Crown Jewels

Chapter 261
The gurgling stream was flowing, and various dishes were introduced to the guests. Shen Lanqing simply ate a few chopsticks while socializing.

Qianqian drank half a glass of wine, his head was already a little dizzy, Ah Zi hurriedly helped her lord, but at this moment, there was another man in a dim robe, with a Ding Baiyu tube on his head, pointing to a silver Cup cup came to Shen Lanqing's side.

Nan Electronics, who was wearing a fish-piece on his head, stood there quietly, waiting in front of Shen Lanqing. Ah Zi looked at this man's appearance, and wondered in his heart why his lord had to take the pill in advance. He was also able to drink a lot of wine during the day, but he didn't understand the usual rules of Lin'an, and he was indeed much more vigorous and unrestrained than the literati of the Jiangnan generation.

Jian'an helped Fu's drowsy head, Shen Lan squinted her eyes, she had suppressed her emotions after tidying up the official robes, and when she looked up, she was still the calm and usual servant of the Ministry of Rites, Mr. Shen.

Meng Zizhou looked at it coldly, this modest gesture was worthy of being praised by others. At this moment, it fell into her eyes, and there was an uncontrollable cold hum in her throat. The eyes briefly met, and the inexplicable atmosphere spread. Shen Lanqing raised her eyebrows in surprise, Calmly, he looked at the man in front of him again.

The blue shirt and jade crown, the expressionless face looks a little cold, but the demeanor makes people feel elegant, quite familiar with Jiangnan Juzi.

What surprised Shen Lanqing the most was that this man turned out to be extremely tender, and that baby face contradicted his stern expression.

The smell of alcohol was on the brain, Shen Lanqing blinked, her brain seemed to be blurred for a moment, and her eyes fell on the baby-faced man naturally for a long time, Meng Zizhou was stunned for a moment when he was stared at like this. Without opening Shen Lanqing's mouth, she raised her glass and clinked cups, and took the initiative to bump into the silver wine cup in her hand.

The moment the cups meet, they are even...

I've never been half my head short!

Such details are extremely easy to worry about in Lin'an official circles, because the wine cup is half an inch short, and timely etiquette is also a status.

Among the people present, Shen Lanqing Pengzhan, the only person who needs to be half an inch shorter is Zhou Huaijin, Minister of the Ministry of Officials.

Among the toasts with other officials, there is really no one who doesn't understand etiquette, and this baby-faced man in front of him is the first one.

The doll wearing a jade crown has a serious and dignified face, and Shen Lanqing, who is wearing a black dress and robe, is cool and modest. The two stand side by side beside the curved water. If you ignore the strange atmosphere that rises inexplicably, it will really make people admire It's nice to be young.

But at the moment when mengzizhou toasted to Shen Lanqing, the surrounding adults were looking for mistakes in groups of three or four, but the eyes watching the show were observing the movement that happened from time to time. While observing closely, there was faintly A little expectation.

You know, this man with a jade crown, Meng Zizhou, is the seventh son of the Zhongqinhou Mansion. He grew up in a heap of rich clothes and jade food since he was born. Surprisingly, although this master has a bit of a temper, he has real abilities, not to mention that Zhou Huaijin is the best candidate for the original servant of the Ministry of Officials, who is supported by Zhou Huaijin.

But who would have thought that Shen Lanqing would appear on the way!
I don't know that during the official assessment, Meng Zizhou was stabilized, and he even directly airborne the official department, and directly took away the position of the official servant that he had been thinking about for nine years, causing him to prepare for three years in vain. a rank.

Meng Zizhou originally returned the case. If he could be given another three years, the position of Minister of Rites would definitely be in her pocket. Such a woman was taken.

Who can feel better about this matter of the dove occupying the magpie's nest?

This time, Mr. Zhou Huaijin and Mr. Zhou actually held a banquet here to clean up the dust for Mr. Shen, the future servant of the Ministry of Rites. Shen Lanqing was slightly stunned by the decisive and free-spirited appearance of the drink in the glass, but Shi Shiran stood there, still holding the wine cup in his hand and hadn't touched it yet.

In the wine cup, the liquid was slowly poured, without taking half a mouthful.

Mencius Zhou raised his head, and met the woman's restless eyes. Shi Shiran smiled a little, but it was different from the spring breeze before, and there was a kind of coolness that soaked people's bones.

Immediately afterwards, the smile also slowly subsided, and her gaze was fixed on him lightly.

Meng Zizhou frowned slightly, feeling the invisible oppressive momentum in the space between the two of them, he was a little surprised in a daze, but after he came back to his senses, he felt even more ashamed, the wine in the glass was not half pecked, it was a response to him in front of him who?
Not paying attention to Meng Zizhou's cold face, Shen Lanqing put down the wine cup, picked up the grapes in his hands as if no one was around, and ignored him.

This guy is clearly looking for trouble. Shen Lanqing was appointed as the Minister of the Ministry of Officials. Not to mention, it is a document made by Shangshu Zhou Huaijin himself. Where is the official rank? .

Meng Zizhou, who was completely ignored, pursed his lips, seeing Shen Lanqing's calm appearance as before, and was not affected by him at all. The loss after being occupied by the dove and the shame and anger after being neglected made him, who was held in the palm of his hand since he was a child, It is rare to taste such an uncomfortable taste.

"Shen Lanqing—"

"Your name is Shen Lanqing, right?"

Seeing Meng Zizhou gritted his teeth fiercely and squeezed out the word Shen Lanqing from his mouth, the corners of Ah Zi's mouth twitched as he peeked at the situation here, quite speechless, it turns out that a high-ranking official can do this in private childish?

This is an occasion where colleagues in the officialdom gather, how can such a "stunned young man" be so impatient?
How could Meng Zizhou, who was so ashamed and indignant at this moment, know that he, the dignified and brave seventh son of the Earl's Mansion, was actually despised by such a clumsy fat girl. At this moment, he was full of Shen Lanqing, thinking about what to do, so that he could force himself to be among these people. Get back the three-point field in front of you!
Facing his arrogance, Shen Lanqing only slightly raised her eyebrows. At this moment, she was completely sure that Meng Zizhou was definitely here to provoke him!
Seeing that this person's face was still calm, Meng Zizhou gritted his teeth, and suddenly felt that he was a joke, he was dangling in front of Shen Lanqing like a brightness adjustment clown, he was almost so angry that he could crush the wine glass in his hand , but what about this person in front of him?
That idle and cold gaze, that disdainful gaze cast on him.

He looks like a vexatious child!

Mencius couldn't jump anymore when he thought of the news.

The rigid old father at home said he was childish and immature; The dude under the shelter of his ancestors, will never grow up willful and stubborn.

When his relatives and mentors said this about him, Meng Zizhou could barely accept it.

But what is this newcomer Shen Lanqing in front of me, that disdainful and helpless gaze, when looking at him, is there any difference from looking at a naive child.

This is simply...too deceiving!
The rustling of bamboo leaves on both sides of the cup of water, mixed with discordant broken notes in the breeze, makes the surrounding air and time seem to freeze.

The wine cup landed on the ground, although it was not thrown hard, the moment it hit the ground, the fine white porcelain was still shattered into several petals, and the dregs splashed on the skirt of Shen Lanqing's long black dress. The turbid liquid in the cup was very presumptuous. Shrinking for a moment, I saw that the turbid liquid of sake directly stained the skirt of my lord's black official robe, outlining a damp shadow.

When the wine cup fell to the ground, Meng Zizhou was just venting his anger. He hadn't expected the white pieces of broken porcelain, so the oppression in his chest was naturally not calm. Seeing Shen Lanqing frowning at the wet water stains on the hem of the official robe, he finally There is a sense of sight that I am not provoking and singing alone, and the arrogance that was about to be cold rekindled my fighting spirit, and I went straight to Shen Lanqing, expressing the doubts and depression in my chest these days.

"Shen Lanqing, Lord Shen, Minister Shen—"

"When I first came to the capital, there is a servant minister who has the ability to reach the fourth rank." Meng Zizhou's eyes were obviously doubtful. "As a woman, with such abilities, Meng is really admired and ashamed."

Meng Zizhou gritted his teeth, and when he said the words "Servant Minister of the Ministry of Officials", his eyes could not hide the taste and covetousness, and the sour taste of teasing was brought out in the sarcastic words with guns and sticks. He looked irrational. Look at it Shangshu Zhou Huaijin, who sat upright and sipped tea with downcast eyes, shook his head slightly, feeling surprised but helpless.

The boy Meng Zizhou is not completely a dude, he is still very capable during the days when the officials are on duty, with a little guidance, he will definitely be the pillar of the officialdom of the Yan Kingdom in the future, and he has imposed a lot of expectations on him, but he usually Looking at the very safe Meng Zizhou, he was indeed a little impatient today.

Simply fiddled with the dress on her body, Shen Lanqing raised her eyes lightly, her eyes were still calm, but seemed to be mixed with coldness, when she looked at you coldly, the spring-like temperament before was completely gone, bringing out the power of indifference and frost, suddenly There was a strong contrast between the aura and the humble and respectful Lord Shen before. Mencius felt that those eyes with black eyes from distant mountains seemed to be emotionless, and seemed to be soaked in the mist on the ice, silently making his body stiff in place. .

Meng Zizhou's Adam's apple rolled for a moment, but the remaining words in his mouth could not be uttered at all. His stiff elbows made him feel a little awkward. Facing Shen Lanqing's clear eyes that seemed to be able to see through people's hearts, his lips moved for a moment, suddenly For a while, I felt that what I said, such a word to a woman, implied unreasonable speculation, whether it was not what a gentleman did.

When this thought flashed by, Meng Zizhou's heart was shaken for a moment, but he could think that the position of servant minister he had been thinking about was indeed taken by her, Shen Lanqing. He was worse than her, and how could she be able? do this position.

Why?
Just because she, Shen Lanqing, is just like the previous empress, is she a woman?
Doubts came to mind again, Meng Zizhou's eyes flashed unwillingness, and this unwillingness was clearly and clearly seen by Shen Lanqing who was opposite, the woman's eyelashes were half-drooped, and her eyes lightly moved away and naturally fell on the official robe On the hem of the skirt, the wine stains that had been tainted by wantonness were already half-dried, and soon there would be no traces of them at all.

Slowly raising her hand, Shen Lanqing fiddled with the corner of her skirt again, then raised her head slightly, her lips parted slightly, and her eyes were calm and deep.

"Meng Zizhou, the Qilang of the Meng family, is the youngest son in the family. The kindergarten teacher studied in Jiangnan. With the help of the family, he worshiped his mentor. Taichang entered the Ministry of Officials in 30 years and was on duty for four years. He was in charge of officials' meritorious deeds. After the transfer of official positions, in terms of official career, it is neither bumpy nor smooth; in terms of political achievements, he has never been sunk in counties and counties, but has been exposed to practical affairs;

Shen Lanqing's expression was calm, and she opened her mouth to thoroughly feel the officials of Meng Zizhou in these years, and Meng Zizhou's pupils shrank slightly when he heard it.

"If Mr. Meng is really dissatisfied, you may wish to ask Mr. Shangshu to check the political achievements of Mr. Shen as an official in Jiangnan; if not, you can also check his rank in the imperial examination in the autumn of Chang'an Mansion."

"Shen felt that if Mr. Meng could clear up these investigations, he would not have come to Shen so lightly and used the 'female gender' or the so-called 'political achievements' that he had never noticed to find out for himself Excuse."

Meng Zizhou felt that Shen Lanqing's words were like a heavy hammer, completely revealing the things he didn't want to admit deep down in his heart.

Meng Zizhou raised his hand with difficulty, subconsciously recognizing Shen Lanqing's gaze, and wiped off the cold sweat on Fan's forehead with difficulty, and his speech was unspeakably dry.

More importantly, he had nothing to say.

Shen Lanqing glanced at Meng Zizhou for the last time, and said the last sentence, "Gains and losses in the officialdom are inevitable, but if you lose your heart and the courage to face yourself, then maybe... you really lost."

After saying that, Shen Lanqing withdrew her gaze, and finally glanced at the last wine stain left on the black skirt, turned around and apologized respectfully to Zhou Huaijin, Shangshu of the Ministry of Officials, and stood up to leave under the pretext of being disheveled and inelegant.

In the alleyway, the rutted carriage slowly drove away, completely leaving Xuanyangfang where Shangshu Zhou's mansion was located.

AhZi observed the direction the carriage was leaving, and couldn't hold back in surprise.

"My lord, shouldn't we go back to the Shen Mansion first and change into clothes?"

The corners of Shen Lanqing's lips were lightly pursed, unaffected by what happened just now, her eyes swept across the direction of Chang'an Square to the south, a genuine smile appeared in her eyes, the elegance of the distant mountains instantly soaked through that layer of coldness, Seeing AhZi's confused look, he couldn't help pinching her somewhat stocky cheeks.

"promise--"

"The hem of the skirt is all dry, where can you still see the wine stains!"

As Shen Lanqing said, she spread out the skirt that was completely dried out, and the ink-colored clothes were thick, and she couldn't see anything wrong with her eyes.

Ah Zi brought her face closer in a good-tempered manner, still somewhat puzzled.

"Since you didn't change your clothes, why did your lord leave the venue in such a hurry?"

Ah Zi Hanhan tried hard to open his narrowed eyes, the cool wind from outside the carriage seeped in through the window, making the interior of the sedan look extraordinarily bright.

Shen Lanqing put her hands behind her head, enjoying the spring scenery outside the window, squinting her eyes and raising her jaw with a smile in her tone.

"If I continue to stay there, they will not feel comfortable on the field, and I will not feel comfortable, why bother?"

"the most important is--"

As Shen Lanqing said, she looked out of the window in the same direction as Chang'an Square again, her eyes filled with anticipation and satisfaction, as if she couldn't wait and was a little apprehensive.

"I can't wait—"

(End of this chapter)