On the afternoon of the 27th, the sun was shining brightly and the weather was warm. On the courtyard lawn of the Liaoyang Princess Mansion, there was a small white table with a white chair next to it. A small silver trolley was parked next to the small table.
The small trolley is divided into upper and lower floors, on which are placed various exquisite refreshments, tea sets, milk, juice, wet towels...
The small table is covered with a white lace tablecloth. On the tablecloth is a set of exquisite blue and white porcelain tea sets, and a pastry stand. The pastry stand is divided into three layers, with several kinds of sandwiches on the lower layer, traditional British waffles on the middle layer, and
Small cakes and fruit towers. Next to the pastry stand, there are several small cups and saucers containing raisins, croissants, and caviar.
On the lawn around the tea table, six identical dachshunds were running and playing, jumping and having fun with each other. It was very pleasant. They were still the six that Xiang Xiaoqiang saw in the garden of Changping Marquis Mansion when he first came to Ming Dynasty. But at that time, they were still the same ones.
Puppy, now grown
Much bigger, but still cheerful, fully demonstrating the docile and cheerful characteristics of this kind of dog. The dogs are in harmony with the white tea table, tempting refreshments, green evergreen lawns, and the surrounding quaint Japanese courtyards.
Together, it makes people feel very comfortable.
Under the corridor, there are occasionally two or three imperial guards looming. It is obvious that the security measures of the Princess Mansion have been doubled today.
Girls' chatter and laughter could be faintly heard in the distance. Then, Zhu Yourong and Shi Shigege walked over side by side, holding hands, chatting and laughing. Then another wheelchair was pushed out, leaning toward Xiao Qiang sickly.
In the wheelchair, Hu Jiong pushed him. Behind him, two girls walked out side by side. One was Wei Zijin and the other was Xiao Wu.
Several people came to the tea table. Shi Shigege and Xiang Xiaoqiang were still in wheelchairs, and Zhu Yourong was sitting on a chair. The three of them began to drink afternoon tea affectionately and chat. It was said to be drinking afternoon "tea", but in fact it was a British-style afternoon tea.
It's more of a social activity.
Men and women from the upper class gathered together in the afternoon to eat, drink, and chat, just like a small salon. Tea was not necessarily the most important thing. Zhu Yourong drank black tea. Xiang Xiaoqiang and Shi Shigege couldn't drink tea because they were still taking medicine.
Just drink juice and milk.
Wei Zijin, Xiao Wu, and Hu Jiong stood around.
…
Today Zhu Yourong came to Liaoyang Princess Mansion to see the Fourteenth Gege.
Zhu Yourong originally wanted to visit Shi Shigege and Xiang Xiaoqiang on the 25th, but he was stopped by everyone from the generals at the headquarters to his own imperial doctor, uncle, and nanny. Everyone forbade Zhu Yourong from visiting Shi Shigege and Xiang Xiaoqiang before his condition improved.
So he went to visit at the risk of being infected. Zhu Yourong had no choice but to stay in the fortress and just called to say hello. As a result, it was not until today, the 27th, that Zhu Yourong was "released" by everyone when their conditions improved significantly.
”.
Hu Jiong was so excited today. He didn't expect to see Her Majesty the Queen. He had been to the palace many times with the adults in the past, but it was never his turn to see Her Majesty. He didn't expect that he would actually see her this time at the Liaoyang Princess Mansion.
.
The disease that Shishi Gege first contracted is almost gone now, but she still coughs once or twice now. Xiang Xiaoqiang, who was infected later, is still coughing, but has no fever anymore and can participate in activities normally. So the seats
The placement is very particular. The gentle breeze passes through the courtyard. Zhu Yourong sits upwind, Xiang Xiaoqiang sits downwind, and Fourteen Gege sits in the middle of the side. This can minimize Zhu Yourong's infection.
Zhu Yourong had already expressed his condolences when it was time to express condolences. Now that the three of them were sitting down, Zhu Yourong opened his mouth to formally express his gratitude to Shi Shigege for her contribution to the strategy for the Ming army to enter the pass.
"Sister is very smart and understands the righteousness well," Zhu Yourong said sincerely, holding Shi Shigege's hand, "Even though she was ill, she was still able to carry out her sick body and contribute a key plan to the country and the nation, saving the Ming army from having to
In order to storm Hangu Pass and save the
The lives of countless soldiers of the Ming Army... well, and the lives of countless soldiers of the Qing Army... have also saved the people of Guanzhong and Shanxi from water and fire... I am here to replace the families of the soldiers, as well as the suffering people of Guanzhong and Shanxi,
Thank you sister!"
"Ah... Your Majesty," Fourteenth Gege quickly lowered his head, with a look of sincere fear and flattery on his face, "How dare this Liaoyang... Liaoyang is in his position, this is all Liaoyang's business... His Majesty called Liaoyang's name.
That's good. The word 'sister' really hurts Liaoyang..."
"Knock button... button button..."
Xiang Xiaoqiang lay sickly in his wheelchair, coughing twice from time to time. He has been coughing continuously for the past two days. Now the vocal cords of his cough have changed. It is no longer a normal "cough" sound, but a pathological "buckle" sound.
. He was coughing, chewing a piece of cake in his hand, tilting his head
I watched the two girls acting like little girls there, and it was a great pleasure to watch, and my heart was filled with joy. Shi Shigege once claimed that such "little girls in the backyard are disgusting to think about."
Now, he and Zhu Yourong have started "rehearsal" in the backyard.
The two girls glanced at him at the same time, and then looked at each other with smiles. They both looked like "We don't care about him, let him cough." They looked very close, like close friends.
How could Xiang Xiaoqiang not understand this? He felt even more happy.
"Sister is only a few years older than me," Zhu Yourong said with a smile. "She is also the princess of the Ming Dynasty, so why don't I call her sister? If I don't call her sister...hehe, what is my name again?"
"Kunkou...koukou..." Xiang Xiaoqiang coughed and interjected sickly, "Your Majesty's sister should be called 'Eldest Princess'..."
Zhu Yourong was stunned, and the Fourteenth Princess was also stunned. They all looked at Xiang Xiaoqiang, wondering why he suddenly brought up the issue of Princess Liaoyang's title.
Xiang Xiaoqiang took the cake and gnawed it, looking at the two of them with a puzzled expression, as if to say: What? What did I say wrong?
He suddenly felt that his left foot and right knee were kicked at the same time under the table. On the table, the two girls were still looking down at each other, smiling intimately.
Got it. The kick to her left foot was kicked by Shi Shigege who was sitting next to her. She asked herself not to talk too much because she didn’t want to fight for any more titles. The kick to her right knee was kicked by Zhu Yourong who was sitting opposite.
She was sitting far away and couldn't reach her kicking feet, so she could only raise her legs to kick her knees. Zhu Yourong probably blamed himself for interjecting such a comment at this time, which made her unable to get off the stage.
Zhu Yourong looked at Xiang Xiaoqiang, then at Fourteen Gege, feeling a little embarrassed, then he laughed and said:
"Sister Liaoyang is only two or three years older than me, so she is my equal. Although the one who was canonized at the beginning was called 'Princess Liaoyang', it goes without saying that this 'Princess Liaoyang' must be the eldest princess. My sisters,
I usually call her "Princess" or "Princess", but when it comes down to it, it must be the eldest princess. Well, after all, it's you, Mars."
"Pfft... bang bang bang..."
Xiang Xiaoqiang spat out a mouthful of cake crumbs, choking and coughing. He picked up the juice and sent it down. It took him a long time to recover. Behind him, Hu Jiong, Wei Zijin, and Xiao Wu hurriedly stepped forward and wiped the table with all their hands.
Cake crumbs on top.
"Uh..." Fourteenth Princess smiled and said, "Your Majesty, what is 'Mars'?"
Zhu Yourong smiled, glanced at Xiang Xiaoqiang, smiled at Shi Shige and said:
"This is a very invented word. It means that this person doesn't know anything. It's like he just came to Earth from Mars. It means something like 'Oolong'."
"Uh..." Shi Shigege laughed again, "Then... what is an 'oolong'?"
Zhu Yourong laughed and said:
"Sister, I don't know. 'Oolong' is a Cantonese slang word, which means making a fool of yourself or embarrassing yourself. Tingzhi taught me this when he came back from Nanyang School last time. However, Tingzhi is the right person to describe myself here. Hahaha...
…”
Fourteen Gege also laughed, and the two girls looked at Xiang Xiaoqiang and laughed at him together.
Xiang Xiaoqiang also waved his hand, holding half a piece of cake and coughing and laughing, but he knew in his heart that Zhu Yourong said these words, which officially promoted the fourteenth princess from "princess" to "eldest brother".
"Princess". Wei Zijin behind him also understood and remembered that the first thing he did after returning was to deal with the title issue of Princess Liaoyang and upgrade Princess Liaoyang's various indicators of treatment from "Princess" to "Elder Princess" as soon as possible.
”.
In China's Han Dynasty, princesses were divided into three classes according to their generation: princess, eldest princess, and eldest princess. The emperor's daughter was called a princess, the emperor's sister was called the eldest princess, and the emperor's aunt was called the eldest princess. But these are all
Used when there is no title, such as minister or
When the maids and servants address her, they always call her "Her Royal Highness the Princess", "Her Royal Highness the Eldest Princess", "Her Royal Highness the Eldest Princess". But when they are called together with their titles, they usually just say "Princess Liaoyang", "Princess Yong'an"
"Princess", "Princess Xiuning"...
When the Fourteenth Princess was canonized, it was very vague at the beginning. She was only canonized as "Princess of Liaoyang" and did not say whether she was a princess or an eldest princess. Originally, in terms of age, the Fourteenth Princess should be considered the same generation as Zhu Yourong, so she should be
She is the eldest princess. But before the Ming Dynasty, there were very few examples of women with other surnames being canonized as princesses. Even though
The canonization is also given as a title, and it does not really regard her as a member of the family, and generally does not pay attention to seniority. However, the princess and the eldest princess have hierarchical status, treatment, and formal occasion etiquette.
They are all very different in terms of system standards. Although they are both princesses, the superiority and inferiority of the elders and juniors are different after all.
Now Zhu Yourong has personally admitted that it has been confirmed that the 14th Princess is the eldest princess. Xiang Xiaoqiang has also completed the purpose of "clearing" the 14th Princess. However, I am afraid that the annuity of the 14th Princess will not be increased. Zhu Yourong is playing a trick.
He was cunning and opened his eyes and said that the title was originally based on the eldest princess. Needless to say, the annuity was also based on the eldest princess. Now there is no need to increase it.
But having said that, when the Fourteenth Princess was originally conferred, considering the significance of her defecting to Nanming, the annuity of 700,000 given to her was already quite high, fully reaching the level of the eldest princess. Zhu Yourong was also very kind.