Chapter 71 (1/2)
Chapter 71: Setting Fire to the Ancestral Hall (Part 1)
Chapter 71: Setting Fire to the Ancestral Hall (Part 2)
Chapter 71: Setting Fire to the Ancestral Hall (Part 3)
Naturally the Eastern courtyard of the General residence was very lively Guests alking around, those giving their birthday congratulations, those giving gifts,the entire ambience before the start of the banquet joyous and harmonious
Old Shen Furen had always put on a generous appearance when she was in front of outsiders, and when the young ladies caift the such a scene, those furens' smiles became more real but Ren Wan Yun clenched her teeth secretly
Ren Wan Yun was in charge of the public funds and had to e all the ant and the amount that she could pocket was e period of ti the elbows
This side was bustling but the other side was not the same In the southwest corner of the Shen residence, the ancestral hall was cold and deserted at the uards An ancestral hall naturally need not require such disposition of forces The reason for this is because these people are responsible forShen Miao so that she would not be able to escape
The ancestral hall was in the chilliest of land and in the year would often not see the sun, moreover it was currently the winter, thus one would feel the cold penetrating one's bones when the wind blew It was filled with a fragrance of incense and the s up in curls,on air
“Young Lady,” Gu Yu rubbed her hands, “Today is Old Furen's birthday celebration but they deliberately locked up Young Lady here This is just too much!”
Not to even talk about letting Shen Miao out, there was not even anyone who cah Shen Miao had done a wrong and the servants atching her
“What is with the anxiety” Shen Miao said while she stood in front of theThere were bare trees outside the hich looked particularly desolate in the winter
“How could Young Lady not be anxious?” Gu Yu had held back for these days and finally could not bear it, “They locked up Young Lady here clearly for a forcedLady would have alreadyfa Lady, Young Lady's entire life would be ruined!”
Jing Zhe had been fiddling with the charcoal brazier on the ground the whole time In the entire cold ancestral hall, there was only this charcoal brazier that was providing so pole in the house, Shen Miao shook her head, “Bring the few blankets in this house and sun them outside for a shi+chen (1 shi+chen = 2 hours)”
“Young Lady!” Gu Yu stomped her feet and was anxious of Shen Miao's nonchalant attitude But when Shen Miao's eyes swept over, she no longer said any her inner feelings, and went out to follow Shen Miao's instructions and sun the quilts
“Today's weather is a rare good one” Shen Miao looked outside theThe sun does not reach the ancestral hall and only shone on the middle of the courtyard She could not leave this ancestral hall courtyard but was also unwilling to walk out of the ancestral hall
“Young Lady said,” Jing Zhe finally stoppedthe charcoal pieces and continued, “Master and Furen will really rush back today?”
Shen Miao told Jing Zhe that there was nothing to worry about because on Old Shen Furen's birthday, Shen Xin and ould return to the Ding capital Even though these words were absurd to say, because there was no one that came to inform that Shen Xin would be in the capital today, and there was still a period of time before the year ends Shen Miao was locked in the ancestral hall every day so hoould she hear such news? But when Jing Zhe faced Shen Miao, she was unable to ask the questions in her heart She found a kind of never seen before bearing fro Lady One point was that her words could unconditionally convince others
Shen Miao said, “In a while, think of a uards outside and make them stay far away from the courtyard They need not directly leave, but just a further aill do”
“This servant understand” Jing Zhe said Even though she did not knohy did Shen Miao arrange it as such, but these past days she has been with Shen Miao in the ancestral all and discovered that Shen Miao did not show panic about the entire scenario For a person to not panic over the current situation, one was that the person was stupid and did not know of the situation, or the second was that they had a strategy to deal with it And Jing Zhe did not think that Shen Miao was stupid So even if Jing Zhe's heart felt worried like Gu Yu, Jing Zhe trusted Shen Miao unconditionally and believed that she was able to deal with the situation on hand
Shen Miao took note of her gaze and gave a slight sigh in her heart
Between her four ent, Bai Lu was theZhe was the eous
At that ti Zhen used her own beauty to become that powerful official's concubine That official lusted over beauty and Jing Zhe also had h at the end she was beaten to death by the Furen, she ed to send the token of authority out before her death and successfully helped Fu Xiu Yi to pull the official over
As a irl So for thiswere not suitable and only Jing Zhe was slightly better But once Jing Zhe knehat Shen Miao planned to do, if she would help, Shen Miao had no clue about it
After all, the things she wanted to do were going to be just too shocking to the world
“In fact,” Jing Zhe tolerated but still softly said, “If Young Lady wants, it is possible to let Mo Qing think of a way to bring Young Lady out”
Mo Qing's skills were above the guards of the General residence Even though it is hard for two fists to go against four hands, it was not impossible to escape with someone
“And then?” Shen Miao answered the question with another question “The skies and earth are big, would peace reign if one escape? The life contracts of you four are in the hands of Old Furen, if I leave, ould happen to you all?”
Jing Zhe suddenly knelt down onto the ground and said, “This servant knows that because of these servants life, Young Lady is then willing to stay here, but if Young Lady fall into adversity because of these servants, then these servants deserve to die ten thousand ti, Master and Furen picked these four servants to stay by Young Lady's side so that these servants would take care of Young Lady How can now be in reverse and be Mistress that is taking care of these servants?”
There was a trace of being emotionally moved that appeared in Shen Miao's eyes Shen Xin indeed kne to pick people These four maids never had a trace of abandonment in her most difficult tioods and in this world, things were sie when there was enive up the personal maids just to win over the hearts of others
“Do not you worry” Shen Miao said, “Nothing will happen to you all and me Today it is Old Furen's birthday celebration, I heard that Second Elder Sister had sewn a Goddess of Mercy painting for Grandotten about me then I would not take a laissez-faire attitude to it” She sift for Old Furen but do not know if she will have the fortune to enjoy it”
Around ten Li (1 Li = 500 frorassland that see a rest
Sitting furthest away froed man, his complexion was bronze in colour,the battlefield but his strength could be seen His stature was like a littlewith big eyes Together with a full beard, in one glance one could tell that he had a forthright character
The fe the head of the horse That woreen short jacket and a pair of gold embroidered pants, and her hair was tied up in a simple bun She had a pair of lively eyes and looked pretty but the thing that attracted others was her air of valiant heroism There was a pair of double silver bracelet around her waist thatsounds as she stroked the horse
“Furen, there is still about one shi+chen (1 shi+chen = 2 hours) before the capital is reached” Theall the ti to the capital”
“How is the Northwest bad?” The worew up in the bitter cold Northwest and if you like sweetness, why did you marry me for?”
That ht, this capital has a trace of sweetness and not suitable for us coarse people The Northwest is better, one can still hunt deep in the mountain in winter, and silver foxes run all around that can be hunted and then given to Furen for a coat”
When the woman heard it, her lips raised to a s an official and speaking bureaucratically!”
These two people were not others but the formidable Grand General Shen Xin and his Furen, Lou Xue Yan Today they returned in a rush in order to participate in Old Shen Furen's birthday celebration Before this, they had not disclose anything to the Ding capital as they had received the surrender letter in advance Mostly likely it was to give the people in the capital a pleasant surprise that they came back this early in triumph
“We have yet to seen Mother's birthday celebration before” Luo Xue Yan said, “In the previous years, it was always after the year ends that we returned and gave Mother the bestowevity presents In a rush to return today, one do not know if this fire rat (T/N: no idea what is it, just take it as a type of huge breed of rat) coat will enter Old Taitai's eyes”
“Why would it not enter Old Taitai's eyes?” Shen Xin heard it and i and even in the battlefield, this is also a treasure With it, you can be invulnerable to knives and spears At the beginning, in order to hunt that fire rat, I kept watch in the iving it to Mother, I will… Give it to you” As his words reached the end, Shen Xin's voice gradually softened Obviously his words were soenial but a human's heart is not a scale, and there were soh Old Shen Furen treated Shen Xin very well, she was after all not his real mother and since there was no blood relationshi+p, Shen Xin naturally dotted his oife more Moreover Luo Xue Yan followed hiht normally and this fire rat cloak was more useful to her than to Old Shen Furen If it was not because of Luo Xue Yan insistence to give it to Old Shen Furen, Shen Xin would have already gave it to Luo Xue Yan
“What do you know” Luo Xue Yan stared at him, “You have h all of the rewards that His Majesty bestowed you were given to Old Taitai, ill really truly know The last time we returned to the capital, I actually heard that people in the capital said that you purposely chose not to be close to Mother I do all this, all for you Even if you do not worry about reputation, Jiaojiao cannot be associated with an unfilial father”
When these words were spoken, Shen Xin was also silent for a long ti capital was not like the Northwest region that was bitter and cold, and did not have traps from the enemies' knives and spears But how can it be considered as truly peaceful Both of them, husband and wife, were not in the capital and the ru
Luo Xue Yan continued saying, “You know that I do not know of all the twisting and tricky around the inner courtyard, as our Luo faulations I can only use the simplest method This fire rat cloak is precious and if it enters Old Taitai's eyes and makes her happy, when everyone sees that, the ru”
After a long while, Shen Xin then said, “It still Furen that thought out well”
“I did not do it for you but for Jiaojiao” Luo Xue Yan snorted and suddenly looked sullen, “Both you and I are h the Northwest region's conditions are brutal and Jiaojiao is still young of age and cannot be brought over But during all these years, we did not personally taught or accompanied her, it is us that let her down”
When Shen Xin heard it, he sighed again and hung his head as a touch of pain flashed in his eyes
There were no heartless parents under the skies, and there were no parents that did not love their children But he and Luo Xue Yan were unable to control their destiny as to fight in the battlefield, but Shen Miao could not follow When two ar the opponents' relatives were common, and then they could only reluctantly and painfully separate fro capital, one did not need to worry about Shen Miao's safety
Luo Xue Yan see, “I often think it was truly safe putting Jiaojiao in the capital Without parents by her side, was she really living happily? When we meet up with her every year, she always treat us coldly, but for whatever reasons it were, it would all be our fault So no matter what she did, we cannot blame her at all”
Shen Miao was not close to Shen Xin and his wife or even Shen Qiu because these so-called family did not accompany her since childhood She was close to Ren Wan Yun and Chen Rou Qiu and even Old Shen Furen, because these people had contact with her all the time and was considered as 'family' in her eyes And Shen Xin and his wife treated their daughter with being subservient to her every wishes, because this was all caused by them
Shen Xin patted Luo Xue Yan's shoulder, “There will always be a day where JiaoJiao will understand our difficulties”
“Will she really understand?” Luo Xue Yan smiled bitterly, “There are some times where I would think that the unruliness of JiaoJiao was actually caused by who else? Shen residence…” She suddenly shut up and glanced at Shen Xin somewhat upset
Shen Xin naturally understood the e in his expression A hed and held his beloved wife's hands, “Furen worry too much Mother and DiMei would teach JiaoJiao well and if is not right JiaoJiao would not be so close with them”
Shen Miao's attitude towards the two ShenShens was so good that it made one jealous As such even if one have some ideas, it became nondescript
“It is me that worry too hter of the Northwestern Luo fah it was a third ranked official, everyone else in the faest little sister and there were three older brothers in front of her, so ever since she was born there were only parents and older brothers in the fae on shae families was little and she did not understand the sinister in it
If she were to know about it, she would definitely be willing to take the risk and keep Shen Miao at her side, and not let Shen Miao stay in that terrible Shen residence
Just as they were speaking, they heard so out, “Father, Mother”
Shen Xin's expression dropped and he angrily said, “When there is someone outside, call me…”
“General Shen!” The onco person quickly said
“Do not be bothered about your father” Luo Xue Yan rolled her eyes at Shen Xin, “Putting on airs”
The onconified look He had a wheat-coloured skin and when he laughed, there were two dimples on his face which added a rare childishness to his face This young man looked quite similar to Luo Xue Yan and was Shen Xin's Di son, Shen Qiu
Shen Qiu enty-two this year and was brought along by Shen Xin when he was ten to experience the battlefield, saying that a strict teacher produces outstanding students Shen Qiu was also brave, after so many years, he had earn a few meritorious deeds and was currently a fourth rank small General
“Father, Mother, your birthday gift is set then what do I give?” Shen Qiu scratched his hand and was in a somewhat loss
“This ift to send A o to the battlefield if one cannot make a small decision like this!” Shen Xin seized the opportunity to criticise his son
“I have not participated in the Grand tiive and cannot report up how many enemies I have killed It is not auspicious for the birthday celebration”
Lou Xue Yan laughed at Shen Qiu's words, “It is alright Previously His Majesty rewarded you with a bolt of fine silk brocade, you should give it to Old Furen I heard that there is a shortage of this kind of fine silk brocade in the Ding capital that even the Ladyshi+ps in the Palace would not have any If Old Taitai gets a blot, she would naturally be happy”
“But that is to give to Younger Sister!” Shen Qiu hurriedly said
“Let the matter drop” Shen Xin waved his hands, “Have you seen your Younger Sister liking such brocade?”
Even though Shen Xin did not know a fehter of his did not liked those elegant old and silver, the h he was helpless, he could only leave it to her as she was happy Even though the fine silk brocade was beautiful, Shen Miao would not necessarily appreciate it
Shen Qiu heard it and felt that his Father made sense so he bowed his head and squatted down before saying softly, “This tiift for Younger Sister Thinking about it uilty”
In fact Shen Qiu's and Shen Miao's relationshi+p in the past was very good, and both sister and brother supported each other and life was considered blissful However, Shen Qiu started following Shen Xin to the battlefield every year and then only saw Shen Miao once a year Afterwards, Shen Miao's te year and both brother and sister aled any words No er Sister, Shen Miao would only give him a lukewarm attitude
Shen Qiu did not know of the reason but Shen Miao knew In fact it was Shen Yue and Shen Qing and also Gui Momo that circuitous attacked and re by their side, and it was obvious that they valued males and belittled females Sons could carry on the ancestral line so they were valued, whereas daughters were not valued asand was easily swayed by a feords, and when she saw this elder brother, she naturally felt that he had stolen all of her parents' love and felt hateful towards hi to be close with him
“Never mind” Shen Xin patted the dust of his body and stood up, “Call all those brothers up and continue the journey back Must return to the Ding capital in one shi+chen (1 shi+chen = 2 hours)!”
As time passes, the birthday banquet in the Shen residence was about to start The various Furens and young ladies were seated and there were ten full tables of the as such to an event, all the officials' Furens with a little rank had all come Of course, all the people who came to this banquet were not because of Old Shen Furen's face but because of Shen family's Shen Xin's reputation Even so, this birthday celebration banquet was bustling, just like previous years
Shen Yue wore a hundred pleated Ruyi moon dress (T/N: no idea what is it) and the white entle She was already adorable and attractive but with today's specific dressing, there was a sche and Shen Miao had someone to hts on Shen Yue and naturally thought about the benefit of having this Second Young Lady of the Third household in the Shen residence married into their residence
The ifts were all at the other side, accompanied by Shen Gui and Shen WanThose two of course would not give up this opportunity to win over their hearts and in no ti around
Master Su held a cup of wine but he was in soood relations with the Marquis of Lin An residence and the Shen and Xie fa one another but the Shen faood person and since others had sent an invitation, there was no reason to refuse so he thickened his skin to participate But his heart was so sick in bed' eldest son At least he need not watch these bunch of wily old foxes harbouring ulteriorone another