Chapter 649 Hand over the short sword
This long trip made Song Chunxue realize that she was not a good mother.
When she returns this time, she will make sure to arrange the future of her children, and then peacefully become a nun.
"If you do not return the divorce papers and Yun'er's dowry by noon tomorrow, I, Xie, will pay for a group of people to play the suona and wail at your residence to hold a memorial service for that innocent child. After all, he is Yun'er's child, and he still has half of Xie's blood in him."
Xie Zheng spoke in a calm voice to the people slinking away, saying loudly, "Take care, don't bother seeing me off."
The eldest and second eldest brothers of the Xie family exchanged a few more pleasantries with Xie Zheng inside the house, drank two cups of tea, and agreed that Xie Erye's birthday was in a few days, and everyone would go together to celebrate.
But everyone still advised him that it's easier to see the King of Hell than to deal with his underlings, and told Xie Zheng to be careful and be wary of the Chang family's people trying to scheme against him.
Xie Zheng naturally knew that he had seen far more evil in the places he had visited over the years than he had in the capital.
But he was fearless.
Before returning to Beijing, he was prepared to deal with whatever came his way.
He never imagined that the first family to break up their relationship would be his daughter's husband's family.
After everyone left, the Xie father and daughter chatted for a long time in the study.
When he came out, his expression was calm and gentle.
Xie Lingyun wore a confident and determined smile.
"Father, rest assured, leave these matters to me. In the past two years, I have not been content to be a mere figurehead or someone's daughter-in-law. I have been keeping a close eye on everything inside and outside the Xie family."
"Father, why don't you take Aunt out for a walk and hand over the manpower to me as soon as possible? I will handle them one by one."
Xie Zheng nodded with satisfaction, "Okay, then thank you for your hard work."
"It's not hard work at all. This is something I've always wanted to do, and I'm happy to do it." Xie Lingyun said in a low voice, "Father, please don't have any worries. It's not easy for Aunt to come all this way, so don't leave her with any regrets."
These words made Xie Zheng a little uncomfortable. He put on a stern face and pretended to be angry, saying, "I know, you're a young lady..."
"Go quickly, your aunt is waiting for you over there."
Song Chunxue watched as the two children sat barefoot on the ground playing in the dirt.
The weather is nice now, and the ground isn't cold, so it's good for the children to get some fresh air.
Seeing Xie Lingyun rush over anxiously to pick up the child from the ground, Xie Zheng stopped her.
"The soil in the yard isn't dirty, and it's hot now, so it's fine. Let the kids play. As the Taoists say, connecting with the earth strengthens one's spirit. The energy in our bodies comes not only from grains but also, and more importantly, from the energy of heaven and earth. We grow up on the ground. Children are pure yang in nature; they know what feels comfortable and what is close. It's just washing clothes; it's no big deal."
Xie Lingyun was surprised and stopped in her tracks. She smiled and teased, "Dad actually knows these things now. When I was little, you were afraid my feet would get cold when I splashed in the water, so you never let me sit on the ground to play."
When the past was mentioned, Xie Zheng smiled helplessly, looking at his daughter with a complex expression.
“I was too young before. What people said was right. I was stubborn and unreasonable, and I wouldn’t listen to the advice of the elders. I didn’t care enough about your mother either. We treated each other with respect but had no affection. I blamed her for leaving at first, but now I think she did the right thing.”
He sighed softly, "I only realized in the last few years that building a harmonious family is much harder than studying the classics. Apart from being influenced by my parents, no one teaches me these things."
Xie Lingyun lowered her head. "Yes, so why don't you ask Aunt Song for some advice and teach me later?"
Xie Zheng raised his hand and tapped her on the forehead, "You have no manners."
"Father, it's good that you stay in Jincheng. When the children are a little older, I'll take them to find you. I'll train two reliable people to look after things at home. Seeing Aunt's ambition, I also want to stabilize things as soon as possible and go out to see the world. The world is so big, it's such a pity that I'm stuck in this one place."
Xie Zheng lowered his eyes and nodded, "Yes, it is indeed a pity."
Men should aspire to travel far and wide; why can't women do the same?
The children ran toward their mother. Song Chunxue stood up from the ground and saw Xie Zheng walking toward her with an umbrella.
"It's not raining today, why are you using an umbrella?"
Xie Zheng glanced at the sky. "The sun is very hot. Let's use this for shade. How about we go out for a walk and have some drinks at a restaurant at noon?"
Song Chunxue had never seen anyone carry an umbrella to shield themselves from the sun when going out. Wasn't that something only royalty and emperors did?
"How about we switch to veils? They're less conspicuous and easier to carry."
I feel that this umbrella is too thick and heavy; my arms get sore when I hold it up.
"Alright, as you wish." Xie Zheng smiled indulgently. "You're so thoughtful."
Song Chunxue looked away; this person was really something.
Before long, he had someone bring him a veiled hat.
The item given to Song Chunxue was a new one that Xie Lingyun had recently bought; it was very pretty, lightweight, and cool.
Song Chunxue couldn't help but sigh, "People in the capital really know how to manage their lives; they don't let themselves suffer when they go out."
It's rare to see someone in Jincheng wearing such a beautiful veiled hat when going out.
Stepping onto the clean streets, Song Chunxue couldn't help but exclaim, "The ground in the capital is so clean. No wonder it's under the emperor's nose. There are hardly any leaves on the streets."
"There's a sandy road ahead too," Xie Zheng said with a smile. "After all, the border area is windy and dusty, and even if it's paved with blue bricks, there's still a lot of dust. There are also many cattle, sheep, donkeys, and camels."
Song Chunxue bluntly stated, "They're poor. All the profits go into the pockets of the officials. Who cares about the quality of the roads outside? As long as the roads in front of the big officials' doors are smooth, that's all that matters."
Xie Zheng seemed thoughtful. "Sister Song's advice is right. When we get back, we should allocate some money to fill the road. If blue bricks are too expensive, we can use gravel and sand instead. That way, it won't be so muddy when it rains."
Song Chunxue laughed, "I wasn't talking about you, you didn't get any extra money."
"But I didn't pave the road; I'll take care of it when I get back."
Well, she figured this was Xie Zheng's way of trying to win people over.
They strolled around, bought some snacks, and finally arrived at a nice restaurant.
They asked for a private room and sat by the window.
Outside, the sun blazed down, and the bustling, wide streets of Beijing, crisscrossing the city, were a sight to behold.
On the table, the waiter brought over iced glutinous rice balls that exuded a chill, with beautiful colors, one red and one white.
"This is red bean glutinous rice cake. Try it, it's very refreshing."
Song Chunxue did feel the heat. Her body was not as weak as before, and she did not sweat easily.
But it was really hot and uncomfortable.
She took two bites, and it was indeed delicious.
"Money really can make the devil turn the millstone. It's so refreshing to have something cold in June. But you can't eat too much of this stuff, because the coldness is hard to digest once it enters the body."
Despite saying that, Song Chunxue still finished the small bowl of icy glutinous rice.
"Then I'll bring you again tomorrow. It's okay to eat a little less each day."
"It's so expensive outside," Song Chunxue looked up and asked, "Does the cook at home know how to make it?"
Suddenly, she felt dizzy.
"Oh no, someone's here..."
Just as Xie Zheng was about to ask her what was wrong, he suddenly felt dizzy, his head slammed onto the table, and he lost consciousness.
When she woke up again, Song Chunxue clenched her fingers and gripped the dry grass.
"Awake?" The man in front of him was wearing a mask covered in graffiti. "I heard you have a short sword with sentience. Hand it over, and I'll release Lord Xie."
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