Mu Yi'an and his family got up early, and with their carriage loaded with food and supplies, they returned to Jiangjia Village.
"He's back, he's back, the scholar is back..."
The children playing at the village entrance saw two horse-drawn carriages approaching, recognized the drivers as belonging to the Jiang family, and ran towards the village shouting.
"Father, Mother, my second brother and the others are back!"
Just as Brother Jiang was about to go to the school, he heard a group of children running and jumping over, shouting, "The scholar is back!"
"Shuyun and the others are back?"
Jiang's parents were also extremely anxious, having been waiting for this moment for the past few days.
"Father, Mother, your son is back. I didn't let you down."
Jiang Shuyun alighted from the carriage and bowed deeply to her parents.
"well……"
Mr. Jiang was very excited; his son had accomplished what he himself had failed to do.
Son, grandson, generation after generation, we'll keep going, and things will only get better.
Looking at her relatives, clansmen, and fellow villagers around her, Jiang Shuyun was still very excited, and a sense of pride welled up within her.
"Shuyun, well done! You've brought honor to the clan. We should celebrate with you properly."
Third Grandfather's voice was loud and clear, and one could hear the comfort in it.
"Third Grandfather, my wife and I have discussed it, and this time, we'll treat the villagers to a meal ourselves. If I'm lucky enough to be on the list next February, we'll celebrate properly then."
Jiang Shuyun knew that the clan didn't have much money; Mu Yi'an had already told him that.
The pigs, sheep, and chickens on our own farm have multiplied quite a bit. When the time comes, we'll bring over a few pigs and sheep, and since we have plenty of vegetables and dried goods from the village, we'll stew them together and eat them.
"Okay, Third Grandfather understands. You are all good children, Third Grandfather understands."
The gray-haired third grandfather patted Jiang Shuyun on the shoulder, feeling very gratified.
The Jiang clan doesn't have ancestral lands, and each family has limited resources. It's not that they can't afford to share this cost, but they might feel uncomfortable about it.
Now that the problem is solved, I feel a little bad for Shuyun and her husband, because I made them spend money again.
Mu Yi'an was also talking about this with Jiang's mother and the others, "Mother, Shuhe and the others will bring the pigs and sheep back later. Then we'll have Third Grandfather and Father arrange where we can have the meal."
"With both pigs and sheep, it must have cost a lot of money, right?"
Jiang's mother felt a little reluctant, as all of this was earned by her second daughter-in-law.
"Mother, it's alright. My husband has passed the imperial examination and deserves a meal. The clan has limited resources, but we can manage it ourselves, so let's not trouble them."
Mu Yi'an didn't want the clan members to complain about them because of the money.
When a promising member emerges from the clan, the clan should, in principle, contribute this sum of money. In some places, however, the clan doesn't have the funds, so the clan members pool their resources together.
Mu Yi'an and her group didn't lack the money, but they didn't want to incur the wrath of their clansmen and ruin their reputation.
“If you have a plan, then do it your way.”
Knowing that her vision was not as broad as her second daughter-in-law's, Jiang's mother stopped giving unsolicited advice.
"Mother, Jiang Qi wanted to come back, but I stopped him."
"Good for her. She's so heavily pregnant. We didn't want her to go through all that trouble."
Jiang's mother was also scared; this was Jiang Qi's first pregnancy, and nothing could go wrong.
Mu Yi'an stayed with Jiang's mother and aunts while they talked. As for other matters, Butler Li took care of them, so she didn't need to worry about them.
Before long, Jiang Shuhe and his cousin Wang Jiatang arrived in two oxcarts.
"Third Grandpa, we've brought the pigs and sheep here. Where do we go to process them?"
Jiang Shuhe has grown up quickly in the past few years. He got married at the end of last year, and recently found out that she is pregnant.
Mu Yi'an built a row of more than ten houses on the estate, where married farmhands could live with their families.
After Jiang Shuhe got married, they were allocated two rooms and the young couple lived their own lives, giving some money to their families every year to help them out.
"Send them to the drying ground; it's a big place there. Jiang Qin, tell every household in the village to bring some vegetables and dried vegetables to the drying ground. Tell everyone that Shuyun is treating everyone to meat, so please go and help."
"Okay, Dad, I'll go right away."
Jiang Qin left, and Third Grandfather was worried, so he went to the drying ground with Shuhe first. Today, the whole village was together, and they needed to discuss with the village head and the head of the village committee to maintain order and prevent any trouble.
The villagers all went to the threshing ground to watch the excitement. There were several big, fat pigs and several sheep, which were more attractive to the villagers.
"Shuyun, I heard from your older brother that you went to the capital before the new year?"
"Yes, Yi'an and I discussed it. The climate in the capital is different from ours, so we'll go there in advance to get used to it, so that we won't feel unwell when we enter the examination hall and it will affect our exams."
Jiang Shuyun came back this time to talk to his father about this matter. He won't be able to come back for Chinese New Year this year.
"It's pretty good, but the cost is a bit high."
“Yi An has already made all the preparations. When the time comes, Steward Li will go with him. He already has experience.”
Jiang Shuyun told her father about Yi'an's arrangements so that they wouldn't worry about it.
"Okay, second daughter-in-law is very thoughtful. Don't put too much pressure on yourself. Exams depend not only on your usual efforts but also on luck."
If it doesn't work this time, we still have a chance. While Dad hopes you'll achieve great success in the exams, he doesn't want you to push yourself too hard.
"I understand, and I will adjust accordingly. We've made plans for both success and failure, so I'm in a good mood right now."
Jiang Shuyun and Yi'an have already discussed it. If he passes the exam this time, he will try to get a teaching position at Bailu Academy. If he doesn't pass, he will continue studying at Bailu Academy. No matter what, this time, the family will be together, whether it's in the prefectural city or somewhere else.
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