Adhere to the gentleman's principles

In the inn in Jiaozhi City, Zhao Junning and Xu Zhiwan booked a large courtyard of the inn and stayed there. They sat on the second floor of the house and drank a sip of tea. Zhao Junning went to the window, looked outside, took a breath and said, "Yangzhou is by the sea, but I didn't expect it to be so different from Jiaozhi, which is also by the sea."

Xu Zhiwan walked over and said, "How do you feel?"

Zhao Junning looked out the window and said, "It's beautiful here. You can see the sea at a glance."

Xu Zhiwan smiled and said, "Yes, Jiaozhi is a very beautiful place for me."

Zhao Junning asked tentatively, "Is it because mother-in-law and father-in-law met here?"

Xu Zhiwan nodded: "Yes, I was only fourteen years old at that time. I ran from Qingzhou to Jiaozhi just to find Zi Yan's father. I liked his father very much at that time. When I learned that his father came to Jiaozhi to investigate a case, I came. At that time, I almost got lost in Jiaozhi. It was on the coast that Zi Yan's father found me. At that time, his father said that he had to investigate a case so he wanted to send me away.

I said that I also knew martial arts and could help him, and later I helped him catch the criminals and followed him all the way to Pingliang. Because he had made great contributions, the late Emperor Xuande wanted to grant him a marriage, but of course I disagreed, so I asked my father to go to the palace to ask for the marriage. Emperor Xuande agreed, because he originally wanted me to marry Ziyan's father, so he agreed to the request. Later I married his father, and his father went to war in the first year of our marriage.

The war lasted for ten years, so I went to the border to accompany him. Gradually, his father also fell in love with me, but we got married very late, when we were thirty years old, and had that bad boy. His father didn't like his son at first, but there was nothing he could do at this age, so he also liked us and we both treasured this boy."

After hearing this, Zhao Junning said, "The story of my mother-in-law and father-in-law is very similar to that of Zi Yan and me, but the difference is that he doesn't seem to like me yet. I feel that this marriage is really hasty."

Xu Zhiwan looked at Zhao Junning and said, "Don't be so quick to deny the right or wrong of your marriage. Zi Yan has been a kind and affectionate child since he was young. He is very similar to his father. He won't fall in love at first sight, but as long as this boy meets someone he likes, he will devote himself wholeheartedly."

Zhao Junning asked cautiously, "Has he ever had someone he liked?"

Xu Zhiwan thought for a moment and said, "When I saw him and Princess Yu Fu together before, his father and I thought he liked Princess Yu Fu. Later, we found out that he didn't like her, but Princess Yu Fu liked Zi Yan. This kid always speaks directly, which makes the princess cry every time.

He didn't like the princess and didn't go to comfort her. His angry father often went to the Pingliang Palace to ask His Majesty to tell the princess that Zi Yan didn't like her. Both father and son were straightforward. I was worried at the time. Later, His Majesty resigned and said that he would not randomly marry the princess to a minister. Zi Yan felt relieved. As a result, the princess came again before you got married last year.

This time Zi Yan said something harsh, and the princess held a grudge and I heard she beat you, but I heard you fought back, with your father's demeanor back then, you can't tolerate such nonsensical grievances."

Zhao Junning smiled and said, "Mother-in-law is right, but I understand what she said just now. I will not easily deny the right or wrong of our marriage. I will try my best to make Zi Yan willingly recognize me."

At night, Zhao Junning stood in the courtyard of the inn wearing a cloak and looking at the sky, whispering: "I heard that if you look at the moon in the sky, he will see the same moon in the distance. I wonder what he is doing now. This moon is so round. Can he see it?"

In the mansion of Marquis Guangping in Bianjing, Li Ziyan walked out of the door and looked at the full moon in the sky. "Today is the fifteenth day of the lunar month. I don't know if she has seen the full moon. Maybe she has already fallen asleep."

Jiaozhi, "Why do you miss Ziyan?" Xu Zhiwan asked. Zhao Junning turned around and looked at Xu Zhiwan, nodded and said, "Yeah."

Xu Zhiwan said, "You two young couple really miss each other so soon after separation? Your father-in-law wrote to you today saying that the boy has been studying very hard in the past three days, and often helps your father-in-law manage the cloth shop and restaurant business. He even waited for a long time at the gate of the mansion very late at night." Zhao Junning felt happy after hearing this.

The next day, Fuling came running and shouted, "Miss, Miss, there's a letter."

Zhao Junning put down the book and walked away quickly. Fuling handed the letter and a box to Zhao Junning. Zhao Junning opened it and saw red maple leaves, spotted bamboo and a bag of red beans. He opened the envelope again and looked at the contents and wrote in his heart: My wife Junning, you have been gone for a long time and I miss you very much. Therefore, red beans, maple leaves and spotted bamboo are used to express my longing for my wife. There is a beautiful woman, I will never forget her when I see her. If I don’t see her for a day, I will miss her like crazy.

I don't know when my wife will return home. I would like to enjoy the full moon with my wife in a different place. It is so hard to find red maple leaves in spring. I walked through the whole maple forest to find this one. Can my wife see how much I miss her?

Zhao Junning looked at the red maple leaf beans in the box again and smiled slightly, saying, "I miss you very much, too."

Then Zhao Junning sat down and wrote a letter. Fuling saw Zhao Junning so happy and thought: It seems that the young lady really likes her son-in-law.

Fuling recalled the morning of the seventh day after Zhao Junning and Li Ziyan got married. Li Ziyan was reading in his study at home when he threw the book down. "This Zhao Junning, I really have a problem with my brain. How can I be responsible for her? She looks timid, but she is more thoughtful than anyone else. I will not read today."

Fuling entered the study room with breakfast in her hand and bowed, saying, "Sir, the young lady asked me to bring you breakfast." Li Ziyan took a look and said, "Where is she?"

Fuling said, "The young lady went to the cloth shop first and asked me to pass a message to my son-in-law. She said that my son-in-law should study hard and not just play around. The young lady is waiting for the day when my son-in-law becomes an official with ability."

Li Ziyan snorted coldly: "This Zhao Junning..." Fuling said first: "Son-in-law, the young lady is spoiled by her family at home and treated like a treasure. If you hadn't said that on the street that day, the young lady would not have married you. Son-in-law doesn't like the young lady. It can be seen that the young lady didn't pester the son-in-law,

If the Marquis and our master were not brothers in life and death, the master would never let the young lady marry you. The master believed that the son-in-law and the Marquis and his wife would treat the young lady well, so he married his beloved baby into the family. But on the first night of marriage, you made the young lady cry.

The next day you went out to have fun, but the young lady was always thinking about you, and she heated up the meals for you every day and waited for you to come back. The young lady didn't dare to be alone since she was a child because she was afraid. She would have nightmares when she slept alone. I know that you don't know these, and I don't know whether you will like the young lady in the future, but our young lady may like you, uncle.

Son-in-law, please be a little nicer to our young lady. Just consider it as a plea from Fuling. The young lady asked Uncle Hu about your eating habits. This is what she makes in the morning to nourish her stomach. Our young lady has never cooked for herself at home. My second son and I didn't want the young lady to marry you, but the young lady said that you are a good person and you are not a bad person.

My dear brother-in-law, our young lady is also a very good person. She is timid but she will protect us and she is very nice to everyone. The young lady is very smart but she is just a girl after all, she is only fourteen years old.

Her only thought was to make herself live well in this world that is unfair to women." Fuling took a breath and said, "Fuling's words stop here. I hope that the son-in-law will be better to our young lady in the future... By the way, the young lady said that it would be better to eat breakfast hot."

Fuling walked out of the study, Li Ziyan exhaled and walked to the table to look at the fragrant breakfast. After the recollection, Fuling looked at Zhao Junning. After Zhao Junning wrote the letter, he put it in an envelope and handed it to Fuling, saying, "Give it to the messenger."

Fuling took the envelope and said, "Yes, Miss." Fuling walked out of Zhao Junning's room and Xu Zhiwan happened to walk in. Fuling bowed and said, "Madam."

Xu Zhiwan said, "Are you going to deliver the letter to the messenger? Go quickly." Fuling then bowed and went out.

"It seems that Zi Yan has sent a letter." Xu Zhiwan came over and said happily to Zhao Junning, who stood up and saluted: "Mother-in-law."

Xu Zhiwan said with a smile: "Okay, okay, we should be polite at home and outside. Let's go and talk about our business."

As they walked down the street, Zhao Junning asked, "Mother-in-law, you haven't told me what business you came to Jiaozhi to discuss?" Xu Zhiwan said, "Selling cloth."

Zhao Junning seemed to understand, but Xu Zhiwan said, "You have just started your business. Follow me and you will understand it slowly."

The two entered a cloth shop, and the clerk inside came over and saluted: "Boss." Zhao Junning took a look at Xu Zhiwan and understood the general situation. Xu Zhiwan said: "Go and get ready!"

Xu Zhiwan said to Zhao Junning, "Why are you so stunned?" Zhao Junning nodded, "Mother-in-law, you are amazing. You have opened a cloth shop in Jiaozhi."

Xu Zhiwan said, "It's nothing. Businessmen need to be ambitious. You are just not ambitious. Officials want to climb up the social ladder, and businessmen want to make as much money as possible and have more and more prosperous business."

Zhao Junning said, "So mother-in-law brought me here because the business in Jiaozhi is difficult to negotiate, so you came here in person?" Xu Zhiwan nodded and said, "Well, I guess so. The business we are discussing this time is to sell the goods to a ship merchant in Jiaozhi. This ship merchant is not easy to deal with, and Old Xu couldn't negotiate with him, so I came here in person. But this time, this big deal is for you to negotiate. Here, you are not the wife of the Marquis's mansion, you are just Boss Zhao."

Zhao Junning nodded and said, "Okay, my mother-in-law trusts me, so I will negotiate this deal well." Xu Zhiwan said, "My mother-in-law trusts you."