Chapter 492 - 493: Local Customs

Chapter 492: Chapter 493: Local Customs

Jin Qianqian wrapped her arms around him too. "You should get to work. Lichun and the others will take care of everything."

As she spoke, she quickly let go. ’If I keep hugging him,’ she thought, ’I won’t be able to let him leave.’

Ancient Wen Heng felt the same. He had to pull himself from the room while he still had some self-control. "Wait for me."

Only after seeing the master out did Lichun and the others dare re-enter the main courtyard, leading a group of servant women to begin their work.

After all the moving and resettling on their journey, they had become quite experienced. It didn’t take long for them to give the entire main courtyard a fresh new look.

Ming Feng had already run to the back office to tell the servants to boil water immediately. Then he hurried to a nearby restaurant to order several tables of food.

The master had already instructed him on these tasks several times. If he messed up again, he’d probably have to relinquish his position as the master’s right-hand man.

The moment Ancient Wen Heng appeared, Lu Shenggen asked with curiosity, "Mr. Gu, you were in such a hurry just now. Did something happen?"

Ancient Wen Heng grinned at him. "Nothing major. My wife and children have arrived."

He Gaofei was speechless. A sudden pang of envy struck him.

Wu Yichen was also at a loss for words. ’When will my family be able to join me?’ he wondered. ’Unfortunately, my mother needs to be cared for back home, so my wife probably won’t be coming.’

Lu Shenggen fell silent. ’Serves me right for running my mouth,’ he thought.

Lu Shenggen forced a smile. "Congratulations, Mr. Gu, on having your lovely wife and children join you."

"Thank you, thank you," said Ancient Wen Heng. "I suppose your families will be arriving soon as well?"

At that, Ancient Wen Heng rubbed his nose. ’Maybe I’m being a bit too smug.’ He saw their expressions darken and figured their families had no plans to come.

"Ha," He Gaofei let out a dry laugh. "Sir, you were just mentioning water storage. Do you have a plan in mind?"

"Here’s what I was thinking..."

Word of the Prefect’s wife’s arrival quickly spread throughout the city.

Zhou Shixiong heard the news as well and immediately had two cartloads of goods prepared and sent to the Prefect’s back office. He sent a message saying that after they had rested for a few days, he would come to properly welcome his sister-in-law and two nephews.

The young couple had been reunited after a long separation, and he wasn’t so tactless as to intrude while they were still in the throes of their reunion.

＆

Now that Jin Qianqian and his two children were living in the back office of the prefectural residence, Ancient Wen Heng started returning to the rear courtyard right on time every day.

Spurred on by the sight of the happy family, He Gaofei and the others wrote several more letters home. After being separated from their own families for so long, they too yearned for a reunion.

Their subordinates had suggested they find themselves respectable concubines here, and it wasn’t that they didn’t want to. But they simply didn’t have enough silver on hand. Finding a concubine required capital.

They suspected their wives back home had conspired together. Aside from a small allowance from the clan, the women held onto their dowry silver tightly, likely to prevent this very scenario.

They had initially wanted to bring their household concubines with them, but what was it their wives had said?

’Mr. Gu is traveling alone, and on such a fast-paced journey, how could you possibly have time to care for a woman?’

’Even just to make a good impression on your superior, you shouldn’t appear so eager for female company.’

Back then, the thought of coming to such a dangerous place had already made them feel a bit timid. And those charming consorts at home, who normally seized every chance to vie for their favor, were even more terrified of being brought along and had avoided them during that time.

It wasn’t that the men hadn’t noticed. They just found it all rather disheartening, so they simply listened to their wives and brought no one.

But now things were different. Mr. Gu had his beautiful wife and young children with him, enjoying the bliss of family life every day. How could they not be green with envy?

Unfortunately, the letters they sent vanished as if they were stones dropped into the ocean.

Lin Dapeng had specially escorted Jin Qianqian on this trip. After resting for a few days, he was preparing to return, taking with him some local specialties that Jin Qianqian had procured.

Jin Qianqian said, "On your way back, follow my instructions and deliver the letters and goods to each household. If any urgent matters arise at home that you can’t handle, go directly to Hu Dong. He will help you resolve them."

Before her departure, she had already made these arrangements, even taking Hu Dong around to meet key people, all to ensure there was a contingency plan for emergencies.

"Yes, Madam," said Lin Dapeng. "I’ll take my leave now."

"Safe travels," Jin Qianqian replied. "And remember to take good care of Qingzhu."

Lin Dapeng hadn’t originally needed to make this trip, but Qingzhu, his wife, had been worried and insisted that her new husband escort them.

Naturally, Jin Qianqian wouldn’t play the villain by hastily sending him back after only a few days of rest. Besides, if Lin Dapeng delayed any longer, Qingzhu’s baby might be born before he got back.

After spending a few days exploring, Jin Qianqian also heard from Ming Feng about the tremendous changes that had occurred over the past few months.

She once again lamented how slowly news traveled. With such world-altering changes happening here, word probably hadn’t even reached Shangjing yet. ’If it had, I wonder how many people would be filled with regret?’

＆

The following days were peaceful, yet life was filled with a newfound vitality.

The population of Lu City was small, but the land was vast. Even so, after a year of hard work, the people could barely fill their own stomachs.

But ever since the newly appointed Lord Prefect brought them improved farming tools, they could cultivate twice as much land as before, even relying purely on manual labor.

This newly reclaimed land came with a three-year tax exemption. If they were diligent, they could have a prosperous year.

The bandits they had once constantly worried about were no longer a threat.

The Lord Prefect had long ago issued a proclamation: anyone who reported or captured bandits would be entitled to all the crops produced by the captured bandits’ forced labor for the first three years.

This was essentially a business with no startup cost. Now, every village was secretly gearing up, waiting for the autumn harvest to make their move. When they weren’t busy with farm work, they were training with the soldiers.

Aside from the immobile elderly and babes in arms, it was as if the entire village population had become soldiers.

Jin Qianqian noticed this phenomenon after just a few trips out of the residence and was left speechless. It made her secretly hope for the autumn harvest to arrive sooner; she really wanted to see the look on the bandits’ faces when they were caught.

Ancient Wen Heng smoothed her hair. "The people of this border city have always been tough. It’s just that in recent years, their enemies have become increasingly despicable, their methods more and more vile, causing the people to temporarily lose their fighting spirit."

"All I did was give them a conviction—a chance for revenge. It’s only natural that they would strive toward that goal."

Ancient Wen Heng truly didn’t feel it was his accomplishment. ’When people have been oppressed for a long time, they will revolt as soon as they’re given a lever.’

He had merely given it a slight nudge. The current reaction was entirely within his expectations.

"Our household should join the training too!" said Jin Qianqian.

"Aren’t they already training with Master Wu every day?"

Jin Qianqian pointed to herself. "The children and I will join in too."