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

Chapter 81 Wang Hai
After leaving Qi'er Lake, Zhu Shenzui and his party headed south. They originally planned to enter the Great Wall via Yanghewei or Gaoshanwei and eventually return to Shanxi. This was also the return route he had planned before.

However, as Lindan Khan was gathering troops on the grassland, the Ming Dynasty also received the news. In order to prevent Lindan Khan from directly leading his troops south to attack the Ming Dynasty, Xuanfu and Datong were on high alert and border checks became much stricter. Under such circumstances, it was not so easy to enter the Great Wall.

Because of this, they were delayed for a while, and Zhu Shencui finally made a detour along the north of the Great Wall, passing Yulin before entering the Great Wall from Yunyoubao. After entering the Great Wall, Zhu Shencui and his men breathed a sigh of relief.

Then, we headed south, and it was already early May when we returned to Pingyang Prefecture.

Although this trip to the grassland was different from my original plan, it went smoothly overall.

All the goods he brought had been sold out, and the harvest was also very good. In addition to the cattle and sheep skins and other items exchanged for trade, there were also a lot of gold, silver, and jewelry. Even if some of the money was spent on border control on the return journey, the profit was extremely generous.

No wonder the Shanxi merchants were so wealthy. Zhu Shenzhui and his team were just a small caravan, and this trip to the grassland was just a preliminary test. If it were any other large merchant caravan, it would be hard to imagine how much profit they could make from a trip to the grassland.

After returning to Pingyang, Zhu Shenzui first found a place to accommodate the people and goods, and then went home.

This trip lasted more than two months. After being away from home for so long, Zhu Shenzhui really missed home.

When he got home, the door was still the same as when he left, and it was closed tightly. Zhu Shenzhui walked forward and knocked on the door to open it.

When she opened the door, Zhang saw Zhu Shenzhu standing at the door, looking exhausted. She was stunned at first, then surprised, and then she couldn't help showing joy.

"Sister-in-law, I'm back!" Zhu Shenzhui said with a smile as he looked at Zhang, who had become a little thinner.

"It's good that you're back. It's good that you're back. Uncle has been away for such a long time, and I've been worried about him. Amitabha, I'm finally able to see you back safely." Zhang's eyes were moist and her voice trembled slightly.

Zhu Shenzhui would often go out for a few days before, but at that time he would only come back after half a month at most.

But this time, before Zhu Shencui left, he told Zhang that he would be going to the grassland for a long time. Zhang originally wanted to stop him because she never expected that Zhu Shencui would suddenly go to the grassland.

In Zhang's mind, the grassland was not the Ming Dynasty. The people living there were all barbaric Mongols. If Zhu Shenzhui went to the grassland and something happened there, what would happen to her family?
In her heart, Zhang didn't want Zhu Shenzhu to go, but she knew Zhu Shenzhu's personality and knew that she couldn't stop him from making his decision. After Zhu Shenzhu left, Zhang worried about him every day. She couldn't eat or sleep well. She wondered where Zhu Shenzhu was, how he was doing, whether he was in danger, and whether he would get into trouble...?
Zhang was worried about Zhu Shencui day by day, but she could do nothing. She could only set up a small Buddhist shrine in the main house and burn incense and chant scriptures in front of the Buddha every day, hoping that the Buddha would bless Zhu Shencui and bring him back safely soon.

Finally today, Zhu Shenzhui came back. Zhang was so happy that she quickly invited Zhu Shenzhui in. Hearing the noise outside, Qiaoer, who was playing in the house, ran out. When she saw Zhu Shenzhui, she cheered and ran over.

"Father! Father! Where have you been? Don't you want Qiao'er anymore? I miss you... I miss you so much..." Throwing herself into Zhu Shenzhui's arms, the little girl cried and complained loudly, and she even hit Zhu Shenzhui a few times with her little fists to express her inner dissatisfaction for not seeing Zhu Shenzhui for so many days.

"Okay, okay, stop crying. Isn't father back? You've cried so hard that you look like a little kitten. If you keep crying, our Qiao'er won't be pretty anymore." Zhu Shenzhui picked up Qiao'er with a smile, wiped away her tears lovingly, and comforted her softly.

Feeling Zhu Shenzhui's broad shoulders and the reassuring breath and warmth, Qiao'er pressed her little face against Zhu Shenzhui's neck and hugged him tightly with her arms.

"Qiao'er, come down. Your uncle just came home. Let him rest first."

"No! I want my father!" Qiao'er, who was usually well-behaved, refused to let go today. It seemed that Zhu Shenzhui would disappear again as soon as she let go.

The little girl missed him very much these days. As Zhu Shencui disappeared day by day, the little girl was always thinking about him. Sometimes she would even sit on the threshold of the main house and look towards the courtyard gate for a long time, expecting Zhu Shencui to suddenly appear.

But as time went by, Zhu Shenzhu never came back, and Qiao'er became more and more worried.

Today, she finally saw him back. Qiao'er was happy but she also blamed him in her heart. She was unwilling to let go of his hand because only in Zhu Shenzhu's arms did Qiao'er feel truly safe.

After being apart for so many days, Zhu Shencui missed them, so he hugged Qiao'er to comfort her, and took out the toys he brought back from the grassland to tease her. Children's emotions come and go quickly, and Qiao'er, who was crying just now, saw the rare things Zhu Shencui gave her, and her eyes widened in surprise, and she giggled while playing with them.

"Uncle, what is this...?" Zhang on the side noticed Dari who came back with Zhu Shenzhui. Now Dari is no longer the sloppy and pitiful look before. These days, Dari's clothes are no different from those of ordinary Ming people. In addition, he ate well with Zhu Shenzhui on the way back. The half-grown boy got nutritional supplements, and his face no longer had the yellow and thin look before.

Ma Shizhou and several other people were placed by Zhu Shenzhui in other places in the city. As for what to do with Dali, Zhu Shenzhui had already thought about it on his way back, so he simply brought him back home this time.

When they entered the room just now, Dali had been following behind Zhu Shenzhui silently. When Zhang saw Zhu Shenzhui was excited, she didn't notice the short Dali. When she came to her senses, she realized that there was such a person, and she couldn't help asking about Zhu Shenzhui.

"This is Dari. I brought him back from the grassland. He will live with us in our home from now on."

"Dari? Is he a Mongolian?" Zhang asked in surprise.

Zhu Shenzhui nodded and explained: "Dari is his Mongolian name, but I gave him a Chinese name, Wang Hai."

As a Mongolian slave, Dari naturally had no household registration, and placing him somewhere else might cause trouble. It would be much safer for Zhu Shenzhu to take him home directly. In addition, although Dari had begun to learn Chinese, he could only speak a few words in such a short time, and his tone was stiff, which sounded strange.

"Your servant greets the mistress, the young master..." When Wang Hai (Dari would use this name from now on) heard Zhu Shenzhu mention his name, he immediately knelt down in front of Zhang and kowtowed respectfully in his not-so-fluent Chinese.

“This...this...” Wang Hai’s actions scared Zhang. Zhang was just the daughter of an ordinary family. Even if she married into the Zhu family, the Zhu family, as a royal family, had long been in decline. There had never been any servants in the family, let alone masters and servants.

Seeing Wang Hai's humble and respectful appearance, Zhang didn't know what to do for a moment. She was a woman, and although Wang Hai looked young, it was not easy for her to go forward and support him. She could only look to Zhu Shenzhui for help.

"Get up, you will live here for the time being. Don't go out casually these days. Learn Chinese well first. After a few days, you will be fine after you get your household registration done." Zhu Shenzhui said this, Wang Hai responded, kowtowed to them, and then stood up.

"Uncle, what's going on?" Zhang asked puzzledly. This Mongolian boy was so weird that Zhang was puzzled.

"I'll tell you in detail later." Zhu Shenzhui replied, and then asked Zhang: "Sister-in-law, is there anything to eat at home? I just came to the city and haven't had time to eat yet. I'm a little hungry..."

Zhang finally came to her senses and quickly blamed herself, then nodded and said, "Yes! Yes! Wait a minute, I'll give you something to eat."

"Thank you for your help, sister-in-law. By the way, sister-in-law, please make more. Wang Hai hasn't eaten yet."

"I got it. You go back to your room and rest first. I'll be ready soon." Zhang said, and then went to the kitchen to get busy.

Holding Qiao'er, he took Wang Hai to his room.

After entering the house, Zhu Shenzhui asked Wang Hai to put down the things he brought back, and then took him to the side room.

The side room is right next to Zhu Shenzhui's. This room is not often occupied, but it has furniture and everything. Now that the weather is getting warmer, there is no need for a kang or anything. Just find a quilt later. There will be no problem for Wang Hai to live here.

After giving a few instructions, Wang Hai cleaned up quickly. While he was cleaning up, Zhang called Zhu Shenzhui outside that the noodles were ready. Zhu Shenzhui casually invited Wang Hai to eat. Wang Hai shook his head and said that he was a servant and could not eat with his master. Zhu Shenzhui did not say anything and took Qiao'er over first.

When they arrived at the main hall, Zhang was surprised that Wang Hai didn't come up. Zhu Shenzhu told her that she didn't need to wait for him and that he would leave a bowl of noodles for Wang Hai later. Seeing Zhang's confusion, Zhu Shenzhu briefly explained Wang Hai's situation to Zhang. After listening to her, Zhang understood Wang Hai's background. Thinking about how Wang Hai became a slave at a young age and had been living a precarious life, as a woman, she couldn't help but feel pity for this child.

"Uncle, enjoy your meal." Zhang said, and then she stood up and went back to the kitchen. She took a bowl of steaming hot noodles from the kitchen and went to the side room. Wang Hai never expected that the mistress, whom he met for the first time today, would personally bring noodles to him. For a moment, Wang Hai was at a loss.

"Eat, kid. From now on, treat these as your home." Zhang said to Wang Hai with a smile. Seeing Wang Hai's dazed look, she didn't stay for long. She put down the bowl and turned to leave.

Wang Hai came to his senses then. His eyes were red and he knelt down in front of Zhang who had already walked to the door. He kowtowed several times. After getting up from the ground, Wang Hai picked up the bowl of fragrant noodles with tears in his eyes, picked up the chopsticks, and began to eat in big mouthfuls.

(End of this chapter)