Zhou Pu said that he would have to trouble Lin Fu again, and Gu Yingxiu looked at Lin Fu with a puzzled expression. She also wondered why Lin Fu had brought back the person who had saved his life. Was it because Lin Fu didnt have any money to repay him in Jiangning, so he brought him back to Dongyangfu? Of course, even if Lin Fu returned to Dongyangfu, he still wouldnt have any money. Gu Yingxiu thought about taking out some silver to reward the man, after all, he had saved Lin Fus life, and it was only right to repay him with a sum of silver.

  Lin Xie knew that after Gu Yingxiu married Lin Tingxun as a concubine, her personality became strong and bold, and she was not content to live in the inner house enjoying wealth and glory. She took charge of external affairs and over the years established a considerable reputation in the Lin family. In Shiliang County, many people knew the name of the Seventh Lady. Although after Lin Xie passed the imperial examination, his status was different from before, however, when it came to Zhou Pu and Chen Enzes household registration in Shiliang County, Gu Yingxius connections were still more convenient than Lin Xies.

  Standing on the street, Lin Mou introduced Zhou Pu and Chen Enzes cover identities: "Seventh Lady, Brother Zhou Pu is a refugee who escaped from Jibei. He has only one family member with him, his nephew Enze. After arriving in Huai Bei, Brother Zhou Pu and Enze worked as laborers on a grain boat, drifting aimlessly. The work on the boat was very hard. I owe Brother Zhou a life debt this time, and I couldnt repay it in other ways, so I thought of helping him settle down in Dongyang Prefecture or Jiangning Prefecture..."

  Gu Yingxiu carefully examined Zhou Pus eyes, and she was no longer the young girl who had just come out of her boudoir. After being in contact with various people and matters outside the house, she had gained a certain amount of discernment. Chen Enze followed Lin to survive on the island for over a month, wearing coarse cloth clothes, looking like a poor child, and his young age didnt draw much attention from others; Zhou Pu was completely different, he was half a head shorter than Lin, but his shoulders were half a palm wider than Lins. Gu Yingxiu looked at him standing in front of her, and he seemed as solid as a boulder, not looking like an ordinary refugee who had escaped from Jibei at all.

  Gu Yingjiao knew that after Lin Xie passed the imperial examination, it wouldnt be difficult to guarantee two outsiders to settle in Shiliang County. However, she was worried that these two outsiders were suspicious and would leave hidden troubles for Lin Xies future career. She hastily said: "If Master Zhou doesnt mind going to the Lin family as a guest, I can take charge of this matter..." She took the initiative to consider Lin Xies future and asked Chen Enze warmly, "Little brother, how old are you this year? You can also go to the clan school to read for two years, and there will be more choices in the future."

  Zhao Hu nodded towards Lin Jingzhongs shoulder, letting him see the long package slung over Zhou Pus back, which clearly contained two scabbarded waist knives. However, his way of thinking was much simpler than Gu Yunxius; Zhou Pu had saved Lin Xies life, so he didnt care about Zhou Pus background.

  Lin Jingzhong was a bit more thoughtful, and when he heard Qi Furen make such arrangements, he knew that Qi Furen had her own plans, so he stood aside silently.

  Lin Xian thought to himself that in the eyes of his good friends and seven wives, he was still a weak and inexperienced bookworm. If Zhou Pu truly wanted to settle in Shiliang County, becoming a dependent of the Lin family would not be a bad choice. However, Zhou Pu had important responsibilities to attend to, and following him back to Dongyang was only for the purpose of registering their household and obtaining a reliable identity. Only then could they go to Jiangning and reunite with Fourth Wife Feng Peipei, making it more convenient for them to take action.

  "Enze is already fifteen this year," Lin Fu replied to Qi Furen, "Zhou Dage has also been drifting for two years and cant get used to farm work. Being a farmhand might not be suitable, I was thinking of letting Zhou Dage take on some hardship and become my attendant!"

  Gu Yings sleeves fluttered as she gazed at Lin Xie under the morning sun, her eyes narrowing slightly in surprise. She thought to herself that something was off about him since his return - he seemed different from before. Lin Xie had lost both parents at the age of ten and had been living independently ever since, with no one to rely on. His nature was somewhat weak, indecisive, and irresponsible. Yet today, when she took it upon herself to take care of things for him, he unexpectedly refused outright.

  Gu Ying still had some worries, but didnt think of saying much in front of outsiders, and just smiled: "You are now a jinshi, you should also have a few personal attendants to take care of you... Dont worry about that for now, Zhao Hu, Xiao Wu, you two first send Lin Fu and Zhou Ye back, and get the house back. Master will know that Lin Fu is back and will be concerned."

  Gu Yingxiu led the horse back from Zhao Hus hands, turned around and glanced at Lin Xie, who looked thinner than before he went to Jiangning for the exam, with a darker complexion. However, he had an air of confidence that he didnt have before. Gu thought to herself that Lin must have experienced some hardships during the past month and had grown into a man. She couldnt treat him with the same carefree attitude as before.

  Collecting her earlier flamboyant demeanor, Gu Yingxiu mounted the horse and said to Lin Xie: "Zhao reported back that you were killed by bandits, and the warehouse also sent people to inquire about it in Baisha County. Although I wanted to help you keep your old house, I couldnt break the rules of our clan. Your house was occupied by the Lin Guisheng family half a month ago. Since youre alive and back, go take back your house directly. Ill head back first; after youve settled things on your end, remember to come over and pay respects to Old Master."

  She then said to Zhao Hu: "Find someone to send a message back home for me; I have something to discuss with your mother..." before whipping the horse and riding off into the distance.

  Lin Xie watched as Gu Ying rode away on horseback, thinking to herself who would have imagined that before her marriage she was a delicate and tender girl? Its really pitiful.

  Zhao Hu saw Lin Xie staring in the direction of Gu Yings departure, and asked with a sly smile: "Is that fox spirit from Jiangning more beautiful than your seven wives?"

  "Arent you afraid of being overheard by the Seventh Lady?" Lin Jingzhong was both respectful and fearful of the Seventh Lady, Gu Yingxiu, and didnt dare speak as casually as Zhao Hu.

  Lin Xuan smiled wryly, knowing that Zhao would not say anything good after returning alive and trying to shirk responsibility. Probably everyone in Lin Village knew that they had been enchanted by Su Meis beauty, and it was said that "a crowd of mouths can make a golden voice". Lin Xuan thought he couldnt argue his way out of this even if he tried, let alone the fact that he had followed Su Mei to Baisha County in the first place because he was infatuated with her.

  Back then, Su Mei was sent to the outskirts of Jiangning City, Lin Xie didnt follow her into the city, and I dont know how Su Mei and Xiao Man are doing now. Its only been three or five days since we parted ways, but Im already missing them a bit.

  To be honest, Lin was ambushed in Baisha County, and Zhao had no responsibility at all. After all, Baisha County was also where Lin insisted on going with him, and being robbed was an accident. In this era, its not about reason, but when traveling outside, Lin is the master, and Zhao is the servant. If the master dies in a foreign land, but the servant returns safely, thats a grave sin.

  Zhao Hu didnt know what the Seventh Lady wanted with his mother, thinking it wouldnt be anything bad. He found an acquaintance on the street and asked him to take a message back, then he accompanied Lin Jingzhong in escorting Lin Xie back home first.

  *******************************

  The rich and noble live at the head of the village, while the poor and humble live at the end of the village. This seems to be a common practice in rural society at this time.

  Shanglin Village is no exception. The village head near the ferry terminal is home to many wealthy families, and the most striking one is naturally the Lin familys ancestral mansion, which covers an area of nearly 30 mu, with a large courtyard of over 20 rooms, layered with green tiles and gray bricks. Although the Lin family is one of the top wealthy families in Dongyang Prefecture, Shanglin Village has prospered due to its location, with a thriving water and land transportation hub, where the north and south meet, and the countys garrison is located at the southern end of Shanglin Creek, providing sufficient security guarantees for the four towns and eight villages. Although there are no city walls to protect it, many merchants have settled in Shanglin Village, buying land and building houses. The Lin familys ancestral mansion, although striking, cannot be said to stand out from the crowd.

  The street of shops that Zhou Pu saw when he got off the boat was just a small alley in front of the ferry terminal. Walking west along the upper Lin Creek for over 200 steps, there is another long and narrow lane paved with green bricks extending to the village head of Upper Lin Village. Both sides of this street are lined with mansions built by wealthy families, even if they are small, they are very exquisite. Some houses are connected together, while others are separated by narrow alleys.

  There are also wine houses and shops in the alleys. Only by walking in can one truly discover that this place is no less prosperous than an ordinary county town.

  Lin Xie passed the imperial examination and became a xiucai, which was considered to be of great honor and prestige, and it meant that he had entered the local gentry class. However, he did not have enough money to buy land and build a house at the village head, so he could only continue living in his old family home at the village tail.

  Its been three months since I left Shanglin Village. Lin Xie stood behind the bamboo fence, looking at his own courtyard, and found that there were a few weeds swaying in the cold wind of early winter on the eaves. After autumn, Shi Liang County had little rain, and a layer of floating soil accumulated in the courtyard. An old plum branch was slanting, with bare branches carrying unopened flower buds.

  "Lin Xiuzai is back!" A woman in the courtyard, holding a dustpan and picking up soybeans, looked at Lin Xiu being surrounded by Zhao Hu, Lin Jingzhong and others as he walked over. With a bitter expression, she walked to the bamboo fence and greeted Lin Xiu without inviting him in. Two three or four-year-old boys wearing split pants ran around with their buttocks exposed in the cold wind.

  Lin Tie knew why the woman looked at him with a bitter face, and he nodded in response to her greeting: "Aunt Lan is picking soybeans?" Since his family thought he was killed by bandits, and he had no descendants or close relatives to inherit the property, it was only natural that the house would be returned to the clan and redistributed to poor families within the clan. However, now that he was back alive, no one could stop him from taking the house back, especially since he had just passed the imperial examination and become a scholar-official.

  Although in high society, a juren is nothing, ordinary people really dont dare to occupy the property of a juren.

  These three rooms and a yard were left by Lin Lians parents, four years ago, the seventh lady Gu Yingxu had someone remove the thatched roof and cover it with tiles, and also re-painted the doors and windows with tung oil, which is considered a good house in the village.

  This woman and her family had just moved in, happy and joyful, for less than half a month. Suddenly, Lin Xie, who was believed to have been killed by the bandits, came back alive on a boat. How could she not be disappointed?

  "Aunt Lan, since Lin Kui is back, were going to trouble you with moving again! Dont worry, Ill find a few young men in the village to help with the move, and theyll get everything done before lunch." Zhao Hu said, his hand grasping the gate as he prepared to enter first.

  Lin tied up Zhao Hus hand and said: "I remember that your family still has two empty rooms, borrow me to live for a while..." Turning his head to ask the woman, "When I left, there were some books left at home, dont know if they are still there?"

  "What are you doing? Dont go back home now?" Zhao Hu didnt understand Lin Xuans meaning.

  The woman was thinking about how Lin Xie didnt want them to move out for the time being, but she wasnt very sure. She thought to herself that her husband should have come back by now to make a decision. The happiness they had wouldnt last half a month and would soon turn into nothing. Thinking about moving back to that broken grass house that couldnt keep out the wind in winter or the rain in summer, the woman felt a wave of sadness. When Lin Xie asked her where the books from their original house were, she hesitated and replied: "I dont know either, the house was empty when we moved in."

  "This needs to be asked at the main house," Lin Jingzhong said, "Maybe in school, since youre back, the things that belong to the clan can be returned...the main house should have records..."

  "Really dont want to go back home?" Looking at Lin Tie turning around to leave, Zhao Hu grabbed his arm and asked in a low voice.

  "Lin Xuan wants to come back and live, and also buy land at the village head to build a new house. How can he still live in the village tail?" Lin Jingzhong said, thinking that these three dilapidated houses no longer match Lin Xuans current status as a scholar.

  "Lin Xuan should find an official position in the county, that would make him a government official," said Zhao Hu. "He should buy a piece of land and build a house in the city, but this house is still Lin Xuans!"

  Lin Xie didnt bother to explain, and instead told the woman in the bamboo fence: "I wont be staying in Shanglin Village for a few days. Ill just borrow Zhao Hus house to live in. You let Guisheng come back and find me at Zhao Hus place, and Ill write a deed for you. From then on, you can all live here with peace of mind..."

  Zhao Hu and Lin Jingzhong couldnt guess what was on Lin Fus mind. Lin Fu thought about going back to Shanglin Village, but only wanted to help Zhou Pu and Chen Enze settle down in Dongyang Prefecture before heading to Jiangning. He hadnt planned on staying in Shanglin Village for long. Besides, as a person who had borrowed a corpse to return to the world of the living, he didnt have any attachment to his old home. Seeing the womans worried face, it was better to give this family a place to live and work peacefully rather than letting them be driven out and leaving three empty rooms to be battered by wind and rain.

  The woman was somewhat stunned, and the neighbors who knew that Lin Xie had rushed back to tell her: "Wei Shu, you still dont hurry up and thank Master Xin for his kindness, he wants to give your family this house to live in."

  "Thank you, Mr. Xin... " The woman listened vaguely to everyones words and thanked Lin Xie.

  Lin Xian looked at his neighbors, and this era was like that. With just one phrase "Holding the old gentleman", he was separated from people he used to be familiar with by a great distance.