The Ups and Downs of Mrs. Yipin

Chapter 74 Going to the Princess Banquet ([-])

The visitor raised the curtain of the carriage, Fang Xiuyi got up slowly, stepped on the stool, and got out of the carriage supported by Mama Shi.

In front of me is a grand building with a tall red courtyard door, white walls and gray tiles beside it, and hollow fan-shaped lattice windows, which is very beautiful.The place where the eldest princess lives is higher than that of ordinary wealthy people outside.

"Madam He, this way please!" The visitor greeted Fang Xiuyi politely.

"Thank you. I don't know how to call it?"

"My husband's family name is Liu."

"Mother Liu, I'm sorry."

Mama Shi handed over a small purse at the right time, and Mama Liu accepted it without changing her face.

"The princess is talking to a few ladies. There are more people here today. The young people have all gone out to the flower hall. I don't know much about poetry and painting."

Fang Xiu didn't even think about hearing anything from this person, but since it's such a rule, she doesn't want to break it, so it's not a bad thing to listen casually.

The place where the eldest princess lives seems to be a four-way courtyard. As soon as Fang Xiu walks through the corridor, there are many maids and women in the courtyard. They are very busy coming and going, but they are all quiet and there is no panic at all. The discipline education is really well done.

Finally arrived at the door of the eldest princess, Fang Xiuyi was grandly welcomed into the hall of the eldest princess after hearing Mama Liu's call.

This hall is about the size of three rooms, and it is really imposing.Sitting directly above the hall is the eldest princess, and there are already many noble ladies sitting on both sides.

"The Eldest Princess Fu'an!" Fang Xiuyi bowed to the Eldest Princess.

"Mrs. He, please sit down." It sounds like the eldest princess is still a little enthusiastic.

"Xie the eldest princess." Fang Xiu stood up all the time, looked at the eldest princess formally, and then was led by a little maid to sit down on the third chair on the right side of the eldest princess.

The eldest princess should be in her forties, but she has been living a good life and taking good care of her. She looks only in her thirties.The royal family has good genes, so the appearance of the eldest princess is still very commendable, but the majestic temperament is better than the handsome appearance, which is a bit unbeautiful.

Sitting on both sides are noble ladies of different ages. When Fang Xiu saw Mrs. Gu sitting opposite, there were already people sitting on the left and right of him. The person on the top was older than her, about 40 years old, and the person on the bottom was the same as last time. Mrs. Cao, who had a little trouble in Gu's mansion
As soon as Fang Xiu had time to nod to Mrs. Cao, she heard the eldest princess say, "Mrs. He seems to like to live in seclusion very much."

Reclusive?Fang Xiuyi mentioned her again for some reason, and after hearing what she said, everyone else turned their attention to her.

"What the eldest princess said is that I am not good at myself, and I have only been a wife for a few months. I really dare not go out casually, for fear that I will smear my name as a lady and make people laugh." Fang Xiuyi didn't want to say those high-sounding things. If you talk too much, you will fall into trouble even more.

"Madam He is straightforward!" The eldest princess said ambiguously, she didn't know whether it was a compliment or a sarcasm, "Since the emperor has appointed you a first-class wife, you deserve it. Don't belittle yourself. You are a small family."

It seems that the Eldest Princess is used to instructing others. Fang Xiu smiled and said, "Thank you, Eldest Princess, for your guidance. I am enlightened. If there is anything wrong, please give me your advice!"

"I don't dare to teach you. You are all family members of important court officials, and your words and deeds are related to the court's face."

This is a good one, and everyone in the room has been said.All the ladies, including Fang Xiuyi, expressed their gratitude to the eldest princess and their determination to follow the rules.

"I heard that Mrs. He's two sons and daughters are excellent, and the emperor also gave them a reward. Why didn't they bring them here today?"

"Thank you, Eldest Princess, for your concern. It's just that the little girl is weak. The weather has been hot for the past few days, and she feels a little unwell. It's really inconvenient to come to the house to greet the Eldest Princess today. I hope the Eldest Princess will forgive me!"

"I think the children suffered a lot in the past. Since this is the case, Mrs. He must work hard to let them raise their bodies."

"Thank you, Eldest Princess. I will take care of them with all my heart and let them recover soon." Fang Xiuyi swore that her voice could not help but raise her voice.

Next, the eldest princess did not target Fang Xiuyi anymore, but seemed to talk to everyone in a friendly manner, caring about the whole family, and encouraging their adults to work hard and make contributions to the country.

Thanks to the eldest princess, Fang Xiuyi also took the opportunity to remember several wives.It seems that this eldest princess considers herself as the head of the family, and she has no scruples to criticize other people's family affairs in public.Although the eldest princess has a noble status and a long age, Fang Xiuyi thinks that not everyone likes her style, because the embarrassing smiles on the faces of a few people showed their own thoughts.However, due to her status, no one dared to express their dislike.

Some people came one after another, and they all brought one or two beautiful little girls with them. After greeting the princess, the girls were all led to other places.Fang Xiuyi was a little uncomfortable, she decided to go back and express her attitude to He Huai'an, she would never "sell" her children in this way in the future.

"Okay, the maids and mothers around the children will follow. Don't worry, you are in my house. I specially invited the theater troupe today, everyone should go to the theater." Finally, the eldest princess finished her indoctrination, Let everyone go out.

"Thank you, Eldest Princess!" Everyone got up one after another, and followed behind Eldest Princess.

When Fang Xiuyi was in the south, she had also heard about the theater troupe, and she was a little discouraged when she said it, because there was a widowed young woman who ran away with an opera troupe in a mansion she had been to before, so she didn't like the theater troupe. Very interested.Also, she couldn't understand.

Madam Gu really took care of Fang Xiuyi, she walked beside Fang Xiuyi automatically.

"Mrs. Gu!" On this occasion, Fang Xiuyi felt that it was not prudent to address elder sister and younger sister.

"Madam He!" Madam Gu also spoke softly, "Are the children serious?"

"It's not serious, it's just a little weak, just rest and recuperate."

The two didn't say any more, and followed everyone to the backyard.

This place looks like it is usually used for entertainment, and the decoration facilities are very complete.There is a stage on the north side, and the other three sides are two-story theater tables, and they are all connected together, so it is convenient for everyone to move around.

There are so many people today, the upstairs and downstairs are almost full, and some little girls also come in to listen to the play.For a while, the scene was very lively.

Fang Xiuyi, Mrs. Gu and others accompanied the eldest princess to sit on the second floor opposite the stage. The maids had already prepared snacks, fruits and tea.

"This Desheng class is very high-level and has a lot of plays. Even I was invited a month in advance. If you like anything, feel free to order." The eldest princess asked the list to be handed over to everyone for everyone to choose.

"The so-called difficult to adjust, with so many people, I don't know how many plays I have to order. Why don't the eldest princess order for everyone." The speaker, Fang Xiuyi still remembered, was the wife of a cabinet scholar, Mrs. Yu.

No matter in terms of age or grade, Mrs. Yu was enough to represent the opinions of others, and everyone agreed with her. Therefore, the eldest princess took advantage of the play list and ordered two plays, saying that she would sing one in the morning. , Sing out in the afternoon.It was only at this time that Fang Xiuyi realized that he had to stay here for a whole day for this summer banquet!

The gongs and drums started beating quickly, the babbling drama was sung, and the colorful costumes danced on the stage, but Fang Xiu couldn't understand a single word.Seeing that the others were fascinated and moved, she could only pretend to stare at the stage, but what she was looking at was the costumes and makeup of the actors.

The clothes worn by these opera singers, with wide robes and long sleeves, are worthy of being famous opera troupes. The workmanship and style are also very high-quality, and the face paintings are also acceptable.It's just that in this era, women cannot act, and all roles are played by men.Looking at a few men, their eyes are moving and their movements are charming, no wonder some people are bewitched.

After pretending for about half an hour, Fang Xiuyi couldn't sit still. Because she didn't understand singing, she inadvertently drank a little too much tea, so she wanted to go there conveniently, and it happened to be a time to relax.She apologized to Mrs. Gu and went downstairs.

Mother Shi and Xiaotao were waiting downstairs, and when they saw Fang Xiu coming out, they hurried up to greet her.

"lady!"

"Don't be nervous, I just want to make things easier."

"Ma'am, please go this way, I've already asked." Mama Shi was very thoughtful.

I have to say that the Princess's mansion is too big, and it took about five or six minutes to walk to the toilet.

After coming out of the latrine, Fang Xiuyi didn't want to go back to listen to the opera, it was really torture.

"Mother Shi, is there anything to watch nearby?"

"I heard from the maids that walking forward, there is a small garden with some flowers blooming well. There is also a gazebo inside."

"Okay, let's go there."

The small garden is not very far away. If there is anything going on in the opera garden, you can know it here in time.

This small garden is surrounded by a circle of well-trimmed bushes, and inside is a crisscross path paved with stone slabs. Each path divides the small garden into different areas. Each small area is self-contained and has rest There are tables and chairs, ornamental flowers, and a larger gazebo in the middle of the garden, but at this time, there are already people in the gazebo.

"Mother Shi, do you think I should go over to say hello to someone first, or I can just take a look first." In fact, Fang Xiuyi said this, not without any assertiveness, but just a way of expressing her helplessness.I wanted to hide in peace, but I didn't expect to meet someone who hides in peace like her. However, from this aspect, they can be regarded as like-minded people.

"Madam, let's sit in the gazebo for a while." Mother Shi could hear Fang Xiuyi's meaning.

"Then let's go."

There were three people in the gazebo. To be precise, one master brought two people. Just like her, they were a maid and a mother.

"Mrs. He!" The other party knew Fang Xiuyi, and even got up to salute Fang Xiuyi.

This woman is about the same age as Fang Xiuyi, but her appearance is much better than Fang Xiuyi's, and she belongs to the beauty level.The dress looks simple, but the workmanship and style are very high-quality, and the makeup is exquisite. She should also be an extraordinary woman.

"Hello, but forgive me for my blindness, dare to ask?"

"My husband's left deputy is Cheng Tongfang, the imperial censor."

"So it's Mrs. Cheng, sorry, I'm not very familiar with the capital, please Haihan!" Fang Xiuyi once made up for the official title in the capital, vaguely remembering that this position is a third rank, and the authority seems to be quite large.

"Mrs. He doesn't need to care. It's not a good thing to be familiar with these things." Mrs. Cheng spoke lightly, and her expression didn't seem to be much. Fang Xiuyi felt a little familiar.

"Thank you Madam Cheng for your understanding." Fang Xiuyi also sat down to rest, "Madam Cheng didn't go to the theater?"

"I don't understand." The answer was very simple.

Fang Xiuyi really wanted to laugh out loud, there were people like her, she thought everyone here liked to listen to operas.

"Haha, I don't understand either. I really failed the Eldest Princess' painstaking efforts." Although Fang Xiuyi was glad that someone felt the same as her, but after all, she didn't know the basics, so it was necessary to declare her "loyalty" to the Eldest Princess.

"Mrs. He, don't be nervous. The eldest princess has put in a lot of painstaking efforts. If she fails this time, she will make up for it next time."

Fang Xiu's eyes widened, this Mrs. Cheng can still talk like this? !She involuntarily glanced at Mama Shi, and saw Mama Shi nodded slightly. It seemed that this Mrs. Cheng was not someone with ulterior motives.

"Haha, what Mrs. Cheng said is true."

The rules of the Princess's mansion are meticulous. Seeing that there are guests here, the maids in the mansion immediately brought tea and snacks and other things, and said that after the banquet in the morning, someone will come to guide the way.

"It's rare to hear that Mrs. He comes out to socialize. I don't know what hobbies you have on weekdays?"

As soon as Fang Xiu put down the teacup, it seemed that she had once again failed the eldest princess' painstaking efforts. She didn't understand tea.

"I made Mrs. Cheng laugh. I mainly make a few clothes and take care of two children on weekdays. I don't have any special hobbies. Where is Mrs. Cheng?"

"I used to like to read and write, but now I'm a housekeeper."

"The housekeeper is exhausting, and Mrs. Cheng must be working too hard."

"Isn't Mrs. He working very hard?"

"Hard work? Hehe, yes, the housekeeper is indeed very hard." Fang Xiuyi felt a little guilty.

Mrs. Cheng obviously didn't know that Fang Xiuyi would react like this, but she didn't ask any further.

"I don't know if I can visit the house some other day?"

Fang Xiuyi felt a bit abrupt about Mrs. Cheng's proposal. Generally speaking, the other party would invite her to her home as a guest.

"Okay, no problem. Welcome to the mansion as a guest, anytime." Fang Xiuyi thinks that this Mrs. Cheng is not annoying, and there is no problem with frequent visits.

"Thank you Madam He!" Madam Cheng got up and said to Fang Xiuyi, "Since we are here, why don't we take a look at these flowers, they are indeed exquisite. Don't let these flowers down again."

Fang Xiuyi just took a sip of tea and almost spit it out. She finally thought why this Mrs. Cheng felt a little familiar, because her way and style of speaking were very similar to He Huai'an's.

(End of this chapter)