After the whole family was swept away, I lay down flat

Chapter 1064 After the Grandparents Left

Hai Xiya and his wife, Xie Wenzai and their entourage left the capital, and the Hai family residence suddenly became much quieter.

With fewer people, there is less work to do. Men in the family no longer have to go to the government to work, but they don't stay at home all day.

Haijiao would go out every day. Either to play with his old friends, or to visit new friends he made after coming to Beijing. In addition to sending New Year gifts, he would also visit his subordinates and people he had won over. The New Year was coming soon, and the gifts that should be given had to be given, and the money and food that should be provided had to be in place. He always wanted people to spend the New Year comfortably and well-fed, so that they would appreciate the benefits of following him and be willing to continue to follow his lead and be loyal to his orders in the future.

In addition, when his future in-laws come to the capital, he will also show up from time to time to see if he can help in any way, so that his father-in-law and great-father-in-law will be happy to marry their daughter, and he and Zhuang Minyi will be able to live in harmony after marriage.

Hai Jiao was almost never at home every day. In comparison, Hai Chang'an was much more free than him. Apart from his superiors and colleagues in the Banner Guard, he had almost no close friends in the capital, so he didn't have to go through the trouble of sending New Year gifts. On the Chang family side, he had no contact with the direct branch, and was only indifferent to the side branch from which his biological father came. Except for sending a New Year gift once, he never entered the Chang family again. Even that New Year gift was very simple. In his opinion, such a gift was just suitable for the Chang family's side branch, which had fallen on hard times, to spend during the New Year. But in the eyes of the arrogant Chang family's side branch, they were very stingy and didn't have any valuable items to show off. They either ate food or wore ordinary clothes. It was clear that they didn't treat them as family members!
The attitude of the Chang family's side branch became cold, but Hai Chang'an was not in a hurry. He didn't want to get close to them in the first place, and he was always annoyed by their overly attentive attitude. Now that they have taken the initiative to stop trying to please him, he is still looking forward to it. Taking advantage of the free time during the New Year holiday, he can stay at home to accompany his wife, teach his son civil and martial arts, and get close to the neighbors to prepare for the future plan of buying a house.

Compared with the overly busy Hai Jiao and the overly idle Hai Chang'an, Lu Bainian in the front yard was much more normal. He occasionally went out to visit friends, but most of the time he stayed at home reading, practicing calligraphy, and painting, and his days were leisurely. Hai Tang was worried that he would be lonely, so she would bring him some soup and snacks from time to time, and chat with him, which he felt very happy about.

All the government offices in Beijing were closed for the holidays, and the Lu family case was interrupted just after the beginning of the trial. No one knew what the outcome would be. Lu Bainian had already asked his old friends and knew that his family members and grandchildren would probably not have a good ending. He was sad but calm. He knew that he could not do anything. If he got involved, the Lu family would not be grateful, and he would be implicated, which would be a loss.

He had finally ended his more than 20 years of exile, regained his freedom, and returned to Beijing to spend his old age. If he were to be exiled again because of his family, his old body would probably be ruined in a foreign land.

But when he thought of the unfilial descendants and relatives at home, he couldn't help but worry about them and hoped that they could keep their lives. Even if they were dismissed from their posts and returned to their hometowns, where they could only make a living by farming, it was better than dying an unnatural death.

Haitang was very attentive. After chatting with Lu Bainian for a few times, she noticed what was on his mind and asked quietly, "Grandpa Lu, if you can't let go of your family, can I go back with you to see them?"

Lu Bainian smiled bitterly and said, "What's the point of going back? If I don't plead for them, and I don't save their future and lives, they will only curse me when they see me, so it's better not to see me."

Haitang said, "Then just go and take a look quietly, and don't let them see you."

Lu Bainian hesitated for a moment, but finally shook his head: "Forget it. Now I just have some concerns in my heart. If I really meet them, even if they don't find out and we don't talk, I'm afraid I won't be able to hold back my heart and run to my old friends and say things I shouldn't say. Even if no one bothers me, I won't have the face to see them again." The Lu family used to be the loyal lackeys of the Sun family, and they helped the Sun family eliminate dissidents and frame loyal people. Among the old people of Wumen who were exiled to the northwest, some were schemed and persecuted by the Lu family. If he hadn't been abandoned and betrayed by the Lu family when they were in the border town, the other party would have regarded him as an enemy long ago. How could they have been on good terms with him and have been getting along well for so many years? He knew that the Lu family deserved what they got now, and no matter what the final outcome was, it was what they deserved. Why should he use the friendship of sharing hardships for so many years to ask those who had been hurt by the Lu family to forgive them?
If he really said this, he would no longer be worthy of being a friend of his old friends.

Lu Bainian took a deep breath and said to Haitang with a forced smile, "Good child, Grandpa Lu knows you are worried about me. Don't worry, I am just sad for the moment. They didn't care about family affection and let me fend for myself in the northwest. After I returned to Beijing, they didn't treat me well. They were ruthless first, so why should I meddle in other people's business? I have a lot of things to worry about, and I really don't have the time to care about irrelevant people."

To prove that what he said was true, Lu Bainian showed Haitang the design drawings in his hand: "Look, the drawings of the new school are already out. I am busy checking them carefully to see if there are any inappropriate places so that I can quickly modify them and prepare to start construction in the spring. Now that Lao Xie is not here and Lao Cao is not here either, I am the only one left to do this job."

He pointed at the drawings and explained to Haitang which house needed two more windows to increase lighting and ventilation; which house was near the water and needed to be moisture-proof; which school dormitory needed to consider heating in winter; the room used as a library also needed to be equipped with fire prevention facilities; which kind of trees would be better to plant in the yard; and the back garden should also plant some vegetables, fruits and melons to facilitate students' daily diet... In short, he had so many things to consider, and he was really busy!

Haitang knew that Lu Bainian wanted to keep her busy so that she wouldn't have any random thoughts, so she tactfully kept silent. She followed Lu Bainian's lead and offered several practical suggestions, which Lu Bainian found to be very good. While he was busy revising the drawings, she found an excuse to leave.

How long can a school design drawing hold Lu Bainian's attention? Haitang thought that she had to find something else for Grandpa Lu to do so that he would not have time to think about random things.

She returned to her room and wrote a letter to Jin Jiashu. It was not a coded letter, but she did not sign the envelope either. She knew that Jin Jiashu would recognize her handwriting.

Zhang Lurong has already joined the Jinyiwei Army and become Haijiao's new subordinate, but he still has a few younger brothers who are still running errands for the Hai family. It is not yet the New Year yet, and some of these young men are still guarding near the Hai family. Haitang sent Dunzi to look for them and called them over.

She handed the letter to the other party and asked him to deliver it to Jin Jiashu. Even though the other party showed a knowing smile, she remained calm.

Yes, she did write to her fiancé in private, so what? !
The letter was sent, but there was no reply yet. Haitang was not in a hurry and continued to help her second aunt, Mrs. Hu, and arrange the housework.

Now, the household affairs are led by Mrs. Hu, and she only checks for omissions and fills in the gaps. After all, she has been a palace lady for many years, and has also served as a tutor to noble ladies in the royal family. Naturally, she knows how to guide others without leaving any traces. Mrs. Hu has had many years of experience as an assistant, and has accumulated some experience in recent practical operations, so she has become more and more adept at housekeeping. Even if there are occasional mistakes, they will be corrected quickly under Haitang's guidance. After two or three times like this, she will never make mistakes again.

As Mrs. Hu became more and more skilled, Haitang was able to have some free time.