Five years later, in Yunzhou, at the residence of Princess Yuening.
Spring in Yunzhou was warm and pleasant. While it was still the cold snap of late winter in the capital in February, gentle spring breezes were already blowing in Yunzhou, with grass growing and orioles flying.
The dazzling sunlight shone on the plaque of "Xisong Academy".
Song Wanchu walked at a leisurely pace. Along with the loud reading voices, she slowly passed by one classroom after another.
There were more than sixty children, divided into four classrooms according to their ages.
Several children sitting in the last row heard the footsteps and quietly looked back. Seeing Song Wanchu, they quickly sat up straight.
Those who were yawning quickly picked up their books.
"Hey, hey, wake up. Don't sleep. Mother is coming again!"
"It's just these lazybones. They yawn non - stop as soon as they see the teacher, but they are all full of energy when practicing martial arts with Second Master!"
The one speaking was Nanzhi.
In the past, Suyue, Xiahe, and Yinglan who used to be by her side had all found good families and were living happily.
They also often came to visit her and still addressed her as "Miss". Everyone was very affectionate when they met.
Only Nanzhi, almost thirty years old, still refused to get married.
She said that following Miss was more comfortable than marrying a man.
The children adopted by Song Wanchu and Liang Yuzhou five years ago used to address her as "Sister", but now they had to call her "Aunt".
Song Wanchu looked at the half - grown boys in the last row pretending to read and shook her head with a smile. "They aren't afraid of me at all. I still have to let Liang Yuzhou discipline them well."
Five years ago, she and Liang Yuzhou returned to Yunzhou.
She paid for it herself, the Chu family provided the manpower, and Shi Minglang supervised. They built this magnificent and imposing residence of Princess Yuening.
The plaque on the main gate was even inscribed by the Empress herself.
But Song Wanchu thought it was too wasteful for just her and Liang Yuzhou to live in this mansion with more than two hundred rooms.
She wasn't short of money; she was extremely wealthy, but still thought it inappropriate.
Until one day when she went out to pay respects to Old Lady Chu. She saw a ten - year - old boy lying beside the side gate, looking inside longingly.
Soon after, a kitchen maid carried out a large bucket of swill, all leftovers.
The little boy's eyes immediately lit up. Looking at the bucket of swill, he seemed to see delicacies from the mountains and seas.
The maid smiled and handed the swill bucket to him. "I've picked out the good ones for you. Don't forget to return the bucket!"
The little boy thanked her repeatedly and carried the bucket away huffing and puffing.
He was so thin and his back was so frail. The ten - pound swill bucket swayed in his hands.
Song Wanchu got off the carriage and quietly followed him all the way.
The little boy carried the swill all the way to a desolate alley.
He pushed open a dilapidated wooden door, put the swill bucket on the ground, and proudly put his hands on his hips.
"Come and have a look. Big Brother got you something good today!"
Suddenly, six kids rushed to the door, two boys and four girls. The youngest little girl could barely walk steadily, babbling and unable to speak clearly.
And this ten - year - old begging boy was actually the oldest.
They were all disheveled, ragged, and sallow - faced and thin.
The children all surrounded the swill bucket, drooling. They flattered the little boy, calling him Big Brother one after another.
The little boy was extremely proud. He skillfully directed his little siblings. "Go and get your bowls. The sisters line up in front, and the brothers in the back. Don't push or grab!"
He himself took a broken iron spoon and scooped up the leftovers into the chipped bowls one big spoonful after another.
These leftovers were not even worth a second look from the dogs in the princess's mansion, but these children ate them with relish.
The little boy was like a general, patrolling among his six younger brothers and sisters.
"Eat slowly. There's still more!"
When everyone was full and the leftovers in the bucket were almost gone, the little boy fished out half a steamed bun from the swill and swallowed it whole.
He was obviously still hungry, but seeing his younger brothers and sisters with round bellies, he tightened his belt and proudly raised his head again.
"Big Brother! You're really amazing. How do you manage to beg for so many delicious things every day? There was such a big piece of meat in my bowl just now!"
The boy a bit younger than him exaggeratedly gestured with his hands.
"Let me tell you. I got all these from the residence of Princess Yuening! Everyone in Yunzhou knows that Princess Yuening is the kindest person in the world, a female Bodhisattva! Even the servants in her mansion are all kind - faced. That fat aunt in the kitchen always picks the good food for me, and that little brother who guards the side gate even gave us his small clothes. Otherwise, could we have survived this winter? We would have starved and frozen to death long ago!"
A five - or six - year - old little girl said, "The princess is so kind to us. Let's go to the temple and burn incense for her to bless us so that we can eat the leftovers from the princess's mansion every day!"
At that time, Suyue was still by Song Wanchu's side. Hearing this, she was already in tears.
Song Wanchu felt extremely guilty.
She had been raised in luxury, never short of money, living a life of extreme extravagance.
She had never seen real poverty until she saw these children, children who should have been cared for and loved by their parents, but were so happy and content just to be able to eat a mouthful of leftovers.
The Great Zhou Dynasty was powerful, intimidating all sides, and the people lived in peace. But in the corners that the emperor couldn't see, how many people were struggling desperately just to survive.
So, in that year, there were seven more children in the residence of Princess Yuening.
They weren't real siblings, but all had lost their parents and become orphans.
The oldest little boy became their leader.
A ten - year - old little boy had supported them all for a whole year by begging.
Even Liang Yuzhou thought highly of this child.
When asked his name, the little boy proudly patted his chest. "My name is Big Brother!"
He personally gave this child a new name, Song Chenxi.
Song Wanchu and Liang Yuzhou suddenly had seven children.
The fortune - telling by Taoist Qiu was really accurate.
Over the past five years, they had successively adopted more than fifty other children.
Most of them were orphans, and some were girls who had been abandoned as soon as they were born.
Every time a child came to the princess's mansion, they would be registered under the couple's names immediately.
Among their more than sixty children, there were forty daughters.
They wore all kinds of beautiful dresses and, like the boys, sat in the classroom to study.
Liang Yuzhou taught his sons martial arts and also allowed his daughters to join. But he wasn't as strict with them as he was with his sons.
Song Wanchu walked around the classroom and noted down a few children who needed to be disciplined.
A gentle breeze blew through the covered bridge, making the palace lanterns hanging on the bridge sway slightly.
Song Wanchu sat under the eaves. Nanzhi brought over a basket of needles and thread.
The two of them embroidered a pair of tiger - head shoes each.
The wet nurse came out, holding a four - or five - month - old baby girl in her arms.
The baby had just finished breastfeeding and was smiling sweetly at Song Wanchu. Her big, round eyes were full of the innocent smile of a child.
"The baby always smiles when she sees Miss."
The wet nurse gently patted the baby's back. The baby burped and smiled even more happily.
Song Wanchu quickly put away the needles and thread and took the baby girl into her arms.
"Tuantuan." She softly called the baby's name.
The baby seemed to understand and waved her chubby little hands in Song Wanchu's arms.
Tuantuan was a baby girl who had been abandoned as soon as she was born.
One day, she accompanied her aunt to check the accounts of the farm. On the way back to the city, she heard a baby crying.
The newly - born baby was thrown by the river. In the cold and desolate wind, the baby was only wrapped in a piece of ragged cloth.
Song Wanchu didn't hesitate at all and carried the baby back.
"You already have more than sixty children in your family. It's too tiring. Let me take this baby girl back and let your eldest brother and sister - in - law raise her."
Her aunt felt sorry for her.
The eldest brother she mentioned was her aunt's son. In his thirties, he had six sons but no daughter.
Even so, Song Wanchu still couldn't bear to part with the baby.
Because she had already let her sister - in - law adopt one of her daughters.
Over the years, there had been many families, some without sons and some without daughters, who wanted to adopt children from the princess's mansion.
But so far, only Suisui had been adopted out.
Song Wanchu played with Tuantuan for a while.
Suddenly, someone at the door announced, "Second Master is back!"
A man in a jade - colored long robe walked in. He had a graceful and extremely handsome figure.
He was also leading a twelve - year - old little girl by the hand.
The little girl's eyes were red, as if she had just cried. She hung her head, looking listless.
It was Suisui, who had been adopted by her cousin and cousin - in - law.
Song Wanchu returned Tuantuan to the wet nurse's arms and stood up to ask, "Why are you back?"
Liang Yuzhou frowned slightly and pushed Suisui forward.
"This child has a strong will. She emptied the wallets of her six elder brothers and scraped together five hundred taels of silver. She climbed over the wall in the middle of the night and escaped from the Qi residence. The Qi family searched for her all night. When they found her, this child was mingling with the caravan about to leave the city, declaring that she would follow the caravan all the way north to the Kingdom of Gaochang to find the queen."
Although Suisui was an adopted child, she had never suffered any grievances in the Qi family.
Her six elder brothers doted on her like a precious gem.
Her aunt and sister - in - law were also kind grandmothers and mothers.
Song Wanchu was puzzled but didn't rush to blame Suisui.
She held her little hand and asked, "Aren't you happy living in the Qi family?"
Suisui pouted. She seemed a bit guilty and also seemed to have a lot to say.
She was one of the seven children first adopted by Song Wanchu and Liang Yuzhou.
The bean sprout - like girl who used to be sallow - faced and thin and couldn't even walk steadily had now grown into a graceful young girl.
Moreover, her eyebrows and eyes resembled Song Wanchu's a bit.
Liang Yuzhou always indulged her especially.
Even though she had made such a big mistake, he didn't scold her at all.
If it were those boys, their butts would have been beaten black and blue.
Suisui timidly glanced at Liang Yuzhou.
Song Wanchu comforted her. "Your father is a reasonable man. If you have a reason, I'll decide to spare you a spanking."
"Why on earth don't you want to be a young lady in the Qi family properly?"
Thinking that a ten - year - old little girl had almost left the city with the caravan, Liang Yuzhou suppressed his anger between his brows and asked in a deep voice.
Suisui murmured softly, "I don't want to learn female handicrafts, nor do I want to learn painting and tea ceremony. I want to learn martial arts from father and become a female hero like the queen of Gaochang in the future!"
Song Wanchu and Liang Yuzhou looked at each other and understood everything.
Suisui liked to listen to storytellers and read storybooks. The most popular storybook in Yunzhou was about the heroic story of Queen Yaoguang enduring humiliation and finally succeeding in her revenge and restoring her homeland.
Yaoguang was the hero in Suisui's heart.
And she had also shown amazing martial arts talent since childhood.
Under Liang Yuzhou's careful teaching, she was very good at using the whip. Even the eldest brother in the Qi family who had practiced martial arts for thirteen years was no match for her.
And her cousin - in - law, Mrs. Wei, was a gentlewoman from a scholarly family.
How could Suisui accept her way of teaching?
"Mother, I don't want to go back. I'll be good in the future and won't cause any more trouble. Please let me stay and continue to learn martial arts from father."
Before Song Wanchu could say anything, she saw the chief steward running over, sweating profusely.
"Madam, Second Master, it's terrible. Our little ancestor has disabled the younger brother - in - law of the magistrate of Tianshui County!"
The little ancestor the steward was referring to was the former little boy, Song Chenxi.