People who think I'm ugly are so sweet

In June, the heat wave hit, and the cicadas kept singing. Today, at the end of May, I took the Queen Mother to another palace in the suburbs of Beijing to escape the summer heat.Xu Taihe, as one of the six ministers, also went with Sheng Jia.

Throughout the month of May, disasters have been happening in Xu's residence. An aunt who made a mistake died.Mrs. Zhang specially invited an eminent monk from Qingcheng Mountain to perform a ritual in the mansion, hoping to drive away evil spirits and avoid disasters, resolve grievances and knots, and give blessings and auspiciousness.

At the hottest time of the year, Xu Xilu finally used ice.Jiudong put ice into the bellows of the seven-wheel fan, and transported it by himself, the whole hall shivered.There is a well in the courtyard of the Tidal Pavilion. The water in the well is cool and sweet. Put the food in a basket, tie it with a rope and store it underground for half a day. When you take it out again, it will have the same effect as putting it in an ice cellar.The large kitchen will also deliver a lot of soup and snacks to cool down the heat every day.But even with so many ways to cool off the heat, Xu Xilu, a delicate modern person, still couldn't bear the heat.

Xu Xilu ordered someone to transplant a few grape vines, put a cool chair under it, and put some freshly taken fruits out of the well.Lying on the cool chair, eating the grapes that Xing Nong peeled and handed over, with the sound of cicadas singing in my ears, doing nothing, thinking about nothing, this is the best way to spend the midsummer.

However, because he only lay down and ate all day long, Xu Xilu's waist was unfortunately thicker, and he was a little worried when he looked in the mirror, but the next day he still had to eat and sleep, but he recovered for half an hour that night. Exercise before bed.

One day, Xu Xilu was lying on a cool chair with a book of Chinese script on his face, drowsy.Xing Nong walked over lightly, took down the script carefully, and said softly: "Second Master, Third Miss is here."

Xu Xilu half-opened his eyes, "An Ning? Ask her to go to the inner hall, and I'll change my clothes and go."

In the inner hall, Xu Anning sat upright, she did not touch the iced fruit that Xing Nong brought her.Seeing Xu Xilu come in, she hurriedly stood up and called out, "Second brother."

I haven't seen her for half a month, and Xu Anning has lost a lot of weight. She was born petite, and now she is as thin as a gust of wind can blow her down.Xu Xilu had always had a good impression of this younger sister, but now he felt a little more guilty. Although Aunt Dong committed suicide by herself, her death was inseparable from him after all.

"I heard that you were ill a while ago, how are you recovering now?"

Xu Anning forced a smile, that smile was like a candle in the wind, "Doctor Pan is a genius doctor, with just a few doses of medicine, I'll be almost healed."

Xu Xilu nodded, "Then you..."

"Second brother." Xu Anning's voice changed slightly, "I'm here this time to seek the truth. Please second brother tell me why my aunt suddenly died suddenly."

Xu Xilu was a little slow, and said: "Madam doesn't want you to know about this matter, of course she has her reasons."

"I understand." Xu Anning looked directly at Xu Xilu, tears slowly welling up in his eyes, "Second Sister...she is talking about revenge all day long, and she wants to make everyone in the Xu Mansion feel bad. I... ...I'm a little afraid of her, but I don't know how to convince her. My wife told us that my aunt committed suicide by hanging herself because of a big mistake. Second brother, tell me, is it true? I believe my father, he will never Locked up my aunt for no reason. I just want to know, does my aunt really... deserve to die for her crime?" Xu Anning seemed to be unable to bear it any longer, and buried her face in her palms, sobbing softly with.

"An Ning," Xu Xilu took her hand away, and said as gently as possible: "Your mother, maybe she didn't deserve to die, but she chose to leave in the end. Tell me, why is that?"

Xu Anning shook her head with red eyes, "I...I don't know."

"Think about it, if your mother is still alive, my father will definitely not forgive her easily. The death penalty is inevitable, but the crime of living is inevitable. Either sell her to the government, or hand her over to the government. At that time, you and the second sister What will happen again?"

Xu Anning stared at him blankly, "Second Brother, what do you mean, Auntie is for us?"

"That's right." Xu Xilu said, "You are concubines, if your biological mother is a convict again, so what if you were born in Xu's family in Shangjing? The caretaker and noble daughter in Beijing will always look down on you. Now She is dead, so my father will no longer pursue her faults, nor will he take his anger out on you."

Xu Anning shook her head desperately, "No, aunt... aunt...why is she so stupid!"

"An Ning, you have to live a good life with Qingyang, earnestly, so that you won't disappoint Aunt Dong's painstaking efforts. As for revenge," Xu Xilu sneered, "You tell the second sister that she has the right to revenge. But She'd better figure out who she's going to get revenge on."

As July approached, hundreds of people in the Xu family were preparing for Xu Xuanying's wedding.From the entrance of Xu's mansion to Xu Xuanying's new house, red cotton carpets were laid, every door passing by was pasted with big red happy characters, and even the trees were covered with carmine veils.

At the end of June, Xu Changying returned to her natal home once.Because Xu Taihe was not around, he only went to greet Mrs. Zhang. Mrs. Zhang was busy looking at the dowry, so she sent her away without saying a word.After Xu Changying left Shi'an Garden, he came directly to Chao Chao Pavilion.

Xu Changying has heard a little about what happened to Xu's mansion in May. She has been married, and she comes back often. Inquire carefully.

"Thank goodness that fire didn't hurt you. However, this Mrs. Dong is really ruthless," Xu Changying sighed after hearing Xu Xilu's story, "It's not a pity for her to die, but the third sister is pitiful."

Xu Xilu smiled lazily, "Sister also thinks that this matter was done by Mrs. Dong alone?"

Xu Changying heard his implication, and couldn't help covering his mouth with a handkerchief, "What do you mean?"

"Ms. Dong only has two daughters. What's the benefit of her poisoning her father? Yes, if she does this, no matter Mrs. Xie or other newcomers, she can't get anything out of it. Isn't it the same for her? The concubine's status is humble, When Qingyang and An Ning get married, what else does she have in this family?" Xu Xilu said indifferently, "If I were her, I wouldn't do such a stupid thing. After all, only if the father is good, can she have children hope next to you."

"Then, who do you think it will be?"

Xu Xilu bent his lips and smiled, "Who do you think my sister is?"

Xu Changying looked at his younger brother, with a little worry in his eyes, "Xi Lu, you only said this to your sister, and you didn't tell anyone else, did you?"

"Don't worry, sister, I have my own measure."

Xu Changying nodded in relief, "You have grown up, seeing you like this, my sister is relieved. By the way," she suddenly frowned, "Last time you told me that you wanted to join the Imperial Army for training. I have also mentioned it to your brother-in-law a few times. A while ago, the staff was limited. You know my father-in-law, who is upright and hates favoritism, so your brother-in-law didn’t dare to mention it. Recently, there was a gap, but... well."

"Whatever sister has to say, just say it."

Xu Changying took a sip of his tea, and said seriously, "Do you know about the dispute between Shen and Xie?"

Shen refers to Shen Xiuming, Shen Guogong, and Xie used to refer to Xie Heng, the chief minister of the cabinet, and now is Xie Ji, the Minister of Dali Temple. The grievances between the two families were also heard by Xu Xilu in Qinghui Tower last time. "I know, but how can this matter be related to those two families?"

"I heard from your brother-in-law that when the late emperor was here, Shen Guogong had disagreements with Mr. Shoufu. Whether it was in the court or in private, they were incompatible. But the two of them were the right-hand men of the late emperor. There are many party members. The rest of the ministers had to choose one to follow in order to get promoted and make a fortune, or just to protect themselves. Later, Mr. Shou Fu retired and returned to his hometown, and this Shen Xie struggle came to an end."

Xu Xilu followed her words and said: "This year, Xie Ji returned to Shangjing. Could it be that Duke Shen wants to pay his father's debt?"

"In the beginning, Shen Guogong was quite polite to the Xie clan. But one month ago, the new censor Xie Qingsu—" When Xu Changying mentioned this name, he paid special attention to Xu Xilu's expression, seeing that the latter looked ordinary, Then he continued: "Xie Qingsu actually read Shen Guogong's book in the early court, saying that he bent the law for personal gain and allowed his son Shen Zixian to openly beat the children of the family and rob the daughters of the people..."

"Who did he rob?" Xu Xilu asked, "Could it be Miss Yao?"

"Miss Yao?" Xu Changying looked blank, "Which Miss Yao?"

It seems that Shen Zixian has many previous convictions besides the last time.Xu Xilu waved his hand, "I misremembered—and then?"

"In front of all the ministers, Xie Qingsu spoke so convincingly that Shen Guogong could only plead guilty. However, the sage was kind enough to only fine him a few months' salary. But after this incident, the Shen-Xie dispute will inevitably start again. Young and old ministers, stand in line again, and my father-in-law, General Zhenyuan, who was born as a general and commanded the imperial army, is only loyal to the Holy One, and will never participate in party disputes."

Having said this, Xu Xilu almost understood.Xie Heng's only prostitute daughter is a noble concubine of the Xu family, and the juniors of the two mansions also have close contacts, so Xu Taihe was naturally placed on the other side of the Xie family.In order to maintain neutrality, General Zhenyuan will definitely not favor any side.Now is the beginning of the dispute between the two families, and any action may be forcibly divided into parties by others. If General Zhenyuan helps him with this seemingly insignificant favor, I am afraid that it will cause a lot of trouble for the entire General Zhenyuan's mansion. "So, I made it difficult for my sister and brother-in-law."

"Don't say that." Xu Changying hurriedly said, "Your brother-in-law still has some connections, we will continue to find a way for you."

"No need." Xu Xilu didn't want Xu Changying to be said to be a helper devil, and said with a smile: "Father is also looking for a way out for me. He has already seen a few private school teachers for me, but I don't want to do that."

Xu Changying said angrily, "You are smart, but you just don't want to work hard, otherwise, you will definitely be no worse than Xuanying."

"Sister was joking, how could I be as good as elder brother. He will marry Lin's daughter soon, and it will only get better and better in the future."

Xu Changying withdrew his smile, "Xuanying's wedding must be very grand. I heard that many dignitaries from aristocratic families will come, and even Prince Duan will come to watch the ceremony in person."

Xu Xilu smiled faintly, "So, I'm looking forward to it."