The last time Li Nai saw Sun Jue was during the Dragon Boat Festival.

The matter of the twins, Li Nai mentioned it to Sun Jue at the end of April. It was on the wine table, after three rounds of wine. Although there was no one else, Sun Jue's reaction was still very intense.

If it is anyone, it will not be easy to raise a son for a few years in vain.

Li Nai's good words are exhausted, but Sun Jue is still not a fake color. Looking at that menacing appearance, if it weren't for Li Nai's brother-in-law, he would have to move his fists like that.

Because he took care of his daughter's family affairs, he was afraid that the trouble would come out and cause gossip from the Fan family, so Li Nai could only endure it, thinking about waiting for her to marry her daughter and then "move it with affection and understand it with reason".

Unexpectedly, Sun Jue could take the initiative to come to the door.

"It's Yushu here!" Li Nai personally greeted him, his face full of warmth.

Sun Jue was wearing a ninety percent new official uniform, his figure was slightly fat, and he snorted coldly at his brother-in-law's enthusiasm, and followed Li Nai to the living room.

Cao, Li, and Sun, the Sun family only relied on the help of the Cao family, so that they can say today, but the Li family can be compared with the Cao family.

Seriously, the Li family is still a head taller. Li Nai's grandfather served as the governor of Guangdong in his early years and was a feudal official; Cao Hao's grandfather was weaving in Jiangning all his life, and he was always a slave of the Son of Heaven.

Unlike the Cao family's introverted and low-key, on the Li family's side, Li Xu has always paid the most attention to enjoyment. Even if the old house in the capital has not had a serious master come over for several years, but the furniture is not ordinary.

Let's just say that this living room, the sandalwood inlaid jade screen, the antiques in the Baibao grid, the famous calligraphy and paintings on the wall, take out two pieces at random, are worth hundreds of taels of silver.

As far as Sun Jue's eyes can see, they are all rich and noble, and they only feel that they are dazzling.

Look at Li Nai's body again, an azure crepe robe, and a royal blue horse coat. The buckle on the horse coat is a sapphire the size of a little thumb cap. Directly above the hat on his head was a sapphire half an inch square.

The few jobs hanging on the belt are all Sichuan brocade embroidered by Suzhou, and half of the thin gold chain is faintly exposed, I don't know if it is a pocket watch chain or something else.

This is just a homely dress, and this one will cost a few hundred taels of silver.

Sun Jue was only panicked in his heart, thinking that after he went to Beijing on an errand, his father only gave a thousand taels of silver every year, which was not enough to chew at home, let alone personal contacts.

I wrote to my father, but my father's surname was stubborn, and he only told him to do his best to be an errand and not to think about learning from others to drill camps.

Sun Jue only felt bitter in his heart, when he first entered Beijing, he also held a high shelf, thinking that with the heart of "loyalty and patriotism", he could achieve a career; As a result, he became what others called a "grandson nerd", the officials did not like it, and his colleagues did not like it, and he was ostracized for several years.

When he knew the "rules" of the Beijing officials, and the world was the most affectionate, he knew what it was like to be poor.

Not to mention anything else, as an official, the "three festivals and two longevity" filial piety to the boss, without a thousand gifts of two silver, can not be taken. Not to mention, the old in-laws, colleagues and fellow villagers, and the throwing away of various relationships and entertainment.

The same is weaving, the Li family spends tens of thousands of taels of silver to raise a troupe, and as the son of the grandchild, he brings his family into Beijing, but it is a house with a small three, and there are more than 20 people.

The Cao family has a county king, Gege, who is considered a royal family, can't compare, can't the Li family compare?

The more Sun Jue thought about it, the more annoyed he became, and then thought about the pair of sisters he had always loved, only to feel that he had become a big joke, which was a shame for the Sun family.

He didn't want to think about it, in fact, his hat was not green, after all, the pair of sisters followed Li Ding first, followed him. After arriving at Sun's house, Sun Jue's family was strictly forbidden, and Cao Ying obeyed her husband's life, extremely virtuous, and the sister was raised in the inner house, and she didn't have the opportunity to meet the man next to her.

Li Nai sat opposite Sun Jue, seeing Sun Jue's expression changing, his face became darker and darker, and he was at a loss in his heart, afraid that his brother-in-law would come to make trouble.

"Yushu came just in time, you are Hanyu's uncle, and I want to ask you to be the master of the family. The Fan family is a prime minister's house, not an ordinary family, and I am afraid that I will lose face due to lack of manpower. Li Nai squeezed out a smile and said.

For the Fan family, Sun Jue has long admired the name. Except for Fan Wencheng, the founding assistant minister, Fan Wencheng's sons are all feudal officials and supervise one side.

In Fan Shichong's generation, there are many brothers and nephews who are officials in the court, not to mention that now he is on an errand in the military department, this Fan Shichong has just been transferred to Shangshu, and he happens to be his top boss.

"Sending my husband to you?" Sun Jue was quite surprised, no matter what he thought in his heart, he looked down at his supplemental clothes, and said politely: "I am a small official, and I can't give my niece a decent look, so forget it." ”

"Yushu, what are these words? You are Yu'er's maternal uncle, you don't be the send-off master, who will be the send-off master? Speaking of which, Yushu is also proud of the spring breeze, and it has only been in Beijing for a few years, and it has been promoted by two levels. Now that he is in the military department again, he is soaring, and he is waiting for me, and I am looking forward to Yushu being able to pull it in the future. Li Nai said very sincerely.

Sun Jue thought that he was now in charge of the military department, I don't know how many people had hot eyes, and he was a little proud in his heart, and he said in his mouth: "Big brother Miao Zan, it's nothing, it's just a diligent errand." ”

"Now that the northwest is using troops, the military department has a heavy errand, and Yushu must also take care of his body. Although it is more bitter, when the war is over, it will not be able to run away from Yushu's share in terms of meritorious deeds. Li Nai said.

Sun Jue was already embarrassed, raised his eyebrows and said: "It's hard enough, it's very trivial, where is there a polite department to be at ease?" However, as a courtier, it is also a blessing to be able to share the emperor's worries, and how many people can't get in if they break their heads. ”

The two of them said these tasteless words, and they seemed to have a warm conversation.

Because Sun Jue is in the military department, he is far more informed about the news in the northwest than others, so he has to list them one by one and put a look at Li Naixian.

Li Nai didn't understand military affairs, and he was confused when he heard it, but he paid attention to it when he mentioned the name of King Nersu of Pingjun, and he was also quite concerned about the recent situation of the fourteenth elder brother.

By the time Sun Jue felt thirsty, the two guests had been chatting for two quarters of an hour.

Sun Jue's heart had already gone to the initial anger, remembering his original intention of coming, he glanced at Li Nai, and didn't know how to speak.

It's not that he is shallow and cares about a few silver coins, this is a major matter related to the face of the Sun family. Although the twin sons are concubines, they have already been on the Sun family tree, and they have become the descendants of other people's families.

Besides, as an in-law, what kind of face does the Li family have to let the Sun family support the Li family's grandson?

Li Nai's side, listening to Sun Jue's idle talk for a long time, he was already tired of it, but when he stopped talking, he felt cold again.

Looking at Sun Jue's appearance of wanting to speak and stopping, Li Nai is more than ten years older than him after all, and he is more sophisticated. I knew in my heart that the previous "lure with profit" was almost the same.

After all, the brother-in-law has already been a daughter-in-law's dowry, which shows that this son is having a hard time.

Thinking of this, Li Nai's previous worries were gone, and he was relieved.

I'm not afraid that Sun Jue will ask for silver, but I'm afraid he won't want it. If you ask for silver, you can still cover up the past, and you can think of a way to save the face of the two families.

Sun Jue picked up the teacup, brought it to his mouth, took a sip of tea, lowered his head and didn't look at Li Nai, and said, "What my brother-in-law said a few years ago, what happened to Zhuangzi?" Well? ”

No matter how thick-skinned he is, he can only directly announce the amount of silver he wants.

Li Nai saw that he was hesitant, and knew that he had always loved face and had a thin skin, and then said: "What I didn't say, the right should be the gift of He Yushu's ascension." Thirty hectares of land, all of which are first-class fertile fields, are near the Tongzhou wharf, is a well field, a Zhuangzi that guarantees harvest in drought and flood. ”

Sun Jue let out an "oh", looked interested, and said, "Zhuangzi in Tongzhou? East? In my early years, my father once looked for someone to divinate me, saying that my destiny was in conflict with the east. ”

Seeing him behave like this, Li Nai was a little confused.

This Zhuangzi was mentioned by him on his own initiative, and he immediately gave it again, what was the idea? If you don't plan to make real money, it wouldn't be decent. Besides, this time he entered Beijing, he came to donate officials and marry daughters, and the money on hand was almost spent.

Sun Jue had already put down the teacup in his hand, cleared his throat and said, "Isn't there also two Zhuangzi in my brother-in-law's Fangshan?" ”

"That's the sacrificial field?" Li Nai's words frowned a little. His mother, Han, died of illness a few years ago and was buried in the Li family cemetery in Fangshan.

Speaking of which, Li Nai's grandfather's grave is in Tongzhou. Because the Zhuangzi in the vicinity were all powerful families, the Li family could not buy a wide range of sacrificial fields there, so Li Xu bought a few Zhuangzi in Fangshan to pick a place with good feng shui.

Li Xu's grave was repaired a few years ago. After his wife Han died, he was buried in Fangshan first.

"Isn't the Zhuangzi in Shanghan Village a few miles away from the sacrificial field? It's not connected, it's not like it. Sun Jue's eyes fell on the calligraphy and painting on the wall, and said as if unintentionally.

When Li Nai heard this, he couldn't tell whether he was angry or annoyed, and stared at Sun Jue speechless.

The Li family has four Zhuangzi in the capital, two in Tongzhou, and two in Fangshan. There are two places in Tongzhou, one is his grandfather's grave sacrifice field, with 20 hectares of land; One next to the canal wharf has thirty hectares of land. There are two places in Fangshan, one is also a sacrificial field, with 80 hectares of land; One is separated from the sacrificial field a few miles, and it is the largest of the four villages, with 140 hectares of land.

This 140 hectares of Zhuangzi is the most profitable of the Li family's industries in the capital. The Li family's annual entertainment in the capital also depends on this Zhuangzi.

In recent years, the fields in the capital have been expensive, even if the Zhuangzi includes dozens of hectares of mountainous land, but even if the hundred hectares of fertile land can be sold for 60,000 or 70,000 taels. Coupled with the mountainous area, if Zhuangzi sells it now, it will not be a problem to sell 70,000 or 80,000 taels.

Li Nai did a good job of "breaking money" to deal with the affairs of these two nephews, but he never thought that Sun Jue would open his mouth like this.

Sun Jue's side, he was still sulking in his heart, thinking that the Sun family was also a big family in his early years, but his father and ancestors were not good at management, and gradually declined. What was left to his father's name was a small village of twenty hectares.

The Li family is not considered an industry in the south, and there are only four places in the capital to manage Zhuangzi, and the land is almost 300 hectares, which is more than ten times more than the Sun family.

Looking at Li Nai's embarrassed appearance, Sun Jue only felt a lot more comfortable in his heart.

The Li family brazenly let the Sun family raise a few little mongrels for a few years, is it really easy to be the Sun family?

It's just a concubine born of two concubines, and the Sun family has a son-in-law and grandchildren, and there is no shortage of these two children; Li Ding, that short-lived ghost, if there were no heirs of these two little mongrels, he would have cut off the incense.

Although Li Nai is the eldest son of the Li family, with Li Xu on top, he is not a person who can make up his mind. Tongzhou Zhuangzi "gifted" Sun Jue, he had already mentioned it in his letter to Suzhou, and Li Xu also agreed with him to do so.

Fangshan's Zhuangzi is the Li family's largest property in the capital, that is, Li Nai, who did not have his father's consent and did not dare to dispose of this Zhuangzi.

Both of them were silent, and the room was frighteningly quiet.

But there was a housekeeper, who didn't know that the two people in the house were in a stalemate, and walked to the door to tell that a guest was coming.

Today, it is said that the wedding shed is built, and several clansmen of the Li family in the capital are in-laws, and they all send juniors to help.

Li Nai's smiling face was gone, he waved his hand and sent the housekeeper down, and said to Sun Jue: "Yushu, my father bought the two Zhuangzi in Fangshan in his early years, and he planned to use them as sacrificial properties. The Zhuangzi in the middle is the property of Liu Zongbing's family with a white flag, and his father has always been worried about buying it. Because Liu Zongbing has been serving abroad for all these years and is not in Beijing, the matter has been delayed. ”

Although he didn't say it explicitly, the meaning of the refusal in these words was conclusive, Sun Jue only felt that his face couldn't hold it, raised his head, and looked at Li Nai with a cold face.

Li Nai knew that his surname was Lonely, and he was afraid that his face would be sour, so he thought about it for a while, and said: "If Yushu thinks that the Zhuangzi in Tongzhou is small, then do you think it will work?" On the side of Gulou Street, there are two door-face houses, which are also the property of the Li family. In a year, the rent income can also be a thousand hundred taels, which can be regarded as adding a spare flower to Yushu. ”

Sun Jue's side, he couldn't sit still, got up from the chair with a "swish", and said with a sneer: "Brother-in-law doesn't despise me like a businessman, otherwise how can I still learn to bargain with a businessman?" My brother-in-law can put down his worth, but I don't dare to admit it. Even if I didn't come today, my brother-in-law's 'kindness' should be forgotten. ”

After speaking, without waiting for Li Nai's reaction, he had already left his seat and strode out.

Seeing that he was decisive, Li Nai could only follow him and said, "Yushu, it's all my own family, let's discuss it carefully." ”

Sun Jue didn't look at him, drank his own long entourage, and rode away.

Looking at Sun Jue's back, Li Nai stomped his feet vigorously, not knowing whether to hate his younger brother for leaving such trouble, or to complain about Sun Jue's greed.

Sun Jue's side was really annoyed.

Who doesn't know that the Li family is rich, what is a Zhuangzi? Pick a small Zhuangzi to fool him, is it really easy for him to bully?

Thinking of the two little mongrels that disgraced the Sun family, Sun Jue only felt a bad breath in his heart.

When he returned home, he went directly to the inner house and ordered the two concubines to be brought.

Cao Ying saw that his face was not good, and she served him to change out of his official uniform, but she only felt kicked in her heart, and she didn't dare to breathe.

At this time, the mother-in-law has already led the twin concubines over.

These two children, born in the summer of Kangxi's fifty-third year, are six years old this year, and have begun to follow the master's enlightenment.

Sun Jue's sister-in-law's qualifications are mediocre, far less clever than these two concubines, and Sun Jue still prefers these two concubines, thinking about teaching them well, so that they can take the road of the imperial examination and shine on the lintel.

Now, it's all a joke, how much I liked it in the past, how disgusted it is now.

Without waiting for the two children to finish asking for peace, Sun Jue walked to the table, picked up the feather duster in the bile bottle, and whipped it at the two children.

The two were still stunned, and the feather duster had already fallen on one of them. Because the child is still young, this time it just happened to be pumped to the face, and when it went down, it was a hideous blood purlin.

The two mothers-in-law at the door were already bluffing, and said in a loud voice: "Uncle......"

"Get out!" Sun Jue only felt the noise and glared back.

The two mothers-in-law were also old men of the Sun family, and they knew that the temper of the master in the family was not as good as it looked like, so they retreated tremblingly.

The two brothers could not bear the pain, and were already sobbing and crying.

Only Sun Jue and his wife and their two children were left in the house. Although it was not from herself, these two concubines usually called themselves "mother", and now they are being beaten in her room, and they can't say it clearly.

Although Cao Ying was afraid of her husband, she could only step forward and persuade: "Master, the sons are still young, if the master sees that they are wrong, it will be ...... to scold a few more words."

Before the words fell, Sun Jue's feather duster had already been waved.

Cao Ying only felt that the fire was burning in her back, and she let out a low cry, and she was so painful that she couldn't speak.

Next, the mother-in-law outside the door heard the miserable cry of the child from the house......* Changping, Caojia Zhuangzi.

Looking at the letter in Li's hand, Cao Hao only felt that it was an eyesore. This is the "family letter" handed to the Li family when the daughter-in-law of the housekeeper sent by the Li family a few days ago to ask for peace.

I don't know if Li Xu was intentional or unintentional, this letter to the Li family bypassed Cao Hao.

On Cao Hao's side, of course, there is also a handwritten letter from Li Xu, which mentions that Li Nai inquired about Li Ding's murder. In the letter, Li Xu only said that Li Nai was dull, and asked Cao Hao, a nephew, to help Li Nai in terms of "flesh and blood". It's not affectionate, it's not polite, it's like an uncle entrusting his nephew.

The two housekeepers' daughters-in-law came from Suzhou, and I heard that they came to ask for peace for the Li family on the orders of Li Xu.

For his cheap "uncle", Cao Hao not only can't get close, but also has twelve points of vigilance.

He did everything he could for the Cao family, but he didn't want to be busy in vain, and finally was dragged into the water by these so-called relatives.

With a little hesitation on Li's face, he said to Cao Hao: "Hao'er, I haven't been able to sleep well these days, and I don't know how to reply to your uncle." Your eldest grandmother is over 80 years old, her body is not good, and your grandmother has not been good since the beginning of the year. ”

It turned out that Li Xu's letter mentioned the recent situation of Wen Taijun and Gao Taijun, mentioned the second elder's longing for Li, and hoped that Li would be able to go to Suzhou after giving Cao Yin "Burning Zhou" in September.

The last time Li returned to Suzhou was ten years ago, and now he is quite moved to see his cousin's letter mentioning this matter.

Nothing to be courteous, either annihilation or theft.

In Cao Hao's heart, he would not think that Li Xu was just thinking about "flesh and blood". If he really had the intention of taking the Li family back to Ningning, Li Nai would mention it at the beginning of his entry into Beijing, and he would not make a special trip to come.

"Mother, Suzhou is thousands of miles away from the capital, and the road is not cheap. The mother's body is not as good as before, and Changsheng is still young, and she can't bear the hard work on the road. Otherwise, wait for another two years, wait for the father's filial piety, and the son will send his mother to Ningning? Cao Hao pondered and said.

Through her mother's affection for Li Nai's father and daughter, Cao Hao also knew that she still attached great importance to the Li family, the "mother's family". Cao Hao is a son, it's hard to say anything else, so he can only use the word "drag".

Li Shi listened, hesitated and said: "Hao'er, your eldest grandmother is more than eighty, and she will be ninety, this is ......."

(To be continued)