Following the red paper left by firecrackers all over the street, they quickly found the Su family's two-courtyard house located on a quiet side street.
The Su family is celebrating a happy occasion today, and to welcome guests, the main gate is wide open, with servants and guests coming and going from time to time.
Wu Xingwang and his son were followed by only Wu Peng, with the three of them carrying large and small bags of gifts.
A servant responsible for greeting guests at the main gate stepped forward and asked, "What is your honorable name, sir?"
"Your surname is Wu. Could you please inform Master Su Kunliang that an old friend has come to visit?" Wu Xingwang said with a smile.
The Su family was full of scholars, and fearing that the servants wouldn't know which Master Su he was referring to, he specifically mentioned Su Kunliang's name.
In the living room, Su Kunliang, who was greeting guests with his three adult sons, was taken aback when a servant came to report that there was no one with the surname Wu among the people he knew in Cangwu County.
Having been here for half a year, he rarely went out and interacted with others. Su Kunliang subconsciously looked at his eldest son.
“Father, the servants said that all three of them brought gifts. On such a joyous occasion, they must be hoping to have a drink at the wedding.” Su Yunzhi’s thin face was gentle.
Su Kunliang snapped out of his daze and said to Su Yuan, who was following behind him, "Su Yuan, take a few people and invite our distinguished guests in for a celebratory drink."
Su Yuan led several servants to the gate and immediately recognized Wu Xingwang and his son.
He jogged forward and bowed excitedly, "Master Wu, Young Master Wu, what brings you to Cangwu County?"
"I came here to discuss some business, and it just so happens that your daughter is getting married, so I've come to ask for a cup of celebratory wine," Wu Xingwang said with a smile.
Su Yuan immediately called to the servants following behind her and stepped forward to accept the gifts brought by Wu Xingwang.
"Master Wu, Young Master Wu, please come inside with me quickly."
Upon entering the hall, Su Yuan dared not shout. She quickly walked up to Su Kunliang and said with delight, "Master, look, who's here?"
Su Kunliang looked up at the group of people following behind Su Yuan, his eyes widened suddenly, and he involuntarily stood up, "Old Wu!"
"Am I seeing things?" He couldn't believe his eyes and turned to look at Su Yunzhi.
After they separated, he thought they would never see each other again in this lifetime.
Su Yunzhi also stood up from her chair. "Father, that's right, it's Uncle Wu!"
Wu Xingwang walked up to Su Kunliang, smiling and preparing to greet him, but Su Kunliang couldn't contain his excitement and stepped forward to hug Wu Xingwang.
"Old Wu, what brings you to Cangwu County?"
Wu Yuan and Wu Peng, who were behind him, never expected that Master Su, who always adhered to etiquette, would also have a passionate and unrestrained time.
"I came here to take care of some business." Wu Xingwang patted him reassuringly.
Su Kunliang pulled him to sit down at the table. "Yunzhi, go and call your brother and the others out to meet Boss Wu."
Wu Xingwang quickly waved his hand, "No, everyone's busy today."
“Of course, etiquette must not be disregarded.” Su Kunliang insisted with a stern face, “When elders come to visit, how can juniors be impolite?”
Soon, the twins Jin Yan and the youngest Su Yunrui came out to pay their respects. Zhu Jinhui was in the backyard to invite female guests, so she did not come.
Su Kunliang's guests were all distant relatives. After the banquet and celebrations, they left with their gifts and departed.
The Su family had just settled down in Cangwu County, but they had gone through many hardships along the way, and many members of the collateral branches had perished.
Supported by its deep-rooted resources, the Su family is barely able to maintain a semblance of prosperity.
Several children from the collateral branches were married into prominent local families, and the clan also helped talented young men secure good jobs.
Only then did the Su family gradually gain a foothold in Cangwu County.
After the guests left, Su Kunliang led Wu Xingwang and his two sons to the study.
Wu Xingwang looked around the two-courtyard house. After the guests left, only Su Kunliang's family remained.
"Where is Old Master Su?" It wouldn't be right not to visit him since he's come to pay his respects.
Su Kunliang felt a bitter taste in his mouth, but smiled and said, "My father and his clansmen arrived in Cangwu County ahead of us. The journey south was not peaceful, and many of the collateral branches of the clan suffered losses. My father spent all his savings to buy a large house to serve as the ancestral home of the Su family."
“Now the ancestral home is used to house collateral branches. This house was set up by my father for us alone; he does not live with us.”
The ancestral home was filled with relatives from other branches of the family, yet Su Kunliang, as the future heir to the family head, lived outside. Something must have happened in the meantime.
"Uncle Wu, are you here in Cangwu to discuss business?"
Su Yunzhi sensed her father's emotions and deliberately changed the subject.
When the topic of business came up, Wu Xingwang smiled broadly and said, "It's quite a coincidence that the person who wanted to cooperate with us was Deng Kang. We happened to see Miss Su's bridal sedan chair entering the Deng family when we came in."
“Deng Kangzheng is my father-in-law.” Su Kunliang’s eyes lit up.
Su Yunzhi's thoughts shifted slightly. She wondered how Aheng and Yuanzhi were doing. Anan's child should have been born by now.
He was eager to ask about their situation, so he smiled slightly and said, "Uncle Wu, how have things been since you went to Nanzhou Prefecture six months ago?"
Wu Xingwang said, "We didn't settle in Nanzhou Prefecture, but went to Nanman Prefecture instead."
"Southern Barbarian Prefecture?"
Su Kunliang and Su Yunzhi paled upon hearing this. Nanman Prefecture was a place frequented by Japanese pirates; how could they have gone there?
Wu Xingwang recalled the hardships he had endured, but they seemed like fleeting clouds, gone in the blink of an eye.
He slowly recounted everything that happened to them in Nanman Prefecture. "That's right, Nanzhou Prefecture is full of powerful families, so there was nowhere for us to stay. We gritted our teeth and went to Nanman Prefecture. It was a bit desolate, but fortunately, the place was big enough to accommodate so many of us. The place where we settled was called Dragon Pool."
"I heard that the Japanese pirates massacred the entire population of Xihe County?"
Su Yunzhi was even more shocked. After arriving in Cangwu County, he had some understanding of the affairs in the south.
The Wu family father and son were aware of the situation in Xihe County, but they could not tell outsiders.
"The Yun brothers led their men to wipe out the Japanese pirates and rescued many enslaved people. Now, Xihe is under the jurisdiction of Longtan," Wu Xingwang said tactfully.
Su Kunliang, a tough guy, exclaimed, "The Yun brothers are indeed capable!"
Wu Xingwang then recounted in detail how they carried out large-scale construction and reclaimed wasteland for farming in Longtan.
"What? Your rice yield is over 200 jin per mu?" Su Kunliang was shocked when talking about grain production.
“That’s right,” Wu Xingwang affirmed.
Then, he told the Su family father and sons about how Longtan developed agricultural planting and took in refugees and beggars.
When they learned that the mastermind behind all of this was Lin Yinan, the father and son were stunned.
Even when he was eavesdropping on Zhu Jinhui at the study door, he quickly covered his mouth with a handkerchief for fear of making a sound.
After calming herself down, she hurriedly instructed the servants to bring in the prepared wine and dishes.
I never expected that Lin Yinan would have such abilities.
Finally, Wu Xingwang extended a warm invitation to the Su family father and son, saying, "After the New Year, Longtan will open its city gates wide and be completely open to the outside world. If you have time at that time, Master Su, please come and visit us."
“Yes, we have cargo ships coming to Cangwu County to deliver goods. It’s very convenient to come by waterway,” Wu Yuan chimed in.
Su Yunzhi was somewhat tempted by this, but since the Su family were not businessmen, they knew very little about business matters.
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