Rebirth: Making a Fortune in Ancient Times

Murong Fu carried out Xia Yu's suggestion exactly.

He found himself being led to a separate room, where every available space was filled with lights. A hint of mockery flashed in the Japanese man's eyes; he was unafraid of any further torture.

On the first day, he remained calm. Only when he reached his fifth meal did he mention to the delivery person that he had already eaten four meals that day. However, the delivery person didn't even glance at him, simply placing the food down and leaving. Whether he ate it or not was irrelevant; someone would collect the food after a while.

Looking at the food on the ground, he couldn't figure out what those people were up to.

There were no windows, and he couldn't see the sky outside. He felt sleepy and wanted to go to bed. But the lights in the room were too bright. He tried to turn them off, but every time he turned one off, someone would immediately come in and turn it back on. He then realized that someone had been watching him from the shadows.

I cursed inwardly, "I can still sleep even if the lights aren't turned off." The Japanese man lay on the ground, trying to shield his eyes from the glaring candlelight with his arm.

"Clang... Clang..." Just as he was about to fall asleep, a piercing sound rang out. Annoyed, he got up and looked towards the source of the sound, only to find a person banging a copper basin with a hammer. From then on, whenever he closed his eyes, someone would be banging a copper basin beside him.

The next day, he was somewhat listless.

On the third day, he began to feel anxious, not knowing how much time he had spent in that room. If someone hadn't brought him food, he had the illusion that he was the only person in the world.

On the fourth day, his thoughts were in turmoil, and he was extremely tired. But whenever he closed his eyes, someone would bang on a copper basin, making that piercing sound, preventing him from falling asleep.

"Ah...ah...is anyone there? Say something!"

Observing all this, Murong Fu saw the state of the people in the room and felt that the time was about right. So he asked...

"Do you have anything to say?"

"..." He remained silent. Murong Fu was even less in a hurry; he had plenty of time to wear him down.

"How many days have I been here?" the Japanese man suddenly asked.

"..." This time, Murong Fu remained silent; no one would answer his question.

"Ah... just kill me, I won't say anything." The Japanese man suddenly went berserk and tried to bang his head against the wall. But he was quickly stopped.

Murong Fu had someone administer a dose of muscle-softening powder to him. This medicine would not harm his body, but it would leave him no chance to commit suicide.

Finally, on the evening of the fourth day, he told the person who delivered his food that he had something to say. Only three hours had passed since his last conversation with Murong Fu.

Several days of sleepless nights had left him in a state of mental chaos. He would rather die than live like this, but now he couldn't even die.

Finally, he revealed everything he knew, but he claimed ignorance of any deeper plans. Murong Fu was satisfied with the contents of the document, feeling he had uncovered enough. He gave instructions to his men and left. He needed to report this matter to the imperial court as soon as possible.

After he left, as Murong Fu had instructed, the Japanese could go to sleep, but the muscle-relaxing powder should continue to be administered to prevent further suicides.

Xia Yu knew the interrogation had yielded results, but she didn't inquire further. She was very busy, spending her days shopping. Food seeds, local medicinal herbs—anything she hadn't seen in Zhongzhou Prefecture, she bought. Back at the inn, she and her two maids carefully sorted and stored the various seeds they had purchased.

Although Xia Yu claimed that the method was Murong Fu's idea and that she didn't want to take credit, he still clearly stated Xia Yu's contribution in his memorial to the court. A true man should stand tall and upright in this world. He appreciated Xia Yu's good intentions, but he couldn't bring himself to steal someone else's credit, especially since his contribution in this matter was also significant.

As the memorial was being rushed to the capital, the mission also received the Emperor's reply.

The classical Chinese was very profound, but Xia Yu understood the line, "Isn't it a pleasure to have friends coming from afar?"

Three days later, the two sides met again. This time, in accordance with the Emperor's reply in his memorial, it was set for Prince Lip to lead a delegation to the capital of Da Huai in March of the following year for the first state-level visit. Xia Yu was still the interpreter. She didn't really understand why the Emperor wanted to set the date after the new year, since he had mentioned the knife seller's prophecy to Shen Jingheng.

But these are not things she needs to consider; all she needs to do is convey the meaning of both parties correctly.

At the end of the meeting, Prince Lip looked at Xia Yu and smiled.

“Beautiful lady, I will be making an official visit to your country next year. I will be bringing my son with me, and I hope you can become good friends.”

"Spring is a beautiful season, and my country and I warmly welcome you and your son to visit. I look forward to meeting your son, and I believe we will become good friends."

Xia Yu was very relaxed when speaking to Prince Lip, because the officials around her couldn't understand her. Therefore, she didn't feel ashamed about becoming friends with a foreign man. However, she would never dare to say "Let's be friends" to a large, imposing young man; she was afraid she would scare him.

With this matter settled, it was time for the delegation to return home; it was already the winter month. They had thought they wouldn't be in such a rush to go back, but considering the approaching New Year, everyone was eager to return.

Fortunately, Xia Yu managed to buy almost everything she needed during her stay. On the way back, the large ship docked at several major cities to replenish supplies, and otherwise traveled day and night without stopping. When the ship docked, Xia Yu would disembark and do some shopping, mainly buying seeds. Sometimes, though, she would also buy other interesting items, which would be perfect for her own enjoyment or as gifts.

They pressed on with all their might, and finally, on the eighteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, the angel delegation arrived at the capital's dock. Everyone was exhausted as they disembarked. Except for the delegation's key officials, everyone else was allowed to go home first.

Grand Tutor Li had to go to the palace to meet the Emperor first, so Xia Yu, Chang Yun, and Shen Luo took their luggage and returned to the Li residence first.

When they arrived home, the old women who looked after the house had already boiled hot water and were waiting for them to return.

After bathing and changing, washing away her fatigue, Xia Yu told the two maids to also wash up and get some rest. After the maids left the room, Xia Yu lay down on the bed, intending to sleep for a while. However, after a short while, Xia Yu reluctantly got out of bed again and began packing her things. The joy of soon returning home made her unusually excited; her body was exhausted, but her mind was exceptionally clear.

Xia Yu was homesick. She and Liu Shi had never been separated for so long. During this time, because of her unstable location, although she wrote letters home, she received no messages from home. She missed her parents very much and was also worried, fearing that something might have happened to their family while they were away.