Rebirth of the High Gate Mistress

Chapter 186 I won’t marry anyone but Li Ling

　　The young couple were leisurely browsing the shops when a carriage passed by on Chang'an Street not far away.

Zhou Qing, who finally returned from outside the city, glanced at the person she had longed for, who was in a hurry to come back and go shopping with his wife as he said, and her heart began to hurt again.

 In terms of appearance and talent, she is no worse than the daughter of the Shen family, and her family background is much better than that of the Shen family.

 She hates it, and she is even more unwilling to do so!

The carriage drove back to the Zhou Mansion. Zhou Qing got out of the car with a cold face, worried, and happened to meet her mother personally escorting Granny Wang out.

This Granny Wang is a well-known official mediator in Beijing. She has some status and is eloquent. The children of high-ranking families in Beijing will often ask her to help them get married.

Zhou Qing saw her coming to the door again, so she guessed that she was here to mediate for her again.

Zhou Qing relied on her beauty and was quite famous in Beijing. She was very high-spirited. Ever since she fell in love with Li Ling, it was difficult for other nobles to fall in her eyes.

Mrs. Zhou was very unhappy when she saw her daughter coming home after dark. She smiled awkwardly at Granny Wang and said, "My daughter is very filial. My mother-in-law has not been well these days. She went to the temple early in the morning." I went to burn incense and pray for my grandmother."

As she sat there, she called out to Zhou Qing, who was walking towards the house with a dull face: "Qing'er, why did you come back? You didn't know how to say hello to Granny Wang when you saw her."

Zhou Qing didn't even raise her eyebrows, and replied with a cold face: "The carriage and horse broke down halfway, and the coachman's repair delayed the return journey."

Mrs. Zhou deliberately said to Granny Wang: "This child has always been well-behaved and doesn't go out much."

 Seeing that her daughter's face was calm, Mrs. Zhou couldn't say anything in front of Granny Wang. She scolded her daughter and said, "Go to your grandmother's place first. Your grandmother is thinking about you."

　　It really sounds like my daughter has a lot of filial piety.

Zhou Qing agreed and went into the house on her own.

After Mrs. Zhou sent Granny Wang away, she hurriedly found her daughter. She scolded her: "Tell me, you are such a big girl, why are you so ignorant? What does it look like to come home so late?"

Seeing her daughter's neither salty nor cool expression, she became even more angry: "Grandma Wang is a well-known official media in Beijing. I want to find a good marriage, but she must be the matchmaker. When you see someone like this People, why don’t you know how to say something properly?”

Zhou Qing sneered and said, "She came to my door to talk to me as a matchmaker again?"

Mrs. Zhou said angrily to her daughter: "You are about to turn nineteen, aren't you anxious? I can tell you, if you don't get married, you will become an old girl. After the double tenth, I will see who can marry you." .”

Zhou Qing was worried about others, and she hated her mother's urging for marriage. When she heard her mother nagging her again, she replied angrily: "Instead of marrying those crooked things, I might as well cut my hair and become a sister-in-law." Woolen cloth."

Mrs. Zhou said with a bluster, "Why are you talking such nonsense again?"

Zhou Qing rolled her eyes at her mother and sat aside in silence.

There is no better way to know a daughter than a mother, so Mrs. Zhou naturally knew her daughter's thoughts. She sighed, sat next to her daughter and persuaded her: "I know you have always cared about the eldest son of the Li family, but we also asked someone to go to the matchmaker. , it’s because people look down upon us.”

Without waiting for her mother to finish, Zhou Qing said annoyedly: "That may not be that the Li family's son himself is unwilling, maybe his old lady looked down on our door."

Seeing her daughter's stubbornness, Zhou's mother continued to persuade her: "Now that the Li family's eldest son is married, what's the use of you still worrying about it? I advise you to open your heart and find a good wife as soon as you can." People are serious people. If you continue to waste time like this, what will you do in the future after you have passed the marriageable age?" After hearing what her mother said, Zhou Qing cried aggrievedly. She choked and said: "Mom, I am not I don’t want to get married, but apart from the eldest son of the Li family, I really can’t look down on anyone else.”

Seeing her mother frowning, she bravely said, "Mom, even if I have to be her concubine, I am willing to do it."

Mrs. Zhou was shocked when she heard what her daughter said, and said with a bluster, "What are you talking about? You are the legitimate daughter of an official family, why would you want to be a concubine?"

Zhou Qing wiped away her tears, held her mother's hand, and said slowly: "Mother, listen to me. Although the eldest son of the Li family is married, it is now known that the daughter of the Shen family cannot have children at all. She is like this How can a woman from a small family survive for a long time without being able to spread the branches and leaves of the Li family? My daughter is just condescending to be a concubine temporarily. When she gives birth to a child for the Li family, isn't it a matter of time before she becomes the daughter of the Shen family? "

When Mrs. Zhou heard what her daughter said, she felt a little more lively, but she still refused unwillingly: "This is too risky. If the eldest son of the Li family praises the daughter of the Shen family, wouldn't you be humbled for the rest of your life?" You just have to live on your own, forget it, get rid of this thought as soon as possible."

Zhou Qing looked at her mother and said, "Mom, with my daughter's talent, appearance and temperament, can't she beat that daughter of the Shen family? Do you have such no confidence in me?"

Mrs. Zhou naturally knows her daughter well. She is beautiful and energetic, and she has no worries about earning a place in the back house.

 But Mrs. Zhou was still unwilling to accept the thought that she would be a concubine.

Seeing that her mother refused to let go, Zhou Qing said decisively: "Either I will never get married in this life, or if I get married, it will have to be the son of the Li family. If my mother can't let me get what I want, I will die to make my wish clear, or I will go to the temple to work for the rest of my life." That’s my sister-in-law.”

In the Anxi Hall of the Zhenguogong Mansion, the old lady has been lingering on her sick bed since autumn due to successive changes in the mansion.

 In the past two days, the old man has been feeling better. He has taken medicine at noon and is leaning on the couch to think about something.

Mammy Qiu came in with two snacks and said to the old lady with a smile: "This batch of barley and Sydney yam cake is the best for clearing away heat and reducing phlegm. You haven't even eaten a few bites of lunch, so now you have some snacks."

The old lady glanced at the snacks that Aunt Qiu put on the small table, and said with a smile: "Shu'er made this and sent it over, right?"

With a smile on her face, Nanny Qiu picked out a piece of snack and handed it to the old lady: "You are really sharp-eyed. You guessed it was the second lady's craftsmanship before you even tasted it?"

The old lady took the snack, took a bite, and praised: "It tastes good."

Mother Qiu took the opportunity to persuade: "Second Madam's craftsmanship will always satisfy your appetite. If you like it, use more of it."

 The old lady sighed slightly: "This child is really a wise and filial child."

Aunt Qiu has been with the old lady all her life. Although they are masters and servants, they are also close friends. When she saw the old lady sighing, she hesitated and said: "The Imperial Hospital has been trying to find ways to treat the second lady. The last time Doctor Zhang came After giving the uncle acupuncture, I asked him about it, and he said that the Second Madam’s problem may be difficult to cure.”

 The old lady glanced at Aunt Qiu and asked, "Why didn't you tell me this earlier?"

Aunt Qiu replied: "You have been sick all this time, and I can't bear to cause you any more troubles."

The old lady let out a long sigh and said leisurely: "The family is really having a hard time these days."

Mother Qiu couldn't help but said: "Brother Ling is the eldest son, and the second lady is like this, do you have to make any plans?"

 (End of this chapter)