The Jiang Family's heirloom was actually a pair of shoes.
Everyone, including Yu Shu, thought it was a joke. However, after Madame Wei told them the story of her ancestor, everyone came to a sudden realization and completely dispelled their suspicions.
This could be traced back to a few generations ago. Prince of Dongjing's grandfather's grandfather was posthumously titled Marquis of Peace, Jiang Tai Gong. Prince of Dongjing's branch started from this ancestor. It was said that Jiang Tai Gong was born as a concubine's son. His father ran an escort agency and his mother was not kind. When he was young, he lived a hard life. His neighbor, Squire Zhou, had a daughter who was close to Jiang Tai Gong. She often secretly sent food and clothes to him.
After a few years, Jiang Tai Gong had grown into a handsome and calm young man. Miss Zhou was also born with a delicate and beautiful appearance. Jiang Tai Gong intended to marry Miss Zhou, but he was opposed by both parents. The Jiang Family imprisoned Jiang Tai Gong and broke one of his legs. When Miss Zhou heard the news, she sneaked out and bribed the servants of the Jiang Family to rescue Jiang Tai Gong, who was on the verge of death.
Jiang Tai Gong had once been unable to recover from his setback. It was Miss Zhou who enlightened him and persuaded him to leave his hometown and find another way out. After Jiang Tai Gong suffered this setback, his leg injury healed and he decided to go north to join the army. Before he left, Miss Zhou prepared clothes for him and urged him again and again not to mention the important matter of their marriage. Jiang Tai Gong felt that he was not worthy of her, so he did not dare to mention it. After that day, he left his hometown and went far away.
Coincidentally, the Jin army invaded and the north was in chaos. The An Dynasty was rarely peaceful. The imperial court recruited soldiers on a large scale. Jiang Tai Gong changed his appearance and started from a small corporal. His ancestors ran an escort agency and learned some martial arts. After one or two years of training on the battlefield, his talent in military strategy showed. He was not afraid of death and often acted as the vanguard to kill the enemy. Gradually, he made a name for himself.
After more than ten years, the north was pacified and the young man returned to his hometown. He had become a brave and skillful general; he could finally hold his head up high and become a man who brought honor to his ancestors. The only flaw was that he had been a bachelor for more than ten years, and was still single even after he reached thirty years of age. He had never forgotten Miss Zhou, who had shown him great kindness. However, after all these years, perhaps she had already married and had children around her knees.
Perhaps the heavens were taking pity on her. Jiang Taigong sent people to inquire about Miss Zhou's whereabouts. He wanted to repay her kindness that day. He found out that after he left his hometown more than ten years ago, Miss Zhou bade farewell to her parents and left home. She went to the temple to shave her hair and become a nun, vowing not to marry.
The ending of the story could be imagined. Now that she was middle-aged, Miss Zhou was no longer beautiful. She admitted that she was not worthy of him, so she closed her door and refused to see him. But Jiang Taigong still wholeheartedly wanted to marry her. He knelt three times in front of the temple gate and finally moved Miss Zhou's heart.
As a result, this affectionate Miss Zhou eventually became Jiang Taigong's wife, and the couple's marriage was delayed. But it was a lifetime of happiness.
"This pair of shoes was sewn by my great-grandmother before I left my hometown to join the army. I couldn't bear to wear them, so I kept them at the bottom of the box. When I reunited with my great-grandmother, I took out this pair of shoes and passed it on to my descendants. It was to remind them not to be ungrateful, not to have no ambition, and to treat their wives well. "
Madame Wei was indeed from a family of scholars. This story, which was a bit vulgar in Yu Shu's eyes, was narrated vividly and thought-provoking by her. There were a few sensitive girls in the seats. When they heard the part about Miss Zhou shaving her hair to get married, they all shed tears of sadness. Then, they went to Jiang Taigong's temple and knelt down to beg for a good wife. Their eyes lit up with yearning.
Yu Shu thought that if Madame Wei didn't purposely beautify the ancestor of the Jiang family, then this Jiang Taigong could really be called a real man with true feelings.
At least, he was more respectable than Xue Pinggui, Xue Shimei, whose wife stayed in the cold kiln for ten years and gave birth to his children. Finally, when he became rich, he married another princess.
Oh, there was also her big brother, that scum.
"May I know which family's young lady guessed this pair of shoes?" Madame Wei looked at Situ Qinglan in the pavilion not far away with kind eyes.
Situ Qinglan's eyes turned red after hearing the story. She bowed to Madame Wei and said, "My surname is Situ. Academician Fang of the Taishi Library is my grandfather."
Country Furen hadn't even heard of Situ Qinglan's name before. The matchmakers that Empress Rui had arranged for her were all young ladies of noble families. There wouldn't be such an orphan girl living under someone else's roof.
However, she still knew about the Fang family. Madame Wei knew this, but she didn't look down on her. She smiled even more kindly and waved to Situ Qinglan.
"Good child, come over to my side. Let me take a closer look. What kind of clever mind do you have to be able to guess my riddle?"
Seeing this, Situ Qinglan's breath quickened and her cheeks turned red. Being stared at by hundreds of pairs of eyes, she didn't have stage fright. She lowered her head and smoothed her skirt. She walked out of her seat and crossed her hands in front of her stomach, walking forward step by step.
Cui Yun, who also guessed the other riddle, was completely ignored.
Cui Yun's face darkened. Cui Xin pulled her back to her seat before she lost her composure. Looking at Cui Yun's angry face, Cui Xin pinched her wrist and whispered,
"Forget it. You're not that lucky."
She had told Cui Yun the last two riddles. If Cui Yun said it all at once, no matter which one was the heirloom of the Jiang family, it would be hers. However, Situ Qinglan appeared out of nowhere. Cui Yun thought she was smart and guessed the dagger first. Situ Qinglan hit her right between the eyebrows.
"Sister." Cui Yun was not convinced. But Cui Xin glanced at her coldly. Cui Yun didn't dare to argue with her. She just said in a low voice, "Humph, I'm not that lucky, but she is? She's just an orphan girl. She can't even be a concubine for Prince of Dongjing. "
Fortunately, her voice was not loud, so no one heard her. Cui Xin didn't care about her complaints. She looked back thoughtfully at Yu Shu, who was sitting at the same table as Situ Qinglan. She frowned and thought,
How could Situ Qinglan guess it was that pair of shoes? It seemed that Yu Lianfang had a special relationship with Commandery Princess Chunwei. Could it be that Yu Lianfang was adding fuel to the fire and ruining her plan?
Yu Shu didn't know she was implicated. She was whispering to Xin Liu about Situ Qinglan, "Situ is so careful. I didn't guess it was a pair of shoes. I thought it was a dagger."
Xin Liu stuck out his tongue and said, "I also thought that annoying Cui Yun guessed it right."
Xin Liu had this advantage. If she was on good terms with you, she would share the same hatred. Cui Yun didn't offend Xin Liu, but she once targeted Yu Shu. Yu Shu didn't like Cui Yun, so Cui Yun gave Cui Yun the cold shoulder.
Childish, but worthy of friendship.
Of course, if it wasn't for Yu Shu who sacrificed herself to save Xin Liu's life from Ji Xingxuan, this silly girl would have died a wrongful death.
The two of them didn't know what was going on. The elders beside them felt more complicated. Second Mrs. Xin took a sip of wine and said to her sister-in-law, Second Aunt Xue,
"I don't know if it's fate or …"
"Ahem," Second Aunt Xue interrupted her and gestured to the younger ones beside her with her eyes, hinting her not to talk nonsense.
Second Mrs. Xin pursed her lips and didn't say anything else. Anyway, the Xin family wouldn't touch the "good relationship" of Prince of Dongjing's Mansion. This was a lesson from her father-in-law. They just had to listen to it. Others could do whatever they wanted.
Second Aunt Xue was relieved. She gently patted Xue Jinxun's head. Fortunately, nothing happened today.
.....
After a while, Situ Qinglan returned to her seat, but she didn't take back the pair of heirloom shoes. Instead, she took a jade pendant that Madame Wei wore.
What happened was that Madame Wei didn't deny it. Princess Chang Shu persuaded her, saying that such a meaningful heirloom shouldn't be given to an outsider and should be passed on to her son and daughter-in-law in the future.
Madame Wei didn't know that Princess Chang Shu was forcing her to take a stand. "Either you give this pair of shoes and recognize her as your daughter-in-law today. We will have completed the task given to us by the Empress and solved your family's biggest problem.
"Or you take the shoes back. Don't give them to others without a clear reason. You're occupying the manger and not taking a shit. You won't admit it later and we will have to worry about your family's business."
Madame Wei was such a cautious person. How could she hastily arrange a marriage for her precious son just based on a puzzle? She thought this girl was smart. But to be the daughter-in-law of the Jiang family, she couldn't just be smart. She still had to find out what kind of person she was.
Madame Wei played Tai Chi with Princess Chang Shu and pretended to be in a difficult position. She looked at Situ Qinglan who was waiting obediently at the side.
Fortunately, Situ Qinglan was not blind. She said, "Madame, please listen to me. Even if you were to give me this heirloom, I would not dare to accept it. When I get home, I would have to offer it to you. Thank you, madame, for your kindness. But this heirloom is too heavy for me to accept."
Madame Wei smiled and asked the maid to put away the shoes. She took off an old jade bracelet on her wrist and held Situ Qinglan's little glove. She said gently, "What a good girl.
"What a good girl. I love smart and decent girls like you. Since it's not convenient for you to accept these shoes, I can't let you suffer a loss. Since everyone else has a prize, I'll give you this mutton-fat jade bracelet. I've worn it for many years. It's a good thing. Don't refuse it."
Situ Qinglan didn't want to be disrespectful, so she accepted it.
That was what happened.
Xin Liu listened to Situ Qinglan's explanation and snickered. She moved closer to Yu Shu and said, "I think Lanlan is taking advantage of you. What's the use of an old pair of shoes? It's better to take a bracelet."
"Exactly." Yu Shu thought so too.
Situ Qinglan heard them whispering and knew they were talking about her. She secretly rubbed the exquisite jade bracelet on her wrist and smiled faintly. She didn't care.
She knew that things wouldn't be so easy, and she couldn't be too hasty. Today was a good start, and Madam Wei already had her in her eyes. Her chances of success were much higher, and she would have to rely on her own hard work next.
She looked around and stopped at Yu Shu. She purposely snorted to get her attention. Then she interrupted, "What are you two talking about me secretly?"
Xin Liu covered her mouth and shook her head.
"I don't believe you." Situ Qinglan glared at her. She turned to Yu Shu and asked curiously, "By the way, Lianfang, I see that you and Commandery Princess Chun Wei are very close. Have you known each other for a long time?"
Yu Shu didn't know where to start. She just answered vaguely.
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