Chapter 19: disappointment

Chapter 19: disappointment

This question circled in Jiang Xuening's mind for a whole night without an answer.

She did not know exactly how the selection process was carried out.

In this way, even those who have some doubts in their hearts cannot be verified.

In the early morning of the next day, more news about Princess Leyang's selection of companionship came out one after another.

Like the primary companion reading list.

Xiao Shu, the eldest lady of Chengguo Duke's Mansion, who Shen Zhiyi had played with since she was a child, was naturally among them, followed by other ministers and eleven well-learned ladies from Xungui's family.

There is Jiang Xuening who has a "good life" in it.

At the same time, she also noticed that last time in the Qingyuan uncle's mansion, Miss Fan's family, who was pointed out by Shen Zhiyi as the leader in the poem, and You Yue, the second lady of Qingyuan uncle's mansion who was the leader in the painting, were also among them.

Such as specific things to learn.

The men of high-ranking officials need to learn rites, music, archery, imperialism, calligraphy, and mathematics, but the daughters of ordinary families can only learn a few words, and they learn things that are dispensable such as female celebrities, poetry, and painting.

But Shen Zhiyi is a princess, and she already has requirements, so it's naturally different.

Among the six arts of a gentleman, you need to learn rituals, music, and calligraphy, and secondly, you need to learn some elegant things such as mixing incense and painting. Besides, the Holy One favors Shen Zhiyi, knowing that she always wants to sneak to the Wenhua Palace After listening to Jing Yanri's lecture, he found some old gentlemen with great knowledge in the Hanlin Academy for her, and told her some books that only men can read.

The most astonishing thing among them, perhaps one of the gentlemen invited by the Holy One for her was "Mr. Xie"——

Xie Wei, the crown prince and grand teacher!

It is said that he will teach two courses: one is the piano, which is counted in "music"; the other is to choose a book from the classics and history collections, but the specific one has not yet been decided.

God knows that when Jiang Xuening heard the news from Lian'er's small mouth, she wished she could grab the ground with her head!

Another example is the arrangement of entering the palace.

The day after tomorrow, I will prepare to enter the palace, stay for about three to five days, follow the female officials in the palace, learn the court etiquette roughly, understand the taboos in the palace, so as not to make any mistakes and cause some disasters.

At this time, if you really can't learn or your qualifications are too poor, you will be politely persuaded to quit.

Then they each go home and stay for a few days before they really enter the palace to study with them.

Most of them live in the palace, and they can go home for one day every nine days until they finish the studies arranged by the gentlemen, which will probably take more than half a year.

— This is definitely a good opportunity.

As long as Jiang Xuening thinks of going to the palace to study with her, her head will be as big as a bucket. Of course, she dare not blatantly say no to the Holy Majesty's will, so there must be a suitable reason.

If you can't learn etiquette, or if you are "persuaded from dismissal" because of your poor qualifications, isn't that just what you want?

She made up her mind to "passive sabotage"!

afternoon.

Tang'er and Lian'er packed up and prepared things for her to enter the palace for the first time in the room, and said that when she enters the palace, she will meet so many ladies from aristocratic families, so she must bring some gifts for meeting, and it is best to go out later buy some.

Jiang Xuening was sitting by the window reading idle books, the corners of her mouth twitched slightly.

"Those who knew said they were going to study with them, but those who didn't know thought they were going to visit relatives."

Lian'er pouted: "When a girl enters the palace, of course she has to be well-prepared for everything. This time, the servants are not allowed to follow in. Who knows what kind of maids are in the palace? They don't need it this time, but they can be used next time. And Our girl is the only one who didn't submit her name but was on the accompanying list, so she can lose anything, not the pomp!"

Jiang Xuening's eyelids twitched when he heard this.

Sure enough, I should find a toothmaid to sell this girl first, right?

Why don't you open which pot and lift which pot?

She buried her head and picked a piece of candied fruit from the plate to eat, and flipped through the book casually, regardless of how much they tossed about.

Anyway, she didn't plan to stay in the palace for too long.

It's just that it can't be said.

If people know that she is deliberately playing tricks and tricks to avoid entering the palace, I'm afraid it will cause some unnecessary troubles.

The fewer people who know about it, the better, preferably none.

I just turned a few more pages, when I suddenly heard a "snap", as if something small had hit the window sash.

Jiang Xuening raised her head to look, and there was only a shadow of the sun outside.

Just as I was about to lower my head and continue reading, there was another soft "pop".

This time it hit the window sill, bounced, and rolled onto her book.

She picked it up and saw that it was a golden pine nut with a small crack.

Squeeze it with your fingers and it will open.

It turned out to be fried pine nuts.

Cooked.

Jiang Xuening didn't see anyone, but she already knew who was coming, so she couldn't help laughing: "The courtyard wall in the mansion looks as if it hasn't been built, if I let my father know that you came in without making a sound, you just walked in through the main entrance. I’m afraid I’m going to complain again.”

"But didn't you let him see it this time?"

Yan Lin's voice came from a high place, and he only appeared from the thick shade of the tree under the wall, and jumped down with a single leap. Purse, holding a small handful of pine nuts in his hand, he walked to her window with a smile.

"Unless you go to sue."

I hadn't seen him for a few days, but he seemed to be a little tanned. There was also a shallow scratch on his originally handsome face. Fortunately, it was neither deep nor much better. The original aristocratic aura was added with a bit of toughness, making it even more scorching hot.

Jiang Xuening asked him, "How did you do it?"

Yan Lin was somewhat concerned about this appearance. Hearing this, he raised his hand and touched his cheek, coughed, and said, "When I went to Tongzhou Daying, I drank a little wine and couldn't help but want to compete with my father's subordinates. , I have no eyes in my fists and feet, and I hurt a little. But it’s okay, the doctor in the army said, it will be fine after two days.”

Both Fengtai Daying and Tongzhou Daying have had garrisons throughout the dynasties to defend the capital.

However, since King Pingnan rebelled and invaded the capital twenty years ago, and Fengtai and Tongzhou were too late to respond and enter the capital in time to quell the chaos, the late emperor set up an imperial army in the capital, and selected the best of the two battalions to join the army. Among them, guard the capital.

In this dynasty, after Shen Lang ascended the throne, he further strengthened the imperial army.

Because he was a witness to the rebellion of King Pingnan back then, he had a deep shadow on the danger of the rebellion of the vassal king and the slowness of the army to help, so the status of Fengtai Daying and Tongzhou Daying in the army declined further and further.

Yongyihou's Mansion is one of the noble families in charge of military power in the court, mainly in charge of the Tongzhou Camp which is farther away from the capital.

As for Fengtai Daying, which is closer to the capital, it is in the charge of Chengguo Duke's Mansion.

However, the most important twenty-six imperial guards are under the joint control of the emperor himself and the Ministry of War.

It can be seen from this that although the Yan family and the Xiao family are the two noble families in the capital that can be compared shoulder to shoulder, the Xiao family of the Duke of Cheng's mansion is Shen Lang's family, and they are obviously more trusted than the Yan family. .

I don't know who is behind the incident in the Yongyi Hou's Mansion.

Jiang Xuening looked at Yan Lin and said, "How is Zhou Yinzhi?"

Yan Lin glanced at the busy maidservant in her room, and only put the handful of pine nuts in her hand on the table by the window. With one hand on the window sill, she turned up and sat down, with one leg hanging outside and the other in the air. He bent over the window sill, and took a piece of candied fruit from her to eat.

Then he said: "This person is interesting."

He thought about it for a while, and he showed quite admiring expression: "I met him before leaving Beijing. He is neither humble nor overbearing, and he is calm. Maybe because he is a Jin Yiwei, he knows everything about the court, and he should be able to handle things. Yes. It’s just that I think this person is useful, not just because of that. There is something related to him recently, I wonder if you have heard of it?”

Jiang Xuening was curious: "There have been assassins in Beijing recently, it's not peaceful, I didn't go out, and I didn't pay attention to the outside. What's the matter?"

Yan Lin quickly said: "This man has a good horse, and he likes it very much. He feeds it himself every day. There is no open space in the capital. If he has time, he will take it to the suburbs of Beijing for horse racing. But not long ago he was in Wei When the office was dealing with official business, a little boy came to the house suddenly and said that his horse was sick and was about to die. The man immediately asked the officer for leave, and after returning home to see the horse, he even drew his saber and handed the horse to him. killed."

Jiang Xuening suddenly froze.

Yan Lin laughed: "The next day when he went to the Zhen Fusi, the officer asked him, is your horse okay? He said, the horse died, and I killed it. The officer was very surprised and asked him why. He actually said He has been raising this horse for more than two years, and he is like his own relatives. But the horse is sick, and he really can't bear to see it suffer, so he simply gives it a good time, so as to save it from torture, and it is considered to be the return of the horse and him. More than two years of friendship."

that horse...

How could Jiang Xuening not know?

The horse was fine when she went to find Zhou Yinzhi that day, so why was it so sick that it was dying, and still "painful"?

The only thing she can think of at the moment is the excuse she made up when she asked the boy to go to the guard to find him back: Master Zhou's beloved horse is dying of illness...

A chill suddenly spread from the bottom of the feet to the whole body.

Jiang Xuening's fingers pressing the pages of the book didn't hold down, and trembled slightly.

Yan Lin said: "It's hard to say whether this statement is true or not, but the matter of killing the horse is true. This man's decisiveness and sharpness in his actions can be seen. Recently, the Holy Spirit intends to entrust Jinyiwei with the punishment and prison affairs. However, the Ministry of Punishment, Dali Temple and the Metropolitan Procuratorate, the three law divisions that were in charge of criminal and prison affairs, have great opinions. This time, the Criminal Division impeached Zhou Qianhu during the matter, which just gave the three justice divisions a chance to make use of the issue, and the Holy One couldn't bear it. Everyone is talking about it, and Zhou Qianhu's official position has been withdrawn a few days ago. I have arranged people in the court, and this deficiency just happened to Zhou Yinzhi."

Zhou Yinzhi would never scatter an eagle if he didn't see a rabbit.

It's good that Yan Lin handles things neatly.

Although Jiang Xuening was reborn, she didn't know anything about the government when she experienced these things in her previous life, she only knew the final result, but how things happened, what was going on in the middle, and how many forces were wrestling with each other, I don't know anything.

If you remind me hastily, I don't know who will fall into it.

I'm afraid I didn't help the Yongyi Hou Mansion and hurt myself, but if Zhou Yinzhi comes to warn me, one can hide myself, and the other is that Zhou Yinzhi is the "secret son" sent by Jin Yiwei to investigate the relationship between Yongyi Hou Mansion and King Pingnan's rebellion. ", you have to know more about this matter than she does, and you have to come up with real news, so that you can get enough attention from the Yongyi Houfu.

Even if disaster cannot be avoided, if we can take some precautions and preparations in advance, we can avoid the situation like in the previous life——

Although some people died in the ransacking of their homes, more people died in exile.

Some are due to old age and frailty, some are due to encountering bandits, and some are due to poverty and illness...

This includes Yan Lin's father.

Jiang Xuening felt a little heavy in her heart again, she only said that she was completely used by Zhou Yinzhi in her last life, and even though she still used this person in this life, she should take strict precautions.

Today, I was able to kill my beloved horse because I lied to every detail;

Tomorrow, he can also raise the butcher's knife to her for his official career and future.

She also couldn't help reminding Yan Lin: "I think this man likes his horse, but he can kill it as soon as he says it. Although it is decisive, it is also a ruthless method."

Yan Lin's eyebrows stretched, knowing that she cared about him, he only said: "I know."

Jiang Xuening couldn't say anything more, so she just lowered her eyebrows and picked up the handful of pine nuts he had just put down to peel.

The pine nut kernels are small, and it is unpleasant to peel, which takes a lot of effort.

She frowned as she peeled.

Yan Lin looked at it with a smile, and then untied the bulging purse hanging from his waist and threw it to her: "I knew you were impatient to peel it off, so open it and have a look."

She took the purse and felt it was heavy.

When I opened it, I saw that it was full of peeled pine nuts, gathered together in a yellow color.

Although things are not expensive, it takes some effort to peel them off.

Just looking at the bulging purse, one can imagine how the boy sitting on the window sill carefully peeled the pine nuts out of the shell bit by bit with his hands that used to only hold a sword. come out.

Then save up.

Then throw it to her as if nothing had happened.

Seeing that she didn't speak, Yan Lin thought she didn't like it: "Don't you like food?"

Jiang Xuening shook her head: "No, I like it very much."

Yan Lin was surprised: "Then why don't you eat?"

Jiang Xuening didn't know how to explain it, although the thing was small, but she had too much heart, she was afraid that she would not be able to pay it back.

There is a cool autumn wind blowing in front of the window, and September is coming to an end, and the fragrance of osmanthus is gradually fading away.

Yan Lin didn't see her speak for a long time, and for some reason, she remembered the strange words she said to him that night, and when she raised her eyes, she saw her servant girl packed up a few more books and asked her, "Girl, will you enter the palace tomorrow?" Do you want to bring some books to read?"

Jiang Xuening didn't turn her head back: "No."

It was only then that Yan Lin remembered the matter of entering the palace, took another candied fruit from her, and smiled: "I'm going to enter the palace to be the princess's companion, and I can also be taught by Mr. Xie. How about it, are you happy?"

It's no wonder Jiang Xuening was so happy.

She opened her mouth to say that she didn't want to go at all.

But before he could say anything, he looked up and saw Yan Lin smiling all over his face, and after thinking about it again, he felt a little smug in his words, and suddenly had a bad feeling in his heart.

Jiang Xuening's eyelids twitched: "Did you know about the companion reading within two days after you came back?"

Yan Lin let out an "ah" and blinked at her. The brilliance in her dark eyes was shining brightly, and the color between her brows became more and more obvious: "I knew about the Princess choosing to read with her, and I told her about it a long time ago." I've passed you, and I want her to add you no matter what. You always said that you want to go to places you have never seen before. Aren't you curious about the things in the palace in the past? Of course I can't forget this great opportunity. Ningning, how are you, I have done a good job of this, right?"

Jiang Xuening: "..."

After a long time of trouble, you are the one who wants to **** me! !

She resisted the urge to push this kid off the window sill, the corners of her mouth twitched, she seemed to be smiling, but secretly clenched her back molars, and said: "Beautiful! It's so beautifully done, so' Surprise' it!"

For some reason, Yan Lin felt a chill on the back of her neck.

But when Ning Ning was happy, he was also happy.

So he said: "Although I don't know what books Mr. Xie will teach you to read, but learning the piano has been decided, and there will definitely be some. I ordered people to search for some good pianos a few days ago, and some of them were hundreds of years ago. Mr. Xie loves the qin. If you go to the palace to learn the qin, bring a good one. Even if the master is strict, he will be tolerant of you for the sake of the qin. Today is just right, and there is still some time. Let’s go, I will take it with you. You go with the piano!"

When Jiang Xuening heard the words "Mr. Xie", she felt hairy all over her body, and when she heard "qin", her head grew dizzy. She wanted to say that she would come back with "persuasion" when she went there, and she really didn't need this thing.

But Yan Lin couldn't stand being domineering.

After a while, she was forced into the carriage by him and went out of the mansion to choose the piano.

At this time, fourteen days had passed since the Jiujiu Chongyang Festival.

You Fangyin did not know how many times she stepped into this firm, and after inquiring about the market price of raw silk today, she frowned, no matter how many times the clerk at the counter looked at her with blank eyes, she still thanked her sincerely and honestly.

For more than ten days in a row, she had to burn the lamp to learn to read the ledger and practice accounting, and her eyes were bloodshot.

When I walked out of the business, I only felt top-heavy.

The street market outside is bustling with crowds and horses and horses.

Recently, the house has become more and more strict, and she always sneaks out. If her two elder sisters, especially the second elder sister, find out, I'm afraid it will be another torture.

The second sister had just been selected as the eldest princess' companion, and no one in the house dared to offend her.

You Fangyin thought, she should go back earlier today.

And last night, I only slept for two hours, and I really couldn't bear it anymore.

But as I walked, I saw a small stall on the side of the road with many exquisitely embroidered brocade handkerchiefs and sachets, as well as various embroidery patterns. One of the sachets was embroidered with green calyx orchids, the stitching method was something she had never seen before, her gaze stopped for a moment, and her footsteps also stopped.

You Fangyin thought of the white peony that she had stained.

So she stretched out her hand and picked up the sachet for a closer look.

She didn't want someone to pass by and bumped into her unintentionally, and she was in a trance and couldn't even stand firmly, so she was taken forward at this moment, and she couldn't help but flustered around her sleeves, Unexpectedly, most of the neatly hung brocade handkerchiefs and sachets were thrown to the ground.

The peddler was also a small business, and immediately yelled: "What's the matter with you, girl? Are you sincerely here to smash people's business!"

You Fangyin suddenly felt guilty: "I'm sorry, I just wanted to see the sachet, I didn't mean it..."

The eyes of the surroundings were all on her, which made her extremely embarrassed, so she hurriedly lowered her head, helped the peddler pick up the things that fell on the ground, and apologized repeatedly.

There was quite a commotion on the street, and everyone couldn't help pointing at her.

Jiang Xuening just followed Yan Lin up to this elegantly furnished secluded restaurant upstairs, and before she could go in, she heard the voice, turned her head, followed the sound, and immediately saw the embarrassed girl in the crowd.

When he picked up a sachet, he knocked down more and became more and more flustered.

She recognized that it was You Fangyin, and couldn't help being slightly suffocated in her heart.

It seems that nothing has changed.

How clumsy it was before, and how clumsy it is now.

Looking at the stall again, it sells sachet brocade handkerchiefs...

She suddenly laughed at herself.

What are you looking forward to?

Not long ago, I knew that a girl in the back house had never learned how to be a housekeeper. I'm afraid she couldn't even read the account books, couldn't write a few words, and was bound by her family. Even if you have money in your hands, you will buy some land when you are exhausted. Is it really expected that she will take money to take risks, buy raw silk and do business?

After all, there is only one You Fangyin who was as bold and extraordinary as in the previous life.

Yan Lin followed her gaze, and recognized that it was the concubine of the You family she had saved that day, and frowned for a moment: "What's wrong?"

Jiang Xuening withdrew her gaze, lowered her eyelids, and said, "If you can save a disease, you can't save your life. Sometimes you know that something is impossible, but when you see it with your own eyes, you will still be a little disappointed..."

Yan Lin looked back at her with some doubts.

She smiled slowly: "It's okay. Just a little bit."