Although Cheng Chi said so, the news that "the second daughter of the Zhou family is a Go expert and almost beat the fourth master Chi" spread throughout Jiuru Lane like wings. Even Zhou Chujin smiled and asked his sister: "When did you learn to play Go?"
Zhou Shaojin was so anxious that sweat covered his forehead and he kept explaining.
Some were as close as Zhou Chujin, and she would just smile and pass by. But some were like the great grandmother Zheng, who smiled and pulled her hand when she met her on the road, saying, "Second cousin, there is really no need to be so modest. I am going to hold a poetry gathering at home in a few days, and you must come then. The seventh daughter of the Shen family is obsessed with chess, and I will introduce her to you then, and you can play a few games."
My great-grandmother Zheng would hold a flower-viewing party today or a poetry gathering tomorrow; there was never a moment of peace.
In the past, Zhou Shaojin thought that since her grandmother and her husband were in love and had a son, she was loved by her parents-in-law and had no worries in life. It was normal for her to have the energy and interest to enjoy fun. But when he saw that her son was not even one month old, he was planning a flower-viewing party. Now he thought that it might not be as simple as just enjoying fun.
Just like the Miss Shen she was talking about, she had never heard of her.
In other words, the people who knew the grandmother were not the ones who usually interacted with the Cheng family.
Zhou Shaojin reluctantly exchanged a few words with Grandma Shi and headed straight for Jiashu Hall.
After hearing this, Mrs. Guan's face became solemn and she called Mrs. Mian and Zhou Chujin over to discuss what to do.
Mrs. Miao disagreed and said with a smile, "I won't go when the time comes."
Zhou Chujin guessed what Mrs. Guan was thinking, and said thoughtfully, "I'm afraid I have to go! We all live in the same alley, and my cousin's wife will know if Shaojin can play Go. I'm afraid she has other intentions for doing this."
Zhou Shaojin immediately thought of the phrase "Xiang Yu dances with a sword, aiming at Pei Gong" and she couldn't help but blurt out: "... Is he trying to trample on my uncle's reputation?"
According to rumors, Zhou Shaojin is only slightly inferior to Cheng Chi, but if Miss Shen defeats Zhou Shaojin... As a man, Cheng Chi is just so-so in the eyes of others. What's more, he can play chess with Miss Shen. If he beats Miss Shen, then Cheng Chi's level can be imagined.
Cheng Chi was a Jinshi who passed the imperial examination twice but did not enter the government, which has long been criticized by many people in the literati circle. He was just so-so at playing chess, so his so-called "high attainments in calligraphy and painting" is worth pondering. If we further associate it, the Cheng family did not let Cheng Chi become an official, maybe because they knew that Cheng Chi was not capable enough to govern a place, so they simply hid him at home. A person who can pass the imperial examination, no matter how useless he is, can handle simple government affairs with the help of a teacher. Could it be that Cheng Chi could not even do this, then how did he pass the imperial examination...
Zhou Shaojin felt his palms full of sweat just thinking about it.
She said, "Doing this won't do any good to the second house, right? We all live together, so we all prosper together and suffer together!"
Old Mrs. Guan felt that Zhou Shaojin was taking it too seriously.
For a large family, after several generations, the bloodline becomes thinner, and naturally there will be differences in closeness and distance. With the interests intertwined, there will be rifts between them, so it is normal to do a few dirty things. As long as it does not affect the overall situation, it does not matter how big the matter is. The Cheng family also went through this - the most important thing is to be decent to the outside world, and it is not good for everyone to tear the relationship apart.
Zhou Shaojin, however, has memories of his past life.
The second branch is unusually obsessed with managing the clan.
She suddenly had a bold idea.
Could it be that the income from the Cheng family's public library is very high, high enough to allow the family that can control the income from the public library to gain huge benefits
Zhou Shaojin asked his grandmother: "How is the income from Jiuru Lane Public School distributed?"
Old Mrs. Guan was stunned.
Zhou Shaojin said with embarrassment, "I'm just a little confused. What kind of grudges do the first and second houses have? They can't be resolved. Logically, the first house is now in a raging fire, with no hatred for the murder of his father or the seizure of his wife. Even if the second house wants to be the head of the family, it should be careful and patient, and work slowly. Why would it be so reckless and argue with the first house? If cousin Shi and cousin Yu were successful at a young age, it would be fine. Cousin Shi is just a scholar now, and cousin Yu has not even finished his career. Why do they compete with the first house? This is unreasonable?"
When Zhou Chujin heard Zhou Shaojin say something "irrational", she couldn't help but smile.
When did my sister, who always said "I feel" and "I think", start to pay attention to the rationality of things
Old Lady Guan thought about it carefully and felt that Zhou Shaojin's words made sense. So she said, "We have separated a long time ago. The sacrificial field is in the eldest branch. The eldest branch, considering that we are from the same clan, will give 300 taels of silver to the fourth and fifth branches every year. As for how much silver the second and third branches get, I don't know. But you can find out.
"When I first took charge, if the weather was good, the annual income from the sacrificial fields was about 500 taels. If there was a disaster, we could only get 100 to 180 taels at most, and sometimes we didn't get anything at all. So the eldest son of the family gave us 300 taels of silver regardless of the harvest, and I was embarrassed to ask about the income from the sacrificial fields. But I think that even if the eldest son of the family bought more sacrificial fields later, the income from the fields is there, and it is impossible to be so profitable that people will envy. Unless they are strong on the outside but weak on the inside, they can't make a living like this.
"But a few days ago, the ancestor of the second branch gave Zheng a piece of land because she helped the Cheng family to expand. I don't think she is short of money.
“Now, it is the profits of Taiyu Bank that connect the several companies together.
"But the Taiyu Bank was founded by Fourth Uncle Chi. Even if the Second Branch took it away, who would take care of it? The Qinyu Bank doesn't belong to us alone. The Li family also has a stake in the Wei Bank!"
After hearing what his grandmother said, Zhou Shaojin felt that he had misunderstood. Fortunately, his grandmother not only said nothing, but also sent people to check the revenue of the sacrificial fields and the public treasury, saying: "Being careful is always a good idea. It is always right to be more careful." She also praised Zhou Shaojin for being "careful".
Zhou Shaojin couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
After leaving Jiashu Hall, she discussed with her sister: "Should we also inform Uncle Chi. Uncle Chi is a man, he may not pay attention to these private matters."
Zhou Chujin felt that it was necessary, and said, "It would be even better if we could get you out of this matter. No matter what, you have suffered an undeserved disaster. Maybe the story of 'you almost beat Uncle Chi in chess' was fueled by them and made the situation worse."
Zhou Shaojin didn't think so, but her sister's approval still made her feel more confident.
She went to the Oriole Hall.
Cheng Chi was sitting on a drunkard's chair under the veranda, reading a book. The draft blew on his clothes from time to time, making him feel a little cooler.
Seeing Zhou Shaojin coming over, he smiled and said, "Why? Are you here to play chess with me?"
Zhou Shaojin knew without asking that he was well aware of the recent rumors.
She suddenly understood Jiying's feelings a little.
With a master who "is not anxious when you are anxious", it's no wonder that Ji Ying calls Uncle Chi by his name in private.
However, ever since Ji Ying came back from Cangzhou, he no longer calls Uncle Chi by his name, which is considered a good thing.
Zhou Shaojin told Cheng Chi what had happened.
Cheng Chi didn't take it seriously and said with a smile: "It's okay, just don't fight back."
Zhou Shaojin said embarrassedly: "I can avoid it on the first day, but I can't avoid it on the fifteenth! If my cousin's wife is really determined, she will always find an opportunity. Besides, I don't know how to play Go at all. If this news gets out... How embarrassing!"
Cheng Chi didn't care about the second wife's intentions, but gave her some advice: "Aren't you learning Go from Aunt Shen? Wouldn't it be a real honor if you could play a game with Miss Shen?"
"But I still don't understand the formula," Zhou Shaojin lowered his head and whispered, "and it's not good to bluff others like this... I can't get away with it every time, right? That would be so tiring!"
Cheng Chi raised his eyebrows and said, "Then I can't do anything!"
Zhou Shaojin nodded.
The purpose of her coming was to warn Cheng Chi. Since he already knew, her goal was achieved. As for herself, the worst that could happen was that she would be laughed at. She might even be able to outwit Mrs. Shi and make those who thought she was good at chess never look for her again.
But if she had to live with Mo Xuyou's "good reputation", she wouldn't be able to sleep peacefully.
"Then you can read the book!" She stood up and said goodbye, "I'm going to the Buddhist temple to copy scriptures."
Cheng Chi looked at her disappearing into the background and frowned.
He was the one who told her not to get involved in this matter, but now everyone knows about it because of the quarrels of the people in the second house. Logically, even if she didn't argue with him, she should have asked him to help solve this problem. But she just came to warn him... Is this little girl too naive? Or does she have a way to solve it
Cheng Chi decided to wait and see.
When Grandma Shi asked her personal maid Hongrui to deliver the note to her, Zhou Shaojin bluntly rejected her: "Thank you for your appreciation, cousin, but I really don't know how to play chess, and I'm afraid I can't accompany Miss Seven of the Shen family. Some of the words were just jokes among family members, but your grandma took them seriously without asking any questions. I'm afraid your grandma Shi will be disappointed."
Hongrui smiled and advised, "Our eldest grandmother also said that our second cousin is helping Madam Guo copy scriptures in the eldest house, so she probably won't have time to attend the poetry gathering. But our eldest grandmother saw that our second cousin had outstanding character, and really wanted to make friends with her, so she invited our second cousin to the poetry gathering. As for playing chess, that's just talk. Please don't take it to heart." She added, "Our eldest grandmother has invited everyone who is about the same age as our second cousin, and she has also invited the chefs from Beijianglou and Meiyanlou restaurants to help prepare the banquet. For now, our second cousin should just put aside the poetry gathering and chess. Put aside chess and other things, and just go to taste the cooking skills of the chefs from the two restaurants. Our eldest grandmother hosted such a party just to make it lively. Second cousin will know after going there once." As she said that, she took out a piece of invitation from her bosom and said, "Look, this is for the eldest cousin. Our eldest grandmother said that the eldest and second cousins are like pearls in the morning dew, and the poetry gathering will not be wonderful without either of them. I hope the two cousins will come and let our eldest grandmother know that I am not the kind of person who only eats for free and does nothing." At the end of the words, she was already joking with a smile.
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Today's update, sisters.
O(∩_∩)O~
PS: In the last few days of the month, please give me some pink tickets to guarantee a minimum amount!
※(To be continued)