Chapter 600 - 222: Catching Up
Chapter 600: Chapter 222: Catching Up
"Wanqing, take a look," Li’an said. "The ledger records all the expenses, including the prices of each transaction and the final harvest. See if there are any mistakes." He pulled the silver notes out of his pouch, which surprisingly also contained some broken silver. "It’s a long journey, and I was worried it wouldn’t be convenient to carry silver, so I exchanged it for silver notes. These remaining few taels weren’t enough to exchange for the smallest denomination of silver notes, so I just didn’t bother."
Chen Wanqing found it both amusing and endearing. She took the ledger but didn’t open it. Since they had even brought one or two taels of loose broken silver, the accounts were absolutely not falsified. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have included such small amounts.
Just then, a maid came over and announced that the food was ready. Chen Wanqing told Li’an and Uncle Bai to put everything else aside and hurry to have lunch.
When they moved to the large flower hall, the two men looked around again and again, their hearts drumming nervously in their chests. Chen Song’s family had truly risen in the world. The decorations in this flower hall were more opulent than anything they had ever seen. Of course, it wasn’t as if they had seen many fine arrangements to begin with.
"What about Chen Song? Is he not coming back for lunch?" Chen Bai asked.
"He isn’t. Unless there’s something important, my father usually eats at the government office at noon. He is currently working at the Salt Transport Department, and he has so many things to handle that he’s rushed off his feet every day," Chen Wanqing replied.
Normally, the busiest time of the year for the Salt Transport Department should be the spring and summer seasons. This was the peak period for salt production, and transportation demands skyrocketed. It was already October; it shouldn’t have been this busy. However, the Salt Transport Department also managed the salt tax of various regions. To collect taxes, one had to deal with salt merchants. The current dynasty levied heavy taxes on salt merchants, leading many of them to evade taxes for profit.
As a newly appointed official, Chen Song had already established a firm foothold in the Salt Transport Department, but there was never a shortage of people trying to drag him down with them. To prevent making mistakes in his duties and giving others an excuse to frame him, Chen Song kept his guard up at all times, not relaxing for even a moment. For the past two days, her father had gone elsewhere to collect taxes. He hadn’t returned yesterday, and she didn’t know if he would be able to come back today.
"I’ll have someone send a message to my father later to let him know you’re here so he can try his best to come home," she added.
"There’s no rush," Chen Bai said. "His official duties are more important."
"There’s really no rush, Wanqing. We can just wait a bit longer. Let’s not delay Uncle Chen Song’s work," Li’an agreed.
Chen Wanqing then talked about De’an, Yao’an, and her mother. "De’an has gone to the Prefecture School, and Yao’an is still at the private school and hasn’t returned. As for my mother... she went to look for my youngest uncle."
To Chen Wanqing’s lack of surprise, Chen Bai and Li’an, who were eating, both stopped their movements upon hearing this and stared at her blankly.
Chen Bai stuttered, "Qing’er, where did you get a youngest uncle? Could it be... could it be that your mother’s relatives have found her?"
Chen Wanqing nodded. She didn’t go into detail about the Xu family’s background, only mentioning that her mother’s parents and older brothers had been looking for her for twenty years. That youngest uncle of hers was currently in Xinghuai Prefecture. Her mother had some matters to ask for his help with, so she went to find him and would probably have lunch there today.
Chen Bai and Li’an were in a daze, not knowing whether they had truly absorbed her words. A moment later, Chen Bai suddenly asked, "Then are your father and your mother... doing well now?"
Chen Wanqing immediately understood the unspoken meaning behind his words. Clearly, Uncle Bai had also realized that her mother was no ordinary person, and he was worried that there might be changes to her parents’ marriage.
Chen Wanqing said, finding the situation both amusing and ridiculous, "They’re doing great. Uncle Bai, don’t worry about these things. My parents have spent half their lives together and even have the three of us siblings. Could they possibly get a divorce? You absolutely must not let my father hear you say this, or he might disown you as a brother."
Chen Bai sighed. "I was just talking nonsense. You absolutely must not tell your father."
Chen Wanqing then expressed her annoyance with herself, "I should have sent a letter to Jing and had him come over to keep you company and chat."
"We wouldn’t dare. Jing is now the top scorer in the provincial examination!"
At the mention of Zhao Jing, Chen Bai and Li’an flushed red with excitement. Ever since the official document was sent to the county government and the commoners in the county learned that Zhao Jing had become the top scorer in the provincial examination, things had been incredible. The Zhao Village had practically become a sacred place of worship for many scholars. During those few days, regardless of day or night, countless students wandered around the Zhao Village.
When they learned that after Zhao Jing had become a Scholar, he spent the longest time in the ancestral hall specifically dedicated to housing the Holy Decree, they assumed he must have received Your Majesty’s enlightenment to become the top scorer in the provincial examination before even reaching the age of twenty.
The scholars and local gentry went crazy! They bought all kinds of tribute items to offer at the ancestral hall. Thick, billowing smoke rose from the hall every day—those who didn’t know better would have thought a fire had broken out. Even Lord County Magistrate went to the ancestral hall in person to offer a stick of incense. He also presented a plaque inscribed with "A Land of Outstanding People" and hung it outside the hall.