The Heir

Сhарtеr 174: Fаrewell

Li Fаmilу Ink Маnоr.

Early in thе mоrning, Zhen Niang rоse eаrlу. Аftеr wаshing uр, she toоk Xiao Ya to the bасkyаrd and wаs аbоut tо heаd tо thе Ink Wоrkshоp whеn she heard hеr grаndfathеr coughing from thе north roоm. Worried, shе first еntеrеd thе kitсhеn.

Zhao Shi hаd аlso gоttеn uр eаrly аnd wаs in the kitchеn with thе nun and Мa Sao. Whilе the nun and Mа Sао werе prepаring brеаkfast, Zhао Shi wаs сrоuсhed bу а small stоve, simmеring peаr syruр саndy.

Zhеn Niаng реeked into thе kitchen and asked, "Мother, Grandfаther is cоughing agаin." Нer grаndfather’s cough was an old ailment. It had been much worse before, but after the family’s circumstances improved, they hired a doctor to treat him, and with some rest, he had gotten much better. However, recently, because he had been researching the Li Family’s Four Harmonies Ink, he had taken everything upon himself, even personally overseeing the burning of the soot material with a few others.

His cough simply couldn’t tolerate smoke, so it had worsened during this time.

"Indeed, he coughed all night. This pear syrup candy was brought by Wenqian from the capital. I heard it’s good for coughs, so I got up early to simmer it," Zhao Shi said, then turned to Zhen Niang. "Zhen Niang, you should also advise your grandfather. His health can’t handle smoke—don’t let him go into the Ink Workshop anymore."

"Mother, you know Grandfather’s temper. He’s completely focused on developing this Four Harmonies Ink to participate in next year’s Tribute Ink Selection. I’ve advised him countless times, but it’s no use. If I say more, he gets angry with me," Zhen Niang replied helplessly. That was just her grandfather’s nature.

"Your grandfather is really something. If he can develop the Four Harmonies Ink, that’s good, but if he can’t, he shouldn’t risk his life like this. Even if we’re competing for Tribute Ink, it’s not like we don’t have other good ink products. Does it have to be the Four Harmonies Ink?" Zhao Shi muttered under her breath.

"What do you know? The ink Zhen Niang makes isn’t true Li Mo. If our Li Family wants to compete for Tribute Ink, we must use the Li Family’s specialty ink products," Old Shopkeeper Li said sternly as he walked out, draped in his clothes.

Hearing the old man’s words, Zhao Shi dared not say more.

"This time, your Cheng San Yeye has secured a favorable opportunity for the Li Family. We must not miss it," Old Shopkeeper Li then turned to Zhen Niang.

"Grandfather, I understand," Zhen Niang nodded repeatedly, having already made up her mind. No matter what, she would keep an eye on her grandfather during this time and take care of his health. If he still wouldn’t listen, she would have her father send him back to Huizhou. With her grandmother keeping watch, her grandfather might listen a little more.

Zhen Niang then helped her grandfather sit down and attended to his washing.

At that moment, Xiao Ya led Ping’an Sao from the Luo Family in. As soon as Ping’an Sao entered, she placed two still-warm eggs into Zhao Shi’s hands. "Auntie, these are fresh eggs from our family’s Luhua chicken. They’ll help nourish the old man."

Ping’an Sao was following Luo Wenqian’s instructions to visit the Li Family more often when she had time. Additionally, she had her own motives: her son would undoubtedly rely on Wenqian in the future, and since Zhen Niang was Wenqian’s future wife, Ping’an Sao couldn’t speak directly to Wenqian, so she made an effort to visit Zhen Niang’s family more often.Zhao Shi thought that after her daughter married into the Luo family, she would need to rely on the support of the Luo family's sisters-in-law. Therefore, she was happy to interact with Ping'an's wife, as it would at least allow her to learn more about the Luo family.

Over time, Ping'an's wife and Zhao Shi grew increasingly close.

Thus, Zhao Shi didn’t hesitate to accept the eggs. At that moment, Ping'an's wife pulled up a stool and sat beside Zhao Shi, picked up a fan to help her fan the stove, and then said with a mysterious expression, "Auntie, have you heard? The Tian family’s daughter is engaged to the third son of the Xu family."

"Really? How come there wasn’t even a whisper of it before?" Zhao Shi asked in surprise. Back when the Xu family had taken an interest in Zhen Niang, rumors had spread even before anything happened. How could it be that now, with the two families already engaged, there was still no news?

Little did Zhao Shi know that previously, the Xu family had taken the initiative in showing interest in Zhen Niang. However, given their status, they couldn’t possibly lower themselves to make the first move, so they had spread rumors to encourage the Li family to approach them first.

This time, however, it was the Tian family who had taken the initiative. Before the engagement was finalized, the Xu family naturally kept it under wraps. Now that the engagement was settled, everyone would know in a couple of days.

"It’s true. Auntie Wang helped make the match. I heard the Tian family gave her quite a generous gift. The news hasn’t spread yet, but I reckon everyone will know in the next few days," Ping'an's wife said. Auntie Wang was one of Luo Wenqian’s closest relatives. Although there had been some unpleasantness when she came to speak on behalf of Tian Ronghua, Luo Wenqian still respected her. However, since Luo Wenqian didn’t get along well with the Wang family, he never visited them personally. Instead, he secretly asked Ping'an's wife to check on Auntie Wang from time to time.

Ping'an's wife had heard this news yesterday when she went to visit Auntie Wang. That’s why she came early in the morning to share the gossip with Zhao Shi.

"Oh, then congratulations to the Tian family," Zhao Shi said. Although she herself didn’t care for the Xu family, in everyone else’s eyes, the Tian family had climbed high with this marriage. When the news reached Huizhou, many would surely envy them.

Zhen Niang listened from the side. Although the news was somewhat surprising, it made sense. The Xu family had initially taken an interest in Li ink, but the Li family hadn’t gotten involved. Now, turning their attention to Tian ink was only natural. She suspected the Tian family had paid a hefty price this time.

However, thinking about the Xu family’s eventual fate, the Tian family would likely suffer some repercussions as well. It seemed that ever since the Tian family started competing with others, they had been stubbornly heading down a dead-end path.

Of course, the path the Tian family chose was their own business, and Zhen Niang didn’t care. Still, with the Xu family’s support, the competition for next year’s Tribute Ink would likely be fierce. She would have to stay sharp.

Fortunately, with Cheng San Yeye’s recent intervention, she didn’t have to worry about the Tian family resorting to underhanded tactics in next year’s Tribute Ink selection.

Meanwhile, Old Shopkeeper Li couldn’t stand listening to such gossip. Seeing that breakfast was almost ready and Li Jingfu still hadn’t come out, he asked unhappily, "Jingfu’s wife, why hasn’t Jingfu gotten up yet? Is he being lazy again? Go and wake him up.""Father, Jingfu isn't in the house—he's at the Yi Hou Sheng Firm. Last night, Wenqian came by and said he's leaving today for Shizhou in Shanxi to discuss a business deal. Since Jingfu has traveled the Shanxi routes before, he invited him over to share information about the journey over drinks. They talked late into the night, so he didn't return," Zhao Shi explained.

Meanwhile, Sister Ping'an added, "Yes, when I arrived, Uncle Jingfu was already up. Grandfather, I'll go fetch him right away." With that, Sister Ping'an rose and excused herself to leave.

Upon hearing that Luo Wenqian was heading to Shanxi, Zhen Niang felt a flicker of unease.

These were the middle to late years of the Ming dynasty. Aside from the prosperous Jiangnan region and the capital, many areas were far from peaceful. However, looking at the broader timeline, the mid-to-late Ming period—particularly during the Longqing era and the early Wanli years—was relatively stable, which later historians would refer to as the Wanli Restoration.

"Grandfather, there shouldn't be any Tartars in Shanxi, right?" Zhen Niang asked her grandfather. In the past, when Luo Wenqian traveled for business, she hadn't thought much of it—after all, merchants were always on the move. But now that they were engaged, her feelings had shifted. At the very least, upon hearing he was going to Shanxi, she immediately wanted to know the current situation there.

It was like in her previous life, when she was studying away from home: her mother paid little attention to the local weather forecast but checked the forecast for her daughter's city every day.

In short, it was the concern of family.

"I've heard Tartars often appear around Xuanfu and Datong. As for Shizhou, it's far from those areas, so Tartars rarely venture there. However, it's in the Lüliang region, where banditry is rampant," Old Shopkeeper Li pondered before answering.

Zhen Niang breathed a sigh of relief. As long as there were no Tartars, it was fine. As for bandits, merchants had their ways—at most, they'd pay a toll. Besides, many of Luo Wenqian's caravan guards had once mined gold with him, and their skills were no worse than ordinary bandits. That wasn't something to worry too much about.

What Zhen Niang didn't know was that in her previous life, she had never paid attention to military affairs. She was unaware that in the coming September, Anda's forces would raid over a thousand li and slaughter fifty thousand men and women in Shizhou. It could be said that the Ming dynasty's border defenses at this time were full of holes.

"By the way, Jingfu's wife, didn't Jingfu say the Qin family from Shanxi would send someone this year? Why haven't they come?" Mentioning Shanxi, Shopkeeper Li couldn't help but ask about the Qin family from Shanxi. After all, Li Jingfu owed his life to the Qin family, and that debt of gratitude had to be remembered.

"Yes, the Qin family never came. Jingfu wrote to ask, and it seems they had some family matters keeping them from traveling," Zhao Shi replied.

Old Shopkeeper Li nodded.

Just then, Li Jingfu and Luo Wenqian arrived together. Seeing Luo Wenqian and knowing he was about to embark on a long journey, the Li family naturally offered a few words of advice, which Luo Wenqian acknowledged one by one.

Finally, Old Shopkeeper Li asked, "When are you setting off?"

"I'll be leaving shortly. I just came to say goodbye," Luo Wenqian replied. Then, turning to Zhen Niang, he added quite naturally, "Don't worry. I'm familiar with the checkpoints and connections along the way."

"Oh," Zhen Niang nodded, her eyes crinkling into a gentle smile. A sense of inexplicable calm settled over her.

Luo Wenqian had come specifically to bid farewell. Once his goodbyes were said, he prepared to depart."Wait a moment." Seeing him about to leave, Zhen Niang remembered something and called out, then scurried back into the room. From under her pillow, she retrieved a pair of shoes she had recently finished making.

These shoes had been sewn back when the engagement was first settled, urged on by Hua'er and Xiao Ya. They were finely stitched with layered soles, which had truly taken her considerable effort. They had been sitting in the room for several days, and she had never found a suitable opportunity to give them to him. Now seemed just the right moment.

Thinking this, Zhen Niang tucked the shoes into her sleeve and went out to Luo Wenqian. She pressed the shoes into his hands.

Luo Wenqian's eyes lit up, and he grinned, tucking the shoes into his chest. He patted them gently to show he would cherish them, then bowed once more to Old Shopkeeper Li and the others before turning to leave.

...