lady, please calm down

The eighth day of July.

Early in the morning, the carriages and horses were prepared in the palace's back house. After saying goodbye, Ayu and Cai Hua boarded the carriages respectively.

Before leaving the house, a little maid in Yunong's yard quietly stuffed a small bundle into Hutou, and explained to Cai Hua, who was in the same car with no money, "It's filled with snacks that Miss Zhao loves to eat." .”

At chen o'clock, the carriage left the house, and Ayu met her mother and aunt in the city. The motorcade left the city and headed northwest.

After leaving the city, Hutou opened the bag and saw that in addition to some food, there was also a stack of cargo tickets wrapped in red silk and some scattered silver.

After the incident in the school, Hutou's little treasury was wiped out by her sister, and her money was tight. The money that Sister Yunong gave her in private was nothing more than giving her timely help.

But thinking that he was still a guilty person at this time, he couldn't help but glance at Cai Hua nervously.

Cai Hua was leaning on the soft pillow in the car, looking out the car window with a profound smile that saw through everything.

I don’t know if I really didn’t see it or if I just pretended not to see it.

During Ayu's wedding this time, apart from the maids and servants, the only full-time escorts in the motorcade were Xiao Man and dozens of others.

It's not that the palace doesn't pay attention to the safety of Ayu and Cai Hua, but because the strongman bandits in the vicinity of Caizhou have long been wiped out, and there has been no case of robbery on the road within hundreds of miles for many years.

Yingchuan County is four hundred miles northwest of Caizhou. We stayed overnight along the way and the journey was indeed smooth and peaceful.

Ayu's mother, Tan, couldn't help but sigh to her sister-in-law, Cheng, "In the ninth year of Fuchang, I took Ayu back to her hometown, and I encountered robbers on the way. I was so frightened that I still remember it fresh!"

Mrs. Cheng couldn't help but smile and said: "Huaibei has changed rapidly in recent years. We have all seen it. Thanks to Yuan Zhang! In this chaotic world, a paradise has been created."

"Haha~" Tan smiled reservedly and said humbly: "The success of Huaibei today is not only due to Yuan Zhang alone, but also depends on the lives of the officers and soldiers, the dedication of the officials, and the efforts of the people."

It is not unreasonable for Mrs. Tan to say such high-level words. After all, Mrs. Cheng is praising her son-in-law. It is reasonable and reasonable to be humble on behalf of her son-in-law.

But having said that, the proud smile on Mrs. Tan's face revealed her happy mood now.

Since she married Chen Jingyan when she was a teenager, these years in Caizhou have been the happiest days in Tan's life.

At first, her husband had a successful career. In just a few years, he rose from a small magistrate in a depressed county to a high-ranking official in a local frontier.

The son is also highly valued and has become a leader among the young people in Huaibei.

The daughter got her wish and married the man of her choice.

At Tan's age, what she wants is for the men in her family to be successful and the women to be happy and healthy.

Ayu, who was sitting quietly aside, heard her mother mention the "strong man who robs the road" again, and couldn't help but reveal her pair of signature dimples. Wherever there were robbers back then, it was all uncle's bad idea.

Last night, after a discussion about which one was more annoying, "Don't marry someone after playing with them" or "Don't play with others after marrying someone", Chen Chu finally realized his mistake and corrected it.

After several profound lessons, Ayu's resentment was greatly reduced.

After returning home today, Ayu couldn't help but feel brighter. Looking out the car window, she felt that the flowers were extraordinarily red, the grass was extraordinarily bright green, and everything in the world was beautiful.

The convoy left Caizhou on the eighth day of the lunar month.

Entering Yingchang Prefecture three days later, Caihua parted ways with Ayu that day and turned west to Wucheng to inspect the newly discovered hematite ore.

Ayu took Hutou and continued northward, finally entering the border of Yingchuan County on July 12th.

During this visit, Ayu tried to keep a low profile along the way, but unexpectedly, the magistrate of Yingchuan County received news from nowhere that the concubine of the King of Chu had returned home.

He actually stayed at the county boundary for days.

At noon on the 12th, the motorcade appeared in everyone's sight. The magistrate of Yingchuan County hurriedly led his officials to greet him and shouted in front of the motorcade, "Du Shangyi, magistrate of Yingchuan County, welcomes the two ladies and Concubine Chen. .”

This time there was no man from the family accompanying them when they returned to their hometown. Grandmothers Tan and Cheng got out of the car and had a few words with the local parents.

During the greetings, Du Zhi County would always mention Concubine Chen from time to time. Mrs. Tan understood, smiled and called the maid next to her, and whispered: "Go and ask Ayu to get out of the car. Du Zhi County is the parents of this county, A Yu It’s a good idea to meet up with him when he gets home.”

Ayu, who had been staying in the car, finally showed up.

But before she could step forward, Du Shangyi had already led dozens of county government officials to bow deeply and said again: "Du Shangyi, Magistrate of Yingchuan County, pays homage to Concubine Chen."

"Master Magistrate, please excuse me."

Ayu knew that Du Zhixian was able to lower her body so low to welcome her at the county border, not because she was the daughter of the Chen family of Yingchuan, but because she was the wife of the Chen family of Caizhou.

At this time, she represented the palace, so no matter the etiquette or attitude, she was neither reserved nor cutting down, neither spreading nor branching.

After a short while, Du Shangyi rode a big horse to open the way in front of him, heading to the ancestral home of the Chen family in Yingchuan.

This horse-riding skill was only recently practiced urgently by Du Zhi County. It is well known to the officials of Qi State that officials in Huaibei are not allowed to ride in sedan chairs when inspecting or traveling.

Although Yingchang Prefecture did not have such a rule, Du Zhixian would rather wear out his hindquarters than change his sedan chair to a horse, in order to show Concubine Chen that although he was not in Huaibei, he still kept the teachings of King Chu in his heart.

The painstaking efforts here certainly have some effect.

At least, Tan and Ayu really remembered his name after loudly announcing their home status several times.

On the way home, Mrs. Tan glanced ahead through the car window screen and couldn't help but smile to Ayu: "This Du Shangyi is somewhat sincere."

But when Ayu heard this, she looked at the person leading the way and said worriedly: "Mom, isn't this kind of ostentation a bit too much?"

Tan said: "This is our parents. You can't drive him back when he comes to welcome you, right? It's true that your father wants to keep a low profile, but he must save some face for others to prevent my son from being raped." He said that after marrying into the royal palace, he would no longer recognize his elders in his hometown."

When I first heard this, there was nothing wrong with it.

However, some personal emotions of the Tan family were inevitably mixed into it. In the early years, because there was only one Chen Jingyan in the Chen family who held the position of county magistrate to support his appearance, the local family had clearly shown signs of decline.

There was even an incident where other aristocratic families occupied the Chen family's land and house. It was under those circumstances that Chen Jingyan had no choice but to agree to the marriage between Ayu and Wu Yifan.

At that time, the Wu family had Wu Weiguang serving as a minister in the court, and it was at the height of their power. Chen Jingyan's "last resort" was not because he looked down on the Wu family, but because Wu Yifan's "illegitimate son" was not a secret in the family.

Chen Jingyan just pinched his nose and ignored Wu Yifan's tainted background just to find support for his family.

Today, the prosperity of the Chen family in Yingchuan has far exceeded that of the Wu family back then.

The humiliation suffered in the early years was washed away in one day.

Naturally, Mr. Tan could not resist Du Shangyi’s grand welcome!

When you return to your hometown with wealth and honor, you should walk in rich clothes.

So that those people who followed the trend in the past few years can see clearly who is the hope of the Yingchuan family!

And someone who had the same idea as her was Ayu's grandmother, Mrs. Liang.

Early noon.

The convoy of provincial relatives arrived at Yanagawa, where the ancestral home of the Chen family is located.

Grandmother Liang, wearing a gray-colored shirt with large sleeves and a jade-inlaid forehead mop, with a golden phoenix hairpin inserted into her meticulously combed silver hair, stood outside the courtyard to greet her in person.

Behind him, a group of grandchildren of various ages were waiting eagerly.

To Liang's left, stood the prefect of Yingchang with a warm smile, and to her right, Chen Jingyu, the third son of the Chen family, who stayed in his hometown to serve his mother.

The heads of the Yingchuan family, such as Zhong, Yu, Xie, and Pei, stood on both sides of the gate.

Originally, the Wu family should have a place here.

But now, the Wu family, which used to be the most prosperous in Yingchuan, has become a thing of yesterday and disappeared.

The Wu family's precedent is also an important reason why other aristocratic families respectfully wait for a 'concubine'.

Today's aristocratic family, although it still has a clear name, is unable to fight back when faced with the butcher's knife of the military leader.

At present, the political situation of Qi State has gradually become clearer. For a long time to come, the King of Chu in Huaibei will almost be able to determine the rise and fall of the clan with a single word.

Because the other aristocratic families had no friendship with the King of Chu in the early years, even if they wanted to join the Huaibei gang, they lacked the opportunity. That's why they acted so meekly and wanted to use the Chen family's relationship to try to get involved in this worldly situation and benefit the family.

Here, just as the motorcade came to a stop, a servant from the Chen family stepped forward to stabilize the car seat.

Later, Tan, Cheng and Ayu got off the car respectively.

When the first two people got out of the car, Mrs. Liang was still able to remain calm, but when she saw Ayu, the old lady couldn't hold herself steady, so she raised her legs and walked over.

Chen Jingyu quickly helped his mother and followed him.

"Daughter-in-law pays homage to mother."

The rules of the Chen family seem to be quite strict. Tan and Cheng saluted quickly, with standard movements and respectful attitudes.

"Yeah." With a faint hum, Liang didn't stop, her eyes kept falling on Ayu's face, and she didn't stop until she was a foot in front of Ayu.

"The grandson comes to see his grandmother."

As Ayu said this, she was about to kneel down and kowtow, but the old lady grabbed her arm to stop her. Then she held Ayu's little hand tightly, her eyes were red before she spoke, "Okay, okay, my grandson has grown up."

When Ayu was a child, she stayed with her grandmother until she was eight or nine years old before she returned to her parents. Grandparents and grandchildren certainly have real feelings for each other. When she saw her grandmother being emotional, she couldn't help but blush and murmured: "My grandson is unfilial. I haven’t been home to visit my grandmother for several years. Is she still in good health?”

"Grandma doesn't blame Ayu for marrying and obeying her husband. Let's go home!"

After that, he took Ayu's hand and walked towards the Chen family's ancestral home.

The sixty-year-old woman's steps were much more agile and powerful than before. Although Tan, who was following behind, had been ignored by her mother-in-law Xiaoyou just now, she didn't mind at all now.

Haha, Ayu was born in her belly. Seeing her daughter's beauty at this moment, she was just as happy as her daughter.

The little girl who was very opinionated at the beginning has now become not only the pride of her, but also the pride of the entire Chen family.

At two quarters of noon, the door of Chen's house opened wide, welcoming Ayu into the house.

Opening the middle door to welcome a married woman can be said to be an exception, or it can also be said to be slightly over the line.

But something even more extraordinary was yet to come. Before Ayu had time to rest after entering the house, she was led by her third uncle to the family ancestral hall to pay homage to her ancestors.

This is an unprecedented first time.

Even though the aristocratic family is in decline, the fact that the Chen family received a prince's concubine beyond the standard still made other aristocratic families secretly complain: By trying to please the King of Chu in this way, the Chen family has lost the face of our Yingchuan family.

I think back then, the Emperor of Tang wanted to marry a daughter of the fifth surname and Qi Wang as his queen, but he couldn't get it.

Look at today, a prince's concubine has become a noble of the Chen family and a life-saving straw for various families.

Alas, the changes in the world are so sad and sad.

But even if they were disappointed again, everyone would only dare to force Lai Lai in their hearts, and no one would praise her in person, "The Chen family girl is beautiful, smart, graceful, graceful, and naturally noble."

At noon, the Chen Mansion held a banquet to entertain many guests.

Among the female guests in the back house, it is said that with Ayu's seniority, not to mention the main table, even the deputy table would not be able to sit.

Ayu consciously sat at the same table as her sisters at home. They had not seen each other for several years, and the unfamiliarity between the sisters was quickly eliminated under Ayu's guidance.

Before the banquet started, in the distance, an old woman in her fifties led two girls who had not yet untied their buns. They stood on tiptoe in the hall and looked around, as if they were looking for someone. Until they saw Ayu's figure, they couldn't help but look happy. , walked over quickly.

My cousin Chen Xueji, who was sitting next to Ayu, saw the woman and couldn't help but remind her in a low voice: "Oh! My aunt is here. Sisters, please put your jewelry away quickly, be careful not to be hit by the autumn wind."

While talking, he took off the jasper bracelet from his wrist and put it away close to his body.

The sisters at the table suddenly felt like they were facing a formidable enemy and hid their valuable jewelry one after another.

This aunt was the younger sister of Chen's mother, Liang. The two were nearly ten years apart. Many years ago, Liang had arranged for her to marry the only son of the envoy of the Yingchang Salt and Iron Bureau at that time.

Although the salt and iron bureau secretary didn't sound that impressive, he was a very good one, and Liang had arranged a good home for the young girl.

Unexpectedly, just over a year after my aunt's marriage, my father-in-law fell ill and died.

The family has lost its backbone, and the situation is naturally no better than before.

Subsequently, after the disaster of Ding Wei, Qi and Zhou fought violently near Yingchang. After several lootings of the aunt's husband's house, they were finally wiped out. The husband was so angry that he vomited blood and died.

Since then, my aunt has come to the Chen family every now and then to 'hang around'.

Mrs. Liang felt sorry for her little sister's difficulties, and felt that her misfortunes were all caused by the marriage she introduced. Therefore, when her own family was also in trouble, she always helped her aunt's family.

This aunt took control of Liang's guilt and made it worse.

After the situation of the Chen family improved in recent years, my aunt saw her younger generation wearing very expensive jewelry and dared to directly ask for it for her daughter, which made the Chen family sisters very dissatisfied.

Sure enough, my great-aunt approached Ayu's table and glanced first. Seeing that the heads and hands of the girls were all clean, she couldn't help but curl her thin lips like a knife.

Immediately afterwards, I found that only the jade hairpin and golden hairpin on Ayu's head were still there, and those eyes habitually stayed there for a few more breaths.

But then, perhaps remembering that there was something serious to say today, he resisted and turned his eyes away from Ayu's head, and forced out a disgusting smile, "Ayu, do you still remember your great-aunt! When you were a child, your great-aunt was still there. I hugged you!"

After all, she is the elder. Ayu stood up, bowed to her aunt, and said with a smile: "My aunt and my grandmother are sisters from the same mother. How could Ayu not remember my aunt."

When my great-aunt heard this, she suddenly smiled and raised her hand to shake Ayu's hand. Ayu seemed to raise her hand accidentally and just avoided her hand. At the same time, she picked off two Huaibei products from her head. He smiled and looked at the two girls behind his great-aunt, "These are the Sixth Sister and the Seventh Sister. We haven't seen each other for many years and they look so good. Let's treat these two little things as a meeting gift for my sister." .”

He said and handed over the hairpin.

Ayu had just taken off her headdress with very precise hands. At this time, the hosta from her mother's family and the golden hairpin given to her by her uncle were also put on her head, but she chose these two.

"Liu Niang, Qiniang, thank you cousin." My aunt took it away for her daughter. She couldn't help but glanced at the ornaments on Ayu's head again, and said with a smile: "It's better that Ayu loves my aunt's family and is kind-hearted." Then there will be a good reward, and I will marry the right man! I don’t know how many times better than those who treat my aunt as a beggar."

When saying this, my aunt also glanced sideways at the many Chen family daughters sitting there.

This time, Chen Xueji and the others were also angry.

They all heard it very clearly. Sister Yu just said it very clearly, "My great-aunt and my grandmother are the same mother. How could Ayu not remember my great-aunt?"

Sister Yu is already reminding me that my sisters respect you just because you are my grandmother’s sister.

Not only did this great-aunt fail to hear what Ayu meant, she even asked Dana to get up!

Didn’t you see me just now? My sister Yu saluted the magistrate, but he quickly moved away and did not dare to accept it. However, your great aunt, who cannot be beaten with eight sticks, accepted the salute from sister Yu as she deserved!

Seeing that the eyes of the sisters at the table were about to burst into flames, Ayu wanted to end this embarrassing conversation quickly, so she smiled and said to her aunt: "Aunt, where is your seat? Otherwise, do you want to sit with me?"

This table can seat eight people, and it is already full. There is no room for the three of them.

My aunt was really moved, but when she saw no one stood up to give up her seat, she had to say: "I won't sit down anymore. My aunt came here to talk to you about something serious."

"Oh? Great-aunt, please speak."

Ayu's expression remained normal, but she was already on guard.

But even though she was mentally prepared, she was still disgusted by her aunt's imagination.

"Ayu, let me tell you, the King of Chu is young and strong, and he will inevitably bring other women to his home in the future. Instead of taking advantage of others, you might as well bring Liu Niang and Qiniang back to your home. You are cousins, so they naturally To you, at least you will have someone to take care of you in the palace from now on, so as not to be bullied by the princess."

Ayu opened her small mouth and said nothing for a long time.

Seeing this, my aunt persuaded her earnestly: "In the future, if you have six mothers and seven mothers to help you, then the palace still has the final say? This matter will be of great benefit to you and your Chen family."

Having said this, my great-aunt looked at Ayu again with the look of 'you have taken advantage of me', and said with a smile: "Ayu, you are not even jealous of your own sister, are you? Don't worry, Liu Niang When Qiniang enters the house, she will not compete with you for favor."

Oh, you're even engaging in moral kidnapping!

Talking nonsense and full of absurdity!

Even though she was at the family banquet, Ayu's chest couldn't help but feel angry, but her tone was calm when she spoke, "Auntie, it's hard for you to bother planning so much. Instead of doing this, it would be better for my aunt to score twice and seek happiness. The remarriage of a good husband will enable the sixth sister, the seventh sister, and the others to have their father's protection."

How can a younger person advise an elder to remarry? Besides, my aunt is already fifty years old, so it would make people laugh if she mentioned the matter of spring again at her age.

My great-aunt couldn't help but change her face, and said displeasedly: "You kid, you are talking nonsense. My great-aunt has already known her fate, so it is not etiquette to marry again!"

Ayu nodded, lowered her eyelids and lowered her eyes and said, "That's true. But if the sixth and seventh sisters come into my house, wouldn't they become sisters working together with the same husband, which is also not etiquette."

Only then did my great-aunt understand that this girl had gone around in a big circle and was secretly cursing herself for not knowing etiquette. She couldn't help but get angry and said, "Hey, hello. Sister Yu, your son, Fugui, doesn't recognize us relatives, so he pulled my family together." I don’t even want to!”

The sound was a bit loud, attracting the attention of the female guests at the surrounding tables.

The movement here probably also alerted the main table in the inner room. Shao Qing, two women came forward from the inner room quickly but not in a panic.

Someone approached and made a blessing ceremony, and said: "Ms. Chen Fei, the old lady invites you to sit at the main table in the back room."

Upon hearing this, Ayu bowed to the sisters at the table, turned around and went to the inner room.

'Concubine Chen' is reminding her great aunt that although Ayu is a grandchild, you cannot treat her as an ordinary grandchild!

But the old lady's painstaking efforts obviously had no effect. My aunt looked at Ayu's back and wanted to say something, but another woman had already pulled her away, half inviting and half dragging her away.

It wasn't until his aunt walked away that Chen Xueji, who had witnessed the whole process, whispered to the sisters: "How can there be such unclear elders in this world! In the public, what nonsense are you talking about to help Ayu control the back house of the palace? If the princess hears this After that, how will Ayu handle herself! No wonder Ayu got angry and scolded her for her lack of etiquette!"

"Yes! I heard that Concubine Cai in the palace is not easy to get along with. My great-aunt got confused and forced Ayu to cause trouble for her!"

"Hey, with such relatives at home, we might get into some trouble in the future!" (End of Chapter)