Zhulan looked at Boss Zhou, who nodded, “We were afraid of rain and hurried home. We left the city gate and caught up with the Zhang family’s ox cart. I glanced at Wang Ru hastily, and she was still there. She hasn’t woken up, but her face looks much better.”

Li Shi sighed, “The people next door are really unlucky. Wang Ru was injured and then got caught in the rain. Just hope she doesn’t get a high fever again.”

Zhulan looked at the rain getting heavier and she was already in the dark. It was autumn, with autumn rain and cold weather, Wang Ru’s luck was indeed bad. In ancient times, she was afraid of colds and typhoid fever, which could kill people.

Seeing her mother-in-law looking at the meat in her hands, Li Shi chuckled, “Mom, the pig that was killed today is very fat. It is said to weigh two hundred and twenty kilograms. Mom, let’s see if the fatty meat is fat. We must be able to extract a lot of lard from it.”

Zhulan nodded, “It’s indeed fat enough.”

The pigs they raised this year were also good, estimated to weigh two hundred kilograms!

When Li Shi thought about eating hot pot at night, she carried the meat enthusiastically, “Mom, I’m going to extract the lard.”

“Go ahead, by the way, make the bone soup first. You can also have a bowl of bone soup at noon.”

Li Shi had already entered the kitchen, shouting, “I know, mother.”

Zhulan sat under the eaves and continued to sew clothes. It was too dark in the house on a rainy day, and she didn’t want to light an oil lamp to hurt her eyes, so she could only find a place with enough light to sit.

After a piece of clothing was sewn, there was movement next door, and the voice of being careful not to get caught in the rain could be vaguely heard. Wang Ru was back. The next door was noisy, and Fourth Wang’s voice could also be heard. She didn’t believe Fourth Wang was worried about Wang Ru. Yesterday, he was busy working for Wang Ru just for money. There was no money tree and he was spending his money. Fourth Wang had been keeping a low profile in the past six months!

Fourth Wang also wanted to make things right, but unfortunately, Wang Ru didn’t give him any chance. Now he finally got the chance. She even wondered if Fourth Wang had deliberately angered Wang Zhang Shi in order to get slapped.

The heavy rain didn’t last long and stopped at noon. After the rain stopped, the wind picked up and it was quite cool. There was a fire in Zhulan’s house, and it was really comfortable to sleep on the kang bed during the afternoon.

In the afternoon, Zhulan didn’t have to worry about anyone coming. Everyone knew that she had the habit of taking a lunch break so as to take good care of herself. If no one came in the morning, no one would come in the afternoon. Zhulan slept until she woke up naturally.

Li Shi held back her words and finally waited until her mother-in-law woke up. “Mom, Wang Ru has called the doctor again. She really has a fever.”

Zhao Shi answered, “I don’t know if she can survive such a serious injury.”

Zhulan wasn’t surprised that Wang Ru had a fever. Anyone in her condition wouldn’t withstand getting caught in the rain. She asked, “Was Dr. Lu invited?”

Li Shi looked at the excitement at her door and nodded: “Doctor Lu was invited.”

Zhulan thought about Dr Lu who came in person, “The Wang family must have given a lot of money!”

Li Shi said excitedly: “Mother, it was not invited by the Wang family. Shi Gongzi is here. He sent someone to invite him. And Wang Ru woke up for a while and drove Wang Daya away like crazy. Wang Daya was kicked out and was taken home by Sun Shi.”

Zhulan was surprised, “Only Wang Xin was kicked out?”

Li Shi nodded, “I heard it true at the door of our house. Wang Ru asked Wang Daya to get lost. I don’t know what Wang Daya did. Shi Gongzi’s entourage came out with Wang Daya and Fourth Wang. The couple also rushed out, but Wang Ru passed out again!”

Zhulan really didn’t expect that so many things would happen after she fell asleep for half an hour, “Is Doctor Lu gone?”

As Zhulan finished speaking, Doctor Lu and his son entered the courtyard. Zhulan quickly got up and said, “Doctor Lu, are you heading back to the county? I’ll have the eldest arrange the carriage for you right away.”

Dr Lu waved his hand, “My son and I are not going back to the city. We’ve come to stay for a while. Madam Xiucai, please don’t worry. We’ll be imposing on you for a few days.”

He wasn’t planning to stay overnight next door, for he found the idea of being surrounded by nosy people in the house quite bothersome. As he grew older, all he wanted was to find some peace and quiet.

Zhulan lowered her voice, “Is the situation next door bad?”

Dr. Lu didn’t hide it, “Indeed, it’s not good. With such a high fever, I’ve prescribed strong medicine. We’ll see how he is tonight.”

Zhulan inwardly reflected that if Wang Ru had known what would happen today, she would definitely not have taken the risk. After all, it was Wang Ru’s own fault for acting rashly without fully understanding the situation. She said, “Doctor Lu, please come this way. I apologize for inconveniencing you by having you stay in my grandson’s room for these few days.”

Dr. Lu said, “I should be embarrassed. Where does the grievance come from.”

Zhu Lan had new blankets at home. She led the way to the room and instructed Li Shi to take the blankets for her two grandsons to Chang Zhi’s room. For the next few days, the two grandsons would be staying with Chang Zhi.

Then she moved out two new beddings and put them on the kang. She said to Dr. Lu: “I will ask Boss to come over and light a fire later. There is a well in the yard for easy water. If you want to boil water, there are also pots for boiling water. What else do you need?”

Dr. Lu’s son, Lu Lingzhi, added, “Thank you for your trouble, Madam Xiucai.”

Since learning the name of Mr. Lu’s son, Zhulan had specifically asked why he was named Lingzhi. Old Master Lv candidly replied that it was because Lingzhi was precious. He mentioned that his grandson was also named Lu Réncān, but after strong protests from the grandson as he grew older, his name was changed to Lu Renshen.

T/N Note

There was quite a word play in the name of the grandson. The doctor originally named him 人参 which means ginseng and sounds like rén shēn. But he didn’t like his name so it was changed to 壬申 which is also pronounced like rén shēn but as AI told me, “The name “壬申” (Renshen) is derived from the Chinese zodiac system, where each year is associated with one of the twelve animals and one of the ten celestial stems. “壬” (Ren) refers to the ninth of the ten heavenly stems, while “申” (Shen) represents the ninth of the twelve earthly branches corresponding to the monkey in the Chinese zodiac. Therefore, “壬申” refers to a specific year in the Chinese calendar cycle, and when used as a name, it often carries the connotation of the year of birth or a particular astrological significance.”

Zhulan felt sympathy for the younger generation of the Lu family. Zhulan smiled and went out, asking Boss Zhou to make tea and send it over.

A fire was lit in the house of Dr. Lu and his son, and Shi Qing’s boy came to the door, holding a box with a purse on it.

Boss Zhou came out to pick it up. After seeing the person off, Zhulan came out and asked, “What did he say?”

Boss Zhou put down the box, “The box is a thank you gift for Wang Ru. Thank you for yesterday’s help. In the purse are the accommodation and food expenses for Dr. Lu and his son.”

Li Shi was extremely curious but didn’t dare to open it to see what kind of gift was given. However, she originally disliked Wang Ru living next door, but the thank-you gifts she received in the past two days had worn out the knot in her heart.

Zhulan opened the purse and found a five-tael silver ingot. Shi Qing was so generous. She could let them stay for this money for a year!

Zhulan initially intended to put the silver into her purse for Zhao Shi to keep. However, when she noticed Li Shi eyeing the purse, Zhulan hesitated. Li Shi had a talent for cooking but lacked interest in needlework and embroidery, unlike Zhulan. Li Shi had always admired embroidered purses and handkerchiefs but didn’t know how to make them herself. Since Li Shi seemed interested in the purse, Zhulan handed the silver to Zhao Shi instead, saying, “You keep the silver.”

Zhao Shi had become accustomed to taking care of household expenses, “I’ll put it into the account when I get back.”

In the disappointed gaze of Li Shi, Zhulan took the purse. She didn’t open the box, nor did she intend to show it to Boss or Second Zhou. Some things were better left unknown. The less they understood about the family’s background, the better Zhulan and Zhou Shuren could steer the direction of the household.

Zhulan carried the box back to her room. Only when she was in her room, did she open the box to see. This time it was also a silver ingot. No wonder it was so heavy. There were four five-tael silver ingots inside, a total of twenty taels of silver. The thank you gift was silver. You could tell at a glance that Shi Qing came from Pingzhou in a hurry and only brought money with him!

Putting away the money, Zhulan thought silently, the seventh lunar month was prosperous for the Zhou family. This month was like the God of Wealth entering the house. Money was flowing into the Zhou household like it had grown legs, with a new shop opening in just a few days.

Li Shi knocked on the door, “Mom, may I come in?”

(End of Chapter)

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