Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 224 The legitimate son
The attack on the caravan came to an end for the time being, because of Mu Changrui's disappearance, it was difficult to investigate the matter. Even if the Jinyiwei continued to investigate along the clues of Mu Changrui, the clues would be broken if they could not find him, and continuing to investigate would be nothing more than doing one's best and leaving the rest to fate.

Liu Dayou disappeared from the trading company. According to the company's internal statement, Liu Dayou was sent to the grassland, where he would live permanently. As for when he would return to Ming Dynasty, no one knew, or he might never come back.

Liu Dayou's family had been settled in the company, so there would naturally be no problem. Even the guys inside the company thought so. However, Liu Dayou's sudden disappearance aroused Ma Shizhou's vigilance. At first, Ma Shizhou did not think too much about it, but as time went by, and later the company gradually released the news that Liu Dayou was sent to the grassland, Ma Shizhou felt something was wrong.

Just when Ma Shizhou was about to ask someone about the situation and find out why the company suddenly sent Liu Dayou to stay in the grassland, Zhu Shenzhu called Ma Shizhou to have a private chat with him. No one knew what they talked about, but they only knew that Ma Shizhou talked to Zhu Shenzhu for a long time, and when he left, Ma Shizhou's face was very ugly.

A few days later, Ma Shizhou adjusted the personnel of the caravan and reappointed the deputy team leader. As time went by, Liu Dayou was gradually forgotten by the caravan members. Perhaps it would not be long before most people would no longer remember that there was such a person in the caravan.

Xu Jingqiu's belly was getting bigger and bigger, and her due date was approaching. After the midsummer passed, autumn came, and Xu Xiancheng went to Qiuyuan. It was during his Qiuyuan that Xu Jingqiu was finally going to give birth.

Let’s not talk about Tana and Tenger on the grassland for now. Although Tana was also Zhu Shenzui’s legal wife, Tana was not included in the family tree. Xu Jingqiu was the legal wife.

If Xu Jingqiu's child is a boy, then he will be Zhu Shenzhu's eldest son and the future heir to his clan title. Sister-in-law Zhang is particularly concerned about the birth of this child. Sister-in-law Zhang failed to give birth to a son for the Zhu family, which is a regret in her life. Now she places all her hopes on Xu Jingqiu.

Before the birth, Zhang made many preparations, and so did her husband Zhu Shenzhu. Not only did he find a midwife and a doctor in advance, he also arranged everything else.

The due date was just around the corner, and Zhu Shencui was particularly concerned. At noon that day, Xu Jingqiu suddenly cried out in pain in her stomach, and Zhu Shencui, who was accompanying her, instantly knew that she was about to give birth. He quickly called his sister-in-law Zhang for help, and then invited the midwife and the doctor over.

Zhu Shenzhu waited anxiously from noon till night, listening to the occasional shouts from the house, and he was spinning around.

Finally, a cry was heard and the child was finally born. When the midwife came out with a smile and told Zhu Shenzui that it was a big fat boy, although it was his second time to be a father, the smile on Zhu Shenzui's face was no less than when Tengger was born, and he jumped for joy.

Mother and child were safe, and sister-in-law Zhang was smiling from ear to ear. In her heart, she secretly thanked the Buddha for blessing the Zhu family to finally have an offspring.

The child's name had been chosen long ago, Zhu Minlan. This was the name Zhu Shencui gave the child. The day after the child was born, Zhu Shencui reported the name to the General's Mansion, and then the General's Mansion entered the name into the family tree and sent it to the Prince of Jin's Mansion for registration.

This is the traditional rule of the imperial clan. Only those who are listed in the clan genealogy are the real imperial clan. Zhu Shenzhu's branch is the Prince of Jin. The Pingyang General's Mansion is the core of the imperial clan of Pingyang Mansion, but the real branch is in Taiyuan Mansion, which is the Prince of Jin Mansion.

Xu Jingqiu suffered a lot when giving birth, but thanks to the preparations made by Zhu Shenzhu in advance, she finally got through it safely.

In the blink of an eye, more than half a month passed. As the child grew up, his eyes and features became more and more like Zhu Shencui, which made Zhu Shencui very happy.

Some days later, it was time to hold the baby's full moon banquet. The birth of this eldest son was a big event for the royal family, so Zhu Shenzui invited many members of the royal family, and even people from the general's mansion came to congratulate, filling the small courtyard.

Zhu Minfeng, Zhu Minyu and Zhu Qiuqi would certainly come. In the past two years, their three families have been much better off than before. When the Liu family was in trouble, they followed Zhu Shenzhui and gained a lot of benefits. Now the three of them not only have enough land to support their families, but also have some businesses. It is no longer the time when they had to eat one meal and no next meal.

"Congratulations, Sixth Uncle!" When they saw Zhu Shenzhui, the three people who came with him stepped forward to congratulate him with a smile and handed over the gifts they brought.

"It's enough that people are here. Why be so polite?" Seeing that the gifts they brought were not ordinary, Zhu Shenzhui shook his head and smiled.

"Sixth uncle, etiquette cannot be abolished, especially for such a happy event." Zhu Minfeng said solemnly, and the honest Zhu Minyu smiled and nodded repeatedly. As for Zhu Qiuqi, he smiled and said that this was what they should do, and uncle didn't need to be polite to them. They were able to live their current lives in the past two years thanks to uncle. He accepted the gift and invited them to sit in the courtyard.

Because the house is not big, the buffet is set up in the yard. Anyway, the weather is not cold now, so it is more convenient to eat outside. Besides, those who came today are close relatives of the royal family, so everyone is not too particular.

The people from the General's Mansion left after they came. It was not that they did not try to keep them, but the place was too small. Besides, the General's Mansion was rich and did not care about this meal. So the people who ate at the banquet were ordinary clansmen. In order to take care of everyone, Zhu Shenzhu used all the hard dishes in the banquet this time, including fish and meat, and steamed buns were provided to fill you up.

They were not outsiders, and Zhu Shenzui knew that everyone had been eyeing this meal for a long time. Moreover, it was obvious at a glance that several of the clan members who came were intentionally hungry. After sitting down, their eyes glowed green as they stared at the chicken, duck, fish and meat on the table, wondering how they could get the start before others.

Zhu Shenzhu had also been through this kind of life, so he certainly knew what everyone was thinking. So Zhu Shenzhu didn't beat around the bush. When almost everyone had arrived, it was getting late, so he said a few polite words. His words were nothing more than that he had a baby boy, and that the Zhu family had someone to take over. Today was the child's full moon banquet, and he thanked relatives and friends for coming to support him, and everyone should eat and drink well.

After that, Zhu Shenzhui drank a glass of wine and told everyone to start eating. As soon as he finished speaking, everyone picked up their chopsticks and started eating the food they had been eyeing, swallowing it down like hungry ghosts.

"Fifth brother, do you still remember the ancestor worship at the General's Mansion on the beginning of winter that year?" Zhu Minfeng looked at the clan members around him eating, with a smile on his face. He did not grab food like others. If it was two years ago, Zhu Minfeng would definitely be the same as everyone else, but his family is different now. His family has become well-off. Although their life cannot be compared with that of the General's Mansion, they can be regarded as an upper-middle-class family in Pingyang City.

"How can I not remember?" Zhu Minyu smiled bitterly, "That time you and Xiao Shiba came late, and after you sat down you asked where the cakes on the table were, and shouted that the manager of the General's Mansion bullied you and didn't serve you. I was so embarrassed that I couldn't say anything. Fortunately, Uncle Six came to the rescue, and Xiao Shiba came to his senses later. You also secretly packed all the cakes that the General's Mansion brought back for me, and asked me to take them home to my wife and children..."

"Yes, yes, yes!" Zhu Qiuqi smiled and nodded. He remembered this incident clearly. Before leaving, Zhu Minyu took away half a roast chicken and made a pig's trotter for himself. He originally planned to give it to Zhu Shenzhui, but Zhu Shenzhui refused to take it. After a long struggle, he finally took half each and gave the other half to Zhu Minyu and Zhu Qiuqi.

Time has passed so quickly, and the scene back then is still vivid in their minds. The three of them couldn't help but sigh with emotion. Their lives now are very good, which is like heaven and earth compared to before. Looking at the royal family members who were reincarnated from starvation around them, and thinking of their own scenes back then, they couldn't help but shake their heads and laugh.

Who brought about such a day? Wasn't it Zhu Shenzhui? It was also after the beginning of winter that Zhu Shenzhui called the three of them together and decided to bring down the Liu family. Then he benefited from the downfall of the Liu family and finally turned the tables.

After the Liu family was brought down, the brothers Zhu Minfeng and Zhu Minqi bought some land. Zhu Qiuqi did not value the real estate as much as his two uncles. He lived a comfortable life with the money and even married a wife.

Afterwards, Zhu Shenzhui gave them more opportunities, especially because he was worried that Zhu Qiuqi would not live off his savings, so he specially found them a job. Although the three of them did not belong to Hengtong Trading Company, many of the things they did were related to the trading company, including the purchase and sale of some of the company's materials, etc. As a purchasing and distribution partner, they had a good and stable income.

As Hengtong Commercial Bank continued to expand, their own business also gradually grew. After discussing it, the three of them decided to open a commercial bank as a partner of Hengtong.

Especially in the first half of this year, the business of the three of them made a lot of money through Hengtong's channels. This was money they had never thought of before. Life at home was getting better and better, and their gratitude towards Zhu Shencui was growing.

Drinking wine, talking about these past events, and looking at the clan members around them, the three of them knew that they had a good life today thanks to Zhu Shencui. They came to the banquet today to congratulate Zhu Shencui's eldest son on his full moon, and also because they hadn't seen Zhu Shencui for a long time.

The banquet was lively. Knowing that the royal family members were not having a good time, Zhu Shenzhui made special preparations in addition to the banquet. When they left, they gave them gifts in return. The so-called gifts in return were also real things, such as roast chicken, roast duck, and a whole leg of lamb. These things they took home were enough for their families to have two full meals.

To be honest, most of the royal family's gifts were just ordinary things, and some of them were just a few ordinary cakes. Compared with the return gifts, the gifts were not worth mentioning at all. When they received the return gifts before leaving, these royal family members couldn't help but show surprised expressions, and then they were moved in their hearts. Although they didn't say it, they gave a thumbs up to Zhu Shenzhu's arrangement.

(End of this chapter)