The Eldest Daughter Returns: Imperial Uncle, I'm Pregnant!

Outside Zhuangzi.

"Boss, that man doesn't seem to be in that village!"

"Did you see clearly? That person was definitely running in this direction, wasn't he?" The person leading the way on horseback wore a mask and deliberately kept his voice low.

“I just went over and saw that this belongs to the former Prime Minister’s wife. Today, Miss Gu stayed at that manor. The commotion there was because someone tried to murder the master of the house during the rainy night but was caught. I took a peek from afar during the chaos, and that person couldn’t possibly be hiding here.”

Another person said, "Boss, should we go in and take a look?"

"No! The guards around here are no ordinary people."

The leader glanced in the direction of the estate. They couldn't afford to offend either the Prime Minister's residence or the Duke of Ningguo. If they offended the master of the house, they would be in deep trouble. The capital was just ahead, and that person might have already entered the capital. Moreover, continuing to chase after them would not do them any good.

Furthermore, the employer who hired them to kill was indeed paying them insufficient fees. Needless to say, they had endured hardships and slept in the open along the way, and many of their own brothers had perished. It was unclear how to calculate the compensation.

"Go back and report! Just say the man escaped and we couldn't catch him." The leader, holding his whip, turned his horse around, lashed its rump, and hissed, "Go!"

It rained all night, but the rain stopped the next morning. The sky was a clear blue, birds were playing on the branches, and even the air felt fresh and pleasant.

Baoqin got up early to get ready, and then called Siqi and the others to go to the front to serve the young lady, while Ruhua went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast.

Baoqin entered the room. On the right side of the desk, the young lady was asleep, wearing a coat and lying on the desk. The lamps on the desk were all off.

"Good heavens?" Baoqin stepped forward and gently called to Gu Qingwan, "Miss, why are you sleeping here?"

Gu Qingwan woke up feeling somewhat confused. How could she have fallen asleep here? It didn't make sense. Yesterday, she was sitting here reading when she suddenly felt sleepy, so she went to pour herself a cup of tea, then returned here to sit down, and then she couldn't remember anything else...

"I shouldn't have listened to you and gone back. Even if I'm serving you here, you shouldn't have let me fall asleep here. What if you catch a cold? Why don't you go to bed to sleep...!" Baoqin started nagging again.

Gu Qingwan rubbed her neck, feeling a bit sore. Hearing Baoqin's rambling, she immediately woke up. She looked up and stared at the bed curtains, but no one had tidied up there; it seemed they had already left.

"Siqi, go ask Ningyi if everyone outside the manor has left?"

"Yes."

Last night, Gu Qingwan was calculating these books while thinking about things. Her head was spinning, and she was very worried about the future. She didn't know when she fell asleep; the clothes she was wearing were probably what he had covered her with before he left. Now that he was gone, Gu Qingwan decided to take a nap, since she still had things to do later.

"I've finished looking at the account books on the estate, and they're all problematic. Shishu, you can sort out the rest and send them to the government. Baoqin, don't do anything yet, I'm going to take a nap."

"Miss, please have some breakfast first."

"Have Ruhua keep it warm for me. Come and wake me up in an hour. We need to go back after we finish our work today."

Gu Qingwan lay on the pillow and smelled a scent that didn't belong to her. She turned over and reached under the pillow. There seemed to be something underneath. Gu Qingwan lifted the pillow and sure enough, there was a jade pendant with the character "Chen" engraved on it. This was a jade pendant symbolizing the identity of the King of Chu, but it shouldn't have the character "Chu" engraved on it, right? In any case, it was probably something he left behind. She would return it to him when she had the chance.

She fell asleep while thinking about it.

"Miss, Miss." About an hour later, Bao Qin came in, opened the bed curtains, and gently called to Gu Qingwan, who was still asleep.

Gu Qingwan woke up from her dream, looked at the ceiling of the bed and then at Baoqin, and felt relieved. At least she was still here. She composed herself, got up and let Baoqin and the others help her get dressed, while she thought about the process. Just then, Siqi came in.

"Miss, the people outside the manor left last night. Oh, by the way, Wang Dazhu arrived early and is waiting outside. When would you like to see me, Miss?"

"We'll have to wait until Miss has finished her breakfast," Baoqin said somewhat angrily. "She's been up all night without breakfast; how can her body take it? If Miss doesn't take care of herself, I'm going to complain to the Old Madam!"

"Alright, if we keep going like this, Baoqin will soon become a housekeeper. I wonder who will take her away." Gu Qingwan teased Baoqin, and the maids beside her laughed along.

"Miss, what are you laughing about?" Ru Hua came in carrying a food box and heard laughter filling the room. Ru Hua loved lively atmospheres, so she quickly inquired as soon as she entered.

“Our young lady said that Sister Baoqin is the housekeeper,” Siqi explained as she stepped forward to help Ruhua set out breakfast.

“That girl is absolutely right!” Ru Hua said with a simple smile.

"Ruhua, if you say one more word, I'll tickle you!" Baoqin's cheeks flushed red from the teasing. Baoqin reached into her dressing case and took a white jade hairpin: "Miss, shall I wear this today?"

Gu Qingwan glanced at herself in the mirror and nodded: "This one is fine. The outer garment doesn't need to be too complicated, just wear the silver one with the subtle floral pattern."

"Yes."

After tidying up, Gu Qingwan sat down at the round table. Drinking water before meals was her personal habit. Ru Hua had prepared honey water in advance and handed it to her as soon as she was seated. Today's breakfast was also carefully prepared by Ru Hua.

Every dish was exquisite. The thin-skinned soup dumplings were crystal clear, so thin that you could see the filling and soup inside. There was also a small bowl of corn and milk soup, plus two small dishes of refreshing side dishes. I heard that these were prepared and brought over by Ru Hua.

Gu Qingwan ate a simple breakfast and rinsed her mouth with the mouthwash that Baoqin brought over.

The front yard was crowded with people, with Wang Dazhu at the head. They were all craning their necks to look at the archway.

Many people witnessed what happened yesterday. This young lady has the demeanor of a daughter of a prominent family and is a person who can make decisions. Yesterday, she said that if you report the Liu family father and son, you will receive a string of cash. At first, some people did not believe it, but there were still people who were willing to try. After Ning Si, Ning Wu, and Ning Liu registered, they took out a string of cash from the basket on their backs and gave it to them on the spot. As a result, more and more people tried it.

Of course, there are also some who are still observing. You know, the young lady is powerful, but if the master leaves and the Liu family father and son are still here, people as petty as them will definitely take revenge on them severely. Let's wait and see.

However, the rumors still spread last night. As soon as the rain stopped this morning, everyone knew that the Liu father and son had been taken to the government office by the young lady's men. Before leaving, they were tied up and paraded around the manor. No one knew who was so bold as to throw rotten eggs at the Liu father and son, and then things got out of control.

The Liu family father and son bullied men and women, ruining countless good girls. The Liu family father and son worked together to bully them, and if they didn't obey, they would come to their homes to beat, scold, and rob them, leaving these people angry but unable to speak out.

When Wang Dazhu said that the landlord's rent was still 30%, but that the Liu family had secretly increased it to 60%, it further fueled the people's anger. They knew their livelihood depended on the weather; some years had good harvests, others bad. Even on good years, after paying rent, they barely made ends meet, and many starved to death in bad times. If it weren't for Ning Er and the others, these people might have killed the three men.

This put those who had been watching on the sidelines at ease, and they went to file complaints one by one. Ning Er had someone register them all and send them to the government.

"They're here! They're here!" someone shouted from the crowd.