My Husband is a Drama King [Book Transmigration] 44p1

Chapter 44 p1: Crisis

After the two of them had finished the ginger soup, Xu Zhizhou went back to his room first. Song Changxu took a candle to check the storage room where the silk was kept. Fortunately, the tiles there were not leaking. He looked a few more times and touched it with his hand. It was dry.

He locked the door and went back.

The rain grew heavier, accompanied by lightning and thunder. Water droplets splashed on the wooden door, soaking more than half of it.

Song Changxu entered the room and closed the door tightly. Xu Zhizhou lay in bed, listening to the sound of the rain hitting the window.

“Husband, come up quickly.”

Seeing the current situation, he didn’t dare to teach Zhizhou to read. He blew out the candle and got into bed. A body squeezed in.

Xu Zhizhou hugged Song Changxu’s waist and rubbed against his chest. On such a rainy day, in the darkness, he was suddenly a little scared. Feeling the warmth from Song Changxu’s body, he became less afraid.

No wonder they sometimes said it was good to have a husband at home to help.

Xu Zhizhou felt at ease.

A husband can also ward off evil spirits.

Song Changxu didn’t know what Xu Zhizhou was thinking. He patted his back, and the two of them soon fell asleep in the sound of the rain.

Feng Xin’ou and Jiang Zhuo had eaten dinner and were working on a small empty space in their courtyard. Jiang Zhuo had gone to buy some seeds. They could plant some scallions, ginger, garlic, and a pinch of cabbage in this empty space, so they wouldn’t have to go to the market to buy them.

In a small empty space, the two of them used a hoe to loosen the soil. Just as they had finished, the rain started to fall.

The two of them went back to their room. Jiang Zhuo closed the doors and windows and said, “I was thinking of loosening the soil today, and it started to rain heavily. It was all for nothing.”

Feng Xin’ou pulled him to sit down. “It’s fine. When the weather clears up, I’ll go with you to loosen the soil and plant.”

Hearing Feng Xin’ou’s words, Jiang Zhuo’s mood improved a lot. Fortunately, it was raining at night, just right for sleeping. If it had rained during the day, they wouldn’t have been able to do anything.

He and Xu Zhizhou were in the food business together. Xu Zhizhou paid him three taels of silver a month. The rent for their place in Mijiang Lane was ten taels of silver a year, which they could earn back in four months.

There was still some land in Qishan Village under his husband’s name, and they would send silver over every year. His husband would also go to the bookstore to copy books. Thinking about it, they could get by in Jinhe County.

Jiang Zhuo took advantage of the rain and found a few empty basins to collect water, so they wouldn’t have to go to the well.

He washed his and his husband’s undergarments, wrung them out, and hung them up in the room.

Feng Xin’ou went to light a candle, then brought some hot water. After the two of them had washed up, they lay down on the bed.

The bed was covered with two layers of soft cotton quilts. Lying on it, you couldn’t feel the hardness of the bed board at all. If Feng Xin’ou had rented a place by himself, he definitely wouldn’t have rented one with a small courtyard, but would have just found a cheap place to share with someone.

Also, he wouldn’t have been so meticulous as to put two layers of cotton quilts on the bed. Feng Xin’ou was only focused on studying the classics and didn’t care much about these other things.

“Husband, we really did the right thing by coming to Jinhe County with Xiucai Song and the others,” Jiang Zhuo said.

“Brother Song and the others are indeed honest people,” Feng Xin’ou agreed.

Jiang Zhuo muttered a few more words. “I hope it doesn’t rain tomorrow.”

The rain had come too quickly tonight. It hadn’t stopped by midnight. The night watchman was still making his rounds. Song Changxu woke up in the middle of the night. He looked out the window and saw that it was still dark.

He heard a dripping sound. At first, he thought it was the sound of rain hitting the window. He closed his eyes, intending to go back to sleep.

But after listening for a while, he felt that something was wrong. He got up, lit a candle, and found that there was a leak in the bedroom. A small puddle had already formed, and the water falling from the beam splashed on Song Changxu’s shoes.

He first found a basin to collect the water, then looked around. He also went to check the room where the silk was stored. After finding no other leaks, he went back to bed.

The rented house was indeed not good enough.

When they had first moved in, there had been problems with the tables and chairs, and they had had to find a carpenter to fix them. The bed board had been made by a carpenter they had found themselves.

They would be in Jinhe County for at least a year. After this year, he hoped to have earned enough money for him and Zhizhou to buy a house and settle down.

Song Changxu had thought about passing the Jinshi exam, but he was not so arrogant as to aim for the top three.

It would be fine to become a second or third-class Jinshi.

Third-class Jinshi were generally sent to the counties to be seventh-rank county magistrates. As a county magistrate, there was also a yamen residence to live in. If one became an official in the capital, one could only rent a house.

Land in the capital was as expensive as gold. With his salary, it would be difficult to buy a house in this lifetime, and renting was also very expensive.

Song Changxu thought about this and that, and still fell asleep.

It was still raining in the morning. He went to study with an umbrella. The students in the school all arrived a little later than before. Song Changxu had already recited two articles. Now, besides reading the Four Books and Five Classics, he also spent some time reading about the geography and customs of the Ningxing Dynasty.

He had to pay more attention to the political affairs of the Ningxing Dynasty.

Xie Feng yawned and put down his book box. The sky was still gloomy, and the light in the classroom was very weak. The front and back doors were both open, but not much light came in.

“It’s such a pain to study on a day like this,” a scholar complained, casually flipping through a book.

“I heard that His Majesty is going to marry a Phoenix Lord, a ge’er from the Xiao family,” a young master who was well-informed said in a low voice.

Song Changxu’s ears perked up. He seemed to be still reciting his books, but his mind had already flown to the nine heavens.

“That’s right. He’s marrying the legitimate ge’er of General Xiao, His Majesty’s own cousin, who has a good reputation in the capital. It’s said that when Xiao Yurong came of age, the threshold of the general’s mansion was almost worn out, but General Xiao didn’t agree to any of them. Now it seems that he had long wanted to marry his ge’er to His Majesty.”

A scholar snorted coldly. “His Majesty has not yet taken over the government. Empress Dowager Xiao and General Xiao are in control of the court. Now they’ve given His Majesty a Phoenix Lord with the surname Xiao. It seems that this world will be surnamed Xiao in the future.”

Xie Feng immediately frowned. “Brother, be careful with your words. If others hear this, your whole family will be implicated.”

“Now is the time for us to review our books. We shouldn’t be discussing political affairs,” Xie Feng said, changing the subject.

The scholar who had spoken realized that he had said the wrong thing, his face full of regret.

The scholars went back to their own reviewing.

Song Changxu’s mind also came back.

In the original novel, Emperor Pingjing had indeed married a ge’er from the Xiao family, but their ending was not good. After all, Emperor Pingjing was a young and ambitious emperor. How could he be willing to let his maternal relatives interfere in politics and turn himself into a puppet emperor?

These matters were too far away from him now. Song Changxu continued to study.

Xie Feng, on the other hand, broke out in a cold sweat from what the scholar had said. What if someone here reported this to County Magistrate Huang or other officials? All the scholars in their circle would be implicated.

His Majesty’s taking over the government was imminent, and the struggle with the court ministers and the Xiao family had reached a fever pitch. This time, His Majesty’s marriage to a ge’er from the Xiao family was probably a compromise between them.

The Xie family had someone who was an official in the capital. Xie Feng’s information was more accurate than that of ordinary people, and at the same time, he was more cautious.

They were only xiucai now. Even the current Prime Minister Liu would not dare to talk about His Majesty and the Xiao family in public.

The morning passed peacefully. At noon, they went to the dining hall for their meal. Song Changxu saw that there was braised pork. He hurried to get a portion, and also a portion of potato shreds.

The other scholars had no appetite due to the weather, but Song Changxu ate with satisfaction.

After class every day, what he looked forward to the most was what to eat in the dining hall at noon.

It was still raining in the afternoon, and the horsemanship class was changed.

Luo Shuang looked at the gloomy sky and sighed. He didn’t like rainy days. He felt a bit sentimental and sad.

Cheng Maoxue was playing chess with Song Changxu. He said, “Brother Song, it’s my birthday in a few days. I’d like to invite you to my house for a while.”

Song Changxu agreed. “I’ll bring my husband with me then.”

Cheng Maoxue told Song Changxu his address. He smiled and said, “It’s good to bring your family. I’ve invited a lot of people. There will be women and ge’ers, and we’ll have the light wine and pastries they like.”

Song Changxu thought about what kind of gift to bring. He couldn’t just go to someone’s birthday empty-handed.

After the two of them had finished their game, Song Changxu put the chess pieces away and went out with Cheng Maoxue.

The rain had stopped, and the sky had cleared. A rainbow appeared in the distance. The scholars all came out and looked at it, and for a moment, they started to compose poems.

Song Changxu: “…”

He was not good at composing poems. He found another place to stay.

Xie Feng composed two poems, which drew a round of applause. He looked around and didn’t see Song Changxu. He thought to himself that this Brother Song really didn’t like to compose poems.

When he had said before that they would be composing poems at the literary gathering, he had immediately refused.

Xie Feng was not a fool. He understood that Song Changxu did not like to compose poems.

Composing poems is so good. You can express your feelings with just a few lines. Brother Song has really missed a great joy in life.

After class, Song Changxu found Teacher Zhou, showed him the essay he had written, and asked for his guidance.

Teacher Zhou: “Your essay is very novel, but it’s a bit too bold. Come to my room, and I’ll explain it to you in detail.”

As a teacher at the county school, the school had provided them with a residence. The one Teacher Zhou had been assigned was inside the county school. Song Changxu did not look around, but from the layout, it was a one-bedroom, one-living room, and it was very clean.

Teacher Zhou went to pour some tea.

Song Changxu took the teacup with both hands. “Thank you, teacher.”

Teacher Zhou said earnestly, “Your essay is very well-written, but it will be difficult for the provincial and metropolitan exams. The chief examiner for the provincial exam this time is the Vice Minister of Rites. He doesn’t like essays that are too sharp. A more conventional one is better, and he prefers more ornate wording.”

“You can either tone down your style, or you’ll have to wait until the palace examination and take a gamble to see if the high-ranking ministers in the court, and most importantly, His Majesty, like it.”

Song Changxu knew that Teacher Zhou’s words were very useful to him. He thanked him.

“Also, on the fundamental issues, you should read, see, and think more.”

Song Changxu cupped his hands. “Yes, teacher. I understand.”

The two of them talked about some more academic issues. Seeing that Teacher Zhou’s eyes were a bit tired, Song Changxu tactfully took his leave.

The sky was clear in the afternoon. When Song Changxu left the county school, he saw that Xu Zhizhou was still at his stall. He walked over and asked, “Did you come out in the afternoon?”

Xu Zhizhou said, “I didn’t prepare much today. It’ll be sold out soon.”

It had been raining heavily in the morning. He and Jiang Zhuo had not planned to set up their stall, but the weather had cleared up after lunch, so they had decided to just sell for an afternoon.

In the evening, there was still some Bobo Chicken left. He and Jiang Zhuo divided it and took it home to eat. Xu Zhizhou pushed the pushcart home cheerfully.

His Bobo Chicken had already made a name for itself in Jinhe County. Xu Zhizhou was even more attentive to the ingredients. With more food being bought, it was important to ensure that it was clean.

He liked to eat the braised meat from the Ding family’s because he knew it was clean. By extension, the customers who came to eat also liked to eat clean food.

Xu Zhizhou was impressed by his own cleverness.

Who else would make money if not him?

Back at home, after dinner, Song Changxu told him about Cheng Maoxue’s invitation to his birthday.

Xu Zhizhou thought for a moment. “Alright, I’ll go and broaden my horizons.”

After dinner, it was not yet dark. Song Changxu thought of the tiles and went out to find a tiler to fix the eaves.

A moment later, he came back with a tiler.

“I’ve heard that there are two xiucai living in our Mijiang Lane. This time, I’ve even gotten a job from a xiucai,” the tiler, who was about forty years old, with a burly build, said. He looked like a straightforward man.

Song Changxu said, “Last night, it rained heavily, and the tiles in the kitchen and bedroom were leaking.”

The tiler climbed up a ladder, took off the tiles on the eaves, and replaced them with new ones. There was no major problem, so Song Changxu paid him.

“If you have any such problems in the future, you can come and find me. I’m in charge of the eaves in this lane. This Mijiang Lane is eighty years old. When my grandfather was here, this place was only for the rich and powerful. Now it’s like this. For you xiucai, it’s still a quiet place to study.”

No wonder it’s an eighty-year-old house.