With Emperor Zhengyuan opening Jinkou, Shen Yao's marriage was put on hold, and the Shen family breathed a sigh of relief.
On the surface, Xiao Tao's position as prince is very stable. The third prince was born indifferently, the fourth prince is weak, the seventh prince is stationed at the border all year round and is away from Beijing, and the fifth and sixth princes are both princelings... It seems that he can compete with Xiao Tao. There are almost no people competing for the throne.
But Shen Yuan knew very well that among those born in the Heavenly Family, who would be the most economical person?
If everyone is willing to be a virtuous king who assists the emperor, where will the undercurrents in the court come from, and where will his daughter meet the prince from time to time?
But no matter what, everything will wait until next year. On the second day of the Little Grand Palace Banquet, Emperor Zhengyuan held a sealing ceremony, and all offices in Tiansheng were also officially sealed, thus starting the month-long annual holiday.
As the New Year approaches, it snows heavily in Kyoto for several days. The elderly people are saying, "Auspicious snow heralds a good harvest, and next year will be another good one."
On New Year's Eve, Shen Zhuo was awakened by a deafening burst of firecrackers early in the morning.
Shen Zhuo shrank into the bed, covered his ears with the quilt, and shouted angrily: "Ying'er, go and get this person out!"
Lan Cao stepped forward to pull up the bedclothes and said with a smile: "I can't hold it, so I have run away. It was the fifth young master who was naughty and ran away just after he threw a bunch of firecrackers. He was going around the yard throwing firecrackers early this morning."
"Miss, I have to pay my respects to the master and his wife this morning. It's time for you to get up." With that, Lancao dug Shen Zhuo out of the bed.
Shen Zhuo leaned against the bedpost, sleepily letting Lan Cao dress her. When Shen Zhuo arrived at Tingsongju, as expected, she was the last one to arrive.
"Come here, come here, the fourth lady is here."
As soon as Shen Zhuo stepped into the courtyard gate, he heard a group of little girls happily passing messages into the main house. Shen Zhuo's face turned red. She was caught staying in bed again.
Lancao opened the door curtain, and before Shen Zhuo entered the house, he was surrounded by a warm atmosphere. On weekdays, the spacious and bright hall is full of twenty or thirty people, and everyone in the room is enjoying themselves.
Sitting on the main seat were Mr. and Mrs. Shen Yuan, and below them sat three aunts, five sons and four daughters. Many children bring happiness, and a house full of children is vividly interpreted at this moment.
Shen Zhuo walked into the house and greeted Princess Shen Yuan and Princess Pingyang.
Shen Yuan said with a straight face, "On New Year's Eve, the day when the family is reunited, you should also take a nap."
Shen Zhuo bowed his head obediently: "My daughter realizes her mistake."
Princess Pingyang glanced at Shen Yuan and said, "Since we are at home, there is no need to talk nonsense. The most important thing is to be comfortable and happy."
Princess Pingyang is not a person who sticks to vulgar principles. This can be seen from her taking care of Shen's mansion.
Shen Yuan had one wife, three concubines, five sons and five daughters. The composition of the population was complicated, but the whole family got along well with each other, and there was never any trouble in the back house. This all depends on Princess Pingyang's tolerance and wisdom in managing the family.
Mr. and Mrs. Shen Yuan are the most common and typical aristocratic marriage in Kyoto. After many considerations between the two families, the marriage was concluded under the advice of the matchmaker. Shen Yuan and Princess Pingyang almost had a blind marriage. They only met once or twice before the marriage. The only difference is that Shen Yuan chose the in-laws of Prince Zhao's Mansion himself, and he also put a lot of effort into marrying Princess Pingyang. Fortunately, the two of them were lucky. After their marriage, they were harmonious and very loving.
Shen Yuan's real concubines are Aunt Mei and Aunt Bai. Among them, Aunt Mei has been with him the longest. She was Shen Yuan's personal maid when he was a boy, and was also his maid when he found out about love. She was low-key and pragmatic, virtuous and hard-working, and she had a youthful friendship with Shen Yuan.
Before Shen Yuan got married, Prince Zhao's palace asked him to get rid of Aunt Mei, but Shen Yuan bluntly refused, making Prince Zhao furious and almost regretting the marriage. It was Princess Pingyang who came forward to persuade the prince. She said: "If he really does whatever he wants to do to Aunt Mei for me, such a cold-blooded and heartless person, then I will not marry her."
After Aunt Mei learned about it, she felt grateful to Princess Pingyang. After Shen Yuan's wedding, she abided by the rules and devoted herself to helping Princess Pingyang with various affairs, becoming a great help to Princess Pingyang. After Princess Pingyang gave birth to three sons and one daughter, Aunt Mei gave birth to daughter Shen Ting.
As for Aunt Bai, she is a special existence in Shen Mansion. Aunt Bai's name is Bai Gulida. She is the priest of the Boban tribe, a tribe in the Western Regions, and the most beautiful woman in the tribe. She has high eyebrows and deep eyes, with black hair and blue eyes. Her eyes can attract people's hearts. She is extremely charming and good at singing and dancing.
In order to seek the protection of the Tiansheng Dynasty, the Boban tribe sent Baigulida to Kyoto as a gift. It was not long after Shen Yuan was promoted to the chief minister of the cabinet, and his reputation was booming both in the court and among the people. It was also the time when Emperor Zhengyuan was most suspicious of Shen Yuan. In order to test Shen Yuan, he gave Baigulida to Shen Yuan as his concubine.
After that, Shen Yuan stayed in Baigulida's Zhufang Courtyard for three full months, drinking and drinking every day and singing every night. When you are awake, you will be with your friends, and when you are drunk, you will lie down on your beautiful face. Day after day, he was dissolute and did not even go to the morning court. It seems that he has changed from a strict and dignified minister to a prodigal son. Rumors also began to circulate that Shen Yuan was successful in his middle age and was proud and arrogant, but nothing could be said about it. Emperor Zhengyuan saw that he was too dissolute, so he ordered him to go to court. Only then did Shen Yuan walk out of Zhufangyuan.
Bai Gulida also became pregnant at that time, and soon gave birth to twins, Shen Yuan's youngest children, Shen Congzhi and Shen Taozhi. From then on, Shen Zhuo became a sister when she was seven years old.
Baigulida is so beautiful that her appearance is like a weapon. Not only can men be easily charmed by her, but even women can't resist her. At least it was hard for Shen Zhuo to resist. When she was young, in order to get another look at Aunt Bai, she often brought good things to make Aunt Bai happy.
Although Princess Pingyang had a grudge against Aunt Bai and had a natural rejection of women in her heart, she still felt pity for her. A woman who is trying to survive in a foreign country is often unable to help herself.
Although Zhufangyuan is the residence of Shen Mansion, Shen Yuan opened a special door so that people in Zhufangyuan can come and go freely without going through Shen Mansion. It is said in the world that Aunt Bai was favored by Shen Yuan, and there are even many folk tales about Shen Yuan doting on his concubines and destroying his wives.
Princess Pingyang spared all the greetings and greetings from her aunt. Aunt Bai hardly appeared in Shen Mansion throughout the year. She lived in Shen Mansion like an invisible person. Only during the New Year would she go to the main courtyard to gather with everyone. On the contrary, her twins like to run into various courtyards of Shen Mansion.
The two siblings are the youngest children in the family, seven years younger than Shen Zhuo, and they are extremely delicate and beautiful, even prettier than the children in the New Year pictures, so everyone in the Shen family dotes on them. The two brothers and sisters like to pester Shen Zhuo and Shen Xi the most, they are the perfect little overlords and backup candidates for the little witch.
"Jiaojiao, Jiaojiao, come on, let's set off firecrackers!" Shen Congzhi ran over dragging a bunch of firecrackers and pulled Shen Zhuo out.
"How many times have I told you to call me Fourth Sister! Fourth Sister!" Shen Zhuo knocked Shen Congzhi on the head angrily.
Shen Congzhi and Shen Taozhi had heard people around them call Shen Zhuo "Jiaojiao" since they were young, so they also called her "Jiaojiao". No matter how Shen Zhuo corrected them, it was useless. It's rare for Shen Zhuo to be a sister, but she has never heard her younger siblings call her "sister."
Shen Zhuo was pulled by Shen Congzhi to the lotus pond in Shen Mansion. At this time, the lotus leaves in the lotus pond had long since withered, leaving only the withered and yellow stems standing high and low in the water. The water was covered with a thin layer of ice. It contrasts with the withered yellow and deserted surroundings. Rather like a fine ink painting.
Shen Taozhi sat on Shen Xi's shoulder, lit fireworks in her hands, and was supported by Shen Xi as she trotted along the pond, her little face smiling brightly.
"Jiaojiao, Jiaojiao, please support me too." Shen Congzhi looked at his sister with envy.
Shen Zhuo silently glanced at Shen Congzhi, then at himself. Does fifth brother have any misunderstanding about himself?
Seeing Shen Zhuo's speechless face, Shen Sheng, who was standing by the side, laughed, picked up Shen Congzhi and lifted him onto his shoulders.
"The eldest brother will support you and run faster than the third brother and the others. Come on, sit still!"
With that said, Shen Sheng put Shen Congzhi on his shoulders and chased after Shen Xi. Shen Taozhi screamed and asked Shen Xi to speed up, and then Shen Xi jumped up and used Qinggong. Shen Sheng didn't show any weakness, he put his foot down and flew up.
Han Tao and Shen Wei set off a circle of fireworks by the lake. They held torches and lit the fireworks one by one. The colorful lights rose into the sky, blooming like flowers in full bloom.
Shen Yuan stood on the shore of the lake with his wife and concubines, watching the children playing around, with smiles and joy on his face.
Looking at the fireworks all over the sky, Shen Zhuo couldn't help but have delusional thoughts. It would be great if time could stay at this moment.
