As soon as Xia Fang came in, she saw the old lady looking at her with clear eyes.
She was stunned for a moment, then stepped forward with a smile: "The old lady is awake. Just now, the eldest lady asked the slave to be gentle and not to disturb you."
The old lady stood up holding her hand and said: "As I get older, my spirit is always lazy, and I can't sleep well after sleeping."
Xia Fang joked: "How old are you, madam? Your days of happiness are still to come. When the eldest and second young ladies get married, you still have to hold your great-grandson."
The old lady smiled and said nothing, glanced at the thin quilt on her body, and suddenly asked: "What do you think of this girl Ran'er?"
Xia Fang thought for a moment before saying: "The eldest lady is not as lively as the second lady, but she is very independent in what she thinks and does."
She glanced at the old lady and added: "The eldest lady has just returned to Beijing not long ago, so my servant may not be able to read it accurately."
"It doesn't matter."
The old lady said: "You can see very accurately. Xue'er was spoiled by me and her mother. She was so cute before she got married. Once she got married, the gap between the two was immediately apparent."
Xia Fang probed: "That's why you insist on letting the eldest young lady marry into the Duke of Jingguo's palace, and you want the second young lady to marry into the Shen family?"
The old lady nodded, suddenly looked at her and asked, "What do you think of Mr. Marquis?"
Xia Fang blushed and hesitated for a long time before whispering: "Master Hou is an upright hero."
The old lady sneered: "What kind of heroic bear is that? If there is no woman in the family to take care of the bear, it is nothing."
Then he took Xia Fang's hand and said: "I know what you are thinking. Don't worry, when the new lady comes in, I will tell the Marquis that if he makes you my aunt, it will not be in vain for you to serve me for so many years." mutual affection."
"Old lady!"
Xia Fang suddenly knelt down, bit her lip and said, "Slave, I just want to serve you for the rest of my life."
The old lady waved her hands carelessly: "How long can I, an old lady, live? How old are you? Why bother spending my whole life with you? Don't worry, Mr. Hou is an upright man. Ran'er has also seen that she is the kind of person who will never mess with her if you don't mess with her." I won’t offend you. As long as you stay on your own terms and I’m here, even the new wife can’t do anything to you. In a year or two, you will give the Marquis a son and a half, and your life will be considered complete.”
Xia Fang blushed and nodded: "I will listen to you, Madam."
-
On February 28, the 13th year of Xuanyuan, it was appropriate to relocate.
The Li family rushed to the capital on the last day of February.
Early in the morning, the old lady sent people out countless times to check on the situation. Near noon, the entire Li family arrived.
When Mrs. Li and Mrs. Tian saw her, she rushed over and hugged her and started crying.
From the crying of the parents-in-law whose bones have been turned into ashes to the old man Li who passed away more than ten years ago, they are just telling me how difficult it is to be a woman.
The old lady naturally felt sad when she thought of her parents and brothers.
After everyone had cried enough, it was time to recognize their relatives.
Although Yanqing is only more than a hundred miles away from the capital, apart from going to Beijing once every three years to report on work, the Li family only came once when Luo Hongjun was born, and Luo Hongjun was already 12 years old after the Chinese New Year.
Tian only gave birth to two brothers and sisters, Li Yuanliang and Li Shi. When Mr. Li was still alive, he also achieved the rank of a fourth-rank official. Unfortunately, he never became a Beijing official until his death. Li Yuanliang also made up for his father's regret.
There are still two concubines in the Li family, but as soon as the old man died, the concubines divided the family and they are still in Yanqing.
Therefore, only the Tian family and the eldest son's family came to Beijing this time.
Li Yuanliang had a wife and four concubines, two of whom were childless. Li Yuanliang's wife, Mrs. Liu, left them all in Yanqing because they had just arrived in the capital and had no place to live.
The old lady first met several children of the Li family, including three concubines, two sons, and three daughters.
The meeting gifts were a set of fine Four Treasures of the Study for each of the two legitimate young masters, and a set of red gold headdresses for each of the three girls. Li Xinyue, the only legitimate daughter, was given a ruby emerald hairpin and a pair of jade bracelets as a separate gift.
Both Li and Cao also prepared gifts for the children respectively. Boys were jade pendants and girls were jewelry. On the surface, they were treated equally.
Several children kowtowed to express gratitude.
Li Xinyue glanced proudly at the things in the hands of the two concubines, and looked away contemptuously.
When it was the Luo family's turn, Luo Ran took his younger brothers and sisters to greet Tian and Liu.
Mrs. Liu looked at the eight or nine children in front of her, large and small, not including the unborn one in Mrs. Cao's belly, and immediately regretted that she had had fewer children.
He laughed dryly and said to the old lady sitting at the top and the sister-in-law beside him: "Oh, it's indeed the Marquis Mansion. The people here are more prosperous than us."
Mrs. Li naturally understood what her sister-in-law meant. She just felt sorry for the money and didn't say anything.
Mrs. Tian glared at her daughter-in-law, smiled and said to the old lady, "It's good to have a strong population. Many children are a blessing. Sister, you are blessed!"
Then they gave the children a meeting gift. The boy's gift was also one of the four treasures of the study, but the quality was not as good as that of the old lady.
The girls also have a set of jewelry, but the gold is hollow, but the style is still novel. He also gave each of the three sisters Luo Ran, Luo Ruxue and Luo Ruzhen a solid gold bracelet, which was not light in weight.
When they arrived at Mrs. Liu's place, Mrs. Liu took Luo Ran and Luo Ruxue's hands and praised them: "Tsk, tsk, look, the water and soil in the capital are good for nourishing people. Look at the skin of Ran'er and Xue'er, they are so tender that water comes out when they are pinched. of!"
"Auntie, thank you very much."
Luo Ran withdrew his hand without leaving a trace and bowed.
Luo Ruxue also didn't like this aunt who had shallow eyelids, so she forced a smile.
Ms. Liu didn't care that she was left out. She turned around and took the things from the maid's hands, and put them on Luo Ran and Luo Ruxue affectionately: "This is my aunt's heartfelt wish. Wear it carefully, in case my aunt has something good tomorrow." I’m definitely still thinking of you.”
Then they were given to Luo Rudie, Luo Ruzhen, and six-year-old Luo Ruxuan respectively.
Luo Ran didn't even look at the bracelet on his hand and politely thanked him.
Luo Ruxue's face was ugly, and she didn't even bother to show a fake smile.
Luo Ruzhen was young and had a firecracker temper. Her eyes widened on the spot and she couldn't help but said, "No more?"
Mrs. Liu didn't seem to understand either, and was stunned: "What's missing?"
Nine-year-old Luo Ruzhen stretched out her little wrist and shook it. A silver bracelet that was no thicker than chopsticks and very rough in workmanship was in sharp contrast to her original gold bracelet with a ruby in a twist.
Mrs. Liu smiled awkwardly: "We are from a small place, not as good as your Marquis in the capital. Miss Four can go to our place and ask about it. This silver bracelet is enough for an ordinary person to chew for a year."
Mrs. Li was so angry that she almost burst into tears and looked at her mother aggrievedly.
Mrs. Luo lowered her eyes and coughed lightly: "Fourth girl, your mother has been very ill these days. You can stay in the yard to take care of your mother for the time being."
Luo Ruzhen was not afraid, and even if she was not allowed to come, she would not hesitate to come.
He turned around and returned to Mr. Cao, pulled off the bracelet on his hand and threw it to the maid next to him: "I reward you!"
