Farmer girl swaps husbands: buys a sickly villain and pampers him

Chapter 261 Recognizing the Ancestor and Returning to the Clan
Half a month later, Zhou Wangshu received a summons from the emperor and entered the palace.

General Su Rende, the Protector of the Nation, accompanied him. The father-in-law and son-in-law stayed in the palace for two hours. After two hours, notices were posted in various districts, stating that Zhou Wangshu was the long-lost eldest son of the Marquis of Cheng'an. He had lost his memory after falling into the water and was then abducted by human traffickers, which was why he did not remember returning home. After verification from various sources, the Marquis of Cheng'an found his eldest son, Zhou Wangshu, and from that day forward, he was added to the family genealogy and returned to the Xia family.

"Now that they've been found and are planning to return to their ancestral home, why haven't they changed their surname yet?" some of the people were discussing.

"I heard that the eldest son's mother happens to be surnamed Zhou. Since he ended up with his mother's surname by some twist of fate, he was too lazy to change it and just took his mother's surname. However, according to the rules of each family, the surname should be changed to the family name in the genealogy, so he should be changed to Xia when he is included in the genealogy."

"I think Zhou Wangshu is a very nice name. Xia Wangshu... is a bit strange."

"It's not that Xia Wangshu's name is strange, it's that the Xia family of the Marquis of Cheng'an's mansion is not worthy of such a beautiful name. You don't know, the Marquis of Cheng'an's first wife, who is Zhou Wangshu's birth mother, Madam Zhou, came from the Zhou family of Linyang, which is a top-tier literary family."

"Didn't they say a few years ago that their family had rebellious intentions and were all executed?"

The Marquis of Cheng'an's residence. The Marquis of Cheng'an had just entered when he saw his wife walking towards him from the opposite direction. His smile vanished the moment he saw her, replaced by pure annoyance.

"My lord, I heard that the eldest son has been found. In that case, when will he move back?" said Lady Cheng'an.

Marquis Cheng'an looked at his wife in surprise.

"Are you willing to let him move back?"

Lady Cheng'an said reproachfully, "Look at what you're saying! That's our eldest son. It's wonderful that he's still alive. Of course, we should let him be recognized by his ancestors."

"Madam is truly virtuous." Marquis Cheng'an's face lit up with a smile again. "You can make the arrangements as you see fit, just don't neglect it. The child suffered a lot outside, and we finally managed to find him, so we should make it up to him doubly. By the way, he has lost his memory and doesn't remember anything from before, so we shouldn't deliberately bring up certain things in front of him, such as his mother's affairs, so as not to upset him and make him feel unwell."

"Rest assured, my lord."

"How is Zhen'er?" Marquis Cheng'an finally had a change of heart and remembered the son who had made him lose face.

Perhaps because Lady Cheng'an was so sensible, they had to feign concern and offer a few words of care.

"Zhen'er knows he has brought shame to the Marquis's mansion and has been too ashamed to go out and see anyone. Your Highness, you don't need to worry about him; I will guide him properly."

"Since he knows it's shameful, he needs to restrain his behavior. Tell him to change his ways. I don't expect him to bring glory to the family, but at least he shouldn't be as disgraceful as he is now. Now that his elder brother is back, and his brother is renowned, the Emperor values ​​him highly. Under his leadership, our Cheng'an Marquis's Mansion will surely reach new heights. As long as he doesn't cause trouble, he'll be sure to enjoy wealth and honor."

Lady Cheng'an said with a smile, "Yes. When the eldest son returns, Xia Zhen will see that he has such an outstanding elder brother, and he can learn from him in the future."

"His Majesty has already made it public. I reckon he will be returning with his wife in the next few days, so you should prepare accordingly."

"Yes." The matter that had troubled Marquis Cheng'an for half a month was finally resolved, and he was in a great mood. He returned to his study with his trusted subordinates.

Xiao Yanci was having tea and snacks with Wang Ruyan in a teahouse when he heard a commotion outside. He looked out the window and saw Zhou Wangshu riding a tall horse, with a sedan chair beside him and a large procession behind him carrying many things.

"Lord Zhou is going back to the Marquis of Cheng'an's residence. Some people are just born lucky, and Lord Zhou is one of them. Think about it, he was originally born into wealth, but he fell on hard times due to an accident and was bought by a kind family. Throughout history, few people who are sold by slave traders have lived well; only those who are lucky enough to meet kind-hearted families have a chance to survive. But he's lucky; he directly married into the family and got such a kind and beautiful wife, and then had such a powerful in-law family. That's not all; he was even recognized by his own father and is now back at the Marquis's residence."

As Xiao Yanci listened to the envious chatter of the common people, his gaze lingered on Zhou Wangshu.

“Husband, this mission is very important. You must do it well. If you do it well, my father will definitely promote you. You will be much better than that Zhou guy then,” Wang Ruyan said, linking her arm with Xiao Yanci’s.

A look of disdain flashed in Xiao Yanci's eyes.

Wang Ruyan, a woman who had lost her youth and beauty, followed him and acted as if nothing was wrong. Did she think he was a fool, believing he couldn't distinguish between a virgin and a used woman, or did she simply not care about his feelings? In any case, in her eyes, he was just a freeloader?
"Don't worry, madam. I will definitely handle the task that my father-in-law entrusted to me. I will not let him down."

A look of satisfaction flashed in Wang Ruyan's eyes.

"Madam, please wait here for a moment. I think I've spotted a few colleagues. I'd like to go say hello first."

"Okay, go ahead!" Wang Ruyan waved her hand. "If you can't get away, don't rush back. Just go and do what you need to do."

Xiao Yanci went directly to another room, pushed open the door, closed it, and walked towards the woman sitting by the window.

Jiang Yihuan turned around and saw Xiao Yanci, then closed the window.

"Aren't you with your daughter, the Prime Minister's wife?"

“Zhou Wangshu has returned to the Cheng’an Marquis’s residence. He will inherit the title and become the next Cheng’an Marquis. Su Yaoguang will be the Cheng’an Marquis’s wife.” Xiao Yanci put his arm around Jiang Yihuan’s waist. “You’ve always been jealous of her. Are you happy to see her doing so well?”

"What can I do even if I'm not happy? She's lucky; she can just marry a man from a noble family." Jiang Yihuan said softly.

“The Marquis of Cheng’an’s mansion will definitely prepare a banquet to announce Zhou Wangshu’s return. I can’t do anything about the women, but you can ruin their plans,” Xiao Yanci said. “If Su Yaoguang is poisoned on the day of the banquet, what will the Protector General do? The Marquis of Cheng’an’s mansion and the Protector General will fall out on the spot. No matter what Zhou Wangshu chooses, he will offend one side. Then they will fight like dogs and kill each other.”

"Brother Xiao, you're getting naughtier and naughtier." Jiang Yihuan hugged Xiao Yanci's neck. "But I like it very much."

Poisoning alone won't do; she wants Su Yaoguang gone. Xiao Yanci knows perfectly well that only by killing Su Yaoguang can the Protectorate General's Mansion and the Marquis of Cheng'an's Mansion forge a deadly bond, yet he still can't bear to let her die. Does she think she doesn't know his intentions? She'll give him a big gift later.