"Dr. Du, Ah Xu, you two tell me honestly, are you hiding something from me?"

This was Su Luo's intuition. As business partners, it seemed like they had been hiding something from her, and she really disliked that.

The two exchanged glances, their eyes darting away, trying to avoid Su Luo's question.

"I'm asking you, Dr. Du, you answer."

Du Xiuyuan was at a loss; he didn't know how to tell Su Luo about this.

As Su Luo's apprentice, he shouldn't have kept anything a secret, but this matter concerns the fate of the nation and his family in the capital, so it's best to keep it a secret from as few people as possible.

He silently prayed to himself, 'Master, it's my fault. When we find the lucky star, I will tell you the whole story.'

"Madam Su, I am only responsible for treating illnesses; I know nothing else."

That's true. Du Xiuyuan might not know something, but Su Luo still trusts Du Xiuyuan quite a bit.

But Du Xiuyuan didn't know this, while A Xu definitely did.

"Ah Xu, you speak."

"Madam Su, there's nothing here, what can I say?" Ah Xu pretended to be stupid.

Su Luo didn't believe that nothing had happened. When Wang Dayong's wife gave birth, A Xu had also appeared, and Nangong Qing had a whole book recording the child's life.

They are both people of high moral character and would never do anything like human trafficking, so what could possibly make them so concerned about newborn babies?

“Ah Xu, don’t think I don’t know that Nangong Qing has a notebook. It’s full of children’s notes. Even if you hadn’t told me, I would have looked it up myself.”

Ah Xu's eyes darted around nervously. He had never been good at lying since he was a child. Even in the imperial court, few people knew the purpose of their visit to Yongle County.

If Su Luo finds out, the young master might also be punished, and he absolutely cannot harm the young master.

“That was written down by the young master, Madam Su. Let me tell you the truth.”

Ah Xu looked troubled, as if he was about to go all out. Du Xiuyuan nervously tried to stop Ah Xu, but after being glared at by Su Luo, he shut his mouth.

“My son has suffered since he was a child, and he wants to hear the first cry of a newborn baby. He says that the sound can heal the soul and is the sound of hope.”

Ah Xu prayed in his heart that Nangong Qing would never know what he had said today.

My lord, I'm sorry, but we're going back to the capital to get married anyway, so don't worry about our reputation!

Su Luo frowned. Did he really have this kind of fetish?

When she looked at Nangong Qing lying on the bed, her eyes showed a hint of disgust.

"Is it really necessary? You can't stay up for days and nights just to hear a couple of cries. You're even more tolerant than a woman in labor."

"Yes, yes... I will definitely persuade the young master next time not to harm his health like this."

Stepping outside into the courtyard, Su Luo said to the two of them, "Take good care of Nangong Qing, okay?"

"yes!"

After thinking for a moment, Su Luo said, "Dr. Du, I'm quite busy these days. Once my house is repaired, you can move to Changping Village and we can exchange medical knowledge properly."

"Thank you, Madam Su."

Du Xiuyuan had already made some progress in his suturing skills and wanted to learn new ones, but Su Luo didn't have time to teach him. He even thought that Su Luo was going to forget about him.

Now that Su Luo has spoken, he can focus on his studies.

After seeing Su Luo off, the two breathed a sigh of relief. If Su Luo had pressed them for more time, they couldn't be sure if they could have kept Fu Xing's secret forever.

...

During her time back in Changping Village, Su Luo harvested the soybeans she had collected.

Soybean pods are left to dry in the sun, and occasionally a few will burst open, the sound of soybeans falling onto the bamboo mat as pleasant as a musical rhythm.

Seeing that it was almost dry, Su Luo tapped it with a wooden stick, and the beans inside the pods fell down with a clatter.

I used a winnowing basket to filter the beans several times to remove the residue, and finally got clean soybeans. I harvested about 30 jin (15 kg).

When no one is around, she goes into her space to pick cotton, enough to make clothes and two quilts, but she hasn't had time to pluck it yet.

The dry land was now available, and Su Luo originally wanted to plant some radishes, but fearing it would affect the turnips and rapeseed that were being cultivated, she took the radishes to the vegetable garden in the new house to plant.

The house isn't finished yet, but the vegetable garden is ready, so planting things is no problem at all.

"Luo Luo, how about I dig up this whole vegetable garden? Anyway, I don't know what to plant in the fall. If you want to plant something, I'll dig it up for you."

Zhao Ruyun dug in front with a hoe, while Su Luo planted seeds behind her. These radishes were seeds she had left in her space, about an ounce or two, enough to finish planting this vegetable patch.

"We can't just plant this. We also need to leave some space to plant some leafy greens, scallions, and green onions."

Zhao Ruyun was happy just thinking about it. By the time they moved into the new house, the vegetables in the garden would be growing well.

If she wants to eat something, she can just come out to the yard and pick it. In her spare time, she can also pull weeds in the vegetable garden.

"Okay, plant them all."

“Mother, Master Fan dug up a huge tree for my brother’s yard and said it would bloom in winter. I want to plant flowers too.”

The tree that Fan Gaocen dug up was a plum tree, and Yi Huan was already envious of it even though it hadn't bloomed yet.

"Huanhuan, what kind of flowers do you like? When spring comes, Mom will get them for you."

The two children sat on the swing that the carpenter had just made, swinging and talking to Su Luo and the others.

"I like all sorts of colors, but I don't want anything ugly!"

Life has improved, and Yi Huan's face is even rounder than Yan Chuan's.

"Okay, Mom will find one for you then. As for Chuan Chuan, what else do you like?"

Without hesitation, Yan Chuan replied, "Buy books, a bookshelf, a desk..."

Almost everything was related to reading; it seems I'll have to send Yanchuan to school next year.

"Luo Luo, Yan Chuan is just like his father, he likes to tinker with these things."

Zhao Ruyun straightened up and looked closely at the two children.

"You know what, Chuan Chuan and Huan Huan really do look more and more like Huai Xu as they grow up."

Su Luo also turned around to look at Yan Chuan and Yi Huan. These two were twins and looked alike, but Su Luo didn't know what Chen Huai Xu looked like.

But the two children have eyes like hers, big and double-lidded, and that's enough.

"Luo Luo probably doesn't remember the name of the locust tree anymore, right? Does she often wonder what it looks like, how tall it is, and what its characteristics are?"

Su Luo: "...?"

Can she say she has never thought about this question?

"Actually, Huai Xu was taller than Chen Mengqing, with a pair of pure, spring-like eyes, and a reserved and gentle demeanor. It's just a pity..."

At this point, Zhao Ruyun stopped talking, raised her head, and refused to let her tears fall.

"Mother-in-law, don't overthink it. Didn't we ask Nangong Qing to help investigate? He'll let us know if he finds anything."

Su Luo could only comfort Zhao Ruyun, but according to Zhao Ruyun's analysis, Chen Huaixu was just a delicate scholar.

A person who is so weak that he can't even kill a chicken would surely die on the battlefield.

...

Peaceful times always pass quickly, and after a period of time, the two Fumanlou restaurants began to diverge significantly.

The dishes and prices are the same, but the main restaurant is full of merchants and some landlords.

The branch stores were quite interesting; they were almost always gathering places for students, scholars, and literati.

Whether you're going to take the imperial examination or just passing through, you have to visit Fu Man Lou.

Some people even travel from afar, drawn by its reputation, to come and engage in poetry contests and painting competitions...

As long as he receives Nangong Qing's approval, his poems and paintings can still be signed and hung in Fumanlou.

For a time, everyone felt honored that Fu Man Lou had their works.

Coming here is no longer just about eating; it's more about witnessing the changes in the literary world.

Many influential people often sat here, and the Fu Man Lou branch was once the most popular restaurant in Yongle County.