Chapter 124 Chapter 124 Two Chapters in One
After the children turned six years old, Jinniang gave them two strings of silver as a monthly allowance so that they would have an understanding of money. They are lazy and do not know the difference between grains. Even if they are given a huge amount of money in the future, they may not be able to control it. Jiang Xian's sister also got married with several thousand strings of cash. Now after returning to Beijing, the family has rented a house where they can't even step foot.
Seeing Jiang Xian change his shoes after returning, Jinniang asked, "How is it? Will your sister and brother-in-law be in Beijing in the future?"
"That's not the case. My brother-in-law has been appointed as the governor of Yingzhou." Jiang Xian said.
Xue's brother-in-law was a censor before, and now he has returned to Beijing and been appointed as the governor of Yingzhou, which is actually a good thing. Jinniang smiled and said, "Then I'll have someone arrange some formalities first, so that we won't be unprepared when they leave."
Jiang Xian nodded: "Okay, then go and prepare first."
After that, the two parted ways. Jiang Xian went to the study in the garden, while Jinniang went to the warehouse to make some arrangements. This aunt had an average relationship with Jiang Xian and had never spoken a fair word on Jiang Xian's side, so she asked people to prepare more local food.
After returning to the main room, Jinniang washed her hands and went to see Ding'er. Although there is a foster nurse to take care of her, Jinniang still checks on her personally every day.
The child is now three months old and likes to suck his fingers. Jinniang looked at the child with a smile, touched his forehead, then looked at Zi Teng and said, "The diaper must be changed in time, otherwise the buttocks will easily become red."
"Don't worry, I'll come to see you every half an hour." Zi Teng did not dare to neglect him.
Jinniang nodded: "That's good. When Erlangjun grows up, you will be fine too."
As she was talking, she saw Sister Yun coming to see her brother, holding a very delicate silk doll in her hand. She couldn't help but say, "Don't let him play with this thing. He's still young now. Don't waste it by putting everything in his mouth."
Sister Yun smiled and said, "My daughter is just showing it to her brother. This is something she saved up for half a year to buy."
Because Xi Qiu is her mother, if she wants to buy something, she can just tell Xi Qiu directly, and Xi Qiu will ask Fan Si to buy it for her. This time, Jinniang asked Liu Doer to go to Luoyang to buy land. Since Luo Da was busy in Beijing, she asked Fan Si to go to the farm near Beijing first to see if there was anything else to plant.
Fan Si was really an expert. He suggested that the fields in the north should also be grown with Champa rice introduced from Vietnam, just like in the south, because it matures early and is resistant to drought. Jinniang naturally agreed.
In the past, only Luo Dazhi was in charge of the family, but now Jinniang has to train all the people.
Coming back to her senses, Jinniang reminded him again: "I know, but he loves to put things in his mouth too much, you must be careful." After she said this, Yunjie let Jiaoxing hold Juanhaier and just squatted down to talk to her brother.
The mother and daughter went to the main room to talk again. Yunjie played the pipa for her, while Jinniang started doing needlework again.
She is now embroidering Guanyin. In addition to the Guanyin with a basket and the Guanyin delivering a child that she has already embroidered, she is also embroidering another picture of Guanyin in white. Jinniang embroidered Guanyin as her daily homework, and made clothes for Jiang Xian in her free time.
There's nothing she can do about it, since her husband always has the mentality of a child. Sometimes a piece of clothing can make him very happy.
After the song was over, Jinniang smiled and said, "It's getting better and better."
"Mom, are we going to the home of the Imperial College chief academician tomorrow? Is Dalang going too?" asked Yun Jie'er.
Jinniang nodded: "Yes, our family of four will all go. It's almost winter now, and it's nice to see the flowers in the flower garden in full bloom."
Now is not the time to meet each other yet, but just to see what the other person is like. As for Jiang Xian, she will see if the man is good at contemporary literature. As for Jinniang, she will see what the mother-in-law's temperament is like, what the family situation is like, and whether she is just a mere pretense.
The most important thing is whether my daughter's temperament is compatible with me. If not, it doesn't matter if I find another one.
Now no one has brought it up, everyone is just watching, it doesn't affect anything.
Sister Yun smiled and said, "My daughter would like to thank you for staying up late to make the clothes for her. They are really beautiful."
"Shh, keep your voice down. If Ning hears it, he'll get jealous again." Jinniang acted as if this was our little secret.
Sister Yun stuck out her tongue.
Jinniang looked at her daughter and thought that if possible, she hoped her daughter could stay at home for the rest of her life. However, it would be nice for my daughter to live at home for the rest of her life, since the garden is empty anyway.
Even if she gets married, she will marry at least at the age of 18. She wants to stay for a few more years.
Yunjie had no idea what her mother was thinking, and happily went back to her room to take a nap. Jinniang shook her head and continued to do needlework.
It gets dark early in late autumn. When Jiang Xian came back, the boiling soup in the Boxiagong was bubbling, with steaming lamb ribs on the side. Each person had a bowl of steamed buns with a full bowl of vegetables in front.
"I'm afraid you'll get irritated if you eat too much, so make sure you eat some vegetables," Jinniang instructed.
Jiang Xian pointed at the two kids with his chopsticks: "Did you hear me? I'm talking to you guys."
Sister Yun and Brother Ning curled their lips at the same time.
The family had a happy meal, and the next day they went to the home of the Chief Academician of the Imperial College. Xu happened to be there too, and Jinniang nodded slightly to her. Then they went to the home of Madam Li, the Chief Academician of the Imperial College. Madam Wei happened to be there too, and since they all knew each other, Jinniang quickly integrated into this circle. She has always been like this, getting along well in her own circle first and then moving out.
Sister Yun used to wear her hair in a bun, but now she wears double buns. She wears a butterfly-shaped pearl hairpin on her head, a comb with three small pearls on her forehead, and a tassel hairpin inserted behind her hair. She wears a long leather coat with real red cherry brocade and December flowers embroidered on the collar. She wears an autumn-scented pleated skirt underneath and a pair of pointed-toe shoes on her feet.
When everyone saw the little girl wearing brocade clothes, with eyes like stars, eyebrows like distant mountains, and standing tall and graceful, they wondered how beautiful she would be when she grew up.
Jinniang did not deliberately praise her daughter. After all, her daughter was good in every aspect and everyone could see it just by sitting here.
"Your daughter is so beautiful." People kept praising her.
Jinniang was even more modest and said, "Look at what you said. I just wanted to bring her out to see the world. Don't you know that this child often bothers me at home?"
Madam Wei pointed at Jinniang and said, "Look at you, you are talking nonsense again."
A few people were talking and laughing, and Mrs. Li asked Jinniang where they came from, and she said, "It's not far from where I am."
"Fortunately, we live in Jinliang Bridge, not far away." Jinniang smiled. She knew very well that she was asking about the price of the house they lived in.
But since they haven't officially started talking about marriage yet, she won't reveal her home address.
Then Madam Li said, "I like hibiscus, so I planted a lot of hibiscus in the garden. The chrysanthemums and camellias serve as a foil. Madam Wei, please don't laugh at me."
"We also planted some hibiscus in our garden. They change every day, and now only the red ones are left." Even if Jinniang didn't necessarily want to get married, she couldn't pretend to be poor.
When Mrs. Li heard that Jinniang had a garden at home, she nodded secretly. After all, Xu also had a group of acquaintances. After all, her cousin was the daughter-in-law of Prime Minister Jixian, and some people talked to her, but Xu and Jinniang rarely mentioned each other.
After talking for a while, everyone got up and went to the garden to appreciate the flowers. Yun Jie'er stayed with Jin Niang. The mother and daughter appreciated the flowers and drank, and there was nothing unusual.
Xu didn't take it seriously, because nowadays it wasn't even a visit, and she thought it was just an ordinary flower banquet.
As expected, after returning from the flower banquet, Jinniang and Jiang Xian didn't even have time to drink water. They went straight to the inner room. The maids blushed and thought they were going to do something.
"You speak first." Jinniang sat down and said.
Jiang Xian said, "I saw that he had published a collection of poems before, and he seemed like a famous scholar, but when I asked him about contemporary literature, he seemed to be speechless."
Jinniang also said, "The Li family looks good from the outside. When I took Yunjie to appreciate the flowers, I deliberately gave a penny to the maid who served us drinks. It turns out that her master has decided to retire. His health is not very good and he has been taking medicine all year round. That's fine, but the two sisters-in-law in front are not getting along."
All in all, they both felt that it was not feasible, so when Madam Li invited Jinniang for the second time, Jinniang declined several times. They are all smart people. Madam Li is the wife of the chief academician of the Imperial College, and there are many candidates. When Liu Doer returned from Luoyang during the winter solstice, the third son of the Li family had already been engaged.
Liu Douer then took the land deed back. It turned out that all the first-class red and silt fields had been bought, so he could only buy second-class fertile land at two strings of cash per mu, so Liu Douer bought 300 mu.
Jinniang smiled and said, "Thank you for your hard work."
"What are you talking about, madam? It's all my job." Liu Dou'er is also good at talking.
Jinniang rewarded him with a ten-string Jiaozi note, a piece of coarse silk and a piece of fine silk.
At the end of the year, outstanding employees were given a bonus of five cents and an extra pair of sheepskin gloves. At the same time, there were two other outstanding employees this year: Fan Si and Xiao Yun. Fan Si planned the farm in Beijing and increased the production. Huizhu made snacks, candied fruits, and crab stuffed oranges quickly and well, and never shirked his responsibilities.
Fan Si got a piece of heavy silk, and Huizhu got powder, rouge and a green handkerchief.
There are always people who are happy and excited at every staff meeting. Ah Ying is very happy for Liu Douer, and the couple even spent money to prepare a table for them and have some drinks together. Fan Si and Xi Qiu carefully put away the heavy silk. Huizhu was originally hired from outside, but received such an honor, and had the idea of staying in the Jiang family for a long time...
As for Hu Tou, she even cried because she didn't get it. She said to her mother Luo Dajie in the back garden: "My son has done very well this year. He will continue to work hard next year."
It happened to be heard by Jiang Xian, who held his forehead with his hand.
Jinniang was just setting up her accounts. She had collected the income from the collapsed house and the money from the shop in Tianshui Lane, plus Jiang Xian's monthly salary for the past few months and the income from the farm in Beijing, all together amounted to more than 1,900 strings of cash.
During the New Year, he spent nearly fifty strings of cash on making clothes, paying monthly wages, and preparing gifts, and he saved all the rest of the money.
The previous money was used to buy a house and to save for his daughter's 3,000 strings of cash dowry. Now, it is to save some money for his own family. Thinking of this, she went to see Dingger again. Dingger was now four months old and had begun to learn to turn over. Jinniang teased her for a while, and she was so tired that she kept yawning. She came back and rested on the bed for a while.
The next day was New Year's Eve. This year, the whole family would go to the old house to celebrate the New Year. Jinniang asked the experienced Fang mother to stay behind to look after the house and take care of Ding'er. The child was only a few months old and could not be exposed to the wind. However, all the other children would go.
Today everyone was dressed in new clothes. They first went to the eldest master Jiang's place in the eldest house. The Jiang family ancestral hall was there. They first had to pay homage to their ancestors and then have dinner together in the eldest house. In the past, there were no such rules for dividing up the family. Now, the Jiang family has produced two Jinshi (imperial examination candidates). Jiang Yan and Jiang Xian are working in the government offices. Whenever there is a vacancy for minor officials, any capable Jiang family member will be promoted. This can be regarded as a contribution to the family, and the Jiang family has begun to pay attention to it.
Jinniang talked to Xu and her daughter-in-law Xiao Wu, while Yunjie talked to the little girls in the clan. Their family had often invited members of the Jiang family over before, and Yunjie often came out to help entertain the little guests, so she felt very familiar with the place when she came back.
Seeing this, Mrs. Xu said: "Sister-in-law, Sister Yun is such a good child. I would be so happy if my sister could be like her."
"Sister-in-law, what are you saying? I think your daughter Zheng is also very cute." Jinniang was wondering why Xu was praising her own daughter, but she also said a few words modestly.
Xu smiled and said, "I am too old to manage her, but she is very close to her sister-in-law."
Jinniang looked at Xiao Wu and said to Xu, "No wonder everyone envies sister-in-law for welcoming a good daughter-in-law into the family."
Xu wondered if her husband had talked to her brother-in-law. Even if there was some intention in letting her nephew marry Yun Jie'er, her nephew was a handsome man after all, and it would not be easy for her brother-in-law and his wife to find that young talent.
Unexpectedly, Jiang Xian flatly refused.
Just now, Jiang Yan brought his nephew Xu Kang to Jiang Xian to test him. Seeing that Jiang Xian praised him several times, Jiang Yan brought it up tentatively after Kang went down.
"It seems that Shiliu Lang is quite impressed with him. This young master of the Xu family is still unmarried. What do you think of Shiliu Lang?"
Of course Jiang Xian couldn't agree to this. He and his wife hadn't even agreed to the son of the Imperial College's chief academic officer. Xu Kang did have some talent, but it was impossible for the Xu family to get their consent, or even to marry their daughter off.
His family is not like Zhang Jiulang, who was born into a family of officials, so he had to find a son-in-law who was a Jinshi to keep the family name from falling. He himself is a Jinshi, his son is young and also a scholar, and his daughter can easily find a man who is both rich and talented, so there is no conflict.
But Xu Kang is his brother's nephew after all. Jiang Xian smiled and said, "Sister Yun is not very old. My wife and I want to stay for a few more years."
This means disagreement. Jiang Yan originally asked on behalf of his wife. Xu Kang is indeed a rare talent. It is fine if his younger brother disagrees, so the two brothers started talking about other things.
This is about Jiang Fang who was sent out to the capital. "He will return to Beijing to report on his work this year. I don't know how he is doing. Shiliu Lang, why don't we introduce him to him at the same time? If he can stay in Beijing, it will be better than anything else."
Jiang Xian was a little angry when he heard this. He could only maintain superficial peace with Jiang Fang, but he was still required to support his adopted brother, which he was unwilling to do.
Since Jiang Fang has asked to leave, he has nothing to do with this family anymore. It's ok for them to get along as clan members, and they really treat each other as brothers.
Even someone like him who never reveals his thoughts can't help but ask: "Brother, since the second brother has been adopted, should we..."
"Third brother, how can you think like this? After all, he is our biological brother. What's more, my aunt came to our house in person to apologize to mother. She has been visiting us frequently during the holidays over the years. It is better to resolve a feud than to create one." This is what Jiang Yan thought.
Jiang Xian didn't want to argue with his brother, but he felt a little depressed.
After returning home, she and her husband went to see their youngest son first before going back to their room to talk about it.
When Jinniang heard this, she slammed the table and said, "I was wondering why my sister-in-law was praising Yunjie for no reason. It turns out that she was waiting for me here. What a wishful thinking!"
"I have already rejected all of these, and my brother naturally understands what I mean. But he asked me to recommend Jiang Fang in front of Academician Fan? That's ridiculous." Jiang Xian felt a little aggrieved.
That brother who has always looked down on the whole family, if he is not doing well, does that mean the whole family has to help him? My brother can be forgiven, but he doesn't seem to be that magnanimous.
Jinniang supported him: "Back then, your aunt wanted to give away land as a reconciliation, but we refused. Over the years, although we have been in contact with them, we have only treated them as ordinary relatives. I am very happy that you are willing to do this. Even if your mother is in heaven, she will definitely be very pleased."
Jiang Xian thought that finally no one thought he was narrow-minded. He held Jinniang's hand and said, "My dear, we are the only family I have now."
Everything has changed since my mother passed away.
However, the Zhou family's New Year's Eve was not very lively. Zhang had a gloomy face, and Jiang was worried about her two daughters and was in a bad mood. Zhou Cunzhi's most beloved son was ill and his concubine was dying, so New Year's Eve was very deserted.
He has always had a rebellious personality, and at this moment he suddenly felt a little lonely.
Somehow he thought of many years ago, when his family was gathered together, his father was still an official, there was a lot of traffic in front of the house, his mother was generous and kind, and everything was good.
Alas, all that's left is a sigh.
Suddenly, he laughed again, thinking of the fat girl who made clothes for him. Life is full of ups and downs, and it goes on and on forever. Now, she is an official's wife.
Compared to Zhou Cunzhi's depression, Xu was even more depressed: "Does my uncle look down on Kang'er?"
Jiang Yan said, "That's not the case. You know, Sister Yun is still young, and she's their eldest daughter, so it's natural for her to want to stay for a few more years. Let's not talk about this in the future. If your cousin has anything good to offer, please look after her."
"Yes." Mrs. Xu didn't want to make too many troubles about her uncle in front of her husband.
Jiang Yan was going to stay outside to celebrate the New Year. She complained to Mother Ge, "They didn't agree to such a good marriage. They said nice things, but they still despise the poor and love the rich."
Mother Ge hurriedly advised: "Madam, we can't get any good results. What about the one from the Zheng family?"
After Zheng married into the Zheng family, the Zheng family visited frequently, especially after Jiang Yan and Jiang Xian passed the imperial examinations, they treated the Jiang family as their own.
"Yes, doesn't my stepmother-in-law often bring her niece's granddaughter over to play with? She is about the same age as Ning'er. Could it be that she has no interest in her?" Xu said.
…
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Jinniang and Jiang Xian went to Liu's aunt's house together, had tea and dinner, and then returned. I went to the Wei family again on the second day of the Chinese New Year, but Yun Jie'er and Ning Ge'er didn't come, and Mrs. Wei asked about them.
"The two children caught a cold when they went to my uncle's house yesterday. I let them rest at home. Tomorrow my sister-in-law and my nephews' wives will come to my house to play." Jinniang arranged a play and wine party for the third day of the New Year.
The Chinese New Year is the most tiring time of the year. Visiting relatives is very tiring, and there are many things to socialize and talk about.
But this time, she didn't see Fan. Jinniang was a little surprised: "Why don't I see Dalang's wife?"
Mrs. Wei said somewhat embarrassedly: "She is not feeling well."
Jinniang thought something must have happened, so she secretly asked You Mama and found out that Fan was so angry that she went back to her parents' home. Mother You couldn't help but say, "Big Brother is going too far. He wants to bring the one he raised outside back home."
Why does this sound so familiar, as if Liu Dalang was in the same situation back then.
"What should we do then?" Jinniang thought that Fan had given birth to children and was a good wife and mother, so why was she still not satisfied? Did all men have three wives and four concubines to appear respectable?
Mother You said, "Don't get involved in this matter."
"I know." Jinniang sighed.
On the third day of the New Year, Jinniang's family invited people to come to their house to play and sing. Also coming this time was the wife of the Taicheng of Tianzhang Pavilion. She also had a son, whom she brought home to play.
"This is my Erlang." Mrs. Cheng introduced.
Jinniang was very happy to see Cheng Erlang, who was about fourteen or fifteen years old and looked like a handsome young man. She couldn't help asking, "Are you studying now?"
Madam Cheng introduced: "This child is studying at Yingtianfu Academy."
"He looks very gentle and refined." Jinniang praised.
Several ladies were present in the hall, including Wei Qilang, Ning Ge'er, two nephews from the Jiang family, Zhang Jiulang's son Meng Ran, two young men from the Liu family, and nephews from the Xue family. Wei Qilang quickly stood up to help entertain them.
Jinniang looked at Madam Wei and said, "Our Qilang has become much more sensible now."
They are definitely my own nephews and they even help me entertain them. Maybe it’s because I think Ning’er is too young.
Mrs. Wei smiled and shook her head: "He is just being weird."
While the boys were playing tossing pots and shooting arrows, Yun Jie'er and Miss Zheng were talking in the next room. Miss Zheng was nine years old this year and had a very good face, like Guanyin.
The servants brought tea and snacks. Miss Zheng thought to herself that her family was said to be even more glorious than this in the past, but her father was an official in the government and had fallen on hard times, unlike the Jiang family, which had so many guests coming to the family.
How could Jinniang know all this? She had to ask Mrs. Cheng more. The Cheng family was originally from Luoyang, west of Beijing. The 300 acres of land she bought for her daughter were all in Luoyang, which was just right.
Even after the guests left, Jinniang called her son over and asked, "I asked you to learn from Cheng Erlang. What do you think of him?"
Ning slapped his head and said, "My son forgot. You don't know that today, Wei Qi Ge and this Cheng Er Ge were competing in archery and pitching pots. They were competing in everything. They were even playing games at the dinner table. We were all watching the fun."
Young boys are really full of energy.
Mrs. Wei was also talking to her son on the way back in the carriage: "What happened to you today? You usually get along well with Cheng Erlang."
Cheng Daizhi was also a disciple of Wei Daxueshi, and they had a very close relationship.
Wei Qilang smiled and said, "My son is fine. He was just joking."
Mrs. Wei thought that her son was getting older and she could no longer figure things out and could no longer take care of him.
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