Light Dance Jiajing

Meng'er suddenly felt that this topic was very boring. In this era, apart from a career in politics, it was hard for a man to take up a menial job. What else could a woman hope for except marrying into a good family? Meng'er wanted to make money, but how could a woman expose herself in public and calculate her living? She was a daughter of a wealthy family, not a merchant. Meng'er frowned even more deeply as she thought about this.

Wang Wei had no idea what she was thinking, so he asked suspiciously, "What's wrong? Is there anything wrong?"

Mei'er glared at Wang Wei and said, "It's not right. It's absolutely not right." Then she tried to get rid of Wang Wei. Isn't it like talking to a deaf person when two people have completely different ideas?

Wang Wei frowned slightly and was silent for a while as if he had thought of something. His brows knitted tighter and tighter. Suddenly, he looked at Meng'er vigilantly and said, "You...you want to recruit me to be your consort. I want to be a high-ranking official. Being a consort would only mean an idle position. I...I won't do it."

Mei'er's eyes widened. What was the little fat man talking about? Mei'er didn't get angry but laughed: "What nonsense are you talking about? How can a prince consort do whatever he wants? Humph, you wish for it."

Wang Wei stared at Meng'er for a while, as if he was finally relieved: "It's good that it's not. Well, my mother and aunt's jokes can't be taken seriously. Haha, I was scared to death..."

Meng'er rolled her eyes at him and said, "The prince consort is a royal relative. Humph, there are many people who want to be his wife. You should stop worrying about it as soon as possible."

Wang Wei also rolled his eyes at her: "I'm not trying to discourage you, but which promising man would want to be a royal consort? Ahem..." He suddenly noticed that Zaihou was looking at him with an unfriendly look. Even this little brat, the look he gave him sideways was actually a bit intimidating, so he stopped talking.

In fact, Meng'er was not that angry. She had never thought about getting married. She was a modern person at heart. She was not mentally prepared for how to get along with a husband in feudal society. Wouldn't it be better not to get married? Anyway, she, a princess, couldn't starve to death. Thinking of this, she said indifferently: "The life of relying on my husband as the heaven is really not suitable for me. I only learn the things that the ladies of the family are interested in, such as music, chess, calligraphy and painting. I will not embarrass myself by doing things I don't like, and I will not live to please men."

Wang Wei frowned. He was a typical young man brought up in a feudal society. As the eldest son, he grew up under the pampering of his mother and the strict training of his father. His mother regarded her husband as the most important person in the world and was gentle, virtuous, and well-mannered. Although it was an arranged marriage, she had a good relationship with his father. Although his father kept taking concubines, his mother never complained. Wang Wei had seen it since he was a child and felt that it should be so. Women were naturally vassals of men. But he suddenly remembered something from the depths of his memory. It was a few years ago. On that day, his father took in the fifth concubine. His mother was happy during the day, but she hid in a corner and cried secretly in the dead of night. At that time, he asked his mother what was wrong, and his mother lied to him that she was blind. At this moment, his heart was open, but he felt a little suffocated. Wasn't his mother enduring it bitterly on weekdays?

A woman like his mother, a beautiful and talented young lady from a noble family, lives a cautious life after getting married. It doesn't matter if she is the principal wife or if she gives birth to a son. She is always worried about being disliked by her husband. She is even cautious about her father's favorite concubine. Such a life seems glorious, but what's the point? His father favors whoever he wants and never cares about the feelings of any woman. His mother's earnest teachings are still in his ears, such as to please his grandfather, obey his father's orders, and bring honor to the family. Since he was a child, nothing he has done is what he likes. He suddenly envied Meng'er. This little girl lives a free life. From a favored girl of heaven to this point, she doesn't show any decadence. Instead, she feels happier than before. Today he came with his mother, thinking that Concubine Kang must be miserable after being expelled from the palace with her two young children. Unexpectedly, despite the bad conditions, the group of people were well organized under the command of this girl, and she seemed to enjoy it. The little girl's rebelliousness did not arouse his disgust. Instead, he suddenly began to waver in his understanding of what he had always taken for granted.

At this time, Luzhu and Luluo came into the yard carrying buckets. The two maids struggled to lift the buckets and wanted to pour the water into the water tank. Wang Wei silently walked forward and picked up the buckets. With a little effort, he poured the whole bucket of water into the water tank. Luzhu and Luluo both recognized Wang Wei and quickly bowed to thank him. The two maids were the same age as Wang Wei. Girls matured early and had only seen maids and eunuchs in the palace. They looked at Wang Wei with some shyness. Luzhu blushed and lowered her head quickly, while Luluo was more carefree and natural. Wang Wei walked back to Meng'er and put on a lazy expression: "Hey, I've been traveling for most of the day and I'm starving. Find me something to eat."

Meng'er glanced at him unhappily and muttered, "You caught up with the porridge that had just been cooked. Come with me if you're hungry." Wang Wei drank most of the pot of osmanthus millet porridge. He looked at Meng'er and didn't believe that it was cooked by her, but he was tactful enough not to question her in person.

The cold palace has its own rules, and outsiders are not allowed to stay overnight, so Mrs. Wang stayed for two hours and then left with Wang Wei. Before leaving, she left them a large sum of silver. Concubine Kang was grateful and accompanied her to the door.

Zaihou, who was five and a half years old, had already started reading and writing. Meng'er thought that although Zaihou did not have to take the imperial examination, he could not relax in his studies. She was always inexplicably worried that if something happened to her soul in another world one day, who would Kangpin and Zaihou rely on? So she was extremely strict with Zaihou and wanted to teach him everything. Every morning she accompanied Zaihou to read and write, and then took Zaihou to run and exercise on the mountain road. Although Zaihou could not understand Meng'er's good intentions, he was very obedient and did as Meng'er asked. The two children often sat under a big tree in the mountains, leaning against each other in the mountain breeze. Meng'er hummed from time to time, and the sight of patches of woods was pleasing to the eye.

Half a year passed in a blink of an eye. Meng'er, who was good at handling things, had become very familiar with the maids and eunuchs in the cold palace. She also persuaded Zaihou to become a disciple of a guard in the guard camp who was good at horse riding. In half a month, both of them could ride horses properly. However, Kangpin often complained: "How can a girl be like a wild boy? How can she get married in the future!" Zaihou took over the conversation seriously: "It doesn't matter if you can't get married, I'm still here."

The weather was getting cooler, and the temperature in the mountains was dropping drastically. Nanny Zhao had already prepared cotton clothes for everyone. Meng'er and Zaihou were wrapped tightly. The two children were used to being wild, and now wearing coarse cotton robes, they looked no different from children who were born and raised in the mountains.