Watching Zhou Laoda leave the courtyard, Xingxing rubbed her eyes and walked up to Zhao Guihua, muttering, "Mom, is the Zhou family causing trouble again?"
Zhao Guihua could tell from her sleepy state that she was still half asleep. She gently put her arm around her and led her back to her room. "It's alright. She just wanted money. We'll send it over, and they won't dare to cause trouble again."
"The Zhou family is so troublesome. Have they been coming over to bother you and Dad a lot these past few years?" Xingxing's words were somewhat indistinct, clearly indicating that she was extremely sleepy.
"No way, they wouldn't dare. Look at your five older brothers, each one taller and stronger than the last. Erfu alone could beat their whole family to a pulp. If your fourth brother joined in, he could crush them all." Zhao Guihua suddenly burst out laughing, seemingly thinking of something.
"What about when my brothers aren't home?" Xingxing asked softly, lying in bed with her eyes closed.
“If Brother Fu isn’t here, they wouldn’t dare. Everyone in the village wants to work in our orchard. Every family wants someone to come and earn money, so naturally they’ll fawn over us. If the Zhou family dares to cause trouble, they’ll be spitting at by everyone in the village.”
Zhao Guihua was overwhelmed with emotion. It was true what they said: whoever feeds you is your mother, and whoever has money is your grandfather. Ever since her family became wealthy, the villagers' attitude towards them had completely changed.
"Oh, then I'm relieved." Xingxing muttered to herself and fell asleep again.
Xingxing stayed in Yegou Village for two months. The rice in the paddy fields was harvested, and the seedlings were replanted. The villagers also helped to pick all the fruit in the orchard. Some of the fruit was kept for brewing wine, and the rest was sent to the county town to sell. They would sell as much as they could, and the fruit that couldn't be sold was kept to make dried fruit or used in cooking.
When Emperor Taikang and the Empress learned that the princess had returned to Yegou Village and stayed there for two months, they could no longer contain themselves and sent several messages by carrier pigeon urging the princess to return to the palace as soon as possible and not to linger outside the palace any longer.
"I really have to go back to the capital this time, otherwise my father and mother will be angry. Sigh, I really can't bear to leave my parents and brothers. What should I do?" Xingxing said dejectedly.
Zhou Laoda and Zhao Guihua also knew they couldn't keep their daughter. They were just farmers, and it would be useless to try to keep Xingxing. The emperor's word was an imperial edict, and there was no room for negotiation.
"Father and Mother, you haven't been to the capital yet. Why don't you come back to the capital with me this time? The Emperor bestowed a house upon you before, so you'll have a place to live. I can also come out of the palace to visit you often. You can come back when you get tired of staying in the capital, okay?" Xingxing pleaded, acting cute and pitiful.
“I’ve been away from the capital for so long, and the only person I know there is Zhang Xiantao. But Zhang Xiantao is still eloping and probably won’t be returning to the capital for a while. I’m not familiar with the people in the palace either, and many of them want to bully me. My father is busy with state affairs all day long, and my mother is easily influenced and has a weak constitution. There’s no one who can help me. If you go there, at least someone can speak up for me, and I won’t be all alone.”
Zhou Laoda and Zhao Guihua were already worried that Xingxing would be unhappy after returning to Beijing, and now that they heard what she said, they were even more worried.
"How about we go back with our daughter and come back when she's used to it?" Zhao Guihua asked Zhou Laoda tentatively.
“It’s really not safe for Xingxing to be alone. If we were by her side, we could at least help her out. Otherwise, she really wouldn’t have any of her own people.” Boss Zhou was also very worried. Thinking back to how Xingxing, a princess, could be kidnapped from the capital to the south, he felt that the capital was a den of dragons and tigers. How could they protect her without the two of them?
Fu Gemen was speechless. Three years ago, when the couple returned to Beijing, they said they were afraid of holding Xingxing back and refused to come to Beijing with them. In the blink of an eye, they said that no one could protect Xingxing without the two of them.
Lin Ge'er and his masters were treated like air. Wasn't Xingxing safe and sound all the way thanks to the protection of the people of Xianwu Island in the past few years?
Zhu Lin remained calm throughout, as if he hadn't heard the nonsense uttered by Zhou Laoda and his wife. If he was reluctant to part with Xingxing and worried that they might not see each other for several years, he should just say so directly. Why make up so much?
The couple was going to return to the capital with them, and they would have to protect them along the way. The secret guards would also have to work hard. But in the couple's mouth, all the secret guards and the people from their Immortal Mist Island were just decorations, which was both ridiculous and absurd.
"Oh dear, everyone is going back to the capital. What will happen to Mingyue and me? If I go back and my mother finds out, she will definitely send someone to arrest me and confine me. Then I won't be able to see Mingyue anymore. But if we don't go back, where can Mingyue and I go?" Zhang Xiantao was so anxious that she paced back and forth.
"Xiantao, would you like to come back to the swamp forest with me? Actually, it's quite comfortable living there. We can often go into the forest to hunt, pick wild fruits and mushrooms. It's no worse than Yegou Village." Zhao Mingyue earnestly urged, trying to lure this wife back.
“Going back to stay for a few months is fine, but living there year-round is definitely not an option, Mingyue. I’m not used to that kind of secluded life. I’m used to being wild and want to stay outside. If we get old in the future, we can consider going back to the swamp forest to live in seclusion.” Zhang Xiantao didn’t want to lie to him and stated her position directly.
Zhao Mingyue was a little disappointed, but he wouldn't pressure her. Her mother had said that it didn't matter where they lived; what mattered most was that two people who truly loved each other could be together.
After thinking for a moment, Zhang Xiantao squinted and said, "I've got it. This time we'll go north with you, and then we'll split up. You go back to the capital, and Mingyue and I will go back to the swamp."
"Xiantao, are you willing to go back to the swamp forest with me?" Zhao Mingyue was overjoyed.
Zhang Xiantao told him to calm down, "We're only going back for a few months. We'll come out again. But I'll write a letter to my mother saying that Mingyue and I have gone back to the swamp forest to get married. Since she and my father don't agree to our marriage, we won't go back, so as not to get in their way."
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