Chapter 980: Zhou Wangshi

Zhou Shuren drank the wine silently. It was indeed hard work. If children were born one after another, it would be a huge financial burden. In ancient times, raising a child was not just about raising him or her, especially in a family like theirs, the birth of each child represented a large sum of money.

Ran Zheng said quietly, "This aristocratic family really doesn't have as many children as yours. This is the advantage of having only a legitimate wife. There is less fighting in the harem, and there are rarely any accidents when the children are born."

Even in the Ran family, many of their sons had accidents, and he had not even counted the ones that were in his belly.

Zhou Shuren said with emotion, "Everyone has desires. Once they get something, they want more."

It is not wrong for the legitimate wife to protect the rights of the legitimate sons and daughters. There are many struggles in the backyard of a large family, and the concubines want to get more, so struggles are inevitable.

Ran Zheng couldn't even control himself, let alone his son and grandson. He picked up the wine glass and said, "I really admire you."

Zhou Shuren took good care of his son and grandson. No matter how much temptation he faced, Zhou Shuren's son managed to hold on.

Zhou Shuren thought to himself, it was not that he was so powerful, but that he was an outsider, so he had no scruples. At that time, he did not trust his sons, so he was really rude. His grandchildren were brainwashed since childhood, and the powerful relationships were explained clearly to them. Coupled with the foundation laid by his sons' married life, it came naturally.

Ran Zheng looked at Zhou Changzhi, "Your fourth child has really changed a lot. He has become more mature and stable, and he is becoming more and more like your third child."

Zhou Shuren was very relieved, "Children will grow up, and he loves me."

Ran Zheng laughed, "When I was in Jinzhou, your fourth child left a very deep impression on me."

Zhou Shuren curled his lips and said, "Drink."

Ran Zheng drank the wine and continued, "Your fourth son is a young scholar. He has been in the dark for so many years and is now mentally mature. Will he end up like this next year?"

"Well, get ready for next year."

Changzhi has been preparing for many years. He has nothing to prepare in terms of knowledge and is mature mentally. He has nothing to hold back. He has high hopes for Changzhi. This kid should be able to win him the top spot!

Ran Zheng congratulated him and said, "You will be able to relax more in the future."

The Zhou family has a really good foundation, plus their descendants are thriving, which is a sign of prosperity. In a few generations, as long as they don't commit suicide, they will definitely be among the big families in the capital. He thought of the Ran family and his heart was burning with excitement.

In the afternoon, the Ran family left, and the Zhou family received a letter from home. After reading it, Zhou Shuren handed the letter to his wife, "Take a look."

Zhulan took the letter and looked at it, "Where did Zhou Wangshi go?"

Zhulan read it carefully again and confirmed that Zhou Wangshi had really passed away. Calculating Zhou Wangshi's age, she was indeed very old. Zhou Shuren was of a high generation, so she had always ignored Zhou Wangshi's age. Calculating the age, Zhou Wangshi was older than both her parents.

Zhou Shuren, "Birth, aging, sickness and death. As we get older, we will meet more often in the future. The letter said that the old patriarch is ill."

Zhulan had some feelings in her heart, but not too many. The Zhou family had left their hometown for many years, and her impression of Zhou Wangshi was also blurred. She felt more emotional and a little sad. "The letter said that the person had been buried."

Considering the time it takes to deliver the letter, sending someone back from their home wouldn't be able to help much.

Zhou Shuren said, "Let Steward Ding go back, mainly to see the old clan leader, and take the book back for Mingqing. Mingqing will also have to die next year. There are also some supplements for the body, so you should prepare some."

Zhulan, "Okay, I'll arrange it now."

Zhou Shuren called Steward Ding and said, "You don't have to rush back. Buy some land and rebuild a house in Zhoujia Village. This time, don't build an old house. Build it according to the size of the mansions in the capital and bring more people back."

He paused and continued, "This time when you go back, renovate the Zhou clan's ancestral hall and clan school. Just give the money directly to the clan leader."

Steward Ding didn't want to leave the capital, he was afraid that someone would take his position, but this was the master's trust in him, "Yes."

Zhou Shuren was thinking in his mind that he couldn't leave the capital, so he had to prepare some backup plans as soon as possible. The Zheng family's house would have to be returned sooner or later. Zhou Shuren stroked his beard, thinking that rebuilding such a big house was not a real backup plan, it was just for show, so he still had to choose another place as a backup plan.

Zhulan came back quickly, holding a box in her hand, "I've chosen, can you see if there's anything else I need?"

Zhou Shuren opened the box and said, "That's enough."

Zhulan was handed over to housekeeper Ding, and Zhou Shuren took his wife with him, "It's stuffy in the room, let's go sit in the yard for a while."

Under the tree in the yard is their favorite place. There are two rocking chairs placed together. Rocking in the rocking chairs is particularly comfortable. This shows how they will spend their old age.

Zhou Shuren said, "Ran Zheng mentioned his grandchildren to me."

Zhu Lan turned her head away, "What do you mean? They want to marry someone closer to them? There is no suitable girl in our family. The grandchildren of the Ran family are not young anymore, and the youngest, Ran Xun, is also quite a bit older than Yudie."

Zhou Shuren's mouth twitched, "You think too much, that's not what I meant."

Zhu Lan coughed and said, "You can't blame me for this. When I heard about this, my first reaction was marriage. What does Ran Zheng mean?"

Zhou Shuren stroked his beard, "Ran Zheng hopes that I can give some pointers to his eldest grandson. Next year, his eldest grandson Ran Xun will also be coming down the pavement."

Zhu Lan said, "Can't he teach himself?"

Zhou Shuren's tone was full of pride. "He can indeed teach. He has good knowledge, but not everyone who has learned well can teach others. He envies me for being able to teach children. Look at Rongchuan and Changlian. This is very convincing."

Zhulan smiled and said, "Yes, yes, you are the most capable."

"That's right, we still have Chang-Chi, but the competition this time is quite fierce."

Zhu Lan felt heavy in her heart, "Yes, not to mention the several big families in the capital, there are quite a few from the maternal families of several princes this year, especially the Chen family and the Feng family. These two families are both legitimate branches and legitimate sons, and the Qi family also has them."

Zhou Shuren stroked his beard and said, "It's hard to say what will happen to the Feng family next year."

Zhu Lan rocked the rocking chair, "This person is talented, but he is still influenced by his family. He can't escape when his family is in trouble."

Zhou Shuren closed his eyes and said, "I'm thinking whether I should let Mingyun take the exam for the scholar next year."

Zhulan, "Why do you have this idea?"

"I was thinking, since people are already eyeing Mingyun, I might as well make him more famous. With more attention, people might be less willing to take action."

Zhulan frowned, "No, don't you think there are too many targets? Mingyun and Changzhi are going back to their hometown to take the exam, they are not taking the exam in the capital."

Zhou Shuren said dimly, "Yeah, it's really frustrating. It would be great if we could take the exam in Beijing. The two of you really have too high a goal. Forget it, let's just wait and see. Who knows, maybe there will be results in the next two or three years."

Zhulan didn't want to think about anything now. She just wanted to relax, close her eyes, and feel the breeze. This feeling was really good. However, after a while, she heard snoring. She turned her head and saw Zhou Shuren snoring in his sleep.

The typos have been corrected here. There are still more than 20,000 words to be corrected. Correct them online~~

(End of this chapter)