While Zhao Qingyang and his brother were busy studying for the imperial examinations, Zhao Minggeng cleaned up the household servants.
For example, the old woman who buys groceries.
His loose tongue almost caused an irreparable accident for his master. If he could still stay, then Zhao Minggeng would be a Buddha.
After several rounds of cleaning and clearing inside and outside the house, the mansion is now quiet.
Considering that sometimes people are not as reliable as animals, Zhao Minggeng once again turned to his own daughter for help.
He found a group of nice dogs, some big and some small, and hoped his daughter could help him take them into her space for a day or two, and release them after they gained sentience.
In this way, dogs are much better at guarding the house than humans, at least ensuring they won't betray their owners.
What could Zhao Qingyan say, considering he was her biological father?
She had long suggested that Zhao Minggeng should hire more skilled guards.
Zhao Minggeng vehemently disagreed, complaining that it was too expensive.
His meager salary was just enough to cover his family's expenses.
If he hires more guards, he'll be unable to make ends meet.
As an honest and upright official, where would he get so much money to support unnecessary people?
Besides, he is the best bodyguard.
It wasn't that Zhao Minggeng was truly unaware of the limits of his abilities; rather, his skills were indeed unmatched.
Of the five masters in the family, apart from Zhao Qianci who is fragile, the others are all capable of fighting.
The household also included a butler, a coachman, servants, a cook, and women who did odd jobs, among other things.
Each of them still has considerable strength.
Zhao Qianci, whose strength was severely underestimated, was not truly fragile.
When facing bandits, they would also draw their knives and fight.
It's just that his wife and children are all too strong, which makes him seem almost useless.
Where can I go to reason with this?
Seeing Zhao Minggeng's miserable expression, Zhao Qingyan didn't know what to say.
She really wanted to say, "Don't worry about the money, I'll take care of it."
In the end, he swallowed his words.
Zhao Minggeng dotes on his daughter, so how could he let her support the family? Although he often takes advantage of her, such as asking her for treats and drinks.
However, Zhao Minggeng never asked for money.
During holidays and festivals, they would give children a lot of lucky money.
It's estimated that Zhao Minggeng might have a few hundred taels of silver on hand right now.
"Dad, why don't you remarry? Then someone will help you manage the business."
After thinking for a long time, Zhao Qingyan finally blurted out this sentence, which startled Zhao Minggeng so much that he jumped up high.
"No, daughter, what kind of mushrooms did you eat? Why are you talking nonsense?"
Your dad just asked you to help train the dog, and you want me to get married.
Is there any necessary connection between getting married and having a dog?
Besides, even if your father were to get married now, he couldn't afford the dowry.
With that money, I plan to find some land in the countryside, buy some crops, and grow some grain. At least I'll have some income every year.
Zhao Qingyan chuckled, "Father, I've already paid the dowry for your wedding. Now, the question is, do you want to get married?"
Zhao Minggeng thought for a moment, and suddenly Ma's face appeared in his mind, causing him to shudder involuntarily.
"Forget it, if I were to marry someone like your mother, my life would be truly ruined."
There's no need to force a mother figure on you siblings.
Throughout history, there have been very few good stepmothers.
They were either scheming about the children left behind or about the family's assets.
"You can't get wolf meat onto a dog, so don't bother. Living alone is fine."
Zhao Minggeng is truly like someone who has been bitten by a snake once and is afraid of ropes for ten years. He can sever all ties with his ex-wife just by thinking about her.
The Zhao family did not insist on this.
A perfectly good family can become a real nuisance if they bring home a troublemaker.
Even if you can subdue the other party, it's still a lot of trouble.
Having missed the topic, Zhao Minggeng led his daughter to a room in the three-courtyard house.
Upon opening the door, one could see more than a dozen cages inside. Some cages contained an adult dog, while others contained several puppies.
Keep adding them, there are quite a few dogs here.
There were more than thirty of them, big and small.
"Dad, are you sure you want such a huge army of dogs? These pups can eat way more than a person when they grow up."
Zhao Minggeng thought for a moment,
"Yes, that's how it is. I'll borrow some money from your grandma later and buy the land as soon as possible. Then we'll have food to feed the dogs."
But, my dear daughter, please don't forget to bring your father some food. I feel incredibly healthy after eating the food you give me."
Zhao Qingyan chuckled, "Don't worry, you have plenty of food."
Farmers cultivate the land to make a living, but my father only farms to raise dogs... sigh...
Zhao Minggeng glanced at his daughter.
"Don't tell me that buying a few people is better than building a pagoda. Too many people mean too much trouble, and our family isn't suited for it."
Besides, when raising dogs, you only need to provide them with food and water; you don't need to pay them a monthly allowance.
"Your father doesn't have the ability to support so many people."
Zhao Qingyan gave Zhao Minggeng a thumbs up.
"Brilliant, absolutely brilliant, Dad. You've really got a clever plan. It's a great deal."
With a wave of her hand, all the dogs in the house entered her space.
Zhao Qingyan then pulled Zhao Minggeng in as well.
The dogs, who were barking just moments ago, were completely bewildered by the sudden change of location.
Just as they were trying to alleviate their fear by making noise, they felt the oppressive aura and tucked their tails between their legs, lying motionless in their cages.
Zhao Minggeng opened the cage and called the dogs out.
The dogs remained motionless.
Zhao Minggeng only needed to ask his own daughter for help.
Zhao Qingyan said,
"Come out, everyone. Have you seen that river over there?"
"Go ahead and have some water, but don't you dare defecate everywhere or damage my crops."
As if they understood, the dogs barked a few times and came out of their cages in a very orderly fashion.
As if they had rehearsed it beforehand, they lined up to go to the river to drink water.
Having drunk their fill of water, they stood by the river, looking around in amazement. This environment was truly a rare treat for them.
With such a large space, they really wanted to run around freely.
Zhao Qingyan waved her hand, pulled some green vegetables from the field, and threw them in front of the dogs.
The dogs smelled the vegetables and started eating them without hesitation.
"The vegetables smell so good. I've finished them all. I wonder if you can have some more?"
The dogs ate while thinking.
The vegetables were quickly eaten up by the dogs, and Zhao Qingyan then took the dogs out of their cages.
Zhao Minggeng, who was munching on an apple, was no exception and was also thrown out of the space by Zhao Qingyan.
The dogs were startled again, their faces filled with disbelief.
What about the river water from earlier, and the vegetables we just ate?
He was about to scream when Zhao Qingyan's "hmm" startled him back down.
They shrank back, too afraid to make a sound.
"This is your master, my father. From now on, you will help my father guard the house."
You absolutely must listen to me, understand? Otherwise, you'll become a dish in a hot pot restaurant, you know?
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