The carriage stopped at the gate of the county government office, the people from the Xia clan had already arrived, and they drank two cups of tea. When they heard the report that the people from the Zhou family had arrived, the patriarchs and elders from the Xia clan immediately put down their teacups and sat up.
As a result, when they looked up, what they saw was Xia Xia being carried in.
Patriarch Xia and others: ...
Lao Zhoutou and Mrs. Xia asked Mr. Zhuang to go first, and the three walked in behind. Man Bao and Bai Shanbai Erlang didn't know why, but waited on the three of them very attentively, and only looked at the opposite side after they were all seated. Patriarch Xia and others.
The two sides didn't know each other, and being a little embarrassed, Xia Xia propped up his body and sat up slightly to introduce the two parties, "Miss, this is our patriarch."
Regardless of what he thought in his heart, Man Bao stepped forward with a respectful face, raised his hands and said, "Zhou Man has met the patriarch."
Patriarch Xia hurriedly stretched out his hand to support her, and he simply took her hand and said excitedly: "Like, really like, you and Xin Niang look very similar."
Old Zhou couldn't help but think in his heart: He is more like their old Zhou family, so how is he like a sister-in-law
Man Bao followed with a downcast expression.
When the county magistrate Zhai arrived, Man Baocai followed Patriarch Xia to meet all the clan elders and people who came, and then Patriarch Xia and the old Zhoutou Qian family met and talked about Xia Yanlai. When he entered the door, Patriarch Xia was saying Thinking of Xia Yan's contribution to the family's help and harmony in his life, when he saw the county magistrate Zhai, he quickly turned around and saluted.
Seeing that they were so friendly to each other, County Magistrate Zhai couldn't help picking out their beauty, and then smiled, inviting both parties to sit down. After standing on the top seat, he bowed to Zhou Man and invited Zhou Man to sit down first.
Man Bao smiled and said: "The magistrate, please sit down, I'll just sit down."
Although the members of the Xia clan had made some preparations, they were still surprised to see the county magistrate Zhai being so polite to Zhou Man.
Only then did County Magistrate Zhai sit down, then looked at the two sides and said, "Since both sides are here today, we can speak up if we have something to say, so as to avoid rifts and conflicts in the future."
He turned his head to Patriarch Xia and said, "Patriarch Xia should know, Mr. Zhou came to Shangzhou to find relatives, the two sides should have confirmed the relationship, right?"
Patriarch Xia remembered that they were not sure yet, so he looked towards the Zhou family.
Zhou Dalang immediately took out his uncle's household registration that he had prepared, as well as the books of his aunt in the bundle that he had found in the mountains that year.
Patriarch Xia looked at it, sighed and said: "This is indeed the household registration of Zhou Yin and Xinniang. They are the same person. I didn't expect them to be fourteen years ago... Alas, I said that Xinniang's child is filial. And not without a conscience."
The old Zhou family couldn't help but look at each other when they heard this sigh, as if...the relationship doesn't need to be so stiff
Sure enough, patriarch Xia said to Man Bao: "I never expected to see the eldest lady in my lifetime, and I can explain to your grandfather when I go underground and meet him."
Man Bao lowered his head with regret on his face.
Xia Xia heard them talking nonsense all the time, so he took the initiative to ask: "Patriarch, when will the things left by brother Yan be given to the eldest lady?"
He said: "I plan to let Xiaorui vacate the shop for her after a while, and the rent for so many years will also be handed over to her. Then I will ask the patriarch to be a witness."
After that, he groped in his arms with trembling hands, but couldn't find anything for a while, Xia Rui could only step forward to take out the yellowed paper for him.
Xia Xia opened it with trembling hands, and said: "I signed this with Zhou Yin back then. I rented his shop and gave him eighteen taels of silver a year, because he entrusted me to collect the rent and look after the house for him. This is my possession of him." It's cheap, but in the past twelve years, I haven't confiscated any rent, so I plan to add ten taels of silver to it every year... "
Patriarch Xia raised his eyebrows, smiled and stretched out his hand to press Xia Xia's hand and said, "What's the hurry, third brother? I have been keeping the rent in the field for Xinniang. Besides, you have worked for them for so many years, even if you are Xinniang. He and Zhou Yin came back in person, and they won't ask for your extra share."
Man Bao froze for a moment and nodded immediately, "That's right, Uncle beat me."
Xia Xia didn't care about Man Bao's words, he just stared at Patriarch Xia and asked, "You said you collected rent from her?"
Patriarch Xia nodded, "Of course, haven't I been renting a piece of land from Xinniang? You rented that piece of land to me back then."
Xia Xia sneered in his heart. He rented him three yuan back then, but he didn't expect to save all the land, so Xia Xia didn't feel too angry.
Patriarch Xia turned his head and sighed to Man Bao: "In these years, your parents never came back, and the land must not be left unoccupied, and there were some guesses in the clan, so I rented out all the land, one of which was rented by me. Yes, there is another piece that was rented out to Chief Xu, and the other piece was scattered and rented out to members of the clan."
"It's just that you don't know that we rely on the sky to grow the land. In the past ten years, there have been droughts or floods. Let alone making money, it is considered good to be able to grow the seeds." Patriarch Xia said: I have saved some rent, and I will bring it to you later."
Man Bao looked at patriarch Xia with a moved face and said: "Grandpa patriarch, you are already very grateful for taking care of the fields for my family these years, how can I ask for your rent again?"
Patriarch Xia said: "Renting the land to the renter is the duty."
Man Bao shook his head and said with a sigh: "If there were no accidents to my parents back then, they would definitely go home every year. Before I came here, I didn't think that the property left by my parents was still there, so the land deeds I collected were only for you. It's just a thought."
After all, Man Bao took it out from his arms and collected it well, but there were some yellowed title deeds.
Patriarch Xia saw that she was still wrapped in a layer of oil paper, even if he was as old as a fox, he couldn't help but change his face, just don't think about it, cheating ghosts
Patriarch Xia didn't expect that Zhou Man would talk to people at such a young age, and he would talk nonsense. On the surface, he said the same thing, but he thought differently in his heart.
He put away the last little thought in his heart, insisted on giving the rent to Zhou Man, and even decided to go back and perfect the account books so that Zhou Man could check it.
Of course Man Bao can't take it anymore, she keeps pushing back, she really doesn't want it, it's fine to pick out the meat from people's mouths, and spit out what's eaten in the stomach, that would be a public outrage , too offended people.
Moreover, compared to the fields that need to be cultivated and tended, what she wants more is the house in Songhua Lane, so she refused vigorously, and then sighed: "Let the patriarch and the uncles and brothers in the clan give us the fields and so on." Don't worry, it's the house where my grandparents lived... "
She said with a sad face: "I was still young when I left home, and I only vaguely remember that a jujube tree was planted in our yard, and every autumn it produced a lot of green dates. As long as my mother wanted to eat it, my father and My grandfather took pictures for her to eat, and I wanted to go back to that house to accompany my grandparents and see where they lived."
Everyone in the Xia family: ... cheating on ghosts? It was only a few months when you left, can you remember this
Everyone became more and more sure that her heart was stuffed with sesame seeds. Sure enough, no one could be an official, especially one who became an official in the capital at a young age.
However, there is indeed a jujube tree in the courtyard of Xia's family, which was planted shortly after Xia Xin was born.