Chapter 136 - 136: Discussing Merits and
Translator: 549690339
Through the collective effort of Wei Ruo, Wei Jinyi, Xiumei, Xie Jue, and Xie Ying, along with several attendants of the Xie Family, three large carts full of goods were successfully delivered.
Afterwards, they returned to the city, with Wei Ruo, Wei Jinyi and the Xie siblings saying their goodbyes on West Street.
“Ruoruo, let’s continue tomorrow!” Xie Ying said cheerfully. Although she was exhausted from a day of work, the sight of the villagers smiles and the glow in their eyes when they received the goods filled Xie Ying with a sense of fulfillment.
“All right.” Wei Ruo had planned to do just that.
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For the next several days, Wei Ruo joined the Xie family in providing relief to the disaster-stricken villagers.
Wei Qingwan persisted for three days but stopped for unknown reasons thereafter. Wei Ruo did not inquire further as she was not particularly interested.
Time flew, and seven days passed in a blink.
Thanks to the joint efforts of everyone in Xingshan County, the overall situation in the county remained manageable. Although everyone suffered losses and faced a difficult year ahead, at least everyone could survive without significant casualties.
Good news came from the Capital City at this time.
Emperor was very pleased with Chu Lan’s report on land improvement in Xingshan County and decided to recognize and reward those responsible.
In the afternoon, Wei Mingting was invited to the County Government. The
Wei Residence was buzzing with excitement.
Last time, Prince Seven bestowed Wei Ruo with many gifts. They wondered what the Emperor would bestow upon the Wei Family this time.
In Cangyun Garden, Madame Yun was anxiously poring over the accounts, unable to concentrate.
Wei Qingwan returned early from the Qian Residence and kept Madame Yun company in Cangyun Garden.
Both of them hoped that Wei Mingting would be recognized in this round of rewards, and a promotion would be an even better outcome!
Only after nightfall did Wei Mingting return home. Madame Yun and Wei Qingwan went to meet him.
“My lord, how did it go?” Madame Yun asked anxiously.
Wei Mingting frowned slightly, his expression not very pleased. “Things did
not go as I expected.”
Madame Yun’s heart leapt. “What happened?”
Wei Qingwan curiously looked at Wei Mingting, eager to know what he meant by ‘did not go as expected’.
Wei Mingting said, “This time, the Emperor rewarded Prince Seven and Qian Magistrate but did not mention the Wei Residence at all.”
“What?” Madame Yun could hardly believe it, “Why was the Wei Residence not mentioned?”
Wei Mingting shook his head. “I don’t know. It’s normal for the Emperor not to reward the Wei Residence, but why was Ruoruo also left out…”
Wei Mingting had never expected to gain anything from Wei Ruo s achievements, but he believed that his Ruoruo must have contributed to the success, not just a little, but quite significantly.
It was clearly Wei Ruo who had spearheaded the cultivation of new crops, but when it came to recognition and rewards, only Prince Seven and Qian Magistrate were mentioned. Wei Ruo’s name did not appear at all.
Madame Yun was taken aback. “How could it be? That’s not right. My lord, didn’t you say that the Emperor especially values those who could share his burdens due to the insufficient grain supply in various areas in the past two years?”
“Indeed,” Wei Mingting had the same thought, hence his confusion about the outcome of the rewards.
Madame Yun speculated, “Could it be that Prince Seven deliberately withheld information?”
Since Prince Seven was the one to report the matter, it was up to him what to report to the Emperor. If Prince Seven only mentioned himself and Qian Magistrate, then naturally it would have nothing to do with their Wei Family.
“I’m not sure. Only the Emperor knows what he truly thinks,” Wei Mingting sighed.
Although he had been in officialdom for many years, he had only seen the Emperor a few times from afar and had never had the opportunity to discern the Emperor’s thoughts, unlike the high officials in the court.
As for Prince Seven, Wei Mingting had had minimal contact with him and didn’t know his character and thoughts well.
After a moment of contemplation, Wei Qingwan guessed, “Perhaps it’s because older sister is a woman. It’s not appropriate for the Emperor to reward a woman for such an achievement.”
Wei Mingting responded the same way as before, “We don’t know the actual situation at the moment.”
Then, Wei Mingting cast a glance at Wei Qingwan, “Wanwan, you should go back first.”
Wei Mingting was now considering how to tell Wei Ruo about this, so he asked
Wei Qingwan to leave first.
Wei Qingwan obediently left Cangyun Garden.
After leaving Cangyun Garden, Wei Qingwan thought about the situation all the way back. She was surprised by the outcome, but she couldn’t help feeling happy.’
Because she knew that the reason Wei Ruo could act so arrogantly in the residence, even daring to offend her mother, was that she relied on her achievements and her connection with Prince Seven.
If Wei Ruo had been recognized and rewarded this time, she didn’t know how much more arrogant Wei Ruo would become, nor how she would suppress her overtly and covertly.
So, although it was regrettable that the Wei Residence didn’t receive any rewards, for her personally, the joy outweighed the disappointment.
Even though Wei Mingting didn’t know how to break the news to Wei Ruo, understanding that the truth would eventually come out, he decided to summon Wei Ruo to Cangyun Garden after some consideration.
He preferred to tell his daughter in person rather than having her find out through other channels.
Upon Wei Ruo’s arrival, Wei Mingting briefly explained the situation.
He then looked at Wei Ruo and couldn’t help but feel nervous.
Such moments were rarely seen in him. Even when he was on the battlefield facing ruthless Japanese Pirates, he had never felt nervous.
But now, he was feeling nervous because he was worried that his daughter might be upset and devastated by this piece of news.
After pondering for a moment, Wei Ruo replied, “I understand. Her face was calm, showing no signs of sorrow, pain or complaints. Seeing her reacting in such a way made Wei Mingting even more worried. “Ruoruo, I’ll try to find out what happened…” Wei Mingting said. Although the Wei Family’s power was limited and they might not have the channels to inquire, Wei Mingting still wanted to find out for his daughter. Wei Ruo shook her head, “Father, don’t worry too much. Given the circumstances, finding out the reason won’t change anything. Let’s leave it at that.”
Wei Mingting understood Wei Ruo’s meaning that knowing the truth wouldn’t change anything given their current circumstances.
But it was precisely because of this that he was more worried for his daughter. He even thought that if Ruoruo could voice her grievances and cry like Wanwan did when she was wronged, he might not be so worried.
“Father, if there’s nothing else, I will go back first,” said Wei Ruo. Wei Ruo wasn’t in a good mood. She didn’t show anger or sadness because she knew that it was pointless. However, that didn’t mean that she was unaffected by the news.
Wei Mingting frowned, as if he wanted to say something to Wei Ruo. However, being unskilled in comforting others, he spent a long time thinking about what to say. In the end, he simply nodded and let Wei Ruo return to Tingsong Garden.
Upon her return to Tingsong Garden, just as she was about to enter, Wei Jinyi called out to her.
“Ruoruo.”
Wei Ruo turned around to see Wei Jinyi looking at her with a concerned expression.
Wei Ruo guessed he must have learned about the news her father had just told her.
“Second brother, I’m not in a good mood..”