CHAPTER 1344: CHAPTER 1322: RELUCTANT AGREEMENT (SEPTEMBER BONUS CHAPTER 6)

Manbao: "...There’s not that much, if someone buys it, at most they’ll give you eighty or hundred taels."

"That’s still expensive, it’s a whole house, wearing it on your body isn’t it heavy?" Old Zhou and Ms. Qian said, "Put it away, wait for an opportunity to exchange it for money in the future."

Such heavy clothes on the body, he was afraid they’d bend the spine.

Manbao: ...She didn’t want to reveal the price of the fabric because she was afraid of this situation.

Manbao rolled her eyes and said, "Dad, is Daya’s wedding date set?"

"It’s set, the banquet is on the twenty-ninth of the twelfth lunar month, the next day it’ll be New Year, she’ll have two months to rest before the busy farming season starts."

Only then did Ms. Qian remember to ask, "How was that date set?"

"There was no choice, apart from the twenty-ninth, only the tenth of the first lunar month was suitable," Old Zhou said confidently, "Getting married after the New Year saves them one formal gift for going back home, how unreasonable is that? Moreover, entering too late, it’ll be close to busy farming, that’s not good for the child."

Ms. Qian: ...You just want to save that one gift, don’t you?

Manbao joyfully poured another cup of water for her dad and then praised, "That’s a good date, getting married the next day is New Year’s Eve, perfect for a family reunion, how festive!"

Old Zhou instantly smiled, eyes squinting, "Yes, even Manbao says it’s good. I also felt this date was festive that’s why I chose it."

Manbao took the opportunity to say, "Dad, did you discuss the dowry with the matchmaker? I want to give the shop in the county to Daya as her dowry."

Old Zhou spat out the water in his mouth, "What did you say?"

Manbao jumped aside to avoid it, and lifted her sleeve to wipe his face, "Dad, that shop is just in exchange for a piece of cloth, I’ve already given Daya two pieces of cloth, why care about giving one more?"

Old Zhou turned to look at the silk on the bed and felt she made a bit of sense.

He immediately shook his head to get rid of the idea, glaring at Manbao, "No, the fabric can’t make money, but the shop can. Do you know how much revenue that shop produces each month?"

Old Zhou said, "It’s much better than us working in the fields."

Manbao smiled, "Rest assured, I’ve discussed it with Eldest Sister-in-law. Although the shop is given to Daya as her dowry, Eldest Sister-in-law will still run it, and a portion will still be contributed to the family each month. It’s just that the shop will be listed under Daya’s name."

Old Zhou didn’t believe her, but he knew he couldn’t outtalk her, so he simply turned his head to one side to refuse to listen to her, "Whatever, I don’t care, that shop was bought by you, and your sister-in-law registered it under your name. It was agreed that it would be your dowry when you get married."

"But Dad, I’m so capable now, I can earn a lot of money, and I’m not in the county, that shop isn’t much use to me."

"You will have to come home eventually, right?" Only then did Old Zhou remember, "That’s right, I was so busy with Dali Village today, you’ve been running outside these days, I forgot to ask you, are you going back to the capital after the New Year?"

Manbao: "...Dad, Sixth Brother and the others are still in the capital, are we going to leave them there?"

Old Zhou sat pondering while feeling his tobacco pipe, saying, "Back then, I didn’t know how to settle that matter, you said you were going to the capital, and I muddleheadedly let you go, you said you wanted to buy a shop, and it was bought, but I’ve been thinking these days, the capital is too far from Qili Village, it takes ten or twenty days back and forth, now that your uncle... your real father’s injustice is cleared, you should come back home."

He said, "I know, you are capable now, and there’s no room to show your abilities in the village, but you can go to Yizhou or Mianzhou, they are big and prosperous, and closer to home, how about it?"

Manbao seriously said, "Dad, I took a job to treat the Empress and the Crown Prince, I agreed to take a month’s leave, if I don’t go back, the Crown Prince might kill, and that would implicate the family."

Old Zhou opened his mouth wide, only then remembering, "Right, you were treating the Crown Prince and Empress, all this silk is the reward for that."

He lamented, "Isn’t there a single doctor in the capital who can take over from you?"

"I know things they don’t."

Old Zhou looked at Manbao and sighed, "My daughter is so capable now."

"Alright, every time speaking about it you urge the child to come back, how many times have you done this in the past half year?" Ms. Qian said, "It’s good for the child to be successful, do you really want them to be like you, staying in the village for a lifetime?"

"What’s wrong with staying in the village? Didn’t you hear that Old Five said not to travel far when parents are around?"

"He’s not thinking about his parents, he’s thinking about his wife!" Ms. Qian burst his illusion and said, "Moreover, can parents live well if not traveling far? You’ve never gone far in your life, did parents live well? Worked hard their whole lives, couldn’t even enjoy their blessings before passing away."

Ms. Qian said, "But now, you can wear cotton clothes when you want, silk clothes too, eat meat every now and then, where do all these come from? Just relying on farming the land could this happen?"

"Why not, wheat seeds are grown out of the land."

"If it weren’t for Manbao and Four, that’s not wheat seeds, just wheat!" Ms. Qian said, "If sold, at most it’s thirty coins a bushel, it just keeps the family from starving, and saves some medicine money, but what’s that worth?"

Old Zhou then stopped speaking.

Manbao obediently sat on the stool waiting for her parents to finish arguing; now that they stopped, she looked up and called, "Dad——"

Old Zhou turned his back on her, ignoring her.

Ms. Qian made the decision, "Let Daya take out one piece of colored silk, the shop will be listed under her name, then we’ll inform the matchmaker, since we’re adding the shop to the dowry, the Zheng Family must get the young couple a house in the county to live in."

Only then did Old Zhou turn back around, frowning, "Really giving it away."

Ms. Qian gave him a sideways glance, "Exchanging it for a piece of colored silk."

But that colored silk was also given by Manbao.

The words circled the tip of Old Zhou’s tongue, but in the end he didn’t say them, only after pondering for a moment he said, "That’s fine, Daya hasn’t been working in the fields much these past two years, the grandson-in-law is studying in the county, leaving her alone in the village isn’t good, young couples should spend more time together."

Seeing he had come to terms, Ms. Qian was satisfied and gave him a smile, "There aren’t many days left, tomorrow let the Eldest go find the matchmaker and settle this."

Old Zhou nodded, though still feeling a bit of heartache, he sighed, then looking at the silk on the bed said, "If only we could exchange it for another shop."

Manbao thought: Who would be dumb enough to trade a shop for a piece of cloth?

There are no such spendthrifts in the county.

But what she said was, "Dad, only Eldest Sister-in-law can run a shop in the family, even if you exchange it for another, there’s no one to manage it."

Old Zhou then shifted his displeasure to a few daughters-in-law, "It’s strange, five daughters-in-law, they all seem quite clever, how come the food they cook can’t match the taste of Eldest’s wife?"

Otherwise, the family could open a few more shops in the county.