In the "Legend of the White Snake" that has been passed down through the ages, there is a paranoid monk Fahai. staring at his eyes, he just couldn't get used to Bai Suzhen, the snake demon who "repaid his kindness". found out right and wrong, and made a Leifeng Pagoda, suppressed Bai Suzhen at the bottom of the West Lake Tower, and forced the good husband and wife, mother and son to separate.

The Kangxi Dynasty also had a Fahai, although not as famous as the Fahai monk, but among the magnates in the capital, he was also a legend.

Speaking of which, he was born in the Tong family, known as the "Tong Half Dynasty", the second son of his uncle Tong Guogang, and Kangxi's cousin.

However, because Fahai's biological mother is not Tong Guogang's concubine, but just a servant. According to the saying in the capital, it was raised by a girl. Therefore, from the beginning of his childhood, his identity was extremely embarrassing. didn't even treat him as an ordinary concubine, he was discriminated against by his father and brother, and the Tong family didn't regard him as a master.

His biological mother did not carry her identity until she died, and because of the hindrance of her brother Oro Dai, she was not buried in the ancestral grave of the Tong family. Because of this, Fahey, along with his brother, became enemies.

Fortunately, he was angry, knowing that his father and brother were not reliable, so he took the road of the imperial examination, and he was admitted to the Jinshi in his twenties. This is nothing, because of his excellent character and learning, he was appointed as the prince's teacher before he was established, teaching the thirteenth elder brother and the fourteenth elder brother. Among them, he is the most close to the thirteenth elder brother, and the master and apprentice are very compatible.

When the prince was "abolished", because the thirteenth elder brother was involved in the battle for the heir, Fahai, who was a teacher, was also implicated, and was demoted six levels in a row, originally from the fourth-grade waiter to the seventh-grade Hanlin Academy.

It was not until last year, after the intercession of several university scholars, that he was reinstated.

In the winter of the 55th year of Kangxi, there was heavy snow in the capital.

Alinga lingered on the sickbed and was already unconscious. The seventeenth elder brother took the seventeenth fortune out of the palace to serve the sick, and it has been several days. According to the Imperial Doctor, he is now dying, and he should begin to prepare for the future.

The Guogong Mansion was gloomy, and the tenth elder brother, as Ah Ling's nephew, came to visit the patient twice, but he was also not energetic.

Some people are frustrated, and some people are proud.

Fahai was promoted to governor of Guangdong, and he said that he was going to leave Beijing to take up his post.

The crowd who saw him off included his colleagues from the Fahai Hanlin Academy, as well as the two princely students he had taught. There are also several distant relatives of the Tong family, the Tong family's own family and close branches, but because they are afraid of Oro Dai, no one shows up.

Cao Hao and Fahai are not familiar with each other, and today they are accompanying the thirteenth elder brother to see him off.

After the eighth elder brother burned "Five Seven", the thirteenth elder brother returned to Tangquan, originally planning to come back when the eighth elder brother went out for the funeral. Unexpectedly, only two days later, I got the news of Fahai's promotion.

At the front door, the thirteenth elder brother happened to meet Cao Hao, so he pulled him along.

Cao Hao didn't know Fahai, and he had been a Beijing official for many years, so this was the first time he saw him. However, he has admired the name for a long time, and he has heard the thirteenth elder brother mention it early.

Fahai Kangxi was a jinshi in the thirty-third year of his life, and he served in the Hanlin Academy for more than 20 years, and the elegant temperament cultivated by his body is indeed not the same as everyone else.

Even if the Tong family doesn't recognize him, but the emperor recognizes him as a cousin, the future is naturally limitless. When the governor comes down and returns to the capital, it is Jingtang.

The attitude of the fourteenth elder brother is particularly respectful, which makes people offer a thick Cheng Yi. Between the words, it was full of gratitude to the teacher's teachings back then, and the others who listened to it were all emotional.

Since there are few people who follow the flattery, either praise the fourteenth elder brother for respecting the teacher, or praise Fahai for learning extraordinary.

In contrast, the Thirteenth Elder Brother is also a disciple, but he is much more silent. In addition to pulling Cao Hao, he wore regular clothes and only brought two long entourage.

If it weren't for the fourteenth elder brother calling "thirteenth elder brother" and Fahai saying "thirteenth elder brother", I am afraid that few would recognize him as the prince's elder brother.

"The mountains are high and the rivers are far away, and the teacher cherishes them." After the thirteenth elder brother said goodbye to everyone, he looked at Fahai and hugged his fists.

Fahai looked at the thirteenth elder brother and said slowly: "Does the thirteenth master remember the banner in the teacher's study?" ”

The thirteenth elder brother didn't expect Fahai to say this, so he was slightly stunned and nodded.

"Send it to the thirteenth elder brother for encouragement." Fahai smiled a little and looked at the thirteenth elder brother, with encouragement in his eyes.

The thirteenth elder brother only felt a warmth in his heart, his eyes were already sour, he took a few steps forward to take the reins from the coachman's hand, leaned over and said, "The student helps the teacher to get into the car." ”

Fahai nodded, rushed to see everyone off, hugged him, took the arm of the thirteenth elder brother, and boarded the carriage.

The fourteenth elder brother stood aside, watching the carriage gradually move away, but his heart was cold.

He and the Thirteenth Elder Brother were both students of Fahai, so naturally they also went to the teacher's study. On that banner is a Tang poem written by Fahai himself, "Danqing doesn't know that the old man is coming, and wealth is like a floating cloud to me."

Is this a gift to the thirteenth elder brother to encourage him, or is it to be told to him, the fourteenth elder brother?

Because of the teacher-student relationship, the fourteenth elder brother was a little happy about Fahai's comeback, but now he is also proud. He glanced at the thirteenth elder brother, and felt a little jealous in his heart.

Back then, the thirteenth elder brother was snubbed by the imperial father because he was restless; Now, what if he had other thoughts?

The thirteenth elder brother looked at the carriage going away with a stunned expression. It wasn't until he couldn't see it that he turned around and said to Cao Hao: "Thank you for coming with me, I want to stay at the Fourth Brother's Mansion for a while before I go out of the city." It's not good to pull you anymore, but when you arrive at Xiaotangshan, let's eat again. ”

Cao Hao responded, and the fourteenth elder brother had already wandered over, and said to the thirteenth elder brother: "Thirteenth brother, is this going back to the house, or is it ......?"

"Go see the fourth brother, and then go out of the city." The thirteenth elder brother replied peacefully.

The fourteenth elder brother smiled and said, "That's right, I haven't been to the fourth brother's mansion for a few days, let's go together." ”

The thirteenth elder brother nodded with a smile, said goodbye to Cao Hao, and rode away with the fourteenth elder brother.

After seeing this scene of teachers and students parting, Cao Hao felt uncomfortable. In one month, it will be Mr. Zhuang's anniversary. At this time last year, Mr. Zhuang was still worried about him as a student, but now he is forever separated.

There was silence all the way, and when he arrived at the door of his house, Cao Hao saw several carriages parked outside.

Cao Hao turned over and dismounted, and saw Wu Sheng coming over with the porter to lead the horse.

"Visitor?" Cao Hao pointed to the carriage over there and asked.

"If you go back to the uncle, it is the mansion of several princes who sent housekeepers and ladies to give birthday gifts." Wu Sheng bowed and replied.

Ming'er is October 30, Lee's forty-sixth birthday. Because it is not a whole life, and Chu Yu still has filial piety, so the Li family confessed that there is no need to hold a birthday, nor invite a troupe, just a family meal.

Unexpectedly, there was also a prince's mansion to come to Shangshou.

Cao Hao nodded, and before he entered the house, he heard the sound of horses' hooves of "tapping" and "tapping".

When he was young, there was a steward holding a worship box, and it seemed that he had seen the world, and he recognized him from Cao Hao's supplement, and said, "May I ask if it's Cao's forehead?" ”

Cao Hao nodded and said, "It's Cao, may I ask the honorable driver?" ”

The man bowed down and replied: "Back to Cao's forehead, the slave is the manager outside Prince Yu's mansion, and he was ordered to come to the birthday ceremony for Mrs. Bo." ”

Although the Cao family is said to be an earl, they are people. Prince Yu's mansion is the blood of Emperor Wen, and his family is Kangxi's nephew Baotai. Even if you want to give a birthday gift to the Cao family, you can't use the word "enter".

Or because of rumors outside, even Baotai can't tell whether Li is a cousin or a sister. As soon as the rumors of Li's life story came out, they were all checked and checked, and they were all about the old prince who went to Suzhou and Jiangning to send his grandmother when he was alive in the early years.

As everyone knows, he is the most generous in his siblings, and several brothers were crowned princes during their lifetimes. Among them, he has the closest relationship with his brother Wang, the first generation of Prince Yu Fuquan.

Even if the Li family is not a princess, but the daughter of Prince Yu Fuquan who is in exile, it is reasonable to love the house and Wu today, and regard them as women.

Cao Hao has been in the capital for many years, and it is difficult to say anything else, but the stewards of various palaces are common. That's really a lot of dogs, even for Cao Hao, it's just mediocre.

There are really few people who are so respectful as the steward in front of them?

Could it be that Baotai really wants to admit his nephew? Baba makes people give gifts with great fanfare.

Cao Hao thought in his heart, and stretched out his hand to invite the steward to the living room for tea. In the carriage, it was the mother-in-law who came to give the Li family a birthday, and rushed directly to the second gate and entered the inner house to talk.

In addition to eating tea, this steward is secretly looking at Cao Hao. Isn't there an old saying? Calling a nephew like an uncle.

The old prince has six sons and seven daughters, and now there are only two people alive who are five and six gege, except for the third son Baotai who inherited the throne. The two Geges who were born were married to Mongolia again, and they couldn't help their parents' families.

Although the Li family is not a princess and county lord, he has a son-in-law and daughter-in-law of the county king, and he is favored by the queen mother in the palace.

Even if you can't recognize your relatives clearly, you are your own flesh and blood after all. Therefore, after discussing with Fujin, Baotai prepared a birthday gift and sent it over, which was not without temptation.

Cao Hao was a little uncomfortable, Prince Yu Baotai he had seen, more than ten years older than him, and he was a relatively modest figure among the princes. Rao is like this, and Cao Hao is not interested in recognizing his uncle.

What is selfishness?

If the identity of the Li family can be seen by the sky, why bother to be a "Ruyi" and a child of "Enyin", he would have been rewarded a long time ago and went to the royal palace.

That's it, Prince Yu's Mansion still wants to recognize his relatives, which is really a bit stupid.

* Inner house, Ranin.

Li sat on the edge of the kang and asked the maid to serve tea to the two grandmothers who came from the palace.

This afternoon, she has already entertained several groups of guests. Some of the palaces are fine, they have been moving around a little before, and they can say a sentence or two; Some princely mansions had no personal contact with the Cao family earlier.

The more rusty it is, the less likely it is to entertain.

Do not lose the courtesy, but people feel lazy; It's not good to be inexplicably close, and there is a suspicion of flattery.

Fortunately, Chu Yu was by her side, and when she saw that her mother-in-law didn't like to talk, she said a few words on her behalf to round the scene.

This person from Prince Yu's mansion is different from people from other princes' mansions. Even Chu Yu had some guesses in his heart, thinking that his mother-in-law Xu was the pearl of the late old prince.

This grandmother who came to live on her birthday, in addition to giving birthday gifts, also got the explanation of Baotai and Fujin, and came to see the Li family.

Because Wang Fujin of Pingjun is a beauty, and Cao Hao has always been praised for his good looks, he has long thought that Li should be a beauty. After meeting, in addition to feeling fairer and younger, his appearance was not very outstanding.

It's just that calm and atmospheric, different from ordinary ladies, with a bit of royal demeanor, the two grandmothers sighed in their hearts, their faces became more and more respectful, and they said a lot of auspicious words.

Li listened with a smile, and Chu Yu had already asked someone to prepare a silver seal and give it to the two grandmothers.

After sending the two grandmothers away, Li Shi breathed a sigh of relief and said to Chu Yu: "If you don't say anything, it's more sad than in previous years." Ming'er doesn't eat the banquet, these gift-givers, do they still want me to return the gift one by one? ”

Chu Yu persuaded: "It's too much to worry about, and it's almost the end of the year, so you just need to be richer in the New Year's ceremony." ”

Li stroked his forehead and said, "That's fine, otherwise, I can't afford to run." ”

Chu Yu secretly said in his heart, don't say that he can't run, even if he goes to someone else's house, how should he greet him? The following is not appropriate; It's not appropriate to be polite, where are there a few who dare to accept it?

"By the way, Fu Jin and the eldest girl and the third girl all said that Ming'er would come back. It's okay over there in the palace, the prince came back with Fujin, and there was no need to make a carriage pick it up. The Sun family and the Guogong Mansion have to prepare a carriage, and Ming'er will go over to pick it up early. Li thought that his daughters and nieces were coming home, and he also had a smile on his face.

"He has commanded him to go down and make himself ready." Chu Yu replied.

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were talking, when they heard a maid under the corridor say, "Mrs., grandma, the second wife, and the second grandmother have arrived." ”

Li remembered that Zhao Jia's joke about Changsheng catching Zhou, sullen, and complained to Chu Yu: "Look, it's going to hurt me again." They all say that old children, little children, this is really true. ”

The Li family guessed wrong, the Zhaojia family originally wanted to come over to show off the dignity of what was decided yesterday, but they didn't expect that Xifu was running into the carriage of Yuwangfu and leaving.

In the past month, after the Li family was given "Ruyi", all kinds of royal secrets flew all over the sky. But because after Zhaojia's winter, some of his body is uncomfortable and does not like to go out, so he does not know.

Zhao Jia's only thought that the Li family had borrowed the light of her husband and son to earn her fateful status, and she had the dignity she said today, and she couldn't help but be jealous in her heart.

Hearing that Cao Ying and Cao Yiming'er had returned, Zhao Jia's expression was a little stiff. She was a few months older than the Li family, and she didn't do anything on her birthday, and her two daughters were just sending birthday gifts back to their parents' homes, and they didn't show up.

Okay? When the mother is long, she can't return to peace; My aunt has a birthday, but she has to go back to her parents' house.

It's all their own flesh and blood, and they can still be so snobbish.

She only felt that she couldn't breathe, looking at the kang table and the various birthday gifts on the ground that had not yet had time to put away, she became more and more dazzling, and she didn't even feel the mood to damage Li's two sentences...... * The front yard, the study.

Cao Hao sent away the palace steward, and asked Wu Sheng to send the gift list and account books over the past few days. It's a thick one, from the princes of the clan to the mansions of other powerful people, there are many people who give gifts.

There are so many people who are polite all of a sudden, and Cao Hao feels a little headache. After all, when it comes to the New Year's festival and when he needs to visit, he has to come forward as a son......

(To be continued)