The journey of the only child of a peasant family to take the imperial examination

Chapter 415 Little New Year

Although it is vacation, the classmates in Shangshe have changed their previous habit of traveling together. This winter vacation, I haven't heard anyone say that they have made an appointment with friends to go out for winter hunting or drink tea and appreciate plum blossoms.

Everyone is working hard in secret.

According to custom, relatives have lunch together at noon on the day of the Little New Year.

In the past, everyone’s economic conditions were average, so although it was called the Little New Year, the food was actually not much different from usual. The highlight was the New Year’s Eve dinner on New Year’s Eve.

But things are different this year.

We have to have a decent feast no matter what.

This kind of matter should always be handled by the eldest wife.

However, the main house is small, so Zhang Ping'an told Qian Youyi in advance so that the other party could be mentally prepared.

Qian Youyi frowned slightly when he heard this, then nodded and said softly, "Okay, I understand."

After Zhang Pingan finished speaking, he went to talk to his mother again: "Mom, please pack some decent ingredients in advance tomorrow and ask Old Man Lu to send them to my uncle's house, so that my aunt won't be embarrassed when she prepares the New Year's dinner tomorrow at noon."

Xu nodded: "Okay, I think so too."

After saying that, he sighed again and said, "This is not a good match. Many things are very inconvenient to do. Your father is not the eldest son, which makes it even more difficult!"

"Mom, it's okay. This situation won't last long. After I take the imperial examination next year, no matter whether I pass or not, I have to make a living. Not only do I have to live a good life, but I also have to take care of Brother Dazhu and the others. As the saying goes, it is better to teach a man to fish than to give him a fish. If they live a good life, it can save our family a lot of trouble," Zhang Pingan persuaded.

"Well, mother knows that you are a man with plans in mind," said Mrs. Xu in a very proud tone, feeling proud of her son.

"By the way, how are those people from Black Wind Ferry doing at the manor? Are they all settled?"

Speaking of this, Zhang Laoer had something to say, and continued: "They are very good, all very down-to-earth, and are honest farmers. They are much better than those tenants on the farm before!"

Xu agreed, "Yes, we made the right choice! But they were so pitiful. When they arrived, they were all starving. I heard from them that several of them had sold themselves into slavery in other families. Now everyone in their village is trying to save money so that they can redeem them when times get better."

"This atmosphere is much better than that in our village," Zhang Ping'an admired the spirit of unity.

After thinking for a while, he looked up and said to Zhang Laoer, "Dad, when we go to the village on the 29th, you can give them each a 100-wen reward so that they can have a good new year. As for how they use the money, don't worry about it."

Xu asked, "Isn't this a bit too many? There are quite a lot of them!"

Zhang Pingan didn't have time to explain.

Zhang Laoer said in a deep voice, "My son has his own reasons for doing things. We should just follow his instructions and stop asking him questions!"

Mrs. Xu was a little unconvinced and said with her hands on her hips, "Hey, you! I can't ask a few questions to my own son?!"

Zhang Pingan was a little amused and helpless when he saw this, so he quickly tried to persuade him.

Xu was not really angry, she was just complaining.

The old couple soon reconciled.

After breakfast the next day, Xu asked Old Man Lu to take the packed things to the eldest wife's house first, and took Mrs. Hu with her to help.

When it was almost time for lunch, the family took a carriage to Zhang's house.

The gifts were all prepared by Xu, and Qian Youyi did not interfere.

This made Xu feel that her daughter-in-law respected her very much, and she was very satisfied.

Zhang Laoer was also in a good mood. He always enjoyed the feeling of taking his son to visit friends during the Chinese New Year and other holidays.

After Zhang Lao Da and Zhang Lao San bought their own houses, they lived separately, but in the same alley, both in a relatively remote location in the north of the city.

Fortunately, the surrounding area is relatively quiet and the people living here are all decent people. The environment is much better than that in the south of the city.

The carriage was wide and the alley was narrow, so it could not go in when it reached the entrance of the alley.

Zhang Ping'an helped Qian Youyi down, and the maids and servants hurriedly held umbrellas and put bricks on the ground.

The roads are slippery in winter. If you don’t put bricks under the ground, not only will your clothes and shoes be splashed with mud, but you will also easily slip.

The group walked in slowly.

The gorgeous attire and the scene were out of place in the north of the city.

Fortunately, in winter, if people don’t go out to work, almost everyone stays at home, and there are not many people walking in the alley at this time.

Even though they were very careful, the hems of their cloaks were still a little stained when they arrived at Mr. Zhang's house.

Xu was heartbroken.

"Mom, it's okay. Just go back and ask the maid to wash it," Qian Youyi didn't care.

After a few people knocked on the door, footsteps were immediately heard in the yard: "Here they come."

It was the voice of Dazhu's cousin.

Dazhu opened the door and smiled innocently, "Second Uncle, you're here! Come in! My parents and grandparents are waiting for you!"

"Yeah," Zhang Lao Er nodded in response, "Is your third uncle here?"

"Not yet. The two families are close to each other. Aunt San said they will come later," Dazhu said with a smile.

Xu couldn't help but curl her lips when she heard this and whispered, "I think your Third Aunt is just trying to shirk her responsibilities!"

Upon hearing this, Dazhu scratched his head and didn't know how to respond. He could only smile awkwardly and pretend not to hear.

Zhang Ping'an secretly pulled his mother's sleeve, indicating that it was enough.

After entering the main hall, everyone first paid their respects to Old Man Zhang and Mrs. Zhang.

The old man and the old woman were warming themselves around the brazier.

I was very happy to see Zhang Laoer and his friends coming.

Zhang waved her hand and said, "No need for all the formalities. Please take a seat!"

In order to save money, the eldest son bought a very small house. After everyone sat down, the main room suddenly felt very crowded.

This was because Qian Youyi had instructed the maids and servants to wait in the car in advance and not come in.

Otherwise there would be no room to sit.

Mrs. Li was busy in the kitchen. When she saw a few people coming, she quickly took off her apron and went to the main hall to greet everyone.

When he saw what the second wife brought, he smiled even more happily.

In other words, she only contributed labor today, the second house provided all the food, and she also received a generous holiday gift.

I just hope that the old man and the old woman are in good health and can live more years so that they can help their children more.

As long as the old man and the old woman are around, my house will benefit from it.

Li has always seen things much more clearly than Ma.

"Sister-in-law, there are still a few dishes that haven't been cooked. Do you need our help?" asked Mrs. Xu.

"Oh, no need!" Li said hurriedly.

She was very sensible, so how could she ask Ping'an's wife to come and help?

"Ping'an, please sit for a while. Everything has been cleaned up and the dinner will be served soon. Thanks to your mother for asking Mrs. Hu to come and help this morning, it saved us a lot of trouble!" Li said with a smile.

After hearing this, Xu Shi did not stand up and said politely, "Thank you for your hard work today, sister-in-law."

She knew that her sister-in-law was very smart, and that was why she asked Mrs. Hu to come and help. She definitely couldn't let her daughter-in-law go into the kitchen to help.

Fortunately, my sister-in-law was very cooperative, and it was worth it for her to give so many things!

Everyone was chatting and exchanging pleasantries in the house, mainly Xu and Zhang Laoer talking, and the others listening.

"Then can I also work on your farm? It's not a good idea to always help others repair houses," suggested Boss Zhang.

"Boss, your waist and legs are not in good condition, and farming is hard work. It would be good for you to help people repair houses and pick up tiles now," Zhang interrupted calmly after hearing this.

This is what it means not to talk about it anymore.

Boss Zhang felt very sorry.