Free Web NovelChapter 992: Chapter 987: Reluctant Farewell (3)
"Madam!" Lyuzhi saw Bihuai supporting Xiqiu into the courtyard and came forward to greet them: "Everything is well at home. The young master and Twelfth Aunt have both been sent back, Young Master Zhi is inside studying, and Fourth Master hasn’t returned yet!"
Xiqiu nodded, letting Lyuzhi help her remove her cloak as she stepped into the room, where she saw Zhi sitting cross-legged on the kang, absorbed in a book. Qingshan and Qingyuan were also sitting nearby, each reading a book, their voices resounding as they read aloud. Seeing her enter, the three of them set their books aside, and Qingshan and Qingyuan bowed and stood to the side, while Zhi joyfully called out, "Mother!" freeωebnovēl.c૦m
"What book are you reading?" Xiqiu picked up the book Zhi had put down; it was an Introduction to Phonetics. She laughed and said, "I heard the teacher was currently teaching the Three Character Classic. Why did you take out the Introduction to Phonetics to read at this time?"
Zhi replied with some embarrassment, "I didn’t learn well before... so I wanted to take another look."
Xiqiu chuckled softly, noticing several characters marked with a red pen. She pointed them out with her finger and asked, "What does this mean?"
Zhi rarely blushed, and responded, "Characters I don’t recognize." He then reassured Xiqiu, "Once I ask the teacher, I will definitely remember them."
"Not knowing and knowing to ask indicates our Zhi has made great progress." She said this while ruffling Zhi’s hair, handing the book back to him. Then she turned to instruct Qingshan and Qingyuan, "You two go and rest!"
Qingshan and Qingyuan nodded and left the room.
Xiqiu stayed and read with Zhi, who looked up and asked Xiqiu, "Mother, is Fourth Aunt sick?"
"No." Xiqiu hugged him: "Fourth Aunt has given birth to a baby. Now our Zhi has another younger brother." Zhi listened and laughed, nodding as he said, "Then I’ll go play with him another day."
Xiqiu smiled softly, holding Zhi. Just then, the door curtain was lifted, and Fourth Master Xiao strode in, snow accumulating on his head. Seeing his father, Zhi wanted to jump over merrily, but Fourth Master Xiao waved his hand, saying, "I’m cold." Then he went by the stove, took off his coat, and handed it to Bihuai to take away.
"Why are you back so late today, Fourth Master? Is there something in the court?" Xiqiu got off the kang and brewed tea for Fourth Master Xiao personally. Fourth Master Xiao rubbed his hands together and replied, "Liaodong has been snowed on for dozens of days straight, freezing all the crops. Huang Da has petitioned the court for relief, fearing that once spring comes, the people will run out of food." ƒгeewebnovёl.com
Xiqiu furrowed her brows slightly; no wonder she hadn’t received a letter from Tong Quanzi for over two months. She wondered how they were faring over there.
"And what does the Emperor say?" Xiqiu handed him the tea, and the two sat at the edge of the kang. After taking a sip, Fourth Master Xiao replied, "The matter is under discussion to transport grain from the Capital and Hu-Guang, but the journey is long, and it’s currently ice and snow everywhere, making travel difficult!"
The real worry is that disaster victims might seize the grain en route, right? Xiqiu looked at him and asked, "Will it be escorted?"
Fourth Master Xiao placed down the teacup, taking Zhi, who had jumped onto his back, and nodded, "There certainly must be escorts, but the personnel hasn’t been decided." It’s a difficult task, and few would volunteer. Smiling, he asked about the Zhou family’s affairs: "... I only heard about it this afternoon. Is Fourth Aunt and Lord Zhou doing alright?"
"Mother and child are safe, and Lord Zhou is alright too." Xiqiu mentioned her upcoming plans to assist the Zhou family, to which Fourth Master Xiao responded, "It’s cold, take care of your legs, and don’t tire yourself too much."
Xiqiu acknowledged this, served Fourth Master Xiao dinner, and as soon as they had put down their bowls and chopsticks, Tiancheng reported from beyond the curtain: "Master, there’s a Mr. Qin visiting outside."
Fourth Master Xiao raised an eyebrow and glanced at Xiqiu. Xiqiu was taken aback and asked, "Is this the second son from Tongxuan Hall? Do you have dealings with him, Fourth Master?"
"No," Fourth Master Xiao stood up, "He must need something from me," saying so, he took a cloak from the screen, put it on, and said, "I’ll go see." They had met last time in Shandong.
Xiqiu was just curious and personally sent Fourth Master Xiao out the door.
It wasn’t until later that night, after Xiqiu had coaxed Zhi to sleep, that Fourth Master Xiao leisurely returned from the outer courtyard. Seeing her waiting for him, he warmed her hands and said, "Why aren’t you asleep? It’s cold, you don’t need to wait for me."
"I couldn’t sleep," she replied, fetching water to assist him in washing up. Once in bed, Fourth Master Xiao shared with Xiqiu the matter of Second Young Master Qin: "It’s about the 800 mu of land in Tongzhou; he’s interested too." Not wanting to forcefully take the initiative, he came to negotiate.
Xiqiu raised an eyebrow. Next to her estate was a plot of 800 mu of land, owned by a family with the surname Zhou from Tongzhou. She and Ruan Jingliu both had an eye on it for growing medicine, never expecting Second Young Master Qin to also be interested. She asked, "Did he find out that Fourth Master was attempting to make the purchase, so he came here?" As expected, Fourth Master Xiao had to be involved in this matter, which wasn’t what Xiqiu had intended, but something that Ruan Jingliu had directly approached Fourth Master Xiao about.
Fourth Master Xiao affirmed and sent someone to handle the matter in Tongzhou.
"Hmm." He smiled and said, "He has several estates like this in Tongzhou, but none as good as this one. He’s been interested for a long time, but before he could act, we beat him to it, hence the negotiation." He paused, looking at Xiqiu.
Xiqiu seemed to understand why Ruan Jingliu was suddenly insistent on purchasing that 800 mu of land; the origin of this lay with Second Young Master Qin. Shaking her head, she said, "Fourth Master, you don’t need to look at me for this matter. You’ll have to ask Sister Jingliu."
Fourth Master Xiao chuckled and replied, "That’s exactly what I told him. If Nurse Zhang agrees, we husband and wife have no objections."
Saying this, the couple exchanged a glance, sharing a knowing laugh.
The next day, Xiqiu first went to the Tong Mansion and informed Madam Jiang about the Zhou Residence and Tong Xiyan’s affairs. Madam Jiang entrusted Xiqiu with many items, and she and Tong Shen Zhi went together to the Zhou Residence. After a busy day, Fourth Master Xiao fetched her back, and they talked again about the matter of escorting grain to Liaodong that had been mentioned the previous day.
She initially thought this arduous task would be thankless: if done well, there’d be no military credits; if done poorly, delaying the relief of the people of Liaodong would result in infamy. Hence, no one would want to go. Unexpectedly, someone in the court was eager to take this journey. Not only did Han Cheng request to escort the grain to Liaodong, but even Xiao Yanyi surprisingly volunteered to be a lieutenant, accompanying Han Cheng.
Han Cheng’s recent behavior, preferring to leave the Capital and not stay home, did not surprise her; it was only Xiao Yanyi...
"Second Brother is going?" Xiqiu furrowed her brows, thinking of Xiao Yanyi’s frail appearance. "Lord Han is accustomed to horseback riding for long durations, but Second Brother he..." She paused and asked, "Has the Emperor agreed?"
Fourth Master Xiao nodded, saying, "His intent was resolute, so the Emperor consented."
Xiqiu sighed.
