CHAPTER 1292: CHAPTER 1291: HOMECOMING

"Don’t give me any of that mumbo-jumbo, alright, I know you’re busy after returning. I’ll take Brother Jun back with me first. Your courtyard has people watching over it as arranged by your teacher’s wife, and it’s cleaned every few days. Moving in now is convenient. Just that the meals and purchases might not be timely, so come over to my place for dinner tonight," said Old Doctor Du, a straightforward person, who just grabbed Lord Du and dashed away after giving these instructions.

Song Chongjin, being observant, had already noticed Old Doctor Du’s figure from afar.

After giving him a glance, Old Doctor Du rushed towards his own wife. But after finishing speaking, didn’t even give a look and just left, what was that about?

Song Chongjin felt quite wronged...

He hadn’t even said a word to his master yet!

However, he was indeed surrounded by people at that moment, and couldn’t find a chance to break free.

Not only was Lv Wenguang there, but also the County Magistrate and the Magistrate, and more people arriving one after another, including the head and teachers of Changqing Academy.

Over there, Lv Wenguang said that today was a rare grand occasion, and he personally would host, having already booked a place at the largest restaurant in the county, to welcome Song Chongjin.

Song Chongjin couldn’t very well refuse, so had to agree.

However, he apologized, saying there were family members and servants to arrange for, and once they were settled back home, they would definitely come to the banquet.

Lv Wenguang understood this was human nature, so of course, he kept nodding and asked if there was anything else he could help with. He mentioned if their home wasn’t ready in time, he had a courtyard, quite serene, where Song Chongjin and his family could temporarily stay.

Others were busy volunteering as well, one family said they had excellent cooks, another said they had extra maids, and some even owned restaurants, proposing all meals and whatnot could be handled by them since the gentleman had just returned, and convenience should be ensured.

Everyone was almost fighting over it.

Let it be known that producing a top scholar like this in Jing County isn’t rare, but a Master Heir-Apparent truly is!

After all, he’s the Duke’s own son! Oh dear, if they could curry favor with him, would they be worried about anything in the future?

Song Chongjin politely declined each offer, and just mentioned that his family members had all been arranged for.

He then asked Lv Wenguang and the others to step ahead, saying they would see each other at the restaurant at lunchtime, and only then were they able to leave.

There were Yao Da, Shitou, and twenty Personal Soldiers there, and all the luggage had already been packed onto the wagons, just waiting to set off.

The courtyard that Song Chongjin and Wang Yongzhu purchased initially wasn’t too far from the dock, and with this group, it was an extraordinary sight, with passersby avoiding them, they reached home smoothly.

As expected, as Old Doctor Du mentioned, they had likely already received word, as the courtyard gates were open.

There were a few figures inside tidying up, and seeing Song Chongjin and the group entering, they quickly stepped forward to greet them.

It was indeed the steward from Old Doctor Du’s household.

"Lord Song, the front yard has been tidied up, the back yard was also cleaned a couple of days ago. The wells have been dredged, the kitchen’s firewood is all prepared, and rice, flour, and vegetables have been sent for, they should arrive shortly."

The steward from Old Doctor Du’s household was someone who could handle things, having arranged everything so neatly in such a short time.

Wang Yongzhu thanked the steward, and rewarded him with some silver.

The steward, being very tactful, thanked them for the reward and left with the servants.

The remaining people were easier to arrange, the twenty Personal Soldiers with Yao Da, Shitou, and Jinhoo naturally stayed in the front yard.

The steward who came aboard with Jinhoo, a very discreet Zhang Yinbao, was also initially arranged in the front yard, but he mentioned that Boss Zhang had arranged accommodation and wouldn’t intrude.

He requested simply being notified upon reaching Shiqiao Town.

Wang Yongzhu didn’t insist, knowing he’d feel restrained staying there, so she left him to his own devices.

She handed the front yard over to Song Chongjin and Yao Da, and ran straight to the back yard.

After being away from this courtyard for more than half a year, upon her return, she felt an overall comfort, and so did Old Granny Zhang, both of them visibly relaxed and eased.

As they walked through the courtyard, they smelled the rich fragrance of roses.

Looking up, they saw several rose flowers climbing over the courtyard wall, swaying gracefully with the breeze, very pretty.

Passing through the moon gate, Wang Yongzhu couldn’t help but feel a sense of delight.

It had only been half a year since she had carefully arranged the courtyard, and after a winter and spring, it was now thriving with vigor.

The entire courtyard was lush and verdant, the scent of flowers permeated the air.

Roses had climbed halfway up the wall, with a few eager ones already spilling over the top.

That magnolia flower had long passed its blooming period, now with a full canopy of green leaves.

The two grapevines had already covered the trellis, with three reclining chairs set around the stone table beneath, beckoning one to steal leisurely moments.

And in the small jar in the corner, the water lilies had sprouted palm-sized leaves, with two small red carps swimming about, fluttering their tails, quite amusing to watch.

Old Granny Zhang couldn’t help but exclaim with delight, "Indeed, Lady Huang’s deft hands made this courtyard look splendid this year, last year it wasn’t evident at all."

Since the rooms inside were occasionally cleaned, but were nonetheless uninhabited, there was dust to sweep and windows to open for ventilation.

Gu Yu and Li Xia only wiped the reclining chairs, added cushions, and let Old Granny Zhang and Wang Yongzhu sit down to rest.

Old Madam Ding had already gone to the kitchen to boil water, brewed a pot of tea for them, and reheated some snacks to place on the table.

She washed two large teapots and filled them with the local tea leaves, made a big pot of hot tea, along with a few large earthenware cups, and brought them to the front yard.

Those Personal Soldiers hadn’t drunk water all morning. Seeing the hot tea, although it didn’t have much tea flavor, it quenched their thirst, each drinking several cups.

Old Granny Wu and two maids went to tidy up inside the rooms.

In no time, Yao Da brought a few Personal Soldiers to carry the chests into the inner yard, momentarily stunned by the scene in the backyard.

Having just about finished tidying up, the Personal Soldiers carried the chests into the rooms, where naturally two maids would take care of the arrangements.

Song Chongjin finished his duties at the front and entered the backyard, where having a cup of tea and reclining on a chair, he felt wholly relaxed, almost wanting to close his eyes and doze off for a moment.

Old Granny Zhang, seeing Song Chongjin like this, couldn’t help but smile lovingly, motioning to the comings and goings to keep quiet, not to disturb her son-in-law’s nap.

Yao Da carefully approached, "Madam, the front yard is fully arranged, I’ll be staying with Shitou in the west wing room next to the wall, leaving the middle room for Young Master Jinhoo. As the Duke’s Mansion has many people, the three rooms in the east wing aren’t enough, so we’ve vacated one room for them in the west wing, with five people to a room."

"I noticed the front yard also has a kitchen with all the necessary utensils. If we bother the wives around Madam for cooking, it would be overwhelming. I was hoping to request leave from Madam to find a trafficker and hire a couple of women to cook, borrowing Madam in this matter?"

Before Yao Da came, he was instructed by Yang Zongbao to listen to Wang Yongzhu in everything.

Throughout the journey, he and Shitou could tell, this household was run by the Madam. Despite Lord Chongjin being a Master Heir-Apparent and having a stern demeanor, before the Madam, he’s like a pushover.

Moreover, for household trivialities like these, they certainly had to consult Wang Yongzhu, so it wasn’t something hidden from Song Chongjin.