Free Web NovelChapter 2348: Chapter 2323: Suggestion
Yang Heshu glanced at him and then laughed, "You should return. If you can make it back to the capital before the New Year, that would be ideal. If not, arriving on the second or third day might calm the Emperor’s mind a bit."
After all, rushing to the capital during the New Year shows they aren’t deliberately wasting time.
Although, considering the time they’ve spent, it’s not very convincing.
Bai Shan looked at Manbao and asked Yang Heshu, "Is the Emperor really that angry?"
Yang Heshu replied grumpily, "What do you think?"
He continued, "Zhihe mentioned that General Ashina praised you endlessly upon his return, saying that you parted ways only in Shazhou City, and because you had many people with you, you were slower."
"The Emperor originally thought you’d be slow—about five or six days slow—and should have returned to the capital by now. But it’s been nearly half a month, and still nothing."
"Oh, and you probably don’t know, Junior General Guo returned home with the coffin seven days ago, passing through Xiazhou. He should be in the capital by now," Yang Heshu said. "I asked Junior General Guo about his departure, and he left Xizhou three days later than you, yet he’s already back. What do you think the Emperor will think of you?"
Manbao and the others were first surprised, then delighted, "Junior General Guo returned home with the coffin?"
Yang Heshu acknowledged that this matter was no secret in court; only Zhou Man and the others, being far from the political center and on the road, hadn’t heard about it.
"Shortly after Lord Chai left, the Emperor regretted his decision, so he reinstated General Guo’s position with a new decree and sent people to welcome him back to the capital for the funeral."
The Emperor has always been generous to his meritorious ministers. Many generals who fought alongside him were given funeral rites by the Ministry of Rites, and the Emperor often attended the funerals himself as a sign of mourning.
Yang Heshu said, "The Emperor is much softer than before."
In the past, if a general made such a significant mistake, he wouldn’t have been let off so easily, let alone have the imperial decree changed.
"But just because the Emperor is lenient, don’t take advantage of it. You’ve wasted too much time on the road this time; prepare to plead guilty when you return."
Manbao and Bai Shan could only reluctantly agree.
Yang Heshu looked at them and couldn’t help but smile, "Mistakes are mistakes, merits are merits. I heard you found a way to inoculate against smallpox this time?"
Manbao nodded and briefly explained the process and effect of the inoculation.
Yang Heshu was thoughtful and asked, "May I see your data and medical cases?"
Those were crucial data. Hearing this, Manbao had no objection and said she could show him the records later.
Manbao felt someone tug at her hand. Looking down, she saw Brother Qi curiously staring at the red tourmaline on her hand.
This was the red tourmaline that Bai Shan procured after visiting three stores, making four bracelets in total, layered on Manbao’s hand. They were particularly eye-catching and beautiful.
Indeed, they were particularly attractive to children’s eyes.
Manbao extended her arm in front of him, smiling, "Isn’t it beautiful?"
Ms. Cui laughed, "This child, I don’t know what’s going on. Obviously, he’s a boy, but he loves these jewels and powders."
She worriedly glanced at Yang Heshu. She actually wanted to ask Manbao privately if such behavior in children was an illness.
But Manbao cheerfully said, "Children all like shiny things. If he likes it, let him play with it, but keep an eye on him. These are for looking, not eating."
Manbao thought for a moment and said, "Scholarly sister-in-law, you can use bright fabrics to make some toys for him. Children love vibrant colors and shiny things like these, but since these aren’t suitable to play with, give him something appropriate."
Ms. Cui was taken aback and asked, "Is this normal?"
"Yes, it’s natural," Manbao said. "Everyone loves beautiful things. Children, because they haven’t learned to hide their feelings, show it more openly."
Ms. Cui turned her head to look at her son leaning against Yang Heshu’s leg, then looked up at her husband’s face.
Yang Heshu had been smiling, but seeing his wife’s expression, he paused.
Ms. Cui was a bit jealous and couldn’t help but pout. She pinched her son’s face, feeling he was ungrateful. Despite spending most of her days with him and often taking him out to play, as soon as his father appeared, her son clung more to him.
Initially, she didn’t mind, but now she felt a pang in her heart.
Unaware of her thoughts, Manbao happily took out a box, opening it to show Ms. Cui, "Look, scholarly sister-in-law, these are gifts for you."
The gifts were from everyone, and Yang Heshu also received a good piece of raw jade that had been opened. Although it wasn’t polished, its quality was excellent.
Bai Shan said, "We found two such pieces of jade, both with good quality. So we thought to give one each to Senior Brother Yang and Senior Brother Tang. They can design something and have artisans make it."
Yang Heshu was pleasantly surprised by the translucent white jade, "It does look beautiful, thank you all."
What Ms. Cui received was a box of gemstones, personally selected by Manbao.
She laughed, "These are truly local specialties."
They brought back many gifts for friends and family, along with items they planned to keep or use themselves, not intend for sale. Altogether, it was quite a haul.
They rummaged through their luggage and found it hard to part with anything. Even Yin Huo urged Manbao, "When your niece arrives, ask if she can return with us."
Zhou Lijun arrived with Xiang Mingxue just as it was getting dark. She had her hair styled, clearly indicating her married status. Upon entering, she immediately embraced her sister and then went to find Zhou Man, "Aunt?"
Zhou Liru’s face was flushed with excitement, "Aunt is in the study talking about cowpox with Lord Yang, Second Sister..."
She glanced at Xiang Mingxue, who had entered not long after, and whispered, "Did you marry Second Brother-in-law?"
Zhou Lijun gently poked her forehead with a smile, "Aren’t you silly? You’ve already called him Second Brother-in-law, so how could I not marry him?"
Xiang Mingxue approached with a smile and saluted his sister-in-law, and Zhou Liru hurriedly returned the gesture, saying, "Aunt is in the study discussing cowpox with Lord Yang. Let me first show you our luggage."
Zhou Lijun asked, "What’s so special about the luggage?"
But when she went to the courtyard to see the pile on the cart and in the courtyard, her mouth dropped open, "Is this all your luggage?"
They already had plenty of luggage when they left, but how could there be three or four times more on their return?
Zhou Liru replied, "Yes, there are things we bought for ourselves, gifts for friends and family, and items to sell. Second Sister, you wouldn’t believe it, we stumbled upon a lair of bandits on the road, and it was filled with treasures. We couldn’t just leave it, so we ended up with quite a bit more stuff."
