Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!

Chapter 1096: Chapter 1096: Visit Zhou Family Village

In the blink of an eye, it had been seven days, and the Zhou family in the capital received a letter from Chang Zhi. Due to the drought conditions, the urgent letter had not arrived as quickly as usual.

Zhulan opened the letter and read it aloud, ”There’s been a heavy rain in the hometown for two days. The fields shouldn’t be lacking water now.”

But then she stopped speaking, her eyes widening. She truly hadn’t expected that there would be something buried in front of her father-in-law’s tombstone. On reflection, well, there wasn’t much she could recall—memory is fickle, not retaining everything, especially considering the many years she had been here, and besides, she was an imposter.

What Zhulan could remember was her mother-in-law passing away with unfulfilled wishes. Now that they had found something, if she was in her place, she would’ve also died with regrets. Her mother-in-law really left a tricky situation, not mentioning anything when she first became ill. But then again, who would have thought she wouldn’t survive the illness?

Putting down the letter, Zhulan knew they needed to relocate the ancestral tomb, but she was genuinely curious about what was inside the chest. Stretching out her hand, she counted the days: there was still time before the end of autumn. Even though the rural exams were continuing this year, after careful consideration, it would still be a few months away.

When Lady Zhao entered, she saw Zhulan calculating, ”Mother, I’ve heard there was a letter from home.”

Zhulan motioned for Lady Zhao to come in quickly, ”It’s too hot outside, come in and sit down.”

Lady Zhao was indeed extremely overheated, ”The rain that fell a few days ago didn’t help at all.”

Zhulan remained silent; more than being unhelpful, the ground hadn’t even gotten wet. They had waited so eagerly for the rain, only to be bitterly disappointed. ”Has our family’s pond been cleaned out yet?”

Lady Zhao was distressed, ”It’s mostly been cleared out, alas... all those fish!”

Zhulan also felt the loss. They had raised the fish in their pond well, but the severe drought had drastically lowered the water level, killing many fish day by day. In the end, they toughened their hearts and decided to clear them all out, selecting some medium-sized fish to keep in large water jars and distributing the rest.

Now, the market wasn’t short on fish, and while the river levels had fallen, it hadn’t dried up.

Zhulan informed her about the situation back home, ”Although the seedlings were affected, the fields should now have enough water.”

Lady Zhao was very touched, ”Mother, when I fled to Zhou Village, there was no greenery along the way. It wasn’t until I reached our village that I saw it. Mother, our hometown really has great Feng Shui.”

Zhulan blinked; she didn’t really believe in these things, but it seemed quite mystical. Chang Zhi’s letter mentioned that only the area around Zhou Village had experienced a torrential downpour, with other places receiving less rainfall.

In the teahouse in the capital, Yushuang and Yu Lu, accompanied by Mingyun and Ming Teng, had stepped out. Yushuang listened to the storyteller’s voice in the bustling teahouse, ”The drought doesn’t seem to have much affected the business here.”

Mingyun cracked sunflower seeds, ”The first batch of ships that went out to buy grains has returned. The imperial court has already arranged for the distribution of food, and the everyday life in the capital has not been much affected.”

Aside from the limited variety of vegetables available for purchase, life in the capital had not suffered greatly.

Yu Lu used a handkerchief to wipe her fingertips, ”Father hasn’t returned for five days now.”

Ming Teng was indeed worried about their father, ”Our father hired many refugees, both men, and women. It’s become known throughout the capital. Ran Xun told me that our father plans to grow vegetables, and now many households are following suit, reducing the number of refugees outside the city.”

Mingyun smirked, ”According to father, he has seen the Emperor several times in the last few days.”

Yushuang, being astute, realized something and whispered, ”The news of our family employing people to grow vegetables spread so quickly, could it be orchestrated by someone high up?”

Mingyun nodded in approval, ”Yes, otherwise everyone in the capital wouldn’t know about it. My father doesn’t attract that much attention, and these people only know that Zhou family has a Lord, but they don’t actually recognize him.”

Yu Lu smiled, ”This is so much better. There’s no need to set up so many porridge stalls. Refugees can earn silver and food by their labor. If all the farms near the capital start growing vegetables, there won’t be enough refugees to meet the labor demand.”

Ming Teng agreed, and this way, they helped resolve many of the imperial court’s problems. Suddenly, Ming Teng gazed downstairs, ”Hey, Big Brother, do you see if that’s Liufeng and a few from the Gu family?”

Mingyun took a closer look, ”It really is them, though there are a few I don’t recognize.”

Mingyun and the others were seated on the second floor. When Gu Liufeng and his companions ascended, he caught sight of them instantly, his eyes lighting up at the sight of Yushuang.

Gu Liufeng quickened his pace, appearing somewhat anxious, but this couldn’t be blamed on Gu Liufeng. The Zhou family had had much to deal with this year, and it had been some days since he last visited the Zhou residence. The desire to see his betrothed fiancée made it difficult. ”Mingyun, Ming Teng.”

He paused afterwards, ”The two Miss Zhous.”

It wasn’t proper to call out names in public, and Gu Liufeng felt a twinge of regret. Though he greeted them, his eyes never left Yushuang.

Yushuang covered her face with her fan, her earlobes reddening, while Yu Lu nodded generously.

Mingyun observed those who had come with Gu Liufeng, including the son of the Gu family and others he didn’t recognize, ”These gentlemen are somewhat unfamiliar to me.”

Liufeng retracted his gaze and introduced them, ”This is my maternal aunt’s nephew. There’s been a drought outside, so they’ve recently come to the capital and are touring around today.”

Mingyun nodded, understanding that these young gentlemen must belong to the Ding family, given the relationship with Mrs. Ding, wife of Gu Zhuomin.

The gentlemen from the Ding family looked on in confusion at the others, not daring to speak out because of the clothes the opposite party wore. They examined the Jade Pendants and the fabric of the garments, smiling cautiously.

Mr. Gu wished to stay, but unfortunately, as the Zhou family had female members present, he could only feel regret internally. ”I’ll head to the private room. See you later, Master Mingyun.”

Mingyun smiled, ”Hopefully, there will be an opportunity to invite Mr. Gu for tea in the future.”

Liufeng, however, settled himself down, ”Big brother, I’m not going over.”

He didn’t need to avoid the situation; he and Yushuang were engaged.

Mr. Gu was an experienced man, and he too hoped that Liufeng would stay. Zhou family’s second master had taken up an official position, and his career seemed promising. His father was very concerned the Zhou family might break the engagement. ”Alright.”

As the curtain of the half-open private room was let down, Yushuang finally lowered the fan that had been shielding her face, her hands gripping the fan handle still somewhat nervously.

Mingyun set down the teacup he was holding, speaking in a voice loud enough that Gu Liufeng dared not look directly anymore. ”In such hot weather, why have you all come out?”

Mingyun, ”Being at home on a day off was dull, so we decided to come out for a change of scenery.”

Liufeng inwardly remarked on his luck. He had initially been reluctant to come out, but it was fortunate he did.

Time passed quickly and within the span of two cups of tea, the tranquil tea-sipping in the private room was interrupted by someone stopping outside.

The young ladies looked up, and Yushuang saw the two girls from the Gu family, along with two others; one appeared slightly older, maybe sixteen or seventeen, and the other a bit younger at about thirteen or fourteen, ”You’re all out today as well?”

The faces of the two Gu girls held a hint of discomfort. They were jealous of Zhou Yushuang, having flattered her in the past while looking down on her in their hearts since her father was a commoner. Now, they were even more envious. Zhou Yushuang’s father had taken an official role and was rumored to be leading delegations to nearby countries—a smile played on their lips, slightly ingratiating, ”Yes, we didn’t expect to see the Miss Zhous here for tea today.”

Yushuang’s smile remained faint. Her greeting was out of politeness, but she certainly wasn’t oblivious to the jealousy of the two young Miss Gu.

In a town in the northeast, Prince Liang’s face was stormy. Ever since leaving the capital, his mind hadn’t been focused on searching.

Prince Liang’s guard, ”Your Highness, we’ve been rushing along. Shouldn’t we take a break to do some searching?”

They had to at least put on a show of searching, and yet the Prince insisted on speeding along.

Prince Liang snorted, ”Search for what? What can we find? Head to where the coffin was first discovered, then we’ll proceed to Pingzhou. The fourth son of the Zhou family is returning to his hometown to take the civil examinations. It just so happens that His Majesty wants to have a look.”