Chapter 199: Fighting for death

Dugu Haoran hurried into the guest's room and apologized: "I don't know that Secretary Zhang has arrived and has never been welcomed. I hope Secretary Hai will forgive him."

Zhang Yun was drinking tea. When he saw Dugu Haoran coming in, he stood up and returned and smiled, "I came uninvited, I should be the one who apologized."

"You are polite to Mr. Zhang, please sit down quickly."

The two exchanged a few greetings and took the seat. A maid also gave Dugu Haoran a cup of tea. Dugu Haoran picked up the teacup to hide his anxiety. Zhang Yun chose to come to the house today not for his father. Forty-nine days have passed, and the Dugu family can talk about some serious matters. He vaguely guessed that Zhang Yun was probably coming for his daughter.

One of the reasons why Dugu Haoran disagrees with Mingyue to marry Zhao Xuming is that he is a princeling. On the surface, Zhang Yun is a neutral faction, but Dugu Haoran knows that Zhang Yun secretly supports King Qing Li Cong. Of course, party disputes are the affairs of their generation, and he does not want his children to get involved, so it is not important whether Zhao Mingxu's position is to support the prince or King Qing, but it is actually not important. The key is the attitude of his daughter. Dugu Haoran has always been famous for spoiling his daughter. In major marriages, he respects his daughter's choice. He knows that Mingyue does not like Zhao Xuming, and his daughter does not like him, so he doesn't want to force him.

"My father's affairs have made me exhausted, and I have not thought about many things for the time being. I have been in Beijing for more than two months and have not visited Shangshu Zhang. I am really sorry."

Before Zhang Yun could speak, Dugu Haoran made a decision first. It was not convenient for the family to talk about festive things. Dugu Haoran's attitude was as expected by Zhang Yun. He smiled and said, "I can understand the mood of Haoran. When my father passed away, I was also sad for a long time. But since my ancestors have passed away, we have fulfilled our filial piety as sons, and in the end we have to return to all kinds of cumbersome national affairs and housework. I came today to talk to my brother about the new prime minister."

Dugu Haoran was stunned, "New Prime Minister", what does this have to do with him?

Zhang Yun continued with a smile: "My dear brother may have been busy with funerals and I don't know much about some things in the court. A few days ago, the emperor talked about the expansion of the prime minister with several of us prime ministers. Now there are only six prime ministers in the court. The emperor means to expand to nine. In addition to Yang Guozhong who has served as Minister of War, there are two other places that have not been determined. We ordered each to recommend one person. Li Gao recommended the Hexi Jiedushi An Sishun, Chen Gao recommended the Minister of Revenue Cui Qiao, and Pei Shangshu recommended the prefect of Yangzhou Lu Huan. Yang Shenjin has not yet decided. I am also considering it here. If my brother is interested, I can give you this place."

Dugu Haoran was moved and became a prime minister. This was something he longed for in his dreams. He was the transferee of Jianghuai Capital, and the conditions for becoming a prime minister were enough. After his father passed away, the Dugu family fell into a weak position. If he could become a prime minister, not only would he change the weakness of the Dugu family, but his personal career would also reach glory. But once he nodded, he would have the logo of Zhang Dang on his body. What would the prince think? Dugu Haoran felt very embarrassed.

Dugu Haoran's expression fell into Zhang Yun's eyes. He smiled silently, "This is a big deal, and I don't have to rush to answer, but I'll consider answering me again in two days."

Speaking of this, Zhang Yun changed the topic and laughed, "There is another small thing. At the beginning of the year, I came to ask for a marriage for my disciple Zhao Mingxu. Lingzun did not have a clear answer at that time. Later, the court was busy, so I forgot, haha! I am not a good matchmaker, but Zhao Mingxu came to me the day before yesterday, and he still wanted to marry the daughter of Dugu Mingyue, Mingyue, as his wife. This really touched me a little. There is no way. I just have to be honest and come to propose to my disciple again, and I hope my brother Yu will accomplish a good thing."

It was indeed for the sake of the bright moon, Dugu Haoran pondered silently. Zhang Yun's bait was thrown in front of him, so he couldn't refuse it openly. At this time, Zhang Yun suddenly saw a figure shaking under the door of the opposite room. Someone was eavesdropping on their conversation. Zhang Yun changed his mind and immediately smiled and said, "I know that it is not suitable for your husband to do a wedding now, so as long as the brother agrees to this marriage first, set a name, and consider the marriage calmly in half a year. Is that good?"

"This..." Dugu Haoran hesitated for a moment and said, "I will think about this for two more days. I will definitely give Zhang Shangshu a clear answer."

The eavesdropping at the door was Mrs. Pei. She was happy to hear this, but she was happy, but her husband delayed it. She couldn't help but feel anxious. She wanted to go out and agree, but she seemed rude and had no choice but to do anything, Zhang Yun stood up and smiled and said, "Okay! I'll wait for two more days, and I hope my brother will reply together, so I will say goodbye first."

"Haha! I'll send you a trip to Shangshu, Zhang Shangshu, please!"

The two walked out of the room with greetings and gradually walked away.

"Master, I heard that Shangshu Zhang is here, but it's for the bright moon?"

As soon as Dugu Haoran returned to the inner courtyard, his wife Pei came up with a smile, pretending to know nothing.

"Oh! Zhang Shangshu came for business."

"Business? Didn't Mingyue's marriage be mentioned?" Mrs. Pei's eyes gradually became sharper.

"Well! It seems to have been lifted a little bit." Dugu Haoran replied whimperingly.

"So what is the conclusion?"

"I said I would think about it for another two days."

"What is the master going to think about it?"

Mrs. Pei tried to make her tone a little more relaxed, and she reluctantly smiled and said, "Master, don't blame me for asking too much. Mingyue's marriage has worried me for several years. If I don't care about it, I may not care about her."

"Okay! I'll just agree."

Dugu Haoran sighed and said helplessly: "But I only have one request. You must persuade Mingyue. As long as she is willing, I have no objection."

"Okay, since the master must stick to his daughter's idea, I'll talk to her."

As soon as he finished speaking, a little maid appeared at the gate of the courtyard. Yingying politely said, "My mistress asks her wife to come over."

This little maid is the personal maid of Mrs. Zhang, the wife of Dugu Shi. Naturally, Mrs. Zhang invited her daughter-in-law Mrs. Pei to go there. Mrs. Pei has a very good relationship with her mother-in-law. First, they are similar in age, and Mrs. Zhang is one year older than her. Secondly, Mrs. Zhang remarried Dugu Shi less than a year after her husband died, which made her feel a little shameful. In addition, Mrs. Zhang is disrespectful to the elderly and has no elder style. She ran out to dance with young people in the Mid-Autumn Festival in the Yuan Dynasty and Mid-Autumn Festival. All of these made Mrs. Pei, who has been extremely strict in ethics since childhood, look down on her. Mrs. Pei snorted and was about to refuse, but Dugu Haoran said: "Madam, go and see her! My father passed away, which has a great blow to her. We juniors should care more about her."

Mrs. Pei glanced at her husband. She didn't want her husband to go and care about him, her young stepmother, so she nodded and said, "Okay! I'll go see her."

The Pei family covers a large area. Although Mrs. Zhang and Mrs. Pei live in the back house together, there is a high wall between their houses, and they have to walk through two doors to pass. Mrs. Pei slowly came to Mrs. Zhang's back house with two maids, but she faintly heard Mrs. Zhang's laughter, "You have missed this time!"

Bypassing a cluster of fine bamboos, she saw that Mrs. Zhang had already removed her filial piety clothes and was playing shuttlecocks with several maids. Her daughter Mingzhu was also inside. Mrs. Pei frowned. She had only been 50 days after her husband died. She removed her filial piety clothes and laughed and played casually. This was too much. Her husband also said that she was sad and she was unstoppable in the days when her father-in-law died. But now, she didn't look like she was hit at all.

Mrs. Pei walked up and scolded her daughter unhappily, saying, "Mingzhu, who asked you to get rid of your filial piety clothes?"

Mingzhu didn't expect her mother to come so quickly. She was so scared that she stuck out her tongue and said timidly: "Didn't you say that you can get rid of the filial piety clothes after 49?"

"Hmph! If you want to remove filial piety clothes, you have to decide for your mother. How dare you remove filial piety clothes without authorization and kick shuttlecock? Are you worthy of your death grandfather?"

While cursing his daughter, he glanced at Mrs. Zhang with disdain.

How could Mrs. Zhang not hear her harsh words? Her face sank: "I asked Mingzhu to remove her filial piety clothes, what! Is there anything wrong?"

"Oh! Look at what Zuniang said, there is nothing wrong with it. Zuniang said that she could remove the filial piety clothes, so there is no problem. Mingzhu, if you have something to say, you go first!"

Mrs. Pei said it very politely. She had decided that she would never let Mingzhu enter the yard again.

"Zu Niang, then I'll go first, I'll find you to play with you another day." Mingzhu was a little afraid of her mother and slipped away in a hurry, but when she walked to the corner, she got into the bamboo forest while her mother was not paying attention and secretly hid in the forest to eavesdrop.

"Zu Niang, are you asking me for trouble?"

Mrs. Pei should call Mrs. Zhang the mother or mother-in-law, but in fact, from the day Mrs. Zhang remarried to the Lonely Mansion, Mrs. Pei never called her "Mother", but called her two daughters the grandmother.

"Oh! It's nothing. I heard that Zhang Shangshu came to visit Haoran just now, but for the sake of the bright moon?"

If it were a few months ago, Mrs. Pei would have said, "How could it be the Mingyue's business?" to deny it, or to say, "I don't know about this!" to pretend to be confused.

But now she has no need for this. After dying of loneliness, Mrs. Zhang is nothing at home. Not only does Mrs. Pei not deny it, but she also has to tell her the truth clearly and let her know that the family is now the Pei family.

"Xu Niang is right, it's for Mingyue. I have agreed to give Mingyue to Zhao Xuming."

After saying that, she glanced at Mrs. Zhang with a hint of challenging meaning, but unexpectedly, she was heard by Mingzhu hiding in the bamboo bushes. She was so scared that she lost her vigor. She shrank and ran out of the bamboo forest from the other end, and ran towards her sister's embroidery room.

Mrs. Zhang was angry here, and she opened her eyes wide and said, "The Grand Master said it clearly that Zhao Xuming had a bad character and Mingyue was not allowed to give it to him. What? The Grand Master just passed away, did you rebel against him?"

Mrs. Pei suddenly remembered that on the Lantern Festival this year, she ignored her ban and forced Mingyue Mingzhu out to watch the lanterns. In fact, she asked Mingyue and Li Qing'an to have a secret meeting, so that her sisters came back in the middle of the night. Mingzhu, under her instigation, had a strange makeup and dressed in strange clothes all day long. Others thought that her family was not strict and she lost all her face. Now she used the dead to suppress herself. New and old hatreds broke out in Mrs. Pei's heart.

She couldn't control her anger and refuted Mrs. Zhang: "The Grand Master has never said this. I think this is what you mean. Now the Grand Master has gone to the immortals, and the Grand Master will decide the family. The Grand Master and I are Mingyue's personal parents. Can't we make the decision and let outsiders point fingers?"

"You made it clear, who is an outsider?"

"Who is an outsider? She knows in her heart that I have never seen her husband go to Sijiu and play shuttlecock happily as his wife. Is there any etiquette?"

"You also know etiquette? Is there a daughter-in-law like you who talks to your mother-in-law? You are still a daughter of a famous family."

The conflict between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law in the Dugu Mansion finally broke out publicly. Everyone in the Dugu Mansion was talking about this. Young people watched the fun, but the elderly looked at the trick. This was actually a battle for the right to deal with family affairs in the Dugu Mansion. In the past, Mrs. Zhang had the final say. Now that the great master has passed away, it is Mrs. Pei’s turn to make the decision. Many servants who sympathized with Mrs. Zhang sighed secretly. After all, the key is that Mrs. Zhang is not the original wife of the great master. Now that the great master has passed away, she has no son to support her. Why did she fight with Mrs. Pei?

Mingyue's room was a different scene. Mingyue's face was pale and the wood stood in front of the window. Her heart was filled with sadness. She was sad about the shattering of her dreams. She was sad about herself. Her mother actually decided to marry her to Zhao Xuming. Every word of her mother's words stabbed into Mingyue's heart like a sharp blade. She had to let them stab her randomly and could not defend herself. Her hope was completely shattered.

Mingzhu was anxious and hurriedly advised her sister: "Sister, why don't you ask for your father! Let your father make the decision for you."

"Don't go to your father, I'll decide this!"

The cold voice of their mother came from the door. Mrs. Pei walked in slowly. She glared at her little daughter fiercely and said, "Mingzhu, you go out!"

"But, mom..."

Before her sister could say anything, Mingyue waved her hand to stop her and said softly: "Mingzhu, you go out first! I'll have a good talk with my mother."

"Sister!" Mingzhu sighed, lowered her head and hurried out. When she walked past her mother, Mrs. Pei said to her coldly: "From now on, you are not allowed to go to the East Courtyard again. If you dare to go again, I will break your legs!"

Mingzhu was so scared that she trembled all over, but she took her mouth and walked downstairs quickly. Her mother's stern voice came from behind, "Also! You are not allowed to wear fancy makeup anymore, otherwise, I will not have you as my daughter."

Mingzhu didn't say a word, she went downstairs and hid in a corner, squatting on the ground, waiting for the storm to come uneasily.

The door was closed gently, and Mrs. Pei smiled and said to the eldest daughter: "Mingyue, it's time for us to have a good talk."

Mingyue nodded silently and said, "Mom, Mingzhu is still a child, please don't be so fierce to her."

Mrs. Pei took her daughter's hand and sat down, sighed and said, "You sisters are both my mother's love. Mom is for your own good. Mingzhu has been used to being indulged in the past few years. Look at her, she often goes out early and comes back late, and mingle with those little girls who are angry in the demon. She is a woman. As long as she takes a wrong step, she will be over in this life. Mom knows that you love your sister, but Mom's strict requirements for her is also a manifestation of loving her. Mingyue, you are a sensible child, and you should be able to understand Mom's painstaking efforts."

Mingyue was moved, and she slowly leaned into her mother's arms and whispered: "Mom, I understand!"

Mrs. Pei caressed her daughter's back lovely and said softly: "My Mother is also for your own good. Mother is a veteran. I know what kind of marriage can last the most. 'Good family and respect each other'. Like your father and I, I am the second daughter of the Pei family, your father is the eldest son of the Dugu family. This is a good family. We have never argued about the affairs of our father's family or the parents' family. Marriage is not just a matter of two people, it also affects the interests of the two families. I didn't know your father at the beginning. I was also very scared before getting married and cried secretly. But after getting married, as time passed, we gradually got to know each other, and I like your father more and more. The couple is loving and gave birth to your brothers and sisters. This is marriage, like white rice, although it is a little plain, but can be eaten for the rest of my life. Ming Yue, do you understand the painstaking efforts of my mom?"

Mingyue slowly raised her head and said, "I know my mother is for my own good, but I really dislike Zhao Xuming. I know that he has a bad character. On the contrary, I like Li Qing'an very much."

Speaking of liking Li Qing'an, Mingyue's face was a little red, but her beautiful eyes became extremely bright. "I like him guarding the border for the country and his heroism. I am willing to go to Beiting with him. Mom, you can fulfill your daughter!"

Mrs. Pei's face slowly sank. Her hard-working persuasion made her daughter become a wind in her ears. She restrained her inner displeasure and advised again: "Mingyue, you have to be more realistic. Li Qingan became a military governor at a young age. Of course, this is easy to make the girls admire you. Mother can understand your mood, but you have to understand that you will be eighteen years old next year. If you don't marry after the age of eighteen, most people will not agree to this marriage anymore. You and Li Qing will be

An has no engagement or matchmaker, how can you be sure that he will marry you? If he marry someone else, wouldn’t you be delayed? At that time, if you turn back and want to marry Zhao Xuming, people will not wait for you anymore. Mingyue, instead of guarding the moon in the water and the flowers in the mirror, it is better to cherish what you have already obtained. Don’t argue with your mother again. Zhang Shangshu came to propose marriage to Zhao Xuming twice. Human affection is more important than mountain. Your father and I have decided to agree to him."

Mingyue shook her head slowly, "He will wait for me, I know."

She knelt down on her knees, but her eyes looked at her mother with great determination: "I will never marry Zhao Xuming, and I will not marry anyone except him. Mom, I'm sorry!"

"You..." The anger in Mrs. Pei's heart was ignited again. She shook her daughter's hand and stood up and said angrily: "The marriage of children is controlled by their parents. Since ancient times, I won't say anything to you anymore. Regardless of whether you want it or not, you must marry Zhao Xuming. This is my mother's decision, and there is no room for negotiation."

"I will never!"

Mingyue also suddenly stood up, her stubbornness hidden in her bones was aroused, and she said word by word: "I will never marry him even if I die!"

"Okay! Well said!"

Mrs. Pei was so angry that she trembled all over and pointed at her daughter and said, "I'll raise you for nothing. If you want to die, go to die!"

She turned around and walked out.

"Mom!" Mingyue screamed sadly, she rushed forward and looked at her mother and said tremblingly: "Mom, don't force me!"

"Don't try to use death to coerce me. If your mother wants you to marry, you must marry, and you must get married before the end of the year."

Mrs. Pei snorted, "Bang!" with a loud bang, she threw the door heavily and left without looking back.

A feeling of despair grabbed Mingyue's heart, tears flowed down her cheeks, and she could no longer save her mother's determination. Could this be her fate? No! This is not her fate. She said that she will never marry if she dies. She suddenly turned around and stared at a white silk on the bed.

Mingzhu was so scared that her heart almost stopped beating when her mother slammed the door heavily. She heard her mother scolding the maid loudly, "You should take the eldest girl tightly and not allow her to step out of the building. She would report to me any actions. If you dare to hide it at all, see if I break your legs!"

Mingzhu quietly took it out of the corner and quickly slipped upstairs. She wanted to discuss countermeasures with her sister, but when she walked to the door, she suddenly felt something was wrong. When she pushed the door, she was stunned.
Chapter completed!