Having tasted success, the six bookstore owners in Heshun Prefecture placed large orders.
The paper mill in Tianxin Village has also gotten back on track.
The expanded factory buildings have been completed; only the paper-making pools are yet to be built.
Zhao Xiaodong did a good job as village chief. The villagers not only did not take advantage of his young age, but also praised him for his proper handling of affairs.
If only a few people praise you, it might be because of a close relationship; but if most people praise you, then you must truly have some skill.
Lu Qiqi assigned specific managers to oversee both the paper mill and the lime factory.
The matter was interconnected, with each step passed on to the next.
Workers and supervisors help each other and check each other. If there is anything amiss, they can file an anonymous complaint at any time.
Although the villagers cannot write, it does not mean they cannot go outside the village to find someone to write for them.
However, since the paper mill opened, Lu Qiqi has never received any complaint letters.
She later learned that when the villagers had something to say, they never thought of the mailbox first, but went directly to Zhao Xiaodong to argue.
The two factories assigned different tasks, and the content of the disputes also differed.
In the end, in order to reduce Zhao Xiaodong's workload, Lu Qiqi directly expanded the manager's authority, allowing the manager to handle the relevant matters.
If the person in charge can't handle it, then go to Zhao Xiaodong for help.
This way, Zhao Xiaodong can save himself a lot of trouble.
Since Zhao Datou was sent to the government office, Ru Mei and Zhao Zhiwei have never come to the paper mill again.
Knowing this, Lu Qiqi didn't say much, but instead asked Zhao Xiaodong to help arrange Yuan's funeral.
Three days later, Zhao Datou was also sentenced.
Murder and concealment are heinous crimes, therefore an order was issued to execute him in the autumn.
Lu Qiqi learned about this from the workers at the paper mill.
She finally understood why Zhao Zhiwei had been staying at home all the time.
The loss of his mother was enough to make him devastated.
He also learned of a shocking change, a blow that was far too great for him.
Several women sat in the papermaking workshop, holding pliers in their hands, splitting the bamboo paper to make it easier for those in charge to dry it.
While Lu Qiqi was checking the papers, she overheard something and pieced together the whole story.
Yuan was originally a child bride whom the Zhao family elderly couple had brought back for their second son.
They married her before she reached marriageable age and initially raised her as a daughter. Later, the old couple arranged for Yuan to marry their second son, Zhao Chu'er.
That is, the current Master Zhao.
Back then, Master Zhao was an excellent student and teacher, highly regarded by his teacher, who recommended him to go to the capital to study under his friend.
Unexpectedly, after a month and a half of travel, Master Zhao encountered a group of bandits in a mountain valley, and they overturned the carriage and the rider on a cliff.
The coachman and the carriage crashed to the ground and were smashed into pieces, but Zhao, the clerk, was lucky enough to be caught on a tree trunk and survived.
The car was damaged and the driver died. Zhao, the clerk, was also injured. He had to travel over mountains and rivers, relying on begging along the way, to finally walk back to Heshun Prefecture.
He had returned to Tianxin Village to look for Yuan Shi, but unexpectedly learned that Yuan Shi had remarried Zhao Laoda.
Within a year, the child was born.
Upon hearing this, Lu Qiqi was puzzled. How could the news of Master Zhao's accident reach Tianxin Village so quickly?
Although pregnancy is said to last ten months, most people don't actually stay pregnant for that long.
Based on the timeline, Yuan became pregnant when Zhao the clerk had his accident.
In terms of timing, is it really that outrageous for the Zhao family to do things this way?
At that time, Master Zhao had not even arrived in the new capital yet, but he was already in a hurry to remarry his second daughter-in-law to his eldest son.
Lu Qiqi listened to the women's intermittent conversation and then understood.
When Madam Yuan learned of Zhao's passing, she was in a daze for two years, and she couldn't even remember the year Zhao Zhiwei was born.
This Zhao Zhiwei is actually the son of Master Zhao.
Now Zhao Zhiwei's biological mother has been murdered, and his adoptive father has been imprisoned, awaiting execution in the autumn.
Her biological father suddenly reappeared in her life.
It would take anyone a while to calm down.
For a moment, Lu Qiqi also felt some sympathy for Zhao Zhiwei.
...
After arranging his mother's funeral, Zhao Zhiwei learned about the grudges and conflicts of the previous generation that spanned twenty years.
He couldn't quite describe the feeling in his heart. Ru Mei had cooked him some congee today.
Ru Mei, holding a bowl of congee, walked up to him and said, "Husband, you haven't eaten for three days, and today is the fourth day. Please have a bowl of congee."
A wisp of hair fell across Zhao Zhiwei's forehead, his chin was covered in stubble, and his eyes were bloodshot.
Seeing him like this, Ru Mei felt a pang of heartache.
Father-in-law, oh no.
When Zhao Laoda was escorted to the government office by Zhao Shiye's men, she received the news and rushed home.
She saw her husband sitting silently, holding his mother-in-law's body.
That expression made her shudder even in her dreams.
Zhao Zhiwei sat blankly at the table, so Rumei picked up the porridge and fed it to him with a wooden spoon.
Ru Mei had never seen him so dull-witted, like a foolish child who only knew how to open his mouth and swallow.
After feeding her a bowl of porridge, Rumei didn't dare to feed her any more. She hadn't eaten for three days, and eating too much now might harm her health.
But she didn't want Zhao Zhiwei to become like this.
Just as Ru Mei was at a loss for what to do, there was a knock on the door outside the courtyard.
Ru Mei found it strange; her mother-in-law had just left, and the white banners outside the courtyard hadn't even been taken down yet.
Who could possibly be visiting at this time?
Although she was puzzled, she still called out towards the courtyard, "Coming!"
Then, he quickly went to open the courtyard gate.
As soon as the courtyard gate opened, Ru Mei saw Master Zhao. She already knew about the relationship between Master Zhao and Zhao Zhiwei.
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