Do you know: I am Xu Jiazi

Chapter 408: Narrator: Green Grass [Thank you! Goodbye! words are owed]

Winter morning,

Xu Zaijing's courtyard was dark and silent.

Only a window in the corner of the room was emitting a faint candlelight.

"Dangdang~ It's 4 a.m. It's cold and snowing, remember to put on more clothes!"

"Dangdang~"

The voice of the monk announcing the time on the street could be heard faintly.

In the corner of the room where the candle was lit, a faint voice came: "Mother Xia, is it snowing?"

There was a rustling sound.
The corner window was opened and then quickly closed.

"Miss Yunxiang, it's snowing."

"Oh!"

Half an hour later,

A voice came from the room: "Sir, it's snowing, you should wear this cloak."

In the conversation,

The door was opened.

Two men, one tall and one short, came out holding lanterns.

Standing at the door and smelling the scent of the first snow in winter, Xu Zaijing exhaled deeply.

While stretching his body, Xu Zaijing walked from the porch at the entrance to the courtyard, and walked to the racecourse along the road that had been swept by the night watchwoman.

"Shuashua~"

There was the sound of a bamboo broom sweeping the floor on the way from the cabin to the stable.

Seeing Xu Zaijing and the other man coming over with lanterns, Alan and Xunshu, who were sweeping the snow, called out "Young Master" to each other.

Xu Zaijing nodded.

Walking to the door of the wooden house next to the racecourse,
The bright lanterns are still hanging under the eaves of the wooden house.

Xu Zaijing pushed the door open with Yun Xiang and walked into the house. While taking off his cloak, he looked at the master who was busy polishing the accessories of the small bed with horsetail grass in the wooden house.

Xu Zaijing took off his cloak and was about to step forward to help.

Yin Bo waved his hands and said, "Jing'er, go and practice! Your hands are too strong, don't rub them! Yunxiang girl, come here!"

Yun Xiang put down the water gourd and other items and walked over with a smile.

"Yes, Master."

After Xu Zaijing finished speaking, he walked over to a small bed that had already been completed in the room, looked at the shine of the small bed in the candlelight, and then touched it with great fondness.

"Master, your craftsmanship is beyond reproach. This is it!"

Xu Zaijing gave a thumbs up.

Yin Bo was in a good mood, and said with a smile in his one eye: "Don't worry, you will be there!"

"cough!"

Xu Zaijing stood up and walked out.

Before, there were only Xu Minghua and Sun, the prince and queen mother, in the Yongyi Marquis's mansion. Xu Zaijing and his brothers and sisters all jumped out of Sun's belly one by one, and they all used the same small bed from the oldest to the youngest.

But as Zaiduan and his family grew up and got married, with the arrival of Xu Xingdai and Xu Xingzhong, this small bed was no longer enough.

"Why are you shy? We will definitely make more in the future."

Yin Bo muttered hoarsely.

Yun Xiang, the maidservant in front of him, lowered her head and quickened the speed of polishing the wooden accessories.

Outside the wooden house,
There are still snowflakes in the sky.

Qingyun walked out of the stable leading two horses.

quickly,

From the racecourse came the rumbling sound of horses galloping, mixed with the sound of weapons colliding and bowstrings vibrating.

Half an hour later,
Qingyun and the horses, panting heavily, ran back to the wooden cabin with white air puffing out.

Xu Zaijing dismounted, patted his mount gently, and stretched himself.

He went back into the wooden house and drank some warm water. After saying hello to his master, he led his men away from the racecourse.

After bathing and changing clothes, Xu Zaijing had breakfast in his mother's courtyard.

After returning to his own courtyard with his men, Xu Zaijing looked at the three maids who were sorting his book boxes and said, "You don't need to follow me to Sheng's house today."

Qingcao and the other three looked over in surprise. Yun Xiang, who was on duty today, looked at Xu Zaijing innocently: "Young Master?"

Xu Zaijing nodded in affirmation and continued, "I have already talked to my mother about it!"

"When it's daybreak, you can go to my warehouse with Mother Zhu to take a look. After you have selected the items, you can take a car to Sheng's house."

The three maids looked at each other, then bowed to Xu Zaijing in unison: "Yes, sir!"

"Ok!"

After saying that, Xu Zaijing carried the book box out of the courtyard by himself.

After giving some instructions to Qingyun in the outer courtyard, Xu Zaijing rode out of the Xu family's gate with his brother.

On the way to Sheng’s house,

From time to time, you can see animal-drawn carts entering the city in the early morning.

The cart was loaded with rice, winter vegetables and other goods.
Some carts were covered with sheds, while others were directly covered with rush mats. Both the sheds and the rush mats were covered with white snowflakes.

The sky brightens,

The clouds dispersed,

The sun's rays shone through the gaps in the clouds.

When Zhuang Xuejiu walked into the school leisurely,
Inner Courtyard of the Yongyi Marquis's Mansion,

In the corridor not far from the main courtyard,

Qingcao, Yunxiang and Huaxiang were wearing cloaks over their newly made winter clothes and walking behind the two mothers beside Sun.

After passing through the corridor and the door,
Several people came to the gate of a courtyard.

"Xiaozhu, Xiaodan, why are you here?"

The two mothers walking in front smiled when they heard this and bowed to the well-dressed woman who was speaking in front of them: "Sister-in-law Cui, we brought the three girls from Wulang Courtyard over to pick some things."

"Meet Aunt Cui."

Led by Qingcao, Xu Zaijing's three maids bowed together.

"Get up! Get up! I am a slave, how can I accept your courtesy!"

The woman smiled and walked a few steps, then came to Qingcao and the others.

"Mammy, what are you talking about? It's only natural for us to greet each other. How are you feeling in winter?"

"Good! Very good!"

Listening to the conversation between Qingcao and Aunt Cui, Yunxiang and Huaxiang smiled behind Qingcao.

This Madam Cui was not an ordinary maid in the marquis's mansion, but Xu Zaijing's wet nurse, so her status was naturally different from that of others.

"Sister-in-law, this is the pair of cards that Madam handed down. Please check them!"

Mother Zhu, who was beside Sun, took something out of her sleeve and said.

Aunt Cui smiled and said, "Okay! Then I'll take a look first!"

After checking carefully, Aunt Cui looked at Qingcao and others again and nodded: "Come on, come here!"

As he spoke, he led a few people towards the gate of the yard.

After writing their names and leaving red fingerprints on the table at the entrance of the courtyard, Nanny Cui led a few people over the high threshold and into the courtyard.

Hua Xiang and Yun Xiang, who had only been in the mansion for a short time and had never been here before, looked at the yard with some curiosity.

I saw that the ground in the yard was much higher than the ground at the door. There was no snow on the ground, and the melted snow on the roof fell directly into the gutter in the yard and was led out.

The yard is not big, and after entering the gate there are one- or two-story wooden and brick buildings.

There is a wooden sign hanging on the door of each house.

When they got closer, the two sisters could see words such as "medicinal materials", "fur", "cloth", "wood", "gold and silver", and "jade" written on the wooden signs.

"Qingcao, why did you come to the warehouse this time?"

"Replying to Madam, a maid in the old lady's family has been engaged, and the young master asked us to pick out a few gifts that suit her."

Aunt Cui, who was walking in front, nodded and said, "Then it's not easy to send medicinal materials. Let's look at fabrics, gold, silver and jewelry."

As she spoke, Madam Cui pulled out an exquisite key with a copper ring from her sleeve, walked to a house with a wooden sign with the words "Gold and Silver" hanging on it, opened the exquisite copper lock and pushed open the door.

"Come on, come in and take a look."

Qingcao walked over the threshold with ease, while Yunxiang and Huaxiang looked around curiously. The room was dry and bright, filled with quaint wooden shelves, and the air was filled with the aroma of wood and other flavors.

The wooden shelves are filled with exquisite and bright wooden boxes.

"You are all from Jingge'eryuan, take a look for yourselves! If I find someone I like, I will tell you whether you can take him away."

Aunt Cui said with a smile.

The two mothers beside Sun were also standing at the door, smiling and nodding.

Qingcao smiled and bowed to Aunt Cui and the two mothers, then walked over holding Huaxiang and Yunxiang's hands.

Come to the house,
Qingcao loosened his hand, opened a large and exquisite wooden box and said, "This is the pure gold pony that Princess Pingning gave to you before. You can't move it."

Yun Xiang and Hua Xiang looked at the pony wrapped in precious silk in the wooden box and nodded.

"This box contains the gold items given by the wife of Ningyuan Marquis. They cannot be touched."

"These are gold and silver melon seeds given by the palace. They are meant for people to use. You can pick a few if you need them!"

Hua Xiang and Yun Xiang nodded.

Qingcao pointed to a few wooden boxes inlaid with copper nails and said:

"These large boxes contain gold and silver sent by the Xiangyang Marquis's Mansion. They are all made in-house and can be used for gifts and exchanges."

Yun Xiang pointed to a larger wooden box behind those boxes and said, "Sister Qingcao, where are the others?"

Qingcao and Aunt Cui at the door smiled and looked at each other, saying, "Those were sent after the birth of the two sons of Marquis Xiangyang. They are exactly the same as these boxes."

"Oh!"

"This was sent by Cao family, Marquis of Tuoxi."

"This is a thank you gift from Bei Liao"

"This was sent by the Bai family in Yangzhou."

After walking around the room for a while, Hua Xiang looked at the wooden boxes, which were more than the wooden boxes that Marquis Xiangyang had sent in two batches, and the materials were much better, and asked, "Sister Qingcao, what are these?"

Qingcao shook her head and said, "I don't know that either, so don't ask! If we can know, we will know it naturally."

"Yes!"

As they were talking, the three maids had almost circled around both sides.

Afterwards, Qingcao took the two of them to the innermost part.

There was a table facing the door. Qingcao lowered her head and said to the wooden box placed in the most honorable position on the table: "These are the things that His Majesty has given me. In the wooden box is the ring that the Empress gave me when I was a child, and the hairpin that Empress Rong gave me. You can't move them."

"Uh-huh!"

After saying that, Qingcao pointed to the wooden shelf on the side of the table and said, "These were sent by the Lu and Li families of the Duke of Lian. They are all exquisite gold and silver wares made by master craftsmen. When our young master and the young man of the Lu family became sworn brothers, the Lu and Li families sent thirty pieces at once."

Yun Xiang looked at the exquisite wooden box and said uncertainly, "Sister Qingcao, are you here according to the young master's age?"

Qingcao nodded: "Yes, I will give two pieces to my relatives every year in the future."

Hua Xiang said hesitantly, "Sister Qingcao, are we going to find the young master's intention among these?"

Qingcao hesitated for a moment, then shook his head and said, "These are too valuable and will distract from the main event."

As she spoke, Qingcao walked to the exquisite large wooden box that had just been given to her by someone unknown.

After opening one of them, he took out six wooden boxes engraved with flower patterns from the twelve long flat wooden boxes placed side by side.

"Sister Qingcao, it would be a pity to break this set of flower patterns!"

Hua Xiang whispered.

Qingcao handed the wooden box to Huaxiang and shook her head: "It's okay, there are eleven sets in the box."

"oh oh!"

Close the wooden box.

Three maids came over, each holding two flat wooden boxes.

"Mammy, please check it."

Qingcao placed the wooden box in his hand on the small table at the door.

Aunt Cui smiled and said, "Qingcao, you only look at your son, not your own?"

When Qingcao heard this, he looked at a bucket-sized wooden box on the small table in the room.

"Sister Qingcao, do you have one too?"

Yun Xiang asked in a low voice.

Qingcao nodded.

Seeing how Yunxiang and Huaxiang were thinking, Qingcao sighed and said, "Come and take a look!"

Aunt Cui and the two mothers beside Madam Sun all laughed.

Qingcao walked to the wooden box and took out a small key from the pouch at her waist.

After opening the delicate little lock, he said, "These are mine. Half of them were given to me by the old Marquis of Xiangyang when you came to the Marquis' Mansion."

After saying that, Qingcao pointed to the small table where her wooden box was placed. There were six drawers on the small table.

"The left side is what the clouds think of you, and the right side is what the flowers think of you. It's okay if you mix them up, the contents are the same."

As he spoke, Qingcao gently pulled out the drawer for them.

Looking at the jewelry in the drawer, Yun Xiang said curiously, "I remember the ones at the bottom, but I've never seen the ones at the top before!"

When Qingcao heard this, he hurriedly looked at his wooden box.

Aunt Cui at the door smiled and said, "That was just delivered by Qingyun two days ago. I specifically put it in your place."

Xu Zaijing had a spare key to the green grass wooden box in his hand.

"Okay, now that we're done, let's go look somewhere else."

As she spoke, Nanny Cui waved to the three maids.

The three maids quickly pushed the drawers and locked the box.

quickly,

The door was shut.
The room fell into silence again.

Elsewhere, the door of a house with jade hanging on it was opened.

Just like in the 'Gold and Silver' room, Qingcao led the Yunxiang sisters and pointed around the room, saying, "Most of those were gifts from friends when you went to Yangzhou."

"These are the ones that Mr. Liang Liu thought were good, so he asked someone to send them here."

"Sister Qingcao, what about this?"

Yun Xiang asked while standing in front of a wooden box the size of a table.

Qingcao walked over, gently opened the wooden box and said, "This is a gift from the wife of Ningyuan Marquis when the young master turned one."

"Wow~"

The quality of the jade carvings of the eighteen kinds of weapons and the four treasures of the study in the wooden box amazed the two maids who had seen many fine things.

Close the wooden box gently.

Qingcao took Yunxiang and Huaxiang to the side of several long tables placed against the wall, which was the place where Qingcao had just mentioned "Yangzhou, a gift from a friend".

"Let's pick it here!"

Afterwards, the three maids discussed it and one of them picked out a jade-carved hairpin from the wooden box on the long table.

Go to the door,

After checking, Aunt Cui shouted to the maid at the gate, "Someone, bring three boxes over!"

After she finished shouting, Aunt Cui continued, "The three girls have already looked at two places. Since the young master has ordered us to do so, we should also go and have a look at the fabrics and furs. Come!"

Saying,

Nanny Cui took Qingcao and the other three into another room.

Standing at the door,

Looking at the exquisite and precious materials in the house,

Aunt Cui and the two mothers also sighed.
Many of the materials in this room are tributes and are rarely seen on the market. Most of them were awarded by the Queen Mother in the past.

After walking around the room in a daze, the three girls chose one piece in total, which was made of the material sent by the Xie family.

When Aunt Cui checked,
Yun Xiang looked at the somewhat crude silk bow bag hanging in the room and whispered, "Sister Qingcao, who made that? Why is it placed on the wooden stand made of the material given by the Queen?"

Qingcao said, "That was embroidered for you by the two girls Pingmei and Anmei when they were young, and they have been keeping it there ever since!"

The three people at the door smiled with relief when they heard this.

"Brother Jing always asks me to take good care of it!"

Aunt Cui said with a smile.

(End of this chapter)