After drinking at the wine house in Shanglindu, Lin Fu and others went to Zhao Hus home. Previously, Lin Fu was a pure bookworm, except for the Lin family and the villagers of Shanglin Village, he had almost no connections in Shiliang County. The matter of Zhou Pu and Chen Enzes household registration still needed Lin Jingchang and Zhao Hu to help with the legwork.
Zhao Hu had been a small leader in the rural camp for two years, and he had opened his eyes to the world. He and Lin Jingchang were not timid or ignorant villagers. The rural camp controlled by the Lin family also recruited some outsiders from time to time, and Zhao Hu knew a thing or two about settling down and registering as a resident. Lin Jingchang failed to pass the imperial examination and went to work as an accountant in the Lin familys warehouse, where he harbored a deep resentment. Although he was not highly valued by his own family, he put his heart and soul into his work, and his knowledge and thoughts were much deeper than Zhao Hus. When they were drinking together at the wine tower, Lin Jingchang told Lin Xian in detail about how to settle down and register as a resident, who to look for, and how to send gifts: "I know Chen Shuban, the head of the countys household registration office, but its not easy for Big Brother Zhou to settle down and register after drifting outside Jibei for several years. Well probably have to find County Magistrate Chen... Im going to the county seat the day after tomorrow, and I can help you run an errand... Zhao Hu doesnt have anything particularly urgent to attend to, so why dont we let him take Xiucai to visit a few key families first?"
Lin Tie, Zhou Pu, Zhao Hu, Lin Jingchang and others returned to Zhao Hus home from the wine building. Someone had been waiting for him at Zhao Hus house for a long time, but it was Lu Dongyang, the county school instructor of Shiliang County, and Chen Ling, the county chief clerk, who came under the escort of two government officials. The head of Linli Village was also in Zhao Hus home.
Although Lin Xie was studying at the Lin familys private school, he passed the imperial examination to become a xiucai in the year when Lu Dongyang became the instructor of Shiliang County, so nominally he should be considered as one of Lu Dongyangs disciples.
Seeing Lu Dongyang waiting at Zhao Hus house, Lin Xie made a bow and said: "Master, why are you here?"
"...We came to find you," Lu Dongyang said after staring at Lin for a moment, explaining the reason he and County Clerk Chen Ling had come. "After the Baisha County robbery case occurred, it shocked the Xuanfu Si (Proclamation Office), but the case has not been closed yet. However, based on the testimony of Zhao Neng, a servant of the Lin family, and the evidence from Baisha County, the Xuanfu Si is convinced that you died in the robbery case. This morning, a fast horse messenger was sent to the county office from Lins residence, saying that you would return by boat today. This matter cannot be taken lightly, so Magistrate Liang specially dispatched me and Clerk Chen to come and verify it. Please tell Clerk Chen about your experiences after encountering the robbers and escaping, as the county needs to submit a report to the Xuanfu Si regarding this matter. I came here to serve as a witness..."
"This is natural, Master En and Chen Zhubu didnt come, I also plan to go to the county tomorrow to report this matter in detail." Lin Fu replied, inviting Lu Dongyang, Chen Ling and others to enter the house and repeating the carefully fabricated lie again.
Its said that Su Meis influence is far greater than that of a newly promoted jinshi, but the White Sand County robbery case involving Su Mei only requires notification to the Jiangning Prefecture authorities. However, since the case involves a newly appointed jinshi, it has to be reported to the Jiangdong Xuanfu Si, although its just a formality. Now, Lu Dongyang and the county chief clerk personally came to verify Lin Lians return to Shanglin Village, which is not surprising at all. After all, the case has already been reported to the Xuanfu Si, and any further mistakes would be unbearable for Shiliang County.
Perhaps the county is more afraid that the Lin family will push out a fake "Lin Xie" and let Lu Dongyang, the instructor of the county school who has met Lin Xie a few times, personally come to verify.
After confirming that Lin Xie was indeed himself, Lu Dongyang and County Clerk Chen Ling were not particularly concerned about Lin Xies experiences over the past few months. They briefly recorded it and had Lin Xie write a statement himself, signed and fingerprinted, before hurrying back to the county. Regarding Zhou Pus rescue of Lin Xie, both Lu Dongyang and Chen Ling said that the county would reward him. As for Zhou Pu and Chen Enzes nephew and uncle wanting to settle in Shiliang County, this matter had Lin Xies guarantee, and since they were entering as Lin Xies entourage with a humble background, there was naturally no problem.
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At night, they didnt go to the wine house, but instead set up a table of wine in the main room of Zhao Hus new mansion. There were dishes like braised pork face, roasted chicken, and red-braised fish, as well as some plain vegetables. They bought back two jars of wine from the wine house, which was somewhat sour. In this dynasty, all wine, tea, salt, and iron are monopolized by the government, and the government imposes a heavy tax on wine, making good wine extremely expensive. For ordinary villagers, drinking even poor-quality wine is a luxury.
Zhao Hus father was a honest man who couldnt even fart with one stick, only knew how to deal with farm work, and at the wine table, he didnt say two words, just pinched the edge of the wine bowl with his fingers and took small sips, reluctant to swallow in big gulps.
There were guests, and Zhao Hus three younger siblings didnt have the qualifications to sit at the table, they were all driven to the old house to eat. The meat dishes were all served to Lin Fu, they could only pick a few vegetables to go with their rice, and it was only after Lin Fu sat down that he picked up a shallow bowl of meat and tore off half a chicken to send over to them, watching them gobble down hastily, truly heart-wrenching.
Zhao Hus mother has been helping with the chores in the big house for years, assisting the Seventh Lady with her tasks. She has seen some things and is more like the mistress of the Zhao household. Whenever something happens in the Zhao family, it is Zhao Hus mother who makes the decisions.
According to custom, when there are guests at home, women and children are not allowed to join the banquet. The Zhao family also follows this rule, so she stands beside the wine table, persistently bringing up the matter of Zhao Hu becoming a son-in-law to the Lin family again. In her opinion, such a good opportunity cannot be easily let go.
"Now that this matter is settled, I will be going to Jiangning and wont be staying in Dongyang..." Lin Xuan said, knowing that Zhao Hu should have discussed with his family about following him for so long, thinking that he should be too embarrassed to ask himself, but still wanting to consider their thoughts.
“……” Zhao was taken aback, she didnt ask Lin why he wasnt staying in Dongyang and going to Jiangning instead. She hesitated for a moment, unable to decide whether to let Zhao Hu follow him to Jiangning as well, which was different from her initial thoughts.
At this moment, the dog in the yard started barking, and faintly heard a womans voice shouting from the old mansion: "Is Zhao Hus nephew here? Is the scholar here?"
Lin Mou didnt know who else was coming to find him, and after a moment, he heard Zhao Hus sister Mei Zi calling out to the visitors from the old mansion: "Oh, its Aunt Lan and Uncle Gui Sheng! What brings you here to see my brother and Brother Xiu Cai? Theyre in the next courtyard, Ill take you over."
The dog in the yard barked incessantly, and it was unknown who had kicked it again. It let out a mournful cry and followed the person into the main room with a whimper.
Lin Jie saw that it was Lin Guisheng and his wife, who had occupied their old house. Lin Guisheng had a long bag with an opening in the middle slung over his shoulder, which looked bulging and heavy, but it was unclear what was inside. Lin Jie pulled out a stool and invited Lin Guisheng to sit down: "Uncle Guisheng, come sit down, have a drink first, and Ill write up a document for you later. Zhao Hu and Xiao Wu will both be witnesses, so you can rest assured that you can live in the old house from now on..."
Lin Guisheng hadnt touched meat for half a year, but seeing the shallow half bowl of meat in front of him, his eyes gleamed with desire. Originally a timid and fearful person, his body involuntarily moved forward, and he was only startled back to reality when his wife pulled him from behind. He smiled awkwardly: "Youre being polite, sir. As a jinshi, you are now a respected gentleman, while Im just a humble commoner - its not proper for me to sit beside you..." He carefully held out the heavy bundle on his shoulder and said, "I dont know how much our old house is worth, but for now, Ive managed to scrape together this amount. Please give me an estimate, sir, and Ill send it over in a couple of days... I hope you can forgive my familys debt for two more days..."
Lin tied up slightly, feeling that he should have made it clear in the morning, smiled and said, "Ive been eating at Uncle Guishengs house since I was a kid, are you kidding me?"
"How dare I joke with a scholar like you? I knocked on seventeen or eighteen doors today and really only borrowed this much. If I hid even one copper coin, I wouldnt be human. You tell me the exact amount, how much is still owed, and Ill definitely make it up to you in two days; otherwise, you can just take back the old house." Lin Gui Shengs face was tear-stained as he almost begged, his wrinkles twisted like an ancient elm tree root.
Lin Xie suddenly felt something blocking his heart, and he also felt an unusual heaviness in his chest. He stood up, took the money bag from Lin Guishengs hand, and pressed it tightly, weighing almost a hundred kilograms.
In rural areas, silver was rarely used, and copper coins were the norm. According to official regulations, 1,000 copper coins could be exchanged for one tael of silver. However, in reality, silver was more valuable than copper, so one tael of silver could usually be exchanged for 1,200 to 1,400 copper coins. The money bag contained over a hundred kilograms of copper coins, which was equivalent to about seven or eight taels of silver. For Lin Guishengs family, who were originally poor and struggling, this was an enormous fortune, and it was hard to imagine how many good things he must have said in order to borrow such a large sum of money.
The three old houses in Cun Wei and the house site are worth no more than seven or eight taels of silver, but Lin Guisheng stood there cautiously and dared not to say a word; they simply did not dare to believe that Lin Xie was willing to give them the house for free, and they even thought that occupying the old house in Cun Wei would offend Lin Xie, which is why Lin Xie said such things.
Lin Jie put the bulging wallet on the corner of the table, he knew that even if he gave the old house to Lin Guishengs family for free, they might not be able to live in it with peace of mind. He took out two strings of copper coins tied together with a thin hemp rope from the wallet and said to Lin Jingchang: "Little Five, go get some paper and pen, and also ask two elderly clansmen to come over as witnesses. I am willing to sell the old house at the village tail to Lin Guishengs family for 2,000 coins, sign a contract of sale, and never mention it again..."
"Alright!" Lin Jingchang stood up and left. Since Zhao Hus home didnt have paper, brush, or ink, he had to go back to his own place to get them.
"How can this be good, how can this be good..." Lin Guisheng and his wife saw that Lin Lian had spoken clearly and concisely, and they asked Jingchang to invite the clan elder as a witness before they believed it was true. They knew that the two old houses at the end of the village were worth far more than 200 taels of silver. They thought about letting Lin Lian take in all these copper coins, but most of them had been borrowed and might not be repaid for ten years. Their hearts were conflicted, and they didnt know how to express themselves with words. Their mouths stuttered and couldnt utter a complete sentence, and their eyes welled up with tears.
Zhao Hu brought a bowl to Lin Guisheng and poured him a bowl of wine. After a while, Lin Jingchang brought paper, pen, inkstone, and invited two respected elderly relatives as witnesses. The two elderly relatives had heard Lin Jingchang explain the situation on the way, and as soon as they entered the house, they praised Lin Shou for not forgetting his roots. They also said to Lin Guisheng and his wife: "That house is a lucky house, it produced a scholar and became an official, let alone two taels of silver, even twenty taels of silver, people would rush to buy it. The kindness of the imperial examination candidate, you must remember..." Lin Shou immediately wrote the deed for selling the house and land, asked the elderly relatives to sign as witnesses, and had Lin Guisheng and his wife take away the deed and the remaining copper coins.
At this point, it was almost midnight after seeing off Lin Guisheng and his wife as well as the elderly relatives. The remaining dishes were also cleaned up by Zhao Hus sister Mei Zi. Lin Xuan still wanted to wait for Zhao Hus parents to return to their old house before going to bed. However, Zhao Hus mother made a big decision before leaving, saying: "You go to Jiangning, and naturally, Zhao Hu will follow you to Jiangning too." This meant that no matter where Lin Xuan went, she had decided to let her son Zhao Hu follow him as an attendant.
