have I ever ruined the reputation of the Lin family?" Lin Jue felt a little angry. Lin Bonian ran away in the middle of the night.
It's really strange to come and talk openly about something and nothing. Lin Jue didn't understand what was going on.
"Do you still want me to explain it clearly? Let me ask you, does this house belong to you? Is it the house of the woman named Xie in Wangyue Tower? You don't have to deny it. I know it clearly. It's in the contract with Li San who sold the house.
What is written is the name of the woman surnamed Xie. You, a dignified man of the Lin family, come to live in the house of a prostitute. How can you behave like this? And you also do business with them in partnership. Aren't you ruining the reputation of my Lin family?
?Lin Jue, it's not harmful for you to have fun with those women, but you seem to be taking it seriously? My descendants of the Lin family have no precedent of marrying prostitutes. Don't do anything to ruin the family."
Outside the back door, Xie Yingying, who was standing in the corridor but had not come in, heard these words clearly. She suddenly turned pale and trembled all over. The maid beside her was busy supporting her and comforting her in a low voice. Xie Yingying was also a restrained and polite person, knowing that she
If he couldn't go in to plead his case, it would make Lin Jue even more embarrassed, so he had to grit his teeth and endure it.
But Lin Jueke in the hall was really annoyed. Lin Bonian was a bit unreasonable. He came to show off to him in the middle of the night and said these words, which really made people angry. But Lin Bonian is an elder after all.
As the head of the family, Lin Jue suppressed his anger and remained calm.
"Is this what Second Uncle is here for tonight? It's better that Second Uncle doesn't interfere with the affairs between Miss Xie and I. Miss Xie is not the kind of person that Second Uncle said. Second Uncle doesn't want to use the word 'prostitute.'"
To insult her with words like that. I can tell my second uncle that I have decided to take the girl as my concubine. Whether my second uncle agrees or not, I will do it. Don’t say anything about the things at home.
Rules, those rules can be broken by others, why can’t I break them? Could it be that the second uncle is forgetful? There are several sisters-in-law in the old house in Hangzhou, and there are also several aunts and sisters-in-law in the second uncle’s house, but they all came from brothels. The second uncle can’t
Bullying me for not knowing these things.”
Lin Bonian's face heated up and he felt a little ashamed. Lin Jue was right, there were indeed several former brothel prostitutes in his house. The two brothers Lin Chang and Lin Sheng each accepted one, and he accepted one. Speaking of which,
There is another embarrassing thing. Lin Chang’s concubine in the fifth room is Yu Zhuer, the former red brand of Cuiwei Building. Lin Bonian himself once went to play with this Yu Zhuer. When Yu Zhuer came in, he saw the two people behind Lin Bonian.
They all recognized each other, and the scene was extremely awkward. Lin Bonian secretly screamed that it was ridiculous, but there was nothing he could do about it.
"Look, I just said a few words to you, and you said these words. Do you still say that you have eyes for me as the head of the family? Lin Jue... people can't forget their roots. Even if you have the ability, you will leave the Lin family.
It’s still nothing. A person must have roots to have confidence. That’s all, I won’t say more. I don’t want to do evil things in vain, but as the head of the family, I must be responsible for the Lin family. You are a descendant of my Lin family.
, you need to listen to the orders of the family leader, and you need to think about the Lin family. I am right, you agree, right?"
Lin Jue nodded and said: "Then why do you still need to ask your second uncle? Lin Jue is a member of the Lin family, how can he not think about the Lin family? Lin Jue dares to pat his chest and say that I am as protective of the Lin family as anyone else in the Lin family."
Lin Bonian nodded and said: "Okay, that's it. Actually, I am different from my eldest brother. I am the head of the family and I don't care about small details. As long as it is for the sake of the family, I can turn a blind eye to the rest.
. Don’t you like this brothel girl named Xie? That’s okay. I don’t object to you taking her as your concubine. It’s nothing. But you must listen to me on important matters, otherwise I will never agree.
You have to understand this."
Lin Jue said sternly: "Yingying is not a brothel girl, please don't use this title."
"Okay, okay, if you say it's not true, then it's not. Just do it as you please." Lin Bonian waved his hand and said, "These are all trivial matters. Today I'm here to tell you a big thing, a big thing about you. You can do this."
You must obey my orders."
Lin Jue said in a deep voice: "Second uncle came to me so late. I think he must have something important to say. Second uncle, please tell me. What is the important matter?"
Lin Bonian glanced at Lin Jue and said softly: "Lin Jue, you are twenty this year."
Lin Jue nodded and said, "My nephew has celebrated his twentieth birthday. He is twenty years old."
Lin Bonian nodded and sighed: "Okay, okay. I'm twenty years old. I'm already an adult in my weakest years. Time flies. I remember you as a child when you were only ten years old. In the blink of an eye, you were already gone.
You are a talented person with a lot of experience. If your parents were still alive, they would be so happy to see you like you are now."
When it comes to family ties, Lin Jue naturally feels soft in his heart. Although he is not a real member of the Lin family, but only possesses Lin Jue's body as a soul, the memory in his body still remains, and there is inevitably a family affection that is difficult to let go of. Mentioning that
Lin Jue would not remain indifferent to the pair of parents. His expression also softened.
"Hey, Lin Jue, to be honest, my second uncle has not fulfilled his responsibility to you. After your parents died of illness, my second uncle should have taken more care of you, but my second uncle was so busy with official duties that he rarely paid attention to you.
You care. This is the second uncle's dereliction of duty. If you went astray because of this, the second uncle will be even more ashamed of your parents. Fortunately, you did not go astray and are now on the right path. Say
When I wake up, my second uncle is full of apologies."
Lin Jue smiled and said: "Second uncle, you don't have to be like this. With the family taking care of you, how can you go astray?"
The Lin family has such strict family laws. When Lin Boyong was the head of the family, he had almost all-round restraint on the children of the Lin family. Who could go astray? From this point of view, Lin Jue was somewhat grateful to Lin Boyong for his inhumanity and harshness. If not
Under the strict control of family law, there is no telling what kind of person a bastard without a father or mother will become. But it is a pity that Lin Boyong is only strict with other people's children and indulges with his own son. The other children have not gone astray.
, his own three sons are not considered talented, which is also Lin Boyong's limitation.
"Yeah, it's useless to say this. The second uncle reflects on himself and should pay more attention to you from now on. He should not only shoulder the responsibility of the head of the family, but also shoulder the responsibility of being your elder. You are already in your prime.
, you have reached the age of getting married and having children. As the head of the family and your second uncle, I should take care of this matter for you. Therefore, I am here to tell you that your second uncle has already decided to arrange a marriage for you.
The woman is the beloved daughter of the current Deputy Prime Minister Qian Qianyi, and she is seventeen years old. You are lucky, and Deputy Prime Minister Qian is also very satisfied with you. This marriage..."
Before Lin Bonian finished speaking, Lin Jue's expression changed and he frowned and said: "Second uncle, what did you say? You have arranged a marriage for me? How is this allowed?"
Lin Bonian came with a stern face: "What did you say? What's wrong? I'm the Vice-President's daughter. Isn't he worthy of you? It's rare that you reach such a high level, you should be happy. You became Lord Qian's son-in-law.
Needless to say, there will be benefits in the future? Mr. Qian is the deputy prime minister of the dynasty, and he will give you great help when you become an official. It will be a great thing for you and the Lin family, do you understand?"
Lin Jue frowned and said: "Second uncle, I understand what you said, but how can this important matter of marriage be..."
"Lin Jue, marriage is an important matter that is dictated by your parents and a matchmaker. Do you think your second uncle can't make the decision for you? Your parents passed away. I am both your elder and the head of the Lin family. Who else is more qualified for this matter besides me?
?" Lin Bonian shouted.
"Second uncle, that's not what I meant. What I meant was that you should discuss such a big matter with me. I'm not even prepared, so how can I be married? I don't even have any fame, so how can I get married to someone else? I'm so high-ranking.
I can't afford it." Lin Jue scratched his head anxiously. He never imagined that Uncle Lin came here in the middle of the night for this matter. This was really surprising.
"What is there without fame? Lin Jue, do you still want to hide it from me? When you reported to me after the Spring Festival that day, you didn't mention a word about the emperor's inspection of the Gongyuan. The emperor asked you to be the first on the spot. Why didn't you
Say? Your Majesty's golden words, since these words must be certain, but you didn't mention it at all, is this contempt for me? Do you think that I, the second uncle, the head of the Lin family, do not deserve this news? Lin Jue, before
You have turned a deaf ear to what I told you. Let me tell you, no matter how capable you are, you will be nothing if you leave the Lin family. I have already agreed to this marriage. Without your right to speak, I want you to marry the Deputy Prime Minister.
You have to marry my daughter, there is no room for negotiation. This is an order from your second uncle, as the head of the Lin family, and you are not allowed to object. Do you understand? Don’t be ignorant of praise." Lin Bonian got angry and stood up.
shouted sharply.
Lin Jue's brows twisted into a knot. Based on Lin Jue's understanding of Lin Bonian, Lin Bonian has not always been so tough. Today's behavior is actually a bit unconventional. This person is too meek and lacks ability, which has led to his failure in the government.
He is an ordinary middle-class man. But he still has some ambitions, and is also a bit cruel and desperate to achieve his goals. Because of this, Lin Jue planned the plan to kill the eldest son of the eldest son and seize the head of the family.
Happy to cooperate.
In other words, this person does not have great wisdom, but he still has some small cleverness. Therefore, sometimes he makes a lot of money just for small profits, but he does not understand the overall situation and the changes in the situation. This is why he has only made small profits over the years.
It's cheap but there's no reason why he can't hold it in his lap. If something goes wrong, he has no choice but to let others take advantage of him.
Lin Jue didn't trust Lin Bonian from the bottom of his heart. The deeper he got to know him, the stronger his distrust became. Especially after coming to the capital, when he saw Lin Bonian's tall house full of wives and concubines,
, when he saw Lin Sheng's domineering look towards him. After hearing the hypocritical words of concern Lin Bonian said to him, Lin Jue realized this even more strongly. But helplessly, the head of the Lin family was not Lin Bonian.
It's Lin Boyong. Lin Boyong may be more qualified, but because of his own situation, Lin Jue had to choose to cooperate with Lin Bonian and help him seize the position of head of the family. However, now it seems that this move may not be good for the Lin family.
Good thing.
Lin Bonian came here today and suddenly talked about his marriage, which gave Lin Jue an unexpected feeling. A person who doesn't care much about you suddenly wants to care about you. There must be a reason for this. Lin Jue didn't think so.
This was a change caused by Lin Bonian knowing that he was about to pass the imperial examination. Maybe Lin Bonian would be happy because he had passed the imperial examination, but this happiness should not be expressed in the fact that he was suddenly forced to get married.
These two things are not close at all. He can happily come to congratulate him in the middle of the night, or hold a big banquet to publicize it, but what kind of behavior is he forcing himself to suddenly accept a marriage? And even if he is sincere
If you want to discuss this marriage, you can come during the day. Why make a surprise visit in the middle of the night? It looks extremely urgent and hurried, full of coercion and unobjectionable toughness. It makes people suspicious.
Lin Jue's mind was so meticulous. The biggest worry in his mind these days was the fact that Lin Bonian was being investigated seriously and his teacher was investigating the crime. Lin Jue thought about this matter countless times in his mind, and the more he thought about it, the more he thought about it.
The more serious and troublesome the matter became. Even if Lin Jue was like this, Lin Bonian should be more worried than Lin Jue. And at this time, he came late at night just to tell Lin Jue that he had found a marriage for him. This was even more...
Somewhat unreasonable.
The reason why Lin Bonian came in the middle of the night and suddenly made this strong request to marry Qian Qianyi's daughter was definitely not because he suddenly decided to care about himself, a fatherless and motherless person whom he had not cared about for twenty years.
It’s so easy to live as a nephew.
If you think about it further, who is Qian Qianyi? He was the deputy prime minister and one of the top officials of the Zhou Dynasty. He suddenly fell in love with her and wanted to betroth his daughter to him. This was like pie in the sky.
.Especially when I don’t know this Qian Qianyi at all, and Lin Bonian has nothing to do with this Deputy Prime Minister Qian, this kind of thing makes people feel even weirder.
Taking all these doubts together, we can draw a simple conclusion: Lin Bonian's motives for coming in the middle of the night are suspicious. This must be more than just a marriage. There must be some reason behind this.
"Second uncle, you should not take the matter of marriage lightly. You suddenly came to tell me about it and asked me to agree on the spot. I am really surprised. To tell you the truth, my nephew has not considered getting married. Second uncle, can you allow me to think about it?
How many days will it take for you to make a decision?" Lin Jue frowned and said.
"No! This matter cannot wait. I am not here tonight to ask for your opinion, but to tell you. You are not allowed to make your own decisions regarding marriage. As the head of the Lin family, I have the right to make arrangements for you."
Lin Bonian flatly refused. He couldn't wait. He had to settle the matter as soon as possible. Every extra day would put him in danger. Now his neck was not only wearing the noose tied by Yan Zhengsheng and Fang Dunru, but also
There is also a knife that Wu Chunlai has lying around. Although Wu Chunlai will not expose himself, who knows his true thoughts. If he thinks that he has not tried his best, he may not reveal the matter, then it will be all over.
Lin Jue frowned and said nothing. He was thinking about how to deal with the matter. It was impossible to agree to him, but before refusing, he needed to know the reason behind Lin Bonian's actions today.
"What are you still hesitating about? Such a good marriage will be of great benefit to your future. Why are you being pretentious?" Lin Bonian stamped his feet and shouted.
