In the afternoon of the next day, Yang Yuanba was reading a book in the room, and there was a knock at the door of the courtyard, and he put down the book and walked to the courtyard.

"Who?"

"It's me, Childe!"

The voice was a little unfamiliar, Yang Yuanba opened the door, and the person who knocked on the door was Aunt Zhang, the housekeeper in the inner courtyard of the Yang Mansion, so she asked with a smile: "Aunt Zhang, what's wrong?"

Aunt Zhang is more than fifty years old, has served the Yang Mansion for more than 30 years, has been in charge of the inner courtyard, and has not dealt much with Yang Yuanba, she beckoned to Yang Yuanba and smiled: "You come back with me, the master is looking for you in a hurry." ”

Yang Yuanba was stunned, "Is my grandfather back?"

"It's not too old, it's a master.

Only then did Yang Yuanba understand that it was his father who was looking for him, and in the Yang Mansion, the old family also called Yang Chudao the master, and often confused Yang Chudao with Yang Yinglong.

Yang Yuanqing had already talked to his father Yang Xuangan the day before yesterday, it was the first time that their father and son met in five years, the atmosphere was relatively friendly, and Yang Yuanqing also maintained the respect he deserved for his father.

Since his father was in a hurry to find him, he didn't ask much, followed Zhang Gui back to Yang's Mansion, and came to the back house, Yang Xuangan's usual living yard, which was also the small courtyard when Yang Yuanqing first entered Yang's Mansion twelve years ago.

After waiting in the courtyard for a while, a maid came out of the room and said with a smile: "Master Yuanba, the lord invites you in." ”

The room is no different from twelve years ago, except that things are different from people, in addition to his father Yang Yinglong, his mother Zheng is also sitting on the couch.

Yang Yinglong is forty-two years old this year, his temples have been slightly white, but he is still in good spirits, his waist is also straight, and his slender cheeks have a somewhat kind smile, he is very satisfied with the son of Yuanba, and he is only fifteen years old and relied on his military merits to be named a viscount, this is the third person with a knighthood in Yang Mansion in addition to his father, uncle and himself, and he does not even have a few brothers, which gives him a long face.

However, Yang Yinglong still had a little bit of happiness in his heart, that is, the day before yesterday, his son didn't kneel when he saw him, although the relationship was harmonious, but Yuanba also showed enough respect for himself, but the small detail of not kneeling still exposed the deep estrangement between their father and son.

Yang Yinglong was helpless, he also knew that the results of more than ten years of indifference could not be changed overnight, in fact, Yang Yuanba had already behaved beyond his expectations.

Yuan Ba stepped forward and gave a deep salute, "See Father!"

He saluted Mrs. Zheng again." See Mother!"

Mrs. Zheng has not changed much, her high combed sideburns, her hair is covered with pearls, the thick fat powder on her face hides the traces of time, her appearance cannot see her true appearance, her cheekbones are high, her lips are very thin, and the natural meanness in her bones is still difficult to change, although she is already a grandmother.

For Yang Yinglong, Yuanba is his son, this is the bloodline that cannot be changed, he still has a father-son affection for Yang Yuanba in his heart, and he will be happy because of Yang Yuanba's achievements.

But Mrs. Zheng is different, Yuanba is not her child, the child born to her husband and another woman is her opponent by nature, her enemy, although she has not seen Yuanba for five years, but at this time, Mrs. Zheng's eyes still can't hide the jealousy in her heart, Yuanba was a child, she was jealous that Yuanba was taller than her two sons, and later she was jealous of her father Yang Chudao's partiality towards Yuanba, and now she is still jealous.

Her eldest son is only from the Shangdang County Order of the Sixth Grade, and he does not have any title, although the second son Rong got the position of Qi Wang Cangcao to join the army yesterday, but Yang Yuanba is already a Fourth Rank Officer Viscount of Flying Fox County, which makes her happy in her heart, how can she be comfortable.

However, Mrs. Zheng will no longer be as arrogant and fierce as she first saw Yuanba more than ten years ago, she gave her husband a little face, and her husband has repeatedly told her these days not to have any more conflicts with Yuanba, and Yang Yuanba is also respectful to her, so she said lightly: "You're welcome, please excuse me!"

Yang Yinglong saw that his wife's attitude towards Yuanba was like hospitality, and he actually added a 'please, word, he was helpless, his wife had shown her jealousy of Yuanba in his ears more than once, she now has this attitude, and she is already very face-saving.

"Yuanba, the reason why I am in a hurry to get you back is that there is a more important matter. ”

Yang Yinglong glanced at his wife again and said: "Your uncle spent his birthday in Xingyang last month, but we were late in the news, and we didn't send the birthday gift in time, which was a bit rude. ”

Yang Yuanba thought that something big had happened, but it turned out that he was just asking him to give gifts, and he was also a little strange in his heart, obviously his second brother Yang Rong was in Beijing, and he met him yesterday, how could his father say that he was not in the capital? Could it be that he left Beijing early in the morning? It shouldn't be!

Although it was strange in his heart, Yang Yuanba didn't say anything, he saluted, "The child is willing to go!"

Yang Yuanba's affection for the Yang family has always been very weak, he joined the army five years ago, to a certain extent, to escape from the Yang family, although he lived in the Yang Mansion at this time, but he had no contact with the Yang family, and he went out early and returned late every day.

However, Yang Yuanba's mentality has gradually matured, he knows that Yang Yinglong is his father no matter what, and he no longer has any feelings for his father, but he can't violate the basic social norms, and he has always maintained a respectful and distant attitude towards Yang Yinglong.

He did a good job of some necessary gifts, such as Yang Yinglong asked him to give gifts, although he didn't want to go, he still agreed, such an inconsequential little thing, he didn't need to sweep his father's face.

Yang Yuanba bowed, exited his father's room, and waited for him to go away, before Mrs. Zheng said coldly to her husband: "Blind date is blind date, why do you still find an excuse to give gifts, is my Xingyang Zheng family with five surnames and seven families, and not worthy of a concubine of Yang Mansion?"

Yang Yinglong hurriedly laughed and said: "This is actually what my father meant, to match Yuanba with a wife of a famous family, but you also know his temper, if it is a blind date, he will definitely not go." ”

"What does it matter to me whether he goes or not?

Mrs. Zheng's willow eyebrows rose, and the fire of jealousy in her heart began to burn, "I'll tell you, it's only this time, I look at your face, there will be no next time, no!"

Mrs. Zheng snorted heavily, stood up and rushed out of the door angrily, Yang Yinglong looked at his wife's back, he smiled helplessly, his wife is a big mountain between him and Yuanba, hindering the father-son relationship between them, I am afraid that it will disappoint my father.

Xingyang Zheng originated from the descendants of Zheng Guo in the Spring and Autumn Period, and has been a famous family in the Central Plains for hundreds of years, Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Qi Dynasty re-established the Shi clan after the Wuhu Rebellion, and the Xingyang Zheng family and Fanyang Lu, Qinghe Cui, Taiyuan Wang, Zhao Jun and Longxi Li were listed as the top five surnames in the Han people, and became the most prominent family in the Northern Wei Dynasty together with the eight surnames of Tuoba.

Soon after the founding of Tianwu, Shangzhu Guo and Peiguo Gong Zheng Yi became the representative of the Zheng family in Xingyang, he was extremely glorious in the court, and Yang Chudao father and son also married the daughter of the Zheng family as his wife, but in the eleventh year of Jianyuan, Zheng Yi was convicted of losing his official position, and soon died of illness, and the aura of the Zheng family gradually began to dim.

The Zheng family's mansion is located in Anyefang, is a mansion covering an area of 30 acres, Zheng Yi's sons live here, the eldest son Zheng Shanyuan was named the Duke of Guichang, and the second son Zheng Yuancong was named the baron of Yongan County, but Zheng Yi's Duke of Peiguo was inherited by his third son Zheng Yuan, and Yang Yinglong's wife Zheng is Zheng Yi's youngest daughter.

In the afternoon, Yang Yuanba appeared outside the gate of Zheng Mansion with a vermilion lacquered sandalwood box, he had no good impression of the Zheng family, and did not deliberately change into bright clothes, still wearing the blue cloth in the morning, wearing a flat scarf, wearing a pair of half-used black leather boots, the clothes looked very shabby, this is not Yang Yuanba deliberately so, he grew up wearing a half-old blue cloth since he was a child, and he is not used to clothes such as brocade robes and golden crowns.

Yang Yuanba didn't want to enter the Zheng Mansion at all, so after the Zheng Mansion housekeeper came out, he handed over the gift to the housekeeper and left, and after waiting for a long time, the Zheng Mansion housekeeper came out and bowed his hand to Yang Yuanba, "Yang Gongzi, please enter the Reading Pavilion!"

Yang Yuanba handed him the wooden box, "I won't go in, this is the birthday gift of the Yang Mansion to your eldest master, there is a letter in it, please convey it." ”

"This ....."

The housekeeper's face was a little weird, he scratched the back of his head and smiled: "I can't give this on my behalf, Yang Gongzi is also invited into the Reading Pavilion!"

After all, Yang Yuanba is a child of the Yang family, and he also knows that he is coming on behalf of his father, and it would be a bit rude not to enter the Zheng Mansion, but when he stepped into the door of the Zheng Mansion, he thought of Mrs. Zheng's high cheekbones and thin lips, thinking of her being mean to himself since she was a child, hating Wu Jiwu, and he also hated this Zheng Mansion.

Yang Yuanba followed the housekeeper all the way to the middle hall, passing through the front yard, a few chrysanthemums were planted in the yard, it was the beginning of September, a few yellow chrysanthemums had been competing to open, a middle-aged man in a white robe was standing in front of a chrysanthemum with his back hand to admire.

"Second master!"

The housekeeper respectfully saluted the middle-aged man, the middle-aged man is Zheng Yuancong, the second master of the Zheng Mansion, he compiled books in the History Museum, and was knighted as a baron of Yongan County, with a polite appearance, handsome appearance, and a long beard on his chin, Zheng Yuancong nodded, glanced at Yang Yuanba, and said with a smile: "This little brother is ......"

"This is the son of Yang Zhuguo, the son of Hongluqing, Yuanba, who gave a birthday gift to the eldest master. ”

Mrs. Zheng is Zheng Yuancong's sister, Yang Yinglong is his brother-in-law, Zheng Yuancong has also heard of Yang Yuanba's name, and knows that he has military merits, but most of the Zheng family are literati, and now the world is peaceful, and there is no interest in this kind of martial arts, so I don't know much about Yang Yuanba.

Zheng Yuancong squinted at Yang Yuanba for a long time, the smile on his face faded slightly, and he said lukewarmly: "It turned out to be Yang Xian's nephew, who has been admired for a long time."

Yang Yuanba felt the coldness in his eyes, which made him unhappy, so he arched his hand, "I'm disturbing Uncle Shi's flower appreciation." ”

Zheng Yuancong looked at his back and shook his head, "Rude junior, I actually wore a cloth robe into Zheng's mansion." ”