Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 314 Departure_1

Chapter 314: Chapter 314 Departure_1

Zhulan felt quite satisfied with the arrangements, as she already had two little ones at home, with the girl learning from Xue Han and the little boy from Mingyun. Of course, this was just the beginning, and whether they would continue to follow them depended on the children’s aptitude.

Zhulan asked the broker, "How much silver?"

Zhulan was well aware that some slaves with families and friends were usually ransomed when trouble arose. Those who were left were either without relatives or estranged from them, which was preferable, as it would avoid a lot of trouble.

The broker answered with a delighted expression, "Madam, these slaves all come from official households. Although they are a bit older, the price can’t be low, eighty taels for the whole family."

Zhulan pursed her lips and remained silent. The broker felt uncomfortable under her gaze and said, "The lowest I can go is seventy-five taels."

Zhulan had no idea about the price and only replied after the broker insisted on it, "You need to exchange their slave contracts, I won’t be paying with silver."

The broker paused, then responded, "Of course, this way please."

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren followed the broker to a place overseen by a government officer. They didn’t need to go to the government office, as there was a designated place here for processing the paperwork. They paid the silver and exchanged it for the title deeds.

Zhulan’s family now had slaves. She and Zhou Shuren didn’t bring them straight home but took them to a medical facility first to have a doctor take a look. Fortunately, the old lady was just malnourished and lacked rest, not actually ill.

Then, Zhulan bought some grey and dark-colored fabrics before she finally brought everyone home.

Once home, Zhulan arranged for the family to stay in an empty room in the front courtyard. These slaves sold by the government officer didn’t have anything but the clothes on their backs, so Zhulan found some old quilts and wooden buckets from the house and had the eldest son send them over.

There was firewood in the front courtyard, as well as a kitchen, so they could boil water and wash up themselves. There were also cloths and sewing materials available. Zhulan wasn’t in a hurry to meet them and waited until they had all tidied up.

Lady Li could not contain her excitement, "Mother, do we really have slaves to serve us now?"

Zhulan replied, "Yes."

Lady Li was elated, "Mother, does that mean I’ll be the eldest lady in the future?"

Zhulan questioned, "If you’re the eldest lady, what does that make me?"

Lady Li feigned ignorance, "You’re naturally the grand lady, Mother."

Zhulan was silent. She knew that would be the term used; she looked after herself well and didn’t look old. That’s right, with new people in the house, the titles naturally had to change. To distinguish between them, she did indeed need to add the term "old" to her title. Feeling rather disconcerted and looking at Lady Li only made her head hurt!

When Lady Li saw her mother-in-law close her eyes, she didn’t understand what she had said wrong and softly called out, "Mother."

Zhulan, with her eyes closed, pointed towards the door, "Get out."

Lady Li clammed up, sensing her mother-in-law was in one of her moods again. She had started to realize that every so often her mother-in-law would become temperamental and knew that staying quiet and obedient was the best approach.

For lunch, Zhulan instructed Lady Li to send some pancakes and vegetables to the front courtyard.

By the time Zhulan woke up from her afternoon rest, the newly bought family was already standing in the backyard, all dressed in newly made clothes and looking clean and tidy.

Zhulan sat on a chair that the eldest son had brought out and raised an eyebrow at the newly made garments. It had been just five hours since she had returned with them, including about an hour standing there. In other words, within four hours, deducting the time taken to heat water and bathe, they had managed to make eight presentable, well-fitting outfits, which meant someone was skilled at sewing.

Although Zhulan hadn’t paid much attention to the front courtyard, she knew what she needed to, and it was clear that each family member had their chores neatly divided!

Zhulan spoke up, "Who is skilled at sewing?"

The elder woman stepped forward, "Madam, I excel at sewing. Later in life, I became a housekeeper at a country estate."

Zhulan hummed in acknowledgment and continued, "Each of you, state what responsibilities you held previously."

The old man took a step forward, "I used to look after horses. When I grew old, I worked as a gatekeeper at a country estate."

The son continued, "I drive the carriage for the head family."

The daughter-in-law chimed in, "I started off washing vegetables in the kitchen, then learned sewing and did needlework."

The two older boys, the nineteen-year-old was a young servant in charge of horses, whereas the slightly younger one, aged seventeen, was a servant who ran errands.

As for the remaining two children, the ten-year-old girl was always learning proper conduct, preparing to become a Third Class Maid, while the boy was also learning manners but had yet to be assigned a role.

Zhulan, upon hearing this, realized that not a single member of the family was at the center of power. None of them were particularly clever, but they were honest.

What the Zhou family now needed were honest people.

Zhulan inquired, "What are your names?"

The old man stepped forward, "This humble one’s surname is Ma, a name given by the former head family, Ma Qiang."

The old lady stepped forward, "I am Lady Mawei."

The couple—the husband named Ma Eryue and the wife, a maid sold into servitude from a young age with no surname, also given a name by the original head family, Xing Hua.

The children did not mention their names.

Old Man Ma took a step forward and said, "May our lady please bestow names upon the children."

Zhulan fell silent. By giving them names, she would truly be accepting the members of the Ma family, which was very important to them. Seeing the expectant looks of the Ma children, Zhulan inwardly cursed the frustrating customs of ancient times but still went ahead and named them.

Without changing their surname, Zhulan wasn’t going to come up with anything fancy. She wasn’t a talented female scholar, so she named them according to the twenty-four solar terms: the nineteen-year-old boy was Li Chun, the seventeen-year-old Yu Shui, the ten-year-old girl Jing Zhe, and the eight-year-old boy Chun Fen.

Afterward, Zhulan arranged for the group.

Based on their abilities, Zhulan announced, "We are heading to the capital to participate in the examinations. This time we’re taking Eryue, Xing Hua, Li Chun, and Jing Zhe, while Ma Qiang and Lady Mawei will stay behind with Yu Shui and Chun Fen."

Lady Dong suppressed the corners of her lips from turning upwards. Even though the mother-in-law had left grandma behind, at least she was still a servant. She wouldn’t have to do the work herself anymore.

The Ma family readily accepted the head family’s arrangements. Although their new head family wasn’t of official status, they belonged to a Graduate’s family, which was soon to participate in the imperial examinations in the capital.

If their new head family secured the degree, their entire family would remain as officials’ servants, which was much better than being sold to a merchant. Any initial trepidation the Ma family felt had long since disappeared, leaving only a sense of joy.

The Mas were simple but not foolish. Their new head family had not yet risen to prominence, but they were among the first batch of servants. As long as they performed well, they were certain to be put to good use.

In the evening, the Ma family prepared their own meal in the front courtyard, with Lady Mawei cooking.

At Zhulan’s home, Lady Li was cooking, with Xing Hua taking over the chore of washing vegetables, freeing Lady Dong and Xue Han from that work.

After the Ma family had settled in for a couple of days, the day arrived for Zhulan and Zhou Shuren to set off. They hired five horse-drawn carriages. Zhulan and Zhou Shuren took one carriage, as Zhou Shuren didn’t want Xue Han to be a third wheel. Xue Han rode with Lady Li, Yu Lu, and Jing Zhe in another.

Elder Zhou with Ming Teng took another carriage, with the remaining two carriages loaded with bedding, luggage, and provisions such as mountain goods and food.

Eryue and Xing Hua were in charge of one carriage, and Li Chun looked after another.

Wu Ming had only hired one carriage and didn’t bring much luggage, whereas Zhao Bo had hired several more.

The Zhao family owned a house in the capital, and Zhao Bo wasn’t going alone this time. He brought six servants with him, along with not a small amount of luggage, requiring four carriages just for himself.

In contrast, Wu Ming could now make use of a servant, having bought a young servant to accompany him.

The caravan also included two other families heading to the capital. The convoy wasn’t large this time, with no cargo carts slowing them down, allowing them to travel swiftly.

This journey to the capital wasn’t particularly rushed. They would cover a set distance by day and then stop to rest well ahead of nighttime.