Compared with Zhao Youjun's harshness when he was in charge, the people of the Hou Mansion undoubtedly supported Mu Qingwan, who was relatively gentle but did not lose his majesty.

Seeing that the time was moving towards the end of the year day by day, after the twenty-third day of the lunar month, Mu Qingwan gave all the people in the house a New Year's reward and new clothes, and specially gave a few days off to those who had relatives in Huzhou.

Although it was only a few small actions, it undoubtedly warmed the hearts of these people in this cold winter day.

On the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month, many servants who had a home to return to visit their relatives went home, and the entire Weiyuan Marquis Mansion was obviously deserted compared to the past.

In this desertion, the Chengming Hall, which had been closed for almost half a year, finally opened its doors again.

What Feng Zhige said at the beginning was only about Zhao Youjun and Feng Mingwu for half a year.

Now, it's the end of half a year.

After half a year, Mu Qingwan's originally gentle face was a little more majestic because of the master, she stood quietly outside the gate of Chengming Hall, and there was a maid holding an oil-paper umbrella beside her, blocking the wind and snow in her face.

"Stop singing," Mu Qingwan gathered the big on his body, and turned his head to look at his daughter standing on the side, "Why do you lock them up for half a year?" ”

Not a year, not two years or three years, but half a year.

Mu Qingwan has never guessed this question in the past half a year, she has always believed that if Feng Zhige wants to lock up Zhao Youjun's mother and daughter for a longer time, then they will not be able to leave this courtyard.

Half a year has passed, Feng Zhige has become taller, she is wearing a narrow jacket of red satin with golden butterflies, covered with a snow-white fox fur cloak specially made for her by Mu Qingwan, and a simple bun on her head, which is decorated with two snow-white pompoms made of leftover scraps from the cloak.

As she walked, the pompom on her head shook slightly, and the snow-white skin moved slightly, occasionally revealing the bright red inside, like a delicate red plum blooming in this snow.

Hearing Mu Qingwan's question, Feng Zhige smiled slightly, until the person who saw it felt that this cold winter day was suddenly a little more agile.

"Mother. We're about to go to the capital. Feng Zhige didn't answer this question directly, "Moreover, even if we don't let the mother and daughter come out, it won't be half a month." They will also come out. ”

Mu Qingwan didn't hear what Feng Zhige said clearly, her mind stopped at Feng Zhige's sentence "We are going to the capital".

Mu Qingwan grew up in the capital since she was a child, it was her hometown, and after being away for twenty years, how could she not miss her hometown.

And. Her eldest brother and third brother are now in Beijing, and the last time she corresponded with her brothers, her eldest brother also mentioned that he hoped that the second brother would also return to Beijing to take up his post in the coming year.

When Mu Binghong left Huzhou before, Mu Qingwan heard Feng Zhige say that he might go to the capital soon, but Feng Zhige has not mentioned this matter in the past six months, and Mu Qingwan did not ask. At this time, when she suddenly heard Feng Zhige talking about going to the capital, Mu Qingwan was surprised and happy for a while, and she was so excited that she didn't know what to do, and even Zhao Youjun's mother and daughter, who were about to walk out of Chengmingtang, were left behind by her.

That's when it happened. Zhao Youjun's mother and daughter, who had been in Chengming Hall for half a year, walked out of it.

If someone who was familiar with Zhao Youjun half a year ago saw her at this moment, they would definitely not recognize that the person in front of him would be Mrs. Weiyuanhou, the head of the noblewomen in Huzhou City.

In the past, Zhao Youjun was always noble and bright, but at this time, her hair was scattered and there was no hairpin ring, a face was dusted somewhere, and she looked gray, and she was wearing a winter coat indiscriminately. How to get along with the original Mrs. Weiyuanhou.

Feng Mingwu's situation is not far from Zhao Youjun.

They came out when they heard the sound at the courtyard gate, so that the deaf and dumb woman who delivered food every day would make a fire for them.

This winter was extremely cold, and Mu Qingwan was not short of Chengmingtang's use, and the best silver frost charcoal was sent by someone according to their share.

But. The charcoal is there, but who makes the mother and daughter unable to make a fire, and in the end it is so cold that they jump to their feet, but they can only circle around the cold charcoal basin.

So Feng Mingwu came up with an idea and asked the mother-in-law who delivered the food every day to light a fire for them, and this was the scene where the two sides met head-on in the yard.

looked at Mu Qingwan and Feng Zhige, who hadn't seen him for half a year. Zhao Youjun's mother and daughter were a little stunned for a while, and then, as if they realized something, the two looked at each other several times in disbelief, and then hugged each other in the snow, crying and laughing.

When they were first imprisoned in Chengming Hall, Zhao Youjun's mother and daughter only felt that they were exiled like this, and they had to face all the trivialities of life in person, which was simply the harshest punishment in the world, and they even thought that they would collapse if they didn't last long.

In fact, Zhao Youjun and Feng Mingwu really almost collapsed.

It's just that the potential of people is endless, and when they survived the initial painful days, the mother and daughter magically adapted.

Even, if they are the protagonists of the story, people will add adjectives such as metamorphosis, phoenix nirvana, etc. to their experience.

Half a year has passed under the hardships and expectations of Zhao Youjun's mother and daughter, in their opinion, this half year is probably longer than their previous lives, so long that they have almost forgotten, and one day they can walk out of this Chengming Hall again.

Mu Qingwan and Feng Zhige quietly looked at Zhao Youjun's mother and daughter's excited and forgetful expression, and after a long time, they finally calmed down, and Mu Qingwan commanded softly: "From today on, you will be on an errand in this Chengming Hall, but you must wait for the second girl and her mother." ”

Of course, this was not said to Zhao Youjun's mother and daughter, but to the large group of servants behind him.

"Yes, ma'am." The servants said yes, and their faces were full of respect.

Zhao Youjun's mother and daughter, who were in the midst of excitement and excitement, suddenly sobered up and realized the current situation.

Among those servants, they could not find any familiar faces, and presumably these people would not obey them like the subordinates in the Chengming Hall in the past.

Although they don't have to live that kind of dark days anymore, but today's Weiyuan Marquis Mansion is no longer what it was at the beginning, in the past half a year, Mu Qingwan has already run Weiyuan Marquis Mansion like an iron bucket, in other words, the inner courtyard of Weiyuan Marquis Mansion has already changed a lot, even if they come out of Chengmingtang and want to regain the stewardship from Mu Qingwan's hands, is it possible?

However, even though he knew that it would be extremely difficult to do this, Zhao Youjun still did not give up.

This Hou Mansion. And the man in the Hou Mansion, who she gave up the most precious things in exchange for back then, how could she watch these fall into the hands of the person she hated the most?

Mu Qingwan and Feng Zhige left together.

The servants who were assigned to wait in Chengmingtang also immediately performed their duties and cleaned the courtyard. Tidy up the house, boil water, prepare a charcoal pot and hand stove......

The Chengmingtang, which had been lifeless for half a year, seemed to come to life in an instant.

Standing in the wind and snow, with such a lively scene in the background, whether it is Zhao Youjun or Feng Mingwu. All distorted faces, and in their eyes was hatred.

After a long time, after finishing comfortably washing for the first time in half a year, the first thing Zhao Youjun did was to write a letter by himself.

The letter was sent to the capital, which carried all the resentment that Zhao Youjun had accumulated in the past six months, and also contained all her expectations for the capital.

It's a pity that Zhao Youjun didn't know that the carrier pigeon she released with her own hands had not yet flown out of the Weiyuan Marquis Mansion. He was shot down with an arrow.

Fu Feng held the blood-stained and stiff carrier pigeon in his hand, carefully took out the letterhead in the bamboo tube under his paws, and sent it to Feng Zhige, and then looked at the pigeon in his hand.

"Today I can taste the taste of roast pigeon." Fufeng duct.

Feng Zhige didn't even look at the letterhead in his hand, and threw it directly into the charcoal basin on the side, watching the letterhead turn into a small cloud of flying ashes.

Even if you don't have to look at it, Feng Zhige can probably think of what Zhao Youjun said in the letter, which is nothing more than complaining to the capital, borrowing people's hands, borrowing momentum, and so on.

Zhao Youjun will soon wait for news from the capital. Still, presumably she won't be happy about it.

Thinking of this, Feng Zhige smiled slightly.

……

The year of the Marquis of Weiyuan Mansion was very lively.

For the first time in twenty years, Mu Qingwan and Zhao Youjun sat at the same table to eat. As if there was some kind of tacit understanding, the two never mentioned the-for-tat confrontations in the past, and they both acted as if nothing had happened.

In the past six months in Chengmingtang, Zhao Youjun had that experience of almost going crazy, and finally made some progress.

At the very least, her patience was much better than before.

If it weren't for Feng Mingwu's ruthless eyes when he occasionally looked at Mu Qingwan and Feng Zhige. Maybe someone would believe that nothing had happened before.

For example, the only two men on the table, Feng Lin and Feng Mingxiang.

When Zhao Youjun and Feng Mingwu were locked in Chengming Hall, Feng Lin nodded too much, Zhao Youjun let Mu Qingwan live in seclusion for so many years, Feng Mingwu was so young and so temperamental, so Feng Lin didn't think that Mu Qingwan's treatment of them was heavy.

In the past six months, what is the situation in Chengmingtang, Fenglin has always attracted people's attention, every time he hears how difficult Zhao Youjun's mother and daughter are in Chengmingtang, his heart is complicated at the same time, he will think that they have only been in Chengmingtang for a few months, so how did Ah Wan come over when he was alone in Luoshuixuan for so many years?

Every time he thought of this, while feeling more and more guilty about Mu Qingwan, Feng Lin's heart hardened a little.

Therefore, in the past six months, Feng Lin has never stepped into Chengmingtang, let alone Zhao Youjun's mother and daughter.

And Feng Mingxiang's mood is even more complicated.

One is his biological mother, and the other is his own sister, but he was imprisoned in Chengming Hall by Feng Zhige, who he valued the most, Feng Mingxiang's mood can be imagined, and it can even be compared with when he watched Feng Zhige walk towards Zhao Youjun with the broken arm.

In Feng Mingxiang's heart, Feng Zhige, who is equated with the word "sister", is undoubtedly the most special existence, and Feng Mingxiang in Feng Mingge's eyes is also a little different from others.

Therefore, in the past six months, except for the deaf and dumb old woman who delivered food to Chengmingtang, only Feng Mingxiang has stepped into Chengmingtang.

Of course, Feng Mingxiang went to visit Zhao Youjun and Feng Mingwu, and every time he was greeted in Chengming Hall, it was Zhao Youjun's mother and daughter, Mu Qingwan and Feng Zhige's extremely vicious curses, as well as accusations against Feng Lin and Feng Mingxiang, and in the end, it would always turn into a pleading, begging Feng Mingxiang to take them out.

Seeing his mother and sister become like this, Feng Mingxiang couldn't say that he wasn't sad, but after understanding the entanglement between Zhao Youjun and Mu Qingwan for the past twenty years, he really couldn't convince himself to agree with his mother's approach.

Now that Zhao Youjun and Feng Mingwu finally walked out of Chengming Hall, looking at Zhao Youjun's eyes that had become much gloomy and darker, Feng Mingxiang did not have much joy, but more, but a faint uneasiness.

Feng Mingxiang's feeling is of course not wrong, Zhao Youjun's lack of action does not mean that she has died down.

She was waiting, waiting for a reply from the capital.

However, she did not wait for a reply from the capital. But he waited for the holy decree from all the way from the capital.

……

Before the end of the year, the whole city of Huzhou was lively, with the roar of firecrackers and the laughter of children. The door god posted on the door, as well as the red Spring Festival couplets with good wishes, this qiē shows the unique atmosphere of the New Year.

Then, early in the morning, it was almost the gate of Huzhou that had just been opened. A row of solemn and solemn cars drove from outside.

Solemn and strict sù is generally used to describe people, but no one thinks there is anything wrong with it here.

It's just that the car driver and the people who followed him all had a coldness that was incompatible with this lively New Year.

As if frightened by something, the car drove into the city, and the place it passed immediately changed from lively and jubilant to a silence, and the silence spread from the city gate to the city, until it came to the most central place in Huzhou City.

Under the attention of many people, the car stopped in the middle of the gate of the Weiyuan Marquis Mansion.

Then, the curtain was lifted. A man stepped down from the carriage.

The visitor was wearing a sunflower chest and a black gauze hat decorated with rhino horn belts on his head, and his figure was tall, but his face was white and beardless, which always made people feel awkward to look at.

The man got out of the carriage, first straightened his clothes with a solemn expression, and then took something from the hands of the attendant behind him, and then the attendant opened his mouth, and a slightly feminine and sharp voice came out from afar.

"The Divine Decree to ......"

"Weiyuan Hou Fenglin received the ......"

There are only two sentences, but they undoubtedly shook the hearts of many onlookers.

By this time. The strange feeling of the person in the lead can be regarded as finding the source, and it turns out that it is the father-in-law from the palace in the capital.

During the lively New Year's Festival, a holy decree suddenly came from the capital. Except for a limited number of people such as Feng Zhige, the rest of the Weiyuan Marquis Mansion obviously didn't expect this to happen.

Pick-up?

Most of the people in the Weiyuan Marquis Mansion were stunned.

Twenty years away from the power center in the capital, even Feng Lin has forgotten when he last received the order, let alone these servants and maids who were bought after arriving in Huzhou.

Fortunately, Mu Qingwan had been a genuine Mrs. Weiyuan Hou for a while, but she only lost her mind slightly. He unhurriedly commanded his subordinates to prepare for the order.

Change clothes, open the middle door, sweep the snow from the front yard, and put out an incense table to burn incense......

If it weren't for the father-in-law who passed the decree to the emperor, he would have to take a bath.

When the incense case was ready, Feng Lin, who had already come back to his senses, personally invited the father-in-law from the celebrant to enter.

A moment later, as the father-in-law's voice fell, everyone got up in a daze, not knowing how to react to this will from afar.

Especially Zhao Youjun, who had just trimmed his nails and pierced his palms, leaving bright red flowers in the snow.

It has been almost half a month since she left Chengmingtang, and counting the time, the letter she wrote in the capital may have just been received, although she knew that the reply from the capital could not be delivered to her so quickly, she was still anxious and expectantly waiting.

It's just that she didn't expect that before the reply she had been looking forward to for a long time, she actually waited for the holy decree of the capital.

The content of the decree is very simple, the emperor ordered Weiyuan Hou Fenglin to take the whole family to Beijing within two months.

In the past 20 years, Zhao Youjun has never forgotten the blossoming flowers of the capital for a moment, and of course, what she can't forget is the position she was in that made everyone look up to her.

Many times, Zhao Youjun returned to the capital in his dreams.

But that doesn't mean how happy she can be when she receives it.

She knew very well that her imperial brother, who regarded imperial power as extremely important, would never let herself, who was now only a concubine of the Marquis of Weiyuan's mansion, appear in front of people again, so what did this will mean to let them return to Beijing?

I don't know if it's too cold or too thinly dressed, Zhao Youjun only feels a cold in his bones.

Perhaps, after receiving this will, the only one who is really happy is Mu Qingwan and Feng Mingwu.

Mu Qingwan had already learned from Feng Zhige that she would return to Beijing in the near future, but it wasn't until she saw Feng Lin receive the bright yellow holy decree that she finally had some sense of reality.

Thinking that after returning to Beijing, he would be able to see his relatives who had been separated for so many years, if he hadn't been worried about not being able to lose his honor in front of his father-in-law, I am afraid that Mu Qingwan would have cried on the spot.

And Feng Mingwu, her happiness is because of something else.

In the past six months in Chengmingtang, Feng Mingwu didn't know how many times she had heard Zhao Youjun's description of when she was the eldest princess, and she had painted a magnificent picture in her heart through these descriptions.

After all, she was young, Feng Mingwu couldn't guess what was hidden behind this holy decree, she only knew that since her emperor's uncle had issued an order to summon them back to Beijing, she must be willing to recognize Zhao Youjun's identity.

At that time, her mother will still be the eldest princess of the dynasty with infinite scenery, and she may really be as she imagined when she was in Chengmingtang, and the emperor's uncle will make her the lord of the county!

The beautiful picture in his imagination made Feng Mingwu smile and squint instantly.

……

The eunuch who delivered the decree ignored Feng Lin's retention, turned around and walked away with the cold wind and snow.

No matter what happened to the people in the Weiyuan Marquis Mansion, it was impossible for them to resist the decree, since the holy decree wanted them to appear in the capital within two months, then they had to consider entering the capital from this moment on.

From Huzhou to the capital, if it usually takes more than half a month, but now in this snowy weather, in order not to miss the time, it is necessary to prepare for at least one and a half months.

It also means that after this Shangyuan Festival, the people of the Marquis of Weiyuan Mansion will enter Beijing.

This will also be a new journey.

(To be continued.) )