Zhulan looked at Yao Zheyu’s pale face and said, “Young master’s condition is not good yet, how about one more night’s rest and leaving tomorrow?”

Let’s not exacerbate the situation. Their friendship was at stake, and this was the real world. Look at the male lead’s miserable situation; there was a chance he could have died.

Yao Zheyu was in a hurry to return to the capital. He regretted not waiting for his grandfather’s entourage to arrive. Anxious about his grandfather’s condition, he rushed back with his men. However, on the first day, they fell into an ambush. Yao Zheyu realized that someone deliberately exaggerated his grandfather’s condition to lure him back.

Now he was afraid that his grandfather’s entourage might have arrived at Pingzhou but missed him. If that were the case, it would be even more difficult for him to return to the capital. Although his grandfather had given him many things over the years, the majority of the wealth was still controlled by his grandfather. Not to mention, he absolutely needed to obtain his grandfather’s connections and a list of trusted individuals. He couldn’t let his father get hold of them.

He must go back to the capital, he must go back.

Yao Zheyu said: “Thank you, Madam Xiucai, for your kindness. You took care of me last night and my health has improved a lot. As long as the carriage does not leak, the condition will not get worse.”

Zhulan maintained a smile as the male lead hinted at them to get the donkey cart ready. The Yang family’s donkey cart wasn’t in great condition, only slightly better than a cowshed on wheels. It was bound to be drafty.

Zhou Shuren said: “Young master, go back and rest first. When the cart comes, I will notify you.”

Yao Zheyu thanked, “Sorry to trouble Zhou Xiucai.”

Boss Zhou went to Sunjia Village. It was noon when he came back. Boss Zhou not only brought the cart and donkey back, but he also brought back beef, and there were many pieces of beef, almost ten kilograms in size.

Zhulan looked at the beef, “Where did your wàigōng get the beef?”

Boss Zhou said: “At Sun’s Village, Sun Sanwang’s cowshed collapsed and killed some cows. It happened to be the day when Eldest jiùjiē¹ took wàigōng² and wàipó³ back. After the county officials left, Grandpa bought thirty catties of meat in one go. Ten catties are for Mother. If I hadn’t gone to wàigōng’s house today, Eldest jiùjiē would have brought some tomorrow.”

Seeing that Zhou Eldest didn’t take out any silver, Zhulan knew that her parents had accepted the silver for buying the cart and the donkey. Donkeys were not common in the Northeast, but they were faster than cows, although not as fast as horses. Moreover, they were not cheap.

After Zhou Shuren and Zhulan discussed it, they took twenty taels to buy a donkey and a cart. They wanted to give more, but they were afraid that their parents would not want them, so they finally took the market price.

Zhou Shuren asked the boss to replace the car curtain with a quilt. The straw curtain was leaking too much. He then repaired the inside of the shed to try to prevent it from leaking.

Zhulan asked Li Shi to make porridge and steam steamed buns, then took out an old quilt to spread it inside of the car, and covered the porridge jar and buns with cotton clothes. When everything was ready, she went to notify Yao Zheyu.

In the end, Zhou Shuren took out twenty taels of silver and gave it to Yao Zheyu with a look of pain on his face, “Master, don’t dislike it, I should have given more, but my family bought a new field and a house, and just gave the money for the donkey cart to the Yue family. So I can’t spare much.”

Yao Zheyu’s mood became complex. Although he didn’t spend much time at the house, he knew it wasn’t cheap. How much silver could a scholar have? But looking at Zhou Shuren’s sincere expression, any lingering resentment in his heart vanished. Zhou Shuren indeed had integrity and noble character. “I will remember the favor today,” Yao Zheyu said, “and once my affairs are settled, I will express my gratitude.”

Of course, he gave him some money. Zhou Xiucai had a good heart, but he trusted people too easily. Oh, this was not good. He originally wanted to use Zhou Xiucai to do things in the future, but now it seems that he had to forget it, so as not to harm him when the time came.

Zhou Shuren hid his face and said, “Young Master said this, Zhou is ashamed. Land and house opportunities are rare. The gold ornaments given by Master Zhou have been exchanged for silver. I hope Master will not blame me.”

Yao Zheyu didn’t take it to heart and made a mental calculation. No wonder Zhou Xiucai had the money to buy land and a house.

Zhulan lowered her head and looked at the snow at her feet. It was not easy to rely on acting skills in life. Zhou Shuren’s acting skills even deceived the male protagonist. Speaking of which, it was not easy for them. Dealing with a scheming male lead was difficult; they had to strike a balance, making him feel grateful without arousing his suspicions. It was truly a test of character.

Second Zhou’s face was expressionless, but his heart was not at peace. Dad was really awesome. He could even deceive the young master of the Hou Mansion without changing his expression!

Boss Zhou became more active in his heart, and his back was sweating. He thought to himself, what else was there that Dad didn’t dare to do?

Zhou Shuren and Zhulan saw off Yao Zheyu. The donkey cart left the village and they sent away the big trouble. Zhulan thought it was time to celebrate. It had been a long time since she had wontons, so they would eat wontons tonight.

Yao Zheyu appeared suddenly and left quickly, causing no trouble to the Zhou family. Ten days after Yao Zheyu left, New Year’s Eve arrived.

This was the second New Year that Zhou Shuren and Zhulan were celebrating in ancient times. They ate the same as the first year. There was still a hot pot at noon, but it was more elaborate than last year and there were more types of meat.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, they exchanged New Year’s greetings. With the experience from last year, they had each prepared many auspicious phrases. Unlike last year, when they stumbled over their words, they had all become more adept, which took away some of the fun but ensured smoother interactions.

This year’s red envelopes had doubled compared to last year, with each red envelope worth twenty cents.

After moving to Lijia, they didn’t give out any fewer red packets than they did in Zhoujia. There were more children in Lijia than in Zhoujia, and since Zhulan’s family was considered wealthy and it was their first year there, the children came knocking on their doors after breakfast. Luckily, Zhulan was prepared in advance; otherwise, they wouldn’t have had enough to go around.

The children in Lijia were delighted. Lijia had many children but was also one of the poorest villages in the area. The children rarely had sweets, let alone saw a penny. With a penny, they could buy two pieces of malt candy!

The children in Zhoujiacun were unhappy because they lost a chance to make a penny.

On the second day of the new year, Xuemei came with her family, and Zhulan gave them red envelopes. Zhulan waited for Jiang Sheng and Zhou Shuren to go out, then said, “You guys came early enough. Didn’t you go back to Jiang’s house?”

Xuemei said, “We went back on the thirtieth day of the lunar month, but it was a bit unpleasant. Mother-in-law complained that the New Year’s gift we gave was too little and said a few hurtful words loud enough for my husband to hear. We returned home yesterday at noon. Oh, by the way, Mother, my husband wants to sell the divided house. He plans to sell it to my eldest brother’s family because their eldest son is getting married, and they need a house.”

“Jiang Sheng doesn’t plan to go back in the future?”

Xuemei said happily, “Well, my husband said that he will buy a house in Zhoujia Village in the future. Selling the house will give my parents-in-law some peace of mind.”

She hadn’t expected that her thriving family life at her parent’s home would cause such a big blow to her in-laws. Her relationship with her in-laws had changed, and they seemed somewhat unrecognizable. Perhaps her in-laws had always been like this. If it weren’t for the hardships they had endured in the past, they wouldn’t have been shaped into who they were now.

Xuemei and her husband came to pay New Year greetings and bought meat and clothes for Zhulan and Zhou Shuren. When the couple returned to Zhoujia Village, Zhulan gave two kilograms of mutton with bones, five kilograms of pork, and a rabbit, which was enough for the whole family. She also gave fabrics for a dress and finally gave Xuemei a silver hairpin with precious stones and a pair of silver earrings to Jiang Miao. The little girl had her ears pierced in the winter. By the time she found out, the little girl’s ears were all pierced.

In modern times, she was afraid of having her ears pierced, so in modern times, she had non-pierced ears.

Xuemei didn’t take the basket, “Mom, you and Dad have been supporting us all winter. All these are too many.”

Zhulan handed Xuemei some money and said, “It’s not much, compared to the New Year’s gift you gave. I don’t need much of it myself, and now that you’re married, you’re still my mother’s daughter. Your siblings will also share with you, so please take it!”

Xuemei now deeply understood the feelings her mother experienced after returning from her grandmother’s house in the past—guilt, gratitude, and a sense of helplessness. She couldn’t do much to help her parents, but the least she could do was not to cause them any trouble.

(this chapter is finished)

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Footnote

1. Mother’s brother
2. Maternal Grandfather
3. Maternal Grandmother