Chapter 71 [VIP]
May has arrived in the blink of an eye, and Yuanbao is already over three months old. Now, in addition to eating and sleeping, he has gained another skill: he can roll over by himself.
It was very difficult for her to roll over at first. She clenched her little fists, her face turned red, and she had to use all her strength to roll over.
After a few tries, she mastered the trick: she could flip over by simply lifting her calves and sticking out her bottom, making everyone laugh.
Mrs. Li picked up the child with great delight and instructed, "Now that the child can roll over, you can't leave him alone. If you're not careful, he might accidentally roll off the bed."
Wang Ying said, "It's alright, I'll have a carpenter make a railing tomorrow, so he won't fall off the bed."
Chen Rong laughed and said, "You're quite resourceful. Making a fence would be good. They roll over, sit up, crawl, and once they're older and can crawl, it'll be impossible to keep an eye on them."
Lin Qiu's belly is gradually getting bigger, and she is now more than six months pregnant. She has not vomited since she became pregnant and has a good appetite.
Madam Li said, "Qiu'er is pregnant well this time; she knows how to care for others."
Chen Rong sighed, "I reckon it's a boy or a girl, just like when I was pregnant with him."
"This is Qiu'er's first pregnancy. Whether it's a boy, a girl, or a son, it's all the same. If you ask me, it's better to let the flower bloom before bearing fruit."
"I'm afraid that I'll end up like me, disliked by the Cao family..."
Actually, Chen Rong wasn't initially a sexist. She had two older brothers and a younger brother; she was the only daughter in the family. With loving parents and supportive brothers, she lived a life no less privileged than a princess.
As a result, after marrying into the Lin family, she only gave birth to two sons in five years, and never conceived again after giving birth to Lin Sui.
For this reason, her mother-in-law often complained about her when she was alive, complaining that she couldn't give birth to a son, and that the Lin family's three generations of only sons were about to end with her.
At first, Chen Rong could still argue back, but as time went on, she became less and less confident. In addition, the neighbors mostly favored boys, which gradually changed her values.
She always felt guilty for not being able to give birth to a son, which is why she has been so tolerant of Lin Xiucai over the years.
When Lin Qiu heard his mother say this, his face also turned somewhat disappointed. His parents' marriage had left a deep shadow on both him and Lin Sui.
Although Cao Kun is treating her well now, she's afraid that he'll start to dislike her over time.
Seeing this, Wang Ying led Lin Qiu to the backyard, saying, "Don't listen to their nonsense. With how much Cao Kun is interested in you, he'll be more than happy unless you give birth to a baby."
Lin Qiu laughed out loud, "I also think Cao Kun isn't that kind of person. If he dares to look down on me, I won't stay with him anymore!"
"That's right! If he dares to treat you badly, you can come back and open a shop with your sister-in-law. What's wrong with a young man? A young man can also do business and support his family. He's no less capable than a man!"
His interruption made Lin Qiu feel less upset. "Sister-in-law, could you find me some clothes that Yuanbao has outgrown, so we don't have to make new ones?"
"Okay, I'll take them out for you to pick and choose. Take whichever one you like."
Children grow up quickly, changing almost every day. Chen Rong and Li Shi made too many little clothes for them, some of which were too small before they could even be worn. They picked them out to save for Lin Qiu's child.
As the two were picking through their purchases, a commotion suddenly broke out outside. Wang Ying stood up and said, "It sounds like someone from our house has come."
Lin Qiu said, "Could it be that Cao Kun has returned!"
The two hurriedly walked outside, but when they reached the front yard, they saw a large number of officials and constables. They were so frightened that they stopped in their tracks, thinking that something had happened.
Li and Chen Rong stood aside, completely bewildered, not understanding the meaning behind such a grand display.
Before long, a carriage stopped at the gate, and two yamen runners helped a portly official down. This man was none other than Feng Shiren, the magistrate of Longquan County.
Upon entering the courtyard, he first bowed to Li Shi and Chen Rong, who were so startled that they immediately knelt down and kowtowed.
"Please rise, ladies. I have come to bring you good news."
"Good news?"
Is your son-in-law named Wang Ying?
"yes……"
Madam Li quickly called out to him, "Ying'er, come here quickly, the official said he has brought good news to our family..."
Wang Ying stepped forward and knelt down to pay his respects according to custom, saying, "This humble subject, Wang Ying, greets Your Excellency, the County Magistrate."
"Young Master Wang, please rise." The magistrate, unable to help him up, gestured for him to stand before revealing the good news he had brought.
"Last year, Wang Langjun cultivated high-yield wheat seeds and sent them to the capital. He also wrote a method to ward off the spring cold, which was very effective. The court specially bestowed upon him one hundred taels of silver as a reward!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for the generous gift."
Wang Ying did not show much of a smile on her face. She took a tray of silver from the yamen runner next to her. There were ten silver ingots, each weighing ten taels.
This money would be a tremendous reward for an ordinary family, but it wasn't of much use to the Chen family. What they lacked wasn't money, but an opportunity to exonerate Qingyan...
The magistrate continued, "Your talent should not be overlooked. If you have better seeds and methods for cultivating the land, you can offer them up for a greater reward."
"yes."
Wang Ying stood up, holding the silver, and looked at the magistrate, hesitant to speak. Normally, if it were just a reward, there would be no need for the magistrate to come in person. Could there be something else?
Just as he was filled with doubt and suspicion, the magistrate spoke again, "I have another matter to attend to this time. I heard that Mr. Wang's husband was slandered by villains during the county examination two years ago?"
Upon hearing this, Wang Ying immediately knelt down and pleaded, "This matter is absolutely true. Two years ago, when Qingyan took the imperial examination, a friend of his companions hid cheat sheets in his writing brush, preventing him from taking the examination again. This humble subject dares not utter a single falsehood, and begs Your Honor to investigate thoroughly!"
"Does anyone know who hid the manuscript?"
Wang Ying said, "It is Zhang Shiqiu, the scholar who kidnapped me and almost killed me last year!"
The magistrate recalled for a moment and said, "It's that person! I remember he's dead. There's no way to verify this. What should we do?"
"Since the handwriting is legible, the copy should be kept in the county government office. It can be distinguished by comparing it with Zhang Shiqiu's and Chen Qingyan's records!"
Feng Shiren nodded. "In that case, I will send someone to investigate this matter when I return, and I will give you an explanation soon."
"Thank you, Your Excellency!" Wang Ying was moved to tears. Li Shi and Chen Rong also kowtowed in gratitude. They only stood up after the magistrate had left by carriage.
Holding Wang Ying's hand, Li asked, "Can Qingyan continue his studies?"
"We don't know yet, but there should be hope!"
"Great! Great! Quickly, deliver this message to the estate!"
Wang Ying quickly stopped the servants, "Don't send it yet. Wait until the county has finished its investigation and has the results before telling him, otherwise we'll just be disappointed again."
"Yes, yes, you've thought of everything. Let's tell Qingyan after we've confirmed it!"
In fact, investigating whether Chen Qingyan wrote that copy was quite simple, but the subsequent procedures were rather complicated, making it difficult to successfully overturn the verdict.
Because after verification, the documents had to be submitted layer by layer upwards, from the county government to the prefectural government, and only after the prefectural government approved them could they be sent to the capital. Only after the capital approved them could Chen Qingyan's examination records be unsealed.
Often, once they reached the capital, the matter would be completely forgotten.
This is why Chen Jing said he could only find a way to exonerate Chen Qingyan after he was transferred to the capital.
The imperial examination system was so strict to prevent cheating. If someone without talent or virtue became an official, countless people would suffer.
The magistrate is bringing this up again because Wang Ying's superior seeds and methods for preventing the late spring frost have played a significant role, and the Grand Minister of Agriculture, out of respect for Liang Boqing, has asked someone in the capital to speak about it.
In Kyoto, a single word carries immense weight with the county government. That's why the magistrate made the trip in person, hoping to leave a good impression on the Chen family, in case Chen Qingyan rose to prominence someday and he could benefit from it.
After the county officials left, Wang Ying suppressed her joy and continued to live her peaceful life as usual.
At the end of May, Wang Ying took the opportunity of delivering a letter to Elder Liang in Beijing to return to the manor.
As the weather gets hotter, it's time for the shop to start selling popsicles.
In previous years, I always worked on the farm, and this year is no different. I'll also take the opportunity to go back and check on how the crops are growing.
The weather was nice today. On the way, Wang Ying noticed that the millet planted in the fields along the way had only just started to sprout. It looked like it was replanted in March and wouldn't be ripe until at least the end of July.
As we approached Chenjiazhuang, we finally saw fields of yellowing wheat, the heavy ears of grain bending the stalks.
In previous years, wheat could be harvested around the Dragon Boat Festival, but this year, because spring came late, the wheat matured late, and people didn't start harvesting until almost June.
Wang Ying encountered many acquaintances working in the fields along the way, so she simply got out of the car and greeted them as she walked.
"The young master from the east is here!"
"Oh dear, it's been half a year since I last saw my master! How are you doing?"
Wang Ying smiled and nodded, "It's fine, I just gave birth at the beginning of the year."
"Why didn't you bring the young master over?"
"It's too hot. I'll bring it over to show everyone when it cools down."
Wang Ying originally planned to bring Yuanbao along, but Li Shi refused, saying that it was too hot for adults to stay outside, and the child would definitely get heatstroke if he went out. She suggested that Yuanbao stay at home and be looked after by the old woman.
The further they went into the village, the more people accompanied them; everyone had been missing their master for a long time.
Aunt Liu said, "Young master, do you know that apart from our village, the winter wheat harvest in the other villages has failed completely this year!"
Wang Ying said, "I've heard some things."
"Fortunately, you came up with a solution for us in advance, otherwise we would only be able to harvest one crop this year."
Sister-in-law Zhang said, "It's not just our village that's pressing down wheat seedlings; people in Meng Village and the neighboring Zheng Village have also started pressing down wheat like we have."
"And you know what? A few families in Zhengzhuang had mulched their wheat fields and watered them, and the wheat was growing well. But a couple of nights ago, someone suddenly set fire to the wheat fields, and not a single grain was left!"
Upon hearing this, Wang Ying exclaimed in astonishment, "Such a thing actually happened? This is utterly despicable!"
"That's right, the smoke was billowing high, and you could see the bright red flames even in the middle of the night! The poor family worked hard all winter, and just when it was time to harvest the wheat, everything was burned to the ground."
Aunt Liu spat, "These people are so vicious! Aren't they driving people to their deaths?"
Because of this incident, the people of Chenjiazhuang dared not sleep at night. Every household sent out men to guard the wheat fields, fearing that they would be harmed by villains.
The people dispersed when they reached the gate of the villa. Ershun stopped the car and knocked on the gate. After a short while, Liang Lao's voice came from inside.
Who is it?
"It's me, Wang Ying."
Liang Boqing hurried over and opened the door. "Wang Xiaolang is here! Where's Yuanbao?"
"It's too hot, I didn't bring it."
The old man's smile vanished instantly. He didn't bother to say a word and turned to walk back.
Wang Ying was both amused and exasperated. Could the old woman's attitude change so quickly?
A note from the author:
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
