Chapter 627: The System for Rising Through the Imperial Examinations (36)

At the same time Xie Yang received the beaded flower, she learned of its effects and the points it cost from the Main System.

She couldn't help but touch her forehead: could it be that all the points he earned were spent on her?

No wonder mothers-in-law have always scolded their sons for "forgetting their mother once they have a wife"; if all the money they earn is spent buying jewelry for their wives, how could a mother feel balanced after finding out? Would she curse her in her heart as a little vixen... no, an old vixen?

Xie Yang found her own internal monologue amusing.

Reciprocating the gesture, she also prepared a New Year's gift for him—a fine piece of mutton-fat white jade pendant. Hmm, it especially suited his gentle, jade-like temperament and refined appearance.

She placed it alongside a newly made set of winter clothes by his pillow.

Song Yanqing, whom she had brought home, saw this gift the moment he entered the room, the smile in his eyes as bright as the stars.

Needless to say, that night—cough—anyway, he got up late again the next day.

This New Year was the most prosperous one in the history of the Song family third branch, and also the most leisurely.

Before they had separated from the main family, and before Song Zhisheng was injured, the couple had to do a lot of work for the household, truly like old oxen who ate the least and did the most; after Song Zhisheng was injured, the third branch received even less food, and Lin Shi still had to shoulder all the washing and chores for the entire family alone, yet she still couldn't earn any favor and was often pointed at and scolded by Wang Shi.

This year's New Year was much more comfortable; to shut Wang Shi's mouth, Song Zhisheng took two fish and a rabbit to the old house in advance, and on New Year's Eve, he didn't go over, spending the New Year in their own new house instead.

Wang Shi was dissatisfied that he had brought so little: "Lao San, you've earned quite a bit of money selling wine, why is this all the filial piety you're giving your mother? Aren't you afraid of being laughed at if word gets out?"

"This isn't little! The rabbit is what the children's mother and I are offering you in filial piety, and the two fish are what Yanqing and his wife are offering you; altogether that's nearly thirty catties of meat. You can go ask around, which family offers their mother thirty catties of meat for the New Year?"

"..."

Wang Shi was choked by his words.

Thirty catties of meat sounded like a lot, but it wasn't Pork; fish meat had many bones, and rabbit meat had a gamey smell—how could it compare to the fragrance of Pork!

Besides, the third branch had earned money this year and even produced a scholar; how could they be compared to other families?

"Lao San..."

"Mother! Eldest Brother and Second Brother must be very filial; what are they offering you? How about I match what they give?"

"..."

Wang Shi opened her mouth: "Your Eldest Brother and Second Brother haven't separated from the family yet!"

"That's right, Eldest Brother and Second Brother haven't separated, but although I have, I only received one acre of poor land. With the yield from just that one acre, how much do you expect me to offer in filial piety? I'm still carrying debt! If you think it's too little, I'll just take it back; selling it will help me pay off a bit more debt."

"..."

What?

Take it back?

Wang Shi glared at Lao San and snatched the fish and rabbit into the house.

As soon as she entered the kitchen, she was almost tripped by a broom left at the doorway.

After the third branch was separated from the family in the second half of the year, there were two fewer people doing chores in the house.

Don't look at how Wang Shi verbally disparaged Lin Shi and her daughter; once the two of them were truly gone, the house actually fell into complete chaos—clothes were dirty with no one to wash them, the courtyard was dirty with no one to sweep it, and the main hall and kitchen were a mess with no one to tidy them up.

When sweeping the dust before the New Year, she called the eldest daughter-in-law, who said she had to watch her grandson; she called the second daughter-in-law, who said she had to watch her son; she called the granddaughters, who were all looking for ways to slack off. It was almost New Year's Eve, and the house was still so dirty and messy that there was nowhere to step.

Wang Shi put her hands on her hips and scolded: "Where is everyone! Are you all dead? You hide from work the moment you have to do something! Are we even going to celebrate the New Year?"

Song Zhisheng hadn't gone far; hearing his mother's scolding, he twitched the corner of his mouth and shook his head.

He walked home, his feet crunching on the accumulated snow.

He was wearing the deerskin boots his daughter-in-law had brought back from the County to honor them; walking on the snow, his feet were neither frozen nor wet, allowing him to walk quickly without any worries, and he returned to his own home in a few minutes.

Stepping into the courtyard gate, which was hung with lanterns and decorated with spring couplets and the character for 'fortune', he saw a clean Courtyard with the snow cleared away, flanked by spotless covered corridors. On every door were spring couplets and the 'fortune' character written by his son in a free and elegant hand, and on every window were window-paper cuttings of unique and beautiful designs made by his daughter. He instantly felt that separating from the family was truly wonderful!

Entering the house, he saw the Eight Immortals Table in the main hall already neatly set with twelve dishes and one soup for the ancestor worship. Happy laughter from his wife and children drifted from the kitchen; looking in, he saw them working together to wrap dumplings!

"Mother, there's plenty of Pork filling, let's wrap a few different flavors. We have cabbage, celery, and chives, why don't we wrap some of each?"

"Sure! Wrap whatever you want to eat."

"Sister-in-law, I also want to eat the Crab meat dumplings you made last time."

"That's simple enough? I peeled quite a bit of meat while making the Crab roe sauce yesterday, which I was originally going to use for small wontons, but if you want dumplings, then we'll make dumplings. How about we also mince some fish paste and try wrapping some fish-flavored ones?"

"Great, great! Brother, go kill the fish quickly, I'll come pull out the fish bones."

Hearing this, Song Zhisheng smiled with relief, once again rejoicing that they had separated from the family!

"Wife! I'm back! What do you need me to do?"

"Go chop the firewood! Get the roasting kiln started; Yang Er said she wants to roast a duck and make Peking duck for us to try."

"You got it!"

Diligence in spring brings an early harvest!

"From now on, the snow melts and the wind turns soft of its own accord; the plum blossoms must yield to the new willow branches"—

Just after the Beginning of Spring, figures of diligent labor appeared in the fields.

The ice and snow melted, hibernating insects awakened, and the earth was once again covered in green.

The most eye-catching of all was the Xiao Chai Shan that Xie Yang had bought.

In the third lunar month, the alfalfa on the sunny southern slope survived the bitter cold and sprouted new branches. The tender green stems and leaves swayed in the warm spring breeze; from afar, it looked like a fuzzy green carpet covering the southern slope.

The lambs that had survived the autumn and winter were like mythical beasts released from their cages at this moment. Led by the ewes, they happily trotted on their four hooves up the southern slope, eating the alfalfa the flock loved most—the tenderest first harvest—and bleating with satisfaction.

The lambs purchased from other villages and towns at the beginning of spring were still too small and had to be kept in the sheep pen for a few days, but the piglets provided by her maiden family were born on New Year's Day and were three months old by spring. After being fed a little diluted Spirit Spring Water, they were chased by Xie Yang onto the hillside to frolic and roll around.

The tea tree seedlings on the east and west slopes also safely survived the winter. Having drunk their fill of water mixed with Plant Nutrient Solution, they sprouted new buds and branches. With sufficient sunlight, rain, and nutrients, they grew at a rate of over ten centimeters every day. At this rate, in less than three years—at the latest, by next spring—they would be able to harvest fresh, tender tea leaves.

The pine and cedar forests on the northern slope were also planted one after another after the beginning of spring.

Because they were transplanted, they became a forest as soon as they were planted, and the medicinal herbs beneath the forest could be sown immediately.

In short, in just one spring, Xiao Chai Shan had completely changed its appearance.

Especially entering April, the alfalfa bloomed with purple flowers of varying shades, looking like a beautiful patchwork carpet from both near and far, embedded in the lush green hillside.