Chapter 169: Chapter 169: Talk about Relatives

Translator: 549690339

Zhuang Yuanren remained silent.

Seeing this, it became clear.

A hint of joy emerged from Zhuang Ruman’s brows. Zhuang Yuanren, who felt compelled to apologize at Zhuang Qingning’s door, revealed that Zhuang Qingning was in the wrong no matter how it was discussed.

“Did you not take a detour to visit your uncle, the village chief, to talk to him?”

Zhuang Ruman asked again, but the reply he received was still silence.

Now, it was Zhuang Ruman’s turn for silence.

Looking at Zhuang Yuanren’s behavior, it seemed that when he went to Zhuang Jingye’s house to discuss the matter, Zhuang Jingye didn’t take it seriously and didn’t treat him well, which was why Zhuang Yuanren appeared unhappy.

It looked like Zhuang Jingye truly intended not to give their family a chance, and didn’t value Zhuang Yuanren, who was expected to be the future scholar.

If that was the case, there would be nothing in the entire village they could rely on…

“Father.” After a long silence, Zhuang Yuanren spoke up: “If you continue to act stubbornly and just want to cause difficulty for Zhuang Qingning and her sister, then I will never come back. Please treat it as if you don’t have a son like me…”

!!..

With such parents, not only did he lose face in front of Zhuang Qingning’s sisters but was also looked down upon by Zhuang Jingye, he feared that he would have no face in the village in the future.

It would be better not to have…

Zhuang Ruman’s heart sank further.

It seemed that his prediction was truthful, and in the future, they would only be able to live quietly, not daring to make any mistakes. Otherwise, there would be no benefits. They might even jeopardize Zhuang Yuanren’s future prospects. If it comes to that, their family would completely lose all support.

Zhuang Ruman certainly did not want such a result.

For thirty years, fortunes turn and change. When Zhuang Yuanren succeeds, they could troubleshoot the two sisters.

“From your words, do you think I’m incapable of understanding anything? From now on, I’ll listen to you. You just focus on your studies.”

Zhuang Ruman said.

“Thank you, father.” Zhuang Yuanren paused and continued: “It’s getting late. I’ll return to school early, and father can recover from his injuries in peace. When I have a spare moment, I’ll come back to see you.”

“You’re not even going to stay for dinner?” Zhuang Ruman struggled to prop up half of his body with his elbow: “It’s almost dark now, and the journey back to the town isn’t easy. It would be better to leave tomorrow.”

“No, I need to return early to talk to my teacher to avoid missing the opportunity to go to the government school.” Zhuang Yuanren answered.

“Hmm, this is important. It’s better to settle it early.” Zhuang Ruman nodded, called Mrs. Song into the room, took the money bag from the crack in the wall, counted out half of it, and gave it to Zhuang Yuanren.

“You take this. Buy something for your teacher, and make sure you’re looked after. When you’re outside, don’t hesitate to eat and dress well to avoid seeming poor. If you run out of money, you can always come back for more.”

“You should quickly cook some eggs for Yuanren to take with him. He can eat them at school to build his strength.”

Mrs. Song rushed to get eggs and boiled them upon her husband’s command.

She boiled all eight eggs in the bamboo basket, thought for a moment, and took a few more from the basket to add to the pot, adding more firewood to the stove.

“Thank you, father, and thank you, mother.” Zhuang Yuanren thanked them, his eyes lowered, and his hands clutching the money bag tightly. He couldn’t help but tremble at the corner of his mouth.

The money bag was light, yet they instructed him to eat and dress well, not to appear poor, and buy things for his teacher…

Who could know that because his money was so limited, aside from buying stationery, he could hardly even eat a decent meal every day?

Others often went to restaurants, and they ate at least meat buns or noodles with shredded meat. He could only buy a sesame seed cake, taking a bite when no one was watching. Occasionally he would eat a meat bun, but he didn’t dare to cat too much, for fear he would grow unaccustomed to the dry sesame cakes.

When people go home, they bring a lot of snacks and dried fruits with them. They share them with others as if the items were free, but he could only bring some ordinary eggs to school, which were not comparable to what others brought.

The gap between people was indeed vast.

Zhuang Yuanren sighed, put away his money, quickly packed some things, took the eggs that Mrs. Song had boiled, and hurriedly went to the town.

After Zhuang Yuanren left, Mrs. Song started preparing dinner.

Concerned that the money at home had decreased and the eggs meant for sale had been taken by Zhuang Yuanren, Mrs. Song decided to make steamed cornbread with sweet potato paste and cornmeal. She cooked tomato and mung bean but didn’t dare to add many drops of oil.

Zhuang Ruman, who was eating the cornbread, looked a little green.

He too, of course, wanted to eat well.

“Speaking of which, Qinghe is now quite old. As the mother, you need to do something since I’m bedridden. It’s time to help Qinghe find a suitable match.” “Qinghe?” Mrs. Song clicked her tongue: “Yuanren hasn’t even mentioned his marriage yet, and you want to discuss Qinghe’s potential marriage? It wouldn’t sound right if it goes out. Besides, Qinghe is only thirteen years old. Is it too early to discuss marriage?”

“What’s wrong with that? If the elder child can’t get married due to certain reasons, should the younger ones hold off on getting married too? Moreover, Yuanren’s situation is different. He should wait until he passes the scholar examination before finding a wife.”

Zhuang Ruman continued: “The age is not a factor. It’s not uncommon to discuss marriage at the age of twelve or thirteen. And we’re just talking about arranging a match, not her getting married right now. Why fear that she’s too young?”

“We should take advantage of Qinghe’s young age to find a good match. If she’s older, she might become selective and end up an old maid. By then, even if Yuanren becomes a scholar, it will likely be too late.”

“True.” Mrs. Song nodded: “In my spare time, I will find a suitable family.”

“Whether a family is suitable depends on its background. Our daughter and Yuanren’s sister, cannot settle for a lower status or a family that lives hand to mouth.”

Zhuang Ruman took a sip of his cornmeal porridge before continuing: “Also, the betrothal gift must not be too poor. If the family is rich but the betrothal gift is still small, it would seem that they are being stingy, and the relationship with the in-laws wouldn’t be good. Qinghe could suffer when she goes to them.”

“Alright, I’ll listen to you.” Mrs. Song felt that Zhuang Ruman’s words made sense, so she decided to follow his advice.

Mrs. Song was always obedient, which satisfied Zhuang Ruman.

As long as Zhuang Qinghe’s marriage could be arranged and they could quickly get hold of the betrothal gift, their family could live more comfortably..