Chapter 208 Naming the Children
Smoke from cooking is curling up.
The cooking has started in the kitchen.
First, cook the rice. Once it's almost done, scoop it out and steam it in a small pot behind the stove. Freshly harvested rice is cooked until it's about 60% done before steaming, making it especially fragrant. This is a new method she learned from a book.
The lunch menu was quite lavish, with a platter of braised meats being a must, along with braised pork, stir-fried rabbit, Mapo tofu, bean sprout and egg pancakes, stir-fried vegetables, pork liver and egg soup... All of these dishes were cooked with lard, so even the vegetarian dishes were glossy and looked incredibly appetizing.
Cheng Wanwan asked Chunhua to invite the village head and Old Man Zhao over to eat together, as well as the newly arrived Master Yu.
Da Shan was still too honest by nature. It was impossible to ask her, a woman, to eat with a group of men... After all, in this era, men and women could not eat at the same table. Since she had come to this place, she should try her best to abide by the rules in front of outsiders.
There were two dining tables in the house. The larger table was placed in the dining room, where several men of the family dined with the county magistrate.
The smaller old table was placed in the kitchen. The kitchen was already quite large, so there was no problem fitting a small table there. The younger children and women in the family would eat at this table.
On the large table was a pot of wine, which Cheng Wanwan had bought on short notice at the mall and poured into a common pot after buying it.
Zhao Dashan stood up and poured wine for everyone.
First it was Magistrate Shen, then Master Yu, followed by the village head, and finally, it was his own family member, Old Man Zhao.
Shen Zheng frowned: "What kind of wine is this? It smells so good. I'd like to have a sip too."
Magistrate Shen frowned. When did this kid learn to drink? He opened his mouth to scold him.
However, when he thought about this, he wondered if disciplining his child at Zhao Chengshi's house would make Zhao Chengshi misunderstand him as having a violent temper.
After thinking about it, he held back.
Cheng Zhao said calmly, "You're feeling dizzy after drinking, and you still have to study this afternoon. Are you trying to slack off?"
Shen Zheng: "..."
His father came, and he wasn't even allowed to have a drink to celebrate?
He met Cheng Zhao's indifferent gaze, and for some reason, even though it was so calm and serene, he felt a little timid.
I really don't understand why I'm such a coward.
Master Yu took a few sips of wine and a bite of food, and was immediately stunned.
This is just a remote mountain valley, and this is just a farmhouse. Why is the wine they brew so mellow, and the food they cook so delicious?
During the peak of his life, he had tasted all sorts of delicacies, but he was captivated by the food in a village.
He glanced at the other people at the table; everyone looked perfectly normal, while he seemed completely naive and unsophisticated.
He coughed and started chatting with Cheng Zhao and Shen Zheng.
Over here, Magistrate Shen, the village head, and Old Man Zhao were chatting happily, mainly about ratooning rice.
The village headman said with a smile, "Your Excellency, please rest assured. I have had my grandson Tiezhu write down all the details of watering, fertilizing, and harvesting the ratooning rice. After the rice is stored in the granary, this booklet will be sent to the county government so that people in other villages can follow suit and increase their income."
"Excellent! Excellent!" Magistrate Shen laughed. "The existence of Dahe Village is truly my good fortune."
After the ratooning rice began to head, he had already written a letter and submitted it to the prefect. He would write another letter and submit it after the rice harvest.
The people of Dahe Village must be commended by the imperial court!
Especially Zhao Chengshi!
Magistrate Shen was in a good mood, finding the wine and food delicious, and his spirits were high.
The meal ended pleasantly.
Magistrate Shen stood at the gate of the courtyard, waiting for Cheng Wanwan to come out. He had a few words he wanted to say from the bottom of his heart.
But Cheng Wanwan was busy with various things, and he stood waiting for a long time, making Old Man Zhao and the village head anxiously accompany him...
"Sir, there's still a case to be heard at 3:45 PM. Shouldn't we be heading back now?" The servant respectfully came over to remind him.
Magistrate Shen glanced at the sky; it was indeed getting late.
This is a serious case, and he must handle it personally. He looked regretfully in Cheng Wanwan's direction and said, "Let's go."
I'll have to come back another time.
Fortunately, my son lives here, so it wouldn't be out of the ordinary if he came at any time.
No sooner had Magistrate Shen left than Aunt Wang arrived with a bowl of pickled vegetables. Ostensibly, she was there to deliver the pickled vegetables, but actually...
"These pickles are quite delicious, I've filled a bowl for you to try... Oh, Auntie Shan, did the magistrate just personally propose marriage?"
Cheng Wanwan felt utterly helpless when faced with Aunt Wang's gossipy gaze.
Surely the whole village doesn't think the magistrate has come to propose marriage.
It's a good opportunity to have Aunt Wang explain things clearly.
“The magistrate is a benevolent official who loves his people like his own children. He has come to Dahe Village for two reasons. First, he has found a teacher for Dahe Village. Second, he wants to understand the growth of the ratooning rice so that he can report to the prefect,” Cheng Wanwan said. “As for the marriage proposal last time, it was a misunderstanding. Please don’t take it seriously. I am a widow, and I don’t care about my reputation. But if I tarnish the magistrate’s reputation, that would be a serious crime.”
Aunt Wang slapped her own mouth: "I'll never talk nonsense again. I need to tell the other sisters-in-law and aunties to watch their mouths!"
Aunt Wang ran out like the wind.
Cheng Wanwan walked out of the courtyard and heard Xiao Sidan pestering Cheng Zhao: "Big cousin, please just give me a character name, okay..."
Cheng Zhao refused, saying, "The name was bestowed by an elder or teacher; it is not appropriate for me to take it."
Cheng Wanwan's heart stirred.
Actually, she had disliked the names of her four sons for a long time, but these four names were given by the original owner of the body. She was not the children's biological mother, and she always felt that changing the names of other people's children without permission was disrespectful to the original owner.
She had forgotten that in ancient times, in addition to given names, people also had courtesy names.
And often, the courtesy name is more important than the given name.
The four children's names can remain unchanged; each child can simply have a new character chosen as their formal name—it's perfect.
“Since the name was bestowed by your elders, how about I give you one?” Cheng Wanwan said with a smile. “And your three older brothers, I’ll give each of you one.”
Zhao Sidan blinked: "Mom, do you know how to name things?"
His name and the names of his three older brothers were all chosen by their mother, which made him somewhat doubtful of her naming abilities.
"You little rascal, you're still complaining about me!" Cheng Wanwan deliberately glared at him fiercely. "Look at the names you've given them, Da Huang, Er Huang, Da Hei, Xiao Hei, Xiao Dian..."
Zhao Sidan: “…”
Isn't this genetic? How can you blame him?
Cheng Wanwan did start to seriously consider this matter.
A name carries the hopes and expectations of one's elders, and she must think about it carefully.
As he was scribbling on the paper, Zhao Sidan's joyful voice came from outside: "Second Brother, you're back!"
Cheng Wanwan walked out of the house and saw Zhao Ergou leading the carriage in. The carriage curtain was blown up by the wind, and the carriage was still full of cloth.
The last few times my second brother went to Baiyun Town to sell goods, he could usually sell them all in half a day. Even if the quantity of goods was larger this time, there shouldn't be so many left to bring back.
Just as she was about to ask, Zhao Ergou spoke up, "I met an acquaintance on the way. He wanted to go to Phoenix Town, so I took him there by carriage. It delayed my business. Let's talk about it tomorrow."
He led the horse into the stable, then picked up a sickle to cut grass, and soon his figure disappeared into the yard.
Cheng Wanwan's eyes narrowed.
This kid grew up in Dahe Village, and everyone he knows is from the same village. No one from Dahe Village went to Fenghuang Town today.
It was clearly an excuse to brush off her questions.
It seems there's something wrong with this shipment.
She calculated that in just a few days, her second son had earned several dozen taels of silver, which showed he did have a talent for business. However, he was also too confident, and excessive confidence turned into arrogance, which was not a good thing.
Appropriate setbacks can help a person grow quickly, and as a mother, she shouldn't interfere excessively.
Cheng Wanwan pretended not to know anything about it and continued drawing the shop plans.
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