The next morning, Zhulan got up. Zhou Shuren had already written a reply to Wu Ming. Zhulan read the letter once. She thought Zhou Shuren would tell Wu Ming to keep a low profile recently, but unexpectedly, “You actually told Wu Ming not to hold back and to fight back when necessary?”

Zhou Shuren took Zhulan’s hand and explained, “I thought about it all night. Based on my understanding of the Emperor, I feel that the Emperor’s rejection of the memorial for the mourning period is not only because he dislikes Wu Ming but also because he wants to push Wu Ming. I went through the plot again based on what you said. If we hadn’t been involved, Wu Ming would only have taken the preliminary examination this year. I’m really afraid that if Wu Ming is too patient, the Emperor will take his place again.”

Zhou Shuren paused and said, “Once Wu Ming is favored, and given the Emperor’s previous anger towards him, it’s inevitable that the Emperor will use him harshly. At that point, Wu Ming will become a tool in the Emperor’s hand again. Once the tool is no longer useful, it will be time for reckoning, and Wu Ming will still face a tragic end. This won’t do! I’ve put in so much effort, and you’re worrying about the Wu family. I’m still waiting for Wu Ming to repay the Zhou family in the future. I can’t do a losing proposition.”

He had been too busy the past few days to think carefully about Wu Ming. Yesterday, however, his mind was clearer, and he thought more deeply. This deeper thought led him to realize the problem, and he didn’t sleep well last night, fearing he had made a losing proposition. He got up at dawn to write a letter.

Based on his understanding of the Emperor, the Emperor was currently casting a wide net and hadn’t paid much attention to Wu Ming yet. He needed to help Wu Ming now; otherwise, Wu Ming’s fate would be sealed. Once he was in the Emperor’s hands, there would be no way to save him.

Zhulan hadn’t noticed the Emperor at all. If Zhou Shuren hadn’t mentioned him, she would have simply thought the Emperor disliked Wu Ming. Zhulan was speechless; every step the Emperor took was carefully planned!

Zhulan said softly, “I truly sympathize with the princes.”

Zhou Shuren was speechless.

He also felt sorry for the princes. With such a father, the princes thought their little schemes were discreet, but the Emperor was watching them all. From the Pinggang incident, he knew the Emperor was using his sons to purge the princes’ maternal clans!

The princes still had teeth now, but after the purge, they would have none left. A prince without teeth—it was pitiful to think about.

Zhou Shuren still felt that the Crown Prince’s ascension to the throne was highly likely!

Zhulan took the pen and wrote another letter, explaining Wu Ning’s situation and focusing on what had happened. Only by knowing what had happened could she address the problem effectively; otherwise, Wu Ning wouldn’t get better without resolving his inner conflict.

Then Zhulan asked about the studies of fifteen-year-old Wu Yong and thirteen-year-old Wu Ting.

Wu Yong’s talent wasn’t as good as Wu Ming’s, so he didn’t participate in the preliminary examination this year. Now that the two brothers were with Wu Ming, Zhulan had nothing to worry about. The letter ended with a simple message: take care of yourself and stay healthy.

At the county government office, the Wu family had just finished breakfast. Wu Yong looked at where his younger sister was sitting. “Brother, is little sister almost at Lizhou City?”

Wu Ming replied, “She should be there.”

Since the Zhou family came to take his younger sister away, no one had mocked him for being a jinx. He truly regretted it; he should have sent her away directly in the first place.

Wu Ting pursed his lips. “I wonder if the Zhou family treats little sister well.”

If there hadn’t been any other way, he really didn’t want his younger sister to leave. She was close to him in age, and they were very close. He was genuinely worried.

Wu Ming was also worried, but he trusted his godmother. As long as his godmother was there, his sister would be fine. As for his godfather, he chuckled. He felt that he was the one who understood his godfather the most. His godfather was cold at heart, and he didn’t care about anyone except his godmother. He once doubted how such a cold person could be a good local official, but he was proven wrong.

His godfather taught him a lot about governance, and he realized that his godfather was genuinely kind to the people, which made him feel ashamed.

In the distance, the three Wu brothers were thinking of Wu Ning, and Wu Ning was thinking of her brothers.

Looking at the food on the table, Wu Ning knew the Wu family couldn’t compare to the Zhou family. Her eldest brother had earned some money from fur trading in the past two years, but her three brothers were still unmarried and saving for her dowry. The Wu family’s meals were always simple.

Xue Han put food on Wu Ning’s plate. “Don’t just look, eat more.”

Wu Ning looked at the delicate buns. “Okay.”

After breakfast, Zhulan asked Xue Han to accompany Wu Ning to the orchard for a walk. She felt that seeing nature would help ease her mood.

With Steward Ding accompanying them, Zhulan wasn’t worried. In fact, even without Steward Ding, just the servants would have been fine.

Zhou Shuren’s reputation was even higher than last year, all because the Li family sent vermicelli to the Qi family, and the Xu family came to deliver a recipe and silver to the Li family, also buying a considerable amount of vermicelli to take back. In ancient times, there were no export procedures requiring quarantine, so the Xu family thought the business was viable and tried short-haul sea transport.

Unexpectedly, the Xu family’s trial was quite successful; this time, they not only came to Lizhou City to purchase in large quantities but also signed long-term contracts. The potatoes and sweet potatoes in Lizhou City were sold even before the harvest and at a higher price than last year.

In addition, Zhou Shuren rented out some ice cellars to merchants from both the Zhou dynasty and foreign tribes, dividing the proceeds into three parts: one part was used to continue repairing dikes, another part to repair roads, and the last part was saved as a precaution against unforeseen circumstances.

These were all good things for the people. In fact, the people are simple; whoever can make their lives better will have a higher reputation.

Fortunately, last year, the Zhou family demonstrated to the people through their actions that the Zhou family would not accept gifts from them; otherwise, even more people would have come to the Zhou family to deliver goods this year.

With apples about to be sold again, the people’s lives will be better.

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren both understand that Zhou Shuren will definitely leave next year; the Emperor didn’t want any official to have too high a reputation in the provinces.

For several days in a row, Xue Han took Wu Ning around. Wu Ning’s condition has improved considerably; she takes her medicine and eats on time every day and has gained a lot of weight.

The wives of officials in Lizhou City also know that a young girl has come to Zhulan’s house, but no one has invited her, not only because Wu Ning was in mourning but also because of her reputation for bringing bad luck to her family.

(End of Chapter)