Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 1408: Envy

Chapter 1408: Chapter 1408: Envy

Wong Ju thought for a moment and then whispered, "My father also wants to divide the family property. After retiring, he will do so. He’s worried that the second wife and the third wife will affect me."

The second wife made a fuss, which made the elder master resolute. Father has already shown me the division document he wrote.

Zhou Shuren said, "Retiring is good. The elder master is hale and hearty, without the daily worries of officialdom, he could live to a ripe old age."

Wong Ju smiled, "Yes, my father said he wants to watch Wong Wei’s sons grow up!"

Zhou Shuren patted Wong Ju on the shoulder, "The elder master has arranged everything for you."

Now that Wong Ju has reached the required rank and has established himself in the capital, he could only wait as long as the elder master was in office. But once the elder master retires, remembering the elder master’s good sense, coupled with the connections and foundation he leaves behind, Wong Ju’s path is all laid out. Tsk tsk, I’m envious of him.

It really is the same in any dynasty, it’s all about who your father is. In ancient times, it was even more pronounced, not only about your father, but also your family, grandfather, and ancestors eighteen generations back!

In Li Family Village, Ming Rui and Shangguan Liu did not eat at the Zhao’s, but returned to Lizheng’s residence for breakfast.

After breakfast, Prince Qi said, "Yesterday’s heavy rain destroyed the mountain roads, so we need to stay in Li Family Village for a while longer."

Prince Qi, pressing on his forehead, even if the roads were repaired, he would not dare to let the Crown Prince travel, as the mountain paths were difficult to navigate especially after the rain, he couldn’t risk the Crown Prince’s safety.

Wen Xu’s complexion changed upon hearing this; he had stayed at Lizheng’s house the night before. The best rooms naturally went to the Crown Prince and Prince Qi, and he also got a not-so-bad room, but he still could not sleep. Now to think he has to stay longer in this godforsaken place; how unlucky.

The Crown Prince wanted to stroll around the village, which he hadn’t been able to observe closely the day before due to the rain, and now that they were not leaving, he wanted to visit the farmers’ homes.

Ming Rui did not go with them, as Wen Xu and the others eagerly followed the Crown Prince.

Prince Qi took care of Zhou Mingrui. Rong Mingteng had taken good care of his eldest son, and since he had a good impression of Zhou’s children, he was concerned, "Is there something you need?"

Ming Rui nodded, "Your Highness, I did not bring much paper with me and would like to ask if Your Highness could spare me some. I will return it once I am able to purchase some."

Prince Qi inquired with his people, learned that they had some paper, and with a grand gesture, said, "Give it all to you, no need to return it. But you have to tell me what you will do with the paper?"

Ming Rui did not hide his intentions, "The child from the farming family I am staying with wants to learn to read. Since we are staying in the village, I want to teach the children some characters, so I would like to transcribe some Thousand Character Text and the Three Character Classic."

Books were precious, and not many in the entire village could read. Even those who could recognized only a few characters; the only books in the village were in Lizheng’s household.

Prince Qi couldn’t help but admire the way the Zhou family raised their children. To think that the young nobleman he brought along, instead of shunning farmers, wants to teach them literacy — last night he’d heard plenty of reports about the conduct of other young nobles, "You are doing well."

Ming Rui smiled as he took the paper, and when he left, he saw Shangguan Liu waiting for him, "I thought you had gone to visit with the Crown Prince."

"I’m more curious about what you are up to?"

Ming Rui shared his plans, "Do you want to join in?"

Shangguan Liu was stunned for a moment. He was casual by nature, so he did not mind the living conditions, but he would not normally interact much with the farmers. He could sense that Zhou Mingrui was not doing this for show to the Crown Prince; Zhou Mingrui genuinely wanted to teach the children to read.

Ming Rui continued, "My grandfather says that knowledge expands thought, discerning the truth. I can’t teach the children much, but I want to try my best to help them learn to read and not be cheated."

Shangguan Liu, "Alright, I will help too."

Ming Rui told the child from the Zhao family about teaching them to read, and Zhao Bai tentatively asked, "Can I let other kids come too?"

Ming Rui smiled, "Of course."

He was very pleased that the children were willing to learn. His grandfather had said it wasn’t scary to be illiterate; one could always learn gradually. What was scary was an unwillingness to think.

In Zhangzhou Province, Yushuang watched as the maid arranged all the items they brought, and it finally felt like home.

The nice thing about a small county is that the local relations aren’t so complicated. The official of the greatest importance is the County Magistrate. Yushuang does not need to rush to meet people; she can settle her family wholeheartedly.

Yushuang held her son, "Son, this is our home now, are you happy?"

Zhao Yuan clapped his chubby hands, thinking his mother was playing with him, and let out an "Ah," followed by giggling laughter.

Yushuang kissed her son’s face and saw her husband return covered in dust, "Where have you been?"

Liufeng needed to change his clothes as they were especially dirty, "I rode my horse around to several nearby villages."

"How are things there?"

Liufeng shook his head, "The land is not fertile. After the peasants pay their taxes, there isn’t much left of their yearly harvest. Life is very tough."

The situation was much the same in the few villages he had visited: clothes were patched over patches, and it was rare to see any without. Now that there were many wild vegetables, lots of women and children in the mountains and fields were digging for them. Both adults and children had a look of hardship on their faces.

Farming had to go on, too; many villages didn’t even have cattle and had to rely on manual labor to plow and cultivate the land.

After Yushuang’s husband changed his clothes, she asked, "What can we do about this?"

Liufeng replied, "These next few days, I plan to ask some experienced farmers for advice."

Don’t expect him to know how to farm; his own lands were taken care of by others. He had to think of other solutions, as there were many issues to deal with.

In the capital, Yu Jiao had taken sleeping pills and, after a good sleep, was feeling better today.

Zhulan watched Yu Jiao constantly pushing Yu Yi’s limits and silently calculated how long until Yu Jiao would get beaten.

Children love to test boundaries, and Yu Jiao was wildly probing the edges of a dangerous precipice.

Yu Yi looked down at the dye on her dress; her favorite skirt was ruined.

Now Yu Jiao was scared, "Sister, I’m sorry, it wasn’t on purpose."

"If it wasn’t on purpose, then you did it deliberately?"

Yu Jiao swallowed, "No, I really didn’t mean it just now."

Yu Yi smiled and beckoned, "Come here, I’m not angry."

Yu Jiao, "..."

Who is she kidding? She ran to hide behind Grandma, cowering there and stubbornly refusing to come out.

Yu Yi said, "I especially like one saying, ’You can hide for a moment but not for a lifetime.’ What do you think, Yu Jiao?"

Yu Die was cracking sunflower seeds, amused by today’s drama; she had waited so long for this moment!

Yu Wen was also very animated, looking at Yu Jiao with schadenfreude. Yu Jiao was really brave. Children are young and remember the sweets but forget the beatings.

Zhulan lifted her head, "The sun is quite strong today, oh my, getting old really makes one sleepy. I’ll go back to my room for a nap, you sisters play."

Yu Jiao watched her grandmother in disbelief, Not, Grandma, are you really my grandma?

Yu Yi’s smile didn’t change, "Yu Jiao, come here, sister will help you wipe your hands."

Yu Jiao stepped back, seeking help from her third and fifth sisters, but the third sister was busy counting melon seed shells on her plate while the fourth sister suddenly felt sleepy and yawned!

Yu Jiao’s maid wanted to cover her face; why couldn’t the young miss remember anything!

Zhulan was not asleep in her room at all; hearing Yu Jiao pleading for mercy, she burst into laughter. Yu Jiao didn’t deserve sympathy at all!