For Zhu Yanyi, Zhan Diting was just a face she had seen once. But seeing Yan Aohan angry made her feel a bit displeased too.
"Even though I pity her body, her rashness is wrong," she said. "You should find a chance to punish her properly. It saves her from thinking we don’t know."
"Ani is right. This boy is probably too idle. I should give him some work to do." Yan Aohan seemed to have made up his mind. His original anger faded away. Since the matter had already happened, the best thing to do now was to properly punish these arrogant people.
Seeing Yan Aohan return to normal, Zhu Yanyi felt a bit relieved.
"How was Grandpa’s surgery?" Yan Aohan felt lighter now that he had thought it through, so he naturally remembered what day it was.
"It went very well. If he recovers well within this week, he can start rehabilitation next week. Grandpa will be able to stand up soon." Zhu Yanyi sighed with emotion. "Actually, I admire Grandpa very much. You wouldn’t believe it. When I opened Grandpa’s leg, I found many bones were shattered beyond recognition. Most of the meridians were messed up too. In such a condition, he must have suffered unbearable pain every time it rained. Yet Grandpa endured it all."
"Some people have strong wills, which often overcome physical pain." Yan Aohan also admired Zhu Xinfu after hearing this. "Grandpa is clearly one of those people with strong wills."
"Yes. But if the post-surgery recovery goes well, Grandpa will be able to walk to attend Doumiao’s National Top Scholar banquet himself," Zhu Yanyi said seriously.
"Yes, then he can walk to attend Doumiao’s National Top Scholar banquet himself." A hint of joy appeared on Yan Aohan’s face.
Zhu Yanyi nodded slightly, but with a trace of regret. "Hmm, but it’s a pity. Her tongue and eyes haven’t been healed yet. She can’t see that scene."
"Once Grandpa recovers, do you think there won’t be chances to see lively scenes?" Yan Aohan comforted Zhu Yanyi. "For example, when we get married, when Doumiao gets married, or when Grandpa celebrates his seventieth birthday. There will be plenty of opportunities."
Zhu Yanyi glanced at Yan Aohan. "What you say makes sense. But our marriage is impossible in the short term. Doumiao’s is too."
Yan Aohan sighed helplessly.
She still felt regretful about not being able to marry sooner.
Zhu Yanyi was speechless at Yan Aohan’s occasional willfulness. She just shook her head.
Yan Aohan hurriedly said, "Let’s not talk about that. Let’s talk about something else."
"Something else? Did something else happen?" Zhu Yanyi looked at Yan Aohan in surprise.
Yan Aohan smiled faintly. "News came from the perfume side. Zhu Shengyao is applying for a pass to enter the mainland, using his and Zhu Shenfu’s documents."
Zhu Yanyi raised her eyebrows slightly. "The fake Zhu Shenfu wants to come back? What’s the reason?"
"He says he misses his hometown and wants to come back to visit his fellow villagers." Yan Aohan chuckled lightly.
"How did you handle it?" Zhu Yanyi didn’t think Yan Aohan would allow Zhu Shenfu’s application to be approved.
"Investigate Zhu Shenfu’s situation in the country. We need to confirm if this person exists. It will take a few days. Then we can just say there is no one named Zhu Shenfu in Sicheng Town." Yan Aohan spoke directly.
Exactly. The real Zhu Shenfu had changed her name to Zhu Xinfu. This meant there was no one named Zhu Shenfu in the Zhu family of Sicheng Town anymore. There was only Zhu Xinfu. So she couldn’t be the Zhu Shenfu of Sicheng Town. If they defined her by the Zhu family of Zhu City, then they could say she wasn’t from Sicheng Town. Naturally, she had no relation to Zhu Yanyi and the others.
Zhu Yanyi gave Yan Aohan a thumbs-up. "Not bad, not bad. But why does Zhu Shenfu suddenly want to come back?"
"The Zhu family of Zhu City sent a telegram to Zhu Shenfu." For Yan Aohan, investigating such matters was very convenient. He didn’t need to make a special effort to know this news.
"Is the Zhu family of Zhu City restless? They’ve already been poisoned, yet they can still jump around. It seems their spirits are really good." Zhu Yanyi said with a smile.
Yan Aohan hummed in agreement. "So, how do you plan to arrange things next?"
Zhu Yanyi smiled faintly. "First, delay Zhu Shenfu’s application to enter the mainland for a while. Say we need to investigate if this person exists. After all, she left the mainland over forty years ago, so we need to verify the information. The investigation time will naturally be long. Let’s set the investigation period at three months. By then, I should have healed Grandpa’s tongue and eyes. Grandpa’s tongue and eyes should be mostly recovered by then. That will be the right time for the real and fake Zhu Shenfu to meet. It will also be the time for me to deal with the Zhu family of Zhu City."
"Hmm, that’s a good idea. Then I’ll reply to them, telling them to hold the application. Say we need to investigate, and the time is three months. We’ll issue the pass after three months." Yan Aohan agreed with the plan. Some things were better handled when all parties were present. Moreover, a lie told for over forty years must have secrets. No one knew what they were. It was better to let the parties involved explain clearly.
Although Yan Aohan had already investigated some clues, he still lacked evidence. Three months was just right. Then he could wipe out the Zhu family of Zhu City in one go.
"Then it’s settled." Yan Aohan immediately went to give orders.
Zhu Yanyi smiled slightly. A gentleman’s revenge is never too late, even if delayed by a few months. Although Zhu Yanyi wanted to act, she thought this opportunity was better for her Grandpa. She believed Zhu Xinfu would be very happy.
Of course, Zhu Yanyi didn’t plan to hide the matter of Zhu Shenfu from Zhu Xinfu. She would just wait until three months later, when Zhu Xinfu was fully recovered, to tell her.
Zhu Zhibin had become the National Top Scholar and needed to hold a banquet. Plus, Zhu Yanli’s child was having a one-month celebration. So Xie Zhong prepared to take Qi Qiaoer back to the capital again. Accompanying them were the Zhu Chanyao family and Zhu Leiyao.
Zhu Leiyao was representing the Zhu family of Sicheng Town, so he brought many local specialties from his clansmen.
Zhu Chanyao was bringing his family to settle in the capital, so he brought a lot of luggage.
With Xie Zhong taking Qi Qiaoer to the capital too, there were many people, making the departure a bit琐碎 (trivial/busy).
Yan Aohan simply had someone book an entire sleeper carriage. This way, they could invite more people.
So, those who came with them later included the Cheng family, the Hu family, who had once had good relations with the Zhu family, and Aunt Qiao.
For Zhu Shunyao, he had to invite these people who held goodwill towards him. Besides, the capital was his daughter and son-in-law’s territory, so he didn’t worry about anything going wrong.