She coldly tossed out two words: "Don't even think about her making any for him. No way." Trying to outdo him in stinginess? She could definitely be even stingier.
She tried all the sunflower seeds from every shop in the county town, but only this one suited her taste the best.
"Really? Which part of the county?"
He also wanted to buy some so he could have a snack to relieve boredom when he had nothing to do.
"Reporting to the Third Master, it was bought from 'Ke De Xiang' in town."
"I've never heard of this person before."
"It smells good?" It really does smell quite good.
"They just opened this year, and business is booming. Their roasted melon seeds are especially good, as are their peanuts and pine nuts. Sir, you could send someone to buy some."
"Okay."
Buy, I must buy, I need to buy some of each to take home and eat.
Inside the main room, everyone found an empty seat and sat down. They looked at each other but no one spoke.
Zhao Xiaoyu took out a handful of sunflower seeds from her pocket and gave them to her mother, then took out another handful and gave them to Xiao Lei, and finally took one out and ate it herself.
Pear Blossom lowered her head and peeled peanuts. "Sister, if you want some peanuts, take them from my pocket."
Okay.
Don't ask her where the sunflower seeds came from; she just grabbed them from her spatial storage. How can you pass the time without eating something?
The room was filled with the sound of people cracking sunflower seeds.
As Xiao Lei munched on his peanuts, he couldn't help but think how thoughtful his wife was, even bringing sunflower seeds to keep him entertained. Lihua was even more remarkable; one of her pockets was overflowing with peanuts, and the other had all sorts of random things.
The others couldn't help but swallow hard at the sound; it was a bit unpleasant to hear others eating while they themselves tasted nothing.
Wang's new daughter-in-law stared at her legendary cousin's family. Were they just going to eat like this? Not even a polite word?
Who acts like this? Fine, don't give them to them, but shouldn't your mother-in-law and aunt at least ask them a question?
That's incredibly ill-mannered.
She looked down on Zhao Xiaoyu's stingy behavior. Honestly, your family is so rich, there's no need to be so stingy about these things.
Zhao Xiaoyu ignored the stares of others and, having not eaten sunflower seeds in a long time, felt quite satisfied.
The old woman beside them, worried that they might be thirsty, went to the kitchen to get a teapot and teacups.
"Xiaoyu, are you all doing well in the prefectural city? Is Xiao Lei's studies going well?"
Thinking about her plans to take charge of the household, Wang decided she still needed to ask Xiao Lei about the state academy.
He must know everything from inside.
"Everything is fine, and Xiao Lei is doing very well in his studies."
Wang looked at Xiao Lei and asked, "How are the teachers at the Prefectural Academy teaching?"
"very good."
"Is it difficult to get into the academy? What are the requirements? How much is the tuition?"
Neither she nor the head of the household knew anything about these things.
"Look, only those who pass the county-level imperial examination can get into my academy, and even then, only those who rank high can get in. The tuition fees are extremely expensive for those who rank lower."
"You need to be a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the lowest level of the imperial examinations) to get in?" Her son should be able to pass the Xiucai exam after the New Year, right? He definitely will. "How much is the tuition?"
"Ten taels a month."
Wang's heart shattered instantly, and everyone in the room was stunned.
“January? You didn’t say a year?” Wang stammered, feeling like she had misheard.
"No, January. We can pay tuition monthly or annually. This is just tuition money; food and lodging are separate. You can also choose not to eat or live at the academy."
Wang's mind was no longer sharp; ten taels of silver had crushed her. Good heavens! She could manage a month's salary, but a year was still manageable. With the cost of books, ink, food, and other necessities, twenty-five taels of silver a year should be enough.
Now, a year's tuition would cost 120 years, not including food and lodging. How can we afford to support that?
She felt as if her and her husband's dream had been shattered.
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