Chapter 058 It’s better to have the last name Crane
"Coming, coming." Chu Li nudged Ruan Qinghuan with his elbow.
Ruan Qinghuan didn't even raise his head, his mind was filled with the little fellow in his arms. When he returned home tonight, he would have to give him a name anyway.
Chu Li looked coldly at the green floating before his eyes, with a deliberately artificial smile on his face, and all his evil thoughts were revealed on his face.
"Greetings, two sisters. My name is Bao Lianru, and I am the daughter of the county magistrate." As she spoke, she bowed to the two of them in a polite manner. At this time and place, this action was somewhat inappropriate.
Chu Li: "We are not your sisters. You should call me Miss Chu and her Madam He Shao. As the daughter of the county magistrate, didn't anyone teach you these things?"
Chu Li saw everything how she stuck to He'an just now. She thought she was not as magnanimous as Ruan Qinghuan, so she wanted to vent her anger for her and also give the girl a warning.
Bao Lianru didn't expect to be scolded right away, so she was naturally embarrassed: "It was Lianru who was rude. Lianru just treated the two sisters as her own family and forgot the difference between the superior and the inferior."
Her voice was neither loud nor soft, but everyone around her could hear it.
She is clearly trying to stir up resentment among the people. What's the point of talking about the distinction between the high and the low? If someone really cares about the distinction between the high and the low, who would come to this miserable place to cook porridge and take care of the disaster victims?
Seeing Chu Li was about to get angry, Ruan Qinghuan put the kid in her arms and said, "Miss Bao, instead of arguing with us about hierarchy, why don't you do something practical? You came at a good time. We will be distributing porridge soon. I'll give you this bucket. Take it to the porridge stand in the front and distribute it to everyone."
Bao Lianru frowned as she looked at the heavy wooden barrel. She had grown up with a maid serving her even water for washing her face, so how could she have carried such a heavy object?
Just as I was about to ask someone to come over to carry it, I saw Ruan Qinghuan had already left with a porridge bucket. Chu Li did the same, putting the child on the ground and leading him, while he carried the porridge bucket with his other hand...
"Oh, look, the one carrying the porridge bucket is said to be the prime minister's wife. How can she do such rough work?"
"She is very tender and delicate, is she really the Prime Minister's wife?"
"Yes, I heard it from a general below when I came up, and it can't be wrong."
"No wonder Magistrate Bao's daughter came forward to curry favor with him, but it seems she failed. Look at her face, how ugly it is."
"Humph, what are you talking about? No matter how high her status is, can it be higher than the Prime Minister's wife?"
In the past, the people did not dare to complain about Bao County Magistrate, the local official. However, the disaster in Lucheng was not well controlled for a long time, and the people had a hard time surviving. Naturally, resentment arose over time.
When they heard that the person coming this time was the Prime Minister, the people began to feel a glimmer of hope. They only hoped that it would not be like in the past, where a group of officials from the capital came, showed up for show and then left.
After hearing these words, Bao Lianru had no choice but to force himself to lift the porridge bucket, stopping every two steps. After finally getting it to the designated location, he began to distribute the porridge.
I went back and forth like this several times, and blisters formed on the palms of my hands.
A drizzle had been falling all day, and the gloomy sky was just like the mood of the people at the moment: they had left their homes and had an uncertain future.
After a busy day, everyone was exhausted, and when night fell, they returned to the villa together.
Xia Lian prepared dinner. He An frowned: "All vegetarian?"
Xia Lian: "My Lord, Madam has said that from today on, except for the little guy, we will all be vegetarians in Lucheng."
He An looked at her sideways and said, "Nonsense, we will be in Lucheng for at least two to three months. Do you still want to be a vegetarian?"
"Who said that being a vegetarian is definitely bad? My husband, you don't know that being a vegetarian is good for your health." Ruan Qinghuan was very hungry, so she picked up the bowl and started eating. Today in the mountain, the porridge was almost gone by the time the food was distributed. She hadn't eaten a single grain of rice from noon to night.
After dinner, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Ruan Qinghuan remembered the name of the little guy, and since everyone was there, he suggested that they all think about it.
She first said: "How about calling me Ruan Zimo?"
Ji Lingchuan: "Children all take their father's surname. Sister-in-law, this is wrong. If this gets out, people will gossip."
Ruan Qinghuan looked at He An when he heard this. His expression was indeed not very good.
He obviously didn't like the child, so she thought of taking the child back to the capital and raising him in the Ruan Mansion, which would surely make her mother happy.
In the midst of hesitation, I only heard He An say concisely: "He Zimo."
Ji Lingchuan curled his lips: "See, it's better to have the last name He. It sounds much better this time."
He An was very annoyed with him: "Go, go, go."
"I'm fighting for your rights, aren't I?" Ji Lingchuan said unhappily, "Shall we sleep together tonight?"
"Who will sleep with you? You sleep in the lower room, and Chu Li sleeps in the side room."
Ruan Qinghuan was speechless. He'an was going to squeeze in with her and the child.
Ji Lingchuan did not leave immediately, but thought of what happened during the day: "I wonder if County Magistrate Bao can get some flour tomorrow. The Wu family appears to be a kind family, but in fact they make money in dirty ways. How did Wan Guan's family get his wealth? Everyone knows it."
Chu Li: "If you don't take it, I will snatch it away."
Ji Lingchuan: "If it's that easy, I can turn the Wu family around without you. Don't forget that the people behind the Wu family are the Second Prince and Concubine Qi."
Chu Li snorted coldly and said no more.
Ji Lingchuan frowned. He was talking to her about reason. What kind of attitude was this?
Late at night, the lights in Bao's house were on. The two Wu brothers were sitting in the living room. Wu Cheng looked unhappy: "Mr. Bao, our Wu family has been doing you a lot of good things over the years. Now you want us to donate food for disaster relief. Aren't you trying to ruin our Wu family?"
"Second Master, you are wrong. It is precisely because we are in the same boat that when there is something good happening in our county, we will naturally think of you."
"Good news?" Wu Cheng snorted coldly when he heard that.
Bao County Magistrate was not angry either. As a minor official of the seventh rank, he was able to get to where he is today thanks to his slickness. "Now is a good time to accumulate reputation and good deeds. This time the Prime Minister will personally provide disaster relief, and the problem of the dike will definitely be solved completely. When that time comes, the Prime Minister will retire after his success, and the Wu family's reputation in Lucheng will naturally rise to a higher level."
"On the contrary, the Wu family is a family of good deeds that the prefect personally mentioned. If we choose to stand aside and watch at this time, the prime minister will certainly see it. After returning to Beijing, there is no guarantee that he will not make a fuss in front of the emperor. Losing a little money is not a big deal, but if it implicates you, wouldn't that be a loss of the greater for the smaller?"
Wu Cheng: "Don't pretend to be so sweet-talking and eloquent in front of my brothers, Mr. Bao."
County Magistrate Bao smiled and looked at Wu Quan who had remained silent. He knew that Wu Quan had the final say on all matters concerning the Wu family.
"Brother, this is not a small amount. Two months of flour will cost at least a thousand taels of silver. We can't be taken advantage of. It's possible that He An is taking advantage of us and wants to take advantage of us."
Wu Quan naturally knew that Bao County Magistrate wanted to please both sides, but what he said was not without reason. Recently, he planned to formally propose marriage to the Qian family, and this would be a good opportunity for him to show off his image as a kind person in front of Miss Qian.
"Okay, let's do as Magistrate Bao says. However, there is one thing I would like your help with."
When he heard Wu Quan's reassurance, County Magistrate Bao was overjoyed: "Mr. Wu, please speak."
"I want to marry Qian Yunxi. I'd like to trouble the county magistrate's wife to take care of this matter."
When County Magistrate Bao heard this, his smile froze. After hesitating for a moment, he said thoughtfully, "Mr. Wu is kind, and this county will do its best."