After the Xu family finished discussing the matter with several clan elders, the eldest lady of the clan accompanied him to the middle hall to see the female relatives of the clan.

In the eastern room, there were only a few elders left.

The old lady of the third room went through the seven teenagers nominated by the Xu family in his heart, and his heart was steady. Shen Zhu, whether it is his appearance or his reading qualifications, is the first among the seven.

If the three brothers in the second room only succeed one person, then the old lady in the third room has no bottom in his heart, after all, there is Shen Rui, who has a deeper relationship with the second room, and Shen Jue, who is more old and has a more important identity; Now that there are three successives, with the qualifications of his great-grandson, how can he be on the list.

What he has to do now is to wait for him to go home after the banquet to unravel him, and not to make Shen Zhu reluctant. Otherwise, it is unpleasant to be so cold-skinned, how could the masters of the second room choose him?

The nine-room master suffers from gains and losses, and if there is no hope at all, he will die; Now his grandson is also on the list of entering Beijing, but his qualifications are not outstanding, but he can go up or down.

On the contrary, it is the eighth room master who is the most calm, it is a good thing that Shen Bao can be chosen, and it is nothing if he can't be chosen, where is the heir so easy to do? Flesh and blood are separated, even if it is for the sake of the child's good future, it is difficult to give up.

The patriarch was a little stunned, not thinking about the reluctance of his raised grandson to succeed others, but lamenting that the outstanding children in the clan were like cabbage and let the small sect pick and choose, in the final analysis, it is because the second house is strong and the sect is weak.

In other families, if the patriarch is strong, these things of rise and fall are mostly the patriarch's words, and the heirs are arranged according to Zhaomu and relatives

It's just that the clansmen are clansmen after all, not enemies, and it's not interesting to calculate.

Although the Xu family is a woman, it is too tough to deal with the matter of choosing an heir, but the head of each room is more willing, and it is not interesting for the sect to intervene.

Not to mention how the Xu family greeted the ladies of the clan in the middle hall, Shen took the steward, and the table in the back hall was already settled, and the eldest master of the same clan came over and invited the patriarch and several clan elders to sit at the table.

In the back hall, a total of six seats were opened, the patriarch and the three clan elders entered the chief, the eldest master of the sect room made the second seat with the family members of each room, and the second master of the sect room sat in the second seat with the three water character masters and the jade character generation of the three elder families. The remaining jade-character teenagers and wood-character boys sat in three seats.

Although it was Xu who posted a banquet today, she was a female family member after all, and there was no reason to go to the men's table to entertain guests, so she asked the father and son of the eldest man of the sect to help entertain guests; She herself was in the middle hall, greeting the ladies of each room with the eldest lady of the sect.

Shen Rui, Shen Jue, Shen Bao and others have similar orders and good relationships, so they naturally sit at the same table.

Shen Bao saw that the hall was full of relatives and there were no outsiders, so he said, "Mr. and Cousin He, why haven't you seen each other?" ”

Shen Jue said helplessly: "I heard that it was arranged by Aunt Cang, and she only asked someone to prepare a separate table for the guest house, and did not ask them to come over for a banquet." ”

Shen Qin was puzzled: "It's not bad for those seats, why do you still have separate seats?" ”

Shen Jue looked around and said, "Xu is because today is the Shen family banquet." A few cousins and cousins came over, but they didn't know each other, and there were many elders, so they didn't feel comfortable in both of them. ”

Shen Bao couldn't sit still, and said in a low voice: "Brother Jue, let's hurry up and get off the table and go see Mr. and them?" ”

Shen Jue was a little hesitant, today he was carrying a task and wanted to accompany the guests with his father and brother. Needless to say, there is the patriarch's wife; On the second seat, the eldest master of the sect is accompanying the guests; On the second seat, although the second master of the sect room is there, it is Shen who can come forward to accompany the guests, after all, the second master has already separated from the family, and he is also a guest when he comes back to the sect; The remaining three teenagers and boys have to be taken care of by Shen Jue.

"I'll take you over first." Shen Jue saw that Shen Bao's face was full of anticipation, and after hesitating, he nodded and said. They are all clan brothers and nephews, and there are no outsiders, so no one should be picky.

The brothers of their Xi clan were happy with each other, but in the seat where Shen Zhu and Shen Quan were, several children looked at each other, a little cold. Their table was next to the second seat, and the elders at the second seat spoke without hiding their voices. As a result, they knew that there would be seven brothers in the second room who would go to Beijing with the eldest lady of the second room to visit the masters of the second room. On their table, there are two, Shen Zhu in the third room and Shen Quan in the fifth room.

Shen Zhu's face was already so dark that he could wring out the water, but Shen Quan didn't care. His parents had long planned to ask him to travel to Beijing, and taking advantage of the return of the eldest lady of the second room to Beijing was also a cheap thing, which could also make his parents worry less.

Shen Quan didn't expect that the matter of choosing an heir would have anything to do with him, but he knew why Shen Zhu was not happy.

It is not a secret that the old lady of the third room and the master of the ninth room are staring at the position of the heir of the second room. Shen Zhu has always been arrogant, and the stars are holding the moon at home, and he is definitely unwilling to go to the second room.

At Shen Rui's table, the brothers were talking to each other, and they mentioned that Shen Rui would enter Beijing with the eldest lady of the second room, which aroused the envy of everyone.

Shen Rui thought of Wang Shouren and Shen Li, and looked forward to it. For the capital 500 years ago, I am full of curiosity.

Seeing this, Shen Bao was about to move, and asked Shen Rui: "Is Brother Rui going to Suzhou with him, or is he waiting for the eldest aunt to return from Suzhou and follow him north?" ”

Shen Rui thought about the geographical location of Suzhou and Songjiang, as well as the Xu family's big banquet today, and said: "It should be followed to Suzhou, there is a canal wharf in Suzhou." ”

When Shen Bao heard this, his eyes lit up: "That...... That...... Then can I go to Suzhou with you and Cousin He? I'll come back when I'm on board? ”

When Shen Rui heard this, he was a little helpless.

Doesn't this kind of thing for children to go out of the house have to be approved by their parents first? Looking at the eight-room old lady's behavior, I am afraid that he will not be willing to let his great-grandson disturb the second-room lady who is not familiar with each other.

Shen Bao obviously thought of this, his expression turned gloomy, and he laughed at himself: "Cousin He didn't say a child's word in the first afternoon, but I took it a little seriously. How could the elders agree? ”

Seeing this, Shen Qin was also helpless.

When the elders of other rooms go out, Shen Baoshi wants to follow, and he can go with him if he says hello; The eldest lady of the second room is not familiar with the heads of each room. Even if Shen Bao is now under the name of the nephew of the eldest lady of the second room, it is not easy to follow him. After all, in Suzhou, it is only the in-laws of the second wife, not the second wife's own home.

Because of this small episode, the table was always a little dull and did not become lively.

When the hot dishes came up one by one, the hall was quiet, only the sound of chopsticks falling.

Because he was worried about taking Shen Bao to see Zhuzhishan, Shen Jue put down his chopsticks after a bowl of rice. Seeing that Shen Rui and Shen Bao were similar, he shouted at the same table with several clan brothers, said hello to Shen, and took the three of them to the guest house.

He Taizhi was having dinner with Zhu Yunming, Wei Xiao and He Taizhi, and when he saw a few of them coming, he immediately got up happily to greet them.

Zhu Yunming and Wei Xiao also put down their chopsticks.

Shen Jue saw that the food on the table hadn't moved a few bites, so he hurriedly said, "The two cousins and Cousin He will eat first, and let's go to the flower hall to sit first." ”

Zhu Yunming and others also brought a small servant to serve, so they ordered someone to serve tea.

He Tai was anxious, and after eating two bites of rice, he put down his rice bowl and ran to the flower hall to talk to everyone.

"Is your clan feast lively?" He Taizhi said curiously.

The He family has only been around for two generations, and although there are two old relatives in the countryside, they only fight the autumn breeze every year, and they don't have much contact.

Shen Jue shook his head with a smile: "This is just a small gathering of the descendants of each house, it can only be regarded as a small banquet, where can it be called a clan feast?" ”

He Taizhi only knew that a lot of carriages came to the front yard one afternoon one after another, and when he heard that this family banquet was divided into a large banquet and a small banquet, he said: "How many people are there in total, and how many seats are opened?" ”

Shen Jue silently counted the number of people in his heart, and said: "There are four great-grandparents and grandparents, ten uncles, twenty-four brothers, seven nephews, and a total of forty-five people, and six seats have been opened. ”

When He Taizhi heard this, he couldn't help but say: "So many people are still a small banquet? How many feasts will there be? ”

"Forty or fifty seats, anyway, at the end of the year, the clan festival will use two dolphins and 100 chickens and ducks for a meal." Shen Jue replied.

He Taizhi's eyes widened when he heard this: "There are so many of your Shen family" and a little annoyed: "It's a pity that I will leave Songjiang with my aunt the day after tomorrow, and I can't see this kind of lively scene." ”

Shen Bao reluctantly said: "You will leave the day after tomorrow?" Can't you stay a few more days? ”

He Taizhi glanced at Shen Bao curiously and said, "Why does Cousin Bao ask that?" Didn't you come with us to Suzhou? ”

"Huh?" Shen Bao was surprised and said, "Cousin He wasn't joking in the morning?" Suzhou is not close to Songjiang, how can I say that I will go"

When He Taizhi heard this, he couldn't help laughing, his eyes turned around the young men of the Shen family, and said with a smile: "Cousins, don't you still know the way?" My aunt said that I would bring you to Beijing as a guest, and I should have told you all the adults today. After that, he snapped his fingers and said, "The four of you, plus the whole cousin, and two others, are seven people in total." ”

This time, even Shen Rui was surprised, he glanced at Shen Jue, then at Shen Qin and Shen Bao, he really didn't expect such a big move in the second room. He originally thought that even if the Xu family really came to investigate the heir candidate this time, the final candidate would not be decided for a while. After Xu Shi saw the same, he returned to the capital to discuss with the eldest man in the second room, and then he would finalize the most successful candidate.

And this candidate, the most likely is Shen Jue. In addition to the distant relatives, He Taizhi's closeness to Shen Jue in the past few days brought out the meaning of looking forward to playing together in the future.

Shen Qin and Shen Bao were both a little dumbfounded, and they didn't react for a while.

Shen Jue was overjoyed, and put his arm around Shen Rui's shoulder, "Ha Luha" smiled: "Great, I can go to the capital with Brother Rui"

He was half a head smaller than Shen Rui, and Shen Rui's body was staggered.

Shen Qin and Shen Bao were awakened by his movements, Shen Bao immediately laughed happily, and his eyes became a slit; Shen Qin was puzzled: "If there are children in every room who follow into Beijing, why is my family not my eldest brother, but me?" ”

Shen Jue pointed at himself, and then pointed at the other teenagers surnamed Shen, and said triumphantly: "How old are we, how old is your eldest brother?" Elder brothers, we have to be busy talking to relatives, busy taking exams, or helping the elders take care of chores, and we are the only ones who can easily get out of the way and go far away."

Shen Qin thought about it, and laughed twice in the voice of a male duck: "I haven't been far away yet, Songjiang is more than a thousand miles away from the capital, this time the big guy is going to see the world."

For a while, the atmosphere was just right, and Shen Rui looked at these innocent teenagers with a smile on his face......