Chapter 1702: Not Suitable to Be Friends

Inside the tent, Zhulan and the others looked at Steward Ding, who was a little nervous. "The jade pendant sent by the servant of Lord Wei's family."

Zhulan's eyes lit up a little. This girl was indeed the one she liked. "Can you tell me how you got her?"

Steward Ding said, "Today, Miss Wei went to the temple to pray. She entered the city with the young master in a carriage. The earthquake happened suddenly, and the crowd at the city gate was in a panic. The young master protected the fourth prince, and Miss Wei was not far from him."

Chang Zhong was surprised, "I really didn't notice the Wei family carriage. There were so many people jumping off the carriage, and the crowds of people trying to avoid it made the scene very chaotic."

Zhulan picked up the jade pendant and said, "You should thank them. Your father saved a lot of money for this jade pendant."

Changzhong took the jade pendant but didn't put it on. He put it in his purse and said, "Mom is right."

Butler Ding continued to work, and Zhulan also prepared a simple meal. The garden was full of people, and without Yu Zhen, Yujiao became lively again.

Zhulan was worried about Shuren. Everyone at home was fine, so she didn't know what the situation was like in the palace.

Inside the palace, Zhou Shuren was sitting on a stone chair eating. The earthquake was not serious, and he needed to eat something to calm his nerves.

The emperor originally had no appetite, but seeing Zhou Shuren eating so happily, he unconsciously ate a bowl of rice as well.

Fortunately, there was no earthquake in the capital today, which would make the people suspicious of him. The emperor put down his bowl and chopsticks and said, "The news from the suburbs has not been sent to the capital yet. I don't know what the situation is like?"

Zhou Shuren paused while drinking tea. Earthquakes are beyond human control. He felt sad. "The news will soon reach the capital."

When the earthquake stopped, the emperor ordered the garrison to rescue people, and they should have reached the suburban counties by now.

The emperor said, "I want to publish a newspaper specifically about earthquakes and natural disasters. What do you think?"

Let the people know what an earthquake is, that an earthquake is not a punishment from heaven, how to save themselves in an earthquake, etc., and that an earthquake is a natural disaster and has nothing to do with the royal family.

Zhou Shuren naturally supported it, "Okay."

The emperor continued, "The Ministry of Revenue should prepare a sum of money."

After the earthquake, people needed to be resettled and houses needed to be rebuilt, which required money.

Zhou Shuren, "What about the patent?"

The emperor was silent for a few seconds, "Let's talk after the earthquake."

Zhou Shuren knew what he was talking about, and he agreed. "I will prepare the money and food."

The emperor hummed, "There should be no aftershocks. I will not keep you here any longer."

Zhou Shuren, "Yes, I will take my leave first."

After leaving the palace, Zhou Shuren did not go home. Instead, he asked Jianyan to send a message back to the Ministry of Revenue. Such a big thing had to be handled with great caution.

At the Wei family, Mrs. Feng kept looking at her daughter while eating, which made Wei Xinyi unable to eat. "Mom, why are you staring at your daughter all the time?"

Feng put down her bowl and chopsticks, "I heard from your sister-in-law that you picked up Young Master Zhou's jade pendant?"

Wei Xinyi's cheeks turned slightly red. She had been staring at Young Master Zhou until she realized that the jade pendant had fallen off. She shouldn't have been staring at the man. She lowered her head and said, "Yeah."

Feng smiled and said, "Okay."

Wei Xinyi clenched her chopsticks tightly, "Mom."

Feng said cheerfully, "Okay, okay, I won't say anything more. But fortunately, I rejected Ji Rong's invitation today."

Wei Xinyi's smile faded a lot, "Mom, don't worry, I know what's going on."

She was spoiled because of her upbringing, but she still had some brains. Ji Rong wanted to make friends with her, but she didn’t want to. Why should I put it? She didn’t like trouble!

The first time she met Ji Rong was at the Prince Qin's Mansion. The quarrel in the garden could not be concealed. She thought of the rumors about the Luo family in the capital and rejected Ji Rong in her heart. She did not want to implicate her family.

The Wei family does not have a deep foundation, and her father just joined the Ministry of Justice this year, which has already blocked the way for others. The Wei family should be more careful. Except for saying a few words to Ji Rong when she met her, she has never accepted Ji Rong's invitation.

Mrs. Feng didn't know what her daughter was thinking. She said, "Mother doesn't dislike Miss Ji. She's just not suitable for our family."

Wei Xinyi smiled and said, "Mom, your daughter understands everything."

Feng was even happier after hearing this. Her daughter was so considerate. "Eat. Eat more since you were frightened today."

The next day, there was no aftershock from the previous night, so Zhulan returned to the main courtyard in the morning. The Zhouhou Mansion was a newly built house made of the best materials. The house did not collapse, only the tiles were broken.

The biggest loss in the mansion was porcelain. Time was too tight, so only the valuable items were picked out and properly placed. Some of the porcelain that was not put away in time was broken, but fortunately the loss was not serious.

The debris in the main courtyard had been cleared. Zhulan said to Qingxue, "Fortunately, the academy is newly built and the children were not injured."

Qingxue, "You didn't get much rest all night, don't think about it, just rest first."

Zhulan was indeed tired, her head was twitching, "Okay, I'll rest first, wake me up if you need anything."

Qingxue said: "Yes."

Zhulan fell asleep quickly, and slept soundly as she relaxed her mind. Mingteng came over soon and sat outside, afraid that something might happen so that he could take his grandmother away.

Ming Teng has been closing his eyes to rest. He didn't get much rest last night. Today his father went out of the capital to inspect the farm, and his mother was busy with things in the mansion. Fortunately, the earthquake did not occur in the capital.

It was noon when Zhulan woke up and felt the person beside her. She opened her eyes and saw it was Shuren. She reached out and held his hand tightly. She felt at ease knowing he was by her side.

Zhou Shuren opened his eyes and asked, "Awake?"

"When did you come back?"

"I came back from having breakfast at the Ministry of Revenue."

Zhulan asked, "Is the situation in the suburbs serious?"

Zhou Shuren smiled, "It's not serious. Some houses collapsed and most of the people were injured. The casualties were less than 50."

Zhulan's expression relaxed. "It's better than I expected."

"Yeah, I thought there would be a lot of casualties."

He didn't feel relieved until the news was delivered to the capital. It wasn't that he was cold-blooded, but he had seen many people killed and injured in disasters. He thought it was a blessing that there were no more than a hundred natural disasters in ancient times.

Zhulan was not ready yet, and she rambled on about the family affairs, "The eldest and Mrs. Li are both very capable, so I don't have to worry about them."

Zhou Shuren was quite satisfied, "We have trained them for so many years, they are no longer worried about dying."

Zhulan asked, "Are you still going to the Ministry of Revenue?"

"No, are you hungry?"

Zhulan: "Some."

Zhou Shuren stood up and said, "Let's get up and eat."

"good."

The earthquake was not big, but the impact was wide. It was not until the newspapers about the earthquake came out that the discussion gradually died down.

Changzhong never found a chance to thank Miss Wei, and finally had no choice but to ask Yuwen for help.

Yu Wen was feeling lazy because of the hot weather, but she immediately perked up after hearing the request, "Wow, it's rare that my uncle is so attentive to a woman!"

I helped Miss Wei at the academy last time, and now I’ve been thinking about thanking her all the time!

Changzhong, "I have helped you a lot."

"I didn't say I wouldn't help. I must help my uncle. Do you want me to invite her to my house or invite her for tea?"

Changzhong thought for a moment and said, "Let's have some tea."

Yu Wen teased: "Then I have to prepare well."

"Prepare for what?"

"Who knows, she might be my future aunt, so I have to leave a good impression!"

Changzhong, "."

No, there is not even a hint of it!

(End of this chapter)