Chapter 253: Educating the Young (Edited)
Author: White Pear Flower
Raws: https://book.qidian.com/info/2386994/
Translated by Pill Bug
Gumihou: Since there’s an ‘original’ version, Gumi will edit this chapter mercilessly. In short, the children will actually be children and Fu Qiuning will not be giving TED talks of any kind. All unnecessary luv luv scenes will be deleted.
Jin Zhenyi stared at his brother for a moment before suddenly reverting to his original cheeky behaviour, “Nothing, I said nothing and did nothing. Hehe, there were no cats either…”
“What about this cat?” asked Fu Qiuning.
Jin Zhenyi’s smile froze on his face, “Honoured Mother, what- what cat? Why is Honoured Mother talking about cats? We have deer, pheasant, rabbits and, uh, deer…”
Fu Qiuning shrugged, “It is fine if you want to keep your little secret. However, I suggest you had best improve your acting a little.”
The other three children coughed into their hands. Even Jin Changjiao managed to cough elegantly into her handkerchief instead of howling with laughter.
“Come here,” Fu Qiuning ordered. Jin Zhenyi shuffled in place for a second before slinking over. She straightened his collar and said, “While you are to be commended for feeding a stray cat, you should think about the source of the food. Did you or did you not steal from the kitchen? How are you better than a thief or a wild dog snatching food from a vendor?”
Jin Zhenyi squirmed in place. In the end, he sulkily said, “That fish belongs to my father…”
“Does it now? Did you have your father’s permission to feed the fish to the cat?”
“…No?”
“Then, why did you do it?”
“It… it looked hungry, and I wanted to give it something,” said Jin Zhenyi.
Fu Qiuning patted his head and said, “It is good to be kind. Kindness is a virtue, do not forget that. However, acts of kindness that infringe on other people’s rights are not true kindness. You must remember this. Be kind if you must, but not at the expense of others, or of yourself.”
The atmosphere suddenly became very solemn.
Still, Jin Zhenyi would not be Jin Zhenyi if he did not quip back, “But I did a good thing, right?”
Fu Qiuning’s eyebrows raised, “Shall we discuss this? Who wants to start first?”
What followed was a short and intense debate on the issue of kindness and how one should go about dispensing said kindness and how much. They were so engrossed in their discussion that none of them heard anything until-
“What is this serious discussion? Talking about the virtue of kindness, are we?”
The familiar voice cut through the talk like a knife. The room fell silent as Jin Fengju strolled in to smile at Fu Qiuning. “How is everything? I come back and see that everyone has done everything properly. Has everything been sorted out?”
Jin Zhenyi, seeing this cheap dad coming into the room with eyes only on Honoured Mother, smirked to himself. He thought: That’s right, so long as Honoured Mother is in the room, he will not be interested in whatever we do. How lucky!
Fu Qiuning said, “Thanks to Second Madam Wan’s assistance, everything was done quickly.”
“I see, I see,” Jin Fengju laughed. “What about that debate just now? What sparked it?”
Fu Qiuning turned to the children. Jin Xiunan stepped forward, saluted her father and said, “It is nothing much. Elder Brother Yi saw an old cat and fed it some fish. We are discussing whether Elder Brother Yi’s act of kindness is true benevolence or not.”
“Oh?” Jin Fengju’s interest visibly lessened since it had nothing to do with Fu Qiuning. “I see, it is good to practice benevolence.”
An awkward silence passed before Fu Qiuning ventured to ask, “Is Lord Husband done with his duties? Is there no welcoming banquet to attend?”
Jin Fengju smiled and replied, “Of course, there will be a welcoming banquet. I have just arrived in the province, so it would be impolite to decline. I took some time to come and see if you have any difficulty settling in before attending. Since you have everything in order, I can now go to the banquet in peace.”
As he spoke, Jian Feng came bearing tea things. He picked up his teacup and drank before adding, “We have been eating nothing but seafood while travelling on the Grand Canal. You must be tired of it. It just so happened that my friends sent me some game meat. I had them sent to the kitchen. You may all look forward to some meat tonight. The rest of you may be fine, but I fear that should Zhenyi go without meat any longer, his temper would lift the roof off.”
Jin Zhenyi’s eye twitched. He thought: See? See? Even though he did nothing but stand on the side, this cheap dad of his still made fun of him!
Fu Qiuning looked at Jin Zhenyi for a moment before saying, “I’m sure he would not do that.”
Jin Fengju set down his teacup and shook his head, smiling, “A father knows his son best. How could I not understand that little rascal? Did you say he gave a cat some fish? What a kind act. However, I am afraid that goodness and kindness are not the only thing fueling this this act of benevolence. First, he is tired of eating fish; secondly, who knows if there is something fishy going on?”
“… I see,” said Fu Qiuning faintly.
In truth, she was not sure how they had gotten onto this topic, or why they were still speaking about this. However, for the time being, it was best to just sit in place and nod for the moment. A quick flash of her eyes showed that all the children were standing perfectly still, alert to their father’s possible mood change.
A few seconds later, Jin Fengju was still beaming expectantly at her. So, she said, “No matter the intent, a good deed was done. Surely that is what is important? A person’s intention to do kindness cannot be felt until the kindness has reached them.”
Jin Fengju’s smile faltered. However, he quickly grinned and said, “Ah, well, I should go to the banquet quickly. This is not the Capital after all, and I am but a new official in a strange land. As a new person in town, I should give them a little face.”
Then, he launched himself out of his chair and disappeared as quickly as he had arrived.
“…At least we have some game meat to look forward to!” Jin Zhenyi cheered.
Fu Qiuning looked at Jin Zhenyi with slightly concerned eyes. She thought: Well, at least the child has an optimistic disposition.
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That night, the dining table was laden with carefully prepared game meat. Fu Qiuning had never handled a household before. However, Jiang Wanying had very exacting methods and she had two of Second Madam Wan’s maids with her to provide advice. Although she had made some changes as she thought suitable, things would not have run as smoothly as they did without Jiang Wanying’s cooperation.
Therefore, she especially had the kitchen prepare some pheasant soup, clear porridge, as well as a number of exquisite dishes upon the advice of the maids to be sent to Jiang Wanying’s room. She had been shocked by the number of dishes a noble lady was supposed to have on her table, but figured that Jiang Wanying would be more comfortable to be served that way.
Naturally, she also had the maids check whether Jiang Wanying wished to have her children with her. As a noble household, children didn’t usually stay with their parents. They had their own wing and set of maids and servants to handle their needs.
Jiang Wanying must have been feeling especially poorly, and possibly lonely because the maid returned to request for her two children to accompany her in her own wing of the house. Fu Qiuning nodded sympathetically and instructed the maid to make the arrangements.
Jin Fengju did not return until the wee hours of the morning. Surprisingly, he wasn’t completely drunk and unaware of what was happening. When he saw Fu Qiuning, he was still somewhat sober. However, after a quick bath and change of clothes, he collapsed onto the bed and started snoring almost the moment his head touched the pillow.
Fu Qiuning looked down at his snoring figure and thought back to Jin Changfeng and Jin Changjiao’s origins. To think that he still dared to drink until he blacked out like this… should she call it brave or reckless?
She was debating whether to just sleep in the next room when Yu Jie suddenly bustled in with a bowl of sobering soup and a sobering stone.
“Madam, I’m sure you must be concerned for Master! I had the kitchen prepare this long ago. In fact-”
“Where is Jin Ming?” Fu Qiuning interrupted her.
“Here, Madam,” said Jin Ming from the door.
“I shall be in the next room. Make sure your master takes the soup, I am sure it would be best for him to be alert tomorrow.”
“But, Madam-” Yu Jie made to rush over, but her hands were full of soup and could not move too quickly.
“I am going to bed,” said Fu Qiuning sternly. It was time to draw the line, especially now that Yu Jie had married a person of Jin Fengju’s choosing. There was no need to pretend any loyalty.
Fortunately, Jin Ming must have stopped Yu Jie from making a fuss, because the rest of the night passed without incident.
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The next morning, Jin Fengju was up early. Thanks to the sobering soup, he did not suffer much. At the sight of Fu Qiuning, he thanked her profusely, smiling as he said, “Back when I was immature, I often got drunk. At that time, Elder Sister had not married yet. Even if I fell asleep, she would definitely wake me up with punches and kicks and feed me this sobering soup, so that I would not suffer during the day. I did not expect that after so many years, with Elder Sister married off to Prince Rong’s Palace and even me rarely getting drunk, today, I would revisit the taste of the past.”
“You may thank Yu Jie and Jin Ming for the sobering soup.”
“… …”
“If you get drunk again, I am sure those two would be more than happy to serve you.”
Jin Fengju laughed and said, “Still, I must thank my benevolent wife for having the servants care for me. It is only right that you did not unduly suffer for my foolishness.”
The conversation was moving towards a very uncomfortable topic. Why did this man insist on reading good intentions behind her every move? It was very frustrating.
“It is as you say,” she said for the lack of anything else to say.
Fortunately, instead of pursuing the subject, Jin Fengju said, “It is likely that the female officials will come by for a visit today. Since Wanying is ill, and you are my official wife, you should be the one to entertain them. I know you have no patience for these things, but you will have to bear with it today.”
Fu Qiuning replied, “It is good that you know it.”
Even as the words passed her lips, Fu Qiuning knew that she had gone overboard. Jin Fengju fell silent and did not say anything else. Fu Qiuning did her duty by helping him into his clothes before saluting him as he left. It all happened in silence.
At the breakfast table, Fu Qiuning sat thoughtfully for a moment before asking one of the maids what Jiang Wanying’s condition was like. Naturally, Jiang Wanying’s competent maids had already prepared breakfast for herself and her children.
On the side, Jin Zhenyi muttered, “Honoured Mother, I know that you are kind-hearted, but you also have to see if others appreciate it. Maybe she finds you annoying, trying to show off the official wife’s authority to her. Why bother? You have to worry about yourself, and it might not turn out well.”
“Shall we have another debate on the issue of kindness, benevolence and virtue?” asked Fu Qiuning.
Suddenly, the table became a little more noisy as all four children did their best to voice their thoughts and defend their opinions. That’s right, this was how it ought to be. She may not be able to influence the children after a certain age, however, by setting a foundation for critical thinking right then, she could at least encourage them how to think and voice out their thoughts properly in the future.
[Gumihou: It is like and yet not like the ‘original’ chapter. If the rest of the chapters are like the above, will just steamroll over things in the future]
Pill Bug TL Notes:
I had some health problems so I had to take a break from translating. I’m back now!
Take care of your health, alright? A healthy person has a thousand wishes, a sick person only has one.
Gumihou: Take care. I recently took a blood test and was found to be pre-diabetic… gotta cut down on the Shandy…
