Chapter 105
August in Jinan this year is either characterized by torrential rain or scorching sun. When Madam Ming arrived, it was in a transitional period between rain and sunshine. Xiao Jingshi had already rented a large house in the area as a place for Madam Ming and her entourage to stay.
Madam Ming's new wife, Yao, came from a family of a sixth-rank official in the capital. Because she was a second wife and Master Zhao had a slight limp in his left leg, Madam Ming's requirements for Yao were not so high.
In Yao's family, her stepmother was in charge, and she and her younger brother lived a very difficult life under her stepmother's rule. Even her dowry was only twenty-four loads, which were barely enough to cover the cost. Fortunately, after she married into the Yun Jian Marquis's household, they took her younger brother in and hired a tutor for him, which made her quite content.
Throughout the journey, she accompanied Madam Ming to Shandong, paying her respects morning and evening with utmost deference, though Madam Ming's mind was elsewhere.
After Yao returned to her room, Yin Chuan, the maid who served her, was close to her because she was one of her dowry maids. Knowing that Yao was tired, she said, "Madam, please rest for a while. This is a room prepared by the Xiao family. It looks quite exquisite. They even sent some incense. Would you like some, Madam?"
"Let's light it." Madam Yao removed her hairpins and looked around. The place where she was temporarily staying already exuded wealth and extravagance, making her unable to imagine how wealthy the Xiao family must be.
Every now and then, the Xiao family's specially hired chef would deliver food. Although it wasn't a lavish feast, it was still a complete selection of both land and sea dishes.
Yin Chuan couldn't help but worry for her grandmother: "Although the Xiao family is not a famous clan, and Lord Xiao is just a prefect, they are making such a grand show. They must be going to great lengths to arrange their daughter's marriage. In that case, I'm afraid the madam will be biased."
Hearing this, Madam Yao laughed and said, "What do I have to compare with the eldest daughter of the Xiao family? Although she is not the daughter of a high-ranking official, her father is promising at a young age, her brothers are outstanding, and her family is very wealthy. You know my family as well. I brought a child with me when I married into the family, and my husband is like that. There is nothing to compare."
Although she said that, she couldn't help but feel sorry for herself.
Miaozhen then made arrangements at home, and even asked Mrs. Kou to come and keep them company the next day: "I'm not good at keeping them company, but I'm troubling you."
Mrs. Kou was more than happy to be able to accompany Madam Hou, and readily agreed, adding with a smile, "Don't worry, I've been in Jinan for several years now, I know it very well."
She felt at ease leaving the matter with Mrs. Kou. Although this person could be calculating at times, she was worldly-wise and would definitely benefit everyone. Besides, Mrs. He would be going there tomorrow, and Mrs. He was family; she could trust her.
Madam Ming's visit this time was to combine the engagement ceremony and the tea ceremony into one event. This was unavoidable, as the two families lived far apart and couldn't keep making trips. After Madam Kou left, Miaozhen invited Fu'er over.
A moment later, Sister Fu walked over with light, graceful steps. When Miaozhen saw her daughter, she exclaimed with delight, "Good! My Sister Fu is becoming more and more outstanding!"
"Mother, you praise your daughter all the time. Anyone who didn't know better would think I was a goddess descended from the heavens." Fu'er's face flushed slightly, and she secretly touched her cheek with the back of her hand.
Calling her over wasn't for nothing. Miaozhen smiled and said, "I heard that this time it was Madam Zhao who accompanied Madam Hou. The relationship between sisters-in-law is very delicate. Some people will feel ashamed even if they receive your favors, while others will be polite to you if you are polite to them. I know that many people advocate that harmony in the family brings prosperity, but I always feel that the friendship between gentlemen is as light as water."
This was to tell her not to fawn over her husband's family as soon as she saw them. A young lady should be a little more reserved. It was Zhao Rui who asked for her hand in marriage, not the Xiao family who were chasing after her.
Some girls start trying to please their husband's family even before they've married into the family. The family takes advantage of this, thinking that the girl is destined for a higher social status, and treats her with disrespect.
Fu Jie'er said, "What Mother says is all wise advice, and I will listen."
"But once you're married, don't throw tantrums all the time. At home, your father and I only have you as our daughter, and your two younger brothers always give in to you. But things will be different when you go to someone else's house. If you're lucky enough to get pregnant and give birth to a boy, you'll be able to stand up for yourself. Otherwise, you'll have to be mindful of how others treat you. It's hard to talk about these things, but that's just how life is. Never treat your mother-in-law like your own mother. No matter how good she is, you can't let your guard down," Miaozhen advised.
Fu Jie'er knew all this all too well. Over the years, she often accompanied her mother to see doctors. Not to mention women from humble families, even women from wealthy families often suffered from mother-in-law/daughter-in-law conflicts, and some even committed suicide by jumping into wells in anger.
If a woman has a successful son, her life at home is slightly better; but if she is unable to have children, even the servants will bully her.
The reason why her mother was so highly regarded, and even the people of Lu called her "Bodhisattva Xu," was because she was skilled in gynecology and helped many women improve their health and conceive.
The mother and daughter chatted for a while, and then Miaozhen gave her a few medical records: "These are your mother-in-law's illnesses. After the engagement is over, you will personally treat her."
Serving tea and water is a job that doesn't require much skill; you just have to do things that others don't do.
Fu Jie'er not only had to study gynecology but also pediatrics. Just like her mother said, even if you can't treat other people's illnesses, at least you can take care of your own children, which is a good thing.
But her medical skills are no match for her mother's; her mother was able to complete her apprenticeship at the age of thirteen, while she still cannot.
He took these medical records back and studied them carefully. On the way, he met Xiao Jingshi and hurriedly bowed. Xiao Jingshi glanced at him and then quickly went into the main room.
When Miaozhen saw that it was him, she personally poured tea for him, saying, "You've really had a lot to worry about, both at home and outside."
Xiao Jingshi took the horseshoe-shaped covered bowl, lifted the lid, skimmed off the foam, and couldn't help but laugh, "We've been married for so many years, and you're still so polite."
“You can’t say that. Outsiders have to pay me for doing things for me, but does that mean family members are entitled to everything? Tonight I’ll prepare some mugwort, ginger, and safflower, and we can soak our feet together to relax,” Miaozhen said.
Xiao Jingshi knew that this was his wife's thoughtfulness, and he appreciated it.
The next day, Mrs. Kou went to visit Mrs. Ming and accompanied her personally. Mrs. Ming found Mrs. Kou to be quick-witted and, although she was a little tired, she was in a good mood.
Soon the day of the engagement arrived. Madam Ming, along with her eldest daughter-in-law and the matchmaker, came to complete the engagement. Zhao Rui was currently serving as the Deputy Commander of the Northern Garrison, a third-rank official. The Northern Garrison was responsible for the "Imperial Prison," and the Embroidered Uniform Guard could send out "Tiqi" (a type of special cavalry) to arrest ministers without any reason. Therefore, all the local officials in Shandong sent engagement gifts, afraid of falling behind.
Even the once aloof and powerful Madam Liu treated Miaozhen with great courtesy. The betrothal gifts from the Marquis's mansion were also extremely generous: 800 taels of gold, 2,000 taels of silver, 2,000 ingots of paper money, 28 taels of five kinds of pearls, a gold phoenix and jade crown with a full set of jewelry, four sets of casual clothes, two pieces of silk gauze, two pieces of silver-threaded gauze, a jade belt, seven gold items, one piece each of gold and jade, 80 bolts of hemp silk, 80 bolts of silver-threaded gauze, 40 bolts of embroidered velvet brocade, 40 bolts of brocaded silk, 200 bolts of fine silk, 66 sets of various colored garments, and eight boxes of jewelry...
Besides clothing and jewelry, further down the list were forty sheep, two hundred bottles of wine, thirty pigs, sixty geese, one thousand round cakes, and thirty-six bags of tea...
No one would dislike such a betrothal gift, not even Miaozhen.
Today, Sister Fu was also helped out, looking as beautiful as a porcelain doll. Madam Ming had seen her before. The eldest sister of the Xiao family wore a phoenix hairpin in a high bun, with graceful bearing and a dignified and majestic beauty. She was clearly a woman who could command respect.
What their household is looking for now is not a daughter to serve their son, there are plenty of those, but someone who can take charge and suppress evil spirits.
After the engagement ceremony was completed, Miaozhen secretly took her daughter to see Madam Ming for medical advice. Although Madam Ming was still experiencing some spotting, it was not to the point of severe hemorrhage. Fu'er stepped forward to take her pulse and prescribed a remedy. Seeing Miaozhen nod slightly, she felt relieved and had someone go and get the medicine.
Now that the marriage was arranged, Madam Ming was satisfied and took her eldest daughter-in-law back to the capital. Miaozhen and Xiao Jingshi naturally had to plan for their daughter's dowry. Since she was marrying into a Marquis's family again, they set a dowry of 50,000 taels of silver, all from their own private savings.
However, the dowry still had to be prepared in Suzhou, since the "Suzhou style" was famous throughout the world. This required the help of the clan, which is why the letter was sent back to the hometown in September.
When Master Xiao saw that Xiao Jingshi and his wife had taken out their own money to prepare the dowry, he couldn't help but say, "This is a major event for our entire family. How can we let them pay for it?"
“Jing Shi’s letter also made it clear that this was because Fu Jie’er was marrying into a higher social class, and her dowry couldn’t be too small, but the whole family couldn’t be left like that.” Ren Shi thought that besides Fu Jie’er, there were also Wei Jie’er and two illegitimate granddaughters in the family. If they were all born like that, the family couldn’t afford it.
Master Xiao sneered: "Whose fault is this? Not everyone can be the same."
That being said, he knew that his fourth son, being an official, naturally hoped for family harmony and prosperity. If he alone acted this way, his other two brothers would certainly be dissatisfied. Therefore, he had the family establish a rule that all granddaughters who married would receive a dowry of six thousand taels of silver for legitimate daughters and three thousand taels for illegitimate daughters.
Six thousand taels, including the dowry and the money to be kept in the dowry, was quite a lot. Lou Qiongyu planned to keep four thousand taels in the dowry and another two thousand taels for furniture, clothes, jewelry, hairpins, and fabrics. Her daughter would be an official's daughter-in-law in the future, so she had to be very presentable.
But when she thought about how Sister Fu had prepared a dowry of 50,000 taels, she felt a pang of sadness.
Han Yueyao has no daughters, only a concubine's daughter who is still young. She was born to Aunt Zhang, who had a generous dowry. Han Yueyao was thinking of asking Aunt Zhang to contribute some money later, as long as it was acceptable.
Han Yueyao always thought of her family, but she also felt that daughters were like water spilled out of a cup. Looking at her mother-in-law's two daughters, the eldest aunt Xiao Suxin was a different story. Every time she came to the Xiao family, she would eat and take things, or ask her family to help her son and husband. Master Xiao just pretended to be confused.
Then there was Xiao Suyun, who was more cunning than her elder sister, and she managed to acquire ten acres of land from the Ren family.
These women, once married, only care about their husband's family and not their own, treating their own family like suckers.
The two sisters-in-law each had their own thoughts, but after Fu Jie'er got engaged, relatives and friends still needed to send dowry gifts, so they had to discuss it. Lou Qiongyu asked Han Yueyao, "What does Second Sister-in-law plan to send?"
Han Yueyao didn't hide it: "We have a gold-engraved teapot and two cups made at home. Also, our second master said that a friend of his gave us a marble screen, which we don't need. We'll send it along with a cloisonné enamel jade peony bonsai."
"So valuable?" Lou Qiongyu thought to herself that Xiao Lao Er was indeed only interested in profit, and that she herself had fallen into a disadvantageous position.
Just then, Xiao Jingtang received a letter from Second Master Xiao and returned with Concubine Qin and their children. Lou Qiongyu was puzzled when she saw him return: "What are you doing back here?"
"Of course Father has something to tell me. Fu'er's dowry needs to be prepared. Father is getting old, so it has to be me who takes care of it."
"Heavens? You're waiting to be assigned an official position at the Imperial Academy, why bother coming back for this?" Lou Qiongyu thought about his own daughter's engagement, and he didn't even mention coming back, but his distant niece was so concerned.
Xiao Jingtang knew perfectly well that this was his parents' love for their youngest child. When Fu Jie'er got married in the future, he might still be in office, and he could go to the wedding. His nephew-in-law was a high-ranking official, so he could also make a good connection with him.
My second brother is the eldest son of the second wife and will inherit the family business in the future. My fourth brother will become an official, which goes without saying. Only I am not very successful. But if I can make some connections, I will benefit greatly in the future, which is better than suffering in the Imperial Academy.
Therefore, he scolded Lou Qiongyu for being ignorant, which made Lou Qiongyu cry again.
When Xu Erpeng and his wife arrived, Lou Qiongyu did not come out. When Mei asked about her, Ren said, "She has not been feeling well lately, so please bear with her, in-laws."
After completing his term in Pengze, Xu Erpeng resigned due to old illness and returned home to renovate his bookstore, preparing to resume his old business. Just as he had settled things at home, he heard that his granddaughter had been betrothed to the heir of a marquis's family. Overjoyed, he went to congratulate him.
The Ren family was very pleased with the Xu family as their in-laws. After returning from Pengze, the Xu family sent local products to the Xiao family. Whether the products were expensive or not was another matter, but the sentiment was commendable.
Moreover, Madam Mei listened to Xu Erpeng's words and was even more polite to Madam Ren than before, saying, "My eldest son went to Nanjing for the provincial examination last year, and he was very fortunate to be entertained by your esteemed sixth master. He was extremely kind to him."
Although Miaozhen's younger brother, Jian Ge'er, did not pass the provincial examination last year, he was on the supplementary list. The Xu family is not short of money now, so they let their son take the exam again in three years.
Madam Ren was also good at saying polite things: "Why do you say that, in-law? We're all family, it's only right."
After exchanging a few casual words, Madam Mei asked when Fu'er would get married. Upon learning that it would be in the spring, she said, "Our family also needs to prepare for the dowry. We'll trouble you to send it over together."
Outside, Xu Erpeng also congratulated the Xiao family. Master Xiao Er pulled him aside and said, "Congratulations to you too."
Now that Xu Erpeng has retired as a seventh-rank official, he is considered a local gentry and is dealing with things with increasing ease. After leaving the Xiao family, Xu Erpeng admonished his eldest son: "Of all professions, only studying is noble. I don't expect you to pass the imperial examination, but you should at least pass the provincial examination. Otherwise, it will be a disgrace when you come to the capital to find your niece."
Xu Jian is twenty-five years old this year. He spends his days studying and doesn't need to worry about the family's shops or fields. It's normal for someone his age not to have passed the provincial examination, and he plans to try again next time. Hearing his father say this gives him even more motivation, but thinking of his younger brother, he can't help but ask, "What about Kun-ge? Why did you make him manage the fields? Isn't he studying?"
"He has only managed to pass the preliminary examination at the highest level, and I would be grateful if he could pass the provincial examination. Now, let him manage the family business and fields so that he will not be ignorant of the ways of the world in the future."
Let alone families like theirs, few members of the Xiao family could pursue official careers. Those who could study well should do so, and those who couldn't should manage the family business well so as not to suffer in the future.
Xu Jian was neither strong nor capable of lifting heavy objects, nor did he want to devote himself to mundane affairs, so he thought it best to study hard.
Xu Erpeng snorted coldly, feeling that neither of his two sons was as outstanding as his daughter. He then discussed with Madam Mei the matter of adding to Fu Jie'er's dowry. Madam Mei suggested sending a mother-of-pearl inlaid dowry box, saying, "Since ancient times, a woman's dowry box has been the most important. It would be good to make a treasure box."
“I see that many people give dowry boxes as gifts, so it’s not unusual for us to give this. Enamelware is all the rage these days, so we could give a set of enamel porcelain with a gilded handle, which would be quite acceptable,” Xu Erpeng said.
Suzhou remained prosperous, but the disaster in Shandong was worsening. Jinan fared somewhat better, being the provincial capital, and Xiao Jingshi had ordered famine relief efforts, but the number of refugees was increasing, especially those secretly entering Jinan from other places. After investigating, he learned that they had come from Jining.
Upon returning, he angrily said, "Zhang Shihua has created a mess during his tenure. He swindled a sum of relief funds, but he probably won't give back a single penny. He's just leaving the disaster victims behind and sending them off to other places."
"There are just too many disaster victims. If only some of them are provided for relief by our Jinan Prefecture, that's fine. But if the surrounding prefectures see that this plan is feasible, they should send all the disaster victims here."
Miaozhen found it strange: "I heard that the Imperial Inspector is in Shandong. Don't these people have any sense of privacy?"
“He’s a member of Yan’s faction. We’re both prefects. Where can I complain? But don’t worry, I have my own way.” Xiao Jingshi knew he had to be ruthless, so he ordered the officials and constables around the city to strictly prohibit the refugees from entering the city and also sent more people.
The three higher-ups all knew he was the father-in-law of the Marquis of Yunjian's heir, and they treated him with great courtesy. Governor Liu even issued a decree to Jining Prefecture, instructing Zhang Shihua to make every effort to provide disaster relief. Zhang Shihua took 10,000 taels of disaster relief funds, pocketed them all, and only used 500 taels to bribe the officials in the yamen. He told the rest of them to go and provide disaster relief on their own.
However, without rice, how could disaster relief be provided? The officials forced wealthy or well-off families to hand over money, causing many to lose their homes and fortunes.
Miaoyun was overjoyed about her son's engagement to the county princess. Originally, the Prince of De's mansion was only willing to offer her a county princess, but now that they saw her sincerity and promised her a county princess, how could Miaoyun and her husband not be happy to have obtained this royal marriage?
As for the famine outside, she donated two hundred taels to the temple as alms and had porridge distributed at her doorstep for three days. She felt that she had gained a good reputation and was quite proud of herself.
Zhang Shihua couldn't help but say, "That heir of the Marquis of Yunjian must have lost his mind. Back then, Xiao Jingshi impeached him and exiled his whole family, but he went and married the daughter of his enemy."
"I heard that it was Lady Xiao who cured Prince Yu's heir, and Prince Yunjian's heir might have done so because of that." Miaoyun said this because she knew that Grand Secretary Yan and his son supported Prince Jing.
Zhang Shihua agreed, glanced at Governor Liu's next words, and hurriedly sent someone with a thousand taels of silver to the provincial capital to bribe officials. Zhang Yan came to speak with her mother, and seeing her father leaving in such a hurry, she asked Miaoyun, "Mother, what's wrong with Father?"
"I heard someone complained to the provincial authorities that your father doesn't care about providing relief to disaster victims," Miaoyun said with a worried expression.
Zhang Yan said angrily, "You used your personal funds to provide relief for three days and even said you would set up soup kitchens for half a month. Everyone in the prefecture praised your compassionate heart, but this villain caused trouble."
Miao Yun sighed, "Indeed, who can stop natural disasters and man-made calamities?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
