Su Xu sighed, "Are we leaving tomorrow?"
He said reluctantly: "Can’t we stay for another day?"
Su Rong said helplessly, "My own father - he was seriously injured in a secret attack and he is ill. I’m afraid he won’t be able to hold on if I don’t go. We can’t delay any longer."
Hearing this, Su Xu immediately said, "Then you must hurry there."
The matter of her daughter usurping the throne was a serious one.
A group of people walked in.
His aunts were busy packing. When they heard that Su Rong had returned, they dropped what they were doing and hurriedly ran out from their own courtyards.
They arrived at the entrance of the front hall just as Su Rong did.
Su Rong smiled and greeted the three of them.
The threesome immediately surrounded her, each asking questions; some commented that she had lost weight, some asked why she had returned, and some said they thought she had gone to Nanchu.
The entire Inspector’s Residence was instantly bustling with activity.
Entering the front hall, Su Rong drank a cup of tea before mentioning the matters concerning the Matron and the young ladies – matters that the aunts were all concerned about.
Hearing that everyone was doing well, everyone heaved a collective sigh of relief.
When Su Rong heard that the three aunts were going to the Capital City, she nodded but did not express any opinion. In her view, their going to the capital was also good, as it could relieve some of the burden on the Matron. After all, wedding preparations didn’t just involve waiting, and there were many things to be taken care of during the Three Letters and Six Etiquettes.
Su Xu was listening to the side throughout. Only when Su Rong and the aunts had finished talking did he send everyone away. Dishes were brought from the kitchen, and he sat at the table with Su Rong, having a conversation with her alone.
He asked Su Rong, "News of the war in Nanping has reached Jiangzhou. They say that Zhou Gu is remarkable, is it really so?"
"Yes." Su Rong nodded.
Su Xu looked at her, "Your mother wrote in her last letter that you have once again renounced your engagement with Ye Guixue and chosen Zhou Gu instead?"
Su Rong nodded again.
"You..." Su Xu sighed, "you really know how to make trouble. If you had known it would come to this, why did you agree in the first place? We didn’t offend the Ye Xiang Residence, we really have to praise them for being magnanimous."
Su Rong, not raising her head as she savored her meal, said, "I didn’t expect it either."
Touching her nose, she continued, "Although we didn’t offend them, Ye Xiang’s sudden change in attitude towards me must have deeply displeased him. But he has no choice. If he wants to continue to support my father without betraying him for Nangong Family, he can only support me in the end."
Su Xu expressed his worry, "That’s to say, the situation in Nanchu is severe. It’s really dangerous for you to go to Nanchu."
"It’s okay, I have three hundred thousand soldiers." Su Rong said. "The imperial court lent me three hundred thousand soldiers, I’ll take them to Nanchu."
Su Xu was stunned, "The emperor actually lent you soldiers?"
Hearing the number three hundred thousand, he was truly shocked.
"Yes." Su Rong simply explained how the old Duke advised her and how she had achieved a win-win situation by borrowing and supporting troops from Daliang.
After listening, Su Xu expressed both awe and admiration, "No wonder he is the old Duke."
Ordinary people couldn’t think of this, nor would they dare to.
"Indeed, the old ginger is still the spicier." Seeing Su Xu also picking up his chopsticks, Su Rong wondered, "Father, didn’t you have lunch already?"
"I had no appetite earlier and only ate a few bites. Now seeing you eat so enthusiastically, I want to eat a bit more." Su Xu picked up a chicken paw and started gnawing at it.
Su Rong nodded.
The father and daughter chatted casually as they ate, chatting about Su Rong’s time in Nanping, about her handwritten marriage letter to Zhou Gu, and about Su Xingze’s appointment to a position in Jibei City. She would detour to Jibei to bid him goodbye, since there had been too many people at the border, and they never really got a chance to have a private conversation.
The meal lasted for a half-unit of time, after which they went their separate ways. Su Rong went back to her quarters to rest, while Su Xu went to find the wet nurse and Yuewan to ask what Su Rong was lacking, so they could quickly prepare everything for her to take on her journey.
The wet nurse shook her head at Su Xu, "Sir, there is no need to prepare anything. Miss Seven lacks nothing. From the emperor to the crown prince, down to every residence in the Capital City, everyone has sent Miss Seven many gifts, but Miss Seven prefers to travel light, so she left everything in the Xie Residence in Capital City, only taking the necessities. She finds it cumbersome to carry a lot of luggage."
Su Xu said, "This child, she doesn’t act like a girl at all."
Yuewan replied from the side, "Master can rest assured, our Miss said, since her biological father didn’t raise her, when she goes to Nanchu, she will let him take good care of her, eating his food, drinking his wine and spending his money. You can then save yours for the eldest young master’s marriage and for the dowries of the six young ladies!"
Su Xu chuckled, "That makes sense."
After he laughed for a while, his happiness turned into melancholy, "Ah, my wonderful daughter, Chu Rong is going to get a great deal."
Yuewan said, "The lady of the house said the same thing."
They were indeed husband and wife.
Su Rong returned to Jiangzhou just to visit Su Xu. So, after staying home for a half-day and a night, she set off from Jiangzhou the next morning. Su Xu and her six step-mothers were choked up and extremely reluctant to see her leave.
After she left, Su Xu turned around, squatted on the ground, hugged himself and sobbed uncontrollably.
The six stepmothers were stunned and collectively called out to the Master.
While sobbing, Su Xu said, "Xiaoqi is gone, completely away from me. I don’t know when I will see her again."
The eldest stepmother tried to console him, "Master, didn’t Xiaoqi say? When she finds her footing in Nanchu, she will come back to take us over for a short stay. If we are willing to go, we can."
"Yes, Master, please don’t cry anymore." The other stepmothers also urged.
Su Xu said, "You all can go, what about me? I can’t leave."
The third stepmother whispered, "You can resign from your post."
Su Xu was silent, "..."
True.
He immediately stopped crying, stood up, wiped his eyes with a handkerchief, and said, "Forget about just what happened. The person who was just sobbing uncontrollably was not me."
The six stepmothers were silent, "..."
They all glanced at each other, held back their laughter, and agreed, "Yes, yes, yes, it wasn’t you, no one was crying just now."
After leaving Jiangzhou, Su Rong in the carriage told Yuewan, wet nurse Zhao and Fen Ling, "After I left, father must have cried."
"Master dotes on you the most." Yuewan said.
"Yes, father dotes on me the most, even though I’m not his biological daughter." Su Rong gently rubbed her face.
She will always remember that since she was a child, her father has spoiled her so much. When he deals with her matters, he always says yes, yes, yes, good, good, good. Even when she fights with people creating trouble requiring household compensation, he just frowns and tells her not to ruin the family anymore. Otherwise, soon there will be nothing left in the house, and they can only drink the northwest wind.
Her sisters were so jealous of her when they were children.
The horse carriage headed north, leaving Jiangzhou, taking the shortest route, they traveled day and night to Jibei City.
After half a month, she arrived at Jibei City. After a routine check at the city gate, she was allowed to enter. Not far from the city, Su Xingze received the news of her arrival and quickly rushed to see her.
The first thing he said when he saw Su Rong was, "Why did you come to Jibei again? Are you here to detour and see me?"
Su Rong nodded, "Without seeing you, I wouldn’t feel at ease. Since I have been delayed for so long, it wouldn’t hurt to delay by a few more days."
Su Xingze exposed her, "You think that because Master Xie and Zhou Gu went to Nanchu one after the other, with them there, your delay there should not lead to major problems, isn’t it?"
Su Rong replied, "Where am I not in a hurry? I had originally planned to stay in the capital for ten days, but I stayed for only three days. Mother was extremely reluctant to let me go."
She asked Su Xingze to get on the carriage, "I will stay here for only half a day."
As Su Xingze had come on horseback and had been talking while leading the carriage, he tiredly got off the horse and onto her carriage. "What would you like to eat? I’ll order someone to prepare it."
Su Rong promptly said, "There’s no need for the kitchen staff to make it. Jibei is famous for its Drunken Goose in Roasted Bread. I missed it last time I came by. Let’s go to the Drunken Goose House this time!"
Su Xingze nodded, "Sounds good."
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