Chapter Eight Hundred Seventy-One: A Quiet Departure

hopeless. Seeing the pitiful state of Anjia and Xixi, as well as Jia Yin's dejected demeanor, they all shrank their heads in shame...The children made such a commotion that the adults lost their motiv..."Sister, I'm not leaving. I want to stay." Wan'er said with a gentle and resolute smile.

She then looked at the elders, including Li Laoer, who were seeing her off, and said: "As the Countess's daughter-in-law, I enjoy the wealth and splendor of the Earl's Mansion. Naturally, when storms come, I must stand firm with the Earl's Mansion."

"Besides, my younger sister takes care of the old house at Suijin Beach, and I take care of the Earl's Mansion. We can rely on each other."

"Most importantly, Jia Ren is taking a big exam. As his wife, I can't help him much in terms of studying, but I can personally prepare food and clothing for him and send him to the examination hall. That's my duty."

Everyone originally still wanted to persuade, but upon hearing this, they all closed their mouths.

Li Lao'er was even more pleased, this daughter-in-law was a good choice.

With such a mistress of the house, the Earl's manor would surely prosper. Her son could be well-supported and live a comfortable life, bringing honor to his family!

Jiarren stepped forward directly, taking his son's swaddling clothes in one hand and holding his wife's hand tightly with the other...

Jia Yin was caught off guard and had a mouthful of dog food shoved in her mouth. She could only quickly ask the people on board to bring down her sister-in-law's luggage.

"As a result, Wan'er said again: 'Sister, there's no need. The few chests I have are filled with things for Grandmother and everyone else to use on the road. I haven't packed my own luggage yet.'"

At this point, Li Lao Tai and Tao Hongying and others also knew that Wan'er and her son wouldn't be going south with the ship.

They leaned against the railing, their hearts a jumble of emotions.

Both pitying for Wan'er's steadfastness, left to shoulder the burden of Earl's Mansion alone, and happy that at least she has a sister-in-law to keep her company. No need to run back and forth between the city and the village.

Wan'er smiled with delight and waved to the people on the boat, "Grandma, Auntie, I can't play with you anymore."

"When you come back, be sure to bring me lots of good stuff!"

"Good!" Li Lao Tai and the others responded in unison, their eyes welling up again.

Li Zhensheng, Jiayi, and Liu Yang finished their errands and hurried over. They bid farewell to the Marquis and the others with a few simple words.

Jia Yin stepped forward and hugged Jia Yi, patting her brother's back heavily. She instructed, "Brother, remember, when you find a sister-in-law, make sure to find one that you like and who treats you well!"

"What outsiders say doesn't matter, your sister-in-law is the one you'll spend your life with. No matter what happens, outsiders can't replace you, so don't wrong yourself!"

Chia-yi's face flushed, her heart pounding with a mixture of warmth and unease.

He rubbed his sister's hair, smiling and nodding, "Don't worry, your brother isn't a fool, he wouldn't put himself at a disadvantage. "

"As for you, with all your family gone, don't be too naughty."

"If you ever feel unhappy, or get into big trouble, go find your third brother in the south. At sea, your third brother is invincible!"

"Haha!" Jia Yin was amused by her brother's proud expression. She hugged him again and instructed, "Make sure you take good care of Grandma and Mom for me!"

I brought you a lot of medicine and poison. Study them thoroughly and get familiar with them before using them, don't mix them up.

"Don't worry!" Jia Yi patted his chest and then bowed to the Marquis and others. Finally, he pulled Liu Yang along and jumped onto the ship's railing in three or two bounds.

Li Zhensheng also bid farewell to everyone, calling the manager and sailors to untie the ropes and raise the anchor.

The large ship slowly left the dock, gradually merging into the river and becoming smaller and smaller.

Onboard and ashore, everyone was waving.

As the big ship was about to disappear from sight, Jiayin could still seem to hear her grandmother calling, "Funiu'er ah, be sure to take good care of yourself! Be obedient!"

Jia Yin wiped away a tear, her face icy cold, stinging from the wind.

There seems to be a void in my heart, filled with fear and sadness...

The Marquis stepped forward, using his cloak to shield his daughter from the cold wind and persuaded her, "Don't cry, you can go whenever you want, your godfather will be ready to send you on board at any time."

"No, I'm not going!" Jiayin pulled out her handkerchief and wiped her face forcefully, stubbornly saying: "Finally, no one is bothering me at home. I want to have fun!"

Everyone burst into laughter and stopped worrying.

Li La Er and Mr. Wen were going back to the yamen, while Li Lao San was going back to Lu'an.

Jiārén and Lǐgē'er accompanied Wǎn'ěr and her son back to the Earl's Mansion.

The Marquis and Li Lao Si, Li Yong naturally had to stay at the military camp.

There's no point in staying here alone and reminiscing by the golden beach. I might as well go back to the city with my siblings-in-law. I'm planning on checking out the new shops...

The carriage came fast and left just as abruptly, leaving the docks silent in an instant.

The Li family's actions, of course, were seen by many people.

But most people who saw it were only curious as to where so many people from the Li family were going by boat, and they didn't guess anyway.

Xiaoban, half-human and half-monster, wanted to spread the word, but this was the Northern Expeditionary Army's territory. Coming and going wasn't so easy...

Without mentioning the pier, just saying that Jia Yin arrived in Xin Du, she parted ways with her brother and sister-in-law.

This time, grandma and the mothers-in-law took away most of the people in the house, even taking one of the cooks from the kitchen.

But good music was still in demand.

Shuiling and Shuiyun remained by her side as always, accompanying her. The driver was a veteran soldier, and Mu Xu also provided personal protection.

At the county princess's manor, there was Old Nanny Liu in charge.

The daily chores of the old house were left to Lin Grandma's care.

That's the benefit of having a master.

Just focus on the big picture, and don't worry too much about the small stuff.

In a new shop in the business district, Kuli was laying out blueprints, double-checking the final details.

He turned his head and saw Jia Yin's carriage parked at the door, so he hurried out to greet her.

Jia Yin took a few steps into the shop, pulled off her wind hat, and laughed, "It's really cold today!"

Gulli also laughed and replied, "Yes, Princess, it's almost the twelfth lunar month, the coldest time of year."

Jia Yin let out a puff of white breath and didn't dare to untie her cloak.

Guli hurriedly told someone to prepare hot tea, but Jia Yin waved her hand and called Shui Ling to take care of it.

At last, she said, “Old Gu, take me around. If everything is alright, I plan to open the fruit and vegetable stall these few days.”

"Chinese New Year is coming soon, it's also the time to grab some lucky money!"

The tone was so eager, everyone laughed.

Even Shuiyun, who was usually taciturn, couldn't help but smile and say, "The county princess is always happiest when it comes to making money."

Mu Xu also curled the corners of his mouth, following behind Gu Li and Jia Yin, listening to them talk about the arrangement of each place in the shop.

The two-story building next door requires a lot of consideration and several days to repair.

This fruit and vegetable shop is only one story, which is much simpler.

Winter brings cold weather, making fruits and vegetables susceptible to frost. Therefore, warmth is paramount, but adequate lighting should not be overlooked.

The original door of the shop was replaced with four large windows in a grid pattern, each fitted with a three-foot square glass pane.

For this reason, the warm rooms in the county princess's manor dimmed slightly.

Of course, the shop was much brighter here.

Though the doors on either side were reopened, they weren't as large as before, but still big enough to pass through.

On the left is a new entrance. A small partition was built to allow guests to pause upon entering, shake off snow from their clothes and rub their shoe soles on the red felt mat before pulling up the windbreak curtain and stepping into the shop.

Of course, the partition is temporary and can be removed at any time during the summer.

Under the floor of the house, a system of heated pipes was installed, similar to modern-day underfloor heating, and covered with warm-colored wooden planks.

When the time comes, we'll have a bonfire in the backyard, and the temperature inside will be guaranteed to be cozy and controllable!o princes in the harem. One is frail, and the other is just over a year old. Neither is a suitable candidate.The most important thing is that both of these princes were not born to the Empress.What if...