Chapter 34 Moving
The next morning, Ji Zheng and Ji's father went to the ancestral hall and divided the clan tree in front of many elders of the clan, the village chief, and many other people in the village.
The Ji family was the first family in the village to split up while both parents were still alive. The villagers talked about it for a long time before it finally calmed down.
As soon as Ji's mother left the house, the women in the village surrounded her and asked about the reason for the division of the family, which made Ji's mother afraid to go out and visit friends. Of course, this is a story for later.
At this moment, Ji Zheng was in a very good mood as he looked at the piece of paper with his name written on it by the homeowner. From then on, everything he did became easier.
The village chief went to the county town in the afternoon and took the document to the government office for stamping. In the evening, the document representing Ji Zheng's independence was in his hands.
In order to thank the village chief for his help, the family killed a chicken and treated him to dinner.
Even though they had separated, they didn't have to go without a meal, so in the evening Ji and An got a bowl of chicken soup thanks to the village chief.
Ji's father was angry with Ji Zheng and he kept looking down on Ji Zheng all day long.
Ji Zheng pretended not to see it and was busy thinking about when to move out.
If we still live here, then there would be no point in dividing the family.
Thinking of this, Ji Zheng's mind turned, "Village Chief, are there any vacant houses in this village?"
"Zheng boy, are you going to move out now?" the village chief asked in surprise. Although he had to move out sooner or later, it was too fast.
"Well, it just so happens that my younger brother doesn't have a room. I'll give my room to him." Ji Zheng pretended to be a good brother and said very considerately.
The others didn't expect him to say that, and their movements were frozen.
Father Ji snorted coldly, "It's really difficult for you to pretend to be a good brother now."
Ji Zheng said nothing, just lowered his head and endured it silently.
After hearing this strange and bizarre speech, the village chief couldn't help but look at Ji Zheng twice more, with some pity in his eyes.
At this time, the image of Ji Zheng in the village chief's mind was that of a poor little boy oppressed by his family.
Of course, this is exactly the effect Ji Zheng wanted.
After thinking for a while, the village chief said hesitantly: "Yes, there is...but the house is a bit shabby."
"It's okay, as long as people can live here." Ji Zheng responded immediately. He wanted to go out and make money in the future, and he was worried about Ji Hean living in Ji's house anymore.
Seeing that Ji Zheng was so eager to move out, the village chief said nothing more. "The house is in the south of the village. Come to me tomorrow and I'll take you there. If you want to buy it, just give me one or two taels of silver. If you want to rent it, just give me twenty coins a month."
This house belonged to an old hunter in the village. Later, the old hunter was taken away by his daughter who married into the next village. The house was left unused so he gave it to the village and it was considered public property.
In the south of the village, Ji Zheng remembered that Ji Hean’s friend named Xiaohua also lived in the south of the village. “Okay, I’ll come to you early tomorrow morning. Thank you, village chief.”
The village chief waved his hands and said, "No trouble, no trouble."
....
Early in the morning, Ji Zheng went to the villagers to buy a chicken and went to the village chief's house.
The village chief's family is the richest in the village. Their houses are all made of blue bricks and stone tiles. His son is a few years older than Ji Zheng and works as a clerk in the county government.
Arriving at the door, Ji Zheng knocked three times, and a woman's voice immediately came from inside, "I'm coming!" followed by the sound of footsteps.
The door opened, and it was the village chief's wife, Auntie Lan.
"Auntie Lan, I'm here to see the village chief. We made an appointment yesterday." Ji Zheng said with a smile.
The village chief told Ji Zheng's family affairs to his wife as soon as he came back yesterday, so Auntie Lan felt a little sympathetic towards Ji Zheng at this moment, "Come in quickly, come in quickly."
Auntie Lan warmly welcomed Ji Zheng in, turned around and shouted towards the inner room: "Old man, little Zheng is here!"
Ji Zheng handed the chicken in his hand to Auntie Lan, "Auntie, give it to you and Uncle to replenish your body."
Auntie Lan cried out, "What are you doing? As the village chief, it's my duty to do something for you. Take it back, take it back!"
Auntie Lan waved her hand to refuse, and Ji Zheng put the chicken down, "This is also a little gift from the young man, please accept it, otherwise I will feel embarrassed."
The chicken ran away as soon as it landed on the ground. Auntie Lan felt a little embarrassed to refuse, so she smiled sincerely and said, "I'm so sorry."
After that, she added, "Bring your husband to our house for dinner later."
"I would like to, but my husband has been sick in bed these past two days, so it's not convenient. I appreciate your kindness, auntie."
Ji Zheng declined, saying that he would have a lot of things to do after looking at the house.
Auntie Lan wanted to say something, but before she could open her mouth, the village chief arrived.
After chatting with the village chief for a while, the two of them went to see the house.
When they arrived, they found the house was just as the village chief had described, a little shabby and small. Ji Zheng went in and looked around, and discovered that although the house was small, it had everything it needed, and it was more than enough for only him and Ji He'an to live there.
"How does it look?" asked the village chief.
"I think it's fine."
In the end, Ji Zheng rented the house. It would actually be cheaper to buy it, but Ji Zheng didn't want to live in the village forever. This was just a temporary place to stay.
After paying the money, writing the documents and putting the fingerprints on them, a freshly made ancient house rental contract was completed.
After putting away the contract, Ji Zheng borrowed some tools from a nearby household and started cleaning.
After spending the entire afternoon cleaning the house inside and out, Ji Zheng returned to Ji's house and moved his belongings over.
When moving things, Ji's father was stern and his mother also had a sad face. After all, they were their own children, and although they were partial, they still had some affection for them.
Ji He'an still wore his hat. No one knew what Ji's mother was thinking these days. She blamed Ji He'an for the separation of Ji Zheng from the family. She kept making insinuations and making weird comments in the yard whenever she had nothing to do.
So this is also the reason why Ji Zheng is in a hurry to move.
"Dad, Mom, I won't be able to serve you anymore. Please take care of yourselves in the days ahead." After saying that, Ji Zheng knelt down and kowtowed twice to the two elders.
On the one hand, kowtow was done for the sake of showing off to others as filial piety was highly valued in ancient times; on the other hand, it was also a way to fulfill the father-son and mother-son love for the original owner.
Seeing Ji Zheng like this, Ji's mother's eyes turned red, and Ji's father's face also showed some emotion, but in the end they still said nothing.
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