Chapter 042
Author: Feast of Masks
Raws: https://www.jjwxc.net/onebook.php?novelid=3185016
Translated by Gumihou
Proofread by Pill Bug
Although Xue Tingxiang said ‘a few copies’, they ended up making several dozen copies of the damned thing.
While Chen Jian and Li Datian diligently copied out the contract, Mao Badou’s mouth was as busy as his hand. He tsked and said, “Heh, I did not realise that our friend Tinxiang is such a sneaky person. When he made a contract with others, it only stated what the other side must do, but never mentioned anything about how much he would pay.”
Xue Tingxiang gave him a look and handed him more paper, “Since you seem to have an easy time writing, you can copy out a few more.”
“Just how many of these do you need? Is this some kind of weird punishment?!” Mao Badou exclaimed, but his hands really did move faster.
Zhao’er thought that it would take them a long time to make 100 copies of the contract and was prepared to accept a few copies when they met with Xue Tingxiang that afternoon. Who would have thought that when Xue Tingxiang came out to meet her, it was to hand over a thick stack of paper?
“There are no names written on the contracts. These will only become valid once the names have been filled in.” Xue Tingxiang only remembered this fact after he had returned to the academy, so he had left the section for the name blank.
“None of you can write. How about this? Once I am done with my evening studies, I’ll go with you to fill in the names.”
“This evening, ah?” Zhao’er looked conflicted. “Can’t you just fill in the name now? Even if you come with us, we won’t be able to make the trip in one night. Besides, it’s not good to travel around in the middle of the night.”
“Do you remember everyone’s names?”
Zhao’er nodded and took out a small booklet from her breast pocket, “It’s only a rough estimation, but I do keep a record.”
This made Xue Tingxiang curious. Since she was illiterate, what kind of records could she keep? He swiftly grabbed the booklet from her, and his action was so smooth that Zhao’er was unable to stop him.
This was probably the first time he saw a panicked look on her face. She even tried to snatch the booklet from him, but Xue Tingxiang had already ducked away and was flipping through the booklet.
“Give it back!” she tried to wrestle with him, but it was already too late.
Xue Tingxiang stared at the strange symbols that had been drawn on the booklet with a smile. There were dots and circles, some grass-like symbols and even something like three flat lines. Were those supposed to be a river or a stream? There were also small mountain-shaped patterns, dog heads, horse faces and so forth.
The crude symbols were drawn with charcoal, but there was a definite system to it. Those who did not know better might think it was some heaven-defying script.
Zhao’er stretched out her hand and said, “Give it back. This is just something I wrote down casually to keep track of things. You won’t be able to understand it. Only I know what’s written there.”
Instead of returning the book to her, Xue Tingxiang held on to it even more tightly, twisting away to hide the book against his chest when Zhao’er tried to grab it. In the end, she jumped on his back, trying to force him to comply.
Under the brilliant sunlight, the girl lying unreservedly on the boy’s back looked like a youth who was just playing around with a younger boy. To the eyes of outsiders, they looked like a pair of children playing around. However, to Jiang Wu’s eyes, it felt particularly uncomfortable.
He could not help himself as he called out, “Zhao’er.”
“What is it, Brother Jiang Wu?” a clueless Zhao’er asked.
Jiang Wu’s face stiffened for a moment. “We should get back to business quickly. Tingxiang still has to return to the academy.”
Right then, Zhao’er suddenly felt the inappropriateness of her behaviour and quickly straightened up.
“Give me back the booklet, and I’ll give you the names.”
“Tell me what this means first,” Xue Tingxiang said, pointing at 3 patterns consisting of a horse face, a large circle and a small mountain-shaped symbol. He glanced over at Jiang Wu, but the youth said nothing.
Zhao’er was silent for so long that Xue Tingxiang had to prompt her again. “That’s Big Horse Mountain.”
“What about the circles that followed it?” Xue Tingxiang dared not ask about the symbols for a cow’s head and a circle. Don’t tell him there’s a village or household called ‘Cow Egg’ or something.
Helplessly, Zhao’er scrubbed her face for a moment before confessing truthfully, “A circle represent 10 catties or 10 items, and a dot means 1 catty or 1 item.”
“So, you received 13 catties of vegetables from Big Horse Mountain?” Xue Tingxiang guessed.
Angrily, Zhao’er snatched the booklet from him and said, “Not 13 catties of vegetables. It’s 13 eggs! Enough, let’s not talk about this anymore. I’m going to give you the names, so you write them on the contract!”
Xue Tingxiang did not want to upset her further, so he returned to his study to collect his writing materials and helped Zhao’er fill out the names from her list from the back of the cart.
Surprisingly, even though Zhao’er’s notes looked like mystical codes written by ghosts, she did not make a single mistake as she read out the names for him. Xue Qinghuai even praised her method. After all, having notes was better than just depending on one’s memories.
In other words, scholars and the illiterate were from two different worlds. After hearing such praise, Xue Tingxiang could only look at his uncle helplessly.
After he was done writing out the names, Xue Tingxiang pulled Zhao’er aside.
“Zhao’er, the next time I go home, I’ll teach you how to read.”
“Read?” A look of confusion flashed across Zhao’er’s face, followed by surprise and a hint of unease. “Is that even possible? I never heard of any girl who could read. I mean, I did hear that wealthy young ladies do read, but…”
There were times when she had felt that not being literate made doing business difficult, but she had never thought about studying before.
“Why not? If I say it’s possible, it’s possible!”
After sending Xue Tingxiang to the gate and watching him enter the academy, Zhao’er finally returned to the mule carts.
Jiang Wu asked, “Zhao’er, what did Tingxiang say to you just now?”
“Why do you want to know, Brother Jiang Wu?” Zhao’er asked him, feeling puzzled by his question.
“I’m just curious.”
“Oh, it’s nothing, Tingxiang said he would teach me how to read when he comes back next time.”
Seeing the unconscious smile on Zhao’er’s face, Jiang Wu could not help feeling a little uncomfortable. He thought: Why am I not literate?
Well, even if he was literate, it was not like he had the right to teach Zhao’er how to read.
There was not much conversation between the three of them after that. Instead, they had a casual lunch at a roadside stall before splitting up into two groups of people to hand over the contracts to be signed.
Jiang Wu would be travelling alone while Zhao’er and Xue Qinghuai moved together.
Naturally, Jiang Wu wanted Zhao’er to travel with him, but since Xue Qinghuai was still not yet familiar with the route, Zhao’er went with him. Therefore, the only thing Jiang Wu could hope for now was for Xue Qinghuai to quickly learn the ropes so that he could have some time alone with Zhao’er again.
Please read this at kitchennovel dot com ~
Zhao’er and Xue Qinghuai only reached home after dark.
Both of them were quite tired. Xue Qinghuai took charge of the mule, unhooking it from the cart and ensuring it had water and feed. He also brushed the animal from head to toe before returning to his room.
Sun’shi had long since prepared the evening meal for the two of them. She had been cooking by herself. It was something that she had been doing for a few days now. In fact, the fourth branch had not said anything about not eating with the main branch. However, since the fourth branch did not contribute any flour or rice to the communal meal, it was a tacit signal that they would not be eating with the main branch. It was something that everyone knew, but after the Incident, not even the main branch dared to bring it up.
Sun’shi was especially affectionate towards Zhao’er nowadays, likely due to something that Xue Qinghuai had said to her. Even so, since she knew that Zhao’er was the one leading the potentially profitable business, she had cleverly decided that she could not afford to offend this God of Wealth.
Therefore, seeing as there was only Zhao’er from the second branch, she repeatedly invited the girl to eat with them in the fourth branch’s room. Zhao’er did not refuse either, mostly because she also did not want to eat with the people from the main branch. Stifling atmosphere aside, the food choices were also limited. There were times she really could not understand what Old Man Xue was thinking. The people from the four branches had already divided, so why persist in keeping everyone together and inviting all this conflict?
However, as a person from the younger generation, it was not appropriate for her to show her dissatisfaction. Therefore, she could only take advantage of the fourth branch situation and eat with them instead. That way, it justified her reason for not eating with the main family.
“Cui’e is back.”
Sun’shi announced as soon as Xue Qinghuai and Zhao’er sat down. They both looked at her, surprised.
Xue Cui’e was Old Man Xue’s and Old Zhao’s daughter. At 16 years old, she was still living with them, waiting to be married off. Recently, Xue Cui’e made a fuss about going to Old Zhao’s maternal home. The time happened during one of the busiest farming seasons, which annoyed Old Zhao greatly. In the end, Xue Qinghuai was tasked to send her there.
That had been over a month ago, and she had just returned.
“If she is back, then she’s back,” said Xue Qinghuai with a frown. “That girl is really ignorant, but she also knows how to come back.”
For now, let us speak about this.
Old Zhao’s maternal home was near the Zhao Clan Farmstead. It takes close to two hours to travel from Yuqing Village to Zhao Clan Farmstead.
Old Zhao’s father had passed on, but her mother was still alive, and she had three brothers in her family. The three brothers had divided their families, with Old Zhao’s mother living with the eldest son. Therefore, Xue Cui’e going to her maternal grandmother’s house really meant she was visiting her eldest maternal uncle’s house.
Eldest Uncle Zhao had three sons. The first two were already married with their own families, so there was no need to mention them for now. The most relevant character to the story is the youngest son, Zhao Jinrui, commonly referred to as Youngest by the people in the countryside.
Eldest Uncle Zhao lost his wife in his middle age. Later, he remarried through a matchmaker’s introduction, marrying Hong’shi, who was 20 years his junior. In short, Eldest Uncle was in his 50s, Hong’shi in her 30s and their son, Zhao Jinrui, was only 17 this year.
In terms of generation, Zhao Jinrui could be considered Xue Cui’e’s cousin.
Historically, it was fairly normal for cousins to develop feelings for each other, and it looked like Xue Cui’e had some tender feelings towards Zhao Jinrui. Because of that, she would often find excuses to visit her Eldest Uncle’s house. This time, she managed to stay for over a month.
Fortunately for her, the two families already agreed to the marriage of the two youngsters, thus cementing their status as an engaged couple. Even so, how could an unmarried girl stay at her man’s house? Even if they were to be married at the end of the year, shouldn’t they endure until then? Xue Qinghuai did try to advise his sister, but Xue Cui’e refused to listen. Thus, with Old Zhao’s support, the only thing he could do was escort her to her fiancé’s house.
As expected, it was not good to talk about people behind their backs. As soon as they mentioned Xue Cui’e, they suddenly heard the girl screaming for ‘Fourth Brother!’
She burst into the fourth branch’s room and glanced at Zhao’er once before loudly declaring, “Fourth Brother, I’m back, but you didn’t even show your face. Anyway, Father asked you to have dinner in the main room with Fourth Sister-in-law and Mao Dan. You too, of course.”
The ‘you’ here was Zhao’er.
Xue Cui’e was born with a round face and large, almond-shaped eyes. The girl was also good at making herself look pretty. That day, she was wearing an apricot-red jacket with a tight belt around her waist to accentuate her slender figure.
From a young age, Xue Cui’e had been deemed the prettiest girl in the village. As she grew up, everyone declared that she would become the most beautiful young woman in the village. What a pity that this title was snatched away the moment Zhao’er entered the Xue family.
Although she was fairer than Zhao’er, with larger eyes and a rounder, luckier face, she had always felt inferior to Zhao’er whenever they were together. In fact, she was sure that when taken individually, her features were much more superior to Zhao’er. Even so, everyone’s eyes seemed irresistibly drawn to Zhao’er.
While Xue Cui’e never believed she was inferior to Zhao’er, she realised that others seemed to favour Zhao’er over her. In fact, even her most promising eldest nephew liked Zhao’er. Indeed, even though Xue Juncai tried to hide it, Xue Cui’e knew about it. The whole family may not know, but Cui’e was sensitive to these things.
Outside, the boys in the village all favoured Zhao’er, and none of them seemed even aware of Xue Cui’e’s existence. Even though Zhao’er acted like a wild child, always getting into fights with them and dressing in a crude manner without taking even the slightest care of her appearance, those boys somehow still considered her the flower of the village.
Whenever Zhao’er was not around, she was the star of the show, but as soon as Zhao’er appeared, she became like a blade of grass in the field.
Because of those thoughts, Xue Cui’e never had a good impression of Zhao’er. This bad impression worsened after she learned that the family had divided due to Zhao’er’s instigation. Not to mention, she also caused Fourth Uncle to distance himself from the family. After learning all of that, Xue Cui’e became even more displeased with Zhao’er. However, because of Old Man Xue’s warning, she could only force a smile on her face and pretend to be affectionate towards this unruly person.
Little did she know that her forced smile and pretence of affection were so obvious and awkward that even the fourth-branch couple felt embarrassed for her. Sun’shi was more worried about Zhao’er feeling offended as she quickly winked at her, hoping that she would ignore Xue Cui’er’s antics.
As for Xue Cui’e, aside from the elderly couple, there were few people she liked in the Xue family. Even her sisters-in-law found it difficult to speak to her due to various reasons.
Xue Qinghuai wanted to refuse the invitation to eat together, but Xue Cui’e continued to stare at him, alternatively acting coquettish, and then threatening, before the four of them finally gave up and followed her to the main room.
Everyone else was already in the main room, with many dishes laid out on the two tables. The dishes were especially rich today.
“Sit down quickly. Cui’e just came back today, so your mother made some good dishes to celebrate. It is good for the family to eat together. Just think of it as a family reunion.”
Old Man Xue’s voice was low and serious. Although he said ‘your mother’, everyone knew he was directly addressing Xue Qinghuai.
Naturally, it was difficult for the son to decline. Thus, the four of them sat down.
During the meal, almost no one spoke. The only ones speaking were Xue Cui’e and Old Zhao. Occasionally, they managed to coax a few words out of Old Man Xue, creating a warm little atmosphere around them.
After the meal, it was customary for the daughters-in-law to clean up.
Xue Qinghuai was about to return to his room when Old Man Xue called out, “Don’t leave yet. I have some things I wish to speak to you all.”
So they all stayed.
In the few days that they had not seen Old Man Xue, he looked like he had aged a few years. There were more strands of silver in his hair, and he had been smoking more and more.
The sound of crackling tobacco could be heard constantly coming from the room.
His sons tried to advise him about his smoking habit, but to no avail. Not to mention, there were very few elderly people in the village who did not smoke, and therefore they had no choice but to let him do as he liked.
The kang where Old Man Xue sat was shrouded with swirling blue smoke. If not for the choking smell of tobacco, one might think that there was an enlightened individual seated there, surrounded by incense.
“Cui’e’s wedding needs to be moved forward. At first, I thought of holding her wedding at the end of the year. That way, we would have enough money for her dowry. However, with the change of date, funds will be tight, and I can only count on you brothers to think of a way.”
Even the main branch couple looked shocked. Everyone at the table was surprised to hear about this.
Sun’shi could not help but ask, “Why was the date moved up all of a sudden?”
If they were not required to contribute money, no one would care whether the wedding happened early or late, but Old Man Xue clearly wanted each branch to contribute money for Xue Cui’e’s dowry.
It was not that they were reluctant to provide dowry to their younger sister, but when the family was separated, 6 mu of land was allocated to the old couple to support themselves and Xue Cui’e. There was also an understanding that once she got married, none of the branch families were expected to contribute to her dowry. Unexpectedly, the brothers found themselves asked to ‘think of a way’.
Xue Qingbai and Xue Qinghuai exchanged a look. Xue Qinghuai asked, “Then, how much are each of the branch families expected to contribute?”
After some thought, Old Man Xue said, “Each family should contribute at least 2 taels of silver.”
Sun’shi was the first to speak up, “2 taels of silver from three families… that’s 6 taels of silver, not counting what mother and father are planning to contribute. What family expects the bride’s side of the family to provide 10 taels of silver without even mentioning how much the groom is planning to give? Father, just how much is the betrothal gift from the Zhao family? We don’t plan to take a single coin, but surely we should know how much Cui’e will be receiving?”
According to Yuqing Village custom, the value of the groom’s betrothal gifts determined how much they valued the bride. On the bride’s side, the more the bride’s family valued the girl, the higher the value of the dowry. Generally, the bride’s family would match the dowry given by the groom’s family.
Even so, since the majority of the villagers were common farmers, the betrothal gifts were often given in the form of fabric, sugar, rice, flour, meat, tea and other material items. Wealthier families may add a few pieces of jewellery for the bride. Naturally, money was also important. Less affluent families may give 3 to 4 taels of silver, while more well-off families may give up to 6 to 8 taels of silver as a gesture of gratitude for the years the parents had spent bringing up the girl.
This betrothal gift was generally not considered part of the bride’s dowry, but rather a gift to the bride’s parents. However, parents who love their daughters may include some of these gifts in the dowry.
Given the financial circumstances of the Xue and Zhao families, both sides should at least provide around 8.8 or 9.9 taels of silver as a show of goodwill.
“That’s right, Mother. What are the betrothal gifts from the Zhao’s side?” asked Zhou’shi.
Xue Cui’e, who had been sitting quietly on the side, looked at them with a darkened expression. Just as she was about to say something, she was roughly pulled down by Old Zhao, who glared at the two talkative daughters-in-law.
“What? Your little sister is about to get married, isn’t it only right for you as the siblings-in-law to contribute to her dowry?”
In the end, no matter how highly she thought of herself, Old Zhao was not quite as intelligent as she believed herself to be. Each time she thought that she had pulled a smart move, it ended up backfiring on her. In the past, she could intimidate or confuse those two daughters-in-law into going along with her nonsense, but after many years, they had long since seen through her. After the separation, they were no longer as frightened either.
Naturally, Zhou’shi and Sun’shi immediately realised that there must be something else going on due to her excessive behaviour.
“What are you talking about, Mother? What’s this about us not intending to contribute money? It’s something we must do as in-laws. Even so, surely we should know how much the groom’s side is contributing to decide how much we could give, right? If we are to do as you say all the time, what’s the point of calling us into the discussion?”
“Mother, surely you’re not going to say that the Zhao family would not be providing any betrothal gift?”
Old Zhao suddenly wilted.
[Gumihou: Ah, all this marriage money talk…]
Kitchennovel.com has a Membership System!!
Please click on the table below to check it out~
Naturally, you can also choose to support us through Patreon or tip us via Kofi~!
Don’t forget to leave a comment at novelupdates too!
