Thrown out of the house, the wet nurse enters the noble household and becomes a person of high statu

"The gatekeeper just told me that an old friend from the village is visiting?"

Pei Zeyu's gaze settled on Gu Zijing, his aloof expression softening slightly, but his tone remained indifferent, "It's you."

After a long separation, Gu Zijing met her old friend again, but she showed no signs of awkwardness and joked with him.

"An old friend has returned, Zeyu, and you won't even give me a half-smile?"

Pei Zeyu retorted calmly, "If you want to buy laughter, you can go to a brothel."

The two had known each other for several years and were extremely familiar with each other. Whenever they met, they couldn't help but banter with each other.

Liu Wenying found a convenient excuse to escape.

"You two have a good chat, I'll go to the backyard to take care of some household chores."

After saying this, she left the front hall without waiting for a response from the two of them, thus avoiding the slightly awkward atmosphere.

In the front hall, only the two of them remained, chatting idly.

As it grew late, Gu Zijin took her leave, and the manor became completely quiet. Pei Zeyu turned around and went to the backyard, where he found Liu Wenying, who was coaxing Jichuan.

He walked slowly closer, looked at Jichuan, and then said, "Zijin told me during the day that she wanted to buy shares in your company."

Liu Wenying was already on edge because of Gu Zijing's joke, fearing that he might really have other intentions.

Especially now that Pei Zeyu has brought it up, she doesn't dare to look up at him.

Pei Zeyu was unaware of anything amiss, and was only considering the feasibility of the matter.

"He also said that he is currently short of money and cannot afford to invest."

Liu Wenying was even more confused, fearing that he really wanted to invest himself in the business.

Pei Zeyu didn't keep her in suspense and took out a neatly bound thick book from his sleeve and handed it to her.

"However, although he has no money, he has prepared this as collateral and asked me to pass it on to you."

As long as it's not about investing yourself...

Liu Wenying secretly breathed a sigh of relief and carefully flipped through the pages.

The booklet has neat handwriting and detailed content; it contains Gu Zijin's travel notes from his years of traveling across the country.

It provides detailed annotations of the mountains, rivers, and rugged terrain throughout the Great Wei Dynasty.

What's even more remarkable is that it even provides detailed records of the mountains, rivers, borders, passes, fortresses, products, and topography within the territory of the Northern Barbarians.

Liu Wenying grew increasingly alarmed as she looked, her eyes gradually brightening.

With the war between the Great Wei and the Northern Di still ongoing and the border situation tense, a detailed and accurate map of the territory is invaluable.

If it were handed over to Xiao Yiheng for official records, it could be used by the court to plan border defenses and deploy troops, which would be of great use to the country and the war effort, far exceeding the value of ordinary silver investment.

She looked up at Pei Zeyu and said, "Such a precious item is indeed worth shares. I will agree to let him contribute his technology as shares."

Pei Zeyu nodded. "Gu Zijin is unreliable, but she is quite reliable in her work. If she can share some of your estate duties, it will be a good use of her."

From then on, Gu Zijin successfully acquired shares in Liu Wenying's businesses, becoming a special shareholder of Zhuangzi.

However, after becoming a shareholder, the once carefree and leisurely young master Gu, who had traveled all over the country, was now completely in Pei Zeyu's hands and under his control.

Pei Zeyu is meticulous and thorough, and everything he does is orderly and measured.

All the miscellaneous tasks and inventory management in the manor were assigned to him.

Gu Zijing was entangled in trivial matters every day, leaving her with no free time whatsoever.

When he was so busy that he barely had time to breathe, he would often look up at the sky and sigh.

I shouldn't have gotten involved in this for a small profit in the first place.

He only wanted money, but Master Pei wanted his life.

But when the dividends arrived at the end of the month, the heavy taels of silver in his hands made his face light up with joy and delight.

All this hard work is worthwhile.

Zichen Palace.

The jade incense burner emits wisps of smoke, while warm light gently spills down.

Liu Wenying came today to discuss the specific plans for the expansion of the orphanage with Xiao Yiheng.

With border wars raging on, countless young men rushed to the battlefield, only to be buried far from home, never to return.

Countless elderly people in the countryside have lost their children and are left destitute and helpless.

Liu Wenying then suggested, "In times of chaos, the most suffering are the lonely and widowed. It is already a pity that those soldiers who went to war for the country could not protect their families and loved ones. The court should protect their loved ones for them."

"If counties and prefectures could also open up more places of care and relief to properly settle the elderly living alone and orphans, it would not only be a way to comfort the loyal and good people, but also to stabilize the hearts of the people."

Xiao Yiheng had long planned this matter, and upon hearing this, he readily agreed.

"I will issue an edict to establish government-run almshouses in all prefectures, counties and cities throughout the country, following the regulations you have set, to properly take in and care for orphans, widows, and widows, as well as war orphans, so as not to disappoint loyal and virtuous people."

The two then discussed the expansion of regulations, the implementation at the county and prefecture levels, and the placement of personnel, finalizing the details one by one.

By the time the event came to an end, it was completely dark outside the palace, and the palace lanterns were lit one after another.

"It's getting late, I should take my leave." Liu Wenying prepared to leave the palace.

"No rush." ​​Xiao Yiheng grasped her wrist. "After being busy all day, we should have dinner before leaving."

Before Liu Wenying could answer, he said to the palace servants standing beside him, "Serve the meal."

Unable to refuse, Liu Wenying had no choice but to follow him to the inner hall.

The Zichen Hall is divided into a front hall and an inner hall. The front hall is where trusted ministers can be summoned to discuss matters and handle daily government affairs.

The rear hall was the emperor's living quarters.

Before long, the imperial kitchen served the dinner, and the eight-immortal table was filled with a dazzling array of dishes, totaling more than a dozen.

The palace maids bowed their heads and stepped forward, gently serving the dishes.

Xiao Yiheng pointed to a dish of bright red fish sashimi, "That's Sichuan peppercorns, a tribute from Sichuan. The imperial kitchen has a new chef; try it and see if it suits your taste."

He remembered that when she was in the sanatorium, she preferred spicy dishes.

Liu Wenying saw that there were spicy diced chicken, boiled sliced ​​pork, Mapo tofu and other strongly flavored dishes on the table, and knew that he had put his heart into it.

"I remember you like spicy food." Xiao Yiheng's lips curled up slightly.

"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty." Unable to refuse, Liu Wenying picked up her chopsticks and took a bite.

The numbing sensation of Sichuan peppercorns and the fiery intensity of chili peppers explode on the tongue, creating a fresh and flavorful taste that is spicy but not overpowering—it's incredibly delicious.

Liu Wenying praised the imperial chef's skills and then ate to her heart's content. She put the dishes into her mouth as soon as the palace maid finished serving them.

After eating a lot, the tip of her nose turned slightly red, and her lips were stained crimson.

Seeing this, the palace maid quickly poured a clear drink and presented it to her with both hands.

Liu Wenying didn't have time to look closely before taking a sip.

"Huh? It's not tea?"

"Hmm, the tea is too hot to drink and doesn't relieve the spiciness. This is a sweet drink made from lychees that were rushed to the capital from Lingnan. It's the best way to relieve the spiciness and cut through the greasiness."

Liu Wenying took another sip, the sweet fruity aroma filling her mouth, the subtle sweetness balancing the spiciness.

Enjoying a leisurely and peaceful dinner is truly delightful.

After the imperial meal, the palace servants cleared away the bowls and chopsticks and served mouthwash tea.

Seeing that it was indeed getting late, Liu Wenying sat for a while before getting up to take her leave.

But as soon as I stood up, my limbs went weak, my head spun, and the scenery in front of me swayed.

Xiao Yiheng reacted quickly and caught her, his expression tense as he touched her skin, which was unusually hot.

"What's wrong?"

Liu Wenying shook her head, her head feeling heavy and dizzy.

"For some reason, I feel hot and my head is spinning."

Xiao Yiheng didn't dare let her move around anymore, and settled her on the large dragon bed behind him. "Lie down and don't move."

Then, he loudly ordered the palace servants, "Summon the imperial physician!"

…………