On the Difficulties of Escape in Ancient Times

Da Zhou allowed them into the palace to show that she valued them.

It is human nature to flatter the powerful and look down on the weak, especially now that the Queen Mother doesn't summon many people. As soon as they enter the palace, they will naturally be seen by people who are watching them secretly.

It can also be regarded as supporting Xiao Xiao, so that no one will look down on her because she has no family background.

Besides, she was about to give birth soon, and even though she had already prepared a nanny and palace maids, she was still a little panicked.

Now seeing her sister and Xiao Xiao having a smooth delivery and their babies being healthy and cute, she can ease her anxiety.

Then I want to gossip with others to relieve my mental stress.

Xiao Xiao is tight-lipped. Although her sister is a little aloof, she knows her limits and is a good target for gossip.

"I heard that after you got pregnant and gave birth to a child, the Li brothers didn't add anyone to the family?"

She is the queen and she is remarried. She must be clear-headed and expecting to be together forever.

Therefore, after hearing such gossip, I can’t help but feel a little envious.

Little Zhou couldn't hide her pride and pretended to be modest: "No, my husband is a clean man and has self-control."

Fortunately, this is Da Zhou's biological sister. After hearing her boasting, she did not want to upset her. Instead, she was very pleased: "You live a good life. I also hope that you can be a couple for the rest of your lives."

Xiao Xiao was much more pragmatic: "Until the day he is hung on the wall, no one can guarantee that he won't have concubines and maids."

"Like General Qi of the previous dynasty, wasn't he also attracted to women when he was old?"

"We can only know what his life was like after he closes his eyes and is hung on the wall."

The Zhou sisters couldn't help but cover their mouths and laugh: This is very interesting.

After the three of them chatted and laughed for a while, Da Zhou asked them to stay for lunch with her.

Although there were not dozens of imperial dishes, the ten dishes that were served tasted very good.

Especially the Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, which was very delicious. Xiao Xiao couldn't help but eat one more bowl.

Seeing how deliciously she was eating, the Zhou sisters couldn't help but eat more.

When they were about to leave, Da Zhou said to Xiao Xiao, "By the way, you should pay more attention to the charity hall."

Xiao Xiao is someone she values. If Xiao Xiao follows the same path as the Gu family, she will also be implicated.

Therefore, even though Mrs. Zhou knew that it was unlikely that Xiao Xiao would do such a thing, she still had to remind her.

Xiao Xiao was not a stupid person. Even though she did not say it explicitly, she immediately assured: "The people of the Gu family are all in the prison of the Ministry of Justice. No matter how stupid I am, I will not repeat the same mistake."

Seeing that she understood what she meant, the Queen also smiled and said, "I know you are not that kind of person, but I couldn't help but give you one more word of advice."

Xiao Zhou couldn't help but mutter, "After what happened to the Gu family, I'm afraid many people are watching the charity hall. It's not easy for my sister-in-law either. If she does a good job, she should do it. If she doesn't do a good job, people will gossip about her."

Da Zhou looked at her with satisfaction: "Not bad, it's rare that you are willing to use your brain."

Xiao Xiao also took the opportunity to express her loyalty: "The Queen is like a good horse to me. The Emperor's grace is great. I will definitely not let the Queen down."

Seeing her serious expression, Da Zhou was very satisfied.

Xiao Xiao saved her life, so she was willing to treat her well.

Now hearing her words of gratitude, I felt at ease and let them go back first with the rewards prepared for the children.

Now that Xiao Xiao has finished her confinement, and now has the Queen's entrustment, she has started to go to the charity hall regularly.

The spring breeze in February is like a pair of scissors. It is still a bit cold in the morning and evening, but the weather at noon is still warm. Now the charity halls are all demolished and rebuilt, and the ditches that originally flowed with stinky water have now become rivers.

Xiao Xiao saw that there was still a piece of open space beside the river. Even though there were many rocks, reeds were still growing wildly. Beyond that were pine trees on the hillside.

She simply hired someone to dig a large pond of more than three acres, and brought water in to grow lotus roots and raise fish.

Xiao Lian was very happy after hearing this: "Let's dig more and dig deeper to build a reservoir. In addition to raising fish, we can also store water and swim in the water in the summer."

After hearing this, Xiao Xiao also thought it was feasible.

This land is downstream of the charity hall and their house, so there is no need to worry about the house being flooded during heavy rain.

If there is a drought, there will be no worries about water shortage because of the reservoir.

But there are a lot of rocks here, so digging a reservoir is indeed a big project.

Fortunately, labor is not expensive now. Xiao Xiao thought about it and thought that her savings were still sufficient. She waved her hand and said, "Then let's ask the people near the charity hall to repair the reservoir first."

There are no good farmlands here, and the people living nearby cannot make a living by farming. They have to hire people to work anyway, so of course they should be asked to come first.

The main thing is that when the house was built before, it was Grandfather Xiao who asked people from nearby to do the work. He also said that they worked honestly and did not cheat or do anything shaky.

The people were very happy to hear the news. It was not because Xiao Xiao paid high wages, but because she would not delay wages and they could also have a free meal every day at noon.

Of course, it can't be the most delicious food, but being able to eat your fill and have some meaty flavor is a good thing for a craftsman.

It seems that the reservoir will not be completed in a short time, and it will take one or two years to raise fish and shrimp before they can be harvested.

Fortunately, there are several fences on the mountain, and the chickens and ducks there have started laying eggs.

We also have pigs and sheep, which should be ready for slaughter in the second half of the year.

As for food, in addition to wheat bran, the diligent little girls went to cut weeds, so there was no need to invest too much in the early stages.

The biggest source of income still comes from the garment shop.

The little girls that the Gu family had previously selected from the charity hall were all clever and dexterous. After learning from the embroiderer, the cats and butterflies embroidered on the screen were vivid, and the peonies and peonies embroidered on the skirts were even more beautiful and elegant.

Since Xiao Xiao took over, she not only changed their slave status, but also gave them monthly wages. This was enough to make those girls who were forcibly taken back by the Gu family and changed into slavery status grateful.

Of course, Xiao Xiao also asked them to take turns going back to the charity hall every month to teach the little girls needlework, mainly because Linglong and the others really couldn't teach them all.

The charity hall used to be maintained by donations from ladies, and the children who stayed there had to leave when they turned twelve.

Now Xiao Xiao has changed the rules and can stay until she is fifteen years old.

She also planned to open a health care center, and had already selected a group of little girls with good memory and dexterity, and asked them to learn how to give massages from Mother Hao, who was invited by Xiao Xiao.

After Xiao Zhou found out, she even gave her an ancient recipe for facial mask.

Yurongsan was originally used by concubines in the harem. It is made entirely of Chinese herbal medicine and is very effective in whitening, removing spots and beautifying the skin.

Xiao Xiao glanced at the younger Zhou and saw that her complexion was indeed good. Then she recalled the older Zhou's skin color and felt that she already had the gimmick for opening a health club.

A lot of herbs are needed to make Yurong Powder. Fortunately, her eldest brother-in-law runs Huichuntang. She can ask him to bring some herbs to you when the time comes, and she doesn't have to worry about being sold as good quality by unscrupulous merchants.

Xiao Xiao was not afraid of trouble, as she only had to speak.

Now all that matters is finding a suitable shop.

If she can't buy a suitable one, she plans to rent a shop first. Since her father-in-law is the Minister of War, no one will raise the rent just because her business is good, right? (End of this chapter)