Chapter 398: Eighty Thousand Mu

Li Lizhi stared at him blankly, her eyes slightly reddening.

Such words were so familiar; the Empress Changsun, as a mother, once told her, "With me, you can forever remain a child."

And her husband once said to her, "With me, you need not be perfect forever."

In the palace, being sensible is her label, and giving is her duty.

At this moment, the long‑standing grievance in her heart seemed finally to find an outlet.

"I… I just don't want to be a burden to you," she said, her voice tinged with choking, "and I also don't want… you to think I'm not good enough."

"Silly," Chen Yan sighed, reaching out to gently pull her into his arms, "What kind of you is the best? It's exactly like this—temperamental, emotional, and a real, aggrieved self."

Leaning on his warm chest, listening to his steady heartbeat and these rebellious yet sincere words, the high wall Li Lizhi had built of propriety and restraint finally cracked open with a boom.

She hesitated, then lightly and swiftly bit through her clothes at Chen Yan's shoulder, immediately burying her flushed cheek deep, whispering:

"Is this… okay?"

"Of course!" Chen Yan let out a low, delighted laugh, holding her tighter.

"That's your privilege!"

He paused, then said, "Do you know why Gao Yang and I seem to quarrel a lot, yet our relationship keeps getting better?"

Li Lizhi honestly shook her head; she truly found it puzzling.

"It's because Gao Yang doesn't hide," Chen Yan said softly, "No matter the kind of feeling, both sides must maintain it, and the best way to maintain is good communication."

"When Gao Yang feels aggrieved, he hits me, scolds me, venting his emotions. After venting, he looks for a chance to talk with me calmly, so no resentment can take root."

"So, whatever is on your mind, tell me; we'll communicate and solve it together. Don't bottle it up, because that only drives us further apart."

"After all, we're husband and wife; when night falls and no one's around, we can whisper, and no one will know, right?"

"Mm!" Li Lizhi nodded vigorously.

Seeing Li Lizhi take his words to heart, Chen Yan relaxed, the lingering gloom in his mind dispersed, and he felt much lighter.

He was about to be intimate with Li Lizhi when a flash of light caught his peripheral vision.

Turning his head, he discovered a pair of glossy black eyes peering through the window crack.

In that instant, both froze.

Then a clamor of chickens flapping, dogs barking, and fleeing sounds erupted outside.

Chen Yan: "......"

"......"

That night, everyone sat together for dinner, and the atmosphere was rather harmonious.

Gao Yang made no comment about Li Lizhi's return, having already accepted that she was also Chen Yan's wife.

Li Tai was quite pleased that the Crown Prince had a son, and he asked various questions about his nephew: "Lizhi, now that the child is born, will you give him a name?"

"Not yet," Li Lizhi replied with a smile, "Father Emperor and the Crown Prince have differing views on this matter; they're fighting over the naming rights, so the child's name hasn't been decided."

"Is that so?" Li Tai was rather surprised, "He actually dares to oppose Father Emperor?"

"Then wouldn't Father Emperor be overjoyed?"

Li Lizhi: "......"

Chen Yan was speechless.

Indeed, those involved are blinded while observers see clearly; even Li Tai understood the old issue of Li Chengqian quite well.

Yet Li Chengqian only grasped this problem when he grew this old, finally standing his ground.

"Fine then," Princess of Yue tapped Li Tai, "What did you just say?"

Li Tai realized his words were inappropriate, awkwardly said, "It was just a comment, but since no outsiders are here, a couple of remarks are fine."

Giving himself a quick excuse, he immediately changed the subject: "How does the child look? More like the Crown Prince or more like the Crown Princess?"

"More like the Crown Prince," Li Lizhi recalled her nephew's features, "He's still young, so it's hard to tell, but his eyebrows and eyes resemble the Crown Prince, and his eyes also took after his father."

"That's good," Li Tai said enviously, glancing at his son chewing meat nearby, tugging at his mouth corner.

Whether he said it or not, his son didn't look much like him at all; he resembled his mother completely.

Yet thinking of his plump body, Li Tai secretly felt relieved—being like his mother seemed not bad.

If he were like himself, it would be ruined.

"By the way," Li Lizhi suddenly remembered the Crown Prince's instruction before she left, "Husband, the Crown Prince said most of the fields have already been secured, and he wants you to return to Chang'an when you have time to take over the lands."

"Or you can send someone to receive them."

"That fast?" Chen Yan exclaimed, "Is the Wei family already collapsing?"

He had thought the Wei family could hold out at least a month.

A century‑old great clan's foundation is no joke.

"I'm not clear on these matters," Li Lizhi said, "The Crown Prince was busy then and didn't explain in detail, he only asked me to tell you to receive the fields."

Li Tai was not surprised, "Mainly because Wei Guifei saw the situation clearly, was very self‑aware, didn't intervene, and even urged the Wei family to discard external assets and throw away profit to survive."

"That way, the Wei family might still have a chance to rise again; if they fight to the death, perhaps many of their kin would also perish."

Chen Yan thought Li Tai made a reasonable point.

Facing so many forces' encirclement, the Wei family had no chance for a fish‑in‑net‑break, and decisively giving up wouldn't cost lives; continuing resistance was uncertain.

Abandoning most of the benefits was a wise move.

"Then exactly how much land?" Chen Yan asked.

Bringing this up, Li Lizhi's expression turned subtle, "The Crown Prince said the secured land is nearly eighty thousand mu; he also said it might not be all Wei family's land, but the remainder is hardly necessary."

"Seize few?" Gao Yang, who had never spoken, was shocked.

To know, the dowry lands of hers and Li Lizhi together hadn't even reached half that number.

What status do they have? What is the Wei family's status?

"Eighty thousand mu." Li Lizhi repeated it again.

At first, she was quite shocked to hear that amount.

But when she thought of the Wei family's status, she found it understandable.

"Eighty thousand mu should be considered few, right?" Chen Yan frowned.

He, on the contrary, thought the amount was small.

"It really is few," Li Tai echoed, adding an explanation: "The Wei family actually isn't that attached to land; their main income is silk."

"That's also why the Wei family couldn't resist targeting your workshop at first."

"......"