Chapter 79 Chapter 79 Two Chapters in One
Put some lard in the pot, add the mushrooms cut into long strips, shredded carrots, and mung bean sprouts, stir-fry quickly for a few times, and the final dish is ready. This was made by Jiang Xian specifically for Jinniang. He found that his wife had been sitting for long periods of time doing needlework, which caused her qi and blood to be deficient. She started eating longans every day, and her menstruation became more frequent.
In this way, Jiang Xian would cook some side dishes and boil some soup when he had time to feed his wife.
Because she was afraid of getting fat, she blanched the chicken soup several times. He dared to say that his cooking skills were definitely getting better.
When the food was served on the table, his wife was already sitting there obediently. Her eyes smiled when she saw him coming. This was the moment when he felt the most accomplished.
"Madam, let me serve you some chicken soup." Jiang Xian said hurriedly.
Jinniang nodded: "Okay."
The two of them ate together. Jinniang yawned and asked him, "Next year, when the exam is announced, does the number one scholar have anything to teach you?"
Jiang Xian shook his head: "I only visited him once or twice and said a few words."
Jinniang was very concerned about his emotions and immediately asked, "Did he neglect you?"
"No, it's not that I'm being disrespectful. He's the number one scholar after all, and I'm just here to seek advice, so I should behave myself as a disciple. It's just that I always feel that Jiang the number one scholar doesn't like me a little bit." Jiang Xian didn't understand.
Jinniang laughed and said, "No way, you always work very hard, how could this happen?"
Jiang Xian spread his hands.
"It doesn't matter. If I can't stay here, I will find other places that will welcome me. After you pass the imperial examination, you will stand out sooner or later with your talent. Our family is getting better slowly now. Don't make yourself feel bad. If you feel bad, I will feel bad too." Jinniang said, holding his hand.
Jiang Xian laughed: "It's not that serious."
Jinniang would not make a fuss about nothing, so that Jiang Xian would not want to say anything to her in the future. Because her career is stable now and Jiang Xian is on the rise, she is afraid that Jiang Xian will be worried about gains and losses.
He enjoys great benefits from his wife's care. No matter where he is, he seems to be the most appropriate person, but with his wife, he is the one who needs to be cared for.
After dinner, they asked the maid to clear the table, and it was time for the couple to be alone.
Often at this time, Jinniang would discuss with him what was in the court bulletin, or share the book she had read recently, and chat for a while. Then she would go to the embroidery shop to draw patterns or do embroidery until they met again for dinner.
This gives the two people independent space and their own things to do. Being too intimate is not good, but being too distant is not the way for a couple to get along.
Often in the afternoon, her mother would come to the embroidery shop to talk about family matters.
"Jinniang, do you know that Madam Hao in our east was beaten?" Luo Yu'e said.
Jinniang exclaimed, "Why?"
"It seems like she went to catch an adulterer, and her husband is angry." Luo Yu'e whispered.
Madam Hao is a son-in-law at home, but her husband would go out and fool around. Jin Niang was speechless and said, "Although Madam Hao is a son-in-law at home, she manages the family business in an orderly manner and is quite virtuous to her husband. I didn't expect her husband to be so shameless."
When the other people in the embroidery shop heard about it, they also stood up for Madam Hao.
"I heard that Madam Hao married him in because of his honesty and helped his family buy land. Otherwise, why would a servant like him behave like this?" Luo Yu'e really couldn't stand such ungrateful people.
Jinniang couldn't say anything: "An honest person is not a good word. In my opinion, this person really has no merits, so he is praised for being honest."
Even Zhu Xiu Niang agreed: "What the boss said is very true. It's the one in my family. When he was young, we were well-off in our hometown. He didn't have those thoughts, but there were still people who threw themselves at him, and he couldn't resist."
"Not to mention that women are doing this to compete for men, I heard last time that there was a newly widowed woman nearby and several men were trying to beg her in various ways." Jinniang said with a smile.
Not to mention those prime ministers who spent their daughters on recruiting sons-in-law, how many scholars who were usually aloof had to show off their talents.
Everyone will smile knowingly when they hear this.
At this time, another person from the guild came over and said, "Captain Wei, the head of the Imperial College came over and said that the top three students of the Imperial College this year will be awarded with book bags. It would be great if they could embroider something like "prosperity" or something meaningful on it."
Jinniang readily agreed and said with a smile, "We, the Wei Family Embroidery Shop, originally embroidered paintings, and we are the best at this. Let us do it. However, if it is good, please let the headmaster tell us the date of the Imperial College exam in the future, and we will deliver it directly to your door."
Since Jinniang became the head of the embroidery shop, she has hardly made any profit from either the work contracted from the Wenxiu Academy or the military uniforms. Now she is just giving away a few items for free to advertise, and when the time comes, she can sell poetry bags, pen bags, book bags, and pen bags.
There is always a way out. Business is not very good, so I can find another way.
During dinner, Jinniang told Jiang Xian about her plan to make book bags. She said, "Anyway, we'll only lose three book bags. If the head of the hall is a good person, we should have good business. I suddenly realized that it's easy to make money from you scholars."
"That's not true. We have to go to a bookstore to fill out our personal profiles, and one sheet costs three to five strings of cash. But your idea is still good." Jiang Xian almost offered to help Jinniang with publicity, but he held back.
Sure enough, Jinniang is a person who tries to do things by herself as much as possible, especially those within her professional scope. Unless she is not good at it, she will speak out directly, just like the last time with the field.
She already had an idea in her mind. If the scholars went hiking with bags of poems in their hands and it rained, the poems would get wet. Not everyone can afford the expensive floating brocade. If she makes a waterproof book bag or poetry bag, it would be a gimmick.
The next day, she went to the oilcloth shops herself and bought some oilcloth. She began to design the styles and incorporated the function of interlayers in modern school bags.
Which places can be used for running-in, where can be used for books, how many bags should be there so that shoulders don’t hurt, and most importantly, it must be waterproof.
The first place winner was made of orange-red coiled brocade with four-season flowers, and the cloth on top was embroidered with a crane. The book bag was completed with a Wei Ji stamp on the lower right corner.
This book bag is quaint, elegant, practical and even waterproof.
Jiang Xian touched it secretly, and when Jinniang saw it, he quickly explained, "I want to know if this is really waterproof?"
"Of course. If it doesn't work, how can I dare to make such a boast? I'll try and show you." Jinniang actually put Jiang Xian's discarded manuscripts in it, buckled the book bag, and directly poured a few cups of water from the teacup and asked him to open it.
This really surprised Jiang Xian, because the manuscript of the poem inside was intact.
What to do? I want it more.
But he still had to say: "My lady, it's great. The book bag you made is more than ten times better than the ones I usually buy."
Because Jinniang usually only made clothes for him, and rarely made book bags for him, and she didn't have much time, she didn't expect that he liked it so much, so she smiled and said, "Since you like it, take it."
"Madam, are you serious?" Jiang Xian didn't want to do it anymore, because he didn't want to see his wife suffer so much.
Jinniang said indifferently: "What's the big deal? You will always be number one in my heart."
Jiang Xian was flattered. This was the first time his wife said this to him. He was so happy. At the same time, he resolutely refused: "I'm waiting for my wife to help me do better when she is free."
"No, I'll give this one to you. I've already thought about it. All three school bags will be made of bamboo-patterned cloth. This one will be given to my husband." As Jinniang spoke, she hung her jade arms around his neck again.
All feelings are naturally unspoken.
The book bags all have bamboo patterns as the base, but they are different. The first one is embroidered with a white deer on the bamboo pattern brocade. Deer and fortune are the same, which means good fortune and promotion. She also painted the deer on the bamboo pattern and then used gold line outline to make it look lively. The second place is to embroider a bamboo cat on the bamboo pattern. The panda is black and white, which represents the peace of yin and yang and symbolizes unity. Silver thread is used on the edge of the bamboo cat. The third place winner embroidered a ribbon bird, which was made with ordinary silk thread.
After the three book bags were made and sent to them, they were told that they were the most waterproof and that if they wanted them, they could come to Wei's Embroidery Shop to have them custom-made.
Originally, Jinniang just thought that this incident could help her develop new business beyond wedding and children's clothing, and she didn't expect the students to actually come to her to buy.
But I didn't expect that the head of the hall was very helpful. When he saw that I had given him a poetry bag in private, he immediately spread the news to almost the entire Imperial College.
Jinniang has set three price levels here. The cloth bag costs three hundred wen, which is what anyone with a little extra money can buy. But it is also very simple, at most it is just patchwork of colors sewn together. The medium-priced one is three strings of coins, and the high-priced one is ten strings of coins.
She simply let Chen Xiaolang set up a stall outside to sell, and he actually earned fifty strings of cash before the winter solstice. Even Zhang Jiulang sent someone to buy one.
In addition to the scholars who bought clothes, there were also some ladies who came to make clothes, and Aying would sell them to them. These people cared about their sons' future more than their own sons did.
As for Jiang Xian, he went hiking and writing poems with Jiang Zhuangyuan and others. He openly took out the new poetry bag that Jinniang had made for him, and was extremely proud of it. Although his wife was not a wealthy businessman, she felt at ease with every penny she earned.
Even when someone said in front of Jiang Zhuangyuan that he married a merchant wife, Jiang Xian was not embarrassed at all. Instead, he said, "My wife is naturally very capable. To be honest, whether I can pass the exam or not, my wife doesn't care at all, because she never changes her attitude based on whether I pass the exam or not."
"Instead, I am marrying above her level."
Little did he know that these words actually changed Jiang Zhuangyuan's impression of him. He originally thought that Jiang Xian was a smooth and worldly-wise man and would not be loyal, but now it seems that is not entirely true. He treats his wife very well. Unlike some people who covet the money of other merchants and look down on Yue's family, hoping to get promoted and rich in the future and then kill their wives.
Jinniang was also afraid that Jiang Xian would be wronged, so she specially made a complete set of poetry bags, book bags, etc. for Jiang Zhuangyuan with green tortoise shell patterns and red lantern patterns, and asked him to take them over.
"You've done such great things, are you going to give them all away?" Jiang Xian was a little reluctant.
Jinniang smiled and said, "You know our current situation. We can't afford to give more valuable antiques. We can only make these and send them. When people see them, they won't think we are bribing. They are all from my heart!"
Jiang Xian just nodded and held Jinniang's hand again: "Without my wife, I don't know what to do."
"Don't say that. Who cooks my favorite meals? Who washes my hair? Who brings me tea and water at night? I just did things within my ability." Jinniang was unwilling to give heavy love and put pressure on others. What's more, all the money from Jiang Xian's shop and farm was given to her without even a second look.
But Jiang Xian knew that his wife was embarrassed.
If someone is willing to make you famous, then these things are well worth the money.
Because the couple were still in the room, they started kissing each other as they talked. They didn't stop until they heard footsteps. Then Jinniang said, "Go quickly."
Jiang Xian smiled and buried his head in her shoulder.
It was also said that Jiang Xian went to the No. 1 Scholar's Mansion and naturally delivered the things made by Jinniang. He also said a few more words before leaving.
Jiang Zhuangyuan didn't show it on his face, but after he left, he put these things in his study. Madam Song joked, "He never comes empty-handed every time he comes to visit."
"She said it was made by her wife." If it was valuable, it would be easy to return it, but since it was made by someone else, it would be difficult to return it.
Besides, Jiang Zhuangyuan adheres to the principle that it is better to offend a gentleman than to offend a villain.
Madam Song couldn't help but say, "It seems that his wife only came to our house once. She rarely comes out on weekdays. Why don't I invite her over for tea?"
People come to his house to respect his academic title, but next year there will be another imperial examination, and the top scorer will change again, so the title may not be worth much.
So, even though Madam Song spoke so enthusiastically before, she was not willing to offend anyone easily.
Jinniang received the invitation two days later. When she heard that Madam Song wanted to invite her for tea, she was showing the invitation to Jiang Xian.
"It's nothing, my lady, just have some tea and come back." He knew very well that his wife was not particularly sociable, and that the two sides were not equal, so he was also afraid that his wife would be ignored.
Jinniang touched his face and said, "What are you doing? Haven't I been to her house before? Maybe she heard that I sent something over, so she invited me back. Officials like her attach great importance to etiquette."
The more I love her, the more I can't bear to see her suffer any injustice.
Jiang Xian came from a family of officials, so he naturally knew that although that group of people seemed approachable on the surface, they were actually very difficult to approach.
But Jinniang didn't go there to make friends with them. Seeing Jiang Xian's nervousness, she smiled and said, "Look at your expression. I'll just treat it as if my husband became a Jinshi and I'm socializing with others. Anyway, there will always be such a time."
"That's true." Jiang Xian was happy when he heard it. It would be great if he really passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi.
Jinniang gladly accepted the invitation and asked Aying to help her comb her hair into a double bun. In the middle of her hair was a plum blossom decorated with pearls and jade, which looked like a living flower. Behind the bun were two gold hairpins, and on both sides were decorated with pearl curtains. Needless to say, she wore a white bodice and a single shirt with a front opening embroidered with plum blossom patterns. Over the shirt she wore a green plum-colored jacket with peony and ribbon birds embroidered on the collar, and the collar was made of a broken peony branch printed with gold.
When I walked out of the door, I still felt a bit splendid.
What she brought today was a baby swaddling cloth. It was said that Mrs. Song was about to give birth, so pink was obviously not an option. If she gave birth to a daughter, it would all be her fault. Therefore, she chose bright red, which could be used by both boys and girls.
Jinniang had encountered a similar problem before. A pregnant woman came to the store to choose cloth for a swaddling cloth. Jinniang happened to have a piece of pink material that was particularly soft. However, as soon as she took it out, she was pointed at and scolded, and she was cursed that the woman would have no children or grandchildren.
When she met Madam Song this time, Jinniang found that the furnishings in her house were different from the last time. It was almost the beginning of winter, and a "paper pavilion" was built in the hall with four paper screens, three of which were used as a roof, and a Xiang bamboo curtain was used as a screen.
The "Spring Fragrance in the Snow" that is burning inside has a scent very similar to that of plum blossoms. In every aspect, this Miss Song is a person with great taste and who knows how to live.
After Jinniang finished her ceremony, she was also invited in.
Madam Song smiled and said, "I just got some new tea and wanted to invite someone to taste it, and I just thought of you."
"Thank you for thinking of me. My husband often says that our house disturbs your family." Jinniang was also very polite.
Madam Song was about to say something when she saw a few more people coming in. Among them were the Fourth Young Lady and two women whom she didn't know. But Jinniang thought that they must have recently become Jiang Zhuangyuan's disciples. They have a closer relationship with Madam Song. They always follow her lead when she speaks. It's not that they are deliberately exclusive, but they are just familiar with each other. It was the fourth girl who helped Jinniang by saying a few words, but that was all.
It's very simple to get familiar with them. Just come over from time to time, and talk a few words when you meet them. Then you will become familiar with them in the future.
But Jinniang was not very willing to do so. In her opinion, these social interactions were somewhat useless. If Jiang Zhuangyuan had not won the imperial examination, no matter how high Madam Song's status was, no one would come to flatter her.
Therefore, after returning, Jinniang said to Jiang Xian: "I can't give up my business here. Besides, Jiang Zhuangyuan is only famous in the literati circle, but he has not reached the position of the leader of the literary world. My dear, you still have to publish your works and gain fame, but it all depends on your real talent and knowledge."
To be honest, she felt that this was a waste of time and putting the cart before the horse. To put it bluntly, if Jiang Xian didn't win, she wouldn't be able to manage the shop well and wouldn't make any money.
She said this because she was afraid that Jiang Xian would think that she was not sincere about him, but there was no other way. It was better for husband and wife to be honest with each other. Otherwise, when both of them were tired of pretending, they would explode.
Unexpectedly, Jiang Xian also breathed a sigh of relief: "Madam, it's great that you think this way. Madam is always afraid that I will be wronged, but I am more afraid that you will be wronged. There will definitely be a day in the future when I will let everyone flatter you."
"I'll think about it when I'm dreaming." Jinniang was very happy to hear that, but she said seriously: "I don't need others to flatter me. I just hope you can realize your ambitions and we don't have to live by others' wishes in the future."
Jiang Xian said: "Okay, I'll listen to my wife and study hard at home."
Jinniang nodded: "In the future, our husband will be a big tree himself, why should he always rely on others."
Now that the mourning period has passed and Jinniang has also stopped mourning, the couple are enjoying their love to the fullest.
Next year, the farm sent firewood, charcoal and grain. Jinniang listened to Luo Da and allocated money for the farm to buy piglets, chickens and ducklings. Then they could get meat and vegetables from time to time, and there was no need to buy them anymore.
Also at the end of the year, business picked up, especially for wedding quilts and curtains. All of the dozen or so beds that he had made were sold out, earning him more than a hundred strings of cash in an instant.
Jinniang had paid off five years of credit loans and paid one year in advance. Now she still had two years of credit loans to pay off. Since she had money in hand, she asked Chen Xiaolang to drive to the rich man's house to pay off the last bit of debt.
She borrowed money on credit from banks and some wealthy families. Even after receiving receipts from both sides, she still had nothing.
The pressure of borrowing money on credit has forced her to work desperately, and there is always a rope tied to her head. Now, she can finally take a break.
It is also said that Madam Song gave birth at the end of the year. Sun Shichen is now studying with Jiang Zhuangyuan, so she naturally came to help. She even went into the delivery room to take care of Madam Song herself. The relationship between the two also made rapid progress.
When the child was born, he was still swaddled in the swaddling clothes made by Jinniang. I heard that the material had been put into water and dried before being sent over, so there was no smell of the fabric itself.
The fourth girl couldn't help but find it funny when she thought about Jinniang not coming back after she went back that day. It's inevitable to feel humiliated when asking for help from others. Everyone has gone through this, but she didn't come.
Little did they know that Jinniang was preparing medicinal materials as Lou Si Niang reminded her. It was said that there was an epidemic outside, but the news had been blocked in the capital, and all the doctors knew about it.
"Thank you." Jinniang heard from her mother last month that she went to visit Lin'er and Guan'er. Although the two brothers were indifferent to her mother's family and were only close to the Lou family, it was obvious that their lives were getting better and better.
Lou Si Niang smiled and said, "It's nothing, just something that comes to mind."
In fact, she felt a little guilty. Before Feng Sheng's wife died, she had some feelings for Feng Sheng, but she regretted that they had not met before she got married. Unexpectedly, Feng Sheng's wife passed away, and her opportunity came, but even so, she still felt guilty.
The Wei family was also very sensible. They seldom had visitors, but they would send the four treasures of the study to their two step-sons and two sets of clothes every year without fail.
After Lou Si Niang left, Jin Niang first asked someone to buy the prepared medicinal materials for the prescription and kept them in her room. She also told her parents about it. Her mother didn't like to hear such news and kept saying that it would not spread to the capital. Fortunately, Jin Niang was the pawnshop owner of the family, so she naturally asked Ju Xiangduo to pickle sauerkraut, bought several baskets of eggs, and bought a new water tank to raise fish.
Jinniang's parents went out to buy vegetables during the Little New Year, and they started to get anxious when they found that people had already started to rush for the vegetables and many vegetables were out of stock.
There are many people like her parents, who always feel that such a plague is far away from their homes. However, Jinniang is very alert, because ordinary people like them cannot withstand such a disease.
"No wonder Yingniang wiped everything when she came to our house for dinner last time. It turns out she knew it a long time ago but didn't tell us." Luo Yu'e said angrily.
Jinniang raised her hand to stop him. "We have received a notice from the government office that the market will be closed tomorrow. The government will also send people to patrol. We have enough food and rice at home, so don't worry."
The saddest person was Jiang Xian. He held his forehead and said, "My mother passed away when the disease was first reported. We were going to have a cure next year, but I didn't expect another epidemic to come."
Jinniang slapped his hand away, looked at him tenderly and said, "Then I must congratulate you."
"Huh?" Jiang Xian was confused and a little angry.
Jinniang smiled and said, "So when God is about to give a man a great responsibility, he must first make his mind suffer, his muscles and bones tired, his body hungry and empty, and his actions frustrated, so as to move his heart and endure his nature, and increase his ability to do what he could not do before. This shows that you are definitely not an ordinary person, but a big person, so this is the case, really!"
She emphasized it at the end.
Jiang Xian was still afraid that something might happen again. Jin Niang still held his hand and said, "I have prepared herbs and food, enough for us to eat for three months. So, you don't have to worry about anything, okay?"
"Madam." Jiang Xianhui held Jinniang's hand and suddenly felt very relieved.
Jinniang added, "I've seen some scholars go to the temple to study, just for the quiet and away from all the hustle and bustle. Now you don't have to go so far, just study hard at home. Maybe when the plague is over, my husband will succeed in his cultivation and won't have to ask anyone for help. You, the towering tree, can do it on your own. We, the little grass, have to rely on you to shelter us from the wind and rain."
"No, my wife is the towering tree." Jiang Xian felt embarrassed by the compliment.
"Okay, smile, it's good to smile, don't let your mind wander." Jinniang chuckled.
My wife is truly the most reliable person in the world, the best person to him, and the one he loves the most!
In the future, he will also grow into a big tree so that his wife can live there!
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