Chapter 55 After parting ways with Liu Yuze, Qin Ren...
After parting ways with Liu Yuze, Qin Ren led Liu Qingyue and the others on their journey.
Perhaps frightened by Liu Yuze, the Liu family members behaved themselves for the rest of the journey and did not cause any more trouble.
However, this peaceful period did not last long. While they were resting at an inn, Su and Liu Qingyan caused trouble again.
It was late October, and the weather was already quite cold.
Many members of the Liu family had suffered imprisonment, including the elderly, women, and children.
Especially the old lady from the Liu family, who is getting old, can't quite endure the hardship of traveling for days on end.
That evening, a light rain suddenly began to fall, making the already cold weather even colder.
In order to prevent the old lady from freezing to death on the road, Qin Ren had no choice but to take them to the nearest post station for the night.
Their group was large, including a group of government slaves from the Liu family, Liu Qingyue and her servant, two guards given by Liu Yuze, two new servants bought by Qin Ren, and several bodyguards hired by Qin Ren.
With so many people staying at the inn, the inn simply didn't have enough rooms.
In order for everyone to be able to move in, Qin Ren had to make sure that the Liu family members squeezed in a little.
Then the old lady from the Liu family said that she was getting old and wanted to share a room with Liu Qingyue and Qin Ren.
Liu Qingyue and Qin Ren's room was very large; it was the best room in the inn.
Their room was a suite with three bedrooms.
Qin Ren and Liu Qingyue shared one room, Liu Qingyue's personal maid shared another, and there was just one bedroom left.
Originally, Liu Qingyue did not want to agree, but looking at her grandmother who looked much older, she changed her mind.
After imprisonment and arduous travel, and now with Minister Liu and his entourage being beheaded, the old lady clearly doesn't have much time left.
Regardless, in this era where filial piety is paramount, Liu Qingyue cannot go too far in public.
In the end, he could only nod reluctantly, and then... to Liu Qingyue's surprise, a strange thing happened that very night.
The reason was that the old lady felt unwell at night, so she asked Liu Qingyan to come and take care of her.
This was the official explanation. In reality, she brought Liu Qingyan over not to serve her, but to serve Qin Ren.
After being reprimanded by Liu Yuze, Su and the others realized that they were able to leave the capital safely because their brother-in-law, Qin Ren, had put in a lot of effort.
In the past, whether it was the Su family, Liu Qingyan, or other members of the Liu family.
They all looked down on Qin Ren, this foreigner.
Liu Qingyan was also pleased that Liu Qingyue might have an affair with Qin Ren, and he felt that Liu Qingyue could only marry a foreign merchant like Qin Ren in the future.
From then on, Liu Qingyue was a businessman's husband.
Merchants are so lowly. Liu Qingyue, as the eldest son of a minister's family, has fallen so low that she has to marry a merchant. This is something he can laugh at for decades.
However... the current situation is that these people are only alive thanks to Qin Ren's help.
During their journey over the past few days, they learned from conversations with other people that Qin Ren was no longer a foreign merchant; he had transformed into a minor official of the sixth rank.
They also knew that Qin Ren was a retainer of King Ying, and that King Ying valued him highly.
The reason the Liu family members were bought instead of falling into the hands of others was because Qin Ren pleaded with Prince Ying.
Thinking back to how polite Liu Yuze was to Qin Ren, Madam Su had an idea: to have Liu Qingyan go with Qin Ren.
Qin Ren now holds an official position and is also very tall and handsome.
She knew that with Liu Qingyan's current status, she had no way of getting married.
The mark on his face is so bad that even if he were to become someone's concubine, no one would dare to take him.
Under these circumstances, Su thought that Qin Ren liked Liu Qingyue's face so much, and that Liu Qingyan's appearance was somewhat similar to Liu Qingyue's.
Men are fickle and always prefer the new.
She wanted to take a gamble; if she won, she could live a good life with Liu Qingyan.
Even if she lost the bet, Liu Qingyue couldn't possibly kill them.
Now that the Liu family is almost wiped out, if Liu Qingyue were to make a move against them at this time, wouldn't that be tantamount to wanting the Liu family to be wiped out?
So she started planning early on and even persuaded the old lady.
After this ordeal, the old lady of the Liu family has lost her former arrogance.
Now, all she hopes is that more of the Liu family's grandchildren will live.
No matter how we survive, as long as we can live a few more lives, that's fine.
That way, even if she dies now, she won't have to worry about facing the ancestors of the Liu family.
So when it got late at night, she made an excuse that she wasn't feeling well and called Liu Qingyan over.
Yes, they were planning to have Liu Qingyan seduce Qin Ren right in front of Liu Qingyue.
Because this is a patriarchal society, most women and boys have to depend on men to survive.
Whether it was the old lady, or Su Shi and Liu Qingyan, they all felt that Liu Qingyue was doing well now entirely because of Qin Ren's abilities.
Men are often fickle and enjoy having multiple wives.
They may not necessarily like their wife's younger siblings that much, but they particularly enjoy the feeling of having their wife's younger siblings as well.
You can tell what kind of people they are just by the way they joke about liking their sisters-in-law.
Actually... if this man were someone else, he might actually have succeeded.
It's just a pity that this man is none other than Qin Ren.
Qin Ren didn't consider himself a perfect man, but his only redeeming quality was his unwavering devotion.
He said he would only have one person in his life, and he would never break his promise.
Besides, he's not some animal that randomly sends messages, and he doesn't get impulsive just because he sees someone.
People who get interested in every pretty woman they see are either perverted or sick.
Qin Ren is not sick, and he doesn't like messing around.
So when Qin Ren saw Liu Qingyan performing in front of him, he didn't even glance at her before having her dragged out.
He has no shame, so Qin Ren will naturally not give him any face.
Seeing that it was getting late, Qin Ren did not immediately pursue the matter.
He said to Liu Qingyue beside him, "We'll talk about this tomorrow. You should continue to rest well. I'm going to visit the old lady."
Upon hearing this, Liu Qingyue nodded. Under normal circumstances, he might have advised Qin Ren not to go too far with the old lady.
But having just experienced something like that, he only felt disgusted and had no desire to offer any advice.
He treated her like a grandmother, but she didn't treat him like a grandson.
She forced him to marry an ugly woman before, and now she's putting Liu Qingyan in his husband's bed. She really doesn't treat him like a human being.
It seems he's been too good to her, otherwise she wouldn't dare to take advantage of him like this.
While Qin Ren went to "visit" the old lady, Xiang Sui came over to take care of the angry Liu Qingyue.
Kaho said, "Master, you don't need to be angry. The head of the family likes you and loves you so much. You should be happy."
When she heard the commotion, she was genuinely a little scared.
She had worked as a servant in other people's homes before and had seen male masters sleeping with servants in front of the mistress of the house, so she naturally understood how disgusting some men could be.
So when she discovered that Liu Qingyan had come over, she was genuinely worried about Liu Qingyue.
But she soon discovered that her worries were unnecessary.
The head of their household is different from the male heads of other households.
The head of the household was not lustful and never spoke much to any servants other than his husband.
Xianghui has been in the Qin family for so long, she doubts that the head of the family still remembers her face clearly.
Such a person would never allow her husband to lose face over something as trivial as sex.
As it turned out, the head of the family did not disappoint his master, and immediately had Liu Qingyan dragged out.
Without the slightest hesitation.
Liu Qingyue: "I wasn't particularly angry, I just didn't expect him to turn out like this?"
Kaho: "Oh dear, Master, don't think about it anymore. It's already so late, you should get some rest. As for his matter, the head of the family will definitely give you an explanation tomorrow."
Meanwhile, on the other side, Qin Ren was talking to the old lady.
Qin Ren: "Do you really hate Yue'er?"
The old lady said, "No, why would Brother-in-law Sun think that way?"
Qin Ren: "Logically speaking, he is Lord Liu's legitimate son. Compared to Liu Qingyan, you should care more about him."
“Of course I care more about him, but… he’s doing very well now, while Yan’er, Lin’er, and the other children in the Liu family aren’t so lucky. I was thinking… since you’re going to take a concubine anyway, why not bring Yan’er into the household as well? Don’t be fooled by how often the two brothers argue; they actually have a very good relationship. Even if you don’t like Yue’er anymore, the two of them together can look after each other.”
Qin Ren: "Then I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you. No matter how good or bad Yue'er's relationship with him is, I would never want a government slave. You're getting on in years, you should take a break. Don't accidentally die on the road, or we'll have to find a place to bury you."
They probably didn't expect Qin Ren to speak so harshly and unpleasantly.
The old lady was so angry that her lips trembled, and she couldn't utter a single word for a long time.
Seeing this, Qin Ren sneered, "If you can't say it, then don't. I didn't come here to listen to you. You've tormented Yue'er a lot in the past, making him suffer a lot. To be honest, if it weren't for him, I wouldn't have saved you. Instead of being grateful to him, how could you think of hurting him? Aren't you, as his grandmother, being too vicious?"
"You, you..."
"What? You're still not convinced? What you've done doesn't resemble that of a grandmother at all; it's no different from that of a brothel madam."
The old lady fainted from anger at Qin Ren's words, leaving Qin Ren speechless.
He allows her to bully others, and he got so angry just because he came over to say a few words of justice for Liu Qingyue. He's really spoiled.
Qin Ren thought to himself that he couldn't really just ignore her.
He ordered Guard A and Guard B to come over and have them carry the old lady out.
"Take her to a clinic; we can't let the old lady die here."
The two men who dragged Liu Qingyan out were guards; they already knew what had just happened.
They were Liu Yuze's people, so naturally they were biased towards Liu Yuze and Liu Qingyue.
They already disliked the old lady because of how she treated Young Master Yue.
Now that they know what the old lady did, they feel that she deserved to be so angry that she fainted.
However, given their blood ties, they couldn't simply ignore her life or death.
So the two of them, along with the old lady, left the post station ahead to find a doctor in the town ahead.
The following morning, they did not immediately continue their journey.
Qin Ren took Liu Qingyue to see Liu Qingyan, who had already become obedient after a night of reflection.
He looked at Liu Qingyue with a hint of fear, terrified that she might hold a grudge and attack him.
Liu Qingyue: "These are your and your mother's indentures. I'll give them to you now. The situation for government slaves is different from ordinary slaves. Even if I get your indentures, you won't be able to live like normal people. I originally wanted my husband to arrange a place for you so you wouldn't have to worry about being bullied. But… you haven't had a moment's peace on the journey, and you even tried to seduce my husband. If I don't do something, you'll probably think I'm made of clay. So, since you're so troublesome, I'll return your indentures to you. You two can take them and go your own way. I won't care about your lives anymore."
In Da Yong, government slaves had no way to live on their own.
Slaves held by officials were even lower than slaves; once captured by others, they could be bought and sold at will.
Some were even beaten to death, but the government wouldn't care.
Qin Ren and Liu Qingyue went to such great lengths to send them to a remote place because they were worried that they would be targeted.
Unexpectedly, despite their consideration for them in everything they did, they never had a moment's peace of mind.
They always cause trouble from time to time, and even if Liu Qingyue had some affection for them, they ruined it all.
Liu Qingyan gritted her teeth, thinking of her two older brothers who had been hidden away by their father.
He said, "Fine, I'll go. I don't want to go to some rural village."
After saying this in a fit of pique, he took his indenture with the Su family and went to find them.
Seeing that he left so decisively, Liu Qingyue turned to look at the other members of the Liu family.
"As for you, if you have better places to go, your indentures can be given to you as well."
In the end, three more people left my uncle's family, and the rest had nowhere to go.
Liu Qingyue: "Those who haven't left yet, you'd better stay with us obediently and stop trying to cause trouble."
The others nodded quickly.
Because the old lady left first, Madam Su and Liu Qingyan left the group, and everyone behaved themselves along the way.
Minister Liu also had two sons, which he had hidden away beforehand.
Liu Qingyan and Madam Su dared to leave, so they must have known where they were.
Liu Qingyan felt that he had two older brothers, and that they could live a good life as long as they found their brothers.
However, Qin Ren didn't think so. Neither of them showed their faces when such a major event happened to the Liu family later.
According to Liu Qingyue, neither of her two older brothers were particularly capable.
Neither Qin Ren nor Liu Yuze had any way to keep the Liu family's government slaves by their side.
These two people, who can barely protect themselves, how could they possibly protect two government slaves?
Qin Ren felt that their departure was likely to end badly.
In fact, Qin Ren wasn't the only one who thought this way; Liu Qingyue felt the same way.
They disliked the hard life in the remote rural villages, always feeling that they could not live a good life there.
But compared to not being able to live a good life, the path they have chosen now is only more terrible and dangerous.
However, Liu Qingyue didn't interfere with them; they had chosen their own path.
The little affection they had to begin with has now been completely ruined by them.
Whether they live or die from now on depends on their own fate.
...
Before Qin Ren could return with Liu Qingyue, two major events occurred in the capital.
The first big event was the sweet potato harvest.
When Qin Ren led the agricultural officials to plant sweet potatoes, he taught them how to eat them and how to cultivate seedlings.
Even though Qin Ren is not in the capital now, the agricultural officials and farmers in the capital can handle the sweet potato matter.
The first batch of sweet potatoes was harvested, and a considerable amount was sent to the palace.
Following Qin Ren's instructions on cooking methods, the imperial chefs in the palace prepared a sweet potato feast.
The sweet potato feast includes boiled sweet potatoes, roasted sweet potatoes, steamed sweet potatoes, sweet potato porridge, sweet potato balls, sweet potato fries, and more.
Qin Ren had said beforehand that sweet potatoes should not be eaten in large quantities.
Eating too many sweet potatoes can easily cause bloating and indigestion.
Even so, many of the officials who attended the sweet potato feast were still stuffed.
The officials from the Ministry of Revenue were very happy and took the lead in eating sweet potatoes at the banquet.
An official from the Ministry of Revenue particularly enjoyed roasted sweet potatoes. He found them to be fragrant and glutinous, and he ate two of them before feeling full.
Prince Ying drank too much at the banquet, and Qin Ren's wine was also opened.
The new wine has a high alcohol content; even a little bit too much will make an average person drunk.
However, the new wine tastes better and stronger. If the wine is aged for a few more years, the taste will probably be even more wonderful.
The series of joyous events made both the Emperor and Prince Ying very happy.
After the banquet, sweet potatoes and new wine were specially sent to the retired emperor.
The current Emperor Emeritus is old and seriously ill, so it is not suitable for him to eat sweet potatoes or drink alcohol.
But sweet potatoes are crucial to the future of Da Nang, and he doesn't have much time left.
At this point, health preservation is completely useless. The old emperor just eats whatever he likes, and he enjoys every moment he can.
The second major event was that, due to excessive joy and drinking, the retired emperor passed away on the sixth day after the sweet potatoes were harvested.
When the retired emperor passes away, the whole country must mourn.
Upon learning this news, Qin Ren and Liu Qingyue changed into new clothes on the way.
During times of national mourning, even ordinary people in other places cannot wear overly bright clothes, otherwise it would be considered disrespectful to the retired emperor.
Qin Ren has a rather special status; he is an official and a talent valued by both the emperor and Prince Ying.
In order to "pretend," Qin Ren and Liu Qingyue changed into plain clothes early on.
Because it coincided with the sweet potato harvest, the death of the retired emperor was considered a happy occasion, and the emperor was not particularly saddened.
To Qin Ren and Liu Qingyue's great surprise, perhaps out of the emperor's fondness for Qin Ren, Liu Yu was reinstated to his original position when Qin Ren and Liu Qingyue returned to the capital.
This news was a great joy for Liu Qingyue.
But for others, it might not be a good thing.
For example, those who humiliated Liu Yuze and Liu Qingyue after the Liu family fell into decline.
What these people feared was not just Liu Yuze's reinstatement.
Liu Yuze's official rank wasn't high, so they weren't that afraid of him.
Their main fears were Liu Yuze and Qin Ren.
Now everyone in the capital knows that the sweet potato was grown by Qin Ren.
It is said that the yield is 3,000 catties per mu, such a high yield, and it is also said to be easy to store.
Once it begins to be planted on a large scale, it would not be an exaggeration to say that it could save tens of millions of lives.
Being able to save tens of millions of lives is a tremendous achievement, and the emperor might very well grant Qin Ren a title of nobility this time.
If Liu Yuze had a brother-in-law who would be granted a marquisate, who in the capital would dare to provoke him?
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