Chapter Ninth: He Cao Forced a Marriage
Snowflakes were falling, and the carriage of Shen Hou's Mansion stopped near the gate of Wen's Mansion. Ji's mother carefully got out of the car with an umbrella, and said to the boy guarding the gate: "My Madam Hou and the Second Madam are here to visit the old lady."
The young man bowed and entered the mansion to make an announcement. Butler Rong happened to come out at this moment. He saw the carriage belonging to Shen's mansion and trotted over quickly: "This mother..."
"Our lady-in-waiting and the second lady said they came to visit the old lady."
"Oh, please come quickly." Butler Rong hurriedly went to the carriage to greet the two ladies. "You two ladies have worked hard, come with me quickly."
"Aren't you going to wait for the announcement?" Ji's mother asked.
Butler Rong bowed slightly and led the way to respond: "Madam, I don't know, our old lady has specially given instructions. It's cold today. If there are visitors, please come directly into the house, and then let the servants go in to report."
"The old lady has the heart of a bodhisattva and thinks everything thoughtfully." Madam Hou and the second lady were wrapped in thick and exquisite cloaks and walked side by side. They looked around. Although this Earl's Mansion is not as gorgeous and spacious as the Marquis Shen's Mansion, it can be considered refined. It's clear and simple overall, which makes people feel relaxed and happy when looking at it.
The housekeeper took the two ladies all the way to the backyard to sit down. After taking off the cloak, Meng Bishuang hurried over: "I just knew that when the distinguished guests arrived, they would be greeted at a distance and welcomed at a distance."
"No, it's us who are disturbing you. You're here uninvited." Mrs. Hou and the Second Madam politely stood up to greet them.
"Sit down, don't stand." Meng Bishuang quickly stepped forward to help Mrs. Hou sit down.
"I just heard that the old lady came to Bianjing yesterday, and I wanted to visit her today."
"Oh, this old lady like me is really lucky." The old lady's voice was heard from far away, and everyone stood up.
"Your Majesty, the Second Madam is very thoughtful. My old lady has bad legs, so I should walk slower and keep the two Madams waiting for a long time."
"Old Madam Ankang" everyone was polite.
"Madams, sit down quickly! Mother Wei, go and make the best tea in my house for the ladies, and also bring snacks from Chaofu for the two ladies to taste." Old man His tone was very excited, but his behavior was always elegant.
"Old Madam, you're welcome, by the way." He motioned to Ji's mother to hand over some gifts: "These are the wishes of the Second Madam and I, and they were specially brought here to honor the old Madam."
"Hey, the two ladies are very polite enough to come to see my old lady, and they even bring gifts. Now, I, the old lady, don't have much to offer you as gifts..."
Mrs. Hou held the old lady's hand: "What are you talking about, old madam? I hope you won't dislike it."
"Oh, no matter how willing you are, why don't you give it up? Sit down, sit down!"
"I haven't seen the old lady for many years. How come I feel so much younger?" Mrs. Hou said.
"Oh, it's the madam who doesn't want to give up. Old lady, I'm getting old." The old lady waved her hand and smiled.
At this time, Mother Zhou served hot pots to everyone sitting here, and Mother Wei served tea and snacks.
"Can the old lady still get used to living in Bianjing?" the second lady asked.
"I've gotten used to it after living here for a long time. It's cold in Bianjing and not as warm as Chaofu. But I, old lady, really like living in Bianjing. It's lively."
"Grandma~" The eldest girl came over at this time. Looking at several unfamiliar faces in the room, the eldest girl felt a little shy for a moment.
"This is the eldest girl who came to Bianjing with me, Yun Jin," the old lady told the two ladies beside her, so the two ladies stared at the eldest girl.
Meng Bishuang stood up and pulled Yun Jin in and said, "This is Madam Jin Jiahou, and this is the Second Madam."
"The two ladies are well." Yun Jin lowered his head slightly and went to the two ladies to bow.
The two ladies were full of surprise, and they quickly responded. They were really well-born, with voices as gentle as jade, and faces as soft and elegant as colorful clouds. They were indeed the looks that a demure and elegant talented woman should have.
"I don't know if grandma has a distinguished guest coming, but Yun Jin is disturbing her."
"No, no, no, sit down quickly, girl!" Mrs. Hou looked so happy that she could hardly move her eyes away. It is indeed rare to find such a beautiful girl in Bianjing.
...
Four rooms in Wen Mansion.
"Hurry up, hurry up. Madam Hou is at your grandmother's place. Just pretend that you are going to pay her respects." When the fourth aunt found out that Mrs. Shen Hou had come to the Wen Mansion, she was so excited that she could hardly close her mouth: "See you soon." Madam Hou, you must behave well."
"Hey, auntie, Mrs. Hou is just here to visit my grandmother. What are the fifth sister and I going to do?" The seventh girl was surrounded by several maids dressing up, and she almost lost her temper.
"Silly girl, don't think that Madam Hou is just here to visit your grandmother. I've heard about your aunt. Yesterday, the gate of the Hou Mansion was almost blocked by a dozen matchmakers, but Madam Hou is here to visit today. If you don’t think about it carefully, you are obviously borrowing Sang Tanhuai to come here.” Fourth Yiniang personally dressed up the seventh girl...
"There are so many young masters in the Shen family, and it's still a Hou family. It's normal to have more than a dozen matchmakers," the seventh girl said casually, playing with her sleeves.
"The old lady has been here for a while. Why did the two ladies choose to visit today? Yesterday's matter must not have been solved so quickly. Why did they choose to come on a busy day? According to your aunt's opinion, it must have been the matchmaker yesterday. The girl I was introduced to was not good, so I thought that there are many good girls in our Wen family, so I came here to choose a girl." The fourth aunt smiled proudly.
"The eldest son of the Marquis has not yet fallen in love with the girl, so you two sisters have to fight for your aunt, in case Madam Hou falls in love with you. Now that the eldest son of Marquis has attacked Jue, he will be Madam Hou in the future. "
The fourth aunt looked at the fifth girl and pulled out one of her hairpins: "Change to another hairpin, this one is not good."
...
Three bedrooms in Wen Mansion.
The second aunt was walking back and forth at the door of the room, but her eyes were looking outside: "Where has this Ping'er gone? Why haven't you come back? I'm really worried."
"Second aunt, don't worry, I have already sent a maid to find our third sister." Xiang mother stood aside to comfort her.
"You said that Madam came just as she asked, leaving us completely unprepared," the second aunt complained a little, but Yun Ping didn't know where she was at this time.
"Second aunt, don't worry, I have already ordered the maid to tell the third girl to go directly to the old lady's house to pay her respects."
The second aunt felt relieved now: "Look at me, I'm so anxious that I'm dizzy again. Fortunately, I have my mother."
...
Mrs. Wen's house.
There was a burst of laughter. The third girl came to look for the eldest girl, and she happened to bump into him: "Grandma Ankang, mother Ankang, who are these two ladies who are like immortals?" The third girl has always been straightforward in character, and she speaks straightforwardly. After all, the two ladies are indeed born beautiful and look like ladies.
Meng Bishuang frowned: "No need to be rude, these two are Mrs. Shen Hou and the Second Madam."
The third girl suddenly panicked and quickly apologized: "Madam, hello, it was Yun Ping who was rude."
The two ladies didn't think anything of it, but it was the first time they saw such a personality, so they were pleasantly surprised: "It's okay, who is this?"
"It's the third girl from the second bedroom, Yun Ping," my grandmother said with a smile, her face full of doting.
"Yun Ping came to play with my eldest sister, but I didn't know that I disturbed my grandmother, mother, and two ladies." Yun Ping grabbed her hand, but Mrs. Hou said: "Look at how such an innocent and lively girl is so scared.
The third girl doesn’t need to be reserved. To be honest with the old lady, this is the first time I’ve seen the third girl’s character, and I like her very much.”
"It would be better if Mrs. Hou doesn't let go of her suspicions," the old lady said with a smile.
"Thank you, Madam, Second Madam for your kindness." The three girls bowed and sat down next to the eldest girl.
"What are you doing, Third Sister, running so fast? Sister, I haven't..." The Sixth Girl stopped walking and closed her voice, looking blankly at the people in the room. The Third Girl was worried about the Sixth Girl.
Seeing the sixth girl running like this and yelling so loudly, Meng Bishuang almost fainted on the spot. She didn't expect that she was so busy welcoming the distinguished guests that she forgot about this little girl: "This is my beloved daughter Xiaoliu... I'm still stunned."
What, come in and meet the two ladies?"
The sixth girl was led in by Meng Bishuang, and each one of them bowed politely: "Greetings to the two madams, and to grandma."
"Xiao Liu's character was spoiled by her older brothers and sisters," Meng Bishuang explained quickly, and then pulled Miss Liu to her side.
"The sixth girl's lively nature made the house lively and made the old lady happy," Mrs. Hou said with a smile. The Wen girl really opened her eyes today.
"Madam, that's right. With these girls chatting with me, this old lady, I can't stop laughing all day long." The old lady was happy when she saw her granddaughter. She also knew that the sixth girl was scared, so she replaced her.
The girl got rid of the problem.
"Speaking of which, why didn't the second lady bring the second girl with her this time?" Meng Bishuang asked.
"I originally wanted to bring her here with me, but Meng Xi has been infected with wind and cold in the past few days. My husband ordered me to stop the wind, so I just stopped," the second lady replied.
"Oh, my little girl's body is the weakest. I, an old woman, had the good fortune to meet an old doctor in Chaofu. He gave me a few pills, which are very effective against wind and cold. I will bring some with me when I go back.
"Give it to the girl as soon as possible." The old lady motioned to Mother Wei to get the medicine.
The second lady was very moved when she heard this and stood up to thank the old lady.
At this time, Mother Zhou whispered: "Old madam, the fifth and seventh girls are here to say hello."
The second lady listened and sat back down. After waiting for a long time, she finally saw all the girls.
"Grandma is in good health, mother is in good health, and the two ladies are in good health." The fifth girl and the seventh girl said in unison and bowed.
After the old lady responded, the two girls took their seats. The second lady also stared at the fifth girl...
Meng Bishuang drank tea silently and didn't say anything, but her face clearly looked wrong...
After everyone chatted for a while, the two ladies were ready to go back home...
Chapter completed!