But today is a little different; Chu Chuyan is going to school for the first time ever.
Zu An thought to himself, "Comparison is the thief of joy. If it were me who didn't go to school every day, I would definitely be seen as a bad student who doesn't have any ambition. But Chu Chuyan is still an excellent student in everyone's eyes."
Because Chu Chuyan's appearance was too outstanding, she usually traveled by carriage. The carriage concealed her stunning beauty, thus preventing her from attracting onlookers along the way.
Sitting on the soft cushions in the carriage, smelling the faint fragrance in the air, Zuan thought of the time when he first came to this world and rode in this carriage, and couldn't help but feel a sense of loss.
"Wife, have you heard anything about Xue'er?" Zu'an couldn't help but ask.
Hearing the word "wife," Chu Chuyan looked helpless. She had corrected him so many times, but he just wouldn't change. She had gotten used to it after a while, so she simply let him be: "We couldn't find her. It's like she suddenly disappeared. What, do you miss her?"
"I miss her?" Zuan almost jumped up. "That woman has tried to kill me time and time again. I'm not a masochist, why would I miss her?"
Chu Chuyan asked with some confusion, "By the way, according to what you said before, this isn't the first time she's tried to kill you, so why didn't you say so sooner?"
Zuan rolled his eyes: "How was I supposed to know who wanted to kill me back then? She was your personal maid. What if you had a lover outside and secretly sent her to murder your husband?"
A faint blush appeared on Chu Chuyan's jade-like cheeks: "Pah, what adulterer? That's awful."
Chu Huanzhao, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but say, "Brother-in-law, you're so pitiful. You must have been living in constant fear these past few days."
Zu An felt a warmth in his heart and glared at Chu Chuyan: "See, it's the younger sister who cares about her brother-in-law. You, as the older sister, should learn from her."
Chu was overjoyed. At home, her parents always made her learn everything from her older sister. Now, for the first time ever, she had an older sister to learn from, and that feeling was really great.
Chu Chuyan ignored his words: "You can talk to me directly from now on. We are family now. Although..." She glanced at her sister beside her, hesitating to speak, "I will definitely ensure your safety."
Zuan's eyes lit up: "That's great! If anyone bullies me in the future, I'll just bring you out and let those guys know why the flowers are so red."
Chu Chuyan: "..."
"I'm not saying this so you'll cause trouble."
"I know, I know~" Zuan chuckled. "To be honest, I'm starting to look down on your Chu family. A dignified ducal mansion, you couldn't even handle a gang before, and now you can't even catch a maid. I really don't know what to say."
Chu Chuyan replied, "Now that you are a member of the Chu family, there are some things I should tell you. Although our Chu family is a ducal mansion, it is not as glamorous as it seems on the surface. The main reason is that we have been forced into the current struggle for the throne."
"According to the agreement made by the late emperor, the throne should have passed to the emperor's younger brother, Prince Qi. However, the emperor wanted to pass the throne to his own son, the current crown prince. If the crown prince were wise, it would be fine, after all, the emperor is the only Earth Immortal and the strongest person in the world. Unfortunately, the crown prince is dull-witted and is worlds apart from Prince Qi. Many ministers and families were already dissatisfied with the emperor for breaking the agreement, and seeing this situation, they were all won over by Prince Qi. Thus, two major factions formed in the court."
"Although the Emperor is strong, he is old after all, and the Crown Prince is not capable of shouldering great responsibilities, so the strength of both sides can be considered evenly matched. In order to gain the upper hand, all parties are trying to win over powerful families in the court and among the people. Our Chu family controls the salt and iron in Mingyue City. We are not only extremely wealthy, but also provide weapons to various forces, so we have become the target of both sides' efforts to win us over."
"However, our Chu family did not want to participate in the struggle for the throne, so we did not side with either side, which angered both families. The emperor was worried that our Chu family would be won over by the Prince of Qi in the future, so he sent Sang Hong, the Grand Minister of Agriculture, to serve as the Prefect of Linchuan County. Sang Hong was originally in charge of salt and iron, and his trip was obviously intended to deal with our Chu family and bring salt and iron under the control of the court."
"King Qi is probably planning to sit back and watch the two tigers fight, waiting until we're both exhausted before he comes out and pretends to be a good guy to force us to join his camp. By the way, the city lord is on King Qi's side; you should have sensed that at the Silver Hook Gambling House."
Zu An finally understood the intricacies behind it all. He thought to himself, "No wonder everyone seems to dislike me after I became the Chu family's son-in-law. They all want to get rid of me as soon as possible. At first, I thought they were after Chu Chuyan's beauty, but now I realize that it's probably for the sake of the entire Chu family."
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