"Secret?" Long Keduo listened to the words of the fourth elder brother and was surprised: "Didn't you see the emperor send a decree?" ”

In order to continue the family's wealth, he has been concerned about the establishment of the prince for more than ten or twenty years, seeing that the emperor is old, and when it comes to the inheritance of the throne, he is naturally reluctant to leave the bamboo basket empty.

The fourth elder brother didn't say it explicitly, but Long Keduo also heard the meaning of his words. If there is really a secret intention to go out of Beijing, it will be cheaper than the fourteenth elder brother.

His face was cloudy, and he raised his eyebrows for a while, and said: "Even if you send it out of Beijing, you are not afraid, whether you go to the post station or the military station, that one is in Ganzhou, even if it is eight hundred miles expedited, it will take some time to arrive." If you reply to the letter to Beijing, it will be even longer. ”

When the fourth elder brother heard this, his heart moved.

Since I don't know if there is a will to go out, and I can't intercept and send it, I will arrange manpower early, and the same is true for intercepting and sending back news.

It's just that in this case, even if the interception is successful, it will be a long time, and it will not be able to cover it up in front of the emperor.

The fourth elder brother hesitated a little, and Long Keduo said in a low voice: "Fourth master, the emperor has been a little short of spirit recently......"

The fourth elder brother's eyes slowly widened, and he asked, "What did the imperial doctor say?" ”

"Don't be tired, you should rest in peace." Roncodo replied.

How can you not be troubled? There is no war in the northwest, no peace talks, and more than 100,000 horses are being consumed there. Khalkha is ready to move again, although there is a Jebtsundamba who has a heart for the imperial court, and he is also about to be ninety. When he is gone, who else will be able to hold down the Khalkha kings?

If Jungar and Khalkha form an alliance, there will be an eyeing Oros behind them, and the northern frontier of the Qing Dynasty will be in danger.

In the past few years of confrontation in the northwest, the imperial court has engaged in small-scale short-term encounters with the Jungger soldiers several times, but nothing has come well. In addition to the fact that the soldiers did not tolerate the bitter cold of the plateau, it was because the opponent had firearms bought from Oros.

Later, although the imperial court also transported firearms to the Northwest Army, most of them were clumsy, old and undurable, and they were just decorations.

The fourth elder brother's palms were wet, and he looked at Long Keduo, not daring to think about the intention of saying these two words.

"Uncle......" the fourth elder brother whispered.

Long Keduo had regained his composure and said with a smile: "The emperor's preference for Brother Hongli is obvious to all. In Beijing, which one else competes with the fourth master? Compared with those who are gone and those who are far away in the northwest, the fourth master can be said to have taken advantage of 'time, place, and people'. ”

The fourth elder brother bowed and said: "My nephew has no inner court to help, and I have no brothers and nephews to count on, thanks to my uncle's teaching." It's still the emperor's mother who loves me, knowing that I am lonely and helpless, which leads my uncle to hurt my nephew. In the end, I couldn't help but be moved, and my eyes were already red.

Referring to the deceased sister Empress Xiaoyi, Long Keduo also showed a little kindness on his face, and said: "Although there are many princes and elder brothers in the emperor, there is only one fourth master who is raised in front of my sister. If I don't help my nephew, can I help outsiders? ”

The two uncles and nephews glanced at each other, all kinds of closeness, and it was not appropriate to speak......* When they came out of the tent of Long Keduo, the seventeenth elder brother invited Cao Hao and the sixteenth elder brother to sit with him.

Cao Hao didn't have anything to do, so he went with the two elder brothers.

"I don't know what the fourth brother is looking for Long Keduo, looking at that look, it seems that there is something urgent?" The sixteenth elder brother couldn't help but be curious, and said to the seventeenth elder brother and Cao Hao.

In the eyes of the fourth brother, the Tong family is the maternal family, and Long Keduo is his uncle, but I don't know if Long Keduo is willing to treat him as his nephew. That's the grass on the wall, when he hugged the starling's thigh, he made a lawsuit in favor of the prince, and then he ran faster than anyone else. Brother Seventeen raised his eyebrows and said.

Although Long Keduo was born in a descendant clan and was a hot person in front of the emperor, the seventeenth elder brother did not ask for anything, but did not want to have more dealings with Long Keduo; Except for official business, the two have little personal relationship.

The sixteenth elder brother glanced at him and said, "It's good to understand in your heart, what do you want to do?" How can I get used to it, show it in front of others, and be careful of offending people. ”

The seventeenth elder brother leaned back in the chair and said lazily: "If I can't tell two truths in front of the sixteenth brother and Cao Hao, then I will suffocate to death." What kind of thing, that Mrs. Ru is spreading posts everywhere, and the palace has not fallen, and it has all been sprinkled in front of our Fujin. We are still embarrassed, and we don't know what to give a gift to. ”

"It's a mess, I heard that the uncle and concubine not only hold the internal affairs of the Tong Mansion, but also the external affairs. Officials who enter Beijing from outside must give this lady a filial piety. Speaking of this, the sixteenth elder brother glanced at Cao Hao and said, "God bless eleven or twelfth this year?" ”

"Eleven." Cao Hao didn't understand how he turned to Tianyou, and replied.

The sixteenth elder brother said with a smile: "Nafu Ruo has to be careful, Long Keduo's only daughter is the year of cardamom, and she is the son-in-law who is looking for a son-in-law in the capital from Mrs. Ru. Your family is enough, and your tutor is good, maybe you have already been remembered by that Mrs. Ru. ”

Cao Hao was very surprised when he heard this.

The Tong family is a two-generation descendant family, one of the best dignitaries, plus Long Keduo is now wearing many positions, the scenery is unique, the girls of their family, even if they are concubines, are also eligible to marry into the clan.

Listening to what the sixteenth elder brother said, Long Keduo, who loves concubines, doesn't want his daughter to marry the clan, but wants to marry the civil family.

"Marrying a woman from a high door and marrying a woman from a low door", although the Cao family is an earl, it is just an upstart, and it cannot be compared with the Tong family known as the "Tong Half Dynasty".

Not only the Cao family, but also the Manchu Dynasty, there are very few powerful families that can match the daughters of the Tong family.

As early as when Cao Xiang and Cao Fu were married, someone mentioned the girl from the side branch of the Tong family, but Cao Yin was still reluctant to climb the high gate, so he chose another family.

is now a girl from the Tong family, and has a pair of famous parents, Cao Hao didn't even think about it.

"Even if she is the daughter of the Tong family, having such a biological mother is absolutely unacceptable. Cao Hao, you have to hold on, it's really not good, just pick a similar one first, they will never be cheeky enough to send their daughter into the Cao family as a concubine. Brother Seventeen said.

Cao Hao was speechless, even if he wanted to order a child daughter-in-law for his son, it was by no means easy.

The Cao family is in the banner, and according to the rules, they can only marry in the banner, and they cannot intermarry with the people. The girl from the flag family has not gone through the draft, and her parents are not qualified to marry the outside world.

Most of the girls who can talk about marriage are those who won the draft last year, the youngest is 14 years old, and the oldest is 18. Usually the girls who pick up the brand, the more outstanding, and most of them are proposed after the draft. The rest are either from a bad background, or the girl's surname is flawed in appearance.

Tianyou's daughter-in-law is the wife of the Cao family, who is filial to her elders and takes care of her younger siblings, and inherits the bloodline of the Cao family, how can she choose one at will?

Cao Hao stroked his forehead, and it seems that he got married and worshiped the church just yesterday, and now he has to consider the marriage of his children......... * Beijing, Cao's Mansion, Lanyuan, Shangfang.

Zhao Jiashi first ate two duck wings, drank a bowl of duck soup, and then took half a plate of spicy fried chicken elbow bones, and used two bowls of rice in one go.

A few days later, it was the seven-sided blessing Jin birth sacrifice, Chu Yu got up early and went to the temple to pray for his biological mother, and he didn't return until dusk.

Zhao Jiashi heard that she was not at home, so she came to play cards with Li in the afternoon, and when it was time for dinner, Li left her for dinner.

Li knew that she was unhappy without chickens and ducks, in addition to a dish of eight-treasure duck soup, he also ordered to go down and add a chicken dish.

Zhao Jia's family often eats in this house, and the cook also knows the taste of this second old lady, in addition to eating duck the most, she also loves heavy oil dishes, so she served this spicy chicken knuckle.

Zhaojia's appetite is good, and Li is happy for her, but when she sees her eating so much, she can't help but worry.

Zhao Jiashi ate another half bowl before putting down the bowl.

Li was afraid that she would not be restrained, so he hurriedly ordered someone to make her a cup of tea.

Zhao Jiashi ate half a cup of tea in one gulp, took a long breath, and said, "This meal, you have to have someone to accompany you to eat fragrantly." If it weren't for my sister-in-law, it would be good to deal with two people. Chef Wang's craftsmanship became more and more praised, and he knew that his duck dishes were so good, and he should have begged him at that time. ”

"It's just a wall, if you want to eat, let someone pass the word, can your nephew and daughter-in-law be reluctant to take two dishes?" Li said with a smile.

Zhao Jiashi wiped his mouth with a handkerchief and answered: "My nephew and daughter-in-law have always been virtuous, even if I am really reluctant in my heart, if I have a sister-in-law, I will be filial to me." It's just that I'm happy, and my second wife is going to lose face. Although she is more delicate, she has not neglected me, why should I covet two mouthfuls of food, and make her feel uncomfortable? ”

She is reasonable left and right, and she doesn't forget to eat a couple of words from a junior at any time, Li is too lazy to worry about her, and laughs without saying a word.

Zhao Jiashi put down his veil and said to Li: "Sister-in-law, I heard that Mrs. Li of the National Uncle's Mansion is going to have a banquet at the beginning of next month, and my sister-in-law has also received a post, right?" ”

Li Shi nodded and said, "There is such a thing, I am invited to go over with your nephew and daughter-in-law after the post." Your nephew and daughter-in-law are still in filial piety, and this uncle is not thoughtful, which is really a bit rude. ”

"Then only my sister-in-law went alone?" Zhao Jiashi asked.

"There is still half a month, and then we will talk about it. I'm also impatient to socialize, but since Uncle Guo's mansion has sent a post, it's not easy to deal with it casually. Lee replied.

"Tsk, if Mrs. has reached this point, she will also be the first person in our Qing Dynasty. I heard that she was so good at taking care of Uncle Tong's concubines that she didn't say anything, even the lady of the main room beat her if she wanted to, and scolded her whenever she wanted. Mrs. Tong said that she died of illness, but who knows the real reason? The old ladies and old ladies of the Tong family are gone, and with the support of Uncle Tong, Li Si'er can run rampant in Uncle Guo's mansion. Zhao Jia said.

Zhao Jia's family loves to play cards in the past two years, and often invites relatives and daughters to play cards in the house, and can hear these gossips, but the Li family is still the first time to hear about it, and can't help frowning: "Even if you spoil your concubine and kill your wife, you shouldn't be like this, right?" ”

Seeing that she didn't believe it, Zhao Jiashi lowered her voice and said, "It's more than that. I have a cousin-in-law, who is on an errand in the Yamen of the Infantry Army, and the Beijing official wants to rise to a liter, but he has not moved until he listens to the guidance of others, changes three hundred taels of gold, and presses a Maitreya Buddha statue to Li Si'er, and he gets the letter in a few days. Although the edict has not come down yet, but with the backer of the Uncle Mansion, who doesn't call her 'Mrs.'? I heard that it is a good piece of meat, otherwise a concubine and a broken shoe who has served Uncle Tong Guo's father-in-law, how can she be so beautiful? ”

Hearing this, Li couldn't help but shake his head.

Zhao Jiashi said a lot in one breath, only to find that he was off topic, and hurriedly collected Li Si'er's gossip, and said: "Sister-in-law, the fourth sister and the fifth son are getting older, and they will participate in the draft the year after tomorrow." Although it will depend on the arrangements of the nobles in the palace at that time, I think that it is better to let them show their faces in front of people, so as to save the anger of the little family, and shrink their hands and feet, and they will not look the same. If you go to your uncle's mansion, will you also take your two nieces to see the world? I wanted to take them there, but my identity was not qualified, so I could only beg my sister-in-law with a shy face. ”

If she had stayed before, she would never have pushed her maid to the front of people. It's just that now Wu'er is very handsome, not only far better than the fourth sister, but also three points better than Cao Jia's and Cao Yi's color. There are three girls in the front, and Zhao Jia's family is unwilling to let the concubine be separated from him, but he treats her much better than in the past.

The fourth sister's appearance is only delicate, and the official position of her father and brother is not obvious, and her future is limited; It's Wu'er, winning by color, if you refer to the sect as a side room, maybe there will be a scene.

Li didn't know the crooked words in Zhao Jia's heart, and when he saw that she was kind to his concubine, he thought that she was old and changed his surname. This is not a difficult thing, with a gesture, she nodded and agreed: "I heard that there is a girl in the uncle's mansion who has not been out of the cabinet, and her age is similar to that of the fourth sister and the fifth son, so it is good for the nieces to get to know each other." ”

Seeing her nodding, Zhao Jiashi immediately smiled, squinted her eyes and said: "Ming'er has to call the tailor to come over and add two clothes to the two sisters, although we can't compare to those noble families, we can't let the girls look down on them with a shabby atmosphere." ”

Hearing her say this, Li Shi also became interested, and called the maid to embroider the crane and ordered: "A few days ago, when I was packing up the jewelry, there were two pairs of gemstone bracelets, one inlaid with amber and the other inlaid with coral, and I went to find them. ”

The embroidered crane went in response, and after a while, he came over with two brocade boxes.

Two pairs of bracelets, golden, with honey-colored amber and red coral, look both rich and lively.

"It's hard for my nieces to go out, so I'll add a gadget for them. This is a birthday gift sent from Suzhou last year, I love this joy, stay outside, and don't ask anyone to put it away. As for which pair is given to the fourth sister and which pair is given to the fifth son, let their little sisters pick them up by themselves. Li said with a smile.

Zhao Jia's touched this, looked at that, knew that they were all good things, and thought that they should be divided into five children and a pair, and he was a little reluctant in his heart. Not to mention the amber and coral above, you can know that it is of the highest grade at a glance, but only this gold weighs, and a pair has more than half a catty of gold, which is heavy, so that people can't take their eyes off it.

At this time, I heard a maid outside the door say, "Old lady, my wife is back." ”

With the sound of talking, a maid lifted the curtain, Chu Yu entered the room, saw Zhao Jia's there, and squatted to salute.

Seeing that she was still wearing big clothes to go out, Li Shi's eyes were red, he waved his hand, and said, "I'm tired, let's go back and rest early." ”

Chu Yu forced a smile and said, "It's just that I've been sitting and reciting the Sutra for a long time, where are you tired?" What do the sisters pick, listen to the old lady and talk lively? ”

"Well, your second aunt wants your two sisters to go out and see the world. Your second aunt wants to make new clothes for their sisters, so I have found two pairs of bracelets to add color to them. Lee replied.

Chu Yu glanced at the two pairs of bracelets a few times and said, "It's all good things, the two sisters are blessed." The daughter-in-law has more good things than the old lady, just a few pieces of amber and coral, which are not as precious as the inlay on this bracelet, but fortunately, it looks about the same color. Take it and grind it, and make earrings or buttons for my sisters, but I can match these two pairs of bracelets with the old lady......"

(To be continued)