People who think I'm ugly are so sweet

In early March, Xie Ji, the second son of Xie Heng, the former chief assistant of the cabinet, went to Beijing with his wife and children to take up the post of Minister of Dali Temple.Although the Xie family's hometown is in Puzhou, they also have a rich foundation in Shangjing.Among them, the Xie family mansion was bestowed by the late emperor in the Ming Dynasty. After Xie Heng retired and returned home, only a few people were left to take care of it. Now, it has finally ushered in a new owner.

When Xie Ji served as the governor of Puzhou, his political achievements were outstanding. This time he took up the post of Minister of Dali Temple as soon as he came to Beijing, which shows how much he is valued today.Many people said that this Xie Ji might become the second chief minister of the Xie family's cabinet.Xie Ji had no concubines except his wife, Shangguan, and Xie Qingsu was their only son.What Xie Qingshen said is true, in a few years, Xie Qingsu is very likely to top the Qinghui list.

When Xie Ji returned to Beijing, officials from the DPRK and China came to congratulate him one after another. Xu Taihe and Xu Xuanying went there with gifts.And Xu Xilu, who was ignored by them, also received an invitation from Xie's mansion.

Then Xie Qingxin is really a person who knows how to enjoy pleasure, this time, he was actually placed in the painting boat on the Xunjiang River.There are two floors of the painting boat, with carved railings and jade bricks, cornices and brackets, during which the sound of Sheng Xiao and the noise of scholars and women are very gorgeous.The bright moon hangs high, there are countless boats and boats on the Xunjiang River, and the lights are scattered like stars.

Xu Xilu asked Jiu Dong to wait on the shore, and followed the steward of Qinghui Building to board the boat.Most of Xie Qingshen's guests are princes of well-known families in the capital. The difference from Prince Duan's Qionglin Banquet is that there are talented men, sons of generals, and ignorant dudes. Sitting, it seems that there is a lot of prejudice against each other.Fortunately, Xie Qingshen was able to deal with it, and everyone would not have any suspicions.

Xu Xilu bent down and stepped into Fangjin. For some reason, he saw Xie Qingsu in white at first sight.He sat in the main seat with Xie Qingxin, his temperament was out of this world, even though he was in a lively banquet, his whole body still looked quiet and cold.

"Brother Xilu!" Seeing Xu Xilu, Xie Qingshen hurriedly put down the wine glass in his hand, and stepped forward to greet him, "You are finally here! Sit down, brother, I have already prepared a seat for you."

Xu Xilu was pushed to sit beside Xie Qingsu, looking at the latter's side face like a jade carving, he felt a little guilty for no reason.

Xie Qingxin said cheerfully, "You two don't need my introduction, do you?"

"I don't need it." Xu Xilu asked awkwardly, "I haven't seen you for a few months, how is Brother Qingsu?"

Xie Qingsu even said with a hint of coolness in his voice, "It's still good."

As soon as these words came out, Xu Xilu only felt that the atmosphere between the two became more awkward.But Xie Qingxin didn't notice it, "You guys talk first, I'll go—hey, Third Young Master Rong, please come in quickly!" After saying that, he disappeared.Xu Xilu was not very familiar with the others at the table, and after a few pleasantries, there was no topic to talk about.The meal that Xu Xilu ate in Qinghui Building a few days ago caused him to regain a few pounds, and now he has to strictly control his diet.He barely moved his chopsticks, just drinking tea from a teacup while secretly observing the others.It's strange to say that Xu Xuanying didn't come to the banquet today, it's impossible that Xie Qingxin didn't invite him, could it be that he has other important matters?

Xie Qingsu didn't seem to have much appetite either, so he ate a little bit of the snack in front of him, eating more politely than the girl's.Seeing this, Xu Xilu picked up a piece of sweet-scented osmanthus cake that was placed far away for him, "The sweet-scented osmanthus cake from Qinghuilou is the best I've ever tasted, Brother Qingsu, use some too."

Xie Qingsu looked at the crystal-clear pastries in his cup, his eyes like ancient wells rippled. "Why do you always give me sweet-scented osmanthus cake?"

Xu Xilu said naturally: "Don't you like to eat this?"

"How do you know that I love this?"

Xu Xilu was dumbfounded by Xie Qingsu's question.To be honest, he not only knows what Xie Qingsu likes to eat, but also what kind of tea he likes to drink and what kind of books he likes to read.It's just that he couldn't tell the truth at this time, "I heard Mrs. Xie mention it."

Xie Qingsu seemed to accept Xu Xilu's explanation, picked up the chopsticks with white jade hands, picked up a bit from the corner of the sweet-scented osmanthus cake, and put it in his mouth.He only took a sip before putting down his chopsticks, and after a long silence, he asked, "Did you find your jade?"

"Jade?" Xu Xilu was stunned for a long time before he realized what Xie Qingsu was saying, "I found it." Xu Xilu wanted to explain the whole story to him in detail, but after thinking about it, he felt that it was unnecessary.The Xie family has a strict family style, and Xie Ji has no concubines. Telling Xie Qingsu about the dirty things in the inner house is like showing erotic pictures to a fairy, which is simply polluting others.

Xie Qingsu nodded, "That's good."

At this time, a manager of Qinghui Building trotted to Xu Xilu's side, bent down and whispered something in his ear, Xu Xilu's eyes dimmed, he stood up and said, "Let's go out and talk."

Xie Qingsu watched his back disappear into the boat, and stretched his chopsticks towards the fragrant soft pastry again.

On the deck, the cold wind carried moisture, blowing away some of the alcohol smell from the boat.The steward bowed respectfully to Xu Xilu, and said: "The person Xu Ergong entrusted our master to investigate, I have already investigated."

"You said."

"Then Zhao Chun, whose ancestral home is Changzhou, is a fellow villager with Aunt Dong of the Xu Mansion, and it is true that he entered the Xu Mansion 20 years ago, and has been managing several Zhuangzi in the suburbs of Beijing, and is one of the stewards. He is a child of a poor family. When he was a teenager, he was sold by Ren Yazi to the Xu Mansion as a servant, but now he owns a courtyard located in the suburbs of Beijing with four entrances and four exits. The small one roughly estimated, according to the big family in Beijing. The general level of the management monthly routine is also unaffordable."

"So it seems that there is nothing wrong with this person?"

"At first glance, this is indeed the case. But Zhao Chun, just a few years after he entered Xu's mansion, Aunt Dong in Xu's mansion made the decision for him, and pointed out to him the girl named Cuixuan as a dowry. But within two days Years ago, Zhao Chun actually gave up that girl."

"Oh?" Xu Xilu raised his eyebrows, "How dare the master point out to him?"

The steward said: "Isn't it? The little one also found it strange, and after some careful inquiry, it is said that Zhao Chun thought Cuixuan was not young and beautiful enough, so he divorced her. At that time, Aunt Dong didn't say anything. , just let him go. Within three months, he married another girl a few years younger, and she hasn't changed her until now."

"If Zhao Chun really dislikes the appearance of his original wife, he can accept a few beautiful concubines. How can he do such troublesome and unpleasant things as divorcing his wife?" According to the current regulations, unless the wife really committed seven crimes, And only with the consent of the clan can the wife be divorced in a legitimate way, otherwise the original spouse can sue the government if she wants to.Xu Xilu thought for a moment, then said, "Where is that girl named Cuixuan now?"

"It is said that they are still staying in Changzhou. No matter how specific, I don't know the details."

Xu Xilu asked: "Then can we still check?"

The steward smiled and said: "My master also has some manpower in Changzhou. As long as Second Master Xu says a word, I will ask them to investigate immediately."

"Then there's work to be done."

After the steward stepped down, Xu Xilu blew the wind alone on the deck for a while.At this time, there were many more boats on the Xun River than before, and the originally spacious river was also slightly crowded.There was a particularly magnificent painting boat so close to him that he could even see the people standing on the bow.The man was dressed in black, with a tall and straight figure, Xu Xilu felt a little familiar, but later he saw the saber on his waist and remembered that this man was the attendant of Prince Duan whom he met in Qinghui Tower last time.It turned out that this was Song Yanqing's boat, no wonder it was so beautiful that people couldn't take their eyes off it.

Xu Xilu looked at it for a while, then turned around and wanted to go back to the boat, when he suddenly saw a trace of innocence, Xie Qingsu also came to the deck at some point.His cheeks were slightly rosy, his lips were much redder than usual, and his forehead was also dripping with sweat. When Xu Xilu approached, he smelled a strong and mellow aroma of wine. "Brother Qingsu, have you been drinking?"

Xie Qingsu turned to look at him, frowning slightly, "You..." Suddenly, the hull of the boat under the two of them swayed, and their figures also became unstable. Seeing that Xie Qingsu was about to fall into the water, Xu Xilu couldn't care less about himself and thought Going to pull him, who knew that when he was about to touch his sleeve, Xie Qingsu leaned back by herself——

"Puff-"

Xu Xilu managed to stabilize his body, staring blankly at his hands——Xie Qingsu despises him so much, would rather fall into the water than touch him?This thought flashed by, but Xu Xilu didn't care about that much, called out: "Xie Qingsu!", and jumped into Xunjiang without hesitation.