RPAGF Chapter 160 Eccentric Temperament
Chapter 160 Eccentric Temperament
“Dad, people don’t necessarily have to pass the imperial examinations to have a future. For me, being able to earn real money and live a good life for our family is the best thing.”
"Tang'er is right. I used to secretly envy your uncles for being able to study, but since we separated the family and started doing business, we've earned more and more money and our lives have gotten better and better. I've gradually stopped envying your uncles. This also proves what you said about doing business not necessarily being worse than passing the imperial examinations."
Besides, not everyone is cut out for studying. I am illiterate because my father won't let me study. Even if I had the opportunity to study, I might fail the exams every time, just like my younger brothers.
But doing business is different. Tang'er is quick-witted. As long as you follow her ideas diligently, you can earn money and make more and more money. Isn't that better than anything else?
Lin Xiaotang laughed and said, "That's right. So what if I'm a scholar? My family is still struggling to make ends meet. My uncles all went to school, but they failed the exams several times. We, on the other hand, are hardworking and honest in our business and are living a life we never dared to dream of before. Compared to them, they should be the ones envying us now."
Lin Qingchuan scolded, "How can you talk like that? He is, after all, your grandfather. We are indeed living better than them now, but we should keep that to ourselves and not say it out loud, or it will make us seem gloating."
Lin Xiaotang obediently replied, "Okay, Dad, I understand."
After all, Grandpa was Dad's biological father. After the family split, the surname was changed, and kinship was severed, Dad could ignore Grandpa, but he certainly couldn't bring himself to laugh at him. That's only human nature.
"Dad, this carriage is quite easy to drive. Why don't you lie down in the carriage and take a nap?"
Lin Qingchuan dared not, as this was his daughter's first time driving a carriage, and he had been worried the whole way, afraid that she might drive the carriage into a ditch in the blink of an eye.
"No, no, you're just starting out. It's your first time driving a carriage, and I'm worried. I'm an adult now, I don't need to grow anymore. Adults don't need much sleep, so I don't need to catch up on sleep."
"Father, you can rest assured that I'll handle things..."
"..."
The father and daughter pushed and shoved each other, but in the end they couldn't reach an agreement.
Lin Xiaotang drove the carriage with ease, but her father was extremely nervous, fearing that if he wasn't careful, they would all fall into the ditch along with the horses.
Lin Qingchuan remained on tenterhooks until he arrived home, only then did he finally relax.
When Liu saw her daughter drive the carriage home, she was so shocked that her mouth dropped open. She looked terrified and said, "Father, you let Tang'er drive the carriage all the way here?"
Lin Qingchuan coughed lightly, his face full of helplessness. "You know how stubborn our Tang'er is. If she wants to do something, she will definitely do it. She wanted to learn how to drive a carriage, so she insisted on driving it herself the whole way and wouldn't let me take over."
Madam Liu shook her head. "You should spoil her as much as you want. She's still so young, and a girl at that. How can she drive a carriage so far?"
The father and daughter exchanged a smile and had no choice but to patiently listen to Liu's nagging.
Lin Qingchuan unloaded the raw pig trotters from the truck and placed them next to the well. He then quickly began burning off the pig hair and drawing water to wash the trotters. He wanted to finish his work as soon as possible so he could return to Guihua Village and have some time to make a new bed for Jiu'er.
Lin Xiaotang helped her mother sit down on a bench in the yard. "Mother, after Father and I left today, did Jiu'er make any noise in the kitchen?"
This Xiao Jiu seemed a bit different. When he was with Granny Chen, the other children all looked at her and her father with fawning eyes when they saw them go to buy servants. Only Xiao Jiu didn't. His eyes were like a still pond, and he didn't care at all who bought him. When she and her father took him to see a doctor and get medicine, and brought him home, he wasn't surprised at all when he saw the poor state of his master's house. Which child in the brokerage business didn't hope to be bought by a rich family? The work would be easy and the monthly salary would be high. Maybe Xiao Jiu's family was well-off before he was sold. I wonder what happened to him that led him to become a servant and be sold.
However, these are not things she should worry about. All she can do is treat everyone who is genuinely good to her well and help everyone live a better life.
Liu shook her head and sighed, "That child is also very strange. He won't say a word to me. I'm pregnant and can't bend over. I asked Yu'er to feed him breakfast, but he refused to eat. The food was always right next to him."
what?
She and her father have both returned from the county, but he hasn't had breakfast yet.
She looked puzzled and said, "That can't be right. He ate lunch and dinner fine yesterday. Could it be that he's not feeling well?"
Could it be that his wound got infected and caused his fever?
Thinking of this, Lin Xiaotang suddenly became worried and anxious. "Mom, you sit and bask in the sun, I'll go check on you." She left those words and hurriedly ran to the kitchen.
Opening the kitchen door, Lin Xiaotang saw Xiao Jiu lying on the mattress in the corner, his eyes closed as if he were asleep. He didn't move even when the door opened. Lin Xiaotang ran over, squatted down, and placed her hand on his forehead.
His forehead was cool and not hot at all, and his face was not red, so he definitely did not have a fever.
Before she could even react and pull her hand away, Xiao Jiu looked up and slapped her hand away, his eyes suddenly snapping open as well.
Lin Xiaotang was taken aback and asked, "You don't have a fever, you're perfectly fine, why didn't you eat breakfast?"
Xiao Jiu turned her head and stared at her for a long time before awkwardly saying, "You didn't bring me breakfast, nor did you tell me you were going out."
This left Lin Xiaotang speechless. She said incredulously, "Don't you understand? It was my father and I who bought you and paid for it. I'm the master and you're the servant. Do I have to report to you when I go out? Also, I didn't bring you breakfast, but my mother and sister did. Why didn't you eat it?"
Xiao Jiu pursed her lips, turned her head away, and ignored her.
Lin Xiaotang pointed to herself, almost laughing in anger. She had been too soft-hearted and had a moment of kindness. Was she going to buy a servant or a young master?
She couldn't help but scoff, "Heh, if you don't want to eat, then go hungry. But you'd better get better soon and get back to work. You've seen it yourself, my family isn't wealthy; we can't afford to support idlers."
After saying that, she strode out of the kitchen to help her father clean the pig's trotters.
The couple, who were in the yard, naturally heard what their daughter said, and they somewhat disapproved of her using such harsh words.
Lin Qingchuan said with a stern face, "Tang'er, your temper is a bit inexplicable. It's true that we bought him as a servant, but we're not a wealthy family, and we don't have so many rules. He's injured, how can he just get better? There are a lot of things to do right now, but we'll take it slowly and get through these few days. He can skip breakfast, it's almost noon, so make lunch early and bring him a bowl. He'll eat when he's hungry."
Lin Xiaotang couldn't help but sigh. Her simple-minded father had lived in a tiny place since he was a child and had never known how rich people treated their servants. She had been polite enough to Xiao Jiu. Some rich people would beat and scold their servants. She was so polite to Xiao Jiu, but what was his expression and attitude?