The Rebirth of Han Yuxi

Chapter 0534 Favouritism

This chapter hasnʼt been edited yet.

The Imperial Court issued a decree assigning Ji Xuan the task of suppressing the bandits. When Huo Changqing received the news, he summoned Yuxi and asked, ”With Ji Xuan tasked to suppress the bandits, have our previous plans fallen through?” Huo Changqing believed their plan had failed, but he still wanted to hear Yuxiʼs opinion.

Yuxi shook her head. ”If Ji Xuan were willing, there wouldnʼt be so many bandits in the northwest. His actions against the bandits are just a formality. Banditry in the future will probably be even worse than it is now.” The reason for the abundance of bandits in the northwest lay with Ji Xuan. Since Ji Xuan became the Governor-General of Shaanxi and Gansu, he had introduced about ten new taxes. When ordinary people couldnʼt survive, they naturally turned to banditry.

Huo Changqing glanced at Yuxi and asked, ”How come you know so much about government affairs?” Taxation, regulations, laws—Yuxi seemed to grasp them effortlessly, leaving Huo Changqing astonished.

Yuxi smiled and replied, ”The Duke Residence has a library with all sorts of books. Whenever I had free time, I would borrow them to read. Moreover, my Dage would allow me to listen in on his discussions of state affairs with his aides. Over time, Iʼd picked up some of the knowledge.”

Huo Changqing found it strange that Han Jianming allowed Yuxi to listen in on court matters. However, he didnʼt ask her because it would be pointless.

Yuxi said, ”Uncle Huo, we must quickly train a group of people to be sent out. It is still okay for now, but if the information is delayed in the future, it could lead to incalculable losses.”

After a momentʼs thought, Huo Changqing responded, ”Actually, Herui and I had already sent out a group of people at the end of last year. Most of them are former scouts from the military camp.” Scouts were people who gathered intelligence about the enemy. They were the best people to gather news from around the region. That was why Huo Changqing insisted on Yun Qingʼs approval.

Yuxi was extremely surprised and asked, ”Why didnʼt I know about this?” Yun Qing had not mentioned such a big thing to her.

Huo Changqing chuckled. ”You were still recovering then, and Yun Qing didnʼt want to bother you. He probably forgot about it later.” After a pause, he continued, ”I think we can divide it into two groups. One group will be led by Yun Qing himself, and the other by you, so thereʼll be less chance of mistakes.”

Yuxi nodded. ”Okay.”

Huo Changqing nodded and added, ”Iʼve already chosen the people. Iʼll bring them to Scholar Tree Estate in a few days. If thereʼs anything you need, just send someone there.” In truth, Huo Changqing was somewhat regretful that he couldnʼt bring Zaozao with him.

After talking to Huo Changqing, Yuxi returned to the inner courtyard. Before she went about her business, she heard that Da Nainai Zhao had come over. Yuxi asked, ”Whatʼs wrong with Da Nainai Zhao?”

Zijin replied, ”She seems to be in a hurry.”

When Yuxi met Da Nainai Zhao, she learned that Tu Shi had had a difficult birth. Yuxi was surprised and asked, ”Tu Jiejieʼs due date was in the fifth month; why did she give birth now?”

Da Nainai Zhao smiled wryly. ”My Dimei accidentally slipped and fell.” Tu Shi was nine months pregnant, and any fall during this period could cause her to give birth prematurely.

Yuxi asked suspiciously, ”How could she slip and fall?” Seeing Da Nainai Zhaoʼs embarrassed expression and reluctance to explain, Yuxi became even more puzzled.

This time, Da Nainai Zhao had come with a request: ”Iʼve heard that Madamʼs personal mama, Mama Lan, is a skilled midwife. I would like to ask for her help.”

If it had been someone else, Yuxi might have hesitated, but her relationship with Tu Qingmei was so close that she couldnʼt just stand by. She immediately sent Mama Lan with Da Nainai Zhao to the Zhao Residence. Originally, Yuxi wanted to go there and see Tu Shi herself, but when she noticed Da Nainai Zhaoʼs reluctant expression, she decided against it.

Yuxi called Zijin and instructed her, ”Go and find out why Er Nainai Zhao had a premature birth.” Tu Shi attached great importance to this pregnancy; even when the midwife had said the child would be a girl, she still valued it greatly. So, there must have been some hidden story behind this premature birth; it was unknown whether Da Nainai Zhao had anything to do with it.

That evening, Yuxi learned the reason for Tu Qingmeiʼs premature birth. It turned out that Yuxi had been overthinking. This matter had nothing to do with Da Nainai Zhao; it stemmed from problems in Tu Qingmeiʼs maternal family. Tu Qingmeiʼs Dage had severely beaten someone under the influence of alcohol. The victim didnʼt want compensation but demanded justice; hence, the case was brought to court.

After receiving the complaint, Tan Tuo investigated and subsequently detained Tu Qingmeiʼs Dage. Despite the Tu familyʼs efforts to secure his release, Tan Tuo refused, stating that he would handle the case in accordance with the law.

Tu Qingmeiʼs Dasao somehow found out that Tan Tuo was associated with the Duke of the State Residence and that her xiaogu, Tu Qingmei, was a close friend of Han Gunainai. As a result, she wanted Tu Qingmei to appeal to Yuxi for leniency and to release her brother.

Tu Qingmei refused, which led to an argument between the two. Somehow, during the altercation, Tu Qingmei slipped and fell. It could only be said that this incident was an accident rather than a conspiracy.

Yuxi found this situation quite perplexing and remarked, ”Tu Jiejie is already nine months pregnant, yet her saozi still wanted her to appeal to me for leniency?” A pregnant woman in the last trimester was highly sensitive to stress, so significant matters should have been kept away from her. However, this Hua Shi, Tu Qingmeiʼs Dasao, showed no concern for her heavily pregnant xiaogu and even argued with her. It was hard to find words to describe her behaviour.

Zijin commented: ”This Hua Shi, Tu Qingmeiʼs Dasao, comes from a family of bamboo craftsmen. She has been bold since childhood. When the two families arranged their engagement, they were still children, and the Tu family had not yet prospered. After the Tu family became prosperous, Master Tu felt he couldnʼt go back on his word and allowed his son to marry Hua Shi. But even after becoming the young mistress of an officerʼs family, Hua Shiʼs attitude hadnʼt changed; she still behaved like a country girl. As a result, she caused quite a few incidents in Xinping City.”

Yuxi asked, ”What kind of person is Tu Jiejieʼs Dage?” Just hearing about him makes him sound troublesome; otherwise, he wouldnʼt get into fights when he was drunk.

Zijin replied, ”Heʼs not particularly skilled, but he has no major faults either. His only hobby is drinking, but he canʼt hold his liquor and has a bad drinking habit.” A man couldnʼt be considered refined if he went crazy whenever he got drunk. Like Master, when he got drunk, he would just lie down and sleep without saying a word.

Yuxi thought for a moment before asking, ”I remember Tu Jiejieʼs Er Ge. Isnʼt he in the military?” Old Master Tu used to be a fourth-rank regional military commissioner, but his old injury recurred last year, so he had been recovering at home.

Zijin nodded. ”Tu Shiʼs Er Ge is very brave in battle; heʼs now a lower fifth-rank officer and even married a young lady from an official family. However, due to the huge difference in status, there are many conflicts between them.”

Yuxi shook her head and commented, ”Every family has its own difficulties.” In her daily interactions with Tu Shi, she rarely heard her talk about her maternal family.

Zijin continued, ”Madam, the person Eldest Master Tu injured is the maternal cousin of Da Nainai Zhao, from the main branch of the Zhao family. Her maternal family can be considered a wealthy family in Xinping City. They only have this one son, and now that heʼs been injured, they wonʼt let go so easily.” If the victim was an ordinary commoner, an apology and compensation might be enough. But since they only had this one son, they definitely wouldnʼt let it slide.

Yuxi looked at Zijin and asked, ”How can they expect me to interfere in local affairs?” If it were a case of injustice like Mr Chenʼs, she would have helped. But for this matter, it was better to leave it to Tan Tuo! Tu Qingmei probably knew Yuxiʼs principles, hence her refusal to intervene!

Although Yuxi didnʼt want to interfere, she still hoped that Tu Qingmei could get through this difficult time.

In the middle of the night, Mama Lan returned. She told Yuxi, ”Madam, fortunately, Er Nainai Zhao and her daughter are safe. She only agreed because of the good relationship between Tu Shi and her mistress. Otherwise, she wouldnʼt have dared to touch this hot potato.

Yuxi hastily asked, ”Thereʼs nothing wrong with her body, right?” Complications during childbirth could lead to permanent problems. Many women were unable to get pregnant again because of childbirth complications.

Mama Lan shook her head. ”No, after the child was born, Er Nainai Zhao just fell asleep. As long as she takes care of herself during confinement, there shouldnʼt be any problems.”

Yuxi finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Although Tu Qingmei had a daughter, the Zhao family cherished the child greatly. On the third day after the childʼs birth, the Zhao family invited many people to the washing ceremony, making it very lively.

When Yuxi saw Tu Qingmei and noticed her good complexion, she expressed, ”I was terrified when I heard about your difficult delivery a few days ago.”

Tu Qingmei replied gratefully, ”Iʼve already heard from my mother-in-law that it was thanks to Mama Lanʼs superb skills. I might not have made it if it werenʼt for her.”

Yuxi smiled. ”What are you saying? Itʼs your luck, too. Iʼve asked Mama Lan, and she said your health is fine. As long as you take care of yourself during your confinement, there wonʼt be any permanent problems. After your confinement, with some care, you can have more children.” She almost said, ʼSince your health is fine, you can have more children, and itʼs okay if they are all daughters.ʼ

Tu Qingmei smiled and said, ”Whether sons or daughters, they are my flesh and blood. I love them equally.”

Seeing Tu Qingmeiʼs attitude, Yuxi nodded. ”Itʼs good that you think like that. If their own mothers didnʼt care for them, who else would?” Yuxiʼs words came from hearing about how Chen Shi treated her youngest daughter with extreme aversion, leaving the child to be cared for by a runiang immediately after birth and not even wanting to look at her. This behaviour disgusted Yuxi.

Tu Qingmei smiled and said, ”My mother-in-law really loves Jingyao. She was worried that I couldnʼt handle two children, so she took Ziyao over to her side.” Her mother-in-law knew a lot, and having her daughter with her mother-in-law could only be beneficial.

Yuxi couldnʼt help but praise her, ”Madam Zhao is truly a good mother-in-law.” She actually thought that people like Madam Zhao were clever!

Tu Qingmei wholeheartedly agreed. ”If my mother could be like my mother-in-law, fair and impartial, it would be so good.” Madam  Zhao treated her two sons equally. She might have favoured Ping Shi among the daughters-in-law, but only because Ping Shi was the eldest. However, Madam Tu was different; she was biased towards her eldest son, believing he should receive more attention even if he lacked talent, and that the younger brother should humble himself even when he was more talented. This not only led to a tense relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law but also strained the relationship between the brothers. Tu Qingmei tried many times to advise her mother, but unfortunately, it was in vain.

Yuxi found it difficult to respond to this.

PS (Author): I feel a bit feverish, and my head is all foggy. The weather has been unpredictable lately, so everyone must take extra care of themselves. Donʼt end up like me, ~~~~(>_