After leaving the capital, the funeral procession headed south and arrived at Wuding Prefecture seven or eight days later.
The journey was smooth and peaceful, and Old Madam Yan was buried in the Yan family's ancestral tomb with great ceremony. The Yan family officially closed their doors to observe mourning.
Wuding Prefecture was not a particularly prosperous prefecture, but it was better than most and worse than most. It was several times better than the desolate Yulin Prefecture in the early years.
The Yan family is one of the most scholarly families in Wuding Prefecture, and almost all the people who come and go from Wuding Prefecture have heard of the Yan family.
The past of the Yan family can be traced back to the previous dynasty, and the recorded history is over a hundred years old. In this dynasty, the Yan family has produced more than a dozen Jinshi (imperial examinations) and countless Juren (juren) and Xiucai (provincial examinations).
When the late emperor was still alive, the Yan family produced a man of extraordinary talent and brilliance. He had a smooth official career and rose to the position of cabinet elder.
Unfortunately, he was accidentally involved in the struggle for the throne in his later years. Although he saved his life, he lost his official position and retired early.
This Lord Yan was a man of great wisdom. Not only did he extricate himself from the chaos, but he also somehow managed to allow the current ruler to continue employing members of the Yan family.
It stands to reason that with such family support, the Yan family's official career should not be too bad, but Yan Guangyi's official career was not so smooth at the beginning.
He obtained the first-class academic title through his own examination, entered the Hanlin Academy based on his own ability, and planned his own exile. He was promoted step by step based on his own ability.
The frequency of his clansmen appearing in his official career was extremely low. The fundamental reason was that his lineage was only a side branch, and their branch was extremely unpopular in the clan.
A few generations ago, there was a rebellious ancestor who was involved in a rebellion and almost implicated the entire family. Since then, their branch has been unable to hold their heads up in the family.
After keeping a low profile for many years, Yan Guangyi's father passed the imperial examination and moved his family to the capital. The family rarely returned to Wuding Prefecture.
Just talking about Yan Guangyi himself, apart from living in Wuding Prefecture for a few years when he was a child, he only went there during the years when he was preparing for the imperial examination and observing mourning period.
Their family was not really familiar with Wuding Prefecture. Only Yan Zhuo, who had prepared for the exam in Wuding Prefecture, was a little familiar with it.
Fortunately, they came back to observe mourning and would have to stay in the mansion most of the time. They would leave Wuding Prefecture in a few years and would not have to worry too much about social issues.
When they arrived at Wuding Prefecture, there were only a handful of people visiting them. Outsiders knew that the family was in mourning and did not want to disturb them. Only those who were related to the Yan family came to visit.
Once the gates were closed, only the two rooms in the Yan Mansion were left to deal with.
When Old Lady Yan was conscious for the last time in her life, she divided the family property between Yan Guangyi and Yan Guangsheng. Logically speaking, as the eldest son, Yan Guangyi should get the largest share, with 70% and 30% being the most reasonable.
However, Old Lady Yan proposed that the family property be divided into 60% and 40% after her death on the grounds that Yan Guangyi's family had been away for many years and Yan Guangsheng's family had been filial to her on their behalf for many years.
Yan Guangyi looked at his mother and brother in silence for a long time. Old Madam Yan was stubborn and Yan Guangsheng was as quiet as a chicken. The room with only three of them was dull and depressing.
Considering that this was his mother's last words, Yan Guangyi finally agreed, but he felt uncomfortable. He went back and told Chu Yuan about it, and Chu Yuan was angry and distressed.
She didn't care about the money in the duke's house. She was born in a duke's mansion and had a wedding with a red dowry that stretched ten miles long. She had seen all kinds of good things. What made her angry was her mother-in-law's blatant favoritism, and what made her heartbroken was her husband's tolerance and concession.
Later, when I saw the division list that Old Lady Yan brought out, I saw that 40% of the property that the second branch got was all good things. The profits from those shops alone were much more than those from the first branch.
Judging from the true value of these things, this division is more like a 50-50 split than a 60-40 split.
Don't they have to thank the old lady for dividing the property equally and not giving all the property to the second wife?
Chu Yuan thought sarcastically.
The relationship between the first and second wives was not good to begin with, and this method of division made it even more complicated.
The ancestral home in Wuding Prefecture is not as large as the Yan Prefecture in the capital. The two families, who had been waiting to separate completely after graduation, now live together. They see each other every day, and no one feels comfortable.
Not to mention the attitudes of Yan Guangyi and his wife and the second wife and their husband, among the younger generation, only three children under the age of ten could not see the situation clearly.
The men of the Yan family did not slack off in their studies during the mourning period and spent most of their time reading in their rooms. However, the girls had much more free time and did not want to stay in the house, so they came out for a walk from time to time.
Yan Xi is the only girl in the eldest wife's family. She has no playmates to talk to and cannot leave the house. Yan Xi is bored and can only wander around the small ancestral home.
The place is so small, and there are always times when you run into the girls from the big house. Sometimes both sides have bad tempers and can start quarreling over a single disagreement.
Unlike the eldest wife's family, which had few descendants, the second wife's generation had five sons and five daughters, both legitimate and illegitimate. None of the sons had married, but the eldest daughter born out of wedlock was married.
Among the remaining four girls from the second wife's house, Yan Xi only has a good relationship with Yan Ran, who is of the same age as her, and they can talk to each other. She quarrels with Yan Chun, the legitimate daughter, and Yan Ling, the daughter of the favorite concubine, as soon as they meet. The youngest, Yan Xin, is taciturn and has a low sense of presence.
Girls' disputes usually don't get out of hand, and the elders won't get involved.
In the past, Ming, who doted on her daughter, would always take her daughter's side when Yan Xi and Yan Chun had conflicts. Chu Yuan, who had no intention of intervening in the girls' verbal disputes, saw that she was partial to her daughter, so she also began to take her daughter's side.
In the end, it was Ming and Chu Yuan who were fighting openly and secretly.
However, since Yan Guangyi was promoted and returned to Beijing, Chu Yuan discovered that Ming's attitude had changed. She no longer favored her own daughter, but was fair and criticized whoever was wrong.
The first time Yan Chun was scolded by her mother after quarreling with Yan Xi, she couldn't believe it. She realized that her mother really no longer took her side and immediately burst into tears.
After Yan Chun ran away, feeling ashamed, Ming apologized to Yan Xi on her behalf, saying that Yan Chun was ignorant and she would teach her well in the future.
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