Chapter 1239 Celebration (Reward for the book friend "Zi Zi")
Old Zhou went out for a walk and found that he had nothing to do, so he left. Zhou Dalang had arranged everything for the family, and Zhou Erlang had taken all the officials to the Bai family.
He walked around aimlessly and finally returned to the room, where he started rummaging through the drawers.
Qian lit three incense sticks for Master Tianzun and asked, "What are you looking for?"
"Looking for clothes. Didn't I put the clothes Manbao sent me in the closet? Where did you put them?" Old Zhou said, "This is for an important official. I'll change into them and entertain guests later."
Qian pulled him away and said, "Don't mess around. I'll help you find it."
Qian found some clothes for him and frowned, "Is everything arranged outside?"
"The boss has made all the arrangements. He doesn't need me."
Qian then breathed a sigh of relief and nodded.
Manbao and his friends also sent letters home, and sent servants to deliver them, but the weather was getting colder, and the speed of private delivery could not match that of official delivery.
That's why the official arrived at Qili Village before their letter.
Mr. Bai was also very worried about Madam Liu and Bai Shan and the others, so he sat down and began to inquire about the news in the capital.
The last time they received a letter from Bai Shan and the others, they said that they had filed a complaint with the emperor, and that he had been released after being in prison for a while and was now fine.
But I don’t know what happened next.
Now that the Zhou family has received rewards, the Bai family should have received some as well, right?
The Bai family really did have some. After hearing from the official announcing the imperial edict that Bai Qi had also been appointed governor of a state, and even governor of a higher state, he breathed a sigh of relief and started asking people to get some good wine so that they could drink it first.
Zhou Dalang quickly invited all the elders and the village chief to his home, and some aunts, sisters-in-law and other relatives who were familiar with their family also came to help.
Zhou Lixue drove an ox cart to pick up the head of the village. Xiao Qian prepared three tables of delicious food, and then Zhou Dalang went to the Bai family to invite Mr. Bai and the officials to come for dinner.
Old Zhoutou, Zhou Dalang, Zhou Erlang and Zhou Sanlang were left behind to entertain the guests, while the others went to the small courtyard to eat.
But they didn't have much interest in eating. They just pricked up their ears to listen to the conversation over there.
The people of Qili Village were also very concerned about Manbao's situation in the capital, but how could the officials know so much?
It only said that the emperor did not punish the person and the person had been released from prison.
Then Old Zhou brought up Zhou Yin's funeral, and asked indirectly whether what the yamen had said before about the bandits was no longer valid, and whether they could do whatever they wanted according to the rules in the future?
The official naturally praised Zhou Yin's loyalty according to the imperial edict. The head of the neighborhood and the village chief were not fools and understood it as soon as they heard it.
Then everyone had a pleasant meal that was neither too late nor too late and then sent the person away.
When Mr. Bai saw that they let the officers leave empty-handed, he couldn't help but wink at Old Zhou.
Old Zhou couldn't understand, so Mr. Bai went to see Zhou Erlang.
Zhou Erlang was stunned for a moment, then realized what was going on and went to feel around his body, but he didn't find a single penny. Mr. Bai felt a headache coming on, and just as he was wondering whether he should pay for them, the officers had already mounted their horses and said goodbye and left.
Mr. Bai could only sigh as he watched the departing team. He said to Zhou Erlang, "Why didn't you prepare in advance?"
Old Zhou asked doubtfully, "Preparing for what?"
The village head beside him said angrily: "Money, they came all the way to deliver the imperial edict to you, shouldn't you give them some money as a reward?"
Old Zhou's eyes widened in disbelief, "I gave him a reward? No, I'm just a peasant, and he's a high-ranking official. How could I give him a reward?"
Shouldn't he be rewarded?
The village head said, "If someone from your family passes the imperial examination in the future and someone comes to tell you the good news, won't you give them a reward?"
"If it was a minor official, or a big event, then of course you would have to give a reward. But this is a high-ranking official, how much money should I give to be considered a reward?" Old Zhou turned to Zhou Erlang and said, "You shouldn't give anything. If you give, I'll beat you up. If you don't give enough, it will be embarrassing for the high-ranking official to see you."
Everyone actually felt that what Old Zhou said made sense. Even Mr. Bai couldn't help but nod his head. "That's right. He's from the capital, so he shouldn't be short of money."
That’s right, we can’t give it to you even if you don’t have it.
Old Zhou thought that the new wheat was not valuable now and its price was the same as that of ordinary wheat. Next year, after the harvest, the price of grain might even drop, so it would not be worth much money at all.
Nowadays, the family's cash income depends on the various medicinal herbs grown in the mountains. The letters written by Lao Wu and his friends only report good news and not bad news. They even told them about Manbao's imprisonment only after he was released. I don't know how much money they spent in the capital to rescue him.
Old Zhou knew that if you were in jail and didn't have money, you couldn't get out. The high-ranking officials in the capital weren't necessarily as good as County Magistrate Yang.
Before leaving, the fourth brother took all the cash in the family with him. Where could he get the reward money for such a high-ranking official in such a short time?
As soon as the officials left, Old Zhou was completely relieved. He waved his hand and said, "Tell the villagers that tomorrow we will kill chickens and sheep and treat everyone to a meal!"
The village chief knew that the Zhou family didn't have much money besides some copper coins. After all, they had just exchanged silver with him a few days ago. So he stopped him and said, "Don't worry. This is a big event for our Zhou family and for Qili Village. You can't just pay for it. Every household should chip in and have a buffet."
Old Zhou immediately declined, "No, no, how can I let you spend all the money? Don't worry, although the fourth brother has taken all the cash in the house, I can still treat everyone to a good meal."
He said, "The harvest this year is good. We have enough rice and flour from our own garden. We also have vegetables from the fields, chickens and eggs from our own garden. We still have enough money to buy mutton and pork."
Seeing that Old Zhou insisted, the village chief didn't argue with him. At worst, he could just bring some food when he came to the banquet tomorrow.
Now everyone in Qili Village knows that Manbao was put in jail for filing a complaint to the emperor some time ago. When the letter was delivered, the Zhou family cried bitterly, even though the letter said that the man was fine and had been rescued.
But does anyone know that it is so easy to stay in this prison?
Anyone who goes in there won’t get skinned alive.
Manbao had no idea how much suffering he had endured, so the Zhou family was worried and asked Zhou Silang to take all the cash in the family and load all the medicinal herbs prepared at home onto a car and take it to the capital.
The mule and the cart were bought on the spot, and when they were taken to the capital, they were sold for cash to Manbao, who was determined to bring the person back.
So now everyone in Qili Village knows that the Zhou family is poor, and they have fallen from the second richest family in the village. Now it is not known whether they have fallen to the last. After all, no one knows the situation in the capital.
However, although no one knew how much suffering Manbao had endured after being released from prison, Zhou Yin's posthumous award was a great thing, and the whole village began to celebrate together.
Now they were completely relaxed and had no reservations about talking about what happened twelve years ago.
Finally, they can talk in private now, instead of just hinting with "hmm" and "ah" when talking about Zhou Yin like before, relying entirely on each person's ability to understand.
The Zhou family elders decided to add the section from twelve years ago to the family tree and rewrite it. They did not trust Zhou Lixue's writing skills, so they decided to let the village chief's grandson write it. After all, he had been to school for a few more years than Zhou Lixue.
See you tomorrow
(End of this chapter)
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