To put it bluntly, although the Mo Family's current actions are to defend their own home, in the eyes of outsiders, it is the heinous crime of rebelling against the emperor.
The Mo Family men once all had the loyal heart to serve the country, although now they have fallen to the point of exile, if not forced to, who would want to be the rebel.
Helplessly, forced by the situation, they can only do their best to protect their own safety.
Mo Qing was still somewhat hesitant, but seeing his four sons speak like this, he simply made a decision immediately.
"Okay, let's do as Mo Jiuye suggested. You take Ms. He to the capital first, others wait for your message in the northwest."
Mo Jiuye had thought it would take a lot of effort to persuade his family to take only He Zhiran to the capital, but he didn't expect it to be so easy.
Even so, he did not forget about He Zhiran's affairs.
"Dad, there is one more thing. My mother-in-law still doesn't know that Zhiran and I are going to the capital. I hope she won't know about this before we leave."
This was also He Zhiran's intention. Last time she did not argue with Madam He, because she understood her temperament. If she knew there was danger, she would definitely not agree to let her go to the capital.
Even if Mo Jiuye didn't say it, she would have reminded them herself.
As a parent, how could Mo Qing not understand Madam He's feelings?
He sighed helplessly.
"Alright, let's not make this matter public for now. We'll think of a way to comfort your mother-in-law after you leave."
With Mo Qing's assurance, He Zhiran had nothing to worry about.
"Then I'll have to ask everyone to take good care of my mother and eldest brother when the time comes."
The couple's trip to the capital was already on the agenda. Mo Jiuye was even more eager to get everything at home sorted out in advance.
After leaving the elders' yard, he went to Hu Cong.
If it was usual, Hu Cong would not be at home at this time. Now his contracting business was booming. Not only did he earn a lot of money himself, but the bonus he gave to He Zhiran was also considerable.
People saw that the houses he built were not only beautiful but also practical. Word spread and more and more people came looking for him, so that the projects in his hands were scheduled until winter.
Yesterday, Hu Cong had just taken a big business - to build a large siheyuan for a wealthy family in Yuncheng. The structure of the siheyuan was almost the same as that of the Mo family, the only difference was that there were no glass windows.
The siheyuan Hu Cong had built before were about the same size as the Mo's, but this time the client wanted one twice as big. To be more accurate with the layout, he stayed at home today to redraw the blueprints.
Mo Jiuye explained to him about building another siheyuan.
Of course Hu Cong agreed without hesitation for his great benefactor. The construction period would also be much earlier.
Mo Jiuye had also chosen the location for the house, right next to the siheyuan where Mo Hanyue lived.
The wasteland to the west had not been fully developed yet. He Zhiran and Mo Jiuye's original intention was to build several large workshops there.
For example, for future milk powder business and some other businesses that may involve processing, they could all be done there.
Anyway, the reserved space was large enough. Even if a siheyuan was built for the He family, it would not affect the construction of workshops in the future.
After making things clear with Hu Cong, Mo Jiuye paid the deposit. He would pay Hu Cong the balance after complete construction.
The whole process was carried out in the way Hu Cong recently contracted projects.
Because this time Hu Cong was contracted to build the house entirely, Mo Jiuye did not need to go out and purchase materials himself. He only needed to provide Hu Cong with glass.
While Mo Jiuye was busy looking for Hu Cong to discuss the construction, He Zhiran was also not idle on her side, because she knew that she and Mo Jiuye would be leaving for the capital in a few days.
After leaving the elders' yard, she went straight back home.
When Lan Er was free, she would go to her sister-in-law's place to get some doll-making materials. At this moment she was sitting in the room making dolls.
However, she kept making mistakes today. She had already dismantled it twice in just a short while.
Lan Er was lowering her head struggling with the doll when she heard someone knock on the door.
"Lan Er, are you there?"
"Madam Jiu, I'm here." Lan Er got up in a panic to open the door.
She had been thinking all night and barely slept, her eyes were a little bloodshot, and the dark circles under them were clearly visible.
He Zhiran stood at the door, first looked around Lan Er, before walking in.
Seeing Lan Er still standing there properly, He Zhiran pointed to the chair beside her and said, "Don't keep standing, you know I don't like these rules."
Lan Er obediently sat down as instructed.
He Zhiran didn't want to beat around the bush and asked directly, "What do you think about what I asked you to consider yesterday?"
"Madam Jiu, I..." Lan Er felt it was difficult to speak out.
He Zhiran knew that giving her only one night to think about it was a bit short.
However, she was about to go to the capital soon, and there was no more time to deal with this matter, so she wanted to resolve it as much as possible before leaving.
"I know you've always reminded yourself to be aware of your status in front of me, but as you can see, I don't care about these things. Besides, I've long regarded you as a friend, so feel free to speak your mind."
Lan Er hesitated for a moment, then pursed her lips, as if making up her mind, and said,
"Master He is from an eminent family, handsome and accomplished. Such a fine gentleman is rare to find. Of course Lan Er would feel moved if she said she didn't.
However, Madam Jiu also knows Lan Er's situation. If the Fourth Princess were still alive, Yu'er and I would have spent our whole lives serving by her side. So before this, Lan Er never thought about her own marriage.
The Fourth Princess was tortured to death in the South. If it weren't for Master Jiu and Madam Jiu, Lan Er would have been dead by now too.
Lan Er is a woman too, and of course would fantasize about her future life like other girls do. But Lan Er is just a maid. Marrying Master He would probably taint his status."
After listening, He Zhiran also understood what Lan Er was struggling with.
In short, her eldest brother was a court official with boundless prospects, with a father who was also an imperial minister. For such a young master from a prominent official family to marry a maid, it was unheard of since ancient times.
He Zhiran didn't care about these things. For her future sister-in-law, if she had to choose between character and background, she would definitely choose character.
Marriage was a lifetime affair, not to mention the He family didn't care too much about ancestry in the first place. It just didn't occur to anyone that He Ziming would fall for Lan Er.
To He Zhiran, none of these were problems. First of all, whether her elder brother resigned his post or not, there was nothing wrong with marrying a girl he liked.
