Chapter 67: Miss Wang is as cunning as a monkey

Yuan Jiaqi's face turned red, and he kissed Ling'er's cheek. Ling'er also hugged his face and gnawed on it, covering his face in saliva.

"Haha, you all continue, continue, we're going back to our room."

Carrying Ling'er, she strolled around and returned to the room. Shopkeeper Lu curled her lips.

"Look how happy you are."

"They don't care for girls, but I care for them very much. A daughter is a mother's little cotton-padded jacket; they are very thoughtful."

Shopkeeper Lu also became happy along with her good mood. "You're right. Although I don't have the fate for a son in this life, my two daughters are truly good, filial, and sensible."

"If you feel you have no one to support you in your old age, you can have Ruyi take a matrilocal husband?"

"No, most matrilocal husbands aren't single-minded. They always feel like they've married into the wife's family, feel inferior under someone else's roof, treat themselves as outsiders, and some even have designs on the woman's family property. Once they get their hands on the property, they harm the original wife and remarry. There are too many such cases. Better to let my daughter marry normally, and we'll see when I'm old and can't move anymore."

"Then come to my house. I don't have so many issues. We can keep each other company, bask in the sun when we have nothing to do, and chat—isn't that nice?"

Shopkeeper Lu was incredibly moved when she heard this. She hadn't expected that a moment of kindness back then would lead to meeting such an extraordinary woman. She truly felt inferior to her.

The door wasn't even closed when someone came to buy goods. Yuan Jiaqi, familiar with the routine, led the person to the kitchen to get the goods, collected the money, and sent it to her room.

"I've invited Miss Wang from the prefecture city to help find a scholar to come to the house to teach you and the children?"

"Yes."

Yuan Jiaqi returned to the living room with a turbulent heart. He must have accumulated great virtue in his past life to be able to meet a woman like Lady Qiao in this life.

Yuan Jiawang swallowed his saliva. "What about the second one?"

"Brother Yuan, have you ever thought about the imperial examinations?"

"I want to separate the family; I don't want to live with Father and Mother anymore."

"But I haven't earned it. I already owe you a debt of gratitude that I can never repay, and now you're even hiring a teacher for me. I, I..."

"Logically speaking, since I've severed ties with Father and Mother, we brothers shouldn't be associating with each other either."

"With you saying that, I can rest easy. I believe in my own judgment, and even more so in your character."

"First, wait until they aren't home, take the household registration, divide the public silver, and force a family separation. Do you dare?"

"Can we go inside to talk?"

Qiao Mai didn't see her off; it was too cold outside, and she was afraid Ling'er would freeze. It was Yuan Jiaqi who went out to see Shopkeeper Lu off.

One sentence made Yuan Jiaqi's body tremble. "I've thought about it, but I'm self-taught and have no foundation. The imperial examinations are just a thought."

Miss Wang is as cunning as a monkey, and her family might be even more shrewd than she is. If they figured out something unusual and harbored evil intentions toward her, she would have the ability to protect herself, but what about the children?

Thinking it over, besides those fruits, she could only send some vegetables.

Yuan Jiaqi sighed. "Do the second brother and the others want to separate too?"

Shopkeeper Lu's embroidery workshop had become particularly famous in the last half-year, the reason being that there was an embroiderer who could do double-sided embroidery.

While coaxing Ling'er to sleep, she thought about what would be good to bring when she went.

"I will definitely not let Lady Qiao down."

Just as she was thinking, the courtyard gate rang, and Yuan Jiaqi habitually went to open it.

Being able to eat fresh vegetables in the middle of winter can be considered a novelty, right?

Nowadays, she has chives, cucumbers, eggplants, green onions, garlic, garlic sprouts, carrots, and potatoes in her space. Tonight, she'll plant some green beans. They aren't rare for white radish and cabbage.

"Then how much monthly silver should we give them?"

Yuan Jiawang looked at the furnishings in the room and said, "Jiaqi, the New Year is coming soon, I've come to see you."

This surprised Yuan Jiaqi. He had thought he would come to seek financial help, but it turned out not to be the case.

Just as he was about to open his mouth to say something sentimental, the courtyard gate rang. Xiuhong and Xiuyu came to pick her up; there were customers at the shop looking for her.

"I learned double-sided embroidery, and the small stall earns a hundred taels a month. Why wouldn't it be enough?"

When he saw who it was, he was stunned.

Yuan Jiawang quickly asked, "What path? Fifth brother, tell me quickly."

"So that's why you need to follow the teacher well. Even if you just pass the Xiucai exam, in the future, when I buy land, I can register it under your name to save on taxes. Of course, it would be even better if you could pass the Juren exam. We can also set up a school so the children have someone to teach them and build a good foundation. Right now, they only know how to read and write. If possible, I want them all to become Xiucai and Juren. Do you know how much silver that would save me?"

This made Shopkeeper Lu very happy, and she quickly sent a thousand taels of silver to Qiao Mai.

"Yes."

"Big brother, why are you here?"

"No, big brother didn't come to persuade you to go back, but to ask you to help big brother."

She wanted to rest for a period of time and hadn't told Shopkeeper Lu. She planned to take two pieces of work she had embroidered before from the space to fulfill the quota after the New Year.

"Many thanks, Lady Qiao!"

Yuan Jiaqi let him in, looked to make sure there was no one behind him, bolted the courtyard gate, and took him to the room where he lived.

"If you all really want to separate, I'll give you three paths."

"Yuan will definitely go through fire and water, no matter the cost."

Putting a small basket of each of these should be enough, right? At most, add some potatoes; can't add anything else, lest they become ungrateful and want more next time.

"Yes, that's how it's said, but after all, it's blood kinship. There isn't much hatred between us brothers, right?"

"Understood!"

"No need to be polite. You and I are partners; if you do well, I do well. Even if you leave this family in the future, we will still be partners. If I'm in trouble, you have to help me. Consider it my early investment."

"Just by setting up a stall plus your embroidery work, it's still not enough for a Juren's tuition, right?"

Currently, her space only has bananas, dragon fruit, mangoes, green mangoes, and mangosteens, and not many stored either.

Putting one of each together, it's just one basket.

It was also from this day on that she didn't touch a needle and thread again, thinking about embroidering again when the weather warmed up after the New Year.

"Who says? One piece of my embroidery work can sell for a hundred taels, or even a thousand taels of silver."

"If big brother came to persuade me, forget it. My life is extremely good right now, very comfortable, and I don't want to return to the original family."

Yuan Jiaqi sneered. "Such parents, drinking the children's blood, eating the children's meat, gnawing on the children's bones—you want to separate? Easier said than done?"

Since Miss Wang said she wanted fresh ones, then get some southern fruits and match them with some northern ones?

"Prepare the New Year things in advance. Prepare more meat; it can be stored in cold weather. In weather like this, the shop won't open until after the fifteenth."

"What can I help you with?"

In a few more days, it will be time to go to the prefecture city, scheduled for the twenty-fifth of the twelfth lunar month.

"Juren?"

The purpose is to give gifts to superiors. This thing is very popular in the capital, and displaying it at home also highlights status and position. It's hard to buy a good piece of double-sided embroidery even for a thousand gold.

So many people come to her shop to browse whenever they have free time, and when they encounter double-sided embroidery, they buy it at a high price.

"Ah?"

Yuan Jiaqi pursed his lips, took a long breath, and his eyes were red.

Instant noodles, ham, and shrimp are impossible. Some ready-to-eat products won't work either, and things from the freezer are even more out of the question.

"You don't need to worry about the silver. I assume you know I can do embroidery."

"From now on, I'll sell the goods. You and Ling'er stay inside; it's really too cold outside."

"Ever since you moved your household registration, Father and Mother have taken their anger out on us brothers whenever they get upset, and the children are beaten and scolded at every turn. As a father, I really can't stand it."

"Little sister, I'm leaving. I'll come find you another day, okay?"

Time flew by, and half a month passed. Qiao Mai produced a screen for Ruyi Embroidery Manor, and it was bought as soon as it was displayed.

"Unite with the Yue family, and on the grounds that they abuse your wives and children, make a scene with them. It's best to break one of their legs or arms or something. After that, they won't be able to make trouble anymore and will have to rely on you all to serve them. Do you dare?"

"What about the third one?"

"Go to the government office and accuse them of being unmotherly and that the sons cannot be filial, and ask the County Magistrate to make the decision for you. The final outcome might be a family separation, but you will get a beating."

"These three paths, each one is difficult."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 68 =====