Chapter 179: Accepting Zhou Changqing, Gu Yunzheng's Courage
After returning home, Shen Xiangwan handed the two children to Zhao Yuping, asking her to take care of them, and took Zhou Changqing and Gu Yunzheng into her small study. Although it was called a small study, it was actually very large, about 100 square meters. It was converted from the east wing and was furnished with a set of mahogany tables and chairs, as well as a bookcase against the wall. It was very spacious and tidy.

"sit."

Pointing casually at the chair opposite the desk, Shen Xiangwan picked up a pen and paper and quickly drafted an employment contract: "Think it over carefully. Once you sign the contract, I will not allow you to regret it."

Putting the freshly-made contract in front of him, Shen Xiangwan reminded him for the last time. She admitted that she took advantage of him a bit, but she would not force him to sign the contract. If he regretted it in the future and dared to betray her, it would not be as simple as death.

"Nothing to regret."

Zhou Changqing lowered his eyes and glanced at the contents of the contract. Without any hesitation, he picked up the brush and signed his name, then pressed the red handprint forcefully. From that moment on, he was equivalent to selling himself to her. The difference was that he was still a good citizen, not a slave.

From beginning to end, Gu Yunzheng did not say anything to stop him. She knew that Zhou Changqing would no longer be free in the future, but compared with continuing to live, freedom seemed insignificant. She only hoped that he could live well, and nothing else was important!

"Very good, from now on, you are mine."

Putting away the contract, Shen Xiangwan motioned for him to stretch out his hand. She carefully checked his pulse before saying, "Your illness is caused by a cold, and it has developed into severe pneumonia. The treatment may take a long time. During the treatment, you also need to pay attention to your diet. It is best to eat light food."

"Thank you, Madam Wei, for the prescription."

Nodding, Zhou Changqing spoke politely but respectfully.

"Um···"

Shen Xiangwan did not prescribe the medicine immediately. After a moment's hesitation, he stood up and said, "Wait for me for a moment."

After saying that, without waiting for their reaction, Shen Xiangwan hurriedly left the small study, leaving Zhou Changqing, Gu Yunzheng, Yuan Yue Yuanying and others looking at each other, totally confused as to what she was doing.

When she reappeared, it was almost half an hour later. Shen Xiangwan was holding a bundle in her hand. "The medicine inside is three times a day, one dose each time. In addition, I will ask the servants to stew a pot of rock sugar and snow pear every day. Remember to ask someone to come and get it. After taking the medicine, your illness will be almost cured."

His illness was already very serious, and ordinary herbal medicine would not be very effective even after ten days or half a month, so she went back to the space and made a course of Chinese patent medicine for his condition. Combined with rock sugar and snow pear, and a mild diet, he would be cured in half a month at most.

"Thank you, Mrs. Wei."

Zhou Changqing tightened the bag in his hand and thanked him sincerely.

"You're welcome. It's just a fair deal between us."

Waving his hand, Shen Xiangwan turned around and said, "Yuanyue, have someone prepare some food and various ingredients and send them to the Zhou family later."

"Yes, ma'am."

Yuan Yue bowed and accepted the order, then quietly retreated.

"Are you a couple?"

Leaning back in the chair, Shen Xiangwan narrowed his eyes and looked at the two of them with interest. Even a fool could see that Gu Yunzheng was madly in love with Zhou Changqing, and Zhou Changqing did not seem to be without feelings for her, but they kept a certain distance between them, which made people suspicious.

"No, it's not." Unexpectedly, both of them blushed and denied her guess in unison.

"Oh?"

If it was another woman, she would probably just give up, but Shen Xiangwan raised her eyebrows slightly, became more interested, and looked back and forth at them.

After all, he is a man. After a brief panic, Zhou Changqing reached out and grabbed Gu Yunzheng's hand: "Her name is Gu Yunzheng, she is my fiancée. We have been engaged since childhood. We should have gotten married when we were old enough, but my uncle and aunt passed away suddenly, and Yunzheng had to observe mourning for three years. As the mourning period was about to end, the Zhou family suddenly suffered a disaster and the whole clan was exiled to Chenzhou. When I thought our fate had ended, Yunzheng, who had finished mourning, sold the property left by my uncle and aunt and came all the way to Chenzhou alone. She suffered a lot for me, and I will never let her down in this life."

At the end of his speech, Zhou Changqing's tone became tense and his eyes were red. His father was originally the prefect of Jiangzhou. He was exiled by the emperor because he privately opened the granary to provide relief to the victims.

At that time, almost all the people who were originally on good terms with them kept their distance for fear of being involved in trouble. Only Yun Zheng not only personally sent them food and clothes, but also gave them a lot of money.

Unfortunately, the exile journey was too expensive. By the time they arrived in Chenzhou, they had very little money left and could only barely build a mud and thatched house in the village.

Originally he thought that he would be able to settle down in Chenzhou, but the reality was far more cruel than he had imagined. Relying on the money and property given by Yun Zheng, they safely survived the hardships of exile, but they could not escape the cruel reality. Their parents and brothers and sisters could not endure the severe cold of last winter and died one after another soon after.

God knows how much effort he put in to help his two younger brothers survive the cold winter, but they were penniless at that time and even sold their only two acres of land. Just when they were about to starve to death, Yun Zheng came, but she had encountered many hardships on the way and had very little money left, barely enough to feed them.

In the past two months, they have been relying on picking wild vegetables and fruits at the foot of the mountain to support themselves. His illness was caused by a cold and he had no money to treat it. The person he owed the most in his life was Yun Zheng. No matter what, he could not let her down.

"Changqing..."

Looking at him with tears in her eyes, Gu Yunzheng was full of affection. The Zhou family was an official family, but the Gu family was just an ordinary merchant. If the old men of the two families had not been close friends, there would be no engagement between them. When she was a child, she was in poor health and was often bullied. No one was willing to play with her except Chang Qing. He always said that she was his future wife and that he would raise her himself. She grew up under his protection and pampering.

Therefore, in her heart, no matter he was the once high and mighty eldest son of the Zhou family, or the down-and-out village man now, he was her husband, the man she loved and trusted the most in her life.

"Okay, if you have nothing else to do, go back first. I'm busy."

Seeing that the two of them were looking at each other with eyes that were about to tear, Shen Xiangwan pretended to be indifferent and ordered them to leave. Who the hell could have thought that she was just sitting at home and dog food fell from the sky, making her almost see stars. No, she had to go to her cheap husband for comfort later, and it would be best if he could kiss, hug and lift her up high to soothe her wounded little heart.

“Ahem… Sorry.”

They realized belatedly that they seemed to have lost their composure, and they suddenly let go of each other's hands, their cheeks slightly hot.

"···"

Waving her hands, Shen Xiangwan didn't want to say a word. She felt a little uncomfortable after not eating dog food for so long!
Completely confused by her train of thought, the two looked at each other in bewilderment, bowed in silence and retreated. However, what they didn't notice was that Shen Xiangwan had been watching their backs until they left with Yuan Yue and the child.

"Tsk tsk... I never knew Gu Yunzheng was so courageous. I hope Zhou Changqing won't let her down."

An unknown amount of time had passed. Shen Xiangwan folded her hands behind her head and crossed her legs lazily. To be honest, she admired Gu Yunzheng very much. In this era, there was probably no other woman who dared to be as reckless as she was. Zhou Changqing was lucky to have such a passionate and pure love.

【End of this chapter】

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