Seeing that the house was all tidied up, Granny Lian went to ask the master, “Madam, since we’ve just moved here, we should greet the neighbors. But tomorrow is the Laba Festival; why not make some Laba porridge and send it to the neighbors to say hello?”

Yang Haiyan agreed with Granny Lian’s suggestion, saying, “You arrange it.”

Having a helper like her made a difference.

Granny Lian, who came from a second-rank official’s household, was incomparable to people like Aunt Fan, no matter how hard they tried.

Although Yang Haiyan initially trusted Aunt Fan more, she gradually realized that Granny Lian was more suited to manage the courtyard.

Unbeknownst to her, she had come to value Geanny Lian more.

Hearing her master agree, Granny Lian was happy and said, “Alright, I will discuss it with Aunt Fan. We’ll cook more Laba porridge tomorrow to send to our neighbors, and we should also send some to the previous captains.”

The term “servant” doesn’t just mean following the master’s orders blindly; such servants lack ambition.

A true servant should listen to the master’s words, be loyal, and also offer suggestions.

Yang Haiyan nodded, “Just handle it as you see fit.”

Since tomorrow was Laba, the Qin family did not hold a grand celebration for their housewarming today, deciding to postpone it until tomorrow.

After Qin Fang returned from his duties, he saw one of the personal guards, Huang Huzai, guarding the gate.

Huang Huzai stepped forward and took the reins from Qin Fang’s hand, saying, “Master has returned.”

Qin Fang replied, “I’m back.” With that, he walked inside.

Behind Qin Fang was Kun Shi, who led his own horse and went to the stable with Huang Huzai.

In the stable, they kept not only horses but also sheep and donkeys.

Regardless of whether it was sheep, horses, or donkeys, Uncle Hong was in charge.

It must be said that Uncle Hong, having been a hunter, understood these animals better than anyone else.

Uncle Hong wasn’t idle either.

During the day, he would call one of the personal guards to help him collect firewood.

He would use a donkey cart to transport the firewood, so he needed someone to accompany him; otherwise, he wouldn’t feel at ease leaving the cart unattended.

Previously, Aunt Hong would accompany him, but now, with the children, it wasn’t convenient for her.

Uncle Hong understood that among all the servants, Aunt Hong had the lightest workload because she needed to care for the children.

Therefore, he took on more work, not wanting to let down the master’s kindness.

Since Uncle Hong arrived, the Qin family had never run short of firewood, and the two sheep were also growing plump.

Kun Shi said, “Uncle Hong, you can eat now; it’s ready.”

Uncle Hong had just finished attending to the donkey.

Today was moving day, and the donkey cart had made several trips, which was quite tiring, so he needed to comfort it.

When he saw Kun Shi and Huang Huzai bringing the horses over, he said, “Captain Kun and Guard Huang are here; I’ll be done shortly. Captain Kun, do you want your horse brushed?”

Kun Shi replied, “No need; brush the master’s horse. I’ll take care of mine myself.”

He cherished his horse and preferred to do it personally.

Huang Huzai joked, “Captain treats his horse like a woman.”

Kun Shi retorted, “Get lost! You’ve used a woman before.”

Huang Huzai laughed, “Why haven’t I? My wife is at home; she’ll come after the New Year.”

He had also been called to serve here, but as a small soldier, he didn’t receive a monthly allowance because military service was mandatory.

Now that he was a personal guard for the master, he received a monthly stipend, and since his food and lodging were taken care of, he was of course happy.

He asked the lady if he could bring his wife from home, and she said yes, so he wrote to his family.

Of course, Yang Haiyan wouldn’t oppose this.

After all, if nothing unexpected happened, these married personal guards would follow Qin Fang for a lifetime.

Would she really want them to be separated from their families?

Moreover, Qin Fang’s current monthly allowance was over eight taels of silver, which was enough to support his family and these personal guards.

The four personal guards each received 300 wen a month, while Kun Shi, as the captain, received 500 wen a month, totaling 1,700 wen a month.

Thus, Qin Fang’s salary was sufficient to support them.

As for the other servants, Yang Haiyan’s income from the pastry shop was sufficient.

Although it was closed for the time being, when it reopened, it could generate a gross profit of ten taels of silver per month, so there was no need for concern.

She even thought that if the wives of these personal guards came, she could open another shop in the county town, letting Aunt Fan manage it there.

Aunt Fan was reliable, so she could rest assured.

Then, she could send one of the personal guards’ wives to help.

Of course, Aunt Fan would still be responsible for making the pastries, as only Aunt Fan and Aunt Hong knew the recipes.

As for Aunt Hong, she would continue managing the shop here.

When things got busy, the wives of the personal guards could help out.

After all, there was more than one personal guard, so there would naturally be more than one wife.

…

When Qin Fang entered the main courtyard, he saw Aunt Yu guarding the gate.

Aunt Yu hurriedly greeted him, “Master has arrived.”

Her voice was a bit soft, stemming from her insecurity, but she was much better than when she first came—at least she had gained some weight.

A bowl of sheep’s milk every morning wasn’t just for show.

Aunt Yu didn’t go anywhere or gossip; she just focused on her work and guarded the gate for Yang Haiyan.

For her, having work to do gave her a sense of security.

Upon hearing that Qin Fang was back, Yang Haiyan set aside her tasks.

Since she had some free time, she started making a few pieces of intimate clothing for him, as his personal clothes wore out easily.

Granny Lian hurried to fetch hot water for Qin Fang to wash his face, and by the time he finished, dinner was served.

While the master ate, the servants and personal guards also had their meals.

Dinner consisted of cured meat and sauerkraut noodles, and Qin Fang ate two big bowls, as the sauerkraut really whetted the appetite.

While eating, Yang Haiyan asked, “Husband, tomorrow is Laba; will there be Laba porridge prepared at your military camp?”

Qin Fang was taken aback. “I don’t think so. Since I started serving in the military, I’ve never eaten Laba porridge. Back at home, my family would always prepare it. Speaking of which, I’ll be able to return home in March next year, and I’ll have a month’s leave then.”

Hearing him say this, Yang Haiyan felt curious about the Qin family, even a bit eager.

After all, both Grandmother Qin and Mother Qin had left a very good impression on her, and Qin Fang was a filial person—though not blindly so—she hoped that she could get along well with Mother Qin and the others. “When Father and Mother see how tall you’ve grown, they’ll definitely be happy.”

Qin Fang felt a tug at his heartstrings and replied, “I’m doing well, but I don’t know how they are faring.”

Yang Haiyan comforted him, “You’ll find out when you go back next year. If they aren’t doing well, we can bring them here?”

Her words were somewhat probing, unsure if Qin Fang would understand. Naturally, Yang Haiyan didn’t like the idea of living with her parents-in-law.

It wasn’t out of disloyalty; modern girls rarely wished to live with their in-laws.

However, she wouldn’t oppose bringing the Qin family over and could buy a courtyard in town for them to live in.

This was a duty Qin Fang, as the eldest son and grandson, could not refuse.

But how to manage it would depend on her interactions with the Qin family.

Qin Fang shook his head. “No, they won’t come. Their hometown is their root; they wouldn’t be comfortable away from it. If possible, I’ll visit them every two years. At least while Grandpa and Grandma are still around, Father and Mother won’t come. And they definitely wouldn’t want to bring Grandpa and Grandma along.”

Yang Haiyan understood from this that Qin Fang was willing to bring Grandpa and Grandma over, but he hadn’t considered bringing the others.

With that topic avoided, Yang Haiyan changed the subject, “Husband, are we going to send Laba porridge to the soldiers in the Eighteenth District tomorrow?”

The Laba Festival has specific significance.

In Qiguo, it is a day for honoring ancestors and deities, praying for a good harvest and good fortune.

Therefore, every year during the Laba Festival, friends and relatives exchange Laba porridge to wish each other well.

As the eldest daughter-in-law of the Qin family, if Grandpa and Grandma Qin, as well as Father and Mother Qin, were no longer around, it would fall to her to oversee the ancestral worship on Laba Festival.

However, as long as the old Qin family was still able, she didn’t have to worry about it.

Qin Fang thought about Yang Haiyan’s mention of the soldiers in the Eighteenth District and asked, “For over a thousand people, how much will it cost?”

Yang Haiyan chuckled softly.

Qin Fang felt a bit embarrassed. “Don’t laugh,” he said seriously.

If the expenses were high, he wouldn’t prepare for the soldiers in the Eighteenth District.

If it was something he could afford, he would naturally agree, as it was only once a year.

But his wife’s laughter made him feel a bit shy.

Yang Haiyan calculated and said, “For over a thousand soldiers, we’d need to prepare 200 jin of rice. One jin of rice plus some ingredients, with a bit more water, two bowls of porridge per person wouldn’t be a problem.

Out of 200 jin, we could have 100 jin of white rice and 100 jin of brown rice, along with peanuts, red beans, mung beans, red dates, longan, and broad beans.

One hundred jin of white rice costs 600 wen, and one hundred jin of brown rice costs 400 wen, and I’ll set aside 500 wen for the other ingredients. That should be enough, so one and a half taels of silver will be sufficient.”

After finishing her calculations, Yang Haiyan said, “Two bowls of porridge per person, that totals one and a half taels of silver.”