Chapter 119

The next day, Hibiscus, still half asleep, tried to stretch, only to find that her arms were being supported by someone and she couldn't move them at all.

Mu Jin became a little more awake. When she opened her eyes, she saw Bai Qiqiu and Wen Zhaoran sleeping soundly on either side of her.

The white wood, its lips glistening, lay asleep at my feet.

And then there's Wang Li, who insisted on sleeping with them last night and is now almost pushed to the edge of the bed and about to fall off.

He chuckled to himself, realizing he had now enjoyed a night surrounded by men, with one on each side of him.

Gently pulling his hand away from Wen Zhaoran's neck, he tiptoed out the door like a thief.

The sun was high in the sky, and a glance told you it was getting late.

Zhou Lin didn't go to town today. He and Mu Zhaoye were drinking steaming millet porridge under the peach tree. When they saw Mu Jin come out, they both looked over with resentment in their eyes.

"You're finally awake."

Why didn't you two go to town?

Hibiscus scooped up a ladle of well water, washed her face, and immediately felt much more refreshed.

After rinsing his mouth, Zhou Lin ladled a bowl of porridge for him from the kitchen and placed it on the stone table under the peach tree.

"I'm taking a half-day off today. I'll go to town this afternoon. I delivered the vegetables from home to town and they just came back."

Mu Jin nodded gently, took the spoon, blew on it, and drank a mouthful of millet porridge with the pickled vegetables.

Mu Zhaoye glanced at the still-closed door. "Bai Qiqiu is still not awake?"

"I reckon I'll need to sleep for another half an hour."

What time did you go to sleep last night?

Zhou Lin cracked a corner of a salted duck egg, carefully scooped out the egg inside with chopsticks, put it in a bowl, and pushed it in front of Mu Jin.

Mu Jin thought for a moment, "I don't know, but it must be quite late."

Zhou Lin sighed, "Next time, don't indulge yourself like that."

Mu Jin nodded, "I won't do that anymore, I always feel like I haven't slept enough."

"I'll go home and check on things later. After you've had breakfast, go back to your room and take a nap."

After finishing the last mouthful of millet porridge, Mu Zhaoye glanced at the closed door not far away.

“I’m not waiting for him anymore. When he wakes up, Jin’er, tell him that Lao Wu and I are going to the river to fish.”

"Should I go wake him up?"

Mu Zhaoye shook his head. "Let's not call him. He didn't get enough rest yesterday. If he goes fishing today and falls into the water while he's not careful, it won't be good."

When Mu Zhaoye returned, Mu Jin always felt that his back view, just like the way Zhou Lin had looked at him before, was full of resentment.

When Bai Qiqiu and the others woke up, the sun was already high in the sky. Mu Jin was in the room copying the storybook she had stayed up all night reading the night before.

When I came out to rest, I saw my brothers were wolfing down the porridge that had been warmed in the pot for them.

"You're finally awake. Brother Zhaoye has already delivered the fish and gone back."

Bai Qiqiu finally came to his senses, slapped his forehead, feeling both angry and regretful.

"I forgot that Mu Zhaoye and Lao Wu had made plans to go fishing today. Sigh, I shouldn't have stayed up all night reading novels!"

Mu Jin laughed and said, "You're probably too late for the fishing. We'll have fish for lunch today, so eat plenty."

Bai Qiqiu was extremely annoyed. After eating a late breakfast, he plunged into the dye house and got busy.

It seemed they wanted to channel all their regret over missing the fishing trip into their enthusiasm for working in the dye house.

After helping out at the dye shop for a while, Mu Jin went back to her room to continue copying books.

He wrote at a moderate pace, and after a whole day, excluding rest and other tasks, he wrote about four thousand characters.

It will take more than a month to copy all three books.

Mu Jin wasn't in a hurry. She had only taken the job so that she wouldn't have to spend money to read storybooks, so she would take it slow.

Amidst the chirping of cicadas, the peaches in the yard ripened in batches, and the first floor of the wooden house was completed.

Mu Bai was called home by Zhou Ling. After the New Year, he would be an eleven-year-old boy.

Zhou Ling, as the stepfather, is really worried sick about his son's marriage.

Although Mu Bai is still young, good men don't wait for anyone, and most of them have already been betrothed to people with good intentions.

Zhou Ling didn't want to wait until Mu Bai was fifteen or sixteen before helping him find a marriage partner. Generally, by that age, any man of good character would have already been chosen.

He also had his own selfish reasons. Now that Mu Zhou was studying in town, he was young and already had a small reputation.

Because of his second brother, Mu Bai's marriage was easier to arrange.

He loved listening to storytelling, and he had heard the story of Zhong Yong's tragic fate.

The examination for the title of Tongsheng (童生) is much easier than that for the title of Xiucai (秀才). Although he was proud of his promising son Muzhou, he was also afraid that his son's talent would run dry.

Taking advantage of this favorable situation, we should hurry up and arrange a good marriage for Mu Bai. We don't need him to be rich or noble; as long as he has enough to eat and wear and doesn't have to work in the fields, that's fine.

Later, Mu Zhou proved himself and became a high-ranking official. It seemed a pity that Mu Bai married down, but with such an older brother, her life in her husband's family would only be smoother.

Zhou Ling never thought of letting Mu Bai marry a scholar. Her own son was so naive that he couldn't bear the thought of his husband having a large number of wives and concubines in the harem.

It can be said that he, as Mu Bai's stepfather, had thought through everything he could regarding Mu Bai's marriage.

Once Mu Bai settles down, he can finally focus on his younger child at home and his older child who is studying away from home.

Although Mu Bai wasn't particularly happy about it, he knew his father was doing it for his own good. He packed his little bag and reluctantly followed Zhou Ling away.

As Mu Jin watched their departing figures, she knew it would be a lie to say she wasn't envious.

Having a stepfather who always puts your needs first is a blessing and a source of happiness.

After seeing Mu Bai off, Mu Jin went back to her room to continue copying the book. In about ten days, she would be able to take it to town and hand it over to Manager Liu.

The vegetables that were replanted in the garden have sprouted, and the poultry raised at home can now produce about fifty chicken eggs and about twenty duck eggs every day.

Hibiscus supplemented her diet with two eggs every day, and drank old hen and old duck soup. Her complexion became incredibly rosy, and the boy gained a lot of weight.

The book was copied, and the days passed from late summer to early autumn.

Huang Pang'er and the new puppy Xuan Ying, with their bellies exposed, were basking in the warm autumn sun in the yard, sleeping soundly, oblivious to the world around them.

The wooden house was taking shape. Wen Zhaoran bought bluestone and bricks from the town and built the kitchen, storeroom, woodshed and dyeing workshop. After the bluestone slabs were laid, he figured he could move back home around late autumn.

Mu Jin carefully put away the copied paper, leaving the two discarded pages in the room so she could use them later.

Today, Mu Jin didn't go to town with Zhou Lin early in the morning. She slept in for half an hour longer and went to town in Mu Nianjun's oxcart.

Manager Liu waited for two or three days and finally the hibiscus arrived.

When a man is looking for a partner, he will chat with the young man or woman he is looking for for a while, when no one is around to accompany him.

Two days ago, when Manager Liu's only son made the suitor cry for the twentieth time, causing the marriage to fall through, Manager Liu was hoping that Mu Jin would come soon.

Whether it works out or not, he's given up on it this year and has no intention of arranging marriages for that brat Liu Chengye anymore.

If he can't find a husband, let him worry about it later.

Mu Jin was completely bewildered by Manager Liu's enthusiasm. Manager Liu only glanced at the paper Mu Jin had written on before putting it away.

"Manager Liu, won't you take a closer look?"

Manager Liu waved his hand, "I've checked, no problem. These three storybooks will cost a total of three taels of silver."

As he spoke, he took the silver out of the counter, counted it, and handed it to Mu Jin.

"Manager Liu, I've ruined two sheets of paper, so you still have to deduct a few coins."

Shopkeeper Liu laughed and said, "It's just two pages. Considering it's your first time copying a book, I won't charge you."

Mu Jin was quite surprised. He wondered if it was just his imagination, but this Manager Liu seemed much easier to talk to and more enthusiastic than when he first came here.

"Thank you very much, Manager Liu."

Mu Jin accepted the three taels of silver and thanked him gently.

Manager Liu handed the paper that Mu Jin had copied to the shop assistant and asked him to take it aside and pack it up.

"Mr. Zhou, how many people are in your family? Are there any young men or women who are not yet engaged?"

Mu Jin was taken aback. "What's going on, Manager Liu?"

Manager Liu smiled and said, "I was being presumptuous. Please forgive me, Mr. Zhou."

She then sighed, “Alas, every family has its own troubles. I have a young child, fifteen years old, and he is the only son in the family. These days, his stepfather and I are very worried about his marriage. When I first met you, I felt that Mr. Zhou was of good character. Over the years, I have not made a mistake in judging people. I thought that if it were your brother or sister, they would be quite good as well.”

Upon hearing this, Mu Jin sighed and smiled, "I do have a brother who is not yet engaged, but Manager Liu, there are many families in town that are a good match for your family. They are certainly better than us village families."

Shopkeeper Liu smiled helplessly, "To be honest, Mr. Zhou, my youngest son has been spoiled by me and the family. He started looking for a wife last year. He has looked at almost every family in town with children of marriageable age, but none of them have caught his eye."

"With such high standards, young master, you don't even look at the young men and women in town. I'm afraid my brother will hardly have the good fortune to enter Manager Liu's house."

"In my opinion, there is no difference between farm families in the town. I also moved to the town with my whole family from the village because I knew a few words and was helped by the old shopkeeper. As long as the farm family's sons have good family traditions and conduct, they are no worse than the sons in the town."

Manager Liu's words were persuasive, but in reality, he was truly at his wit's end. He had already met all the women he could marry or those from poorer families, so he had no choice but to turn his attention to the village.

Mu Jin thought that Mu Bai had been dragged around by Zhou Ling to look at potential partners these days, and Manager Liu seemed to be a kind person.

Although, according to what Manager Liu said, his youngest son is probably a spoiled brat, Manager Liu's family is indeed well-off. If Mu Bai marries into the family, she won't have to tend the fields like she did in the village, which is good.

Whether it works out or not, it's never too late to see how it goes.

She nodded. "Manager Liu, I'll go back and talk to my father. I'll have my husband give you a reply first thing tomorrow morning."

Shopkeeper Liu smiled and said, "Alright, I'll be waiting for good news from Mr. Zhou tomorrow."

Mu Jin smiled. Since the family was marrying off a young man, they couldn't be too eager, so she didn't say anything more polite.

After finding a storybook with about 30,000 words, he bid farewell to Manager Liu and went to the carpenter's shop.