CHAPTER 202: CHAPTER 200 COMPENSATION

Xie Liangchen listened to Tian HuiZhen’s words and began to think. If it wasn’t something significant, Mr. Tian wouldn’t have sent someone back with a message.

The woolen goods they sold included not just clothes, hats, and socks, but also various blankets. The Daming Prefecture and Hezhong Prefecture areas were quite fond of them. Even as the weather warmed and they no longer needed clothes and hats, the woolen blankets could still be used, making it unlikely for none to sell. The only possibility was that someone was causing trouble.

Even if Mr. Tian investigated, there would be no result. If someone else’s woolen goods were better and more reasonably priced, the shops would naturally no longer want theirs.

Gouzi’s voice interrupted Xie Liangchen’s thoughts.

Gouzi said, "Without Chen Family Village and General Song, my sister and I would have long been dead. This gift is something both you and the people of Chen Family Village deserve."

Song Xian reassured Gouzi, "If you and your sister are willing to stay in Chen Family Village, just submit the paperwork at the government office, and naturally, there will be subordinates to register you."

A hint of joy appeared on the faces of Gouzi and Liu Erniang, but Liu Erniang quickly thought of her deceased father and husband, and her eyes instantly turned red.

Gouzi thought of the things Chen Zigeng and Hei Dan had told him, teaching him how to plan and identify medicinal herbs, so that one day he could earn silver coins like the people of Chen Family Village.

These had all become true.

Gouzi repeatedly said, "Willing, of course willing. Chen Family Village is so good... Our days here... are like living in a dream. I often think, how great it would be if the people of Lingqiu could be like this too."

Gouzi felt he had misspoken, as Lingqiu was a territory occupied by people of the former dynasty, yet he said this in front of a Daqi general. He didn’t know if General Song would be angry.

"Everything will be fine."

Although Gouzi couldn’t see, his hearing was exceptionally sharp. He clearly heard General Song whisper a sentence to him and even reached out to pat his shoulder.

What General Song said, "Everything will be fine." Did "everything" also include Lingqiu?

Gouzi’s nose tingled, surprised that the mighty General Song would speak to him so gently. General Song was just like Old General Zhang. When he still had good eyesight, he hoped to grow up and go to the battlefield with Old General Zhang.

Did General Song’s words also imply an intention to reclaim Lingqiu?

Gouzi’s heart was stirred, he had so much he wanted to say to General Song, but at this moment, he couldn’t say anything.

Gouzi helplessly sought Liu Erniang’s hand.

After all, they were siblings, and Liu Erniang understood his actions immediately. She whispered, "If there is anything we siblings can do, just let us know, General."

Song Xian did not refuse and responded, "Alright."

Gouzi gripped Liu Erniang’s hand even tighter. With General Song speaking like this, it meant he had plans.

Xie Liangchen looked at Song Xian. Reclaiming the land under Prince Guangyang was not easy. In Dingzhou, there were Song Qizheng and Song Yu, and to the east was Henghai Jiedu Envoy. If Song Xian acted rashly, he might be secretly schemed upon. So in the previous life, Song Xian only acted after the territory fell into chaos.

If Song Xian made a decision different from the previous life, was it related to her background? This person’s actions... previously made her have to be cautious, now finally, there was more trust between them, yet mixed with some other things, which made her think too much at times.

This feeling was unfamiliar to Xie Liangchen.

If she were to choose, she would rather have some distance from Song Xian. Even if they returned to before, she could still handle it.

But ever since that night at the epidemic prevention station, even though they were so distanced that they couldn’t see each other clearly, she could still see the light in his hand.

After everyone finished speaking, they gathered around to enjoy a meal.

Chang Yue and the others were also invited into the village.

Rice, wild boar meat patties, and stir-fried wild chicken with dried radish were enjoyed by those around Chang Yue, while eating, they kept commenting on the fragrance. They had been secretly guarding Chen Family Village, and usually, there was no opportunity to eat, only able to smell the aroma from afar. Now, finally, the clouds parted, and the moon was visible.

However, after this meal, the usual dried buns would be even harder to swallow.

Chang Yue instructed, "After eating, go out and guard properly." Since getting a clue, Chang Yue no longer pondered when he could return to the master’s side.

Rather than thinking about that, he preferred pondering when the master could move to Chen Family Village.

After the meal, Song Xian led his people to say goodbye and leave.

Chen Zigeng rode a horse and escorted Song Xian all the way to the official road.

"Sister," Chen Zigeng said, "Brother praised my progress in riding and archery. When I am fifteen or sixteen, I will train in Brother’s camp. Even if I can’t go to the battlefield in the future, I can still supervise the military provisions for Brother."

Chem Zigeng was getting more accustomed to calling him Brother.

Before sleeping, Chen Zigeng still went to Mr. Dongli for reading. Recently, Mr. Dongli’s teachings to Chen Zigeng had become more rigorous. Chen Zigeng seemed to be as carefree as before, but in his sleep, he would often mumble the annotations from his books.

Xie Liangchen watched Chen Zigeng’s departing figure, then turned to Old Mrs. Chen, "Grandmother, let’s visit Second Uncle’s house. There are some things I need to discuss with Second Uncle and Aunt."

Mrs. Gao invited Old Mrs. Chen and Xie Liangchen into the house.

The few of them sat on stools, and Xie Liangchen reached out to adjust the brightness of the oil lamp.

"Second Uncle," Xie Liangchen said, "We’re going to stop selling woolen goods for now."

Chen Yongsheng was slightly taken aback, but seemed to quickly understand, "It’s time to stop. We can start the weaving workshop again after spring plowing."

Xie Liangchen shook her head, "Even the woolen goods we have made now won’t be sold. The Tian Family Trading Team brought news that the shops which once bought our woolen goods are now refusing to accept them. I have discussed with everyone, and we plan to have Hui Zhen write to Mr. Tian to sell the woolen goods cheaper. We might not only fail to make a profit but could also lose some capital."

The smile on Mrs. Gao’s face vanished, "The Tian Family Trading Team took away quite a lot of goods... If we lose money, how much will we lose? It might be better to bring them back..."

Xie Liangchen said, "Bringing the goods back would require a lot of manpower, taking into account food and resources for horses, it would cost even more. Besides, the Tian Family had long planned what goods to bring back this time. If they were delayed because of us, it would be even more detrimental."

Mrs. Gao hesitated, "Isn’t there another way? Will we no longer make woolen goods in the future?" Without woolen goods, the village would lose a source of income. The people in the weaving workshop, upon hearing this, would be very upset.

Since selling medicinal herbs, Chen Family Village had been smooth sailing, and such a sudden incident left Mrs. Gao’s legs weak. Thinking of the busy women in the weaving workshop, she felt even more heartbroken.

Xie Liangchen said, "We won’t stop selling. The weaving workshop will continue, but I need to think carefully. What happened this time is common, and the loss won’t be too much. We can think of ways to earn it back later."

But before that, she needed to understand the whole story clearly.

Xie Liangchen said, "Chu Er is watching over Zhaozhou. Let Fourth Uncle take someone to deliver a message to Mr. Tian."

When Chen Yongyi reached Daming Prefecture, he could find a way to gather more information and see who was behind it all. If it wasn’t intentional, she wouldn’t worry about it. If it was deliberate targeting, she would demand restitution with interest.