My Husband is a Drama King [Book Transmigration] 47p1

Chapter 47 p1: Boat Trip

He and Song Changxu were eighteen and twenty-one when they got married. Even though it had been almost a year, he still felt very young.

Besides, Song Changxu had been studying all this time, and he was very tired from setting up the stall. The two of them rarely did that.

He hadn’t even considered the matter of children.

Jiang Zhuo: “It’s just that I’ve seen some children in the lane these past few days, and I suddenly felt something.”

Xu Zhizhou cracked some melon seeds. “It’s fine. It’ll happen when it’s meant to. Besides, Young Master Feng is studying now, and we’re also doing business. If we really had a child, I’m afraid we wouldn’t be able to take care of it.”

Thinking of this, Jiang Zhuo was relieved. “You’re right.”

After chatting with Jiang Zhuo for a while, Xu Zhizhou went back first. As he walked out the door, he saw the children in the lane running around.

He muttered, “Having a child will definitely be very troublesome. I’ve just gotten married and haven’t even had a good time yet.”

When he returned home, Song Changxu had already put away his book box. Xu Zhizhou went into the bedroom, glanced at him, cleared his throat, and said, “I want to eat crayfish. Let’s go and buy some together.”

Hearing this, Song Changxu also felt a craving.

After studying, he wanted to eat something good to reward himself. Now that he had some spare money, it was fine to eat something good.

“Alright.”

At the docks, at this hour, it was all leftovers, but the price was cheap. It was still possible to pick and choose carefully.

Jinhe County was surrounded by mountains and water. The docks were wide. There were some rotten fish and smelly shrimp on the ground, emitting a foul smell. The fishy smell was very strong, and the sea breeze was very salty.

Song Changxu looked into the distance. The sea was clear, and a few small boats were swaying. The sky and the sea merged into one line.

It was almost evening, and the fishmongers were no longer hawking their wares. Song Changxu and Xu Zhizhou picked and chose, and bought two catties of crayfish and two catties of large shrimp.

The fishmonger said, “I’ll wrap them up for you. I had also caught some hairy crabs this morning, but they were bought by a steward as soon as I put them out.”

Carrying the crayfish, they went to buy a pot of wine for seasoning.

In the lane, they ran into someone. They asked, “Xiucai Song, are you having seafood today?”

Song Changxu: “Zhizhou and I both have a craving, so we bought some to try.”

After the young couple had left, they couldn’t help but say with envy, “This couple is living such a good life. One has a title, and the other knows how to do business. How can they not have a good life in the future?”

“That’s right. I see that Xiucai Song even has to fetch water. Aiyo, unlike my husband, who just sits in a chair and waits to be served when he gets home. He doesn’t do anything at home, throws the child at me, and also throws the housework at me.”

“Who says not? My husband also throws everything at me. After I married him, I’m even more tired than when I was at my parents’ house. It’s so disgusting.”

They gathered together and complained for a while. A child ran over, and a mother caught him and spanked him on the bottom. “I told you not to run. You’ll cry again if you fall. Both of you are so troublesome.”

The child covered his spanked bottom and ran away, wailing.

Song Changxu and Xu Zhizhou closed the door when they got back to the courtyard. The houses in Mijiang Lane were densely packed. If they opened the door of their small courtyard, they would be seen.

Xu Zhizhou brought over a stool to wash the crayfish.

Song Changxu was the main chef. Dried chili, Sichuan peppercorns, scallions, ginger, garlic, dark soy sauce, and a little wine.

Xu Zhizhou: “Husband, how do you devein the shrimp?”

Song Changxu washed his hands and showed him once. Xu Zhizhou removed the heads and deveined them.

He quickly finished preparing the shrimp. He went to steam the rice, and also a pumpkin.

Song Changxu put oil in the pot. When the oil was hot, he added the dried chili and other ingredients and stir-fried them quickly. Then he added the crayfish, soy sauce, and sugar, stir-fried them, and then added water to simmer.

“Alright, after a quarter of an hour, turn down the heat and let it simmer for a while to let the flavor soak in. Then we can eat.”

Xu Zhizhou’s eyes sparkled. He hugged Song Changxu’s back. My husband’s waist is so thin.

“You’re so amazing, husband.”

Song Changxu was amused. “I’m amazing just for making you a meal?”

Xu Zhizhou said innocently, “Yes. Eating your fill is such an important thing.”

“I went out to buy some fruits. If the crayfish is too spicy later, we can have some.”

He was a person of action. When he thought of something, he would do it without any delay. By the time Song Changxu came back to his senses, Xu Zhizhou had already run out of the house.

Song Changxu shook his head and took a book to read. He had finally gotten his hands on Teacher Zhou and had borrowed many books from him, so he didn’t have to spend money on them.

He had to save every penny.

When he didn’t have a permanent property, he was very meticulous with the silver in his hands. By the time Xu Zhizhou had bought the fruits, it was almost time.

Song Changxu reduced the firewood. Xu Zhizhou brought over a plate of plums.

The crayfish was ready. Song Changxu went to get it. Xu Zhizhou had already served the pumpkin and rice. He took a moment to glance at the books Song Changxu had placed on the table.

He thought to himself, Oh my god, I think I recognize a few of the characters on this, but they’re so densely packed together, it makes my head spin just looking at them. How can anyone read so many words?

Song Changxu put the book aside and met Xu Zhizhou’s respectful gaze.

Song Changxu: “?”

The two of them happily ate the crayfish.

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In the hot summer, everyone was a bit lazy. Song Changxu brought the mint tea his husband had made. When he felt hot, he would take a sip, which was very refreshing.

Xie Feng and Luo Shuang were listless. Their two families were powerful and had ice. They were also the favored juniors in their families. They would review their books and eat pastries at home, with an attendant fanning them. When they got to the school, they had to endure it with their own flesh and blood.

A scholar was fanning himself with a round fan. The old teacher glared at him. “I’m not even hot while I’m lecturing in the classroom. You’re sitting in your chairs listening, and you’re still so improper.”

The students had their grievances but couldn’t say anything.

They would break into a sweat just from eating in the dining hall at noon. Song Changxu was relatively sturdy and could tolerate the heat.

It was a bit of a torment in the school. Xu Zhizhou also didn’t set up his stall as frequently. They would usually set it up in the morning and afternoon, and go back for a nap at noon.

Xu Zhizhou pulled up the thin quilt and slept with satisfaction.

He slept on his side and saw a book as thick as a brick on the bedside cabinet. He did a carp flip, put the book on the desk, and felt much better.

“Fortunately, I don’t have to read such a thick book.”

He was made to learn to read by Song Changxu all night, which was both novel and a bit of a pain. After he had taught him to read, he would do that to him.

They had just gotten into bed, but he had been pressed against the desk. It was so embarrassing.

After he had learned to read, when his parents sent him a letter, he could read it himself.

Their stall was not open at noon. The customers didn’t like to go out either. They were all cooling off in their rooms. The wealthy merchants would even go to their villas in the outskirts to escape the summer heat.

Master Luo had taken his family to his villa outside the city. The villa had everything. Compared to the hustle and bustle of the county town, it had a more tranquil beauty and a rustic charm.

It was indeed much cooler at the villa. Most of the remaining people in the city were in their rooms, or in teahouses, drinking tea and playing leaf cards.

Some peddlers were still hawking plum juice and mung bean soup with carrying poles. In the hot weather, it was the time for them to make money.

In Qishan Village, Song Ye and Liang Su were taking a short nap. Xu Cheng looked as if he had rolled in the mud. Song Mingyan took him to wash up first and then brought him back to his room to sleep.

The house had a mosquito net. Song Mingyan was wearing a cotton inner garment at home, fanning his son with a cattail fan. At first, Xu Cheng moved a few times, but soon he fell asleep in the cool breeze his father was sending him.

Song Mingyan fanned Xu Cheng for a while and then fell asleep himself. He had saved up some money. Besides buying meat and food for the family, he also wanted to get a few feet of good material to make a new set of clothes for everyone.

Cheng Ge’er was a year older and had grown taller. The clothes at home were all a bit short. Besides, he usually wore the clothes left over from when Changxu or he was a child. He hadn’t had a new set of clothes in a long time.

Song Mingyan looked at Xu Cheng sleeping soundly and smiled. He wanted to raise him well, so that he could be happy for the rest of his life. Then he would also be happy.

After Changxu had become a xiucai, a few matchmakers had come to his door to propose. There were two or three families that sounded quite good, but he had still refused.

Compared to getting married, he preferred to live with Cheng Ge’er. He couldn’t bear to let his son be wronged.

His parents had also gone along with his wish and had helped to refuse the matchmakers.

Life in Qishan Village was also not bad. There was less gossip, and he had a close relationship with Xu Zhici. The two of them had endless things to talk about. With his parents and good friends, and a skill to support himself, life was truly happy.

The other people in Qishan Village did not have as good a life as the Song family. They only had the skill of farming, and their food and drink were all tied to the land. The Song family had a xiucai and did not have to pay taxes, which made them extremely envious.

Everyone was the same, but one family was different. They felt uncomfortable.

Who was there to blame? Who could they blame? Their family had sent their son to study. If it were their family, they would not be willing to spend so much money to send their child to study. Working early was the most important thing.

The Song family did not have to pay taxes, but the couple were still hardworking. They did what they had to do, without any ambiguity.

Song Ye took a nap and then went to the fields. Liang Su first went to the back mountain to cut pig feed. Song Ye worked until it was almost dark. He carried his hoe back and ran into Auntie Fang and Xu Sunzheng.

“In-law,” Song Ye called out.

Xu Sunzheng answered, his face full of smiles. After the two families were united by marriage, their relationship was close. The two children had gone to the county town, and they had to help each other in Qishan Village.

Auntie Fang: “Since you two have run into each other, I won’t disturb you.”

After Auntie Fang had left, Xu Sunzheng asked, “Has Changxu written back?”

“No. We haven’t written either. We’re all uneducated and can’t read. They’re living a good life in the county town. We don’t want to disturb them by writing.”

His son was already married. As the saying goes, start a family and establish a career. Now was the time to establish a career. It was right for them as parents to be concerned, but he and Liang Su didn’t know anything, so they wouldn’t add to their son’s troubles.

His son was a xiucai. He knew more than them. If they still put on the airs of elders, they would be disliked.

Song Ye had also gone through his son’s stage and naturally felt something.

“If we live our lives well and take care of ourselves, we won’t be a burden to the children,” Song Ye said.

Xu Sunzheng said, “What you say makes sense, in-law.”

The two of them chatted for a while and then went back. Auntie Fang had come to Xu Sunzheng to discuss something. Her daughter, Fang Ling, was of age and it was time for a match-making. Auntie Fang had taken a liking to Xu Yuan’s son, who was her nephew.

His sister was arrogant and had married into Shuibo Town. The shop she and her brother-in-law ran was also not bad. She would not want to find a daughter-in-law from the countryside.

Auntie Fang’s plan was probably not going to work, but since they were from the same village, he still had to pass on the message.

Fang Ling looked like a good girl. There were also many good young men in the village. It was easy to find a good family.

Xu Sunzheng thought to himself, But the best man has already been chosen by their family.

At night, Xu Sunzheng told Cao Qin about Auntie Fang’s matter.

Cao Qin: “This is not easy to handle. You can just pass on the message to your sister. Don’t say anything else.”

Xu Sunzheng nodded. “I know my limits. If you ask me, the young men in the village are also not bad.”

Cao Qin put down her needlework. “Both women and ge’ers want to find a husband with a high social standing. I can understand. When we were looking for a match for Zhici and Zhizhou, didn’t we also think that we should find the best husband?”

“Who would want their own daughter or ge’er to live a hard life after they marry?”

Xu Sunzheng also agreed with this. Although Zhici had not yet married Xie Huaichuan, he knew that Xie Huaichuan was also one of the best young men in the neighboring village. Now that he had heard from Zhici that he had an official position in the army, this child had only been sixteen when he had gone to the army. For a person with no background to become an official, he must have suffered a lot.

“Anyway, I’ll just pass on the message. The rest has nothing to do with me.”

They didn’t have to worry about their sons’ marriages. Xu Sunzheng liked both of his sons-in-law. If Xie Huaichuan could come back early, he would be even happier.

A man should focus on his career, but he also had to start a family. Why make a ge’er wait in the village all the time?

They chatted for a while and then went to sleep.

The villagers of Qishan Village still worked from sunrise to sunset. When they ran into someone who liked to gossip, they would ask a few more questions. When Song Changxu and Xu Zhizhou had first gone to the county town, the villagers would still talk about it. Every time they came out with their bowls, they would eat and talk. After a long time, they stopped.

Every family was busy, and they didn’t have so much time for idle talk.

The fields at home were still the most important.

Auntie Fang had gotten a reply from Xu Sunzheng. She was disappointed for a while, but Fang Ling was relieved. “Mother, we can just find a reliable family in the village. We don’t have to climb up the social ladder.”

Who knew what kind of life she would have after she had climbed up the social ladder? Fang Ling used to be arrogant, but now she felt that it was enough to find a reliable man and live her own life well.

Auntie Fang: “My dear, you’re so beautiful, virtuous, and capable. How can you not be worthy of a good family?”

Fang Ling shook her head. “There are many girls like me. Besides, the people in the town just want to marry someone from the town. It’s fine for me to find someone from the village.”

Auntie Fang: “If I had known, I should have arranged a marriage with the Song family a few years ago. Liang Su had asked me before, but I thought there would be better choices in the future, and the Song family also had a divorced ge’er, so I didn’t agree. Now, it’s the Xu family who has benefited.”

Fang Ling didn’t know about this connection with the Song family. Thinking of this, her heart darkened.

She forced a smile. “It’s just that I don’t have the fortune. I can’t force it.”

She could no longer hear what Auntie Fang was saying. She had been envious of Xu Zhizhou, but now that she knew about this, her feelings were even more complicated.

She had never been to Jinhe County in her entire life. Now, even after she got married, she could go and have a look.

It should be like this. On the surface, Fang Ling was the same as usual. At night, she went back to her room, covered herself with the quilt, and cried bitterly.

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