Chapter 234 Young Master’s Thoughts
After that, they met several times. Every time she left the Jiang family's elegant residence, E Lan would write a letter, record the details, and hire someone to send it to Ningguo Mansion and give it to Liu Yan.
Time flies like water, and soon it is the Reunion Festival.
Before Zhuang Rui went to pick her up, E'lan arrived early and sat in the front hall, chatting with Fu Ying about family matters.
As the two were talking, Zhuang Rui finally got up. He walked out without washing up. He passed by the front hall and called out in a daze, "Jiang Fuliang..."
Fu Ying was startled and quickly coughed to signal: "Cough cough cough."
In his peripheral vision, he saw a familiar and beautiful figure, and Zhuang Rui froze in an instant.
After thinking for a moment, he reacted quickly, pretending to scold the servant and continued his words.
"How can you call Jiang Fuliang by his name casually? You slaves are really going too far. If you don't want to receive the monthly salary from the Jiang family, leave as soon as possible!"
Jiang Fuliang, who was not far away, understood what happened and quickly ordered a few servants to go over and help the young master admit his mistake.
"I know I was wrong, please calm down, young master."
Zhuang Rui was dignified and gave the lecture in a serious manner.
"In our Jiang family, we don't follow conventional etiquette and rules, but we can't mess up the order of generations and lose the most basic respect. My father is an elder, and his name cannot be used jokingly. Do you remember that?"
The servants stood respectfully and in order.
"Yes, remember."
Zhuang Rui waved his sleeves in a casual manner.
"Since you are sincere in admitting your mistake, I will not hold it against you this time. Now go on with your work."
The servants responded and left.
"Thank you, young master, for your generosity."
After saying this, Zhuang Rui turned his head nonchalantly, pretending to have just seen E Lan, and was startled, and quickly turned his back.
"Why did Shuang'er come here by herself?"
"If you are traveling alone and run into danger, what should you do? Next time, wait for me to pick you up."
"I got up in a hurry this morning and I haven't washed or combed my hair yet. I am a little out of control. Please don't be offended, Shuang'er."
E-lan put on the new clothes given by her aunt. It was a light yellow long skirt, matched with a butterfly jade hairpin. Her clothes fluttered in the wind, making her look soft, pretty and elegant.
Zhuang Rui only took a quick glance and never forgot her. Even when he turned his back, her stunning beauty kept appearing in his mind.
Looking at his handsome and elegant back, E-lan's eyes and eyebrows were unconsciously filled with a touch of tenderness.
"Everyone wakes up in the morning with unkempt hair and dirty faces, why is it strange?"
Fu Ying gave a way out at the right time.
"We can talk later. Li'er, go wash up."
Zhuang Rui nodded in agreement.
"Yes."
"Shuang'er, wait a moment. I'll be back soon."
E-Lan smiled sweetly.
"it is good."
After everything was arranged, the four of them sat around a table and began to celebrate the reunion festival.
During the dinner, they had a great conversation. Just as Liu Yan said, if you experience it, you will understand that they are as close as a family.
After lunch, according to custom, children present big gifts to thank their parents for raising them.
With the permission of the Jiang couple, E-lan followed Zhuang Rui and knelt three times and kowtowed nine times in a solemn ceremony.
Next, the elders will reward and give gifts as a blessing.
They each took out a brocade box and opened it at the same time. Inside the box, gold and silver ingots were neatly arranged, and a quick glance revealed an astonishing number.
Jiang Fuliang handed the brocade box to Zhuang Rui.
"It's the reunion festival again. Dad wishes you great academic success and a smooth career in the future."
Zhuang Rui smiled happily and accepted it readily.
"Thank you, my child."
Fu Ying handed the brocade box to E Lan.
"I am a shallow and ignorant person, and I can't speak. Please accept this little gift from me."
E-lan accepted it nervously.
"Thank you, my lady."
Afterwards, the family drank tea and chatted until the afternoon, reluctant to part.
Zhuang Rui escorted her all the way as usual, and only after he watched E Lan walk into Feiyaoxuan did he turn around and return to the Jiang family's elegant residence with peace of mind.
Fu Ying greeted with a walking salute.
"The master is back."
Zhuang Rui responded casually and sat down to rest.
"Ah."
Fu Ying stood and nodded respectfully.
"I have something to advise you, would you listen to it, sir?"
Zhuang Rui waved his sleeves and gestured for someone to sit nearby.
"Sit down and talk."
Fu Ying sat down slowly and gave gentle advice.
"Thank you, sir."
"The Reunion Festival is like the New Year Festival. How can you not kneel down to the Lord and his wife and pay respect to your servants? I feel ashamed to accept this and I am really terrified."
"I am confused. Why did you conceal your identity? Does Miss Tang disdain the noble family and only want to marry the son of a noble?"
"Deceiving others is not the right way. In my humble opinion, the engagement has been finalized and the relationship is good, why don't you take this opportunity to tell the truth?"
Zhuang Rui looked serious and explained the reason.
"I saw that Shuang'er had a very low self-esteem, so I didn't dare to tell her my identity, for fear of scaring her away."
"Let's wait until we get married and tell the truth."
Fu Ying understood what he meant, and stared in astonishment, unable to believe it.
"When the young master gets married, will he arrange for my wife and I to sit in the hall?"
Zhuang Rui didn't understand it for a moment and blinked in confusion.
"is it not OK?"
Fu Ying's earnest words were accompanied by a bit of fear.
"It is a shame for Madam to let me witness and decide the young master's marriage. Fortunately, the law clearly states that marriage is free, so it is reasonable to keep this a secret from Master and Madam."
"As for the wedding, this is absolutely unacceptable. Please think twice, my lord. This may be considered as marriage fraud, and the punishment is very severe."
"The lives of my wife and I are not worth cherishing, but I am afraid that it will cause you to suffer, which is not worth the loss."
Zhuang Ruixiao nodded.
"It makes sense."
"Then I'll find an opportunity to tell you the truth before we get married."
Fu Ying secretly breathed a sigh of relief and smiled comfortably.
"Thank you for your understanding, sir."
Then she expressed her worries.
"My wife has always been open-minded. She was able to laugh it off when she learned about the secret marriage, but the palace..."
"I dare to speak out. Everyone in the world knows that the emperor values the Zhuang family. The young master's marriage is not entirely up to his own will. Miss Tang is a commoner, so the emperor may not be interested in her, right?"
Upon hearing this, Zhuang Rui became unhappy and retorted with a pout.
"What's wrong with being a commoner? My mother's ancestral home is Tongrou County, and she was also a commoner before."
Fu Ying sat very politely, not daring to be disrespectful in the slightest.
"Madam accompanied Master Bo and suffered all kinds of hardships. They supported and cherished each other. Their feelings were naturally different."
"How can Miss Tang compare?"
Zhuang Rui thought for a moment, then forgot his worries and felt happy.
"Your words reminded me."
Fu Ying's face was blank.
What are you reminding me of?
"What do you think, sir?"
Zhuang Rui enjoyed it and expressed his ideas.
"Before introducing her to the palace, I can stage a scene to guide Shuang'er to protect her with her life. If one scene is not enough, I can arrange a few more until her reputation spreads all over the world. In this way, our friendship will be extraordinary."
Although this idea was a bit childish, it was also clever, and Fu Ying chose nice words to compliment him.
"Young Master has a wonderful idea."
"But you don't understand strategy, so should we ask the eldest son to come and make the plan?"
Zhuang Rui was unable to react and asked back a series of questions.
"I don't understand strategy?"
After thinking for a while, he smiled helplessly at his father's advice to keep his cleverness to himself and be simple.
"I am really not good at making plans. When the time comes, I will ask my elder brother for help. You don't have to worry about it. Just focus on your own business."
Fu Ying smiled faintly, calm and composed.
"Yes, slaves obey."