Zhulan got off the carriage and found that the person she had just seen was gone. She looked around unwillingly but found nothing.
Qingxue saw the old lady's disappointed look and was puzzled, "Old lady, who did you see just now?"
Zhu Lan waved her hand, "I seemed to have seen Jiang An just now, but maybe I was mistaken."
Qingxue, "Master Jiang An?"
"Well, let's go."
Having said that, he returned to the carriage, looking less energetic. This time he did not look out the window, but gathered his cloak together and closed his eyes to rest.
The carriage drove away and Jiang An, who had been hiding in the alley, came out. Jiang An was wearing foreign clothes. When the carriage from the Marquis' Mansion passed by just now, his intuition told him that something bad was going to happen, but luckily he hid quickly enough.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but touch his face. Even though he had grown a beard, his grandmother could still recognize him. It was indeed his grandmother who loved him the most. Then he left calmly.
At the Ministry of Revenue, Zhou Shuren heard his wife coming to see him, and hurried out. He got on his own carriage, and saw his wife sighing, "Didn't it work?"
Zhulan told him what happened in the palace, "It should work, but I may not be the one in charge."
Zhou Shuren also felt that it was hanging by a thread after hearing this, "It's okay, this chance is gone, there will be next time."
Zhulan, "That's all we can do. It's getting late. Shall we go have lunch?"
"good."
After ordering food at the restaurant, Zhu Lan mentioned that she seemed to have seen her grandson Jiang An. Zhou Shuren raised his eyebrows and said, "I didn't receive any news."
"Maybe I saw it wrong."
Zhou Shuren didn't think his wife was wrong. "Did you see a big change in Jiang An?"
Zhulan recalled carefully, "I only paid attention to his face and nothing else. He had a beard on his face. I don't think about it anymore. I guess I recognized the wrong person. You also know that I am old and my eyesight is not as good as before."
Zhou Shuren kept it in mind. If it was really Jiang An, it must be something unusual that he came back without any news.
After the couple had lunch, Zhulan returned home.
Zhou Shuren returned to the Ministry of Revenue and met the King of Chu. "When did the King of Chu come?"
The King of Chu looked at Zhou Shuren and said, "I just arrived. Is there something going on at home, Lord?"
Zhou Shuren shook his head, "Nothing, is there anything that brings you to the Ministry of Revenue?"
King Chu, "I just received the Emperor's order, asking me to prepare to receive the child, so I specially asked the Marquis to go to the Royal Orphanage to see if there is anything missing."
Zhou Shuren had been thinking about it, so he stood up and said, "Okay."
The Royal Orphanage occupied a large area of land. In order to house the children, it occupied the homes of ordinary people. The imperial court did not occupy the land in vain and arranged houses for the ordinary people and gave them silver compensation.
The rooms were converted into large dormitory rooms with big kangs built inside, so more than 20 children could live in one room.
The quilt and clothes were all ready. The clothes were half-worn, and since they could be used, they did not buy new clothes in order to save money.
Zhou Shuren looked carefully and finally went to the granary where the grain was stored. There were not many fine grains, and they were all old grains. The rest were all coarse grains.
The King of Chu said: "This batch of grain was donated by me."
Zhou Shuren replied, "Your Majesty is very kind."
He didn't care that the food was stale. In these days of food shortage, it was good to have something to eat, not to mention nutritional supplements. Meat had become a scarce commodity on the market.
The next day, Zhou Shuren went to the morning court. Lord Yu had not attended the morning court in the past few days. When he saw him today, he said, "Lord Yu."
Lord Yu didn't look very good, "Lord Zhou."
Zhou Shuren knew that Master Yu had a headache these days, "Is the headache better?"
Lord Yu nodded, "I'm fine now. Thank you for your concern, Lord."
Zhou Shuren stroked his beard and motioned for Lord Yu to walk slower. "Would Lord Yu consider arranging a marriage for your second son?"
Lord Yu had nothing to understand about the smile in Zhou Hou's eyes. He and his eldest son were eager to marry Zhou Hou. "I have thought about arranging a marriage for Yue Yang."
Zhou Shuren thought, the Liu family is better, "Then we need to see each other carefully."
Lord Yu's face became much redder, and he looked excited. He never expected that his second son would catch the eye of Marquis Zhou. His son looked silly when he smiled, but he turned out to be a very lucky person.
Wang Ju was waiting in front. Zhou Shuren nodded to the adults and went ahead.
Lord Yu was so excited that he clenched his fists to suppress his excitement. He was thinking about who to ask to go to the Zhou Mansion to propose marriage. After thinking about it, the color on his face faded. Alas, the Yu family had no reliable friends in the capital.
Wang Ju glanced back at Lord Yu and whispered, "What did you say to him? Why is he so excited?"
Zhou Shuren, "I think his second son is good."
Wang Ju was surprised, "I thought you would choose a son for the fourth girl."
The fourth daughter of the Zhou family has a good reputation in the capital. In addition, the third son of the Zhou family has a bright career, so it is possible for the fourth daughter to be promised to the eldest son of a noble family and become a clan lady.
Zhou Shuren shook his head, "Too tired."
Wang Ju was stunned and then fell silent. She was indeed tired. Many things were beyond her control and the responsibility was too heavy. "I have never seen anyone who loves his granddaughter more than you do."
Zhou Shuren snorted, "I'm the best grandpa."
At Zhou's house, Zhulan waited for the female official to leave. Before she could come to her senses, she waited for a while. Zhulan's eyes curved and she said, "Leave it to me. Really leave it to me."
Not only was it handed over to her, but an order was also issued. Although it was not the original plan to proceed slowly, she was not afraid.
Qingxue followed with a smile and said, "Yes, the Queen Mother will leave it to you."
Zhulan paced back and forth in the room excitedly. After she calmed down, she picked up the list given to her by the Queen Mother. This was the donation that the Queen Mother took the lead in making.
The list included 100 dan of grain, cotton, cloth, etc. It was very complete.
Zhulan felt sad that it was always the common people who suffered and it had no impact on the rich and powerful. She signaled Qingxue to prepare paper and pen. Since she was in charge, Zhou Hou Mansion would also have to donate.
Led by the Queen Mother, the noble families had to donate supplies even if they were reluctant. These things were start-up supplies.
The Queen Mother's order soon spread throughout the capital, and the donation list was also made public. The Queen Mother wanted to set up a private orphanage, and the person in charge would be Lady Zhou Hou. The noble ladies in the capital were stunned.
Of the Zhou family's relatives, Tao arrived the fastest, which shows that she has a good grasp of the news in the capital. Tao asked in disbelief, "Is what's being said outside true? The Queen Mother set up a private orphanage and asked you to be in charge?"
Zhu Lan smiled, "Yes, according to the Queen Mother's order, I will be responsible for the construction of the civilian orphanage."
Tao's pupils shrank. Even if it was a private orphanage, she shouldn't have handed it over to Zhulan. She calmed down for a while and asked, "You, how did you do it?"
The Royal Orphanage takes in orphans of soldiers and is under the charge of the King of Chu. Private orphanages should also be under the charge of men, but this is the first time that it has been handed over to a woman.
Zhulan knew that this incident would shock many people, but she was not afraid. She had the confidence that the Queen Mother would send someone to assist her. "I didn't do anything. The Queen Mother valued my ability."
If this matter is successful, not only will the child be saved, but the woman's status will also be improved. Just thinking about it makes her happy.
Tao was still dizzy. She knew that Yang was powerful, but she didn't expect that she was powerful enough to do the job. The private orphanage was not run by the capital itself. The country was too big and involved all the states.
Zhu Lan smiled and said, "Don't be in a daze, take a look at the supplies donated by the Queen Mother and the supplies donated by our Zhou Hou Mansion."
Tao looked at the two lists. Yes, the Queen Mother took the lead in donating, and the Wang family also had to donate. This time, the whole family had to donate. "Let me take a look."