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Chapter 46: Luo Jin’an Leaves – The Xu Family Plans to Expand
Xu Nian returned to her room and opened the letter. This was the first time she had seen Luo Jin’an’s handwriting. Contrary to his frail appearance, the characters on the paper were strong and powerful, flowing like dragons and serpents, exuding an overwhelming sense of energy.
Xu Nian was captivated. She had always admired those with excellent handwriting. Without even reading the content of the letter, she immediately took out paper and a brush to imitate it. Though she had some foundation in calligraphy, her attempt resulted in soft, weak strokes.
Only when her wrist ached did she finally put down the brush, suddenly remembering that she had yet to read the letter.
Inside the envelope, besides two sheets of paper, there was also a banknote worth two hundred taels and a piece of smoky purple Hetian jade pendant. Xu Nian stared at the jade pendant in shock, her mouth agape. Had Luo Jin’an been too generous? She had only ever seen such high-quality jade in records.
Carefully, she placed the jade pendant in a wooden box, then stored the box inside her secret space. Still feeling uneasy, she even clasped her hands together and prayed to the heavens.
“Dear heavens, please don’t suddenly take back this space. If you must, at least let me return the jade pendant first. Please, I beg you!”
Xu Nian had already decided that the next time she saw Luo Jin’an, she would return the jade pendant to him. If she lost or damaged it, she could never afford to compensate him, no matter what.
After reading the letter, she realized that the jade pendant was likely a token of identification. Luo Jin’an had written that if she ever encountered trouble, she could present the pendant for help.
Xu Nian retrieved the jade pendant from her space and examined it carefully. Only then did she notice that one side of the pendant was engraved with a dragon. When she looked at it from a distance, the carving formed the character “Chang” (昌).
Xu Nian felt a bit dazed. Wasn’t the use of a dragon motif exclusive to the emperor in Sheng Dynasty? Could it be… could it be that Prince Zhenbei harbored rebellious intentions?
Startled by her own speculation, Xu Nian quickly put the jade pendant away. She didn’t dare to reveal it recklessly—what if someone executed her on the spot for possessing it?
Originally planning to rest, Xu Nian now found herself completely awake. To calm her mind, she picked up her brush and continued practicing calligraphy.
It wasn’t until she heard noises outside that she finally put down the brush and stepped out.
“Grandfather, you’re awake. I’ll get you a cup of honey water. Please go sit in the main hall and wait for a moment.”
Old Xu chuckled and walked to the front hall.
Since there were plenty of rooms on the estate, Xu Wei’an, along with Xu Ji and the other two, stayed in the front courtyard, while the rest of the family resided in the back. Xu Nian had also fulfilled her wish of having a room to herself, which made things much more convenient for her.
By the time Xu Nian prepared a pot of honey water and brought it to the hall, the rest of the family had already gathered there.
“Father, Mother, now that everything at home is settled, we’ll head back to the county office. If anything comes up, just send my brothers or someone to find me.”
Old Xu waved his hand dismissively.
“You don’t need to worry about home. Just focus on assisting the county magistrate properly.”
When Xu Nian heard that her parents were leaving, she hurried to the backyard and brought out several potted cherry tomatoes.
“Father, Mother, take these back to the county office. Also, with New Year’s coming up in a little over half a month, it’s time to start preparing the holiday gifts.”
Tian Shi chuckled and scolded, “Your mother is here to handle these things. Why do you have to worry about everything?”
Hearing this, Wang Shi immediately became displeased.
“If it weren’t for Da Ya* taking care of everything, how would we have gotten such a good estate? What, are you saying my Da Ya is meddling too much?”
(*Da Ya is a term of endearment referring to the eldest daughter.)
Being called out in front of so many people, Tian Shi’s face flushed red with embarrassment.
Seeing this, Xu Nian quickly explained, “Grandmother, Mother is just worried about me. You know that after the New Year, I’ll be attending Lady Mei’s academy, so I won’t have time to handle things anymore.”
“Father, Mother, you should head back. Uncle and the others will take care of things here…”
After sending Xu Yaozu and Tian Shi off, Wang Shi tapped Xu Nian on the forehead.
“You heartless little girl! Always siding with your mother.”
Xu Nian grinned mischievously and clung to Wang Shi’s arm, saying, “How could that be? My absolute favorite person in the world is my beautiful and kind-hearted grandmother, Madam Wang Zhen.”
“You keep coming up with these strange words—are you taking advantage of the fact that your grandmother can’t read?”
Xu Nian chuckled foolishly, brushing off the remark. She had indeed spoken without thinking.
Seeing that the whole family was gathered together for once, she decided to share her plans.
“Grandfather, Grandmother, I’m planning to buy a few servants for the household.”
“What? Why waste money on that? We have your aunts and me—we don’t need to buy any!”
Old Xu didn’t immediately reject the idea outright. Instead, he asked, “Da Ya, do you have a particular reason for this?”
Xu Nian then explained, “Now that Third Aunt is likely pregnant, she shouldn’t be overworking herself. If the household relies only on Grandmother and Second Aunt, they won’t be able to manage everything.
Besides, with New Year’s approaching, there will be a lot of social visits. The mistress of the house needs to oversee the festivities, not be tied up with mundane chores.”
Seeing that her granddaughter’s reasoning was sound, Wang Shi no longer objected and instead said, “Then buy two.”
Xu Nian grinned. “Grandmother, two won’t be enough.
We need one servant to do the laundry and cooking, another to take Xiao Liuzi to and from school, one to manage household chores, and one to run errands. For now, four should barely be sufficient.”
Wang Shi felt that her eldest granddaughter really knew how to enjoy life—she was already calling this “barely enough.”
Zheng Shi and Little Wang Shi were delighted. They never imagined they would get to live like the wives of government officials in this lifetime.
While Wang Shi was still distressed about the silver they would have to spend, Xu Nian wasn’t finished.
“Grandmother, I was also thinking that from now on, our family members should receive a monthly allowance. Otherwise, when my uncles go out, how can they walk around without money? That would make others look down on them.”
Hearing this, Xu Fugui and his two brothers’ eyes lit up.
On this matter, Wang Shi had no objections. Ever since the family moved to Beijiang, they had spent at least several dozen taels supporting the eldest son. Now that the younger children were grown, it was natural they might feel resentful if they had nothing for themselves.
In the end, Xu Nian set the monthly allowances:
With each amount Xu Nian stated, Wang Shi did the math in her head. Just the monthly allowances alone would cost nearly 15 taels per month!
Hearing Wang Shi muttering under her breath, Xu Nian smiled and said, “Grandmother, money only has value when it is spent. If we never spend, then who would buy my potted plants?”
The Xu family members’ eyes immediately lit up—this meant more money-making opportunities!
“I plan to sell all the potted plants in my room before New Year’s. Since this is the time when everyone is preparing holiday gifts, these plants will definitely be popular.”
Suddenly, Wang Shi no longer felt heartbroken over the expenses. She chuckled, “That bright red one—I like it just by looking at it. Someone will surely buy it!”
Watching how quickly Wang Shi’s attitude changed, the Xu family members all laughed quietly.
Miumi[Translator]
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