jdhmnovel Chapter 111 The prince is here
Chapter 111 The prince is here
Before leaving the Northwest, the Emperor had sent envoys to Xiaoxi Village. Firstly, to announce that the wronged families of Xiaoxi Village had been exonerated and could return to the capital; secondly, to announce the bestowal of titles upon Zisu, who had now become the Princess of Yulin.
On the way back to the capital, the second madam was unusually well-behaved. Although she wasn't exactly affectionate towards Zisu, she no longer dared to give Zisu a hard time.
The eldest princess couldn't help but sneer inwardly.
It seems my second sister-in-law is afraid of Princess Zisu's status. Moreover, everyone is saying that Prince Duan has feelings for Zisu. Perhaps it won't be long before Zisu becomes Prince Duan's principal wife. So, my second sister-in-law is afraid!
With the status of a princess and a queen consort, plus the daughter of a dignified general protecting the country, how could the second sister-in-law not be afraid?
My second sister-in-law has always been a bit of a bully, picking on the weak and fearing the strong. Even before the Jiang family knew Zisu, she was already showing this tendency. It's just that she wasn't as obvious then!
The relationship between Hua'er, Yue'er, and Zisu has grown increasingly close; they're not sisters, but closer than sisters. Hua'er, in particular, has great respect and affection for Zisu. Perhaps because she has such an unreliable mother, she seeks warmth from Zisu.
To travel from the northwest to the capital, one must pass through Yulin County, which means passing near Wuliping.
Zisu declined the princess's invitation to stay in the capital and insisted on going to Wuliping, with her uncle's family accompanying her.
The news that Zisu was coming back had been received by Aunt Li three months ago. From the moment she received Zisu's letter, Aunt Li, along with her daughter-in-law, thoroughly cleaned up the Little Stone Pool. Furthermore, she bought a plot of land near the pool and began building her own house.
A month ago, the Li family's house was completed, and Aunt Li moved out of Xiaoshitan with her family. Then, she, along with her son and daughter-in-law, and several strong laborers from the village, renovated Xiaoshitan.
Li Mao is already married; his wife's name is Lihua, and she is a girl from the next village.
Hearing that Zisu was coming back today, the old clan chief led over a hundred people to wait for her under the big banyan tree at the village entrance.
"Welcome, Princess Yulin! May you live a thousand years!"
Zisu's carriage arrived at the village entrance, where a group of people were already kneeling on the ground. The person kneeling at the very front was none other than the old clan chief with gray hair.
Upon seeing this, Zisu felt a pang of sorrow in her heart. She quickly jumped off the carriage and rushed over to help the old clan leader up. With tears in her eyes, she said, "Sixth Grandfather, what are you doing? You are Zisu's elder. It hurts Zisu so much to see you doing this!"
The old clan chief, supporting Zisu's hand, stood up unsteadily: "Good child, you are a princess bestowed by His Majesty, a princess who has performed many great deeds for the people. It is only right and willing for this old man to kneel before you! Our Shangguan family of Wuliping has produced such a good girl as you, and Sixth Grandfather is overjoyed!"
The grandfather and grandson chatted as they walked to the entrance of the Little Stone Pool.
The old clan chief said, "Alright, I won't go in. You must be very tired after just getting back. Hot water is ready, so hurry up and take a bath and change your clothes, then get some rest. Lunch will be ready in a quarter of an hour! After you've rested enough, I'll come over for a chat tomorrow morning!"
Today, the old clan chief sent his two daughters-in-law to Xiaoshitan to help Aunt Li prepare the meal. At this time, they heard that Zisu had returned and should have already started cooking! To welcome Zisu's family and the Yu family back home in glory, the old clan chief also specially sent his son and two hunters from the village to catch some wild game in the mountains.
After the old clan chief finished speaking, he ignored Zisu's attempts to persuade him to stay and insisted on going home.
Looking at the old clan chief's hunched back, his gray hair, and his faltering steps, Zisu finally couldn't help but shed tears.
For over a year, Shangguan Chengfeng's family had come to Wuliping countless times to carry out various forms of retaliation against the old clan chief. On one occasion, in order to protect Xiaoshan from being brutally beaten by Shangguan Chengfeng's henchmen, the old clan chief rushed over, only to have his right leg broken by a henchman's stick.
Zisu learned about these things from the letters Li Mao gave her.
"Mother, we must treat the old clan chief even better in the future!" Zisu said with tears in her eyes.
Madam Yu: "Yes, Mother understands. It's only right."
Zisu: "When Father comes back, we'll find a suitable opportunity to ask the imperial physician to examine Sixth Grandfather's leg and check his health. Ah, if only Master were still in the capital! If there's a chance, I'll definitely ask Master to examine Sixth Grandfather!"
Madam Yu: "Well, let's do it this way. Your sixth grandfather has done a great favor for our family. Back then, if it weren't for protecting our family, your sixth grandfather wouldn't have offended Shangguan Chengfeng."
Zisu: "Sixth Grandfather will definitely not accept money from me. How about this, I'll send him some tonics, chicken, duck, and fish every few days. What do you think?"
Madam Yu: "That's excellent. Do whatever you want, no need to ask your mother. Whatever you give to your sixth grandfather, your mother will have no objection!"
Zisu couldn't help but grin happily, reaching out to take Yu's arm: "Mother, you're so kind! You're such an open-minded and generous elder. It's such a blessing for me to have such an easy-going mother like you!"
"You're so sweet-talking!" Madam Yu rolled her eyes at her, but her heart was filled with sweetness.
She was very pleased that her daughter was both kind and filial.
Returning to her long-lost home, Zisu was filled with emotion.
Having gone through the exile period, everyone matured a lot.
My mother has become much more assertive and stronger; she is no longer the seemingly weak and easily bullied woman she once was. My uncle, Yu Zhe, is more composed and wise than before, giving off an aura of unshakeable strength.
My younger brother, Shangguan Yi, no longer picks at his food; at the dinner table, he's so well-behaved he doesn't seem like a four-year-old. My younger cousin, Yu Han, is as sensible as a little adult.
Zisu's temperament became even stronger, more resolute, and more composed.
As for my maternal grandmother, she is even more kind and approachable than before.
The next day, after breakfast, the old clan chief took his grandson, Xiaoshan, to Xiaoshitan. Looking at this family, the old clan chief couldn't help but sigh deeply, recalling the saying, "Reading ten thousand books is indeed not as good as traveling ten thousand miles!"
He had reason to believe that these two families, having experienced exile, would be able to face any future changes with strength and courage, without feeling that the sky was falling or despairing about the future.
Yu Zhe was appointed Minister of Personnel, instantly becoming a second-rank official.
The former Minister of Personnel was from the Mei Guifei's maternal family. He had committed many illegal and unethical acts with the Song family and was exiled after his family's property was confiscated. Naturally, his family's original three-courtyard mansion became the residence of the newly appointed Minister of Personnel, Yu Zhe.
Yu Zhe rested in Wuliping for five days before taking his grandmother and Yu Han back to the capital. Yu Han's servant and page, Duanwu, also went to the capital. Yu Zhe strongly invited Zisu and her family of three to move to the capital, but Zisu firmly refused. Yu Zhe also said that he would wait for Zisu's father to return in Wuliping.
Yu Zhe had no choice but to leave with regret.
The Shangguan Chengfeng family was also raided and exiled. When the family was being escorted to the harsh Northeast, Zisu happened to be visiting her uncle in the capital and unexpectedly ran into the family on the street.
Looking at Shangguan Chengfeng's ashen face, Zisu smiled charmingly: "As the old saying goes, fortunes change every thirty years. Who says that those who live at the bottom of the valley can't rise to the top one day? Uncle, am I right?"
Upon hearing this, the bloodstains on Shangguan Chengfeng's face vanished instantly. Recalling the past, he couldn't help but tremble with fear. He knew he had been incredibly cruel to Zisu's family in the past. Now that Zisu's father was alive, and she was the Princess of Yulin, would she take advantage of their misfortune and make their situation even worse?
Seeing his expression, Zisu gave a knowing, cold laugh: "Don't worry, you're all already drowning dogs, I won't go to the trouble of beating you up. What I want to say is, you can't lose your conscience, otherwise you'll eventually get your comeuppance! In the future, I hope you'll do less evil and not tarnish the reputation of the Shangguan family!"
After saying this, Zisu got into the carriage and drove away quickly.
Shangguan Chengfeng stared blankly, shuffling forward woodenly as the officials shoved him. In that instant, he felt a pang of regret. If only he hadn't been so arrogant and had stayed in his post as a seventh-rank county magistrate. If he hadn't returned to the capital, even if Zhihua and Consort Mei had become deeply entangled, the Shangguan family wouldn't have been subjected to confiscation of property and exile.
This is truly a case of one wrong step leading to another!
His entire family was ruined by his shameless daughter, Zhihua. If he didn't have such a daughter, how could he have ended up in such a miserable state? At the very least, he could have gone back to Wuliping to farm!
Shangguan Chengfeng felt a surge of hatred when he thought of his daughter, Zhihua. Ever since the day the Marquis of Changning's title was stripped, this daughter had become a completely different person. Not only had she suddenly become very capable, but she also wouldn't even bother to call him "Father" whenever she saw him, as if she looked down on him as her father.
At this moment, Shangguan Zhihua had been sold into slavery, becoming a lowly, menial servant. In the backyard of a wealthy household, she performed the most arduous and menial tasks—carrying water, chopping wood, and sweeping the courtyard. If her movements were even slightly slow, or if she didn't put in enough effort, the whip would fall heavily upon her.
This was simply unbearable for Shangguan Zhihua, who had transmigrated from another era. Not only was she deprived of personal freedom, but she also had to eat meager rations every day, constantly hungry and cold, and work from dawn till dusk.
Within days, her mind and body had reached their breaking point. Finally, one day, she took poison and committed suicide!
Upon hearing this news, Zisu couldn't help but sneer.
In her past life, she was poisoned to death by Shangguan Zhihua and Madam Qian. In this life, it is Shangguan Zhihua who commits suicide by drinking poison. Madam Qian, on the other hand, had long since gone mad and died by running into a wall on the day Xiao Fan was arrested.
Xiao Fan's family was also exiled to the harsh and cold Northeast. However, unlike the Jiang family, they were not fortunate enough to be taken care of, and they had no money to bribe the officials. Several of them died on the way.
Princess Rong'an, Xiao Fan's mother, also died of illness on the way, her body left to rot in the wilderness. This greatly shocked and devastated both Prince Rong'an and Xiao Fan. Prince Rong'an's hair turned white. The last vestige of sharpness in Xiao Fan's eyes finally vanished.
From then on, he became a mediocre and useless person.
Upon hearing this, the wounds and pain buried deep in Zisu's heart for many years finally dissipated. Having avenged the hatred of two lifetimes, it was time to repay the debt of gratitude!
In her past life, the only person who had ever helped her was someone she had to repay in this life. She didn't yet know where that person was; she had to wait patiently.
During this waiting period, Zisu reclaimed the Banana Plantation, Sunflower Plantation, and Peach and Plum Plantation. Furthermore, she replanted fifty acres of sunflowers in the sunflower garden, and planted peanuts on the remaining two hundred and fifty acres.
So far, the Western Liang Kingdom has not cultivated peanuts on a large scale, and peanut oil has not been widely promoted. Zisu only pressed some peanut oil herself when she was in Wuliping, and originally intended to promote it to the Hao Ri Zi Restaurant, but before she could realize this, the Princess had an accident.