Chapter 3323 The Truth
Mr. Bai went home drunk. He listened to his wife's gloating while washing his face with his eyes closed. Just as he was about to lie down on the bed, he heard her say, "If we have a wedding banquet and Auntie doesn't go for it, will she think too much? After all, Erlang is so successful now, even better than Shanbao..."
Mr. Bai started coughing, choking on his own saliva. He opened his eyes and looked at his wife, "What did you say? What happened to your son?"
Mrs. Bai was stunned. "I didn't say anything."
"One last word."
"I wonder if my aunt will think too much about it?"
"And further on."
Mrs. Bai hesitated a little, "Our Erlang is so promising now, even better than Shanbao..."
"How do you know that Jilang is better than Zhishan?"
"Our Erlang is the prince consort..."
Mr. Bai: "The Imperial Consort is only a fifth-rank official, and he still relies on the princess."
He said angrily, "He's been doing nothing these past few years. Besides doing odd jobs at the Hanlin Academy, he's been writing storybooks privately. His fame is growing, but he's not very serious. How can he compare to Zhishan?"
"Ask around. Who among the scholars doesn't know Zhishan? He's even more of a well-known figure in government circles, with a bright future ahead of him. What does your son have?"
Mrs. Bai said angrily, "How can there be no more? He is the prince consort!"
"Yes, he was lucky back then, chosen by His Majesty and the Princess to be a consort. Otherwise, I think he would have had no choice but to return home and inherit my property, watching the tenants and farmhands make a living." Mr. Bai had been worn down by Bai Erlang's lack of ambition over the years, and now that he still had a son, he felt less upset. "Your son is living a comfortable life now. Apart from a lack of prospects, he has everything else."
"Zhishan has a bright future ahead of him. He might even become a marquis or a prime minister. You're comparing Erlang to him, and you're even putting yourself above him. Isn't that shameful?" Mr. Bai said, "Luckily you said it in front of me. If you had said it outside, I wouldn't be able to leave."
This was different from what Mrs. Bai thought. She couldn't help but move closer and asked, "Is Erlang really that bad?"
Mr. Bai paused and said awkwardly, "It's not that bad actually. He has now been promoted to the fifth rank in the Hanlin Academy, which is actually quite good. Many Jinshi scholars have spent their entire lives trying to reach this rank."
"But he still can't compare to Zhishan. Do you know how much merit he achieved before being transferred back to the capital?" Mr. Bai sighed. "Dalang said it all in his letter. If he hadn't wanted to stay in the capital to fulfill his filial duties and take care of his aunt and his younger siblings, he'd be a provincial governor now, and a step up to a high-ranking official like a Jiedushi."
In the Jin Dynasty, being a Jiedushi was almost like being a local emperor, and being granted a title of nobility and appointed as a prime minister was also like that.
Mrs. Bai was shocked. "Shanbao isn't that big, is he?"
"What do you think?" He is less than a year younger than your son, how could you not know Bai Shan's age?
Mr. Bai lay back on the bed, closed his eyes again and said, "Don't say such things, even at home. The magistrate of Luojiang County will be visiting tomorrow, and his wife will definitely be coming with him. You should get ready. Erlang wants to imitate the Zhou family and hold a buffet. I thought, since we are going to do it, why not make it more lively? The Zhou family can eat for one day, and our family can eat for two or three days."
"Aren't you worried that it would look bad if our family celebrated but Auntie didn't? Tomorrow I'll go find Auntie and we can just celebrate together. We can spread out the feast and anyone can come and eat. It'll be over in three days."
The more Mr. Bai talked, the better he thought this would be. He said, "Invite all the relatives from nearby Mianzhou. Erlang and Zhishan weren't able to invite their relatives from here when they got married before. They rarely come back, and it's unknown when they'll be back next time."
When Mr. Bai mentioned this to Old Lady Liu, she immediately agreed and said with a smile, "It's time to have some fun. We've been so grateful to the villagers for taking care of us all these years, and we haven't given much back. Let's take this opportunity to have some fun with everyone."
"Since it's a buffet, there will definitely be people coming from nearby villages. We'll need a lot of things, so we'll need a few days to prepare."
"I'd like to invite your Yue family and relatives in Yizhou," Old Lady Liu said with a slight smile. "If you don't return home after receiving your wealth, it's like traveling at night in brocade clothes. This is probably the only time I'll be extravagant in my life."
The two looked at each other and smiled slightly, remembering the grievances they had suffered when they were taking refuge in Mianzhou.
Zhou Man and his friends knew nothing about this. They had also been forced to drink several bowls of wine by their fellow villagers last night, so they all got up late.
If they hadn't planned to meet the magistrate of Luojiang County today, they would probably have continued sleeping.
Yin Huo didn't drink, but he slept in. Yesterday he went up the mountain to pick fruits and listened to the villagers talk about Bai Shan and his friends' childhood. He was physically and mentally exhausted, so he slept quite soundly.
When they were woken up, it was already noon, but Qili Village was some distance away from the county town, so no one had arrived yet.
Bai Shan asked Yin Huo to have a leisurely breakfast together, and then wandered around the intersection before the magistrate of Luojiang County arrived.
The magistrate of Luojiang County also came with his wife and children, thinking it would be good for his wife and children to meet the princess and Zhou Man.
Seeing the village entrance, the county magistrate whispered to his wife, "Remember, you must talk more with Lord Zhou."
"What about the princess?"
"Of course I have to respect her, but Lady Zhou is more important than the princess," he sighed. "Lady Zhou is from Luojiang County after all, so she has more ties to us. Besides, she's in the court, so she's much more useful than the indifferent princess."
"If anything happens in Luojiang County in the future, her words will be more effective than those of the princess." And it will be easier to get Zhou Man's words, after all, Luojiang County is her hometown.
The lady agreed.
"We call her Lord Zhou, but in the backyard, you should call her Princess Madam out of respect. It sounds better." The county magistrate explained everything in detail.
Madam: "Master, I am getting nervous too."
The county magistrate sighed, "I have to be nervous. Look at how many years I've been in office. If I had listened to Zhou Lizhong and promoted the rice seeds he had, I would have already left with some credit."
"But I think Luojiang County is pretty good. If I'm going to be a county magistrate forever, I'd rather be in Luojiang County."
"Can't you just hope for my promotion?"
"But my father said that you are only qualified to be a county magistrate. It's barely enough to govern a county. If you go any higher, you might get into trouble."
When the county magistrate heard this, he became depressed and turned his head away without speaking to his wife.
The lady hurriedly patted his chest and said, "Master, don't be angry. I think what my father said makes sense. It is important for people to know themselves..."
"Okay, stop talking. Save it for when you see the princess and Lord Zhou later. No," the county magistrate said, feeling a little regretful. "Otherwise, you'd better keep quiet."
He probably shouldn't have brought his wife.
Good night, go to bed early tonight, and try to update early tomorrow. There are two more chapters to be updated, which will be updated separately tomorrow and the day after tomorrow.
(End of this chapter)
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