Chapter 79: Visitors from the Village

Lu Songnian was a second-class jinshi (advanced scholar), and the results of the imperial examination were already out. However, it was still uncertain what position he would be assigned.

It wasn’t clear whether Lu Songnian would stay in the capital to serve in the government or be sent to an administrative post in the provinces, like a county magistrate or prefect. If he were to be assigned to the provinces, it would be at least three more years before he could return to report to the capital, and even then, the outcome would depend on the court’s decisions. There was a lot of uncertainty.

If he were to serve in the capital, it would be more stable since he wouldn’t have to travel around the provinces, and life in the capital would be better than in the countryside.

However, one thing was certain: the Lu family already had one official on the board.

Although Lu Ke did not pass the imperial examination, the Lu family didn’t feel too disappointed. After all, the provincial examination was a place for the best talents to gather, and not passing was the norm. Only those who passed were considered as the “stars of literature.”

Moreover, Lu Ke had at least earned the title of “juren” (a degree holder), which was already a great achievement, so there was no need to feel too discouraged.

Even though both of them had failed to pass the imperial exam, the Lu family wasn’t overly concerned.

After all, Lu Songnian and Lu Ke were both still very young.

They had a long life ahead of them. If they didn’t succeed this time, they could try again next time, and that was no big deal.

After the news came, they hadn’t received confirmation on when Lu Songnian would return home. Wen Ruyu was unsure when they would return, and the family could only make rough estimates.

After passing the exam, students would be given a break by the government, though the break wasn’t long. It would be enough for Lu Songnian to return home in glory.

Considering that Lu Songnian would likely stay in the capital for a while, it was estimated that Zhao Shu would be close to giving birth when he returned.

Naturally, the happiest person in the Lu family upon hearing that Lu Songnian had become a juren was Zhao Shu.

When she heard the news, she was so excited she stood up in a start. Wen Ruyu was afraid Zhao Shu might be too excited and risk harming the baby.

Not only was the Lu family excited, but even the County Magistrate of Lin County sent people to congratulate them when they received the news.

Wen Ruyu didn’t mind the third daughter-in-law frequently visiting the Lin family, so the magistrate sent someone to congratulate them. The next day, Zhao Shu’s mother, Mrs. Cao, personally came to offer her congratulations.

The locust plague had arrived just around the time the results of the exam were announced, so the villagers didn’t manage to offer their congratulations right away.

With the locusts passing through, people were busy spraying powder, cleaning up the remnants of the insects, digging up insect eggs, and burning the straw.

In an effort for peace of mind, they also prayed to the gods, asking for good weather and no more disasters.

It wasn’t just the village that was busy—the county magistrate also had to be busy. This locust plague was a nationwide disaster, and the upper authorities had shown concern, so the local officials had to respond as well.

To show his concern, the magistrate had to go pray to the gods and visit all the villages in Qinghe County.

Since there was no county magistrate in Qinghe County, the county magistrate and the clerks had more to handle.

Recently, the Lu family had both joy and sorrow. As soon as the good news about Lu Songnian came, Lu Bainan was preparing to leave.

The day before Lu Bainan left, Wen Ruyu ordered a feast to be prepared at home. The family gathered around, and they sent him off.

The next day, Lu Bainan came to say his goodbyes to his mother, carrying a recommendation letter, and rode off to join the military.

After Lu Bainan left, Wen Ruyu sent off the maidservants who had reached marriageable age in his room.

Those who were willing to stay at home were assigned to be servants, while those who didn’t want to stay were married off.

In addition to the twenty taels of silver Lu Bainan gave, Wen Ruyu also gave each of the girls ten taels of silver as a parting gift, showing kindness.

After handling the matters in Lu Bainan’s room, the village head and clan leader of Lu Village came by with a group of people.

The harvest this year was poor, and due to the locust plague, families with fewer people were better off, but those with many children were struggling to feed them.

The clan leader and the village head felt awkward asking Wen Ruyu for money, so they used a different approach: asking her to take in a few children.

“The harvest is bad this year. Although the tax has been reduced, some people still can’t afford to eat. We’ve brought a few children over. Sister-in-law, please have a look and see if any of them are suitable. If so, please keep one or two. That would be doing a good deed.”

Wen Ruyu didn’t plan to take them in.

It wasn’t that she was unwilling to take in children from relatives to serve as maids.

At this time, many families faced such situations: unable to afford their children, they sent them to work for other families. Sending them to relatives was better because at least they wouldn’t face as much abuse.

As long as the host family provided a meal, they would be like their second parents.

The reason Wen Ruyu didn’t want to take them in was because she was afraid that once she took in one, there would be a second and a third.

She would rather buy someone from outside than have villagers constantly send children to the Lu family whenever they were hungry.

The children brought by the clan leader and village head were both boys and girls in roughly equal numbers.

In ancient times, families could have several children, and those who frequently had boys weren’t bothered by having one less.

Moreover, sending them to the Lu family was considered a better outcome than selling them off.

Looking at the weak children, Wen Ruyu sighed, “Although this is the case, it’s too cruel to separate them from their families.”

Seeing that Wen Ruyu wasn’t interested in taking anyone in, the village head and clan leader exchanged looks.

They had brought out so many children, and if they didn’t manage to send any away, it would be hard to explain when they returned.

The clan leader had no choice but to put his pride aside. “These families are really in trouble. At least keep one or two, just so they can have enough to eat. Sister-in-law, you know, the locusts came, and the fields were eaten clean in just two days. The harvest is really bad. If we send them all back, some people in the village might starve this year.”

Although starvation wasn’t inevitable, no parent wanted to reach the point of selling their children.

Rather than selling them to unknown families, it was better to send them to Wen Ruyu’s home to work. They might even be able to take the children back someday without spending money.

Wen Ruyu understood their plan but said, “It’s not that I don’t want to help. Our family has many mouths to feed, and everyone has their own job. Last year, you brought people to me, and the situation wasn’t as bad, and I didn’t take anyone in, did I?

Now that the situation is worse, and food is expensive, it’s hard to feed even one more person. This year, Bainan went to join the military, so I’m trying to save money by sending away some of the people in his room. My household has enough servants. Even if I took in a few more, there wouldn’t be enough work for them.”

Upon hearing this, the village head and clan leader exchanged disappointed glances.

To be honest, they felt that the Lu family, with its large household, should be able to take in at least one child, especially since they were relatives. They couldn’t understand why Wen Ruyu wouldn’t take in even one child.

They thought that perhaps if her nephew were here, it might be easier to ask him.

Wen Ruyu was not inexperienced and understood what they were thinking.

When poor families met wealthy relatives, they would always act friendly. If they couldn’t get what they wanted, they would think about how the wealthy relatives never helped their poor relatives.

It was likely that most people in Lu Village thought that way about Wen Ruyu.

If she kept worrying about what others would say behind her back, she would be miserable.

Therefore, Wen Ruyu chose to focus on the present and do what she thought was right.

After seeing the disappointment in the village head and clan leader’s eyes, Wen Ruyu changed the subject and said, “But since they are relatives, and our family has some extra resources, it’s hard to just watch them suffer.”

Hearing this, the village head and clan leader immediately perked up.

“Alright, let’s consider it as doing a good deed,” Wen Ruyu sighed. “I’ve been expecting food prices to rise, so we stocked up on grain last year. This year, we’ve got an extra thousand jin. Originally, we planned to trade the rough grain for charity.”

“The people in Lu Village are all relatives, so naturally, they are more important. Even if we don’t have extra, we can always spare some. Since the village head and clan leader are here, I won’t make you leave empty-handed. Tomorrow, I’ll have the housekeeper send some grain over. Please distribute it as you see fit.”

The entire Lu Village had about a hundred people, so the thousand jin of grain Wen Ruyu offered wasn’t much but would be enough to help in an emergency.

If the locust plague could be controlled well, the grain output in the third quarter wouldn’t be greatly affected.

By the third quarter, the grain would be harvested, and unless there was another disaster, the thousand jin would definitely help those poor families in the village.

At current grain prices, the thousand jin of grain was worth about ten taels of silver.

They were relatives, and since the family was prosperous, it would be inappropriate not to help them when they were in need.

Wen Ruyu’s words were pleasant, whether or not she truly meant them, but at least the village head and clan leader felt respected.

After hearing her plan, both the village head and the clan leader nodded in agreement.

Although they didn’t manage to send the children to the Lu family, they could go back and explain that they hadn’t come empty-handed, so they no longer pressed Wen Ruyu to take the children.

At noon, the Lu family prepared a meal.

Wen Ruyu wanted to keep them for lunch, but the village head and clan leader, feeling embarrassed, declined and left with the children.

The children, who were thin and weak, couldn’t help but salivate at the thought of food.

When they heard the village head say they wouldn’t eat, they reluctantly pouted.

Wen Ruyu saw this and had the kitchen send out some cakes for each child to have a piece.

As they were escorted out, Wen Ruyu’s smile slowly faded.

After sending off the village head and clan leader, Wen Ruyu ate her meal and then rested for a while.

When she woke up, she called Qingxue over and instructed her, “Find someone to go to the shop and bring Yian Mama here.”

“Does Old Madam need something from Yian Mama?” Qingxue asked, thinking Yian Mama would surely ask about the matter.

Wen Ruyu looked into the mirror at her still radiant face, though with a few more fine lines around her eyes. She gently touched her cheek and said, “Tell her I want to buy a house in the capital and ask for her opinion.”

Qingxue nodded and left to carry out the task.