In the middle hall of the clan house, the direct relatives of all the heads of the clan gathered together that night to welcome Shen Zhou and wash away the dust.
Just like Xu's time before, Shen Zhou met with all the relatives before the official banquet. Among the brothers of the Shui generation, the only one with the title of Shui, the head of the nine houses, was the eldest son of the clan. The second master was older than Shen Zhou and the others. They are all clan brothers.
Shen Zhou and everyone were meeting for the first time and were not familiar with each other. They were just greeting each other and were very alienated.
However, there are three clan elders in the third, eighth and ninth rooms. When Shen Zhou meets each other, he must greet them respectfully.
The old man from the third room still felt guilty, and when he looked at the second master, he was only warm-hearted and showed no airs; the old man from the eighth house was grateful to the second house and his attitude was also close; although the old man from the ninth house was the only one among the seven sons of the Shen family who came to Beijing. When the second grandson came back, he was very angry and complained about the second room. But thinking about the return gift brought by the housekeeper and Shen Lin's gift, his anger turned into attentiveness.
The three clan elders were so kind, and those gentlemen of the Shui generation were only polite to Shen Zhou.
When the nephews of the Yu clan came to see Shen Zhou, they became even more respectful.
Shen Zhou went from room to room, with a smile on his face but a dull pain in his heart.
Compared with other houses in Songjiang, the number of people in the second house, Ding Taiwei, is too small.
When he saw Shen Juren and Shen Jin's father and son in the fourth room, Shen Zhou couldn't help but look at them a few more times.
Shen Juren has been addicted to lust in the past few years, and has recently been busy with getting married. His eyes are black and blue, showing that he is somewhat deficient in energy and blood; Shen Jin is generous and generous, and he is also the most talented among the nephews of the Yu family. Very outstanding.
Shen Zhou suppressed his dislike for Shen Juren and exchanged a few words with him. Then he looked at Shen Jin and said, "I heard that you are now a junior student in a government school, so this year's scientific examination is not a big deal. How many grades did you pass? "
Shen Jin bowed and said, "My nephew was lucky enough to get a first-class exam."
Shen Zhou smiled and said: "Songjiang's literary style has been at its peak in recent years. You can pass the first-class examination in a prefecture. You may be allowed to pass the provincial examination this year. What do the professors in the prefecture say?"
Shen Jin said: "The professor said that my nephew is young, so don't worry too much about gains and losses. When the end comes, just perform as usual. Even if you fail, you can accumulate experience for the next course."
He is neither humble nor arrogant, and his appearance is dignified, and his appearance is no less handsome than Shen Rui. Even though Shen Zhou is a little resentful of his origin, he cannot have a bad feeling towards him. But he also knows that the more Shen Jin is unable to find fault, the more he has treated Shen Zhou before. Rui's threat becomes more severe.
The Sun family left half of the dowry to the eldest son of the concubine, and casually registered his name, which was probably helpless.
Thinking of this, the smile on Shen Zhou's face faded, and he lost interest in talking to Shen Jin.
After Shen Zhou and the other masters of the house had met, everyone went to the banquet.
At the main banquet, in addition to the clan chief and the three clan elders, there were also the distant guest Shen Zhou, the eldest master of the clan, Shen Juren, the eldest master Hong, the second master of the seventh house and Shen Qi of the sixth house. The others were Shenhu and Shenliu. , Shen Lu and others sat at the second table with the second master of the clan, the third master of the third clan, the fourth master of the third clan and others, and there were also two older men from the Yuzi generation who also sat at two seats.
Shen Juren felt a little anxious in his heart, but it was because Shen Zhou was gossiping with other clan members and did not mention the issue of the heir.
The eldest master of the clan sat next to Shen Juren, thinking that tomorrow would be the day when Shen Juren would remarry, and asked in a low voice: "You will have a big celebration tomorrow, can you invite Master Zhou to have a drink with you tomorrow?"
When Shen Juren heard this, he remembered this matter, shook his head and said, "Before I have time to mention this, I will personally invite the second-fang clan brother..."
Thinking of the news he got from Hao's mother, Shen Juren felt a little more confident.
It is said that the relationship between the clan clan and the second clan is the closest, so what? The head of the clan after the second clan comes from the fourth clan, can they still be far away from the fourth clan and get close to other clan heads?
Even the clan leader Shen Jue, who has always been doted upon by the clan leader and is so lawless, still doesn't let Shen Rui take a step now.
Among the seven sons of the Shen family who came to Beijing this year, the others were all the second and third sons, but Shen Rui was the only one who was different.
Shen Rui is the legitimate son of the Fourth Fang Yuan, the only true legitimate son. The second Fang Yuan wanted to adopt him but couldn't. He always had to have a reasonable excuse... and the nod from his biological father...
Otherwise, as long as you grit your teeth and refuse, even the clan rules have no reason to force someone to adopt a son.
Thinking like this, Shen Juren felt a little dissatisfied with Shen Zhou, feeling that he was too cold and not close enough to him.
In the final analysis, it is just a desire that is hard to satisfy and a wishful thinking. Based on the return gifts prepared by the second house for each house, you can know that the second house is prosperous, no less than the other houses in Songjiang. Shen Juren naturally has some plans in mind.
I also think that the second-fang is a fat man, and after one bite it makes people want to take another bite. There is also the ninth-fang.
Everyone else could keep their composure, and even if they were concerned about the heir's affairs, no one took the initiative to inquire in detail.
The choice of Shen Rui and Shen Jue for the second house was unreasonable, whether it was based on their bloodline or the closeness of their connections across several houses. It was not the turn of others to raise objections. The result was decided, whether it was brought up earlier or later, there was no difference. What a difference.
The Ninth House Master doesn’t think so. In his opinion, the second house cannot let each house have a hard time in vain, and compensation should be given to those who are not selected. The young people traveled thousands of miles to Beijing, and it is not easy to delay their studies for half a year. .
Therefore, the Ninfang Taiye couldn't wait to mention the matter of heirs, saying: "How about the selection of heirs for the second room? Brother Lin came back and said vaguely, saying that he chose the clan brother Jue and the fourth room Rui, and kept Qi. Brother Fang Qin and Brother Bafang Bao, what does this mean? Is it because the grandsons of the three clans haven't made up their minds yet, or they think that your family is withering and they want both of them to stay..."
The ninth master asked so many questions in one breath, and the room suddenly fell silent.
Nowadays, those who are well-informed know that the second room has chosen two heirs. Except for the seventh and eighth rooms, the other heads of the house don't know much about Shen Qin and Shen Bao staying in Beijing.
Shen Zhou smiled and said: "Let the old man worry about it. Choosing Brother Rui and Brother Jue as his heirs is the intention of the brothers. In addition to choosing the heirs from the second and fourth brothers in order, Brother Rui and Brother Jue are of good character. My brother and grandson both liked them very much, so they wanted to choose these two as the eldest brother and my heirs. As for Brother Qin and Brother Bao, they fell in the eyes of the third child in my family. Brother Qin became the disciple of the third child in my family. Brother Bao is now He is also studying with the third child of my family. As for the third child of my family, unlike my brothers and grandsons, he is already fifty years old; he is in the prime of life, and my younger siblings are also young, but it is not yet time to talk about heirs..."
Shen Zhou didn't need to explain these situations, the Ninfang Taiye also heard everything about them from Shen Lin.
The reason why he asked the question in public was just for the next sentence. The ninth wife frowned and said: "Whether the second wife chooses a mate or a lover, it is all your second wife's business. It's just that a few children go to Beijing with the second wife's wife. It is really hard... …When you have a few children, don’t be too biased…”
When Shen Zhou heard this, he was stunned.
How do you say this?
Even though he didn't care much about family affairs, he still knew about Xu's preparation of gifts. Shen Lin didn't come back empty-handed when she returned to her hometown. Xu prepared for him the Four Treasures of the Study, clothes and fabrics, and gold and silver tassels, which were enough for him. A few boxes.
Could it be that these things can't resolve Shen Lin's move to Beijing?
If he remembered correctly, it was true that the Xu family took the initiative to invite the nephews of each clan to come to Beijing, but except for Shen Rui and Shen Jue who were named by her, the other young men were recommended by each clan on their own initiative.
When the patriarch saw the ninth-fang master's eyes wandering around, not knowing that this old man was guilty of greed again, he frowned and was about to speak. The ninth-fang master had already said to the third-fang master: "Uncle Ji, do you think this is true? There are seven people who came to Beijing together. These are all nephews of the clan. Is it necessary to divide the distance? Now there are four in the second room. Didn’t those three travel in vain? My brother Lin is stupid, and the delay of half a year is just a matter of time. After spending two more years in ethnic studies, Brother Zhu is a good student, but now he doesn't even bother with the subject examination. The provincial examination was delayed by one subject, and the next one will be three years later...
The old man from the ninth house and the old man from the third house have always had a bad rapport, and now they are trying to win over the old man from the third house as an "ally".
But this time, the Ninth House Master was destined to be disappointed.
The old man of the third house got into trouble because of Shen Zhu, and he was looking for an opportunity to make amends to the clan and the second house on behalf of his grandson. How could he take advantage of the second house in response to the advice of the old man of the ninth house?
As a man in his eighties, he certainly knows the importance. No matter how good the money is, it cannot compete with the power. Otherwise, he would not forget to let his children and grandchildren study.
If the clan and the second brother-in-law are unwilling to forgive Shen Zhu, even if Shen Zhu is lucky enough to be elected as a candidate or Jinshi in the future, and no one in the officialdom will mention her, she will not have a great future.
Compared with Shen Zhu's future, what's a few dollars?
He can't even bear this old face, let alone that little bit of bargain?
Therefore, the old man from the third room glared and said: "What are you talking about? Who begged you to send your grandson to Beijing? What's the point of talking about delaying or not delaying now? You can follow the eldest wife from the second room to Beijing and let the children see the world. , better than anything. Brother Zhu, Brother Quan, they should have come back with Brother Lin, but they both have brothers at home, and the brothers get together more often, so it is not a big deal to delay their return home. Who If the children at home are not released when they grow up, what is the point of being detained at home?"
The old man from Sanfang didn't make much sense in these words, but many people looked at each other in confusion.
It is true that the old man from the third room has been messing around too much, but now he can speak clearly and clearly, which is completely different from the usual confusion.
The old man from the eighth house thought of Shen Bao's family letter and couldn't help but cursed "old fox" in his heart.
The old man of the third house was always a confused person, so even if everyone disliked him, it was hard to argue with him. After going back and forth, the old man of the third house took advantage of him because of his seniority and his temper.
Now he knows that what Shen Zhu did violated the clan's bottom line, and he didn't just pretend to be stupid to get past it, so he begins to "understand"
Others watched the ninth-bedroom master talking to the third-bedroom master, but Shen Jin was a little stunned.
The heirs are Shen Rui and Shen Jue?
How could it be?
If the second family has no heir, it is true that an heir is needed to take over, but the fourth family is not prosperous.
After all, the second room had a side concubine, and the fourth room was a single family for several generations, with no other cousins. It was only in the generation of their brothers that they became two brothers, no longer a single family.
Shen Qi sat above Shen Jin. Seeing that his face was pale and in a trance, she asked in a low voice: "What's wrong with Brother Jin?"
The two families live next to each other. Shen Jin is about the same age as Shen Quan. They have often played together since they were young, and Shen Qi and Shen Jin are also familiar with each other.
Shen Jin frowned and said: "Second Brother Qi, how could the elder of the second room choose Brother Rui as his heir? The bloodline of the fourth room is not rich, and Brother Rui is the legitimate heir, how can he be the heir?"
Shen Qi was stunned for a moment and said: "In terms of preface, the second brother should be from the clan, and the fourth brother should choose the heir. Rui Ge is one of the candidates. In addition, his maternal ancestor's family has an old relationship with the second brother. It is not reasonable for the second brother's elders to choose Rui Ge. middle?"
Shen Jin shook his head and said: "But Brother Rui is the legitimate son of the fourth wife. Although I am lucky enough to be named in my mother's name, Brother Rui is my mother's son."
Shen Qi listened with a smile and disapproved of it.
If Shen Rui, the legitimate son, was really indispensable to the Fourth Fang, he would not have been almost killed by Zhang Laoan and Shen Juren back then.
Shen Jin's words seemed to suggest that he was taking advantage of himself and acting like a good boy.
If he really felt that his fake legitimate son didn't count, why would he have said nothing when sharing the Sun family's dowry?
Seeing that Shen Rui had a better future ahead of him, he instead began to emphasize Shen Rui's status as the fourth wife's legitimate son?
Shen Qi glanced at Shen Jin. Regardless of whether Shen Jin did it intentionally or unintentionally, this person was unkind.
There is a kind of person like this, who takes advantage but is arrogant.
Shen Qi sneered in his heart, it seemed that there was a reason for the alienation between the third child and Shen Jin. The two of them were not the same person at all.
Shen Quan treats people honestly. If he really likes someone, he will be very caring and take care of as much as he can, just like he did to Shen Rui a few years ago. Shen Quan himself is the youngest son and younger brother, but in front of Shen Rui, he does everything he can. He acted like a big brother, helping all the people he could and accompanying all the people he could. Shen Jin also looked sincere, but more often than not he was just talking. Judging from his words and deeds, he often didn't mean what he said. place.
Shen Jin was worried about Shen Rui's heir, but he didn't know that these two sentences made him suspicious and disgusted by Shen Qi.
Everyone in the world knows that it is difficult to be an heir, let alone an heir to a high family.
It's not like the fourth brother's life was difficult. Why would Shen Rui, the legitimate son, leave his wife's family to become an heir who was not embarrassed? As for things like future support, the eighteen-year-old Shen Jin didn't know much about it. deep……
At the main table, the Ninth House Master didn't get a response from the Third House Master. Instead, he got a blank stare and couldn't help but feel dumbfounded.
After all, Shen Lin was too kind. Even though she told her grandfather about the incident in Beijing, she did not tell her about Shen Zhu scalding Shen Jue.
Even if Shen Lin is stupid, she knows that it is definitely not a good thing. If she says it out loud, Shen Zhu's future will be ruined. Even if Shen Zhu is wrong, she can't kill him at once. After all, we are brothers.
The ninth-fang master didn't know about Shen Zhu, so he was shocked by the reaction of the third-fang master. Then he couldn't help but wonder if the second-fang secretly gave the third-fang some benefit.
You should know that apart from Shen Zhu in the third room, Shen Yong, who went to give gifts to the stewards, also did not come back.
Thinking of this, the ninth-fang master couldn't help but feel itchy in his heart. He wished he could immediately take the third-fang master and ask him privately if he could get a share of the nine-fang pie. However, in full view of everyone, he could only force a smile and said: "I'm just Brother Daizhu. Brother Quan is unjust and Fang complained a few words, but he didn’t mean anything else.
Shen Zhou smiled lightly, could it be that the second roommate was too talkative? Why did the old man think that he could take advantage of the second roommate if he wanted?
Is this a clan relative?
It's really interesting.
My father's temperament is the most intolerable to these little schemes. It seems that it is not unreasonable for my grandfather to alienate his relatives in the Songjiang clan during his lifetime.
The Ninth House Master made such a fuss that he felt uncomfortable and angry. He lowered his head and ate wine.
Because Shen Zhou was told about having an heir by the ninth house master, he turned to Shen Ju Ren and said, "I heard that tomorrow is the official day for Chaoyuan to remarry and fill a house. It seems that Chaoyuan has no time these days. How long will it take to wait?" When you have some free time over there, we brothers can have a nice talk. My brother has already given instructions, and there are not too many heirs in the four houses, so one of your sons cannot be used in vain..."
Shen Juren waited anxiously for a long time just to see the attitude of the second roommate towards the fourth roommate.
Seeing that Shen Zhou had given the right words, he suppressed his emotions and was filled with joy, frowning and said: "Shen Rui has always been stubborn and is afraid that he will not be able to take on the big responsibility... Even if a rich family sister-in-law cares about the Sun family's affection, she should not treat the selection of the eldest son of the second wife as a child's play... "
He said this in front of all the clan members, not to condemn Xu's "nepotism", but to tell everyone that he did not offer his son on his own initiative, but his second wife took the initiative to choose Shen Rui.
Others responded with different expressions upon hearing this, but Shen Qi, who was at the next table, lowered his head and couldn't help but sneer.
However, seeing that Shen Juren and Shen Jin were biological father and son, just now Shen Jin acted like he didn't want his brother to have an heir; now Shen Juren's situation is much the same.
The first sentence of Shen Juren is nothing. Shen Rui has not yet officially given birth to an heir, but he is still his son. It is common for me to scold my son. It would be frivolous to praise my son in public, but the last sentence is extremely inappropriate.
Mrs. Xu is older and is the sister-in-law of a neighboring family. It is not Shen Juren's turn to comment on how she behaves.
Shen Zhou immediately lowered his face and said: "Chaoyuan is joking. The choice of the eldest son's heir is very important for the second wife. How can this be child's play? Brother Rui is a steady man, generous in behavior, and diligent in studying. He is an excellent child. Very popular with my eldest brother and sister-in-law..."
Shen Juren was pushed back. He was so embarrassed and angry that his face turned red. He immediately wanted to stand up and throw away his sleeves, but he didn't dare.
When Mrs. Sun was around, the four-fang family came and went from official families, and Shen Juren didn't feel that there was much difference between his family and the official family. After Sun's death, the interpersonal relationship between the four-fang family also became deserted, and he realized that Juren's family status was different from that of an ordinary small family. In the eyes of officials, they are nothing.
If Shen Zhou was gentle and amiable, Shen Juren would be a little more courageous; but Shen Zhou's aura is there and he is only indifferent to the relatives of the clan, and Shen Juren really doesn't dare to test Shen Zhou's temper.
Seeing everyone's quarrel, the clan leader hurriedly interrupted and said: "Chaoyuan, you have to prepare wine tomorrow, we will all come to your house to beg for wine."
Shen Juren squeezed out a smile and said: "There are several jars of Osmanthus White in the wine cellar at home. We will come out to entertain everyone tomorrow..."
Members of the Shen family gathered here, and the He family also received news that day, knowing that the second master of the house was returning to his hometown to worship his ancestors. However, the second master of the He family did not bother to think about the situation of the second house of the Shen family. Instead, he took his brother's letter and was extremely depressed.
He was really afraid that something would happen. Years ago, he had thought about whether Shen Rui would adopt the second room of the Shen family, but he didn't expect that his words would come true...