Do you know? Do you know? It should be Green Fat Red Thin Episode 23

  As soon as they saw the young man's demeanor, the Sheng siblings knew he was not ordinary and immediately stood up to return his courtesy. After they finished their greetings, Mr. Zhuang began to introduce him, saying that this handsome young man was the only son of the current Salt Transport Commissioner, whose father was the second son of the Qi State Duke's Manor, and whose mother was the only daughter of the Xiangyang Marquis, who had been conferred by the Emperor as the Princess of Pingning Commandery, truly a family of high-ranking officials.

  His name is Qi Heng, also known as Yuanruo, one year younger than Zhang Changbai. A few years ago, he studied under Master Zhuang in the capital city, but later left to follow his father's official appointment elsewhere. Recently, Qi Daren came to Dengzhou to inspect and rectify the salt administration, and is expected to stay for some time. His wife and children naturally accompanied him. When Qi Heng heard that Sheng Xuan's western pavilion was actually Master Zhuang's residence, he asked his father to deliver a visiting card and pay his respects.

  Minglan found it strange that Mr. Zhuang was so close to Qi Heng, and over the past few days of teaching, Mr. Zhuang seemed to look down on the sons of the royal family with disdain. Once, he even directly called them "idiots". She thought this in her heart, but Changfeng had already spoken out: "I guess it's Mr. Zhuang's senior apprentice, should be addressed as Shixiong." He said with a smile and a bow.

  Mr. Zhuang pointed at Qi Heng and laughed: "This young man has a big family background, but he doesn't go to donate officials, instead he wants to study hard by himself. He comes to my humble thatched cottage in the cold winter and hot summer, and even the county princess gets anxious."

  Qī Héng's snow-white skin was slightly flushed, and he said with a blush: "Father often regretted not having taken the imperial examination, and hoped that his descendants would take the orthodox path to officialdom. Fortunately, Mr. Sheng invited Master, so Yuan Ruo came with a thick face."

  He glanced at the silent, smiling Chang Bai beside him and continued, "This is the eldest son of Grandmaster Sheng, Eldest Brother Chang Bai. I heard that Eldest Brother will be taking the imperial examination in the countryside today, does he have a pen name?"

  Chang Bai said: "The grass character is sincere, given by Mr. Zhuang."

  Then the three big boys bowed to each other after passing by, and in unison they went to the two young masters of the Sheng family, cupped their hands and said: "Zecheng brother, Chang Feng xian younger brother."

  Mr. Zhuang waited for half a day, getting impatient and scolding: "You young people are more stubborn than I am, an old man! If you want to leave, then go! My lesson isn't over yet." Minglan secretly added: That's why you've never been able to become an official.

  While they were in a flurry, Minglan let the three already dazed little maids go out. Danju followed them out in an orderly manner. Outside, Xiaotao arrived just in time and handed over the money bag she had brought. Each of the three little maids was given fifty coins, and they all thanked her hastily. Qiheng glanced at her as if nothing had happened.

  Mr. Zhuang called Qi Heng to sit down and listen to the lesson. A young servant had already brought over a desk and chair, originally placed with Chang Bai on the right and Chang Feng on the left, behind them sat their own sister, Ming Lan in front was empty, sitting by the wall on the right side, behind her was Xiao Zhang, now suddenly came an extra student, Mr. Zhuang let him sit to the right of Chang Bai, asking him to sit down in the first row on the right side, directly behind him was naturally Ming Lan.

  Minglan's line of sight was blocked, but she didn't expect that Qi Heng sat down and turned back to smile at her, saying "Sixth sister is well."

  Minglan was stunned for a moment - how could this guy...? Then she instinctively looked at Mo Lan and Ru Lan, only to see that they were indeed looking over here, hastily sitting up straight, not saying a word.

  The room was quiet for a moment, and Mr. Zhuang cleared his throat and said, "You all heard what the sixth lady and the maid just said, what do you think? Don't hesitate to speak up."

  Chang Bai smiled: "Sixth sister has said everything she should say."

  Chang Feng moved his lips, glanced at Qi Heng, and seemed to have some reservations, so he stopped criticizing the eldest son. Mo Lan and Ru Lan had a noble and elegant demeanor, with an air of restraint that was suffocating.

  Mr. Zhuang looked at the crowd today and knew that it would be difficult to ask anything else, so he sighed and said to Minglan: "They won't say anything, Sixth Miss, you'd better speak up."

  Minglan stood up respectfully and said, "This... each has its own advantages, but..." She smiled shyly: "The eldest son is easy to recognize, it's convenient and saves trouble, and it's not easy to quarrel."

  Zhi Heng endured without turning back, instinctively feeling that the voice behind him was soft and clear, very pleasant to hear.

  Mr. Zhuang didn't comment either, gesturing for Minglan to sit down, and then asked Qizheng: "Now, you were also listening in the back just now, what do you think?"

  Zhi Heng also stood up and said: "The student has just arrived, how can he speak rashly, however..." He paused for a moment, smiled, "Sixth sister's last question... asked extremely well."

  The atmosphere relaxed immediately, everyone thought of it and found it funny again. Mr. Zhuang shook his head at him.

  After a while, Mr. Zhuang turned to the boy in the first row and said seriously: "What I say today, I only say once, and after leaving this door, I will not recognize it at all. A great man should be loyal to the king and love his country. No matter how strong the wind and rain are outside, they will eventually pass. What's important is that we must keep our key points tight and not fall into them casually. We must not engage in unnecessary disputes with colleagues, and being a pure minister is the right reason!

  Many students nodded in agreement, while Minglan secretly thought to herself: "This old man is so cunning. What he means is that whether or not the crown prince is established doesn't matter, as long as you are loyal to whoever ends up becoming emperor, that's all that matters." This couldn't be said outright, but it also couldn't be left unsaid, so he spoke in a roundabout way like this, considering his task complete. Whether or not they understood was up to their individual abilities.

  ……

  Because Qi Heng was going to pay his respects to Old Lady Sheng, all the brothers and sisters gathered at Shou'An Tang for lunch. Old Lady Sheng pulled Qi Heng over and looked him up and down, her heart full of delight. She glanced at the three little flower-like granddaughters by her side, and couldn't help but feel a pang in her heart, thinking of Minglan and sighing involuntarily. Wang Shi stood beside them, introducing with particular enthusiasm.

  Sheng Hong was overjoyed when he received the letter from Qi Daren and immediately invited him to come to his family's private school to study together. Qi Daren had been worried that his son would neglect his studies, so he readily agreed and they quickly became close friends after a few meetings. Amazingly, they discovered that the Qi Guo Gong Fu and the Wang Shi Niang Jia had a distant and complicated familial relationship.

  Wang smiled and said, "After careful consideration, it turns out that they are our own people. Although they are distant relatives, we should get closer to them in the future." From then on, colleagues became relatives, and the atmosphere in the house became more lively. Even the Sheng sisters didn't need to be reserved anymore.

  Minglan listened to Wang's lengthy explanation and finally understood why Qi Heng called her "Sixth Sister" as soon as he came up. But before she could even react, Rulan was already enthusiastically calling out "Brother Yuanruo". Molan also coquettishly called out in a sweet voice, and Minglan couldn't help but tremble with excitement, following suit; Qi Heng politely responded with: "Fourth Sister, Fifth Sister, Sixth Sister."

  She glanced down at Minglan, only to see her combing a small braid, standing dazedly beside her, with her chubby little hands covering her mouth, constantly yawning, her tender cheek as white and plump as a small bun, Qiheng curved the corners of his mouth, suddenly feeling a bit itchy.

  Minglan had never felt that a day was as unbearable as today. In the early morning, she taught Xiao Chang'an to recognize characters, and Mr. Zhuang dragged on with his lessons, unwilling to let them go. At noon, everyone was in high spirits during lunch, reluctant to disperse. In the afternoon, Mrs. Zhuang, like a fierce tigress, seemed about to pounce, but Minglan didn't have time for her afternoon nap. However, her two sisters apparently thought today was wonderful.

  In the afternoon, when Mo Lan was playing the piano, her music flowed like a babbling brook, moving and sincere. Zhuang Shi Niang closed her eyes in appreciation, while Rulan's usual impatience disappeared, replaced by a faint smile at the corner of her mouth as she played with her head bowed. Minglan listened with displeasure, so she went to observe them, only to see their faces flushed red, their eyebrows and eyes relaxed, seemingly on the verge of bursting into laughter.

  Minglan sighed and continued to pluck her zither strings, Ah, spring...

  It wasn't until I arrived in this era that I realized the huge gap between ancient and modern times. In ancient times, a girl's first priority in life was to get married and have children, then take care of her husband and teach her children, and spend the rest of her life doing so. All learning, needlework, accounting, household management, and even reading and writing before that were preparations for this ultimate goal.

  The poem "Mulan" is not written to make a good impression in the future, but to bear the name of a talented woman, which has more value in the marriage market, or to please her husband after marriage; Similarly, Mulan learning to read accounts is not for future accounting work, but to better manage the family's property and finances after marriage; The same goes for Mulan learning needlework - at least in other people's eyes.

  An ancient girl, from a very young age, would be subtly instilled with the idea of marriage by her elders. When she was little, Yiyi heard from her mother: "Your mid-term exam scores have regressed this time, be careful that you won't even get into XX High School!" In ancient times, she heard from Housekeeper Cui: "It took four days to embroider a water duck, how will you do the needlework for your husband and children in the future? Don't let them despise you!"

  Of course, at this time, the girls would all make a show of being coy and shy, but in their hearts they had long since accepted the idea of marrying and having children. Girls with foresight even began to plan for themselves early on. So, looking at Mulan and Rulan's springtime faces, Minglan didn't find it strange at all. A husband was not only love for ancient girls, but also a lifelong meal ticket, a guarantee of a stable life.

  She found their attitude towards her quite natural, if they were to pretend to be innocent and say that they treated her as an elder brother, that would be affected. It's only normal for a young man from a prominent family with excellent looks to have thoughts about her.

  Minglan suddenly felt a pang of melancholy. Life in Shou'an Hall was safe and warm, but she couldn't stay there forever. Ten years old was a turning point; they were outside the pass, while she was still inside.

  ……

  Before going to bed in the evening, Minglan was reading a piano score. A young servant, Han Niu, ran over to Changbai's side, holding a shallow, wide-mouthed porcelain basin about a foot wide, and carefully placed it on the table. He let out a sigh of relief, wiped the big sweat from his forehead: "Sixth Miss, these two small fish are for Master to watch you play with, saying that you want to read books and do needlework, often looking at this is good for your eyes."

  Minglan walked over to take a look, and saw that in the shallow porcelain basin were two red-and-white striped goldfish, their scales shining bright red or snowy white, their tails fluttering, and at the bottom of the water were several small pebbles and a few tender shoots of aquatic plants. The water sparkled, the fish swam nimbly, and the vibrant red and green colors combined with the blue-and-white porcelain to create a truly delightful sight. Minglan was overjoyed, and looked up at Hancow with a smile: "This is really beautiful! When you go back, tell Young Master that his sister likes it very much, thank you so much for bringing it here... Danju, quickly give Second Brother Cow two hundred coins as a token of appreciation. He's been carrying this basin all the way here, and it must have been hard work."

  The little cow was only eleven or twelve years old, and heard that he liked to receive money, so he handed over the string of coins, and hastily thanked Minglan repeatedly. Danju grabbed a handful of fruit from the table and stuffed it into his pocket, then let Green Branch send him out.

  Xiao Tao still had a childlike appearance, and when she saw the sweat cow leave, she immediately went over to look at the brocade carp, clicking her tongue in admiration of its beauty. Dan Ju turned around and saw the master and servant staring foolishly at the brocade carp, even using their short fingers to point and gesture, and couldn't help but laugh: "The young master is really meticulous, I heard that he has a large vat of characters in his house, raising several pairs of brocade carp, this pair is probably scooped out from his vat."

  Xiao Tao raised her head and smiled foolishly: "Sister Danju is not wrong, when I was in the mistress's room, I also heard that the young master treasures this brocade carp very much, and no one is allowed to touch it on ordinary days, especially the fifth daughter; this time he actually gave our daughter two, it's really strange."

  Minglan didn't say a word, using her short and chubby fingers to tease the two fat-bellied goldfish in the water. She thought to herself: Could this be the reward for standing in line during the day? If so, that's not bad either, it shows that Zhang Bai is quite thoughtful, able to get along with a sensible and reasonable older brother, really something to be happy about.

  It has to be said that Wang's batting success rate is still very high, with at least two good balls in three swings.