Jiu Zhang Ji: The Daily Life of the Reborn Daughter

Chapter 150: Caring for the world, loving without boundaries

Qiao Lili quickly asked Yunwu to take a few servants to clear a passage through the crowd of onlookers.

The people here thought that an orphan had come to seek refuge, and they all stretched their necks to look. The classmates from the academy, led by Qiao Zhen, also lined up to form a welcoming formation.

The first person to come out of the passage was a middle-aged man in plain clothes. To say he was plain was a bit of a stretch, as his clothes had neatly patched patches in inconspicuous places.

The man had calm features and a serene expression. He was not wearing a crown and had a bamboo hairpin in his hair. His steps were a little messy and he must not be as calm in his heart as he looked.

After he walked out of the crowd, people discovered that he was followed by a group of kids of all ages. The oldest were about ten years old, while the youngest had just learned to walk. At the back was a woman holding a baby about half a year old in her arms.

These ten or so little kids were not dressed very well. Their clothes were faded from washing and had patches all over them, but they were very clean. Everyone had a chubby face.

The arrival of this group of people made Qiao Lili a little puzzled. At this time, the man walking in front bowed to Concubine Yun and Princess Zhenbei who were sitting in the first seat, and said, "I, Zhou Chengye, greet you, my dear lord."

Concubine Yun raised her hand slightly to excuse him from the formality.

When Zhou Chengye looked up and saw Concubine Yun and Princess Zhenbei sitting at the top, he not only did not exempt himself from the formalities, but knelt down instead. He had some guesses in his mind, but he did not dare to speak out at this time, after all, Concubine Yun was still wearing a veil.

"Excuse me, Your Excellency. I came to the orphanage today because I had no choice but to do so." After he kowtowed three times, he changed his previous calmness and sounded a little nervous.

"If you have anything to say, just say it." Concubine Yun didn't say anything, so Qiao Lili quickly took over.

"After many years of marriage, Zhou Chengye and his wife had no children, so they adopted an orphan wandering the streets. Unexpectedly, this was the beginning of a trend that they could not stop adopting. Whenever they saw children without care on the streets, they felt sorry for them. Over the past few years, they have adopted eleven children."

"We are just an ordinary family. We only have a tea shop to make a living. After raising these children, we are already unable to make ends meet. At the beginning of the year, Xiaojiu fell seriously ill, so we even sold the shop."

"Without income, we have been living on our savings for half a year. The children have suffered as a result. They have nothing to eat or wear."

"My wife and I wanted to send them to other families to be raised, but we couldn't bear to send them to any family. The children refused to leave, saying that they would stay with me even if they had to eat coarse food."

"I heard a few days ago that a salesian home had opened here. After discussing it with the children, we decided that our whole family should come here to seek shelter."

"As long as the children have food to eat, my wife and I can do whatever work we can here, cooking or cleaning. This way we can be with them and it doesn't count as separation."

After saying that, he knocked his head to the ground again. The little boys looked at Zhou Chengye kneeling and kowtowing, and they looked at each other and knelt down too. Even the woman holding the child wanted to kneel down too.

Concubine Yun and Princess Zhenbei were shocked after listening to Zhou Chengye's narration. Not only did an ordinary family adopt so many children, but they might even sell the shop they relied on for survival in order to pay for the children's medical treatment. It was obvious that they really loved these children.

Although the children's clothes were old, they were clean and tidy. Each child was chubby. On the contrary, the couple were a little thin. I guess they were concerned about the children's food.

"Please stand up quickly." Concubine Yun and Princess Zhenbei said in unison. A servant had already helped Zhou Chengye up, and a maid held the woman back from kneeling.

"Lili, look at this..." Concubine Yun asked Qiao Lili.

This orphanage was left by Qiao Li. Even if she wanted to do something, she still needed Qiao Lili's consent. The imperial concubine had a very good grasp of this sense of boundaries.

"Of course I'll accept it." Not only should he accept it, but Zhou Chengye might be of great use in the future.

"Yunwu, register them." Qiao Lili had an idea in mind and ordered, "Arrange a yard for their family."

"Yes, young master." Yunwu brought the person into the orphanage and handled the relevant procedures.

I don’t know who took the lead, but applause was heard from the crowd again. Qiao Lili knew that most of the applause at this moment was for Zhou Chengye.

After the couple, carrying a bunch of carrots, followed Yunwu and the servant into the orphanage, the applause slowly stopped. The scene became quiet again, but it didn't matter that the sound of horse hooves approaching from afar could be heard clearly.

This time there was no need for the servants to clear the way. The crowd automatically parted to both sides of the alley, leaving the entire alley entrance open. It was a horse that was coming, and if they didn't get out of the way quickly, they would probably get hurt.

As the crowd moved aside, Qiao Lili saw her brother riding a chestnut horse. He was still wearing court robes and it seemed that he had rushed over as soon as the court meeting was over.

As the sound of horse hooves got closer, Qiao Lili saw that there was a carriage following Qiao Peng. At this time, Concubine Yun also noticed it. She and Qiao Lili exchanged glances, because that was the carriage from the palace.

Not only was it the palace carriage, but sitting on the shaft on the other side of the driver's carriage was Li Liangsheng, Eunuch Li. Both of them guessed who was sitting in the carriage.

The emperor is here.

What is the emperor up to again? Concubine Yun and Qiao Lili were thinking the same thing.

The emperor is poor and his pockets are cleaner than his face. It is impossible for him to send money. Then what is he doing here?

Qiao Lili stood up quickly, and the Princess of Zhenbei also understood and stood up with the help of her granddaughter Xiao Wenchu. Although Chen Ruxin, Su Shiyun, Zhao Luxi and Mrs. Song didn't know who was coming, when they saw Qiao Lili and the Princess of Zhenbei stood up, they also stood up quickly and lined up on the road to greet them.

Only Concubine Yun still sat calmly in the first seat.

He couldn't help but let out a long breath, looked up at the sky, turned his head to look at the children inside the Salesian Kindergarten, but didn't look at the stopped carriage or the people getting off it, feeling annoyed.

The carriage stopped at the entrance of the alley, Qiao Peng dismounted, Eunuch Li opened the curtain, and Qiao Peng helped someone down from the carriage.

The man was wearing a purple silk brocade gown embroidered with golden ruyi patterns, a jade crown on his head, and a jade belt around his waist. He was clearly dressed like a nobleman, but he had the appearance of a dragon and a phoenix, and was extremely graceful and elegant.

Eunuch Li did not shout that the emperor had arrived, but Qiao Lili and the people behind her knelt down anyway. The onlookers saw that even the future Sixth Prince's wife and the Princess of Zhenbei knelt down, and they guessed a lot about who was coming, so they knelt down as well.

Emperor Yong'an walked straight to Concubine Yun with the gait of a dragon and a tiger, and sat down next to her. Concubine Yun turned her head and glanced at him with disdain on her face, and wanted to move away. Emperor Yong'an quickly grabbed her hand and whispered in her ear: "Fei'er, give me some face."

Seeing that the emperor had already sat down, Eunuch Li unfolded the imperial edict in his hand and read it loudly: "In compliance with the will of Heaven, the Emperor proclaims that the daughter of Duke Dingguo, Qiao Lili, has the world in her heart and boundless love..."

With the world in his heart and love without boundaries, Qiao Lili couldn't help but complain in her heart, what is this future father-in-law trying to do? It sounds like he wants to exterminate all nine generations of the clan.