Chapter 1356 Mr. Zhuang Extra
Bai Shan and the others stayed for lunch and drank a cup of tea with the gentleman before saying goodbye and leaving.
Today is New Year's Eve, so dinner must be eaten early. Even if there is nothing for them to do at home, it would not be convenient for them to come back late. Therefore, Mr. Zhuang did not keep them for long. He sent them to the door, watched them leave, and then turned back.
After a few days, the grandchildren became familiar with Mr. Zhuang again. Since they had nothing to do during the New Year holidays, they stayed in the study together to accompany their grandfather.
In fact, they were just playing by themselves. Mr. Zhuang didn't disturb them. He took a book and sat on a chair, dozing off.
Zhuang Dalang came in, found an excuse to send the three children out, and then picked up the teapot from the stove to make tea for his father.
Mr. Zhuang dozed off for a moment before being awakened by the aroma of tea. He looked up at his son, sat down, and asked, "What's going on?"
Zhuang Dalang hesitated for a moment before speaking, "Dad, Ji An is old enough, and it's time for him to get married."
Mr. Zhuang nodded, "It's not a child anymore, we can prepare it now."
Zhuang Dalang spoke, and the rest of the conversation became easier. He sat down at the bottom, looked at his father, and said, "What do you think of Zhou Man?"
Mr. Zhuang was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "Manbao is naturally excellent, but they are not suitable."
Zhuang Dalang frowned slightly, and Mr. Zhuang said, "Her marriage has been arranged, and it should be finalized soon."
Zhuang Dalang felt a little disappointed when he heard this, but he still asked with a smile, "Whose family has such good fortune?"
Mr. Zhuang said, "It's her junior fellow apprentice Bai Shan."
Zhuang Dalang was slightly surprised. The family backgrounds of the two families were quite different. How could the Bai family be willing?
He looked at his father and asked, "Did you act as the matchmaker?"
Mr. Zhuang smiled faintly and said, "If both families are interested, I can act as a matchmaker, and it will become a wonderful story."
Zhuang Dalang understood that the two families were interested in each other and were discussing it among themselves.
Mr. Zhuang took a sip from his teacup and said, "I've seen it. Although Ji An's academic performance is average, if he studies for a few more years, he will have a good chance of taking the math exam."
After graduating from the Department of Statistics, one can directly work in the county government. If one does a good job, he can be promoted to the chief clerk, which is much better than being an accountant.
The Zhang family where Zhuang Dalang is now is the relative family of Zhang Zhubu.
Zhuang Dalang said, "For twenty consecutive years, the chief clerks in Luojiang County have all been members of the Zhang family. Dad, our family has no one to support us. If Ji An enters the officialdom, he won't benefit from it, but he might suffer all the consequences."
That's not the case. People should always have some ambitions. How can they hesitate just because of something that has never happened?
But Mr. Zhuang opened his mouth but didn't say what he meant. When Zhuang Ji'an was just born, before he took Mr. Bai to work in the school in Qili Village, the father and son had many quarrels about this.
He had mentioned this truth many times when he was young, but Zhuang Dalang obviously had his own understanding.
Just as Zhuang Dalang could not understand him, he also could not understand his son's thoughts for a time.
But later his wife told him that everyone is different and he cannot force his son to be like him. If he cannot convince him, he must learn to let go and let him live on his own.
You have to live your life yourself.
Mr. Zhuang knew that he had experienced a lot since he was a child, and stability was his greatest pursuit.
When Mr. Zhuang's place was taken by Chen Fulin, Zhuang Dalang was still too young, just over three years old. Even though he could remember things early, he didn't remember much. He only knew that he was very happy every day. His mother liked to take him out of the alley by the hand, and when they came back, if they met the candied haws seller at the alley entrance, she would buy him a string.
That should be the most peaceful period in his memory.
The next New Year, the news that Mr. Zhuang was expelled from the provincial school became a hot topic. The children who used to play with him in the alley no longer liked to play with him and even pushed and hit him.
However, such days were short-lived, and they soon returned home. However, the peace did not last long. Mr. Zhuang was very confident in himself, so he sold the remaining land in his family and took his wife and children to Beijing to take the imperial examinations.
That time, they went with the idea of staying in the capital.
Mr. Zhuang told his wife at the time that even if he failed the exam, he would find a job in Beijing and stay there.
At that time, the whole family was very confident, including Zhuang Dalang, who was already a little sensible. He was also very happy and felt that his father would definitely be able to do it.
As a result, they left the capital in a more embarrassed state.
Mr. Zhuang did not take them back to their hometown. Chen Fulin's roots were too close to Mianzhou, and going back would be like walking into a trap.
But their family’s savings were almost spent in the capital. Mr. Zhuang suffered a series of blows and fell ill on the way out of grief and anger.
Not only Zhuang Dalang, but even Mr. Zhuang would never forget those difficult days. He always felt that his wife's early death from illness had a lot to do with that period.
Obviously, Zhuang Dalang also thinks so.
At that time, Zhuang Dalang was only five years old. Mr. Zhuang fell ill, and the family of three could not even afford to rent a house, so they had to temporarily settle down in a dilapidated temple.
Zhuang's mother went out to do laundry every day. The money she earned was used to feed the family of three and to buy medicine for Mr. Zhuang.
After the family got through the most difficult days, Mr. Zhuang became so thin that his clothes could hardly hang on him, and then he went to work as an accountant.
Life gradually became better, and after two years of peace, Mr. Zhuang wanted to make a comeback, so he quit his job as an accountant.
He was already in that situation at that time. It was difficult for him to continue to study or take the examination. He could only work as a staff member for an official. Maybe someone would recommend him to become an official in the future. Even if he did not become an official, it would be good enough to clear his name.
It is impossible for Mr. Zhuang not to feel resentful for having been wronged for no reason.
But it would have been fine if he hadn't gotten involved in official affairs. Once he got involved, his luck seemed to be very bad. He worked as a staff member for two officials. In the last one, he even helped the person move from Sima to the position of governor. However, due to differences in ideas halfway through, he was expelled again.
The banker's life became difficult again.
In Zhuang Dalang's memory, from the time he could remember until he was fourteen years old, his life had always been unstable. Even when his father worked as an aide to others and seemed to be highly valued, he was always ostracized in private.
Especially after his father's past was made public by someone unknown.
At school, the eldest son of Master Du, to whom his father served, looked down upon him without a word, and told his classmates directly, "His father was expelled from the prefectural academy for bad behavior. I heard he even plagiarized a classmate's poetry while in the capital. If it weren't for someone recommending him, my father would never have employed such a person. He would only do odd jobs and earn them a living."
Zhuang Dalang did not tell his parents about these things, but less than half a month later, he had a conflict with the other party in school, and Mr. Zhuang found out.
After he resigned, he left again with his wife and children. It was after that time that Mr. Zhuang no longer thought about being a staff member for others. Instead, he took his wife and children back to his hometown and started taking some work as an accountant and a housekeeper.
Looking back on his entire childhood and adolescence, Zhuang Dalang felt that apart from the less noticeable period in his early childhood, the two years when his father worked as an accountant were the most stable and happy times for him.
So after returning home, he rejected his father's suggestion to study and insisted on working as an accountant.
He felt that if one did not have a foundation, one should not get involved in officialdom.
Be content with a small fortune, and life like this is good enough.
Originally, the extra chapter should be written after the ending, but everyone seems to have a lot of controversy about Zhuang Dalang, so I released it early.
The next update will be around 6:00 PM
Although I know that everyone may feel uncomfortable at this time, and I feel uncomfortable too, I still ask for some monthly tickets for my poor Mr. Zhuang.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
