Hearing this sentence, there was a brief blank in Wu Chao's mind - how can I put this feeling? It is probably like what his mother said, touch the cat with your hand. If the cat lets you touch it, you will feel that
One hand received the most holy blessing in heaven and earth...
Now, he feels this way more than anything else.
He felt that he had received the most sacred permission——
"Zhaozhao..." he tried to shout.
"Huh?" The girl looked at him, with dimples looming on her cheeks.
"Zhaozhao, thank you." The young man's tone had a gentleness that could only be expressed to the person in front of him, but it also always showed seriousness.
"Thank me, I didn't do anything useful." Xu Mingyi said with a smile: "And you have helped me a lot all along."
If we really have to do the math, I'm afraid it's impossible to figure out who owes more to whom.
But she felt that it was no longer necessary to forget about it.
I just can't figure it out anymore.
Looking at the young man in front of her, she suddenly thought -
"Do you think this is how children should be raised?"
This topic came up so suddenly that Wu Chao couldn't help but be a little stunned - was Zhaozhao going to discuss raising children with him now?
But Xu Mingyi's next tone and demeanor told him that she just had a sudden realization.
"When facing changes, if your mind is firm enough, there will always be a support in your heart. But if your mind is sensitive and fragile, you will be doubtful and wavering before the change, and you will be crushed by the so-called suffering if you are not careful."
Although there are no absolutes in the world, and everyone's natural temperament is also different, most people are born ordinary.
It is the experiences and possessions that make them no longer ordinary, good or bad.
In any case, she always felt that Wu Chao existed because the Wu family had put a lot of effort into teaching and cultivating him. He was raised like a child of a well-established family, but he still had a firm enough heart and independent will, and would not follow the crowd.
Disturbed by outsiders' voices.
She felt more than once that the Wu family clearly trained Wu Chao as the future head of the family.
After roughly understanding what she meant, Wu Chao smiled.
He didn't think he was that good.
And if his attitude when facing this matter is indeed more calm and rational than ordinary people, then it should have something to do with the woman in front of him.
Let me ask, there is such a determined and clear girl who is willing to accompany him to move forward. He just wants to be crushed by this trivial thing. I'm afraid it is a huge difficulty, right?
Even if you do encounter hardships in the future, you can just crush them under your feet.
Before this, he had never known that falling in love with someone could bring such firm yet soft strength to his heart.
but--
He also has quite a lot of experience when it comes to raising children.
Especially raising a daughter.
Thinking of this, and then looking at the girl with raven-haired eyes and snow-skinned cheeks in front of him, the boy's mind drifted away unconsciously, and a sentence came out of nowhere: "Zhaozhao... What's a nice name for a girl?"
?”
Xu Mingyi: "...?"
Looking at the girl's slightly rounded eyes, Wu Chao immediately came back to his senses and quickly said: "...I mean, I have never heard a better name than Xu Zhaozhao. Your house... seems very...
Good at naming."
As he spoke, he took a tea cup and took two sips of tea in a disguised manner.
Xu Mingyi looked at him suspiciously and said, "...I think so too."
"Is lunch available?" Wu Chao quickly changed the subject because he was afraid that she would think about it further, and that she might be greeted with fists and kicks after she figured it out.
"I haven't had time to eat yet."
"Do you want to go to Zhuangyuan Building?"
Xu Mingyi shook his head.
Yesterday, she just asked Mingshi to buy a bowl of ice powder, but the errand boy brought back a portion of all the signature dishes of Zhuangyuan Building.
Under this condition, she would not want to go to Zhuangyuan Building again for at least ten days and a half.
On this point, it is said that the shopkeeper of Zhuangyuanlou has to ask this errand boy to compensate for the losses.
"Is there anything else you want to eat?"
Xu Mingyi thought for a while and said, "Otherwise, let Xiao Qi go to the back kitchen to cook some random dishes, and we'll eat here."
"Xiao Qi?" Wu Chao said subconsciously: "What's delicious about the food he cooks?"
"Xiao Qi's craftsmanship is not good yet." Xu Mingyi said: "And I remember that when he was in Ningyang, he studied with Divine Doctor Qiu for a few days - coincidentally these two days, I always think about Divine Doctor Qiu's craftsmanship.
.”
Wu Chao was silent for a moment.
Suddenly, he felt that he should have seized the good opportunity of Qiu Shen's medical and culinary skills.
"What's wrong? But Xiaoqi isn't here? If he wasn't there, it would be the same if someone else did it. I just mentioned it casually." Xu Mingyi said casually.
"...here." Wu Chao no longer hesitated: "What do you want to eat? I'll let someone explain it right now."
Compared with other things, it is more important to let her eat what she wants to eat.
Xu Mingyi ordered a few home-cooked dishes that Divine Doctor Qiu often made, and Xiao Qi followed them, adding two meat and two vegetables, and two cups of seasonal vegetable soup.
It was already afternoon.
The sunlight shines through the window lattice on the dining table. The green lettuce is fried beautifully, the pork belly slices are moderately fat and shiny, and the green and white green onions are sprinkled on the neatly stacked fried tofu. The two of them sit opposite each other with chopsticks in hand, and the atmosphere is leisurely and quiet.
good.
…
Soon, the Queen Mother's birthday came.
Before dawn, everyone in the palace was busy in an orderly manner.
Xu Mingyi followed Cui into the palace early. In the afternoon, together with the female family members, she accompanied the Queen Mother to listen to a lively birthday performance in the imperial garden. Seeing that it was getting late, some palace officials came to guide them, and everyone went to Wanfu Tower to attend.
Away from the banquet.
In the Wanfu Building, the birthday celebration lanterns are hung high, scattered at different heights, winding like a star river, like pearls, illuminating the surroundings as bright as day.
The eunuchs of the inner prison shuttled among them, holding cups and serving dishes.
The officials and their female relatives sat at separate tables, chatting and laughing one after another.
Until the eunuch's singing came from outside and entered the hall——
"The Queen Mother is here!"
"The Emperor has arrived!"
"The Queen has arrived——"
Everyone stood up and saluted one after another. Amidst the roar of the mountain, the emperor and the empress supported the queen mother on the left and right as they marched into the palace.
Also walking in together was Princess Jingrong.
Seeing that she looked and behaved like a child, following closely behind the Queen Mother, looking around nervously and curiously, and whispering to the Queen from time to time, everyone understood.
I heard earlier that after the eldest princess was assassinated, her mind returned to her childhood. Since then, today is the first time she has appeared in front of others. Now she looks like she is ill, and indeed she is seriously ill...
…
The crown and uniform were heavy and cumbersome. Princess Jingrong suddenly stumbled while walking. If the maid at the side had not had quick eyesight and quick hands, she would have almost fallen down.
Seeing that the eldest princess, who was wearing a true red shirt with large sleeves, a deep green robe with gold, and layers of pearls on her bun, was not able to walk well, Mingxiao, the censor of Zuodu, was secretly frightened and subconsciously wanted to reach out several times. .
... A mentally retarded person, why should she follow him?
And he was still wearing a crown uniform. What if he really fell down and his brain was already damaged?
"With the palace maids supporting you, teacher, just calm down." Song Dian, the young censor on the side, comforted in a low voice.
Ming Xiaozhi's face froze, and he said solemnly: "There are foreign envoys here today, and I am afraid that she will make a fool of herself in public, which will damage the face of Daqing!"
Song Dian made a light "Ah" and nodded: "Of course the students know what the teacher is worried about."
But... the teacher is so eager to explain, doesn't it make it look like there is no silver in this place?
But the next moment, Princess Jingrong was accompanying the Queen Mother as she passed by them, and she secretly waved the apple in her hand at her teacher——
Song Dian immediately thought of the day when the teacher passed by the back wall of the eldest princess's mansion and was hit on the head with an apple by Her Royal Highness the eldest princess on the wall.
This is really... a great fate.
——Song Dian sighed in his heart.
After the Queen Mother and the Emperor sat down, everyone followed suit.
The prince sat under the emperor, and the beautiful Concubine Rong also asked her wet nurse to hold the little prince beside her.
At the royal family banquet headed by King Yan, several princes stood up first to toast and wish their mother the Queen Mother a long life.
Immediately afterwards, Prince Jing, Princess Yufeng and other juniors came forward to offer birthday gifts.
Princess Sangyun naturally also prepared birthday gifts and birthday wishes, and these were all approved by the King of Yan. They were quite satisfactory and showed her true intentions, but they would not attract the limelight among everyone.
Like other juniors, Princess Sangyun, who received the reward from the Queen Mother, sat back with a smile on her face.
She noticed that a lot of eyes were on her - was it because this was her first time in Beijing? Or was it because... she had followed her mother's good looks?
What's more, the looks of the people from Mizhou are inherently more outstanding and profound than those from ordinary Zhongzhou people.
Thinking of this, the girl is not afraid of those appraising eyes at all.
Immediately afterwards, all the officials and the female relatives also stood up to congratulate each other. The Queen Mother was in good spirits today, her smiling eyes were always bent, she was extremely approachable, and the whole palace was harmonious and festive.
Under the imperial steps, music was playing, and a group of dancers stepped on the soft gold carpet and danced gracefully.
Princess Jingrong leaned close to the Queen Mother, pointing here and there and asking questions, making the Queen Mother laugh from time to time. Emperor Qingming occasionally glanced at her and smiled fondly.
"Look, madam, that is the girl from the Xu family who often plays with me!"
Princess Jingrong pointed in the direction of Xu Mingyi.
The Queen Mother looked over and nodded with a smile.
It turns out that the granddaughter of General Xu’s family is already of this age and is so beautiful.
Sensing the Queen Mother's gaze, Xu Mingyi did not avoid it, but nodded to the old man as politely as possible.
The smile in the Queen Mother's eyes grew stronger, and she nodded to the girl in her sight.
Immediately afterwards, Xu Mingyi noticed that when the Empress Dowager withdrew her gaze, her eyes seemed to linger for a moment as she lowered her head in the direction of the clan disciples.
Wu Chao was sitting there——
Xu Mingyi couldn't help but think slightly.
The next moment, she saw the young man who was sitting there with his eyes half lowered, raising his eyes in her direction as if unintentionally.
When their eyes met, the young man's gaze slightly lowered and glanced at the food in front of her.
Xu Mingyi understood and silently picked up the chopsticks.
At the same moment, Princess Sangyun, who was sitting at the royal family banquet, had just caught the sight of the young man wearing a dark blue robe.
With almost just one glance, she recognized that this was the young man she had seen outside the city that day——
"Cousin..." After repeated hesitation, the girl plucked up the courage and asked in a low voice to Princess Yufeng beside her: "Which family does that... the young master sitting below cousin Shengchang belong to?"
The Xie family's clan population is relatively simple, and she has seen them all in the past few days. She knows that her older cousin only respects the prince, so thinking about it, he must not be a descendant of the clan.
However, the other party is also sitting in the upper position, which shows that his identity is somewhat unusual.
Princess Yufeng glanced at it leisurely and said in a casual tone: "That one is the grandson of Prince Dingnan's palace."
"Prince Dingnan's Mansion...the Wu family in Ningyang?" Princess Sangyun was a little surprised, but soon realized - it turned out to be the Queen's direct nephew, so that's no wonder.
And she remembered that the late princess was the daughter of the Wu family.
——The woman who has been dead for many years, but is still remembered by her father, whose portrait even hangs in his father's study where no one sets foot.
But now, she couldn't think about these unpleasant things and just looked at the young man sitting there.
Looking at him from a distance that day, she felt that this person was particularly beautiful. Looking at him now, she couldn't move her eyes away. But because of his aloof and noble temperament, people didn't dare to look directly at him.
When she took a quick glance outside the city, she just thought she would never meet again, but she didn't expect that the other person turned out to be the grandson of Wang Dingnan...
"Don't think about it, this Wu Shisun already has a sweetheart." Princess Yufeng reminded her in a faint tone while holding the wine glass.
Princess Sangyun's face immediately turned red when she heard this, and she immediately explained: "My cousin misunderstood——"
She had only met him for the second time, what could she have thought?
She originally thought that girls from the capital were reserved and reserved, not as bold and forthright as girls from Mizhou, but why did this cousin speak so unscrupulously?
Princess Yufeng disagreed.
What can be misunderstood?
Isn't it just a matter of sex?
When it comes to experience in this area, she has eighty times, if not a hundred. If she can't even see this, wouldn't her reputation all these years have been in vain?
Princess Sangyun suppressed the shame and fluctuation in her heart and took two bites of the food.
However, the figure of the young man always seemed to be in the corner of her sight.
...Does he really have a sweetheart?
Thinking about it, the other party seems to be several years older than her. Even if a young master of this age does not get married, the marriage will not be settled.
"Is it an engagement?...How do you know it must be your sweetheart?" She asked in a nonchalant tone as much as possible.
——With such a family background, most marriage arrangements are just subject to family arrangements, right?
Princess Yufeng said with a smile: "Since we are the sweethearts, it is only a matter of time before we get engaged."
Does that mean you haven’t made an engagement yet?
How did the cousin know that the other party had a sweetheart?
"I wonder which family the girl my cousin is talking about is from?" the girl lowered her voice and asked curiously.
