Chapter 171 Missed
Although Wei Shuyi feels unwell every winter.

Especially since it is so cold this year, I can only lie in bed and recuperate most of the time.

However, Sheng Hong is now obsessed with Wei Shuyi, and he took care of her when she was sick. Although it is a bit inappropriate to describe him as taking advantage of his concubine, it is not an exaggeration considering that what Sheng Hong wants is Wei Shuyi's affection and true love.

It's love!

And Sheng Hong’s youngest son Chang Rong is also in Mu Cang Zhai.

Most people, as they get older, like cute and lovable babies more and more. This is the reason why many people who give birth to children in old age, or the elders in the family dote on their young children infinitely, such as the Lady of the Duke of England and the Duke of England to Zhang Guifen, and Madam Sheng to Minglan.

Now it’s Sheng Hong versus Chang Rong.

Especially when his children are all grown up and there is only one child left in the family, Sheng Hong loves him very much!
Moreover, Chang Rong inherited Wei Shuyi's temperament and her sister Minglan's appearance. She has a good temper and a delicate appearance, which makes her very likable!
Because of these many benefits, Sheng Hong would go to Wei Shuyi and hug Chang Rong and play with her after returning home from work every day.

Mu Cangzhai.

Wei Shuyi is in the room.

Wei Shuyi, dressed in white, was leaning against the head of the bed, stroking the quilt with one hand and resting the other on her stomach. Her long hair was tied up and she wore an indigo forehead protector. Her pretty face was a little pale, and she looked like a delicate and feeble sickly beauty.

At this time, Minglan walked into the house holding Changrong, followed by Xiaodie who quickly followed behind her and quickly turned around to close the door tightly.

"You're coming back tomorrow?"

Wei Shuyi was very pleased to see the friendly appearance of the siblings. He turned to look at Xiaodie, slightly opened his lips with little blood, and said:
"What fun things are you doing today?"

Wei Shuyi stayed in the house for a long time and seldom got out of bed, feeling bored. Therefore, the greatest pleasure of the day was to listen to people talking about what was happening outside. On weekdays, he would even listen with great interest when Xiaodie talked about the trivial matters in the servants' world, not to mention the things happening in Shou'an Hall.

Xiaodie told the story truthfully about what had just happened in Shou'an Hall, even including how she put Changrong in Yang Wenyuan's hands and then spoke well of the young master.

Minglan was listening at the side, and her hand that was teasing Changrong paused slightly, as if she was recalling something.

Wei Shuyi pursed his lips slightly, with a look of helplessness on his face.

The reason why she asked Minglan to often carry Changrong to Shou'an Hall was because Changrong had a likable personality and was young, so he could be liked by adults, especially when there was no competition from peers around him.

Chang Rong has now gone from being the favorite of Mu Cang Zhai to the favorite of Shou An Tang. Seeing that Wei Ruixuan also has a great chance, Xiao Die's reckless speechlessness slightly blocked her path to progress...

Wei Shuyi's smile was a little forced, but he didn't blame Xiaodie for it.

After all, she has always been loyal but not calculating enough, and she just meant well but ended up doing something bad.

Seeing that the atmosphere was slightly stagnant, Minglan spoke up:

"Girl, I won again at the mahjong table this afternoon!"

"What are you so proud of?"

Wei Shuyi turned to look at Minglan and said helplessly:

"Your father asked you to go to Shou'an Hall in the afternoon because he wanted to learn needlework from the old lady. You play mahjong every day. Have you learned needlework?"

“I learned it!”

Minglan said confidently:
"My fifth sister and I would get together to embroider every night, otherwise my grandmother and the eldest lady would not allow us to sit at the table."

"You are so proud of yourself."

Wei Shuyi stretched out his bare hand and touched Minglan's forehead, causing Minglan to cover her forehead in pain and complain slightly:

"What are you doing, girl?"

"What did you say I did?"

Wei Shuyi's eyes were filled with a hint of disappointment. He had thought that Minglan playing mahjong with them would leave a good impression in the eyes of the elder ladies, especially the eldest sister Hualan, but he never expected that she would move her needlework to the evening.

"You save your needlework for the night, aren't you afraid that the oil lamp will burn your eyes?"

Minglan then realized that the young lady was worried about her, and smiled again:
"It's okay, little girl. Fifth sister is here too. The oil lamps we use at night are all brought by eldest sister from the Marquis' Mansion. Lighting one or two more can make the house as bright as day, and there will be no oil smoke, so it won't irritate your eyes."

"Anyway, embroidery at night is not a good thing."

Wei Shuyi was relieved at this, but still instructed:
"If you feel you don't have time during the day, don't go in the afternoon and come to my room to do needlework."

"No need, little girl..." Minglan quickly put Changrong on the sitting bed and hugged Wei Shuyi and said coquettishly.

Minglan finally had something to do to pass the time in winter, and she was reluctant to give it up.

She thought about it and thought of using her grandmother to help out, so she quickly said:

"Grandma praised me this afternoon for always winning money and saying that I am a man of great calculations and will definitely be a good accountant in the future. If you don't let me go, won't the title fall from my head to my fifth sister?"

Minglan held up her scallion-like soft hand and said confidently:

"Little girl, we can't afford to lose this!"

Seeing Minglan's serious face, Wei Shuyi couldn't help but laugh.

In order to play mahjong, Minger tried his best and even brought out the old lady.

Is mahjong really that fun?

Although Wei Shuyi had heard of mahjong, as a concubine, she had no chance to play it herself, so naturally she had no idea what it felt like.

But looking at Ming's appearance, it might be a good way to kill time, Wei Shuyi thought secretly in his heart.

But then, Wei Shuyi was startled.

Old Madam Sheng said that Minglan will be a good accountant in the future?

Although it was an unintentional remark, it had a different meaning when it fell into Wei Shuyi's ears.

Old Madam Sheng felt that Minglan would definitely be the eldest lady in the future, and she said it casually with this thought in mind?

Otherwise, where would the accounting skills be used?
The more Wei Shuyi thought about it, the more he felt that this was the case, and he couldn't help but feel happy.

"What kind of loss can't be tolerated?"

Suddenly, Sheng Hong pushed the door open and walked in, smiling:
"What kind of loss did we suffer today? Tell father about it."

Sheng Hong handed the long cloak in his hand to Xiaodie, then stretched out his sleeves and the front of his clothes to sweep off the remaining snow.

Sheng Hong glanced around the room and saw that nothing had changed.

The furnishings are simple, with only plain daily items and nothing fancy.

You know, Sheng Hong not only came frequently these days, but was also very generous. He would give the courtyard a lot of rewards every few days, but Wei Shuyi didn't like to show off, so he kept all the money at the bottom of the box, waiting to be used as Minglan's dowry in the future.

And Wei Shuyi's dislike of showing off makes him even more likable to Sheng Hong.

After all, who doesn’t like a woman who is thrifty and manages the household well?
Moreover, this behavior just happened to complement Sheng Hong's current situation in the officialdom, adding a sense of tacit understanding.

"My lord, you heard it wrong. How could Ming'er say that he suffered a loss? Right?" Wei Shuyi now also wanted to win favor, so in his daily words and deeds, he paid great attention to showing his innocent side in front of Sheng Hong, so he pretended to be so.

However, Sheng Hong knew Wei Shuyi's character and just turned his gaze to Minglan.

Minglan smiled and said:

"Father, I was just talking to Mother about the mahjong game this afternoon. I heard that my elder sister suffered a loss at the table."

"Hua'er?"

Although Sheng Hong was a little unconvinced, he still laughed and said:

"So Huaer played mahjong with you guys this afternoon. Why did your elder sister lose again?"

"Yeah~!"

Minglan nodded vigorously, and then saw Sheng Hong pick up Chang Rong from the sitting bed, so she gave her father and mother some space to talk alone, and immediately said:

"Father, mother, and grandmother are waiting for me to have dinner. I'll go over first."

"Eating so early?" Sheng Hong wondered as it was still early.

"After dinner, I still have to learn needlework with my fifth sister, so dinner has been earlier these days." Minglan replied.

Only then did Sheng Hong nod.

"Then go ahead, but remember not to leave it too late." Sheng Hong gave a few instructions.

"Ok!"

After Minglan left and closed the door, Wei Shuyi retracted his gaze and said to Sheng Hong who was holding Chang Rong:
"I will be learning needlework with the fifth girl at Shou'an Hall these days."

"fair enough."

Sheng Hong stretched out his hand to tease Chang Rong in the swaddling clothes, causing him to giggle and stretch out his white and tender arms to hug him. This joyful and well-behaved look made Sheng Hong feel that all the fatigue from a day of official duties had disappeared. He smiled and replied:

"Ruru is as reckless as her mother, while Ming'er is as smart and clever as you. Ru'er can also go to Shou'an Hall to listen to the teachings and learn more from her sister."

As for Molan, in Sheng Hong's mind, she is already a good lady from a noble family, and with Lin Qinshuang's personal teaching, there is nothing to worry about.

"My Lord, you are too kind. Tomorrow will not be as good as you say."

"Hey, Ming'er has been raised by her grandmother, and she has been taught by example since she was young. As a mother, you should not belittle yourself on her behalf."

The couple continued talking for a while. Seeing that Wei Shuyi looked a little tired, Sheng Hong got up and left.

Before leaving, he asked Dongrong to bring some supplements over.

Sheng Hong then turned to Weiruixuan.

In the courtyard.

Wang Ruofu had already prepared dinner, and Changbai was seated nearby.

Sheng Hong entered the house and couldn't help wondering:
"Where's Ru'er?"

"I'm going to the old lady's house for dinner tonight." Wang Ruofu replied calmly.

"You went to your mother's?"

Sheng Hong sat down hesitantly.

He found that this family was becoming more and more incomprehensible.

Didn’t Ruer have little contact with her mother before, so she felt that her mother was an old lady who was difficult to get along with, and therefore didn’t like going to Shou’an Hall?

Now take the initiative to go to Shou'an Hall for dinner? "Yes!"

Wang Ruofu served Sheng Hong the meal and explained:

"Haven't they been learning needlework from Fang Mama these days? So, she's been eating at Shou'an Hall more often these days."

This was not only because Ruolan changed her impression of Old Lady Sheng because Hualan stayed at Shou'an Hall more often when she returned home, but Wang Ruofu also contributed a lot.

With the leverage in the hands of Old Lady Sheng, Wang Ruofu has been thinking of a way these days -

That means sending Rulan to the old lady as well.

I hope that even if something unexpected happens in the future, the old lady will consider Rulan's feelings and be more considerate.

Sheng Hong has been living in Linqi Pavilion these days, so he only now found out that Rulan had started to eat alone in Shou'an Hall, and he had unknowingly become so much closer to Shou'an Hall.

I think Hualan has some credit for this.

Sheng Hong was also happy at the moment and said:

"That's good too. Shou'an Hall is even more deserted in the winter. If Rulan goes there, she can spend more time chatting with the old man. It will be beneficial to both sides."

After saying this, Sheng Hong started talking to Chang Bai next to him.

"Bai Er, how was Mr. Zhuang's class today?"

Changbai answered seriously, one by one, making Sheng Hong nod from time to time.

"As expected of you, a famous scholar in the Great Zhou Dynasty!"

Sheng Hong couldn't help but feel even happier when he thought that such a great scholar had been invited to his own school.

"Okay, okay, the food is here, let's eat first."

Wang Ruofu saw that the father and son were about to say more, so she quickly stopped them and said:

"It's cold now. If we don't eat it, we'll have to send it back to the kitchen to be cooked again."

As she spoke, Wang Ruofu placed a plate of venison in front of Changbai and Sheng Hong and said:

"This is the deer that Wenyuan brought home during the day and freshly slaughtered in the kitchen at home. Would you like to try it, sir?"

"Oh? Venison? Where did it come from?" Sheng Hong's eyes suddenly lit up.

Changbai explained:
"I heard from my brother-in-law that it was sent to the mansion by tenant farmers from a farm outside the city."

"Did you take the live deer home to dispose of it?"

"Ah."

It was time for Wang Ruofu to show off her son-in-law again, and she said:

"Sir, you're right, this venison is really nourishing. I feel much better after eating it at noon. You should try it too."

"Ah."

"..."

That night.

Sheng Hong finished his meal and was about to go out after Changbai left.

"Sir, what are you doing out so late?"

Wang Ruofu thought that Sheng Hong wanted to run away after eating everything and go to that bitch's house in Linqi Pavilion again, so her face looked a little unfriendly.

Fortunately, the effort she put into controlling her temper during this period of time has begun to pay off, and she did not confront Sheng Hong on the spot.

Sheng Hong turned around and explained:
"I'm going to Mu Cang Zhai."

Seeing Wang Ruofu's expression eased slightly, Sheng Hong continued:

"It's snowing hard outside. I'm going to go check on Changrong."

When Wang Ruofu heard that they were not going to Linqi Pavilion, she didn't care anymore.

Moreover, given Wei Shuyi's physical condition, he would not be able to stay at Mu Cang Zhai, so he nodded and said:

"Sir, please put on more clothes. There is a heater in the house, but it is dark and cold outside, so you'd better put on more thick clothes."

As he spoke, he took out a thick robe from the closet and handed it to Sheng Hong.

Sheng Hong nodded and took it.

"Ok!"

Sheng Hong went out.

However, he did not go to Mu Cang Zhai as he had just said, but turned and walked towards the kitchen.

In the kitchen.

Because the masters of the house had already finished their meals, the kitchen utensils had been cleaned and most of the cooks had returned to their rooms. Only one cook, wrapped in a thick quilt and sleeping soundly against the wall, was left to keep watch in case the master needed her at night.

Seeing that it was Sheng Hong, the master of the house, who came, the kitchen immediately woke up from its drowsiness.

Sheng Hong didn't care about these and asked directly:
"Did your family kill a fresh deer today?"

"Yes, my Lord!"

The cook lowered her head, fearing that Sheng Hong would blame her, and said with a little fear in her tone:
"It was sent by my eldest brother-in-law's entourage today."

"Are there any items left behind?" Sheng Hong asked tactfully, lowering his voice inadvertently.

"Yes, of course there is!"

The cook thought Sheng Hong was investigating their embezzlement, so she quickly led Sheng Hong to a cabinet, unlocked the outside, and showed Sheng Hong the things inside while saying:

"We know that deer are full of treasures, so apart from what the eldest brother-in-law took away this afternoon, the rest are all here."

Sheng Hong nodded, looked inside carefully, and asked:

"What did Wenyuan take away this afternoon?"

The cook said directly without any hesitation on her fat face:
"Lubao."

"Lubao?"

Sheng Hong felt a little regretful, until he saw a large pot of deer blood and half a deer antler in the cabinet, and then he felt a little less disappointed.

Yes, after all, we just got married...

Yang Wenyuan: It's not for my own use! If I had known you would doubt me like this, I would not have left you any!
Sheng Hong was slightly satisfied, these are not bad!

"Take them all!"

There were quite a few things inside, and Sheng Hong couldn't take away the deer blood and deer antlers alone, so he waved his sleeves and emptied the cabinet in a short while.

Wei Ruixuan.

Wang Ruofu hadn't seen Sheng Hong come back for a long time, and thought that Sheng Hong had said something wrong, so she went to Linqi Pavilion on the way.

I suddenly felt sullen.

Not wanting to wait for Sheng Hong any longer, she immediately bent down, knelt beside the bed, spread out the bedding, and prepared to go to sleep.

Just in time.

There was a sound of a door being pushed open.

When Sheng Hong entered the room, he immediately saw Wang Ruofu kneeling beside the bed. At this moment, she had her back to him, and her plump figure was clearly visible, which made Sheng Hong's already surging heart even hotter.

He quickly stepped forward and put his hand on it.

Wang Ruofu felt the warmth on her waist, and her heart was moved. She turned around and saw Sheng Hong's face which was very close to her. It was slightly red and had a slight fishy smell.

"Madam, it's late, take a rest!"

As Sheng Hong blew out the lamp with a "whoosh", the lights in the room immediately went out.

At the same time, there was another kind of excitement.

This kind of momentary excitement only occurs once every ten days or half a month, but today was a little unusual and did not stop until half a quarter of an hour later.

Moreover, he scored twice after many years of rest.

Back kitchen.

Not long after Sheng Hong left, there was another knock on the door.

The cook thought that Sheng Hong had noticed that something was missing, so she opened the door in panic.

But when I looked closely, I found that it was Master Changfeng from Linqi Pavilion.

"Sir, you are here in the kitchen so late, do you have any food instructions?"

The cook asked:
"If you have any instructions, just tell the servants to come. Why do you have to come to this place of oil smoke in person?"

Chang Feng didn't care about anything else.

He walked straight into the door and said to the cook directly:

"Is there anything left of the deer that was killed at noon?"

"To answer your question, my Lord has just been here and has taken away all the things."

"What was left?"

"Deer blood, deer antlers, etc."

Chang Feng: “…”

This is a missed opportunity?!

(End of this chapter)