Chapter 1580 Banquet

Zhou Shuren took a deep breath, "Bah, I won't let them go as merchants. If I remember correctly, there are many caravans every year. When the caravans enter the grassland, they will hire many escorts to protect them. Even so, if they are unlucky, they will suffer heavy losses."

Li Zhao finally responded, "You mean escorted by soldiers?"

Zhou Shuren: "Well, I have a fixed patrol mission anyway, so I can earn some money by escorting people."

Li Zhao opened the new gate. Yes, the patrol mission was accompanied by an escort mission. Not only would there be no loss, but he could also make some money. It would be even better if they could also provide food for the people along the way. We were short of food now, and he was thinking hard in his mind.

Li Zhao continued to think, "We can also raise some cattle and sheep and be self-sufficient in meat, which can reduce a lot of burden."

Zhou Shuren, "Yeah, not bad."

Li Zhao was excited. "I will go back and think about it carefully. I will present the memorial to the emperor tomorrow."

Zhou Shuren waited for Li Zhao to leave and breathed a sigh of relief. The annual military demand could really crush him, especially during the years when grain production was decreasing.

Li Zhao was a quick-witted man. The next day, the emperor saw the fold. The emperor was delighted after seeing it and said, "What a good idea."

The prince also looked at the folded paper and said, "This is because I didn't get the silver, but Marquis Zhou gave me a solution."

After reading the memorial, the emperor thought even more. Not only was Marquis Zhou exhausted by military supplies, he, the emperor, was also exhausted. The navy was a huge expense. If it were not for the income from the shipping routes, the burden on the court would be even heavier.

The emperor approved the memorial and felt relieved. It was rare for him to care about the prince's marriage. "Have you been to the Shangguan Mansion recently?"

The prince paused, "No, my son is busy lately."

The emperor looked at his son's expression. He knew his son, whom he had raised, very well. "I know you have no feelings for Miss Shangguan, but I hope you can spend more time with her. A wife is someone you will spend your whole life with."

Even though the queen had various faults, her merits could not be denied. He had never thought of replacing the queen, nor had he thought of appointing another empress after she passed away. The promise he made to the queen would not change, and one wife for a lifetime was enough.

He and the Queen have feelings for each other, so he hopes that his son's future marriage will be smooth. It is important for a couple to be of one mind.

The prince was touched. He understood what his father meant, but he tried. "Ms. Shangguan is very good."

She was very suitable for being the Crown Princess, but there was something missing when they got along. He thought it might be because they were not married. If they were married, they would be closer.

The emperor took a deep look at his son and sighed in his heart. He began to lose his son's attention and it would be difficult to win his attention in the future.

At Zhou's house, Mingrui brought his wife back from the manor. Mingrui said, "Grandma, several talented orphans in the manor are already able to help the doctor."

Zhulan was delighted to hear this and said, "You learn very quickly."

Mingrui nodded, "Yes, the doctor I hired also likes me very much and wants to take me as a formal disciple."

"What did the kids say?"

Mingrui's eyes were filled with warmth. "Several children are willing to do this. They said they are not learning this for themselves, and they will stay in the village to attend classes after they have learned it well."

"A few kids are nice."

I know that you have the intention to give back after learning, and it's good that you didn't teach anyone an ungrateful person.

Zhulan thought of the ungrateful orphans. Not all orphans are good. Some are good and some are bad. Naturally, there are also children like the ungrateful orphans.

Lin Qing looked at her husband. She was extremely happy after getting married. She accompanied her husband to do things every day. Her mother-in-law was also nice to her, and her sister-in-law was her friend. Her married life was like falling into a honey pot. Every time she went back to her parents' home, the sisters in her family were extremely jealous of her.

Zhulan chatted with Mingrui for a while and signaled the two children to go back and rest. Mingrui has been in charge of the orphanage recently, and the children have had a hard time.

After leaving the government office, Zhou Shuren came back and saw the letter on the table. He picked it up and read it. "It's from Mingyun."

"Yes, it was delivered this afternoon. Along with the letter came some medicinal herbs."

Zhou Shuren had already taken out the letter and read it. It was just an ordinary family letter, which said what he had learned. The key point was that Wu Ming did not hide anything. "Mingyun has been gone for more than half a year."

"yes."

Zhou Shuren put down the letter and said, "Wu Ming takes care of Mingyun, and you should also take care of Wu Ming's wife and children."

"I know. Wu Ming now has illegitimate sons."

The concubines who were pregnant at that time gave birth to a son and a daughter. She also saw the two children. Song Lan did not treat the children harshly and was quite good to the two children. As for the concubines, she did not see them.

After dinner, the two sent the servants away and continued chatting. Zhulan mentioned Yuwen, "Someone still cares about Yuwen. There are a lot of posts to the fourth room recently."

Zhou Shuren, "There were quite a few posts in the past. How many times have you seen your granddaughter participate?"

"Yuwen will go to tomorrow's banquet. It's rare for the Shangguan Mansion to hold a flower banquet. It's also the future Crown Princess's family home, so everyone who is invited must go."

Zhou Shuren is not worried about his granddaughter, "Yuwen is very smart."

"Just too smart."

Among the granddaughters, this one is the smartest.

The next day, Yudie and Yuyi also attended the banquet at Shangguan Mansion. Several girls also went, including Li and Suxuan.

Miss Shangguan, the future Crown Princess, held a flower banquet for the first time and many young ladies came.

Yujiao was familiar with Shangguan Li, and was taken away by Shangguan Li as soon as she entered the yard. Yudie and her sisters went to see Shangguan Jia first. Shangguan Jia was the future Crown Princess, and there were already many young ladies around her.

Shangguan Jia saw Yudie and the others and said enthusiastically, "You are here."

Yudie, the elder sister, stepped forward and said, "Sister Shangguan, we are not too late, are we?"

Shangguan Jia smiled and said, "It's not too late. Look, there aren't many people here yet."

When Yudie heard this, it seemed that many young ladies had been invited today. After a few words, Yudie and the others followed the maid and took their seats.

Yujiao also came back, with a look on her face as if she had heard some gossip from me.

Yuyi frowned and tapped the back of her sister's hand with her fan, indicating that she should be more reserved in Shangguan Mansion. Now the garden was full of young ladies from various mansions, so she should avoid gossip.

It was almost time, and all the young ladies from various mansions had arrived. Among them, a few were the most eye-catching.

The Yudie sisters looked at each other. They had heard that the prince had set a date for his wedding, and many families in the capital were eyeing the position of the prince's concubine. The prince's concubines were future imperial concubines, and unlike the prince's concubines, they also needed to be fought over.