Walking into the Red Mansion starts from the maid

March in the capital is a little more deserted than in the suburbs, maybe because the spring scenery is all locked up in the homes of various nobles.When Zhao Lu took Penghua to Qingwen's shop, there was a group of men dressed as servants outside surrounding the door. Seeing Zhao Lu preparing to enter, he asked, "What are you doing?"

Just as he was about to speak, he heard a boy in brown clothes snort next to him. Everyone behaved themselves again and said politely: "Are you shopping? Come in."

"What's going on? They?" Zhao Lu asked, "Are they looking for you?"

Qingwen's eyes froze for a moment, she pursed her lips, pulled the person in, and closed the door with a bang.

"What's wrong? If you've been open for 99 more years, you're going to be a century-old shop. It's not an exaggeration to make a lot of money every day. Thank you for closing it in broad daylight?" Zhao Lu brought some fresh vegetables and stewed a lot of dried tofu for everyone. Zilai's favorite pig's trotters saw that Qingwen seemed to be in a bad mood, so he tried to smooth things over.

Zilaisu put all the items aside, and seeing Qingwen still looking downcast, he said angrily: "My cousin said he found my parents."

The voice was not lowered, and it was naturally heard outside. However, it was chaotic for a moment and then calmed down.

"Come to the capital from Jinling?" Zhao Lu was stunned. His slightly honey-colored skin from running around every day made his facial features even more beautiful. He frowned in surprise and said with disdain: "You have sold everything, what are you doing to get it back?"

She wanted to think that it was because she couldn't survive anymore and she wanted to beat her daughter Qiu Feng again?
And that Duo Guan, who is really able to meddle in other people's business, happily married Zhao Deng, happily moved to Zhuangzi, and lived a good life, how come he is everywhere!
"It's nothing. I took a look, and they are no different from strangers. I don't want to have anything to do with them anymore, but..." Qingwen was silent for a while, feeling a lot of unhappiness in her heart.

Ask yourself, if your original parents come to visit, Zhao Lu feels that if you don't ask someone to blow them out with a big stick, you have done your best to be kind and righteous. How can you think about your parents?
But Qingwen is different. She is an aborigine. Although she was young when she was sold, she still remembers some things. She was abandoned by her parents to a stranger before her eyes, and she was born with beautiful face. She is lucky and unfortunate. Of course, it is not good to meet again suddenly. At ease.

After a few words of advice, she stood up and looked out through the crack in the door.

From a distance, I saw Lai Shangrong dressed in green clothes, holding a folding fan in his hand, with a proud expression on his face.Next to him was a man with a stooped body, a pleasant smile and a somewhat flattering appearance. He was holding a rough-looking boy in his hand, and behind him was a woman who was also tired of life.

I have to admit that although my mother was ordinary, Qingwen and her father looked like they were carved from the same mold. It became difficult to use the excuse of not knowing each other. He turned to look at her and said, "You have a younger brother." ?”

Qingwen smiled and said softly: "Maybe it's my brother."

If life cannot go on, girls will always be abandoned first. Zhao Lu snorted from his nose.

Fortunately, looking at the shabby clothes, he didn't look like he had made a fortune, otherwise the appearance of trying to flatter Lai Shangrong wouldn't be so weird, "Why don't you come with me to live in the suburbs for a while? It's so hard not to see you. And retreated."

It's not that I'm afraid of them.

It wasn't long before the shop was on the right track after opening its doors to do business and make money by being friendly. If someone messed up the business, not to mention Qingwen and Zhao Lu would feel bad.

But I also know in my heart that Lai Shangrong has always wanted to pounce on Qingwen and drink Qingwen's blood. Such a skilled and beautiful woman with no foundation is simply a good concubine who has been taken into the family to continue to generate income.

You can run for a while, but you can't run forever.

As a woman, it seems that it is only a matter of time before she is trapped in marriage. Thinking of this, Zhao Lu couldn't help but shudder. Because of her young age, she seemed to have never thought about getting married.

But there was no time for her to think about it now, because Qingwen said, "There are people at the back door, otherwise I would have gone back to the house long ago, and there would be no time for them to behave like monsters."

In fact, Qingwen couldn't remember many old things. She only knew that the family could not afford to eat, but the scene when her mother took out the steamed buns from her arms in the middle of the night, chewed them up and fed the swaddled baby, left a very deep impression on her. .

It's not that she wants to compete with the cub for a bite to eat, but her parents said that if there weren't big ones, life wouldn't be like this.

The bad days seem to be caused by Qingwen everywhere.

Clothes in the winter have to be repaired here and there. First, make clothes for my brother, then my parents, and finally Qingwen. But when it comes to her, there are often not even a few rags left.Therefore, she suffered from hunger and cold until she was six or seven years old, and when she was about to die from the cold and wind, the two adults encouraged each other to sell her, and then she went to Lai's house and lived a good life for a few days.

This is also the reason why she is so patient with Lai Shangrong. The Lai family is kind to her.

This was actually Zhao Liu's life. When she first came here, she felt a breath of immortal energy hanging on her life. The feeling that she was about to die soon was constantly reminding her from opening her eyes to closing her eyes every day that she would not be able to live any longer. .

Later...if she didn't have the heart of an adult, she would probably feel that Rongguo Mansion was very kind to her.

Zhao Lu watched dumbfoundedly as the beauty complained, and then entered the role of a sultry counselor, sighing: "Then what are you thinking about? I thought that if I can't avoid it, and I can't leave these things alone, then It’s better to go back home for a while…”

Qingwen looked at the peach wood hairpin on Zhao Lu's head attentively. After a long time, she slowly turned her gaze to her face, "Do you know that the third girl has to be named Princess Xingyuan? There are rumors in the house that Xu will be granted the title of Princess Xingyuan at the latest before the beginning of summer." She is going to marry far away, what do you think I go with her?"

"Ah?" Zhao Lu was startled and gritted his teeth. There was no need to push himself into such a desperate situation. She wanted to say that it was not certain whether Lai Shangrong would be able to keep his official position in the future. There was no need to avoid him or give up your own. What a future.

Unexpectedly, the more Qingwen thought about it, the more she felt that this method was feasible, and she became quite happy. Although the depression just now was swept away, her crazy look was not normal.

"How about... you think about it again?"

"The third girl is an imperial princess. We don't know where she is going when she goes to another country to get married. The marriage is not up to her. Is it possible that it will be better if you go?"

"Although it sounds ugly, it is true. If you go north, you will be a barbarian tribe in the ice and snow; if you go south, although you have nothing to worry about, it is still unknown what the food customs, humanities and environment will be like."

Speaking passionately, Penghua munched popcorn and came in from the backyard with a fire stick. Zhao Lu couldn't help but tell her: "We agreed when we came here not to run around. Where have you been?" "

Fu turned around and asked Qingwen: "When can you open fire again?"

"What fire? I have so many pieces of cloth and satin coming and going, how can I fire it?" Qingwen was obviously stunned by the black fire stick, and couldn't help but ask where it came from.

Then he slapped his forehead and tapped Zhao Lu's chin, "Oh, I forgot, you..."

I forgot that this girl is mute.

The two of them opened the curtains and entered the backyard one after the other. They saw the boys lying around, some rolling their eyes and breathing more out than in. Some simply lay on the ground without any reaction. They had obviously fainted. . "Be good." Qingwen rubbed her chin, her eyes wandered over the master and servant, and said with a smile: "I never thought Xi Daying was so supportive. The Jia Mansion really delayed you."

"I'm not, I didn't, don't talk nonsense!" If she had the ability to fight off four or five young boys, why would she spend money to hire a ghost sword as a security guard?
After three consecutive denials, he shouted to Peng Hua. The master and servant looked at each other, and Zhao Lu whispered, "Did you do it?"

The panting young man lay on his back on the ground, murmuring at the corner of his mouth, wanting to say something. Unexpectedly, Penghua came out, stepped forward to light the fire stick and greeted him again, and then gestured and said something to Zhao Lu.

"Okay, okay, you hit them because they wanted to get into the house, right?" Penghua raised the corners of her mouth and nodded, with inappropriate happiness on her face.

"Where did that fire stick come from?" Although the more he looked at it, the more familiar he looked, Zhao Lu refused to admit that it was something he had memorized at home, so he pretended to ask and laughed. Fortunately, Qingwen couldn't understand the mute's own sign language. , and then I believed the words picked up from a dog hole.

Qingwen muttered, "Okay, let's leave quickly."

Before going out, she went to the accounting room to exchange a few words. When she came out, she had a heavy purse in her hand. Not long after, the accounting office invited two waiters nearby, walked in and threw the boys out.

The three of them took the opportunity to leave the shop and went straight to Rongguo Mansion.

When Qixie saw Zhao Lu, she was really shocked, "It's hard for you to worry about so many things at such a young age."

As he spoke, he pulled the person to the corridor. When he saw no one around him, he looked nervous and solemn, and whispered: "It's inconvenient to speak in the outer courtyard, I just ask you, does Jiang Yuhan really...really have a room outside?"

Zhao Lu gritted his teeth and nodded solemnly, thinking that raising one's heart is also raising one's heart. Could it be that Qixie married him and he didn't have to please Prince Zhongshun?

Everyone in the Jia family knows that their servants are like dry batteries, and they have to make the best use of them to keep their money spent. Could it be that Prince Zhongshun is a kind man who likes to spend money to see people get married?
If Jiang Yuhan can't give birth, maybe Qi Xie will fall into her trap.

But when I was young and admired her, any boy or girl who didn't have a child, even if they were the next best choice, they still looked forward to getting married in pairs, with the prime minister Bai together.No one can accept being a mistress for no reason, especially a person with a high moral standard like Qixie.

In order to call Qixie Xinzhen, she made the scene vivid. On a certain day of a certain year, Jiang Yuhan and a young woman went to the lake. The two fed each other cakes and laughed together, which was very harmonious...

"Stop talking!" Qixie's expression was sluggish. The Jia Mansion was as exquisite as ever, and the crabapples, peaches and plums were as beautiful as the sunset. However, there was always a sense of sadness in the bustling spring. The two stood side by side, the older one's eyes were red, and the younger one's eyes were red. Standing hesitantly.

"Have you two finished talking? An angel has arrived at the main entrance to announce the decree. Stop standing there!" A woman shouted outside. Outside the corner door, there was Ningrong Street across the wall. Of course the angels would not come here.

However, Jia Zheng is now in a state of panic. He is afraid of making mistakes in every aspect, and he wishes he could hold his heart at the feet of the emperor, so the rules in the government will naturally become stricter.

Qi Xie's cheeks, pear dimples rippled slightly, her bright star-like eyes were covered with a layer of mist, she nodded, turned around and walked towards the house.

Needless to say, her family wanted to find a suitable husband for her, but there were obstacles in the way of Jiang Yuhan's children. The family knew about it and even communicated with her.

In the early years, all the doctors in the capital looked at it and shook their heads. Although they did not say it clearly, their hopes for the rest of their lives must not be higher than that of their children.

Qixie covered her mouth tightly, life was already so difficult, why should she still go to those Shura fields where wives and concubines fight?
Zhao Lu originally wanted to say anything else, but don't find someone with all the five poisons, but seeing Qixie so sad, Zhao Lu shut his mouth in time.She did not understand the thoughts of these women, just as these women had never understood her, and it was useless to say more.

After waiting at the corner door for a long time, a little maid came in a hurry and told Zhao Lu that Miss Qingwen was called away by her wife. Don't wait any longer. She doesn't know when she will come out.

The little maid didn't recognize Zhao Lu, which seemed a bit condescending.Seeing that he was treated as a poor relative who came to visit Qiufeng, Zhao Lu was not upset. He smiled and said, please tell Qingwen that she would stay one night at Tianqi Temple and leave the city tomorrow.

"Okay." The little maid's voice was clear and crisp, and she agreed readily, but it was impossible to know whether the words were conveyed.

Jia Tanchun, the princess of Xingyuan County, left the capital on Qingming Day. The emperor sent Zhongshu and others to personally escort her aboard the ship to show the importance he attached to the Kingdom of Java.Except for the second wife of the Jia family who came to pay their respects, the rest were Baochai and Daiyu who saw each other off from afar.

Lively, but not lively.

However, unexpectedly, the prince of Java arrived in person. The prince with slender eyebrows, broad shoulders and broad back stood on the bow of the ship, his eyes fell on Tan Chun, and his actions showed a sense of importance that could not be ignored.

Marrying a foreigner's daughter is almost certain to exclude you from the imperial power. Tanchun and the prince are like a pair of mascots, linking the precarious friendship between the imperial court and the foreign country.

Qingwen was among the people getting married. She was sold out by her parents once before, but now she made her own decision and sold it out again.

There has been a deviation between right and wrong. She looked sternly, her eyes passing over Baoyu Qixie and others one by one. After Fu Shen came far away, she stood upright and never looked at the plants and trees in the capital.

After Zhao Lu heard about it, he sighed, "It's true that he is decisive. He is much more courageous than me."

As he said that, he slapped his palm on the table, which made Penghua tremble in fright. Just as he was about to raise his eyes to look at her, he heard an angry voice and shouted: "Wrong! You are so capable, can you use the fire stick? The fire stick is too hot." If you get it right, you are just a idiot with strong limbs and a simple mind. Write quickly, if you can't finish three articles about your name, you will not be allowed to eat goose stewed in an iron pot from now on!"

After thinking about it, she scolded again: "You are not allowed to accept food from fat people!"

Well, geese are not easy to raise. One of the dozen and a half geese that Xiaohong sent to her died in infancy.

But it would be a pity to throw it away. After plucking the hairs in boiling water, stir-fry them over low heat until golden and fragrant. Add the bean paste brewed in the camp. After stewing, add potato and sweet potato starch. Then grab the vegetables and simmer in the big pot for half a day until they are hot. It's so refreshing to eat.

When Penghua heard the three names, she immediately scratched her head and head anxiously. She wished she could turn back time and find that beautiful girl to change her name again. It would be best if she could call her Yiyi, she thought.

Zhao Lu couldn't worry about spring plowing, so he found Qi Fang and hired a village head to take care of it. This year, he vigorously carried out intercropping of corn and sweet potatoes, and harvested the sweet potatoes from many years ago.

Of course there were voices of opposition, but it was the uncle who paid the money. Zhao Lu worked hard to save his own coffers. When the off-white sweet potato starch came on the market, Zhang Lin and the others received their first interest payment.

(End of this chapter)