While washing up, Zhen Wanwan listened to Rou'er talk, and this matter also surprised her quite a bit.
At first, she thought it was just a whim of Zhu Yuan's and that he would lose interest in a couple of days.
Unexpectedly, after persisting for half a year, Zhu Yuan still cooks for her whenever he is home, just like always.
And I must say, his cooking is quite delicious. Zhen Wanwan once asked Zhu Yuan why he likes to cook.
At that time, he answered with a slight smile…
Because he often went hungry for two meals a day when he was a child, sometimes only eating once every two days, his idea was very simple: to eat his fill every day.
Later, he was taken out of the palace. After the old servant passed away, he was left all alone. At that time, he didn't know how to cook, so he would squat at the neighbor's house every day to learn how to cook.
At first, the food was hard to eat, but it gradually became more and more delicious, and he slowly came to regard cooking as a way to find happiness.
Later, he joined the army and served as a strategist under General Xiao. One day, he was recognized by the subordinates of Prince Anqing. Because of his different status, he no longer showed his emotions in front of outsiders.
Undoubtedly, Zhu Yuan can only be himself at home, or more precisely, when he is with Zhen Wanwan and their children.
Be back to being that boy who was the only one who found happiness in his youth.
Upon hearing this, Zhen Wanwan felt a pang of sadness. Her childhood was indeed unfortunate, but Zhu Yuan's childhood was filled with misfortune and hardship.
She felt sorry for him, that he had no one to rely on, nowhere to go, and no way to protect himself. From now on, she would love him, respect him, and accompany him for the rest of his life.
Zhen Wanwan silently made a vow in her heart, suppressed her heartache, and gently tapped Rou'er's head with a light smile.
"Rou'er has grown up and is very concerned about the affairs of adults. It seems I need to talk to Granny Zhang and ask her to start looking for a husband for you!"
Rou'er was so frightened that she stomped her feet, covered her mouth, and ran away, saying, "My lady! I'm still young! Sister Xiaomei called me just now, so I went down to help!"
Zhen Wanwan smiled helplessly as she stared at her back. This child is really easy to tease!
"My lady, what makes you so happy? May I ask what it is?"
Zhu Yuan brought the food into the house, and Zhen Wanwan could smell the aroma of chicken soup.
Seeing her looking over with a puzzled expression, Zhu Yuan chuckled and pulled Zhen Wanwan to sit down, personally ladling chicken soup for her.
"You must have had a hard night, Madam. Please make sure you have something nourishing today."
Zhen Wanwan's cheeks flushed, and she glared at Zhu Yuan with displeasure: "What are you saying in broad daylight! Don't you have any shame?"
Zhu Yuan's lips curled slightly, and he was in a very good mood.
Not long after breakfast, Zhu Yuan had to return to the prefectural city, and the two children saw him off with tears in their eyes.
Seeing how dependent the children were on him, Zhu Yuan was filled with guilt. He believed that it wouldn't be long before he could be by their side at all times.
"Madam Zhen! Madam Zhen! The fruit on the back hill is ripe. What do you think we should do with it?"
Wang Fu presented Zhen Wanwan with a beaming smile, holding a handful of ripe, clean grapes.
The grapes are plump and round, hanging in bunches, each one oval-shaped with a smooth surface and an appealing color, like exquisite gemstones.
Zhen Wanwan took it, casually picked a grape and put it in her mouth. In this era, there were no pesticides, so grapes were naturally not sprayed with pesticides. She ate it without the slightest hesitation.
It tastes sweet and sour, and is very refreshing.
Zhen Wanwan gave a thumbs up and nodded: "Uncle Wang! This tastes good. You take a few people to pick the grapes, and let Aunt Ma and Aunt Wang pick out a few good bunches and freeze them in ice. I want to give them away! Then keep some for our family to eat, and make the rest into wine!"
Before her tavern even opened, she had already been urged many times by letters from Madam Chen and Madam Feng.
Zhen Wanwan still had a few jars in her space, but they were all good stuff, so she had to save them for her family.
Wang Fu chuckled and agreed, then turned to find someone to do the work.
"Mommy~ Mommy~ Sweetie...I want it!"
Sweetie, who had been gazing longingly at her mother for a long time, had to speak up first to remind her mother, who hadn't noticed her.
Sweetie opened her mouth wide, revealing three or four baby teeth, and raised her two chubby little hands high, wanting to pick grapes to eat.
Zhen Wanwan looked at her with amusement and picked out the plumpest grape from the pile, handing it to her.
Sweetie's chubby little hands held the grapes just like an adult holding a persimmon.
Sweetie looked at the grapes she had just received, feeling very happy. She glanced at her brother, then at her own grapes, a hint of struggle in her eyes.
Then her eyes lit up, and she pointed at her baby, saying, "Mommy~ Brother, I want him~"
At this moment, the little boy looked aloof, engrossed in reading a book. Seeing his gluttonous little sister, he was also thinking of his older brother, feeling both helpless and happy.
Zhen Wanwan pinched Tianbao's cheek hard. This little guy didn't forget his older brother even when there was good news. Not bad, not bad.
Zhen Wanwan didn't forget her son either, and picked out a big one for him as well.
While things are warm and beautiful here, in a corner of Anqing Prefecture, someone is plotting something big.
"Third brother! Are you sure this is true? Don't arrest the wrong person!"
"Brother, this is absolutely true! My informant reported that he personally witnessed Zhuyuan sneaking out in the middle of the night, heading towards Guangling County, and when he returned, he was carrying a lot of things, which were obviously prepared by a woman!"
"I think Zhu Yuan may appear to be indifferent to women, but he's secretly keeping a beautiful woman as a mistress! He might even have several children with her!"
The man, whose appearance was slightly lewd, smiled lewdly, his eyes gleaming with cunning and ruthlessness, as if he had already grasped Zhu Yuan's weakness.
The man called "Big Brother" by the lewd man pondered for a moment, hesitating whether or not to do it.
After all, the harm shouldn't extend to their wives and children. What they did was too insidious. What if they were sentenced to hell by the King of Hell when they got to the underworld?
Thinking of this, he held the prayer beads and recited a few Buddhist verses.
The lewd man gritted his teeth in hatred at the sight of his timid and hesitant manner. This guy was supposed to be the boss, yet he was so indecisive.
No wonder they ate wild vegetables every day in the mountains. Things were a little better before; occasionally they would rob a rich merchant, earn some ransom, and be able to eat meat a few times.
Later, when the government troops came to rob the bandits, they were so frightened that they hid in the mountains for a year or two. The sleazy man dared not recall those miserable days.
When there was no more loot on the mountain behind, several strong men from the village went out hunting and were carried off by tigers. Only then did they become restless and collectively descend the mountain to prepare to return to their old ways.
And when I looked around, the world had changed!
Those refugees were even more ashamed than they were, and they snatched away their already meager food as if they were fearless of death.
Only then did they realize that the world had truly changed!
The Northern Hu people have invaded!
The Prince of Yang rebelled, and the two princes fought each other to the death, plunging the country into internal and external troubles!
And these bandits were completely unemployed!
These refugees have no food or money; if we kidnap them, we might even steal their food!
But…
The lewd man touched the silver notes in his pocket, then thought of the man's methods and the wife and children he had in his hands.
He wasn't like his older brother, a simple-minded man who only had his body. He understood that if they failed to complete the mission this time, their entire mountain stronghold would be doomed!
The sleazy man hardened his expression and warned the burly man in front of him sharply, "Brother! You have to do this whether you like it or not! Don't forget that our men are still being held hostage by those people!"
The man who was called "Big Brother" trembled. How could he have forgotten about this!
Thinking of his sweet and soft daughter, his gaze became firm. He decided to go with the third brother to see her first. Zhu Yuan looked unwell and might not be able to have children at all!
What if he just doesn't like women?
If that's the case, they'll have an explanation when they go back, and they won't have to hurt innocent people.
"Third brother, lead the way!"
The sleazy man breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that his older brother had finally come to his senses. Although his older brother was a bit simple-minded, he was still very strong in combat.
With him around, the chances of success are much greater.
The two men walked timidly among the fleeing villagers, but their large size made them conspicuous no matter how they tried to hide.
They both seem like bad people, and bad people who can't keep their secrets!
The villagers silently separated the two, keeping their distance from them.
Women with children would use the two of them as examples to lecture their children when the children cried.
If they keep making noise, let them take it away and eat it!
This statement is notorious for its scare tactics among children; no child dares to cry or make a fuss under their noses, for fear of being captured.
The two were completely unaware of all this, and even thought that having no one around would better protect them.
Their actions had already been reported to Lü Yunshen, who snorted coldly and cursed inwardly, "Fools!"
He couldn't help but suspect the Prince of Yang who sent these two people. With such a brain, how could he possibly capture the Zhuyuan family? He was truly ignorant of his own limitations!
He turned and ordered, "Keep a close eye on these two. Report back immediately if they make any moves! Later, have someone keep a closer eye on the Prince of Yang!"
The King of Yang's move was blatantly foolish. His attempt to kidnap Zhu Yuan's wife and children right under his nose was clearly doomed to fail.
Based on their interactions over this period, it doesn't seem like something he would do; I'm afraid his real intentions are not what they seem.
His own offspring were in their hands, and perhaps he also wanted to hold Zhuyuan's weakness in his own hands, but instead of sending a shrewd person, he found two unintelligent mountain bandits.
He probably didn't have much hope for these two people. He probably wanted them to cause trouble so that they would lower their guard and send someone to rescue his son!
It must be said that Lü Yunshen's guess was exactly what the Prince of Yang was thinking.
On the day of his defeat, his son was captured. Just as he was in a state of great anxiety, he found a letter by his bedside the next morning.
The letter informed him that Zhu Yuan was hiding his beautiful wife and children in Meizi Village, Guangling County, Anqing Prefecture!
Prince Yang gathered his advisors to discuss the credibility of the matter, and they all felt that there must be a trick involved.
After careful consideration, he guessed that it was probably the work of one of the two princes, who wanted to make him and Zhuyuan both suffer heavy losses so that he could reap the benefits in the end.
King Yang was well aware of their intentions, but now that his son had been captured by Zhu Yuan, he had to find a way to rescue him.
Therefore, he came up with a plan to lure the tiger away from the mountain. In order to prevent his own men from being killed by Zhu Yuan, he even found a mountain bandit with martial arts skills to do this.
First, they were sent to investigate whether it was true that Zhu Yuan had a wife and children. Of course, in Yang Wang's mind, he was more inclined to believe that it wasn't true.
After all, what girl would like someone like Zhu Yuan?
Cold-blooded and ruthless, she would torture people to the point of wishing they were dead, and then brazenly hang their mangled corpses on the enemy's city gates.
Tell me, what blind woman in the world would fall for a man like that? And even bear him children?
Prince Yang had not forgotten that he had once heard that Zhu Yuan was capable and tried to poach him from General Xiao's ranks by using a honey trap.
As a result, the man cut off the beauty's hands and feet and threw her onto his bed in the middle of the night. He was so frightened that he could no longer get an erection and lost all interest in sex.
Thinking of this, Yang Wang hated Zhu Yuan with a passion. This man had harmed him so much. If he really had children, he would make him pay a hundredfold!
Secondly, the messenger clearly intended for them to suffer heavy losses. Prince Yang is no fool; given his current situation, if he were to act rashly, he might fall into a trap.
If he fails to intercept the enemy and instead loses his own life, he'll have no one to blame but himself.
In the dungeon of Anqing Prefecture, Zhu Yuan casually toyed with a scorching hot dagger, his eyes filled with icy coldness.
The Crown Prince of Yang was only thirteen or fourteen years old. Because he was the only son of the Prince of Yang, he was pampered from a young age. He was usually the one who disciplined others, and no one dared to bully him.
Now he is the fish on the chopping block, and others are the butchers; he was so frightened that he wet his pants on the spot.
Smelling the foul odor, Zhu Yuan frowned and gave him a disgusted look.
Feeling it was pointless, and disregarding all formalities, he asked directly, "Tell me everything you know, and I'll let you die a quick death!"
"Fine, fine! I'll talk! Please don't kill me!" Prince Yang begged for mercy as soon as Zhu Yuan finished speaking.
He simply ignored the words that would have made him die a quick death.
Perhaps he still harbored illusions, thinking he could escape this calamity, but almost no one who fell into Zhuyuan's hands ever left alive.
He was willing to spare the life of the Prince of Yang at this moment, only to lure out the Prince of Yang. He had already done enough to eliminate any potential threats.
Moreover, the boy in front of them, though seemingly innocent and kind, had actually killed many civilians in the Yang King's fiefdom.
Many ordinary people, due to their social status, were powerless to do anything about him.
After Yang Wang betrayed the country and cooperated with the Northern Hu people, he became even more brazen, engaging in sexual exploitation with those people.
His going to the battlefield is nothing more than wanting to watch killing for pleasure, to satisfy his twisted psychology.
Upon hearing this news, Zhu Yuan looked down on such people even more.
His eyes showed undisguised disgust and loathing, but the Crown Prince of Yang couldn't care less. So Zhu Yuan cut off a piece of flesh from his thigh.
He wailed in agony, unable to hold back his curses: "Didn't I already say I would explain everything clearly? Why are you still torturing me like this!"
However, to his anger, Zhu Yuan only smiled faintly: "Oh, I didn't see clearly for a moment and accidentally swiped it!"
"You! Ouch! It hurts so much! Waaaaah..."
The Crown Prince of Yang stared at him in disbelief, but the excruciating pain in his thigh left him no time to complain or curse.
Zhu Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly and smiled faintly, "If you drag this out any longer, I might make a mistake again!"
"No! I'll talk!"
…
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