novelkee Chapter 196 Busy
Chapter 196 Busy
"After his father's death, the Hu people, having avenged their great grudge, attempted to retaliate because the trade agreement had not been reached."
The Xie Family Army was established by my grandfather and father. My two uncles fought against the Hu people several times with the help of the Xie Family Army, with both victories and defeats.
However, for some reason, his uncle secretly colluded with a general of the Hu people. The current emperor was very suspicious and, once he decided to take action against the Xie family, he would not tolerate the existence of the Xie family army.
I delivered the letters from my uncle and the Hu general to the emperor, who then set a trap. You know what happened after that.”
After hearing this, Meng Fuqing finally understood why Xie Jin didn't carry the heavy burden of deep hatred; it was because he had already personally avenged half of his grudge.
The rest were the emperor and the Yang family.
They also understood why Xie Jin had a high nose and deep-set eyes, with features unlike the typical appearance of the Great Yan people; he was one-quarter Hu (non-Han) ancestry.
"You plan to target the emperor and the Yang family after you've been cured of the poison?"
"Yes."
Meng Fuqing frowned slightly. "If the antidote prescription is correct, why did you die by self-immolation in Meng Linlang's dream? Are the remaining three ingredients really that hard to find?"
“That’s right. Even if I searched for it myself, I don’t know if I could find it. Jade-like smoke is also very rare, as it only blooms in February and March, making it very difficult to find. Perhaps I didn’t find all three of these things in my dream.”
Before Xie Jin left, he told Meng Fuqing that to use the token, all she needed to do was show it to the manager of Chunxiaolou in the city.
Knowing she didn't lack anything, he considered this an early birthday gift from him.
Once the room quieted down, Meng Fuqing let out a soft breath. She had underestimated the Xie family's situation.
Knowing that Xie Jin would be away from Jing'an Prefecture for some time, she picked up the token on the table by the dim candlelight and examined it for a moment, thinking to herself, "This is probably Xie Jin's trump card."
However, she cannot reveal her true intentions openly.
The news that the strange events in Hanhua Village had been solved by an unknown female Taoist priest spread quickly. The next day, Lu Zhi went to the craftsmen's workshop again and soon brought back a bricklayer and a stonemason.
The decision to build the house was made quickly; Meng Fuqing had already determined his requirements—earthquake resistance, waterproofing, fireproofing, and moisture resistance.
As for the blueprints, she didn't intend to be unconventional. She directly selected a suitable and spacious two-courtyard blueprint from the craftsman. Since there were few people in her family, she suggested converting the few uninhabited small houses into bathrooms and toilets.
The craftsmen didn't find it strange at all; on the contrary, they thought some of the things Meng Fuqing proposed were very novel. As long as ventilation and moisture prevention were done properly, it would be much more convenient.
Finally, after the Taoist priest Yan He examined the feng shui and a deposit was paid, construction on the house began.
Since a house was being built, it was inevitable that the craftsmen and helpers would have to be provided with lunch. Before Meng Fuqing could ask anyone to help with the cooking, a woman from the village came to Shan Qiyu.
Finally, Shan Qiyu carefully selected two women who were both good cooks and quick-witted.
In this way, Meng Fuqing would not have to worry.
She used the room on the east side of the main hall as a storeroom, and even put a lock on the door, giving the key to Shan Qiyu.
The warehouse was filled with some grain. Meng Fuqing would occasionally go in and replenish the vegetables and meat using the supplies in his spatial storage. Shan Qiyu knew where the supplies came from and wouldn't ask any questions.
Truckloads of blue bricks and tiles were transported to the village, and Hanhua Village and Guojia Village were bustling with activity all day long.
The villagers of Guojia Village, who had never witnessed such a grand procession before, were abuzz with discussion. They felt that the new migrants were unlike any other migrants. Where else would a migrant settle down and have so many carriages and horses, and even build houses?
Some idlers wanted to go to Hanhua Village to watch, but they were shocked when they saw the scene at the village entrance from afar.
It was because a man was sitting leisurely under the big banyan tree in the village, leading a gray wolf.
The man in the carriage didn't react much, but Gray Wolf became alert when he saw the approaching stranger.
The villagers of Guojia Village were very puzzled. They heard from the village head's son that it was a white wolf, so how did it become a gray wolf? Did it fall into the chimney?
While the villagers were discussing it, Guo Lizheng still didn't believe the news that Hanhua Village had returned to normal after Guo Zifan brought it home.
Now he had no choice but to believe it.
When he learned that a doctor from Hanhua Village had been invited to the prefectural city by Lord Xu's confidant, his heart sank even further.
Only after the eldest son inquired did he learn that the doctor knew how to prevent epidemics, and the current epidemic prevention matters at the city gate were being arranged by this old doctor.
"Father, don't even think about embezzling these people's food. I don't know how deep the waters behind them are. Be careful not to make a mistake and capsize the boat."
These were the words his eldest son told him when he came home.
The reason why Guo Lizheng was able to stay in the village peacefully was twofold: firstly, his daughter-in-law did not like him at home, and secondly, he, as the father, listened to his son.
Despite his heart aching, he could only temporarily abandon the idea of providing relief grain. He was still thinking about when to go to Hanhua Village to give some gifts to the village chief and the wealthy Lu family in order to build a good relationship.
Busy at home, Meng Fuqing only went to the mountain in the morning. Unfortunately, several days had passed, and she had searched almost the entire mountain near Hanhua Village, but still could not find any trace of Yu Shengyan.
The space became even more abundant with wild animals.
After a couple of light rains, new green replaced the withered yellow, and everyone in Hanhua Village welcomed spring once again.
The villagers' homes were almost ready, and each family sent a man to help build the house. Meng Bochang then began to organize the villagers to reclaim wasteland.
The villagers of Hanhua Village mostly own land around the village. It used to be convenient to dig for wild vegetables here, but when it came to clearing the land, it became a headache.
The land, abandoned for many years, had grown a lot of weeds and saplings. These had to be cleared first, then the land had to be plowed and irrigated... In short, the work of clearing the land was very arduous.
The only consolation is that, as newly settled migrants, they do not have to pay taxes in the first year, only half in the second year, and only in the third year do they begin to pay the full amount.
There is enough time to thoroughly till the land.
Hanhua Village was bustling with activity, and Meng Fuqing quietly celebrated his fifteenth birthday.
Since she had never properly celebrated her child's birthday before, Shan Qiyu thought that this time the whole family should get together and have a good celebration.
After one's birthday, the coming-of-age ceremony should not be neglected.
However, at this moment, the busy yet peaceful village welcomed an uninvited guest—Qin Su.
"I'm looking for Meng Fuqing. Make her come out to see me now, or else..."
Qin Su sat upright on his tall horse, his accessories as elaborate as ever, but the coldness in his eyes was even greater.
"Young Master Qin, is it?" Lu Zhi crossed his arms and looked at the person on horseback. "Meng Fuqing is not in the village, but Miss Yan is. I can take you to see her."
It would be better if Yan He wasn't mentioned; as soon as Yan He was brought up, Qin Su's face turned frighteningly cold.
"Aren't you afraid I'll kill her?"
"If you can beat them, so be it," Lu Zhi said nonchalantly.
Yan He arrived just in time to hear this: "Hey, we're from the same village, shouldn't we stand together against a common enemy?"
Qin Su looked at her and sneered, "Since Meng Fuqing dared to lie to me before, why is she now a coward? Tell Meng Fuqing that if I can't see her, I will stay in a nearby village until she shows up."