Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 1369: Mainstay

Chapter 1369: Chapter 1369: Mainstay

Zhou Shuren listened as the Retired Emperor recounted the incident, stroking his beard. Chang Yi’s method was really cutting, making him twitch at the mention of compensation in silver, let alone the Grassland Tribes, which must also be a painful loss for them.

The Retired Emperor watched Zhou Shuren with a smile, "That’s right."

Zhou Shuren became alert, knowing that these two words never preceded anything good!

The Retired Emperor continued to play chess, "Although Lin Xi is not a princess, she is one in my heart. Therefore, the Emperor immediately rejected the proposal and didn’t leave any room for argument."

Zhou Shuren thought to himself, should I thank you for being lucid? Confer a princess and bear the responsibility, and there are not a few advantages.

The Retired Emperor went on, "But some people are shameless. Seeing they couldn’t marry a princess, they turned their attention to the daughters of high officials, aiming for an alliance through marriage."

Zhou Shuren’s gaze grew profound as he met the Retired Emperor’s smiling eyes, "They want to use marriage alliances to lull the Imperial court into complacency? To make the court lower its guard against them?"

The Retired Emperor laughed, "Cousin, do you need me to remind you of something?"

Zhou Shuren clenched his back teeth, "You’ve already reminded this minister."

Darn it, he was related to the royal family and the Rong family also had twin daughters, but the children were too young, and besides, Marquis Rong Enqing was a more laid-back Mr. Hou, so the Grassland Tribe would not target them. As for the Ning family, heh, Marquis Ning’s youngest daughter was betrothed after the eldest one was married off.

The Retired Emperor was in high spirits, "Shuren is indeed smart."

Zhou Shuren, feeling the pain in his liver, "Did someone mention this to you?"

The Retired Emperor placed down a chess piece, "You’ve lost."

Zhou Shuren, "..."

Angry, he should never have entered the palace. The Retired Emperor’s obsession with his own wife was driving him nuts!

The Retired Emperor was in a great mood, as his brooding from the entire winter had finally dissipated, "Actually, no one mentioned it to me, it was the Princess Consorts who discreetly brought it up with the Empress a few days ago."

Zhou Shuren’s mind raced. The Retired Emperor telling him in advance clearly meant the Emperor would not reject the proposal outright. The Emperor probably wanted to stall these people, and he rolled his eyes internally, "The Emperor is wise and valiant, he would never do anything to diminish his own dignity!"

The Retired Emperor paused, then stood up laughing and patted Zhou Shuren’s shoulder, "My son must surpass me."

After saying this, the Retired Emperor left in good spirits. Zhou Shuren felt relieved, just as long as they don’t make use of his granddaughter.

Zhou Shuren furrowed his brows. The Zhou family’s kinship with the royal family was a double-edged sword, protecting the Zhou family but also bringing them more attention.

Zhou Shuren left the palace and saw the boxes in the carriage, hmm, they only gave one box without skimping, he counted five in total.

The Zhou family. Zhou Shuren’s luggage had arrived ahead of him and Zhulan had already neatly put it away, taking the items that needed washing downstairs, then calculating the time for Zhou Shuren’s return.

Chang Xhong was so tired that he was yawning, "Mother, why hasn’t father come back?"

"He should be back soon."

A servant from the palace had come not long ago to fetch some items, saying they were for the Retired Emperor’s chess game. If you calculate the time, he should leave the palace by now.

Missing his father, Chang Xhong lay on the table watching the door. Zhulan, seeing her son’s slowly dropping head, smiled without interference. The child really missed Zhou Shuren.

When Zhou Shuren entered the house, he saw his son’s head bang onto the table, quite loudly at that, "Oh, are you kowtowing to your father now that I’m back?"

Chang Xhong was dazed for a moment before coming around, leaping up excitedly, "Father! You’re back."

Zhou Shuren was nearly knocked over by the tight embrace of his strong son, "You do miss your father, don’t you?"

Chang Xhong hugged his father and sniffled, indeed missing him, "Father, you’ve grown thinner."

Zhou Shuren had indeed lost weight. Following the Crown Prince everywhere, coupled with the exhaustion of travel, he was lucky to have not fallen ill, "I’ll regain it over the New Year."

Chang Xhong ushered his father to sit, being exceedingly attentive, pouring him tea one moment and massaging his shoulders the next.

As her husband and son interacted, Zhulan had already taken a good look at him. Indeed, he had lost quite a bit of weight and his clothes were loose. She also noticed that there was something off about his arm, "What happened to your arm?"

"I strained it, have been resting it for a few days now, I dare not exert too much force."

Zhulan frowned, feeling extremely distressed, "You’ve suffered a lot on this trip."

Zhou Shuren, "It was worth it, though."

If the Crown Prince succeeds to the throne smoothly in the future, he would surely be a wise ruler, which would be good for the common people, the country, and the Zhou family.

Zhulan was naturally aware, "I’ve prepared all your favorite dishes. Rest after you have eaten."

Zhou Shuren nodded, "Mhm."

He was indeed very tired.

Because his son was present, Zhou Shuren only spoke of things he had seen, leaving out the rest. It wasn’t until his son reluctantly left and Zhou Shuren lay down to rest that he mentioned the news he had heard from the Retired Emperor.

Zhulan was surprised, "I really had no idea, it seems the news hasn’t spread."

Zhou Shuren, "It must be because the New Year is near, and the tribes coming to the capital don’t want to overdo it, so the news hasn’t spread."

"Xue Han hasn’t come back and told me, she probably doesn’t know either."

Zhou Shuren wasn’t very sleepy yet, he turned over and propped himself up, "Right now, it seems neither side is prepared for war."

Zhulan, "But it’s close."

Zhou Shuren sighed. War meant death, and it was unavoiable.

Zhou Shuren was exhausted and soon fell asleep. Zhulan carefully tucked in the blanket, watching her husband. Now that he was home safely, he could finally sleep soundly. With the Crown Prince, he must not have had proper sleep. Zhulan didn’t know how long she sat until the light in the room began to dim, and only then did she call a maid to light the candles.

Winter days were short—that was the downside.

Zhulan rubbed her waist after sitting for so long; it was terribly sore.

In the evening, Chang Li and the others knew their father had returned. Chang Li at least saw his father, but Chang Yi and the others didn’t, as their father hadn’t woken up the entire time.

The next day, Zhou Shuren didn’t attend the morning court. He had requested leave and went straight to the Ministry of Revenue.

Chang Yi shared the carriage with his father, "Father, I haven’t made too many moves."

With many ambassadors from various nations at the embassy, it was difficult to take action. There were supposed to be further developments, but since the tribes had paid in silver, they had seldom left their lodging.

Zhou Shuren smiled, "That’s good, the Grassland Tribes are in dire need of silver now."

If it wasn’t for the need of silver, they wouldn’t have made such an exorbitant demand in the first place and it also indicates that the tribes have made quite some preparations. The influx of silver they brought must be intended for secret transactions.

Zhou Shuren’s mind wandered, wondering who was secretly selling grain and other supplies to the tribes. After a mental review, there were indeed quite a few