Chapter 89 (combined with Chapter 89)
The transfer order was indeed to Fujian, but not as the initial position of Assistant Prefect of Xinghua Prefecture. Instead, he was appointed as Vice Commissioner of the Provincial Surveillance Commission, responsible for supervising the judiciary. The Provincial Surveillance Commission, the Provincial Administration Commission, and the Commander-in-Chief were all established to supervise officials, and this position held a higher rank than the previous Assistant Prefect.
Miaozhen then asked Xiao Jingshi, "Why did you change locations?"
"It must have been Eunuch Huang who helped. Sometimes I think that although he's not exactly a man, he's incredibly helpful," Xiao Jingshi said.
"That's because this Eunuch Huang is a good person; some others are not."
“Many people take the money but don’t do anything, and some might not even be able to help,” Xiao Jingshi said.
Miao Zhen thought, "It's because you're capable that people would recommend you like this. I'm not very good at this kind of social interaction, so you'll have to take care of these things yourself."
Xiao Jingshi laughed and said, "You don't need to socialize. If it weren't for you, I might not be able to get along with these people."
This was the truth, but Miaozhen shook her head: "Knowing someone is one thing, but being appreciated and helped by others is your own ability."
She didn't think it was her achievement. Even without her, Xiao Jingshi was quite adept at managing relationships within the family. Besides, he was highly regarded by his mentor, so there might be another path for him.
However, they also encountered a problem. Master Xiao Er heard that Fujian was not peaceful and insisted on keeping Zhao Ge'er at home. His reason was readily available: Zhao Ge'er could go to the academy to study.
Suzhou has many excellent academies, and the Xiao family, being a prominent local family, will naturally thrive here. If they go to Fujian, they'll likely suffer from culture shock and language barriers.
Miaozhen genuinely wanted all her children to stay with her, but even if she went to Fujian, her eldest son would still be sent to the academy and wouldn't be by her side at all, so Miaozhen's attitude softened considerably.
But she also respected Zhao Ge'er and called him over to talk about it. Unexpectedly, Zhao Ge'er was willing to stay. "Although I really want to go with my parents, what my grandfather said is true. I'm used to the Suzhou accent, but going to Fujian would be starting all over again."
He even mentioned Ting-ge'er: "Although Mother's intention to take care of him is good, he has been recuperating for a while now. If something happens to him in Fujian, wouldn't you be blamed by Uncle Hu's family? In that case, it would be better to let Ting-ge'er go to the Chao family to study now, and our family can take better care of him."
"It was your great-aunt who forced you to handle this matter, so she naturally has to take full responsibility."
Zhao Ge'er has changed a lot. He is naturally intelligent. With the guidance of Master Xiao Er and the earnest teachings of Xu Erpeng, as well as Xiao Jingshi taking him out to socialize, he can no longer be regarded as an ordinary eleven-year-old child.
The parents found their son's opinions to be very reasonable and readily adopted them. However, Miaozhen did not leave immediately. She still helped her son choose an academy and had Xiao Jingshi personally escort him there before she felt at ease.
Both Master Xiao and Xu Erpeng assured that they would take good care of Zhao Ge'er. Xu Erpeng added, "He loves to come here to read. Even if he doesn't come, your mother and I will have your younger brother visit him."
Children always have to learn to grow up, and although Miaozhen had many concerns, she still agreed.
As for Ting-ge'er, Chao said, "You are going to be officials, and those bandits aren't so blind. Besides, I heard that the Japanese pirates are causing more trouble in Zhejiang right now."
“But if anything goes wrong, then I—” Miaozhen hesitated.
Madam Chao said, "That's his fate. You don't know how much trouble his family caused. I secretly thought it would be good for him to have a connection with your family. You can hold the profits from the fields and shops on his behalf and use 20% of them in your posts as a way of looking after him."
Chao's actions were certainly meaningful. For Ting-ge'er, having a highly respected noblewoman to teach him would make his studies much smoother. As for Xiao Jingshi, he needed to bribe officials, and his expenses would come from this arrangement. It was a win-win situation for both parties, and this was also a way of giving Zou a proper explanation.
Moreover, children are often sick, and apart from a skilled doctor like Madam Xu by their side, Madam Xu is too old to take care of them, and Madam Xia is even less capable.
After these matters were settled, Xiao Jingshi hired a secretary from Shaoxing and brought two members of his clan. Miaozhen bid farewell to her relatives and friends, bought a lot of medicinal herbs in Suzhou to take with her, and packed her luggage with Fu Jie'er.
This time, she didn't travel on her own boat to Fujian, but on an official ship. Coincidentally, another family was also going to Fujian to take up their post. They came from the north, and after Miaozhen boarded the ship, their servants even led the way.
After Miaozhen boarded the ship, she sent Xiaoxi to express her gratitude. Both ladies came out to greet her. It turned out that this was the newly appointed Prefect of Fuzhou, Lord Cai, and his family.
This Lord Cai is an official from Zhejiang. He previously served as the prefect of Guide Prefecture in Henan, and has now been transferred to Fuzhou as the prefect. Like Miaozhen, Lady Cai also brought her two sons and one daughter with her to her new post.
However, his eldest son was already twenty years old and a tall young man, his second son was about the same age as Sister Fu, and his daughter was seven years old and was losing her baby teeth.
Mrs. Cai and Miaozhen were about the same age and came from a prominent family in eastern Zhejiang. She had even heard of Miaozhen's name.
“I have a cousin who consulted you when she was in Beijing. Do you remember her?”
Upon asking, it turned out that her cousin was the wife of a former official in the Ministry of Works. Miaozhen had a slight recollection of her and said modestly, "I never thought that my humble name would reach your ears."
"You're being far too modest, Yiren (a fifth-rank official's wife)," Mrs. Cai said with a smile.
Miao Zhen thought that given Mrs. Cai's age, she probably couldn't give birth to a son as old as Mr. Cai, and that she might have to remarry. Therefore, she only talked about local customs and traditions.
But Mrs. Cai also knew quite a bit: "Many nobles came from Fujian this time, such as the Marquis of Yunjian, the Marquis of Nanping, and the Earl of Pingjiang. All the big names came."
"There's nothing we can do about it; our master was transferred there urgently," Miaozhen said.
The mention of the word "emergency" made Mrs. Cai somewhat frightened, yet she seemed to reassure herself, "Ms. Xiao, are we all alright? There are still so many soldiers here."
Miaozhen thought for a moment and said, "It shouldn't be anything serious. We should stay in the city and not go out unnecessarily."
Seeing Miaozhen's composure, Mrs. Cai wiped the sweat from her forehead with some embarrassment: "You see, I've always been timid since I was a child. Sigh, I don't feel at ease leaving the child in my hometown, and I'm afraid something might happen if I keep him with me."
Zhejiang is currently suffering from Japanese pirate attacks, and it may not be safe to leave the children in their hometown. Keeping them with us would allow us to look after each other.
Miaozhen offered a few words of comfort, and Mrs. Cai, finding Miaozhen amiable, with a sweet, melodious voice and a red birthmark between her eyebrows, felt a good impression of her. The journey was rather dull, but the time passed quickly as the two chatted together.
Although Fu-jie is young, she has become very well-mannered in her daily life under the guidance of the ladies-in-waiting over the past few years. She has also studied for six years and looks like a lady from a respectable family. Mrs. Cai took a liking to her as soon as she met her, and was even more delighted when she heard that Fu-jie was now learning medicine from Miao-zhen: "When the time comes, she will definitely be as skilled in medicine as your mother."
"You flatter me," Fu Jie'er said, blushing as she thanked her, but her demeanor remained poised and graceful.
That night, Xiao Xi came over and said to Miao Zhen, "Do you know that this Mrs. Cai is a second wife, and also the younger sister of the first wife? The first wife knew that she was not in good health, so she asked Lord Cai to agree to let her sister marry into the family."
Miaozhen used to find it unbelievable, after all, it sounded strange that sisters from the same blood could share a husband.
However, after spending a long time in ancient times, she discovered that many official families did this, firstly to maintain the good relationship between the two families, and secondly to prevent their children from being bullied.
Miaozhen had read many storybooks, all of which depicted stepmothers harming people.
"How is the relationship between Young Master Cai and Mrs. Cai?" Miaozhen asked.
Xiao Xi shook her head: "This servant doesn't know."
Upon hearing this, Miaozhen thought for a moment and then chuckled, saying, "When we go to Fujian in the future, we'll have plenty of time to inquire. Don't leave any trace."
Xiao Xi smiled and said, "Grandma is right."
"It's so late. I wonder if Zhao-ge'er is doing well at school? The academy doesn't allow servants to come with you. You have to do everything yourself." Miao-zhen missed her eldest son very much.
Xiao Xi comforted him, "Actually, in my opinion, this is a good thing. The second master has taken a liking to our eldest brother, so when the family is divided in the future, he will give him more personal money, right?"
Miaozhen shook her head: "I don't care about these things."
“You may not care, but Master Heng and Master Tang may not.” Xiao Xi could see clearly that although Madam Six seemed gentle and mild, she was actually very strong-willed. She forced Master Tang to go to the Southern Prison. Now that she saw Miao Zhen and the others sending Zhao Ge’er to the academy, she got anxious and insisted on sending Miao Ge’er there as well.
Needless to say, there's more to say about Second Master Heng. Once, Xiao Xi overheard Fourth Master telling Fourth Madam that Second Master Heng had invited him to watch a Persian dancer. Apparently, he had booked that dancer and was also going to book one for his younger brother. Fortunately, Fourth Master was completely uninterested in these things. Instead, he kept telling Fourth Madam that the whirling dance made people dizzy.
This is enough to prove that it is actually a good thing to leave the eldest son to flatter the second master and the second mistress. Just like Ting-ge'er was raised by his own grandmother, he was always closer to her than others.
"Alright, you've had a long day, you should go and rest too. I'm going to my room now," Miaozhen said softly.
Knowing that her grandmother was considerate of her, Xiao Xi bowed and left first.
That night, Lou Qiongyu was also anxious. If Xiao Jingtang were at home, she could have just let him handle the matter. But he had gone to the Southern Prison. She had to first mention the matter of her child going to the academy to Ren Shi, and then have Ren Shi mention it to Master Xiao. Master Xiao would have to find the time to make a decision.
Fortunately, Master Xiao Er was not biased towards his sons; he wished for as many scholars as possible to come from his family. Zhao Ge'er was a promising scholar, and Miao Ge'er was no less so.
Miao Ge'er quickly settled on a school. Seeing her son's fear, Lou Qiongyu said, "Isn't your older brother also in that school? You can look after each other then, so there's nothing to be afraid of."
“But it’s good for my son to study at home. Isn’t the scholar that Fourth Uncle invited teaching him very well?” Miao Ge’er was unwilling to go at all.
Lou Qiongyu said, "But their contract expires at the end of the year. We don't have the face to do that. What will you do then?"
Qiubai Academy is the best academy in Suzhou at present. The lecturers there are at least scholars or graduates of the imperial examinations. The students are all famous child prodigies in Suzhou. Otherwise, someone as doting as Fourth Sister-in-law might not have agreed to leave her child at home.
"Alright." Miao Ge'er didn't want to disappoint his mother.
Miao Ge'er was soon sent to the academy as well, and he also went to see Zhao Ge'er. It was clear that Zhao Ge'er had adapted well after only three days. He could get his own meals, wash his own clothes, and comb his own hair, and he was not uncomfortable at all.
"How come Big Brother knows everything?" Miao Ge'er originally thought that Zhao Ge'er was only a month older than him, and that the two were actually about the same age, but now he felt that they were different.
Zhao Ge'er laughed and said, "When I first started school, my mother made me wash my own handkerchiefs and fold my own clothes, and she even taught me how to sew."
Miao Ge'er rested his chin on his hand and said, "It seems that Fourth Aunt had foresight."
"Don't talk about foresight. You'll have to learn slowly. If you don't know something, just tell me," Zhao Ge'er said with a smile.
With his older brother protecting him, Miao Ge'er felt a sense of relief. Zhao Ge'er, seeing his cousin like this and thinking of his parents, couldn't help but feel a lump in his throat.
Actually, he had his own reasons for staying in Suzhou to study. Firstly, he didn't want to transfer to an academy in Fujian. Suzhou was his hometown, and he was familiar with everything there. Secondly, he could spend his days reading in his maternal grandfather's bookstore, and his grandfather would even search for books that the bookstore didn't have.
He used to be completely inseparable from his parents, but after moving to the outer courtyard, he often went out with his grandfather and father. His horizons broadened, and he became much more independent.
Although he missed his parents very much and wanted to be with them, he knew that if he didn't achieve any official rank in a few years, he would be a disgrace to his parents and he himself would be too ashamed to face anyone.
In a family, if the men do not hold official positions, they can only manage mundane affairs, which he is unwilling to do.
While Zhao Ge'er was studying diligently, Miao Zhen and the others had already arrived in Fuzhou. Their journey from Suzhou had been smooth sailing for five days, and although their ship had encountered a storm once, it still took them about seven days to reach their destination.
This is already a very short distance from the capital.
Officials of the dynasty cannot rent houses outside at will. Now, those who are sent outside live in the office of the Provincial Judicial Commissioner, which has three courtyards. The first courtyard is the office of the Provincial Judicial Commissioner, the second courtyard is the study and kitchen, and the third courtyard is their living quarters.
Sister Fu lives in the west wing, while Brother Zheng and Brother Ting live in the east wing.
After losing his mother, Ting-ge'er was physically weak and mostly unattended. Now, with Miao-zhen taking care of him and Zheng-ge'er playing with him, the two became very close and would often chat together. His spirits improved considerably.
They have their own chef, so they won't have any trouble getting used to the food here.
Zhi Fu came over and said, "Mother, I see the window outside is broken. Should we get it repaired?"
"If it's not your place, then don't worry about it," Miaozhen said.
Fu Jie'er didn't understand: "Mother, why is this? You are a very meticulous person. Before, when the flowers and trees in Furongwu were not in good condition, you specially had them trimmed. Why are they like this now?"
“Because this belongs to the imperial court, not to us. Everything we do must conform to the regulations. For example, if the window in your room is broken, we can just fix it. If we replace the window without authorization, it will be easy for someone to report us. Your father was an imperial inspector before, and now he is also an official who supervises others. If he can’t even do his job properly, how can he manage others?” Miaozhen said.
From major aspects like house repairs, such as the style of doors and the type of paint used on walls, there are rules to follow, and you can't just do things arbitrarily. Even minor details like what calligraphy or paintings to hang in the study are subject to these rules.
Fu Jie'er was astonished: "So that's how it is. It's not as good as our family."
“But the reason our family is so wealthy is because we have officials protecting us.” Wealth alone is not enough without power. Ting-ge’er’s mother had a good relationship with the imperial clan, which is why Chao was willing to stand up for her.
Fu Jie nodded to herself. She thought to herself that everyone said her second aunt and sixth aunt were daughters of officials. Her mother rarely mentioned these things, but she felt that her mother seemed to know a lot, but just didn't like to show off.
She thought this, and inadvertently blurted it out.
Miaozhen smiled and said, "You will achieve something if you put your mind to it. Now that I am following your father on his post, I will definitely want to learn more about it."
The mother and daughter chatted for a while, then ordered someone to set out the meal. Soon, Xiao Jingshi and the two boys arrived. Xiao Jingshi smiled and said, "It's quite a coincidence. I just went to pay my respects to Shangguan and ran into an acquaintance."
"Oh, who is it?" Miaozhen didn't have the habit of not speaking while eating or sleeping; she and her husband mostly discussed things at the dinner table.
Xiao Jingshi kept everyone in suspense: "You met him when you were at Xuanda University?"
Miaozhen thought for a moment: "Could it be Zhang Shi? But that's not right. Her husband is in the Northwest. It should be difficult for him to be transferred here so quickly."
"It's Lord Fu! He's currently the Governor of Fujian." Xiao Jingshi was delighted at the thought.
This Lord Fu is truly someone the Emperor trusts very much. Miao Zhen thought of his wife, Lady Ruan, and wondered how she was doing. With that thought, she said, "I'm thinking of sending a visiting card in a few days. What do you think I should prepare? If it's too generous, people might say I'm forming cliques; if it's too light, it won't seem sincere."
Xiao Jingshi was also a little worried: "I'll go ask the clerk later."
Giving gifts is a big deal, especially to an old acquaintance like Governor Fu; the couple did not treat it casually.
Before coming to Fujian, they thought it was a turbulent place, but now they felt that they might be able to make some achievements. Miaozhen and Xiao Jingshi were both in a good mood.
Although Fuzhou and Suzhou are both in the south, they are quite different. Fuzhou feels like the surging sea, while Suzhou feels like a gentle drizzle.
After the meal, Miaozhen took Tingge'er's pulse and, seeing that he was alright, instructed the maids who were taking care of him: "You must be careful not to wake him up at night, and make sure he doesn't kick off the blankets and catch a cold."
"Don't worry, Fourth Grandmother, we will definitely take good care of the young master." The maids dared not be negligent.
Miaozhen added, "If he feels even slightly unwell, he should call me immediately. Don't dawdle."
After Zhengge'er and Fujie'er and Tingge'er left, Zhengge'er started fussing about wanting to sleep with his parents, saying, "I can't sleep alone, I miss my parents."
“What’s there to think about living in the same courtyard? You’re all grown up now, you can’t act like a spoiled child anymore. You’re a little man, aren’t you?” She stroked her son’s little face.
Zheng Ge'er has always been very individualistic, but he actually longs for his mother's attention. Before, when his older brothers and sisters lived elsewhere, he was very happy living with his mother. Later, when Ting Ge came, although he had a playmate, his mother's affection for him diminished considerably.
Miaozhen saw the look in her son's eyes and knew he was still young. Even though she was very tired, she brought him a picture book to read with him. She couldn't neglect her own child for the sake of someone else's child.
Seeing that Zheng Ge'er was yawning and about to go to sleep, she let Xiao Jingshi carry the child back to the room.
Xiao Jingshi returned quickly. The couple smiled at each other, and Miaozhen rubbed her forehead: "I'm really tired today. I was just forcing myself to stay with the children. Zheng'er is the youngest in our family. We've been so busy these days that we've neglected him. We'll spend more time with him tomorrow."
Xiao Jingshi thought that she was truly perceptive of other people's emotions, even those of children. Regardless of whether she was his wife or not, she was a very good person.
Thinking about it that way, he liked her even more.
After washing up, the couple lit a stick of incense in the incense burner. Miaozhen, who had just disembarked from the turbulent boat, was now sleeping soundly on the bed, exhausted.
When I woke up again, it was already daylight.
Xiao Xi had a lot of local Fuzhou delicacies brought in, and Bi Tao said with a smile, "This was specially ordered by the master so that you could taste the food of Fuzhou."
"Where is he?" Miaozhen rubbed her ears and couldn't help but ask.
Xiao Xi said, "Fourth Master has already gone to the front hall to handle some matters. Oh, by the way, Fourth Master had someone draft the list of items to be sent to the Fu family and asked you to prepare it."
Miaozhen took the list and thought it was good. She immediately asked Xiaoxi to open the chest and prepare the food, while she got up and had breakfast.
The first thing was said to be Fuzhou meat swallow, which looks a bit like wonton, but it has a crispy texture. The skin of the meat swallow seems to be more chewy. In addition to meat swallow, there were also fish balls. The fish balls were very bouncy, but since I had just eaten a bowl of meat swallow, I only ate a few fish balls.
She also shared a lot of the rest with Sister Fu, Brother Zheng, and Brother Ting.
The Fu family accepted the visiting card and gifts sent to Fu Yu's residence, and soon Madam Ruan replied with an invitation to visit.
"Huh? How come you got back so quickly? I thought it would take several days!" Miaozhen said with a smile.
Xiao Xi chimed in, "The governor's wife and you are old acquaintances, so naturally your relationship with her is different from that of others."
Miao Zhen was puzzled, and instructed Fu Jie'er to look after the house while she took a carriage to go there first.
After several years apart, Ruan Shi still looked beautiful and was very affectionate towards Miao Zhen. "Doctor Xu, I never expected that we would meet again in Fuzhou."
"I didn't expect it either. After hearing my master say it yesterday, I was overjoyed and sent a visiting card today." Miao Zhen thought that Xiao Jingshi used to be a seventh-rank imperial inspector, but now he is a fifth-rank assistant inspector. After not seeing him for several years, her status has improved, which can be considered a small progress.
As the two were entering the inner courtyard, a man came out from the inner room and addressed Ruan as "sister-in-law." Ruan then said to him, "I have invited Physician Xu over. Don't worry, Uncle, Lu'er will definitely get better."
Fu Huan quickly bowed and said, "Thank you, sister-in-law."
It turned out that Madam Ruan had invited her to come and treat the patient. Miao Zhen thought to herself, no wonder she had been invited so quickly. After entering the inner courtyard, Madam Ruan said after the patient had gone far away, "Dr. Xu, please examine my niece later. My uncle and his wife have divorced and have no intention of remarrying. They only have this one child."
"You didn't mention that you were seeing a doctor, so I didn't bring my medicine kit," Miaozhen said.
Madam Ruan said anxiously, "It was my fault. I was so happy to have you come, Doctor Xu, that I had someone invite you over."
"It's alright, we can just send a servant back to get it." Miaozhen had been practicing medicine for many years and was very experienced in handling all kinds of problems.
Madam Ruan sat with Miaozhen in the flower hall, waiting for the Xiao family to bring the medicine box. She said to Miaozhen, "My niece has been motherless since she was a child and has a somewhat eccentric temperament. Please bear with her."
Miaozhen wondered to herself how she would treat a naughty child if she really encountered one.
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