A few days later, Jian Ning's family set off. The head of the village and the clan leader led the villagers to the village entrance to see them off. Chang cried bitterly. She cried bitterly when she saw Tian off. This time, she cried like a tearful person when she saw Jian Ning's family off, and she held Jian Ning's hand tightly.
"Sister, don't cry. Even if things don't change, we'll definitely meet again in the future." Jian Ning called her sister directly. After being together for so long, how could people be heartless? She hugged Chang and said, "Take good care of yourself. When my husband is transferred back to the capital, I will take your family over. Then we can work together with Sister Tian to make wine. When my daughter gets married, I'm counting on you to make her wedding dress!"
"That's great. I'll take care of the three maids and Miss Qiaofeng." Chang didn't care whether to go to the capital or not, but she was reluctant to part with them. Now that Tian had gone and then Jian Ning's family had left, how could she not be sad?
"I just want the days to pass faster and faster. It would be best if the three of us could be laughing and joking together every day again in the blink of an eye. That's how happy and hopeful life would be!"
Jian Ning whispered in his ear, laughing softly, "Don't dare let Uncle Ding hear this. What's the matter? Are you unhappy and hopeless with him? Be careful, or he'll get angry with you if he hears."
She pinched Chang's shoulders lightly, shook her and joked.
Chang's face was still covered with tears, but she couldn't help but burst out laughing after hearing her words. "Take care of yourself too. Take care of yourself and your family. Don't be too strong and tire yourself out, okay? Also, think of sending me a message from time to time. There are many children studying in the village nowadays. If I can't read, I can ask the children to help me read. I will also send my daughters to the clan school to learn to read, and have them write back to you after they learn."
"Yeah." Jane Ning nodded.
Ding Youtian was also saying goodbye to the village head and the clan leader. The eldest, second, and third brothers were all there, but Old Ding and Mrs. Meng were missing. He had thought several times before leaving to find the eldest brother to give him some words of advice, but after weighing the pros and cons, he gave up the idea.
The older brothers are all hardworking and willing to work hard. As long as there are no major natural disasters and they have a few acres of land, they can all do their job and live a good life. He has nothing to worry about.
"Everyone go back to your work. We'll say goodbye now." He bowed to the villagers and got into the carriage with Jian Ning.
Erniu, Sanniu, Guoguo and Baimei were already in the carriage. The two girls were leaning on the window, waving to their friends. They had been to the capital with their parents and were now going on another long journey, which made their friends in the village very envious. Master Ding flicked the whip in his hand, and Lieyan ran forward with all four hooves, followed by a group of children chasing after the carriage.
"Jia Jia, Yao Yao, don't forget us..." The eldest and second daughters of the Chang family chased after them and shouted the loudest.
Mr. Ding San sent Jian Ning and his family to the dock. Jian Ning handed the carriage and Lie Yan to him. Mr. Ding San cherished Lie Yan and the carriage as if they were his own eyes. He had thought that Jian Ning and his family would take both the horse and the carriage with them, but he didn't expect that Jian Ning would leave them all to him. Mr. Ding San was so excited that his eyes were wet.
"Everyone is doing well, Fourth Brother. Today, Third Uncle is giving you a few words of advice: treat your wife well, be an honest official, don't bring shame to Dingxian Village, and set a good example for the younger generations in the village. Did you remember that?"
Ding Youtian bowed to him solemnly and said, "Don't worry, Third Uncle. Your nephew Jin will remember this. Your roots are in Dingxian Village. No matter where you go, you will not bring shame to the people of our village!"
Uncle Ding nodded. "Don't worry about your family. We've all been through hardships together since childhood. If anything happens to your family, everyone will help take care of you. My eldest brother was afraid you'd be worried, so he asked me to tell you."
Ding Youtian smiled, bowed again, and he and Jian Ning, each carrying a bag and holding a child, turned and walked towards the boat.
At 15:15 in the afternoon, the boat arrived at the Zhuling County dock. Qin Yifan and his men were already waiting there. As soon as the boat docked and lowered the steps, he eagerly ran aboard, grinning. Seeing Ding Youtian, he punched him in the chest. "You're amazing, man! If you hadn't made a move, it would have been fine, but once you did, you won first place. My father scolded me for days, saying we were both taught by the same teacher, so why did you win first place and I didn't? He kept asking me why."
He spoke in a loud and powerful voice. Fortunately, the boat was bustling with people, so he only attracted the attention of one or two people passing by. Ding Youtian also punched him and said with a smile, "Tell Uncle Qin that I have more than one teacher. The other teacher is my mentor."
"Are you talking about the fortune teller, Uncle Liu?" Qin Yifan said as they disembarked from the boat with him. "Because you spent the New Year in the capital, he made a special trip to visit my father before the Lunar New Year and spent a few days there. He was forced to stay with me for almost five or six days before leaving."
"Oh, my master spent the New Year with your family? That's strange. These two old men used to live close to each other but didn't interact much. Now that they live far apart, they've become close friends."
"There's one more thing I'll tell you in detail on the way." Qin Yifan hired two carriages. Jian Ning took Erniu and Sanniu in one, while he, Ding Youtian, and the two yamen runners he brought with him took the other. After getting in the carriage, he asked Ding Youtian, "Have you heard of Prime Minister Nan? He's the only prime minister of our dynasty. I heard recently that he's defected to the Yue Kingdom. He's quite a formidable figure. I'm afraid he'll cause great suffering soon. Alas!"
He sighed, but Ding Youtian smiled when he heard it. He suddenly remembered that there was no news about Huo Jincheng after he hurried away that day. Needless to say, Huo Jincheng must have gone back to report to the prince, and then the news was spread.
"Why are you laughing?" Qin Yifan was puzzled.
"Not only do I know him, I also know Nan Xiang. You've seen him too, more than once." He gave Qin Yifan a look.
"Oh? Could it be..."
Ding Youtian smiled and nodded. Qin Yifan patted his forehead and nodded at him, saying, "No wonder you were able to win first place. So that's why! So that's why! My dear brother, you are so lucky. Did you know that he has such great talent yet never accepts any disciples? How many lifetimes have you cultivated to be so lucky? You have monopolized all the good things in the world. I am so envious."
The news that the newly crowned top scholar's wife was the legitimate daughter of the Prince of Pingnan and had been bestowed the title of Princess Anning by the Emperor for her contributions to epidemic control had spread throughout the states and prefectures of Dayan State, and Qin Yifan naturally knew about it. Recently, he had heard that the Southern Prime Minister had defected to the Yue State, and he was already worried. But the unexpected discovery that Blind Liu was the Southern Prime Minister dispelled his worries.
Because there were two yamen runners in the car, Ding Youtian did not call Blind Liu his mentor, but only asked, "How much do you know about the Southern Prime Minister?"
"I only know that he followed the emperor to conquer the five countries of the previous dynasty and made great contributions to the founding of this dynasty. Later, I heard that because of his growing power, he gradually..." Qin Yifan stopped talking because Blind Liu was Ding Youtian's mentor.
Nan Shang was accused of treason that year. Ding Youtian had also heard about it when he was in the capital. He couldn't help but sigh for Liu Xiazi in his heart. He believed that his master was definitely not a traitor, and it was impossible for him to defect to the Yue Kingdom to massacre the people of the Central Plains. What Liu Xiazi said in the letter echoed in his mind, that if he was not an upright official, he would personally chop off his head.
Just ask, how could such a person who cares about the people defect to the Moon Kingdom and ignite the war?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
