The Lucky Heiress

Chapter 368: Chapter 368: Blood-Related Relatives_i

Wei Ruo bundled up in her clothing, wrapping herself tighter.

Inwardly, Wei Ruo complained that the fabric of her clothes was unsuitable for venturing outdoors. This fabric was specially modified by her and while it was more breathable and lightweight than ordinary material, making it quite comfortable during hot weather, it was indeed awkward in this kind of situation!

Then, Wei Ruo leaned against the stone wall behind her, listening to the sound Of heavy rain pounding in the forest and the occasional rumble of thunder. The wetness all over her body made her feel somewhat restless, hoping that the rain would end soon.

Catching a glimpse of Wei Jinyi, who was standing with his back to her, Wei Ruo felt a warmth in her heart. Though her second brother could sometimes be old-fashioned”, he was genuinely considerate towards her.

Besides Brother Xiaoyong, he was the second brother who treated her well and the only one she was related to by blood who felt like a real family member.

This was what a relative felt like. Fortunately, fate was not extremely unkind to her, leaving her with at least one “relative”.

“Thank you, second brother,” said Wei Ruo in a low voice to Wei Jinyi. “Hmm,” Wei Jinyi responded in a voice slightly lower than usual. On the other side, Xiumei was in a similar situation as Wei Ruo, wearing clothes made of the same fabric.

Xiaobei followed suit by covering Xiumei with his clothes, to which she quietly thanked him.

Perhaps the heavens had heard Wei Ruo’s plea, for the rain stopped after approximately the time it took for a stick of incense to burn.

Even though the rain had stopped, water was still trickling over the ground and the entire mountain seemed washed by the rain, the gathered water flowed like a small stream.

Wei Jinyi sent Xiaobei to a spot that was untouched by rain to gather some dead branches and leaves.

Although the weather was not too cold, Wei Ruo wouldn’t be able to return to the city comfortably with her damp clothes and hair.

Wei Jinyi cut some miscellaneous trees nearby to make a temporary shield for Wei Ruo and Xiumei.

After Xiaobei collected some firewood, he lit a fire, allowing Wei Ruo and Xiumei to dry their clothes behind the temporary shield.

After the rain shower, the sun came out again, and with the help of the fire, their clothes dried within the time it took to burn a stick of incense.

Although Wei Ruo and the others appeared somewhat disheveled, they were not as uncomfortable as before.

When Wei Ruo emerged from behind the temporary screen, she returned the now-dried clothes to Wei Jinyi.

Wei Jinyi received the clothes and noticed a faint scent, not of flowers or incense, but akin to a mixture of herbs and sandalwood.

Wei Jinyi knew this was Wei Ruo’s scent, and unconsciously tightened his grip on the clothes.

After freshening up, the group descended the mountain once again, making it back within the city gates just before they closed.

Early the next morning, Wei Ruo went to visit the villages and counties belonging to Fengting Mountain to roughly discuss the purchase. The negotiations went relatively smoothly, especially with Wei Ruo offering a combination of silver and grain for the purchase, which was gladly accepted. This year, grain was particularly valuable, and using grain to make purchases was even more effective than using silver.

At the same time, the brothers Zhao Hai and Zhao Xun arrived in the provincial city. Zhao Hai would help manage the newly acquired lands on behalf of Wei Ruo. His early arrival was also convenient for helping Wei Ruo to settle the villagers from Dahetun Village, who were hiding on Fengting Mountain.

The reason for arranging Zhao Hai to come was not only because of his good ability and experience in managing estates, but also partly due to Zhao Xun’s desire to come to the provincial city to take the imperial examination.

Zhao Xun was a scholar and eligible to participate in the examination. However, his health condition was worrisome and it was uncertain whether he could last through the entire examination.

In this case, Zhao Hai was reluctant for him to participate. His health had finally improved under Wei Ruo’s care, and the strenuous examination may cause his condition to deteriorate.

However, Zhao Xun was adamant and insisted that he didn’t want to miss this opportunity, even if it might cost him his life.

With no other option and unable to dissuade him, Zhao Hai agreed to accompany him to the provincial city.

So, Wei Ruo made such arrangements to make it convenient for Zhao Hai to take care of Zhao Xun and to help her manage things in the provincial city.

Apart from Zhao Hai, a few villagers from Stone Village would also arrive in the provincial city later for Zhao Hai to delegate and organize the follow-up farming work on Wei Ruo’s new land.

Since Wei Ruo had a certain understanding of these villagers and approved of their abilities and attitudes, she decided to engage them.

The launch of the new estate would be more difficult to manage with all-new personnel, especially considering the large area of farmland that Wei Ruo had purchased. Assigning some familiar faces would make things smoother. Afterwards, Wei Ruo took a stroll around the city, looked at several shops, and asked about prices.

But there was no rush in settling on a shop. Wei Ruo only chose a rough location. The final decision would be made after her wet nurse and Uncle Xu came to further inspect and understand the area.

On the third day, Wei Ruo and Wei Jinyi met with Wei Yichen and presented him with some gifts.

During their encounter, Wei Yichen’s expression was as cold and serious as it had been in the past few days, losing its former warmth, and he no longer talked to Wei Ruo as much as he used to.

After briefly expressing gratitude to Wei Jinyi and Wei Ruo, Wei Yichen sent them away.

After finishing their tasks, Wei Ruo and the others set off for Taizhou prefecture that afternoon.

This trip, including their stint in the provincial city and the round trip, took Wei Ruo and her company eight full days.

If it weren’t for fear of being reprimanded by Yun Shi for returning late Wei Ruo would have been able to delay their return journey even further.

When Wei Ruo and Wei Jinyi returned to the Military Prefecture in Taizhou, it was already the evening of August 14th.

Since the Mid-Autumn Festival was the next day, the entire residence was particularly busy.

Upon her return, Wei Ruo, as per tradition, went to pay her respects to Yun Shi.

But Yun Shi’s expression today was very poor. She showed no joy in anticipation of the reunion festival, and her bad mood didn’t seem to be aimed at Wei Ruo, nor did she say much about Wei Ruo’s late return.

Maybe it was because her most cherished children were not with her on a day that was supposed to be for family reunion.

only after returning to Tingsong Garden and inquiring from Nurse Zhang did Wei Ruo learn that Yun Shi’s bad mood was not just due to Wei Yichen and Wei Qingwan’s absence from the residence.

Nor would Wei Mingting be able to return home the next day, because the front line Anti-Japanese Army and the Japanese Pirates had clashes again, and the situation was unknown.

Additionally, during Wei Ruo and the others’ trip to the provincial city, Yun Shi had received a letter from the Earl residence’s master in Capital City, addressed to the Military Prefecture. The letter stated that a nobleman in Capital City wanted to support the master and arrange an office for him, but this required the master’s cooperation..