Chapter 961 - 963 Shamelessly Seeking Benefits_1
Diao Yao knew that Princess Diao Bin had contracted a strange illness and was moved by compassion, tears streaming down her face as she spoke.
"Why are you crying? I’ve already seen hope, if your senior brother could be cured of such a severe poison, then Sister Ruozhu will surely think of a way to cure me," said Princess Diao Bin, suddenly smiling. Though her gauze cap hid her smile from view, one could tell from her tone that she must have smiled.
Upon hearing her cheerful tone, Diao Yao felt embarrassed to continue crying and wiped her tears vigorously, saying, "Yes, Sister Ruozhu is very capable, she will definitely find a way to cure you!"
Bai Ruozhu, who had just finished administering acupuncture and felt somewhat tired while packing up, happened to hear their conversation outside and a faint smile appeared on her face; she was pleased that they had so much faith in her.
...
These days, because of the announcement of the Rural Examination results, Bai Zepei had been ranked first, and with the Mid-Autumn Festival approaching, many families were hosting banquets. He was incredibly busy, with invitation cards arriving daily, sometimes requiring him to visit two or three households in a single day. Many invitations were courtesy of Mr. Xie’s connections, while others were from Meng Liangshen’s sect.
Mr. Xie had also ranked within the top ten, but the Bai family was so elated to see the large characters "Bai Zepei" that they didn’t pay much attention to the other names on the list.
Later, Mr. Xie joked, "The student surpasses the master. I have already been beaten by the following waves and left on the beach."
Bai Ruozhu also received many invitation cards but was solely focused on studying medical books and the Poison Scripture to find a cure for Princess Diao Bin. She declined all invitations and feigned illness to stay home.
After being busy for several days and nearly finishing his tasks, Bai Zepei suddenly mentioned at lunch, "Dad, Mom, I plan to find time to visit the clan and pay respects to our ancestors soon."
Everyone involuntarily stopped eating. Returning to worship the ancestors meant facing the grandparents, possibly leading to more heartaches. Yet failing to do so after passing the Imperial Examination might subject one to criticism, and in the future, it could even serve as an excuse for impeachment by the imperial censors.
Bai Yihong thought for a moment and said, "That’s fine. Let’s prepare and depart the day after tomorrow. Your mother will stay to take care of Caiyue, and as the eldest grandson, you must also go."
Lin Ping’er was somewhat worried but knew that taking care of her daughter-in-law and granddaughter was more important to her.
"Dad, I’ll go back with you. I also plan to meet with the clan’s Grandpa," Bai Ruozhu said, fearing that people might cling to her brother now that he was returning home triumphant. She had to go to feel at ease.
Bai Yihong didn’t oppose the idea. "Then talk to Yichun and see what he thinks."
"No worries, we should also visit our home, as we’ll be heading to the Capital soon and it will be hard to return later. Let’s also ask Uncle Zhou and his family if they want to go back with us," Bai Ruozhu added.
"Alright, I’ll go see your Uncle Zhou later," Bai Yihong replied.
That evening, Bai Yihong came back and said that Zhou Deshun and his family also wanted to return to the village to check on their rental affairs. Bai Ruozhu counted the number of people and arranged for the steward to prepare three horse carriages and some gifts for the journey.
On the morning of the departure, Bai Ruolan suddenly clung to Bai Ruozhu, refusing to let go, muttering, "Want to go, want to go."
Bai Ruolan had improved somewhat and could now speak a few words. Since she had been primarily cared for by Plum Blossom, she often clung to her and didn’t seek out Bai Ruozhu as much. Her sudden insistence likely meant she understood they were returning to their old home.
Lin Ping’er felt a pang of sympathy and suggested to Bai Ruozhu, "Take Ruolan with you, and have Plum Blossom come along. Having someone to look after her is better. Take her to the Wang Family for a visit. Once we leave, it’ll be thousands of miles apart."
Bai Ruozhu nodded and told La Mei to pack some clothes, planning to take the two of them along on the journey.
Before long, Zhou Deshun and his family hurried over; they had previously agreed to meet at the Bai Family home before setting off together.
However, when the maid opened the door, she discovered that there were quite a number of people outside, not just Zhou Deshun’s family of three!
Glancing over, Bai Ruozhu saw Zhou Deshun’s face filled with embarrassment. Zhou Deshun’s wife had an unpleasant expression, as if she was upset with someone. Zhou Chuang hung his head, looking very downcast.
To one side of the three family members stood the Zhou Family’s old granny, along with Zhou Taohua and her entire family.
Zhou Deshun gave Bai Ruozhu a strained smile and said, "Ruozhu, Uncle Dehai heard that we were heading back to the village and wanted to travel with us."
Even though Zhou Deshun was being circumspect, Bai Ruozhu understood that it likely wasn’t him who told them; it was possible Zhou Deshun had mentioned it to the elders, and somehow Zhou Dehai’s family found out.
Zhou Dehai smiled at Bai Ruozhu, rubbing his large hands and said, "Ruozhu, we’re not imposing on you, are we?"
Bai Ruozhu felt Zhou Dehai’s smile was exceptionally obsequious. The entire person had changed a lot and was different from when he was in the village.
She felt increasingly less fond of Zhou Dehai. If they wanted to travel together, they could have said so earlier, and she would have prepared an extra carriage. By not informing in advance and suddenly showing up at the doorstep, were they afraid of being refused, playing a game of ’act now, apologize later’?
Bai Zepei came out of the house, carrying a small bundle and spoke indifferently, "Uncle Dehai, why mention it only now? There aren’t enough carriages for everyone."
Bai Yihong and Lin Ping’er came out upon hearing the commotion. Lin Ping’er looked askance at Taohua’s mother, who, since entering the Bai Family yard, had been looking around restlessly. Her daughter, Zhou Taohua, was practically ogling Bai Zepei, her eyes nearly glued to him.
Lin Ping’er thought the mother and daughter were disgusting, but out of respect for Zhou Deshun’s family and the Zhou Family elders, she refrained from kicking them out directly.
"Zepei, we only found out last night that you were going back. We didn’t want to disturb you so late, or should I find another carriage myself?" Zhou Dehai said with a somewhat strained smile. While he talked about finding another carriage, he didn’t make any move to do so.
"Let it be, I’ll arrange another carriage," said Bai Yihong. He didn’t want to put Zhou Deshun in a difficult position, nor did he want to hurt Zhou Dehai’s pride, considering they were all from the same village and Zhou Dehai had acted as a middleman for the Bai Family’s first land purchase.
Since arranging for an extra carriage required time, everyone went to the main hall to rest. Lin Ping’er took the opportunity to hold Little Dengdeng a little longer, then whispered into Bai Ruozhu’s ear, "I reckon Uncle Dehai’s family is dead set on traveling back to the village with us, wanting to bask in the glory of your second brother."
Bai Ruozhu scoffed disdainfully, whispering, "They aren’t faring well in Beiyu City either; who knows what other schemes they might have."
"You must keep a close eye on them, that mother and daughter are no good. Look at how Taohua’s eyes are fixed on your second brother. Hmph, she doesn’t even look at what she is, thinking she can come and cause trouble for our family," Lin Ping’er said resentfully.
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The fifth update is here, oh yeah, asking for monthly tickets, please please please, throw them at me, muah~