The Eldest Daughter of a Rural Family
Chapter 971 - 219: Valuing Pei Qin

Chapter 971: Chapter 219: Valuing Pei Qin

Xie Yi had been speculating about Emperor Chu Wen’s identity ever since she arrived; Pei Qin had never left the inner courtyard, and even Shen Songming had gone to the inner courtyard to see her. Yet, this time, she had personally come out to meet this extraordinary and dignified person, which meant his identity must be even more prestigious than Mo Heng’s.

As she was thinking, she suddenly sensed a momentary sharp murderous look in his eyes as they fell on her. She looked up and instantly felt a chill in her heart.

Emperor Chu Wen had already regained his composure and asked about Jiujiu and Xixi. He heard from Mo Heng that they had been sent to the teacher to enroll in school. His gaze at Mo Heng then contained an added probing element. Pei Qin had used the Seven-pulse Lotus to cure a poisoning, which affected her physically, preventing her from having more children. They only had two daughters—did Mo Heng want a son? Was he intending to keep Xie Yi?

Pei Qin was unaware of his thoughts. Noticing it was almost noon and knowing Emperor Chu Wen could not travel back to Capital Jingcheng to have lunch, she instructed the kitchen to prepare a meal.

Jiujiu and Xixi also returned from Master Ouyang’s school.

Mo Heng had the two Little Radishes come to greet Emperor Chu Wen.

Xie Ze also returned from school.

Second Madam Zheng also noticed that Emperor Chu Wen’s status was higher than Mo Heng’s and hurriedly pushed Xie Ze to greet him.

Xie Yi also nodded slightly, signaling him to go.

An unfamiliar old man, aside from his imposing presence, had not given him a polite look, begrudging Xie Ze to go forward to greet him. Xie Ze pouted slightly, but still obeyed and went up to greet him.

Xie Yi waited on the side for a response. If her father’s sacrifice could expedite their words reaching the heavens and earn some reward, then she and her brother could live with more dignity!

Emperor Chu Wen simply responded faintly without turning his head and continued talking with Jiujiu and Xixi, showing his affection for the Little Radishes. At mealtime, he even had Jiujiu and Xixi sit beside him.

Xie Yi, Xie Ze, and including Second Madam Zheng were not invited to the table, and were not allowed to stay in the room to eat together.

Initially feeling indignant, Second Madam Zheng saw Xie Yi deep in thought and, turning over her thoughts, pulled her aside to ask, "Who is this man? Could he be from the Mo family? He seems to care a lot for the two little girls—just like they are his own granddaughters."

Xie Yi did not respond, but she was certain of his prestigious identity. Looking at Xie Ze’s youthful appearance and their being asked to leave without a chance to speak, she could not help but feel bitter and distressed.

However, Emperor Chu Wen was remarking to Mo Heng, "I thought the imperial cuisine in the palace was bad, but this home-cooked meal is just the same, nothing compares to the stir-fry and mixed noodles we used to eat together at the Mortar Barracks." He indicated to Mo Heng that he treated Pei Qin and other chancellors differently.

Mo Heng replied, "Then let the kitchen prepare it."

"Make it tonight!" Emperor Chu Wen had no plans to return to the palace today.

Glancing at him, Mo Heng had no choice but to agree.

After the meal, seeing Pei Qin take her medicine, Emperor Chu Wen ordered a brazier to be lit in the study, and he entered the study to talk with Pei Qin and Mo Heng.

Seeing no one attending to her, and still unclear about the special status of this person special to Mo Heng and Pei Qin, Second Madam Zheng shamelessly decided to stay, claiming she would spend the night to keep Xie Yi company and chat.

Xie Yi couldn’t leave the house, nor did she have any Silver Coin. She had declined the money Pei Wendong gave her and now could only rely on Second Madam Zheng to glean the information she wanted. She couldn’t remain unknown and let Pei Wendong feel that marrying her was without value, causing others to look down on her and her brother.

The study door remained closed all afternoon. With Lu Hai and Liu Feng guarding outside with cold expressions and two guards brought by Emperor Chu Wen, no one else could approach.

Inside, Pei Qin was discussing military strategies with Emperor Chu Wen for attacking the Rong Clan and the operations of the Mortar Barracks. Her injuries hadn’t healed yet, but once they did, she could lead troops again, although she was hesitant due to Mo Heng. She spoke at length because the Mortar Barracks was her creation, and she was reluctant to hand it over to just anyone. However, she still had to oversee the production of ammunition shells and gunpowder.

The national treasury was depleted, and with widespread pillaging and war, especially in Northern Great Chu, the country urgently needed to recover. But Emperor Chu Wen absolutely could not tolerate the Rong Clan advancing into Liaodong and was determined to use the full force of the nation to expel the Rong Clan and the Wa Ci from the borders and subdue their territories!

Provisions and military pay were significant concerns. Even though Xiao Guangjing had offered the gold mines of Laizhou Prefecture, it was still insufficient. Raising taxes in the south would only provoke public anger and outrage, eventually leading to outright rebellion and chaos.

"Let’s initiate a public appeal! The fate of the nation is everyone’s responsibility! Put out the banner clearly, saying it’s to gather silver and supplies for the campaign against the Rong Clan! Mobilize all of Great Chu to also give the Rong Clan something to ponder!" Pei Qin said, tapping on the territorial maps of the Rong Clan-occupied areas like Liaodong.