Yang Hong's eyes lit up. If he had known the Zhao family was so rich, why would he have bothered to curry favor with Xiao Kui and betray his own sister for a few dozen taels of silver?
Now things are really messed up. Xiao Kui got beaten up, and I've completely offended him. Now that my sister has returned to the Zhao family, how am I going to clean up this mess?
When he saw the two gleaming silver ingots on the table, he forgot everything. His eyes lit up, and he unconsciously reached out his hand towards the ingots.
Seeing his brother-in-law, Zhao Xian felt a bit annoyed. This older brother was too strange, actually scheming against his own sister.
Just as Yang Hong's hand was about to touch the silver, Zhao Xian spoke coldly.
"Look carefully, this is official silver, a gift from me to my mother. I hope you won't try to take it. Only my mother can use this silver. If you take it out and use it, you'll be arrested and imprisoned. Don't say I didn't warn you then."
Yang Hong shuddered in fright and quickly withdrew his hand. He had heard that ordinary people were not allowed to use government silver without permission, and if they were caught, they would be in big trouble.
He had no idea how his brother-in-law, a scholar, had suddenly become so wealthy, showering him with so many fine things. He wondered if his own family must have even more treasures.
The Zhao family prospered, and the younger sister also enjoyed the benefits, and he himself also benefited from it.
Li Chun'e chatted with her in-laws for a while, and seeing that it was getting late, she prepared to take her leave.
“Mother-in-law, then we will take Ruotong back. Don’t worry, we will not let Ruotong suffer any more grievances this time she returns to the Zhao family.”
Yang Dahai and Sun were also very happy. The Zhao family had finally prospered, their daughter would no longer suffer, and they, as her own family, would also benefit.
By this time, Yang Ruotong had already packed her things. Old Mrs. Zhao carried these things onto the carriage, and Ruotong said goodbye to her parents and got into the carriage.
The guard flicked his whip, and the carriage left the Yang family's residence. Zhao Cheng mounted his horse and followed closely behind.
After Zhao Xian's carriage left, Xiao Kui sobered up and finally got up from the ground.
Yang Hong stepped forward to help him, but he was pushed away and pointed at Yang Hong's nose while cursing.
"Hey Yang, I've been around Yingkou Town for so many years, and I never thought I'd be played by you. We'll see."
After Xiao Kui finished speaking, he stumbled away. At this moment, Yang Hong felt a cold sweat break out on his back. He knew he had offended this old man and was doomed.
The carriage continued its journey, and in another fifteen minutes we would arrive at Narcissus Village.
Zhao Cheng urged his horse to the side of the carriage and instructed the guards driving it:
"I'll go back and make some arrangements first. Please be careful."
After giving his instructions, Zhao Cheng spurred his horse and arrived at his doorstep in the blink of an eye.
As soon as Zhao Cheng jumped off his horse, his family surrounded him.
"Brother Zhao, why are you back first? Did you bring your wife back?"
"My sister-in-law is in the carriage behind. We're about to enter the village. Everyone is lining up to welcome her."
The crowd immediately cheered, and then split into two lines: one line for all the soldiers and the other for the rest of the family.
Zhao Cheng stood at the front of the crowd, waiting for the carriage to enter the village.
A short while later, the carriage approached from afar and slowly came to a stop in front of the house.
Zhao Cheng stepped forward and opened the carriage door. Zhao Xian jumped down from the carriage first, and then helped the others down one by one.
Everyone came out to greet them; it was quite a grand procession.
Yang Ruotong was stunned by what she saw. She hadn't expected to receive such a high-level reception when she returned to the Zhao family.
At the same time, she was also very puzzled as to why the Zhao family had so many people.
Zhao Xian led Yang Ruotong toward the crowd, and everyone bowed in greeting.
"Greetings, sister-in-law."
Seeing everyone's enthusiasm, Yang Ruotong felt a little embarrassed and returned the greetings one by one.
Then Zhao Xian began to introduce everyone to Yang Ruotong.
Zhao Xiaosheng and Zhao Xiaoshan need no introduction. Let's start with Qin Shiyu and Qin Yingying.
"These are the Qin sisters. This is the elder sister, Qin Shiyu, who is in charge of the production and sales of white sugar."
This is my younger sister, Qin Yingying. She's in charge of the family finances; she's our family's accountant.
Everyone burst into laughter, and a little girl became the accountant.
Then Zhao Xian looked at Li Guang and introduced him to Yang Ruotong:
"This is Li Guang, who is in charge of managing the family's fields. Currently, all of the family's fields have been redeemed, and more than 300 acres of wasteland have been purchased for reclamation. Now Li Guang has become our family's landlord."
Zhao Xian's words were witty and humorous, making everyone laugh and creating a very lively atmosphere.
Looking at the neatly lined-up family guards, Zhao Xian explained, "They are family guards, responsible for the safety of the household."
After introducing his family members, Zhao Xian took Yang Ruotong to see the workshop and the craft workshop.
The workshops and factories were enormous, and Yang Ruotong was stunned. Both buildings were newly built and must have cost at least several hundred taels of silver.
At this moment, Zhao Lingling ran over happily and said excitedly:
"Brother, sister-in-law, I'm going to herd the mule." He said, and ran to lead the mule.
Zhao Xian frowned. This wouldn't do. Now that there were a few more oxen in the family, was his younger sister going to have to herd them?
My younger sister is nine years old this year, and she still can't read a single character. This was very normal in ancient times, as girls from ordinary families didn't need to go to school.
But he was a time traveler, and his mind was still in modern society. He didn't ask for much; he only hoped that his younger sister could read and write, and be as well-mannered as the Qin sisters.
I've been so busy with business lately that I haven't had time to look after my sister.
At first, he wanted Qin Shiyu and Qin Yingying to teach his younger sister to read and count, but the two sisters were too busy and couldn't find the time. It seemed he had to think of another way.
There was an old man named Mr. Fang in the village who taught in a private school. He converted his family's ancestral hall into a school and accepted the village children to come and study.
Traditionally, schools only accept boys; girls are not allowed to enter. Zhao Xian knew this and wanted to ask Mr. Fang if there was a solution.
Yang Ruotong has been brought back, fulfilling a wish of his family. Now he needs to focus on his younger sister and make sure she doesn't become a cowherd.
Seeing that it was still early, he decided to go to Mr. Fang's school to visit this old private tutor.
Mr. Fang has been teaching in his private school for over twenty years. In the past, his school had quite a few students, but over the years, he has not produced a single scholar who passed the imperial examinations, and even the number of students who passed the preliminary examinations is very small. Fewer and fewer children are coming to him to study.
Some villagers sent their children to private schools in neighboring villages, but were unwilling to send them to his school.
Currently, only a few children are studying at his school, and his income has decreased significantly, barely enough to make ends meet. If his students continue to leave, Mr. Fang's life will truly become a problem.
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