Boss Zhou was looking through the list of pensions given by the Ministry of Households. He had been traveling for seven days since he came out, and he wanted to go to the farthest place on the list first, and then slowly walk back.
Minghui's face turned pale. It was the first time for him to go on a long journey, and he had to travel quickly. His father took this first mission very seriously. He was about to fall apart, not to mention having normal food and accommodation.
Minghui groaned, his butt hurting from sitting, "Dad, when are we going to get there?"
Zhou Changli felt sorry for his son. This kid looked like his mother. He loved his son very much. He raised his hand and touched his son's face. He looked thinner. "We'll get there tonight."
Minghui's eyes lit up, "It's finally here."
Changli closed the list and said, "Tujia Village, the farthest village on the list given to me by the Ministry of Revenue. We will stay in the village tonight."
The pension lists were compiled according to the statistics of each state. Because his father reformed the Ministry of Households, the records of the Ministry of Households were very detailed, which saved him a lot of trouble. He only needed to inquire in a low-key manner.
Tujia Village is very large, about twice the size of Zhoujia Village. From a distance it looks like a town. The ancestral hall can be seen in the distance, and there are several houses that are very conspicuous.
Minghui exclaimed, "The Tujia Village clan is quite large."
What Changli was thinking was that a total of five people died in the Tujia Village, three of whom had the same surname. The Tujia Village looked peaceful and the people were in good spirits, which showed that the clan was strict. He was more concerned about the children with the surnames Bu and Tong.
Changli and his party pretended to be merchants buying grain. There was a food shortage now, and merchants buying grain everywhere were the most numerous, so they would not arouse suspicion.
When we entered the village, we went straight to the head of the Tujia village.
The village head's surname is Wang, and Wang is a common surname in Tujia Village. Knowing the purpose of Changli and his party, the village head smiled bitterly and said, "Since the beginning of winter last year, no less than five merchants have come here. We have no food to sell in our village."
Changli was not surprised. The Tujia Village was huge, and it would be strange if merchants missed it. "That's a pity. We have been out for a few days and would like to stay in the village for two days to rest. Please trouble the village head."
As he spoke, the servant brought tea and other gifts of thanks.
The head of the village did not doubt it. He had checked the household registration and it was genuine. He also had a pass for travel. These could not be faked. His eyes fell on the thank you gift and he smiled more cordially: "You have been through wind and cold. It doesn't matter how long you rest. The house at home is big enough for you to stay in."
Changli said a few more words and went to the arranged room to rest.
In the capital, Zhulan was thinking about the letter from the boss, "The boss has been gone for seven days, and not a single letter has been sent back."
Zhou Shuren, "He is so focused on his journey that there is probably nothing much to write about."
"... ... It is indeed something that the boss can do."
Zhou Shuren asked, "When are Jiang Sheng and his wife going to set off?"
Zhulan: "I haven't asked yet."
"Ask when to leave and ask Jiang Sheng to come."
"What did you find him for?"
"I took his suffering to the palace to show it to the emperor. The emperor thought it was good and said that I could put more of it in the propaganda newspaper. I asked him to draw more pictures and send them back."
Zhu Lan sighed, "Who would have thought that Jiang Sheng had this talent."
"Yeah, I didn't expect that either."
Zhu Lan added, "I heard from Mingrui that he has a day off tomorrow, and he invited Liu Yuanbo and Yu Yueyang. Mingrui is very wary of people, but Lord Yu's second son caught Mingrui's eye."
Zhou Shuren paused while stroking his beard. "Let Yuyi take a few peeks tomorrow."
Zhu Lan thought of Yu Yueyang's appearance and smiled, "I know what's going on."
Zhou Shuren also laughed. His fourth daughter had a stern face, which could scare her younger sister to tears. His wife said that Liu was not bad and it was time to get to know her. Even though some people said that Yuyi should be the eldest daughter-in-law, he felt that Yuyi was capable. But wouldn't it be good to live a more relaxed life
It's not easy to be a clan wife. You have to set an example in everything and it's too tiring.
The next day, Liu Yuanbo arrived not long after the Zhou family's door was opened. Guo was helpless. Fortunately, the two families were proactive in getting engaged so it was not considered rude.
Mingrui was leading people to decorate the garden. Seeing Liu Yuanbo, he rolled his eyes inwardly, "You are so proactive."
Liu Yuanbo thought that he had to be proactive. The money was still to be discussed. Actions didn't cost money, so he would definitely put everything first. "I'll see if there's anything I can do to help."
Mingrui pointed at the busy maid and servant, "No need."
Liu Yuanbo looked around, hoping to see Yudie in the garden.
Ming Jing knocked on the rice cake and said, "Don't look. The sisters know that Brother Mingrui invited outsiders, so they won't come to the garden."
Liu Yuanbo reached out and grabbed a piece of rice cake, took a big bite, and said with a smile: "It's delicious."
Ming Jing, "!!"
He was kind enough to tell her the news, but someone actually stole his rice crackers!
Mingjing tilted her head to look at Brother Mingjia. No one knew what Brother Mingjia was thinking. He missed his brother Minghui. Brother Minghui had already helped him bully his brother back home.
Shangguan Liu and others arrived one after another. Yu Yueyang arrived neither early nor late, and he felt very uncomfortable.
Mingrui felt it and asked, "Are you feeling uncomfortable?"
Yu Yueyang felt even more uncomfortable, "It's okay."
Seeing that everything was fine and Mingrui was still smiling foolishly, he stopped paying attention.
Why did Yu Yueyang feel uncomfortable? Because he heard the conversation between his eldest brother and his father. His eldest brother said that the fourth daughter of the Zhou family was good and asked his father to try harder. He was confused and was thinking about the fourth daughter of the Zhou family in his mind. He really didn't pay much attention!
In the main courtyard, Zhulan got the news and asked Qingxue to find Yuyi. She expressed her feelings without hiding anything. Yuyi was still a girl, so she blushed and said, "Grandma, I don't need to watch secretly."
Zhulan: "Hmm?"
Yuyi burst out laughing, "Two big dimples, my granddaughter was so impressed."
Zhulan couldn't help but laugh, "This child is a big-hearted person who loves to laugh."
Yuyi blinked and said, "Grandma, I'm going back first."
Zhulan nodded, "Okay."
As soon as her granddaughter left, Zhulan said to Qingxue, "This girl will definitely meet Master Yu today. Do you believe it?"
Qingxue smiled and said, "Believe me, the fourth lady has her own ideas."
"The children at home are sensible, so I don't worry about them."
In Tujia Village, Changli took his son to tour the village. Minghui was basically dragged along. Changli gritted his teeth, "Look at what you look like? Walk properly."
Minghui yawned, "Dad, we finally stopped traveling, but you dragged your son out to walk around the village at dawn. Your son is sleepy."
All he wanted now was to sleep.
Changli twisted the brat's ear and said, "Your grandfather asked you to help me."
"I'm giving Dad some advice. Walking around the village in the morning is the easiest way to find problems."
Chang Li was about to speak when he saw a frail child in front of him coming over with two bundles of firewood on his back. He looked at the child in front of him, then at his son, who was about the same age, and motioned for his son to stand still.
The boy walked with his head down, breathing heavily with every step. He carefully came to a door and shouted for firewood. A woman came out of the house, took out half a cake, and two bundles of firewood were carried in. The boy happily ran away with the cake.
Minghui whispered, "Dad, let's go and take a look."
Changli: "Yeah."