Chapter 420: Falling into another trap
The following day, the Seventh Prince and Zhou Feng set off back to the capital.
Du Wanchun and Nan Fengling brought the children to the dock to see them off.
Little Mianmian waved to them: "Uncle! Auntie~"
The Seventh Prince and Zhou Feng stood on the deck of the ship waving to Xiao Mianmian.
Watching their departing figures, Xiao Mianmian turned back to Du Wanchun and asked, "Mom, when will Uncle and Aunt come back?"
Du Wanchun hugged her and laughed, "Don't worry, they'll be back soon with their little brothers and sisters."
Little Mianmian was overjoyed to hear this, clapped her hands, and laughed, "I'm going to have a little brother and a little sister again!"
Nan Fengling, holding the child beside her, laughed and said, "So, will our little Dongdong have a little brother or sister soon?"
Little Mianmian jumped off Du Wanchun, came to Nan Fengling's side, and nodded with a smile.
After the family returned from the dock, Granny Zhuang had already prepared lunch.
Tao Yaofang couldn't stay idle at home, so she helped Granny Zhuang cook, making three or four large dishes by herself.
When Du Wanchun entered, Granny Zhuang, carrying dishes, said, "Oh, Yaofang, you don't need to do these chores. Go and rest."
In the past, Tao Yaofang not only had to farm and cook for the whole family, but now in the Zhou family, servants do everything for her.
She felt a little out of place.
Du Wanchun walked over and said with a smile, "Yaofang, how about this, you can come with me to do business in the rice shop from now on."
Tao Yaofang was very happy and said with a smile, "Thank you, sister-in-law."
Because of the sudden arrival of the young master Jin, Tao Yaofang and Zhou Quan's wedding was held rather hastily, but it was still done in a dignified manner.
Aunt Zhou treated Tao Yaofang almost like her own daughter-in-law.
On their wedding day, he also gave Tao Yaofang a complete set of gold jewelry.
Tao Yaofang was also very frugal and rarely wore these things, except for the jade bracelet that Du Wanchun gave her.
She wore these jade bracelets every day, as if wearing them reminded her to treat the Zhou family well.
The Zhou family not only gave her a life, but also rescued her from that hellhole.
Just as Tao Yaofang was feeling happy, Nan Fengling walked in carrying the child and said, "Yaofang, have you heard that Master He has passed away?"
Tao Yaofang nodded.
Nan Fengling continued, "On my way back, I heard from the villagers that Madam He is now in charge of the He family. She has dismissed all the concubines. As a result, your little sister should no longer be forced to go to the He family."
Tao Meiyu, the youngest sister of the Tao family, never appeared again after that day when she ran away.
Tao Yaofang thought it made sense, "However, I don't know where she went."
Du Wanchun smiled and said, "Wherever she goes, that's her fate. Yaofang, let's go, let's go to the rice shop first."
Tao Yaofang immediately put Tao Meiyu's matter out of her mind, smiled and agreed, then followed Du Wanchun to the shop.
The two arrived at the gate of the mansion one after the other, got into the sedan chair that had been prepared in advance, and headed towards the rice shop.
Not far from them, a woman wearing a veil on her head and dressed in tattered clothes secretly watched them.
This is Tao Meiyu.
After escaping from her home, Tao Meiyu had no money to go anywhere else, so she secretly became a beggar in a dilapidated temple.
Besides begging while wearing a scarf, she would secretly come to see Tao Yaofang every day.
On the day Tao Yaofang and Zhou Quan got married, she watched from afar, her mind filled with thoughts of why she wasn't the one wearing the wedding dress.
Tao Meiyu felt more and more regretful and jealous. She came to see him every day, and the more she looked, the more upset she became.
But she couldn't help herself to look at it.
This time, upon hearing that Master He had died, she prepared to go home and made a special trip here to see Tao Yaofang one last time before leaving.
When she saw the pile of jade bracelets Tao Yaofang was wearing, her teeth chattered uncontrollably, and she couldn't contain her resentment.
The more he thought about it, the more unwilling he became, so he secretly followed Du Wanchun and Tao Yaofang's carriage to the outside of Zhou's rice shop.
After thinking it over, she decided not to go home.
She was going to marry into a family even better than the Zhou family, and she was going to wear gorgeous clothes and flaunt her power in front of Tao Yaofang and Du Wanchun.
After making her decision, Tao Meiyu secretly stole Xu Niangzi's silver from the teahouse opposite Zhou's rice shop, and then headed towards the capital.
On her way to the capital, Tao Meiyu encountered the Yuan family, who were searching for someone near Qingzhou Prefecture.
Lord Yuan was the court official who came with the Jin family to search for the missing person.
However, he went in a different direction than Young Master Jin.
Lord Yuan stopped his carriage by the roadside and, seeing the pitiful Tao Meiyu, gave her a pot of water and a steamed bun.
Tao Meiyu ate heartily.
Lord Yuan, seeing that she was quite pretty, asked her, "Young lady, how did you end up alone on the streets as a beggar?"
While eating, Tao Meiyu told Lord Yuan about how her parents had forced her to sell herself.
She downplayed the issue, directly mentioning the forced sale, but omitting the fact that she went to the He family's house first.
Lord Yuan felt sorry for her and gave her some silver.
Tao Meiyu accepted the silver with great gratitude.
Looking at Lord Yuan's attire, she guessed that he was a high-ranking official in the court, and thus began to have different thoughts.
She asked Lord Yuan, "Sir, you don't look like someone from Qingzhou Prefecture. What brings you here?"
Lord Yuan said slowly, "I've come to find someone."
She then asked, "Who are you looking for? I'm from Qingzhou Prefecture, maybe I can help you."
Lord Yuan then took out portraits of Aunt Zhou and Zhou Ruiyuan from his bosom.
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