As for Xia Yang, after receiving Xia Tian's letter after the New Year, he had been thinking of going to the capital when the weather got warmer.
Later, plague broke out in various places. Although there was no plague in their area, the government ordered people in the city to stay as little as possible to be on the safe side.
That was also the time when cholera was at its worst in the capital. Xia Yang did not dare to take any risks and could only postpone his trip to the capital again and again.
By the time the rumors died down, it was already August. He received a letter from Xia Tian saying that the capital was unsafe and asked him not to go there for the time being.
He felt a little worried after hearing this, so he thought about going to Beijing and coming back to celebrate the New Year before the end of the year.
It was almost October when he arrived in the capital, and Xia Tianchen was already on his way to Linzhou.
Xia Yang found Linglong Lane according to the address left by Xia Tian. When Uncle Chen and Aunt Chen heard that he was the lady's elder brother, they warmly entertained him.
When Xia Yang heard that Xia Tian had followed Chen Nian to Linzhou to take up his post, he felt annoyed and blamed himself for not coming earlier.
"Uncle, why not stay in the capital for a while before going back?" Uncle Chen suggested to him, "Madam also told us last time that she would help take care of the shop and the yard in the capital.
There's a nice yard and a shop here. I'll take my uncle to have a look tomorrow."
Xia Yang didn't expect that his sister had thought so carefully for him, even starting to prepare the yard and shop.
He had just mentioned this at the time and had not made a final decision yet. He wanted to wait and see first.
It seems that Xia Tian also wants their family to be together.
When Xia Yang thought about this, he nodded and agreed.
The next day, Xia Yang followed Uncle Chen to see the yard and the shop. The yard was also a two-story building, and the shop had no backyard. Xia Yang was a little hesitant.
Another thing is that the prices in the capital are indeed very high. A random courtyard costs several thousand taels of silver, and shops are also much more expensive.
Now that his sister has gone to Linzhou again, he is a little hesitant and doesn't want to buy a house in Beijing for the time being.
He originally wanted to move to the capital just to be closer to his sister, but now that she is no longer here, he has to reconsider.
Uncle Chen didn't say anything, but later he used the money left by Xia Tian to buy both places.
After all, it is not easy to find a suitable yard and shop in Beijing nowadays.
Xia Yang stayed in the capital for five or six days, but did not visit the Wu'an Marquis Mansion. The person he wanted to see was not there, so he simply did not go.
After leaving the capital, I originally wanted to go home directly, but then I thought that since I was already out, I might as well go to Linzhou.
So he turned around and went to Linzhou halfway.
By the time Xia Yang arrived in Linzhou, it was already early December.
After entering Linzhou, I asked for directions along the way and finally found the Linzhou government office.
Chen Nian was working inside. When he heard the yamen runner come in and report that someone was looking for him, he was a little confused. He thought it was Cui's uncle who came, so he had him brought in.
When Xia Yang entered the room, he saw Shen Nian writing something at the desk, and for a moment he was a little hesitant to recognize her.
Chen Nian was wearing a crimson official uniform, completely different from the sickly look he had in Liujia Village before.
When he heard someone coming in but didn't say anything, Shen Nian looked up and was about to ask what was going on, but when he saw the dazed person coming in, he was also stunned for a moment.
After reacting, he asked in disbelief, "Xia Yang?"
"Brother-in-law, it's me." Xia Yang smiled embarrassedly, "I came to see Xia Tian."
Chen Nian couldn't help but sigh when she looked at the radiant, calm and composed Xia Yang, who was completely different from the uneasy and inarticulate person she had met when they first met.
"Brother, this change is quite big!"
"The same goes for my brother-in-law. I didn't dare to recognize him just now." Xia Yang replied with a smile.
After not seeing each other for two years, both of them have changed a lot.
"Brother, are you coming from home?" Shen Nian asked someone to make tea.
Xia Yang was also thirsty. He took a sip before saying, "I'm from the capital. I was originally going to the capital to see you, but when I got there I found out you were in Linzhou, so I decided to come to Linzhou to see you."
"Brother, you've worked hard." Shen Nian was a little moved, "Brother, let's go back to the mansion. Xia Xia will definitely be very happy to see you."
Xia Tian finished the tea in the cup and stood up. "Okay, let's go."
At this moment, Xia Yang was already accustomed to hearing Shen Nian calling him "big brother".
He now knew that his brother-in-law was already a second-rank governor, a legitimate official of the imperial court.
He really enjoyed it when such high-ranking officials of the court called him "Big Brother" all the time.
When Xia Yang followed Chen Nian back to the mansion, Xia Tian heard Ningxiang come in and say that her uncle had arrived. She thought it was Cui's uncle who came to visit.
He hurried out to greet them, and after seeing who it was, he rushed forward in disbelief, "Brother?"
Xia Tian excitedly grabbed Xia Yang's sleeve, his eyes full of disbelief.
"Fourth sister, big brother is here to see you." Xia Yang said with a smile.
The two looked at each other for a while, and Xia Yang sighed, "Fourth sister, you have changed." You have become more beautiful and look like an official's wife.
"Brother, you have changed too." Xia Tian was a little excited. She didn't expect Xia Yang to really come to see her.
"Let's go back to the house and talk." Shen Nian reminded.
Xia Tian finally reacted and quickly called out, "Come on, big brother, come inside, it's cold outside."
After entering the house and asking Xia Yang to sit down, she quickly told Ningxue to go to the kitchen to tell people to prepare the meal. Her elder brother must be starving after traveling all the way here.
He also told Cuiyun to boil some water and let Xiayang take a bath and change clothes first.
Several maids quickly agreed and went to work.
Ningxiang and Cuiling made tea and brought it over.
During the waiting time, Xia Tian asked Xia Yang how he knew she came to Linzhou.
The letter she wrote was sent along with the New Year gift, and she had only been gone for a few days, so how did Xia Yang know about it?
"I went to the capital to see you, but when I got there, Uncle Chen told me that you had come to Linzhou with your brother-in-law to take up your post.
I figured since I was already out, I might as well come to Linzhou to see you guys before I go home, so it wouldn’t be a wasted trip.”
Xia Tian felt a lot of emotion when listening to Xia Yang talking. He didn't expect that the man who was so honest and taciturn at that time could now talk so freely.
"I'm sorry, brother. I came here suddenly and forgot to write to you to explain." Xia Tian felt a little embarrassed.
The emperor only gave her three days at that time, but she was so focused on preparing things and saying goodbye to other relatives and friends that she forgot to write a letter to Xia Yang to explain the situation.
"It's okay. I had been planning to go to the capital for a long time and wanted to open a shop there, but because of the plague, I couldn't leave for the time being, so I missed it."
He had originally planned to set off in May or June, but was delayed for a while due to the expansion of the new store, so he missed it.
When Xia Tian heard about the plague, he asked, "Brother, there's no drought or plague over there, right?"
"Not really." Xia Yang sighed, "But the crops in the fields are indeed not as abundant as in previous years, so it has been affected to some extent.
Although there was no plague, there were refugees coming here, and the government at the time didn't allow them to leave, but fortunately, they've been allowed to do so now."
Xia Tian felt relieved after hearing this, as long as there was no disaster.
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