Yu Maozhong is obviously dead. Aunt Ding is a little worried. Lirou is silent. Girls like theirs can only wait for their parents to make the decision. She cannot ask about other marriage matters, and it is impossible for her father to marry her. She said this.
At this time, the news of Li Zhen's marriage was announced, shocking everyone.
Li Shu was also very surprised: "What's going on? Did Li Zhen let Cen Shi know that she wanted to kiss her?"
Little Fu nodded: "Donggong is the matchmaker for this marriage. Your eldest uncle is now promoted to the commander of the Jinyi Guards. I heard that Dongggong knew from somewhere that Prince Cen came to ask for his hand in marriage, so he proposed to marry your fifth sister to Prince Cen. Your eldest aunt is very happy. When we came back a few days ago, she was still complaining to me that there was nothing she could do and she couldn't find a good man in Kyoto. Now it can be considered that she got what she wanted."
These four words "getting what you want" made Li Shu laugh.
"Thunder, rain, and dew are all gifts from the emperor, and the East Palace is also Xiaojun. How can the uncle and uncle be dissatisfied with such a marriage?" Thinking of this, Lishu also thought that if the emperor granted a marriage, she and Zheng Hao would not be able to resist either. There is no need to take revenge on anyone.
"No, your eldest aunt is really happy. Why did she choose her son-in-law these years? With Li Zhen's status, it is easy to choose a son-in-law. But they mother and daughter have always wanted to find someone who can match Zheng Hao's status. Where do you think they can find a match? The man is young, has a good reputation as a civil servant, comes from a noble family, and is a prime minister. Where do you think they can find him? This Cen Shifang is not suitable for our family, but he and your uncle both hold military positions and are Hou Hou. Prince of the mansion, of course your aunt will be very happy." Little Fu said her intention.
Li Shu felt very strange: "Then Cen Shifang wanted to marry the fourth sister before, but ended up marrying the fifth sister. How embarrassing will it be when we meet?"
Little Fu laughed at herself: "How can I still be embarrassed, you little girl? Besides, it's just a peace, and you didn't even invite a matchmaker, so there's nothing embarrassing about it."
"Yes." Li Shu thought Li Zhen would like it?
Of course Lizhen didn't want to, she cried: "I heard about Cen Shifang. Gu Xue'e died less than a year after marrying her, and her cousin became a widow again and returned home, as well as her concubine and daughter. Don’t you want to get married?”
"When you see this, why don't you look at the other side. He is the heir apparent of the Hou Mansion. He is young and is the governor, and has a higher official position than your father. Gu Xue'e's death is because of the decline of her Gu family. Gu Xue'e herself is a It's useless. If it's really bad, your grandfather still wants to marry the fourth girl to the Cen family. It's just that your uncle is pedantic and aloof. Of course, he also has his own plans. He is a civil servant and is married to the Xungui family. On the contrary, It will harm your reputation." Mrs. Xu slowly persuaded her daughter.
Li Zhen sneered: "Four girls are born as concubines, and she can be a marquise? It's really ridiculous. Cen Shifang came to see the reputation of our Liu family. She was ranked ahead of me, so they didn't pick her."
When Mrs. Xu saw her daughter stop crying, she knew that this trick worked: "It's good if you understand this truth. The most important thing is the benefits. In the future, you will be a marquise. Even if Lishu wins the Jinshi, she will only be in the seventh or eighth grade." Even if you are a junior official, you have to salute you. What's wrong with that? What's more, I have also met Cen Shifang. He is a talented person after all. He is older and knows how to care for others. You see Isn’t the Zheng Hao that Li Shu is going to marry ten years older than her?"
Hearing that she could stand out among the sisters, Li Zhen was extremely happy, but she was a little unsure: "Mom, you said this is a marriage granted by the East Palace, but is Cen Shifang willing to do it? In fact, I know that if it is Li Shu, He and Lirou, they have good looks and are better at fawning than me, but I am not as good as them."
"Look at what you silly boy said. Since ancient times, marriages have been made between two families. Don't be petty. If I had given birth to a son in the early years, I would have loved to have a concubine for your father. Giving birth to a child would kill someone. I have a cousin who is She didn’t want to suffer the pain of childbirth and became a monk, so her mother prepared an ultimatum. If you let me serve as a servant, you are just looking for a few more scapegoats, and I won’t help you. So, what are you worried about? You see, your second aunt is a concubine after all. You are shallow and only know how to be jealous. Mother has prepared several beautiful girls for you, and their marriage contracts are in your hands to win over your husband. If they are disobedient, they will be in trouble." Mrs. Xu warned her earnestly.
Having said that, Li Zhen is a little bit embarrassed. Who in the world is willing to share her husband with others?
Even my mother, seeing that Aunt Hu had given birth to two sons and Aunt Zhou had given birth to a daughter, quickly opened up to Xi'er and Pan'er, but in the past year, no good news came from the family.
But every time my father goes to another woman's place, she always looks very lonely.
Will my mother regard Aunt Hu, Aunt Zhou, or even other people's children as her own? Obviously not possible. When she gets married, her mother will marry her with all the family's money, and will not leave any of it to the children of her concubines. Naturally, she will also euphemistically call it "marrying high means bringing enough dowry."
Li Zhen slowly accepted it, but Cen Shifang was very depressed. He finally came back. As soon as he came back, the East Palace heard that Liu Chengzong was promoted to the commander of Jinyiwei. The commander of Jinyiwei is the commander of Jinyiwei. He is the highest commander of Jinyiwei. Taking orders from the emperor, with an appointment like Liu Chengzong's, he was definitely a general whom the emperor trusted very much.
He couldn't resist even if he wanted to. After all, no matter how strong you are, you can't be stronger than a word from Dong Gong.
"Yes, I obey." If you are like the third son of the Geng family, you can still scheme, but if you dare to scheme against Jin Yiwei, you may die without knowing how.
Whatever an official said in his sleep at home may have been recorded by the Jin Yiwei, not to mention that he was plotting against his daughter. Cen Shifang had no choice but to comfort himself. Lirou was a good calligrapher, and maybe the fifth girl was not bad either.
As Li Zhen's marriage gradually became clear, Li Rou didn't feel sour after learning about it, but she still felt a little melancholy. Cen Shifang was indeed not a good person, but he was the first person to take her seriously.
Mrs. Xu quickly urged Liu Chengxu to help Lirou settle down. Liu Chengxu couldn't help but discuss it with Mr. Fu. Mr. Fu said: "Originally, she was raised under the old lady's lap. I shouldn't have said anything. Besides, I just said When I came back, the eldest girl came back and said we were going to get married."
"Who is it?" Liu Chengxu asked.
Little Fu said: "This is Wu Qing, the transfer envoy to the west of Beijing. I heard that he is from the Wu family in Zhangpu. Does your husband know?"
Liu Chengxu smiled: "How could I not know that the former Imperial College priest is Wu Dacao's brother. It is said that girls from their family specialize in marrying into the prime minister's family. Why did they think of marrying us?"
"The eldest girl said that last time Lirou went to the Song family to play, someone took a fancy to her. She thought you had some arrangements before, but Lijia didn't have the nerve to say it, and now she's here." Little Fu thought that the eldest girl was not a nosy person. He is nosy and does not like to help others. He is mostly using Li Rou as a favor.
But her daughter made it clear yesterday that she should not get involved in Lirou's marriage, otherwise she would be blamed for any bad life in the future. Little Fu just stayed obedient and didn't say anything.
Mrs. Liu urged her son: "You vetoed your nephew. You don't like the Cen family. The Yu family is like that. Now it's easy for the Wu family to be good. Why can't we delay it?"
In this case, Liu Chengxu had no choice but to call his eldest son-in-law over and ask about it. Song Mingji said this again: "Mr. Wu is now the transfer envoy. His family is very wealthy and his official reputation is also very good. This time, the person he proposed to marry was Wu Xuanhe, the third son of their family. , is studying in the Imperial College. The Wu family is a home of poetry, literature, etiquette, and music. The ladies in the family even run a poetry club. Wouldn’t it be great for my fourth aunt to marry into such a family?"
Liu Chengxu met Wu Xuanhe again and saw that although he was a little thinner, he spoke elegantly. Mrs. Liu and the head of the house urged her in every possible way, as well as Li Jia and Song Mingji tried their best to promote it. The marriage was quickly settled.
The two sides exchanged Geng Tie and agreed upon the agreement.
Li Shu also knew that there was something weird about this marriage, not a big one, but there was definitely something wrong. Lijia was probably just using Lirou as a favor, and she definitely didn't really care.
Of course, Mrs. Xu must have taken care of the paperwork, and Mrs. Xu is now the housekeeper, but as the aunt, Mrs. Fu also went to the Wu family several times.
She came back and told Li Shu: "None of the three sons of the Wu family has taken the imperial examination to become an official. Naturally, a family like ours can be a favor and get an official position even without taking the imperial examination. Yes, this Mrs. Wu is still a member of the same clan as your mother-in-law. Sister, Mrs. Zheng said that she had been smart since she was a child, good at poetry and writing, and determined not to marry someone other than a dragon among men. Mr. Wu died two times before, and she fell in love with Mr. Wu at a glance, so she married him. I have given birth to three sons and four daughters, and Mr. Wu is still very good as an official."
After hearing this, Li Shu felt that there was no problem. At most, Mrs. Wu was very independent.
But then Xiao Fu's voice changed: "I quietly asked someone to find out. It was said that Mrs. Wu's eldest son was originally her niece. The daughter was not willing to marry him back then. After Mrs. Wu found out about this, she looked down on the eldest son very much. The daughter-in-law even made a promise not to let her eldest daughter-in-law enter the Wu family cemetery in the future. Her eldest daughter-in-law is not easy to mess with. She imitates her mother-in-law's words and deeds in private. It is said that Mrs. Wu also wants her to be divorced. Of course, this kind of If she hadn't been speaking to your eldest aunt, I wouldn't have understood it very well. Her second daughter-in-law, the father of Gao, was both a famous scholar and the daughter of a minister of household affairs. Mrs. Wu was very displeased that she was as thin as a lie and was told by the east wind."
The east wind is evil, that means the mother-in-law is hateful!
This Mrs. Wu seemed to be not only assertive, but also very strong. Lishu thought that it would be very hard for such a mother-in-law to be a daughter-in-law.
If Lirou marries Cen Shifang, Cen Shifang will eventually marry his stepwife. His cousin has already turned off the flames and he can make the decision himself. Moreover, the Marquis of Guangyang seems to be in poor health. Soon after Lirou marries her, he becomes proud and proud. Of course, Gu Xue'e, whom Cen Shifang tricked, died without any explanation, and she was not a good man.
Neither of the two marriages seemed to be very good. Li Zhen had an unruly and mean temper and had no scheming, while Li Rou always had to keep a low profile.
"Mom, will you tell daddy this?" she asked.
Little Fu smiled: "This is not a big deal. If it is gambling like Yu Maozhong, or if it is really bad behavior and committing adultery, I will naturally say it. But this kind of mother-in-law is fierce and has many sisters-in-law. This What do you say about this kind of thing? Who doesn’t have troublesome things? You see, we also have four girls in the second house, maybe others are afraid of having too many sisters-in-law."
There was nothing she could do to call her selfish, but Li Shu felt that her mother was really good.
But who does she blame for what happened in her previous life? Can you count on others to be kind to you? Although there are many good people in this world, there are even more people who stand by and watch indifferently. No one will put themselves in your shoes. Only when you stand up for yourself can you live a good life no matter what environment you are in.
Naturally, Aunt Ding and Lirou didn't know this. Aunt Ding also said, "The eldest lady is good friends with you, so it's true that she introduced me." In Aunt Ding's view, the transport envoy is responsible for salt and iron, and the family must have a lot of money.
She has also seen the third son of the Wu family. He looks very wealthy and noble. Although he looks a little like a government official, he has the demeanor of a famous family and is better than the previous ones.
Lirou accidentally passed by in the corridor and looked at Mr. Wu. Seeing the surprise in his eyes, she blushed slightly.
The mother and daughter sympathized with Li Zhen. Li Ju said: "I once heard Sister Gu say that the women raised in Cen Shi's house were all as beautiful as flowers. Cen Shizi was a wild man and had a bad temper. , Fifth sister has always been intolerant of others, and the two of them may be at odds with each other."
"Who cares about her? Gu Xue'e has a peaceful temperament and beautiful appearance. She can't win over anyone, let alone her? You married your own, so at least you don't have to raise a child for someone else in vain." Although Aunt Ding regretted that her daughter almost married Cen Shifang and became Mrs. Hou. , but when I think about it, Cen Shifang is a bastard playboy. Although he has achieved some achievements now, who knows how much injustice his daughter will have to suffer when she gets married, and that cousin is a widow again.
The Marquis of Guangyang heard that he was ill and brought back his illegitimate son. The man was only about fifteen years old and was already a scholar. He had been fostered in his uncle's house. In the past, the Marquis of Guangyang was afraid of his wife and did not dare to take her back. Now, he probably thought of her when he was sick and took her back in person.
It's so complicated, Aunt Ding thinks it's better for her daughter to marry into the Wu family.
Lijia was a little uneasy. She was waiting for an opportunity to get married this time and calculated on her father's trust in her. Because Mr. Wu was the transporter, his father-in-law happened to have a matter settled by him. In exchange for marrying his younger sister, Lijia was appreciated by his father-in-law, and her mother-in-law's face became much better.
Of course, Lijia also thinks that the Wu family is very good. Wu Xuanhe is a student of the Imperial College, and Mr. Wu has served as envoy for several times. It can be said that the family is extremely wealthy.
Although Mrs. Wu has a bit of a temper, Kelirou has a gentler temperament, so she may be more suitable.
This Wu family is better than the Yu family that her father mentioned, and it is also better than the third cousin from her aunt's family. Her aunt has separated and her uncle is not doing very well now. She feels relieved a lot when she thinks about this.
Zheng family
After Zheng Hao came back from Gan Nian Temple, he went out to socialize a few times, but he still didn't dare to ignore it.
In the morning, I came over to Mrs. Zheng to say hello. Seeing that Mrs. Zheng was a little tired, Zheng Hao couldn't help but sit down and ask, "Mom, are you feeling unwell?"
"I'm just a little tired. This is an old illness. It's not a problem. Yes, your father-in-law has been back for more than a month. Their family has been busy before. I met Mrs. Liu Er a few days ago. She was talking about the Mid-Autumn Festival. Her family The second daughter is getting married again, and everything has come together. As for Lishu—" At this point, Mrs. Zheng glanced at Zheng Hao.
Zheng Hao heard Li Shu's name and listened patiently.
Mrs. Zheng smiled and said: "Lishu gave me a box of buttered abalone, saying that she made it by herself. I'm old and can't handle it, so I'll give it to you."
Hearing this, Zheng Hao saw the gold powder sprinkled on the table, which was very tempting, but he didn't expect that it was her who made it.
But Zheng Hao was confused: "I never like sweets..."
"Since you don't like it, give it to Qing'er." Mrs. Zheng was not used to her son's duplicity.
Zheng Hao said awkwardly: "She gave this to you. If you give it to Brother Qing, wouldn't you be betraying her kindness?"
Mrs. Zheng snickered: "In that case, I'll give it to you. If you don't like giving it away, just give it away."
Zheng Hao then said: "If I give it to someone else, I'm afraid she will cry." After saying this, he laughed out of nowhere.
Mrs. Zheng said sternly: "To be honest, we only agreed to this marriage because of your Uncle Liu's face at first. Your Uncle Liu and your father are very close friends. He is a sincere and upright person, and has an excellent official reputation. He is very popular." If she is capable, his daughter will definitely be good. But I think this Lishu's appearance is rare in the world, but she has never been condescending because of her appearance, and she is also humble. She is an excellent girl. Her mother is also a woman with a beautiful heart. You are a beautiful woman, and you have taught her well. She can be a housekeeper, a manager, a prostitute, or a cook making tea. You have to treat her well. I’m afraid you won’t find such a good woman in all of Kyoto.”
"My son knows." Zheng Hao also answered seriously.
I don’t know what happened to that little girl back then three years later?
Therefore, during the Mid-Autumn Festival, Zheng Hao came to deliver festive gifts in person. Young Mrs. Fu was discussing household matters with Mrs. Xu. Now that the eldest son was born, Mrs. Xu felt that her daughter had a good marriage, and she was back to her original self. Little Mrs. Fu And because Liwan was the second wife, the Zeng family came to ask for someone, so naturally they had to arrange a wedding, and everything had to be prepared in advance.
Lishu, along with sisters Liwan and Lirou, were helping to copy the gift list. In the past few years, Lishu's handwriting has become better and better while she was away. Lirou felt a little ashamed when she saw it. Lishu glanced at Lirou's handwriting. I couldn't help but shake my head. I had no character at all.
"Third sister's calligraphy is getting better and better, especially the calligraphy written on Mrs. Wei can be mistaken for the real thing." Lirou also touched her head, feeling quite embarrassed.
Li Shu smiled and said: "That's all I can do. I'm not as good as you in terms of meticulousness, and I'm not as good as Fifth Sister in terms of decisiveness in killing."
"The third sister is too modest." Now that the marriage has been decided, Li Rou seems to have relaxed a lot about little Fu and Li Shu. In any case, they have never harmed her. As for the things she didn't deal with when they were young, they seem to have disappeared. .
Just like her grandmother told her, it was normal for the sisters to have quarrels at home, but in the future, they should support each other outside. They have a little fight at home, but when they close the door and go outside, they are just a family.
At this time, someone said from outside: "The eldest master Zheng personally sent the gift, and the eldest master and the second master are not at home. What should we do?"
Mrs. Liu smiled and said, "Just let him in. There is no one else here, they are all members of the family."
Lishu also smiled shyly, and from time to time she saw a young man appear at the door. When he crossed the threshold, he lifted his clothes slightly and bowed politely. Xiao Xiao is solemn, cheerful and clear, tall and tall, handsome and handsome.
Mrs. Liu looked over and couldn't help but be impressed by her appearance and demeanor: "Please get up quickly. I met your mother a few days ago. How is she?"
Zheng Hao hurriedly said respectfully: "Thank you for your concern, old lady. My mother is in good health. She has an old illness and it is inconvenient to come, so I specially asked the junior to come. When passing by the North and South Goods Store, I heard that new goods have been added. According to the old lady You always like sugar-crispy plums, so I bought some."
"Hey, my old lady is usually very talkative, but some people are thinking about her." Mrs. Liu was in a good mood.
Zheng Hao also laughed.
Mrs. Xu and Mr. Fu both asked each other how Zheng Hao was doing in his studies, and he answered them one by one. He was neither too hasty nor too slow, nor did he show off deliberately, and was very patient.
Mrs. Liu would leave food whenever she was happy. Mrs. Fu wanted to let her daughter show off her skills, so she said, "Third girl, you go to the kitchen to make arrangements."
"Yes, mother." Li Shu said to her heart, you Zheng Hao, you can't even look at me for so long after entering the door, you can really hold it back. She also wanted to show off her skills.
But what to do, in the blink of an eye, she made an arrangement. It was still hot in August, so it was best to make some elegant flower dishes. Tea porridge was very good. It happened that the tea planted in her yard was blooming just right. She did it once, and it was very delicious.
After Lishu left, Wu Xuanhe also came to the door. The marriage between the Wu family and the Liu family was very formal. Wu Xuanhe and Zheng Hao were very familiar with each other, and they were somewhat related to each other.
Although Wu Xuanhe was usually unassuming in the Imperial College, he still had a vague air of pride, which was naturally due to his status. His grandfather was once the minister of the Ministry of Rites, his uncle was the former minister of the Imperial Academy, and later served as the minister of the Ministry of Households before he died. His father was a Jinshi at the age of seventeen, and now he has been appointed as a transfer envoy twice before he is forty.
But it is a pity that none of the uncle's six sons became officials in the imperial examination, and the same is true for their family.
Of course, his proud family background is not worth anything to Zheng Hao. The Zheng family in Xingyang has been a wealthy family for thousands of years. Zheng Hao's grandfather was the prime minister. Although his father was not as good as his grandfather, he also rose to prominence at a young age. Zheng Hao himself is the biggest favorite now.
However, both of them are from official families. No matter what their temperament is on weekdays, they are very polite at this time and patiently talk to the female family members.
Zheng Hao and the Zheng family both valued Lishu, as did the Wu family. Her father-in-law was the censor of Youdu of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, and the more aristocratic the family, the more they paid attention to etiquette. Moreover, just now Wu Xuanhe took a look at Lirou and saw her beautiful appearance. He thought that several of his sisters liked to write poems and compose poems, but the eldest sister got married and the poetry club could not be opened. If she got married, she might be able to compose poems. society.
Because according to Mrs. Zheng, the third girl from the Liu family is good at playing the guqin and the music is beautiful, so the fourth girl must also be talented.
Although Mrs. Xu was talking to them, she was a little anxious because she didn't see Cen Shifang. My eldest sister-in-law had sent people over to give her a holiday gift three days ago. Zeng Yunxi couldn't come because the wedding was approaching, but the gift was very generous.
Only the Cen family seems to follow the rules too much...
Lirou often served Mrs. Liu and was very familiar with Mrs. Xu's expression. When she saw her like this, she knew what she was thinking.
Fortunately, Li Shu came over at this time. This was the first time Li Shu saw Wu Xuanhe, and she nodded secretly when she saw his graceful demeanor. When she was in Shandong, she often arranged her mother's banquets at home, which didn't bother her.
She cooked the tea porridge for everyone, and the rest was prepared in the kitchen. She served the fruits before the meal first. It was August now, and there were many fruits. So she served eight dishes of fruits before the meal, including sugar cane, pomegranate, Sweet grapes, pears, golden peaches, Persian dates, and cherries.
There are four more dishes of cold dishes, eight dishes of hot dishes, two portions of soup, and finally a portion of tea porridge, rice and so on.
Mrs. Liu and her three granddaughters were sitting there, Mrs. Xu and Mrs. Fu were serving dishes nearby, and Zheng Hao and Wu Xuanhe were at the same table. Li Shu and the others were okay, they were at home anyway. Zheng Hao and Wu Xuanhe felt a little uncomfortable, especially since the Liu family seemed to observe the two of them eating from time to time. The two of them did not dare to let go and ate, and they were even shocked by the looks.
But Zheng Hao finally drank up all the Tumi porridge.
Such elegant things must have been made by Li Shu. Somehow, he knew it. :,n,
