Chapter 45
In the county, a few days ago, Wen Xiaowu came back for a visit. After reading Wen Shi's letter, everyone in the family breathed a sigh of relief for no apparent reason.
This was sent back when Wen Shi had just settled in. Since Wen Xiaowu hadn't been home for a while and no one in the family could read, Wen's father didn't know the contents either, so he could only keep it carefully.
“Your third brother is reliable and I trust him. He is talented and virtuous, and the teacher will surely accept him.”
After speaking, Old Man Wen suddenly coughed.
Xiuyu sat to the side, feeling very uncomfortable listening to this.
"Dad, Mom, the New Year is just around the corner, it's time to start buying New Year's goods, right? By the way, why hasn't the second son's wife come back yet?"
Xiuyu now spends her days crammed into the shop. The two children are alright, but she feels like she's suffering terribly, sleeping on the floor is extremely uncomfortable for her.
She had to work non-stop during the day, and there was little hope for her. Her only wish was for that heartless Wen Chuanzong to return soon.
"We're not going back home for the Chinese New Year."
Upon hearing his father's words, Xiuyu suddenly stood up and looked at him with some disbelief. The others were similar, but none of them showed any obvious opposition.
"Go do your own thing, don't just sit there."
After speaking, Old Man Wen coughed even louder. He quickly poured himself a bowl of hot water. Liu looked at him with concern, hesitant to speak.
“Father, the weather is getting cold, and your cough has gotten worse. How about I take you to see a doctor later?”
"No need, it's an old problem, it'll be fine by spring."
"But it wasn't this serious last year."
"fine."
Old Man Wen waved his hand, then went upstairs. He knew his own body well.
"Mother, please persuade Father."
"Second brother, your father won't listen to me unless your third brother or your eldest brother speaks up."
Mrs. Liu was filled with mixed feelings of joy and sorrow. After many years of marriage, she knew her husband very well, and his stubbornness was truly unbearable.
"Mother, why don't we invite the doctor? We've already spent the money, Father won't waste it."
"That's fine, I'll go."
After Wen Lao Er finished speaking, he hurriedly ran out. He was an honest boy and more filial than the others. Liu Shi didn't say anything and poured herself a glass of water.
Half an hour later, the doctor followed behind Wen Lao Er and walked in shakily. His hair was gray and he carried a large medical kit on his back. Wen Lao Die cursed a few times, but in the end he still let the doctor examine him.
"As people get older, they will inevitably have a few ailments and pains. Minor problems that were not a big deal before will become more and more serious. I will prescribe some medicine for you. Your spleen and lungs are not very good. You should eat more nourishing foods in your daily life."
The doctor wrote a prescription and left. Wen Lao Er went to get the medicine and then brewed it. Wen Xiao Wu followed his second brother to the back to brew the medicine and was also busy.
Wen Shi was unaware of all this.
Inside the city, he and Yingxiang continued to live their lives as usual, and before they knew it, the New Year was almost here.
"In five more days, if we just hold on for five more days, we can take a break and come back on the seventh day of the new year."
The classmate next to him was named Yu Ran. After class, he said excitedly that he was about the same age as Wen Shi and was very intelligent. Mr. Huang was the only teacher who had assigned the most homework in all these years.
Each assignment requires at least ten articles. If you write them carelessly and sloppily, I'm sorry, but you'll have to write twenty. If you still refuse, then you'll have to leave.
There are still long lines of people outside who want to become his apprentices, but very few are willing to leave.
Some couldn't stand it and left, but most of them were students from relatively well-off families. Nobody is a fool. Mr. Huang's connections in the officialdom must still be there. Once they can enter officialdom, their future won't be too difficult.
"By the way, Brother Wen, we've been studying together for a while now. Let's have a drink before the holiday, and work hard together next year to strive for the highest honors in the imperial examinations."
The students behind him began to echo his sentiment. Everyone wanted to get together, after all, they were classmates and had the same teacher now, but who knew what the future held?
At noon, the classroom was very warm. As the weather grew colder, a charcoal brazier was added to the classroom. Wen Shi, who was focused on the food that was being heated, was brought back to his senses by the sound of the brazier.
"Eating is fine, but drinking is not."
"Brother Wen, you work so hard and are so ambitious, you should relax a bit and have a drink. It won't hurt."
Wen Shi nodded and didn't refuse in the end. It would be best if classmates could become good friends. He would just drink less after he went.
During this period, his changes were visible to the naked eye, not only physically but also internally. Mr. Huang was a good teacher and never objected to him seeking private instruction.
He has a lot of homework every day, and sometimes when he's under a lot of pressure, he eats more, otherwise he can't concentrate. He used to be thin, but now he's gained some weight, which makes him look much better than before. Most of the fat is on his arms.
Wen Shi wasn't oblivious to people's feelings. Every time he would ask someone for a long time, he would accurately compile all the questions he didn't understand and ask them two or three times every ten days.
Knowing that his foundation was weaker than others, Mr. Huang always explained things to him very patiently, and he also appreciated Wen Shi.
There were already quite a few students in the classroom, and after Wen Shi arrived, more than ten more came.
The old gentleman still insists on personally inspecting the classrooms every day, and the classrooms next door have already begun to be cleaned up.
"Alright, let's all go together then."
"good."
Everyone agreed, and once the food in their bowls was heated up, Wen Shi immediately took it over, picked up his chopsticks, and ate quickly, but not in a rude manner.
The bowl of white rice was packed tightly together, topped with a stew of potatoes and meat that he had made himself last night, along with some small pickles.
Yingxiang doesn't stay in the kitchen for long. Wenshi cooks in the morning and evening. Although it's tiring, Wenshi never complains. He cooks extra dishes and steams rice in the evening to save for himself to eat the next day.
As for his wife, he suggested she eat out for lunch, but he couldn't very well let her eat out. He felt the food had been sitting out for so long and wasn't fresh, and they always had pastries at home that she could eat too.
After Yingxiang became pregnant, she couldn't move around as easily as before. She felt uncomfortable bending over and such, and she never liked to make herself suffer.
The sign-in system she carries now has become her little yellow dog in her ancient life.
Every day at noon she would choose delicious food from there. Wen Shi just assumed she was eating out, since she controlled all the money in the house and he never questioned it.
Yingxiang would occasionally go out for a walk, and seeing the increasingly strong festive atmosphere on the streets, she felt that time was passing by too quickly.
She was more looking forward to the temple fair after the New Year, which was said to be very large. She had never been to a temple fair before, even though she had been there for so long.
As dusk approached, Wen returned shortly afterward. Lately, the moonlight hadn't been as bright, so he carried a lantern with a candle inside for illumination on his way to and from school, which was much better than carrying a torch.
With the holiday approaching, he was naturally happy to be able to relax.
"My dear wife, I might be back late the night before the holiday, as I'm having dinner and drinks with my classmates."
"Drink less."
Yingxiang lay lazily on the bed, wearing a white undergarment. She looked at her slightly protruding belly and gently stroked her stomach with both hands.
Since we don't know the gender, there's no need to think too much beforehand; just treat it like opening a blind box.
Wen Shi was not an unreasonable or sexist person; he was not pedantic, and Ying Xiang did not face much pressure in this regard.
Right now, I'm just hoping the baby will be born healthy, but there's something else I have to consider beforehand.
That's a midwife. In ancient times, the most common place for midwives was a clinic, but you couldn't give birth in a clinic. Women usually gave birth at home and would ask a neighbor or a familiar midwife to help them. Older women were also good at midwifery.
Suddenly, a strong wind picked up outside, and a torrential rain began to fall. This unpredictable weather was really unpleasant. Yingxiang sighed helplessly and frowned.
"Husband, what are the arrangements for the midwife?"
Thinking of the ancients' childbirth, which was like walking through the gates of hell, Yingxiang couldn't help but feel nervous and worried. It was a bit early to talk about this now, but we couldn't leave it unresolved forever and just find someone to talk to when the time came.
Hearing this, he was taken aback and remained silent for a long time. Actually, Liu was a midwife; she had delivered the children of his two sisters-in-law. But asking her to come after the New Year was out of the question. He decided to find someone else here instead.
"I'll make some inquiries and hire two midwives when the time comes."
"As for your postpartum period, we'll hire someone to take care of you then."
"After the New Year, I still need to go to the market to buy a ewe. It would be better if I didn't need it, but I can't be without it if I need it."
If all goes well, Yingxiang will give birth around the beginning of next summer, when the weather will be warm and there will be no need to worry about her catching a cold.
What are you going to do with the ewe?
Yingxiang looked at Wenshi in confusion. Wenshi glanced at her and then said, "If you don't have enough milk, a ewe is an alternative."
Wealthy families often have several wet nurses feeding their children together, ensuring that no child is neglected. However, ordinary families don't have this option. If a mother's milk supply is insufficient, she might borrow some milk from neighbors or acquaintances. If a woman has enough milk, she generally won't refuse to feed other children, as everyone loves children.
Unless the relationship is so bad that communication is impossible, no one cares about those little squabbles on a daily basis.
But they were unfamiliar with the area, and the old ways of the village would definitely not work. Wen Shi thought of getting a ewe first, and if they didn't need it, they could sell it.
Yingxiang fell into deep thought upon hearing this. She didn't like mutton and didn't know if the baby in her belly would like to drink goat milk.
Thinking about this, she was a little undecided, but she didn't refuse. Wen Shi was doing it for the child's own good. If she didn't have enough breast milk and the child was hungry and crying, it would be heartbreaking. It would be better for the child to be hungry than to be hungry.
There is no milk powder here, and it is uncertain whether the system even exists. Although living conditions were poor many years ago, people could feed their babies rice water, but rice water is definitely not as good as goat milk.
"Husband, we can't graze sheep here either?"
"After spring arrives and the weather warms up, I'll take it outside the city every afternoon when I come back, and make sure it's well-fed and watered. You don't need to worry about that."
"That's a good idea."
Yingxiang thought about it and realized that she would need quite a few things before giving birth, such as baby clothes. She would have to start preparing after the New Year.
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