Zhou Shaojin nodded continuously, tears streaming down his smiling face, and choked up as he said, "If you don't tell me, even if I live to your age, I may not know how to find the way out!"
Her ignorant look pleased Mrs. Guo.
Madam Guo couldn't help but laugh and said, "Go down and have a rest! If I'm right, A Xuan will come over tomorrow. You better cheer up and entertain her well, don't bring shame to my reputation."
It’s not the reputation of the Cheng family, nor the reputation of the eldest house, but the reputation of Old Madam Guo.
Zhou Shaojin jumped up and responded with a coquettish "yes".
Mrs. Guo smiled slightly.
Zhou Shaojin went downstairs to meet with Madam Wei Er, and told her everything she had instructed today. Madam Wei Er hurriedly said "thank you for your hard work" and personally escorted her out of the Chuihua Gate. Then she turned around and went to the Heshou Hall where Madam Guo was resting, and talked to Madam Guo about Cheng Rang's studies: "... instead of going to the Imperial College, he went to Sanming Academy? I heard that Sanming Academy is not as good as Shuanghe Academy?"
Madam Guo patiently explained, "The Imperial College is mostly populated by people who want to make achievements in their official careers. They care about their background, qualifications, and family background. They have a lot of social activities every day, so few people can sit down and study. Shuanghe Academy is a private academy. The principal is a world-renowned scholar. Needless to say, his knowledge is profound, and the students have a solid foundation, but there are also many people who have a talent for studying. My brother has had a weak body since he was a child, and his energy is not good. If he goes to Shuanghe Academy, I'm afraid it will be difficult for him to excel in his studies. Over time, his interest in studying will also decrease. It's better to go to Shuangming Academy. Compared with Shuanghe Academy, it is much inferior in size and students, but it is better in that the teacher is patient and meticulous in teaching, and likes those children who make up for their shortcomings with hard work, which is the most suitable for my brother.
"This academy was recommended by your uncle. He would never do something without a purpose, so you can rest assured.
"You should also talk to Erlang. If there is nothing to do in the government office, he should stay at home more and give his son some guidance on his studies. With Erlang's knowledge, he should be able to rank among the top students in the academy.
"Now that we have separated from Jiuru Lane, the branch in the capital will rely on Jiashan and Rang Ge'er to bring honor to the family. Rang Ge'er can no longer hide behind Jiashan like he did before. Even if he cannot pass the imperial examination, he still has to study. How dare you arbitrarily say that Rang Ge's study is average and his son will be the same as him?"
Mrs. Wei nodded repeatedly, suppressed her excitement, stood aside with her hands hanging, and agreed respectfully.
Mrs. Guo nodded with satisfaction.
A little maid came in and reported: "The fourth master is here."
Maybe she heard that Madam Liao and Madam Fang sent Fang Xuan to her to help Shao Jin
Madam Guo snorted coldly.
Mrs. Wei Er hurriedly stood up and took her leave.
Although she is not as smart as Yuan, she is not stupid either.
In the past, whenever my mother-in-law heard the name of my fourth uncle, she would smile. But these days, she has been indifferent to him. It is obvious that there is some conflict between mother and son. But no matter what the conflict is, my fourth uncle is my mother-in-law's favorite son. She doesn't want to get involved.
Mrs. Guo frowned and sat there silently waiting for Cheng Chi to come in.
Cheng Chi bowed to his mother and sat on the kang opposite her. After the maid brought tea and snacks, he sent the servants away and said to Mrs. Guo, "My eldest brother came to me a few days ago and asked me how much money I had at home. He said Jiashan was going to get married soon, and we planned to let the couple return to Jinling City to live for a few days after the wedding ceremony in the capital. First, they would show their filial piety to you, and second, they would get to know their relatives, so that the new bride would not even know her relatives. So we just renovated the house in Xinglin Hutong casually and bought some small things. Now that we have separated from Jiuru Lane, everyone will live in the capital for a long time in the future, and Jiashan's new house can't be decorated casually like this. He asked me how much money I had at home... He said that the family must not have enough money to pay for such a thing. He originally wanted to discuss with the Min family to make Jiashan's marriage simpler. So he wrote a letter to his eldest sister-in-law. But his eldest sister-in-law disagreed. She said that she only had Jiashan as her son, and her eldest brother was a minister in the cabinet. The family of the marriage was the Min family in Fujian, and she could not let the eldest daughter of the Min family down no matter what. If the public lord could not come up with the money, the expenses of Jiashan's marriage would be paid by her, and the public lord would not have to worry about it..."
Mrs. Guo's expression suddenly became very ugly, and she asked, "How did you answer?"
The money given to the second house came from the first house's treasury, and not a penny of Yuan's dowry was touched.
Now that Cheng and Xu are getting married, it is reasonable that the money should come from the eldest son's family, and there is absolutely no reason to use Yuan's dowry.
But the law is not beyond human nature.
Now the family has encountered something they have never encountered before. Even if there is extra money in the treasury, without business and land... instead of buying property and living a good life, they are only thinking about their son's marriage.
It has to be a grand celebration.
Afraid that the public treasury could not come up with the money, she used her own dowry to pay.
Her son, who was easily influenced by others, listened to her and consulted with his younger brother...
She really raised a good son!
The fingers of Mrs. Guo holding the round fan turned slightly white.
Cheng Chi sighed secretly.
The eldest brother clearly knew that his mother had a grudge against Yuan, but he still said such words. It can be seen that when it comes to matters between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, the most important thing for a husband is to mediate.
I hope he won’t be stupid enough to push Shao Jin in front of his mother in the future.
He held his mother's hand and whispered to comfort her: "Don't misunderstand, mother. Big brother also understands that it's not easy for the family. After all, he has a high status and position. It's not good for Jiashan's wedding to be too shabby. I told big brother at the time that I had to come back to discuss this with you. But when I came back, I found a way to raise 100,000 taels of silver. I thought, when the time comes, I will tell big brother that this silver is your pocket money - instead of letting big sister-in-law use her pocket money to give to Jiashan for marriage, it's better for you to pay..."
In this case, Yuan had nothing to say.
Madam Guo held Cheng Chi's hand tightly and remained silent for a long while. But as soon as she opened her mouth, she said, "Although we have separated from Jiuru Lane, we are the direct branch of the Cheng family. Naturally, the rules of our family must follow the practices of Jiuru Lane."
The custom in Jiuru Lane is that the marriage of a legitimate son is 1,000 taels of silver, and that of a concubine's son is 500 taels of silver; the marriage of a legitimate daughter is 700 taels of silver, and that of a concubine's daughter is 300 taels of silver. However, Jiuru Lane has been rich for a long time, and no longer follows this rule.
Cheng Chi smiled bitterly and advised Madam Guo, "Our family is not short of that little bit of silver. I will transfer another 100,000 taels of silver back in a few days. You don't have to worry about this kind of thing. It's not worth it to get angry!"
Mrs. Guo said nothing.
But when he met Zhou Shaojin the next day, he asked Zhou Shaojin to copy the account book of Jiuru Lane Inner Courtyard and told her: "Remember all the expenses. If there is anything in the future, follow the usual expenses."
Zhou Shaojin had no idea what had happened between Madam Guo and Cheng Jing. She just agreed and started copying the account books of the inner courtyard of Jiuru Lane.
In the afternoon, Fang Xuan came as expected.
She wore a plain wisteria-colored bodice, a moon-white embroidered skirt, and embroidered shoes with lotus-seed-sized pearls, which made her look elegant and gorgeous.
Mrs. Guo sat and chatted with her in the banquet room.
Zhou Shaojin was copying the account books in the next room.
The old lady invited them to dinner in the evening. The two men smiled and ate dinner with her, then went home separately.
Mrs. Fang was waiting for Fang Xuan in her inner room. When she saw her, she asked her what she had done at Cheng's house that day.
Fang Xuan told her mother the truth.
Mrs. Fang frowned and asked, "You said that the second daughter of the Zhou family was also here? And when you were talking to the old lady, she was copying the account book in the ear room?"
This is clearly telling the second young lady of the Zhou family how to manage a household!
But every family has different practices. What does it mean to let the second daughter of the Zhou family copy the account books of the Cheng family
Madam Guo was the mother of the old man after all, so Fang Xuan did not dare to act unruly in front of her. She cheered herself up and accompanied Madam Guo for an entire afternoon. She was already very tired, so she yawned and said, "Yes! Madam Wei Er said that the old lady asked her to copy all the account books and put them in the storeroom, saying that some of the account books had disappeared before, and these account books had to be kept for future reference."
This is also possible!
Since the eldest branch of the family was separated from Jiuru Lane, it is normal that some things were lost.
But Mrs. Fang Er always felt uneasy.
Every time Fang Xuan went to Jiuru Lane, she would ask her carefully what Zhou Shaojin was doing. She knew that Zhou Shaojin had been copying the account books and had also called Biyu, the old lady's former maid, to copy together. Fang Xuan received guidance from Madam Guo and began to learn how to write with her. Only then did she feel relieved.
Soon the summer was over.
Everything in Jinling City has been arranged.
Things were shipped in from Jinling one after another, and Biyu and others were busy instructing the servants and old women to organize the things into their respective courtyards.
In early August, Yuan rushed back from Jinling to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival.
There also came with them more than a dozen hereditary servants who were willing to follow the Cheng family to settle in the capital. There were also some who were unwilling to settle in the capital but did not want to leave the Cheng family. Yuan arranged for them to help manage the sacrificial fields and look after the ancestral graves.
There was definitely not enough room in Xinglin Hutong, so most of them were resettled in Chaoyangmen.
After washing up in Xinglin Hutong, Yuan's family rushed to their house near Chaoyangmen.
She looked at the towering old trees, the wide corridors, the exquisite pavilions, and the golden lake in the house and couldn't help but open her eyes wide. She asked the nanny she left in Xinglin Hutong to take care of Cheng Jing: "When did the Fourth Master buy this house?"
It’s much bigger than the one in Xingbi Hutong.
Yuan had heard that Madam Guo used her own money to buy a house for Cheng Chi near Chaoyangmen. She thought it was at most a house about the same size as Xinglin Hutong, but she didn't expect it to be... this big.
It is not inferior to the ancestral home of the eldest son in Jiuru Lane.
The maid said respectfully, "I heard that it was three houses combined, and it took a long time to buy them all. As for when the renovation started, I don't know... When the fourth master came to tell me, he had already moved in."
Yuan said "hmm" absentmindedly, and met Mrs. Guo in the upper room of the main courtyard on the east road.
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Hey guys, today's update!
O(∩_∩)O~
PS: Tomorrow is Monday, and I will be very busy. I can only update once, which will be around 8 o'clock in the evening. I apologize for the inconvenience!
※(To be continued)