Starting from a thatched cottage, the farmer embarked on the road to wealth through imperial examina

Although Wulang knew what Xu and others had done to his family, he was a sensible and good boy. When he saw Xu and her daughter coming to the door, he still greeted them politely and invited them in.

"Sister-in-law is here, please sit in the room."

Hearing Wu Lang's voice, Lian also came out.

"Her Third Aunt, Erniu, please stop being so busy. We are a family, there is no need to be so polite."

Xu and Da Niu followed Lian into the house and saw Er Niu busy carrying a stool while Lian picked up the teapot to pour water.

When Ye Changyan heard the sound of Wulang opening the door, he had a feeling that his aunt's visit was not a good thing, so he helped his father, who had some buns, back to the house to rest.

Then Ye Changyan took advantage of no one's attention and returned to his room.

Xu sat down on the stool brought by Erniu, and Erniu sat next to her.

Lian placed the poured water on the stool in front of Xu and sat down next to Erniu who was picking vegetables. While helping her pick the vegetables, she started chatting with Xu.

While talking, Xu kept looking around.

Compared with the old house of the Ye family, this farm is far inferior. The adobe house is covered with blackened thatch.

The rammed earth ground without slabs of stone was swept clean, but the potholes on the ground could not be concealed.

The furnishings in this hall were extremely simple. The only furniture there was an octagonal table with the paint on it mostly peeling off, four long benches, and a few short bamboo stools. There wasn't even a cabinet.

There are a few large pottery jars in the corner, but I didn't see them when I came here last time, and I don't know what's in them.

There are several bamboo plaques hanging on the wall, but nothing else.

In the room, only Lian's mother and daughter were picking vegetables, and Wulang was sitting at the table reading a book, but Ye Xiaozheng and Ye Changyan were nowhere to be seen.

"His Third Aunt, aren't his Third Uncle and Sanlang at home?"

After chatting for a while, Xu decided to get to the point.

"Sister-in-law, you also know that his uncle is not in good health, so he might be resting in his room. Sanlang didn't get enough rest last night, so he might be resting in his room as well."

When Wulang opened the door, Lian saw Ye Changyan helping her husband into the room, and then she never saw the father and son again. When Xu asked about it, Lian had to say that they were all resting.

"We came here with the girl, there's nothing to do, we're just sitting around doing nothing anyway."

Xu smiled and then opened the cloth bag she had brought with her.

"When I had nothing to do at home, I made soles for Dalang and two more pairs of shoes for Sanlang and Wulang. Da Niu also practiced sewing and made two undergarments for Erniu and two pairs of socks for her uncle and aunt."

As he spoke, he took out all the things he had just counted, one by one, and placed them on the stool.

"The stitching is sparse, but it's wearable. I just don't know if it will fit Saburo's feet."

"Sister-in-law, this is unacceptable!"

Lian was a little shocked to see Xu's stool full of clothes, shoes and socks. She had been married into the Ye family for many years and everyone knew that Xu was good at needlework. Dalang and Da Niu were all dressed very elegantly when they were young. In comparison, the children from the second room were dressed much more sloppily.

But in his memory, even the old man and the old lady had never received a single needle or thread from Xu. He didn't know why his sister-in-law came to his poor farm with so many beautifully made clothes, shoes and socks today.

"From what you said, you also know the situation of this family. The old lady is in charge of the family. Sanlang passed the imperial examination and became a scholar. We, as the uncle and aunt, can't produce anything decent. We have been busy for a while, and these are the things that are not presentable. His third aunt, please don't despise them."

Seeing her sister-in-law's sincere look, Lian didn't know what to do for a moment. She looked at Erniu secretly, only to see that she was busy picking vegetables. She glanced at Wulang secretly, only to see that Wulang had buried his head in a book.

Ye Changyan heard the noise outside while in the house. He knew that Lian might not be able to deal with his aunt, so he walked out of the house.

"It's my aunt and my elder sister coming over."

Ye Changyan's voice was heard from the door in the corner, and Xu and the big girl hurriedly got up.

"Sanlang, I hope I didn't disturb your rest."

Xu looked concerned and asked Ye Changyan.

"Aunt, sister, please sit down."

Ye Changyan hurriedly waved at the other party, then covered his mouth with his hand, yawned, and then continued.

"I don't know where the wild cats came from last night. They were fighting outside this house. I couldn't sleep well all night. I just took a nap and I feel much better now."

As he spoke, Ye Changyan seemed to accidentally look down at the clothes, shoes and socks on the stool, then pointed in the direction of the stool and asked.

"This is?"

"Sanlang, you've come just in time. Come over here and try them on. These are the shoes that your aunt made for you. See if they fit your feet."

Xu was just about to change the topic when Ye Changyan asked about it. She quickly picked up the shoes she had prepared for Ye Changyan and motioned for Ye Changyan to go over and try them on.

"Is this for me?"

Ye Changyan asked Xu with some surprise.

"Our Sanlang passed the imperial examination and became a scholar. Your uncle and aunt are not very capable, so they can only make two pairs of shoes for you. I don't know if you like them or not."

After hearing what Xu said, Ye Changyan didn't hesitate to walk to the stool, took the shoes from Xu's hand, and tried them on.

"Hey, is this really made for me?" Ye Changyan looked at Xu and continued, "It looks like it was custom-made. It fits my feet perfectly."

"It's fine as long as it fits."

Afterwards, Xu asked Wulang to try on the shoes as well. He found they still fit him perfectly, so Ye Changyan gladly accepted them.

"Thank you so much, auntie and elder sister. Please remember to thank uncle on my behalf!"

Seeing this, Mrs. Xu smiled as brightly as a flower, and the big girl also smiled shyly.

Lian, Erniu and Wulang didn't know why Ye Changyan would accept it so easily, but they all smiled and thanked him repeatedly.

"Yesterday, I heard that Sanlang bought some land. Your second aunt was very noisy and couldn't explain it clearly. Before leaving, your uncle and your eldest brother asked me to ask if they really bought some land and asked if they needed to go to the fields to help with the farming season. It's not far from the beginning of winter, so don't delay the autumn ploughing."

Sure enough, when the aunt-in-law came to visit, things were not that simple. She used the excuse of sending gifts to bring them closer, and it was also convenient for her to ask what she wanted to know.

Ye Changyan had no intention of hiding the purchase of land from the old house, so he spoke frankly.

"Aunt, you also know the situation on this farm."

As Ye Changyan spoke, he looked towards Xu and saw that Xu's eyes flickered. Seeing this, Ye Changyan smiled secretly in his heart and continued speaking.

"We have five people in our family, including three half-grown children. We need to eat a lot every day. Every month, we have to go to the county to buy medicine for my father, and the cost is not cheap."

Hearing what Ye Changyan said, the faces of Xu's mother and daughter turned ugly. Xu deliberately avoided Ye Changyan's gaze, and the eldest girl also lowered her head.