Fortunately, although the carriage was simple, it was not something that ordinary families could afford. Although He Jiuniang was careful, she did not pay too much attention to it, and the two of them went in together.
Laughter could be heard from afar, and both of them breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed they were friends, not enemies. That was good; they could have a peaceful New Year.
"That's enough, that's enough. You're too kind, Madam. You're making me feel so bad!"
As they approached, the middle-aged man's urgent yet amused voice reached their ears. He Jiuniang raised an eyebrow; the voice sounded somewhat familiar, but she couldn't quite place it.
Thinking this, I went inside and saw a man who was thin but had a shrewd look on his face. At that moment, the man was refusing Sun's kindness.
When Sun sent New Year's gifts to others, they weren't anything very expensive; they were just some food that her family had made themselves, such as pork or pickled vegetables, or some local specialties brought from the prefectural city and the capital. They were still food.
“You’re back. Perfect timing. Steward Zhang came to deliver New Year’s gifts to our family. I’ll also give Lord Zhang some gifts in return.”
When Mrs. Sun saw the couple, she greeted them as usual and briefly explained the current situation.
He Jiuniang then remembered that the middle-aged man was the steward of the county magistrate's family. She had seen him a few times before when she was treating the county magistrate's daughter, but she didn't have a deep impression of him.
When Steward Zhang saw the two of them, he didn't bother to refuse and hurriedly bowed, saying, "This humble servant greets Third Master and Third Madam. My master sent me to deliver New Year's gifts and a visiting card. My master wishes to pay a visit on the second day of the Lunar New Year. I wonder if you are available?"
Before Lu Baichuan arrived, he didn't mention the invitation, worried that the rest of the Lu family wouldn't know about Lu Baichuan's arrangements and it would be awkward if his elders came only to find no one there.
As Zhang the steward spoke, he took out a visiting card from his sleeve and presented it to Lu Baichuan. When Lu Baichuan opened it, he saw that the name of the county magistrate was written at the bottom.
Although the invitation was sent by the county magistrate, it stated that the visitors that day included not only the county magistrate's family, but also other officials and their families, and that everyone wanted to visit together.
The New Year's gifts that Butler Zhang just delivered were also very valuable, including not only food but also many treasures, all carefully chosen to please the recipient.
However, Madam Sun only accepted the food and refused anything else, and she also sent a return gift to Steward Zhang.
Although she was just a woman, she was very clever. She knew that her son was now a high-ranking official and there were many people who wanted to curry favor with him. However, her family was not short of money, and even if they were, they could earn it themselves. There was no need for her to accept such an expensive gift and incur favors for no reason.
While Lu Baichuan was looking at the visiting card, He Jiuniang also peeked over to take a look. She guessed that the county magistrate's people must have discussed it beforehand. After all, among the many officials in the county, the one with the closest ties to his family was the county magistrate. It would be most appropriate for the county magistrate to organize and bring everyone here.
As a subordinate, it is normal to visit one's superior during holidays. Moreover, the superior is very polite and has sent a formal invitation to inquire. If the host is unwilling, one can simply refuse.
He Jiuniang thought about it carefully. There shouldn't be anything else going on during the Spring Festival. Unlike other families who would go through the usual procedures of visiting relatives, her family didn't seem to need to.
The clansmen are all in one village now, so a visit on the first day of the lunar month is sufficient. Besides, the county magistrate and his party are coming on the second day, which should also be taking this into consideration.
If they all come together, it'll only take one time to work. But if they split into several groups, that's when things get really troublesome.
So she didn't say anything, and Lu Baichuan nodded and said, "Then come on, it's a good opportunity for me to get to know you gentlemen."
Although he will be taking up a post in the capital in the future, most of his family members will remain here. Even if his family members leave, other members of his clan will still be here, and the foundation of his business will also be here. He will still need the protection of the county officials. As long as they don't go too far, it is still necessary to maintain good relations with them.
Steward Zhang was very excited. He bid farewell to the Lu family and hurried back home, of course not forgetting to take the food given to him by Madam Sun.
Those were all personally sent by Old Madam Lu; it's quite prestigious. The refusals I made earlier were just a token gesture.
After Steward Zhang left, Madam Sun asked He Jiuniang, "What's the situation with the Li family?"
"It's quite serious. He was beaten badly and will probably need to rest for several days."
He Jiuniang told the truth and briefly explained how the Zhang family had been sent to prison. She then said to Yu Shi and the others, "After they come out, Zhang Li Shi may be divorced by the Zhang family. You should pay close attention to her and not give her a chance to do bad things."
People like Zhang Lishi are inherently bad and have corrupted their children. If they are truly divorced by the Zhang family, they might retaliate. We must take precautions to prevent such a thing from happening.
Lu Baichuan said, "Don't worry, I won't give her another chance to cause trouble."
Since his wife had handled all the important matters, he would simply deal with the minor ones. He had already made arrangements for Zhang Li's whereabouts; he would just inform the county magistrate later.
Although it won't kill her, it will prevent her from harming people again.
As for Zhang's youngest son, he has already sent him to his biological father. That man has no sons and didn't know before that Zhang's youngest son was his child. Now that he knows, he will definitely raise him.
The child is innocent. Even if Zhang Lishi and Zhang Chong did something wrong, the child should not suffer. Besides, the child is still young. Although his personality is a bit skewed, as long as his biological father teaches him properly, he can definitely be corrected.
Having done all this, I can say I've done right by the Zhang family.
He Jiuniang nodded. That's fine, as long as Zhang Lishi stops causing trouble for people.
Knowing that officials would visit on the second day of the Lunar New Year, and that the news of Lu Baichuan's promotion would surely spread, He Jiuniang gathered everyone in the main room after dinner to tell them the news, so that her family wouldn't be caught off guard.
The original plan was to talk about it tonight, and He Jiuniang had already prepared her words. She briefly talked about what happened in the capital, then mentioned that Lu Baichuan had made great contributions and talked about his promotion.
"We spent so much time in the capital dealing with Prince Lin's matter. After it was resolved, Bai Chuan made a great contribution and was appointed by the Emperor as a second-rank Assistant General. I also helped a little in that case, detoxifying and adding some poison to everyone. The Emperor was so pleased that he bestowed upon me the title of First-Rank Imperial Lady, and also gave one to my mother. Originally, we were going to send an official to the prefectural city to report it, but we thought the journey was too far and troublesome, so we skipped that step. However, we brought the imperial edict back with us."
Lu Baichuan: ...Just helped with a small favor? ? ?
The "small favor" his wife mentioned was quite shocking to others. Allies benefited, while the enemy lost so badly they didn't even have any bitter tea left. The Third Prince of Dongting was still imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison.
He Jiuniang didn't care what Lu Baichuan was thinking. While speaking, she took out the imperial edict and showed it to everyone. Most of the Lu family members were literate now, and it was the first time they had seen an imperial edict. They were all excited to look at it.
Of course, no one tried to snatch it, because they felt that the imperial edict was a sacred object and not something they could just grab at will. In fact, it was kept by Old Man Lu and Madam Sun, and everyone just gathered around to look at it out of curiosity.
Holding the imperial edict in her hand, Madam Sun was still in a daze and it took her a long time to ask, "What...what was I given again?"
"Grandma, Mother said you've been granted the title of First-Rank Imperial Lady, just like Mother!"
The puppy hugged Sun's leg, its voice very loud.
His father and mother are so amazing, he is so proud of them. When he grows up, he wants to be just as amazing as his father and mother, and earn another imperial title for his grandmother and mother!
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