The Concubine's Survival Manual

Chapter 228

Coming out of Yang's house, Qin Niangzi's face was a little worried.

She leaned against the car wall, looked at the dark sky outside the window through a gap in the cotton curtain, not like when she came here, pointing out the street scene with Xu Fengjia.

After being in a daze for a long time, I realized that Xu Fengjia's eyes were also circling her. When I looked over, I saw Mr. Xu raised an eyebrow, as if he was asking himself, "What happened."

Qin Niangzi let out a long breath, leaned her head on Xu Fengjia's shoulder, and said softly. "Shanjiu is really studying too hard."

"Isn't it good to study hard?" When Mr. Xu spoke, he could never change his tone that seemed to be exaggerating. "Could it be that he wants to walk around Mazhangtai all day long and be a bohemian son, so you are happy?"

"That's not what I mean either." Seventh Lady frowned, and looked at Xu Fengjia with a little dissatisfaction. "I just think he's pushing himself too hard..."

Ninth Brother's knot in his heart cannot be solved by Qin Niangzi with a few words.With this child's stubborn nature, even if he doesn't say it on the surface, he will still try his best to catch up with the footsteps of the people around him in private.

Indeed, compared to Xu Fengjia, Feng Jin, Quan Zhongbai and other handsome young men, Brother Jiu is indeed a little too silent.

I haven't gone through many winds, frosts, snows and rains, and I don't know that there is a sad story behind these handsome young men.In many cases, step by step, it might not be a kind of happiness.

Qin Niangzi's heart sank again when she thought of Brother Jiu's expression when he spoke.

She looked at Xu Fengjia with a little worry, and couldn't help asking softly. "Do you think... do I overwhelm Shanjiu?"

Xu Fengjia's expression changed, obviously he had grasped Qiniangzi's meaning.

Ever since the day when Seventh Lady entered the main courtyard, there was no doubt that she was the one who made up her mind among the two siblings. Over the years, Brother Nine has grown up very smoothly, neither the eldest wife nor Seventh Lady took home to bother him.When the status of the son-in-law is firmly established, the only task is to study and gain fame. Although the political ups and downs, although the Elder Master intends to let him know, he never pulls him into the game.

No better than Seventh Lady, at such a young age, she is already deeply involved in the political vortex, and has various connections with several political figures, not to mention the Elder Master, even Xu Fengjia once expressed emotion, it is a pity that she is not a man.

The twin sister is so good, it is a kind of motivation, no doubt, but it is also a kind of pressure.Brother Jiu has always been conceited and smart, but the people around him are all smarter and better than him, and there is an extremely shrewd old man Ge - his life is actually not easy.

Xu Fengjia pondered for a moment, then suddenly changed the topic. "Do you know when I went out with the army for the first time, which general was the lowest rank around me?"

Before Qin Niang could reply, he had already continued. "Zheng Qianhu, who is the fifth rank, is the eldest son of Gui. Speaking of it, he is five or six years older than me. In my age, he has risen from a small soldier to a hundred households. At that time, several members of the Gui family This young master has at least ten lives on his body. He is proficient in military skills and martial arts. Not to be left behind."

"I have the third brother and the fourth brother by my side. At my age, these two people are also brought by my father. Although they can't say that they have made great military achievements, anyone who mentions the two sons of the Xu family will give a thumbs up. The fourth brother is fine, the third brother is a god-like figure on the battlefield, he is accurate in his calculations and ruthless in his calculations, even his father highly values ​​and admires him, and there is a vague intention to treat the third brother as his successor."

Through the thick cotton curtains, the sun shines into the car, leaving only a ray of dim light, and Xu Fengjia's face seems to have a vague melancholy, he showed a wry smile, and continued, "Now Shanjiu is facing The situation is already tens of thousands of times milder than I was back then... If he can't even bear such a challenge, in my opinion, you don't need to worry about him."

Xu Fengjia really never knew how to be gentle, sweet talk, pretentious comfort.

But what he said, although cruel, also revealed an unspeakable frankness, which pierced into the bottom of Qiniangzi's heart, and she couldn't help laughing at herself.

"I've only had this little brother in my life, and I always want him to be a little bit smoother, a little bit smoother..."

As she spoke, she sighed inwardly.

The only irreparable regret in Brother Jiu's life is Jiu Yiniang. When Jiu Yiniang passed away, he was still too young, and this has become the regret he has been thinking about for more than ten years.

Why is Seventh Lady not like this?

Before she died, Jiu Yiniang asked her to take good care of Brother Jiu, so she really wanted to lock Brother Jiu in the greenhouse, so that he would not be sad or encounter any setbacks for the rest of his life.

But brother Jiu is finally going to grow up.

The first step is to recognize your shortcomings and deficiencies.

This step is definitely not something that Qin Niangzi can urge him or help him take.

Qin Niangzi put aside her thoughts and discussed with Xu Fengjia, "In a few days, I will also go to Feng's house to pay New Year's greetings."

Because of Feng Jin's sensitive identity and his own strong will, the Yang family has never publicized their kinship with the Feng family.Of course, Qin Niangzi's contacts with the Feng family have always been kept out of the public eye, and even Ping Guogong and his wife never got any news.

But in private, Qin Niangzi has already regarded the Feng family as her own relatives, and she always wants to come and walk around during the holidays.

Xu Fengjia frowned immediately, pondered for a long time, and then said, "Alright, let's wait until the Lantern Festival, and have spring wine in a few days, I'm afraid you may not be free to go out."

Seventh Lady is now the head mistress of the Xu family, and on many occasions, she is indeed inseparable from her.

"Speaking of which, next month will be Fifth Sister's third anniversary." Seventh Lady remembered to discuss with Xu Fengjia again. "Your fourth aunt told me a few times just now that I hope the third anniversary will be more grand. I think you didn't have time to come back when the fifth sister passed away. This time, you will perform seven-day rituals for the fifth sister at Dahuguo Temple. , you can also say hello to the official office, and then go in and fast for seven days to pray for her, okay?"

Now when it comes to Wu Niangzi, there is no longer that tense atmosphere between the two of them, and there is more of a touch of sentimentality.

Their lives are still moving forward, but Wu Niangzi's life has been forever frozen in faded memories.

Xu Fengjia nodded without hesitation, "It happens that there are not many things happening in February, so it must be no problem for me to say hello to the emperor."

He paused, then asked Qin Niangzi, "How did you find out about Xiao Songhua?"

"Bai Lu has always been inquiring about it." Seventh Lady couldn't help frowning. "The whole family of this girl is the dowry of the mother. Her mother was a little maid in the yard of the mother back then. She was in charge of sewing and mending. A buyer, and later transferred to work as a small foreign accountant, and he has been honest all his life, not too shrewd or too noisy."

In short, this is the most simple servant of the family, so simple that there is no doubt about it.

"Because there is no face, the family does not live in the mansion, but lives outside in the coal alley. The elder sister in front of Xiaosonghua seems to have fallen in love with a neighbor in the neighborhood like this, and married to another place. In addition, the family does not have any relatives, and usually follows the crowd and communicates with everyone, step by step, not too lonely." Seventh Lady carefully explained the twists and turns to Xu Fengjia. "It's me. I called Gu Yu and Chun Equinox to recall her. They all said that she was a very timid maid. She didn't even dare to breathe in front of Fifth Sister. Although she was not favored, she had never eaten Fifth Sister. at the top of the queue."

Xu Fengjia couldn't help but frowned. "Don't remember Yu An wrongly—this kind of thing is not a joke."

"It's because this kind of thing is not a joke that Yu An will never talk nonsense." Seventh Lady sighed. "Forget it, I just went to my cousin Zixiu in a few days. I can't say that I have to do business for a while, so I asked my cousin Zixiu to help me find out. Xiaosonghua's family is a sister who has not been found yet, and she has not entered the mansion. Serve, after she got married, she and her husband's family went out to visit relatives and friends. Bai Lu asked the neighbors around for a week, but none of them could tell where she went. I don't want to make too much noise..."

Based on Yu An's identification, Qin Niangzi can only investigate in private. If she makes a big splash, it may not only arouse the murderer's vigilance, but also bring great danger to herself.It is more likely that the murderer will cut off several clues in advance and play tricks to make it harder to distinguish the truth.

Xu Fengjia nodded thoughtfully, and said in a low voice, "Let me tell Feng Zixiu about this matter."

Thinking of the past events between Feng Jin and Fifth Lady, Seventh Lady suddenly felt a headache again, she glanced at Xu Fengjia, and asked softly, "Are you still jealous of my cousin—you tell my cousin about this, and he will I don’t have to pay attention to you, it’s better for me.”

Xu Fengjia had a sour expression on his face again. He snorted and leaned against the wall of the car with his arms around him without saying a word.

Qin Niangzi's soft laughter and her low and soft voice sounded in the car.

#
When they returned to the mansion, the two of them had to go to the two elders to pay their respects as usual, and then went back to Mingde Hall together to change their clothes. Xu Fengjia had to go to Menghuaxuan to talk to Ping Guogong again.Mr. Xu was rather depressed, "It's not easy for the two old people to see each other often, so they had to pass on the message."

Now the ruling and opposition parties are not at peace, the Elder Master is busy seizing power, Duke Heping is of course very close, and some things are inconvenient to say in the letter, Xu Fengjia, the son-in-law and nephew, does not come forward to pass the message, what is the use of it?Seventh Lady couldn't help laughing, she patted Xu Fengjia's arm, and said solemnly, "It's okay, okay, uncle, you don't need to pass the message."

Xu Fengjia suddenly became dizzy, "Three families ran away, I still have my own business, do you want to live?"

While talking, he walked out of the house, Qin Niangzi shook her head and laughed, and then she called someone to change clothes and hair, and everyone was overwhelmed.

Because today, when Seventh Lady returned to her natal home, Shangyuan and Zhongyuan went back with her as usual, and Lixia was taken out by her family to have tea and meet her son-in-law. .Duan Wu pulled Xia Yuan over to help, and the two of them were not very good at hand. Qin Niang felt that her scalp was being pulled so painfully, she couldn't help covering her head and said, "Has Xiao Huangpu come back? If she comes back, let her help me dismantle it." Bar."

Xia Yuan looked ashamed, and after saying no to him, he turned over and went out, led Xiao Huangpu in half a day and said with a smile, "Just when I got to her place, I saw her rushing in from the outside."

Little Huangpu's face was flushed from the cold, but he didn't feel a little bit excited. He breathed into his palms and said, "Didn't you rush in because of Chu Geng? If not, I wouldn't be able to get in."

Seeing that she was so happy, Seventh Lady raised her eyebrows and looked at Little Huangpu in the mirror, and said with a smile, "When you come, someone will undo my hair, otherwise your two elder sisters will not be able to do it well - go back to Xiayuan Serve the two little ancestors, and go play with you at the Dragon Boat Festival. On New Year's Eve, you should relax for a while."

The two servant girls knew Qiniangzi's temperament, and if they asked you to relax, if they really wanted you to relax, they both threw away their hands and walked out of the room with a smile.Little Huangpu's expression immediately changed into excitement. She leaned close to Qin Niangzi's ear and whispered, "The emperor pays off. When I go back today, I really met the fourth sister. So you come and talk to me." After a few words, she was tricked out by the maidservant—Madam Tai had indeed opened the box a few days ago, and found her trusted mother to speak, and called a few stewards outside to speak a few times. Leshan Residence All of them secretly said that Mrs. Tai wants to convert several properties into silver, so that they can be stored densely, so that they will not be calculated by others."

Seventh Lady's expression suddenly changed.

The female family members in the mansion are not easy-going lamps, except for a few unmarried concubines who have no autonomy over personnel affairs, and there is no news that is too concealed in the yard.The several courtyards were guarded tightly by their respective masters, and Qi Niangzi was very confident. There were some things she didn't want others to know, and no one else could get the news. She was under the nose of the Fifth Young Madam. After smuggling two accountants in and living there for a few days, the fifth young lady didn't notice anything?Of course, in the same way, Qin Sitang can only infer what Shen Sitang is planning in private, and can't get any rumors from the servants.

These few words from Xiao Huangpu are really the first time she has received definite news, and Mrs. Tai must have made a move to cash in private.

Mrs. Tai is so old, where is there any place to spend money behind her back? This money is not for the fifth house, but who is it for?
"Do you know how much money has been exchanged?" She asked again, but she didn't have much hope: I'm afraid little sister Huangpu, a hairdressing maid, can know about such things.

However, little Huangpu's face suddenly glowed, "This servant did not expect that Fourth Sister actually found out!"

She lowered her thoughts a little more. "It was also a coincidence that day. The fourth sister of the servant girl was combing Mrs. Tai's hair. A mother in charge came outside. She looked at the dusty people and came in without anyone notifying her. Mrs. Tai's hair was braided to a critical place. Fourth sister When she couldn’t draw her hand, Madam Tai said, ‘Just tell me, this girl doesn’t understand.

"At this time, the fourth sister felt that it was inappropriate, so she quickly braided her hair in a bun, and exited the room under the pretext of having something to do. After closing the door, she heard a sentence from the crack of the door. 'All 10 taels have been exchanged. Please order the banknotes in Yichun Bank—"Young Madam, listen, isn't this just a coincidence? Fourth Sister didn't take it too seriously, when she heard my question, she just..."

She didn't continue talking, but there was a little more shame in her brows.

Qin Niangzi patted Xiao Huangpu on the shoulder absently, "What are you worried about, silly girl, and you still think I can beat drums and drums to talk about this?"

But she had already thought about it: the entire Xu family's internal accounts did not have 10 taels of money on the books, what did Madam Tai want to do with the 10 taels of silver?
She asked little Huangpu again, "When did this happen?"

Little Huangpu hesitated a little, "I heard about it more than a year ago. When the accounts were settled after autumn this year, the fourth sister also heard muttering, saying that Mrs. Tai's dowry income is less, and the rewards for the servants are not enough. It’s not as rich anymore.”

A year ago, the time was right, but the entry and exit of 10 taels of silver was not a trace that could be covered up by an account, and it was absolutely impossible to be unknown without bribery of Cai Le's family.And such a big matter, once any mother in charge realizes it, she will never dare to cover it and not tell it.

What is this 10 taels of silver used for?

Does Madam Tai know about Madam Fifth Young Master's plans, or is she also a pawn in the game?
Seventh Lady couldn't help but fell into deep thought.

(End of this chapter)