After being jilted, the entire neighboring village was filled with deep regret.

Chapter 464 Murong Chen's Visit

After learning the whole story, Zhu Yixuan, who was preparing for the exam, frowned and looked at Master Zhu and the butler. "Didn't you pay a deposit in advance?"

Master Zhu turned his face away and snorted coldly, "Who in the whole county doesn't know that I've got my eye on that coffin!"

Zhu Yixuan was speechless. "I would believe Lu Tong, but I might not believe Shen Yi. He wouldn't care what you like, nor would he care if he offended you!"

He had known Shen Yi's temperament for a long time; that guy was very strange.

Old Master Zhu was furious. "Then I'll just have to swallow this bitter pill! That's the coffin I wanted! The one I wanted! How many years do I have left to live? Now my coffin has been stolen, aren't you going to do anything about it?"

Zhu Yixuan was at his wit's end. "I'll take care of it! Butler, first send someone to stop the coffin, and then have the coffin shop send another coffin over. I'll go there personally to apologize and explain."

He had no choice but to do this to appease his father.

Steward Zhu hurriedly led seven or eight people in a carriage to chase after the coffin.

By this time, the coffin had already traveled several miles out of the county town. When they saw the coffin-carrying team, they rushed up and surrounded them without saying a word.

The butler shouted sternly, "Stop! All of you, stop right there!"

Zheng Ergui and the others put down the coffin in bewilderment, staring at Steward Zhu with great confusion. "What's wrong?"

Steward Zhu stepped forward and roared, "This coffin was long ago set in our Zhu family! The coffin shop owner sold it without any sense of ethics! You all need to carry it back to the city right now!"

"No! We all received money from the county magistrate and agreed that the item must be delivered to Shenjiazhuang intact. The coffin shop owner was also there at the time, and he didn't mention the Zhu family! Besides, we saw the county magistrate pay the money! This item belongs to the county magistrate now."

"No matter how powerful your Zhu family is, you can't just forcibly take other people's things!" Zheng Ergui still had some courage, and immediately started arguing with Steward Zhu.

Steward Zhu's face turned pale and then flushed as he angrily said, "Our young master has already spent double the money to find Magistrate Shen. Now, send the coffin back to me!"

The group was undecided for a moment.

Zheng Ergui stubbornly shook his head, "This is a deal between your Zhu family and Lord Shen. Unless Lord Shen gives the order himself, we can't listen to you. Brothers! Let's go! We can't afford to delay our business!"

Compared to the Zhu family, they were naturally more afraid of officials.

Steward Zhu was furious, but dared not actually use force, so he could only lead his men to deliberately trip them up and delay the time.

The two sides nearly came to blows several times.

And so, another group of the Zhu family dragged another coffin toward Moshi Town.

Murong Chen arrived at Shen Family Village under the escort of Shen Yi and his companions.

As soon as he entered the village, Murong Chen looked around curiously. "Was this where the concubine used to live?"

Tang Yu nodded.

Murong Chen secretly breathed a sigh of relief. "This village is nice, quite wealthy. It seems the concubine used to live a good life. No wonder she always says she wants to go back to her hometown."

Tang Yu choked and hesitated before saying, "Your Highness, in fact, I haven't been in Shen Family Village for very long. I heard that it used to be quite poor, and the concubine's family was practically destitute. It was only after Shen Yixian became wealthy that he and his wife led the villagers to make money, and their lives gradually improved."

Murong Chen looked at Shen Yi, "I want to hear the truth about what happened to the concubine's family before."

Shen Yi pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "The concubine's father is named Shen Mu, her mother is Huang, and her grandmother is Chen. She has an eye disease and cannot see."

The concubine had many brothers and sisters, and the whole family relied on the meager income from the land to make a living. Back then, they were arguably the poorest family in the village.

Back then, I was running a small business. I had no parents, no brothers, and my wife was pregnant. I was too busy to manage everything, so my second aunt recommended my concubine's mother, Madam Huang, to help. It was from that time that my concubine's family gradually improved. Later, I went into business with my concubine's brother, and now my concubine's family is one of the wealthiest in the village.

Over the years, Uncle Shen Mu has built large courtyards for his sons one after another. Because of our meritorious service on the border, the Emperor bestowed upon us a plaque, and my eldest brother, the concubine, even built a special house to commemorate us.

As they spoke, the group arrived at Shen Mu's house.

Shen Mu and Shen Dagou went into the house first, and said nervously to Huang Xinghua, "The important person has arrived. You should quickly tell the children to leave and not make a fuss. It would be bad if they disturbed the important person."

"What kind of important person is this?" Huang Xinghua had just finished crying, and her mind was still buzzing.

Su Tai, who was standing nearby, quickly said, "Auntie, listen to Uncle, go and make the arrangements first, I'll go out and take a look."

Shen Mu and Shen Dagou quickly followed Su Tai's steps.

Su Tai had just stepped out of the courtyard when her legs went weak, and she knelt down with a thud, crying out, "Your Highness!"

Murong Chen stepped forward and offered a slight gesture of support, saying, "Madam Shen, there's no need for such formalities. Please rise and speak."

Su Tai glanced at Shen Yi and Tang Yu in shock, then cautiously asked, "Your Highness, when you come to Lizhou, will you bring Tian Tian?"

Murong Chen shook his head, "I came here for the imperial examination. My concubine is about to give birth and cannot travel far."

Su Tai understood and respectfully led the way for Murong Chen.

Shen Mu, who was standing to the side, was stunned.

Shen Dagou quickly tugged at his hand, signaling him to follow.

The group entered Granny Chen's bedroom.

Su Tai hurriedly stepped forward and gently woke Granny Chen, "Grandma, the person you've been longing for has come to see you!"

She called out to Granny Chen several times before she responded.

Shen Yi stepped forward and said, "Grandma, I'm Shen Yi. I've brought Tian Tian's husband to see you."

Granny Chen turned her head weakly and smiled in the direction of the voice, "Shen Yi! You've become an official! Big Dog said you're very busy, how come you have time to come back to the village?"

Seeing that Granny Chen was still relatively lucid, Shen Yi quickly helped her up with Shen Dagou.

"Grandma, Sweetie's husband is here too."

Murong Chen spoke gently, "Grandma, I am Murong Chen. I've come to see you on behalf of Tian Tian."

When Granny Chen heard the unfamiliar voice, she paused for a moment, "How is Sweetie's husband! How is he! How is my Sweetie? Is she doing well?"

“Very good! She is very good! She makes all the decisions in the manor, and my father and mother love her very much. She also often goes back to the Yong'an Marquis's manor to talk with the Yong'an Marquis.”

Murong Chen spoke in a calm and unhurried manner, which pleased Granny Chen.

"Good, good! My sweetie has always been obedient, sensible and filial since she was little. I was so worried about her marrying so far away! Now that I hear you say that, I feel relieved!" Granny Chen said with a reassuring smile and caring words.

Murong Chen felt a warmth in his heart. No wonder Shen Tian always talked about her grandmother and always thought of saving a portion of the good things for her.

Thinking of this, Murong Chen instructed his men to bring in the box. "Grandma, here are some things that Tian Tian prepared for you, including clothes she made herself and jewelry she chose for you. She said that you've never had a decent set of jewelry in your life, and even though the family has the means, you can't use it, which is a bit of a regret, so she prepared all of this for you."

(End of this chapter)