It was almost midnight when the young man returned to the noodle stall. After returning, he put on an apron and continued to help his grandfather silently.
For those who set up night stalls, it was already very late at this point, and almost no one could be seen on the more remote streets. However, the old man at the noodle stall added lamp oil to the lantern, obviously wanting to stay up a little longer. Do some business.
Near midnight, the sound of horse hooves and wheels broke the tranquility.
A luxurious carriage appeared on the street at night, with seven or eight guards in front and behind the carriage.
The carriage was hung with a lantern from the Zhong Mansion. Anyone with knowledge of the situation would know at a glance that it was Mr. Zhong from the Zhong Mansion who was returning home.
When the convoy turned into the alley, the old man kneading the dough at the stall suddenly pulled apart the dough and shook it up and down. He smashed it three times on the counter and then kneaded it again.
The leader of the convoy was a big man with a beard. His slightly moving eyes were always paying attention to the shadows on the left and right in front.
Everyone nearby knew that this person was Mr. Zhong's personal guard and the general manager in charge of the security of the entire Zhong Mansion. His name was Du Fei.
He suddenly turned his mount around, stopped by the side, and jumped off the horse. "I'm a little hungry. I'm going to eat a bowl of noodles." He handed the horse to others to take away, and walked towards the noodle stall.
When the motorcade arrived at the gate of Zhongfu, Du Fei also walked to the stall and sat down, "Here comes a bowl of noodles."
"Okay, Mr. Du, wait a moment." The old man said hello, turned around and uncovered the pot, pulled out the cut noodles and put them into the pot, covered the pot lid, continued to knead the dough, and said with Du Fei's back to back: "Someone was exploring the Zhong Mansion just now. end."
Du Fei also turned his back, "What kind of person?"
Old man: "The one who came in the carriage is a young man. He is quite handsome and has a heavy sword hanging on his waist. He doesn't look like someone from the capital, but has an accent from the states."
"Lizhou..." Du Fei thought for a moment and then asked, "What did you ask?"
Old man: "I asked round and round about the situation of the people in the Zhong Mansion. I heard that the master was not at home, so I asked when he would be back. By the way, he seemed to be particularly concerned about the situation of the two young ladies, and asked more detailed questions."
Du Fei: "Do you know where people stay?"
The young man squatting aside and washing dishes spoke up, "The official guild hall of Liezhou. The carriage is rented from the 'Shengji' car dealership, and the driver is also from the 'Shengji'."
"Liezhou guild halls?" Du Fei was obviously stunned for a moment and wondered, "The big exam is coming soon. Now the guild halls in each state should be vacated for candidates to stay. Could it be that they are candidates?"
Young man: "I don't know. There are officers and soldiers guarding us, so we can't get in."
Du Fei thought about it for a while and said, "You've met this person. Let's go together later."
The young man said "Yeah".
When the noodles were cooked, they were brought to the table. Du Fei Xilihulu ate, dropped the money, and returned to the Zhong Mansion.
The noodle stall also finished its last order and began to close the stall...
In the streets and alleys, it is louder at Yinshi.
There was a solitary lamp on the desk. After a long period of sitting, Du Fei sat cross-legged and meditated with his eyes closed.
Someone hurriedly came outside the moon gate, leaned forward, and placed a post in front of Du Fei with both hands, "General manager, the basic situation is here."
Du Fei slowly stopped his work and opened his eyes, took the post on the case, opened it, looked at the light, and muttered, "Lizhou, Changming Mansion, Liangtao County, Angui Town, Jiupo Village, ah..." The words he muttered were stuck. , his eyes suddenly widened a bit, his eyes fixed on the name 'Ashiheng', and he slowly stood up.
The person in front of the case was stunned, "Manager, what's wrong?"
Du Fei took a closer look again, took a deep breath, and slowly closed the post, "It turned out to be a candidate."
The person before the case asked: "Does it need to be investigated carefully?"
Du Fei waved his hand, "No need, go down and rest."
The man in front of the case cupped his hands, took two steps back, then turned around and left.
Without anyone else, Du Fei opened the post in his hand again, looked at the content and muttered to himself, "It turned out to be hiding in Lizhou, young master, you are finally here!"
early morning.
In the inner house of the Zhong family, Mrs. Zhong Wen Jianhui was dressed in a long brocade dress. She still had the charm of a mature woman without losing her dignity. The hostess was elegant and natural. She smiled and helped her two daughters pick up the jewelry on their heads.
The jewelry was made in the palace and was brought back yesterday by Zhong Yuanwai. It was a gift for the three women in the family when they went out to meet people.
There is a scenic spot in the southeast outside the city called Lingci Mountain, which is the place where Lingmi is grown. When Lingmi flowers are in full bloom, the sea of flowers is infinitely beautiful. Lingci Mountain will be open to the public for one day for some noble people to come and enjoy the flowers, but ordinary people refuse to enter. It is really not suitable for such a place with too many people.
For women, it is another day to show off their beauty and show off their beauty. They have been looking forward to it for a long time. Good-looking clothes and good-looking jewelry are indispensable. It would be unbearable if Mr. Zhong didn't get some jewelry to show off.
The eldest daughter is dressed in a white dress and has picturesque features. She is as graceful and reserved as a graceful summer lotus, and her eyes are filled with freshness and refreshment.
The woman in Huangshan gauze and skirt is the youngest daughter. She has a beautiful appearance and clever eyes. She is also good-looking and obviously more lively than her sister. When her mother and sister are talking, she keeps chirping.
The eldest daughter's name is Zhong Ruochen, and the younger daughter's name is Wen Ruowei, obviously named according to the time of birth.
The second daughter took her mother's surname.
In his early years, Zhong Yuanwai was just a clerk in his wife's family. The shopkeeper had no children. When Zhong Yuanwai married his daughter, Zhong Yuanwai agreed and one of them would be adopted by the Wen family. What she didn't expect was that Wen Jianhui's stomach wasn't up to par, and she couldn't give birth to a son to adopt to the Wen family. After giving birth to two daughters, her stomach stopped, so she had to do this.
Fortunately, shopkeeper Wen was right. Mr. Zhong just managed to develop the small shop that his father-in-law had run in the same place for decades into what it is now.
It's just a twist of fate that now Mr. Zhong seems to be facing the same situation as the late shopkeeper Wen, with no son to inherit the family business. It can be said that Shopkeeper Wen had great foresight back then. Even in the face of this situation, Shopkeeper Zhong did not take concubines and give birth to children.
In this world, it is simply unbelievable. This is not the small shop owned by shopkeeper Wen, who just gave it to outsiders. Now that the Zhong family's huge fortune can be given away so easily, do you really not feel bad at all?
Mrs. Zhong was also quite ashamed and anxious. She even tried a lot of home remedies, but her stomach just didn't respond. Later, as she got older, she just let nature take its course. She herself also hinted to Zhong Yuanwai that as long as she was willing to give half of her property as dowry to her two daughters in the future, she could turn a blind eye to other things.
The hint was already obvious, but Zhong Yuanwai did not do that. At most, there would be a beauty named Yiqing outside occasionally.
There was also an incident where a certain beauty wanted to take advantage of her position, but was easily dealt with by Mr. Zhong and failed to make a big splash.
Marrying a daughter of the Zhong family is equivalent to sharing the Zhong family's property. What's more, the two daughters of the Zhong family are so beautiful that many people covet them.
After picking out the jewelry he liked, Wen Ruowei, who was eager to show it off, couldn't stand it anymore and jumped up and down, "Mom, what's going on with dad? It's already what time, it's time to set off, why haven't you come yet?"
"Look at you walking around with your hands behind your back. How do you look like a girl?" Mrs. Zhong helped her eldest daughter put jewelry on her head and scolded her younger daughter. After pulling out the jewelry from the eldest daughter's bun, she replaced it. He made a comparison and said, "Your father came back late last night. Let him sleep a little longer so that you can play."
Wen Ruowei came over, supported his waist with one hand, and put his other hand on his mother's shoulder, "Mom, I know you find me an eyesore, don't worry, this time I go to Lingci Mountain, I will definitely bring back a young man to be your son-in-law."
"Damn girl!" Mrs. Zhong was angry, picked up the hairpin and tied it.
The young man reacted quickly. Wen Ruowei jumped out of the way, made a face and said with a smile: "You're kidding, don't worry, I'm not married yet, how can it be my turn."
Zhong Ruochen, who was sitting in front of the mirror, smiled tenderly.
Mrs. Zhong couldn't help but sigh. She was worried when it came to her eldest daughter's marriage. The inside story was not enough to explain to outsiders...
In the inner courtyard, a graceful man with a white face and long beard, slightly gray temples, walked out of the house, walked to a temporary deck chair placed in the yard, lay down and closed his eyes to meditate.
It was none other than the owner of the Zhong Mansion, Mr. Zhong Su Zhong.
The servants on the side had already prepared hot water, soaked a towel in water, wrung it out, and applied it on Mr. Zhongwai's face. He took it off later, then smeared his face with soap, then used a sharp razor to clean and shave his face, and finally used a wet towel to shave his face. Use the towel to clean your face carefully.
Du Fei, the head guard, came and stood aside without disturbing him, just waiting quietly.
After everything was done, Mr. Zhong got up and went into the house again. Du Fei followed him in. He said to Mr. Zhong, who was accustomed to having a cup of tea after washing, "Uncle, someone was touching the bottom of the Zhong Mansion last night."
Mr. Zhong, who was slowly sipping the tea, didn't take it seriously and blew on the hot air. "It's nothing special. Just watch and deal with it."
Du Fei: "It's the young master. The young master is back."
"Uh..." Mr. Zhong looked up, a little confused, "Which young master?"
Du Fei took out the post from last night and handed it to him.
Mr. Zhong put down his tea cup, took the post and opened it. He looked at it incomprehensibly at first, but after seeing the words 'Ashiheng', he stood up suddenly, knocking over the round stool behind him, and checked it over again. , raised his head and asked: "Are you sure it's him?"
Du Fei: "It is unlikely that this name will have the same name, not to mention that it is at the bottom of Tanzhong Mansion, so it is almost certain that he is here."
Officer Zhong read the post again and exclaimed, "He's finally here. My daughter is almost old." Fu frowned again, looked at Du Fei, and wondered: "He's checking the bottom of Zhong Mansion? What are we doing to him?" Not clear? What does he mean by being sneaky? "
Du Fei: "I wonder what he meant when he came to the capital but not to the Zhongfu. Also, he came to the capital to take the exam. Logically speaking, the boss should have written to inform us in advance, so we can make arrangements easily. Answer."
"Yes, I haven't contacted you since I sent you a letter three years ago. What on earth does this kid want to do? Wait, he went to Beijing to take the exam..." Du Fei lowered his head and looked at the post again, "Examinee, he is He came to Beijing to take the exam. It seems that the boss wants him to be named on the gold list. Well, he ranked 106th in the Lizhou Provincial Examination..." The corners of his mouth twitched slightly and he raised his eyes to look at Du Fei.
Du Fei smiled, a little embarrassed, "I'm afraid there's no hope of getting a gold medal in the provincial examination."
