"Logically speaking, those four people are all veterans who fought alongside the general on the battlefield. They could be almost as good as ten men each. Dealing with a village girl is nothing. Even if the village girl knows a little bit of kung fu, it shouldn't be that four men couldn't handle her. I guess those four people didn't even go there!"
Green Willow, who was beside Chu Mingzhu, answered cautiously.
"Didn't go? You mean they dared to disobey me and run away on their own?"
They look down on us, aunt and niece, because we've fallen on hard times!
"Hmph! Ungrateful bastards! Don't let me see them again, or I'll make them pay!"
Chu Mingzhu cursed angrily when she thought about how those people had left on their own.
But after a while, he still said...
“Increase the monthly salary of the remaining guards by 500 copper coins each. You two and Master Wu will also increase by 500 copper coins. The cook and the stewards will increase by 200 copper coins each. The other second-class maids will increase by 100 copper coins each, and the maids will increase by 50 copper coins each.”
"Thank you, Master!"
"This servant and the others also thank you, Master! This servant will definitely give them a good talking-to later, so that they will serve you well!"
The peach blossoms and green willows returned.
Go!
Hey, come back!
You said~
Xiao Yi's family were farmers, and when he returned, he was implicated by the Chu family and lost his official position. In order to protect Jin Yu, he had to hide all the way. He probably didn't have much money left when he got home. Even if he did have some money, the two years of drought probably spent it all. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been dressed so poorly when they returned.
When I send someone this time, you should come along too. Take some cloth, pastries, and silver and go to Brother Xiao Yi's house for me.
They are, after all, my future in-laws and brother and sister-in-law. While they're down on their luck, I should lend a hand. Having this favor will give me more leverage when I marry into their family!
Tao Hong thought about the clothes Xiao Yi and Xiao Yuanhang wore when they returned. They were all made of fine cotton, and their clothes were also very new and appropriate. They could not be considered shabby.
It's already quite good that ordinary people can dress like this, but there's no need for her to say it and spoil her master's mood.
Green Willow hesitated after hearing this.
"Then, how much silver should I give?"
"Fifty—no, one hundred taels!"
For a group of peasants, one hundred taels of silver must be an enormous sum!
"Yes, then this servant will take care of it right away!"
"Um!"
After Green Willow left, Peach Blossom accompanied Chu Mingzhu back to her room, completely unaware that a small figure emerged from the flower bushes and chased after Green Willow, hiding and dodging along the way.
The small figure was naturally Chu Jinyu.
He vaguely heard Chu Mingzhu saying something about Phoenix Mouth outside the door, and she also mentioned his mother, so he went to the window and secretly listened for a few words.
That's right. Even though Chu Mingzhu corrected him eight hundred times, the people in the ancestral hall were his biological parents. Xie Yushu was just a country woman. But when he thought of his mother, he still thought of Xie Yushu first.
Later, after Chu Mingzhu had gone far away, he secretly followed her. When he heard that Chu Mingzhu was going to send someone to Phoenix Mouth and kill his mother, he immediately made up his mind to go and inform his mother.
Moreover, he's had enough of this house. He's going to find his mother and sister and never stay with his aunt again!
Fortunately, Chu Mingzhu was afraid that the servants would disturb his studies, so she didn't allow them to wander around him and only went back to his room at night to keep watch for him! Along the way, apart from avoiding the maids and servants in the outer courtyard, no one bothered him at all.
Xiao Jinyu followed Lüliu to the outer courtyard first. She watched as Lüliu had the head guard select four people to accompany her on business the next day. She then ran to the storeroom and kitchen, packed some cloth and pastries, and also took a few steamed buns and pears from the kitchen and stuffed them into her arms. She watched as Lüliu put the boxes down, and then quickly returned to her room.
The Marquis of Anle's mansion is no longer the general's mansion it once was, and the guards are not as strong as they used to be. After that calamity, General Chu's trusted guards were either dead or scattered. Now, only about twenty people remain in the mansion. They are all assassins who were pulled out of the pile of corpses by General Chu and secretly trained by the Chu family.
They are all good people and loyal enough, but now their master is not respectful and shows them no respect at all. They are all veterans of the Chu family army and have made some merits in battle. The reason they are willing to stay is because of the old general's kindness. But Chu Mingzhu only treats them like servants and orders them around. So their heart to repay the kindness has cooled down.
Furthermore, given that Chu Mingzhu and Chu Jinyu were no match for them, the guards unanimously agreed that no one would dare to attack their masters, so they simply stood guard around the perimeter of the courtyard.
It's probably because there aren't enough people. All the guards, both visible and hidden, inside the courtyard have been withdrawn, and the only thing they're doing is ensuring that no one gets in from outside!
Therefore, no one noticed Chu Jinyu's series of subtle actions!
When he returned to his room, he saw the servant making his bed. Chu Jinyu quietly stuffed the steamed buns and pears into the desk drawer, then went to the washbasin as usual to wash up before going to bed.
The servant boy who was serving him was only eight or nine years old. He had been keeping him company until now and was so sleepy that he could only nod. After a while, a little gurgling sound could be heard.
Chu Jinyu tiptoed to put on her clothes, then wrapped herself in a cloak. She took a steamed bun and a pear and quietly walked to the chest containing the cloth. She took out a few bolts of cloth and dragged them under the table in the inner room. She lay down inside, wrapped herself in the small cloak, and fell asleep peacefully.
Fortunately, the box was inside the house, and he was wrapped in a thick fox fur cloak, otherwise he would have frozen to death!
The next morning, Chu Jinyu was sound asleep when she was lifted into the car and headed towards Phoenix Mouth.
Meanwhile, Chu Mingzhu packed a cart full of food, clothing, and other necessities overnight, along with a thick letter, and had it sent to Xiao Yi's military camp.
Chu Mingzhu slept in a rare way, and the servant who served Chu Jinyu also slept until he naturally woke up. Just as Chu Mingzhu finished breakfast and was about to check Chu Jinyu's studies, a maid and a servant came over crying and wailing, saying that Chu Jinyu was missing!
By the time Chu Mingzhu had mobilized everyone in the manor to search the Marquis of Anle's residence three times, it was already noon.
At this point, Chu Mingzhu couldn't help but suspect that her eldest nephew had run away from home.
There were only two carriages leaving the manor. Thinking that Chu Jinyu hadn't mentioned that bitch Phoenix Mouth for a long time, and that Xiao Yi had just sent a letter yesterday, he must have gone to find Xiao Yi. So he sent someone to chase after the carriage to Xiao Yi's side to find Xiao Jinyu.
Xiao Jinyu's journey to find his mother was also inexplicably smooth!
If eating steamed buns, gnawing on pears, and sleeping in a box isn't considered hardship.
Xie Yushu was unaware that her adopted son was rushing to her at all costs. She was counting down the days until her elder brother Xie Tianlin's wedding and was discussing with Xie Tianqi which day to go back and what wedding gifts to bring for her brother and sister-in-law.
Xie Tianqi would need at least six or seven days to get home, but she only had three days off at the end of the month. So, Xie Tianqi and Xie Tianming were frantically swapping shifts with others to try and free up seven days of leave so they could go home and attend their older brother's wedding banquet in peace.
Xie Tianqi planned to buy a pair of gall-shaped vases as a congratulatory gift. Xie Tianqi also wanted to give a tea set. The two of them chose a very nice one, which was both elegant and practical.
Xie Yushu thought for a moment. Her gift couldn't be too expensive, otherwise she wouldn't be able to accept the gifts from her parents and Tianqi. So she chose two sets of quilt covers, sheets, and pillowcases, all made of the most popular twill-printed mandarin ducks playing in the water thick cotton fabric. She also bought some peanuts, melon seeds, and candy, intending to entertain her new relatives.
Little did she know that there was already an undercurrent of tension in her family over her divorce, and the conflict would completely erupt after the Chu family arrived at the Xiao family!
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