Chapter 897 Dark History

Three days passed in the blink of an eye. The Gu family's hometown was not too far from the capital. It only took two days for a fast horse to go back and forth. The first news that came was from Gu Liufeng's grandfather's branch.

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren read the news together. Zhulan was surprised, "Liu Feng's grandfather died a long time ago."

Zhou Shuren pointed at the information on the paper, "The Gu family has a lot of wealth."

Zhu Lan took a quick look and said, "This person passed away and they didn't tell the Hu family about it. The Gu family really doesn't want Liu Feng anymore."

Zhou Shuren, "I don't think so. After all, he is a grandson. Hate comes from love. The longer you hate, the more you miss him. As I said just now, the Gu family has a lot of wealth. No one wants Liu Feng to go back."

Zhulan narrowed her eyes, "You are just guessing."

Zhou Shuren spread his hands. Indeed, this was his guess. "Too little information has been sent back. We will know once we find out."

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren didn't expect that on the twenty-ninth day of the lunar year, Gu Liufeng's cousin and his family would come to Beijing.

Zhou Shuren was already on vacation at home. He had just repaired Mingteng yesterday and was in a good mood when Hu Xia came with the news.

Zhou Shuren looked at Hu Xia, "I just came to Beijing and I'm already visiting your house?"

Hu Xia nodded. He was also very surprised. "The Gu family has an old house in the capital. It's not big, but it's a ready-made place to live. We arrived in the capital last night. They sent me a letter today. I hope you can come to visit me after the New Year."

Zhou Shuren, "I remember Liu Feng's uncle joined the Ministry of Industry?"

Hu Xia nodded, "The head of the Ministry of Industry."

Zhou Shuren nodded. He had been busy managing his network for the past six months. His friend Lord Fang from the Ministry of Industry was the second in command when the Shangshu was away, so he was right under his nose.

Zhou Shuren asked, "What else do you know about the Gu family?"

Hu Xia shook his head, "I don't know much."

He didn't interact much with his brother-in-law back then. At that time, he was focused on making progress and didn't pay much attention to the Gu family.

Zhou Shuren was originally looking at the chess manual and playing chess by himself. He pulled Hu Xia and said, "Play a game with me."

Hu Xia was in a dilemma. He only had a basic understanding of chess, so he could only go ahead and do it.

Less than a cup of tea later, Zhou Shuren waved his hands, thinking that he was not as good as Ming Teng, so he gave up and asked, "Are you going to stay in the Ministry of Revenue like this forever?"

Hu Xia had never thought about rising through the ranks in the Ministry of Revenue. The Ministry of Revenue was full of talented people, and he was a practical person who could not compete with them. Now he had an idea and said, "Please give me some advice, sir."

Zhou Shuren was quite satisfied and quite clever, "You should work harder next year and try to get a good evaluation in the Ministry of Personnel's assessment next year."

Hu Xia was excited. This was clear instruction. "I will definitely work hard."

Zhou Shuren continued, "As for the Gu family, you should keep an eye on them."

Hu Xia kept it in mind. Even if the adults didn't say anything, he would still pay more attention to it. This concerned his nephew's future as well as his own future, so he had to be cautious.

Zhu Lan waited for Hu Xia to leave, then walked out from behind the screen and said, "The Gu family is smart enough not to send an invitation to our family."

Zhou Shuren, "It's better to have a brain than no brain. By the way, what's your New Year gift to Zhang Jinghong?"

Zhulan, "Zhang Jinghong is really generous. He picked out the best tonics for his New Year gifts. I gave him some nice furs in return. Didn't you say that Zhang Jinghong couldn't stand the cold? We have a lot of good furs at home, so giving him some more is also a token of my thoughtfulness."

Zhou Shuren hummed, "Even if Zhang Jinghong is released, his life is still not very good. Even if he wants to buy things, he has to go out of Beijing to buy them, otherwise what he buys will not be good."

"It's not just a matter of background, but also Zhang Yang's relationship. No one is willing to offend Zhang Yang for Zhang Jinghong. Mrs. Song found out that the tonic Zhang Jinghong sent was bought at a high price in Pinggang."

Zhou Shuren said: "Their lives would not be much better even without Zhang Yang. Everyone is afraid that the emperor will suddenly change his attitude and be implicated."

In the Ministry of Revenue, Zhang Jinghong was the only person who could speak. When other people had official business, no one would take the initiative to talk to Zhang Jinghong.

Zhulan smiled and said, "You seem to appreciate him more and more."

"What I admire is the character and resilience. Even when faced with difficulties, one still remains fearless. This is very rare."

Zhu Lan said quietly, "There has been a huge change, even Yao Xin. Yao Xin came to our house twice, but she was sensible and didn't come more often."

Zhou Shuren hummed, and suddenly he was happy, "I haven't taught this proper disciple much, and now he is still exploring the beautiful mountains and rivers. This non-disciple has been taught a lot."

Zhulan was also feeling emotional. Just as she was about to speak, her youngest son Changzhong came in and said, "Dad, you promised me to make an ice lantern. The ice is ready. I need you to hurry up."

Zhou Shuren happily held his youngest son's hand and asked, "Has the carving master your eldest brother hired arrived?"

Changzhong nodded, "We're here, we're here."

Zhou Shuren turned his head and asked, "You're not going?"

Zhulan didn't want to go. The weather was cold enough, and she had to face a pile of ice. "I won't go. Please take care of our son and don't stay outside for too long."

"knew."

At night, the Zhou family lit up ice lanterns. The ice lanterns were colorful. Well, the kids at home stayed outside after dinner. If there were a lot of ice lanterns, even with candles lit inside, the whole yard would be bright.

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren stood at the door of the house. Zhulan said, "Tomorrow is the 30th, and it is a new year. Mr. Zhou, what do you wish for the new year?"

Zhou Shuren looked at his son and grandchildren. The children's laughter softened his expression. "I want to better protect this home, the home we built together."

Protect the children's laughter and better protect this home from wind and rain.

Zhulan looked at the children who were already having a snowball fight, and even Changli and the others joined in. Even though there were constant plots outside, returning home was the best safe haven. "This is the best wish."

Zhou Shuren held Zhulan's hand. He and Zhulan had a home that they had built together.

On New Year's Eve, the Zhou family was in a festive mood. Zhulan woke up early in the morning and saw Yudie and Yuyi coming hand in hand. The two little girls were the first to arrive.

Zhulan smiled, "You two came really early."

Yudie was wearing a round dress, "Grandma, I got up the earliest and then went to find Yuyi."

Yuyi was still yawning, "Sister got up too early."

Zhou Shuren picked up the two little girls. These two granddaughters were very attractive. "Come on, Grandpa will take you to wake up your uncle."

Yudie hugged Grandpa's neck and said, "Grandpa, let's go quickly."

Zhulan watched her husband carry his two granddaughters out. Although her husband was strict with his grandsons, he was the best grandfather to his granddaughters. No matter how naive the questions the little granddaughters asked were, Zhou Shuren would patiently explain them.

Soon, the giggling of Yudie and Yuyi and the angry voice of their son could be heard from the yard.

Changzhong sat wrapped tightly in the quilt, glaring at his father, "Dad, your son is your uncle."

He is an uncle, wuwu, his little niece will definitely laugh at him in the future.

Zhou Shuren was in high spirits. Even if he didn't go to court, he didn't have time to communicate with his children every day. So he was naturally happy during this break. Looking at his son's angry look, he felt particularly happy. What a dark history his son will have when he grows up!

Yudie covered her eyes and said, "Uncle, shame on you."

Yuyi looked at her uncle and nodded heavily, "Shame on you."

Zhou Shuren saw his little son's blushing face and laughed out loud.

(End of this chapter)