si-mexico Chapter 326 Old things
Chapter 326 Old things
Chapter 326 Old things
Xu Rongrong and Mu Rong visited Prince Ning's mansion late at night, and they needed to avoid being seen.
Therefore, even after leaving the front hall, Mu Qianyin did not take Xu Rongrong far away.
Instead, he found a quiet room alone in the front yard.
The room is not big, but it is filled with books. An entire wall of bookshelves are filled with classics, history books, and military books and tactics.
Under the small window directly opposite the bookshelf, there is a long couch, and beside the couch are some leisure books and notebooks.
Mu Qianyin's ears turned slightly red when she saw Xu Rongrong coming over: "These notebooks are for me to kill time."
Xu Rongrong smiled and nodded: "I also like to read novels and stories. Sister Mu has some good ones here. Please lend me a few later." It was natural to be happy to meet a fellow enthusiast. Mu Qianyin quickly responded: "No problem, I have a box in my room..."
After saying that, I found it funny too.
The princes' wives all came from scholarly families, and none of them were not skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. But none of them loved reading books as much as she did, and even had a whole box of them hidden away...
However, Xu Rongrong didn't care. After all, she was willing to interact with Mu Qianyin because she was attracted by her free and easy personality.
The wing on one side of the room is equipped with a tea room and is fully equipped with everything you need.
"Let's sit under the window." Mu Qianyin suggested.
Xu Rongrong naturally responded. She helped Mu Qianyin bring out the tea tray and tea stove from the ear room and placed them in front of the couch under the window. The warmth instantly dispelled the night chill.
Since there were no servants to serve, Mu Qianyin made tea herself.
Seeing her familiarity and the location of the tea room, Xu Rongrong couldn't help but curl her lips: I guess this room should be where Prince Ning and Sister Mu often stay together. It's quiet yet warm.
"Come, try this Moonlight White, it's a tribute for the new year." Mu Qianyin poured a glass for Xu Rongrong.
Xu Rongrong took a sip and savored the fresh and mellow taste.
"Sister Mu, why do you like white tea? I remember that I saw you drinking mostly green tea in the mansion before." Xu Rongrong asked with a smile.
She remembered that the origin of Moonlight White tea was near Fuhai, but that place had just been granted by His Majesty to Prince Ning. How come the tea was delivered so quickly?
Mu Qianyin poured her another cup. "I'm pregnant now, so I can't drink green tea. But there are always guests coming and going in the mansion, so I have to sit with them for a while. This was brought to me from the palace a few days ago by the chief official. They said it's okay to drink a little while pregnant."
Although the prince established his own office and mansion after he came of age, he still had to collect all the offerings from the palace because he had no proper job and no income.
Xu Rongrong nodded when she heard this. "The affairs of the palace are complicated. I didn't expect that the Chief Secretary could observe things so meticulously. I wonder where he is from? I'll ask someone to help me take care of it later."
"His name is Wei Shi, and he is from my mother's Wei clan."
"Wei family...is there anyone else?" Xu Rongrong vaguely remembered that there was no one from Ning Wang Wu Tianxiao's mother's family, so even though he was the most talented among all the princes, he had never been valued by the emperor and his ministers.
Mu Qianyin smiled and said, "Although the Wei family has declined, it was once a prominent family a hundred years ago, and naturally had some wealth. This Wei Shi, the Chief Clerk of the Wei family, is a servile son of the Wei family. When my mother was selected to enter the palace, the family only sent a brother to accompany Wei Shi to escort my mother to the capital. In recent years, the Wei family has made little progress, relying entirely on the rewards my mother received in the palace to survive..."
"But with the Empress around, apart from Consort Shu, which of the other concubines didn't live a hard life? Mother only received some extra bonuses in the years after she gave birth to Tianxiao... However, Mother was a person who always planned ahead. She knew that her family was unreliable and was afraid that Tianxiao would be left without support in the future. So after receiving the generous reward from His Majesty, she used it to buy two manors outside the city and asked Wei Shi to guard them..."
"After my mother passed away, countless people in the Wei clan tried to seize the two manors, but they were all stopped by Wei Shi alone. Therefore, when Tian Xiao left the palace to build his own mansion, the first thing he did was to transfer Wei Shi from the manor to be the chief secretary of the mansion. As you know, I have always been careless and not good at managing the harem. I owe all the affairs of the mansion to Chief Secretary Wei."
Mu Qianyin recounted in detail the origins of Wei Changshi and his relationship with the Wei family, her words unable to conceal her respect for Wei Changshi.
It can be seen that she is extremely convinced of Wei Shi in her heart.
Xu Rongrong had only met Wei Shi once and didn't know him well, so she didn't know if it was possible.
But when Mu Qianyin talked about Concubine Wei's past, she felt quite emotional: "Concubine Wei has a keen eye for talent and is able to think long-term. She is truly a rare woman."
"Who says it's not true?" Mu Qianyin sighed softly, "It's a pity that he died of illness so early."
There was another sentence that Mu Qianyin didn't say, but she felt even more regretful in her heart, which was...
The talented and resourceful Concubine Wei happened to marry into the imperial family.
The emperor dotes on the queen alone, which is a blessing for the queen, and their friendship is regarded as a model for the world. But for the other concubines in the harem, it is more like... a disaster.
Concubine Wei was only a concubine until her death...She was posthumously conferred the title of concubine after Wu Tianxiao came of age, in accordance with the customary practice.
Seeing the desolation in Mu Qianyin's eyes, Xu Rongrong smiled and changed the subject: "Since they are from Concubine Wei's family, I'm afraid I won't be so lucky to invite them."
"Why are you so anxious?" Mu Qianyin squinted her eyes at Xu Rongrong. "The Chief Secretary Yi in Rong'er's mansion is not bad. He grew up with Rong'er. Although he is young, he is one of the younger generation of chief secretaries in the capital. Who wouldn't praise Mu Yi when he mentions him, saying that he knows the big picture and knows how to act. He is very reliable! The Marquis's mansion is simple, and he will definitely be able to take care of things for you in the future."
“???” Xu Rongrong was stunned for a moment, then blushed after she understood.
Mu Qianyin looked at her expression, which showed only embarrassment but no anger, so she teased her with a smile, "I see that you treat Rong Ge'er very differently than before. Are you completely determined to marry him now?"
"Hmm?" Xu Rongrong was a little surprised. Was her previous thoughts so obvious?
"Last year, when you were first granted marriage, although you didn't say it, I could see that you didn't want to marry him in your heart, but you were constrained by the imperial order. I know Rong Ge'er has always been aloof and not good at pleasing girls. He was so focused on you at the time, and I was really afraid that his inappropriate methods would push you further away."
"During the time in the Hunting Palace, I saw that he treated you very cautiously. He didn't know whether to stay close to you or away from you all day long. Not to mention others, even I have never seen him so timid. If you didn't know, you would think he owed you something in his previous life." Mu Qianyin's unintentional joke made Xu Rongrong stunned for a moment.
Did I owe her...in my previous life?