Chapter 193: Chapter 192 Daughter’s Request Chapter 193: Chapter 192 Daughter’s Request The daughter had a talent for painting, and Hongji specially bought the best drawing paper from the county for his youngest daughter to practice with.
Hongji was not too biased either; while he obtained good-quality paper for his youngest daughter to train with, he also bought different paper for his other daughters, allowing them to practice with slightly inferior paper.
The painting skills of the youngest daughter were also something the other daughters wanted to learn; this was an addition to their lives beyond the studies they did with Mr. Chen.
Hongji spent money on high-quality drawing paper for his youngest daughter’s paintings, which wasn’t cheap at all, causing Mrs. Lai, upon knowing that her son spent so much on drawing paper for his granddaughter, to feel a pang in her heart!
It seemed a waste of money to have the family paint, but the elderly couple still wanted their granddaughter to draw for them and never complained about the cost of the paper.
When the granddaughter painted portraits for other villagers using such high-quality paper, it pained her heart each time, and she made sure to charge them a little.
“Everyone has seen my granddaughter’s painting skills. If she sold her portraits, she would surely make a good sum. She doesn’t charge you for her labor, but she can’t just cover the cost of the paper. If you want my granddaughter to paint for you, you must pay for the paper.”
Mrs. Lai’s words were not without reason; those who wanted Shiqi to paint for them had saved a bit of their nest egg, it was just the cost of the portrait paper, possibly around a dozen coins, an amount they could afford.
The family members had worked hard over the past couple of years and earned some money, making life a bit better at home; the children would give some pocket money to their elders.
Shiqi put effort into painting portraits, yet her grandmother collected the money; even though it was just for the paper, she felt somewhat helpless.
Hongji, being a filial son, usually gave some pocket money to his parents; Mrs. Lai collected a bit of money for the paper, and he could not say much about it.
As long as his parents did not meddle in some of the larger harvests at home, for the sake of harmony, Hongji and his wife turned a blind eye, letting Mrs. Lai be busy with her dealings.
Shiqi did not paint portraits every day; she had many other things to do and only allowed people who wanted portraits to schedule an appointment, painting one portrait per week on the day Mr. Chen rested, using painting as a leisure activity.
As Shiqi grew up, she certainly did not forget about learning musical instruments; that day at the dinner table, she expressed her desire for her parents to buy her a musical instrument and hire a teacher.
That evening, after having dinner, Shiqi saw her parents entering the room with her younger brother and remembered about the musical instrument; she knocked and entered her parents’ room.
The youngest daughter specifically came to seek out her parents; Hongji and Mrs. Li exchanged glances, knowing that their daughter definitely had something to discuss with them.
Regarding what it was? They could guess a bit…
Mrs. Li beckoned her youngest daughter over to sit beside her, holding her son and then placing him in the cradle, the couple focusing their primary attention on their clever and bright daughter.
“Father, Mother, I came to ask if you could buy musical instruments for my sisters and me first. If it’s hard to hire a teacher, we sisters could start by practicing with the instruments first.”
Mrs. Li glanced at her husband and said, “Daughter, our family is a farming household; neither of us knows how to teach you to play musical instruments. Even if we buy them for you, how will you learn without a teacher?”
“Yes, daughter, buying musical instruments is quite expensive. I heard that the instruments used by ladies from wealthy families are very costly!”
Hongji also spoke up; he had been non-committal until then, spending most of his money on constructing the newly purchased estate.
“Father, Mother, if we don’t understand, we can learn. We could buy cheaper or slightly lower-quality instruments to begin with, like the flute, which is made of bamboo and is somewhat cheaper.”
Shiqi understood the situation of her parents, who were farmers; even hiring a teacher to teach their daughters literacy was probably the limit of their capabilities.
But she refused to accept that others could become talented women while she, even as a farmer’s daughter, could not, as long as she had the desire to learn and acquire skills.
She had a foundation in music, familiar with several Western instruments; it was only ancient times instruments she did not know. Still, playing the flute was common between ancient and modern times, making it the easiest and most affordable instrument to begin with.
“It might not be good for girls to learn such instruments. Wait until our farm makes more money, Daddy will buy you a pipa.”
Hongji had that sort of mindset, believing that it was better for men to play the flute, as if women learned it, people might deem it inappropriate.
“Daddy, your daughter has money; this money might be enough for you to buy me an ordinary Guqin.”
Ye Shiqi took out from her space the silver and gold she previously stored. Over the past year, the honey she sold from her space, her parents had given her the money.
Only the money from the farm’s produce was kept by her parents. Mrs. Hongji and her husband were very progressive, and seeing that their little daughter could do so much, they let her keep the earnings from her labor as her future dowry.
Over the past year and more, Mrs. Hongji and her husband had not expected their daughter to make so much money from selling honey.
Mrs. Li recalled that time when the young Master Tang gave a gift to their little daughter who seemed not to have accepted it. However, the young Master’s box was missing some small gold. At the time, she and young Master Tang had found it strange but had kept quiet about it.
This secret had always remained buried in the hearts of Mrs. Li and young Master Tang. It turned out that the daughter had accepted the gold.
Mrs. Li knew the process, but Hongji did not. When he saw the small gold on the table, he asked:
“Where did this small gold come from?”
Mrs. Li glanced at her husband and said:
“Husband, I know about the small gold, it was a gift from young Master Tang to our little daughter, it seems it is the small gold she mentioned.”
Hongji looked at his little daughter and asked:
“Is it as your mother has said?”
“Yes, what Mother said is correct; I accepted the small gold from young Master Tang.”
Ye Shiqi honestly told her parents that she had not accepted other valuable gifts except for gold and silver.
Seeing so much money on the table, Mrs. Hongji and her husband did not think their daughter had stolen or robbed anyone. If someone in the village had lost something, they would surely have reported it and caught the thief.
With such a kind nature, how could their little daughter have stolen or robbed?
Hongji, looking at the considerable amount of money on the table, thought that not only a regular Guqin, even a pipa could be bought.
As for hiring a teacher, that still required an introduction from the Tang Family. In this regard, Hongji was indeed quite unaware.
Hongji nodded to his daughter and said, “Regarding buying the instruments, Daddy knows now. Daddy doesn’t understand musical instruments and does not know what kind of instrument teacher to hire. Tomorrow, when I see young Master Tang’s housekeeper, I’ll ask him to help look around and help buy you the instruments.”
Upon hearing her father’s words, Ye Shiqi knew that her father had agreed to hire a teacher and buy instruments.
“Thank you, Daddy, thank you, Mother.”
The little daughter cleverly saluted them, and Hongji and Mrs. Li both smiled, for their little daughter was well-known as a genius in the village.
This worry and joy made the couple do their utmost to protect her, shielding and sheltering their little daughter from harm.