Red Mansion Reader

Chapter 4 Go Study
It was getting late, and Chen Qishan and Chen Qi, who had been busy in the fields all day, just returned home and felt that today was a bit strange.In the past at this time, Chen Heng would be waiting for them in his yard. The little people were busy running errands, pouring water and asking for warmth, which made them very interesting to watch, and even the fatigue of the day would be much less.

But what about others today?

The two father and son looked at each other, looked at Zhou and Gu who were making contact in the yard in tacit understanding, and asked in unison: "Where is Ergou?"

"Father, Ergou is resting in the house." Mrs. Gu put down her work and got up to get tea for the two of them.Zhou continued to explain from the side, "After delivering the meals to you this morning, I was wilted when I came back, and I have been lying in the room."

A flash of light flashed in Chen Qi's mind, half worried: "Could it be heat stroke?"

As the end of May was approaching, peasants like them knew best how hot the weather was.

"No way." Zhou hesitated for a moment, then looked at Gu who came out with tea,

Mrs. Gu put down the tea and comforted everyone: "I just checked before, Ergou is fine. Father and mother, don't worry, the child should just be tired from playing. He likes to be quiet and not to move. It's good to go out and play during this time. I think today is at home to take it easy."

"That's good." Chen Yushan nodded, and he glanced at Mrs. Zhou, "Tell him to come out for dinner."

Mrs. Zhou understood, got up and walked to the wing room.This old lady, since her eldest grandson passed away a few years ago, she has regarded Chen Heng as the meat on the tip of her heart.

But what's the matter with Chen Hengneng, he's just depressed, he can't figure out why Mrs. Wang doesn't allow him to go to the school to eavesdrop.Seeing the grandma coming in, he quickly showed a smiling face to make the old man happy.Seeing this, Mrs. Zhou felt much more at ease.

Farmers don’t pay much attention to dinner, but in order to save money on lamp oil, they will move the dining table to the yard, and enjoy the cool evening breeze by the way.

Two eggs were added to dinner, one for my second aunt Li and one for Chen Heng.The second aunt has been in the body for six months, and the whole family is a little nervous about her, fearing that she will bump into each other, except for her daughter Chen Xian.

This girl was still immersed in the situation where her mother gave birth to a younger brother and couldn't extricate herself from loving her.Adults find it interesting and often make fun of it.

The most active person here is Chen Huaijin himself. Although Chen Xian is his own daughter, he loves to make Chen Xian cry the most, and then laughs out loud at his daughter's flushed face.

No wonder Grandpa keeps scolding him for being out of tune, for being out of shape all day long.

After dinner, the family will continue to sit in the yard and chat.At this time, it was Chen Huaijin's home field.He was already restless, and before he got married, he often secretly went to the county to play with Chen Begshan on his back, and made some messy friends.

Over time, he has developed a first-class eloquence, even if it is an ordinary event in the county, it sounds very interesting after his embellishment.When the family was listening to what he said, a sudden knock on the door caught everyone's attention.

"Who?"

The second uncle, Chen Huaijin, stepped forward to open the door quite actively. He didn't know who he saw, and yelled at Chen Qishan, "Daddy, daddy."

"What are you doing?" Chen Yushan cursed while sitting on the seat, and when he saw the person coming under the moonlight, he quickly got up from the bamboo chair, "Wang... Wang..."

The visitor smiled and greeted first, raised his hand and said, "Second brother, you probably forgot my nickname, right?"

Chen Gaishan smiled sheepishly, "In just a few decades, we are all grandpas."

Although the two were young, there is already a huge gap between them in terms of status and social status.How dare Chen Gaishan call the other party's nickname in public?He simply chuckled, and kept the address aside.

"Yes." Wang Xianming stood under the moonlight in a clean and tidy robe and sighed, "Think back, we were only as old as him."

Wang Xianming pointed at Chen Heng, who was listening, Chen Heng felt his heart skip a beat, and even his blood couldn't control the acceleration. He vaguely felt that Mrs. Wang came for him.

Chen Yushan, who also felt the same, first invited Wang Xianming to take a seat, and then said to Gu and the others: "Take the children down."

Hey, Chen Heng sighed in his heart, he was still too young, no matter how well-behaved he was in the past, he was still a sensible and obedient child in the eyes of his elders.

If he wanted to stay and listen in his heart, Chen Heng had no choice but to follow Mrs. Gu back to the house.Only Chen Caishan, Chen Qi, Chen Huaijin, and Zhou family remained in the courtyard.

The people who are mainly responsible for the conversation are Chen Yushan and Wang Xianming, and the others can only be regarded as accompanying guests.After the two briefly talked about the past, the topic returned to the purpose of Wang Xianming's trip.

"You said...you want Ergou to study with you?"

Chen Yushan exclaimed, and put his hands on the hakama subconsciously. People who do farm work wear something like a robe. If they really want to wear it to the field, they will have to make fun of the villagers the next day.

"Ah."

Wang Xianming nodded seriously. He took the tea from Chen Qi and took a sip.Said: "I think this child is smart, maybe he is a good student. Second brother, don't worry, let him study with me for a few days. If it is really suitable, let's talk about the future?"

Wang Xianming, who dared not say anything to death, naturally had his own considerations.He had persuaded students to quit one after another before, and some rumors had spread in the village.

After Wang Xianming finished speaking, everyone present had different reactions.Chen Gaishan leaned on the seat and remained silent.Zhou's expression was uncertain, and he didn't know what to think.

The most interesting thing was the two brothers Chen Qi, Chen Qi looked into his room with a guilty conscience as if thinking of something.Chen Huaijin was so happy, he patted his thigh and said: "Father, what are you thinking about, the master can come to the door in person, and we can figure out a way..."

"What are you talking about?"

Chen Yushan yelled at his son, screaming in his heart that it was terrible, how could he let this guy who didn't keep his mouth shut, he should really let his wife take him away.

"How can this be called talkative. You don't know when you are old... I agreed to this matter for my elder brother." Chen Huaijin, who was spoiled since he was a child, would be afraid of this, so he stood up and saluted Wang Xianming, and said emotionally.

"Sir, don't worry. I will take Ergou to the school tomorrow morning, and I promise not to delay your class. My eldest brother, this kid, has been sensible and intelligent since he was a child. I always thought he was a kind of material, but I didn't expect that he should be studying. Hahahahaha."

Chen Huaijin couldn't help laughing, his mind was far more active than ordinary people, Wang Xianming's speech was reserved, and he even said something about it.Then he came to the door in person, could he have identified Ergou?

Wang Xianming, who put down his teacup, stroked his goat's beard, and controlled the shallow smile on the corner of his mouth: "Second brother, if you are worried about Shuxiu, you don't have to. We agreed today, Er...Heng'er, come to me just for a trial reading, and there is no rush for the rest. If it suits you, let him read it for a few days first, and you can learn more about it."

"That's great." Chen Huaijin raised his hand again and again, looking at my good nephew, he doesn't want money to teach you, "Mr. Lao, Mr. Lao."

Forget about this family, Chen Gaishan, who was blowing his beard and staring angrily, had no choice but to stand up, "Alright, then do as you wish."

Wang Xianming, who got what he wanted, let out a long sigh of relief, knowing that he would leave time for the family to discuss, so he simply got up and left.

When he was sent out by Chen Qi, Chen Yushan signaled Chen Qi to call both Gu Shi and Li Shi over.

The adults in the family sat together, and the two daughter-in-laws were still confused, so they first listened to Zhou's lesson on Chen Huaijin.Fortunately, this situation is not uncommon on weekdays, so Gu's naturally doesn't care.

The thick-skinned Chen Huaijin went in from one ear to the other and out from the right. After finally waiting for his old lady to teach him a lesson, he hurriedly conveyed Wang Xianming's intentions to them both.What he said made his eyebrows dance with joy, and Gu Shi was stunned for a while when he heard it.

Thinking about it, she didn't figure out how her second dog got into Mr. Wang's eyes.

After Chen Huaijin finished speaking, Chen Yushan coughed and took over the topic, "Second bitch, what are you thinking?"

It must be read. Isn't it a good thing that the child Ergou has this fate for Wang Xianming?Gu Shi just wanted to say this, but after thinking about it, she knew that what Chen Gaishan asked was not what he meant. If he himself disagreed, why would he call him over.Rejected on the spot, so what is the problem?

After contemplating for a moment, Gu finally said: "Father, I will make more connections on weekdays. Ergou's study expenses will never be allowed at home..."

This daughter-in-law still has little experience, and she doesn't know how much effort the whole family needs to raise a scholar.Zhou sighed and interrupted her, "This is far from enough."

Seeing that it was Mrs. Zhou speaking, Chen Gaishan swallowed the words that came to his mouth.Mrs. Zhou continued to say to several juniors: "Don't look at how glamorous Wang Xianming is now, our family's twelve acres of land now, three acres were sold to our family by his father in order to support him in his studies.

Originally, their family was one of the best in the village, a family property accumulated by generations of ancestors with diligence.Just because Wang Xianming wanted to study, and the family farms were sold acre by acre. At that time, your father and I felt distressed when we saw it.It was also because of his good luck that he passed the Tongsheng examination and bought back some of the previously sold land. "

Mrs. Zhou picked up the tea and took a sip to moisten her throat.In front of Mrs. Gu, she kept a word in her heart: If Wang Xianming fails the exam, then you will know what it means to be a scholar who is useless.

"It's not that I don't want Ergou to study..." Zhou put down his teacup, paused for a moment, and said quietly, "It's just going to be such a waste of money to go on this road. You always talk about motherhood in private, but you are not in charge, so you don't know the situation.

In today's world, when a child reaches the age of three, he has to pay one thousand taels a year. Our family's annual harvest is only 30 taels of silver. For this item alone, the whole family spends seven taels of silver a year.

The harvest in the fields has been good in recent years, and our family has saved some property.But these are reserved for Daya, Erya, and Ergou to get married.Don't think it's too early to think about it. The children don't let us count the days to grow up. If you want him to grow up slowly, he can wait.Think back for yourself, don’t you think the day Ergou was born is not too far away? "

Chen Qi listened silently, and then said in a muffled voice: "Both my wife and I know about mother's difficulties. I went out to do part-time jobs before, and I saved three taels of silver. Since the master said it was a trial study, let's take the money out first."

Gu Shi, who was originally said to be worried by Zhou Shi, raised her eyebrows when she heard the words, and glared at Chen Qi who dared not look at her.Okay, you dare to hide your private money behind my back.

"This is yours to take." Mrs. Zhou nodded unsurprisingly, and said, "But what I'm going to say next is for you." Mrs. Zhou looked at Mrs. Chen Huaijin and Mrs. Li on their right, "I have saved 30 taels of silver here, which is the money everyone has saved over the years. Now you are married and your daughter-in-law is pregnant again. Even though you are brothers, this account should be settled. I will show it later, and you two brothers will split it half and half."

"Mother, what are you talking about?" Chen Huaijin's face turned red, and he waved his hands directly, "You take everything to the eldest brother, and treat Ergou as my uncle."

"A person who is a family and a father, how to do things without discussing with his wife?" Chen Yushan, who was holding back his stomach, finally broke out, and yelled at Chen Huaijin, "Do you think that the daughter-in-law you are begging for is a Bodhisattva? She is coaxed by offerings on weekdays. If there is something to do, I forget her as soon as I think about it."

Seeing that his father was really angry, Chen Huaijin hurriedly bowed his head to admit his mistake to Mrs. Li.In front of the whole family, Mrs. Li couldn't say much, so she had to stand up and save Chen Huaijin's face.

"Father and mother, they say that everything is happy at home. The child Ergou is also watched by his daughter-in-law. He is the most well-behaved and sensible on weekdays, but whenever I feel a little uncomfortable, he is more anxious than Erya's father. He can have this opportunity this time. We, as elders, can't delay him. Let's do it according to the father-in-law."

You were unhappy that time, I'm not in a hurry?Chen Huaijin didn't dare to speak, so he could only criticize a few words in his heart.

"If you can think of it this way, I can rest assured that Huaijin will be handed over to you." Mrs. Zhou agrees with Mrs. Li's rationality, "But if you want to reconcile your family, you have to have a bowl of water. The 30 taels is still half of the two brothers. I make the decision for Huaijin and lend his elder brother ten taels of silver, and leave five taels for your own use. You are too heavy now, so you can't ignore it."

"That's right, that's right." Mrs. Gu rubbed her hands anxiously. She really wanted to thank Mrs. Li, but she didn't know what to say until she reached the point of her mouth, and finally choked out a sentence: "If you have any problems in the future, just tell your sister-in-law."

Seeing that the two daughters-in-law reached a tacit understanding, Zhou finally let go of her worries. She looked at Chen Yushan, "Don't worry, your father is the one who decides the family, so listen to your father."

Chen Gaishan looked at the place where Wang Xianming had just sat in a daze, and didn't know what to think about, so Chen Huaijin scratched his ears and cheeks anxiously, unable to figure out the medicine in his father's gourd.

"Your mother has a good saying. Once the road of studying starts, it will be like water. When the two dogs fail in the imperial examination in the future, don't forget the appearance of working together today."

Chen Yushan lowered his head and meditated, his mind was wandering, his eyes fell on the hakama inadvertently, a few mud marks stained during the day had not had time to wipe off.He immediately thought of Wang Xianming's robe that was dazzlingly bright under the moonlight.

Clenching his fists uncontrollably, Chen Yushan gritted his teeth and said viciously: "Send Ergou to study, taking advantage of my weak bones, and I can still plant a few more years of land, how can I confess my eldest grandson."

　Thank you for voting, thank you.The code words are all motivated. I thought that this small piece of writing was not read by anyone, hahahaha, after all, the red building is not the red building, and it is not empty.I wrote it purely because of the heroine...

　　
　
(End of this chapter)