To avoid complications, Tang Xun decided to first complete the tasks of teaching the whole family to write their names and sending his daughter to school.
Only when the money was in hand would it truly be his.
Since the family still had to cover his tuition fee recently, he had originally thought it would take some effort to persuade his mother. Unexpectedly, as soon as he brought up the matter, she agreed without hesitation.
“A-Li is indeed at the age to start school. Her aunt also went to the academy around this age.”
His sister’s ability to marry well was partly because his brother Tang Zheng became a Xiucai at a young age, and partly because Xiao Mei had attended a girls’ school.
Even without the dream-sending incident, Yang Taohua would not have prevented her granddaughter from studying. In fact, she had already prepared two years’ worth of tuition fee. Now, knowing that her granddaughter was blessed, she felt it would be good for her to attend school for a few more years—perhaps her granddaughter was a genius.
Tang Xun, who had prepared a whole speech, was stunned and had to swallow his words.
He had always felt that his mother favored his younger brother, selling off many fields to fund his brother’s education and neglecting him, the eldest son. Now, he realized that his mother might not be as biased as he had imagined?
“What about the money?” he asked instinctively.
Yang Taohua rolled her eyes and said, “We haven’t divided the family yet, so of course I’ll pay. Don’t worry, I won’t shortchange A-Li’s school fees.”
She paused, her tone tinged with relief, “I thought you only knew how to eat and play all day, but now you finally remember you’re a father?”
If it weren’t for the System assigning tasks, Tang Xun, who had completely forgotten about this, rubbed his nose, suppressing the slight guilt that arose. “A-Li is my first child. How could I not care about her matters?”
After settling the school matter, Tang Xun prepared to teach his mother to write her name. He had already taught his wife Song Cuiyu before bedtime last night, and his daughter as well. Speaking of which, Tang Xun had to admit that his daughter had some talent for studying—she learned characters exceptionally quickly.
Well, this trait resembled him, carrying the same spark he had as a child.
He shamelessly took credit for it.
Yang Taohua waved her hand in refusal. “I’m already this old. Don’t make fun of me.”
Tang Xun had already prepared his reasoning. “Our family will surely become an official household in the future. You, Mother, will be the matriarch. You must know at least a little—you can’t even recognize or write your own name. How embarrassing would that be?”
This struck a chord with Yang Taohua.
“Alright then, I’ll learn a bit too.”
Tang Xun was delighted and even dragged his son Gouwa over to learn together.
He had thought teaching his mother would be harder than teaching his son, but perhaps because she had tried writing her name before, she picked it up quickly. In contrast, his son simply couldn’t remember.
Tang Xun was so frustrated he nearly jumped—this was a task worth five taels!
“How can you not remember the two characters for ‘Gouwa’?”
If he couldn’t even remember them, writing was out of the question.
Gouwa complained, “Dad, why did you give me such a hard name to write!”
Tang Li watched from the side, amused. “Isn’t ‘Gouwa’ just my brother’s nickname?”
Gouwa still hadn’t been given a formal name.
Tang Xun’s eyes lit up. “That’s right, Gouwa hasn’t been given a formal name yet. Hmm, let me think. From now on, he’ll be called Tang Tian. I hope he can become an upright and honorable man.”
Tang Li saw right through her father’s little scheme—he had deliberately chosen a name with fewer strokes.
Gouwa, freshly bestowed with his formal name, was overjoyed, grinning widely. “I like this name!”
His father had promised to buy him tanghulu if he could learn to write his name within a quarter of an hour.
Thanks to the simpler name and the tempting reward of tanghulu dangling before him, Gouwa managed to learn how to write his name before they set out.
[Congratulations, Host, for completing the task: successfully teaching the entire family to write their own names. Reward: 2 Intelligence points and 5 taels of silver.]
Tang Xun felt the pouch of silver hanging inside his robe grow heavier. His heart skipped a beat—had he just gained five taels of silver?
He absolutely loved these simple, high-reward tasks. The more, the better.
In high spirits, he said to his younger brother Tang Zheng, “Let’s go, we’re heading into town!”
He wanted to hurry into town to settle the matter of schooling, then return home to continue studying. After all, earning a tael of silver a day was no small feat.
Tang Zheng was puzzled by his sudden change in mood—could teaching the whole family to write their names really make his elder brother this happy?
Perhaps he had misunderstood his brother before. Maybe his elder brother wasn’t as hopeless as he had imagined.
Yang Taohua went along with them, while Song Cuiyu stayed at home.
Yang Taohua packed a sack of dried mushrooms she had gathered from the back hill and sun-dried, then added some eggs to a basket. After a moment’s thought, she decided it wasn’t enough, so she caught two chickens to bring along.
Since they were making a rare trip into town, she planned to visit her younger daughter, Xiao Mei, to see how she was faring after marriage.
Her daughter’s father-in-law was Li Ruida, the Assistant County Magistrate of Gaojiang County—a minor official, but an official nonetheless. She couldn’t show up empty-handed, as that might make her seem like a poor relative looking for handouts and could cause her daughter to be looked down upon by her husband’s family.
Still, she couldn’t offer much more. The family did have two bolts of silk gifted by Master Liaoran, but Yang Taohua knew her boundaries. In her view, those were given to her granddaughter by Master Liaoran, and she couldn’t casually use them to curry favor.
With so many items to carry and a considerable distance to the county town, Yang Taohua spent some money to hire a horse-drawn carriage.
In recent days, Tang Li had been so preoccupied with improving her standing in the family that she had nearly forgotten the so-called original plot. Now, entering the town and about to meet her aunt, the relevant memories from her reading came flooding back.
Speaking of her aunt, Tang Mei, her husband’s family was a mess of troubles. To outsiders, the Li family was an official household, and for a village girl like her aunt to marry into it was considered a stroke of great fortune—a clear case of marrying up.
The Li family matriarch had originally intended to arrange a marriage between her eldest son and her own niece. However, due to her natal family’s misfortunes and her reluctance to oppose Assistant County Magistrate Li, she reluctantly accepted this marriage. Yet, she remained deeply dissatisfied, treating her aunt with constant disdain and criticism. As a mother-in-law, it was all too easy to make life difficult for a daughter-in-law, all while leaving her with no way to complain. As a result, her aunt endured a period of hardship, and it was said that her uncle had even kept a mistress outside. Not wanting to worry her maiden family, her aunt had kept all of this hidden.
Later, when Second Uncle passed the provincial exam and even became a Jinshi, his future was visibly bright, and Auntie’s life finally began to improve. However, just a few years later, her husband returned to his hometown to pay respects to his ancestors and unfortunately drowned. The Li family’s matriarch, Madam Su, insisted that Auntie’s birth chart was unlucky and had caused her son’s death, demanding that Auntie shave her head and become a nun. In the end, it was Second Aunt, who came from a noble background, who directly invited a great master from the capital to denounce the so-called fate talk as nonsense and brought Auntie back home.
It could be said that the Li family was not a good match. However, this marriage couldn’t be blamed entirely on Grandma for misjudging it. After all, before the wedding, that husband appeared respectable on the outside—who knew he was rotten to the core?
Tang Li quite liked this aunt of hers. In her memories, she was gentle and kind, always amiable to everyone, and often made clothes for her.
This time, when visiting Auntie, she could also drop some hints to her Grandma. She wondered if that scumbag husband had started keeping a mistress yet.
[System, can you find out if that scumbag has started keeping a mistress yet? Where is he keeping her?]
[The original work does not provide specific details. The System’s current level is limited, and permissions are insufficient to investigate.]
[You’re so useless!]
She was still a child now, with no money or influence. Investigating this matter would be exceptionally difficult. It would be better to issue a task and have her father look into it. Although her father had been idle before, he had met quite a few idle people and had his own ways of investigating.
Come to think of it, if Auntie were to return home, it would be best to do so before Second Uncle passes the provincial exam. Once Second Uncle succeeds, the Li family would be even less likely to let her go.
…
Tang Li pondered this matter on the way, while also observing her father taking advantage of the carriage ride to attend classes diligently in the System’s Spatial Dimension. Her father was becoming more and more self-disciplined.
Grandma sat beside her, chattering endlessly about Auntie’s affairs, clearly missing her.
“Madam Su looks kind and gentle. Xiaomei’s life shouldn’t be too difficult. I just hope she has good news soon.”
Tang Li thought to herself: Grandma had misjudged this time. Madam Su was not someone easy to serve.
Upon entering the city, they first went to the Li family residence.
The Li family lived in a three-entry courtyard residence, quite spacious, with a total of eight servants attending to them.
Tang Li’s cheap husband was not present, reportedly away at an out-of-town shop to check the account books. The Li family’s master was on duty at the yamen, so the ones who came out to receive them were the Li family’s matriarch, Madam Su, and the Li family’s second young master, Li Yueze, whose talent for studying was far better than his older brother’s.
Madam Su had a maid fetch her daughter-in-law. Seeing the gifts brought by the in-laws, she covered her nose with a handkerchief. These in-laws were truly unsophisticated, bringing nothing but worthless trinkets.
Her attitude toward Tang Zheng, who had become a Xiucai at a young age, was entirely different. She warmly inquired about his favorite foods. As for Tang Xun, she simply ignored him.
Although Tang Xun was accustomed to this treatment, he still felt a subtle displeasure.
[System, according to your arrangements, roughly when can I pass the Xiucai exam?]
[In the early stages, I can arrange Four Books and Five Classics courses for the host daily. After completing two thousand lessons, you will possess the knowledge equivalent to a Xiucai.]
Tang Xun calculated: So, if he attended classes for two hundred consecutive days, he could steadily pass the Xiucai examination? This year’s County Examination had already passed, but he could fully participate in next year’s County Examination.
In less than a year of studying, he became a Xiucai (Licentiate)—even his widely praised, exceptionally talented younger brother couldn’t achieve that!
If he managed it, he would become the most talked-about person in the entire Gaojiang County!
An endless surge of motivation instantly welled up within Tang Xun.
He would become a Xiucai (Licentiate) within a year! And a Juren (Recommended Man) within two years!
He couldn’t help but reveal a faint smile on his face.
Li Yueze, the second young master of the Li family, was discussing academic matters with Tang Zheng when he caught sight of this from the corner of his eye, showing a faint trace of disdain.
At that moment, Tang Li’s aunt, Tang Mei, also came out. She was wearing a peach-colored skirt, with a silver-plated plum blossom hairpin tucked into her hair.
At this sight, Tang Li was shocked: How had her aunt’s originally round apple-shaped face become so thin, like a melon seed?
Looking closer, her face was covered with a thick layer of powder, as if trying to conceal a weary appearance.
Even without the spoilers from the original story, Tang Li could tell from her aunt’s condition that being the daughter-in-law of the county magistrate was not easy.
Yang Taohua naturally noticed that her daughter’s condition was not as good as imagined, and her brows immediately furrowed.
Taking advantage of being a child, Tang Li spoke without reservation, “Is the food in the Li family not good? Why has Auntie lost so much weight?”
Yang Taohua asked with concern, “Xiao Mei, are you feeling unwell?”
Her perfectly healthy daughter had lost so much weight in less than half a year since marrying into this family. What was going on with the Li family?
Tang Zheng, who had been speaking with Li Yueze, also stopped, his expression turning slightly colder.
As for Tang Xun, he began poking the System.
[System Deity, is my sister sick?]
He only had this one sister—she couldn’t be allowed to fall ill.
The room fell silent. Madam Su frowned slightly and said, “Xiao Mei, I always tell you to eat more, but you never listen. People who don’t know might think I’m mistreating you.”
Tang Mei felt bitter inside but didn’t want her family to worry. “I’m fine. I just had a fever recently and lost my appetite. My mother-in-law treats me very well, and I’m truly grateful.”
Madam Su’s brows relaxed slightly. “If the medicine prescribed by the last doctor wasn’t effective, we’ll find another one.”
Her son’s Xiucai (Licentiate) brother was right here, and Madam Su didn’t want him to form a negative impression of the Li family. Especially since her younger son would need to consult him frequently about his studies in the future.
She turned and instructed the maid, “Bring the black chicken soup simmering in the kitchen for Xiao Mei. Also, find the ginseng in my cabinet. From now on, add a few slices of ginseng when making soup for her to nourish her body properly.”
She took Tang Mei’s hand. “I only have this one daughter-in-law and no daughters of my own. Xiao Mei is filial and sensible—I’ve always treated her like my own daughter.”
She put on the full appearance of a loving mother-in-law, leaving no room for criticism on the surface.
Author’s Note:
None