Ordinary clear day

Chapter 184 Alternative

Shu Ning and his party walked to the vicinity of Liubu before parting with Tong Ying, and then drove to the East Lane owned by Tong's house.Shu Ning smiled at the corner of her mouth all the way, recalling the conversation with Tong Ying just now.

Due to time constraints and many people nearby, they all abandoned the past way of talking in coded language, but they were not so straightforward as to speak their hearts.Tong Ying briefly summarized his recent situation in a very serious way, and explained several key points, namely: after he entered the military department, he was very busy with work, so he might not be able to come to her house as often as in the past, but I will not cut off the news, and ask her not to worry; according to reliable information, he will probably be promoted soon, and he will be promoted back to the title of Beizi in all likelihood; the promotion of the title and his meritorious deeds mean his independence The power will be greater; in the past, the emperor had acquiesced to give him considerable autonomy in marriage, so even if it is a failed girl, as long as her family background and appearance pass the test, the emperor will probably not object.

After hearing this, Shu Ning only had time to talk about the recent situation in a hurry, and then told Tong Ying to pay attention to her body, and Duan Ning's car will be repaired.Seeing that Huzi and the two family members were about to come back, Tong Ying had no choice but to whisper: "Take care, don't wrong yourself." Then she rode back to the front.

Later, as long as Shuning thought of the last point Tongying said, her heart would be full of joy.This means that she only needs to continue to act mediocre and hope to fail the draft, and she doesn't have to work hard to measure how to grasp the degree of being good but not too good.

When she was in a good mood, she smiled very sweetly at Tong's house all day long. Coupled with the ladylike etiquette trained by Nanny Cui for a long time, even Tong's mother-in-law and daughter-in-law deeply felt that she was expected to be drafted this year, and her expression became joyful.And because Zhenzhen acted cautiously and behaved politely, Mother Tong, who was originally very picky, looked better, and everyone in the room was happy.When Duanning took his wife and sister to say goodbye, the young couple were greatly relieved.

What made Shuning even more overjoyed was that the conversation between her grandmother and aunt revealed a message. This year, an aunt from her cousin Tong Guowei married a family surnamed Wei. She had a daughter who was also drafted this year. I heard that she looked very good. Talented and outstanding.The Tong family had already deliberately promoted her, so they didn't pay much attention to Shu Ning.Grandmother was naturally a little upset, but for Shu Ning, it was great news. Presumably Tong Niangniang of Yanxi Palace would pay more attention to her aunt and niece, right?
After returning home, Shu Ning seemed to have shaken off the heavy shackles in her heart, and even Nanny Cui's tutorials became interesting.She has learned how to make up and dress, and how to match jewelry. She has memorized the table of relations between the dignitaries in Beijing and China very smoothly, and she has begun to read the profiles of dignitaries from other provinces.Because she progressed very quickly and Nanny Cui was in a good mood, when teaching Suxin Dongqing and the others the rules of pouring tea, she didn't even hit her, she just scolded a few words.

In her spare time, Shuning remembered that the sleeves of Tongying's clothes seemed to be often frayed, and also remembered that he had said that no one in the palace was free to take care of his food and clothing, so she decided to make some clothes or sleeves for him so that he could Don't be so embarrassed.Of course, she had to do such a big needlework, and it was impossible to completely hide it from others, so she made two sets of clothes in the name of making clothes for her brother, one for brother Duanning, and one for him to forward. To Tong Ying.Every few days, she would also cook a few snacks, and in the name of bringing her brother to the Yamen to satisfy his hunger, she would pass them on to Tong Ying for him to fill up.

Nanny Cui didn't agree to let her cook again, but she said: "It's just making dim sum, and it's never smoked. Cooking is something that a daughter should learn." Nanny Cui had to reluctantly agree, but Every time she does something, she always stares at it.

Originally, only Duanning knew about Shuning's actions, and even the maid next to her could only vaguely guess, but she couldn't hide it from her sister-in-law Zhenzhen.The new clothes that Duanning got from his sister the day before, was missing a set the next day, and he never saw it again.Coupled with the strange place on the way to Tong's house a few days ago, Zhenzhen became suspicious, and after torturing her husband for a long time, she finally found out about Shuning and Tongying.

Zhenzhen's first thought when she found out was that her second brother could give up, and then she was a little aggrieved, thinking that her husband should not hide it from her.Duan Ning talked all kinds of things, and then coaxed her back again.But thinking of how little aunt Shuning helped herself and Duanning a lot in the past, Zhenzhen also wanted to help her, but she couldn't think of a way for a while, so she temporarily suppressed it.

Soon, Zhenzhen's father completed the task of supervising the watch workshop of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and was going back to Guangzhou.Accompanied by Duanning, Zhenzhen went back to her natal home to listen to the teaching for half a day, shed tears to bid farewell to her father and concubine Wen Shi, and became more cautious after returning to the Earl's Mansion.She was originally a smart person, but when she realized her own shortcomings, she put away even a bit of her previous arrogance, and got along well with everyone in the mansion.

Fangning and Yihai have a harmonious relationship after marriage, and get along better with her mother-in-law.Both mother-in-law and daughter-in-law are Buddhists, and Fang Ning cooks some delicious Vegetarian dishes from time to time, and Shu Mulu likes her even more.But Fangning didn't forget her biological mother, she would go back to her mother's house every three to five days to visit, and occasionally she would honor Aunt Chen with a few things.Maybe it's because every time Yihai accompanied his wife back to her natal home, she was very respectful to Aunt Chen, and didn't feel slighted at all because of her status, so Aunt Chen gradually liked this son-in-law, but she would persuade him every time. To improve more.

Wanning has always been very calm, and I haven't seen her making a fuss recently. Nalashi only said to the public that she wants to learn the rules and practice her talents, and she will not be allowed to see outsiders again, and even the brothers and sisters in the other rooms have not seen much.In private, Nala exchanged the gifts given to Wanning by the fifth elder brother from the girls who received the gifts. returned items.However, she finally solved a problem.

When the fifth elder brother came to the door, Nala himself stood in the courtyard to block the drive.She spoke so bitterly that even tears came out. The fifth elder brother had no choice but to hand over the gift to the maid, and if he had something to say to Wanning in the yard.When I came again, I couldn't even enter the second gate.After being blocked several times, Inara revealed that it was for the sake of their future that the fifth elder brother came less often.

After Nala breathed a sigh of relief, he also intensified his actions, asking his daughter to review the etiquette and palace rules she had learned in the past, and by the way, re-practice all her talents for use in the draft.

The weather is getting warmer day by day, sometimes Shuning misses the garden in Fangshan very much, and it must be the time when the garden is full of beauty.When Xiao Liu returned home one time, she specially brought her a large bottle of peach blossoms. She kept a dozen of them, and gave the rest to her sister-in-law Zhenzhen and other relatives in the house.It's just that she really wants to go back and see for herself.

Duanning brought back the news that Tongying was indeed promoted to Beizi again, and officially served as a military counselor at the Ministry of War.Among the many young clans in central Beijing, it can be said that they are quite outstanding. Fortunately, there are still a few princes with their own merits, which slightly overwhelm Tong Ying's brilliance.

At the end of March, the Ministry of Household Affairs wrote to the emperor, saying that all the banners had reported the age of the women who should be drafted, and asked the emperor to set a date for the selection.The next day, the emperor decreed that this year's showgirl contest will be held on the eighth day of the fifth lunar month, and a list of showgirls will be made for each banner.For a time, the entire capital city was busy.

Nala summoned several skilled tailors to make clothes for her daughter and niece Shuning.In addition to the light blue plain silk cheongsam that was uniformly worn during the primary election, there are also costumes for preparing to enter the palace for review.

Shuning didn't put much thought into it.For the first selection, she just had it made in the most common style, except for the thin edge trimmed with dark blue satin, there was no pattern at all.Because of the idea of ​​losing the election, she regarded the few clothes she wore when she entered the palace as regular clothes. She chose soft colors such as pink, pink blue, pink green, and bean green, and the styles were also the most fashionable in Beijing. On-trend style, just a little less embellished.The so-called fashion means that everyone will wear it. Is there a better way than this?

But Wanning's approach is quite different.The color and style of the gown for primary selection were fixed, so she just embroidered a few orchids with blue silk thread on the cuffs and hem, which was refreshing.But for the few pieces she was going to wear after entering the palace, she made full use of her strengths and designed fresh and elegant clothing styles. In addition to a set of silver red and a set of moon white, the others also used pink, pink, blue, green, and pink. Yellow-pink-purple pink, but the degree of refinement is several times better than that of Shuning.If it wasn't for Nala's great efforts to stop her, she still planned to make some light gauze sleeves for wearing in hot weather.

Nala felt a little guilty that her daughter's clothes were more exquisite than her niece's, and asked Shuning specifically if she wanted to make two more clothes for her in that style?Shu Ning smiled and said: "Even if the clothes are made of gold and silver threads, I can't compare with her when I wear them and stand next to my second sister. Why do I need to do such a superfluous thing?"

Nalashi was right when he thought about it, so he stopped insisting.Then she called the jeweler to make new jewelry for the two girls, and also signaled Shu Ning to order someone to do it, as long as the expenses were paid by the company.

Shu Ning was also polite, picked out a few styles and handed them over to the craftsmen.She didn't pick gemstones or anything like that, most of them were simple styles, and all of them were inlaid with south beads.

With the preparations for the draft being completed day by day, a letter was sent back from Baoding, and Tong Shi came back.

When she came back this time, she didn't bring Xianning with her, she just brought Xiao Liu's when she passed by Fangshan Bieyuan.Shuning Duanning was very happy to see her mother.Seeing that her children are in good health, her daughter-in-law has become calmer, and the housework is well taken care of, Tong is very satisfied.

After thanking Mrs. Nala for her preparations for her daughter's draft, she summoned Nanny Cui and asked about Shuning's learning of etiquette, and then sent Nanny Cui back to Tong's house.Mother Cui thought that Shuning had learned everything she should have learned, and the rest were harem tactics and intercourse techniques, which seemed not what she should learn now, so she didn't say much. Shu Ning taught the opportunity face to face, and taught a few ways to keep the imperial husband's favor.Shu Ning answered in her mouth, but actually her heart was already full of black lines.

As soon as Madam Cui left, Shuning felt as if she had been liberated, Suxin and Dongqing also laughed and laughed all day long.Shuning found a good day, took the two of them to the Valerian Color Shop, bought a full set of cosmetics and skin care products and came back.She was a little surprised to find that the shopkeeper in the shop had changed, and it was no longer Chen Demei. It was said that she was having a baby now, but a man took over.

On a whim, she bought three sets in total.After returning home, she sent a set to Wanning, but Wanning refused to accept it, and said with a straight face, "I don't need his stuff!" Shuning had no choice but to take it back, intending to give it to Xuxu.Except for the ones I use, I gave the rest to my sister-in-law Zhenzhen.

Everything seemed to be going well, and she even met Tong Ying, who came to visit her brother Duanning in the plum courtyard.Only in April, a big event suddenly happened.

The earthquake in Pingyang Prefecture, Shanxi affected as many as 28 prefectures and counties, causing numerous casualties.On the second day after the earthquake, it rained heavily in the area of ​​the capital, which lasted for several days.

Tong and his son, daughter and daughter-in-law lived in the earl's mansion, and they were very concerned about Zhang Bao who was far away in Baoding. They hurriedly sent a letter to ask, and they were relieved when they learned that Baoding was fine.Fortunately, Zhili was not affected by the disaster, but several prefectures in Hebei felt the shock, with more or less human and livestock casualties.

Although people are fine, the heavy rain has not stopped. Farm houses in the suburbs of Beijing have collapsed and rivers have risen.Tong is worried about the property of Fangshan Bieyuan and wants to go back and have a look.Xiao Liu misses her son and wants to go with her.Shuning was worried about her mother, so they went on the road together.After thinking about it, Tong decided to temporarily hand over the housekeeper of the two yards to his daughter-in-law Zhenzhen, so that she could learn how to cook.Zhenzhen was apprehensive, and only after hearing the encouragement from Shuning and Ermo, did she gain some confidence.

After returning to Fangshan, Tong and Shuning asked Chang Gui about the damage to various properties.Probably because Zhang Bao's water conservancy facilities were well done and maintained years ago, several fields and forests were not seriously damaged, only the nearby lotus pond was severely flooded.Gu Quansheng, the deputy manager, took the risk and led people to grab [-]-[-]% of the lotus root seedlings, and put them in large wooden pots with mud, and prepared to plant them back after the rain stopped, but it is impossible to have a good harvest this year.

However, the river digging and dam repair project that Shuning had given Gu Quansheng to do in order to calm the conflicts between the stewards had been put to good use.Because the river bed was deeper and wider, and the dam was stable, the river did not flood to the shore, and most of the nearby farmland was preserved.What's more, when digging the soil, a big hole was dug in the nearby wasteland, which was used by the villagers to make a pond. They planned to grow some lotus roots like Zhang Bao's family did, but now they just use it to store water.

Mrs. Tong ordered Changgui, Quansheng and others to make preparations for flood control in the fields and forests, and approved Quansheng's suggestion to temporarily convert the lotus pond into a fish pond. Those lotus root seedlings will be planted in the garden and will be moved back next year. to the pond.Gu Quansheng was really capable, and soon contacted a restaurant in a nearby town, and will supply fish to them in a few months.

The young master of the Lu family at the opposite door heard that Mrs. Tong was back, so he specially asked his wife to come over to say hello, and asked Mrs. Tong for an old ginseng.It turned out that after hearing about the earthquake in Pingyang Prefecture, Mrs. Lu's family fainted for several days because she was worried about her daughter and son-in-law who lived in Shanxi.The doctor said to use ginseng soup to stimulate it, otherwise there will be a funeral.Because I heard that Tong's collection has old ginseng, I came to ask for it.Mrs. Tong didn't talk too much, and gave one to the young lady of the Lu family.Two days later, the other party returned half a stick and said that the old lady had woken up.Tong's comforted him in the past and said that Li Wensi was not from Pingyang Prefecture, so he expected to be fine.But Mrs. Lu was still worried, and Grandpa Lu had already sent people to Shanxi to look for it.

This news made Shu Ning feel a little depressed.In this era of major earthquakes, the work of search and rescue and earthquake disasters must be very difficult. I hope that the imperial court's disaster relief work will start soon.

On the way back to Beijing with her mother, she found a monk asking for donations, so she took off all the money and jewelry on her body and asked the maid to donate them, so she felt relieved.Tong patted her head and took out two or three bank notes.

Back at the Earl's Mansion, the mother and daughter were talking to Zhenzhen about what they had seen on this trip after washing up, when a woman came to report: "The third wife, the eldest wife and the aunt are in Rongqing hall, please ask the third wife I went to meet with the third girl, saying that there is something important to discuss."

Tong Shi and Shu Ning looked at each other, feeling a little strange, they went to Rongqing Hall together.As a result, not only did he return to Beijing, but also sat in the hall with Nala, Wanning and Xu Xu were also present.As soon as Nala saw Tong's mother and daughter coming in, she enthusiastically asked them to sit down. Tong smiled and gave way. Have you heard? The imperial court may suspend the draft."

(In fact, I miscalculated the year, it should be the 33 draft... I had to make a mistake...)
(End of this chapter)