Deng Li was stunned, and raised her head in panic, "My little girl won't go back, don't leave your brother."
Her worst-case plan was to wait for her father to take her back to the Deng family. The best outcome, of course, was to stay with her brother at the Zhou Mansion. She didn't want to be sent back. If she was sent back, her efforts would not be in vain.
Zhulan was not discussing, she was just informing. She didn't need to bother with the child. Besides, the little girl was Deng Xiucai's daughter after all. The more Deng Xiucai was entangled, the more it showed that Deng Xiucai still cared about his daughter. "It's getting late. I have things to do. You should go back first."
Deng Li held her breath tightly in her heart. She still had a lot to say, but the difference in status made all her plans become imaginary. She was unwilling but could only leave. "I'm leaving now."
Zhulan waited for Deng Li to leave, then laughed, "I found that my mentality is really old."
In the past, she could still think of saying a few more words, but now she can't even muster the energy. Her mentality is becoming more and more like that of a housewife. She no longer cares about some things.
Mrs. Song didn't take Deng Li seriously. "Mistress is not old, you still have to watch the young master get married and have children."
Zhulan thought of her son who was sleeping soundly and smiled. Yes, not only would she have to watch her son get married and have children, but she would also have to take care of the little guy. She smiled as she thought about it.
In the imperial palace in the capital, the emperor had the situation of several affected states in his hands, as well as the government's handling of the situation. The emperor said quietly, "There is only one Zhou Shuren."
Even though he had people inform several state capitals of what Zhou Shuren had done, when the snowstorm really happened, various problems still arose.
The prince said: "Not everyone is as devoted to the people as Lord Zhou. Some officials still have selfish motives."
Even if I say it clearly, the emperor knows it. The city of Jinzhou, which is controlled by Lord Zhou, also approved silver. There was no corruption in Jinzhou, but in other places, haha!
The emperor thought about what happened in Jinzhou today and pressed his brows. It seemed that only Jinzhou could accomplish it.
The prince took the news handed to him by his father and fell silent after reading it. The aristocratic families were intertwined and Jinzhou had been sorted out several times. Zhou Shuren relied on his own abilities to control the government office. Although he had no family of his own, he had the ironclad support of Lord Wang and others, so he could be united. Coupled with the determination and support of Master Shen, the situation in Jinzhou was indeed not replicable.
The prince silently put down the memorial. Although the emperor was high and mighty, it was sometimes difficult to maintain balance. "Next year, Zhou Shuren will have been in Jinzhou for three years."
The emperor understood what his son meant, "It's not the right time. He is still too weak."
The power behind him is too weak to enter Beijing and compete with the power in the court. He wants to keep this lucky general.
In Jinzhou City, Zhulan looked at Li who was sitting there in silence, "What's the matter? Did you have a conflict with the boss?"
This shouldn't be the case. She has seen how strong Li's fighting ability is. The boss can only hide!
Li felt upset, "Mom, the income this month is much less."
Zhulan, "How much is missing?"
"Forty taels. Now most shops are closed. I only made twenty taels this month."
Zhulan was surprised. Su Xuan's pastry shop was really profitable. Although it was a shop with several branches, the income was considerable. "How much did you earn this year?"
Li was a little more energetic. "Thanks to the good fortune of the provincial examination this year, I made a lot of money. So far this year, I have earned more than 700 taels."
Zhulan said with emotion: "I have already made a lot of money."
Mrs. Li was still listless. "Mother, it's not much. You've seen Mingyun getting married in two years. Now Yulu is also engaged to the Wang family. Yulu's dowry will be much higher. And Mingteng, he's not a child anymore."
The more Li spoke, the lower her voice became. The eldest wife's assets had accumulated over the years and had accumulated a lot of wealth. In the past, the annual income was only a little over a hundred taels, but this year it could exceed a thousand. Adding her own few hundred taels, it seemed like a lot, but when she thought about her son and daughter's marriage, she felt that the money was too little.
Zhulan looked at the huddled Li and laughed out loud, "When the time comes, the government will pay for part of the betrothal gifts and dowry. Don't put too much pressure on yourself."
Li's eyes sparkled, then shrank back, "Mother, I've inquired about it. The dowry of Lord Wang's wife is sixty-four pieces, and the dowry of Wang's daughter-in-law is fifty-six pieces!"
She didn't know how much silver she had saved as a deposit. She was afraid that her daughter would be looked down upon and suffer a loss if she went to these powerful and wealthy families.
Zhu Lan was also upset when she heard this, "You are really diligent. I didn't even ask about it. Now that you are talking about it, I am already feeling depressed."
She had worked so hard to prepare a dowry for Xue Han, but now she had not even collected forty loads. She hadn't bought a shop or a farm yet. The more she thought about it, the more stressed she felt. It was time for her to earn money!
Zhou Shuren's voice came in, "Why are you feeling down?"
Li, “… . . . .”
No, how come her father-in-law came back in broad daylight? She was so scared that her soul almost flew away!
Zhulan looked up and saw Zhou Shuren had come in. "Why are you back?"
"I came back to change my clothes. What did you say?"
Why is Zhulan not in such a good mood
Li stood up quickly and said, "Dad, Mom, I'm going to go back first. You two can chat."
Having said this, he quickly retreated, patting his chest as he walked. Fortunately, he escaped quickly.
Zhulan laughed out loud as she watched Li run away. Li was really afraid of Zhou Shuren. "No, we just talked about the dowry. I just think the money at home is too little."
Speaking of which, the Zhou Mansion did not spend much this year. Each branch had its own property, which was sent to the mansion from time to time. A lot of money was saved on food, and all the money was spent on dressing up and favors. Most of the money from last year's income was saved, and this year's income was basically all deposited. There was also income from the fishery, but it was still not enough. It was time to prepare a property for Xue Han starting next year.
Zhou Shuren thought about his salary, well, it was not enough to cover the expenses of the whole family, so the bulk of his income came from rewards!
In the capital, the second prince Zhang Jingyang stopped Lao Wu and said, "It's rare to meet you on the street. Lao Wu, would you like to accompany me to look around?"
Zhang Jinghong had something on his mind and also wanted to inquire about something, "Second brother, please."
Zhang Jingyang smiled and took the lead, "Brother heard that Lao Wu's mansion also opened a porridge shop."
Zhang Jinghong, "Brother, I want to do my best. Come on, second brother, do you know who the guards around the prince are?"
He searched for a long time but found no information.
Zhang Jingyang said casually, "Old Fifth, I've discovered that not only does the Emperor treat you and the Crown Prince differently, he also treats you and us differently."
He and his third and fourth brothers have done many outrageous things behind the emperor's back, so why is it that the fifth brother makes the emperor so disgusted? I didn't think much about it before because they are all the emperor's sons, but now I think too much.
Zhang Jinghong's heart was pounding. As the person involved, he had the most say. He lowered his eyes. His uneasiness came from his second brother. Now his third and fourth brothers must have noticed it too. "Brother is joking. I don't understand."
Zhang Jingyang smiled and couldn't help but recall what his mother said: women are sometimes the most meticulous.
Zhang Jinghong stared blankly at his second brother leaving, cold sweat breaking out on his back. He turned around to leave, but stopped and stared straight at the door of the inn.