Back to the ancient restaurant

Shen Linghua didn't seem to expect that the person sitting in the carriage would be Li Zi'an, seeing him come back with a big cart, her face was full of surprise.

When Li Zian was selected as a scholar, Shen Linghua regretted it for a while, but she couldn't hold back Xu Wantang's sweet talk.Later, I heard neighbors in the village gossiping that Li Zian had dropped out of school, and I was still grateful for my decision at that time.But now seeing Li Zi'an in a brocade robe, riding in a carriage and carrying so many things back to the village, and comparing it with Xu Wantang, who can only talk empty words, he immediately stands out.

Seeing that Li Zian also saw her, Shen Linghua wanted to say hello.Unexpectedly, the other party's gaze just passed her face, and then he patted the coachman on the shoulder to make him speed up and leave.Shen Linghua, who opened her mouth, was splashed with snow foam by the rear wheels of the carriage, and even the pink blue padded jacket embroidered with pink peach blossoms that was just made on her body was also splashed with snowflakes.The snowflakes stick to the cotton robe and melt quickly, and the spots of water stains on the blue cotton robe are very ugly.

Shen Linghua shook her arms around the hem of her clothes, her face turned pale with anger as she watched the carriage gradually go away, she stomped her feet hard and went home with a basket on her shoulders.

When Li Zian arrived home, Mrs. Li was frying chicken and fish for Chinese New Year in the kitchen with her two daughter-in-laws.Hearing the little grandson and the little granddaughter scrambling to shout "little uncle", Mrs. Li immediately put down the fence in her hand, wiped her hands on the apron carelessly, and walked out.Seeing that the young man standing outside turned out to be her own son, Granny Li felt sore and her eyes turned red.

Seeing Mrs. Li standing at the kitchen door with red eyes looking at him, Li Zian walked over with Li Wenyue in her arms.Reaching out to help Old Madam Li shave the messy hair from her sideburns behind her ears, she said with a smile, "Mother, what are you doing delicious? I could smell it at the door."

Mrs. Li glanced at the pile of things piled up by the door, and couldn't help asking distressedly: "The house is all ready, why did you buy so many things? How did you come back after such a long journey?"

Knowing that the old lady felt sorry for him, Li Zi'an replied with a smile: "I have been busy in the shop for the past few months, and I haven't been able to come back. It's not easy to be free. If I don't come back with something, I'm afraid my mother Get me out."

"You bastard, when did mother drive you out?"

The two chatted a few more gossips, and Mrs. Li saw that her youngest son was wearing thin clothes and hurriedly asked him to go inside to keep warm.

Li Zi'an responded, put Li Wenyue down in his arms, and walked to the kitchen door to say hello to his elder sister-in-law and second sister-in-law who were busy working in front of the stove.Seeing Mrs. Li's response, her eyes wandered, she didn't dare to look at him.Li Zian knew that she must still be upset because of the previous incident.Li Zi'an didn't take it seriously either, and walked towards the main room with a child on the left and right.

Inside the house, the old man was wearing a big padded jacket and was sitting on the small bench inside the door basking in the sun.Hearing Li Zian calling him, the old man just lazily raised his eyelids and nodded.A few potatoes and sweet potatoes were simmering in the charcoal basin. Li Wenshu let go of Li Zian's hand and pulled out one with the fire stick standing next to him, and gave it to Li Zian with the corn husk beside it.

"Uncle, this sweet potato was baked by grandpa early in the morning. I just ate one. It's sweet and delicious, uncle, try it soon."

Li Zian looked at Li Wenshu's big flickering eyes, and couldn't help reaching out and patting his head twice.Reaching out to take the sweet potatoes, Li Wenyue hurriedly moved a small stool from the side for Li Zian to sit down, and the two of them made one on the same leg, and they both stared wide-eyed and waited for Li Zian to peel the sweet potatoes for them.

"Don't let them eat too much. If you eat too much of this stuff, you won't be able to eat later." The old man said in a low voice as he looked at the three people whose heads were all put together, smoking his cigarette.Seeing that Li Wenshu was about to refute with puffy eyes, Father Li tapped the pipe and pot on the upper of his shoe and said, "It's useless to stare. Who ate too much the day before yesterday and cried in the middle of the night."

Li Zian didn't expect his father to speak, and he knew that eating too much sweet potato is really bad.After peeling the sweet potato, Li Wenshu and Li Wenyue took a symbolic bite, and stuffed them all into his mouth, making Li Wenshu's eyes go straight.

"Uncle, are you finished?" Li Wenshu held Li Zian's hand in disbelief, his eyes widened.

"Otherwise, let me feed you?" Li Zian was panting non-stop from being scalded by the hot sweet potatoes, and hearing what Li Wenshu said, he stuck his head in front of him, pouted to spit it out.

Seeing this, Li Wenshu was so disgusted by him, she wrinkled her little nose and jumped off Li Zi'an's lap, while hiding back, she said disgustedly: "Hey, uncle, you are so disgusting."

Li Zi'an was amused by Li Wenshu's expression, he hugged Li Wenyue and rushed towards Li Wenshu who was standing at the door, and the three of them played a game of cat and mouse in the yard.

Listening to the sound of the three people playing in the yard, Mrs. Li showed a rare smile on her face.Even Father Li, who was sitting at the door basking in the sun, looked at the big and small children in the yard, and the corners of his mouth involuntarily raised.

In the evening, when the tributes on the table were arranged, Father Li brought all the men in the family to worship the stove. Li Zi'an stood in the middle and followed the people in front of him to kneel and kowtow to the portrait of Lord Stove, watching his father post the The one-year-old Stove Lord's portrait was burned together with the paper-made horse, and he kept saying prayers to keep his family safe.After the paper horses were burnt, Father Li let the family share the sacrificial stove fruits placed on the table.

Because the weather was too cold, everyone packed up after eating and went back to their rooms.When Li Zian returned to the room, he found that the bedding on the bed had been changed, and the soft cotton quilt still had the special fragrance of being exposed to the sun.Li Zian took off his outer shirt and got into bed, listening to the cold wind outside, he couldn't help thinking of Li Hongshen in his mind.Thinking of his mean stepmother and his indiscriminate father, I really miss him.

……

When Li Hongshen returned home, it was already the twentieth of the twelfth lunar month. Looking at the scene of lanterns and festoons in the mansion, Li Hongshen was stunned for a moment before turning his head to look at the butler beside him, with questioning eyes.

The butler looked at Li Hongshen's expression, was stunned for a moment, and then bowed and replied: "Master, today is the day that the eldest lady and King Rui made a decision."

Hearing this, Li Hongshen's expression froze, and he looked at the butler with cold eyes like a cold sword.

Today, I have reached the age of knowing the destiny, but I have not yet established a prince.In order to compete for the big position, more than a dozen princes kept making small moves in private.Although it is not stated today, everything can be seen in the eyes.If the Li family is smart, they should remain neutral, and neither team can stand.Now that the Li family is married to King Rui, it is equivalent to being tied to King Rui.Although King Rui has the backing of Concubine Zhuang, his biological mother, and the Marquis of Zhen Guo, his holy will is unpredictable. Who can guarantee that one day when he is in a bad mood, he will not settle accounts with these princes.It's fine if King Rui wins, but if he loses, the Li family's marriage with King Rui is simply asking for death.

"Is father in the study?"

The butler was sweating from Li Hongshen's stare. Hearing this, he hurriedly bowed again and replied: "Yes, after seeing off the people from Prince Rui's Mansion, the master went to the study and hasn't come out yet."

Hearing what the housekeeper said, Li Hong walked towards Father Li's study with a cold face.

At this time, Li Bingcheng was writing in his study.Hearing footsteps coming from the door, he looked up to see that it was Li Hongshen and lowered his head again.

"Are you back?" Li Bingcheng asked with his head down.

"I saw my father."

After Li Hongshen met Li Bingcheng, he stood aside, squinting at his father's handwriting, which seemed to be a little better than before, but the person who wrote it became more and more confused.

After Li Bingcheng finished writing, he put down the pen, picked up the words he had just written, looked at them, and put them back on the table.

"Being out for so long, you have nothing to ask?"

"The matter has come to this point, what's the point of me asking again? Father still has something to order, and the child is exhausted from the journey. If the father has no order, the child will go back and rest first."

Li Bingcheng was so blocked by Li Hongshen that he had nothing to say.He waved to him and signaled him to go back and rest first.

Seeing this, Li Hongshen saluted Li Bingcheng again, then turned around and took Zhao Yang who was waiting at the door back to his Haoranxuan.

Xu Shi knew that he would be back in the next few days, so Haoranxuan's servants cleaned up the room early.Li Hongshen motioned for Zhao Yang to take Fu Gui'er down to rest, and he sat down at the table looking at the familiar and unfamiliar furnishings in the room, pinching his forehead wearily.

The marriage between King Rui and his younger sister is definitely a steel knife hanging over Li's house.Maybe one day it will fall, Li Hongshen doesn't believe that his father has been in the officialdom for decades and can't see the stakes in it, but he really can't understand the deep meaning of it.

After Li Hongshen took the family banquet with him, Zhao Yang brought Fu Guier to Li Hongshen's room with a gloomy expression in the evening.

"My lord, I heard from the servants in the mansion that the eldest lady's marriage to King Rui is a bit strange..."

Seeing Zhao Yang's complicated face, Li Hongshen frowned and asked, "What did you find out?"

Zhao Yang hesitated for a moment, then unconsciously scratched Fuguier's big head with his right hand, and then said after hesitating, "I heard from Mama Liu in the kitchen that Missy and Madam went to the banquet held by Marquis Zhenguo. What was the accident? I heard from Mother Liu that it was King Rui who helped me. A few days later, the holy decree gave the young lady to King Rui as his concubine."

Hearing this, Li Hongshen couldn't help but fell silent, always feeling that there was something wrong with this matter.It always feels like someone has designed it in advance...

Zhao Yang looked at his young master's face, and moved his lips as if he wanted to say something.

Li Hong looked at his expression deeply, and asked, "Have you heard anything else, let's talk about it together."

Zhao Yang raised his eyes to look at Li Hongshen, hesitated for a moment, lowered his head and said: "I heard from the servants in the mansion that Madam is helping you find a fiancée, and I heard that Madam is looking for her natal niece, and the master has no objection." ..."

Hearing Zhao Yang's words, Li Hongshen laughed back in anger.

This woman stretched her hands long enough, and she actually wanted to marry her niece and daughter from her natal family who lived in a poor family? !Li Hongshen, the niece of her natal family, met her once, not to mention her appearance, just her petty air filled him with disgust...

Now that woman is still delusional about finding him a wife like this, it seems that she really wants to completely change the Li family's surname.What's ridiculous is that his so-called father didn't respond to this, and it seemed that he couldn't tolerate him.That being the case, then he has nothing to miss!

"Try not to disassemble the things you brought back, and we will set off immediately after the Chinese New Year."

After Li Hongshen finished speaking, thinking of Li Zian's surprised expression when he saw him, he couldn't help showing a smile.