Great Qing Xiangguo

Chapter 17

Zhang Ban spent the night at Chen's house, got up early the next day and went back to his hometown in Gaoping.Because he was in a hurry to go back to congratulate his parents, Chen Tingjing no longer stayed with him.

Saying goodbye to Zhang Jian, the family went back to the house to talk.The old man asked: "It is said outside that you won the number one prize, but they insisted that Lord Wei speak ill of you in front of the emperor, and pulled you down. It is said that you did not send money to Lord Wei, is there such a thing?"

In fact, Chen Tingjing still had doubts about this matter, but he said in front of his parents: "Oh, this word has changed when it is passed on. Someone in the Gongyuan made things difficult for me and defaced my exam paper. It was Wei. My lord, find my exam papers from the posthumous papers, otherwise I wouldn’t be here today! In the capital, paying homage to masters, posting postings to students, and presenting ceremonies are all rules, and it’s not a big deal. But Lord Wei doesn’t even want this. , he will be a corrupt official?"

The old man said: "So that's the case! Mr. Wei is really a good official!"

It was already obvious on Shuxian, she sat beside the old lady and kept covering her mouth to regurgitate the acid water.When the old lady saw her, she said: "Shuxian, don't stay here all the time, go into the house and lie down." The maid Cuiping hurried over and helped Shuxian go into the room.Cuiping is only 12 years old, but she is very clever.

Shuxian went into the house, the old lady told her family members to go down, only Chen Tingjing and his parents were in the living room.Only then did the old lady ask: "Jing'er, mother heard that you found another wife in the capital?"

Chen Tingjing blushed immediately, and said, "Where did mother hear that?"

The old lady said: "Mother heard what Shuxian said, Dashun told Cuiping, and Cuiping told Shuxian what she said."

Chen Tingjing said: "This Dashun!"

The old man didn't say anything for a long time, but now he got angry and said, "Did you blame Dashun for what you did?"

Chen Tingjing said: "Where am I going to hide it from my parents? I want to tell your elders myself. The child is unfilial and did not report it in advance, but there is indeed a reason for the incident, and it is too late to bring the letter back." Chen Tingjing almost lost himself in the capital. Life, thanks to the rescue of Li's father and daughter, I said it carefully.He also said that Mr. Wei was the mediator, and he himself was grateful for his life-saving grace, so he agreed to this marriage.

After hearing this, the old lady took her son's hand and cried again: "Mother never thought that you would suffer so much in the capital! Father and daughter of the Li family are really your benefactors!"

Chen Tingjing said: "If sister Yueyuan hadn't rescued me, I would have died long ago!"

The old lady turned her head to look at the old man, and said: "Father, since this is the case, I will accept this marriage, and this is also fate."

The old man didn't say anything, he wanted to deal with the important matters of his children's marriage, no matter what, he had to go back to understand the family first, how can he be the one who can make decisions casually.But after hearing so much from his son, the old man gradually lost his temper, but he refused to say a word.Chen Tingjing knew his father's temper, no matter what he thought in his heart, his mouth was always fierce.

Chen Tingjing had no choice but to agree to this marriage. He respected and was grateful to Mr. Li. Although Yueyuan was young, she was also very smart and cute. He just felt that he could not forgive others, so he said: "I am sorry. Shuxian, I feel that Yueyuan has been wronged again. After all, she is a woman with a family background, how can she be made to be low-key and small?"

The old lady thought for a while, and said: "Where is Shuxian, mother will go and talk. This child is reasonable, not the one who is jealous! Yueyuan will grow up in the future, and you will take her as your wife. Yi Shuxian's temper is not good." I will be mean to her. Your father and I, as long as we are reasonable, we can figure everything out. Since you have called your father in front of others and you have a marriage contract, you have to do your filial piety. Your father-in-law is still sick Now, at home, you pay your respects to your relatives and friends, and leave early to go back to the capital when you are free."

Only then did the old man say something: "Remember what your mother said!"

Chen Tingjing visited relatives and friends at home for forty days, and the old lady urged him to go to the capital, saying that his father and mother are still in good health, and there are people who take care of the big and small things at home. For the heavy.Chen Tingjing was in a dilemma, he wanted to spend more time with his parents, but he was also worried about the health of his father-in-law in the capital.Thinking that if the father-in-law is still sick in bed, Sister Yueyuan will be really pitiful.

Chen Tingjing has a younger brother, who used to have a single name and a unified character, but now the brothers of the Chen family follow the imperial edict and use the word Ting as their generation.Tingtong was about the same age as Dashun, and he pestered his parents many times that he wanted to go to the capital to study with his elder brother.Chen Tingjing knew this younger brother, and his temper was a bit dishonest. He was afraid that he would become more frivolous when he went to the capital to learn, so he always refused.Ting Tong was crying and making noises, only saying that his parents were biased, seeing that his elder brother was awarded a Jinshi, he only listened to his elder brother in everything.After all, the brothers and sisters were all afraid of the old man, and the old man finally lost his temper, so Ting Tong didn't dare to make trouble anymore.Chen Tingjing tried to persuade him with kind words again, and told Tingtong to study hard at home, and he would naturally go to the capital if he became famous in the future.

Da Shun still wanted to go with the young master, but he went to ask Cuiping and said, "The old master asked me to go to the capital to serve the young master, are you going?"

Cuiping usually blushes when she sees Dashun, saying: "Fuck you, ask me what I do!"

Da Shun said: "Go and see, the capital is a big city, and there are many things you can't see! It's okay, I will take you to play every day."

Cuiping's neck was red, and she said: "If you want to see the world, you can just go, don't keep pestering me! The young mistress is still waiting for me to deliver things in the garden!"

Cuiping turned around and left, Dashun was anxious and dared not chase after her.Cuiping was originally sending needles and threads, and Shuxian wanted to sew some clothes for Chen Tingjing herself.Shuxian said to Cuiping: "Young master is going to the capital, no one will take care of you, and Dashun only knows how to play, so I can't rest assured. Cuiping, can you go with the young master?"

Qianji was playing here with his mother, and before Cuiping could answer, he said, "I'm going to the capital with my father!"

Shuxian annoyed her son and said, "You don't want a mother anymore!" Although she was teasing her son, she still felt a little uncomfortable when she said this.

Cuiping blushed again, bowed her head and said, "I want to stay at home with young mistress."

Shuxian looked at Cuiping, couldn't help but pursed her lips and smiled, and said, "Stop pretending in front of me. Knowing that Dashun is going, you seem to have lost your soul all day long."

Cuiping was so anxious that she wanted to cry, and said, "Young Mistress, you're wronging me for saying that!"

At this time, the sound of the piano came from the room, and Shuxian became flustered and accidentally tied her hands.It turned out that Chen Tingjing was playing the piano in the room.Cuiping hurriedly grabbed the young lady's injured hand, and said, "Young lady, don't worry about it, just tell the old lady to go to the capital!"

Shuxian smiled and sighed: "My parents are already at this age, how can I walk away!"

Shuxian stopped talking, and listened to the piano while sewing.After a while, the sound of the piano stopped, and Shuxian stared at the pond in a daze.In the pond, lotus flowers are blooming, and a few dragonflies fly and stop above them.Qianji was chasing dragonflies by the pond, Shuxian told his son not to run around, but not to fall into the pond.

Cuiping raised her head abruptly, saw Chen Tingjing coming, stood up hurriedly, and said, "Master, please sit down, I'll get you a cup of tea."

Cuiping walked away, Chen Tingjing said: "Shuxian, you have enough clothes, you can rest."

Shuxian answered irrelevantly, and said, "I want Cuiping to go to the capital with you, so that I can take care of you."

Chen Tingjing's answer was also wrong, and said: "I know you feel uncomfortable, I think maybe this is God's arrangement!"

Shuxian bowed her head and said: "Where, I thank him from the bottom of my heart! My parents say that he is our benefactor, how can I be an ungrateful person?"

Chen Tingjing said: "How about I tell my parents to take you to the capital."

Shuxian shook her head for a long time, and said: "I was angry about Yueyuan, and I am already unvirtuous; if I go to the capital with you and leave my old parents alone, I am unfilial again. I won't go!"

Qianji is ignorant, always messing around, clamoring for his mother to take him and his father to the capital.Cuiping knew that the young master and the young mistress had something to say, so she took a long time on purpose to bring the tea, and the branches in the garden slapped when they were far away.Chen Tingjing and Shuxian stopped talking and sat silently facing each other.Shuxian's heart sank, seeing that Cuiping had just come, she couldn't help saying, "It's been so long since I poured a cup of tea, did I go to the street to buy tea, or did I go to fetch water from the well? I knew you were not in the mood Already, I will go to the capital with Dashun tomorrow!"

Cuiping asked Shuxian to say a few words, and tears rolled out like soybeans.At this moment, Chen Tingtong ran over and said, "Brother, Mr. Zhang Bang's home has delivered a letter." Chen Tingjing read the letter, and it turned out that Zhang Bang's mother was ill and could not leave for the time being.

It was late autumn, Chen Tingjing bid farewell to his parents at Zhongdao Zhuangkou, and was about to go to the capital.He had already paid homage to his ancestors in the ancestral hall, and now he was about to board the car. Chen Tingjing knelt down to pay respects to his parents again.Dozens of members of the Chen family came to see each other off, and surrounded hundreds of neighbors, some came to say goodbye, and some just watched the fun.The old man repeatedly asked: "Ting Jing, in the officialdom, it is important to be cautious. Dad has said everything that should be said. No matter how big an official you become in the future, don't forget to report to the saints and caress the people. It is not in vain to read Book of sages!"

Chen Tingjing said: "Boy, remember father's teaching!"

The old lady said: "Jing'er, you can rest assured that there is Shuxian at home."

Knowing that his wife was about to give birth, Chen Tingjing was naturally worried, so he said, "Shuxian, parents depend entirely on you, and you have to take care of your own body."

Shuxian nodded and said: "The weather is getting colder every day, so be careful to add clothes. Qianji, come to mother, father is leaving."

It turned out that Qianji had been holding his father's leg tightly, with tears in his eyes.Chen Tingjing bowed and picked up his son, and said with a smile: "Qianji doesn't cry, father will bring you delicious food from the capital. You study hard at home, and go to the capital when you grow up."

The maid stepped forward and hugged Qianji down, Qianji burst into tears, only arguing not to let father go.When Qianji cried like this, several adults in the family also cried.The old lady only said that Ting Jing would go to the capital to be an official, so what are you crying about?As he said it, tears flowed down his face.Cuiping was going to follow her, she was so happy, she just looked at Dashun and smiled.Everyone was crying now, and she couldn't help crying too.

Chen Tingjing used two mule carts to go to Beijing. Chen Tingjing and Cuiping were in the same cart, and the cart was driven by Dashun.There is only one car for luggage, and another servant, Heizi, drives the car.Dashun turned his head from time to time in the car, Cuiping's face was flushed, and she just stared at him.Chen Tingjing didn't pay attention to the two children, and only cared about reading in the car.

When he arrived in Taiyuan, Chen Tingjing went to the governor's yamen to visit Wu Daoyi, the master of Futai.Now that Chen Tingjing is no longer a prisoner in the past, Wu Daoyi was very polite and hosted a banquet in the yamen, and even sealed 300 taels of Cheng Yi as a gift.Chen Tingjing lingered in Taiyuan for a few days and visited several old acquaintances.He also thought that Fu Shan was really a character, so he went to Wufeng Temple alone without telling anyone.Unexpectedly, Mr. Fu Shan went on a cloud tour, Chen Tingjing felt very regretful, and returned home disappointed.

(End of this chapter)