"This is the Duke's Mansion," Mei Qingxue craned her neck to look out of the carriage window. It was truly imposing! How much must it have cost to build? Just looking at it made her envious.
"My grandfather used to be a merchant," said Du Gu Qing. Then he joined the army, and everyone in the Feng Kingdom knew about him. But Mei Qingxue seemed unaware. She wouldn't think his grandfather was a corrupt official, would she?
"So that's how it is," Mei Qingxue suddenly understood. She had almost marked her husband's grandfather as the first target for investigation. She hated those who were wealthy but heartless the most.
"What's that?" Not far from the magnificent mansion gate was a small thatched shed. Mei Qingxue pointed at it and asked Du Gu Qing. It was really strange.
"It's a porridge shed. Grandfather distributes porridge every year."
A good person, a really good person. Mei Qingxue made up her mind that even if his grandfather was extremely pedantic, she would tolerate it.
"What are you thinking about?"
"I'm wondering if grandfather is very strict. Should I also call him grandfather? There are so many strange forms of address in ancient times."
"You'll know what to do when you hear me speak later."
"Okay!"
"His Royal Highness the Prince of Rui and his princess have arrived..."
The people inside immediately came out to greet them. At the front was an old and kind - looking man with wrinkled skin and white hair.
"Greetings to His Royal Highness the Prince of Rui and his princess," the old duke bent his knees to perform a grand salute. Etiquette must not be neglected. He was the most punctilious person.
"Dispense with the formalities. Please rise quickly, grandfather. This is Xue'er. Xue'er, quickly greet grandfather!"
"Grandfather."
The old duke introduced the others in the hall one by one. "This is your eldest uncle, your second uncle, and your aunt. Your uncle passed away last year." There were also some young people standing beside them.
They all looked young and had a certain resemblance in their features. It was obvious that they were a family. Du Gu Qing, who had few siblings of his own, felt very close to them when he saw them. The old duke said with a beaming smile, "These are all your younger brothers and sisters. Go and pay your respects to His Royal Highness the Prince of Rui." Needless to say, these were the children of the uncles and the aunt.
"Greetings to His Royal Highness the Prince of Rui and his princess," the young people were not shy and quickly bowed. Mei Qingxue had rarely been with her peers since she came to this world. She was extremely happy to see so many people of similar age today.
"We're all family. There's no need for such formalities," Du Gu Qing waved his hand gently and then told his attendants to present the gifts one by one. Then they began to catch up. The old duke asked most of the questions. When he learned that his daughter was in favor again, he couldn't help shedding tears.
"Grandfather, don't be sad. Mother is doing well."
After this chat, the relationship between the two families became much closer. The old duke had a good impression of Mei Qingxue. After all, she was from a noble family and their family status was comparable.
"Grandfather, your grandson will take his leave now. Since the two mansions are so close, your grandson will come to visit more often. After all, grandfather is the closest person to me in this world," Du Gu Qing said.
Hearing Du Gu Qing's words, the old duke's face brightened. Mei Qingxue was a female family member, so he didn't say much. It wasn't that he didn't like his grandson's wife. He just adhered to etiquette. The old duke's wife, the aunts, and the uncles' wives took care of the princess for the whole day.
"How was it?" Du Gu Qing asked his little wife as soon as he got into the carriage, asking about her experience of visiting relatives.
"They were so enthusiastic. It seems that mother was a beloved daughter in the family before she got married."
Only a beloved daughter would be valued by her family. In ancient times when men were favored over women, such families were rare. Just like her own family, the daughters were also more favored.
"You're right. When mother entered the palace, the family was really reluctant to part with her. We exchanged a lot of letters in the first few years. But later, because of my situation, mother was so determined that she stopped writing letters. How could she answer the family's questions in the letters?" Du Gu Qing could understand his mother's feelings. He also knew that the people his mother was most reluctant to part with were his grandfather and grandmother. Fortunately, he saw them today and knew that they were in good health. His mother in the palace was still waiting for his letter to relieve her longing.
Now that his health had improved, his mother had regained favor, and his fief was in this area, his mother had started to resume communication between the two places.
It was the bond of affection that was so hard to let go.
"Let's write a letter to mother when we get back," Mei Qingxue grabbed her husband's hand and patted it gently. After visiting relatives, Du Gu Qing seemed a bit depressed. Mei Qingxue knew that he was sentimental. Ancient people were always prone to feeling sad about the changing seasons and emotions. Even men were the same. No wonder ancient poets often died of melancholy.
"Okay, stop thinking about it. Do you think mother has any regrets? No. The only regret is that she can't serve her parents in person. But you're here. You can fulfill the duties on behalf of your mother, and it's the same," Mei Qingxue comforted him.
"Yes, how could I forget this?"
The knot in Du Gu Qing's heart was untied, and he felt much more relaxed. When they returned to the magnificent courtyard, the two of them really lived a fairy - like life.
Although it was a fief, there were local officials. They only needed to report to Du Gu Qing regularly.
"Shall we go boating on the lake today?" Mei Qingxue said to Du Gu Qing excitedly. Eunuch Tang happily followed behind them, carrying Mei Qingxue's snack box in his hand.
Linzhou was the largest and most bustling city in the south of the Yangtze River. A few years ago, when the flood was severe, this city was also severely affected. Fortunately, the officials were quite responsible, and with Mei Qingxue's help in providing food, the lives of the victims here were not too difficult. After the flood receded, it became a prosperous city again.
However, Mei Qingxue didn't expect that the news that the Princess of Rui was actually Miss Mei from the Mei family and was now in Linzhou had spread somehow. Everyone wanted to see the kind - hearted benefactor's face. Every day, the front gate of the prince's mansion was blocked tightly.
This made Mei Qingxue both happy and troubled. Now she had to sneak out of the back door like a thief every time she left the mansion.
Even so, she still had to be careful not to be recognized by the enthusiastic common people.
Because they eagerly invited Mei Qingxue to their homes. Since it was not convenient to pull Mei Qingxue's clothes, they would pull the prince and the guards. Every day, their clothes were in tatters. People who knew would think it was the prince and princess on an inspection tour. Those who didn't know would think it was a gathering of the Beggar Gang.
Du Gu Qing was always smiling because of the love and respect from the common people. Everyone knew that there was a white - haired male immortal standing beside the female immortal. The female's beauty was unparalleled in the world, and the male immortal was also extremely handsome.
They truly had the looks of immortals.
Mei Qingxue was both troubled and happy. This was the credit of the people from the Azure Sea Pavilion, not her own. As long as the common people could live and work in peace and contentment and the country was prosperous, she would be extremely happy. Mei Qingxue never thought of saving the world. She just wanted to do her part, and now it seemed that she had been quite successful.
The two of them lived a fairy - like life in Du Gu Qing's fief, traveling around every day.
Actually, traveling was just one purpose. They were also secretly observing the local officials. After all, Du Gu Qing was the highest - ranking official in this area. Now it seemed that he was just having fun, but he could take over the local government affairs with just one word.
Eunuch Tang was very happy every day. The good relationship between the prince and the princess made him start to wonder when there would be a little prince or even a little princess. Looking at Mei Qingxue bouncing around every day, her belly showed no sign of change. When they left, Concubine Qin had specifically told him that if the princess was pregnant, he must send the news back to the palace immediately. Not only was Concubine Qin anxious, but he was also eager. As he got older, he just wanted to enjoy the company of grandchildren. Even if they weren't his own children, just seeing them would make him happy.
The most important thing for Eunuch Tang every day was to prepare a bowl of kidney - tonifying soup for both the prince and the princess, hoping that they would have a child soon.
"Eunuch Tang, what are you making me drink every day? It doesn't taste good, and it's such a big bowl," Mei Qingxue asked the old eunuch, seeing his strange smile.
"That's a very nourishing soup. Drinking it regularly is very beneficial to your health," Eunuch Tang just didn't say it was a soup for tonifying the kidneys and promoting fertility.
"If that's the case, then Eunuch Tang, make one more portion for yourself every day. It's different here from the palace. You can be more relaxed and don't need to be so formal," Mei Qingxue said.
Eunuch Tang didn't expect that Mei Qingxue was so generous. A fertility - promoting soup... If it was useful for him, he would rather drown in the soup pot.
"Thank you, Princess."
"What are you thanking me for? The snacks you made today are really delicious. Are they from the south of the Yangtze River? I've never eaten them before," Mei Qingxue remembered the taste of the snacks she ate earlier and couldn't help smacking her lips.
"That's a snack from my hometown. It's called Wisteria Cake," Eunuch Tang introduced. Mei Qingxue added in her mind that it was also called Wife Cake, but this name probably didn't exist in ancient times, and she wouldn't introduce new terms.
There was a look of loneliness on Eunuch Tang's face. He hadn't been back to his hometown for decades. It was when he went on a trip with Mei Qingxue and the others that he unexpectedly saw the Wisteria Cake.
"Eunuch Tang, where is your hometown?"
"It's..." Eunuch Tang was about to say something when he seemed to remember something. His eyes dimmed, and finally he replied, "I can't remember." Mei Qingxue knew he was lying. Since he could talk about the snacks from his hometown so vividly, he must have some memories. It was probably a painful past. Mei Qingxue understood and didn't ask any more questions.
"If you've forgotten, then forget it. Wherever His Royal Highness the Prince of Rui is, that will be your home from now on," Mei Qingxue couldn't say too much. If she did, the old eunuch would feel uneasy. Since the old eunuch had been kind to Concubine Qin and was so good to her, she should show her kindness.
"Eunuch Tang, what shall we have for dinner tonight?"
The only thing Mei Qingxue could think of to change the topic was food.
Eunuch Tang smiled and looked at Mei Qingxue. "You can have whatever you want. There's even a former imperial chef in the mansion. Together with the snack - maker, there are two of them. Even if you want to eat palace - style dishes, it's not impossible. It's just that the ingredients aren't as good as those in the palace."
"I'll eat all the delicious food!"
Mei Qingxue laughed. She knew that Eunuch Tang regarded them as children, so she might as well act like a child. After all, she had been a child ten times. One more time didn't matter.
"Okay. I'll go and tell the kitchen right away."