76. The Farmer Who Became the Top Scholar
"Dad, I didn't expect that Xiaobao also has a talent for studying. I think it's better to do this. Both children are promising. Both children go to this school. Anyway, it is our Yan family's family school. We can't spend the annual education. How much it costs is a bit expensive for pens, ink, paper and inkstones, but I don’t need very good paper and inkstones when I’m just starting to learn calligraphy, so just buy the cheapest ones. I can save this money at home.”
If Liu Fuchun hadn't been a shrewd woman, she wouldn't have taught Yan Changxue so well. When she saw that the old man's heart was now biased toward the kid from the second family, she immediately stood up and planned to use a seemingly fair method to make today's decision a success. This was fooled in advance.
"The children are still young now. Even if they are talented, it is not absolute. Changxue just told you that he wants to send the second baby to study. I still want to object. After all, the second baby is the same age as the second baby, so we can't just send the second baby. Baby, don’t give me a little baby. I think it’s better to do this. Let the two children study at the same time, and then wait until the county examination and the prefecture examination. By then, the difference can be distinguished. Which child has better grades will be raised next. My child, this is fair and no one will complain."
She finally understood that the second child's family was treacherous. Yan Chu secretly memorized so many books. She didn't believe that the second child's family didn't know about it. They were probably waiting for her here.
If she doesn't stand up now and come up with this compromise, based on the old man's expectations for the younger generations, if the family still has enough money to provide for a scholar, then Yan Chu is definitely the one to provide for him. But if he does, what will happen to her son? ?
Liu Fuchun thought about it. There are so many students in the school. Even if Uncle Yan likes one of them, he won't spend too much energy on one child. Moreover, he has to concentrate on preparing for his provincial examination. I'm afraid his energy will be spread even thinner. Some people, because their eldest son was a child and was studying in the county school. After a few years, they didn't believe that Yan Chu could run ahead of Yan Yu.
Originally, according to Dafang, they were sending outstanding children to school. However, when Yan Chu showed that he was better than Yan Yu, they changed their words and said that they would use fair methods to allow time for the whole family to decide which child should be allowed to continue. Read the answers below.
They told me all the good and bad things to say. If you are not thick-skinned, you really can't handle such a thing.
"Sir, what my aunt just said is true. In fact, both Xiaobao and Erbao are the children of our Yan family. No matter which one succeeds, the whole family will benefit from it. It costs a lot to support the eldest cousin in the county school. I'm afraid life in the family home for Erbao and Xiaobao will be tight again, but it doesn't matter. We can eat less meat at home, and we don't need to make new clothes for this room. The uncle's salary is high, and the life at home in the past It’s okay if I can get by, but now I hope my uncle and auntie will pay some money to the public school every month for the sake of my second child.”
Although Yan Meihua is a girl, her status in the Yan family is still quite high. The eldest granddaughter Yan Chunhua lives with Yan Changxue and his wife in the town. In the old house, Yan Meihua is the actual eldest granddaughter. She brings several The younger sister takes care of the housework and raises a group of chickens, ducks and two pigs at home. Compared with her daughter-in-law, Yan Jiang relies on her granddaughter more.
Moreover, before Yan Chu was born, Yan Changxi and his wife had three daughters in a row. At one time, Mr. Yan and Yan Jiang were thinking about letting their second granddaughter set up a female household and find a son-in-law, so that the family of the second granddaughter would not be incestuous. As for the separation, even though Old Man Yan and Yan Jiangshi were not very close to the other granddaughters, they still valued and liked Yan Meihua, the granddaughter.
Taohua and others would not dare to say these words in front of Old Man Yan and Yan Jiangshi, but Yan Meihua has the confidence.
Old Yan helped Yan Changxue buy a small courtyard in the town. He is also the shopkeeper of the town's tavern. The tavern is not just for drinking. He also works part-time as a restaurant and provides a variety of dishes. People nowadays are not so particular, and Some wealthy people order a table full of dishes, and it would be a pity not to finish them all. The people in the tavern will share the good dishes. As the shopkeeper, Yan Changxue can also choose the best-looking and highest-priced meals.
Under normal circumstances, Yan Changxue's family does not need to spend anything on food at all, and they can eat big fish and meat, otherwise they would not be as wealthy as they are now.
There is no need to rent a house, and there is no food expenditure. Basically, Yan Changxue's 800 yuan salary should be saved, and there is no separation of families now. It makes no sense that Yan Changxue's family has to work hard for the family, but Yan Changxue can be so cool and unrestrained. Use the money to buy beautiful silk and satin clothes, and Liu Fuchun can wear a thin gold bracelet on his wrist.
When she got married, she didn't have any dowry. Now it's said that her mother secretly gave it to her. Who would believe it?
"Mei Hua's mouth really broke my heart and her uncle's heart."
After hearing Yan Meihua's words, Liu Fuchun twitched the corners of his mouth and faced the Yan family with a mournful face.
"Bao'er is studying in the county school. The students there either have someone who works as an errand or runs a rice shop and cloth shop. The family is well off. If Bao'er's father and I don't wear better clothes, people will look down on Bao'er and it will be bad for his future. There is no benefit to making friends, so why would we want to spend money on such flashy things?”
Liu Fuchun helplessly shook his head towards Yan Meihua, and then looked at Yan Mudan with a sincere expression.
"Little sister, please say something for me. Tell me how much money it costs for a student like him to go to the county school. We didn't pay the public school, but that's because we gave most of the money to him. The family gave him 500 coins every month, but that was not enough to cover the expenses of his pens, ink, paper and inkstone. He knew that the family had done their best, so he was embarrassed to ask for money from the family. When he was studying, he got up early and went to bed late to copy books for the library to make money. If it hadn't delayed his studies, he would have passed the exam to become a scholar. When his father and I found out about this, we felt so distressed. We were afraid that you would get angry after knowing it, so we kept it a secret and gave him most of his father's salary every month. Today, Meihua pointed this matter at me, the elder. I am wronged. The children who don't know think that I, Liu Chunfu, am the black-hearted woman. With a mother with a bad reputation, how will others look at our son in the future?"
Speaking of the sad part, Liu Fuchun even wiped away tears.
"Dad, Mom, what my sister-in-law said is true. Now, students in the county school have to spend two or three hundred coins just to buy a better inkstone. Moreover, it is fashionable for those scholars to hold literary gatherings. If you want to participate, you have to share the cost of the literary gatherings, which costs thirty or forty coins each time. If you attend too many times, no matter how much money you spend, it will not be enough. However, those literary gatherings often have scholars and juren participating. It is worth spending any money to learn from them."
Yan Mudan's own son is studying in the county school, so she is very familiar with this matter.
"Our family's monthly expenses for the lineage are as much as two or three taels of silver. It is also thanks to my brother and sister-in-law for the money. I occasionally supplement some of it. Otherwise, I will be laughed at in the county school."
When she mentioned two or three taels, she even raised her voice, and the pride on her face could not be concealed.
But perhaps Yan Chu's performance just now also shocked her. As a son who was not good at studying, Yan Mudan, who urgently needed a promising younger generation from her mother's family to support her, suddenly felt that her second brother's family was not completely as hopeless as she had imagined before.
Therefore, she did not follow her sister-in-law's words to criticize Yan Meihua for disrespecting the elders, but simply talked about the consumption in the county school.
"The eldest cousin is just a student, and the third uncle is already a scholar. Why does the eldest cousin spend more than the third uncle?"
The childish words of children can always be easily forgiven. Old man Yan and Yan Jiang, who felt distressed for their eldest grandson because of the words of their eldest daughter-in-law and daughter, were stunned. They didn't know how to explain this problem to the little grandson who had just raised this question.
Speaking of which, my third cousin Yan Changde from the next room was born in the main branch of the Yan family. His uncle was a fourth-rank official in the capital, but they were from the same village. Every day, Yan Changde stayed in his study room and rarely went out except for teaching the children in the school. Except for occasionally seeing him go to the county library to buy books and some pens, ink, paper and inkstone, he didn't see him spending any other money.
As for the so-called book clubs, it was good enough for him to go three or five times a year. Those book clubs were organized by county magistrates and scholars. The clan leader was proud of it and occasionally boasted in front of the clan members. Yan Changde was too lazy to spend time on studying for other inferior book clubs.
"Your eldest cousin is different from your third uncle." Liu Fuchun said softly to Yan Chu, "Your third uncle has an uncle who is an official in his family, and your eldest cousin can only rely on himself to build connections. You are still young and don't understand it now, but it doesn't matter. When your eldest cousin is successful and passes the examination for a scholar, he will be your support. You don't have to go through the sadness he is experiencing now." Liu Fuchun sighed and looked bitter. Sure enough, after she finished speaking, the expressions of Old Man Yan and Yan Jiang were much more relaxed. Yes, the eldest grandson is different from the nephew, and it is understandable that the expenses are higher. But Yan Chu's words just now still made a bottom in the hearts of the old couple. Originally, they thought that the eldest grandson's monthly expenses were only 500 wen, but now according to the eldest daughter-in-law, the money earned by the eldest son was basically spent by the eldest grandson, and not a penny was saved. The authenticity of this needs to be verified, but it is basically certain that the eldest grandson took 400 to 500 wen out of the 800 wen. In this way, the other party's expenses are far beyond the expectations of the old couple.
Studying costs money, but it can't be so expensive. Now the grandson is just a student and has such a large expense. When the other party passes the exam to become a scholar in the future, can the family still afford the other party's financial needs?
"Erbao and Xiaobao are going to the clan school to study. From this month on, you, Changxue, will pay 300 wen to the public school every month to subsidize Dabao. The remaining money is enough. Now the two younger ones have to go to school. You can't let your two sons be raised by your younger brother."
Perhaps because he thinks that the little grandson will have a promising future, Old Man Yan rarely said a fair word.
"Dad."
Yan Changxue wanted to refute, the land his younger brother cultivated was all public property, he was the eldest son, according to the rules he could get 80% of it after his parents passed away, which meant that the land his younger brother cultivated was actually his, he just spent his money early, was that wrong, and if Yan Yan and Yan Yu were successful, wouldn't the second son's family also benefit from it?
Liu Fuchun was much smarter than her husband, and seeing Yan Changxue seemed to be about to speak, she immediately stopped him.
"Dad is right. Even if my father and I are frugal, we will save the three hundred cents. My second brother's hard work over the years and I and Changxue have seen it. No matter who is Pei'er or Pei'er, Even if they are successful, they will never forget their second uncle."
What Liu Fuchun said was beautiful. Although Old Man Yan and Mrs. Yan Jiang preferred their eldest son, their second son was also their biological son. Seeing their brothers harmonious was the happiest thing for them.
Yan Meihua's original intention was just to enable her younger brother to study. Now that her grandfather has relented, she has no intention of having any verbal disputes with her uncle's family, so it has naturally stopped.
As for Yan Chu, he looked at the aunt with a bright smile, who was able to bend and stretch, and judged the situation, but it was more difficult than imagined.
When Yan Changxi and his wife hurried from the field after listening to their second daughter's words, everything had been settled. They were stunned when they heard that their children could actually go to school.
*****
"Actually, my sister-in-law is pretty good too."
They didn't see the whole process, but just listened to sister-in-law Liu Fuchun's narration of what happened during the day, as Yan Changxi and his wife whispered while lying on the kang.
"I didn't expect that our little treasure can also study. If he can be admitted as a scholar in the future, I will be willing to lose ten years of my life."
Li Qiuyue was also full of longing. When she thought about her son being able to study, she felt that she suddenly had a lot of energy again. She didn't feel tired anymore when she thought about the dozens of acres of farmland at home.
In the past, when I made money, I was making money for my eldest brother and his family. Now, although I am mostly making money for my eldest brother and his family, I can still have some soup at home. In this way, the motivation for making money is completely different.
"Mom and Dad, can Taohua and I and the others come in?"
The couple was still happy when there was a knock on the door of the room. It was so late at night, and they didn't know why the eldest daughter showed up with her younger brothers and sisters.
Yan Changxi got down from the kang and opened the door for his siblings, and then watched the little girl Lanhua guarding outside. The eldest daughter came in with Taohua and Xiaobao and locked the little girl outside. She was mysterious and didn't know what to say.