Transmigration: A Farm Girl’s Brocade
Chapter 434 - 238 Test_2

Chapter 434: Chapter 238 Test_2

Last year, Lady Wu had spent silver to send someone to Quanzhou Province in search of her brother. Half a year later, the person returned and reported that Lady Wu’s brother had followed a county magistrate surnamed Sun, who had moved to a prefecture in Jiaodong called Zaozhou, to serve as a magistrate several years ago. Her brother, as Sir Sun’s Old Master, had also gone to Zaozhou.

Lady Wu had a very close relationship with her brother, and even if the sibling affection had been less strong, her parents still lived with her brother. Qian Sangui and Lady Wu couldn’t fathom why her brother would ignore his only sister for over a decade and why her parents would neglect their only daughter as well.

Qian Hua would be traveling to Capital City in the middle of this month, and Capital City wasn’t too far from Jiaodong. Qian Sangui instructed Qian Hua to take some time to visit Zaozhou and make sure to find out the whereabouts of Lady Wu’s brother.

After the people from the outer courtyard had their fill of food and drink, they gradually left for their homes. Before Wong Shoushi and his eldest son Wong Furen departed, Old man Cai, following Qian Sangui’s order, returned the half cart of gifts and a hundred ingots of silver that the Wong family had brought.

Wong Shoushi’s face turned red as he said, "We are all relatives, why does Landlord Qian accept everyone else’s congratulatory gifts, but refuses mine?"

Old man Cai replied, "This is the order of our lord and lady, they say they have accepted the kindness of Old Wong, but the gifts should please be taken back."

Left with no choice but to walk away embarrassed, the Wongs fled, still red-faced and laden with their returned belongings.

This greatly upset Lady Tang who was standing aside. On the way back, she grumbled to Old man Qian, "Third Uncle’s family lives well, but we poor relatives have a hard life. Why didn’t he accept those gifts and show some generosity to us? Clearly, Third Uncle has no place in his heart for his brothers and nephews..."

Old man Qian cursed, "Nonsense, my grandson holds a high official post. If Sangui had accepted such large gifts, it would be considered a bribe, which is punishable by beheading."

Old woman Qian, supported by Lady Xu, was walking by their side and, overhearing this, also scolded, "You home-wrecking wench, you’ve ruined your own house, and now you want to ruin my third son’s too? Not if I can help it."

As she spoke, she again tried to strike someone with her crutch, but Qian Manhe hurried over to pull Lady Tang away. They had gone a considerable distance yet the sound of Qian Manhe scolding Lady Tang could still be heard.

Old man Qian then started berating Qian Ergui, who was following behind.

The Little Monk did not leave Guiyuan; he would stay till the afternoon the next day before returning to the monastery.

After the meal, he went back to Linfeng Courtyard to take a nap with Qian Yijin, and afterward, they returned to Wangjiang Building.

Cheng Yue called him over and personally helped him into a new monk’s robe. The clothes made for him earlier were too large, so Cheng Yue altered them again after lunch.

She checked the fit and then smiled satisfactorily, "Now it fits." She also cupped his face in her hands and looked at him with concern, "You used to be much chubbier than Jinwa, but now you’re almost the same size. Haven’t you been eating well?"

The Little Monk, smiling, reassured her, "Auntie, don’t worry, Master said I am growing taller, so I have slimmed down."

Even in the late spring, the afternoon sun was still very strong, so everyone stayed inside Wangjiang Building without venturing out. The sunshine streamed in through the outside lattices and the open doors, bathing the room in a halo of light. Along with the breeze, the fragrance of gardenia flowers from outside the door wafted in as well.

Cheng Yue sat quietly to one side, watching the three children banter and laugh, occasionally pouring tea for them by hand and now and then joining their conversation.

As the sun gradually moved westward and the sky became suffused with rosy twilight, Cheng Yue and the others finished their dinner and then went for a stroll pushing the baby carriage in Hexi Garden. Qian Sangui was feeling a bit tired again; they had also had dinner in Wangjiang Building.

At that moment, Old man Cai from the outer courtyard came rushing to report that Lin Qing and the Golden Hair Ghost had returned.

Upon hearing this, Qian Yixiu hurried toward the outer courtyard. Had Cheng Yue not been by her side, she would have already run ahead. Qian Yijin and the Little Monk also went with her to the front courtyard.

That afternoon, the young siblings had not stopped making jokes about Old Foreign Li. Qian Yijin had even given the Little Monk two glass marbles, which delighted him so much he didn’t know what to do with himself. Qian Yixiu had also promised that if Old Foreign Li brought another pocket watch, she would give one to the Little Monk, and she taught him how to tell time with it. The Little Monk wasn’t interested in the watch, saying he knew how to tell time, but he wanted a telescope.

The request for a telescope put Qian Yixiu in a bind. There were only two in the house; she wanted to give one to her father for his journey, and she wanted to keep one for their own use. She said, "When the foreigner comes back, let’s see if we can trade for another one."

In the outer courtyard, a long, thin iron tube lay on the ground, beside it stood a cannon carriage with two large wheels. Qian Yixiu was first caught by these two items, then followed the enthusiastic greeting of Old Foreign Li, whose pronunciation wasn’t quite accurate, but still recognizable as he called out, "Yixiu, Jinwa."