Just like in the original work, Sheng Hong was detained in the palace by Emperor Jiayou all night after the court meeting. It was not until nearly noon the next day that Sheng Hong, who was already exhausted and exhausted, and his days were like years, saw Emperor Jiayou.
Upon seeing Emperor Jiayou, Sheng Hong immediately knelt on the ground and accused him repeatedly!
Emperor Jiayou walked slowly in front of Sheng Hong, clasped his hands in his long sleeves, looked at Sheng Hong, and asked, "Sir, did you sleep well last night?"
Sheng Hong replied hurriedly, his voice trembling slightly: "Get out of the way! I am restless, tossing and turning, and can't sleep!"
Emperor Jiayou remembered the news reported by the Imperial City Secretary, walked to the chair and sat down, and said with some emotion: "Okay! You also know what it feels like to have trouble falling asleep!"
Sheng Hong was so slick and good at observing people's emotions. Just by listening to Emperor Jiayou's words, he knew that he must have offended Emperor Jiayou unintentionally.
Emperor Jiayou said: "The country without a prince is like losing a pillar. I am so anxious that I can't sleep all night, but your San Lang is in the restaurant, talking loudly about the matter of establishing a prince for the royal family!"
As he spoke, Emperor Jiayou lowered his head and looked at Sheng Hong: "You must have already made up your mind, right? And your son-in-law, has he also made up his mind a long time ago? Then you might as well tell me, look at your two sons-in-law. What on earth do people think? Let me sleep peacefully!"
Sheng Hong was horrified when he heard what he said, his mind was in chaos, and he quickly explained: "Your Majesty clearly knows this, I...I really don't know!"
Emperor Jiayou said: "I heard that the results were released in the spring. Sheng Changfeng, the third son of the Sheng family, and Qiu Keli, the son of Qiu Jing, sang joyfully all night. During the dinner, they mentioned that King Yan was a capable man and was of noble birth. Sooner or later he would be the crown prince. It must be you and Your son-in-law made this discussion at home and infected his son!"
…
Thinking of all the things he experienced in the palace one day and one night, Sheng Hong was in shock. As soon as he got home, he was about to take a bath and change clothes, but he saw Lin Sushuang running to see him with a pair of crying children. She looked at him with a smile on her face, as if something Even though it didn't happen, Chang Feng, who was still congratulating himself, suddenly felt boundless anger welling up in his chest.
Without any explanation, he kicked Chang Feng out, knocking Chang Feng to the ground. Even Wang Ruofu, who had always disliked Lin Sushuang, was shocked.
Lin Sushuang was still crying and wanted to defend her son, but she didn't expect Lin Sushuang's behavior to anger Sheng Hong even more.
Sheng Hong couldn't help but think of what Wang Zhong said to him last year. Chang Feng was the son of the Sheng family. If he really got into trouble, it would bring disaster to the family!
Seeing Lin Sushuang and Mo Lan kneeling on the ground crying and begging for him, Sheng Hong's anger disappeared in an instant, leaving only fear.
Dang Ji gave the order and asked his servants to drag Chang Feng to the ancestral hall, and asked Dong Rong to do it himself and beat him twenty times, beating Chang Feng to death until he fainted from the pain.
Sheng Hong then ordered Chang Feng to be confined in his courtyard. He was not allowed to leave the courtyard without his own orders, and no one was allowed to visit, including Lin Sushuang and Mo Lan.
He also dismissed all the existing servants in Changfeng Courtyard and rearranged them with the family's cronies who had signed the death contract.
He also scolded Lin Sushuang, blaming her for doting on Chang Feng too much, which made Chang Feng feel emboldened and dared to talk nonsense outside. Then he also banned Lin Sushuang in Lin Qige.
While Wang Ruofu was happy, he couldn't help but worry about the future of Sheng Hong and his son Changbai. Fortunately, the officials were kind and generous people, and Sheng Hong answered wisely, so the matter was over.
But Lin Sushuang was not easy to get along with. Even if she died, she would have to scrape off a layer of Wang Ruofu's skin, so she immediately revealed that Wang Ruofu had left printing money outside.
For a moment, Sheng Hong felt that each of the women around him was stranger than the last. Even Wang Ruofu, who had a hot temper but was kind-hearted, started the usury business. Many families were ruined because of the compound interest on loan sharks. , the Sheng family is a scholarly family with many generations of officials, and Sheng Hong prides himself on being a pure man, but his wife has done such an outrageous thing.
Sheng Hong was so angry that his three souls ascended to heaven, and his seven souls left his body and shed tears. After yelling at Wang Ruofu for a while, Wang Ruofu thought he was polite and argued with him. Sheng Hong was so angry that he smashed several objects in succession. The vase was broken, and a few tea cups were broken. He didn't even finish changing his clothes, so he ran out of Wei Ruixuan angry and helpless.
In the study, Sheng Hong was sitting behind a long desk, going through complex emotional changes in his heart, and the expressions on his face were also extremely rich.
Suddenly, Dong Rong came in cautiously and reported: "Master, Miss Wei is here, and she brought soup!"
Sheng Hong thought of Lin Sushuang and Wang Ruofu, and now that he heard Wei Shuyuan coming, he was like a drowning man, grabbing the life-saving straw, and hurriedly said: "Let her in!"
After a while, Wei Shuyi, who was quite plainly dressed, carried a tray into the study alone, without even a maid.
"I heard that your master hasn't had dinner yet, so I made a cup of seabass soup. I wonder if it suits your taste?" After Wei Shuyi entered the house, he never mentioned that Sheng Hong was detained in the palace, and that he was in Wei Ruixuan just now. That scene.
"I'm sure there's nothing to say about your craftsmanship!" Seeing Wei Shu look at him with concern, Sheng Hong finally felt warm in his heart.
Wei Shuyi smiled slightly, scooped out a bowl for Sheng Hong, and said: "These butterfly pickles were just taken out. I made them myself. They are sour, sweet and refreshing. Brother Dong likes them the most. The Lord will also try them. See if it tastes like it.”
Sheng Hong was so angry that he had no appetite at first, but after listening to Wei Shu's concerned words and smelling the faint sour fragrance in the air, the hunger that had been overwhelmed by anger surged out again. He picked up his chopsticks and picked up a piece of pickled radish. I started eating the fish soup and couldn't help nodding my head and saying it was delicious.
Wei Shuyi never mentioned what happened in the past two days. He was only concerned about Sheng Hong's health and chatted with Sheng Hong about Brother Dong's situation in the past few days, the progress of his studies, and what interesting things happened on weekdays.
After dinner, Sheng Hong proposed to go to Wei Shu Yiyuan to see his son grow up.
When Sheng Hong and Wei Shuyi rushed to Wei Shuyi's courtyard, Changdong was practicing martial arts with Minglan in the courtyard.
Seeing Changdong's little figure jumping around in the courtyard like a little monkey, Minglan was giving guidance from the side. Little Changdong was only six years old, but under Minglan's guidance, he was able to practice a simple and unsophisticated boxing routine. Looks like the same.
When Minglan saw Sheng Hong, she quickly pulled Changdong over to greet Sheng Hong.
Sheng Hong bent down and held Chang Dong in his arms, and asked with a smile: "Brother Dong, how come you started practicing martial arts?"
Minglan said: "Returning to my father, it was brother Zihou who said in the letter that Brother Dong is almost old and he can practice some boxing and kicking routines with him, which will strengthen his body and make him less likely to get sick."
The little Wei next to me also said: "I have been practicing Baduanjin with Ming'er every day since then, and I feel that my body has become stronger!"
Xiao Wei's health has not been very good since she gave birth to Changdong. After reuniting with Minglan in Yangzhou, under the guidance of Wang Zhong, she learned Taoist health-preserving Baduanjin from Minglan. Now she has several Over the years, little Wei's complexion has become better and better year by year. Today, little Wei's complexion is rosy and shiny, and she looks no different from ordinary people.
"Brother Dong, do you like to practice martial arts?" Sheng Hong turned to look at Chang Dong who was being held in his arms and asked.
"I like it!" Changdong replied crisply.
"Why do you like it?" Sheng Hong asked again.
Changdong replied: "You can practice martial arts without getting sick, and you don't need to take bitter medicine!"
Sheng Hong was stunned for a moment when he heard this, and then he couldn't laugh or cry. He obviously didn't expect this to be the reason.
Sheng Hong asked again: "Does that guy like reading?"
Changdong nodded again: "I like it!"
"Oh? Why does that guy like reading?"
Changdong replied: "My mother-in-law said that studying can make you smart. I want to become as smart as my second brother!"
After hearing this somewhat childish answer, most of the depression in Sheng Hong's heart disappeared, and he carried Chang Dong into the house.
It was night, Chang Dong had already fallen into a deep sleep. After the clouds and rain, Sheng Hong was lying on the couch with his arms around Wei Shuyi. Wei Shuyi's hair was a little messy, lying on Sheng Hong's chest, and there was still a bit of embarrassment on her pretty face. The blush that hasn't faded yet.
It's just that after the storm, Sheng Hong's mind inevitably drifted a little far away. But one thing happened one after another in the past two days, which made Sheng Hong anxious, exhausted both physically and mentally, and his brows inevitably furrowed.
Seeing Sheng Hong frowning, Wei Shuyi couldn't help but ask: "What is troubling you, my lord?"
Sheng Hong hesitated for a moment, sighed, and told Wei Shuyi about being questioned by Emperor Jiayou in the palace today.
After hearing this, Wei Shuyi said: "The officials have always been kind and generous. The Lord has already made his attitude clear. The officials will definitely not pursue it further!"
"I'm not worried about official prosecution!" Sheng Hong thought for a while and told Wei Shuyi about Wang Ruofu's loan sharking.
"I work hard outside, making excuses with others every day, and I am terrified. It's better for her. She is an official's wife and the head of the family. She actually puts usury money outside and does such a sinful thing. If... if……"
"Master!" Wei Shuyi couldn't help but change his expression, and said hurriedly: "Master is a civil servant, and the Sheng family is a scholarly family. The most important thing at the moment is to cut off the tail of the hand quickly and confirm whether there are any victims. Let’s settle this matter completely to avoid being caught! It will ruin the reputation of the Sheng family and the lord’s reputation!”
Sheng Hong's eyes lit up when he heard this and he stood up: "Yes, I was confused. The most important thing now is to resolve this matter quickly and completely!"
Sheng Hong was about to get out of bed, but was stopped by Wei Shuyi: "Now that it has been decided, if we start a big war at this time, wouldn't we tell others that our family has something untoward to tell others? We will wait for this moment until the Lord comes again tomorrow." Just send someone to Shouwei quietly."
Sheng Hong obviously didn't expect that in just a short moment, Wei Shuyi thought so much. However, after careful consideration, he was surprised and found that what Wei Shuyi said made sense.
"I'm sorry that what you said is reasonable. At this time, we must stay calm and not get into trouble!" Sheng Hong took Wei Shuyi's hand and said.
Then he couldn't help but sigh and complained a few times.
However, Wei Shuyi spoke kindly for Wang Ruofu: "The eldest lady is kind-hearted by nature, and she has no palace. In addition, she was thinking about blood and family ties, so she was confused for a moment and was bewitched by the Kang Wang family. But after all, the eldest lady's intentions are good. You just meant well but did the wrong thing!"
"You can do bad things with good intentions. She is just stupid, confused, short-sighted, and selfish. She was incited to become a gunman with just a few words. Can the usury money be released casually?" Sheng Hong said angrily.
After scolding Wang Ruofu several times in succession, Sheng Hong finally vented the anger in his heart.
Things like loan sharking are big or small, but luckily they have been found out before anyone is killed. If one day they really force someone to death, I'm afraid...
Wei Shuyi's heart suddenly froze, and he showed a slightly shocked expression, and said with some disbelief: "My lord, have you ever thought that the eldest lady and the Kang Wang family are the biological sisters of the same mother, and the two sisters came from the Wang family? He is also from a scholarly family and has been a long-time official, but why didn’t Mr. Kang make usury money on his own, instead of instigating the eldest lady to do so?”
Sheng Hong was stunned when he was asked. He obviously hadn't thought about this question. He frowned and looked at Wei Shuyi and asked, "What do you mean?"
Wei Shu said, "I'm just guessing. Our Sheng family wants fields and shops. Every year, there are countless gold, silver, jewelry, and silks sent to Youyang's house. Logically speaking, there are no Short of money.
I heard that when the eldest lady got married, the dowry was quite generous, and our family is not large, so even if there are some welcomes and gifts, it will not be so difficult to make ends meet. "
Wei Shuyi calmly analyzed that in the past, Wei Shuyi would never have thought about these things, and even if he had thought of them, he would not have spoken out.
But after experiencing life and death, and struggling to come back from hell, Wei Shuyi's character changed.
Originally, Wei Shu wanted to neither fight nor snatch, be neither humble nor overbearing, and accept the situation. He just wanted to survive in the cracks and that his family could live in peace and stability. But after experiencing the incident where he almost killed two people, Wei Shu I understand that she has long been a thorn in the side of some people, a thorn in their flesh, and I wish I could get rid of them quickly. If I still accept the situation as before, I am afraid that one day in the future, I will face that kind of experience again.
Although non-dispute and inaction are still on the surface, Wei Shuyi has already begun to change her ways to unknowingly increase her status in Sheng Hong's heart.
In the past, she could not fight for the safety of her children, but now she has to fight for their safety as well.
Although the reasons are the same, the results and methods are completely different.
"Are you saying that Prince Kang has ulterior motives?" Sheng Hong stared at Wei Shu and asked.
Wei Shuyi said with a nervous look on his face: "My lord, forgive me, I had no intention of provoking anything. But other than that, I really can't think of any other reason why I would let a full-blooded sister from the same mother, Instigate your sister to do such a sinful thing as putting away printing money!"
Seeing Wei Shuyi's panicked look, Sheng Hong quickly hugged Wei Shuyi into his arms and comforted her softly: "I'm sorry, don't be nervous. I don't mean to blame you!"
"The Kang family has been in decline for a long time, and my brother-in-law made shady remarks in the court in the early years, offending many people, and even offended the officials, and even lost his job. All these years, he used the dowry of Prince Kang's family Money has caused him to be unable to hold his head high in front of Prince Kang. Could it be because of this..."
Sheng Hong stopped mid-sentence. If the Kangwang family was really short of money, they could have borrowed money by themselves. Why did he encourage his own sister to do so?
Sheng Hong, who has been in the officialdom for many years and is used to intrigues and intrigues, can't help but think about things in the worst direction. If it were another person, Sheng Hong might not think so, but Kang and Wang...
Thinking of the various behaviors of the Kangwang family over the years, Sheng Hong couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart. His back felt faintly cold, and cold sweat seemed to be oozing out.
If you don't think deeply about some things, they may just pass by, but once you think about them deeply, they often make people shudder.
"She is the eldest lady's biological sister, how could she?" But as soon as the idea came up, Sheng Hong found it unbelievable. How could any sister in the world think so of her own biological sister?
But when thinking about Wang Wang's character and his actions over the years, Sheng Hong couldn't help but think about this aspect.
The more I don’t want to believe it, the more I feel that this possibility is real!
"The most difficult thing to predict in the world is the human heart!" Wei Shuyi hugged Sheng Hong from behind, "Even the melons grown on the same vine are all different, let alone people."
Feeling the charm behind him, Sheng Hong didn't have any desire in his heart. He grabbed Wei Shuyi's hand, pulled it in front of him, and held him in his arms, silently.
Wei Shu said: "It doesn't matter at the moment. As long as the beginning and end are dealt with, it will be fine. And after this incident, the lady will not dare to do it again. The master should focus on the court now. Now The reserve position is vacant, and the official family has not yet made a decision. The more this time comes, the more cautious the ruler should be, the words and deeds, restrain the children in the family, and do not talk too much about the matter of establishing the heir apparent. In the future, regardless of the official family's wishes Which clan can’t affect the future of the lord and the second brother is what matters!”
"You're right, the more it is at this time, the less likely it is to make any mistakes!" Sheng Hong said with deep understanding, but then he changed his voice and talked about Wang Ruofulai again: "It's just that Wang is confused, now She made another mistake, if I let her manage the house again, I'm afraid something will happen again!"
Wei Shuyi is a smart person, and he is also very observant. After listening to Sheng Hong's words, he knew that Sheng Hong had made up his mind: "It is true that the eldest lady is wrong, but now that the master scolds her like this, she must also know that she is wrong. , as long as the master exerts more restraint, there will be no more mistakes!"
Sheng Hong frowned slightly, looked at Wei Shuyi intently, and asked, "Why do you speak for Mr. Wang like this?"
Wei Shuyi said softly: "I am not speaking for the eldest lady, but for the Sheng family. Now that the old lady is old and her energy is not as good as before, it is not good for officials to let the old lady take care of the house at this time." !”
"My mother is old, so it's hard to bother her with these mundane matters anymore!" Sheng Hong nodded.
"The second brother and the third brother are not yet married, and the girls in the family are still young. Now it is the critical moment for the court to establish the heir apparent. The city of Tokyo is already in a whirlpool, and the lord has just suffered something in the palace. Although this kind of suffering has passed now, there is no guarantee that there are still many pairs of eyes staring at the Sheng family outside.
Especially those who are eager for the success of their master's career and the success of their nephews. Are they waiting to break down the door and make mistakes so that they can step on them? The more times like this, the less we ourselves can make mistakes, even if we really encounter problems at home. Nothing should have happened to the outside world, what do you think, Lord? "
Sheng Hong was stunned by Wei Shuyi's words, and then he reacted. He nodded immediately and said with deep approval: "Shuyi is really my good wife. At this time, it is better to be still than to move. It is really not good." What's going on?"
Wei Shu said thoughtfully: "The master is busy with things outside, and there will inevitably be times of neglect at home. Although the old lady cannot directly manage the house, if the master goes to Shou'an Hall in person and asks the old lady to help keep an eye on the eldest lady, then It’s for the sake of the prosperous family, and the old lady will definitely not refuse.”
The more Sheng Hong listened, the brighter his eyes became. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that what Wei Shuyi said made sense. He immediately grabbed Wei Shuyi's hand with some excitement and said with a smile on his face: "It's a pity that Wei Shuyi is a woman. If it were a man, how could it be so?" With Xun Yi’s clever strategies, if he becomes an official, he will surely rise to the top.”
Wei Shuyi also smiled slightly and said softly: "The master is a fan of the authorities, and care will lead to chaos. Otherwise, with the master's wisdom and strategy, he would have figured out the key point long ago."
The cold moonlight poured into the room from the window. He stretched out his hand and could vaguely see his fingers in the darkness. Sheng Hong looked at Wei Shuyi's faintly beautiful face and sweet smile, and most of the worries, anger and doubts in his heart dissipated. .
Early the next morning, Sheng Hong went straight to Shou'an Hall, paid his respects to Mrs. Sheng, told Mrs. Sheng everything about the incident, and sincerely begged Mrs. Sheng to come forward.
These things had reached Mrs. Sheng's ears as early as yesterday, but Sheng Hong's reaction was somewhat beyond Mrs. Sheng's expectations.
Sheng Hong didn't hide anything from the old lady and said that it was Wei Shu who woke him up.
Mrs. Sheng nodded when she heard this and said: "This Wei family is a sensible governor! He knows how to think about the Sheng family! He is very thoughtful!"
Originally, Old Mrs. Sheng planned to let Minglan take over the family's middle-feeder management for a period of time, letting the Wang family suffer, and then return the official power to the Wang family after Changbai's bride entered the family, but Sheng Hong listened Having said that, the old lady also felt that Wei Shuyi's suggestion was quite reasonable.
"Forgiveness is always good!" Sheng Hong also said with deep understanding.
Mrs. Sheng couldn't help but add another sentence: "Now that you know she is a good person, you should treat her better. Her life is not easy. She almost lost her life in order to give birth to children for you. Now, She considers you and the Sheng family so much, you must never let her down again!"
"Son, remember your mother's teachings!" Sheng Hong said respectfully.
"And that Kang Wang family, I have said a long time ago that even my own sister can scheme against her, let alone our Sheng family!" Speaking of Kang Wang family, Mrs. Sheng's face showed a bit of stern anger.
"My son made an oversight!" Sheng Hong had a very upright attitude and immediately admitted his mistake.
Old Mrs. Sheng said: "Then Kang Wang is not a good person. Now his husband has lost his official position, his son has reached old age, and there is no result in studying for the imperial examination. Such a plot against your wife is just to get some leverage against our Sheng family. In my hands, I'm forcing you, Chang Bai, and me, an old woman, to do something for her! Just be used by her and become a chess piece in her hands."
It has to be said that the old lady is used to wind and rain. As soon as Sheng Hong said it, the old lady guessed Wang Wang's intentions.
Sheng Hong thought of this possibility when Wei Shuyin mentioned it last night. Now that he heard even the old lady say this, he couldn't help but sigh and begged again: "Wang is confused, so the Sheng family can't live without mother." !”
(End of chapter)
