In September, there is a temperature difference between day and night in Ansu County.
He Chengzhang stood at the entrance of the prefectural governor's mansion wearing only a thin undergarment. The cold was secondary; what bothered him most was the stares of passersby and the whispers of the prefectural governor's servants, which made him feel like he was being pricked by thorns.
People dare to say things like, "The prefect is henpecked," "The prefect will definitely lose his authority in the future," and "It's better to divorce such a troublesome wife and remarry."
He Chengzhang's face was grim, and he finally couldn't help but shout, "Shut up!"
The whispering servants were startled and lowered their heads, pretending to be dead.
Still furious, he pointed at the group of servants and said, "It is none of your business to criticize my wife. I am willing to be kicked out by her, and I am willing to stand here. But if I ever hear you criticizing my wife again, I will sell you all off."
Selling a servant is different from kicking them out. Kicking them out is like returning a product; once the indenture is given, they are left to fend for themselves.
Selling someone outright means handing over the indenture to a broker and selling them to various households according to the master's wishes. To put it nicely, it's selling them to different families; to put it bluntly, it's selling them to filthy and lowly places, directly extinguishing all of that person's future.
Therefore, when He Chengzhang got angry, the servants were terrified and all knelt on the ground, not daring to say a word.
It was quite a grand occasion before the gates of the prefectural governor's mansion were finally opened.
He Chengzhang composed himself before striding in.
The next day, the prefect's remarks spread throughout the city.
The Sun family, who had sent the concubine, were startled, realizing they had made a fool of themselves by flattering him. They were flustered and uneasy.
Everyone, including the Sun family, knew that once the Prefect had appeased his wife, he would definitely settle accounts with the Sun family.
The other prominent families watched the spectacle with their feet up, while those in the small courtyard with the hairpin flower breathed a sigh of relief.
"Great! All the green beans in Xieyang County have been harvested and dried. Thirty acres of land are now free. I need to go back and take care of them," Zheng Ruqian said, stretching. "I don't know what to plant for the next six months."
Long beans are planted in April and harvested in September.
The other crops can only be sown in September and harvested in April.
If the date is too rigid, there are too few options, especially for Zheng Ruqian, who doesn't understand agriculture.
"Second brother, we need to plant some crops that sell for a high price; we can't waste thirty acres of land." Jiang Sheng blinked.
Alright, the area has shrunk another circle.
The younger sister said one thing, and the older brother ran himself ragged.
Zheng Ruqian packed his things and prepared to take Wang Xiaosong back to Xiyang County.
It's not that we can only take Wang Xiaosong; the main problem is that no one else was able to go back.
Zhang Qiquan and Aunt Zhang turned their heads as soon as they heard the name Xiyang County.
Xu Mo is preparing to take the imperial examination and should not be disturbed.
Fang Heng was being eyed covetously by others, so staying in Anshui County was actually the safest place for him. As the old saying goes, the most dangerous place is the safest.
Now that Wen Zhiyun has her own clinic, she can no longer take leave at will in order to maintain her network of contacts.
He could go to the banquet, but the Wang family had recently encountered some problems, and Wang Fufeng was extremely busy. It was neither reasonable nor ethical to take away his fifth brother, who could help, at this time.
Even Wang Xiaosong asked with a bitter face, "Boss, can we not go back to Xieyang County?"
The siblings, who fled that place almost like refugees, loathed a group of arrogant and domineering relatives and also grew to hate that land, never wanting to set foot there again for half their lives.
But what did the land do wrong?
Every place has good people and bad people, and every family has kind people and vicious people. You can't hate a land because of one person, nor can you hate a family because of one incident.
The world is never black and white; around the corner, there are countless gray areas whose colors cannot be defined.
“Xiaosong, you have to go back, go back with great fanfare, go back with full confidence.” Zheng Ruqian patted Wang Xiaosong’s shoulder, his tone mature. “Make those who look down on you respect you, make those who are indifferent warm up, so that your six months of hard work and toil will not have been in vain.”
People who have undergone a complete transformation have every right to be proud.
Wang Xiaosong looked bewildered, not quite understanding his employer's meaning, but at least he didn't resist returning to Xiyang County.
Before leaving, he even went to the Wen family clinic to ask his younger sister, Wang Xiaozhu, "Would you like to come back to our hometown with me?"
After receiving the word "get lost," he slunk back to the carriage shaft.
He mounted his horse and returned to the courtyard with flowers in his hair. He picked up the neatly dressed Zheng Ruqian and was about to leave when a little girl with a pigtail poked her head out from behind the door, followed by her chubby little body and a dark blue bundle slung over her arm.
"Jiang Sheng?" Zheng Ruqian was taken aback. "What are you doing?"
"I'll go with my second brother!" Jiang Sheng said, jumping and skipping along the side of the carriage.
Wang Xiaosong couldn't bear to watch any longer and reached out to help.
Jiang Sheng then climbed into the carriage and sat next to Zheng Ruqian.
Seeing her second brother's astonished expression, she carelessly put down the small package and said with a smile, "Second brother, it would be too lonely for you to go back alone. Jiang Sheng will accompany you. Anyway, you're just idling around all day. Making sausages is enough with the aunties."
That's what they say, but just a few days ago the little girl was still working hard with Aunt Zhang to research new flavors and try to make different kinds of preserved food. She wasn't idle at all.
She got into the car because she was afraid Zheng Ruqian would feel disappointed and wouldn't be used to not having everyone with him.
Although he was also alone when delivering vegetables, that was for work, to earn money. Everyone was alone, just like Xu Mo went to school alone.
This trip back to Xiyang County is different. Not only will we be dealing with some matters, but we'll also be staying for a while. Zheng Ruqian will likely feel a bit down, which will also make everyone worry.
"This is medicine from Fourth Brother, for wound healing and detoxification, plus a big bag of croton powder." Jiang Sheng opened the small bundle. "And there's a dagger from Fifth Brother, who said he found it in the Wang family's storeroom; it can cut through iron like mud."
Finally, he pulled out a piece of paper. "This is a letter my elder brother wrote to Magistrate Bian, saying that if there are any difficulties, I can send it to him."
Immediately afterwards, there was another commotion outside the carriage.
Zheng Ruqian lifted the curtain and saw Jiang San and Jiang Si grinning.
"Second Young Master, I'm a little homesick. Third Young Master, will you let me go back and visit?" Jiang San chuckled.
“I have no home, but I miss Xiyang County.” Jiang Si scratched his head.
These two can't even come up with a plausible reason. It's obvious that Fang Heng doesn't trust his second brother, so he sent two thugs to follow him.
We're all family, can't we just speak frankly instead of resorting to this sneaky method?
Zheng Ruqian wiped his wet eyes and called out, "Xiaosong, let's go."
The carriage bumped and jolted as it headed toward another city.
Whether it was Xu Mo who was reading, Fang Heng who was practicing martial arts, Wen Zhiyun who was at the clinic, or Chang Yan who was helping to handle matters at the Wang family, they all raised their heads and smiled as they looked towards the direction of Xiyang County.
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