The atmosphere suddenly became a little awkward. Si Hua watched from the side, unsure of what to say. Lan Qin looked at the two men seated below, one old and one young, both of whom looked rather displeased.
"Father, Fourth Brother, is there anything else you want to say?" Lanqin didn't want to just sit there idly, so she had to ask.
Lingzhu's old face immediately turned red. He was so ruthlessly rejected by his own daughter, especially in front of the servants. You can imagine how devastated he was.
"Third Sister, Father is getting old, and he only brought his younger brother here to tell you about this because he had no other choice. Eldest Brother works in the Hanlin Academy, and his salary is only enough for his small family. Although Father is a fourth-rank official, he is a low-ranking official. We have so many people to support in our family, and we rely on the salaries of Eldest Brother and Father. If I cannot stay in the capital, it would mean that all the years of Father's upbringing of me would have been wasted. If my younger brother goes to another place, Father might have to support him as well. Third Sister, you don't know the situation at home. Nowadays, our Lady and Princess are wearing all the old clothes, and it's a bit embarrassing for them when they go out to social events." Qiu Fu had no choice but to swallow his pride and complain to Lan Qin.
Serves you right! Who told you to keep so many concubines? Who told you to have so many sons and daughters? They're all clinging to you now, let's see what you can do about it!
Lanqin glanced at Lingzhu's face, which was flushed red like a tomato from embarrassment, and silently thought to herself.
"Qiu Fu, why are you saying these things to your third sister?" Ling Zhu finally couldn't hold back any longer, stood up, cupped his hands in greeting to Lan Qin, and said, "This humble official has disturbed you greatly, I shall take my leave now!"
Lanqin's eyelids twitched, and she thought to herself: Lingzhu, this old man, still has some backbone!
“Father, the family is in such dire straits, why not divide the household? It must be very difficult for you to support so many people by yourself. My elder brothers are all grown up and should establish their own households. I can help them with these things. My younger brothers are all married, each with their own circumstances, but you're shouldering everything alone. I'm afraid this will only encourage laziness in those who are unwilling to work hard and only want to live off the public purse,” Lanqin said. Actually, she had heard similar questions from Anjia before. Lingzhu had more than ten concubines, and the number of their children was so numerous that Lanqin couldn't even remember how many half-siblings she had. Thinking about that household, with only so many courtyards, yet more people than the Fourth Master's harem, their livelihood would inevitably become increasingly problematic. Anjia had her own savings, and she couldn't possibly use them to subsidize her husband's concubines, so Lingzhu's belt would only tighten tighter. Lanqin, having heard all this, naturally wouldn't interfere. She was a married daughter; she certainly wouldn't be using money to support her father's concubines.
Lingzhu felt a pang in his heart upon hearing Lanqin's words. He looked up at Lanqin and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Consort. I will remember it."
Seeing Lingzhu's defiant yet stubborn expression, Lanqin couldn't help but say, "Father, as I just mentioned, if we're going to divide the family property, I can help out by finding a suitable and affordable house. After all, the Prince works in the Ministry of Revenue and knows best where there are houses in the capital. He also has many connections, so perhaps he can find something suitable at a reasonable price. Father is getting old. If we continue like this, we'll eventually run out of money, and I'm sure you can imagine what will happen to us."
When Qiu Fu saw Lan Qin speaking, he quickly said, "Third Sister, some of those younger brothers haven't learned much and just loaf around at home. Does Third Sister have any jobs she can arrange for them to do? That way, after the family is divided, they will have a way to make a living."
Lanqin also knew that those people were, after all, her younger brothers. Qiu Fu's words were not wrong. Now that she held a high position, should she do something for those useless people in her family?
Lingzhu stood there, like a solitary old tree, looking magnificent, but his core was almost hollowed out. He truly regretted taking so many concubines and fathering so many children; now they were all clinging to him, demanding food and drink. What to do? He couldn't just ignore them!
Lanqin saw Lingzhu's dejection and, although she didn't sympathize with him, she couldn't bear to watch the Niohuru family decline like this.
"Alright, let me see. If there's a suitable one, arranging a small job for him wouldn't be out of the question. I wonder how many younger brothers you have, and how old they are?" Lanqin asked.
Lingzhu was embarrassed to speak, so Qiufu immediately said, "Since Third Sister got married, Father has taken two more concubines. Besides me and Defu, Concubine Wang also gave birth to a son. Later, Concubine Qiu and Concubine Gu also gave birth to sons, but they are all still young. The person we need Third Sister to arrange something for is Defu and Concubine Wang's son, Runsheng. He is sixteen years old this year. The others are all sisters."
Lanqin nodded and said, "I will discuss it with Xinyi again to see if there is anything that can be arranged in her household."
Hearing this, Lingzhu's expression softened somewhat. Lanqin's request was to solve the employment problem for his two sons. He actually wanted to separate the family; there were so many people in the household—six or seven sons, three or four minors, and five or six girls, all waiting for their dowries. He was already over sixty; his old bones were about to be completely worn out.
Lanqin invited them to have lunch there before sending them back.
In the evening, Fourth Master returned. Lanqin couldn't help but tell Fourth Master about Lingzhu's visit, and naturally also explained why he had come.
"You could actually agree to it. I can do this for you."
"Thank you for your kindness, sir. But I think it would be more promising for Qiu Fu to go out and gain experience for a few years before being transferred back. There are so many officials in this tiny place in the capital," Lan Qin said.
“That’s true. Being sent to a post outside the capital is a good opportunity for experience. If someone is truly talented, it would be even better if they were sent away for a few years and then transferred back,” Fourth Master added.
"My lord, I don't want to help with Qiu Fu's matter. But I'd like to find some jobs for those good-for-nothings in the household. I wonder if that would be alright?" Lan Qin said.
"There are so many jobs in the garden, you can arrange a few as you see fit," Fourth Master said, looking at Lanqin's embarrassed expression.
"Then I thank you in advance, my lord. Today, when my father came over, I felt a little reluctant to do it, which is why I agreed," Lanqin explained.
"It's nothing. It's not a problem for you to have a few people from your own family around. However, you can't let them take advantage of your reputation to do things improperly," Fourth Master said.
“That’s for sure. If they don’t do their jobs properly and instead bully others, I will not tolerate it,” Lan Qin said.
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