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Watching Yan Zhigao hurry away, the Yan Family also lost their appetite.

After returning to her own courtyard, Daohua threw herself into the study room, rummaging through for a while until she found a map of Jiguang Province. After examining the map, she frowned and said, “Dayuan River also flows through Jiguang Province. If the dyke were to breach, how many people would suffer from the disaster?”

Wang Manman, Guyu, and Lixia were also wearing worried expressions. “Miss, if the dyke in Jiguang Province breaches, it won’t affect us here, will it?”

Daohua was silent for a while. “Jiguang Province is upstream from Zhongzhou Province. If there’s a breach upstream, there will be some impact downstream. However, the distance to us is quite far, so there’s no need to be overly concerned.”

Wang Manman frowned, “Why would the dykes suddenly breach?”

Guyu scoffed, “Why else? Not every official is as diligent and caring for the people as our master. The officials in Jiguang Province must have embezzled the silver meant for dyke construction.”

Daohua glanced at Guyu, “It’s one thing to say such things in the courtyard, but you must not speak recklessly outside.”

Guyu immediately bowed her head, “Miss, I understand.”

Without saying much more, Daohua warned Guyu for two reasons: she didn’t want her to speak recklessly and cause trouble, and from what they had seen when their foster father took over the governance of Xingzhou, even if some officials wanted to do something concrete, if their funds were withheld or delayed by higher-ups, they were powerless.

You can’t condemn everyone with the same brush.

In the following days, Yan Zhigao was extremely busy, leaving early and returning late, barely seen around.

“Mother, what has father been busy with these past few days?”

One day, Daohua arrived early in the morning at the main courtyard to pay her respects and found that her foster father had already gone to the office. She couldn’t help but ask Madam Li.

Madam Li replied, “He’s busy reinforcing the dykes.”

Daohua furrowed her brow, “Weren’t the dykes within father’s jurisdiction said to be very stable?”

Madam Li’s expression grew serious, “Your father is not at ease. He worries that when the flood peak arrives, the dykes won’t hold, so he’s been working on reinforcing them through the night.”

While saying this, she sighed deeply.

“Your father received news that several places upstream on the Dayuan River have breached. The disaster is severe; this year’s flood came fiercely and swiftly, so your father has to be fully alert.”

Daohua’s face showed concern, “Is it that serious?”

Madam Li nodded solemnly, “When has a breach of the Dayuan River not been serious? Alright, these matters are not for you to worry about. Have breakfast, then go to class quickly.”

Daohua nodded and said no more.

That afternoon, right after class, while Daohua was still organizing the incense-burning tools, she saw Wang Manman quickly approaching her and whispering, “Miss, the young master sent someone back with a message, but after reading it, Madam flew into a huge rage.”

Daohua’s face immediately showed surprise.

Her mother’s temperament was very gentle; she rarely lost her temper. What could her elder brother have possibly done to provoke such an outburst from her?

Daohua quickly packed up her things, handed them to Lixia to hold, and then hurried towards the main courtyard.

On the way, she ran into Ping Tong.

“Big Miss, are you looking for Madam? She’s not in the main courtyard; she’s in the elder lady’s courtyard now,” said Ping Tong.

Upon hearing this, Daohua quickly changed direction and hastened towards the elder lady’s courtyard.

Soon, Daohua arrived at Songhe Courtyard. The moment she stepped into the elder lady’s room, she noticed that both the elder lady and her mother didn’t look very well.

“Grandmother, Mother, what’s happened? What did Big Brother do to upset you both so much?”

Old Madam Yan glanced at her granddaughter and nodded with her chin toward the letter on the table, “Read it for yourself.”

Daohua hurried forward, opened the letter, and quickly began to read. As she reached the end, she understood why her mother and grandmother were so angry.

“Big Brother and the others are going to Jiguang to provide disaster relief. It’s also… also a rare opportunity for experience…”

Before Daohua could finish, Old Madam Yan cut her off, “Experience, what kind of experience? It’s not that the family is preventing a few of your brothers from gaining experience, but they should at least pick some better places.”

“Last time, they went to that bandit-infested Fenxi, and this time, they’ve decided to head straight to the flood disaster area. Do they think their lives are too long, always seeking danger wherever it lurks?”

Seeing that her grandmother was truly angry, Daohua dared not speak further on behalf of her three brothers.

Old Madam Yan craned her neck to look outside the door, dissatisfied, “Why hasn’t the eldest returned yet?”

Madam Li explained, “The master must be dealing with something urgent; he should be back soon.”

As soon as the words left her mouth, Yan Zhigao walked in.

Old Madam Yan pointed at Daohua, “Go, show your father the letter your big brother wrote.”

Daohua quickly handed over the letter.

After reading the letter, Yan Zhigao’s brows furrowed deeply, and he fell silent for a long while before looking at Old Madam Yan and Madam Li, “It is rare for Wenxiu and the others to have such aspirations. If they want to go, let them go.”

Old Madam Yan exploded with anger immediately, “What are you saying? Floods are merciless, and when they surge, people die.”

Yan Zhigao sighed, “Mother, I know this, but Wenxiu and the others will be accompanying the Little Prince, right? There surely won’t be a shortage of bodyguards around the Little Prince, so there should be some security.”

“Besides, it’s also a unique experience. Since they were born, our family may not be exceedingly wealthy, but we’ve never lacked food or clothing, so these children don’t know what hardship is. This is an excellent opportunity to let them see the suffering in the world.”

Old Madam Yan was still reluctant, “It’s too dangerous.”

Yan Zhigao spoke patiently, “Mother, the children always have to grow up. Wenxiu, as the Yan Family’s eldest son, will eventually have to stand on his own, and Wentai and Wentao are also boys; a boy’s growth cannot be without any trials and tribulations, can it?”

Old Madam Yan fell silent and did not speak, then finally turned to Madam Li, “What do you think?”

Madam Li, with an unwilling heart but aware that boys should take the chance to travel and see the world while they are young, for only then can they bear the weight of their responsibilities, spoke in a low voice, “I’ll go along with what the master decides.”

Upon hearing this, Old Madam Yan let out a sigh, “Fine, fine, if you parents are not worried, why should an old woman like myself fuss so much? Let it be. But you’ll have to speak to Zhigao and the Wu Family personally.”

Madam Li stood up right away, “Mother, don’t worry. I’ll go and talk to my younger brother and his wife immediately.”

Old Madam Yan waved them off, signaling them to leave.

Once everyone had left, Daohua sat next to her grandmother, snuggled up to her, and smiled, “Grandmother, don’t worry too much. You know about Third Brother; his swimming skills in Yan Family Village are second to none, and he was the one who taught me to swim.”

Old Madam Yan replied in annoyance, “You dare to bring that up? As a young lady, you actually learned to swim like the boys in the river. Instead of stopping you, your third brother even helped. I was too lenient with him last time.”

Daohua shook her grandmother’s arm, “Oh come on, Grandmother, knowing how to swim is also a survival skill. Think about it, if I fell into a river, wouldn’t I have a better chance of surviving than someone who doesn’t know how to swim?”

Old Madam Yan huffed, “I can’t be bothered to argue with you.”

Seeing that her grandmother’s angry expression had eased somewhat, Daohua smiled and suddenly exclaimed, “Oh, Grandmother, I need to go prepare some common medicines for my three brothers. We can’t afford for them to fall ill. I’ll come back later to have dinner with you, okay?”

Watching her granddaughter dart away, Old Madam Yan shook her head helplessly, “Thank goodness she’s a girl; otherwise, she would be more of a handful than her three brothers.”