Chapter 632 The Early Death of a Scholar's Daughter in Ancient Times (The End)
After resting at the post station for one night, they got up at around 4 a.m. the next morning. After packing their luggage and having breakfast, it was already 5:30 a.m. It was just getting light, so they took advantage of the cool weather to continue their journey. The weather in July was a bit hot. They repeated this day after day until the end of August when they finally arrived at the county where Jiang's father was working.
The small county town could barely be considered a city. The city walls were made of earth, and many parts had collapsed due to years of disrepair, making it look dilapidated. But that's understandable, since there are few wars here, so defense isn't a priority. Plus, there aren't many ways to make money, so there's no money to repair the city walls.
The Jiang family looked around the city gate, and the people coming in and out of the city also looked at them. After all, they were obviously outsiders. Since the yamen had been notified that the new magistrate was taking office today, there were people to greet them. Jiang Yue had already seen the people in the sedan chair.
Regardless of whether people are truly welcoming him or not, one must at least maintain appearances. After Jiang's father alighted from the carriage and tidied his clothes, the officials and gentry of Qinglan County surrounded him, all with warm smiles on their faces, seemingly genuinely sincere.
"Greetings, County Magistrate."
"I apologize for disturbing you all. The weather is hot today, and I am deeply ashamed that you have had to wait for me."
After everyone introduced themselves, the process continued. Only after receiving the official seal at the county government office could they officially assume their post as the magistrate of Qinglan County. Of course, Jiang Yue was not there at this time; someone led them to the back residence to settle in.
It doesn't matter if Jiang's mother doesn't know the procedure. The puppet came with a family of four. Jiang's mother just needs to sit in the center and take charge. She doesn't need to worry about the specifics because the back house has been cleaned very well. She just needs to put away the luggage she brought. It's estimated that she will stay here for many years.
That evening, Father Jiang did not eat at home because the county magistrate and local gentry had prepared a welcoming banquet. It was only right and proper for him to attend since it was his first time. However, Puppet also went along, since Father Jiang had no experience in this field. It would take some time for him to transition from a scholar to an official.
Around 9 p.m., Mr. Jiang returned home. He had drunk quite a bit and was walking unsteadily. Mrs. Jiang helped him back to his room. The next day, after breakfast, the family strolled around the county town and bought some daily necessities. They hadn't brought much with them on their way to their new post, so they had to buy many things again.
After a busy day, they finally bought everything they needed, and spent a lot of the money they had brought. On the third day, Jiang's father began to deal with county affairs. As a newcomer, there was too much to do. Not to mention anything else, there were dozens or even hundreds of backlogged cases. In addition, it was almost September, and they also had to work on collecting taxes. Jiang Yue was nowhere to be seen for several days afterward.
She wasn't idle either. There was a small garden here, not very big, but quite elegantly maintained. She brought her younger brother over to play. There was no other way; he was only four years old and too young to do anything right. It was good enough if he didn't cause trouble for the adults.
However, Jiang's mother recently had an idea to hire someone to teach her to read. She even asked Jiang Yue for her opinion. Jiang Yue thought that it would be fine for her mother to teach her. That's right, Jiang's mother had also been to school for a few years, so it was enough for Jiang Yue to be able to read. In fact, Jiang's mother had taught her before back in their hometown. The main thing was that their status was different now, and she wanted to find someone skilled to teach her.
There's no need to hire anyone as capable as Jiang Yue. Her mother teaches her regularly, and her father can consult her when he's free. There's absolutely no need to waste money. You have to understand that the court stipulates that officials cannot engage in business. The family's income depends entirely on her father, and there are currently no ways to increase their income, so we should save money wherever possible.
"Yue'er, where's the letter you wrote? Give it to me quickly, it's to be mailed home tomorrow."
"Wait a minute, I'll go get it. Mom, watch over your little brother."
Now that they've settled in, they need to send a letter back to let everyone know they're safe. After Jiang Yue brought the letter over, her mother didn't even read what was written before putting it directly into the envelope. Jiang Yue took the letter from her younger brother and looked at it. It was almost noon, and the child was so sleepy that he kept nodding. Jiang Yue led him back to the room, and he fell asleep as soon as he got into bed.
Jiang Yue wasn't sleepy. She called out to Bai Ze to find out about the situation in Qinglan County. There were many problems. The economy mainly relied on inefficient agriculture and handicrafts, commerce was underdeveloped, and there were also problems with smuggling and corruption. Politically, Jiang's father faced issues such as tax arrears, collusion between officials and gentry, and frequent peasant uprisings. In terms of people's livelihood, the people were suffering, diseases were prevalent, there was confusion about religion, and there were also forces such as mountain bandits and salt smugglers.
However, the tax issue needs to be addressed first. The previous magistrate, Cui Mingyuan, was a poor scholar who passed the imperial examination but was not promoted in his three years in office. He was reprimanded by the prefectural government for "years of tax shortages under his jurisdiction." If Jiang's father cannot solve this problem, he will probably suffer the same fate as the previous magistrate.
However, with Jiang Yue by his side, things shouldn't be too difficult for Jiang's father. Let's take things slowly and solve them gradually. Jiang Yue looked at the plan provided by the puppet and found it to be quite feasible. Take it slow; you can't rush things.
With Bai Ze's assistance, Jiang's father spent three years turning the situation around. However, due to the vacancy of the position, Jiang's father could only continue in the position of county magistrate. Five years later, Jiang Yue was ten years old, and her younger brother was five years old. In the years that followed, Jiang's mother gave birth to another younger brother, who is now two years old.
The back garden.
Grandpa, Grandma, and Mother Jiang are having tea here. The county government office didn't have a back garden before, it only had a small garden. But now the county's economy has developed, and the county government office was renovated and expanded a lot the year before last.
"Third son's family, your father and I have thought about it and we want to go home."
"Father, Mother..."
Grandpa waved his hand to stop Jiang's mother from continuing, and said, "It's very good here, and you've all been very dedicated, but we've lived in our hometown for half our lives, and we're used to it."
Despite their attempts to persuade him, Jiang's parents could only help him pack. Six months later, after his grandparents had passed away, Jiang's father was promoted from a seventh-rank county magistrate to a fifth-rank prefect. Since he was no longer in the same prefecture, he had to move again.
On the day he left, the people of the whole county spontaneously came to see him off and presented him with a "Ten Thousand People's Umbrella". There are not many good officials like him anymore. Although everyone was reluctant to see him go, they knew they could not hinder his future. They could only reluctantly see him off. When Jiang saw this, his eyes were filled with tears.
It took them a long time to calm down after leaving the county town. It took them more than two months to get to the new place. After that, there were not many changes in Jiang's father's life. He would basically be working here in the future. After Jiang Yue grew up, she had a fake marriage with the puppet. However, this time she did not let the child come out. There were already enough children in the family.
After her parents passed away, Jiang Yue announced one day that she had fallen seriously ill. After retrieving the puppets she had released and saying goodbye to her brothers, she left this world.
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