NFBE Chapter 350: The Mother of the Bomen Raises Her Stepson 17
Chapter 350: The Mother of the Bomen Raises Her Stepson 17
Si Rong smiled slightly and said, "The prince has a clear mind and is not influenced by worldly things. This may not be a bad thing."
"A good thing?" The princess shook her head. "If he really becomes a Taoist, who will take over my huge family business? No, even if he really does become a Taoist, he must leave me a grandson first."
She paused, her gaze lingering on Sirong's face for a moment, with a half-smile on her face. "Sirong, you've been helping me manage my business for these years. You're steady and have a good eye. Can you help me take a look at these ladies today? Is there anyone who's suitable to be my daughter-in-law?"
Sirong understood that the princess was asking her for help in judging. She paused for a moment and said, "The young ladies who came here today all have good family backgrounds and talents, but when it comes to managing a household, I'm afraid their temperament will have to be considered."
"Exactly!" The eldest princess slammed the table. "Those delicate ladies are good at reciting poems and writing couplets, and if they were really asked to manage the household, I think they would be able to behave properly. I'm just afraid that when the time comes, they will take the husband as the main person and really let Changrong go to seek the immortal way."
Sirong took a sip of tea and said, "The second daughter of the Minister of Rites' family, I heard she has been helping her mother with housework since she was young and has a calm temperament."
The eldest princess shook her head: "That girl is too rigid. I'm afraid Changrong doesn't even want to talk to her."
"Then... the daughter of the Minister of the Imperial Household?"
"Too delicate, can't stand being wronged."
Si Rong laughed: "Could it be that the Princess already has a choice in mind?"
The princess gave her a meaningful look and suddenly said, "Sirong, what do you think of my Chang Rong?"
Sirong paused, the water in the teacup swaying slightly. She raised her eyes, met the eldest princess's probing gaze, and smiled, "The prince has a noble character, so naturally he is excellent."
The eldest princess stared at her and said slowly, "If I were to say, compared to those ladies, I prefer your Shen Tang."
Si Rong's expression remained unchanged. She simply put down her teacup and said, "Princess, you're joking. Shen Tang is my adopted daughter. Her background is not worthy of the Crown Prince."
The princess chuckled and tapped her fingertips twice on the table. "Background? When has my Chang Rong ever cared about these things?"
She leaned forward and lowered her voice, saying, "I've met that girl a few times. She's steady and can calculate accounts better than the head of the Ministry of Revenue.
Besides, that girl has become very clever because of you. I have a feeling that she can control my Chang Rong.
When Sirong heard these words, she also thought of Shen Tang's actions in recent years. This girl, who was originally timid and cowardly, went directly to the other extreme, becoming careless and doing whatever she thought of.
She is so bold, as if there are really no rules that can restrain her.
Thinking of this, Sirong lowered her head and smiled: "As for the child, that's something we can influence. It all depends on fate."
Even though she and the eldest princess have been in a cooperative relationship over the years, she really cannot agree to this matter.
What if it is really as the eldest princess said, Xiao Changrong left a descendant in the princess's mansion and became a Taoist priest, wouldn't that be a betrayal of her Shen Tang.
Her gaze passed through the carved window lattices of the warm room and fell on the group of young men and women in the courtyard. Her eyes involuntarily followed Shen Junyao's tall figure. The frail, inhuman child of the past had now grown into a remarkable figure.
Thinking of this, Sirong couldn't help but give herself a thumbs up. She really knows how to raise a child.
Shen Junyao stood beneath a weeping crabapple tree, his moon-white brocade robe accentuating his handsome appearance. He leaned forward slightly, explaining the art of flower and tree grafting to a few young ladies. His slender fingers gently stroked the petals with graceful precision.
"Young Master Jun Yao is now the talk of the ladies in the capital." The princess's personal maid stood behind Si Rong without her knowing when, and handed her a cup of fresh tea with a smile.
"Last winter, during the hunt, he killed two birds with one stone and saved Miss Lu, who was stranded alone. During the Lantern Festival, he even defeated the doctoral students of the Imperial College."
Sirong raised the corners of her lips slightly.
What she remembered more clearly was that Shen Junyao could check the salt permit accounts for her for the whole year at the age of thirteen, and went south alone to settle a dispute in a silk shop at the age of fifteen.
The child was born with a convincing demeanor, and his conversation was both scholarly and shrewd like a businessman.
Suddenly, a soft laugh echoed from the courtyard. Shen Junyao pulled a white handkerchief from his sleeve and caught the windblown hairpin for the young lady beside him. His movements were natural and appropriate, neither overly intimate nor distant, striking the perfect balance.
"The most rare thing is this kind of bearing." The eldest princess stood by the window without knowing when, "I heard that Wu Weibo was born into a peasant family, and her biological mother was also a peasant woman.
Look at Jun Yao again. His demeanor is even more noble than that of many children from aristocratic families. It is said that he is fluent in four languages, and even the Hu merchants from the Western Regions praise him highly!
It shows that you are really taking care of him."
Sirong smiled quietly but said nothing. When the Persian businessman came to visit last year, Shen Junyao chatted and laughed with him in fluent Persian, and finally he managed to buy a batch of high-quality spices at a low price.
The child seemed to have an innate understanding of how to make people let down their guard and achieve their wishes while chatting and laughing.
Hearing them praise Shen Junyao, she was happy from the bottom of her heart. The joy of raising a cub is beyond your imagination.
After the flower-viewing banquet, dusk gradually fell and the servants of the princess's mansion were busy cleaning up the mess.
Sirong stood in the corridor, watching the Minister's carriage slowly drive away. Before leaving, the young lady had even asked Xiao Changrong for an explanation of a passage from the Tao Te Ching, which had drawn a few more glances from the prince.
"He's quite a clever person." The eldest princess walked to Sirong's side without her noticing, waving her fan and laughing softly. "It's a pity that he's too deliberate."
Sirong just smiled and said nothing.
She could see that although the Minister's daughter had memorized the text by heart, her eyes clearly hid the anxiety of a desperate need for quick results. This was completely different from Shen Tang's effortless and smooth flow.
As she was speaking, she suddenly saw Shen Tang coming out from the side hall, holding a few rolls of account books in his hands. Behind him were two maids in charge of the princess's mansion, who were respectfully asking her something.
The afterglow of the setting sun shines on her simple dress, making her look as calm as water.
In the pavilion on the other side, Xiao Changrong sat alone with a book in his hand, but his eyes would occasionally glance in the direction of Shen Tang.
The princess gave Sirong a meaningful look. "Some people, you try your best but still can't get them. Some people, you don't even realize it, but they've already caught your eye and entered your heart."
It seems that my cup of wife tea is destined to be drunk at your house.
Sirong smiled without answering, but gently stroked the non-existent wrinkles on her cuffs.
She knew that some fates could not be forced, but they could not be stopped either. Rather than deliberately trying to stop it, it was better to let it take its course.
I just don't know what Shen Tang is thinking now. According to the age of the ladies in Beijing nowadays, Shen Tang is already an old girl, but this girl is so absorbed in business that she is completely clueless.