The Wealthy Eldest Sister Rules Supreme - Chapter 609 - Chapter 609: Chapter 596: Forbidden to Change for a Hundred Years

Chapter 609: Chapter 596: Forbidden to Change for a Hundred Years

“Magistrate Zhuang certainly has good stratagems.” Chu Jinnian’s voice held a chill when he heard the words “eliminated”.

“I dare not.” Zhuang Qisheng kowtowed again, “I’m confused, I dare not do it again, Master Chu, please, because I have not hidden anything, spare me this time.”

“Magistrate Zhuang’s official position, naturally cannot be saved, as for this life, whether Magistrate Zhuang wants it or not, it depends on Magistrate Zhuang himself.” Chu Jinnian glanced at Zhuang Qisheng.

Zhuang Qisheng, stunned, came back to his senses and hastily kowtowed, “I will follow Master Chu’s orders, willing to go through fire and water, without refusal.”

“Then please tell Mr. Wei that you found Miss Zhuang, who built the waterwheel, a genuine entrepreneur, who is very resourceful and open eyes when she sees profit.” Chu Jinnian said in a deep voice.

Zhuang Qisheng was taken aback again.

What Chu Jinnian was saying was clearly different from the Zhuang Qingning he had met, and Zhuang Qisheng didn’t understand his purpose.

But since Chu Jinnian asked him to do so, he certainly didn’t ask why, and hurriedly replied, “Yes, I understand. I’ll convey your message to Mr. Wei.”

“In the future, if Mr. Wei has any instructions, I will definitely inform Master Chu.”

“Hmm.” Chu Jinnian nodded slightly.

Seeing that Chu Jinnian had no more to say, Zhuang Qisheng hastily added, “If there are no other orders here, I will take my leave.”

Saying that, seeing Chu Jinnian didn’t mean to stop him, Zhuang Qisheng hurriedly climbed into the carriage, ordered the wounded and frightened servants, and left in haste.

“Bully the weak, fear the strong.”

Jing Zhao spat at Zhuang Qisheng’s retreating figure, then walked over to Chu Jinnian, “Young Master, I will have someone keep an eye on him.”

If he was to do things, of course, he couldn’t just let him go.

“Hmm.” Chu Jinnian nodded slightly, “Send a few more people to help Miss Zhuang here.”

“Yes.” Jing Zhao understood and bowed in acknowledgment.

Chu Jinnian stepped into Zhuang Qingning’s courtyard, just in time to see her arranging the food. It was quite sumptuous.

“You are considerate, remembering that I hadn’t had breakfast this morning, and I’m hungry now.” Chu Jinnian picked up a milk cake and took a bite without any hesitation.

It was soft and sweet, with a rich and fragrant taste, and he couldn’t help but praise, “Delicious.”

“Good to hear it. I noticed this morning that there wasn’t much milk left. I was worried that the milk cakes wouldn’t taste good.” Zhuang Qingning smiled, ladled a bowl of jujube and yam rice porridge for Chu Jinnian, served with a few cold dishes brought by Xiangqiao, and had a bite with it.

The two of them sat at the round table, face to face, concentrating on their meal.

Zhuang Qingning took a sip of the porridge and said in a deep voice, “Just say what you want to say.”

Chu Jinnian chuckled, “How did you know I had something to say?”

“You usually talk a lot during meals, but today you haven’t said a word. That means you have something on your mind. You probably want to say something to me, but you find it hard to say, so you’re hesitant.”

Zhuang Qingning said, “So, I might as well ask you, and see what the big deal is.”

Indeed, it was a big deal.

Chu Jinnian touched his nose and put down his spoon, “Given the situation, I think I have to go back to the capital.”

“Oh?” Zhuang Qingning slurped the last spoonful of jujube and yam rice porridge from the bowl, blinked her eyes, “Before you came, the Ningming Magistrate had just left, saying that he felt close to me as if we were old acquaintances, so he wanted to recognize me as his god-daughter. I found his intentions inscrutable, so I did not agree, and I angered him with cold words. This made Magistrate Zhuang leave in a huff.”

“Now you are saying that you have to go back to the capital, isn’t it related to this Magistrate Zhuang and the waterwheel?”

Chu Jinnian nodded in acknowledgement.

Zhuang Qingning pursed her lips.

She was aware of the fame of the waterwheel incident.

At this time, agriculture was the foundation, and anything that could aid agriculture was seen as a major achievement in the eyes of the emperor and the imperial court.

And many things, once they catch the attention of the imperial court, might be exploited by various factions within the court, even causing a great deal of commotion in the pursuit of fame and profit.

It seemed that a simple task, which was initially meant to help the villagers withstand drought, was going to drag her into the whirlpool of power struggles unintentionally.

No matter how much farming and commerce, in the end it all came down to unchanging power struggles.

Zhuang Qingning couldn’t help but sigh at this thought.

Seeing Zhuang Qingning looking downhearted, Chu Jinnian assumed she was deeply concerned about this struggle, he reached out and brushed her hair, “Don’t worry, once I get back to the capital, I will handle this matter properly.”

“It’s not that I’m worried about it.”

Zhuang Qingning closed her fists around her spoon, her sighs becoming more desolate, “Although Xiangqiao is diligent and meticulous, her knife skills are not as good as yours.”

“The yard you sweep is also cleaner, and if you have to return to the capital, I’m afraid these tasks will be left to Xiangqiao to do.”

Zhuang Qingning frowned at Chu Jinnian, “This time, can you come back earlier?”

She had gotten used to having Chu Jinnian accompany her every day, used to his gentle words, and even more used to seeing his gorgeous face. His sudden departure to the capital made Zhuang Qingning feel as though she might not be able to adapt.

No, she needed to be confident, forget about the possibility.

So she still cared about him helping her out with chores.

But now Chu Jinnian did not care about all this, as long as she remembered him, even if it was just a hair, he was still overjoyed.

“Alright.” Chu Jinnian smiled, reached out, and playfully rubbed Zhuang Qingning’s nose, “This time I promise you, I’ll come back earlier.”

“You can’t break your promise like last time.”

“Rest assured, I definitely won’t.”

“And you can’t get hurt again.”

“I promise.”

“Then… Promise ring?” Zhuang Qingning held out her small, delicate finger.

“Alright, promise ring.” Chu Jinnian stretched out his finger and hooked it with Zhuang Qingning’s little finger.

“A promise is a promise, it can’t change for a hundred years, whoever changes, it is…”

“The big bad wolf!”

Chu Jinnian and Zhuang Qingning looked at each other and both laughed out loud.

After breakfast, Chu Jinnian meticulously swept the courtyard, then helped Zhuang Qingning cut the lamb for the hot pot they would have at lunch. He joined Zhuang Qingning for the hot pot lunch.

When Jing Zhao finished packing up everything, Chu Jinnian reluctantly said goodbye to Zhuang Qingning and left.