Abandoned Woman Busy Farming
Chapter 1505 - 1606: The Mystery of Dad’s Origin_1

Chapter 1505: Chapter 1606: The Mystery of Dad’s Origin_1

Others might not have known, but those Imperial Doctors were well aware that Jiang Yichun was Bai Ruozhu’s husband. They couldn’t help but laugh, feeling an added respect for their alliance leader.

How could a woman who commanded such respect from her own husband, one willing to serve her, be an ordinary person?

Over the past few days, the Medical Alliance had gained a reputation in Capital City. Bai Ruozhu had assigned two managers specifically to handle affairs: one was responsible for personnel records and organization, similar to modern human resources, while another managed regular operations and the scheduling of periodic activities, akin to modern administration.

Lin Zhenghui was still worried that Bai Ruozhu didn’t have enough people, offering to give her more workers, but Bai Ruozhu refused. She didn’t yet have much of a reputation in the Commerce Association, and having too many people would draw criticism, possibly causing trouble for her master as well.

Meanwhile, Liao Hongzhe insisted on becoming Bai Ruozhu’s disciple in private, and Bai Ruozhu reluctantly agreed. Although Liao Hongzhe was much younger than Jiu Sheng, he was still significantly older than Bai Ruozhu, which made her feel uncomfortable. Fortunately, she also had a disciple of a more appropriate age, Guoguo. However, both Jiu Sheng and Liao Hongzhe were less than pleased to find out that Guoguo was actually the first "big brother" disciple taken in.

In the end, Bai Ruozhu simply stated that seniority didn’t matter among her disciples and that they should be addressed by their names from now on. Both Jiu Sheng and Liao Hongzhe breathed a sigh of relief, but Bai Ruozhu found it odd—why didn’t they find it embarrassing to call a little baby "big brother", yet they didn’t feel awkward about accepting an eighteen-year-old girl as their master?

As the busy summer farming season arrived, Bai Yihong simply took Bai Zehao to live in the manor outside the city. Along with the workers, the two of them harvested crops in the fields. Bai Ruozhu visited them twice and noticed that her father and elder brother had gotten tanned, but they seemed incredibly spirited, and even excited. Their love for the land was something Bai Ruozhu couldn’t fully comprehend.

One day, Qi Qingyan arrived at the Bai Residence, expressing his desire to stay for a few days, which Bai Ruozhu immediately granted.

"Take me to meet your parents. It’s only polite to greet them since I’ll be imposing on your family," Qi said.

"My father has gone to the fields outside the city and won’t be back for a few days. My mother is at home, though she doesn’t care much for such formalities," Bai Ruozhu replied without much thought, smiling as she spoke. She then suddenly noticed a flash of disappointment in Qingyan’s eyes, but he quickly regained his composure, and Bai Ruozhu even thought she had been mistaken.

"Oh, alright, that’s fine. I’ll visit them together with your father when he’s back," Qingyan said. It made sense for him, a male guest, not to visit the female host alone as it would be inappropriate.

Bai Ruozhu found it strange and, after showing Qingyan to his guest room, couldn’t help but ask, "Uncle Qingyan, how was your stay at the Ministry of Rites Residence? Speaking of which, it’s quite a coincidence; they too are the Bai Family, and it really isn’t easy to differentiate."

Qingyan laughed, "I moved from that Bai Residence to this one; if I didn’t know better, I’d think I hadn’t changed residences at all."

As he spoke, he seemed to recall something, gazing intently at Bai Ruozhu’s face. Being a perceptive person herself, Bai Ruozhu quickly noticed his scrutinizing look and grew even more curious.

"Uncle Qingyan, are you eager to see my father? Also, you’ve been examining me the whole time; I suppose it has to do with Minister Bai, doesn’t it?" Bai Ruozhu asked directly. She had her suspicions, but it wasn’t proper for her to inquire of Bai Guanghe. Qingyan, however, was different. She had saved his life twice, and they had shared adversity, so there were fewer reservations in speaking openly.

"I remember once when I happened to encounter Bai Shilang at the Gu Family, and he fainted upon seeing me—surely, there must have been a reason?" Bai Ruozhu continued.

Qingyan’s body tensed, "You’ve guessed it already, haven’t you?"

Bai Ruozhu nodded, "But I want to know more specifics. My parents are getting older, and I don’t want them to suffer any more harm, so I must be cautious. Even if the other party is kin, if it will impact my parents’ lives, I won’t show any mercy."

"I know your temperament, and that’s why I hesitated, but it’s also not entirely certain. Anyway, let me tell you about Bai Guanghe, and you can decide how to proceed after discussing with your parents," Qingyan sighed.

With that, he began to recount the past, his whole being enveloped in sadness due to the loss of his wife.

When Bai Guanghe was young, he went to the Western Regions with the hostage prince Tang Gui, serving as one responsible for recording events under the prince. He wasn’t of a high rank, nor did he come from a particularly illustrious family, but the Bai Family valued scholarship and the Imperial Examination highly.

Bai Guanghe had passed the Imperial Examination at a young age, but since he was sent to the Western Regions, he seemed rather dejected and didn’t make friends with the locals. His acquaintance with Qingyan was accidental, and they didn’t quite see eye to eye at first.

During an incidental outing, Qingyan resolved an issue with the Barbarian Clan’s Princess Sangren. Sangren developed feelings for him, and later, she sneaked into Gaochang City searching for Qingyan. She wasn’t alone on her trip to Gaochang; a martial arts expert woman accompanied her.

The woman’s name was Jiao Yunyun, resembling a Jianghu heroine, a close sister whom Sangren had met during her travels. She helped Sangren cover her tracks to meet Qingyan but ended up meeting Bai Guanghe instead.

One was a martial arts expert, the other a scholar filled with literary grace—two entirely different people who, inexplicably, fell in love. As a result, Qingyan and Bai Guanghe also became good friends.

Due to Sangren’s status, both families strongly opposed Qingyan’s relationship with her, while Bai Guanghe’s family was too far away to interfere, coupled with Jiao Yunyun being an orphan, there was less resistance to their marriage. At that time, Qingyan and Sangren envied them greatly.

Eventually, it was Tang Gui who officiated their wedding. Bai Guanghe married the formidable Jiao Yunyun, and they lived in harmony and extraordinary love. Soon after, Jiao Yunyun became pregnant. Meanwhile, Sangren was being arranged for marriage by the Barbarian Clan, and with no other options, she and Qingyan fled from both families.

Since then, Qingyan and Bai Guanghe hadn’t contacted each other for decades, only sharing their subsequent stories after reuniting a few days earlier.

Before long, a Holy Edict summoned Bai Guanghe back to Danliang, accompanied naturally by his pregnant wife Jiao Yunyun. By the time the returning horsemen reached the Capital City, Jiao Yunyun’s belly had grown large, only about two months away from childbirth.

Bai Guanghe was promoted by the Former Emperor and was assigned to the quiet Ministry of Rites. For a while, he was indeed triumphant. But issues arose quickly; Bai Guanghe’s parents did not like Jiao Yunyun. They looked down on her for being a Jianghu woman without a family background, and with Bai Guanghe’s rise in rank, they felt their son had a bright future, and this wife, randomly picked from the outside, offered no help to his career."