Chapter 763: Busying With Ventilation and Reporting

enough to fill our stomachs.""How can so many people, a hundred or so, be supported by the taxes and grain given to the imperial court""Yes, even mosquitoes are meat."Three officials and the villager...In just three or five days, the good fortune of Gong's County Princess at Suijin Beach has become common knowledge.

Even gossips on every street corner, you could pick any one at random and they'd have three or five things to say...

No matter how good or bad it is, it's worrying to see a young woman being paid so much attention.

Then, Mrs. Jia Er sent a wet nurse to the Li family with a bucket of live fish.

Elder Li chatted with the midwife for a while, making small talk.

The midwife was also talkative and told Old Li many fresh things about the city. At last, she added two more sentences.

The most talked about thing in town recently is undoubtedly your manor's county princess.

Everybody says that the County Princess is a very lucky person, so much so that even if she walked around an empty field, flowers would bloom everywhere.

Our wife attended a first birthday party for a friend's child yesterday and heard many stories about it.

"No, today I'll have the old servant come over and take a stroll, just to remind Madam."

Li Laotai frowned upon hearing this, it was truly a spectacle to behold, happening right before her own doorstep.

"When did this happen How come suddenly there's a rumor that my county princess is blessed"

The midwife replied, “It should have been four or five days ago. It seems that at the Grain Family’s flower viewing banquet, the County Princess saved a maidservant who almost drowned. Many people saw it and rumors started spreading about the County Princess having great abilities and good fortune.”

"Things became increasingly outlandish and lively, with almost everyone in town knowing about it."

Li Laotai suddenly remembered, her second son seemed to have never returned to the old house after that day.

She was still puzzled about what her son had been busy with lately. It turned out that something had happened, but he had kept it from her!

After the midwife had left, Li Lao Tai felt more and more uneasy. Just as she was about to send someone to the County Princess's mansion to call her granddaughter back, Madam Liu also sent a personal maid over with some gifts.

This time, the Liu family sent two cages of quail. Their tail feathers were very beautiful.

Mrs. Liu was also quite eloquent, after all, those sent out by the mistress were not fools.

"Madam, our master went mountain climbing with friends to enjoy the scenery, and the guards in charge of the house happened to catch so many wild chickens."

Our wife said this wild chicken meat was tough and not very tasty, but the soup it made was excellent.

"And this pheasant's tail feathers are beautiful, perhaps the county princess would like them, so she urged the old slave to send two cages over quickly."

Mrs. Li nodded quickly and smiled, "It's still your madam who has thought things through thoroughly. Our young mistress just likes these strange and unusual things."

Yesterday, I went to the chicken coop and caught a few roosters. I plucked their feathers to make shuttlecocks for Xingxing and Yueya'er.

"Too bad she couldn't find one to her liking, though she did scare the poor roosters half to death. Now that she's here, she'll be delighted."

"Oh, what a coincidence! When I get back, I'll tell our mistress. She'll be so happy. Our mistress said she's been very busy these days, otherwise she would have come herself today."

The midwife followed up smoothly, "Lately, everyone's been talking about the county princess, and it's all praise. Our madam misses her dearly. When she has some free time in a few days, she definitely wants to come visit."

Upon hearing the words, Old Lady Li immediately understood.

Mrs. Liu also heard the rumors about Jiayin and sent someone to remind her.

She immediately became anxious and asked several questions carefully.

The midwife, knowing everything, finally said: "Our mistress heard something was amiss and worried that the princess would be at a disadvantage, so she sent me here."

Li Laotai immediately called people to the field to pick a basket of fragrant melons, asking Liu's wife to carry them back. Then, without stopping, she called her daughter-in-law and granddaughter back to discuss it.

Tao Hongying takes care of a large family every day, which is very hard work.

Although she had found two young women from Ercun to work as maids over the past two years, doing chores like laundry, cooking and cleaning, she, as the head of the household, still couldn't help but worry and exert herself.

Today she finally had some free time to visit Ercun and chat with Xiaocui.

No sooner had she settled down than she heard her mother-in-law calling for her.

She hurriedly bid farewell to Xiaocui and headed home.

Lao Li was pacing under the eaves, her hands clasped behind her back. In her hand was a tobacco pipe she hadn't smoked in ages.

As soon as Tao Hongying entered the hospital, she saw it and was very puzzled.

When a mother-in-law has worries on her mind, she only smokes dry tobacco.

Things have been pretty quiet at home lately, nothing much going on. Somehow I found an old cigarette holder.

Li Laotai had finally waited for her daughter-in-law to return, she grabbed her and pulled her into the house, then immediately began asking questions.

"Have you heard lately People all over town are gossiping about our poor Fu Niu'er."

"What idle chatter How would I know!" Tao Hongying said, utterly bewildered.

Li Laotai pinched her daughter-in-law's arm angrily and snarled, "You just stay at home all day, hiding in the kitchen and never coming out. You never even go into town! How could you possibly know anything!"

Tao Hongying was guilty and didn't dare to make a sound.

Logically speaking, there were only two daughters-in-law in the Li family: she and Zhao Yuru. Zhao Yuru was in Lu'an and didn't come back often, so she was the only one running the household.

She should go to the city often and socialize with various families.

But just thinking about sitting with those noble ladies, putting on fake smiles and exchanging empty compliments, made her exhausted.

With this free time, she might as well figure out some new dishes. The people at home would eat happily, and they could even be sold for silver at the wine shop...

So, for so long, she had been avoiding these social gatherings whenever possible.

Luckily, there was Wan'er supporting things at the Earl's Mansion, the Miss from the Princess Mansion personally stepped forward, and as for my uncle's side, he had already made arrangements.

On ordinary days, she only interacted with a few families, such as the Liu family, the Jia family, and the Guo family. It was very simple.

Old Mrs. Li also knew her daughter-in-law's temper.

At their core, they were all just peasants. They weren't really accustomed to the life of wealth and luxury...

She sighed and quickly told him what had happened.

Tao Hongying didn't react at first, after all, it wasn't a bad thing to have someone praise her child.

Still, Old Mrs. Li tore it apart and crushed it to analyze it for her daughter-in-law.

"You fool! You overdo everything! Our Blessing isn't made of silver, so it's impossible for everyone to like her and praise her!"

"And this rumor just sprung up out of nowhere, as if it wanted the whole Kyoto to know and stick the three words 'Good Fortune' onto Fuku-nya's head!"

"This must be someone playing tricks behind the scenes!"

Tao Hongying frowned, she also felt something was wrong!

"Mother, if someone is truly playing tricks, what are they trying to achieve" she whispered. "Wouldn't it be to force Funiu to marry into the palace After all, only members of the imperial family dare claim to have great fortune!"

But the Emperor's eldest son died young, and the second prince was sickly. The third prince is only two years old. None of them seem suitable!

“It couldn’t possibly be…”

Li Laotai heard this and her face darkened. She quickly interrupted her daughter-in-law's words, hissing in a low voice, "What nonsense! Funi is only ten years old, who could possibly think of such a thing!"

She became increasingly angry, her voice dropping to a low growl. "I heard there's a custom by the sea," she said. "When the Dragon King is furious and storms rage on the ocean, they throw the most beautiful girl from a fishing family into the sea as a sacrifice to appease his anger."

Now, some people are deliberately spreading rumors about our lucky girl, Funiu, saying she's blessed and fortunate. Everyone knows it, everyone believes it.

"What if one day there is an earthquake or a drought, and people cry out that the heavens are angry and demand a sacrifice Wouldn't they offer up Fu Niuer, the most auspicious person among us... as a sacrifice!"

"Our family just doesn't agree. They say that the luckiest person can quell calamities sent from heaven, and this forces our family to face everyone. "

"Even if our family is powerful, can we possibly go against the entire Heavenly Martial Realm!"At that very moment, Wen Yishi suddenly stepped forward, interrupting the crowd's flattery frenzy."Your Majesty, I have a petition to present. Lu Zhong, the official of the Ministry of Civil Affairs,...