Fire Captain

On the third day of the third month, Bai Ziyang and Minglan's carriages arrived with Sheng Molan and Sheng Rulan. Sheng Rulan and her husband knew that Minglan was coming to visit her parents today and to see her sisters. Sheng Molan came here purely to seek abuse. First, she was upset that Minglan had to marry into a wealthy family, and second, she didn't believe that Minglan could really be so favored. When she got off the carriage and saw Minglan and her husband's three luxurious carriages, she immediately felt that her small carriage was inferior to hers. She was immediately angry again and cursed in a low voice: "Poor people suddenly become rich, and villains succeed. What is there to show off!"

Liang Han said helplessly: "I told you not to come but you insisted on coming, and then you got sulky again, why bother?"

Sheng Molan said angrily: "I said I would take the three-horse carriage at home, but you refused, otherwise you wouldn't be at a disadvantage."

Sheng Changbai and his wife, as well as Sheng Changfeng, came out from the door to greet them, and they all walked into the mansion together. Minglan and his wife went to pay their respects to Old Madam Sheng first, but after not seeing each other for three days, Old Madam Sheng acted as if she hadn't seen Minglan for years. Without waiting for the two to finish their greetings, she quickly stood up and walked towards Minglan, saying, "Ming'er!" She opened her arms and hugged Minglan tightly.

Minglan also happily hugged Old Lady Sheng and shouted, "Grandma! Grandma!"

Old Madam Sheng pulled Minglan aside and said, "Let me take a good look at you!"

Fortunately, Bai Ziyang has been feeding Minglan these days, making her plump and white. Minglan smiled and said, "I haven't lost a single hair or a single piece of flesh!"

Mrs. Sheng held Minglan's hand and suddenly said sadly, "You're leaving again when it gets dark. I don't know when you'll be back. Let me see you again!"

Bai Ziyang said, "Grandma, this is not easy. Minglan can come back whenever she misses home. You can call her back whenever you miss her. And I can also come and stay with her for a few days. Don't worry, grandma."

Old Madam Sheng said happily, "Are you willing to do so?"

Bai Ziyang smiled and said, "How can I not give up this gift? I have to thank my grandmother for helping me marry such a good woman."

Old Madam Sheng smiled and patted Bai Ziyang's arm and said, "Naughty!"

Later, Bai Ziyang and Minglan went to pay a visit to Madam Wang Ruofu, but they did not expect that there was Aunt Kang sitting there with a critical look on her face. Madam Wang, on the other hand, was very polite to Bai Ziyang.

As soon as he saw Aunt Kang's expression, Bai Ziyang whispered to Minglan, "This Aunt Kang doesn't look easy to get along with!"

Minglan glanced at Bai Ziyang and said, "You have a sharp eye. This guy is not an easy person to deal with. I don't know what he is going to do to stir up trouble!"

During the meal, Bai Ziyang and other gentlemen sat at one table, while Minglan and other female relatives sat at another table. Although Bai Ziyang entertained everyone, his attention was always on Minglan. He heard that Aunt Kang's words were full of traps and wit. Fortunately, Minglan handled it properly. Not long after, the housekeeper next to Mrs. Sheng came to rescue her, and Minglan took the opportunity to escape from the boring dinner table.

Old Madam Sheng had already prepared Minglan's favorite food. Minglan returned to Old Madam Sheng and said with a smile, "Grandma, your help came just in time, otherwise I would still be trapped in the maze of Madam and Aunt Kang!"

Old Madam Sheng pulled Minglan to the dining table, sat down and said, "Come on, come on, I've been waiting for you and I'm so hungry, come on and sit down and eat..."

While eating, the grandparents asked about Minglan's married life and whether Bai Ziyang treated her well. Minglan nodded and said, "Well, your grandson-in-law is very good to me. He takes care of me in everything. Now I have the final say in the palace!"

When Mrs. Sheng heard this, she smiled and said, "Well, then let me ask, who is in charge of your house now?"

Minglan said, "Now he is a close confidant of his, called Shangcheng."

Old Madam Sheng asked again, "How are the houses and gardens in your mansion?"

Minglan said, "It's in good condition. I heard that before the wedding, the emperor personally ordered the Ministry of Works to repair it."

Old Madam Sheng continued to ask, "What is the current fixed income of your family?"

Minglan thought for a moment, then chuckled and said, "I really don't know about that. I haven't even looked at the account books or anything."

Old Madam Sheng smiled and said, "Haha, look, I taught you to be a lady from a noble family who is proficient in all kinds of martial arts, but now that you are married, your husband hides you in the house and doesn't let you do anything. Isn't that embarrassing..."

Minglan said, "He asked me to take care of it. He told me to be the housekeeper the day after the wedding. But you don't know, their palace is so big. There are more than 50 people just to serve us. When I think about taking care of all these things for their family, I want to sleep."

Old Lady Sheng said, "Your brother-in-law grew up in luxury, and as the youngest son, he is the most spoiled. I think he is a rebellious person who must hate being constrained the most in his life. So you can't be tough with him when encountering things, but... you can't be tougher than him. Although he protects you, you can't rely on him too much. We women have to be able to stand on our own after all." She taught Minglan two points: "First, you must have money in your hands, and second, you must have confidants around you, so that you can live a comfortable life. And you must tell him clearly what you do, and don't hide it and pretend to be virtuous, otherwise it will create a rift between you and your husband." The ways of getting along between husband and wife that Old Lady Sheng told Minglan were all the wisdom of the older generation.

Minglan listened and said thoughtfully, "Don't be fooled by his serious appearance. In fact, he laughs and scolds in private. He has a good temper. He seems to be thinking about all kinds of fun every day. It's hard to get bored when you are with him."

Old Madam Sheng nodded and said, "People from such a family with loving parents and harmonious brothers should have good personalities. Don't be afraid of him."

"Yeah!" Minglan nodded with a smile.

After dinner, Minglan quietly left while Mrs. Sheng was taking a nap to avoid gossip from Madam Wang and Aunt Kang.

After leaving Sheng Mansion, Minglan sat in the carriage and occasionally lifted the curtain to look outside the carriage in silence, as if thinking about something. In the quiet air, Bai Ziyang suddenly said, "Before leaving, I saw my father-in-law returning home. Did he say anything?"

Minglan was stunned when she heard this and asked, "Why do you think so?"

Bai Ziyang said, "You should be happy after meeting your grandmother. Madam Wang and Aunt Kang don't dare to say anything to you. The only one who dares to say anything to you is your father who bullies the weak and fears the strong!"

Minglan forced a smile and said, "No, no one said anything. I just have some food in my stomach. I'll just get off the carriage and walk around!" She was about to get up, but Bai Ziyang stopped her with his hand.

Bai Ziyang pulled Minglan to sit on his lap and asked, "Why are you leaving? Did I get it right?" Seeing Minglan remained silent, Bai Ziyang said confidently, "It has something to do with me!"

In the end, Minglan could only smile helplessly and said, "It's okay, but my father scolded me today, saying that our show was too grand and too ostentatious when I returned home today. I don't know why I advised you and you are so proud of yourself."

Bai Ziyang said, "Are you unhappy just because of this? We call this publicity. But according to etiquette, the prince and princess have guards of honor when they travel. I didn't send out the guard of honor today, which is already low-key enough."

Minglan said, "I am a concubine's daughter. It's good enough that I can marry you, but don't be too ostentatious. Otherwise, I will take all the bad things. Unfairness will lead to resentment!"

Bai Ziyang frowned and said, "What are you arguing about? If anyone dares to argue with you, I will argue with him. Let's see who dares to bully you. I am willing to let you have all the good things in the world."

Minglan said, "It's better to have less trouble than more. We are all one family. It's best for everyone to live a similar life. I can't appear to be too special. That's one thing. Secondly, I appear to be too respectable in front of you. Then they will come to me and ask you to do things for them, such as promotion, performance evaluation, external assignment, recommendation, etc. What do you think, should I help them or not?"

When Bai Ziyang heard Minglan say that it would be best if everyone lived a similar life, he couldn't help but feel sorry for this girl. He felt sorry for this girl who lived too cautiously and fearfully. Even with his support, she still didn't want to rely on him, or didn't dare to rely on him. After all, even her father was almost unreliable back then, so who else could she rely on?

Bai Ziyang had no choice but to turn his head and go along with her, "Okay, okay... I'll just tear off a piece of white and tender lamb skin and put it on you, little fox, and that will solve the problem once and for all, okay!"

After returning to the palace, Bai Ziyang asked Minglan to go back and rest first, and he turned around and went to the study. Later, a letter was sent to the East Palace.

Two days later, after the court session, the crown prince summoned Sheng Hong and praised him for his integrity, impartiality, diligence and honesty, and said he was a role model for all officials. Sheng Hong was so overwhelmed by the praise that he was trembling with fear and broke out in cold sweats.

In the end, the prince transferred Sheng Hong to the Censorate of the Supervisory Council, and mainly managed the affairs of the capital, from the original fifth-rank official to the fourth-rank official. Everyone saw that the prince valued Sheng Hong, and it was obvious that his face as a good son-in-law played a role. His daughter was promoted right after getting married. Only Sheng Hong was sweating in secret, miserable.

What kind of place is the Censorate of the Supervisory Yuan? Those who can enter it either have seniority or background, and who are the people they are in charge of? They are in charge of the capital, and the people in the capital are either high-ranking officials or marquises. He can't afford to offend any of them!

Those who can work in the Censorate are either truly impartial and fearless of power, or they are good at networking and are slick.