Xu Qinyu was stunned when she heard this. "Guards? Why would there be guards coming to my house?"
There were only about twenty guards including Huo Jiang and Lianhua at the restaurant, but no imperial guards. There were not many officials and noble families in Raozhou City who had imperial guards. Moreover, Xu Ji Restaurant had received rave reviews from diners over the past three years. Xu Ji had never made enemies with the dignitaries in the city, so how could the imperial guards surround the house?
Chun Tao shook her head. "I don't know either. I just heard someone knocking on the door. I went to open it and saw a group of guards in black armor surrounding the house. They also said they wanted to see you, the owner of Xu's."
Guards in black armor?
Xu Qinyu's heart skipped a beat. She knew that the Black Armored Soldiers wore black armor. Could it be that those outside were the Black Armored Soldiers? But since Raozhou City was taken over by the Black Armored Soldiers a year ago, she had no contact with the Black Armored Soldiers. She had never even seen the Black Armored Soldiers' leaders, nor had she seen them come to Xu's restaurant for meals.
But Xu Qinyu was not sure at the moment whether the people outside were the Black Armored Army. After all, the Black Armored Army had already fought into the capital, and no one knew what the situation was like inside the capital. Only a few of the Black Armored Army remained in Raozhou City.
So who are these guards? What do they want to do here?
No matter what happened, Xu Qinyu had to go out and take a look. Xu Ji Restaurant did not evade taxes and treated diners wholeheartedly, so she was not afraid of trouble.
Xu Qinyu said, "I'll go out and take a look."
Chuntao had a loud voice, and Ning Jie'er and Wen Shi had already heard what she had just said. Wen Shi and Ning Jie'er had already put on their clothes and came out of the house. When they heard Xu Qinyu say this, they immediately said, "Yu Niang, I'll go with you to take a look."
"Fourth sister-in-law, I'll go with you."
Xu Qinyu nodded, and the three of them walked towards the courtyard gate. Chuntao hurriedly followed, and Moyu, who had been following Xu Qinyu, also followed her side and walked towards the gate.
In fact, before Chuntao came over to report, when Xu Qinyu was still washing up in the room, Moyu was sleeping under the window of her room. Suddenly, he ran out of the room with his ears erect, came to the courtyard, and lay motionless with his ears erect until Chuntao came in to report. Only then did he look at Chuntao again, but with his ears still erect, obviously he already knew what was going on outside.
Xu Qinyu felt much more at ease when she saw Mo Yu following her.
When winter comes, Baiyu hibernates somewhere in the mountains. Snakes usually hibernate for three to four months without eating or drinking, and they will not wake up if no one disturbs them. But Baiyu is different. It will come back once every ten days or half a month, and run back to the mountains within two days of coming back.
So Baiyu is not here at this moment, only Moyu is with him.
Four people walked forward with a majestic black leopard.
The sky was gloomy, snowflakes were still falling, and a layer of white snow accumulated on the ground. Xu Qinyu stared at the white snow on the ground, which made a crackling sound when stepped on. Her heart was beating a little fast. For some reason, she always felt a little strange. She didn't think the guards outside the house would pose any danger to her or Xu Ji, but so many guards were really strange...
They soon arrived at the gate of the house. After walking around the screen wall, Xu Qinyu saw that the gate was still closed. Chuntao must have seen so many guards outside and wanted to come in to pass on the message, so she quickly closed the gate again.
Since the guards didn't force their way in, it must not be a bad thing for them to come looking for her.
Could it be something good?
Xu Qinyu felt strange and confused.
Chuntao ran over and opened the red gate of the house, and Xu Qinyu saw the situation outside. It was indeed as Chuntao said. There was a row of guards wearing black armor standing outside, and these guards had very serious faces. At a glance, there were almost dozens of guards.
When the guards saw Xu Qinyu, Wen, and Ning Jie'er come out, they all stepped back, raised their left arms, and bowed deeply. Then they shouted, "Her Majesty, the Empress Dowager, and the Princess, please return to the capital."
Xu Qinyu was silent for a moment.
Wen and Ning Jie'er looked similar to her, and seemed a little slow to react.
Chuntao, needless to say, looked at the guards who were performing the ceremony in front of her with a dazed look on her face. What were these guards doing?
Xu Qinyu was a little confused...
What? What about the Empress, the Queen Mother, and the Princess? Are you talking to them?
Are you calling them?
But how did they become the Empress Dowager, the Queen Mother and the Princess?
No, if they become the Empress Dowager and the Princess, it only means that Fourth Brother has become the Emperor?
Only when her fourth brother becomes emperor can she become empress, her mother-in-law can become empress dowager, and Ning Jie'er can become princess.
Xu Qinyu finally reacted, but still couldn't believe it. Her mind was blank and she felt like she was dreaming. Could it be that she was still dreaming and hadn't woken up?
How did Fourth Brother become the emperor? Could it be that Fourth Brother was the leader of those black-armored soldiers?
The business trip that Fourth Brother mentioned actually meant leading the Black Armored Army to attack the capital?
Xu Qinyu's mind was in a mess and her heart was in turmoil.
Wen and Ning Jie'er are similar to her.
Ning Jie'er's face turned a little pale.
The three of them finally reacted, looked at each other, and stared at each other, but no one spoke first.
In the end, it was Wen who spoke first, "You, you guys..."
At this time, a man came out from the group of black-armored guards. The man's appearance was not outstanding, but rather ordinary. He was Huo Ye. Since he entered the capital, stormed the palace, and captured the empress dowager and Emperor Sheng Yuan, from the moment he captured the empress dowager and Emperor Sheng Yuan, no matter whether His Highness was the Prince of Shu or the leader of their rebel army, His Highness was no longer His Highness, but the current emperor.
After the Emperor captured the Empress Dowager and Emperor Sheng Yuan, the people he was most worried about were naturally their families in the border town, so he asked Huo Ye to personally lead a team of people and rush back to the border town to bring the Empress and others to the capital.
Huo Ye said, "I am the commander-in-chief of His Majesty's entourage. I have been ordered by His Majesty to bring the Empress Dowager, the Empress, and the Princess back to the capital. His Majesty has been very cautious over the years and has never revealed what he was going to do. He was just afraid that you, the Empress Dowager, would worry. Now that the great event has been accomplished, you, the Empress Dowager, are the ones he is most worried about. Don't worry, Your Majesty's throne is both the people's choice and the legitimate successor. The late emperor left behind an edict appointing the eldest prince as crown prince. Your Majesty has found that edict and has also given him a posthumous title. The Empress Dowager and Emperor Sheng Yuan have confessed that they were the ones who poisoned the late emperor."
After hearing this, Wen finally couldn't bear it anymore. She covered her eyes and tears fell from between her fingers.
Ning Jie'er and Xu Qinyu also felt uncomfortable, their eyes were red. They did not try to persuade Wen, but just let her cry her heart out.
At this moment, Zhu also came out with Sister Yan and Brother Feng.
She had come to the main courtyard to look for Yu Niang and the others but couldn't find them. Then she heard from the maid that a large group of guards had surrounded the house. Yu Niang and the others came out to check, and then Zhu came over with the two children...
When Huo Ye saw Zhu, Feng Ge'er, and Yan Jie'er, he immediately said, "We respectfully invite Madam Zhu and the princess and prince to return to the capital."
Zhu and the two children looked confused.
Huo Ye repeated what he had just said to the three people, and their confusion finally turned into shock.
Zhu was even a little frightened and her body was shaking.
Xu Qinyu was afraid that her grandmother would be frightened, and since it was still snowing outside, she said, "Let's go inside first."
She definitely couldn't go to the restaurant for breakfast today, but she still asked Chuntao to go to the restaurant and told her.
Chun Tao still looked dazed. "Okay, okay, I'll go and tell the restaurant right away."
After Xu Qinyu led her family and Huo Ye into the house to talk, the other guards remained outside the house.
Chuntao also ran towards the restaurant in a daze. She didn't even know when she got there. She was still rushing towards the kitchen. Chen grabbed her and said, "Chuntao, what are you rushing into? Be careful not to bump into the hot pot or hot soup in the kitchen and burn yourself. Where is the boss? Why are you here?"
Chuntao looked up in a daze and called out "Aunt Chen".
Chen has been working for Xu Qinyu for several years. In the first year that Xu Ji Restaurant opened, Chen, Lin and Yuan were hired. The first three female waitresses of Xu Ji Restaurant have all followed Xu Qinyu to the restaurant for three years.
Chen said, "Chun Tao, what's wrong with you? Why is your face so pale?"
Chun Tao swallowed and said, "Aunt Chen, my wife won't be here to make breakfast today."
Chen said, "Okay, I'll go to the kitchen and tell them. The boss must be tired, so why not take a day off today?"
Chun Tao blinked and said, "Aunt Chen, my wife will not come to the restaurant to cook breakfast and dinner anymore."
The lady has become the empress, so she must go to the capital to enjoy the good life. How could she continue to cook for others? Who would dare to eat the food cooked by the empress? But she had eaten the food cooked by the lady before...
Chuntao suddenly felt a little weak in the legs.
Aunt Chen was stunned for a moment. "What are you talking about, kid? You're not cursing the boss."
Aunt Chen felt that this would only happen if the boss was seriously ill or disabled and could no longer cook.
"Aunt Chen, no, I'm not cursing the boss." Chun Tao swallowed again, "My wife has become the queen."
"What?" Chen thought she had misheard. "Empress? What queen?"
Chun Tao said, "Just now, a group of guards surrounded the house..."
She told Chen what had just happened in great detail.
Chen was stunned when she heard this, and finally murmured, "Could it be that I am still dreaming? Why did I have such a strange dream? Ouch, it hurts so much, it's not a dream."
While muttering to herself, Chen pinched her thigh. The pain made her cry. Then she realized that she was not dreaming at all.
Chun Tao chuckled, "Actually, I still think I'm dreaming. It's normal for you to think that way. Then tell the people in the kitchen that I won't be going over."
Chen was still confused. She assumed that if the Dong family became empress, it must be because the Dong family man had become emperor. Wasn't the Dong family man just a pretty embroidered pillow, only good at traveling for business? How did he become emperor? Hadn't the leader of the Black Armor Army invaded the capital? Could it be that the Dong family man was the leader of the Black Armor Army?
Chen was stunned.
Chun Tao yelled again, and she came back to her senses. When she came back to her senses, she asked, "Then, can we tell other people about the boss's affairs?"
Chun Tao felt that this matter could not be concealed. My wife was about to return to the capital with those guards, and my wife did not ask her to keep her mouth shut. "I should be able to tell. My wife is about to return to the capital with those guards. The restaurant must explain everything clearly."
After Chuntao left, Chen was still standing there.
This was truly too shocking. The boss she had followed for several years had become the Empress. Oh my God, she had even eaten breakfast prepared by the Empress.
Not only she had eaten it, but half of the people in Raozhou City and Yuanbao Town had eaten it. When they find out about it in the future, they will definitely eat the same thing as her.
After Chuntao returned, the guards outside the house were still standing. Even when she walked over, these black-armored guards didn't even look at her.
Inside the house.
Huo Ye meant that they should pack up their things today and set off for Beijing tomorrow. Since the waterway was blocked, they could only take the official road. The carriages and other things were already prepared, so Xu Qinyu and the others didn't need to worry. If they traveled quickly, they would be able to return to Beijing in twenty days.
Xu Qinyu remained silent. It was impossible for her to believe Huo Ye's words just because she heard them. After all, she had never met Huo Ye.
No, she had seen this person before. She had eaten at Xu Ji Restaurant in Yuanbao Town before.
But I have never seen Fourth Brother with him, so I won’t believe his words easily.
And she never thought that her fourth brother would become emperor.
Finally, Huo Ye took out the letter written by his fourth brother and said, "Does the Empress have a crabapple-colored glass hairpin in her hand? The Emperor had it made by hand when he went to Erlai Kingdom. He said it was a gift for you, the Empress. I accompanied the Emperor on that voyage. Or you could call Huo Jiang and Lianhua over. The guards at Xuji are all from the Black Armored Guards, trusted by the Emperor. The Emperor was worried about the safety of you and the Empress Dowager, so he dispatched twenty or so Black Armored Guards to guard the restaurant."
Only then did Xu Qinyu believe it.
She had never taken that glass hairpin out until now. No one else could know about it except her family members. Even Chuntao and the others didn't know that she had such a glass hairpin.
Since what Huo Ye said is true, we must set off back to Beijing.
Wen said, "Madam Yu makes the decision. When do you think we should set off?"
Xu Qinyu pondered for a moment and said, "I'll go to the restaurant and tell them later. As for the other luggage, there's not much to pack, just a few changes of clothes. Mom, you can put your valuable clothes and jewelry in a few separate boxes and have Commander Huo send them back to the capital. We can set off first. As for Moyu and Baiyu, Moyu is in the house and can leave with us at any time, but Baiyu is still in the mountains. Baiyu has been with me all these years. If it can't find me when it comes down the mountain, I'm afraid it will cause trouble..."
Huo Ye immediately said, "Don't worry, Queen. His Majesty said that both white jade and black jade are very spiritual. As long as the Queen leaves a token and tells the white jade, she will return to the capital with the black-armored guards."
Xu Qinyu always felt a little awkward when he called her Empress.
Nothing feels real, it feels like a dream.
Besides, she was just a cook, how could she be the queen? Not to mention that Fourth Brother was now the emperor. However, her marriage to Fourth Brother was a coincidence. Before that, they were just dating and had never slept together. She couldn't be the queen, she only knew how to cook...
Maybe it's time for her to go back to Beijing, but not to enter the palace and become queen. She wants to go back to Beijing to see her original family and explain things to her fourth brother. She is also worried about her own restaurants and hotels, which are the result of her hard work.
Xu Qinyu lowered her eyes.
Since he had decided to return to Beijing, Huo Ye began to prepare.
Xu Qinyu was afraid that Wen and Ning Jie'er would notice something was wrong with her, so she said with a smile, "Then Mother, Ning Jie'er, and Grandmother, you guys pack up first. I'll go to the restaurant and make sure everything is arranged."
Wen nodded, "Go quickly, Yu Niang."
Xu Qinyu stood up, left the yard, and slowly walked towards the restaurant.
In fact, she knew very well in her heart that she did not want to continue to be with her fourth brother. The reason was simple. Her fourth brother would be the emperor in the future and would have countless concubines in the harem. He wanted to expand the royal family and marry the daughters of the noble families and important officials in the capital to consolidate his throne.
She was just a cook and could not help her fourth brother in any way. She did not understand these things and could not face being trapped in the harem and could only compete for favor with other concubines.
She was not from this era and could not accept such a relationship between husband and wife, so she simply let go early while there was nothing going on between her and Fourth Brother. She thought that although Fourth Brother was not talkative, he was a modest gentleman and would let her leave.
Xu Qinyu looked up at the gloomy sky and couldn't help but pursed her lips and smiled.
No matter what, it is really great that Fourth Brother can become the emperor and avenge the eldest prince and the late emperor. She hopes that Fourth Brother will have smooth sailing in the future.
She congratulated her fourth brother on being able to ascend the throne. She said that her fourth brother was a good man and knew the sufferings of the people. He would definitely be a good emperor who worked diligently and loved the people. The future Great Sheng Dynasty might really usher in a peaceful and prosperous era.
Xu Qin heaved a long sigh, still feeling a little depressed in her heart. No matter what, her feelings for her fourth brother were real, and she would definitely feel sad if she wanted to let go.
They soon arrived at the restaurant, and Chen had already told everyone there that the owner had become the queen.
Everyone in the restaurant was shocked and confused, feeling like they were dreaming. They felt a little restrained when they saw Xu Qinyu.
It was still early and everyone was busy in the kitchen. No customers came to eat, so Xu Qinyu called all the waiters over and asked someone to call Gong Ge'er and Tao Qi.
Gong Ge'er is the manager of the restaurant. After all, Gong Ge'er and his family are also members of the Wen family and relatives of his mother-in-law. They may return to Beijing in the future, but there is no other manager of the restaurant now, so she prefers to ask Gong Ge'er to manage the restaurant first. When the Wen family really wants to return to Beijing in the future, she will make other plans. If that doesn't work out, there are still Feng Tiao Yushun and the other four brothers. They are her most trusted apprentices. Feng Ge'er is also growing up and can start learning to manage the restaurant.
Xu Qinyu said, "Because, for some reasons, I will be leaving Raozhou City and returning to the capital, so I will have to ask you to take care of the restaurant."
Gong Ge'er's eyes widened as he asked, "Fourth sister-in-law, can you return to the capital? Could it be that the rebels have already overthrown the evil empress dowager and the incompetent emperor?"
Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "Your fourth brother is the leader of the rebel army. He also found the imperial edict that made the eldest prince the crown prince. So he has a legitimate reason to attack Concubine Fu. His general is coming today to take us back to the capital."
Gong Ge'er was extremely surprised.
He knew that his fourth brother was the Prince of Shu, but he didn't know that he was also the leader of the Black Armor Army. He had quietly attacked the capital and seized the throne, but he did it well!
Gong Ge'er was probably the calmest person there. After Xu Qinyu finished explaining, he said, "Four, that's not right. Your Majesty, don't worry. You can return to Beijing without worry. We'll take care of the restaurant."
Xu Qinyu couldn't help but laugh and said, "It's better not to call me Empress. It's awkward for you to call me Empress, and it's awkward for me to hear it too. Just keep calling me the same as before."
Gongge'er scratched his head and said, "How dare we do that?"
Xu Qinyu explained some other things, taking into account all aspects of the restaurant. Finally, she also gave instructions to the brothers Fengtiao Yushun and asked them to learn more from Brother Gong.
Xu Feng and Gong Ge'er are about the same age, and they are no different from brothers now, but Xu Feng still wants to follow Xu Qinyu. But now Xu Qinyu is the queen and no longer just his master, so he has no choice. But he also figured it out, the restaurant and the tavern are the hard work of his master, and he will protect the restaurant and the tavern for his master.
Xu Qinyu spent more than half an hour in the private room upstairs talking to Gong Ge'er and the others, while the other chefs had already gone to the kitchen to get busy.
When Xu Qinyu came down, diners had already come to Xu's restaurant for breakfast.
Most of Xu's diners recognized Xu Qinyu and asked with a smile, "Has the boss prepared breakfast today? Honestly, although the food made by other chefs is equally delicious, the boss's food is still the best. Even though they use the same recipe, the boss's cooking skills are still the best."
Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "I had something to do today, so I didn't help in the kitchen."
The diners laughed and said, "We are just not lucky enough to eat this."
After Xu Qinyu left, the waiters next to her had strange expressions on their faces, wanting to say something but stopping themselves. They didn't dare to tell these diners that they would never be able to eat the food prepared by the host in the future.
…
After Xu Qinyu returned, she went to the city again. She withdrew 300,000 taels of silver notes from the bank, which was almost one-third of what she had earned over the years. She had almost one million taels of silver in her bank. The main reason was that the world was in turmoil this year and the restaurant business was affected. Although the wine was brewed, it had not been sold outside. She planned to wait until the beginning of next spring to transport it to other state capitals.
Before the world was in chaos, Xu's Restaurant's highest monthly profit was over 80,000 taels.
She planned to take these 300,000 taels of silver back to her original family.
This time when she returned to Beijing, she was still very nervous. She didn't know how to face her original family and whether they would notice anything.
Everything was ready. The next morning, Huo Ye sent a carriage to pick up Xu Qinyu and the others. Huo Jiang and Lianhua also went back to the capital with them. The remaining black-armored guards stayed in the restaurant as security guards for the time being.
Xu Qinyu did not bring Chuntao and the other maids back to the capital, for she was afraid that they would not be accustomed to life there. She also had no plans to enter the palace and was planning to return to the southwest in the future, so she did not bring Chuntao and the other maids with her. She also returned their indentures and asked them to stay in the restaurant to work and save some money so that they could buy land and build their own business in the future.
There were three carriages in total returning to Beijing. They were much more spacious than ordinary carriages, covered with soft furs, and had a small coffee table and a small stool. When the coffee table and stool were folded up, there was even a place to sleep. The curtains of the carriages were also very thick, which could block all the wind and snow. There were also hand warmers inside, so the whole carriage was warm and comfortable.
Xu Qinyu and Ning Jie'er rode in one carriage, while Wen and Zhu, each with a child, rode in the other two carriages.
Mo Yu didn't like riding in a carriage and always ran behind it.
Even Ma Er Qilin followed him back to the capital this time.
In this way, they drove all the way to the capital. However, no matter how fast the carriage was, it had to stop to rest at the post station. In this way, they traveled during the day and rested at night. It still took them twenty days to reach the capital, and they missed the end of the year.
The day I returned to the capital was the fifth day of the first lunar month.
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