Pastoral Splendor

The registrar, Gao, was sitting there copying names with a brush in his hand when he heard the old lady's voice. His hand trembled, and the brush fell to the ground, landing on the notebook as a black blob.

"Cousin, what brings you here today?" Clerk Gao tore off the page with a worried look on his face. It was the household registration information of Yuzhou City. He had been copying it for two days, and this page had taken him more than half an hour to write. Just when he was about to finish, the brush slipped and ruined it all.

"Cousin." Completely ignoring Clerk Gao's distress, Old Lady Sijin beamed as she lifted the white sheepskin towel covering the basket. Inside, two old hens, finally seeing the light of day again, were hopping happily, their necks craned back and clucking. Old Lady Sijin picked up one hen in each hand and said, "Cousin, I was worried about your health, so I specially brought you two old hens to nourish you. I also brought you several dozen eggs."

Looking at the two old hens, Clerk Gao's expression softened a bit: "Cousin, is there something you need my help with? Over the years, you've only come to see me during the New Year. Now it's the busy farming season, how come you have time to bring me hens again?"

The old lady Sijin wasn't embarrassed at all when the clerk Gao saw through her lies. She smiled and nodded, "Cousin, how come you're so perceptive? You don't come here unless you need something. I really do have something to ask you."

The old woman put the hen on the ground, wiped her hands, and then shakily pulled out a small paper packet from inside her inner garment. Opening the packet, two gleaming silver ingots appeared before Clerk Gao: "Cousin, this is twenty taels of silver."

Clerk Gao's eyes darted around: "I know, where did you get so much money?"

"This isn't my money, it's yours!" Old Lady Sijin smiled broadly, "This is what our village chief asked me to pass on to you. His grandson, Xiao Jingwei, is very clever. He passed the imperial examination and wants you to get him a job as a clerk in the yamen."

"Work as a clerk?" Clerk Gao rolled his eyes. Just a few days ago, a clerk from this yamen had left. He said he had saved up some money and was preparing to take the imperial examination again next year. He was going to study at the school in the prefecture. The prefect was asking him to find someone to replace him. Wasn't this a perfect coincidence?

However… Clerk Gao’s eyes darted around. Twenty taels of silver seemed a bit low. A clerk in the yamen could earn five taels of silver a month, which would be sixty taels a year. Sometimes, by acting as a middleman and skimming a little extra, a hundred taels a year was a certainty. He smiled and looked at Old Lady Sijin: “Cousin, go back and talk to the village chief. It’s not impossible for his grandson to become a clerk, but there are several others who want to get in, so it’s not easy for me to recommend him to the prefect.”

Hearing this, Old Lady Sijin grew anxious and held the silver to Clerk Gao's face: "Isn't there silver here? You get ten taels, and the Prefect gets ten taels, and that settles the matter, doesn't it? Cousin, back then you climbed over the wall to see me, saying you'd do anything I asked you to do..." Old Lady Sijin's eyes flashed with a sharp glint, but they were dry; the spring water of years past had turned into a stagnant pool, making Clerk Gao's skin crawl: "Cousin, have him add another ten taels of silver, and I'll take care of it!"

"Alright, I'll tell him later!" Old Lady Sijin placed twenty taels of silver on the table and covered it with a piece of paper: "Cousin, I have something else to ask you. It's my own business, and you have to help me decide!"

The old lady was still furious when the matter was brought up. Xiao Sanhua was too arrogant. She ate her own sheep with a clatter. She had asked Xiao Wenhua to talk about compensation, but Xiao Sanhua dared to fight with the village chief. She even stood with her hands on her hips and bulged her eyes, shouting at her that she was not afraid of the clerk in the yamen. Wasn't this rebellion?

"Cousin, are you planning to take their vegetable plot?" After listening to Old Lady Sijin's account of what had happened, Clerk Gao thought for a moment and shook his head: "I'm afraid it won't work. How much does a sheep cost? How much silver should a vegetable plot cost? There's a huge difference between the two!"

"Why not?" Old Lady Sijin's eyes were red. She had come to the city to find Clerk Gao, hoping he would back her up. But he actually said no! Old Lady Sijin clapped her hands and shouted, "Cousin, those are our sheep, ewes! If the ewes have a few lambs, the money will roll in! Although land is valuable, an acre of fertile land is only twenty taels of silver, and a vegetable plot is only six or seven taels at most! Besides, Xiao Sanhua is so arrogant, shouldn't we teach her a lesson?" She glanced at Clerk Gao and grumbled, "I told you, my relative is a clerk in the Yuzhou government office. She just smiled at me and said having a relative who's a clerk isn't anything special. She's not afraid of you!"

Upon hearing this, Clerk Gao was so angry that his beard twitched: "How dare you, little brat, spout such nonsense?"

"That Xiao Sanhua is like a madwoman, she even hit me!" Qi Mu, who was standing to the side, finally got a chance to speak. He stood next to his grandmother and complained fiercely, "She really said she's not afraid of you, Grandpa!"

Clerk Gao stroked his beard, finally managing to smooth it out. His eyes flashed with anger: "She really doesn't know her place. Does she think that because the emperor is far away, no one will care about her? Cousin, buy some wine and food for our house tomorrow. I'll bring a few yamen runners over and ask your village head to come with us to that old lady Xiao's house to help you get justice!"

Upon hearing this, Old Lady Sijin's eyes narrowed with laughter: "Cousin, you're the best! You're my only relative who's such a high-ranking official. If you hadn't helped me, I really wouldn't have gone out to plead my case!"

Having received praise from the old lady, Clerk Gao's anger subsided slightly. He felt as if he were about to float away, almost breaking out of the small room and soaring into the sky. Just then, the two hens cackled inappropriately, pulling him back from his reverie.

Looking down, he saw a puddle of thin, yellowish chicken droppings on the ground, emitting a strong stench. The registrar, Gao, covered his nose and rushed outside, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Quickly, bring in a broom!"

The weather was fine, the blue sky was crystal clear, and white clouds drifted lazily by, creating a pleasant and relaxing atmosphere. The golden sunlight shone on the earthen brick house of Old Master Xiao, making the yellow bricks seem to glow with gold.

Yan Ying was peeling the bamboo shoots. Her hands and feet moved swiftly, and soon there was a pile of tender bamboo shoot shells at her feet. Next to Yan Ying was a large basin filled with clear water, its surface shimmering and reflecting the blue sky and white clouds. Liu Hua squatted beside the basin, using her hands to sift through the peeled bamboo shoots. She picked one up, examined it, and held it up, asking Yan Ying, "Third Sister, why are you washing so many bamboo shoots?"

“This isn’t just a small bamboo shoot!” Yan Ying tossed a peeled bamboo shoot into the basin and smiled at Liu Hua: “Liu Hua, go check if the fire in the stove has gone out.”

Liuhua ran inside with the bamboo shoot in her hand, and came out like a whirlwind a moment later: "Third Sister, it's out, it's out! Third Sister," she looked at the bamboo shoot in her hand, her face full of curiosity: "If this isn't a bamboo shoot, then what is it?"

"It's silver!" Yan Ying replied with a grin, then stood up and rubbed her back. Liu Hua quickly threw the bamboo shoots back into the basin, ran behind Yan Ying, and, trying to please her, clenched her two little fists and rubbed her back: "Third Sister, don't move, Liu Hua will rub your back."

Yan Ying smiled slightly. The Xiao family lived a very frugal life, but it was full of warmth, which was what touched her the most. She took Liu Hua's hand and said, "Alright, alright, how could Third Sister be so weak? Come on, let's go see Mother and Eldest Sister."

Yan Ying picked up the basin and placed it on the stove. She scooped out two boiled eggs and put them in a bowl. She then took Liu Hua and walked towards the back yard. Because Aunt Xiao had just given birth, Qi Hua was a bit noisy at night, and Xiao Lao Da was not sleeping soundly, so he moved out of that room. Da Hua and Si Hua slept in the same room as Aunt Xiao so that it would be convenient to take care of her at night.

"Mother, eldest sister, have some boiled eggs." Yan Ying carried the bowl in and went inside. The room was already quite bright. Aunt Xiao was breastfeeding Qi Hua, and Da Hua was sitting beside her, talking to her in a low voice.

Yan Ying walked over and watched Qi Hua smacking her lips, eating with great gusto. She thought to herself how fortunate it was that Aunt Xiao still had enough breast milk. In her previous life, many mothers had little milk, and the cost of formula alone was a huge sum. "Qi Hua can really eat," Yan Ying said with a smile, handing Aunt Xiao a peeled hard-boiled egg. "She's been eating for a while now, and she still hasn't stopped."

Aunt Xiao looked at Qi Hua with affection and sighed, "It's good that she can eat." As she spoke, her heart ached, and she raised her sleeve to wipe her eyes. Da Hua, who was standing next to her, looked a little anxious and grabbed Aunt Xiao's hand, saying, "Mother, you can't cry during your postpartum period, or your eyes won't work well when you get old."

After saying this, her own eyes reddened, and she held back her tears, gritting her teeth: "Qi Hua is so pretty, like a little pink dumpling."

Seeing that both of their eyes were red, Yan Ying quickly grabbed another boiled egg and stuffed it into Da Hua's hand: "Eat the egg while it's hot."

Da Hua held the egg, staring blankly at Yan Ying: "San Hua, just give it to your mother. I've already caused trouble for my family by being kicked out by my in-laws, how can I eat boiled eggs?" She was lucky that her family would take her back after being kicked out by the Wang family, how could she eat such good food? Thinking of Wang Fugui's heartless manner when he left, Da Hua couldn't help but feel sad. Wang Fugui, it was probably not just because of the child, but also... A face with delicate eyebrows and eyes flashed before her eyes, and she was so heartbroken that she couldn't speak.

"You!" Yan Ying felt indignant and couldn't say anything. "Big sister, why do you have to say that? This will always be your home. Why are you being so polite? You're pregnant. There's nothing good at home. We just eat boiled eggs every day. Big sister, stop making excuses."

Liuhua, standing to the side, tugged at Dahua's collar and said softly, "Big sister, just eat it. Third sister said we'll have meat with every meal from now on." She then swallowed hard and looked up at Yanying, "Third sister, is that true?"

Yan Ying patted Liu Hua's head and said with a smile, "Do you believe what your third sister says?"

Rikka put her finger in her mouth and licked it, then nodded vigorously: "I believe it. Didn't our family have meat a couple of days ago? Lamb for lunch and pork for dinner!"

Mentioning mutton, Aunt Xiao frowned again: "Sanhua, Old Lady Sijin won't just let it go like that. Where are we going to get the money to compensate her for the sheep?" She squinted at the doorway, where a ray of sunlight slanted in, making it seem very warm, but her heart was trembling. Sanhua was too insensible. Just because she was greedy, she went and killed someone's sheep. Old Lady Sijin was not someone to be trifled with!

But… Aunt Xiao glanced at Yan Ying’s forehead. Underneath Yan Ying’s bangs, there was a scar on her left temple. Although it was covered by her hair, she knew exactly what it was. The child had fallen from the mountain and survived by a hair’s breadth. The doctor had instructed her to eat more nourishing foods, but the family couldn’t afford it. San Hua was so hungry that she killed someone else’s sheep, so she couldn’t be blamed.

Feeling deeply ashamed that she was a parent who had failed in her duty, Aunt Xiao's hand, which had been gently patting Qi Hua's back, slowed down as she pondered how to reconcile with Old Lady Si Jin.

"Mother, don't think so much. I have a way." Yan Ying gave Aunt Xiao a reassuring look: "Mother, you just need to focus on taking care of Qi Hua."

"Third Sister, Third Sister!" A panicked cry came from outside the door. Yan Ying looked up and saw Si Hua pulling Wu Hua as they ran in quickly: "A carriage arrived at the entrance of our village, and several people jumped off and went to Old Lady Si Jin's house. I heard everyone talking about how they were government officials."

Aunt Xiao's face instantly changed color. She sat up abruptly and looked around the small room: "Yanying, quickly hide! The authorities are coming to arrest you!"

...