The eunuch Chen Gonggong stood proudly at the door of the general Li Xun's house, and there were several young eunuchs standing behind him, all with a beaming face.

General Li Xun led his family out of the gate, and when he saw the celebrity in front of the current emperor, Gonggong Chen Hong, he quickly took the lead in kneeling, shouting: "The lower officials don't know that Gonggong Chen is coming, and he has missed the welcome, and he asks his father-in-law to forgive him." ”

Chen Hong stepped forward to help Li Xun up, and said with a radiant face: "General Li, please get up quickly, our family is here to bring you good news today, congratulations to General Li on his great joy." ”

Li Xun didn't know what kind of medicine was sold in Gonggong Chen's gourd, so he frowned and asked, "Gonggong Chen, the lower official was recalled by the emperor from the front line to report on his work, and I haven't met the saint yet, so how can I be happy?" ”

"Didn't General Lee have a magpie in his house today? Didn't the magpie climb the branches? Gonggong Chen continued to hang Li Xun's appetite, and at the same time glanced at the two sons of the Li family of the same age who were followed by Li Xun's wife---- the sixteen-year-old eldest son Li Mingshuo, and the fifteen-year-old second son Li Chongjun, but his eyes finally stayed on the eldest son Li Mingshuo.

Li Xun looked at the direction of Gonggong Chen's gaze and roughly guessed what kind of happy event it was, but he didn't dare to think about it, so he had to answer: "Father-in-law said that he laughed, there are not many trees in Xiaguan's house, and I haven't seen birds enter the forest for many years, don't talk about magpies, I haven't even seen sparrows." It's so poisonous today, my father-in-law should ask the house to talk. ”

Gonggong Chen brought a group of young eunuchs into the main hall of Li Xun's house, and all of them sat down, looking at tea, and the brothers Li Mingshuo and Li Chongjun accompanied them at the end. The two brothers are only one year apart, and they are indistinguishable in size, although the appearance is very different, and the elder brother has more good facial features than the younger brother, those who don't know still think that the two of them are twins who don't look the same.

Gonggong Chen glanced at Li Mingshuo, who was sitting diagonally opposite him, and said to Li Xun with a smile: "Lord Li, this is such a thing, the second princess Ning'an Princess born to the original Duan Concubine Niangniang is not eighteen years old this year, the emperor assigned me to choose a family affair for Princess Ning'an, I recommended the eldest son of the Li family to the emperor, after the emperor asked in many ways, it was determined that Ling Gongzi is really a talent, so he agreed to this family business, I came today to inform Lord Li of this happy event, the emperor asked Lord Li to return to Beijing to report on work, In fact, it is to marry Master Li. ”

When Li Xun heard this "great news" that fell from the sky, he quickly rolled down from the chair, knelt on the ground, kowtowed to Gonggong Chen, and shouted in his mouth: "The dog is stupid, he is only shallow in learning, how can he accept this vast imperial grace, and ask Gonggong Chen to express his feelings to the saint, if there is a noble son who surpasses my son's talent, the saint still needs to consider it carefully?" ”

Seeing his master kneeling, Li Xun's wife and two sons all got down from their seats and knelt on the ground, especially Li Mingshuo, and begged: "Yes, Gonggong Chen, I can't even read books in my late life, how can I be qualified to be the husband of the princess, and I also ask Gonggong Chen to report to the emperor truthfully, don't miss the princess's lifelong events." ”

Although Li Chongjun also knelt on the ground honestly with his parents and brothers, he noticed his brother's panic and reluctance, so he lowered his head and snickered gloatingly, Li Mingshuo also noticed his younger brother's schadenfreude, slightly sideways his face, and glared angrily at his younger brother.

Seeing that Li Xun's father and son did not exclaim in surprise as they imagined, but resigned in panic, Gonggong Chen was unhappy, the smile on his face was gone, and he said with a gloomy face: "What? Do you look down on Princess Ning'an? The emperor promised his favorite princess to your family as a daughter-in-law, not only did you not thank the emperor, but also tried to shirk here. ”

Li Xun hurriedly explained: "Gonggong Chen misunderstood, lent us a hundred guts, we don't dare to pick the princess, the lower official just thinks that his son is stubborn, no matter how good he looks and is difficult to match the princess, but I am afraid that the emperor will call him as a son-in-law and disgrace the royal family, so the lower official family is trembling and walking on thin ice." ”

Gonggong Chen's face eased slightly, and comforted Li Xun: "Master Li is really worried, you are also a person above the officialdom, don't you know what King Jing was named for?" ”

"The lower officials don't know, and I ask my father-in-law to teach me."

"King Jing was sealed, isn't it because King Jing's biological mother, Shen Guifei, personally raised Princess Ning'an to grow up? Shen Guifei can be promoted from an ordinary concubine to a concubine, but also because Princess Ning'an was handed over to Shen Guifei to raise after the death of Concubine Duan, Shen Guifei did her best to raise Princess Ning'an to grow up safely, the emperor thanked Shen Guifei for her hard work, and promoted Shen Guifei again and again, in our inner palace, there are not a few princes and princesses, but as long as it is the person next to Princess Ning'an, then no one dares to squint at it, and can marry Princess Ning'an, that is something that many children of the family dare not dream of-----" Gonggong Chen said unhurriedly: "Master Li, how lucky Ling Lang is, you can't even think about it. ”

Li Xun didn't dare to say any more excuses, so he had to change his words: "Xie Chen's father-in-law's advice, the lower officials really don't know about the inner palace, the lower officials have been in the frontier for a long time, don't say it's the inner court, even if it is the officialdom of the capital, the lower officials are also very unfamiliar, if you have any doubts in the future, please ask Chen Gonggong to give advice." ”

"Don't dare to teach the emperor, Lord Li will be the emperor's family in the future, and your Li family will be the emperor's relatives in the future, referring to the practice of other concubines in my dynasty, Lord Li only needs to be loyal to his duties, do his part well, do not run the party, do not form selfishness, do not be greedy for life, not afraid of death, and do not cause trouble to the emperor."

"The lower officials obey orders, and the lower officials must live up to the emperor's trust, fulfill their duties, and serve the court."

"Master Li, our family has other things to deal with today, so I won't make noise with you. Farewell," Gonggong Chen stood up as he spoke, and the other eunuchs also stood up.

Li Xun, his wife and the two sons sent Gonggong Chen to the door of Yimen, and did not come back until the figure of Gonggong Chen and his party disappeared.

Li Xun and his wife called their eldest son to come to their room, and Li Chongjun also wanted to follow in with the mentality of watching his brother's excitement, but was scolded by his father with the word "get out".

There was only a family of three in the house, and Li Xun said to his son: "Shuo'er, I just saw it, you don't want to marry the daughter of the royal family as your wife, your father has the same opinion as you, but the emperor's order is difficult to disobey, let's take a step at a time, and let it be." ”

Li Mingshuo just wanted to reply to his father's words, and Mrs. Li took over: "Master, didn't Gonggong Chen say it, but whoever is close to Princess Ning'an, the emperor's favor will not be bad, in this case, what else do you father and son have to worry about?" ”

Li Xun sighed and said: "That's just the situation in the inner palace, it's not necessarily like this outside, I've always been a princess who can't marry a dignitary, according to this rule, our family's Shuo'er with a princess is obviously beyond the standard, if I am afraid of being impeached by the officials, the emperor will give me a dismount, demote my official, cut my position, and block the mouth of the secluded, that maybe, not to mention that the emperor will look at us and be extremely hateful, not even the princess, only punish us, this is not an impossible thing." ”

Mrs. Li's emotions that had just perked up were instantly suppressed by her husband's words.

Li Mingshuo frowned and said, "Father, can you write a letter to the emperor, just say that his son played when he was a child and accidentally killed him." Root. The son is pouted, and he can't walk humanely at all, so won't the emperor just give me no? ”

You --- Mrs. Li didn't expect her son to come up with such a shameless reason, she was ashamed and angry, and lowered her head and didn't speak.

Li Xun scolded: "Bastard, can you say this kind of thing in front of your mother?" Besides, this time you got through the confusion, in a few years you married another woman, gave birth to a child, and let the emperor know, wouldn't our family have committed the crime of bullying the king, and when the day you become a father is the day when our family is ruined, why don't you think about it in the long run? ”

Li Mingshuo said with a smiling face: "It's still the father who is far-sighted, the son is short-sighted, the father and the mother please calm their anger, and the child thinks about individual things." After speaking, he frowned and thought seriously, as if thinking about some military affairs.

Li Xun and his wife looked at this person's big-hearted son, angry and laughing, pitiful and painful, and asked him: "Shuo'er, are you fifty percent willing to marry the princess?" ”

Li Mingshuo's head shook like a rattle, and he denied it even in a loud voice: "Yicheng is not, I still fantasize about fighting with my father-in-law in the future, to see who has a lot of alcohol, and the emperor is the father-in-law, how dare I?" ”

"It's not serious. I knew that our family would have this kind of thing, I would have found you a daughter-in-law to marry first, but after all, I was one step slower. Mrs. Li blamed herself.

"Dad, mother, doesn't the emperor know that I have a brother, dad can introduce Chongjun to Gonggong Chen, introduce to the emperor, just say that the princess is two years older than me, there is no folk saying, the princess is three years old, the third is a female junior, hugging gold bricks, not to mention that the second child of our family is a daughter-in-law fan, and he loves to drill into the pile of girls all day long, so that the mother quickly marries him a daughter-in-law to come to the house, saving the second child from being a father if he is not married."

Li Mingshuo just wanted to pit his younger brother, and he could pit a handful, but he couldn't do it, and he was scolded by his mother, but Mrs. Li took it seriously and asked her husband happily: "Master, what Shuo'er said is also true, Jun'er always looks like a nymphomaniac, and if there is nothing to do, he will make up for the girls and the little daughters-in-law with a shy face, and the Dai An's family and the Bao Liu's family will be entangled with her daughter for the sake of the county's elder, and they will come to me to complain, if it is really not good, let the county get married first, and there is a princess wife who manages him, so I can save a lot of worry." ”

Li Xun really hated that iron could not become steel, and complained with a white face: "Madam is confused, Shuo'er, I am worried that the princess and the emperor will dislike him for being vulgar, if the princess is rationed, I am afraid that our tutor will be leaked in half a day." ”

Li Mingshuo couldn't bear to worry about his parents, so he pretended to play with the white unicorn jade pendant on his waist easily, and said with a faint smile: "The second child is hateful, this is a well-known thing, am I so hateful?" Why didn't my father ask my mother, has there ever been a subordinate in this mansion who has complained about me? ”

Mrs. Li twisted her eight-character eyebrows with the same style as her eldest son, thought about it seriously, and said very firmly: "No, not once." ”

Li Mingshuo clapped his hands at his father and said, "How is it?" Dad, now you believe it, my character is definitely reliable. Since the princess's relatives can't be withdrawn, then I will sacrifice myself, and I will just do it, who to marry is not to marry, a candle is blown, and it is the same to touch. ”

Li Xun was okay, Mrs. Li couldn't help laughing again, and although she covered her mouth, she still couldn't stop the laughter coming from behind her sleeves.

Li Xun saw that his son didn't have any big knots on his side, and he spoke vulgarly, and he exploded at every turn, so he expelled him.

As soon as her son left, Mrs. Li stopped smiling and said to her husband: "Master, the boss of our family, although he is stunned, he really has never caused any resentment. ”

Li Xun was still worried, and said: "Shuo'er, he is barely a good child, but he doesn't like to study, his wife will discipline him at home for a few more years, and when he gets married, he has a son and a half daughter, and the imperial examination is hopeless, so hurry up and let him serve in front of my account, so as not to achieve nothing in his life." ”

"What about the county?"

"Jun'er---" Li Xun was even more worried: "Jun'er can't become a joke in the capital, that's my biggest expectation for him." ”