All Hail Cousin Brother

Chapter 515: Heart of Seven Orifices

Translator: Atlas Studios  Editor: Atlas Studios

Er Dan also pursed his lips and stuffed a copper coin into the metal box. Then, there was a second, a third, a fourth…

Not everyone was willing.

Yu Youyao did not force them. She only asked the steward to memorize their names. “In the future, if others spend a copper coin to buy a steamed bun, they will need to spend two copper coins.”

She wanted to tell these children that those who only wanted to get and were unwilling to give would give up even more.

After that, Yu Youyao asked the steward about many things in the Graceful Heart Hall.

Yu Youyao was about to return to the residence when she saw Er Dan at the door.

Er Dan seemed to have waited for a long time, and his face was red from the cold. When he saw Yu Youyao, he stammered, “My name is Lu Jifeng. My grandfather said that a gentleman has to be upright. Can you tell me your name?

His name meant a light wind and clear moon. The rain would stop and the sun would rise.

It meant that he was magnanimous and open-minded. It implied that he was transparent and honest.

This name captured both the heart of a gentleman and ambition.

Lu Jifeng’s grandfather was definitely not an ordinary person. Yu Youyao racked her brains and wondered if a wealthy family with the surname Lu in the capital had a similar situation as Lu Jifeng.

However, she shook her head helplessly.

Lu Jifeng was clearly not a person implicated in King Li of Zhou’s case. From the looks of it, he had been lost for at least a few years. In that case, she was really not sure.

However, there was no need to take it too seriously. Yu Youyao nodded. “My name is Yu Youyao.”

With that) Yu Youyao walked out of the door.

For some reason, Lu Jifeng had an urge to shout at Yu Youyao’s back, “Yu

Youyao, you’re a good person.”

Yu Youyao paused for a moment, but she did not stop.

Unbeknownst to her, there was a thin young man standing quietly in the snow, looking at her footprints in the snow. He couldn’t help but stretch out his foot and follow the string of footprints she had left.

She also did not know that in the future, there would be a young man who would follow her step by step until the rain stopped and the sun rose.

Now, they were just passers-by in each other’s lives.

After returning to the residence, Yu Youyao went to An Shou Hall first.

Although she had received her grandmother’s permission to go out today, she should inform her when she returned.

Seeing that she had returned, Old Madam Yu smiled. “Come and have a bowl of ginger soup to warm your body.”

Nanny Liu quickly poured a cup of ginger tea and handed it over.

Ever since it was winter, it was inevitable that she would have at least a bowl of ginger soup every day. Yu Youyao took it with a look of disdain as she pinched her nose and forced a bowl of ginger soup into her mouth.

After drinking it, she even grimaced.

However, Old Madam Yu laughed. “If you don’t like ginger soup, stay in the house obediently. Who asked you to run out on such a cold day? You deserve it!”

Her granddaughter had mentioned it to her long ago.

It was also from then on that she knew that the small inner residence of the Yu Residence could not trap her granddaughter, so she let her do as she pleased.

After that, everything in the residence was left to Nanny Liu and Concubine Qiu to discuss and decide.

“Since the Graceful Heart Hall has been set up, we naturally have to operate it well. Otherwise, people will think we’re hypocritical.” Yu Youyao finished her ginger tea and Nanny Liu quickly handed over the pastries.

After eating two pastries in a row, she suppressed the strange taste in her mouth.

Old Madam Yu agreed deeply. She changed the topic and asked, “Have you settled everything in the Graceful Heart Hall?”

Yu Youyao nodded. “I just went over to take a look at the reception situation in the Graceful Heart Hall. The Graceful Heart Hall was opened too quickly and has many shortcomings. It still needs to be perfected. However, I can’t be at ease if I don’t go over to take a look. It won’t be good if I do something bad out of kindness.”

She was able to consider the situation thoroughly. It was obvious that she was extraordinary. Old Madam Yu felt both proud and complicated. “You’ve been raised by your cousin, and your mindset is different from others. It’s a good thing to start a charity hall. I won’t restrict you anymore. It’s just that a woman’s reputation is the most important. It’s best to think carefully about what to do with this charity hall.”

Her grandmother was worried that her reputation would be ruined if she was outside.

Yu Youyao understood. “Although the beginning of the charity hall was a little rash, with Cousin’s help, it will definitely be improved gradually in the future.

Grandmother, don’t worry!’

It was only because she knew that with Zhou Linghuai’s help that she could let her granddaughter do whatever she wanted.

Old Madam Yu waved her hand and changed the topic. “This morning, your father handed a memorial to the Imperial Court to complain on behalf of the navy in Zhejiang.”

Yu Youyao smiled when she heard this. “What did Father say in the memorial?”

Although he said that she was going to investigate Song Xiuwen, in the end, he complained on be half of the navy. It was obvious at a glance that this idea was not something her father could come up with. Thinking of what her cousin had said previously, Song Mingzhao was most likely involved.

Old Madam Yu’s worried heart also relaxed a little. “Your father told the Imperial Court in the memorial that the Zhejiang navy fights with the pirates all year round, and it’s more tiring than ordinary soldiers. The risk of fighting at sea is high, and the death rate is also higher, so the silver compensation is higher than ordinary soldiers. However, the silver offerings from the Zhejiang navy are more than half of those from other areas. He asked if the Imperial Court knows about this.”

Yu Youyao asked, “That’s all?”

Since they were going to investigate the army, there were many places where they could make a big fuss.

When Old Madam Yu heard this, she smiled. “As expected, nothing can be hidden from you. I’m afraid our family has a female top scholar. Even your father is inferior to you.” At this point, she shook her head regretfully before continuing what she had said previously. “Father used the military incident to give the Imperial Court a five-hit combo.”

Yu Youyao could roughly guess which five combos it was.

Indeed!

Old Madam Yu changed the topic and said, “At the beginning of the Great Zhou Dynasty, pirates were everywhere on the sea. As a result, the coastal area was often invaded and plundered by pirates and bandits. At that time, the Great

Zhou Dynasty was troubled internally and externally. It wasn’t until Emperor Gaozu gave the order to seal the sea that this situation improved.”

Yu Youyao also knew about this.

The sealed sea area was actually a treatment for the symptoms but not the root cause. The pirates and bandits still went ashore from time to time to do evil. There were still people from the Great Zhou Dynasty who traded with foreign countries through the sea.

The Xie Residence was one of them.

As they had arranged everything well, the Imperial Court had received practical benefits. The Imperial Court had also turned a blind eye to this.

Of course, there were also people who pointed out that this move was complying with the law on the surface but breaking the law in reality. They should not be biased.

However, the Xie Residence opened a wide trade route. Just the tax money they paid every year was already very large and impressive. Who wouldn’t want to wait to collect money?

It was not advisable to kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.

There were many people who wanted to protect the Xie family.

This was the foundation of a family with a long history. Their huge connections and channels were already closely related to the fate of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Therefore, although the Xie family was only a merchant, they were definitely not comparable to ordinary merchants..