Reborn as a Happy Wife in a Rural Family
Chapter 153: Failed to Steal the Chicken and Lost the Rice

Chapter 153: Chapter 153: Failed to Steal the Chicken and Lost the Rice

They had tried to outsmart her but ended up creating more trouble for themselves.

The two handfuls of powder Wuqing had scattered both landed on Qingchen, deepening his poisoning and leaving him completely immobile.

However, some of the secret guards who were farther away or ran faster managed to escape unharmed.

Qingchen was furious. That woman’s poison is incredibly powerful; I seriously underestimated her. Once I capture her, I’ll take her life. Such a venomous woman... if I tried to use her, I would inevitably be poisoned by her sooner or later. I will not keep anyone who refuses to serve me alive, no matter who they are. I thought I didn’t mind her being married to someone else, that I didn’t find her distasteful, but she continually rejected me. And she even humiliated me like this! In my entire life, the ones I hate most are women who turn against me. Gu Qingli and that despicable woman who harmed me – both of them will pay dearly for this!

「 」

In the horse carriage, Gu Qingli closed her eyes, her thoughts beginning to churn. Right now, I’m not thinking about how Qingchen will treat me after this loss, but rather, he should be thinking hard about how I’m going to deal with him. I, Gu Qingli, may be a peasant girl here, but I’m not one to be trifled with. Red Leaf Villa, huh? One day, I will make Red Leaf Villa my Gu Qingli’s Red Leaf Villa. They keep coming to cause trouble, treating me like an easy target. Since Qingchen shows no gratitude for me saving his leg, I owe him no courtesy by the standards of the martial arts world.

The horse carriage rocked violently. After a whole night of bumpy travel, it finally arrived at the gates of Qiyang County City in the early morning.

As the city gates had not yet opened, Yun No. 15 stopped the carriage to wait.

"Miss, it’s snowing heavily! Come out and take a look," Wuqing called out to Gu Qingli from outside the carriage, having already alighted.

Gu Qingli heard him and felt like stretching her legs. I feel like I’m about to fall apart after sitting in the carriage for a whole night.

Wuyou supported her somewhat stiff body and frowned, asking, "Are you alright, Miss?"

Gu Qingli shook her head. "I’m fine, just my legs are a bit stiff and numb. It’ll be fine after I move around a bit."

Wuyou nodded, lifted the curtain, and helped Gu Qingli out of the carriage. As soon as she was off, Gu Qingli breathed a sigh of relief; standing felt much more comfortable.

Before her was a vast, snowy scene, with snowflakes still fluttering down from the sky.

The bone-chilling cold wind made her shiver.

Gu Qingli glanced back at the twenty-odd people on the ox carts. There were blankets available, and she saw some still huddled on the carts, their heads covered in snow, looking like snow sculptures if they remained motionless. Others had gotten off the carts and were pacing in the snow, rubbing their hands and blowing on them to keep warm.

Gu Qingli shifted her gaze to Wuqing, who was playfully kicking snow, and the corners of her mouth lifted into a smile. This is the first time I’ve seen Wuqing act like such a young girl. After all, she’s only a girl of fourteen or fifteen, an age meant for fun and youthful energy.

Gu Qingli smiled. They finally seemed like normal young girls for once.

"Miss, it looks like there are people at the corner of the city wall. Should we go check?" Wuyou said at this moment, pointing to a corner of the city gate wall.

"Alright, let’s go take a look."

It was a bit far, and amidst the vast white snow, she couldn’t see clearly.

As master and servant approached, they saw two people huddled against the city wall. Wuyou went ahead, checked their breathing, and then returned to Gu Qingli, shaking her head. It meant they were already dead.

Gu Qingli sighed and said, "Don’t bother with it. Let’s go back." Such matters will be handled by the officials. Perhaps they can send them back to their hometowns for burial. If they had been alive, we would have tried to help.

"Mm," Wuyou replied gloomily.

The two returned to their carriage. Daniu was already awake, and Wuyou was feeding him.

"Sister Erni, have you eaten?" Daniu asked her somewhat shyly, stopping his meal as soon as they boarded the carriage.

"I’ve eaten. Daniu, you go ahead and eat," Gu Qingli patted Daniu’s head.

Daniu nodded and continued to slowly eat his flatbread.

Before long, the city gates opened. The city guards recognized Wuyou, and their party entered the city smoothly.

Upon entering the city, the three ox carts headed towards the county government office, while their carriage went to the Gu Residence.

Once back at the Gu Residence, Gu Qingli couldn’t wait to enter her space and take a hot bath.

After she emerged, she saw Wuqing hurriedly approaching with a letter.

"Miss, a letter from Young Master."

"Oh?" Gu Qingli immediately took the letter and began reading.

It had been sent three days ago. The letter stated that the border area was also affected by the Earthworm turning over, but not severely; only a few houses had collapsed. The main problem was the sudden drop in temperature and the rainfall, which had caused many soldiers to fall ill. He also asked how things were at home and if they had been affected.

Gu Qingli put the letter away. I had been thinking that not receiving a letter from him these past few days meant the disaster at the border was likely very severe. So this was the actual situation.

"Wuqing, ask Wuyou to come here."

"Yes, Miss." Wuqing turned to call Wuyou. Miss is surely going to ask where the elder madam and the others are staying.

It wasn’t long before Wuyou arrived.

"Miss, did you call for this servant?"

"Yes, sit down and talk," Gu Qingli said, pointing to a chair.

Wuyou did not sit but instead waited with her head bowed for Gu Qingli’s questions.

Gu Qingli didn’t insist and asked, "Are my parents staying at my elder brother’s residence?"

Wuyou answered, "No, Miss. The elder madam and her family are at the Xiao Residence, while Master Gu and the others are at the Gu Residence."

"I see." Gu Qingli nodded. I knew Xiao Yunjing had previously bought a separate residence for Mr. Xiao and his family, but I hadn’t realized he had also arranged one for Ms. Wu and the others. That silly fellow had never mentioned this to me.

"Tomorrow, let’s go visit them. Today, just eat something simple, and everyone get some rest."

"Yes, Miss. Shall this servant go make the arrangements?"

"Go ahead."

Wuyou withdrew.

「Capital City, Imperial Palace.」

As the morning court session was about to end, an urgent memorial was delivered to the imperial court.

Chu Xiong unfolded the memorial, paused in surprise, then turned and passed it to Liu Desheng, instructing him to give it to Gu Xicheng.

Upon reading the contents, Gu Xicheng was also greatly alarmed. It reported that in Qinghe County, Qiyang County, the Earthworm turning over had occurred. People’s homes were decimated—not even one in ten remained—and it was followed by torrential rain. The disaster was severe, affecting a wide area; almost the entire Qiyang County had suffered.

Gu Xicheng immediately handed the memorial to the Minister of Revenue, as this would require the ministry to allocate funds.

Soon, all the civil and military officials in the court had read it.

"Where is the Qin Tianjian?" Chu Xiong demanded, his face stern. They actually failed to predict such a major event! What is the Qin Tianjian even for?

The civil and military officials below exchanged glances. When the Emperor asked about the Qin Tianjian, it seemed as if they had only just remembered that such an office even existed. The Qin Tianjian consisted of just one old Daoist priest and his apprentice; they were practically invisible year-round. If not for the annual Royal Family sacrificial rites requiring his presence, they’d likely only ever hear his name but never lay eyes on him their entire lives. The civil and military officials couldn’t understand why the Emperor was asking about the Qin Tianjian at this moment. Shouldn’t they be discussing disaster relief measures? Since the Empress’s incident, the Emperor’s behavior had become increasingly eccentric.