Before Xiang Yi could walk far, the biting cold wind sent all these words over without any choice.

Qiao Yun's eyes widened, "How dare they say such things? I'll go find them right now..."

She turned around to leave, but was stopped by Xiang Yi.

There was light emotion in her voice, and there was even a little indifferent smile.

"Can we tell whether it is yes or no right now?"

Qiao Yun was speechless for a moment.

Her master, Xiang Zhiyuan, was indeed sentenced to corruption and exiled. No matter how many people tried to vindicate his innocence, they failed to get the case reversed.

How could she argue?

What's more, back then, my wife did come to the door with the old engagement contract, and that's how the marriage took place.

But at that time, one of the madam's younger siblings was dying and lying on the bed, and the other was bullied and failed to pass the imperial examination. The madam was really desperate.

Everyone laughed at her for not even losing her face, and rushed to cling to her.

Qiao Yun still remembers her wife standing in the wind in front of Tan's house in thin clothes and telling her.

"It doesn't matter what they say about me, and it doesn't matter what the Tan family does to me. I am the eldest sister, and my parents are gone. I can't watch my younger brothers and sisters survive. I am also the eldest daughter of the Xiang family, and I can't let my late father bear such a burden all the time. She must find a way to turn the Xiang family around."

She married into the Tan family.

Others laughed, her husband was indifferent, but she never said a word of grievance.

......

"Madam is just too angry. When they say this, Madam disrespects the clan and should be severely punished according to clan rules." Qiao Yun was dissatisfied.

"You remember the Tan family's clan rules clearly."

Xiang Yi smiled and glanced at her, "It would be wrong to say that they don't respect the clan. They still respect the old lady and the others, they just don't respect me."

Qiao Yun glared. "Isn't Madam from the Zong family? Isn't she the uncle's wife?"

Xiang Yi paused after hearing this and smiled slightly.

A whirlwind rose from the corner of the wall and merged with the wind in the air, blowing Xiang Yi's smile like smoke.

The second master's young boy, Fengyan, came over at this moment.

"Madam, the uncle has come to write home. The second master is reading a letter in the old lady's courtyard. Please go quickly."

Tan Ting's letter home called out Tan Jian and Tan Rong who were hiding in the room to take shelter from the wind.

The brazier in Qiuzhao Garden made people's faces glowing red. Tan Jian took the family letter and read it carefully to his mother and sister. The room was lively for a while.

"Brother is really coming back, and the date of his return has been decided, just before I get married!"

Upon hearing this, Ms. Zhao's heart dropped.

"For such a big event like your marriage, I was always worried about your eldest brother's absence. Now it's finally over."

The servants nearby congratulated, "The uncle is back, it's time for the old lady to take a break and take a breath."

"Yes. ....." Zhao said and asked Tan Jian, "What else did your eldest brother write?"

"My eldest brother asked about my mother's health and said that my aunt had given me many bird's nests as a reward from the palace and brought them back to my mother."

Tan Ting Tan Jian's aunt Tan married into the Lin family of Changming. Her uncle Lin Yanfan was the eldest son of Lin Bai, the chief minister of the dynasty, and now lives in the capital.

Mrs. Zhao was very happy after hearing this.

The aristocratic families of this dynasty have lasted for more than a hundred years. The Tan family was originally one of the five famous aristocratic families along with Lin, Chen, Cheng, and Li.

However, since Tan Ting's grandfather passed away, the family has suffered from military disasters and epidemics, and the family business has declined. It is not as prosperous as before, and it cannot be compared with the other four major families.

In addition, the father of the successor eldest son Tan Ting died young, and the clan was in chaos, with several branches branching out to various places.

But even so, the Tan family is admired by most families.

Tan Ting became the clan's eldest son at the age of fifteen. If he had not worked hard and won the Jinshi title at the age of only nineteen, his position as the eldest son might not have been secure.

Now that he is staying in Beijing and has closer contacts with the Lin family, it can be seen that he is valued by the Lin family and will have a bright future in the future.

Although Tan Ting is not Zhao's biological child, he was raised by her.

She smiled and said that this year's bird's nests are enough to eat. "Tell your brother not to forget to go to the Lin family to say thank you."

Tan Jian quickly wrote it down.

Tan Rong rubbed her hands for a long time, her body became warm, and she immediately came over.

"Did Brother mention me?"

"Of course I did," Tan Jian pointed to the letter, "Brother said that gold jade hair and jewelry have become popular in Beijing in recent years as dowries, and I have prepared a set of bottoms for you."

Tan Rong heard this . Her eyes lit up, she pursed her lips and smiled, and snuggled up to Mrs. Zhao.

Zhao touched her hair and asked Tan Jian again.

"What did your elder brother write to you?"

Hearing this, Tan Jian coughed twice in embarrassment and looked strange.

"Eldest brother said that although my marriage is important, I must not neglect my studies. He bought me five sets of historical texts and asked me to recite them all..."

Before Tan Jian could finish, Mrs. Zhao couldn't help laughing. , Tan Rong even fell forward and backward in Zhao's arms.

"The eldest brother still loves the second brother the most!"

...

When Xiang Yi arrived, he heard the laughter inside. When the little maid passed the message and led her into the door, Zhao and his friends' laughter gradually subsided. Come back down.

Zhao asked her about the status of her work this morning, and Xiang Yi replied that the matter had been settled and the clansmen had nothing to say.

As soon as Mrs. Zhao heard that everything was fine, she stopped asking any more questions.

Xiang Yi looked at the lingering smile on Tan Rong's face and asked.

"What are mother and sister laughing at?"

Tan Rong said, "...Second brother is really busy!"

Xiang Yi also smiled after hearing this.

This letter home asked questions about my mother and siblings, so it was logical that it was my wife's turn.

Tan Rong called Tan Jian, "Second brother, continue reading. My sister-in-law is here too." After

she said this, Tan Jian's face froze.

The eldest brother's letter sent greetings to everyone in the family, and brought them many things back. He even mentioned a few students in the clan about studying.

But in a page full of words, there was not even a single word about my sister-in-law.

Of course, this is not the first time...

Tan Jian hesitated, but Xiang Yi already knew the answer.

The expression on her face remained unchanged, always gentle, as if she could no longer get used to such a scene.

Tan Jian was embarrassed.

"What's that, sister-in-law, actually, my eldest brother is coming back, and the return date has been decided."

Xiang Yi then raised his head in surprise.

"Uncle is coming back."

Tan Jian said quickly.

"Because my eldest brother is coming back, I am writing this letter briefly. I just want to ask if there is anything my family needs to buy in the capital. My eldest brother has asked someone to do it together and bring it back together."

Xiang Yi nodded clearly.

Tan Jian quickly cleared up the matter and asked, "Mom and sister-

in-law, do you think there is anything you need to buy?" Tan Rong is Zhao's biological child. She is about to reach the age of haircut, so Zhao really wants to buy a few things for her daughter. , so he asked Tan Jian to bring a pen and ink and wrote a few things himself.

Tan Rong tapped her chin with the tip of her pen, and after thinking for a while, she wrote down a bunch of gadgets.

Tan Jian didn't have anything he wanted to buy, so he thought about it and brought some good ink to his classmates.

The pen was handed to Xiang Yi, and Xiang Yi also wrote a few things.

Tan Jian just glanced at it and blinked.

The things the sister-in-law wants to buy are all things that are missing in the family or need to be spared, such as medicinal materials, spices, wood, etc.

But there was nothing she personally needed.

The sister-in-law seemed to have never shown any interest...

While Tan Jian was dazed, Xiang Yi had already finished writing and put the paper back in front of Zhao.

"Mom, let's see if there's anything else to add."

Mrs. Zhao was still relieved about Xiang Yi's work. Seeing that she had thought through everything she needed at home, and even added a few more pieces of wood for Tan Rong's dowry box, Ms. Zhao nodded with satisfaction.

"That's it."

Xiang Yi handed the paper to Tan Jian, and he finally compiled and wrote the reply.

Tan Jian took the paper and glanced at Xiang Yi, but didn't say what he wanted to say.

In the winter, it gets colder day by day, and the bird's nests in the bare branches are all empty, with only a few feathers left, and they disappear when the wind blows.

Xiang Yi got up early in the morning and asked Qiao Yun to clean up and take inventory of the debris in the room.

"Put the items that are not commonly used in the box and leave a few items that are commonly used. Let me put my set of printing equipment in your room first."

Qiao Yun packed them up one by one for her, and finally put them under the window. There are many jade stones placed on the desk.

After the master died in exile, the Xiang family's life became extremely difficult. My wife was not good at female sealing, so she simply learned seal cutting.

After marrying into the Tan family, the Tan family gave his wife a monthly allowance, but since the dowries of wives from aristocratic families were very generous, all the allowance was just a small amount of pocket money.

But the wife had almost no dowry, and this small amount of money was not enough, so she continued to do jade seal carving. Over the past few years, her craft became more and more proficient.

"Madam makes seals without disturbing others, so why do you have to put them all away? Is it possible that only the grandpa's things are allowed in this room?"

Xiang Yi couldn't help but laugh when he saw her muttering.

"Although he does not live in this room alone, these seal-engraving utensils are all my personal belongings. After carving the seals, I sell them to earn some money to support my mother's family. How can I do it in front of him? Wouldn't it become a change? Is he asking for money? "

The Xiang family no longer has a good reputation in his eyes. If she continues to ask for money from him, the Xiang family's reputation will only become more solid.

She can ignore the others, but when her father was alive, the Xiang family's reputation was the most important thing, so she couldn't ignore it.

She thanked Tan Ting for not adding insult to injury and doing everything she should do.

As for more, be it money or other things, she had never thought about it when she first married him.

Qiao Yun heard what Madam said seemed to make sense, but there was something wrong that she couldn't pinpoint.

Xiang Yi thought of something and reminded her, "These accounts have been recorded clearly one by one."

"These accounts are Madam's own accounts, not the Tan family's accounts. Why do they have to be recorded so clearly?" Qiao Yun confuse.

Xiang Yi gathered up all his books on the bookshelf and put them on the lower shelf. He also swept the empty space on the upper shelf with a feather duster and left it for those who were about to return.

She said that the accounts must be clear, "I am in charge of Tan's family now, and there may be times when things go wrong. If someone checks the accounts then, and the public and private accounts are separated, the accounts will be settled easily."

The truth is . It was such a truth, but Qiao Yun was even more surprised.

"Madam is a clan wife, who will come to check on Madam's accounts?"

If that's the case, what dignity does Madam, a clan wife, have?

Xiang Yi shook his head and did not respond further, "It is always right to make the accounts clear and detailed."

Qiao Yun had no choice but to agree, packed up all the printing equipment and put them in her room temporarily.

After tidying up Xiang Yi's scattered things, the whole room became empty.

Xiang Yi couldn't help but go to Qiuzhaoyuan to pay his respects to Mr. Zhao.

Today is already the day that Tan Tingxin planned to return home. Xiang Yi said goodbye and went to wait for others outside the city with Tan Jian.

This winter has been extremely cold. Not long after winter started, strong north winds swept in one after another. Rivers and lakes froze early, and now three- to five-year-old children can already trot on the ice.

Xiang Yi and Tan Jian had people surround the pavilion on the main road outside the city with dense mats, burned charcoal fire and boiled hot tea, so they could barely keep out the cold.

There were not many people passing by, and for those who occasionally passed by, Xiang Yi would ask someone to bring him a cup of hot tea, or invite him to the pavilion to warm up for a while.

Passers-by all thanked me profusely.

Only half a moment passed, and Tan Ting's carriage and horses hadn't arrived yet.

By afternoon, the sky was getting cloudy. Thick clouds were coming down, the wind was getting stronger, and it was too cold to sit in the pavilion.

At this time, Zhao sent someone to call Tan Jian back.

"The second master's wedding is coming soon. It would be terrible if he catches the cold at this time. The old lady is calling the second master to go home quickly!" As

soon as Tan Jian left, Xiang Yi was the only one left in the cold pavilion.

He was a little hesitant. It didn't seem good to leave his sister-in-law alone waiting in the cold wind.

Seeing that he refused to leave, Xiang Yi said.

"Second Master, please go back quickly. When you get home, send someone to bring some mats to protect you from the wind."

"Okay," Tan Jianli immediately agreed, and under the constant urging of Zhao's people, he had no choice but to say.

"Sister-in-law, if you bear with me, I will send someone to deliver the mat when I get back."

Xiang Yi nodded with a smile.

Zhao's people pressed hard, and the visitor also sent a message, so that Xiang Yi didn't have to wait too long and could just go back after dark.

The wind got stronger and stronger, and the dark clouds overhead became lower and lower. After an hour, the sky was almost completely dark, and the north wind wrapped the bamboo mat and carried the flickering charcoal fire.

The sky was covered with dark clouds, and snowflakes as big as goose feathers fell.

Xiang Yi stood up and went to the roadside in person.

There was not a single pedestrian on the road, and there was no light in the night.

A boy who was watching the road outside suddenly fainted.

They carried him into the pavilion and roasted him for a quarter of an hour before he woke up.

Qiao Yun wrapped Xiang Yi's cloak around her and said, "Madam, please go back. It's snowing, and I won't be able to make it today. If Madam is worried, just leave two people here."

The wind blew so hard that people couldn't stand.

Xiang Yi looked at the fainted boy, and then at the end of the road where there was no one around. There was still no sign of anyone who was about to go home.

Xiang Yi withdrew his gaze.

"No need to wait, let's all go back."

Soon the pavilion became empty, except for the bamboo mat that had not been removed, leaving it for passers-by to take shelter from the wind.

However, just as Xiang Yi and his party left, on the quiet and deserted road, a group of carriages and horses came through the snow.

The boy Zhengji had good eyesight and saw a roadside pavilion surrounded by bamboo mats from a distance.

"Uncle, the pavilion in front is surrounded. Are our family members waiting for you here?"

He said, looking at the man on the black horse.

The man wore a gray squirrel collar, dark blue robe with dark patterns, and a black cloak that was blown by the wind.

Hearing this, his expression softened and he said, "Go and have a look."

In the past, when he returned home from a trip, whenever letters from home mentioned the return date, someone at home would definitely be waiting here.

At that time, my mother, the Zhao family, was still in charge of the business. Although the head of the business has changed now, I think there is nothing wrong with it.

The group of people quickened their pace and arrived in front of the pavilion.

But the young man Zhengji ran forward, opened the curtain and was dumbfounded when he saw that

there was no one waiting in the pavilion surrounded by bamboo mats.

The man on the black horse was startled.

A man dressed as an aide in the motorcade stepped forward, glanced at the man quickly, and murmured in a low voice.

"Mrs. Xiang is not here waiting for the uncle? No one is waiting? She doesn't know that the uncle has been away from home for three years and is coming back today?"

There was nothing in the pavilion except the wind blowing in from the edge of the bamboo mat.

The wind and snow blow on people, making them feel cold all over.

The man on the black horse didn't say much, his calm expression darkened, and he withdrew his gaze.

"Okay, let's go home."