Watching the group slowly depart, the guards who had just tried to stop them gaped, panting heavily.
"Headman Zhao, our Xining City actually produced a County Princess? Why does she raise a tiger? Isn't she afraid?"
Head Constable Zhao looked at this group of newcomers and decided to give them a thorough lesson on Song Jinzhao's history of rising to power.
He put his hands on his hips. "What's raising a tiger? She's even killed one."
"Back when I first met the Linghui County Princess, she was just a..."
He recounted everything from how she lost her parents and hunted for a living, to selling tea and cold noodles on the streets to make money, and then moving on to how she captured the traitors from the Northern Shuo Kingdom alive.
Head Constable Zhao talked until his mouth was dry, while his listeners stood with their mouths wide open, finding it all utterly unbelievable.
Were these really things a teenage girl could accomplish?
In just four short years, she went from a simple peasant girl to a County Princess. Even her younger brother scored third place in the imperial examinations and entered the Hanlin Academy. The rise of the Song family's third branch was simply too fast.
Towards the end of his story, Head Constable Zhao suddenly remembered something and slapped his forehead.
"I almost forgot! I need to hurry and report such an important matter to the magistrate."
"Knowing the County Princess has returned, His Honor will definitely want to pay a visit to the Song family."
After buying provisions in the city, Song Jinzhao and her group left the city and headed straight for Song Family Village.
It took an hour to walk from Xining City to Song Family Village, but riding a horse took only about thirty minutes.
When the villagers saw over a dozen horses passing by their doors, they all looked astonished.
The timid ones thought bandits had invaded the village and hid in fear.
Zhou Yagu, who was squatting by the well washing vegetables, heard the sound of hooves and looked up. At a glance, she saw the fine horses stopped at the courtyard gate.
It wasn't until she clearly saw the people riding the horses that she cried out in pleasant surprise.
"The County Princess has returned!" Her voice echoed through the courtyard.
The sound reached the small room to the right of the main hall. Old Man Song, who was taking a nap on the heated brick bed, snapped his eyes open. "Old woman, is that Jinzhao and the others coming back?"
He scrambled out of bed as he spoke, and Old Madam Song also set down the clothes she was sewing and hurried outside.
"Grandpa, Grandma."
The moment Song Shixue saw the two elders, she immediately broke into a wide smile and called out to them.
Old Madam Song happily hurried over and took her hands.
"Shixue is back. You've grown so tall, Grandma almost didn't recognize you."
She wore a long red dress embroidered with beautiful patterns, a jade pendant hanging at her waist, and hairpins adorning her head.
Although she didn't wear many accessories, one could tell at a glance that they were exquisite and expensive.
The old woman's rough palms were warm. Looking at her gray-haired grandparents, Song Shixue suddenly felt that they had aged quite a bit more.
"Grandpa, Grandma."
Old Man Song's moist eyes looked Song Jinzhao and Song Qiming up and down. When he saw little Song Anhao, whose hand was being held, his chest swelled with overwhelming joy.
"The wind is strong outside, hurry and come in." He reached out, grabbed Song Jinzhao's hand, and led her to a chair to sit down.
Zhou Yagu, who had hastily washed her hands clean, walked in carrying hot tea.
Outside, Hu Sanluo was directing the guards to lead the horses into the stable; those that couldn't fit had to be tied near the corners of the wall.
After sitting down, the two elders never took their eyes off Song Jinzhao and the others.
They looked from one to the other, from the oldest to the youngest, their hearts filled with nothing but comfort and pride.
Old Madam Song asked, "Have you eaten lunch yet? You must be starving after traveling for so long."
"Yagu, go cook right away. We'll have an early dinner today."
Song Jinzhao smiled and said, "We ate lunch on the way back. We're not hungry yet, so there's no need to eat too early."
Seeing this, Old Man Song and Old Madam Song began asking how they had been doing in the capital.
The three siblings patiently answered, chiming in one after another. Only the youngest, Song Anhao, had taken off his outer coat and was leaning against the bedding on the kang, yawning.
The members of the first and second branches of the family, who had rushed over, saw the horses tied in the courtyard. Their first thought was that the third branch had truly returned.
After taking just two steps, Song Dalang stared wide-eyed at Xuetuan, who was lying by the woodshed door. His lips trembled as he spoke.
He gripped Aunt Song's arm tightly and said, "Is that a tiger?"
These words drew everyone's attention. Xuetuan, who was being held by Lanxi, noticed strangers looking at him and opened his tiger maw to let out a roar.
Hearing the sound, Song Shixue ran out of the main hall and scolded it.
"Xuetuan, be quiet. Stay obediently by the woodshed. Lanxi, watch him."
Looking at the gorgeously dressed, lively, and beautiful Song Shixue, Song Qiaoniang, who was two years younger, and the others stared blankly.
Second Aunt Song stared at the clothes and jewelry on Song Shixue, her mind already calculating how much silver these things were worth.
"Eldest Uncle, Second Uncle, Eldest Aunt, Second Aunt."
Eldest Aunt Song nodded kindly in response, looking at Song Shixue with a gaze that was both familiar and unfamiliar.
Walking into the main hall, everyone immediately began greeting each other.
The youngest, Song Anhao, looked at the child held in Eldest Aunt Song's arms and sat up with interest to get a better look.
This was the first time he had seen a child younger than himself.
Song Jinzhao introduced them, "This is your cousin Yongshi. He is two years younger than you."
Song Anhao nodded in understanding. "I know. Second Sister told me on the way back."
Before dinner, Song Qiming first made a trip to the village chief's house to deliver the money and goods that Song Gaoli had entrusted him to bring back to the chief's family.
Song Mancang handed the bank notes to Song Dazhuang, his eyes filled with uncontrollable worry.
"Qiming, how is our Gaoli doing in the capital? Every time he writes, he says he's doing well, but we are truly worried about him being all alone in the capital."
Song Qiming held the elderly village chief's hands and said, "Gaoli is doing very well in the capital. He is now a Principal in the Armory Bureau of the Ministry of War and is highly valued by his superiors. It's just that he is too busy with his official duties and has no time to come back."
Song Gaoli's mother wiped her tears and sighed. "The capital is so far away. If we had known, it would have been better for him to return to Anyang Prefecture to be an official. At least it would be closer, and we could see him."
Having not seen her son for two years, she worried that he wasn't eating or sleeping well, and that he had no one to take care of him.
And the capital was so far away that even if they wanted to visit, it was inconvenient.
Song Qiming stayed at the village chief's house for a while before leaving. Over a couple of cups of tea, he talked entirely about Song Gaoli's situation in the capital.
For dinner, the first and second branches of the family all ate together at the third branch's house.
Two tables were pushed together, and everyone sat packed tightly around them.
Afterward, Song Qiming tested the knowledge of his two younger cousins. Song Yongnian was able to answer a few questions, but Song Yaozu hemmed and hawed.
As the difficulty was lowered, when asked about the simplest poem, it was actually the usually silent Song Laidi who beat Song Yaozu to the punch and answered it.
For a moment, Song Qiming felt a bit surprised. "How did little sister Laidi know that?"
Seeing this, Old Man Song smiled and explained.
"I saw that Hu Sanluo knew how to read, and there wasn't that much work to do around the house. So, I simply dug out the books you and Shixue left at home and let Sanluo teach the girls. I figured knowing how to read couldn't hurt."
Song Jinzhao raised her eyebrows in surprise. She hadn't expected Old Man Song to take the initiative to let his two granddaughters study. It was truly a bit unexpected.
Sitting in her chair eating peanuts, Second Aunt Song rolled her eyes and muttered quietly to herself.
"What's the point of learning so many words? It's not like they can take the imperial exams and become officials."
"If you ask me, it would be better to have Zhou Yagu teach them how to cook so it'll be easier to find them a good husband's family later on."
With her sharp hearing, Song Jinzhao looked at Second Aunt Song speechlessly. She wanted to say something but felt it would be useless to speak up.
Once a person's mindset is fixed, it is very difficult to change in a short amount of time, not to mention her deep-rooted preference for boys over girls.
Seeing Song Jinzhao suddenly look her way, Second Aunt Song guiltily turned her head away.
I hadn't even made a sound. Did she hear me?
