Without Hua Zhi, the backbone of the Hua family, they became more cautious. Except for necessary shopping, almost no one came in or out every day.
Wu put down the account book and looked at Yingchun and the others who were busy but not chaotic. "According to the date, the eldest lady should be back soon."
Several senior maids smiled immediately, when the young lady was not around, they felt nervous every day. Although they did these things when the young lady was around, she was by their side. As long as she was with them, they felt at ease and confident.
Liu Xiang walked in quickly, "Fourth Madam, Mr. Wang wants to see you."
Wu knew that Mr. Wu's surname was Wang, but he was always very well-behaved. He had deliberately avoided her when she came to the front yard to handle things these past few days, let alone coming near her.
Since there was something unusual, Wu calmed down and said, "Please come in."
Wang Rong came in without looking around. He greeted with lowered eyebrows and handed the package to him with both hands. "Master was entrusted by the eldest lady to bring it back. The reason will be known to the fourth lady after reading the letter."
"Zhi'er hasn't returned yet?"
"yes."
"Thank you for your help, Mr. Wang." After taking the package, Mrs. Wu nodded to Wang Rong.
Wang Rong bowed and left.
When she opened the package, the letter on the top was for her. Wu could tell at a glance that it was her husband's handwriting.
After opening the letter, she felt sad when she saw the familiar handwriting, but when she read line by line, the sadness turned into shock! Even her hands began to shake involuntarily.
Yingchun and the others looked at each other and felt a little uneasy.
Wu bit the tip of her tongue to calm herself down, read the letter from beginning to end again, closed it and handed it to Yingchun after a moment of silence. The master was right. They should not let the whole family know about these things. Even if they knew what Zhier had endured outside, someone should have written it down first and shared her burden.
Yingchun and the others were watching together. Baoxia choked up when she saw the content, "Injured again, how could he be injured again? He gets injured every time he goes out, how can his body get better?"
When Wu heard this, she thought of the smell of medicine on Zhi'er's body after she came back from the south, and immediately asked, "How did Zhi'er get injured before? I remember that the last time she went south, she brought you with her."
Bao Xia wiped his eyes and said, "The lady doesn't allow me to say it."
"I already know that, I just want to know more clearly."
Bao Xia originally wanted to let the masters of the Hua family know how hard their young lady worked, so she said, "It was because of a business. A business with a bad reputation in the local area came to harass the young lady because it didn't get the business from her. The young lady didn't want to conflict with the locals so she avoided them. Unexpectedly, the man was unwilling to give up and later fell in love with the young lady. He intercepted us at the dock when we were leaving, and the young lady was injured there."
Mrs. Wu thought of what the master said in the letter and asked, "When did Zhier learn the art of self-defense? The Hua family never hired Mr. Wu before."
Yingchun was afraid that Baoxia would say something inappropriate, so she took over the conversation and said vaguely, "Miss practiced it herself."
"It's hard for her." Wu sighed. If she didn't know some self-defense skills, the Hua family really didn't know what kind of heavy price they would pay this time. "Don't tell anyone about this, so as not to make everyone panic. Just do as Zhi'er said and say that the fourth master is sick and needs her care."
"yes."
Wu took the letter back and read it again, then she let out a long breath. From now on, she would need to pay more attention to the affairs of the Hua family's inner chambers. It didn't matter if people said rude things to her, as long as Zhi'er didn't have to worry about the inner chambers after finishing her work outside.
As August approaches, the temperature in Yinshan Pass becomes noticeably cooler, especially at night, when it feels a bit cold even with a thin blanket.
Now that she was not in the imperial city, she did not need to be so cautious about everything, and the people around her were not the women and children who needed her constant protection. Hua Zhi finally did not have to be so tense, and even her sleep improved a lot. She had gained some weight during the time of recuperation.
The happiest people during this period are the younger generations of the Hua family. They finally don’t have to go to work. Although they have adapted to it over the past year, it is really great not to have to chisel and move stones!
Want to learn horseback archery? No problem, they have practiced it before, but they are not very good at it.
Studying the Art of War? That's great, the Art of War is also a book, and they have all read a few of them.
Sandbox simulation? Great! This is more fun than some of the games they played in Beijing!
The Hua family, which was deserted during the day, became noticeably lively. When Hua Zhi was not reciting military books, she would watch battles everywhere and got to know everyone's basic skills almost perfectly. Wu Yong also fulfilled his promise and gave everyone in the Hua family a special token. He also asked each of them to show their face in person so that people would remember them. They could enter and leave the barracks freely with their faces and tokens.
Hua Zhi felt that she should return the favor, so she wrote two copies of Mr. Siqing's book on military strategy, one for her family and one for Wu Yong. However, she only wrote the first volume because she had only finished reading it so far and had not yet fully understood it. She never reads books in a hurry.
Wu Yong was naturally a connoisseur of good things. For him, such a generous gift was totally impossible to refuse, and he even hoped to get the next volume.
"Please make a copy for General Wu next time you come."
Wu Yong looked at her deeply and bowed solemnly, "Thank you for your generosity, Miss."
"General Wu, you don't need to thank me. I am just being generous to others. Mr. Siqing certainly doesn't want his hard work to be in vain."
"… "
The two of them were practicing Tai Chi back and forth, and Shaoyao yawned as she listened. These two people were so boring.
Wu Yong smiled when he saw her like this, "Let's play a couple of games?"
Shaoyao then became energetic and ran out, "Let's try a different terrain today."
Wu Yong bowed and turned to follow.
"General Wu."
Wu Yongzhong turned around again and asked, "Miss, do you have anything else to say?"
"It's not a serious matter." Hua Zhi rubbed her wrist. She had been holding the pen for a long time recently, and there was no one to serve her. Her wrist was a little sore. "Peony has a child's mind. General Wu, just go and do your own thing. Don't delay. I've recovered a little now, so I can play with her."
"I haven't missed anything. The only one who can compete with me now is Shaoyao. I can make some progress playing against her every day. I am happy to play a few games with her every day."
"Did General Wu forget something?"
Wu Yong felt uneasy and didn't respond.
"There are differences between men and women. I can bear the gossip outside for her, but she is the one who is truly in the game."
Nowadays, it is said in the city that Wu Yong has taken a fancy to the eldest daughter of the Hua family, so he comes to visit every day and stays for an hour or two. It seems that good things are about to happen.
Hua Zhi didn't care what the outside world said. She had rejected Hua Pingyu's attempts to refute the rumor. This was nothing and she could handle it. However, she was not happy to see Wu Yong and Shaoyao being too close. No matter how rough Shaoyao was, she was still a woman, and a woman in her prime. She was afraid that she would be tempted.