Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 705 The mystery of life experience
Cao Yu's eyes lit up slightly as he listened to Xie Yuyan's words.

The imperial court has been issuing new policies for years. Perhaps sending Wang Yan to Fujian this time is for the same purpose? Is it really to completely eradicate the deep-seated problems of maritime transport and implement new policies in Fujian as well?
Before becoming prime minister, Prime Minister Wang had said that he would consult the people. If any official is willing to adopt the people's opinions, Prime Minister Wang should be considered one of them.

Cao Yu was not clear about Wang Yan's official reputation, after all, this Wang Tianshi was still young, but Wang Yan was able to arrest so many officials in Fujian with swift and decisive methods, so he should be an honest and upright person.

Don't say it's because Wang Yan has Prime Minister Wang behind him. The two prime ministers are inherently mutually restraining each other, so it's not easy to achieve this.

Cao Yu was a scholar, so he naturally understood these things and knew that Lady Xie's words were not just empty flattery. He had been in Quanzhou for many years, and through leading coastal villagers on maritime trade, he knew many boatmen and merchants. He wanted to write a proper petition.

In this way, many things can be said openly.

If such a large-scale operation cannot solve the maritime transport problem, even if they temporarily escape punishment, they will find it difficult to make a living here in the future.

Firstly, there wasn't enough farmland, and secondly, there were natural disasters almost every year. If they couldn't make money through maritime transport, they would just have to wait to die. Therefore, whether they could manage maritime transport well this time was of paramount importance to them.

If this opportunity doesn't work out, there's no point in thinking about it again. It's better to leave Quanzhou with the people.

Thinking of this, Cao Yu stood up and bowed to Xie Yuyan to express his gratitude, but unexpectedly Xie Yuyan also stood up and avoided his bow.

Xie Yuyan said, "It's up to you to decide what to do. I'm just saying a few words."

Cao Yu was even more grateful to Lady Xie, and... looking at Lady Xie's face, he felt a certain sense of familiarity. Thinking of this, he wanted to say something, but after opening his mouth, he couldn't speak.

Cao Yu looked at Zhou Lanqi: "Since you've made up your mind, I'll go to the government office in a bit, first inform the Imperial Envoy Wang of everything, and then write a petition."

Zhou Lanqi hadn't expected it to happen so quickly and couldn't help but feel a little anxious: "Should we go back and prepare?"

“Dragging things out will only make things worse,” Cao Yu said. “Send the message back and tell everyone about my decision, so they won’t worry.”

Seeing that her husband had made up his mind, Zhou Lanqi had no choice but to nod in agreement.

Cao Yu looked at Xie Yuyan again: "My wife said that Madam Xie has a merchant caravan?"

Xie Yuyan nodded.

Cao Yu continued, "Then... Madam Xie..." He was unsure how to proceed.

Xie Yuyan said, "I have quite a few porcelain kilns. If the maritime trade of Daliang prospers, I might be able to have a merchant fleet at sea. But I don't know much about these things. Meeting you two is a good thing. I might need your help in the future."

These words made perfect sense, and Cao Yu breathed a sigh of relief. Xie Niangzi's words actually put him at ease. However, someone who had only met them once would not give them such advice for no reason.

Cao Yu was a decisive man. After asking all the necessary questions, he didn't waste any time and stood up to walk towards the door. Zhou Lanqi, carrying her daughter, followed him all the way to the yamen gate. She watched as Cao Yu was led inside by the yamen runners before turning her gaze away, her face full of worry.

Yu's mother comforted her, saying, "If all goes well, you might be able to come out soon. Once everything is settled, you won't have to worry anymore."

Zhou Lanqi nodded.

The two returned to the courtyard, and Zhou Lanqi bid farewell to Xie Yuyan: "I must go back and tell everyone what my husband just told me."

Xie Yuyan nodded and said, "Young Master Cao won't be home for at least a day or two. You can stay here and wait for him. There are some developments coming from the yamen, and you'll hear the news faster here." Zhou Lanqi's face lit up with joy, but she quickly hesitated again: "This is too much trouble for Madam."

Madam Yu smiled and said, "Our eldest daughter-in-law has few people with her, so many rooms are empty. I'll have someone clean one up right away, so that Madam Zhou will have a place to stay whenever she comes."

Zhou Lanqi blushed slightly after receiving such a great favor, but out of concern for her husband, she found it difficult to refuse Lady Xie.

"Then I'll have to trouble you, my lady."

Nannan didn't cry or fuss at all, but kept licking her lips and looking around as Zhou Lanqi moved around. Only when Zhou Lanqi was about to leave did Nannan become a little restless, obviously because she was hungry.

Mother Yu was very familiar with these things. She took Zhou Niangzi to breastfeed before carefully escorting the mother and daughter out of the courtyard.

Xie Yuyan looked at the pastries on the table, Zhou Lanqi's words echoing in his ears.

It turns out that what the steward mother said in my past life was true; my mother liked to soak osmanthus sugar candy in her porridge...

However, the stewardess's voice carried a hint of disdain, clearly indicating that she felt this way of eating was not refined enough for a formal occasion. Or perhaps she felt that osmanthus-flavored shortbread was not a delicate treat at all, and certainly did not suit the tastes of noble ladies in the capital.

Xie Yuyan never met her parents and could only get bits and pieces of information about them from other people.

Neither Xie Chengrang nor Xia Jingxian mentioned their mothers. Her maternal grandparents had passed away long ago, and her mother's family had never had any contact with the Xie family.

Therefore, in Xie Yuyan's memory, her mother was a vague name, Wang Xuning, and was more often referred to as Lady Wang.

If her speculation is correct, and Cao Yu and Zhou Lanqi's family are related to her, then Cao Yu should be her maternal grandfather, meaning that her mother's surname should be Cao, not Wang.

Besides that... there are some other details that don't match up either.

According to the Xie family, although her mother did not come from a prominent family, her maternal grandfather's family had been scholars for generations. However, her maternal grandfather was not good at politics and eventually only obtained the position of Registrar of Households. In addition, her maternal grandfather was over fifty years old when he had her mother, and when she married into the Xie family, he was about to retire.

My mother had no brothers, and after her maternal grandparents passed away, her maternal family cut off all contact with her. After my mother's death, not a single member of the Wang family even came to offer condolences.

Xie Yuyan learned all of this from the servants.

Even if there are discrepancies, they shouldn't be too great. But Cao Yu is clearly young and strong, and is not the same person as that Lord Wang at all.

It is clear that the so-called identity of the Wang family woman is false.

Xie Yuyan stood up and opened the window, a breeze brushing past her cheek. Perhaps her mother, like Xu Shu's daughter, had been sent to the Xie family as both a promise and a hostage.

Xie Yizhi promised Xu Shu that she would share wealth and glory with her, which led to the imposter Xie Wenjing entering the Xie family.

Will Xie Chengrang follow suit? After replacing Xie Yizhi, in order to be on the safe side, he stopped using the demonic sect for his work. So he set his sights on Cao Yu and had his eldest son marry Cao Yu's daughter. Cao Yu's daughter then gave birth to children for the Xie family, and the relationship between the two families became unbreakable.

(End of this chapter)