Old things in the Red Chamber

It is said that keeping filial piety is 27 months. Around the Mid-Autumn Festival, Mrs. Tong took off Lin Daiyu's clothes, asked the craftsmen in the family to make jewelry, and asked a few servants who were good at embroidery to make good clothes. Go out to socialize.

Marriage between a man and a woman is naturally a family with hundreds of women asking, and there are several households who take Lin Daiyu out and ask her about her marriage. Not to mention that Mrs. Tong doesn't care about others, it's just that when they heard that they were going to adopt their son, First retreated.

On the side of the King of Beijing Jing, it seemed that he did not give up. In September, Mr. Liu, the new elder, spread a lot of posts and invited people to enjoy the chrysanthemums. Mrs. Tong thought that Liu Ge was always from Hanlin, and Mrs. Lin used to be from Hanlin. For the people in the courtyard, the wives of the same year or Tongke’s family were naturally present for the banquet at their house this time. It’s more or less a kind of incense, and I took Lin Daiyu to meet her. When she leaves the cabinet, it can be regarded as one or two connections. .

Unexpectedly, there are so many people coming this time, including Qingliu nobles and clans.

Mrs. Liu invited everyone to stay on the double corridor bridge. At this time, the wives and wives of some status are naturally inside the bridge, and the wives of other small official families are around the lake.

Seeing the crowd, Mrs. Tong took Lin Daiyu to find a slightly remote place to sit. Sitting at the next table was Qi Jingan's cousin, who was also a child of the eldest princess, holding a little girl in her arms. A secluded corner to coax the children.

"Why didn't my cousin come?" Qi Jing'an's cousin asked Mrs. Tong in a low voice while holding the child.

"Recently, she became pregnant, and the imperial doctor told her to rest, and she dared not work her."

"That's a good relationship. Next year, my wife will have a grandson."

"I accept your good words."

Just as they were talking, Princess Beijing and Princess Nan'an entered the covered bridge hand in hand, and many female relatives stood up to welcome the two.After a ceremony, a nun next to Princess Beijing came to invite Daiyu.

"Our concubine met the wife of Rongguo Mansion a few days ago. Speaking of the girl, she felt very kind, and wanted to invite the girl to talk."

Mrs. Tong stood up, "It's time to greet the princess. Dai'er, aunt will take you with me."

Princess Beijing is as polite as King Beijing, and her speech makes people feel like a spring breeze, which makes Mrs. Tong feel that as expected, any pot should be equipped with a cover. Her master is not particular, and she can't be particular about it.The prince is impeccable, and the concubine is also considerate in every way.

Princess Beijing was sitting in the middle of the covered bridge. All the concubines and concubines of the royal family were sitting here, and there was also the wife of this important minister's family. They were all seated in the position of women based on the status of men.

Mrs. Tong sat next to an old concubine of the clan, and started gossiping with everyone, but it was Princess Beijing who pulled Lin Daiyu and asked her what she likes to eat and play with.I also saw that Lin Daiyu was wearing a pair of bracelets inlaid with gold and jade on her arms, which was too plain.He was about to give Daiyu a bracelet in his hand as a gift.

These days, when female relatives meet, if Mrs. Tong is old enough to give a gift to a little girl, if it is a hairpin or a bracelet on her head, it means that the two families will get married. This is a token of verbal marriage.If you don't intend to get married, you have to give gifts in pairs, which is a table gift.Princess Beijing is not very old, she is only a few years older than Daiyu. She pulls a person of the same age and wants to give a personal item as a gift. Either it is a token for her husband, or the relationship between the two is good enough and intimate Yes, it is simply to send something you like to your best friend or little sister.

There are many twists and turns here. When Madam Tong first came to the capital, her eyes were smeared. Fortunately, the mother-in-law on the side of Princess Anyang gave her a set of common sense to show respect to the younger generation. Otherwise, I don’t know what to do. What a joke.

Mrs. Tong observed this and that side deeply. At this moment, she frowned as she watched Princess Beijing take off an eight-treasure bracelet directly from her arm. When Lin Daiyu couldn't refuse to look at it, she smiled and said to the princess, "Why? Let the princess give up her love, the princess looks at the gold and silver locks, and rewards her no matter what she has."

"It's nothing, it's just because there are a few precious stones on it, I don't usually like this, it's a pity to leave it for nothing, and it's good to give it to my sister. When I saw my sister, I felt destined, and I haven't read it yet. A few pages of books, and I like a girl like my younger sister who is full of poetic and literary spirit."

Mrs. Tong thought to herself, who is your sister, who is disgusting with your broken bracelet? If you really give the bracelets sincerely, it should be a pair, and who will show it to the second wife as a reward.He also said, "Princess is too polite. Our child only likes some wood and jade, and he doesn't like gold bracelets. I have to say it several times before I hang up a pair. You, keep it for other people." Right." For Madam Tong, who has a bit of a temper, speaking so peacefully is already holding back her anger, if she hadn't cared about the child's reputation, she would have had a fight with the princess today.

Princess Beijing knew that it would be too deliberate to continue, so she let go of Lin Daiyu's hand and let her go back to Mrs. Tong. Lin Daiyu had a delicate heart, and she had already understood a little bit. She turned pale and leaned on Mrs. Tong After sitting down, Mrs. Tong thought that she couldn't stay any longer today, she might as well go home to comfort the child.

Here I looked up and looked around, looking for Mrs. Liu Ge's wife to say goodbye, but saw Mrs. Liu Ge's eldest daughter-in-law leading the female family members of the Rongguo Mansion. The first one was Mrs. Wang, with two girls, one was a historian. Lord Hou's niece, Xiangyun, is a concubine named Tanchun.Mrs. Tong saw them a few days ago and recognized these two girls.

The Rongguo Mansion and the four kings of different surnames in Kyoto have always been friends. When they arrived at the covered bridge, several other mansions also stood up to greet them. Mrs. Wang took two girls to greet the royal concubines first, and then to the kings of different surnames. Concubine Wang pays her respects. Madam Tong watched coldly. Concubine Beijing and the other three concubines with different surnames gave generous gifts to Jia Tanchun and Shi Xiangyun. A girl passed by for a while, and handed it directly to the servant woman who followed from Rongguo Mansion.

Mrs. Wang met with several other families. As soon as she sat down, she saw Lin Daiyu coming to pay her respects. Everyone looked at this place. Mrs. Wang kindly invited her to get up. Wen Yan said a few words to Lin Daiyu, looked at Madam Tong took her away.

The more Mrs. Tong thought about it when she returned home, the more she felt that there was something she could say in it. It was hard for her to hide her words. She had an old habit of going to her daughter-in-law Qi Jingan to talk about it. However, Qi Jingan has been a little lethargic in recent days. She was sleeping beautifully, Madam Tong had no choice but to carry Furong to her yard, put the two sisters together, and watched them play on the couch.

When Jia Gu came home in the evening, Mrs. Tong dragged him to mutter for half the night. After two days at the court meeting, King Bei Jing noticed that Jia Gu was looking at him with his eyes squinted, with a calm expression.King Beijing has always been a king of idleness, good karma, and kind to others. Seeing Jia Gu looking at him, he nodded slightly with a smile, which is regarded as a greeting, but he is handsome, tall and tall, and has a good bearing. How do you think of it? He's a man of all talents.Looking at this valiant sergeant, who was praised by everyone, through the lanterns and torches of several houses, Jia Gu bowed his hands and bowed, as a return of the salute.

Mrs. Tong, who told Jia Gu what had happened, was relieved a lot. She trusted Jia Gu very much, and she was sure that she had stabbed her outside, and Jia Gu would clean up the mess for her.It's like when she first arrived in the capital, she didn't pay attention to Shi Taijun, which caused Jia Gu to come forward to compensate Jia Amnesty and Jia Zheng brothers for wine.

Madam Tong, who was relieved a lot, took care of Furong, thinking that the nine princes in the palace were almost one year old now, and two princesses were born in succession in the palace this year. At present, the emperor with only three princes under his knees is still more Rare princes.Although concubines in the palace were not as favored as last year, they were not neglected. The emperor went to the Pixiang Hall every now and then, and he was lucky enough to visit concubines three or five days a month.

In addition, recently, one of the newly-appointed cabinet, Mr. Liu Ge, is especially good at flattering people. He has raised a few righteous daughters, all of whom are talented and beautiful. He offered six of them in one go. When they arrive in the palace, they are all low-level The concubines were scattered in the palaces of concubines everywhere, because there is no little prince in Hefei, until now, no other concubines have lived in Pixiang Palace.Not only her palace, but also the palace where the prince was born is a private courtyard.Aroused the envy and jealousy of many people.

This time Licorice went to collect the fee for the Pixiang Palace, and when she came back, she specially said to Concubine He: "Your servant, look, that noble Liu who has just entered the palace has eyebrows and eyes that look like a queen's empress."

The master and the servant looked at each other, and they both made up their minds that the cat was in the palace, not going anywhere, and devoted themselves to raising the Ninth Prince.

As the saying goes, the tree wants to be quiet but the wind does not stop, so the senior concubines in the palace dare not take the lead. Concubine Jia Gui, who recently wanted to adopt a princess, is also honest, but the family of Liu Ge's goddaughters dominates.

When the fourth concubine met to check the palace expenses, Concubine Xian complained, "There are no tigers in the mountains, and monkeys are called kings."

That is to say, no one dared to challenge the emperor before he understood the meaning of the emperor, for fear of becoming a rafter in the early stage.

For the Gu family outside the palace, there is a happy event. The eldest son of the Gu family, Gu Erye, was finally transferred back to the capital after 12 years of exile. In the second half of the civilian ranks.Fourth Master Gu went out of the city to pick him up. When he arrived at the gate of Gu's house, several young masters from Gu's family came out to pick him up. The family reunited for a day.

On the second day, the eldest aunt of the Gu family and the second grandmother of the Gu family handed over the sign to the palace together. The queen met her very simply this time, met her sister-in-law, and said directly, "I'm going to become a monk."

Her sister-in-law was so shocked that she didn't know what to say.

No matter what their reaction was, the queen submitted a form to the emperor to ask for abolishment, and the emperor smashed the study immediately angrily.The concubines in the palace were even more arrogant.

Who knows, Liu Ge's adopted daughter who looks like a queen gave the emperor an idea. "The monks are the most compassionate. I heard that there are children from poor families who can't support them. They wrap the children and put them at the gate of the temple. I beg the monks or aunts to save the child's life for the sake of the Buddha. .”

The emperor heard this, and immediately went to the Pixiang Hall. At that time, the concubine and the concubine did not know the emperor's plan. In the Pixiang Hall, the Ninth Prince was feeding supplementary food. The Ninth Prince was sitting on the couch with his mouth open and his eyes staring at him. Holding the bowl, staring at it eagerly, with a bulging belly.Seeing his own father coming in, he got up with his little ass pouted, and every time he moved, he could see the flesh on his body shaking, stretching out his arms for a hug, his whole body was round and chubby like a wax gourd.

As soon as the emperor gritted his teeth, he turned his head and went out. When he arrived at He Meiren's palace, he hugged the three-month-old little princess and handed it over to the servant. Blow, wow, wah, wah, wah, started to cry, at first the queen could bear it, but after a while, there was no crying outside the palace gate, and the nuns came to report that the child was still outside, so the queen asked to check, whose child was still there? To whom.

He Meiren's daughter was carried away on her front foot, but she was rewarded with a concubine on her back foot, and her father and brother in the family were rewarded countless times.The nanny in the queen's palace sent the child back, but she didn't dare to continue, she fell on the ground and cried loudly, begging the queen to save the princess' life.

There was no way, the mother carried the child back, although it was tightly wrapped, after all, it had been blown on the wind for a long time, and the little princess became hot shortly after she arrived in front of the queen. Nie Yuan."

Acquiescing to the little princess to stay in the palace, and sent someone to recruit the imperial doctor and the doctor's daughter. After this ordeal, the little princess didn't recover well for half a month, crying heartbreakingly all day long, and the queen's scriptures could not be read any longer. After guarding her for four or five days, the emperor was overjoyed when he found out, and even the Gu family outside the palace breathed a sigh of relief.

After this incident, Concubine He was so frightened that she hugged her son and dared not close her eyes for two or three nights, for fear that if she fell asleep, the emperor would throw the Ninth Prince in front of the empress palace gate.

The entire palace, from concubine Jia to the low-level beauties, all looked at Meili Liu with admiration, and the Empress Dowager also deliberately brought Meili Liu to her front when she was paying her respects one day, to take a closer look at what this femme fatale looked like.

Right now, no one dared to steal Liu Meiren's limelight, making her overwhelm the favored concubine He and the fourth concubine who held the power in the palace.She put on a virtuous appearance, smiling at everyone she saw.

Outside the palace, the eldest aunt of the Gu family made a special trip back to her mother's house and talked to her two younger brothers about the matter, "Although there are rumors that the mother does not bring up family matters, I think the crux of the problem is still dying. The three princes. But the dead cannot be brought back to life. Now the two of them are like this, and now the mother is thirty, and it depends on fate to have another child. Why don't the fourth brother go to the palace to beg the emperor, and remember the little princess in the palace. Under the name of the empress, the status of mother and daughter is confirmed, and it also makes the empress think about it."

The second master of the Gu family thinks this method is feasible, but the fourth master thinks that there is no need to enter the palace, "Your Majesty has been in our house for more than ten years and has been married to Your Majesty for more than ten years. We treat Your Majesty close, how do you know that His Majesty treats Your Majesty not? If Your Majesty doesn't Your Majesty, I have ignored her for a long time, didn't you see that? It is His Majesty who prevents your Majesty from becoming a monk, so let's not worry too much about it, after all, it is a couple's business."

Having said that, the second master of the Gu family was about to speak when he heard a burst of crying outside the yard. The voice was that of the concubine's little brother, who is only eight years old now.His biological mother was a maidservant, and a woman outside scolded him as a "boy raised by a girl". Hearing this, Fourth Master Gu became angry, Second Master Gu stood up, and said to the maid at the door, "Look who scolded Xiao Shi'er, bring him here. "

No need to ask, it was naturally the old nuns beside the stepmother.Gu Erye also knew.Sighing, "While my sister and fourth brother are here, I have something to tell you. I will write a letter to let my fifth brother inherit my father's title."

One episode after another of the big drama in Kyoto, many people watch it, and many people don't watch it.

In November, it was Jia Zheng's birthday, and the invitation was released to the Marquis of Zhongwu. As usual, Jia Gu would not go back. Jia Xuan thought that it would be the same as before, and he would come back after showing his face. Who knew that this time it could not be like this.

He first escorted Lin Daiyu's carriage, looked into the second gate, turned around and went to Jia She to pay his respects, but Jia She was not at home, so he had to go to Rongguo Mansion with gifts. Seeing that he was much more energetic, Jia Xun saw that he seemed to be different from the past today, so he exchanged a few words with him, and watched Chang Sui and the cashier of Rongguo Mansion handing over gifts to him, he stood and asked, "Is there any happy event today?" ? Looking at the red face?"

Jia Lian looked around, but there was no one around, so he put his arms around Jia Xun's shoulders, "It's really a good thing, I told Brother Xun, but you are not allowed to tell your sister-in-law."

As soon as Jia Xuan heard that it was his private matter and related to his wife, she didn't want to know, and pushed him, "Don't tell me, if your family knows, you will blame me."

"Hey, brother, don't think too much about it. It's not a big deal. It's just that our house is a rouge tiger. It's easy to see me and my mother talk a few words and get jealous. I only want to keep this matter from her." That's all." Leaning over to Jia Xun, "In our house, there is a little daughter-in-law whose flesh is the most ecstasy. My brother didn't do it a few days ago, but today he finally got what he wanted, don't you think? A beautiful thing?"

Seeing his joyful look, Jia Xun had no choice but to persuade him, "Rabbits don't even eat grass by the side of their nests. If the servants in your mansion find out that you insulted his wife, there will be trouble in the house. Besides, this In the mansion, those servants who know the secrets of the lord’s house are these servants, if they intend to take revenge..."

"Brother Xun thinks too much, that bastard, as long as he has money, he will go to gamble, or buy wine to eat, his wife has already turned him into a big bastard, no one in this house knows. "

Jia Xun was dumbfounded at the chaos in Rongguo Mansion.

Jia Lian put his arms around his shoulders and walked towards the main room, and asked him with a silvery smile, "Do you want my brother to call you for you to see? Don't worry, I won't recognize you when you leave the door of our house." .Her white flesh, as soon as it touches..."

"Anyway, you are also a man, you should have some respect, you can keep it for yourself. I have seen the Mr. Zheng of your mansion, and I will go back. If I am busy at night, I will ask someone to pick up my cousin. If I am not busy, I will come in person catch."

"Don't don't, brother Xun, you can't leave today no matter if you have something to do or not. The old lady is waiting for you. Come with me to see the master, and go to see the old lady together."

Shi Taijun waited until Jia Sui, and called him happily, took a tortoiseshell glasses, and looked at him from head to toe, "It can be regarded as coming to see my old lady, and I don't come here on weekdays. The old lady misses you too much." can not see you."

Jia Huan could only smile apologetically.

Shi Taijun pulled him, "How are your two girls? I heard that Xuan'er is smart. I just heard from Lin girl that Furong is also strong. When will you bring me to see?"

Jia Xuan had no choice but to say that it is cold now, and he is afraid that the child will be blown away. In the coming year, he will bring it to the old lady for a day.

Shi Taijun didn't hold on to this matter any longer, "Help my wife, let's go around the yard and garden, you can stay with me for dinner today, you don't have to go out to drink with those elders anymore."

Someone was sent to the garden to spread the message, telling the girls in each yard not to run around, and some men from the same family came to see the garden.Jia Huan thought it was inappropriate at first, but Shi Taijun just said, "It's all your sisters, what's wrong, before I moved in, I specially sent invitations to you and your father, and you two didn't come, now you take a look That's okay, after all, it's the glory of the whole family."

She was getting old, and Jia Xun didn't dare to struggle because she was pulling Jia Xun because she was afraid that something would happen. The grandparents and grandchildren went to the Grand View Garden with the maid and mother-in-law.

"Close the door and look outside first." After Shi Taijun ordered, several powerful women stepped forward and closed the gate of the Grand View Garden.

From the outside, it looks solemn and solemn, and Jia Huan praised it as "unconventional."

When I opened the gate, I saw the Taihu Lake rocks piled up with rocks, stacked quite imposingly, and even at the bottom of the stones, there was a stream gurgling.It imitates the image of mountains and flowing water.

"How does Xi'er look?"

"Embracing the mountains and accepting the water, people who have hills and valleys in their chests can't put on such a posture. Looking at this stone screen, I have some expectations for the scenery of the garden."

Shi Taijun smiled complacently, stretched out his hand for Jia Xuan to support, and led the people in through the small path among the chaotic rocks. The plantains are all somewhat decent.Aside from other things, just talking about this garden, even though I only saw a little bit, Jia Huan felt that it was really a good garden.

Seeing the admiration on Jia Xun's face, Shi Taijun signaled the people following him to take a few steps back, leaned on him from a distance, and supported Jia Xun's hand, "This is also because of the honor of the two empresses, this respectable."

Jia Xie pulled his eyes from the scenery of the garden and listened carefully to Shi Taijun's words. He never dared to underestimate this man. Now that he is over 60, his eyes are not blind, his ears are not deaf, and his teeth are not loose. He has seen the world and experienced a lot , has a somewhat "old but not dead is a thief" appearance.

"Although there are two empresses in the palace, time passes quickly, and the emperor's favor cannot last long. In the end, I still have to rely on you brothers."

Jia Huan didn't speak, just looked at the road under her feet, and it was Shi Taijun who supported her, and when she let her go, she should feel more comfortable and calm.

"The old lady also knows that your old man blames me, and I don't say anything, but Mr. Xianguo, I have nothing to say about being nice to him. You can ask him later, is it true?"

Jia Xuan nodded quickly, and Shi Taijun didn't ask him to express his opinion, "The truth is that you are all the blood of the Duke of the country. Now, the nine princes in the palace and your brothers are close relatives. Don't talk about etiquette. Etiquette is nothing more than human feelings, so if the Ninth Prince encounters difficulties in the future, won't your family reach out to help him?"

In the pavilion in front, Shi Taijun was tired from walking, and sat on the stone pier with Jia Xun's hand, motioning for Jia Xun to sit down too. "In this mansion, I'm old too, and I only think about you in this generation, so as not to lose the reputation of the Duke of the country. I only want to tell you this. Your uncle and aunt always want to let the imperial concubine give birth to a son." The half-daughter came, the old woman thought for a long time, the imperial concubine is getting old, and it is okay to raise her in the palace now, and it depends on God's will to toss the child, it is better to raise the Ninth Prince together with the concubine, will the Ninth Prince not care about her in the future? No. It's just that Wang's vision is rough and short-sighted, and he can't see the long-term. The old woman is also old, and he can persuade her for a few years. The affairs in the palace are half dependent on God's will and half on man-made. Although the Ninth Prince has two older brothers, they are both The shoulder-to-shoulder brothers are not much apart in age. In the next few decades, they will have the strength to fight. It’s just that I’m getting older and I can’t see it anymore. But your father and son, especially you, Xun’er, you are in your prime. For the sake of my father-in-law, don't stand by and watch."

Jia Huan naturally didn't tell her the truth, and said, "You are still in good health. It will not be too late to say this in another 20 or 30 years. Besides, we are all courtiers, and some things are the affairs of the heavenly family. We shouldn't interfere, let alone have other thoughts."

Naturally, Shi Taijun would not expect him to confide in him. If Jia Xun broke his heart and soul with just one or two words, it would not be Jia Xun.The grandparents and grandchildren stood up, changed the subject, came out of the pavilion, and went to the inside of the garden.

They are now standing in Qinfang Pavilion, to the left is Yihong Courtyard, to the right is the Xiaoxiang Pavilion, and to the right is Qiushuangzhai.Shi Taijun said, "Yihong Courtyard is your brother Bao's yard, let's go there to rest."

The two walked to the left, got out of the pavilion, walked along a bluestone road, and saw a yard in front of them from a distance.Jia Xun saw that there was no one around, and he was alert just now, and the place where they were talking was also in a condescending place, so he didn't worry about their words being leaked out.Rest assured, Shi Taijun said what he wanted to say, and the grandparent and grandson regained the interest of visiting the garden, talking about the scenery on both sides while walking.

Looking at the building in front of him and Jia Baoyu's yard, Jia Xun asked, "Is there any yard in this garden that is wider and more comfortable than this?"

Shi Taijun patted his hands, "Only the yard here is the most comfortable."