The boat rocked on the water, and anyone who was awake could easily get sleepy from the leisurely rocking, let alone those who were asleep.

When Xiang Yi woke up, he was surprised to see the sun rising high.

Chun Bamboo heard the movement and walked in with a smile.

"Madam, are you awake? Did you sleep well last night?"

In the past, in the Tan family, Xiang Yi, as the wife of the clan, had to set an example and regulate Zhao's morning and evening every day. Unless Zhao made an exception, she could not omit anything else.

Two days before boarding the ship, she could always wake up at dawn, but after a few days, the ship was rocking and there was no maid to wake her up, so she actually fell asleep at this time.

She whispered to Chun Bamboo to wake her up on time in the future.

Chun Bamboo felt a little embarrassed, "But the master told the slaves not to disturb the madam."

Xiang Yi paused for a few breaths when he said this, and when he lowered his head, he saw a mahogany box that he had never seen before.

"What is this?"

Chunzhan didn't answer in a hurry and opened the box for Xiang Yi.

As soon as the box was opened, Xiang Yi really fixed his gaze.

The box was divided into many small compartments like a jewelry box, but instead of packing items, it contained ten jade stones of various sizes, shapes, and colors.

Only then did Chun Bamboo speak, and looked at Xiang Yi with a smile.

"The uncle asked Zhengji to give it to his wife."

The water quality of these jade stones is very good, and their value is much higher than the three pieces Xiang Yi bought.

Xiang Yi didn't speak for a long time. After a long time, he asked where the old man was, then changed his clothes and went out.

On the bow, the ship set off blue waves, and strong winds hit the waves.

Tan Jian secretly wiped the sweat from his heart while answering in front of his elder brother. If

he continued to memorize it, he felt that he might be slapped again...

At this moment, a person walked from the side. When Tan Jian saw that person, he felt as if a god had descended and a goddess descended to earth. He kept reminding me.

"Brother, sister-in-law is here."

Tan Ting was immediately displeased when he took the initiative to interrupt the answer, but when he heard those words again, he couldn't help but turn his head and take a look.

He saw his wife at a glance.

Today, my wife wore a moon-white long coat, a lilac-colored bijia embroidered with Ruyi patterns, and a light purple lilac-style hairpin in her bun. The wind passing by the bow of the ship blew towards her, blowing her ears. A pair of pearls dangling from the side.

This time Tan Jian didn't need to remind him, so Tan Ting said, "Go back and continue to memorize your book."

"Yes, yes, yes..." After hearing this, Tan Jian ran away without stopping for a breath. While bowing to Xiang Yi.

If he didn't have his sister-in-law, how would he be able to live with his elder brother day and night on the boat... As soon as

Tan Jian left, Tan Ting turned his face and took two steps forward to greet Xiang Yi, "Yizhen wakes up." "Really?"

The wind blew strands of hair around Xiang Yi's ears, and she raised her hands to hold them behind her ears, and nodded slightly, thinking of the box of precious jade.

"Why did you buy so much jade?"

Tan Ting glanced at her at this question, wanting to see if she liked it.

He shouldn't have been angry with her yesterday, which made her lose interest and stopped buying jade.

He was about to ask her if she liked it, but she asked in a low voice.

"I don't know how much these jade stones bought by uncle..."

Xiang Yi's voice was extremely low. She had a hunch that she shouldn't ask, but they had always clearly separated their accounts. Those jade stones were really valuable, and she really It cannot be accepted as an ordinary object.

But when she asked, the corner of the man's mouth tightened again.

Tan Ting felt a sigh of relief in her chest, but she thought that she was too angry and didn't speak clearly yesterday, which made her lose interest.

He asked her directly this time.

"Does Yizhen want to record it in the account again, or does she want to return the money to me?"

He couldn't help but muttered again.

"Does Yizhen have to be so clear-cut with me? You and I are husband and wife, how can we be like this?"

He finally said all the things he hadn't said clearly yesterday.

Xiang Yi was stunned for a moment, then raised his eyes to look at the man.

It turned out that yesterday was really what Zhengji had guessed...

But Xiang Yi was surprised and secretly sighed at his change of attitude.

What's wrong with making the distinction clear? It will always save some trouble in the future...

But for now, Xiang Yi looked at the man's resentful attitude and could only keep it in mind silently.

She bowed her head and bowed, "Thank you for that, sir."

Tan Ting didn't want her to be so polite to him, so he raised his hand and helped her up.

He looked at the person in front of him carefully. It was not easy for her to accept his things today. As for etiquette, he just had to work on it slowly with her. After all, they were going to be husband and wife in this life... ...

The two of them each had their own ideas, and for a while they reached a balance on this issue.

The cool breeze blew from the river. Tan Ting took off his cloak and put it on his wife's shoulders.

Xiang Yi half-closed his eyes and thanked softly.

Masaki watched from a distance and breathed a sigh of relief. He originally wanted to come over to serve tea, but for a moment he didn't come forward to disturb him.

The corners of Tan Ting's mouth couldn't help but curl up, and he pointed to the small fish market on the shore in front.

"The weather is getting warmer, and the fish market is becoming more lively."

Xiang Yi also looked towards the lively market, smiling softly and nodding.

Tan Ting thought of the hand he failed to hold yesterday again.

This time he approached quietly, and when a gust of river wind blew in his face, he touched the hand of his wife beside him.

There were no crowds of people today. As soon as he touched her slightly, Xiang Yi noticed and looked over.

Tan Ting did not meet her gaze, but pretended that it was an ordinary thing, and put his arm around her slightly cold hand, holding it lightly in his hand.

The exchange of hot and cold happens in an instant.

Xiang Yi couldn't help but secretly take a breath and looked at the man blankly.

Tan Ting noticed the slight stiffness in her hand. Just when he was about to close his palm and hold her hand completely, Yang Zhen suddenly ran out.

"Sister-in-law? Please help me see the jade I carved!"

Yang Zhen was bored on the boat and started carving jade.

When she shouted, Xiang Yi quickly withdrew his hand subconsciously.

Tan Ting opened his eyes slightly and looked down at her. Xiang Yi was embarrassed for a moment and lowered his head, not embarrassed to look back at Tan Ting.

"My brother and sister called me, I'll go over first..."

He said and left quickly.

Tan Ting was left at the bow of the boat, with the slightly cold body temperature of his wife's soft hands still in his hands.

But he wasn't as depressed as before. Instead, he felt an inexplicable feeling as he watched Xiang Yi leave in a hurry.

Is Yi Zhen... a little shy?

Thinking of this, the man's mouth couldn't help but curl up a little.

Unfortunately, it was interrupted again this time.

Thinking about the naturalness of his useless brother and sister-in-law, Tan Ting couldn't help but feel that this is how they should be as a couple...

At this time, Xiao Guan came over to report.

"Uncle, we will be at the Denghe County Pier in a quarter of an hour."

Tan Ting was still in his thoughts and just nodded after hearing this.

Light River Pier.

The waves reflected the sun in the sky.

Aunt Zhang was sent by the head of the house. Huang Siniang heard her talk a few more words about the Tan family in Qingkan, saying that in the past, the Tan family in Qingkan also had a family with the elder Ge, but in recent years, because of The previous eldest son died young, and the previous uncle of the Tan family was too young and had declined a bit, but compared to the Huang family of Denghe, he was not bad at all.

Huang Siniang knew what she meant.

Such a prominent lintel as Qingkan, if the Tan family uncle was not forced to marry the Xiang family as his first wife, he would not have fallen on the Huang family, or even himself.

Although the Huang family has a similar family background to the Tan family, she is only the girl of the second eldest family member of the Zong family. The eldest sister of the eldest family member died in infancy, and there has been no more girls since then.

The uncle of the Tan family is the eldest son of the Zong family, so he should be matched with the direct daughter of the Zong family.

Therefore, she could only marry after succeeding the Xiang family.

Another dazzling light reflected on the river.

The eldest uncle wanted to be friends with everyone, but his father just listened to him.

She lost her mother long ago, and her biological sister is not around, so she can only let her uncle arrange her life.

But she had to first see what the Tan family's character was like, and then see what kind of behavior the Xiang family had, and how the couple got along before she knew whether to marry...

Huang Siniang had to think about it a lot . , but Huang Liuniang didn't know anything about it.

She came to Beijing this time because her father was transferred to a Beijing official and took her there.

She is two years younger than Si Niang. Although she has reached the age of marriage, she is not too anxious. On the contrary, she has a childish nature. The more she thinks about spending many days in the same boat with a shameless corrupt official, the angrier she becomes.

"...The face comes from the heart, that Xiang family must be extremely ugly, and it has ruined the beautiful scenery of my journey north!"

As he spoke, I saw a majestic ship coming from the south river. The black painted hull was engraved in gold with a large character - Tan.

The people waiting at the dock immediately became active.

The boat here was parked steadily in front of the pier. Huang Siniang and Liu Niang were in a hurry to get on the boat. Naturally, they had to wait for the Tan family to come forward first.

Both of them couldn't help but look towards the boat, and saw a man wearing a copper-green brocade robe and a woman in a pink dress walking hand in hand to the side of the boat.

The man was handsome and the woman was bright. When they got off the boat, they laughed and whispered a few words, and their gestures were very affectionate.

Huang Si Niang and Huang Liu Niang were both stunned by this sight.

It was only the next breath that the second brother of the Zong family who came to see them off came forward, and the two of them knew the identities of the two people who got off the boat.

It turned out to be the second master and second wife of the Tan family.

Si Niang secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and Liu Niang patted her chest directly and chewed on Si Niang's ear.

"Let me tell you, such a bright and beautiful woman must not be that Xiang family. She turned out to be a young lady from the Yang family of Zhongqing Bofu."

Everyone greeted each other and then allowed the Huang family to board the boat.

Tan Jian led them all the way to the spacious hall on the ship.

Huang Siniang had been secretly paying attention to her surroundings, but didn't notice anyone. Until she entered the large hall, she saw a man standing in the middle with his hands behind his back.

The man wore a dark blue brocade robe, with a white jade belt around his waist, and his posture was as tall as a pine tree. Huang Siniang only dared to glance at the man's face very quickly, and she quickly lowered her head on the face that was more handsome and steady than the second master of the Tan family.

She felt a little excited for no reason, and after her cousin introduced her, she bowed to him with proper etiquette.

The man's voice was as calm as his face, but also a little gentle, not too much, not too little, just right.

The Huang family naturally wanted to politely invite Tan Ting to stay with the Huang family in Denghe for a few days before leaving, but Tan Ting had no intention of staying, so he politely declined.

The Huang family had no choice but to ask him to take care of the two girls. Tan Ting naturally agreed and sent the Huang family off the boat.

The Tan family's boat stopped for half an hour before continuing northward.

The two girls were led to the reserved cabin bedroom.

As soon as they left the spacious hall, Liu Niang whispered in Si Niang's ear.

"That uncle of the Tan family looks really handsome. What a pity. Why did he marry that kind of woman?"

She thought about not seeing Xiang Yi just now, so she couldn't help but said, "Isn't he too ugly to be seen? " Why are you bringing her to Beijing?"

Huang Siniang couldn't respond to these questions, so she could only be careful about her words and actions. The Huang family was also a well-behaved family, so don't talk nonsense on other people's boats.

But she was also wondering in her heart. The Tan family's uncle did have the bearing of a clan clan's eldest son, but what about the Xiang family? Is it really because I didn’t come out because I was ugly or because I was disliked?

But as soon as they arrived in their respective rooms, a maid came over and gave them snacks.

"Madam asked the slaves to bring some snacks to the two girls to relieve their fatigue."

Si Niang listened, thinking secretly and thanked her.

But Liu Niang ran into her room, "Huh, I don't want to eat snacks from women like that."

She said and pulled Si Niang, "Sister, why don't you go out for a walk while the weather is nice? Wait until it gets dark. There is nothing to see."

Siniang was still thinking about the Xiang family who had not shown up yet, so she was pulled out of the cabin by her sister.

But as soon as he reached the stern of the boat, he almost ran into a woman.

The woman's lilac-colored armor made her complexion extremely soft, and the pearls beside her ears reflected the light of the water. When the wind blew, her whole body exuded a pearl-like luster.

Both Si Niang and Liu Niang looked at this person and were stunned for a while.

Liu Niang subconsciously thought that there were other women's family members picked up by others on the boat, but Si Niang felt inexplicably uneasy.

Sure enough, the next breath, the second wife of the Tan family walked over quickly.

"Sister-in-law wasn't seasick just now, why did she come out again now? It's time to rest for

a while." Xiang Yi fainted for a while while the ship was starting and stopping, so Tan Ting asked her to stay in the room and sleep for a while. , take a rest.

But there was no reason to sleep during the day. Xiang Yi felt better now and walked out.

When she saw the two girls, she asked Yang Zhen. Knowing that they were girls from the Huang family in Denghe, she greeted them politely.

The two girls were both of marriageable age. Xiang Yi glanced at them and saw that they were both a little stunned for some reason.

The younger sixth girl seemed to have lost her soul, but the fourth girl came to her senses and greeted her.

Xiang Yi was not from a noble family and was not familiar with them, so he left after saying a few words.

She left. After a while, a gust of wind passed by the stern of the boat, and the two of them were completely brought back to their senses.

Liu Niang swallowed a few mouthfuls and scratched her head in confusion.

"Why? Isn't it because of the heart? Why is she so beautiful... No, it may not be because of the heart. Maybe the Xiang family is a femme fatale who held the Tan family hostage. Married in!"

She thought this could make sense, and nodded to herself, "That must be the case!"

Si Niang didn't say anything for a while, but reminded Liu Niang when she was about to continue mumbling.

"Okay, stop talking about other people's affairs, and be careful about being overheard. Didn't you say you want to take this opportunity to practice carving walnuts? Go quickly."

No matter how childish Liu Niang is, she still knows that talking on other people's boats is inappropriate. The bad thing was that she really couldn't imagine how the Xiang family could be so beautiful and eye-catching, and she was no less beautiful than any noble daughter from aristocratic families in the capital.

Huang Siniang and her sister thought the same thing, but they felt a little depressed because of Xiang's appearance and temperament.

How could Nanny Zhang not see what she was thinking? Who would have thought that the Xiang family would be so popular?

But she persuaded Siniang in a low voice.

"Girl, don't be frightened by that Xiang family. No matter what, she is from a commoner family and is the daughter of a corrupt official. If the Tan family has no intention of replacing this wife for the eldest son, how can we get the news?"

She said She spoke, her voice lowered, "This is what our aunt-in-law heard from Dr. Lin. To be honest, even if there is not our family, there are other families. It is impossible for the Xiang family to sit in the Tan family for a long time." She is in the position of the head wife, so why should you care about her? "

That's what Mrs. Lin meant, but what about the Tan family uncle himself?

Huang Siniang didn't say anything, and Grandma Zhang wanted to give her some more advice. At this moment, there were footsteps outside the cabin.

Looking through the crack in the window, I happened to see people walking outside.

It was Xiang Yi.

Grandma Zhang immediately fell silent, and someone came over from the other side of the boat.

They couldn't see clearly, but it was the sound of men's footsteps.

The two people in the cabin listened quietly when they heard the man's voice outside.

"Why did you come out?"

Tan Ting frowned when he saw that his wife had come out instead of resting in the cabin.

Xiang Yi responded in a low voice, "I feel a little bored, and I want to come out for a walk."

But when they walked into the mountains, the wind picked up, causing the pearls hanging by her ears to beat.

He was afraid that she would catch the wind and really get seasick, he had to say.

"It's better to go back."

Xiang Yi saw that the wind was really strong and it was really inconvenient to stay outside any longer, so he said no more and saluted.

Tan Ting watched his wife return to the cabin, and then he felt relieved and went to give instructions on the ship.

The specific situation of the couple talking outside was not visible to the people in the cabin.

But I can still hear clearly what was said and what tone it was in.

As soon as the two of them left, Granny Zhang took Huang Siniang's hand.

"The girl has heard everything. The Tan family uncle doesn't want Xiang to come out at all. He probably dislikes her for being embarrassed and doesn't allow her to leave the cabin!"

Huang Siniang indeed heard the tone of the stable eldest son of the Tan family. He was a little unhappy, but Xiang wanted to defend himself at first, but after being scolded by him, he didn't dare to speak anymore.

It seems that the two of them are really at odds with each other...

So the Tan family uncle brought Xiang to Beijing to find an opportunity to divorce her.

Huang Siniang's thoughts were racing, but Nanny Zhang didn't have so many thoughts and said directly.

"Didn't the eldest man ask the girl to consult with the Tan family uncle on behalf of the young man? Let's go after dinner tonight and say a few words to let the Tan family uncle remember the girl. This is A good opportunity for a girl!"

Huang Siniang felt a little uncomfortable after hearing this.

Then the Tan family's uncle hasn't divorced his wife yet...

"What should I do if I'm caught by Xiang like this?"

Even if he has knowledge as a cover, he still feels a little embarrassed.

Aunt Zhang repeatedly told her to be at ease.

"Since Mrs. Lin has this intention, she must have arranged for people to be with Uncle Tan. The girl can just go. There is no way that Xiang will bump into the girl."

...

After dinner in the evening, they went back to their respective places. After resting in the bedroom, Tan Ting had a separate study room for the director in the ship. He said to Xiang Yi and went to the study room to be the director.

However, after Tan Jian finished memorizing the book, his mind became active again. Seeing Yang Zhen learning to carve and play, he caught a big fish from the river and started making fish soup.

He happily ordered someone to make a cup of stew, and wanted to give a bowl to his eldest brother who was working hard at home. But on second thought, he was afraid that his eldest brother would scold him for not doing his job properly, so he turned around and asked for his sister-in-law.

"Sister-in-law, don't tell me that I made it stewed. Just say that your sister-in-law feels sorry for your eldest brother. Send it to your eldest brother for your younger brother."

Xiang Yi was so funny. Although he didn't agree with Tan Jian's words, he looked at the palm of his hand. For the sake of luck, I had to go through it for him.

The river breeze at night was a bit biting, and the fishing fires on the distant river bank seemed to have been extinguished by the cold wind, making the shadows look like ghosts.

Xiang Yi went to the study to protect Tan Jian's fish soup. As soon as he took a few steps out of the cabin, he saw a piece of skirt passing in front of his eyes, heading towards Tan Ting's study.

Xiang Yi was slightly startled, thinking that his eyes were dazzled.

The wind became stronger and she continued to move forward.

Unexpectedly, at this moment, someone suddenly stood in front of her.

Qin Jiao felt bad when he saw Mrs. Xiang's sudden appearance. Then he saw that she was actually going to the uncle's study when the Huang family girl had just entered.

Qin Jiao stopped Xiang Yi in one step.

The fourth girl Huang that Mrs. Lin chose for the uncle was the legitimate daughter of a serious family. Although she was born into a second wife, she was qualified to be the stepmother for the uncle.

How can a corrupt official's daughter from a commoner family like Xiang compare?

The uncle has been good enough to Mrs. Xiang these days. If Mrs. Xiang is sensible, she should also know how to get together and disperse easily.

He said, "Madam, are you going to the uncle's study? The uncle was tired just now and is taking a nap right now. Madam, it's better not to disturb him?"

Xiang Yi didn't expect Tan Ting to take a nap at this hour, and she was a little surprised.

But in Qin Jiao's expression, she inexplicably thought of the skirt that just passed by her eyes.

Just in the next breath, the faint voices of men and women talking came from the direction of the study.

The voice was not loud and it was not clear what was said, but Xiang Yi understood it immediately.

The night wind blew out the fishing fires by the river, and the angry wind lanterns swayed on the boat and made a gurgling sound, and the light and shadow changed for a while.

So that's it...

Xiang Yi smiled lightly, lowered his eyes, put the fish soup on the small table beside the boat, and said softly.

"Let Mr. Qin serve this fish soup to you, and I won't bother you."

The night wind blew the strands of hair around her ears, and more tiny voices of men and women talking in the study were heard.

Xiang Yi put down the fish soup, raised his hand to pull up the broken hair around his ears, and turned around to leave without wasting too much time.