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Chapter 97: Wenliang

When Wen Ruyu and her group arrived in the capital, the new emperor had already ascended the throne.

This time, an eight-year-old boy from the extended royal family had been chosen—yet another child emperor.

However, this one was picked from the emperor’s nephews, a distant relative, and even finding such a candidate wasn’t easy.

Ironically, the former child emperor who died in political strife hadn’t even turned eight. Now, the newly selected emperor had to be posthumously adopted into the lineage of the previous one.

In other words, the “adopted son” of the late emperor was technically older than the emperor himself.

“The new emperor has taken the throne. There’s a shortage of talent in the palace—they’ll surely need capable people. The New Year is just a few months away, so it’s too late for anything now, but once the new reign begins, they’ll certainly hold a special imperial exam. Third, you should start preparing,” said the matriarch.

Lu Ke didn’t expect the old lady to still be thinking of him at such a family gathering. Surprised and touched, he quickly stood up and responded, “Yes.”

Lu Jinnian, sitting nearby, saw his mother giving guidance to his third brother—who was born of a concubine—while saying nothing to him. He couldn’t help but feel a little sour.

After all, his own studies were just as good, and he was his mother’s biological son.

Just then, a maid entered carrying a letter, seemingly waiting for the family to finish their meal before handing it over.

Wen Ruyu’s eyes were sharp and she spotted it immediately. She asked, “Where did that letter come from?”

The maid replied, “Old Madam, it’s from our hometown, Qinghe County.”

Wen Ruyu nodded and reached out, “Oh, let me take a look.”

Zhao Shu also put down her chopsticks and smiled, “We’ve just arrived in the capital, and already letters from home have come.”

Although the Lu family had moved to the capital, they still owned shops and farmland in Qinghe County.

Since Wen Ruyu was now in the capital, she certainly planned to expand the family business.

She had ambition—she wanted her fabric shops to spread across the country, for Haitang Miscellany to be distributed far and wide, allowing both literate and illiterate women to read or listen to stories in their spare time.

So she still paid attention to their old shops as well.

Whenever there were issues without clear solutions, the folks back home would write her letters. Wen Ruyu would reply with instructions.

When she received the letter, she thought it was just about the business or some family news.

But she was hit with two pieces of bad news upon opening it.

First, a religious group in Qinghe County called “Tianli Sect” had rebelled.

Although the local government quickly suppressed it, the people were still in panic. The shop asked Wen Ruyu if they should temporarily close down.

Second, a devastating blow for the body’s original owner:
Her hometown had been attacked by rebels. Her elder brother was killed, and her mother, devastated by the loss, soon fell ill and passed away.

Now her nephew, Wenliang, had brought his mother to seek refuge with her. They were currently staying at the family courtyard in Qinghe and were awaiting her instructions on what to do next.

Zhao Shu, sitting beside her and smiling a moment ago, noticed Wen Ruyu’s face change and took the letter from her hands.

Others hadn’t yet noticed her change in demeanor and were still caught up in the joy of reunion.

Until Zhao Shu hesitantly said, “Old Madam’s family… something’s happened.”

Everyone’s smiling faces turned serious at once.

“Let me see,” Lu Songnian reached for the letter from his wife.

But before he could take it, Wen Ruyu spoke up and plainly said:
“Your maternal grandmother has passed. So has your uncle.”

Since the soul of the original owner was no longer in the body, Wen Ruyu wasn’t emotionally affected. She felt sympathy, yes, but not deep sorrow.

Still, she put on a somber expression for the family’s sake.

She ate a couple more bites of food, then pretended to have no appetite and put her chopsticks down.

Seeing this, Lu Songnian looked at his wife. Zhao Shu leaned in and gently coaxed, “Old Madam, please eat a little more. You’ve had a long, tiring journey, and it’s been a while since you’ve had a decent meal. Today is a rare full-family gathering. Maybe have some soup?”

She stood to fetch her a bowl of soup.

But Wen Ruyu shook her head and weakly replied, “I can’t eat.”

She couldn’t cry—but she could at least pretend to be heartbroken. In truth, she really was feeling down, so the performance wasn’t entirely fake.

Seeing her so sorrowful, the whole room fell silent. No one dared to laugh anymore.

The Lu family didn’t have much contact with the maternal side—fewer than ten meetings over the years—so emotional ties were shallow.

So in this whole household, only Wen Ruyu truly grieved.

After all, they were her elder brother and mother. Even after years of separation, their deaths could not be taken lightly.

Seeing her stop eating, no one else dared to eat heartily either.

Wen Ruyu didn’t want to spoil everyone’s appetite, so she instructed her eldest daughter-in-law, “Later, send a letter back home. Tell them to temporarily close the shop. Wait a couple of months to see how the situation develops before deciding anything further.

As for Wenliang, let him and his mother stay in Qinghe for now. If they’re willing to come to the capital later, they’re welcome to live with us.”

She vaguely remembered her nephew Wenliang being of good character, though she didn’t know him well.

But after such major upheaval, her sister-in-law and nephew surely needed support.

They were family, after all—Wen Ruyu couldn’t turn a blind eye.

They were, after all, the only remaining blood relatives of the original owner.

Zhao Shu nodded, “Yes, Old Madam, don’t worry.”

After giving her instructions, Wen Ruyu stood and said weakly, “I’m a little tired. You all continue eating. I’ll go rest.”

“But Old Madam, the soup…” Zhao Shu stood awkwardly with the bowl in hand.

“I don’t want it,” Wen Ruyu said faintly.

Then she gestured for Qingxue to help her up and slowly returned to her room.

Once there, she dismissed the servants and quietly brewed some tea.

When she was alone, she pulled out some sugar from her storage space and started chewing.

She hadn’t eaten enough and needed the extra energy.

She never thought her storage space would be used like this.

To maintain her image of grief, she halved her food intake for the next several days and secretly snacked on sugar in her room when hungry.

This continued for about seven or eight days until she gradually “recovered under the care of her daughter-in-law.”

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Meanwhile, back in Qinghe County—

The Tianli Sect rebellion involved several thousand people and left a significant impact.

To root out the remaining rebels, the county magistrate Lin Da-ren conducted a massive investigation.

Everyone involved was arrested, pending a report to the emperor for further instructions.

The county jail was now full.

Among those arrested were Zheng family members—elder sister, brother-in-law, etc.

They had joined the sect just as the rebellion started. After investing money, they realized they couldn’t withdraw, so they were half-forced into treason.

They didn’t enjoy a single day of good life before landing in prison.

Naturally, they resented Liu Suqing—even though they had eagerly joined at first.

Now that they were suffering, they didn’t want Liu Suqing to go unpunished. So they reported all her misdeeds to the authorities.

Liu Suqing, coming from a low social background, had already distanced herself from the sect, but the authorities still sent officers to arrest her.

Unexpectedly, Liu Suqing was shrewd. By the time the officers arrived at the Zheng house, she had already fled with her servants.

She left the city a day before and vanished without a trace.

The authorities wanted to pursue her, but with so many prisoners and so much chaos, Magistrate Lin had his hands full.

So Liu Suqing slipped away easily.

In truth, she hadn’t gone far. With help from Yinfeng, she hid for two days at the Chai family’s countryside estate.

Such a remote spot would be nearly impossible for the authorities to locate, especially when they were overwhelmed.

After two days, Liu Suqing left without saying goodbye—just leaving a letter to thank Yinfeng.

The Zheng family servants admired Liu Suqing’s cleverness and many were willing to follow her.

Thus, she disguised herself as a refugee and began living the free life she had always dreamed of.

After the chaos subsided, Qinghe County returned to peace.

Wenliang stayed at the Lu home for about ten days, but made no friends. He only interacted with the neighboring Song family.

One day, he received a letter from his aunt Wen Ruyu in the capital. It was filled with comforting words.

After reading it, he read it aloud to his mother.

Lady Liang then said, “Since your aunt is willing to take us in, why not set out soon for the capital? It’s safer under the emperor’s rule.”

Wenliang hesitated. He had other plans in mind.

“If chaos spreads, nowhere will truly be safe. We only brought a boy servant, a maid, and an old nurse. We’ve got, what, a few dozen taels of silver? Going to the capital means depending on Aunt’s charity.”

Lady Liang frowned, “She’s your father’s sister—your real aunt. Her family is doing well now. Depending on her is better than turning to strangers. Do you have any better options?”

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