Chapter 69 The Antecedent

West of the city, Cao Mansion, Kuiyuan.

After Cao Yong took a shower, Zi Jing sent the little maid to come and invite him, saying that Dr. Chen was serving tea in the front hall. Cao Yong changed into a clean jacket and went to the front hall.

*

Dr. Chen was serving tea here and had already prescribed a prescription. When Cao Yong asked about it, he found out that the person in the Chrysanthemum Academy was a deficiency caused by the cold weather, and it was not serious. According to Dr. Chen's prescription, it would take a few days to adjust it.

After Dr. Chen left, Amethyst finished handling the affairs of the Apricot. The medicine sent someone to watch, and several old nannies also comforted him.

As soon as she entered the front hall, Amethyst shook her mind. Cao Yong had changed a lot in the past six months, and he had grown a lot taller. However, when she saw Cao Yong's outfit, she still frowned slightly and complained: "Uncle, October is about to enter, why are you dressed so thin? If you catch a cold, you won't be a joke!"

Cao Yong knew she was kind and said with a smile: "The weather is good these two days, so it's not too late to change it tomorrow! But that person, perhaps because of the southerner, can't stand the autumn cold in the north!"

Zi Jing was amused when she heard this: "This one is what the old man can say? Although she is the same age as the old man, she has been several months longer. She is considered to be the old man's cousin!"

Whether it is her cousin or cousin, it sounds ambiguous enough. But thinking about the identity of the scary showman, it is better to have less curiosity. Since Amethyst has already been arranged to take care of her, Cao Yong is completely relieved.

When the two sat down, Cao Yong asked, "Are you ready to treat the full moon gift from my sister? Although the family has not been well-off in the past two years, we can't shorten the other end!"

"Don't worry, my wife started to make a purchase when she was in Beijing, and she had already prepared it!" Zi Jing replied with a smile.

Cao Yong felt a little cold when he thought about the house in Kuiyuan just now, and found that he had not yet built a charcoal basin. After the bathing water came up, the maids sent the basin of silver carbon. Thinking of this, he asked, "Is there too much money on the book?"

Seeing Amethyst nodding, Cao Yong was slightly surprised: "When we entered Beijing, we brought 3,000 taels to the account. How could we spend so quickly in just a few months?"

Zi Jing sighed: "Uncle, the capital is not as good as Jiangning, and the monthly favors are too much. Today, the mansion is in full swing, and tomorrow, there will be gifts everywhere. After reading the account book of the past year, I used to have the investment from Changping Zhuangzi, which was 5,000 taels a year. The expenses in the capital are almost the same. This year, the income is reduced, and the book will be tight. In addition, the mansion inside and outside will have to have 3,000 taels of silver and chew every month."

Cao Yong heard the population and asked, "Didn't I release a few people before leaving Beijing? I remember that there were only about 60 people left in the mansion at that time, why did he add so many more?"

Zi Jing replied: "When the old man was not serving many people, the wife, and the family gave birth to a child, and couldn't pick up a few neat ones, so she called the dentist and bought eight little girls into the mansion. In addition, the wife brought to the Zhao Qian and the two-bedroom family members from Jiangning, and four Changsui, all of them were included in the Beijing Zhongyuan, and the population was a little more!"

Cao Yong sighed inwardly, but he could understand Li's love for his son. However, he was completely uninterested in adding a little maid or something around him, so he hurriedly said to Zijing: "The new little girl is appropriate. I'll send two to my cousin and Mr. Zhuang, so don't arrange people in our yard!"

Zijing responded with a smile: "I know that I love purity, don't worry, uncle!"

Cao Yong thought of the fact that the money was not enough, so he asked someone to take the blue cloth box in his luggage. It contained Tian Qi given by the Sixteenth Prince, the gold ingots given by Tana, and some broken silver and gold leaves: "These are included in the account first. If it is really tight, just touch the silver I gave you at the beginning of the year. Don't make it too difficult for Uncle Zhong to make things difficult for the past few months!"

*

The master and servant were talking when a person outside the door reported that a guest in front of the mansion had handed out a post.

Cao Yong took it and came to see it. His signature was "Nephew Gu Na". He pondered for a moment and asked someone to invite Gu Na in.

When he was in Jiangning, Gu Na lived in the Cao family for four or five years. Zi Jing had met him and heard about him collide with outsiders to plot against the Cao family. Therefore, he was very puzzled why his little master was not angry or annoyed and wanted to see this person. She called a little maid to stay here to serve tea and went to Cao Zhong to check the accounts.

*

Gu Nazion is nearly four years older than Cao Yong. He is slender and wears a green robe and has a bit of the elegance of a southerner.

"Gu Na greets Uncle Yong!" After Gu Na came in, he saluted in a regular manner.

Cao Yong sat on the chair, did not get up, nodded, as a gift: "Since you are here, sit down and talk!" This is not based on your seniority, but watching the young boy in his teenage years grow up little by little, and he can't help but treat him like a child.

"Yes!" Gu Na responded respectfully, but his eyes were already red.

Although Cao Yong did not get up to greet him or greet him intimately, he felt a lot in his heart. Because his attitude towards Gu Na was very familiar, just like when he was in Jiangning a few years ago.

Seeing Gu Na lowering his head and not saying a word for a long time, Cao Yong took the initiative to speak: "Are you going to let go of me soon? Should you stay in Beijing or go to the bottom? Do you have a constitution in your mind?"

"I have been to the capital for four years. My nephew wants to go downstairs to see the world!" Gu Na replied.

Cao Yong looked at Gu Na, feeling a little worried, and couldn't help but ask: "The officialdom has its own rules. Don't be too straightforward. You have been smart since childhood. I don't need to say more about these, but I hope you have to think twice before doing anything outside."

"Uncle Yong's teachings, my nephew remember!" Gu Na responded with his head down. After a while, he raised his head, looked at Cao Yong, and asked, "Did Uncle Yong blame his nephew for Linxiazhai?"

Cao Yong nodded: "Strange, how can you not be blamed? I spent several years of hard work and was repeatedly robbed!"

Gu Na's face was pale and full of guilt, murmured: "Uncle Yong!"

Cao Yong glared at Gu Na: "I blame that fool even more. After a few years in Beijing, I have gained some knowledge. What's wrong with learning? I just learn from others to repay my kindness! Even if I don't mention the mother of the Gu family, I'm the grandmother of the Gu family. You are also a blood relative of the Cao family. So what if you let you eat rice for a few years? No matter how great a kindness is, you can sell your future to repay it!"

The mother of the Gu family mentioned by Cao Yong refers to the wife Gu, who died early, and Gu Na's grandmother; the grandmother of the Gu family refers to Cao Yin's biological mother, Mrs. Gu and Gu Na's great aunt.

Gu Na turned his head and prevented Cao Yong from seeing the tears in his eyes. He said in a muffled voice: "My nephew is not a fool, but his nephew is just for his conscience! Since he can remember, he ate rice from the Cao family. He was a little bigger and went to the Cao family to study, so his nephew couldn't watch the Cao family fall!"

"That's all nonsense. Are those princes and princes easy to meet? Even if you don't care about your own safety, you still have to think about your mother. Over the years, she has been looking at you and expecting you to be safe!" Cao Yong thought that Gu Na was young and was in troubled by the muddy waters in the capital, and he felt that he was disappointed.

When Cao Yong mentioned his mother, Gu Na refused to respond. Gu Na's mother, Zhou, was appointed by her son to remarry her neighbor Chen Liu eight years ago. She worked as a servant in Sun Wenqi a few years ago. Later, with the help of the Cao family, she returned to Jiangning to settle down.

"You returned to Jiangning that year and were driven out by your mother. You were also self-inflicted. You caused these troubles to pour sewage into yourself! After I came out of Qingliang Temple, I saw her privately and said that you must have difficulties. She was very concerned about you, but she couldn't bear to let your letters down for a while, so you should be diligent!" Cao Yong said, all of whom admired himself. He was like an old mother. There was no way. For Gu Na, Cao Song, and Cao Yi, the children who grew up, he really felt like he was a father.

"Yes!" Gu Na replied obediently.

Gu Na is grateful and respectful to the cousin who is a few years younger than him from the bottom of his heart. For his gambling father, he only remembers endless beatings and scoldings, and his face is unclear. However, Gu Na never forgets the harm that man has caused to the Cao family. Cao Yin's haggardness, Li's serious illness, and the smile that Cao Yong showed on the day he returned home.

No matter how many people in the Weaving Mansion knew about Cao Yong's leaving the mansion, the whole mansion thought it was the mistress who returned from beating the relative's house with the young master.

After hearing the news, Gu Na lay at the corner gate and looked at it secretly, but his heart was filled with endless fear. This little cousin is of great status and is the eldest son of the Cao family. Compared with him, the son of the sinner, it is a different place. His father suffered a lot, how could he not think of revenge? Although Gu Na was afraid, he thought about his mother and as long as he did not involve his mother, he would still willingly wait for the final judgment.

Seven-year-old Cao Yong, holding his mother's hand, returned to the Weaving Mansion with a smile on his face.

Seeing Gu Na hiding not far away, Cao Yong did not accuse or insult, but walked forward casually and looked at Gu Na a few times: "I haven't seen each other for two months, why have you reduced a lot?"
Chapter completed!