He had wondered why his mother and aunt wanted to lead troops into battle, but it seems they had already planned it out four years ago, or even earlier.
"Mother, did Wenliu and the others already know about your affair?" Although my sixth brother is capable and intelligent, it is not an easy thing for him to become a first-rank official in just a few years.
Many capable and intelligent people, even if they spend their whole lives, will never be able to reach the position of a first-rank official. He doesn't believe that this is possible without the help of his mother and aunt.
“Yes!” An Shuyi nodded. “They knew a long time ago, more than ten years ago, that people should think three steps ahead before taking one step, and not just look at the ground under their feet, because you don’t know if there is a cliff just one step away.”
"I don't need you to do anything. Just keep an eye on this place and don't let those barbarians from the border invade. If I need anything from you, I'll write to you."
As long as Yan Zhen ascends to the throne, Nangong Haotian will definitely make a move, since he also wants to sit on the throne. However, as long as he dares to make a move, Wucheng and the border will be mobilized.
“Mother, the Li Kingdom has fallen. Who will you let be emperor? You or Auntie?” Wen Shi asked.
“It’s Yan Zhen. Your aunt has already written to the village, and Cheng Yumo will take him to the capital. The secret guards will also accompany him.” Four years ago, Cheng Yumo returned to the village to teach Yan Zhen.
Yan Zhen was not stupid, and she naturally guessed what they had done. Over the years, she had been studying hard and dared not slack off in the slightest.
"It's Yan Zhen! I thought it would be Mother or Aunt!" It seems he's still too stupid to have guessed it.
"I have no interest in the throne. From now on, this place is in your hands. Do a good job!"
"I will, Mother."
After the mother and son finished speaking, Xiao Yubai took off the jade pendant from his waist. "This is a military tally. Don't disappoint me."
Seeing that he was handing over the military tally right now, An Shuyi also took off her half of it. "This is the other half. Just put them together."
Wen Shi looked at the two separated military tallies, wisely refrained from asking any further questions, took them and put them in his pocket. "Alright, I won't let Mother and Godfather down. I'll go back now." With that, he got up and left.
Although he was foolish, he wasn't hopelessly foolish. He could see that his mother and General Xiao were acting strangely, but since his mother didn't say anything, there must be some reason for it.
He wouldn't say anything if his mother said so, but he wondered if General Xiao had some health problem. He hadn't married in all these years, and according to the soldiers, he didn't even have a child. It was truly pitiful.
The next day, An Shuyi and Xiao Yubai left. This time, it wasn't just the two of them; their bodyguards also came along. Eighteen bodyguards rode behind them, with Yingyi driving the carriage.
There's no need to rush along the way; we can take our time. In any case, Xiao Zili didn't ask them to arrive within the stipulated time.
"Madam, please slow down." Xiao Yubai helped her down.
This is their third day on the road. Every day they are like tourists, stopping to rest whenever they see an inn. Today they have arrived in Nanhua City, so they will stay in the city for one night.
Xiao Yubai instructed his bodyguards to book rooms, and then took An Shuyi for a stroll. He reasoned that since they might not have another chance to return, it would be good to see her again. Of course, it was An Shuyi who said this.
The two looked around and bought some delicious food, some nice clothes, and even some trinkets from the roadside that looked good.
They arrived at Nanhua City at noon and strolled around until it got dark before going to a restaurant for dinner.
As soon as she sat down, An Shuyi started ordering, ordering all the dishes the restaurant had, and two of each.
"Madam, you've ordered so much, I can't finish it all," Xiao Yubai said hastily, thinking that his wife was trying to make a fuss.
"Don't worry, otherwise you can eat it all. I don't have much food left here, and it's mostly venison, tiger meat, and roe deer meat. There's very little chicken, duck, goose, or pork left. Buy some to keep on hand."
She planned to travel around with Huahua after Yan Zhen ascended the throne, buying more food and storing it in the warehouse so that it would be convenient to eat.
"It's not enough for me to finish it all at once."
An Shuyi rolled her eyes. "Besides wanting to mess with you that time, the food was just too awful. I only messed with you once, why are you so scared?"
He's so spineless. She told him to finish it all, and he actually ate it. Is he stupid?
"I'm not afraid!" I'm just feeling stuffed.
After the dishes were served and the door was closed, An Shuyi began to pack the food. She took out empty bowls from the storage room, poured the food from the table into them, and then put them back into the storage room.
Xiao Yubai didn't watch over it; he was in charge of pouring the dishes into bowls while she filled them. In no time, the food was all filled, and then another batch was served. This went on twice until all the food was finally filled, leaving only what they ate on the table.
"Eat!"
"Madam, please eat too!" He said, serving her some food before starting to eat himself, peeling the food and picking out the bones—all of which he did.
"Don't just look after me, I can eat by myself." She was enjoying being taken care of, and it felt good.
“I’m eating too, madam, please eat quickly, the fish won’t taste good when it’s cold.”
An Shuyi had no choice but to eat quickly, picking out the fish bones very cleanly so she could eat heartily.
After finishing their meal, the two slowly walked back to the inn, washed up, and went to bed.
They got up early the next morning, had breakfast, and then left. They ate lunch in the carriage. In the evening, they saw a village and decided to stay there for the night.
The village is small, but it looks very peaceful. Children are playing outside, and there are animal calls and the voices of adults talking.
As soon as they entered the village, the villagers saw them and, upon learning that they wanted to stay for the night, led them to a house and said it was for passersby, that it was very clean, and that someone would come to clean it every few days.
Yingyi gave them a few taels of silver, and they settled down. They even bought some rice and flour from the villagers to cook, but An Shuyi ate what Xiao Yubai had prepared.
Why not get the ones made by the secret guards? Because they taste terrible.
Lying in bed that night, Xiao Yubai said, "Madam, I actually quite like life in this village. Every day, the men go out to work, and the women stay at home to cook and take care of the children."
"The child is well-behaved and sensible, and can even greet people. Isn't that wonderful?"
"If you like it, then stay here!" He only saw the peace and tranquility of the place, but failed to see the other problems.
"Doesn't Madam like it?"
“I don’t like it. If you want to buy anything here, you have to go a long way. The villagers work by hand and don’t even have an ox. If you don’t have martial arts skills, how much can you do with just your strength?”
An Shuyi continued, "I didn't see any schools here either, which means that the children here either don't go to school or go far away. I don't want my child to farm for the rest of his life."
“What you say makes sense, Madam. I was thinking too one-sidedly. I should learn more from you,” Xiao Yubai said.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
