After the whole family was swept away, I lay down flat

Chapter 1109 Xuan Rui Tang

Facing Zhou Wenjun's question, Zhou Xuejun's smile remained unchanged: "I heard from mother that this house was already decorated when it came into our hands, and the furniture in the house is all ready-made. Especially the main courtyard and the large courtyard behind the main courtyard, the furniture inside is all complete, different from the furniture in other parts of the house, all are newly built, and there is even a plaque in the main hall of the backyard! It is written by the emperor himself. Since the emperor ascended the throne, no family has been granted a house by the emperor. Dad said that the plaque is very precious, and he was afraid that it would be damaged by wind and rain if it was hung outside, so he took it down himself and temporarily stored it in the main hall. When it is officially opened in the future, the plaque will be hung back."

Zhou Wenjun was surprised and doubtful: "Really? That's really the emperor's grace. I just don't know... what hall name was written on the plaque by the emperor?"

Zhou Xuejun smiled: "It's the three words 'Xuan Rui Tang'."

Zhou Wenjun's expression changed slightly, but he quickly calmed down: "It sounds like a yard prepared for the elderly in the family, but your four branches have separated, when will Xuanrui Hall welcome its owner?"

Zhou Xuejun smiled without saying anything. Zhou Wenjun didn't get any answer, but seemed to have already gotten the answer, and his face became much uglier.

Haitang and Wu Qiong were chatting and had stopped talking. Seeing this, they looked at each other in surprise. Wu Qiong seemed to understand something and looked worried. She was about to say something but stopped talking. Haitang quickly brought up another topic: "This yard is so big! It's more than three times bigger than my yard, but only Sister Xuejun lives here. It's so comfortable!"

Zhou Xuejun turned her head and looked over, smiling, "Yes, yes. Even if my maids are added, and even the palace maids and maids who serve me move in together, each with a room, there is still more than enough. However, the yard is so big, but there are not many people living here. It's okay during the day, but it's a bit deserted at night. Moreover, although this yard is comfortable to live in, I don't know how long I can live here, which is a pity."

After saying that, she turned her head and looked back at her cousin: "Big sister, why don't you stay and stay with me for two days? This house is very big. In addition to the garden and the horse farm on the west side, there is also my yard, and there are two or three yards in the back. In addition to where my brother lives on the east side, there are five or six yards in a row. Although they are not as spacious as the main yard, they all have three main rooms with east and west wing rooms and back houses. Such a big place, let alone our family of four, even if there are 40 more people, including the male and female servants in the family, it is more than enough to live in. If you stay, you don't have to worry about having no place to live, there are so many empty yards! If you think the place is deserted, the east and west wing rooms in my yard are still empty, why don't you stay and talk to me?"

Zhou Wenjun looked at his cousin deeply and said, "You are so old now, why are you still as clingy as you were when you were little? Well, it's rare for you to leave the palace, and this is a new house, so I will stay with you for two days."

Zhou Xuejun was immediately overjoyed: "That's great! I have a lot to say to you, big sister!"

Wu Qiong laughed and said, "It shows that you are sisters from the same family. If you have any secrets, you can only tell them to your sisters."

Zhou Xuejun also pulled her hand affectionately and said, "My dear sister, please don't be upset. I am embarrassed to tell you some things because I am afraid you will laugh at me. My elder sister has seen me make jokes since she was a child, so I am not afraid to let her know. The palace has strict rules and I am always followed by people. Sometimes when I have a quarrel with the emperor, I really dare not tell anyone."

Wu Qiong said angrily, "What's there to be embarrassed about? If the emperor bullies you, just tell the Empress Dowager. Are you afraid that she will make you suffer?"

Zhou Xuejun blushed and lowered her head: "The Empress Dowager will naturally not let me suffer any grievances, but how can I say it with the nerve..." The Empress Dowager is the blood elder of the Zhou family, but in name she is also the grandmother of the new emperor.

Wu Qiong understood what was going on, and smiled without saying anything more. She just called Haitang over and went to admire the flowers and potted plants in the yard together. She left the Zhou sisters pretending to chat there, but in fact they were exchanging glances the whole time, and no one knew what they were talking about.

Wu Qiong had her doubts in her heart, but she would not make a fuss. She grew up in the palace and lived under someone else's roof for many years, so she was used to not looking for the root cause of things.

As for Haitang, she naturally saw that there was a secret between the Zhou sisters, but why should she ask? This was the Zhou family's business, and as long as their family stood firm, there was really no need for her, an outsider, to care too much.

Haitang wants to be a salted fish, but unfortunately she has a brother, Haijiao, who is never the type to lie down and do nothing.

After returning from the banquet of the fourth branch of the Zhou family, he privately told his younger sister a secret that night: "If the Duke of Zhenguo is not well, the new emperor will most likely let the Duke's wife come to Beijing to live in retirement. The house that General Zhou Si was given is spacious enough and has a large yard, which is suitable for the Duke's wife to live there and enjoy her old age."

Haitang immediately thought of the words "Xuanruitang" and asked hurriedly, "Hasn't General Zhou Si separated from the Zhenguogong Mansion? Since the family has been separated, how can he support the wife of the Zhenguogong at home?" General Zhou Si is not the biological son of the Zhenguogong couple, but an adopted nephew from another family! Even if the wife of the Zhenguogong wants to go to Beijing to retire, she should live in the biological mansion, right?

Hai Jiao sighed, "The decision to divide the family was made by the Duke of Zhenguo and his wife. He wanted to separate General Zhou Si's family and set up a separate household in the capital, just like the Cheng'en Marquisate. Even if the Zhou family still controls the Northwest Frontier Army in the future, General Zhou Si's family will not be suspected of having rebellious intentions. But this was arranged after the Duke of Zhenguo passed away. Now he is still alive, but he is seriously ill, so the Duke of Zhenguo's sons have not yet divided the family. General Zhou Si has now been given a house by the new emperor, and nominally this house belongs to the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion. If the Duke of Zhenguo's wife comes to Beijing, she will naturally have to move in."

All the sons of the Duke of Zhenguo are stationed in the northwest, and only the four generals have entered the capital. If the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo really came to Beijing to retire, where else could she go except living in the houses granted by the four generals? She can't live in the mansion of Marquis Cheng'en, right? Although Marquis Cheng'en is the legitimate brother of the Empress Dowager and the Duke of Zhenguo, he has already set up a separate household and a separate branch. The three branches of the Zhou family moved out of the mansion of Marquis Cheng'en after entering the capital, not to mention the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo? Of course, she can buy another house, but General Zhou's mansion is so spacious, but his mother refuses to move in. Who knows what kind of gossip will be spread outside. The wife of the Duke of Zhenguo has a good relationship with her adopted son, so she shouldn't embarrass General Zhou like this.

In short, when the new emperor bestowed the house, he had actually already made up his mind that he would arrange for the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo to live in Beijing in her old age in the future.

After two lifetimes of twists and turns, the situation of the Zhou family in this life is obviously a hundred times better than in the previous life, but the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo still wants to live in Beijing permanently. Things in this world are really unpredictable.

Hai Jiao sighed and said, "Anyway, the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo is healthy, long-lived, and wise. If she can live in Beijing for a long time, it will be more beneficial than harmful to the Zhou family in Beijing. Moreover, she is old, and if she wants to live in Beijing, she can bring her grandchildren to show her filial piety. As time goes by, the new monarch cannot watch the brothers of the queen's family being idle in Beijing, so he will have to arrange a decent position for them. In this way, in a few years, more children of the Zhou family will be able to work in Beijing. It is also a good thing for the queen of the Zhou family."

The wife of the Duke of Zhenguo may have to endure the pain of leaving her hometown, but her retirement in Beijing will generally benefit the Zhou family. In her previous life, the Zhou family was so poor, but she was able to support it until the day when the family made a comeback. What's more, the Zhou family is still as prosperous as before in this life?
With the Empress Dowager in charge of the palace, the Zhou family's children and grandchildren holding real positions in the capital, and the granddaughter who will enter the palace in a few years, the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo will never have a hard time in the capital. The future of the Zhou family will be smoother and brighter than the previous life.