Mother and daughter reunited
Not long after Yu Yadan left the capital, the news about the broken engagement between the Prince's Mansion and the Minister's Mansion quickly faded away. Xie Zhuo canceled his leave with the emperor and returned to the cavalry.
As soon as Fu Zhiqiao returned home, the neighbors all knew that she had returned from visiting relatives.
That day, a middle-aged woman dressed in heavy makeup came to Qintai Street with a smile on her face and asked the nearby residents about Fu Zhi Qiao.
"Auntie, I have a question for you. Is there a Miss Fu on Qintai Street?"
There was only one family with the surname Fu on Qintai Street, and Granny Fan was a little wary. "What, why are you asking her?"
Granny Fan had lived on Qintai Street for twenty years and was a long-time resident. Although the Fu family hadn't been in the alley for very long, they were very courteous. As soon as they moved in, they gave the neighbors cakes and fruits and said some kind words asking for their help. So the neighbors had a very good impression of the Fu family.
The woman pulled a handkerchief from her sleeve and waved it twice in the air. "Oh dear, I've heard that there's a Miss Fu in Qintai Street who's as beautiful as an angel, so I was thinking of helping her find a husband!"
The woman's name was Tian Xiuping. She was a matchmaker, frequently traveling between the east and west sides of the city, arranging marriages for wealthy families, and had successfully brought many people together. She had long heard of a beauty on Qintai Street, whose face was as smooth as tofu and whose waist was as slender as a willow tree…
Earlier, when someone asked her about Fu Zhi Qiao, she had taken note and came here to inquire once, but she came up empty-handed. The neighbors all said that Miss Fu had gone to visit relatives in another city, so she forgot about it.
It wasn't until two days ago when a family came to her door and said that there was a beautiful young woman named Fu on Qintai Street, and asked her to inquire about her. That's when she remembered this matter.
Fu Zhiqiao is seventeen years old this year. Her father has passed away, and she lives alone with her mother. She comes from a modest family, but she has an exceptionally outstanding appearance... Tian Xiuping couldn't help but sigh that this Miss Fu is really lucky. A bright future lies ahead of her.
That's right, the one who has taken a liking to Fu Zhi Qiao is Yang Zhaonan, the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. A year ago, his wife suffered a difficult childbirth and died from postpartum hemorrhage after giving birth to their son. Yang Zhaonan is a sixth-rank official, and it's not good for his household to be without a mistress. Now he wants to take a new wife.
In Tian Xiuping's opinion, Fu Zhiqiao was doing well to marry Lord Yang as his second wife. Lord Yang was only in his thirties, about ten years older than her. Most importantly, he could transform Fu Zhiqiao from a commoner into an official's wife, ensuring her endless wealth and honor in the future.
Arranging a marriage? That's great!
Granny Fan changed her guarded attitude and said slowly, "There is indeed a Miss Fu in our alley. She is pretty and looks like a lucky person."
Tian Xiuping had never seen what Fu Zhiqiao looked like before, but after hearing what Granny Fan said, she had a better idea.
The rumors seem to be true; this Miss Fu is indeed extremely beautiful.
"that……"
Judging from Tian Xiuping's expression and tone, Granny Fan guessed what was going on and answered before Tian Xiuping could ask, "As far as I know, Miss Fu has not yet been engaged."
Tian Xiuping covered her mouth and chuckled softly, thinking to herself that this old lady really knew how to handle things.
"However, a girl this beautiful is probably too good for an ordinary family to marry," Granny Fan added.
"Thank you for informing me, Auntie." Tian Xiuping curtsied, but she didn't take Granny Fan's words to heart. Who was Tian Xiuping? She was a matchmaker for the wealthy and powerful. Ordinary people couldn't possibly hire her.
Upon learning that Fu Zhi Qiao was not engaged, Tian Xiu Ping's worries gradually subsided. She could go back and report with peace of mind. After thanking Granny Fan, she said she would come again another day.
From that day on, more young men passed by the entrance of the Fu residence, hoping to have a chance encounter with Fu Zhi Qiao when she went out.
Fu Zhiqiao always traveled by carriage and didn't notice anything unusual at her doorstep, but Xie Zhuo did.
Freed from the constraints of the engagement, Xie Zhuo completely let go of his burdens and saw Fu Zhi Qiao almost every one or two days, wishing he could be with her day and night.
A few days ago, Xie Zhuo picked up Fu Zhi Qiao from Taibai Tower and took her home. As soon as she appeared, the eyes of several young people on the roadside immediately became burning.
People who practice martial arts have far more sensitive senses than ordinary people.
Xie Zhuo felt displeased and coldly scanned the crowds coming and going on the street, trying to memorize their faces.
It seems there are quite a few people around her who have designs on her. Xie Zhuo is very worried, especially after learning that Zhou Lizhang came to the capital to prepare for the exam, he can no longer sit still.
Having experienced Zhao Junhui and Zhou Lizhang, Xie Zhuo's sense of crisis suddenly intensified. Whenever he had free time, he would personally pick up and drop off Fu Zhiqiao, wishing he could keep her in his pocket at all times and not let anyone see her.
She was his precious daughter, and he wouldn't allow anyone to covet her.
Fu Zhi Qiao has also returned to her usual busy schedule. Due to Xie Zhuo's annulment of the engagement, she had been staying in the villa for a while, which caused a lot of things to pile up at Taibai Tower and Fuyun Pavilion for her to handle.
After two busy days, I've finally managed to get most of the work done.
In the study, Ginkgo knocked on the door, her voice full of surprise: "Miss, Madam is back!"
Fu Zhiqiao put down her pen and went out to greet him.
Before she even reached the gate, footsteps echoed from behind the screen wall. Fu Zhi Qiao felt a surge of excitement and anticipation as she looked towards the entrance.
Yu Roulan should have returned to the capital a month ago, but Fu Zhiqiao thought that the sorghum in the field should be ripe by now, so she wrote to Yu Roulan asking her to keep an eye on it.
The sorghum is harvested around October. After harvesting, it needs to be dried, threshed, and stored. Fu Zhiqiao thought Yu Roulan wouldn't be back until at least late November. Now that it's only early November, she was a little surprised to hear that Yu Roulan had returned to Beijing.
Cheng Yexuan returned with Yu Roulan. He visibly relaxed upon seeing Fu Zhiqiao and greeted her with clasped hands.
Fu Zhiqiao nodded, glancing out of the corner of her eye at Cheng Yexuan's relieved expression, and found it somewhat amusing.
Her initial agreement with Cheng Yexuan was to protect her safety. In reality, she didn't treat Cheng Yexuan as an ordinary bodyguard, but instead had him form a security team and give full play to his abilities.
It was truly an accident that Cheng Yexuan stayed in Qingzhou to protect Yu Roulan.
At that time, Xie Zhuo was jealous of Zhou Lizhang and kidnapped her overnight. She didn't even have time to tell anyone before she was on the ship.
She was worried about leaving Yu Roulan alone in Qingzhou, so she wrote to Cheng Yexuan to stay in Qingzhou. For the past three or four months, Cheng Yexuan has been protecting Yu Roulan in Qingzhou.
For Cheng Yexuan, staying by Yu Roulan's side was far less comfortable than staying by Fu Zhiqiao's side.
Now that he's back in the capital, it means he no longer has to watch over Madam Fu, and Cheng Yexuan feels completely relaxed.
Granny Cui helped Yu Roulan into the Fu family's gate.
A slender figure came into view, and Yu Roulan smiled broadly. She quickly took two steps forward and carefully examined Fu Zhiqiao, a hint of amusement flashing in her eyes.
In just a few months, her daughter seemed to have fully blossomed.
The woman in the corridor wore a pale yellow high-waisted ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), which made her already fair skin appear even more dazzling. Her eyebrows were like distant mountains, her lips like red cherries, and she smiled gently. Her jet-black hair cascaded down her back like a waterfall, and she wore a pair of crystal-clear amber earrings. She looked exactly like a fairy who had stepped out of a painting.
Yu Roulan did not miss the changes in Fu Zhiqiao.
The floral decoration on her forehead added a touch of charm to her cool and aloof demeanor.
The baby who was once in swaddling clothes has grown into a beautiful and graceful woman. The childishness on her face has disappeared, and she is like a peony bud about to bloom, bright and beautiful beyond compare.
Fu Zhi Qiao smiled and spun around in place, letting her look her over.
Having not seen her daughter for a long time, Yu Roulan was overjoyed, but she still said in a slightly reproachful tone, "Look at you, you've lost weight again."
Fu Zhi Qiao hugged her hand, almost pressing half of her body against her, and gently corrected her, "Mom, this isn't called being thin, it's called growing taller."
When her daughter hugged her and acted coquettishly, Yu Roulan's heart melted.
She felt a pang of emotion at that moment, still clearly remembering how frail and small Fu Zhi Qiao looked as a child. When Fu Zhi Qiao was born, she was about the size of a kitten. While other babies cried loudly at birth, she only made a few whimpering sounds.
At that time, Yu Roulan had not yet gotten off the delivery bed. When she heard her child's cries and breathing were very weak, her heart skipped a beat. She took the wrinkled baby from the midwife and burst into tears with heartache.
She was really afraid she wouldn't be able to raise the child.
Fearing she would be upset, Granny Cui comforted her, saying, "Madam, look at those big eyes! This girl will definitely grow up to be a great beauty!"
As Fu Zhi Qiao grew up, she was born weak and sickly, and had to take medicine every few days. Looking at her daughter, whose face was pale and bloodless, Yu Rou Lan felt very heartbroken and wished she could share some of her pain.
Holding onto the idea of living one day at a time, Yu Roulan made no secret of her love for Fu Zhiqiao, providing her with the best of everything, including food, lodging, and daily necessities, and never stopping her on tonics and medicinal meals... Under the careful care of Yu Roulan and Fu Changyue, Fu Zhiqiao's life was saved.
Watching her daughter grow from a frail and sickly child into a stunning beauty, Yu Roulan was overjoyed. In her eyes, there was no woman in the world more beautiful than her daughter.
"My A Qiao is truly a beauty of unparalleled grace."
Upon hearing the praise, Fu Zhiqiao blinked and said, "It's all thanks to Mother. She passed on her beauty to me."
He made Yu Roulan happy with just a few words.
After exchanging pleasantries for a while, the mother and daughter got into work mode, with Yu Roulan reporting the news from Qingzhou to Fu Zhiqiao in a serious and methodical manner.
Everything at Taibai Academy is going smoothly. The alcohol has been delivered to the imperial court, and the peaches and millet have been harvested, dried, and stored in the warehouse... Fu Zhi Qiao nodded repeatedly as she listened. Although she had focused on the capital this year, Qingzhou was her base of operations. Knowing that everything was going well in Qingzhou, she breathed a sigh of relief.
As the mother and daughter were chatting happily, Ginkgo came over and said, "Madam, Miss, it's time for dinner."
In the dining hall, several plates of delicious dishes were laid out on the table, their colors, aromas, and flavors all appealing.
Fu Zhiqiao invited Yu Roulan to take a seat. She wasn't very hungry, and after a few bites, she stopped eating and said, "Mother, I'm planning to sell beef at Taibai Tower."
"What?" Yu Roulan's face instantly turned serious. Her heart was pounding, and the food on the table suddenly lost its appeal.
Selling beef? That's incredibly audacious.
Seeing Yu Roulan's serious expression, Fu Zhiqiao knew she had misunderstood and explained, "Mother, don't worry! I'm not selling oxen. A while ago, I asked someone to bring back a batch of beef and mutton from Wenya, which I plan to use as a specialty dish at Taibai Tower."
Yu Roulan slowly exhaled, relieved. "You can make the arrangements." She always left business matters to Fu Zhiqiao.
After Fu Zhi Qiao finished telling Yu Rou Lan her plan, she instructed Yin Xing to bring out a pot of plum wine, and the mother and daughter celebrated together.
While Cui Mama was in the courtyard, she was distributing souvenirs brought back from Qingzhou. The servants were very happy to receive the gifts, and the whole Fu mansion was filled with joy.
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