In the right wing of the Lu Family Courtyard, several braziers were filled with black and red charcoal fire, making the room warm.
On the couches in the back, a fine white fox fur was spread out, which was suitable for lying a baby who was only more than two months old. Her face was wrinkled, and the black and blue had not completely dissipated.
The small hand is very white; at the moment, it is grasping the fingers of Zhang Yan who is sitting sideways, grinning her mouth, which has not yet grown her baby teeth, and uttering a single note from time to time.
"oh"
"Woo"
The sound was very simple and I didn't understand what it meant.
But it made Zhang Yan frown.
While continuing to shake his fingers slightly, he turned to Du with a smile on his face and said, "Du Ji, look, little Jing Ji is smiling at me~~~"
Du Shi is Zheng Pu's concubine.
And little Jingji is her daughter who was just born this year, and she is also Zheng Pu’s only descendant.
"Although Jingji is young, she also knows that the queen loves her, so she also likes to smile with her."
Du Shi, who was helping her daughter to wrap herself up with a loving look on her face, answered respectfully with a smile on her face, and her voice was slightly flattering, "Unlike the male gentleman who is rarely at home, Jing Ji always teases Jing Ji.
Harmful to life."
"Oh, why are you mentioning him?"
After hearing this, Zhang Yan didn't even raise her head, and sneered lightly, with a somewhat dissatisfied tone, "How much does he care about his family in his heart? It's just that he usually leads the army away from home and is not allowed to go home; but now that he has led the army and is stationed in Hebei County, he still has to do it all day long.
In the military camp, when he rarely comes back for a few days, he either uses family money and food to supplement the tribe's difficulties, or holds a banquet and invites friends to eat and drink. How often have you seen him ask about the expenses at home? Hum!"
Well.
After hearing such words, Mrs. Du quickly lowered her head.
He didn't dare to answer, didn't dare to let his expression show on his face, and pretended not to hear.
She is just a concubine bought with money.
According to the etiquette of the world, the children born to her must also respect their wives as their mothers.
Her status in the family is only a little higher than that of a maid. Whether it is Zheng Pu or Zhang Yan, if they offend her, punish her or sell her to others, no one can blame her.
Although what Zhang Yan said is true.
But Zhang Yan can and dares to speak out such complaints, but she dare not let herself "hear" them.
Lest one day these words reach Zheng Pu's ears and she will be accused of "talking".
However, Zhang Yan is a very good person and has never treated her harshly.
Now she didn't reply, and Zhang Yan didn't take offense either. She just went about teasing little Jingji.
Little babies never get enough sleep.
Not long after, little Jingji became sleepy and kept opening her mouth and yawning.
When everyone saw it, they quickly got up and left.
After giving some instructions to the maid who pointed out to Mrs. Du, Zhang Yan walked slowly towards the largest house in the Lu family's courtyard.
That was the main house, the house where she lived.
Although the manor here is called the Lu Family Villa, it is not an exaggeration to call it the Zheng Family Villa.
The only difference is that this place is much more deserted than the Zheng Family Mulberry Garden in Shifang.
On the sky covered with thick clouds, the fine snow that keeps falling down also exaggerates the feeling of loneliness.
Zhang Yan, who has been living in Longyou since July after finishing Zheng Yan's wedding, has a lot of free time every day.
The property here is managed by her cousin Lu Huang. There are not many children in the family and there are very few maidservants. There is almost nothing for her to do.
The only fun was to dance swordsmanship with Lu'er, the maid who came as a dowry, and occasionally play the piano to entertain myself.
But no matter what kind of fun it is, if it becomes the same thing day after day, it will inevitably become far-fetched.
"Girl, if you count the time, your husband has almost returned from Hanzhong, right?"
The little maid Lu'er, who was following closely behind, asked softly after entering the main room.
She still calls Zhang Yan “girl.”
Because she has not yet followed the dowry rules and become Zheng Pu's pillow.
It's not that Zhang Yanshan was jealous and didn't allow it. It was just that Zheng Pu had a lot of things to do and almost never came home; and he never mentioned it.
It seems that there is no such meaning?
"Well, it's almost done. The Prime Minister has summoned you, so he won't be too slow when he goes."
After a slight pause in his footsteps, Zhang Yan responded casually, "However, if he comes back, he should go to the military camp first. He is the commander-in-chief of the army and cannot stay out for a long time."
"oh"
The little maid Lu'er responded.
Seeing that Zhang Yan did not go into the house, but went to the terrace to sit on her knees and watch the snowflakes in the garden, she asked for a topic, "Do you want to play the piano, girl? I have almost mastered the flute music that the husband asked Lu to write.
What if you don’t want to play with a girl?”
"No, I want to be quiet."
Hearing this, Zhang Yan smiled and stretched out her hand to rub the other person's arm, "I play the piano every day, and I'm not that interested in it. Well, go ahead and get busy. I'll see you if I have anything to do."
"okay."
Although she didn't understand why the girl always sat quietly and admired the snowflakes that came every two days in these three days, the little maid Lu'er still nodded quickly, bowed and turned around to leave.
And Zhang Yan's eyes followed her back as she disappeared around the corner and came back.
Immediately, he raised his head and stared blankly at the snowflakes flying in the sky like catkins.
Her elder sister, Queen Zhang, had been married for more than ten years but had never had any children; but today Liu Chan has many children.
She has been a wife for nearly three years, and she also has no children, but her concubine Du Shi also has children.
Such a result made her afraid to go deeper.
But just as I raised my eyebrows, my heart was worried.
Perhaps, one day, like my elder sister, I will treat the child who marries my maid as my own child?
But a few days ago, my husband seemed to have asked me in a vague way, if my little maid Lu'er gets her hair next year, can I be promised to Zhang Zichan~~~
Zhang Zichan is Zhang Te.
A scholar who spent a year and traveled thousands of miles from Zhuo County, Youzhou County to Shu.
It is also the hometown of Emperor Liu Chan and the Zhang family.
According to his own words, because he heard that Ni Wei led the Xianbei barbarians into Guanzhong, he felt that Ni Wei was not worth serving. Therefore, with the permission of his family, he came to join the Han Dynasty.
This reason seems to be reasonable.
After all, when the late Emperor Liu Bei and her late father Zhang Fei were still alive, they both told their descendants that their villages were repeatedly burned, killed, and plundered by Xianbei. Even Zhao Yun, the general of Wei who had just died of illness, led his villagers to defect to Gongsun Zan when he was young, because Gongsun Zan attacked
Hu.
But this reason is also somewhat bizarre.
The Han Dynasty had been engaged in the Northern Expedition for several years, and had just begun to gain some momentum, when the late Emperor's native villagers came to join him.
The timing is so lucky.
It makes people have other thoughts: Isn't he a craftsman sent from Wei Wei?
Zhang Yan, who returned to Chengdu last year, remembered clearly that when Chen, the governor of Yong'an, sent people to lure Zhang Te to Shu, the whole court was in a sensation.
This is not surprising.
The Han Dynasty was originally a small country with few people, and its national power had been declining for a long time. Who would have thought that talented people would come to join him?
For example, the last talented person who volunteered was Yang Yi.
At that time, the Han Dynasty had just experienced the Battle of Hanzhong, and it was a time when the country was strong.
From then on, the Han Dynasty, which had experienced the Battle of Xiangfan and the Battle of Yiling, no longer had any talented people to join them.
On the contrary, there were many troops and rebellions.
However, Zhang Te seemed to come here sincerely.
Zhang Yan heard from Empress Zhang that after the Emperor Liu Chan wrote a letter to Prime Minister Zhuge Liang, he allowed Zhang Te to temporarily serve as a palace guard and return to the center to lead the army under Xiang Chong.
The external reason was that there were few people from his hometown in Shu, so the emperor wanted to keep Zhang Te by his side and always asked about the customs of his hometown. But in fact, he wanted to keep Zhang Te, the loyal palace guard,
, secretly observe Zhang Te's behavior to see if he has any evil intentions.
But one year has passed, but Zhang Te, who is still young, has not done anything unusual.
On the contrary, the temperament and talents he displayed were highly praised by others.
For example, Zhang Yan's brother Zhong, Zhang Shao, the servant who accompanied the emperor, often praised Zhang Te after meeting him for a long time.
"Zi Chan's talent is ten times that of mine."
This is what Zhang Shao said to others.
Some of it is due to his love for his hometown, but it is undeniable that Zhang Te himself is very talented.
Coupled with Xiang Chong's affirmation, the emperor Liu Chan wrote to the prime minister again, asking if he could fulfill Zhang Te's wish to join the army: to conquer the country.
He came thousands of miles to join me because of his faith.
No matter what a big man says, he will not use it if he doubts it. He will let his idleness go and waste his time.
Furthermore, there are really not many talented people in the Han Dynasty!
It would be too unfair for such a talented person to stay in Chengdu.
After the prime minister received the emperor's letter, he summoned Zhang Te to Hanzhong. After having a talk with him in person, he asked him to be appointed as the school captain. Since Zhang Te was proficient in bow and horse, he was sent to Zhang Bao's Armored Cavalry School as deputy.
This is also the reason why Zheng Pu knew about Zhang Te.
What makes Zhang Yan feel strange is that her eldest brother Zhang Bao is only friendly to Zhang Te because of his hometown affection; but Zheng Pu is not hesitant to praise him and actually wants to marry her as a maid.
Still eloquent.
He claimed that in the Han Dynasty, only the emperor and the Zhang family were from Zhuoxian, and the Zhang family should bear more responsibility for the emperor.
He also said that Lu'er was his wife in the past, and it would be much better to follow him as his concubine.
But Zhang Yan is not stupid.
She was vaguely aware that Zheng Pu's words were just prevarication.
Among them, there must be other reasons.
Otherwise, there are many ways to show favor, so why would Zheng Pu personally manage the marriage? Even if he is showing favor through marriage, it would be more solemn and more sincere to ask Emperor Liu Chan to grant a marriage!
However, she couldn't guess Zheng Pu's intention.
And since the matter hadn't been made clear yet, it was hard for her to ask directly.
Alas, that’s all.
I will ask him in detail how he will make a conclusion in the future.
Zhang Yan, who was tired of looking at Xixue, got up and went back to the house. She took a book from the utensils and leaned on the couch to read.
I do not know how long it has been.
Just when Zhang Yan felt a little sleepy, a slight sound of footsteps came from outside the door.
Looking sideways, Zheng Pu was back.
Moreover, he had just taken a bath, and was wearing a long gown and a large cloak. His hair was still half dry and hanging on his shoulders.
No need to ask, Zhang Yan also knew that he just went to see Xiao Jingji.
It is said that those who hold military positions have a custom that before returning home to see their young children, they must first take a bath and change clothes.
In order to avoid the evil spirit in the army, the child was injured.
"My husband is back."
Zhang Yan didn't get up, she just raised her head and smiled.
"Um."
As Zheng Pu walked over, he took off his cloak and put it on her body. He sat down from behind and hugged her shoulders. He said softly, "It's very cold. I didn't light a brazier or get some furs to wrap myself up."
As his nose was filled with the familiar smell, he suddenly felt that the Lu Family Courtyard was not so deserted anymore.
"Is there anything else going on at home during my absence?"
"Nothing. But even if there is, my husband will care about it, hehe~~"
"Oh, you!"
"By the way, little Jingji laughed very happily when she played with me today."
"Also, I asked my cousin to give Du Ji a maid."
Speak softly and talk about common things.
It's cold but people are warm.
When he was young, Zheng Pu listened attentively to what she said about the trivial matters, and then interrupted, "Xi Jun, it's New Year's Eve soon. I plan to hold a family banquet and invite Brother Wen Rong to come over."
“So best!”
Hearing this, Zhang Yan immediately sat up straight and looked at him, with a smile on her cheeks, "I will take care of this matter. First, let me prepare more ingredients that the elder brother likes. Maybe I haven't chatted with the elder brother for a long time."
But as soon as she finished speaking, she reacted again.
He tilted his head, a trace of suspicion appeared on his face, and looked into Zheng Pu's eyes and asked, "Well, on New Year's Eve, will your husband just invite my eldest brother to your house for a reunion?"
"Cough! Cough!"
Involuntarily, Zheng Pu, whose thoughts were exposed, suddenly coughed several times.
This made Zhang Yan frown and continued to ask, "My husband wants to invite that Zhang Zichan to the banquet too!"
well.
He sighed helplessly in his heart.
Zheng Pu nodded and said, "Yes, that's the plan. Zichan is alone in my big country, with no relatives or friends. I thought that he is from your hometown, so I will take him with me."
"Husband, I have no objection to you inviting him to the banquet."
Before Zheng Pu could finish speaking, he was interrupted by Zhang Yan.
I saw that she had already restrained her face, with a hint of embarrassment in her brows, "But it's just a banquet, and you are not allowed to mention the promise of my little maid Lu'er to him."
Suddenly, Zheng Pu was speechless.
After a moment of silence, Fang argued loudly, "Why is this? I think Zhang Zichan is a man with both talents and virtues, and he is a good match for Lu'er. What's wrong with that?"
Zhang Yan was also very angry, "Lu'er is my dowry maid!"
Uh~~~
All right.
Zheng Pu was suddenly speechless and looked embarrassed.
Marrying a maidservant can also be included in the dowry.
If Zhang Yan is unwilling, Zheng Pu has no right to make the decision without permission.
Perhaps it was rare to see Zheng Pu in such an embarrassing state that Zhang Yan burst into laughter as soon as she finished scolding him.
He also relaxed his mouth and said with burning eyes, "However, this matter is not impossible. If my husband can explain the reason to me clearly. Well, it is not a prevarication!"
"Heh~~~"
Involuntarily, Zheng Pu burst out laughing.
He twisted her body casually and continued the snuggling that he had held her in his arms before slowly speaking out.
"Yu Gong, there are not many generals in the imperial court who are good at cavalry warfare, and there are even fewer cavalry generals who are familiar with the customs of the Qiang and Hu tribes in the border areas. Those like Zhang Zichan should be taken seriously. Privately, when I returned to Hanzhong this time, I gave you some advice.
The Prime Minister has appointed Brother Wenrong as the Governor-General, and at that time, Zhang Zichan will be able to lead the armored cavalry, so that Brother Wenrong does not have to risk his own life every time he goes into battle."
