When the sixteenth elder brother entered Cao's mansion, Cao Hao had just returned home and had just changed his official uniform in Wutong Garden.

Hearing that the sixteenth elder brother was coming, Cao Hao was surprised and went to the front yard to meet the guests.

"Fu Ruo, the master is here on order." When the sixteenth elder brother saw him, he said with a smile: "It's still the grace of the son a few days ago, and it is a reward for the people who call the hall."

Cao Hao was not surprised when he heard Li mention this matter, but said: "In this case, do you want to invite your mother to come over to accept the decree?" ”

The sixteenth elder brother waved his hand and said, "The will has been passed on a long time ago, and today is just a matter of fulfilling the will, and the master will follow you to visit Lingtang." ”

When Cao Hao heard this, he sent someone to the Lanyuan to spread the word first, and then asked the sixteenth elder brother to move there.

The sixteenth elder brother left all the guards in the front yard, and went to the second gate with Cao Hao.

"There is news from Suzhou, the Li family will come to Beijing without saying anything, just make a show, don't get too involved." Sixteenth elder brother said in a low voice.

"So fast, doesn't it mean that there are still ten days and a half moons?" Cao Hao said.

The sixteenth elder brother snorted lightly and said, "They are afraid of being involved, so they can't wait to be escorted to the capital as soon as possible." Li Xu is no better than Chen Gu, who committed suicide a few years ago, but he is just a small official. After all, he is a courtier relied on by the emperor, and he also has a good name among the Jiangnan Shishu, and you, the nephew who is the uncle, and I, the younger generation of the prince, are always afraid. ”

Cao Hao listened and did not speak.

Long before Li Xu was convicted, the imperial court sent a new Suzhou weaving past, which was the emperor's brother-in-law, Hu Fenghui, the eldest aunt of the Nian family.

The Jiangnan officials who presided over the case, for the sake of the face of the Cao family and the sixteenth elder brother, the trial is a trial, but they will not do too much, and they will always leave Li Xu with some dignity.

This Hu Fenghui is not only Nian Qianyao's in-law, but also his confidant, who served as the governor of the Yamen in Sichuan in his early years. With Nian Qianyao and Nian Guifei as backers, he may not put Cao Hao and the Sixteenth Elder Brother in his eyes.

Even if he forced Li Xu to death, it was naturally a matter of criminal responsibility.

Thinking that Li Xu was already an old man, but he would suffer such a crime when he was old, Cao Hao's heart was also heavy.

While talking, the two had already arrived at the Orchid Courtyard.

Li and Chu Yu had already received the news and were waiting under the corridor.

Seeing the sixteenth elder brother, the Li family wanted to bend his knees to salute, and the sixteenth elder brother stepped forward two steps forward to support him, and said, "Don't kill me!" ”

Seeing him like this, the Li family no longer insisted on saluting, and after Chu Yu greeted the sixteenth elder brother, everyone entered the upper room.

Although some time ago, when the funeral was held, the Li family had seen the sixteenth elder brother, but because he was traveling, he had many eyes and ears, and his speech was not cheap, but he only answered two sentences.

Now that he was at home, after sending all the maids out, Li Shifang said: "Have you seen the concubine Niangniang these two times?" How is she...... Do you feel uncomfortable? ”

It turned out that the emperor only mentioned that the fourteenth elder brother was left to guard the mausoleum, but in fact, in addition to the fourteenth elder brother, the fifteenth elder brother was also left in Jingling.

When the Li family heard about this, they were worried about Concubine Mi, so they asked.

The sixteenth elder brother said: "Don't worry, E-Niang, after hearing the news, she was not worried, but relieved." Eniang said that the fifteenth brother is still young, and it is also a blessing to be able to guard the mausoleum of the emperor for a few years, and to accept the surname. ”

Li nodded and said, "It's good that the concubine can think about it." As she spoke, she took out a half-foot-long wooden box from her sleeve, pushed it to the sixteenth elder brother, and said, "I just want to open it, but the concern in my mother's heart is inevitable." You attacked the king, but you have to feed a large family, where is there so much wealth? Inside and outside the palace, everything is waiting for you to take care of. Here is some silver, and you can take it and call it. If that's not enough, come back to me......"

When the sixteenth elder brother heard this, he hurriedly said: "Your kindness, sixteen hearts, but you can get by." If it's really too much, Sixteen won't be polite and will talk to you. ”

Li refused to take it back, and said, "This is not for the prince, but for the concubine and your sister-in-law." Although over the years, the fifteenth elder brother has not been close to me, but he is the eldest son of your Eniang, and if you don't say it, you are also worried. You attacked the prince, how many people watched, a good errand is, don't bother for the silver, leave a statement for the villain. ”

The sixteenth elder brother's son is really tight, not only to reward Cining Palace so that the biological mother can live more comfortably, but also to take care of the fifteenth elder brother's family who stayed in the elder brother's house.

There are also clan relatives who are attached to the close branch of Prince Zhuang's mansion, and there are also many who are counting on the palace to live.

However, he was still embarrassed to accept the gift from the Li family in front of Cao Hao and Chu Yu.

Those two were his niece and niece-in-law, as well as his nephew and niece and daughter-in-law.

Seeing that he still refused to accept it, Li looked at Cao Hao and asked his son to think about it. Cao Hao said with a smile: "The mother thought of going with her son, and the son was also preparing to honor the concubine." The sixteenth master refused to accept it, because he thought that his mother had prepared less, and his son would prepare double copies later. ”

The sixteenth elder brother saw Cao Hao mixed in, and glared at him vigorously, this kid not only "slandered", but also "slandered" in front of him. He hadn't opened the box at all, and he didn't know how much the Li family's gift was, so where was it too little?

Cao Hao only didn't see it, smiled and took the box, sent it to the sixteenth elder brother, and said: "If the sixteenth master is not too little, he will accept it, and I will save a few silver." ”

Having said this, the sixteenth elder brother couldn't bear it, so he had to get up and thank the Li family.

Li Shi said with red eyes: "This is nothing, the prince is rich and prominent, what I am doing now is just the icing on the cake, where can it not compare to the charcoal in the snow between the prince and the concubine back then?" Now I have nothing to look forward to, I just hope that the concubine will live a long life for a hundred years, and I hope that you will all be happy. ”

The sixteenth elder brother thought about the defeat of the Li family, and the saddest thing was the Li family, and Wen Yan said: "The emperor is affectionate, although Cao Hao is not an old minister of the Qiandi, but he is also half of the lineage, and the future is very good, you just wait to enjoy the blessings!" ”

"Well, I'll wait." Li Shi looked at his son and said with some pride.

After saying these few words, the sixteenth elder brother got down to business and handed the list of subordinates to the Li family.

Li didn't care about his home now, he looked at it impatiently, glanced at it, and handed it over to Chu Yu.

Chu Yu took a look, and the people above had already been transferred from the Internal Affairs Office to the Cao family as slaves after reporting to the Yamen of the Infantry Army. The six men and women were fine, but the ten palace maids were "selected" to enter the palace.

She hesitated for a moment and asked, "Uncle Sixteen, when the women enter the palace to serve, how many of them have to be released, these women?" ”

The sixteenth elder brother said: "From now on, they are not palace maids, and they don't need to follow the old rules in the palace." is not only a slave and maid of the Cao family, but a marriage match of life and death, and the Cao family is in charge. ”

Chu Yu listened, and did not feel relaxed at all.

These women all have families in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the Cao family was also under the umbrella of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the early years. If you really despise these palace maids and fall into the eyes of outsiders, it will be the Cao family's frivolity.

There were many worries in her heart, but she didn't show it on her face, and said with a smile: "It's good like this, I was thinking that there was not enough manpower at home." ”

The sixteenth elder brother glanced at her, didn't say much, and mentioned the matter of warming the sedan chair with the Li family. It was delicate work, and it was estimated that it would take some time to make it and send it over.

Li only said that she was not in a hurry, not to mention the sedan chair, it was the carriage given by the emperor, and she did not plan to sit again.

When she came back from Jingling, she decided not to go out easily, so as not to take the imperial carriage to swagger, and not to take the imperial carriage and not to accept the emperor's affection.

After accompaniing the Li family to say a few words, the sixteenth elder brother saw that it was not early, so he got up and said goodbye.

The Li family wanted to send it, but was stopped by the sixteenth elder brother, and only sent it to the door, and watched the sixteenth elder brother leave with Cao Hao.

Li Shi returned to the house, looked at the roster, and said, "The male woman is fine, how can these ten palace maids be arranged?" ”

Chu Yu thought for a while and said, "Old lady, why don't you first invite Aunt Luo and Aunt Chang to look at the surname, and then decide which yard to send to be an errand boy?" No matter how big or small, it is always given by the palace, and they are all treated as big maids according to first-class examples, and it also saves people from talking."

When Li heard this, he was very satisfied, and nodded: "That's it, and I also ask Grandpa Tian to palm his eyes." He has been in the palace all his life, and he has never seen anyone. ”

Chu Yu agreed, thinking that there were eunuchs and palace maids in this house, and in the emperor's heart, he really treated his mother-in-law as a princess, which was also a good thing for the Cao family...... At this time, Cao Hao had already sent away the sixteenth elder brother, asked Cao Yuan to settle the six households, and asked Cao Yuan's family to take the ten palace maids to the Orchid Courtyard.

Li was gossiping with his daughter-in-law, and when he heard Cao Yuan's family say that he took people outside the door to wait, he called them into the house.

They are all dressed in the same way, a water of green spun silk clothes, combed with braids, and only the sideburns with red velvet flowers. Ten people, according to their height, were divided into two rows.

The first five are only thirteen or fourteen, and their faces are still immature; The back five are fifteen or six, all of them are clear-eyed, not too prominent, and they don't look too stupid.

Li and Chu Yu glanced at each other, and each other breathed a sigh of relief. Although it was given to the Li family by the emperor, the Li family could not call ten by one person, and it was disrespectful to point it to others, so he had to put it next to his children and grandchildren. If there are really foxes, they are really not at ease.

At this time, Hengsheng came back from the palace and came to greet the Li family.

stayed in the palace all day, and he could see at a glance that the dozen or so girls on the ground were all dressed as palace maids. He didn't look much at it, but after greeting his grandmother and mother, he withdrew.

When Chu Yu returned to Wutong Garden, Hengsheng was waiting here, and said very seriously: "Mother, the women who come out of the palace are mostly cunning, if the grandmother disposes of people in various places, it is good to be in other places, and it is good for my sister to be exempt." ”

Seeing that his son, who had always been honest, could say such a thing, Chu Yu only felt relieved and distressed, and said, "I know that you feel sorry for your sister, and you won't send someone to your sister's side." ”

Hang Seng was relieved and went with a smile.

Chu Yu looked at his little adult appearance and said to Cao Hao: "In a blink of an eye, the eldest is gone, and the second is sensible." The wind is blowing tonight, and I don't know how Tianyou is in the examination hall? ”

Cao Hao was also worried about his son in his heart, the first test of this imperial examination was Bagu, and the results of this subject mostly depend on the results of this first one.

It's a good thing that a son is strong, but the eight-strand article is really proud for a teenager. It is necessary to be strong in giving birth to a son, and if the answer is good, it is okay; If you don't answer well, I'm afraid you'll be sad for a while.

I just didn't want my wife to worry, so he said, "It's summer, where will it freeze?" ”

Afraid that his wife would be too careful, he diverted the conversation.

Cao Hao didn't take the palace maid given by the Tai Jiang to heart, he didn't have anything to say to people at present, let alone give it to Cao Mansion, even if it was directly given to Wutong Garden, he had nothing to panic about.

What he was not worried about was that Xiangyu went to the palace to serve.

"The sixteenth master made a special trip to mention it before leaving, and asked him to prepare to give someone away." Cao Hao thought for a while and said: "The daughter of the Sun family is also on the candidate book, you can take Xiangyu over to take a look in the past two days, so that the two little girls can meet, and it is good to take care of each other in the future." ”

When Chu Yu heard this, he said, "Forehead, Xiangyu is only ten years old, and she is too young...... The old lady's side, I'm afraid I won't let people go......"

At the mention of this, Cao Hao also had a headache.

With the Li family about to arrive in Beijing, Xiangyu's entry into the palace, the Gao family's side, when it was time for the showdown......*

(To be continued)