Xu Lanyin and the others returned to the village and, by chance, ran into Gu Po again. She was wearing a dark green silk dress and two silver hairpins in her hair. This outfit must have been prepared long ago, specifically for her son to wear after he passed the imperial examination.

Xu Lanyin's heart trembled. The money for buying the clothes must have been given by the original owner as a gift.

Old Lady Gu glanced at Xu Lanyin and the others, raised her head, and walked past them. She continued, "You stingy girl! You won't even give your elders a bit of pig liver. We can't even finish all the meat at home now. When my son comes back, don't give him a few ounces of meat to please him. We don't want it."

Xu Lanyin snorted coldly, "Auntie Gu, I know your family is rich and doesn't care about that little bit of meat. Alas, the land at home was left to my younger brother by my father, but it's a pity that I lost it. I feel sorry for him."

Old Wife hurriedly said, "I've told you countless times that my son has never taken any money from the sale of your land. If you keep talking nonsense, I'll let my son sue you at the county government office and have you beaten with a stick."

She was now much more confident and felt that it was no exaggeration to say that her son would go to the county government office. Yesterday, the county magistrate's legal advisor came to her house to present a gift on his behalf and said that he would invite her son to the county government office as a guest when he returned.

She then said to passersby, "I am so pitiful. I finally managed to raise my son, but this daughter-in-law doesn't respect me before she even gets married. Oh, how can I live my life in the future if I marry a daughter-in-law who doesn't understand filial piety?"

He started acting again and spoke more bluntly.

Xu Lanzhou was furious and wanted to retort, but Xu Lanyin pulled her back. She said, "Why get angry with someone like that? Even if she says that, she'll treat everyone else like a fool."

As they walked home, they heard a voice echoing Gu Wangchen's words from behind. After Gu Wangchen passed the imperial examination, many people began to speak insincerely to curry favor with the Gu family. This was especially true for those with large plots of land, who hoped to register their land under Gu Wangchen's name to avoid taxes.

It is said that most villagers are simple and kind, but when it comes to money and immediate interests, their likes and dislikes are particularly obvious.

When they got home, Mrs. Xu was there too. She thought they should be back by noon, and they were getting very anxious.

Old Lady Xu asked anxiously, "How is it? Is the young lady from the Qi County Magistrate's family interested?"

Xu Lanzhou smiled and said, "It's very precious." He then told them how much money he had given them and asked them to keep it a secret.

The old lady's face wrinkled with laughter as she kept saying, "Oh my, they gave us so much silver. Your family finally has hope." She added, "Let alone giving us so much silver, even if they didn't give us a penny and didn't let us say anything, would we dare to say anything?"

Qin was incredibly excited. She hadn't expected a single chess game to bring life back to her family. Suddenly, she felt a great deal lighter, clasping her hands together and saying, "Brother Yan, our family is saved. You're right, our Yin'er is a brilliant child..."

Seeing this, Old Lady Xu said, "My son has been dead for so many years. It's time to build a cenotaph for him and bring his tablet into the ancestral hall so that you can burn incense and pay tribute to him from time to time."

Qin said with tears in her eyes, "Let's wait a few more years. There's no definite news, and I still have some thoughts in my heart."

Xu Lanyin and Xu Lanzhou hurried to the kitchen to cook.

Old Mrs. Xu held Xu Lanzhou and said, "You are a man, don't go into the kitchen. Ask your sister-in-law to help you later."

She pushed Xu Lanzhou out and helped light the fire herself. Qin Shi didn't dare let her mother-in-law light the fire. She wanted to go into the kitchen, but Old Lady Xu waved her hand and said, "You should get well soon, so that my two grandsons can suffer less."

Soon, Old Man Xu and his eldest wife's family arrived. Only Xu Ershi, who worked as a waiter in the county town, was absent. Li handed Xu Man to Gu, rolled up her sleeves, went into the kitchen and freed Old Lady Xu.

The old man was so angry with the original owner that he couldn't walk properly and had to be supported by Xu Dashi.

Xu Lanzhou came out to greet him and personally helped the old man into the main room.

In the evening, I cooked four meat dishes and two vegetable dishes, and steamed a pot of mixed buns made of cornmeal and white flour.

The old couple led Xu Mingqing, Xu Dashi, and Xu Lanzhou to sit at the eight-person table, while the others sat at smaller tables. Xu Man was held by Li while they ate. Old man Xu then asked Xu Dashi to pour Xu Lanzhou a small half-cup of wine, which made the little man excited and proud.

Qin's health had improved a lot, and since she was so happy today, she felt even more relaxed. She sat at the table and smiled as she helped Xiao Xuyuan pick up some food.

Gu praised Qin for her good fortune and praised the second wife's children for being smart and sensible, which made Qin very happy.

"Those who are blessed don't need to rush. Look, they are rich now. Sister-in-law, you should be more open-minded. Those who are blessed will never be poor. Oh my, a pot of flowers made so much money, and even established a relationship with the county magistrate's housekeeper. How can we not encounter such good things?"

Qin smiled and said, "Thank you for your kind words, sister-in-law. I also want to thank Dashi and Dashi's wife for helping to introduce them."

Gu's words were very pleasing to the ear, but Xu Lanyin knew that Gu had a purpose behind what he said.

At the time, the original owner secretly sold six acres of land, Qin became seriously ill, and Xu Lanzhou dropped out of school, leaving the second branch in dire straits. Xu Qingyan had always gifted the old couple a generous sum of money whenever he returned home, but they were reluctant to spend it, saving it to buy land for the first branch, and they didn't have any extra money on hand.

Old Man and Old Lady Xu's point was that the six acres of land owned by the first wife was purchased with money given by Xu Qingyan, and now that the second wife was in trouble, the first wife had to help. They wanted the first wife to give them ten taels of silver to help the second wife through their temporary difficulties, so that Xu Lanzhou wouldn't drop out of school. The Qin mother and son would also have money for medical treatment. When Gu Wangchen passed the imperial examination and the second wife's life improved, they would return the money.

Gu was shrewd, having long since discerned that Gu Wangchen would not marry Xu Lanyin. She had repeatedly advised the original owner to be more careful and not throw money into the cold water vat, lest both her wife and her money be lost. However, the original owner refused to listen and remained unhappy with her. Later, when her in-laws asked the first wife to give ten taels of silver to the second wife, she refused to accept it. She believed that if Gu Wangchen passed the imperial examination, he would definitely try to break up with the girl Yin. Giving away the money would be like throwing meat buns at a dog, never to be returned. She cried and made a scene, and Xu Mingqing, fearing his wife, did not dare to give it.

Xu Dashi felt bad and secretly sent him a tael of silver from his own pocket.

Although Qin was somewhat disappointed, she didn't blame Gu too much. It's easy to add icing on the cake, but it's hard to help someone in need. Most people are like Gu: not wicked, but selfish, hoping to have the best life among their relatives. If you give it to someone, it's theirs. If they don't give it, you can't force them to give it. How many people care about their brothers like her husband does?

Gu was really good at talking and handling things. She made the two old people very angry because of the money issue, but she coaxed them back to their senses after a while.

In Xu Lanyin's opinion, this big family is relatively harmonious and loving, unlike some farming novels she had seen in her previous life, where there were a lot of bad relatives who sold out their relatives and conscience for a little money.