Chapter 199: Chapter 185: Jinbao’s Full Moon, Preparing for Beijing
The Second Lang couple also came for the Xie Family Fish Pond.
Earlier, when Song Yuanbao was reporting the news from the Capital to Aunt Xie in the main room, Song Erlang and his wife were contemplating in their own room.
The Second Lang’s wife had long given up hope on her mother-in-law, knowing that even if the Third Son passed the advanced scholar exam and became an official, bringing Yuanbao to fetch people, it would not be their second household’s turn, so she didn’t bother to flatter and embarrass herself. She discussed with her husband that, if the Xie Family wanted to go to Beijing, they should spend some money to take over their fish pond.
The surrounding relatives, whether becoming officials or doing business, were all living prosperous lives, each better than the last.
When the Second Lang’s wife compared, she found that their family was the most insignificant, neither having a son nor having silver.
Back then, after much persuasion, they managed to get hold of the land from the eldest son’s family, hoping it could produce more grain. They intended to eat some and sell the excess for money, but after the autumn harvest, a continuous torrential rain flooded the storage entirely, spoiling all the grain. They didn’t earn a penny and almost went hungry, and in the end, the couple had no choice but to turn to the elders for help.
This year, even before the harvest, the Second Lang’s wife’s mind was no longer on this.
Money! She dreamed of having money.
The Wen Family was once so poor, but with the few pieces of jewelry from the youngest sister-in-law, they managed to open a shop in the county, and instantly prospered. Look at what Mrs. Zhou wears now that she’s back, which piece doesn’t make others envious?
Thinking of the youngest sister-in-law, the Second Lang’s wife felt even more frustrated.
A dumb mute, disliked by everyone and of marriageable age without any suitors, married to her naturally unlucky brother-in-law.
One couldn’t speak since young, the other born under a cloud of bad luck.
The year the Third Son got engaged, she laughed so hard she couldn’t breathe, sarcastically saying they were a perfect match.
Now it truly fulfilled the old saying: Life is unpredictable.
One day, fortune changes sides. The mute isn’t mute anymore, and the unlucky brother-in-law, who always met misfortune when leaving the house, passed as a third-place scholar and became an official. Now, he gets whatever he wants, as pleased as he can be.
Only their family has achieved nothing. They couldn’t even keep the grain from the few acres of land they took from the eldest brother’s family.
The more the Second Lang’s wife thought about it, the more frustrated and unbearable it became.
No, she had to think of a way to get money too. Sitting at home guarding a few acres of barren land, they won’t starve, but when something happens, they can’t produce any silver.
So upon hearing that Xie Zheng also passed the advanced scholar exam, the Second Lang’s wife had no idle time to be jealous. Her first thought was the Xie Family Fish Pond. Don’t be fooled by its current small scale; once they acquire it and manage it well, won’t they earn a lot of money in the future?
"Mother, Aunt." Song Erlang caught his breath and started calling out.
Granny Song saw the couple rushing in and couldn’t help but comment, "Chased by ghosts?"
Song Yuanbao and Aunt Xie stopped talking and looked at the two.
Song Erlang felt a bit awkward.
The Second Lang’s wife quietly pulled him a little.
Song Erlang immediately straightened his expression, looked at Aunt Xie, and directly asked, "Aunt, since Xie Zheng passed as an advanced scholar, are you all planning to move to Beijing?"
Aunt Xie glanced at Granny Song, then at Song Yuanbao, shook her head, and said, "Yuanbao said his cousin’s matter hasn’t been settled yet. It’s uncertain whether we’ll stay in the Capital. Why, Erlang?"
Hearing that it hadn’t been settled yet, Song Erlang suddenly found it hard to speak, his face turning slightly red with embarrassment.
The Second Lang’s wife’s eyes glittered with the thought of silver, not caring about much else. If Song Erlang couldn’t speak, she would. "Aunt, we came to discuss something with you. If my cousin really settles in Beijing and you plan to move the family there, that fish pond is left idle anyway, so why not let our family take over!"
Granny Song found it amusing, "Your Aunt Xie spent so much silver and effort on that fish pond, worried to the point of exhaustion. Now your family says take over, and it just happens? Where can you find such a good deal in the world?"
The Second Lang’s wife hurriedly said, "Look at what you’re saying, Mother. If you can consider Aunt’s hardships, we, the younger generation, certainly can too. Since the two of us have brought it up today, there’s no unreasonable expectation of getting something for nothing. Aunt, name a price, and we’ll gather the money to take it over."
These words sounded sensible, so Granny Song stopped chiming in, glancing at Aunt Xie, waiting for her to speak as the rightful owner.
Mrs. Zhou had intended to speak to Aunt Xie, but didn’t expect Song Erlang and his wife to jump in first. Feeling frustrated, she couldn’t stand outside any longer, so she went directly to Wen Wan’s west room and held her fair and chubby little grandson, giving him a kiss to finally feel much better.
Meanwhile, in the main room, negotiations continued.
Aunt Xie’s attitude was vague; she neither clearly stated she wouldn’t transfer it to their family nor agreed outright.
In truth, she felt conflicted.
She knew well enough the capabilities of Song Erlang and his wife, without needing anyone to exaggerate.
Judging by how they couldn’t even preserve the grain from the few acres of land from the eldest son’s family, it was clear they were only good at failure rather than success.
The fish and shrimp in the Xie Family Fish Pond at Qingshui Bay were raised by Aunt Xie day after day, and she had developed some feelings for them. It’s not that she didn’t care about family ties, but she didn’t want to hand over her hard work to people who didn’t understand. Even if she received money in the end, thinking about the fish and shrimp possibly dying in the hands of Erlang and his wife made her uncomfortable, with an impulse to rather release them than sell them.
In the end, this issue was settled with Xie Zheng not coming to invite the Xie Family to Beijing, so the matter was left unresolved.
Second Lang’s wife was not discouraged though, thinking that given their family relationship, when the time comes, she could ask Granny Song to say a few words. Aunt Xie, for the sake of family, would surely give them some face and let their family take over the fish pond.
She gave a hint for Song Erlang to leave first, while Second Lang’s wife sat down, patted Song Yuanbao’s head, and asked him a few questions about Song Wei in the Capital.
She heard that Third Son bought a house by himself and now that he ranked high in the exams, the Emperor bestowed a third-place scholar plaque, which is hanging above the gate of his small courtyard he purchased.
Second Lang’s wife felt like she couldn’t help but feel the urge to spit blood.
——
This time Song Yuanbao returned, not only to ask his grandparents to pack up and prepare to go to Beijing but also needed to go to the town to handle the withdrawal procedures. His father is now a Sixth-Rank Imperial Scholar, and he is an official’s son. As his father rises further, he can secure a spot to directly enter the Imperial College as a supervisor.
Supervisors are exempt from the prefectural, county, and academy exams. Entering is equivalent to being a scholar; when the examination year comes, they directly participate in the provincial exam.
After handling the withdrawal procedures, Jinbao happened to be one month old.
Granny Song invited several women from the village to help cook, held a banquet with quite a spectacle.
Firstly, to celebrate the joy of her youngest grandson’s full month.
Secondly, to invite the villagers to a meal in honor of Song Wei’s third-place scholar achievement.
Thirdly, since they would soon pack up and leave, it was only right emotionally and rationally to gather all friends and relatives before leaving.
Although they would not set off immediately due to Jinbao being too young, Granny Song didn’t want any more trouble later, so she decided to hold all the banquets together.
After being cooped up inside for a month, Wen Wan could finally have a tidy bath and change into light clothing to meet people.
After the relatives had eaten, they all moved to the west room to see Jinbao.
The weather was too hot, so Jinbao only wore a small bellyband embroidered with the words "Peace Year After Year."
His little arms and legs were all exposed, lying in the cradle. Upon seeing so many eyes staring at him, he suddenly went silent when he had been babbling before. His big, black eyes looked around, seemingly searching for someone.
Not seeing his only familiar mother, the little boy pouted and cried.
Wen Wan was outside enduring her relatives’ "endless questioning," but upon hearing Jinbao’s cries, she hurried inside the west room.
The little boy was crying so much that his tears and snots were all mixed up, and the more others tried to hold him, the more he cried.
When he saw his mother coming, he reluctantly stopped crying, but he still seemed aggrieved, sobbing intermittently.
Wen Wan picked him up, wiped his tears and snot. Once the little boy calmed down, someone sighed, "The official’s child is indeed different, recognizing people at just a month old."
Wen Wan chuckled dismissively, "How can he recognize people? It’s just that he hasn’t seen so many people during his confinement, and suddenly seeing them all makes him a bit uncomfortable."
"That can’t be right. I actually think, like father, like son; when Song Wei was little, he was different from others. Maybe Jinbao inherited from his father, making him different and with a great future ahead."
Well, when one has status and position, even passing gas is fragrant.
If Jinbao’s father hadn’t ranked third, even if Jinbao inherited, he could only inherit his father’s bad luck. But as his father succeeded, what Jinbao inherited was only intelligence and ability, while bad luck, well, they all went to hell.
In the past, it was not apparent, but now Jinbao’s distant family relatives seemed to have insightful eyes and god-like powers, seeing through his official fortune and marriage at just a month old — simply impressive enough to ascend to divine ranks.
Wen Wan didn’t continue the chatter. Once the little boy fell asleep, she entertained the relatives outside to avoid disturbing him.
——
Before returning home, Song Wei specifically instructed Song Yuanbao to hire an escort agency to transport his valuable collection from the study to Beijing.
These days, Song Yuanbao had been busy in the study.
Wen Wan would occasionally come to help when Jinbao was asleep.
Knowing that all those things inside were rare, the two of them didn’t dare exert too much force.
The relics were sent to Beijing first, and Yuanbao lingered with Wen Wan at home for two more months until the little boy was a hundred days old. Only then did Granny Song find someone to pick an auspicious day to prepare for the journey to Beijing.
Meanwhile, the Xie Family had already received a letter from Xie Zheng, saying he had passed the exams and would stay in the Capital. He asked his parents, wife, second younger brother, and sister-in-law to pack up all their belongings and move the entire household to the Capital.