Chapter 220: Chapter 219: One Thing Supersedes Another
Hongji’s father would always appear in these awkward situations, no matter which side he leaned towards, he always played the role of the good old man.
When his voice rang out, Mrs. Lai didn’t dare to speak anymore. Hongji’s father never mentioned divorcing her, and he seemed to tolerate whatever she did, which sometimes emboldened her to be unreasonable. This trait had never changed, perhaps due to her husband’s indulgence.
Yet, every time her husband glared at her when speaking, she felt a sense of trepidation, knowing that she had reached her husband’s limit. She dared not to try what would happen if she spoke out of turn again.
The Junior Housekeeper Tang understood this was a case of one thing suppressing another—the unruly had their nemesis too.
After delivering the items, he didn’t return to the Tang Family home immediately but went to see the construction of their own estate.
Other crops had yet to be planted on the mountain. The purchased paddy fields had been sown with rice. Alongside the irrigation channels, some land was reserved for building houses, intended for raising pigs, ducks, and chickens, and for the caretakers of the estate to reside in.
He had heard that the Ye family’s estate had built courtyards like a vacation resort, with houses made of blue bricks and large tiles, each like a small mansion for the wealthy, complete with rockeries and lakes.
Such an elegant place was unprecedented in their small county.
No other crops were planted on the hill yet, but he had asked the Ye family; they planned to plant fruit trees there next spring.
He heard that after hiring Mr. Instrument, his sister’s brother-in-law building a separate residence in the county didn’t have such uniqueness and spaciousness.
Gazing at such dwellings, he wished to live there with his wife, but it was just a passing thought. How could a worker be so autonomous?
He too had spared no effort in arranging for the planting and construction on the mountain and land he had purchased.
Three days later, on one morning, the Young Master Tang came to the Ye family to inform them that Mr. Instrument would arrive the following day to give them a lesson.
Upon hearing this news, the Ye family pondered over what gifts to present?
Logically, such a teacher should not lack money, but sincerity was necessary.
If they were to offer chickens and ducks, it would seem as if the two teachers living with the Tang Family were rather vulgar.
They organized a banquet at noon and decided to present silver along with products from their estate.
Ye Shiqi told her parents that she would give the teacher honey and rice, as she hadn’t ventured out and didn’t have the opportunity to grow better items in her “space”.
For her young age, she felt that it was already quite an accomplishment to manage these things. She would wait until she grew up a bit more.
They were in the Southern region where no Wild Ginseng or other such wild products were found.
Although there were tall mountains, they weren’t the deep, dense forests where wild boars or creatures like wolves and tigers might dwell.
Yet no one had truly encountered any incidents of being harmed by wild animals.
Scholar Mo and Mrs. Mo rested at the Tang Family home for two days, and Mrs. Mo, after sobering up from her drunken stupor, learned from her husband that her younger brother was building a separate residence in the county.
Upon receiving this news, she summoned Zhong Xingwang to inquire about the whole affair. She felt that her brother, being young, had been rather thoughtless. Building a small residence in their little county, where family members, living so far away, wouldn’t stay even once a year seemed a waste of money.
Their family had other estates with separate residences, but the family members didn’t necessarily visit those retreats every year.
She had only vacationed at a separate residence once and felt it was no different from staying in the Imperial Capital.
“Little brother, do you family know you’re building a house here? Even if you have money, you can’t just spend it recklessly!”
Zhong Xingwang had guessed it long ago, if his brother-in-law knew about it, his elder sister must also know. He sat in the living room, glanced at his quietly sitting brother-in-law, and mouthed the words, “Brother-in-law, you betrayed me!”
The younger uncle could understand the lip movements, and so could his wife. He helplessly smiled and spread his hands.
“You can’t blame your brother-in-law. You did this without telling your elder sister, so is it wrong for me, as your elder sister, to ask you about it?”
Facing a reprimand from his elder sister, Zhong Xingwang wasn’t upset, but instead, he smiled and said:
“Sis, how old am I? You still don’t trust me to handle things? I did this with our eldest brother’s approval. Otherwise, where would I get so much money? This is all big brother’s private stash!”
Zhong Xingwang chuckled, as if he had gotten away with something. From his perspective, big brother spending private money to build a separate residence meant he would eventually be entitled to come here to play and stay, which indeed seemed like quite a bargain.
Upon hearing her younger brother say this, Mrs. Mo couldn’t guess what was on the brothers’ minds and didn’t feel it was appropriate to ask further. If her younger brother needed to do something that required Housekeeper Tang’s assistance, building a house wasn’t something to be undertaken frivolously.
“Sis, don’t worry, I’ve got Housekeeper Pang to arrange everything—the Feng Shui Master has been consulted, the designs have been drawn up, and the builders hired. As for the building materials, I hired someone to purchase them too—they’re fairly priced and cheaper. It’s a lot more affordable than building a separate residence elsewhere, and even the land was cheaper.”
Mrs. Mo nodded at her younger brother’s words, but with a serious glance, she added, “Still, you have to consider where you’re buying the land and hiring workers. Prices vary from place to place.”
“I understand that, sis. But having a house in this scenic place with clear waters and lush hills—I think coming here for a vacation every summer would really be like living an immortal’s life.”
Zhong Xingwang admired the thought, as he already envisioned it in his mind. Taking the lead on something for the first time in his life marked the beginning of his independence as an adult.
Passing through the area in his carriage, he felt the convenience of this place was comparable to the big cities. The air quality was better here, and the scenery was more beautiful.
What more could Mrs. Mo say? Her younger brother was right about certain things—if their family had a house here, it would be perfect for yearly vacations, and they could also see each other.
Speaking of this place, with its beautiful scenery without sacrificing bustle, she had experienced it herself while shopping yesterday.
The items she bought in the Imperial Capital were also available here. Though some were more geared toward the common folk and might be a bit behind the trends of the Capital City, the Tang family’s shops managed here offered just as fashionable products.
As long as you have money, you can buy good things. Having such convenient shopping in this small county meant working here was no worse than working in the Capital City.
Staying with the Tang family meant eating well, using fine things, and not worrying about rent.
But these were only temporary conveniences; the couple was prepared to work hard for a year or two to have a house of their own.
After resting for two days, the couple began giving lessons—instruments.
In the realm of music, some of the Tang family’s children had a foundation while others did not.
One could say the older ones might have been taught by a teacher—for instance, Tang Shunyan, the direct descendant of the Tang family, was already five or six years old but had no foundation in playing instruments like the piano or pipa.
The couple split into two classrooms, and the students were divided into two groups.
The ones with a foundation were grouped together, and the others were taught separately so as not to hinder the students’ progress.
Mrs. Mo’s class consisted of girls who were more serene and well-behaved. They could easily merge with the students, who showed more respect in the presence of this teacher.