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

“It’s not some trivial family stuff, and you’re too impatient to listen to it, so why should I bother talking to you?” Xu rolled her eyes, her tone somewhat disdainful.

It's no wonder she favors Daya; it's just that her daughter Wuya is practically a waste of her time, and she's treated her very poorly most of the time.

Her heart and soul were filled with thoughts of her son and husband; she was even impatient to listen to him speak.

She used to live in her hometown, which was far away, so there was nothing she could do. After moving to Beijing, she rarely came to visit her parents. Even her son-in-law, an outsider, treated her better than she did.

As time went on, Xu Shi grew disillusioned with her daughter and treated her merely as a relative.

Wuya felt embarrassed by these words and stammered, "It's not that I don't like to hear it, it's just that you always say the same old things, repeating the same old tunes, reminiscing about the bitter past and appreciating the sweet present, and you even shed tears at the end. It's really meaningless. Besides, I'm busy taking care of the children right now and don't have time. If you're really bored, you can chat with the servants!"

"Forget it, forget it. You're heartless. You wouldn't understand even if I told you. You're just wasting my feelings. Let's go, let's go out!" Xu Shi was too lazy to say anything more.

Daya smiled but didn't interrupt, instead playing with the child on the side.

Wu Ya muttered in a low voice, "Big sister, only you can stand Mother's nagging."

"What are you saying!" Daya slapped her sister's arm unhappily. "We'll all get old one day, we should understand how hard it is for our mother."

“What does she know?” Mrs. Xu shook her head. “By the time she truly understands, she’ll probably be my age.”

After they came out, Wu Ya and Daya's families said goodbye and left.

Both families had a pregnant woman and a young child, so they needed to go home early to rest.

Madam Xu didn't try to keep them; she waved them away.

Both families brought large bags and small packages.

Little Fish was already a bit sleepy, but he still remembered that he had to wait for his dad to finish washing up before they went to sleep together, and his dad would tell him a story!

Who knew that after he finished washing up, he waited and waited in the room, but his father never came back.

At this time, Xu told Zhang Lao Er and Zhang Ping An about Zhu Zhu.

Zhang Ping'an wasn't too surprised. What major conflict could there be between the new bride and her sister-in-law? Although Zhu Zhu was a bit spoiled, she was sensible and it was probably just about the family's property.

Zhang Lao Er actually understood quite well; that's human nature. "In the past two years, everything in Beijing has been rising in price. Housing prices and grain prices are more than double what they used to be. The house your eldest sister and her husband bought back then was in a good location, and it has appreciated a lot now, even ridiculously so. Plus, your eldest sister is good at making money and has a long-term vision. She later opened several clothing and cosmetic shops and bought land in the suburbs. If you think about it carefully, her family business is not small. Giving more than 30% of it to Zhuzhu as a dowry is indeed a generous move!"

“Zhuzhu is married and can no longer take any property from her parents’ home. My eldest sister feels sorry for her and naturally gave her more. But Donkey Egg and Cat Egg are still young. As long as I am here and my brother-in-law is here, there will be plenty of opportunities and time to make money in the future. The family’s business will only be bigger than it is now. This nephew’s wife is too narrow-minded.”

After listening to a few candid comments, Zhang Ping'an immediately realized that his nephew's wife lacked magnanimity.

Madam Xu also said, "Well, she's not exactly a bad person, otherwise your eldest sister wouldn't have tolerated her until now. But she's very tight-lipped about money. She always feels that Donkey Egg is the eldest son and will get the lion's share of the family business in the future. Giving so much as a dowry at once is like cutting off their share. That's why she's unhappy about it."

“A good man doesn’t eat the food from a family division meal. Donkey Egg also handled this matter poorly. Alright, I’ll go to my eldest sister’s house in a couple of days,” Zhang Ping’an said, tapping the table lightly.

"That would be perfect. If you get closer to your older sister, others will look at their family more favorably," Xu said with a smile, her crow's feet at the corners of her eyes deepening.

Once the matter was clarified, Zhang Ping'an went back to his room.

Little Fish was still half asleep, his eyes half-closed. When he saw Zhang Ping'an come in, he sat up abruptly, rubbing his eyes and muttering, "Dad, why are you only coming back to your room now? You said you were going to tell me a story!"

Seeing his son resisting sleep and being so well-behaved, Zhang Ping'an's heart melted. He sat down on the edge of the bed and said, "You're so sleepy, aren't you going to sleep?"

"I am not sleepy!"

To make his words more believable, Little Fish opened his eyes wide.

It's as if it's saying: Look, my eyes are wide open, I'm not sleepy at all!

Zhang Ping'an couldn't bear it and coaxed gently, "Go to sleep. Tomorrow I'll have Uncle Xiaohu ask the school for leave for you, and Dad will take you to the Ge family to play."

"Go to the Ge family?" Xiaoyuer tilted her head and realized who it was. "They have a Hu'er named Maomao. My grandparents took me there for the baby's third-day celebration and the baby's full-moon celebration."

"Yes, it's their family. Uncle Ge has helped Dad a lot, and Dad and Uncle Ge have a very good relationship. When we were at Yumen Pass, Dad had already adopted his son as his godson. I was originally planning to come back to their family's full moon celebration, but I still missed it. Tomorrow morning, after Dad goes to your maternal grandfather's house, I plan to go to their house to take a look. Do you want to come with me? To see your younger brother."

“Alright, then I’ll go with Dad,” Little Fish replied, sitting cross-legged and waving his hand in a cooperative manner.

Actually, he had already seen it. Apart from the different hair color, they all had two eyes, one nose, and one mouth, so there was nothing special about them.

Oh, if I had to say something, there is one: her voice is extremely loud, and her crying is really noisy!

Once she knew she could spend the whole day with her dad tomorrow, Xiaoyuer fell asleep contentedly and stopped insisting on hearing a story.

Looking at his son who fell asleep instantly, Zhang Ping'an could only marvel at how good the child's sleep was.

After sitting and reading for a while, I turned off the light and went to sleep.

The next morning, the father and son got up early. Little Fish's biological clock was already very regular, and he wouldn't stay in bed too long.

Mrs. Xu smiled and called her grandson over to have breakfast, asking, "Why didn't you sleep in a little longer today since you're not going to the clan school?"

"I want to go with Dad to Uncle Ge's house to see their little rascal," Xiaoyuer replied in a clear voice.

"Oh, is it called Mao Mao?" Zhang Lao Er asked kindly.

He has a good memory and still remembers the child's name.

“It’s Mao Mao,” Little Fish nodded.

Mrs. Xu also remembered, and replied with a smile: "Their child is very healthy. He was born with two teeth in his mouth and has a loud voice. He will definitely grow tall."

"Yes, that's why he was nicknamed Maomao. But his hair is really eye-catching. I'm afraid he won't have a good time in the capital when he grows up," Zhang Lao Er said, quite surprised as it was his first time meeting Hu'er Zaizai.

However, since Chuan Chuan is not well-liked, it is foreseeable that this child has no hope for a career in government.

Zhang Ping'an naturally knew this as well, and calmly announced: "It's alright. I've already recognized him as my godson. I believe that out of respect for me, no one will dare to bully him easily."