Chapter Six Return to Beijing

  (Favourite it and give me a thumbs up!!!!!)

  Guarjia watched Shu Yao use the early meal, and then arranged to sort out her luggage in front of Shu Yao. In the early years, Zhiyuan and his wife only brought a few servants when they left Beijing, and their entire family property was not worth a thousand taels of silver. Zhiyuan was sent by the Duke's Mansion to Guangzhou, originally serving the Zhiyuan family who could not bear the hardship of giving birth, took the shortcut back to the Duke's Mansion in Beijing, Zhiyuan and Guarjia did not stop her, now except for Guarjia's dowry Wang, most of them were bought by people later and signed a death contract.

  After more than a decade of managing the household, Guwalgiya was skilled in financial management. The family's wealth had increased significantly compared to before. Last year, when pirates attacked, she and her husband not only repelled them and protected Huizhou City but also took advantage of the situation to make some extra money on the side. Guwalgiya ordered Wang to sell off some unnecessary items, exchange the silver for silver notes, and keep them on hand, so as to avoid arousing envy and trouble from the people in the duke's mansion.

  Shu Yao was drowsy, who let her stay up late at night to plant radishes? Shu Yao was a noble lady surrounded by servants and maids waiting on her at all times. Except for sneaking out at midnight, she was always accompanied by attendants. How could Shu Yao disappear without a trace? The servants and maids were not fools, they couldn't keep an eye on Shu Yao, and would be punished in front of Guwalgiya.

  Xiu Yao nodded frequently, sitting and dozing uncomfortably. Occasionally, she heard Wang Nai Nai report to Guwalgiya Shi how much silver had been received and how much was spent on dismissing the servants. Guwalgiya Shi recorded each item one by one, "Calculating like this, we can recover the silver..."

  "Eight thousand nine hundred and sixteen taels two mace." Xiu Yao said casually, Gua Erjia was confused by Xiu Yao, "Yao'er, what did you calculate?"

  "Hmm." Shu Yao leaned against Gual Jia's body, and indeed felt much more comfortable. Calculating numbers was what Shu Yao was best at; her mental math skills were comparable to a calculator. Simple addition and subtraction were easy for her. Gual Jia pinched her daughter's cheek, "Is she right?"

  "Not a single penny is missing, the girl is really good at her job."

  "You'd better praise her, Yao'er is blaming us for disturbing her." Guwalgiya put Shu Yao back on the bed, with a look of pain and love in her eyes. She fanned her daughter with one hand while sighing: "When Shu Yao was born, even if I was careful, she wouldn't sleep this soundly."

  "You can rest assured, the doctor has examined her and said that our young lady's body is well-nourished and healthy. She likes to sleep because she has no one to play with, she doesn't like needlework or reading classical books and travel notes."

  The old lady Wang's words implied that except for sleeping, Shu Yao had nothing to do. Guwalgiya was amused by her, and her daughter Shu Yao had skin as white as snow, with a luster like pearls. Guwalgiya was at ease, ordering Taozi to take care of Shu Yao, while she herself was busy again, unable to leave any part of the house.

  Half a month later, Shu Mu Lu Zhiyuan took his family and left Huizhou to return to Beijing. Zhiyuan did not want to disturb the people, so he set off at dawn when the sky was still hazy. Many Huizhou citizens gathered at the city gate, and the respected local gentry held a package of dust.

  "Please inform His Excellency the Governor of Huizhou local customs."

  Zhiyuan got off the carriage, with hot tears rolling in his eyes, and choked with sobs: "What virtue or ability does this official have to trouble fellow villagers to see him off? This official thanks fellow villagers."

  He bowed to the ground, Zhiyuan accepted the land of Huizhou, and after more than ten years of operating in Huizhou, there were people to see him off, which was enough. Zhiyuan did not take the umbrella of the people, after drinking the farewell wine, Zhiyuan took his family and left, Guajia dropped the green car curtain.

  "Your mother is great."

  "Uh-huh."

  Shu Yao hasn't been to the space to plant radishes for days, but today she's in high spirits. After seeing what just happened, Shu Yao feels a sense of pride, "E Mama assisted Ama and made great contributions, the legend of E Mama will be left in Huizhou City. There's the eldest brother who won top honors in the imperial examination three times, the second brother who is clever at dealing with pirates and brought reinforcements to save us, you are all legends."

  Gual Jia's eyes sparkled as she gazed at her daughter, "Don't you want to become a legend?"

  Shu Yao shook her head seriously, "I won't make it, Mother. I just want to live a leisurely life and muddle along until my death."

  Shu Yao rubbed her forehead, which had been knocked by Guajia, and pursed her small mouth, "Mother."

  Guarjia pulled down Shu Yao's arm that was covering her head and warned, "Yao'er, be more cautious with your words in the future, hide some of your thoughts. Mother will try to pave the way for you as much as possible, but mother can't watch over you forever, there will come a day when you'll leave mother."

  "Are you worried about the Duke of Jing's residence? Do we have to live in the duke's residence?"

  Before the division of property, we have to live in the Duke's Mansion. The Duchess mentioned that it was not unexpected that she would be annoyed by the Duke's Mansion, her husband was reluctant to inherit the title, and the Duchess did not want to fight for it. Seeing those annoying people again made her so angry that she wanted to whip them a few times to vent her anger. "Their faces are as thick as each other, setting up an array of Swan Goose Banquets waiting for our family, just thinking of trampling on your Ama forever, we can never turn over, they would be happy."

  Is that so? Shu Yao had never met such a wonderful relative, grasping the arm of Gualjia and saying with conviction: "You will not let them have their way."

  Gua Lijia smiled silently, her eyes flashing with excitement, and stroked the cheek of her daughter, "Yao'er, what did I teach you?"

  Shu Yao shook her head, indicating that she didn't remember. Guwalgiya poked Shu Yao's nose and said, "I won't bother others if they don't bother me, but if someone steps on my foot, I'll return it tenfold. Remember this, Mother."

  "Uh-huh."

  "Guarjia said: 'When you and your mother first got married, I had a belly full of fire. The other day we didn't have the ability to tolerate the old lady's many difficulties. Now that we're back in Beijing, we don't fear anyone. With Master's achievements, he will definitely be promoted. The Duke's mansion looks like a flower-covered brocade, but it's actually an empty shell. The old lady is counting on being the first daughter of the Anqing Wangfu to become a noblewoman, thinking that she can live a life of luxury and wealth just by managing the silver shop? Hmph, don't even think about scheming against me again. My mother is worried that there's no one to practice her skills on. The old lady has been scheming for a lifetime, with many experiences under her belt. Let me try my hand at it.'"

  Shu Yao saw that Guwalgiya was in high spirits, and those who were enemies with E Niang would not even have a place to cry. E Niang was not only fierce but also very calculating in her dealings, often gaining benefits after dealing with people. Shu Yao thought she couldn't learn from her even if she tried, as the memories of her past life were too deep. She relied on Guwalgiya and clung to E Niang's leg, leaving everything for E Niang to settle.

  "I remember you saying that the old lady only had two daughters, and that Eldest Aunt married a son of the Anqing Wangfu as a concubine to become Furen, what about Second Aunt?"

  "She was born with a beautiful face and a talent for poetry and painting, especially fond of romantic poems and melancholic autumn reflections. She would often shed tears at the slightest provocation, lamenting the fleeting nature of life, and even the falling of flowers would move her to sorrow. She delighted in elegant pursuits such as admiring plum blossoms in the snow, or gazing at lotus flowers on rainy days, a true embodiment of a refined and artistic young woman."

  "What happened next?"

  The old lady looked at her with a mocking gaze, and it was clear that the outcome would not be good. Guwalgiya said: "The old lady had hoped to rely on her talent to tie up another noble family, but she did not expect to be lured away by a scholar with a poem. Afraid of being exposed and ruining her reputation, the old lady reluctantly agreed to this marriage, hoping that the scholar would pass the imperial examination and live up to her expectations. However, the scholar was only superficially talented, and he looked down on fame and wealth as if they were dirt. How could he possibly pass the imperial examination?

  Your second aunt was not good at managing the household, and her husband spent his days reciting poetry and painting. What's the use of that? In just a few years, they squandered all the dowry given by the old lady. The poor couple was miserable in everything, and they often quarreled. Your second aunt said she had been blind to have married him, as he was hot-tempered. Originally, his wife was supposed to be his soulmate and beauty, but his fiery temper eventually killed her. Your second aunt was so angry that she died of anger. The old lady used all her strength to cover up the matter. Fortunately, heaven took pity on them, and she became pregnant with a posthumous child. After handling her husband's funeral, she gave birth to a daughter named Li Zhiqing. The old lady pitied her daughter and brought her back to the mansion to raise her until today.

  "Is it my cousin?"

  "Li Ziqing is said to have inherited her mother's good looks and her late father's noble character, she is a renowned talented lady in the capital city, and is old Mrs. You's most favored person, I heard from others that she is even better than her mother, she is a clever one."

  Gua Lijia reminded her daughter: "Yao'er, don't be calculated by her"