To Hold One’s Joy

  Chapter 389 Release the list

  In mid-spring, everything has recovered, and the old trees on the roadside have sprouted new shoots.

   But walking in the long and narrow back alley of Changchun Hou Mansion, one can still feel chilly.

   There is a house in the depths of the alley, the door is closed, and few people pass by. It is the residence of the abandoned wife of Changchun Marquis Yang.

  The doorkeeper woman was bored, so she moved a little cockroach and sat in the yard basking in the sun, eating melon seeds.

   Suddenly there was a slight knock on the door.

  The doorkeeper woman raised her eyebrows in surprise.

  Master Hou is cruel, since he divorced Mrs. Hou, he never took a step.

  The second girl and the two young masters came here once, but she didn't dare to hide it, and reported it to Lord Hou through the mouth of the person who sent the expenses on a monthly basis. After that, she never came again.

  Who will knock on the door at this time?

  The gatekeeper woman put the small bamboo basket containing melon seeds aside, walked over and opened a crack in the door.

   "Who is it?"

   Seeing the person standing outside the door, the gatekeeper woman was taken aback: "Sister Xi, why are you here at this time?"

  Sister-in-law Xi is the person who comes to send expenses every month.

  Sister-in-law Xi smiled: "It's not the beginning of spring, it's time to cut clothes. The steward asked me to send another piece of money."

  When the gatekeeper heard this, she couldn't help but welcome sister-in-law Xi in.

   "Yo, I'm eating melon seeds." Looking at the melon seed shells on the ground, Sister-in-law Xi pouted.

  The doorkeeper woman picked up the bamboo basket containing melon seeds with one hand, and grabbed Sister-in-law Xi's arm with the other: "Come on, let's go into the house and talk."

   Just guarding such an abandoned woman, who even eats melon seeds is alone, and has already suffocated the doorkeeper woman, and every time sister-in-law Xi comes over, she has to chat for a long time.

  Sister-in-law Xi followed the gatekeeper into the wing room, chatted for a while and handed over the money bag.

  The doorkeeper woman hurriedly took it away.

  The money is all in her hands, and she has the final say on how much to use for that person.

  Sister-in-law Xi is here to send her money.

  The doorkeeper woman grabbed a handful of melon seeds and stuffed them into Sister-in-law Xi's hands: "Eat melon seeds, the freshly fried melon seeds are fragrant."

  Sister-in-law Xi put down the melon seeds, took out something from her bosom and handed it over.

"This is?"

  Sister-in-law Xi glanced in the direction of Mrs. Yang's room, and said in a low voice, "My wife is used to delicacies from mountains and seas, but now I may not be used to porridge and side dishes, so I brought some good condiments for her."

  The gatekeeper woman was stunned, staring at the cloth bag handed over by Sister-in-law Xi and did not dare to take it: "Sister-in-law Xi, this, is this—"

   This can't be poison, can it?

  Sister-in-law Xi flipped her hand, and a gold ingot fell into the hands of the gatekeeper.

  The gatekeeper woman's palm seemed to be on fire, and it was hot.

  Of course, gold ingots will never be thrown out.

"It's not something that kills people, but if you often eat people, you will be confused." Sister-in-law Xi squeezed the hand of the gatekeeper and said in a low voice, "Madam and Master Hou have been married for so many years. Hugh's hitting gibberish, so—"

   Sister-in-law Xi didn't say the latter words, but the gatekeeper lady understood.

  It's normal for Master Hou to have this kind of worry. The one who looks strange now, when the girls and young masters come, he might talk nonsense.

   "Is it true that poison can't kill people?"

  Sister-in-law Xi smiled: "What's the relationship between us? Can I still coax you? Besides, the wife is still the girl and the son's biological mother after all. How could the Marquis want the wife's life?"

  The gatekeeper woman tightly held the heavy gold ingot and nodded.

   It’s fine if you don’t have to risk your life. In the current situation, it might be better to be a little confused. She still does good deeds.

   Seeing that the matter was completed, Sister-in-law Xi stayed for a while before leaving.

  Walking in the long, narrow and dark alley, Sister-in-law Xi raised her hand and pressed her heart.

   Right on the heart, there is a stack of bank notes hidden.

   A total of five hundred taels!

  Of course this was not given by Master Hou, but by the eldest girl.

  Sister-in-law Xi can still think of the shock on her face when the eldest girl handed her the banknote and those things.

   Not only shocked the big girl's behavior, but also shocked where the big girl got so much money.

  However, who would have trouble with money, this is five hundred taels of silver!

   What she was asked to do was to secretly deliver those things to the mother-in-law who was watching Yang in the name of Master Hou.

   What made Xi Xizi fall for Xu Fang easily was the lack of resources in the Hou Mansion during the Chinese New Year.

  In the past, I could get some rewards during the Chinese New Year, but now I have been looking forward to it for a year, and even the monthly money is not paid on time.

  Hou Mansion is like this, can people not worry about the future?

   But the eldest girl promised that she will be a companion when she leaves the cabinet.

  Sister-in-law Xi raised her hand and stroked the silk flowers on her temples.

  The General’s Mansion is much stronger than the Hou’s Mansion, and it’s a good job to be a companion for a big girl.

  Ten thousand steps back, even if the eldest girl is coaxing her, the five hundred taels of silver bill is real.

  In the quiet courtyard, the winter jasmine blooms quietly in the corner.

  Xu Fang stood by the window admiring the flowers, and turned her head when she heard the movement.

   "Girl, sister-in-law Xi is back." Hongyue walked over, closed the window and reported.

  Xu Fang nodded slightly: "Thank you."

  She didn't ask if it was going to happen.

  Having money can make ghosts turn the millstone. If five hundred taels of silver are thrown down, it will be impossible.

   "Girl, in case sister-in-law Xi is unreliable—"

  Xu Fang smiled: "Is she going to expose me to my father? Then what good can she do?"

The Hou Mansion lost 10,000 taels of silver before the Chinese New Year, and a few months later, it also lost 5,000 taels in order to bring the younger brother back from the Metropolitan Governor's Mansion. The loss of this 15,000 taels of silver directly led to the end of this year. I can't go on anymore, so I can only tighten my belt and slowly pay the monthly money of the whole house.

   In such a situation, Xi’s sister-in-law still expects to get a reward from her father for reporting on her?

  Miss Luo is right. When it’s time to let go of your hands and feet, you can’t back down. You have to solve your own affairs after all.

  Yang's just being divorced is not enough. What she and her father did to their mother must be made known to the world, so as to comfort the mother's spirit in heaven.

  Xu Fang felt emotional when she thought about what Luo Sheng said.

   Can you really wait until that day?

   Before she met Miss Luo, she couldn't imagine it at all.

  Living in fear since she was a child, even growing up safely has become a kind of expectation. Her father and stepmother are like two sinister mountains pressing on her heart, making her not know how to move.

   When she met Miss Luo, she realized that some things are not so difficult, and some people are vicious but not so capable.

  The incident that happened in the back alley of Changchun Houfu was like a small pebble thrown into the lake, and the ripples disappeared without a trace after a few laps, and the capital was still immersed in the excitement of Chunwei.

   Soon it was the day when the Tribute Academy released the list.

  As the officials sent by the Ministry of Rites went to various places to announce the good news, the much-anticipated Huiyuan was widely known, and it was the Mr. Jinsha Su who shined brilliantly on the Shangyuan Festival.

  In addition to this, there is another pair of brothers who are particularly eye-catching, namely Sheng Dalang and Sheng Erlang.

   Although the rankings of the two are not high, they are both on the list. After passing the palace examination, they will be Jinshi.

  One double Jinshi is enough to shine on the lintel.

   What's more important is that the two brothers are young and have never married a wife.

  It is said that the Sheng brothers are the nephews of Governor Luo—

  (end of this chapter)