Taming the Husband Tactics Upgrade

  No longer caring about the presence of his brother, Li Xuantong freed one hand and pulled her into his arms, kissing the hair by her temple, softly saying: "With a wife as delicate and lovely as you, I also cannot fall behind. I promise to you, I will fulfill my responsibilities as the head of the household and as your husband, absolutely not letting you suffer any grievances."

  As if relying on him, she nodded gently, "Mm, I believe you." The man's shoulders were broad and his arms were sturdy, she buried her head in the nape of his neck, after a while, she lifted her head again, looked straight into his eyes, and said softly: "Just now at Huanxiangyuan, you let me handle everything, I'm very happy."

  Li Xiu raised an eyebrow, with a hint of mockery in her smile: "In the maternal home, she had always been coldly observing from the sidelines, and for years, Zhang Yiniang and the madam had been openly and secretly fighting. Most of the time, it was clearly Zhang Yiniang's fault, and everyone could see that. But the madam didn't dare to punish her. At first, she thought the madam was just too kind-hearted and weak-willed. But now, thinking back, she suddenly realized that the reason the madam didn't dare to take drastic measures was because Father hadn't given her the authority to do so."

  Mrs. Li can't fight against Zhang's wife, it's not that her level of house fighting is low, but the men don't support her and instead maintain Zhang's wife.

  Thinking of this, Yu Rou raised her head and said sincerely to Li Xue: "That day, the original imperial concubine deliberately disrespected me when she came to pay her respects, I scolded her. Watching her complain to you, I was nervous, afraid that you would lose face in front of everyone and defend her words. But you didn't. At that time, I thought that Second Brother's evaluation of you was really objective."

  Li Xiu's face was pale, but if one looked closely, they could see that the man's eyebrows, eyes, and mouth corners were all emitting a faint, inexplicable smile. When he heard the last sentence, his smile suddenly froze, but he pretended to be nonchalant and asked: "Oh, how much bad stuff did that guy say about me in front of you again?"

  As if covering her mouth, she chuckled and finally stopped laughing. She got up, walked back and forth in front of the bed a few times, then turned around to face Li Xuan with a serious expression, imitating Zhiyi's tone, with a straight face and hands behind her back. "Li Xuan, although he is arrogant, should still be a good husband. At least he can distinguish right from wrong and has the basic responsibility of being a man." In fact, Zhiyi had also criticized him a lot, saying things like, "This guy loves to visit brothels on ordinary days, drinking flower wine, which is not elegant. You must restrain him more and don't let him take advantage of being a prince."

  "Again, this person has a violent temper, you'd better not mess with him, it's not good for you. Rather than fighting fire with fire, why not use your usual tactics to deal with your brother and turn his hardness into softness?"

  Zhi Yi was indeed the best elder brother in the world, and before she got married, he also taught her many tricks to deal with Li Xiao. In short, for a man like Li Xiao, you can't fight him head-on, you can only coax him, coax him until his heart is filled with joy, and even the moon in the sky would be plucked down for him.

  Li Xiao raised an eyebrow, seemingly disbelieving, "He actually evaluates me like this?"

  Ruqin nodded heavily, Li Xue curled her lip and said disdainfully: "You two siblings are really slippery, each of you is trying to flatter me."

  Although his tone was disdainful and his face showed disapproval, his eyebrows were exceptionally relaxed, and he smiled secretly, covering his mouth, "The king can only say that he is right for half of it. Second brother indeed praised you, but also spoke ill of you."

  Li Xiao's face turned black, and he hesitated: "What else did he say bad about me?"

  Yu Qing sold a pass, no matter how Li Xiao asked, she refused to say. Li Xiao said with a hum: "One by one, like a gourd with a cut mouth. Got it, indeed, having an elder brother means having an elder sister."

  Ru Qing sincerely flattered: "Yes, Wang Ye, your vision is really good." He chose the second brother as a friend and chose her as his wife.

  Li Xiu was stunned for a moment before he realized he had been teased, and couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time. Finally, with a self-satisfied and mischievous smile, he shook his head and said, "Little slippery head, don't be too happy too early, just wait and see how I'll deal with you later."

  Then he glanced at Ruo Xin's chest with a hint of color.

  Her pretty face flushed uncontrollably, her eyes wide with anger and her lips pouting, she turned her head away, huffing: "The prince just loves to bully people."

  The girl's delicate face was tinged with a thin layer of rouge, and she added three points of resentment and seven points of charm. Her big eyes sparkled with a hazy glow, making Li Xiao feel itchy in his heart. He wished he could grab her and bully her fiercely, but unfortunately, he had to hold back because of the Meng brother in his arms. In the end, he could only lick his dry lips and say viciously: "Wait and see how I'll deal with you later."

  Her face suddenly turned red as she thought of his overbearing and fiery lips and tongue, as well as his large palms that didn't know the meaning of gentleness. She muttered under her breath: "You're not even being decent in front of a child."

  Li Xiu bowed his head and gently patted the cheek of Meng Ge, softening his voice, "Meng Ge is well-behaved, Father King needs to rest, can you sleep by yourself?"

  Meng Ge's face showed a reluctance to part, but he still loosened his grip on Li Xiao's front.

  As I think about this child losing his mother at a young age, and being intentionally hurt by the original concubine as a pawn every day, while Li Xiao is not around to take care of him for years on end. It's pitiful to think about it. Xue's son, Shun Gege, although also separated from his mother since childhood, has been raised by Yu Shi. Yu Shi wouldn't be a cruel stepmother, and Zhi Yi is a responsible father. Everything, from food and clothing to daily necessities, is no different from Yuan Gege's. In comparison, Meng Gege is even more pitiful.

  Although she had never been a mother, she was not heartless and couldn't ignore the poor child.

  She smiled playfully at the puzzled eyes of Meng Ge, which made him also smile shyly. With a happy heart, she stretched out her hand to gently pinch his cheek, "Meng Ge is well-behaved, Father is tired and will go down to rest first. I'll come see you again tomorrow, okay?"

  "Meng Ge's eyes flashed with a glimmer of hope, 'Really, really?'"

  "Ah, of course it's true, the queen mother guarantees it." Then she secretly pinched Li Xue and said, "Tomorrow your father the king will take you out to play, okay?"

  Meng Ge's eyes lit up, and he looked at Li Xiao with a timid yet expectant gaze. Li Xiao hesitated for a moment before saying, "Go to sleep, tomorrow Father will take you out to play again, along with Mother."

  A face that looked exactly like Li Xiao's suddenly radiated light, and Meng Ge'er nodded vigorously with a delighted smile, as if his heart had also softened. He gently patted the little face a few times and said softly, "Alright, Mother Empress and Father Emperor have gone to rest for now, we'll come back tomorrow to take you out to play, go to sleep early, hmm."

  Although the child is weak and thin, he looks quite like Li Xiao, with sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes. She thought that as long as Li Xiao was good to her, she would not hesitate to give this child maternal love and care.

  Coming out of Meng Ge's place, Li Xiong put his arm around Ruoxi, whose shoulders were slender but had a nice texture. She also had a subtle warmth and fragrance on her body that was very captivating, especially the faint scent of jasmine in her hair, which was a scent he had always been fond of.

  On the way back to the main house, Li Xī suppressed the urge in his heart and asked: "How will you deal with the servants of Huanxiangyuan?"

  Yu Qing said: "I've already let Yuan Fu come home and take care of it with He's mother. The ringleader was sent to the farm to do hard labor, and the rest of the accomplices were all driven out."

  Li Xumi raised an eyebrow, "Just being punished with hard labor? That's too light a sentence."

  "What does Prince Nai mean?"

  After entering the main house, both husband and wife took off their cloaks and handed them over to the servants beside them. Then they went back to their bedrooms, where their respective servants were waiting to help them change into comfortable clothes.

  Li Xiao spread his hands, and Ren Yurong helped him take off the long gown with intricate patterns of Shu brocade. His sword-like eyebrows furrowed, "You're too soft-hearted. Such a stubborn slave should be taken out and beaten to death as an offering to Yu."

  Ru Qing raised an eyebrow, "After all, we should consider the atmosphere of the New Year. Moreover, although these people are hateful, there are also innocent people who have been implicated, if King Wang really does things this way, I will not be able to bear it." Ru Qing had already changed into a light and comfortable silk dress, the soft fabric clinging warmly to her body, making her feel particularly relaxed and at ease. She sat in front of the crystal mirror, letting Ruan Ling take off the pearl decorations on her head and hands, and put them away in a purple sandalwood box with a copper buckle.

  Linglong took the sandalwood comb inlaid with jade and combed her hair straight, after everything was ready, she got into bed. Li Xiu also went to bed afterwards. Linglong put down the bed curtain, arranged the warm pot, tea pot and other things on the bedside table, then entered the curtain again. Yu Rong covered all the night pearls on the desk and beam with lids before retreating.

  After the room fell silent, Li Xun hastily stretched out his hand from inside his clothes and said, "Your Highness, there's one more thing..."

  Li Xiao turned over, pressed Ruo Qing under his body, and kissed her face urgently with a heavy breathing. His hands didn't idle either, starting to strip off her clothes. A man who had been through many battles had his own advantages - the buttons on Ruo Qing's clothes, the silk ribbon at the back of her neck, were all easily undone by Li Xiao in three or two moves, without even causing a slight pain to Ruo Qing. Her clothes came off lightly and effortlessly.

  The spring in the red curtains is as gentle as a poem and as fierce as a flood.

  ……

  It wasn't until late at night that they finally calmed down. Li Xiang reached out and took the wet towel from the basin on the side of the kang, which had a heat-transferring function due to the heated floor and the steel basin. The water in the basin didn't feel icy cold, but rather slightly warm. He wrung it out and handed it to Ruoxi to wipe her body with. After they both hastily cleaned up, he tossed the towel back into the basin. Just as he was about to lie down, he saw Ruoxi open her eyes, which sparkled with a flirtatious glint, and say in a soft voice: "I want some water."

  Li Xiu picked up the thermos on the table and poured a cup of water, handing it to Ru Qing. Seeing that Ru Qing was still lying motionless, he couldn't help but smile and say: "Do I need to feed you personally?"

  Like a lovesick person, she hastily got up, took the cup and gulped it down, then handed the cup to him, "I want another drink."

  Li Xiu took the thermos again, filled it herself, and this time only drank a small half before handing the cup to him. Suddenly remembering her mother-in-law's teachings on etiquette for women, she smiled obsequiously and said: "Thank you, Your Highness."

  Li Xue took the cup she had drunk from and put it on the table, then pushed her back onto the bed, pulling off the clothes she was about to wear. "Don't get dressed, this is better." Warm jade fragrance, icy skin and jade bones, hugging felt especially comfortable. More comfortable than hugging the big down pillow her mother had made for her when she was a child.

  As if struggling slightly, but in the end was held even tighter, and finally gave up, so be it.

  Li Xing was excited for half the night, although he was extremely tired, but his mind was still clear, and he asked again: "Didn't you want to say something to me just now?"

  After a tiring day and some exercise, Zhen was already exhausted, but upon hearing this, she immediately regained her energy and said: "Even the wet nurse of our Alliance Master also played a role in stirring up trouble." Zhen's words were somewhat hesitant, but fortunately it was nighttime and men couldn't see her expression clearly. "The confession has been written and signed with a seal. Although Yu Niang didn't participate, she can be considered a gossipmonger. Tomorrow I'll scold her severely and then have her confined for several months, and make her copy the 'Admonitions for Women' ten times. Does Your Excellency think this is an appropriate way to deal with it?"

  Li Xuan said carelessly, "So that's all there is to it. You're the mistress, handle it yourself. Consort Yu, you may be cunning, but you handled it well. However, I think just grounding her is too light." Li Xuan opened his eyes and thought about how in previous years, Lu Niangniang from his father's household was also very cunning and had almost schemed against him. Thinking of the harsh punishment his mother had given her, he coldly said, "Just grounding her is too easy on her. She should be sent to the Zhuangzi to be locked up for ten or eight years."

  Ru Qing said, "After all, she is just a concubine and also the distant niece of the Empress Dowager. We can't bear to look at her face, but we have to consider the Empress Dowager's feelings. Being confined in Huanxiang Hall and having her monthly allowance confiscated is already a punishment for her." Moreover, being confined and fined, and the servants in Huanxiang Hall being driven away by her, she had no money to spend and no one to order around, she was so frustrated that she couldn't even jump up.

  ……

  On the second day, when Ruoxi went to pay her respects to Empress Dowager, she briefly mentioned the original side consort's affair. The empress dowager's expression was not good-looking, and her tone was furious: "I had suspected her before and even scolded her, but I didn't expect that she still wouldn't change her ways. Poor A'ge (fourth brother) is innocent and suffered such a crime. It's really despicable." Finally, she asked Ruoxi, "You are the mistress, how should you deal with this?"

  Ru Jing replied respectfully: "Although Yu Ce Fei is hateful, after all, she is still the king's concubine. Moreover, with the New Year approaching soon, it's likely that Yu Ce Fei's family will come to visit her. If things are done too extremely, and word gets out, it would be inappropriate. Therefore, I have decided to let her be confined for a year and forfeit half of her monthly allowance for six months. Does the empress dowager think this is reasonable?"

  The Empress Dowager thought for a moment, "You are the mistress, you handle it yourself." This daughter-in-law's performance was indeed quite satisfactory. So, she also tried her best to maintain her. Moreover, the original imperial concubine's punishment was not light, nor was it heavy, just right.

  As soon as he saw that Empress Dowager Cixi did not object, he felt relieved and continued to discuss with her the matter of distributing silver awards.

  The princess smiled and said, "I heard that you managed the household for your brother in Datong. I suppose this small matter won't be difficult for you. In recent years, there have been many trivial matters in the mansion, and I've been a bit neglectful of teaching the servants. I estimate that some deceitful slaves have emerged. I originally wanted to clean up, but Xiong'er has always made me worried, so it's been delayed. Now that you're here, it's just right for you to try your hand." Then she looked at Ruqing with a loving gaze, "I heard from Yuan Fugui that you've been observing the various behaviors of the servants these past two days. I suppose you have some ideas already."

  With a lowered head, she smiled awkwardly and said, "I'm afraid I've made Mother Concubine laugh. As a new daughter-in-law who is young and inexperienced, how can I possibly deal with these old-timers? So for now, I'll just have to observe the character of these servants before making any plans."

  The empress nodded in approval, "You're doing a good job. Managing the servants requires balance, not being too strict or too lenient. You need to find the right measure yourself. Alright, there's a lot to do for the New Year, you go ahead and attend to it first, if you have any questions, come ask me later."

  With the support of Tai Fei, she became more confident and determined. After Li Xiu's guidance, she stood up even straighter.

  Li Xiao, this guy, three sentences can't leave the tone of a rogue, "Anyway, with the contract in hand, what's there to fear? If someone really doesn't listen, just tie them up or beat them or demote them, it's all up to you."

  It's true what you say, but the fact is that all these slaves have their own masters behind them. Moreover, they are also intertwined with each other. The adopted son of the buyer married the daughter of the gatekeeper, and the daughter of the manager was married to the son of the farm manager. If one of them is touched, it will affect several managers. If several managers make trouble at the same time, it's not easy to handle.

  Li Xue still didn't think much of it, "No matter how powerful they are, can they surpass the guards of the Wang Mansion? If there's really someone who dares to challenge them, just bring some imperial guards to suppress them." Then he made a slashing motion with his hand.

  As sentimental as it is, there's also a sense of openness and clarity.

  That afternoon, Emperor Xianzong summoned all the officials of the imperial palace in the side hall of Chao Yue Hall and distributed New Year's silver coins to them according to their ranks. The highest amount was given to Hong Da Cheng, the chief manager of the front court, who received a total of 20 taels of silver.

  Holding two snow-white silver threads, Hong Dacheng was quite unaccustomed to it, and he looked at Ruoqing with a mixture of surprise and delight. Of course, he couldn't see Ruoqing's face either, because Ruoqing was sitting leisurely in a large armchair, with a smoke-gray light screen in front of her, through which she could clearly see the people outside, but those outside couldn't see inside.

  "His Highness said that you have been in the position of General Manager for over 10 years, handling matters with ease and treating people with courtesy, making His Highness feel at ease. Your abilities are evident to all. Therefore, this reward is well-deserved. However, although you are capable of managing affairs, you failed to manage your own household properly, resulting in a daughter who is ignorant of her place. Hence, His Highness has specifically instructed me to deduct 10 taels of silver from the original 30 taels as a punishment. Do you accept this, General Manager Hong?"

  Chen Xiang couldn't help but glance at Ru Qing, thinking to himself, whenever the king and queen spoke, she was always by their side serving them, yet he had never heard such a sentence before?

  Hong Zongguan knelt down, his tone terrified: "I was wrong to teach my daughter improperly, which led to her offending and disrespecting the princess. It's all my fault, a thousand times over. The princess has already shown great mercy in sparing my daughter, it's an extraordinary kindness. Now that the princess is rewarding me despite past grievances, I am not worthy of such grace."

  Ru Jing carefully observed him and saw that he did not have any deceitful intentions, so she smiled and spoke a few words of encouragement. The other servants also received their New Year's money according to their merits, and those who received more were all grateful and respectful. Ru Jing, as usual, exhorted them with a few words: "You've been doing very well lately, you must continue to work hard, and in the future, Her Majesty and the Prince will surely reward you heavily."

  Those who were timid and dared not speak out in anger, would be summoned by Yuan Fu to read out their past mistakes from the ledger. Upon hearing that they had already been remembered by their master, they felt a sense of emptiness in their hearts and did not dare to argue, instead kneeling down to admit their mistakes and accept punishment.

  There are also those who argue, and they are given a good scolding. If they humbly accept their mistakes, they are kindly advised with gentle words.

  Those who were slightly bolder dared to confront Yu Ru, who was not polite in his questioning. He ordered Yuan Fu to come and point out all the mistakes he had made, then severely scolded him, and finally managed things properly. After all, he was a slave, and seeing Yu Ru's severe expression, he was also terribly frightened, and hastily knelt down to beg for forgiveness, promising not to dare offend again in the future.

  Encountering some big-hearted, self-proclaimed powerful individuals, he pointed out their mistakes and scolded: "…Let bygones be bygones, but if you dare to deceive me again with your good temper, I'll make sure to deal with you. Although I won't hold the past against you, if I catch you again next time, don't blame me for being ruthless."

  Of course, there were also those who were intimidated and those who didn't think much of it, like the emotions that didn't take it seriously, only letting Chen Xiang and others secretly remember these old tricks, which would become the main objects of severe punishment in the future.

  After distributing all the silver awards, I observed the emotions of the people below, either joyful or angry, and gave a "work summary" after another round of training. Then he said: "I know you are old people in the mansion, some of whom are even more dignified than me. But I'll say something ugly, the rules and regulations have been distributed, it's best to follow them. If you think I'm not worthy of being your princess, then I won't be able to use it."

  The people below were shocked, the new queen was young and of low status, after all she was the queen, their mistress, and they couldn't afford to bully her.

  As the maidservants around her saw that this group of people in charge had finally become obedient and straightened their waists, they distributed the rules and regulations written by the servant, as well as the details of rewards and punishments. There were also those who couldn't read, so they loudly recited them in public, letting them carefully memorize them.

  Most of these servants are illiterate, but all of these maids can read and write, and when they speak, they make sense, and involuntarily give rise to a feeling of reverence, so who dares to be presumptuous.

  After the red envelopes were distributed, they would meet with the managers of various villages. As if enduring a brain about to explode, they took out last year's account books for comparison and found many problems. However, they didn't say anything, just smiled and said to Hao, the manager of Tian Village: "You're really having a tough time, the weather is bad and you can't harvest crops, it's not your fault. Maybe it's because everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. Perhaps Hao is only suitable for writing good articles and poetry, but these lowly tasks are not suitable for his identity as a scholar. Let's just let him step down from management duties and have Liao, the deputy manager, take over temporarily. I heard that Liao's family has been farming for generations and is very familiar with labor, so even if the weather is bad next year, they won't have such poor harvests. As for He, I'll find a suitable job for him later."

  He heard the sound of crickets, and his face turned pale with sweat as he knelt down to beg for mercy. Just as he was about to speak, he felt his heart leap into his throat, but before he could cry out in protest, he was dragged away by the guards standing on either side.

  With a cold face, another clear drink: "Take people to the villa, and search for all the gains of this person's corruption. If it exceeds 1,000 two, directly send them to the field house to do hard labor. His family members, children, relatives will never be reused again." The manager of the villa is indeed a good life, with some mixed well, taking concubines, and letting servants serve is also a common thing, every year, a small amount of corruption, a little bit of land, can live a rich life, if encountered lazy or uncommunicative master, never go to check accounts for years, will also raise big ambitions, living like a local emperor is not excessive.

  The king's concubine managed the household chores quite well, and the accounts of each estate in the palace were still clear. However, there were some small problems here and there. As a newcomer, it was not easy to pick on minor faults to establish authority. After much deliberation, she could only target Hao, who had read a few books and put on airs as a scholar, looking down on manual labor as inferior work.

  The fate of He Guanshi immediately intimidated other officials, and the subsequent officials who came in were all trembling with fear when reporting on the harvest situation.

  As she flipped through the new ledger, she raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why doesn't it match the numbers in the account book?"

  These servants all smiled and said: "It was just a momentary confusion, a moment of urgency, and the draft accounts from previous years were brought out. Your Highness, the accounts in your hands are not accurate, and I will make a new one for you later."

  Ru Qing said, "Alright, go back and calculate the accounts carefully before bringing them over. However, I don't hope that the numbers on the account book are too far off from the actual income and expenses." At least the account book says there are 800 black-boned chickens, so there must be 800 finished chicken products.

  The manager nodded repeatedly and said, "Because of the large quantity, one trip has not been transported yet. When I go back this time, I will transport the second batch, and also bring the account book."

  It's clear that this scoundrel only transported 700 chickens, trying to embezzle the rest. Now, intimidated by my methods, he can only hand everything over. He even claimed that the goods weren't fully transported and the account book was incorrect. I knew what was going on in his heart, but didn't expose him, instead saying calmly: "I know it's hard for you to manage such a large estate. Everyone has families to support, sons need to find wives, daughters need dowries, and the monthly allowance is hardly enough. So, trying to make some extra money on the side is only human."

  That official's forehead was sweating, and he hastily said "dare not" and the like. He added: "However, as long as one's heart is not too thick, Her Majesty the Queen and His Highness the King will not pursue it further. But if there are too many insects in the pillar, that would be bad. Ruining good wood is nothing, but if it were to be used as a beam, it would stir up even greater trouble."

  These officials repeatedly nodded and expressed their firm refusal to be pillars of insects, telling the princess to rest assured.

  The village of He Shangzi brought New Year's gifts, including sturgeon, various fish, live chickens, ducks and geese, wind-dried chickens, ducks and geese, wild chickens and cats, smoked chickens and ducks, bear paws, deer tendons, sea cucumbers, deer tongues, cow tongues, dried clams, large deer, roe deer, musk deer, wild boars, home-cured pigs, wild goats, green goats, and soup goats. Although the number of items was not large, with only a few or dozens of each, the sheer variety of rare animals on display left one stunned. It seemed that this was indeed a wealthy household where food was plentiful. In comparison, the Jing Wang Fu, under the management of the Tai Fei, was relatively simple in all aspects, including the use of silver and money. However, in Rong Jin's eyes, even this was considered luxurious, not to mention the scenes in other royal households. It truly was a case of "the meat in the vermilion gates stinks, while bones freeze on the roads".

  After a bout of depression, she regained her spirit and carefully went over the accounts again. As she flipped through them, she suddenly realized that every year, the village of Heishanzi would send twenty pairs of bear paws. So why did Li Xiao still scrape away at her poor bear paws back then?

  ……

  Finally intimidated these arrogant stewards, as if seeing the good and collecting it, also ordered people to reward the New Year's money according to their contributions, after all the stewards left, the sky had already darkened.

  As if stretching one's waist, the day just passed like this, feeling quite fast.

  Back at Longxianju, Li Xiu was taking a bath, and Meng Ge was sitting in the dining hall playing happily. Suddenly seeing Ruoxi, he looked at her shyly.

  With a gentle smile, she beckoned him over, "Niangzi, come here, tell Mother that you had a great time today?"

  Meng Ge was dizzy from the scent of roses, so Qing specially asked Li Xiao to take him out for a day of fun, and also to accompany his foster father-son relationship. It can be seen that the effect is still not bad, Meng Ge's spirit is much better than this morning.

  The Meng brother saw that Ruo Qing's tone was gentle and soft, and he touched his head. This was a feeling he had never experienced before. He couldn't help but feel his heart beating rapidly. Gradually, he opened up and talked about the fun things he did with his father when they went out to play. Although the child spoke unclearly and some of it was hard to understand, Ruo Qing made an effort to appear very happy, occasionally chiming in with a sentence or two, and praising him a couple of times. This caused Meng brother to become more and more excited, gradually relaxing his reserve, and speaking more clearly.

  “……My father took me to the Tianxiang Building to eat roast chicken and braised pig's trotters, the taste was great, my stomach was stuffed. But later, a certain Marquis came, my father asked me to call him Yang Shishu, Yang Shishu was very enthusiastic, he invited us to his home. Yang Shishu's wife was also elegant and beautiful, she treated me well, and gave me a lovely wooden doll to play with. Yang Shishu had a younger brother, so cool, just a little older than me, could already dance with swords. Everyone in Yang Shishu's family was very nice, but I didn't like Yang Jiejie.”

  She forced a gentle smile, "Who is Yang Auntie?"

  Isn't this Yang Qining?

  Meng Ge's face was filled with indignation, "It's just Yang Shu's sister. How fierce, I called her aunt, but she didn't respond, and kept pestering the king."

  As if by chance, he suddenly thought of Yang Qining, who had won the favor of the Empress Dowager, and had even considered arranging a marriage for her. Later, after the full moon banquet for the second son of Qingchang, this person's enthusiastic and entangled attitude towards Princess Jingtao was obvious to anyone who wasn't blind.

  As before, Mei had once told her that Yang Qining liked Li Xiang, and originally wanted to ask the empress dowager to arrange a marriage. Unfortunately, Li Xiang did not follow common sense and married her despite everyone's opposition, leaving Yang Qining disappointed and venting his anger on Rumei.

  Now that Brother Meng has said so, it seems that Yang Qining still hasn't given up on Li Xiao. Could it be that this noble daughter of the Marquis's manor still wants to marry him and become a concubine?

  Meng Ge'er was a young child, and he had always been clear about the people's preferences. Seeing that Yang Qining was even more affectionate than his birth mother, Empress Yuan, he spoke ill of him again.

  "That Yang aunt... is no fun at all, always clinging to Father Emperor, and she even looks down on me. She's so fierce! I accidentally broke her cup, and she scolded me."

  After comforting Mengge, she called Li Xiu's personal little eunuch Xiao Shunzi.

  Xiao Shunzi respectfully said: "...That Miss Yang's cup, isn't an ordinary cup, I heard it was a night-glowing cup from the Liu Li country as tribute, personally bestowed by the Empress Dowager. Meng Ge, cough, not to deceive the Wang Fei, this servant looked carefully and indeed it was intentionally broken."

  Ruò qíng zài dù dāi zhù, méng gē er jīn nián yě cái wǔ suì ba, jiù, jiù yǒu rú cǐ guāo zuān?

  Translation:

  How can he be so cunning at the age of five?

  Digression

  Nothing to say today, busy with business, welcome to continue commenting, will take some time to read carefully