Chapter 56 Returning to Xujiaba to Repair Ancestral Graves
Grandpa Sheng and Grandma Sheng were chatting in the yard, while only Sheng An and Xu Chenglin were in the main room.
Xu Chenglin frowned and hesitated for a long time before finally sighing and slowly saying, "An'an, I think Jin Nian told you that he is my adopted child."
Sheng An's brows twitched slightly, guessing that what her father-in-law was about to say might be related to the Xu family in the countryside. She subconsciously sat up straight: "Yes, Jin Nian did mention it."
Xu Chenglin nodded and continued, "His biological parents live in the countryside. The two families have almost cut off contact over the years. They didn't even come when you and Jin Nian got married."
Of course, he and Jin Nian didn't invite them either, because there was no need.
"Father, Jin Nian isn't home. Just tell me what's on your mind, and I'll listen to you."
Sheng An immediately expressed his stance to avoid putting Xu Chenglin in a difficult position.
Sure enough, upon hearing her words, Xu Chenglin visibly relaxed and finally got down to business:
“Your aunt told me that the Xu family in the countryside has decided to repair their ancestral graves, mainly the graves of Grandpa Jin Nian and Grandma. The auspicious day has been set, and the names of three generations of descendants will be written on the tombstone, including your name.”
He could be ruthless enough to sever ties with his siblings, but his parents were still his parents even after they passed away.
Even though they didn't care about him as their son, and didn't care that he returned to the village to repair the ancestral graves, for the sake of Jin Nian's reputation, he had no choice but to go back.
He went back, and Jin Nian and An An had to go too.
With Jin Nian away from home, An An, as his wife, has to go.
Sheng An understood her father-in-law's concerns and agreed without hesitation: "Father, what day should we go back together? I'll go back with you then."
It's just a formality. As long as she doesn't get entangled with the Xu family in the countryside, she doesn't mind her name appearing on someone else's tombstone.
"Okay, okay! Let's set the date for the 21st of this month. We'll head over there first thing in the morning."
Seeing that his daughter-in-law showed no sign of reluctance, Xu Chenglin breathed a sigh of relief and then talked about the taboos of repairing the ancestral graves and what Sheng'an was going to do.
Sheng An didn't need to do much. Once the graves of the Xu family elders were repaired, she would burn some paper money and kowtow with her peers, and that would complete the process.
"besides……"
Xu Chenglin's mouth was dry from talking, so he drank a large glass of water before continuing:
"Those people from the Xu family, whether they are elders or juniors, if they take the initiative to greet you, you can say a few words if you want to, or just ignore them if you don't want to. In short, don't let them bully you."
Sheng An laughed: "Dad, I'll eat anything, but I'll never suffer a loss."
Xu Chenglin laughed heartily: "It's good that we don't suffer losses, it's good that we don't suffer losses, none of our family members are cowards!"
Sheng An didn't take the Xu family's ancestral tomb repair to heart and continued doing what he was doing.
Grandpa and Grandma Sheng were a little worried. The night before they went to the countryside to repair the ancestral graves, they called their granddaughter into their room and whispered some instructions:
“Your father-in-law is a reasonable man. Once you’re in the Xu family’s territory in the countryside, just stay close to him. Even if someone doesn’t like you, they’ll think twice.”
The two elders didn't know much about the grudges between their in-laws and the Xu family in the countryside. However, since no one from the Xu family had visited them during the long period they had lived there, they guessed that the two sides had a deep-seated grudge.
"Grandpa, Grandma, I know what I'm doing, you don't need to worry."
Sheng An comforted the two elders, not taking the trip to the countryside the next day to heart at all.
Seeing their granddaughter so confident, the two elders of the Sheng family felt a little relieved and urged her to go back to her room to sleep quickly, as she couldn't be late for getting up early the next day.
Sheng An returned to her room and lay on the empty bed. As she smelled the increasingly faint scent on the pillow next to her, she couldn't help but think of the pillow's owner.
"At this hour, I wonder what he's doing. He's probably already asleep."
Sheng An lay on the bed like a turtle, sprawled out his limbs without any regard for his image, his feet swinging back and forth in the air: "The three-day college entrance exam has just ended, I don't know if I can pass it."
If he gets accepted, all his hard work studying from dawn till dusk will have been worthwhile.
Everyone who puts in effort expects something in return.
If she works hard wielding the spatula, only to find out at the end of the year that she not only hasn't made any money but has actually lost a lot, she'll be incredibly depressed.
After a flurry of thoughts, Sheng An drifted off to sleep.
Meanwhile, Xu Jinnian, who had endured three days and three nights of torment in the examination hall and had been sleeping soundly since returning to the inn, opened his eyes.
Ignoring his rumbling hunger, he quickly packed his bags and soon had everything packed.
Xu Jinnian estimated the time and knew that there would be no boats to take him back to Qingzhou if he went to the ferry at this time, so he could only walk to the table, sit down, and pour himself a glass of water.
The water was cold, and felt even more icy on the chilly autumn night.
Xu Jinnian did not pause at all, tilting his head back and drinking it all in one gulp.
A drop of water rippled across the corner of her lips, slowly descended along her smooth jawline, fell into her slender neck, and finally disappeared into her slightly open collar, leaving no trace.
A full pot of tea was finished before we knew it, and the sky in the east gradually brightened.
Xu Jinnian sat for most of the night, his eyes clear and without a trace of fatigue.
He got up, opened the door, and quietly walked to the door of the next room. He raised his hand and knocked lightly, and soon heard rustling sounds coming from inside.
A moment later, the door opened, and Fang Qingzhou's servant rubbed his sleepy eyes, his face full of dissatisfaction with the person who disturbed his sweet dreams so early in the morning.
Upon realizing that the person disturbing his peaceful sleep was Xu Jinnian, he trembled with fright and quickly suppressed his displeasure, saying respectfully, "Young Master Xu, please wait a moment, I will go and fetch my master right away."
At this moment, Fang Qingzhou had already woken up. Wearing an outer robe, he walked over yawning, his face full of undisguised resentment: "You'd better have something to do."
Xu Jinnian bowed apologetically to him: "Brother Fang, I have decided to take a boat back to Qingzhou now. I wanted to let you know so that you could pass on my message to Brother Ye later when he wakes up."
Tan Zhenlin's home is in Nanjing. He stayed at his home after arriving in Nanjing, so he's not at the inn right now.
Fang Qingzhou paused in adjusting his clothes, his brows furrowing deeply: "The results of the provincial examination will be released in half a month. Why are you in such a hurry to go back?"
Before they arrived, the four of them had agreed to stay in Jinling for a while longer, to exchange ideas with students from other prefectures and counties, to correct any shortcomings in their studies, and to wait for the results of the provincial examination.
The provincial examination has just ended, and this person can't wait to go back. Isn't this just a joke?
Xu Jinnian's apology deepened, and he cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to Fang Qingzhou again: "I have been away for many days, and I am really worried about my family. I am eager to return home. I hope Brother Fang will forgive me."
Fang Qingzhou's lips twitched, utterly speechless: "I think you're just worried about your sister-in-law, aren't you?"
They came to Jinling together to take the prefectural examination. This kid wasn't worried about his family, nor was he eager to go home.
Xu Jinnian smiled faintly, which could be considered as acquiescence.
Fang Qingzhou felt a sudden ache in his teeth and waved his hands frantically as if shooing away flies: "Go, go, go quickly!"
It's unbearable to look at!
Xu Jinnian cupped his hands in acknowledgment, then turned and went back to his room to get his luggage.
Watching him hurry downstairs and disappear at the top of the stairs, Fang Qingzhou couldn't help but shake her head: "I didn't expect that this kid would become so human after getting married."
Wow, the Xu family's younger brother and sister-in-law are really good at managing their husbands!
This dead fox probably won't escape his sister-in-law's clutches.
Fang Qingzhou thought gleefully that he couldn't wait to bring up the matter once Ye Yunhua got up.
Leaving aside how incredible Ye Yunhua was, Sheng An and Xu Chenglin, who were far away in Qingzhou, had already boarded an oxcart and were heading to Xujiaba Village, where the Xu family lived, together with Xu Cuilian's family.
Xujiaba Village, as the name suggests, is inhabited entirely by people with the surname Xu. They are all descendants of the same ancestor, and every household is related by blood.
Such villages are often very united and tend to have the upper hand when competing with other villages for land and water resources.
Similarly, such villages are extremely xenophobic, rejecting not only outsiders but also clansmen whose values and beliefs differ from their own.
When Xu Chenglin had a falling out with his brothers and sisters, he was scolded by the clan elders, who felt that he was cold-blooded and heartless and did not care about the brotherhood they had shared for many years.
Over the years, Xu Chenglin has only returned to the village during the Qingming Festival to visit the graves of his deceased parents and burn paper money for them. At other times, he completely ignores the Xu family.
This made his reputation in the village even worse.
Fortunately, Xu Chenglin didn't care. The opinions of the villagers couldn't harm him at all. On the contrary, he and Xu Jinnian lived better lives than anyone else in the village.
The Zhang family was large, and the four members of the Zhang family, father and sons, were also big. Xu Cuilian felt it was too crowded, so she simply sat on the oxcart on Sheng'an's side.
Knowing that it was Sheng An's first time returning to the village, she was worried that Sheng An might be nervous, so she carefully instructed her: "We are both women. After we get back to the village, just follow behind me. If you don't want to talk, then don't."
The eldest and third brothers didn't get any advantage from the second brother, and they're probably really resentful. Maybe the eldest and third sisters-in-law will take this opportunity to use their seniority to pressure An'an.
That won't do!
Regardless of whether those people can get away with it given An'an's personality, her second brother will definitely protect his daughter-in-law in a crucial moment.
If Jin Nian finds out that An An has been wronged, she won't have a moment of peace for a long time to come.
Sheng An was very touched and said with a smile, "Auntie, I will do as you say."
Xu Chenglin instructed his younger sister, "An'an is gentle and easily bullied. If anything happens, you must step in to protect her."
Xu Cuilian patted her chest: "An'an is my nephew's wife, of course I will protect her."
Sheng An: "..."
She's soft-hearted? How come she didn't know that?
It seems her father-in-law has a very strong bias towards her.
Xujiaba Village is quite a distance from Qingzhou City, and it took the oxcart a full hour to reach the village entrance.
Sheng An glanced around casually, and judging from the undulating fields, the simple houses in sight, and the absence of any oxen, he concluded that the overall conditions of this village were quite poor, far inferior to those of Huai Shu Village.
The thought flashed through his mind, and Sheng An got off the oxcart and walked to Xu Cuilian's side, heading towards the village together.
There were many people in the village, and many greeted Xu Cuilian's family along the way, but they all tacitly ignored Xu Chenglin, and their gazes toward Sheng An were quite complicated.
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