Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 282 Peace of Mind_1

Chapter 282: Chapter 282 Peace of Mind_1

The next morning, Zhulan slept quite well, but Zhou Shuren did not rest easy. Zhulan said, "Let’s change rooms tonight."

Zhou Shuren waved his hand, "The inn rooms all face the street. The sound of horse hooves, even if we change rooms, I can still hear them. I couldn’t sleep last night, and I counted that the patrols never stopped throughout the night. It seems the imperial court has deployed troops earlier than I had estimated."

Zhulan handed a handkerchief to Zhou Shuren, "It’s just that we don’t know why they would deploy troops earlier. It seems the imperial court is not short of silver."

Zhou Shuren wiped his face, "It must be related to Shi Qing, but war causes the suffering of the people and drains resources, yet it cannot be avoided. The life of the farmers will not be easy again."

Zhulan, with her nephews on her mind, said, "I don’t even know how Wu Chun and the others are doing; they haven’t sent a letter home either."

"No news is good news, so don’t worry. Everyone has their own fate, and sometimes worrying is of no use."

Zhulan was speechless, finding no way to respond to Zhou Shuren’s words. She pulled Zhou Shuren to sit down and began to comb his hair. Once his hair was neatly tied, they both went downstairs for breakfast.

In the heart of the capital’s power, the people of the capital understood the situation better than those in other prefecture cities. Although the capital was still prosperous, a closer look revealed many caravans and people leaving the city.

After Zhou Shuren sent out the visiting cards and returned, Zhulan gestured to him by the window. "I counted the caravans leaving through the South City gate while sitting idly. In four hours, four caravans left, two were merchants and two were families moving out."

Zhou Shuren sat beside Zhulan, "Our timing for coming here was both good and bad."

Following Zhou Shuren’s words, Zhulan said, "The timing is good because many are leaving the capital under the tense situation, and we don’t have to worry about not being able to buy a house here. As for the bad, the capital won’t be at peace, so it’s better to leave early."

Zhou Shuren commended, "Exactly right. Once we’ve bought the house, I’ll find a caravan to head back."

Zhulan closed the window, "It’s just that we don’t know if the war has started in the Northwest or on the Dongbei frontier."

"No matter where the war starts, grain prices will rise this year. Our family should sell less grain and keep the rest."

"Yes, when do you think the war will start?"

Zhou Shuren spread his hands, "I’m just a scholar who doesn’t have access to such information. My estimates have never been precise, especially with so many variables, I’m even less certain now. But, the army’s provisions move first, so it should still take some time to prepare."

Zhulan said softly, "Then it won’t be long now. Whether in the Northwest or Dongbei, it’s better not to drag it into winter. It’s good that the dynasty is only twelve years old, and the soldiers are still fierce and vigorous, untainted by luxury and laziness. With a good chance of victory, I can be somewhat at ease."

Zhou Shuren was not worried. Those who could succeed in rebellion were brave and skilled in battle. As long as there were ample provisions, the chance of losing was small. After all, heroes emerge in troubled times.

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren chatted for a while before going out shopping. Zhou Shuren wanted to visit the capital’s antique stores.

Zhulan, on the other hand, wanted to visit the ready-made clothes stores and jewelry shops. Zhou Shuren accompanied Zhulan to the clothing stores and jewelry shops first.

The clothing in the capital’s ready-made clothes stores was more opulent, and of course, the prices were quite touching. Zhulan took a liking to two outfits and since Zhou Shuren’s pouch was full, they naturally went on a buying spree. Zhulan even picked out an outfit for Zhou Shuren, and the three outfits cost a total of eighteen taels of silver without choosing the most expensive ones.

Afterward, the pair went to a fabric store. The fabric stores in the capital had all kinds of materials, and since Zhulan was in the capital, she naturally had to take back some gifts. Fabric was the first choice, even though Pingzhou also had most types of fabric, buying it from the capital held a different significance.

Finally, they went to the jewelry store. Zhulan didn’t pick the most famous jewelry shop; she knew her budget well and chose a more approachable one. This time, Zhulan didn’t only focus on gold and silver jewelry; she was drawn to pearls. Pearls were small, and though valuable, the smaller ones weren’t priced too high.

Zhulan chose a few pearl-inlaid hairpins for her daughters-in-law and some pearl earrings for Xue Han and her maids. She bought a jade hairpin and pearl earrings for herself.

In the end, she also chose a pair of gold bangles for old Madam Sun, who preferred gold.

Zhou Shuren said, "Since we are rarely in the capital, we should also buy some jewelry for our two sisters-in-law. Since we’ll be living in Pingzhou City and visiting the Yang family less, it will be even harder to return as we move further away. Our in-laws will have to rely more on our sisters-in-law for care."

Zhulan then selected two pearl hairpins, "That will be all; shopkeeper, please tally up the total silver coin."

The shopkeeper swiftly operated the abacus, "That comes to a total of 56 taels and 5 mace. Since the madam is purchasing quite a bit, I’ll round it down to 56 taels."

The jewelry Zhulan selected was most costly because of the gold bangle and jade hairpin. The hairpins with pearls, whose pearls were not that large, were not incredibly expensive. Zhulan paid with a silver note, and the shopkeeper asked, "Would the two of you prefer silver or gold?"

Zhulan did not wish to carry a bag full of silver, "Gold."

The shopkeeper responded affirmatively, exchanged it for gold, and handed it to Zhulan, "Please keep it safe, madam. We hope to see you again."

Zhulan accepted the silver and left the shop. She and Zhou Shuren were carrying quite a few things, "Let’s send these items back and then head to the antiques shop!"

Zhou Shuren glanced down at the bundles in his hands, "That sounds good."

The pair returned to the inn, where the waiter approached them, "Two guests, a Scholar named Deng has sent over a card."

Zhulan took the bundles from Zhou Shuren’s hands, while Zhou Shuren took the card, gave the waiter a few copper coins, and carried the bundles upstairs.

Back in their room, Zhou Shuren looked at the card, "Scholar Deng’s home is not convenient for us to visit; he will come here tomorrow."

Zhulan took the card and glanced at it, "I haven’t even asked you about your visit to Scholar Deng’s home, what’s it like?"

Zhou Shuren’s arms ached from carrying the bundles all the way, and while massaging his arms, he said, "Scholar Deng’s entire family lives together. He was not at home when I visited, so I left a card. His house was quite chaotic."

Zhulan thought to herself that it’s no wonder Zhou Shuren didn’t mention it; Scholar Deng’s home must have displeased him, "Let’s have lunch first, then go to the antiques shop after."

"Alright."

In the afternoon, Zhulan followed Zhou Shuren to the antiques shop. In the capital, famous antiques shops were all backed by powerful interests. Zhulan did not dare to touch anything carelessly in the shop, fearing she might break something beyond her means to compensate.

Zhou Shuren’s visit today was not just to gain insight, but also to try his luck; he harbored the hope of finding an undervalued treasure. As for why he didn’t try his luck at the street stalls outside, it was simply because there was no time to examine each one. If he were to live in the capital, he would have plenty of time to hunt for bargains at his leisure, but his time was too constrained. Antiques shops, having filtered their collections, offered a better chance of finding something undervalued.

The shopkeeper did not follow them around and continued to sit and drink tea. He could tell at a glance whether someone was serious about buying or just hoping to luck out.

After making two rounds, Zhou Shuren said to Zhulan, "We should leave!"

The shopkeeper smiled and continued to hum a tune, knowing that it wasn’t so easy to find a bargain.

Zhulan, once they had walked a distance, said, "This isn’t like you at all. There was still so much we didn’t see!"

Zhou Shuren replied pensively, "We shouldn’t have chosen a well-known shop. Such shops rarely have fakes; I saw a few items during our rounds and they were all genuine. Continuing to look is just wasting time."

Zhulan chuckled softly, "Shall we try an ordinary shop then?"

Zhou Shuren shook his head, "Even less so. We’re not from the capital and don’t have any backing. Even if I found something, I wouldn’t be able to take it with me."

"Alright then, let’s just go back," Zhulan proposed.

"Let’s head back," agreed Zhou Shuren.

The pair did not rush to return. Zhulan showed great interest in a rouge stall on the street. She was thinking of picking some up to give away when a carriage stopped beside them.