Chapter 361 Letter

Zhulan thought it was abnormal. Zhou Shuren was the prefect and she was his wife. Logically, someone should have asked her for information about Zhou Shuren. But they had been here for so many days and she didn't even know his wife. This was a bit unreasonable.

Zhou Shuren laughed softly, "Have you forgotten that I told you that when we were not here, all the officials in Lizhou were vegetarians?"

Zhulan had really forgotten that ever since Zhou Shuren came to Lizhou to open a meat market, the Tongzhi and other prefectures had sent their servants out to purchase meat. As a result of continuous purchases, merchants saw business opportunities and two more butcher shops appeared in Lizhou City.

There are many officials of various ranks in Lizhou City. Although officials have salaries and the gifts they receive seem to be full of money, the gifts they receive are more than the gifts they give. In the end, what they spend is still their salaries and family assets. Not all officials know how to manage their family assets, and very few have their own estates, so they still need to purchase things outside.

Zhulan was amused, "You mean, they are all waiting for me to host a banquet and invite them?"

Zhou Shuren nodded, "Yes, the Tongzhi and Tongpan are watching me. They imitate whatever I do, fearing that I might go too far. In addition, I have been here for a month and have basically settled the people. I have a very high reputation among the people, so they don't dare to play tricks on me, let alone invite you."

Zhulan reached out and touched Zhou Shuren's face. His face was thin and darker, making his already ordinary appearance even worse. In the first five days of the month in Lizhou City, Zhou Shuren was busy distributing grain and understanding the situation of the entire state. Then when the seeds arrived, he was busy distributing grain and planting spring crops. Although the seeds were not particularly abundant, they were the people's hope for the year.

Before the spring ploughing was over, surplus labor was hired to repair roads and ponds. Zhou Shuren did all the work himself. His office was not in the government office. He was out and about every day. He also personally visited farmers with good conduct who were referred by each village.

This month has been really exhausting. Zhulan's hands moved from her face to her body, and all she felt were bones. "I give you nourishment every day, but it doesn't seem to be very effective. Please be gentle with your body!"

Zhou Shuren held Zhulan's hand and looked at the dark ceiling. He felt so depressed. The candles in the bridal chamber that were meant for his success in the imperial examination were smashed to pieces by the emperor's blow. He has not had a moment of relaxation since he passed the imperial examination. On the first day in Lizhou City, he looked at the people who brought their children to collect food. He was such a selfish and cold-blooded person that his heart was choked with anxiety. He stood aside for a long time without moving. After the people who received the food confirmed that it was edible food and not adulterated, they all knelt down in front of him, calling him "Master of the Honest Heaven".

His mood at that time was not happy, but heavy. At this moment he truly realized that he was not here to complete a mission, not to live a better life and save his head, he also wanted to do something for the people.

The result is that now he doesn't even want to look at his own face, and he also hopes to keep himself in the best shape. Well, it has to be postponed again, and he really should take care of himself.

Zhulan didn't wait for Zhou Shuren to reply, "What are you thinking about?"

Zhou Shuren smiled and said, "I thought I'd take you around the area when I have some free time."

He thought he should give Zhulan a surprise, and then coughed.

Zhulan felt sorry for Zhou Shuren, "You don't have to take me around. There's nothing for me to see. I've been out of town a lot these days, and I've seen everything I need to do."

Zhou Shuren touched Zhulan's hand. He had worked hard, and so had Zhulan. "Thank you for the hard work at home."

Zhulan, "I'm not tired. By the way, I bought five-year-old fruit trees. Although they are expensive, fruit farmers say that five-year-old apple trees are in their peak production period. Even if some flowers are damaged during planting, there will still be a lot of fruit this year."

Zhou Shuren laughed, "Then I'll wait and eat the apples."

Winter apples are a delicacy in the north. He didn’t get to eat many last winter. He thought that people wouldn’t even want to eat apples in modern times, but he would miss them in ancient times!

Zhulan asked, "When do you think I should invite the wives of the Tongzhi and Tongpan?"

"It's up to you. You can invite me whenever you have time."

Zhulan wanted to find out some information first, but then she thought that they had just been transferred here not long ago, and there were few shops in Lizhou City. These ladies basically never went out, so it would be difficult to get the news. "Let me think about choosing a day."

She has to invite him because he is waiting for her. It is very important for a lady to be social.

"It's getting late, go to bed!"

The next morning, Zhou Shuren took a carriage to the yamen. Boss Zhou took Lichun to the mountains outside the city. The fruit trees had been planted, and many people were hired to weed and water the trees. Boss Zhou was there to keep an eye on them.

Zhulan was thinking about what name to use to invite people, flower viewing or tea tasting?

There is no tea in the Hua family, but there is tea. Zhou Shuren has never been willing to drink the tea awarded by the emperor. Well, this can be used as a leverage.

Zhulan thought that she should not invite only the ladies, but also invite the Tongzhi and others. Now that everything is basically stable, Mumu, who hasn't seen her for a long time, can take a day off. She will wait for Zhou Shuren to come back and mention it to him.

Zhulan was worried again. Tea tasting requires tea sets, but her home had few exquisite bowls and plates, let alone tea sets. She kept all the ones she bought in the capital, and was afraid that these porcelains would be broken on the way.

And you can't just enjoy the tea without the scenery, you still need flowers.

The scenery of the courtyard in the house is nice, but a bit monotonous. Well, it's really stressful to hold a decent banquet.

Moreover, there were no merchants making porcelain in Lizhou City, so Zhulan had to buy from Chuanzhou. She was very worried. She spent 3,500 taels of silver out of 5,600 taels on buying land and saplings.

Who asked me to buy five-year-old fruit trees? Each tree cost one or two taels of silver. I bought 2,800 trees, and gave them as a gift to prevent damage. Including the transportation costs, I spent 3,500 yuan.

Digging ice cellars was actually a small expense. Two ice cellars cost 150 taels, leaving only 1,800 taels in the family account. She hadn't bought the shop yet, and had to spend more money to buy tea sets, plates and bowls, etc.

That's right, she hasn't bought her manor yet! This money is spent like water, it's really easy to spend. Zhulan thought of the three houses again. Now everyone knows about Pinggang's situation. Her house has increased in value many times. With the income from these three houses, why should she bother to calculate now?

Liu Ya knocked on the door and said, "Madam, the housekeeper is here."

Zhulan, "Come in."

Steward Ding held the letter in his hand, "Madam, this is a letter sent by Old Lady Yang, saying it's from home."

Zhulan took it and looked at it. There were several letters, each of which was quite thick.

(End of this chapter)