Adhere to the gentleman's principles

Even the colors of people's clothes today were neat and tidy. Xu Zhiwan said, "Let's eat first."

The meal started, and all the dishes on the table were neatly arranged. Li Ziyan leaned close to Zhao Junning's ear and said, "You've prepared everything!" Zhao Junning said, "I have to prepare everything neatly so that your uncle doesn't hate me." Xu Gong coughed lightly, "Ziyan and your wife are so loving."

Then he looked at Zhao Junning: "But you are indeed pretty, just like your aunt, you are likable at first sight." Li Ziyan looked at Xu Gong: "Uncle, let's talk after dinner."

Xu Gong said, "Why are you panicking? I won't compete with you for a wife. Wenhe, look at you and Ziyan, both of you are married." Xu Wenhe scratched the back of his head, "It's because Li Ziyan insisted on provoking others, otherwise he wouldn't have a wife now."

Xu Gong patted Xu Wenhe's head and said, "What are you mumbling about?" Xu Zhiwan said, "Okay, okay, you can fight or talk however you want after dinner."

"Dad, I won't go back. Bianjing is good. I won't go back." Xu Wenhe said. Xu Gong angrily scolded: "You little bastard, in the past seven years since I came back, you have either been to the casino or the brothel. Whenever you go there, you spend a lot of money. You almost squandered all the money in Bianjing. The teachers in the academy wrote to me several times about your grades. You pissed me off."

Li Ziyan said quickly, "Uncle, don't be angry. Wenhe..." Xu Gong said, "And you, you left your wife alone at home after getting married in a place like a casino, a brothel, or a dance hall." Zhao Junning listened and tried to hold back her laughter. Xu Gong said, "You two, Li Ziyan, go to your family's ancestral hall and kneel. Xu Wenhe, come home with me and kneel in the ancestral hall too."

The two looked hopeless. Li Ziyan asked, "Kneeling in the ancestral hall again?"

Xu Gong said: "If you don't want to kneel in the ancestral hall, then copy books. I heard that your wife has been urging you to study hard recently."

After hearing this, Li Ziyan looked at Xu Zhiwan and said, "Mom, look at your uncle." Xu Zhiwan said, "Listen to your uncle."

Li Ziyan lowered his head and said, "Then I'd better kneel in the ancestral hall!" Xu Gong said, "Also, change your colorful clothes and wear something more plain and elegant. You will be taking part in the provincial examination soon. Don't wear something so ostentatious that it will affect your mood."

Li Ziyan wanted to refute but looking at Xu Gong's expression, he said, "Yes." He stood up and walked into the ancestral hall dejectedly.

Xu Wenhe also lowered his head and laughed secretly. Xu Gong said, "You still remember to laugh. Come home with me."

Then he looked at Xu Zhiwan, Li Yin and Zhao Junning and said, "Sister, I will take this brat home first and come back to your house in a few days. This time I will have to wait until the provincial examination is over before I go back.

My nephew, you are a good girl. Zi Yan has been trained by you very well and is very obedient. His temper has also become much gentler. However, if this boy dares to bully you in the future and makes you angry, tell me and I will help you deal with him. He likes to go against his father but he is afraid of me. "

Zhao Junning said, "Yes, it's my uncle, but Zi Yan treats me very well. Now my uncle is on my side, my parents-in-law and I are on his side, so Zi Yan doesn't dare to bully me."

Xu Gong nodded and said, "Okay, I'll go back first then." After Xu Gong left, Zhao Junning breathed a sigh of relief and said, "I was scared to death."

Xu Zhiwan looked at Zhao Junning: "Junning, just now Ziyan's uncle was quite serious in his words, but he is actually very kind to people. He has been spoiled by his family since he was a child and likes to lecture others, so don't take it too seriously."

Zhao Junning said, "No, my uncle is an interesting person, I think he's a good person. Grandparents, I'm going to go see Zi Yan."

Li Yin said, "Go ahead, but let him kneel in the ancestral hall first, and don't let him get up so early. You can go back to your room and rest after you finish watching." Zhao Junning said, "Okay."

Li Ziyan was kneeling in the ancestral hall. Zhao Junning pushed open the door and saw Li Ziyan's back. He walked closer and said with a smile, "Are your legs numb?" Li Ziyan looked up when he heard Zhao Junning's voice and said, "No, I'm used to kneeling. Did my uncle give you any trouble?"

Zhao Junning pretended to be sad: "Yeah." Li Ziyan heard: "Ah? This Xu Gong punished me, but why did he make things difficult for you? You are so good, can't he see it? He still made things difficult for you, tell me how he made things difficult for you, I will go and argue with him."

Zhao Junning said: "My uncle told me to take good care of you as you are getting closer to the provincial examination. He also told me to tell him if you dare to bully me in the future."

After hearing this, Li Ziyan said, "Why do I feel like you are showing off from your tone? Well, I'm glad that your uncle didn't make things difficult for you. Your uncle's words show that he recognizes you as his nephew's wife. Besides, why do you say that I bullied you? Do I dare to bully you?"

Zhao Junning heard this and said, "Your uncle has recognized me since he arrived at the door of the mansion. From your tone just now, you seem to want to bully me?" Li Ziyan smiled bitterly and said, "I didn't say I wanted to bully you." Zhao Junning said, "Oh, okay." Then he looked at Li Ziyan and asked, "By the way, you said you often kneel in the ancestral hall. Did you also kneel when you were a child?"

Li Ziyan said: "When I was a child, I was even more naughty than I am now. I didn't want to recite what the teacher taught me in school, but the teacher always scolded me. One time, the teacher said I was a fool for not being able to recite such a simple thing. I was so angry that I threw the teacher's ruler and tore up the book. After my uncle and father found out, they scolded me for a long time. At that time, I was six years old and still in Pingliang.

At that time, the whole city knew about this. My father would not punish me for the sake of his reputation, but disrespecting teachers was unfilial. My father and uncle had no choice but to punish me by making me kneel in the ancestral hall for two days and two nights without eating. Later, I fainted from hunger.

When I was ten years old, my parents and I returned to Bianjing. We were also in school. At that time, the two geniuses in the school, Song Ciqiu and Lin Muchen, were often praised by the teacher, and I was the negative example. I hated them at that time, but who knew that they were good friends with you.

Wen He, Cong Wen and I were the worst of the three in the academy. We fought, skipped classes, and did everything. So even when we returned to Bian Jing, we would kneel in the ancestral temple every other day. But I just don’t like studying. I don’t know why, when you urged me to study, I didn’t want to study, but my body was very obedient. "

Zhao Junning looked at Li Ziyan and said, "Don't worry, I will never let you kneel in the ancestral hall again. Today, your uncle punished you and I accompanied you. I know your childhood and heard a lot from Uncle Hu. In fact, you are not as domineering and rude as they say.

You just don't like being disciplined, because being born in a military family, there is a force in your bones that doesn't like being bound, but Zi Yan's force can be beneficial to you but also harmful to you.

You can win if you refuse to admit defeat, but sometimes you will suffer. Zi Yan, you need to understand why your uncle and father-in-law discipline you. Your uncle and father-in-law are not the kind of people who like to restrict others, but think about why they want to discipline you and Wen He? "

Li Ziyan lowered his head and said, "I know, because in this world, there are too many people staring at us. Wen He is my uncle's only son and the only heir to the Xu family. My uncle wants him to enter the government but doesn't want him to be too sharp.

My uncle and father control me because I am the only descendant of the Li family. My uncle has been away in Youzhou for many years without a wife or children. My father does not allow me to be a military commander, but a civil official or an ordinary person. My father is afraid that if he falls one day, the Li family will be finished. "

Zhao Junning nodded, and Li Ziyan continued, "But my father is a marquis, so he won't fall, right?"

Zhao Junning shook his head: "No, in this world, we are the subjects of the Liang Palace. If they want us to die, how can we resist?" Li Ziyan slumped his shoulders: "Yes."

Zhao Junning sat down and looked at Li Ziyan: "Why don't you tell me about your childhood. I heard some of what Uncle Hu said, but I still want to hear you talk about it."

Li Ziyan stretched out his hand and coughed lightly. Zhao Junning understood and stood up to fetch tea and said, "My dear, please have some tea."

Li Ziyan took a sip of tea and said, "Let me start from what my mother said about my birth. My mother told me that when I was born, the whole family was waiting for me. It was not until I was born that my father saw that I was a boy and sighed and said, "It's a son, so be it."

My father liked to make bets. He made a bet with a friend that my mother would definitely give birth to a girl, but it turned out to be a son. Later, his friend gave birth to a girl three years later. My father lost and had to pay one thousand taels.

After that, they didn't get engaged, but their relationship grew stronger. They stayed in Pingliang for about twenty years. Then I was born and my parents and I returned to Bianjing when I was ten years old. Before I was ten, I was famous in Bianjing. Everyone who saw me said that this little marquis was good-looking. "

Zhao Junning chuckled: "Were you so narcissistic when you were a child?" Li Ziyan frowned and looked at Zhao Junning. Zhao Junning smiled and said: "Okay, okay, go on."

Li Ziyan continued, "I still remember that when I was five years old, I rescued a dog in Pingliang. I took it home and raised it. After three years, it was thrown to death. Later, when I returned to Bianjing, did you notice that there was a dog hole in the Marquis' Mansion?"

Zhao Junning thought for a moment and nodded: "What's wrong with the dog hole? Is it yours?" Li Ziyan said: "What's mine? I dug it specifically to escape from the mansion. I learned martial arts when I was eleven years old because my father saw that I was often sick, so he made me learn martial arts earlier. But the wall was too high, so I dug a hole to escape from the mansion...."

After hearing this, Zhao Junning smiled and said, "I didn't expect that you were such a naughty kid when you were little! But there is one thing you said that is different from what Uncle Hu said. When you fought with the kids in the academy, you were bullied and beaten and got bruises all over your body. How did it become that you beat them?"

Li Ziyan said awkwardly: "I'm not like that. Anyway, they didn't get any advantage." Zhao Junning looked at Li Ziyan: "My dear, don't worry. I'm here now. If anyone dares to bully you, I'll beat them up."