Chapter Five Outside Matters

  Wen Xiuyu and Wen Chunyi came out of the inner room, accompanied by the delighted Wen Xiujuan for a while before the siblings took him to play in the courtyard. The maidservants followed them out, leaving only Jin Shi and Nizi inside. As they listened to the commotion outside, Nizi pulled out a piece of paper from her sleeve pocket and whispered: "Miss, this is something Qing Xun asked me to bring to you."

  She said, "This year, the heavens are not rewarding us with food, and some people outside the city want to sell their land. Can you now arrange for a dowry field for the two young ladies?" Jin Shi looked at Nizi with some emotion and said: "In these years, it's been hard for you two to always think of me. You go out and tell Qing Xun that if there is suitable land, we can buy it in. I have as much silver as I do, Qing Xun knows the number, no need to rush at this time, we will do as much as we have silver." Nizi smiled and nodded: "Miss, you rest assured, my sister and I are people you brought up, and the men are also real people you carefully chose for us. We won't do things that are beyond our means."

  "Look, we're all better off now than when we were at the Jin's house," said Mr. Jin with a smile. "Unfortunately, I'm stuck with you and can't send Qing Xun out alone." Nizi shook her head with a smile: "Miss, I'm not like Qing Xun, she's always been someone with her own ideas, she can survive well on the outside, but I don't have that kind of temperament. I can only live a good life by following you. My husband is also a practical person, relying on my mother-in-law's many years of connections, he can only be a mediocre manager. When you told me to choose between a harmonious marriage and a comfortable outside life, I chose correctly back then."

  "Ah, you and Qing Xun are indeed rare talents among the 'Qing' ranked individuals. You two have achieved what you have today through your own efforts, don't try to attribute it all to me." Qīng Nī smiled slightly, a hint of nostalgia in her voice as she said: "Back then, when Qing Xun and I were young, we weren't particularly outstanding in any way. Fortunately, Miss had taken us under her wing, teaching us to read and write in secret. That's how we've managed to get where we are today. Qing Xun told me that thanks to Miss's reminder, she was able to humble herself and work hard in her husband's household, even helping with the accounts. The elders there treated her kindly, making things convenient for her wherever they went, and eventually allowed them to open their own new shop."

  Jin's eyebrows curved, and after Qing Xun and his wife opened their shop, the things in her hands were finally easy to sell. The sound of laughter from outside came in, and Qing Ni smiled with her eyes, saying to Jin: "Miss, let my eldest son come in to serve Young Master Yu, he is older and more stable, and won't drag you down." Jin smiled at her, thought for a moment, and nodded: "Okay, call your eldest son in first. Don't restrain your second son either, having a brave child at home is a good thing." Qing Ni smiled with narrowed eyes: "Miss, how dare I restrain him? His little mouth is so sweet that it's suffocating, he can coax his grandparents to take him wherever they go."

  Jin smiled, and on that day at the Wen Mansion, there were only a few young men who could be chosen as a match for Qingni. She had originally wanted to find a clever and resourceful young man for her, but she was also worried that someone with too much cunning would not make a suitable husband. The two of them carefully selected and chose Zhang Mu, the family-born son of the Wen Mansion, precisely because of his unassuming nature. Zhang Mu's parents were both family-born servants of the Wen Mansion; his father had previously been in charge of taking care of the flowers, grass, and trees in the mansion, while his mother had been a housekeeper for Old Lady Wen. A few years ago, Zhang Mu's older brother and sister-in-law had gone with the second master of the Wen Mansion to take up an official post in another province; after obtaining permission from their masters, the elderly couple had returned home to live out their days and care for their grandson.

  Qingni leaned in close to Jinshi, gesturing with her hand and speaking softly: "When I came out, my mother-in-law suddenly told me that my brother-in-law and his wife will be returning home soon. Once they return, they won't leave again. The Second Master has graciously allowed them to move out of the mansion, and from now on, they'll help the Second Master and Mistress with external matters outside the mansion." Jinshi raised an eyebrow, looking at Qingni and asking in a low voice: "If your brother-in-law and his wife have won over the hearts of the Second Master and Mistress, will your grandparents follow them to live together?" After Qingni got married, her family's elderly members had already divided the household early on, in order for the two brothers to get along harmoniously in the future.

  The elder brother and his wife of the Zhang family followed the second master of the Wen family to another province, so the parents of the Zhang family lived with their son's family in a row of houses behind the Wen mansion, helping to take care of the children. Jin Shi began to worry, as whose parents would be willing to live with their eldest son? Qing Ni smiled lightly and whispered to Jin Shi: "My elder brother is capable and has been rewarded by his masters for being filial, but he can't stop his wife from taking care of her natal family. It's not that the wife is wrong to take care of her natal family, as they have a better life because of it. If she didn't take care of them, would she be able to feel at ease?"

  "My grandfather is a simple-minded person, as long as he has enough to eat and drink at home, he won't mind his elder sister taking things back to her natal family. He focuses on raising his grandsons at home. My grandmother, however, is a shrewd person who always keeps in mind that her elder sister's actions are all for the benefit of her own natal family. She has long since passed away, but she and my grandfather still lived with us until the end of their days, and she didn't want to be separated from her old companions either." Jin heard this and let out a gentle sigh, smiling as he said: "In the past, your grandmother chose you because she saw that you have a good temperament and don't hold grudges. Your elder sister-in-law isn't a bad person either; while she takes care of her natal family, she doesn't take everything from her husband's family to give to them. She still has her husband and children in her heart."

  Qingni smiled and said, "My family's one also told me the same thing. He said his mother's eyesight has always been good, and the two daughters-in-law she chose both suited her sons' tastes. He said Eldest Sister is a kind person, and only because we have her at our house would she take care of her natal family like this. He said before he got married, in all four seasons, she would remember to add clothes for him, treating him even more tenderly than his own mother by three points." Jinshi liked listening to Qingni talk about these things, and in this life, she could only be confined to a courtyard, listening to others talk about outside matters.

  Qingni looked at the excitement in Jinshi's eyebrows and said with a smile: "Our two families have already separated, and my elder brother will send money and grain to our parents on time every month. My sister-in-law has a kind heart for her natal family, but she only sticks to her own share, and her husband doesn't object. As a younger sister-in-law, I don't have such long arms that I can go through the walls of the courtyard to manage my sister-in-law's money and grain. Besides, I think my sister-in-law's natal family is quite understanding of the rules, they just had bad luck for some time, but when their luck gets better in a few years, their life won't be worse than others."

  Jin smiled and said, "Living a life is all about coming and going. With your way of thinking, we can have more relatives visiting each other." Qingni listened to Jin's words and smiled, saying, "Miss, I'm telling you, the more things happen outside, the more your speech becomes down-to-earth like ours." Jin smiled and said, "It makes sense that life is better this way. At the Wen residence, compared to being at the Jin house, my days are much better. Every month, I can go out a few times. After Xueduo's incident, plus Jun'er's young age, it's been almost two years since I've gone out. When the weather gets more comfortable, I'll take them with me and we'll go out like before. I don't want to keep the children cooped up."