【Quick Wear】My Years as a Mother-in-law

"No, other nannies will take over when the baby is one year old."

"That's good."

"It's pretty good. Food and lodging are provided, and I get paid. It's only natural that I should do more work."

As they were talking, the two came to the fifth courtyard. Children are small and prone to making noises, so they are usually raised in a small courtyard at the end.

Yun Xi observed the environment as she walked and found it was quite clean. Those lonely elderly people were not just sitting there doing nothing. Those with hands and feet had work to do.

Nanny Chen explained that the laundry, cooking, cleaning and other chores in the orphanage were all done by the elderly and widowed people, who would be paid a small salary. As for the disabled elderly, they would be responsible for taking care of the children. The court allocated funds and supplies, which were basically inexhaustible.

In addition, they receive some social donations every year. The person in charge of the orphanage uses the money to buy supplies for everyone and also bought a large farm outside the city. Now, even without the government funding, the social donations and the output of the large farm are enough to be self-sufficient.

Nowadays, some of the money and materials allocated by the court will be distributed to orphans who have graduated from schools to help them gain some confidence before entering society. Some talented children who want to take the imperial examinations can also borrow money to do so. From these measures, it can be seen that the person in charge of the orphanage is an official with conscience and responsibility.

Soon they arrived at the room where the babies lived. Yun Xi followed them in and found it surprisingly clean, without any unpleasant smells. However, there were a few children whining, and she wondered what was wrong.

There was a big kang, a set of old tables and chairs, and a burning hanging stove in the room. There was a half-meter-high edge of bricks on the edge of the kang. It was probably because a child fell off the kang in the past, so it was covered.

"Which one of them is Yunduan, the little kid from the Yun family?"

"Madam Yun, please wait a moment. Please sit down first. I will feed the children."

I saw Nanny Chen scoop a bowl of thick millet porridge with rice oil from the pot on the stove, blew on it and put it on the table, then picked up the whimpering children one by one and fed each of them a few mouthfuls of millet porridge. The bowl of millet porridge was soon empty.

"Madam Yun, please forgive me for laughing. Hiring a wet nurse is too extravagant. Most children are raised on millet porridge."

Yun Xi shook her head. "I understand. When I get back, I'll find two ewes with milk and bring them over."

Nanny Chen was overjoyed. "Thank you, Madam Yun. Madam Yun is kind-hearted and will surely bring blessings to herself."

"That doesn't matter. I just can't bear to see the suffering in the world, so I'd like to do my bit to help. It doesn't matter whether I get anything in return or not." Yun Xi smiled and sat quietly waiting.

Nanny Chen skillfully coaxed the children to sleep and brought a chubby baby from the kang. "Mrs. Yun, look, this is Yunduan. He can eat and sleep now. He's easy to take care of."

Looking at the wooden sign hanging around the child's neck, Yun Xi nodded, took the child and held him in her arms. The little baby smacked his lips in his sleep and leaned into her arms. The quiet baby was so lovable.

Yun Xi gave the child a rough check and confirmed that he was healthy, so she decided to adopt him.

"Madam Yun, you can take the child to the steward just now to go through the adoption procedures." Nanny Chen reminded.

"Okay, I'll go right away."

The child didn't have any luggage when he was sent here, and when he left, he only took away a cotton coat and a swaddling cloth. Compared with the money and goods donated by Yun Xi, it was a drop in the bucket.

Holding the child, she walked towards the gate. Passing by other courtyards, she saw the envious and pleading eyes of the children. Yun Xi almost softened her heart. She took out a handful of candy from her pocket and gave one to every child she met.

"I will make good money in the future and come to see you when I have time. You should eat well and grow up well, and repay the country when you grow up."

I left reluctantly and found the manager. He was planting a tree in the yard. I took a closer look and it seemed to be a walnut tree.

"Madam Yun, these are walnuts. I heard that children who eat walnuts are smart, so I want to plant a few more in the orphanage."

Nanny Chen said that the manager's surname was Zhuang, and he was an official in the county government. He only had the title of scholar, but because of his contribution to the management of the orphanage, he was promoted to the director of the Ministry of Revenue. Of course, it was just a nominal position, and he enjoyed the treatment of a sixth-rank director. He did not have to work in the Ministry of Revenue, but still managed the orphanage.

He became an official without taking the imperial examination. It seems that Emperor Dongpu knew how to use people regardless of their background. He was a wise ruler.

"Manager Zhuang has a good idea. It's good for children to eat fruits such as walnuts and apples. I heard that tying straw under the saplings to keep them warm will make them easier to survive. Manager Zhuang can try it." Yun Xi reminded.

Manager Zhuang didn't give a perfunctory answer and was very experimental. "There's also this idea. I'll give it a try later."

The two recorded the adoption details in the orphanage's files and went to the county government to change the household registration. From then on, the baby Yunduan was no longer an orphan, he had a mother.

"Madam Yun, raising a child is no joke. Please treat him with care. If one day you don't want to raise him, please don't hurt him and send him back." Manager Zhuang solemnly warned.

"Master Zhuang, please rest assured. I have carefully considered before adopting the child and will not mistreat him. Besides, we are blood relatives. I will naturally take care of him if I can." Yun Xi promised solemnly, and took out fifty taels of silver from her pocket to exchange. "Manager Zhuang, my Yun family still has eleven children living in the orphanage. We are causing trouble for the country. I will donate some more silver. I sincerely ask for your attention."

Manager Zhuang was touched. "Madam Yun, don't worry. I care deeply about every child in the orphanage and will not let them end up on the streets."

"Great! Dongpu is fortunate to have someone like the Zhuang Guanshi who cares about the orphans and works hard for the court." Yun Xi praised him generously. "I want to buy two lactating ewes and twenty apple saplings to donate to the orphanage. I hope the babies can grow up healthily and the children can grow up safely."

"Thank you, Madam Yun."

The two men found a livestock market and searched for a long time before buying three ewes that still had milk. Two were given to the poorhouse and one was taken home. They bought the apple trees from the same fruit farmer where the village manager bought the walnut trees. They were not too expensive, so they bought twenty apple trees for the poorhouse that would bear fruit next year or the year after.

I bought an apple tree and a walnut tree. Both are suitable for winter transplanting and will bear fruit next year.

The apple tree symbolizes peace and good fortune, the walnut tree represents family happiness, longevity and good fortune, and the walnut tree is shaped like a bag, symbolizing a "wealth bag" that can attract wealth and fortune. Walnuts are rich in various nutrients, which help to enhance the body's immunity and improve air quality. It has many benefits and can be planted in front of the door.

The fruit farmer recommended, "Would you like to buy a few peach trees? It would be wonderful to enjoy the flowers in spring and the fruits in summer."

Yun Xi thought for a moment and asked, "As the saying goes, planting six trees in a home brings wealth and blessings. Besides the plum tree, do you have any osmanthus trees, podocarpus trees, jujube trees, orange trees, and crabapple trees?"