At this time, Zhou Yi'an, along with his maid and two servants, also embarked on their journey to Tai'an Prefecture at the same time as Xie Yushu and her group.
In the capital, the Fifth Prince requested an audience with Xie Yushu several times, but was always turned away by Xuan Yuanche. However, he was always restless and anxious as he watched a large amount of wealth flow into Xie Yushu's pockets, and he couldn't help but try to get some into his own pocket.
He wanted to succeed, and he needed money for everything. He needed to support his private army and win over officials in the imperial court. He wouldn't go anywhere without money.
Unfortunately, they could only ask Zhou Yi'an to put in even more effort.
After all, Zhou Yi'an has a significant advantage, while Xie Yushu, as a woman, will eventually get married, so why not marry into his family?
So he used some connections to transfer Zhou Yi'an to Tai'an Prefecture as the prefect. Although it was still a low-ranking official of the sixth rank, it would allow him to be well-informed about the affairs of Tai'an Prefecture and get closer to Xie Yushu, making it easier to take advantage of his proximity.
Little did he know that his immediate superior, Han Zhongyu, was even closer to him.
However, Madam Zhang, upon learning that Zhou Yi'an had gone to Tai'an Prefecture to take up a post and was under Han Zhongyu's command, specifically instructed her accompanying maid, Ruyi, to find an opportunity to poison Han Zhongyu to avenge Zhang Zhidao, and upon her return, to promote her to Zhou Yi'an's concubine.
He also gave her a packet of expensive arsenic.
Zhou Yi'an dreamt of seeing Xie Yushu every day, unaware that he had an assassin by his side who was tasked with killing his superior.
Although Zhou Yi'an and his group set off later, Xie Yushu and her group spent the whole time sightseeing and enjoying the scenery, so Zhou Yi'an and her group arrived first.
Han Zhongyu had heard about Zhou Yi'an's pursuit of Xie Yushu in the capital because he had a good older brother. When Zhou Yi'an came to report, he had a sour face. He wanted to send her back to the capital, but Zhou Yi'an had a transfer order, so he had to accept her whether he wanted to or not.
However, despite taking the money, Han Zhongyu convened a meeting of all officials in the government office to introduce Zhou Yi'an's identity, especially explaining that Zhou Yi'an was Zhang Zhidao's nephew.
The entire government office, from top to bottom, consisted of people promoted by Han Zhongyu, transferred from elsewhere, or, like Liu Nan and his group, nearly ruined by Zhang Zhidao. Upon hearing that Zhou Yi'an was Zhang Zhidao's nephew, they instantly lost all goodwill towards him.
Zhou Yi'an knew that Zhang Zhidao had been beheaded by Han Zhongyu. After all, when Han Zhongyu came to Tai'an Prefecture with the imperial sword, his father had sent a letter to Zhang Zhidao, telling him to be more restrained. In the end, two imperial envoys and more than a hundred people from the two families behind them still died.
Therefore, when the news of Zhang Zhidao's execution reached the Grand Tutor's mansion, neither he nor Grand Tutor Zhou were surprised. Han Zhongyu had even taken control of his future brother-in-law, so expecting him to let Zhang Zhidao go was simply a pipe dream.
Although the father and son were somewhat saddened, they accepted it. Although Zhang Zhidao was Zhou Yi'an's maternal uncle, the two had only met two or three times, and their relationship was quite limited. Zhou Yi'an was not heartbroken at all.
However, her mother, Madam Zhang, was a sibling who grew up with Zhang Zhidao. They were very close, and upon hearing the news, she hated Han Zhongyu with a vengeance and kept urging Grand Tutor Zhou to avenge her brother!
Little did they know that the entire population of Tai'an Prefecture hated Zhang Zhidao with a passion, and even his nephew disliked him intensely!
However, Zhou Yi'an didn't care.
After all, he was personally taught by Grand Tutor Zhou. Apart from being somewhat naive in his feelings for Xie Yushu, he had long since mastered the intricacies of officialdom.
Before he arrived, Grand Tutor Zhou had analyzed the situation in Tai'an Prefecture for him and the difficulties he might face after arriving, so he was well prepared for the current situation.
Therefore, after taking office, he was impeccable in his manners and did not miss a single task. He knew everything he was supposed to know in a few days and kept quiet about things he was not supposed to know. He was quite adept at handling official business, and even Han Zhongyu could not find any fault with him.
When he turned twenty, the biggest problem he encountered was Xie Yushu.
Of course, Han Zhongyu was another person who felt this way, besides him.
Hearing that Xie Yushu had returned, I eagerly awaited her return, but I never saw her again. Finally, I couldn't bear it any longer and wrote a letter to Ajiu, only to find out that Xuanyuan Che had followed me and was taking Xie Yushu sightseeing!
Han Zhongyu began to reminisce about the ruler he used to use as a discipline ruler.
Finally, July arrived, and just as Han Zhongyu was about to turn into a stone of longing for his wife, Xie Yushu and her group slowly and leisurely returned.
Although they weren't exactly exhausted from the journey, after wandering around for so many days, they were definitely not feeling well. So, they didn't go to Tai'an Prefecture on the way back and went straight back to the mountain villa.
By this time, Yuquan Villa had already become what Xie Yushu had imagined, transforming from a barren mountain into a modern, antique-style street.
The exterior is a group of antique-style buildings, but the interior is all modern.
The windows were bright and clean, and the room was magnificent.
A tall and magnificent archway has also been erected at the entrance of the villa, with the four characters "Yuquan Villa" written in a vigorous and elegant style.
The archway connects to a high and sturdy protective wall, completely separating the resort from the hospitals, factories, and supermarkets outside.
It has a kind of imposing presence, like one man holding the pass against ten thousand.
Now all other parts are completed, with only the supermarket outside being finished. Moreover, many projects are being done by different people in batches, and the confidentiality is very good. Unless you have the architectural drawings of the villa, the chief architect Yu Muyang, no one else can know the full structure of the villa.
Moreover, Qu Xiaodie had the foresight to divide the manor into an inner and outer courtyard. All the secrets were kept in the inner courtyard, and no one except core personnel was allowed to enter.
Temporary workers, who are not even allowed into the resort, are placed in temporary rest areas outside the factory area.
This rest area was built when Qu Xiaodie discovered that she needed a large number of workers. Those who lived far away couldn't get back, so she asked Han Zhongyu to approve another three acres of land and built a large communal sleeping area. It was also a tiled house, sturdy and convenient.
Ten people can easily sleep on one kang (heated brick bed). This large communal sleeping area could easily accommodate two or three hundred people.
So, the three of them, who had been carefully planning to keep a low profile all the way, were left outside the villa and made to sleep in a large dormitory when they arrived at their destination.
Of course, the three of them weren't the only ones sleeping in the communal room; there were also Xuan Yuanche's more than two hundred guards. So, the three of them were like mice that had fallen into a cat's den, and dared not move an inch.
The other sixty-odd guards followed Xuan Yuanche into the manor.
Fortunately, Xie Yushu later bought another batch of people, so the staff dormitory was expanded a lot, otherwise there would have been nowhere to put his more than sixty people.
Xuanyuan Che had a sharp eye; upon entering the manor, he immediately took a liking to the three-story villa that Xie Yushu had reserved for him, only to be kicked out by Xie Yushu.
Xuan Yuanche pouted, unwilling to leave, but Xie Yushu threatened him that if he didn't go to the back, he would go to Han Zhongyu's place. Upon hearing Han Zhongyu's name, he promptly went to the back to choose a building.
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