Chapter 407: Imperial Envoy

Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations

Xiaoxiao smiled so much that she could barely hold the reins. Rong Yan controlled the horse for her with a doting expression and paid attention to her safety at the same time.

Yun Er, Yun San, and the others were already numb. They looked at the sky and chatted. “Miss, you’re really talented. You learned to ride a horse so quickly.” “That’s right, that’s right. But where did our Master find this horse? It actually looks almost identical to Miss’s Wind. What did Miss used to say? Are you two deliberately showing off your love to us?”

“Can you not mention that? It wasn’t easy for me to pretend not to see it.” Master was really too much. Not only was he sweet with the lady along the way, but even these details were filled with too much love.

It was said that people were homesick when they were close to home, and it was the same for Xiaoxiao. When she saw the entrance of the county, she tugged at Rong Yan and rubbed her hands nervously. “Little Big Brother, do you think I should see Father or Mother first?”

Rong Yan patted the back of her hand patiently. “Uncle Ning is worried that it’s inconvenient for Aunt Ning to stay at home. He has already rented a courtyard in the county and brought her over to wait for delivery. Your Second Brother can take care of her at any time.”

Only then did Xiaoxiao react slowly. Oh, she had forgotten about this when she told Eldest Brother.

It was unknown if it was because of Xiaoxiao’s words that “it’s better to travel ten thousands of miles than to read ten thousand books” that resonated with Dean Lu. After Ning Ansheng and his master completed the border peace talks, he was pulled onto the path of learning by Dean Lu. He said that he wanted to see the scenery along the way and slowly go home. Hence, the two of them were still walking on the road when Xiaoxiao and Rong Yan returned to the Imperial Capital and came to Xijiang County.

With Rong Yan’s men following him around, Xiaoxiao was very assured. Moreover, Dean Lu had a broad vision and was very knowledgeable. With him teaching Eldest Brother one-on-one, Eldest Brother’s future would definitely be limitless. However, she could not help but feel that it was a pity that Eldest Brother could not see his youngest sibling born.

“Eldest Brother Ning is hardworking. Now that he can be personally led by Dean Lu to experience the world and people, he will definitely reach a higher level.”

Xiaoxiao understood the logic. Most people could not compare to Eldest Brother’s diligence when he was studying. However, he had been in Fortune Village since he was born and had only seen that acre of land. His knowledge was indeed inferior to those young masters, but Dean Lu’s appearance made up for these shortcomings.

She believed in Eldest Brother and Dean Lu.

After putting aside those thoughts, Xiaoxiao tidied up her appearance and galloped towards the official field.

At this moment, Ning Fengnian was checking the fullness of the rice grains. He said to County Magistrate Shen, “We should be able to pump water in the next few days.”

County Magistrate Shen trusted Ning Fengnian’s experience. Besides, his judgment was almost the same as the agricultural officers on his side. If they didn’t collect the grains in the next few days, it might rain again.

“However, the Imperial Court’s imperial envoy hasn’t arrived yet. Should we wait a little longer?”

Hearing the question, County Magistrate Shen, who had not told him the identity of the imperial envoy in order to give him a surprise, revealed a mysterious smile. “No need, no need. Brother Ning, don’t worry. The imperial envoy is a reasonable person. He definitely doesn’t want us to miss the good opportunity to harvest just to wait for him.”

Ning Fengnian was still hesitating when he heard a familiar voice say.

“The county magistrate is right. Let’s do as you say, Father.

Ning Fengnian was stunned at first, then his face broke into a smile. “Xiaoxiao! Aiyo, why are you back!”

Xiaoxiao wanted to jump down from the horse, and this action frightened Ning Fengnian. Fortunately, Rong Yan was agile and skillful. He caught her, and Xiaoxiao ignored his fierce glare and ran towards Ning Fengnian.

“Father! I missed you!”

Ning Fengnian smiled so widely that his eyes couldn’t be seen. “Hey, hey, hey, good, good.”

Then, he looked at the young man who had just supported her daughter.

“Greetings, Third Prince!”

He didn’t recognize him just now. When he took a closer look, he realized that he was Young Master Ah Yan, aka the Third Prince, who lived next door to them back then!

Rong Yan did not let Ning Fengnian finish his greeting. Instead, he bowed. “Uncle Ning, long time no see.”

“I never had the chance to thank you personally for taking care of me back then and apologize to you for hiding my identity.”

Ning Fengnian immediately said that he didn’t dare and was very reserved towards Rong Yan.

After all, he was born and raised in Great Xia and was naturally in awe of the royal family. Xiaoxiao did not force him. The concept of equality for everyone belonged to the modern era. If she insisted on changing their minds for their own good, it would not help them improve, but harm them.

Hence, Xiaoxiao waited for Ning Fengnian to calm down before she started to ask about the changes in the family these days. Hearing that Second Brother insisted on delaying the wedding date and waiting for her, Xiaoxiao was touched and guilty.

“I’ve really wronged Sister Jiao’er.”

Ning Fengnian laughed. “You don’t know that even if your Second Brother agrees to settle the marriage first, the daughter of the Qian Family won’t. She wants you to witness their marriage with your own eyes more than your

Second Brother.”

Xiaoxiao chuckled and flaunted her charisma to Rong Yan. After a while, Ning Fengnian finally straightened his tongue and spoke.

“At first, I was worried that something would happen to this rice seed. I was relieved when I saw this full ear.”

■’This is already the third round of new rice we planted. From the looks of it, the harvest is definitely not less than the previous few times. I’ve told you before that some rice seeds grow well, but the more they grow, the worse they become. I’ve been worried about encountering such a situation for the past few months…”

At the mention of farming, Ning Fengnian started to talk non-stop. When he came back to his senses, he found that his mouth was dry. County Magistrate Shen, who was experienced, handed him tea from the side. Ning Fengnian drank an entire cup and stopped talking in embarrassment. He went to look at his precious rice grains.

Only then did County Magistrate Shen tell Xiaoxiao the ending of those people in the Ning Family’s old residence.

Old Madam had already been executed after doing all her evil deeds. Old Sir Ning and Little Uncle Ning were sent to work. At first, they even whined and tried to muddle through. Occasionally, they would deliberately mention that they had a relationship with the General’s Residence and wanted to slack off. Later on, “for some reason”, the grievances between the old residence and the Ning Family began to circulate in the laborers’ quarters. Everyone knew that not only were they not noble people’s relatives, but they also had a grudge with them. Their attitudes immediately changed drastically, and they threw all the dirty and tiring work on them.

They had to pay back double the laziness they had in the past.

Later on, Old Sir Ning really fell sick, but no one believed him. After all, he was old and passed away after a few days.

The funny thing was that his youngest son, whom he had placed high hopes on and doted on for his entire life, was indifferent to his death. The first thing he thought of was that it would be troublesome and expensive to handle the funeral. Hence, he got someone to send a letter to Ning Fengnian to tell him that if he did not care, he planned to wrap him up in a tattered mat and throw him into the mountains.

After finding out about this, Ning Fengnian paid for a coffin for Old Sir Ning, but at the same time, he also sent a message to Little Uncle Ning that he would fend for himself from now on and he would no longer care about him. The Ning Family would no longer answer his letters or messages.

Little Uncle Ning thought that he was just scaring him, but after sending out a few letters and realizing that they were really returned, he regretted it endlessly.

If he had known earlier, he would have treated Father better. After all, he was the reason for him to contact the Ning Family.. Now that Father was dead, Eldest Brother, no, the Ning Family would really cut ties with him…