Chapter 769 - 771: Finally Home
"You agreed to return to the capital within a year? Isn’t the usual time for assignments abroad three years?" Bai Ruozhu asked with confusion when the topic came up during their casual conversation on the road.
Jiang Yichun plays with a strand of her hair, winding it around his finger as he casually said, "That’s for officials assigned to local posts, who typically spend three years before they are transferred or return to the capital. Some of them return early, but I was assigned by the Emperor to supervise the Northwest Main Camp, and I can be called back at any time. Therefore, I made an agreement with him for one year."
"The current Emperor succeeded to the throne at a young age, and the former Emperor did not have the time to clear the obstacles for him before he died of illness. As a result, he has been under the oppression of relatives and military generals for the past two years, which has caused him a lot of trouble. He has to rely on those old-fashioned loyal ministers, and he also wants to support some young confidants. I have a childhood friendship with him and have no entanglements with those powerful families, so he trusts me a lot," Jiang Yichun explained.
Bai Ruozhu nodded in understanding. If he were still Elder Jiang Ge’s rightful grandson, the Emperor might have been wary of him. But as he has no family power nor marital ties, he can help the Emperor with more caution.
"However, the emperor doesn’t seem to have a good impression of me. He even said that I’m not worthy of you," Bai Ruozhu said with a pout.
Jiang Yichun scratched his nose awkwardly and said, "The emperor is used to being pampered. He doesn’t know how to be tactful when he speaks. Isn’t he not obstructing us now? Even Princess Diao Bin has accepted the reality. Before she left, she said she would marry someone who truly loves her."
Now that things had turned out this way, they were all happy. Bai Ruozhu smiled and said nothing more.
"The emperor’s decision to send you to Beiyu City... it can’t be that simple, can it?" she suddenly asked.
Jiang Yichun couldn’t help but flick her forehead, laughing as he said, "Women should not be too smart and should pretend not to know certain things."
Bai Ruozhu swatted away his hand irritably. Yet, her heart remembered her elder brother who also loved to flick her forehead. She couldn’t help but feel a sense of melancholy. She wondered how he was doing. Had he really given up on Tu Ying?
"I can’t pretend. We should discuss such matters. Even if I can’t help you, at least I’ll know what’s going on and won’t be caught off guard," she suggested.
Jiang Yichun thought for a bit before nodding. She was not the ordinary woman. She showed the qualities of a wise advisor in the face of womanhood. Concealing everything from her would only make her more uneasy.
The two continued on land before transitioning to river travel. Along the way, Dengdeng’s red spots on his face gradually faded. By the time they finished their journey along the river, they had completely disappeared. The couple breathed a sigh of relief. Although they knew the rashes didn’t affect his health, they still worried whenever they saw him and it caused them distress.
However, both Lin Zhenghui’s men and Jiang Yichun’s men were unable to locate Elder Shougu. As for the others, Jiang Yichun didn’t want to take the risk of looking for them. He feared that if they failed to neutralize the poisonous insect, they might leak the news.
Bai Ruozhu speculated that Furball hadn’t grown enough, or perhaps it still needed to consume other insects. It had to become stronger before it could help Jiang Yichun with the poisonous insect. However, they were unable to find any insects. There were few people in Zhongyuan who kept these insects, so it was not realistic to hope that Furball would quickly grow stronger.
The thought that Jiang Yichun would be in grave danger if he were severely injured or poisoned worried Bai Ruozhu. It felt as if her heart was being tightly gripped; she often found herself short of breath because of the anxiety.
After they transitioned to land travel, they head to the nearest Commerce Association. The association was the fastest source of information. Bai Ruozhu went to the association to see the letter she received from Lin Zhenghui.
"The sixth prince of Chengshui Country has arrived in the Capital City and proposed a marriage alliance to the Emperor, intending to marry Princess Diao Bin." Bai Ruozhu read out the important piece of news while looking at Jiang Yichun, both of them appearing reluctant to accept this.
Although Princess Diao Bin had been a rival in love, she hadn’t done anything harmful to Bai Ruozhu. Diao Bin had already stated she would give up, and it was hard for Bai Ruozhu to despise that kind-hearted princess. She really couldn’t bear to think of Princess Diao Bin marrying Zhou Jue, who was similarly a despicable person.
"What should we do? Should we send a letter to the Emperor, exposing Zhou Jue’s character?" Bai Ruozhu asked.
Jiang Yichun was silent for a moment before shaking his head, "The royal family is inherently ruthless. If the Emperor truly cherishes Princess Diao Bin, he wouldn’t let her marry Zhou Jue. If he’s determined to use her for a political marriage, even knowing Zhou Jue’s true character won’t change anything. Not to mention, the fact that Zhou Jue was raised as a princess is no longer a secret. The Emperor probably knows more than we do."
Bai Ruozhu opened her mouth, feeling sorry for Princess Diao Bin but didn’t know what to say. Princesses of the royal family may look like they’re born with a silver spoon in their mouth, but most of them are born to meet the needs of the royal family. For instance, they are either sent to an officer’s house to cement relations or married off to a foreign country to establish diplomatic relations.
The former situation was still tolerable. For the latter, they were uprooted from their home country and might not lead a comfortable life. And once relations between the two countries soured, the princess, who was married off for interstate diplomacy, was the first to suffer.
Bai Ruozhu sighed quietly. Their worries wouldn’t help, and they couldn’t change the situation. They could only hope the Emperor was a man of great affection.
Finally, the family was back in Beiyu City. As soon as Bai Ruozhu set foot in the city, she felt her eyes moisten. She did not have the same emotional connection to this place as Back Mountain Village or Anyuan Town. But her family was here. As soon as she entered the city, she felt the warmth of home.
The horse carriage drove directly to the Bai residence. Bai Ruozhu had sent a letter home before their departure. The letter must have arrived before they did, but she had not specified an exact date of arrival. So, her homecoming today was sure to be a pleasant surprise for her family.
Upon reaching the entrance to their house, Bai Ruozhu noticed a horse carriage parked there. It was not Wa San’s, nor was it big enough to be the Meng family’s. She was intrigued, wondering who the visitor could be.
Jiang Yichun got out of the carriage first and then helped Bai Ruozhu, who was holding Dengdeng, to step out. They walked up to the door and knocked. Bai Ruozhu, somewhat excited, called out, "Father, Mother, we are home!"
The door was opened by a little maid, but Lin Ping’er and Bai Yihong hurried over from the back when they heard Bai Ruozhu’s voice. Both of their eyes were red and moist. Bai Ruozhu also felt tears welling up in her eyes. She hastened forward to meet them.
"Ruozhu, you’re finally back! You must be exhausted from the journey," Lin Ping’er, who had taken her grandson from her arms, kissed the child’s cheek before diverting her attention to ask about her daughter’s wellbeing.
Bai Ruozhu sniffled, with one hand around her father and the other around her mother, she replied, "Everything went well on the road, it wasn’t that tiring. We just missed you guys."
Wan Caiyue, who was extremely pregnant, also heard the commotion and came out of the house. Seeing Bai Ruozhu, she quickened her pace, "Ruozhu, you’re back! Your parents have been eagerly waiting for you guys these past few days!"
Bai Ruozhu immediately let go of her parents and went to help her elder sister-in-law. She scolded her gently, "Elder Sister-in-law, you are going to be a mother now. You shouldn’t be so agitated. You have to be careful with your health."
Wan Caiyue apologized with an embarrassed smile, "I’m just too excited. Quickly, tell someone to fetch your elder brother and second brother over. It’s time for them to rejoice."
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Received the news today that there’s going to be another online "cleanup" campaign. Therefore, I’ve been spending the whole day modifying some of the previously written content, such as explicit romantic scenes between the male and female leads, to censor it accordingly. Thus, the time to write new Chapters was effectively taken up. For today, I could only manage to publish four Chapters to fulfill my commitment. I was thinking of catching up on my delay, but it seems impossible for now... And tonight, I will need to stay up late to continue editing...