Led by Zhang, the women entered one after another. Tian Juan was wearing a red overcoat and gray cotton trousers. She had some rouge on her face and her small red lips curled up in a charming smile.
"Big sister is so beautiful!"
Tian Juan felt a little embarrassed by her younger brother's praise.
Then Tian Sangui was pushed into the crowd, "Wow~"
Everyone exclaimed in surprise, "Is this still the same Tian Sangui from yesterday?"
The white cotton fabric embroidered with red peonies covered the entire body, and below it was a white cotton skirt embroidered with small peach blossoms. Zhang's dark hair was styled into two small buns, hanging on the left and right sides of the back of her head.
She also wore a pair of pearl hairpins and a short, swaying hair ornament, which looked particularly lively as she walked.
On her feet were a pair of brocade cotton shoes given to her by Madam Shen, which complemented her outfit today.
Overall, she is just like Miss Shen, bright and elegant.
This was quite a show of style in the village.
Today's focus is undoubtedly on Tian Sangui.
After being amazed, everyone brought their gifts and headed to the old house.
Knowing that the Tian family was coming to pay their respects for the New Year, Wang got up early and opened the tightly closed door.
As soon as it was light, Tian Laosi, along with his wife and children, went into the main room and knelt down to kowtow to the old man, Yun Shi.
The second son's family hid in the back, unwilling but unable to skip the formalities.
Although Yun was scolded by the old man yesterday, she didn't say anything when she saw Qin today, despite her unpleasant expression.
Seeing Tian Sangui dressed in luxurious clothes, Yun and Wang were unhappy but dared not say anything to her.
Madam Wang tried to smooth things over: "Hehehe, San Gui, you look so beautiful today! A girl is a year older and that makes all the difference; she knows how to dress herself up now!"
"Sister-in-law, today is the first day of the month, San Gui should dress up nicely. It's not like our family doesn't have the means."
Besides, San Gui's godmother also sent over a set that was several times better than what I had prepared. She figured everyone in the village was family, and it wouldn't be convenient for them to wear it out!
Wang was speechless, and could only manage a couple of forced laughs.
Surprisingly, the Yun family invited Tian Sangui to their side.
At first, Zhang was worried and held onto Tian Sangui's hand tightly. Only after Tian Sangui comforted her did she relax.
She walked confidently to Madam Yun, whose gloomy old face pulled Tian Sangui around and carefully examined her clothes.
"The fabric is good, but it's still not as comfortable as homemade. Go and get that batch of cotton fabric from the cupboard!"
Wang, who was behind him, was taken aback at first, but then obeyed and went inside to search.
Yun pulled Tian Sangui to sit beside her. Tian Sangui couldn't understand the old lady's motives today, so he sat down as she asked.
You know what, looking at them like this, they really do look like a harmonious grandmother and granddaughter.
If outsiders didn't know the past, they would think that Tian Sangui was Yun's beloved granddaughter.
Zhang's worried gaze remained fixed on Tian Sangui, to prevent Yun from harming her daughter.
When Wang presented the cloth with both hands, Yun took it and spread it out. She then measured it against Tian Sangui's body and tore it open on the handprint she had made.
The rest was given to Zhang: "Take it back and make some clothes for your grandsons!" Zhang was flattered and accepted the cotton cloth.
The feel of it is thick, soft, and comfortable; it's definitely the best homemade stuff.
Wang, who was standing to the side, felt her heart bleed. She had been longing for the cotton cloth for a long time and had tried her best to please Yun, but the old hag wouldn't give her a single piece.
But now it's all been given to Zhang, whom she dislikes?
Wang was furious, but since it was the first day of the Lunar New Year, it wasn't a good day to argue, so she swallowed her anger.
Tian Sangui watched from the side without saying a word.
My intuition tells me that Yun is acting strangely today.
The old man was in a good mood and pulled Tian Laosi to sit down and talk. Zhang, Qin, and Wang instinctively went to the kitchen to cook.
Today we'll have lunch at Lao Tian's house, and in the afternoon we'll visit our neighbors in the village.
The conversation implied that the old man wanted to hand over the land of the old house to Tian Lao Si to manage, as they were going to be taken to Yun County by Lao Wu to enjoy their retirement. Without anyone to take care of the land, it would be left to fall into disrepair.
"Fourth brother, you just focus on planting, and leave five hundred catties of grain for your mother and me every year!"
I don't ask for anything else.
Tian Lao Si couldn't believe it. He glanced at his father, then turned to look at Yun Shi.
Yun kept her head down, so her expression couldn't be seen. In any case, she didn't argue or make a scene, which meant that she agreed with what the old man was doing.
Only then did Old Tian agree with peace of mind, and he took out four taels of silver from his pocket and gave it all to the old man.
"Father and Mother, you can rest assured that you are with your fifth brother. You can also leave the land to me. Consider this money a farewell gift. I hope you will take good care of yourselves!"
"Oh, my good child, your parents know you're a filial son, don't worry about us!"
At lunchtime, the men sat at one table and the women at another, following the old custom, waiting for Yun to distribute the food.
Previously, Tian Sangui would snatch food for his family; now, Yun Shi would give it to Zhang Shi first, then Tian Sangui, and finally Wang Shi.
This angered Wang Shi so much that she ate very little meat during the meal.
After seeing Tian Sangui and his group off, Wang closed the main door, glared at the main room with hatred, and angrily went into the east side room to lie on the bed and vent her anger.
When Tian Laoda came in, he saw that his wife was unhappy, so he quickly tried to comfort her.
"It's just a piece of cotton cloth, what's the big deal? After you follow Fifth Prince, you'll become an official's wife, so you won't have to worry about not having good cotton cloth to wear."
Yeah, how could she forget about the fifth one? Hehehe!
Seeing that Wang's anger had subsided by half, he took off his cotton-padded coat and crawled into Wang's quilt: "Mother only used a piece of cloth to tie the fourth son's heart to work the land for us. In the future, we can enjoy a life of leisure and eat the grain that the fourth son grows. Isn't that wonderful?"
"What do you have to be angry about!"
"Hahaha, you rascal, you think you're so smart!"
Wang Shi had come to terms with it and started playfully fighting with Tian Laoda on the kang (a heated brick bed).
Meanwhile, in Yun County, Tian Laowu was being entertained at Zuixianlou by several sycophantic wealthy men, where he was surrounded by beautiful women and fine wine.
"Come, come, Your Excellency!"
He was fat and round-bellied, with a large black mole on the lower right corner of his face, from which three long hairs grew. He reeked of alcohol when he spoke.
He pushed the exquisite little black box in front of him toward Tian Laowu and opened it.
Inside the red inner box lay two pairs of gold coins. Tian Laowu merely glanced at them before immersing himself once again in the beauty offering wine.
The wealthy man raised an eyebrow and laughed, "Hahaha, Magistrate, please accept this as a token of my appreciation. I hope you will be lenient with my son during his exams this year!"
Without making a sound, Tian Laowu put the gold into his pocket, pushed away the beauty in his arms, straightened up and said in a deep voice: "Your son is clever and intelligent, he will definitely pass the county examination this time!"
"Oh, thank you again for your kind words, Magistrate!"
"Hehehe, Magistrate, you see, my son might be able to get a minor official position under you?"
The old, thin man, beaming, opened a golden treasure box and pushed it in front of Tian Laowu.
Inside was a pearl the size of an egg, bright and dazzling, clearly expensive.
Tian Laowu's eyes suddenly revealed a greedy look. He quickly pulled her into his arms and stared at Dongzhu, unable to take his eyes off her.
"I am short of a yamen guard supervisor. Have your son come and report for duty tomorrow!"
"Oh dear, thank you so much for the meal, Magistrate!"
Several wealthy men flattered him, and Tian Laowu gradually lost himself amidst the various priceless jewels.
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