Reborn in the last years of Kangxi

Chapter 107
Beijing, Dajing'er Hutong, Jueluo's house.

In the warm pavilion in the inner courtyard, Seshtu sat cross-legged next to the kang table, chatting with his mother Sitara, while waving a small hammer to smash walnuts.Because his technique is really not good, it took a long time to smash more than [-] walnuts, and the forehead was already faintly sweating.

When Xi Tala saw her son, she felt sorry for her son, and persuaded him with a smile: "Forget it, my son, I can't eat that much. Don't smash it, rest!"

Seshitu peeled the walnuts in his hand, threw the nuts into the food box beside him, and pushed them to his mother's side: "Er Niang, try it."

Sitara smiled and picked up a piece, put it in his mouth, and then pushed the food box back.

But Saishitu waved his hand: "It's so tiring to get so much, my son is reluctant to eat it, mother-in-law eat it!" After finishing speaking, he picked up a hazelnut and chiseled it twice, but he couldn't get it open at all, so he couldn't help laughing: "This walnut is considered big, so I'm afraid it's easy to peel, but I don't know how to peel this hazelnut. If you meet Miss San again, you have to ask her carefully!"

When Xi Tara heard his son mentioning Cao Yi, he sighed inaudibly.

When Seshitu came back from the hot spring, he brought two bags of dried fruits such as hazelnuts, walnuts and pine nuts, which he said were gifts from the Cao family.Sitara said that his teeth were bad, and asked his son to eat it himself, but Seshtu took out a food box, which contained several shelled nuts.

It turned out that when the return trip was scheduled for the fourth day of the third day, Cao Yong mentioned that the villa has no other products at present, only some dried fruits to give away, so that everyone should not be disgusted, and it is a little kindness to take some back.

Seshtu thought that his mother's teeth were not good, so he declined the gift on that ground.As a result, when he left in the afternoon, Cao Yi gave him a food box, which contained peeled nuts, and said that he was rushed to peel them out.Although there are not many, but it is somewhat meaningful. Please take it back and give Mrs. Jueluo a taste. The unshelled ones can be kept for the festival or given away.Seshtu couldn't refuse anymore, so he accepted it.

Xi Tara's heart was warm, and she repeatedly praised Cao Yi's thoughtfulness and thoughtfulness, and carefully asked his son about the situation in the past few days in Changping.

Seshitu gave an overview of the layout of Caojiazhuangzi, and told his mother interesting stories about them hunting and visiting the yard.

After listening to her son's words, Xi Tara realized that the wealth of the Cao family was far beyond her imagination, and her expression became gloomy again, and she only sighed in her heart that this marriage is so rare but impossible to seek.

*
Today, those peeled nuts are gone.On a whim, Seshtu peeled walnuts for his mother.How could he know that this work is very skillful and highly technical, and even though he was tired and sweating, there was no result, so he had to ask Cao Yi how to peel the hazelnuts.

Seshitu didn't notice the mother's strangeness at all, and tried twice seriously, either smashing the hazelnuts or breaking the hazelnuts.He really had nothing to do, so he said to his mother with a little apology: "Emiang, let's ask someone to buy the shelled ones from the fruit shop later! These shelled ones will be sent to a few sisters later, I remember that they also like to eat them when they are at home. .”

Xi Tara nodded with a smile, and patted his son's shoulder: "Go and do your work, I've been detained here for a long time!"

"Well! The son is going to deliver dried fruit to the older sisters." Saishitu got off the kang, brushed off the crumbs on the front of his clothes, and then turned to ask his mother: "Is there any message for Er Niang? Is there anything to eat?" , I will buy it for my mother when I come back."

Xi Tara shook her head: "Go and tell them that Er Niang is very good, don't worry about it, that's all. There is no need to buy anything."

Seshtu nodded, saluted and left.

Saishitu just went out on the front foot, and the little maid outside on the back foot reported back and forth that the third lady of the Cao family had arrived.

Xi Tara's face was overjoyed, and he said to the little maid almost without thinking: "Go and call the uncle back!"

Just as the little maid turned around and ran out, she was stopped by Sitara again: "Forget it, don't go!"

The little servant girl stared blankly at his wife, feeling at a loss, wondering what happened to his wife today.

Xi Tara smiled lightly and waved at her: "Miss San, please go to the east room."

Cao Yi came in to greet Sitara, and thanked her for the white jade string and snacks.

Xi Tara smiled and thanked the Cao family for treating their son for so many days, then dragged Cao Yi to sit on the kang, and said hello to her father.

As usual, Cao Yi chatted with the old man about the family life for a while, and then turned to the main topic, telling Sitara that he was going back to the south with his father.

Sitara's hand holding the long string of Buddhist beads on the front of the front was tightened, only to feel that the beads were very tight, and then let go quickly, showing reluctance on his face, but still asked her with a smile, let's go back, what way to go , about how long did it take to get home, and said that the road was bumpy in the freezing cold, and told her to prepare more medicines such as Huoluo Dan.

Cao Yi was moved, and answered one by one. With red eyes, he said please take care of Xi Tara, and said that he would visit the old man when he went to Beijing later.It sounds like polite words, but every word and every word is sincere and heart-warming.

Xi Tara finally couldn't bear to take Cao Yi's hand, looked her up and down again, and sighed in his heart, such a good girl, I don't know who could have her!

When Cao Yi left for a long time, Xi Tara was still immersed in melancholy.It wasn't until the little maid came in to change the hot tea that she came back to her senses, and then began to count the beads one by one, thinking seriously.

*
On the eleventh day of the twelfth lunar month, Shengjia arrived at Qingshan Daying.

Cao Yong had asked his father two days ago about whether someone forced the Cao family to marry him.Cao Yin did not give a clear answer, but said that everything is up to the Lord Long Live. Even if there is no similar thing, Cao Yong's marriage is not something that his parents can determine.

Cao Yong listened, silent in his heart, is this the emperor's tricks?On the one hand, it is to show kindness, on the other hand, it is to guard against it.Kangxi didn't want courtiers to marry privately, did he have other intentions?Wouldn't it be too petty to think like this?Kangxi loves face so much, since it is "favor", he will definitely find himself a daughter of a noble family with no real power in his family.No matter what the other person's appearance is, this kind of marriage where you can't make the decision at all makes people feel very bad.

For some reason, after seeing the love between Ning Chun and Qiu Niang, Cao Yong also consciously or unconsciously thought of marriage.In this world, although I have parents and relatives, I feel lonely in my heart.If you have a gentle wife, give birth to three or four children, and enjoy yourself at the knees of your parents, that will be a more pleasant life.

Cao Yin was going back to Jiangning years ago, and before that he had to go back to the capital to pick up his daughter, so the time was running out.Therefore, after he arrived at Qingshan Daying, he wanted to bid farewell to Kangxi.Cao Yong remembered one thing, that is Jinji Nashuang.Shao Mubu, the former governor of the south of the Yangtze River, died of malaria in June, and Gali took over later.I vaguely remember that Cao Yin also died of malaria in history. After Kangxi received the report of Cao Yin's serious illness, he even bestowed Jinji Nashuang.However, Cao Yin died before the medicine reached Jiangning.

Cinchona cream is an alkaloid extracted from the leaves and bark of a kind of "Cinchona tree", which has special effects on treating malaria.In the 32nd year of Kangxi, Kangxi suffered from malaria, and took a lot of medicines to no avail, and the doctors were helpless.French missionary and Portuguese missionary Liu Ying, etc. presented Cinney.After taking it, Kangxi's malaria was cured quickly, and since then Cinchona Cream has been enshrined as the "Holy Medicine".

When Wei Xin went to Guangzhou, Cao Yong told him to pay attention to the missionaries there and see if he could buy quinine cream from them.As a result, the news came back that while Cinchona Cream was honored as a "Holy Medicine" by the imperial court, it was also exclusive to the royal family.In order to obtain the imperial court's permission to preach, the church there paid tribute to the imperial court for all the Kinneys imported from Europe.

Cao Yong had no choice but to "seek medicine" from Kangxi for the sake of Cao Yin's life.Therefore, when Cao Yin gave his speech, he deliberately went with his father.

After the monarchs and ministers encouraged each other to say goodbye, Cao Yong went out and knelt down, and respectfully expressed his request to Kangxi, that is, to ask for a golden chicken cream for his father.

Seeing Cao Yong "begging for medicine" for his father, Kangxi frowned slightly, and couldn't help looking at Cao Yin with some worry: "Dongting is not in good health? I have asked you many times, why do you have to hide something?"

Although Cao Yin said that he was ill for more than a month due to the death of his youngest son in August, but now he has recovered, but he doesn't know why his son "seeked medicine".However, since it was Kangxi's inquiry, he didn't have time to think about it, so he hurriedly replied: "I don't dare to lie to Long Live, it's good. Children are ignorant, so they will act like this." After replying, he reprimanded Cao Yong in a low voice: " Nonsense, don't go down!"

Kangxi took a closer look at Cao Yin again, seeing that although he was old and skinny, he didn't look sick, so he felt relieved.Because Cao Yong is a filial piety, he didn't blame him, but he said comfortingly: "Cao Yong, Cao Yong, get up! I guess you have heard that 'Jinji Nashuang' is a holy medicine, and it is regarded as a cure for all diseases. It is only for malaria, but it is ineffective for other diseases."

Cao Yong did not stand up according to the rules, Xie En, still kneeling, and expressed his worries.My father is getting old day by day, his body is not as good as before, he has no resistance to diseases at all, and he is the most susceptible to the invasion of diseases.The south of the Yangtze River is humid and hot, and many people suffer from malaria every summer.Even among civil and military officials, many died of malaria.Although Long live is very kind, I often give it to Jinji when I get a report of an official suffering from malaria.However, Jiangning is more than [-] miles away from the capital, and it would take five or six days at the fastest to deliver the medicine through the post station.If it were a young official who got sick, he would naturally be able to wait, but his father's body...

Hearing these words, both Kangxi and Cao Yin were a little moved.They both thought of Shao Mubu, governor of Jiangnan, who died of malaria in early July, and Cao Yin wrote the record of his death from malaria.Counting his age, Shao Mubu was a few years younger than Cao Yin. He contracted malaria at the end of May, which later turned into dysentery, and died at the beginning of July.You must know that Cinchona Cream is only effective against malaria. If it turns into dysentery, the medicine will not be suitable for the symptoms, and it may even be dangerous.

Thinking of this, Kangxi nodded: "Come on, I've agreed, it's hard for you to be sincere and filial!" After finishing speaking, he said to Cao Yin: "Dongting only has one son, but it is no less than I have dozens of sons. That's hard to beat. It’s medicine for spring and summer, and it may not be available at the camp right now, I’ll write a letter to you later, and go to the House of Internal Affairs to pick it up after returning to Beijing.”

After Cao Yong thanked the emperor with his father, he came out of the imperial tent.Now, the deficit is expected to be paid off, and Kinney Nashuang is also ready, Cao Yong is relieved, he has done his best, and the rest is to do his best and obey the destiny.

Then, after Cao Yong went to bid farewell to Brother Sixteen, Detehei and others, he escorted Cao Yin to leave the camp and return to Beijing.Now, it is already the eleventh day of the twelfth lunar month, even if you go fast, it will take three to five days to reach the capital.At that time, fearing that he would not be able to rest for another two days, Cao Yin would set off to return to Jiangning.

Unlike when he left Beijing, Cao Yong did not insist on riding a horse anymore, not because of the colder weather, but to talk more with Cao Yin.Even if Cao Yin didn't want to mention Cao Yong's marriage, Cao Yong still had other doubts that he wanted to solve, such as the secret errands of the Cao family in Jiangnan, such as the identity of Mr. Zhuang Xizhuang and so on.

After listening to Cao Yong's question, Cao Yin was very surprised.The General Secretary of Jiangnan was not well known to the world. Although there had long been rumors in the official circles that the Cao family was the emperor's eyes and ears in Jiangnan, the rumors were rumors after all, and few people had evidence to believe it.The son is only a yellow-mouthed boy, so how could he be so convinced that the Cao family really has secret errands, and even open his mouth to persuade himself to find a way to let go.

"Why would Yong'er say that? Where did you know these things, but what did you hear about Jiangnan in the capital?" Cao Yin couldn't help asking.

Cao Yong looked at his father, shook his head, and thought of finding a reasonable explanation in his heart. He couldn't tell him that the "secret" of Cao's family was known after 300 years, and he was a descendant.

Cao Yin is a relatively traditional literati, if Cao Yong dared to say this, he would not believe in the so-called theory of gods and ghosts, and he would probably think that his son was in a daze.

Really can't think of a good wording, Cao Yong directly pointed out that the Cao family has been operating in Jiangnan for nearly 50 years, which in itself is a big abnormality.The Sacred Heart is unpredictable, how can it be explained clearly by the word "grace".Regardless of whether the Cao family has secret errands or not, it's time to withdraw.Otherwise, if it continues like this until the new emperor ascends the throne, I'm afraid it will be self-inflicted disaster.

Similar to this, Cao Yong is not the first time to talk about it.Four years ago, he mentioned not only the situation of the Cao family in Jiangnan, but also the issue of deficit.Not long after, the court really began to investigate the deficit, and the Cao family became the largest debtor in the Manchu Dynasty.

Both father and son were silent when they thought of the past.

(End of this chapter)