My Husband is a Drama King [Book Transmigration] 43p1

Chapter 43 p1: Mentality

Xu Cheng lay in Song Mingyan’s arms. After the busy spring planting, Song Mingyan had gone back to setting up his stall in town, and the results were still good.

This spring planting, the whole family had worked harder than before, because the grain they were planting this time was all their own. If the yield was reduced because they hadn’t taken good care of the crops, they would all feel the heartache.

Liang Su said, “The family’s ox has grown up, and we still have some silver. I think we can buy two more acres of land next year.”

“Right, it’s time to buy land.”

The family’s life was getting better and better. The old couple still thought of Song Changxu and Xu Zhizhou in the city.

A small head appeared at the door. Xia Ya had come to call Xu Cheng out to play.

Song Mingyan pushed him. “Go on.”

Xu Cheng and Xia Ya went to the river to skip stones. There were many adults and children by the river. Liang Feng saw Xu Cheng and laughed, ruffling his hair.

Xu Peng was tired from working. He also came to the river to cool off. He looked at the young men and ge’ers, and the group of noisy children, and closed his eyes.

“Cheng Ge’er, can we go and pick wild fruits tomorrow?” Xia Ya’s voice was loud. Xu Peng opened his eyes when he heard the words “Cheng Ge’er,” his gaze wandering over the crowd.

Xu Cheng nodded. “Alright. I need to pick some soapberries and wild mint to take back. Oh right, let’s look in the grass and see if we can find any wild chicken or duck eggs.”

Xia Ya: “Don’t even think about it. Uncle Li caught two wild chickens and ducks yesterday. We won’t be able to find any eggs for a while.”

Xu Cheng said “oh” with disappointment.

Xu Peng finally saw Xu Cheng, but he didn’t dare to go up and talk to his son. In the past, he and Song Mingyan had been affectionate, but he had ruined it all himself, even dragging Cheng Ge’er down.

Now that Song Changxu was successful, and Cheng Ge’er was being well-raised at the Song family’s, he had no reason to go and find him.

Besides, with Cheng Ge’er relying on the Song family, he might be able to find a good husband in the future. His own life was like this. He couldn’t go and ruin his child’s good life.

Xu Cheng and Xia Ya played for a while. Liang Feng caught a few shrimp and stuffed them into his hand. “Take these back to make a fresh soup.”

Xu Cheng agreed happily.

Life in Qishan Village was peaceful. Everyone’s actions followed the rhythm of the fields. Occasionally, they would go to town to buy some meat to treat themselves. The vegetables they grew at home were enough for them to eat. If there were no other expenses, one or two taels of silver a year was enough.

The Xu family was cooling off in the courtyard after dinner. Xu Sunzheng and Cao Qin were not very worried about Xu Zhizhou. In Jinhe County, there was still the Cao Chang family to help the young couple. Besides, their second son-in-law was there to study, not to do anything dangerous.

They, as parents, understood their ge’er’s personality. He was not one to suffer a loss.

Xu Zhici was weaving a bamboo basket. He was not one to let himself be idle. Cao Qin said, “Zhici, you can do these things tomorrow. Rest for a while. There’s not much work to do at home.”

Xu Zhici’s fingers paused. He stopped and smiled. “I just can’t stay idle.”

“We don’t have to pay taxes, and the climate is good this year. I think we’ll have a good harvest,” Xu Sunzheng said.

Life was getting better day by day. Xu Zhici went to pour some herbal tea into the teapot.

Xu Sunzheng said, “Today, while I was working in the fields, someone else had no water to drink. I gave them my water flask, and they said my tea was good.”

Xu Zhici was happy to be praised. “I just figured it out myself. Zhizhou asked me to teach him how to make herbal tea back then. On such a hot day, it’s very refreshing to make your own tea and have a drink.”

Song Changxu was not here anymore. Xu Zhici wanted to write a letter to Xie Huaichuan, but he found it troublesome to find someone in town. He went to find Wang Erlang from the village head’s family to help him write.

He offered Wang Erlang money, but he refused. So every time, he would send some of his own herbal tea or a bamboo basket over. Otherwise, he would feel quite embarrassed.

It also cost money for paper and ink when you asked someone to help. How could you just take it for free?

When he asked someone else to write a letter, Xu Zhici had to choose his words carefully and not reveal too much. He only asked if Xie Huaichuan was well in the army and what he was short of, so that he could send it to him.

Even Wang Erlang found it hard to believe that the two of them were still in contact and writing to each other after so many years.

But he still wrote the letter to Xie Huaichuan according to Xu Zhici’s words.

“It’s time to wash up and go to sleep. We still have to go to the fields tomorrow morning,” Xu Sunzheng said, moving the chair into the house.

Xu Zhici also went to wash up. He held a candle and glanced at the tightly closed door on the side, then sighed and went back to his own room.

Before Xu Zhizhou left, he had given him a box of fragrant balm. It was clear that it was a good product from the rouge shop in town. He couldn’t refuse and accepted it. He would apply a little every night. His skin had indeed become much smoother and felt very delicate.

He had good skin to begin with, and his appearance was also top-notch. Now that he had applied fragrant powder, it was even better.

Xu Zhici thought of what Xu Zhizhou had told him: “Elder Brother, you should always dress up. When Elder Brother Xie comes back and sees you, he’ll think you’re even better. Besides, you’re so good-looking, Elder Brother. A little more fragrant balm will make you even better. You’ll also be happy when you look at yourself in the bronze mirror.”

Xu Zhici had been persuaded just like that.

Not to mention that Xie Huaichuan cared about looks, Xu Zhici himself also preferred a young and handsome gentleman.

Xu Zhici applied the fragrant balm, pulled the quilt over his stomach, and fell asleep.

Xu Sunzheng and Cao Qin talked for a while before they went to sleep, mostly about the fields and about Song Changxu and Xu Zhizhou.

“If he really becomes a Juren, I don’t know how happy I’ll be,” Xu Sunzheng said, smiling so much that he couldn’t close his mouth.

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Jinhe County

The pedestrians during the day were all in a hurry. Before dawn, the breakfast shops on the street were already open. The people living in Mijiang Lane, besides the two xiucai, Song Changxu and Feng Xin’ou, were mostly people who did odd jobs in the city, worked as assistants, or were also in the food business.

A small courtyard in the county town cost nearly eighty taels of silver. Ordinary people could not afford to buy a house in the county.

There was no such thing as a mortgage in ancient times, but there were high-interest loans. For example, when poor families were short of money, they would go to the local gambling dens and gangs to borrow money at high interest.

Once this money was borrowed, the whole family would never be able to recover.

Song Changxu ate a white flour bun and drank a mouthful of mung bean soup. After he finished, he set off for the county school.

“Husband, you forgot your water flask.”

Song Changxu said, “The cold water has to be boiled before you can drink it.”

Xu Zhizhou: “I know. You should go now.”

Song Changxu walked out of the house. The fragrance of the breakfast shops lingered in his nose. He was already full from eating at home, so he was not tempted. The people who set up their stalls early on this street already knew Song Changxu. Someone greeted him.

When he reached the school, he began to review his books.

Teacher Zhou’s lectures were more about guiding them to think independently. Finally, he said, “There will be a quiz every month. The county school has rewards for those who do well.”

Hearing this, Song Changxu listened attentively. He was a person who was short of money.

“The first place will get five taels of silver, the second three, and the third one. The exam is tomorrow. You can review more in the remaining time,” Teacher Zhou said, and left the classroom with his book.

As soon as Teacher Zhou left, the scholars started to whisper.

“What’s the point of this little silver? It’s not even enough for me to have a meal at a restaurant.”

“That’s right. I can’t get first place anyway, but I also have five taels of silver.”

“I’m not interested. If they offered twenty taels of silver, I would start to hesitate.”

Hearing this, Song Changxu complained in his heart. Five taels of silver was already a lot. At least for him, it was very attractive.

A soldier who doesn’t want to be a general is not a good soldier. Aim for first, secure third.

One tael of silver was still a lot of money.

With a goal in mind, Song Changxu was even more motivated to review.

The Xie family was not short of five taels of silver, but Xie Feng had always been first in the county school exams. He had been overthrown by Song Changxu in the last college exam. He had to get first place in this quiz.

Thinking of this, Xie Feng immediately started to review. He would not lose to Song Changxu again.

Luo Shuang’s family were wealthy merchants. His mother was the legitimate younger sister of County Magistrate Huang. After the marriage between the Huang and Luo families, their status in the local area became even more solid. Luo Shuang was the fourth generation of the family.

The Ningxing Dynasty had a rule that merchants had to wait three generations before they could take the imperial examination.

Luo Shuang did not care about the silver, but he still wanted to get a good result to show his grandparents.

Cheng Maoxue also needed a good result. The three of them were all favored sons of heaven, and they all cared a lot about their rankings.

This time, with the addition of Brother Song, Cheng Maoxue was even more eager to try.

In the afternoon, it was chess class. Song Changxu was interested in chess. He first played with his classmates, but he won too easily.

The teacher who taught them chess came to play with him, and they barely managed a draw. Song Changxu was interested in chess himself. In university, he had joined the chess club, and his skills were not bad.

“Not bad,” the teacher praised.

Song Changxu modestly declined the praise.

In the future, if he became an official, and if his superior liked to play chess, he could play with him to curry favor.

After class, Song Changxu and Feng Xin’ou went back together. After they had put down their book boxes, they had their husbands help them pack up the stall.

Back in their room, Xu Zhizhou had made mung bean congee in the afternoon. It was already cooked and cooled by the evening. In the evening, he had bought some braised meat and some cucumbers to make a cold salad.

This time, the mint tea, Bobo Chicken, and rice in the wooden buckets were all sold out. As the weather grew hotter, Xu Zhizhou had steamed much less rice, and it had just sold out.

The rice was mainly sold to the workers who carried sandbags at the docks. Over time, Xu Zhizhou could gradually estimate their appetite, and it was enough to just make a little more rice than the base amount.

The braised meat was bought from the Ding family’s. They also rented a house in the lane and were in the braised food business. The taste was good, and Xu Zhizhou had seen them washing the meat, which was very clean.

There were pig ears, pig trotters, and also braised cabbage. They moved the tables and chairs under a tree to eat.

Song Changxu had not bought a large portion. It was just enough for the two of them to finish in one meal. In the summer, without a refrigerator, things could not be kept for too long. It was better to just eat one meal at a time.

For example, the large households had ice on hand. A maid would hold a fan and fan the ice, and a cool breeze would fill the room.

There was no refrigerator in ancient times. To store ice, a lot of resources had to be consumed. Ice was cut in December, and an ice cellar was built. The ice cellar had to be deep underground, with thick walls and good sealing. The bottom was paved with bricks or sandy slate.

The insulating materials were generally fresh straw, cotton, leaves, reeds, and so on. There also had to be a drainage system, with the lowest point connected to the drainage ditch outside the ice cellar, to promptly drain the melted water and prevent the existing ice from melting.

For example, the imperial palace would generally have five ice cellars, but every summer, two-thirds of the stored ice would melt, so the amount of stored ice had to be three times the amount used by the nobles in the palace.

Another method was to use physical means. When saltpeter dissolved in water, it would absorb a large amount of heat, causing the water temperature to drop to the freezing point. In the summer, water was placed in a jar, and a larger container was filled with water. The jar was placed in a basin.

By constantly adding saltpeter to the basin, the water in the jar would freeze into ice.

Of course, there was also a more labor-intensive method of making ice, using well water.

One needed a deep well. The inner wall of a long, cylindrical tube was coated with sesame oil or beef tallow, and it was lowered into the cold water and rotated. After a layer of ice had formed inside the tube, it was taken out and broken.

While Song Changxu was thinking about these things, Xu Zhizhou had already finished his dinner. He had had a taste of braised meat today, and it was delicious.

“Husband, let’s have braised meat tomorrow night too.”

Song Changxu agreed.

Xu Zhizhou found a cool mat and spread it on the bed, then put up the mosquito net. After washing up, he happily rolled onto the bed.

Song Changxu copied a storybook for a while, and then pulled Xu Zhizhou over to learn to read.

Xu Zhizhou pouted and got up. “Alright.”

“I’ve learned a few more characters. It seems that becoming a cultured ge’er is just around the corner,” Xu Zhizhou said with confidence.

Song Changxu handed Xu Zhizhou a copy of the Thousand Character Classic. After teaching him ten new characters, he would also review them with him to consolidate his memory.

Xu Zhizhou had forgotten a few characters. He pointed at Song Changxu and looked at him. “How do you read this?”

Song Changxu told him.

Xu Zhizhou wrote it a few times in the air with his finger. He was already tired. He put down the book. “It’s time to sleep.”

He had no interest in studying. It was enough if he could learn to write simple letters and read. Studying should be left to Song Changxu.

There were two cattail fans in the house. When Song Changxu was fanning himself, Xu Zhizhou shuddered. He quietly moved closer to Song Changxu, behind him.

That way, he could also be cooled by the fan.

“I’m going to sleep first,” Xu Zhizhou said, pulling the quilt over his stomach, afraid of catching a cold. He slept with his limbs spread out.

Song Changxu blew out the candle and went to sleep as well. Whenever it was summer, he wanted to cut his long hair short. He pushed aside Xu Zhizhou’s long hair, letting it spread naturally on the pillow.

In the morning, it was time for the quiz. Song Changxu had a bowl of noodles and then went to the school to review first. When the time came, Teacher Zhou supervised their exam.

Song Changxu found that many of the questions were testing on details, which were rarely tested so finely in the imperial examination. The quiz was to test their current learning, while the imperial examination was to select talented people.

He adopted the strategy of grasping the big picture and letting go of the small details, so it was a bit difficult for him. He could only rely on writing policy essays to raise his score.

After he was done, Teacher Zhou collected the papers, and another teacher came to give them a lesson.

After the exam, they whispered for a while until the class started again. Cheng Maoxue felt that he had done well and was in a good mood.

Xie Feng also felt alright.

At noon, they all went to the dining hall for their meal. They had been eating at the county school for several years, and they were already tired of the food. For young masters like them, it was not allowed to go out for a treat. Rules were rules.

They could only endure the food in the dining hall.

Song Changxu usually had one vegetable dish and one meat dish. The dining hall had free cabbage soup. He could be full with one portion.

He would have a good meal when he went back at night.

“I want to eat Bobo Chicken,” Luo Shuang said listlessly.

Yesterday, his cousin had brought some Bobo Chicken to his house, and Luo Shuang had fallen in love with it after a few bites. Because his family didn’t let him eat from the stalls, his stomach was a bit delicate, and he would get a stomachache easily.

He couldn’t resist and had a few skewers yesterday, but he didn’t get a stomachache.

Cheng Maoxue: “I also know about this. I’ve had it once. After class, I had my family’s servant buy it a few more times. The taste is indeed not bad.”

Song Changxu’s ears perked up when he heard them. He felt a strange sense of familiarity.

Xie Feng sat next to Song Changxu with his food. “Have you had it?”

Song Changxu cleared his throat. “I have. Actually, it’s my husband’s stall.”

Luo Shuang was surprised. “It’s your family’s? The Bobo Chicken is indeed delicious. Now that I know it’s your family’s, Brother Song, I’ll bring more people to support you.”

Song Changxu smiled. “Then thank you, Brother Luo.”

Xie Feng had never had it. Hearing this, he planned to give it a try.

Life at the county school was very relaxed, except for the heavy workload.

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