In the summer of the first year of Xianjia, the capital was rained abundantly, and it was soaked in water vapor for more than three months, and it was rare to see the sun outcropping, and it was not clear until the beginning of autumn, and the people in the city were upset. And on July 16, the first day of the funeral of Zhao Shunde, the Marquis of Pingyuan, God gave a sunny day as if he was funny.

The weather is good but not hot, the sky is blue and bright, and the autumn is a veritable high and refreshing autumn. The courtyard of the Hou Mansion was full of white flags, and the gold and silver foils were piled up into mountains, reflecting the golden and bright sunlight early in the morning.

Old lady Zhao trembled down from the outer courtyard and climbed down her half-old gray and blue cloth shed carriage, and as soon as she stepped into the gate of the main courtyard, her eyes were dazzled by the bright light, and she couldn't help but raise her sleeves to cover it.

The main courtyard is paved with blue bricks, surrounded by hand-copying verandahs on both sides, large and small gold wire birdcages are hung under the eaves of gold painting, parrots and thrushes and other finches are chirping and squatting, and under the steps on the side lie the big grandmother Liu's dog, lazily lying in the sun, and from time to time there are a few pleasant moans. Recite.

Although the birdcage is wrapped with white silk and the dog is also tied with white coarse cloth, it does not show the slightest mourning atmosphere that a funeral should have.

When I met the relatives who came to mourn with her, Mrs. Zhao also smiled and replied...... Fortunately, this smile flashed on his lips, and the old lady held back it in time.

It's rare to have a sunny day, and everyone can't help but feel refreshed, and they really have to be deliberately rigid in order not to be happy on this occasion.

The old lady sighed secretly, and it was no wonder that everyone was sad, in the past few years, the Zhao family of Pingyuan Hou has become more and more unpresentable.

The Zhao family is also a big family in the capital, although the Pingyuan Hou family has been passed down for three generations, and the blood relationship with the rest of the relatives in the clan is getting farther and farther away, but as early as when Mrs. Hou was alive, the movement between the relatives was still close.

Since the death of Mrs. Hou a few years ago, the eldest young master married the eldest grandmother Liu after keeping filial piety, and the exchanges between the Pingyuan Hou family and the clan relatives have suddenly decreased, and in the past two years, almost no one in the clan dares to come to the door.

There's no way, that grandmother not only has a fierce personality, but also regards money as her life, whoever dares to take advantage of her, she will not share the sky with whom. If there are a few words of greeting among the relatives, she will be regarded by her as coming to fight the autumn breeze, sneering at the lightest, and scolding the door at the worst.

In addition to the lineage of Pingyuan Hou, the people of the Zhao clan have the highest status but they have passed the test, they are a petty official, they have a face and bark, and they are treated like this by the grandmother, and the relatives who really have the heart to fight the autumn wind dare not come to the door, and the rest of the people dare not touch this mold.

It's really unusual, the old lady thinks that the old marquis Zhao Shunde is also to blame for this matter.

The old marquis Zhao Shunde, who has just passed away, is the patriarch of the Zhao family, and was promoted to the governor of Jiliao two years ago. As early as after the death of Mrs. Hou, before the eldest grandmother entered the door, the income of the public property in the clan was no longer distributed to the clansmen outside the Hou Mansion.

As for his son, the eldest young master, Zhao Shijin, no one would think of holding him accountable. Zhao Shunde's son and daughter are all cowardly and weak, since marrying Liu, I heard that Young Master Zhao was not taught by his wife in advance, so he didn't even dare to say a word.

In short, the old Marquis Zhao has offended almost all the clansmen with his daughter-in-law in the past two years, and the Pingyuan Marquis Mansion has also cut off contact with the clansmen. Don't blame the clansmen for not having any grief for the death of the old marquis.

It wasn't until the old marquis died of a sudden illness that the eldest grandmother finally let go. figure, Yili gave a post to the clansmen.

"Apparently he came for the sake of the rituals." Someone in the crowd was talking weirdly.

The old lady glanced at the person who spoke disdainfully, everyone is dead, and he shouldn't be so mean to speak in front of someone's mourning hall. Although...... The words are true.

Seeing that the sun was rising, there were only about 20 guests who came to wait for condolences in the courtyard, and they were all relatives of the Zhao family, and none of the noble colleagues of the old marquis were gone. Zhong Mingding's house of Quanjue, but only these few people came on the first day of the funeral, and the scene was really a little cold.

It can be seen that the rumors are true, even if the Hou Ye committed a rebellion, it is a great crime. Colleagues should avoid suspicion, lest they get into trouble. The clansmen whispered among themselves.

"Having said that, after all, everyone is dead, and they have not shown any intention of pursuing it today, so these people are in a hurry to clear up, which is too cold and ruthless."

"Who knows what it means today, is it a hundred...... But since it hasn't been condemned yet, it must be. ”

This remark immediately drew several echoes.

Most of them are ordinary people, and the highest rank of officials is only seven grades, and they only have some rumors about major events in the DPRK and China, and they don't know the inside story. The old marquis Zhao has been beautiful for half his life, and it is not so much, a while ago, there was a news that he was in contact with foreign enemies and plotted against each other in the capital, and all the clans couldn't help but be frightened.

The crime of rebellion is to be sentenced to the clan, and they, the Zhao clan relatives who can't even fight the autumn wind, are going to be connected again, and they are really unjustly sunk to the bottom of the sea.

Colleagues can still be asided, as relatives written on the same family tree, they can't escape if they want to, so everyone has to hold on to luck, willing to believe that if a person dies, it will be a hundred, and he will not be pursued again. As for the colleagues who didn't come to condole, maybe it was just that the grandmother was late in delivering the letter.

The old lady agrees with this speculation. Anyway, the grandmother's housekeeping skills are poor, just look at the front of you to know: the guests have come to the door, the mourning hall has not been arranged, and even a decent place for hospitality has not been arranged.

While speaking, the mourning hall was finally arranged, and the guests came out to lead the clansmen to burn incense and pay tribute. Zhao Shunde has not yet been buried, and is being parked on the bed in the main hall of the Hou Mansion.

Zhao Shijin and his wife were kneeling in front of the hall and crying. The old lady, as an elder in the clan, was humbly allowed by everyone to be the first to enter the main hall. The clansmen came in one by one, took the incense from the Zhike, and while comforting the eldest son and his wife, they went to the spiritual seat to burn incense.

That's when the strange thing happened - the incense was not lit.

The incense in everyone's hands could not be lit, and the hall fell silent for a moment, and everyone looked at the candle flame in front of the spiritual seat. As expected, the candle flame shook a few times and went out.

The old lady's face was white, the incense was not burned, and the candle flame was extinguished, which was the most horrific change in the funeral, implying that the dead would not rest in peace.

A cloud drifted amusefully outside, obscuring the sun, and the light in the hall dimmed, and suddenly it looked ghostly.

The eldest grandmother Liu suddenly cried out in a sharp voice, which startled everyone: "Father-in-law, my daughter-in-law knows that you are worried about the marriage of your eldest sister, and she really refuses to look at it." Don't worry, your daughter-in-law is here for you, but this matter is ......"

Zhao Shunde's face was covered with a white veil, and no one could see if he was really dead.

Zhao Shijin lowered his head and cried silently. Liu stood up and explained to the relatives: "The elders don't know, my eldest sister Wen'er is seventeen years old this year, and before her father-in-law passed away, she insisted on setting a marriage for her, lest she couldn't hold on to delay her daughter, only the eldest sister was dedicated to her father's filial piety, and she didn't want to talk about marriage when her father was seriously ill, so she delayed it again and again." Unexpectedly, I really responded to my father-in-law's concerns, and now at the age of the eldest sister, if I keep filial piety for another three years, how can I find a good family? I implore all the elders to make a decision for the eldest sister for the sake of the father-in-law's inability to turn a blind eye, and break the old routine to get married for her. ”

All the clans looked at each other, and no one answered. A seventeen-year-old girl has not yet said that she is married, and she wants to keep filial piety for another three years, it is really not good to negotiate a good family, and in the face of the situation that the deceased in this mourning hall refuses to look at her, this case seems to be broken.

But the country ruled the world with filial piety, and now it is the time when the new emperor ascends the throne and is strict with the law.

Someone stepped forward to wipe the mud and persuade Liu to think about it in the long run, Liu cried and said: "Originally, my father-in-law had already planned for Wen'er's marriage before his death, and he had already negotiated with the other family, but unfortunately he went before he had time to decide." Now he just needs an elder to take charge of the matter for him. ”

As he spoke, he grabbed the old lady's sleeve and said, "Old lady, you have to help us be the master, otherwise, how can you let your father-in-law settle in the ground?" As long as you send a word as an elder and support my family, it will be fine, and then you and Shijin will come forward together, and first make a ...... with the other family."

The old lady was still frightened by the strange appearance of the candle extinguishing the incense, and only thought that letting the dead look at him was the first priority, and then she grinded these words, and then she livened her heart, and stumbled and said: "Say...... It's also ......"

But at this moment, I only heard a clear woman's voice coming from outside the hall: "Old lady, please be careful!" ”

The crowd parted, but several maids and servants walked in with a woman in a heavy body of filial piety. The old lady settled down and recognized the person as the eldest lady Zhao Qiwen.

Miss Zhao is full of filial piety, with a simple meniscus bun on her head, and she has not even worn a plain silver hairpin ring, only a white velvet flower on the sideburns, and her face has not been powdered, and the corners of her eyes are slightly red and swollen.

Some people say that "if you want to be pretty, you must be filial", but in the past, it was difficult to see the beauty of a woman in a filial robe. Just like that Liu, as the daughter-in-law of the Hou Mansion, at this glance, she looks no different from an ordinary Daixiao village woman.

And after seeing Qiwen, everyone knew that this was true. She was born with eyebrows, and with this body of vegetarian, she is as black as ink, and her skin is as white as porcelain, adding a bit of sadness and charm, which is really pitiful for those who see it.

No one in the clan has ever seen Qiwen's appearance as an adult, and at this sight, regardless of men, women, old and children, the thoughts in their minds have stagnated, and some young male guests can't come back to their senses.

Even the old-eyed and dizzy old lady couldn't help but marvel: I didn't expect that Wen'er and granddaughter had been so iconic after a few years.

"You ......" Seeing that she actually broke into the mourning hall, the Liu family was shocked, and insisted on the majesty of the eldest sister-in-law to reprimand, "You are a young lady in the boudoir, what kind of system do you have to show up like this?" Don't go back yet! ”

Qiwen half-hung her reddened eyelids, holding a handkerchief and half-covering her mouth: "Sister-in-law said badly, the foreign guests have not yet come to the door, and none of the relatives and elders present have come out of the five suits, I came to meet with your relatives at the Daddy Funeral Hall, how can I show my face?" If you talk about avoidance, shouldn't your sister-in-law avoid it even more? ”

The tone of these words trembled slightly, Chu Chu was pitiful, but he was also sharp and hidden, and he was speechless for a while.

According to the rules at this time, those who have not yet married are considered minors, and the daughters of the family do not have to be strictly avoided. Whether old or young, there are more or less blood ties with Qiwen, male guests are not foreign men, and most of them are elders, when it comes to rules, it is natural that she, a young daughter-in-law in her twenties, should avoid more than Qiwen.

This meeting was supposed to be the eldest son receiving guests, and she was watching over the female guests in the back house, but now, the eldest son shrank behind her, staring at the shape without saying a word. Everyone present knew Zhao Shijin's temperament, and no one thought that there was anything special about Zhang Luo coming forward by the eldest grandmother.

Qiwen bowed to all the clans: "Old lady, relatives and elders, sister-in-law's so-called father has already planned for my marriage, and what she said is that the Qian family sent someone to propose marriage two months ago. On the surface, the Qian family of Ding Wu Bo is also a family of ministers, but in fact, it has long been dilapidated, and the second young master who proposed marriage is a well-known bully in the capital, and the only benefit is that the dowry is less, so my father refused at that time......"

"What's the rejection?" Liu interjected and interrupted, "My father-in-law hasn't come home these days, and he doesn't know about the Qian family's marriage proposal at all, you are talking nonsense!" ”

Qiwen raised her eyes and looked at her, and said timidly: "Oh, it turns out that my sister-in-law also knows, but my father doesn't know about it at all." I was still a sister-in-law because I was so busy that I forgot about it. ”

Liu choked and was speechless. She just said that her father-in-law had already taken this family business.

Qiwen frowned with sadness in her eyes, choked up twice, and said: "Besides, my father died of a sudden heart attack, and no one in the family expected it in advance, so why should I be seriously ill for fear of delay?" ”

As she spoke, she had turned to her head and gestured to the lower people, and the two maids in plain clothes each came up with a black lacquer tray, in which incense sticks and candles were neatly stacked, and two other maidservants came over to change the plain candles in front of the mourning hall and redistribute the incense sticks to the guests. Liu was about to ridicule each other, but when he saw this situation, he paused in a panic, and didn't dare to speak out for a while.

Some people try to light a candle with incense, and sure enough, it can be lit lightly. Everyone found it unbelievable: in order to sell his sister-in-law as soon as possible, Liu did not hesitate to play tricks on his father-in-law's funeral?

Qiwen looked at Liu, pursed her lips as if she had plucked up courage for a while, and then continued: "You don't know, my sister-in-law has been worried about my marriage for a long time. I'm sure you've all heard that I was seriously ill last year, right? In fact, it was not a disease, but my sister-in-law wanted to fool my father, and made a private decision, and married me to Dongchang Hou to fill the house. ”

The relatives were even more shocked. They didn't know the details of the affairs of the Hou Mansion's house, but they did hear that Qiwen was seriously ill a year ago and almost died, and they vaguely heard that it was related to the oppression of the eldest sister-in-law, but they didn't expect that this was the case.

Dongchanghou is a bad old man who is more than half a hundred years old and has a bad reputation, and the Liu family wants to marry Qiwen to him, but he can only marry the Qian family this time, just like this time to marry the Qian family, the picture is to give less dowry and more dowry, which is equivalent to selling Qiwen for a good price.

Liu was almost so anxious that he jumped to his feet: "What are you talking about, I knew my father-in-law about the marriage with the Dongchang Marquis Mansion, how could I have said it in private?" ”

Qiwen's eyebrows trembled, and she raised her hand to wipe away her tears and said: "At this time, my sister-in-law still came to make up my father's past, how can I bear it!" ”

With the fact that he used incense and candles as tricks and feet to pretend that his father-in-law was dead, how could Liu's words still be believed? From this point of view, the mistreatment of relatives in the past may have been done privately by the Liu family to hide from his father-in-law.

All the clansmen couldn't listen to it anymore, they had long been dissatisfied with the Liu family, and at this time they were even more indignant, although they couldn't pull their faces and reprimanded them directly, the sound of discussion between them also became louder: "My father's bones are not cold, how dare I be a daughter-in-law!" "It's too daring! Can you deceive me, can the Zhao family be fooled? "I don't respect my father-in-law, I don't care about my sister-in-law, and I haven't given birth to an heir, what's the use of such a daughter-in-law who is not filial and virtuous?"

Liu bit his lower lip and couldn't speak, staring at Qiwen in a cold sweat, and his body was already shaking.

Qiwen gently wiped her tears with a silk handkerchief in her hand, and said sadly: "If it weren't for the fact that someone who was loyal to my father came to report to me and asked me to come in time to stop it, this matter would have been done according to my sister-in-law's wishes." No matter how inappropriate my sister-in-law behaves on weekdays, I can't say much about an unmarried daughter, but my sister-in-law's move not only makes my father uneasy, but also causes the old lady and your relatives to lose face and reputation, how can I still sit idly by? ”

She didn't mention her grievances at all, but her words greatly resonated with all the clansmen. If they had just thought about it and were promised by the Liu family to really preside over Qiwen's filial piety, wouldn't the Zhao family be reduced to a laughing stock?

What a death is not blind! The Liu family was sure that they were in awe of the deceased in the mourning hall, so they dared to use this kind of shoddy deception to deceive the public, and the most infuriating thing was that they all believed it.

The old lady was furious, and came over to Zhao Shijin and asked, "The eldest young master is the son of the Zhao family in vain, is it possible that your daughter-in-law insults her father-in-law and bullies your own sister so much, and she doesn't even come to take care of it?" ”

Zhao Shijin was still kneeling on the ground, looked at Liu with a wince, and said in a low voice: "I'll take care of it...... I'm in charge ...... It doesn't work. ”

It seems that I really can't count on him. "Okay, you can't take care of it, I'll take care of it later!" After the old lady finished speaking angrily, she turned to Qiwen and said, "Wen's granddaughter, please rest assured, although the Hou Ye has passed away, the Zhao family will not be reduced to the point of being wantonly bullied by a woman with a foreign surname!" ”

Qiwen opened a pair of bright eyes, and said in surprise: "It's okay to stop this matter, after all, my sister-in-law is the wife of the Zhao family, even if she behaves inappropriately, what can I do with her?" ”

These words greatly boosted the hearts of all the clansmen, and an uncle immediately said heroically: "Hmph, such an immoral woman who has committed seven crimes, with us presiding over the opening of the Zhao ancestral hall, she will be divorced today!" ”

Several clansmen echoed the voice. They all know that Liu's mother's family has been convicted of corruption as early as last year and has been dismissed from office and confiscated, so even if their official position is low, they still have the confidence to deal with Liu's impartially.

Liu's actions and feet in his father-in-law's mourning hall were unfilial, and he committed the headline felony of "seven outs", plus childlessness, jealousy, and many words are all obvious, and four out of seven are committed, and it is natural to be suspended.

Zhao Shijin still knelt in place, looking stupid and didn't say a word, it seemed that he would not support Liu. This grandmother's good days are over.

Qiwen looked at Liu, who was bloodless and trembling like chaff: "Since that's the case......"

"Miss!" A family member hurriedly ran in and presented two prayer notes, "Two adults have come outside to offer condolences, and they will come over immediately." ”

When outsiders come to the door, it is inconvenient for Qiwen to stay here for a long time, and she needs to avoid it as much as possible.

These two guests who came to worship first saved the Liu family for the time being. All the clansmen were eager to dispose of the Liu family as soon as possible, and they couldn't help but slander that this group of guests had come at an inopportune time.

The old lady persuaded Qiwen: "Wen's granddaughter can avoid it first, as long as you keep good human and material evidence, when there are no outsiders, let's take care of it." Don't worry, I'll give you justice. ”

Several other elders chimed in. Qiwen was full of sorrow, and said with tears in her eyes: "The family is unfortunate, and I can only rely on the help of my relatives, so I can ...... Don't let Daddy go, you can't settle down. ”

Everyone was sad, the old man had just passed away, and his daughter-in-law used him to make a raft to harm his daughter, and the father and daughter didn't know who to say was more pitiful.

Unexpectedly, at this time, the culprit Liu sat down on the ground, covered his face with a handkerchief, and cried out "wow": "Obviously, I broke my heart for this family, but you listened to this girl's words, and you want to divorce me, this is relying on my father-in-law to pass away, bullying my orphans and widows!" If you are unreasonable, let outsiders judge you! I'm going to let everyone see how you're bullying me!" ”

The dignified daughter-in-law of the Hou Mansion turned into a shrew in the market, and she sprinkled it when she had nothing to say, and all the clansmen were so shocked that they couldn't speak. The old lady is also helpless, the outsiders are coming over, she is showing her face, she wants to make a big deal, but Qiwen, an unmarried girl, how can she accompany her to throw her face in front of outsiders?

A cold light flashed in Qiwen's eyes, and she said coldly: "Sister-in-law, please be cautious, you don't want the face of the Zhao family, but I still want it with your relatives, you dare to ignore the face of the entire Zhao family, I can't say it, I and the elders have to lock you up as a sick madman!" ”

As soon as the clansmen were reminded by these words, they remembered that in the eyes of outsiders, they were both members of the Zhao family, and the Liu family really wanted to make such a fuss, losing not only Qiwen's face, but also their faces.

Seeing that the public was angry, Liu didn't dare to make any more trouble, so he had to come over with his servants and maids to help and persuade him, got up and retreated in a gloomy manner, and finally simply went into the inner room and escaped out of the back door. No one had time to pay attention to her for a while.

Qiwen blessed everyone again, and said: "My father's first funeral, Qiwen is overwhelmed with grief, so I will retire first, and I hope to forgive me for the rudeness." ”

Watching her walk into the hall and leave with the help of the little maid, the old lady went to look at Zhao Shijin, who had been kneeling and not moving, and couldn't help but secretly rejoice, fortunately, the eldest lady was not as cowardly and useless as her brother, although she was also weak, at least she had some ideas. Otherwise, the entire Zhao family would fall into the hands of the Liu family.

In the midst of the buzz and discussion, a quick-talking person from the house soon revealed to them: "You don't know, my eldest lady used to be no better than the eldest young master, and she either cried or complained about the heavens and people, and she never thought of any way to deal with it." It was only after last year's 'resurrection' that it finally got better. ”

All the clans were amazed.

Qiwen's "resurrection" is a year away from today, to be exact, in another 10 seconds.

9，8，7，6……

System: Ding! Congratulations to the players for successfully completing the one-year internship period and entering the ultimate mission triggering stage!