“Uncle Sheng, Brother Shitou, sorry for the long wait.”

 

After closing their stalls, Jing’s father and Jing Yi stored the cart at Jixian Pavilion and hurried over.

 

“We just arrived as well. Let’s go inside,” the village chief said, leading the three of them to the registration office of the government office in the town.

 

Dayuan was also governed by a feudal system where the imperial authority did not extend to the county level. The lowest-level government office was located in the county. The county government office typically consisted of a magistrate, a county magistrate, a registrar, a historian, and various administrative departments for handling daily affairs, known as the “six offices.” The staff members of the six offices were collectively referred to as minor officials (xuli).

 

Officials’ ranks only went up to the registrar, which was the ninth rank.

 

In order to facilitate administrative work and serve the people, each county government office would set up branch offices in various towns. These branch offices were managed by village heads, and there would be some minor officials and constables responsible for daily administrative and security work.

 

Although village heads did not have official ranks, they held significant power in managing the villages under their jurisdiction. They only needed to report major cases or events to higher authorities.

 

When the three of them arrived at the registration office, there was a minor official sitting at a table, drinking tea.

 

The village chief explained the reason for their visit and handed over Wang Shitou’s six mu of land deed to the minor official. The minor official, sipping his tea, raised an eyebrow and said, “Got it, leave it here. Come back in ten days to sign and seal.”

 

“This…” Jing’s father was anxious. Who knew what trouble Wang Shitou’s family might cause in these ten days?

 

“Alright, sir. We’ll trouble you then,” Jing Yi interrupted his father. He couldn’t directly bribe the official in front of so many people. He had to obey and give face to the minor official, even though he had no official rank. After all, he was still a recipient of imperial resources.

 

As they walked out of the registration office, Wang Shitou, who had been fearful and submissive just moments ago, suddenly became gleeful. “Hey, nephew, it’s not that I’m not cooperating, you know!”

 

Jing Yi remained silent. This situation was still within his control, so he told Mr. Lin and the village chief to wait for a moment and turned back alone to find the minor official.

 

Seeing him return, the minor official initially wanted to get angry, but Jing Yi took out a small cloth bag from his pocket and handed it to him, saying, “Sir, please try the homemade snacks from our family. It’s nothing much. We’re just in a hurry with this land deed. Please make some allowances for us.”

 

The minor official took the cloth bag and felt it. Inside were not only pastries but also a small silver piece. It seemed to be at least half a tael in size. Instantly, a delighted expression appeared on his face, and he pretended to complain, “You brat, if you were in a hurry, why didn’t you say so earlier? We are here to serve the people, and we can always be accommodating. Go call them back.”

 

When Jing Yi brought the village chief, Jing’s father, and the dumbfounded Wang Shitou back into the room, the process proceeded much more quickly. They drafted a new land deed, stamped it with the official seal, and both parties signed and sealed it. From that moment on, the six mu of fertile land belonged to the Jing family.

 

Before leaving, the minor official told Jing Yi to come to him if he needed any future assistance. This frightened Wang Shitou, and he had no other thoughts.

 

The village chief watched as Jing Yi handled this matter boldly and cleverly, thinking that the Jing family was on the rise.

 

After buying the land, a few more days passed. Tomorrow was the rest day for the Jing family’s small business, which occurred once every ten days. It was also the day when the whole family would visit the Lin family.

 

Because this visit to the Lin family was related to Jing Yi’s marriage, everyone except Jing’an and Jingshu, the two younger brothers, felt quite nervous.

 

The entire family had been planning for days what gifts to bring. In addition to the things they bought in town, they specifically went to the mountains to see if there were any fresh items. Jing Yi wanted to show off a bit in front of his future father-in-law.

 

“A basket of eggs, two catties of pork, a wild chicken, and a jar of sugar. That should be sufficient for the gift. Oh, and I gathered a basket of lantern fruits yesterday. I must have Yuanyuan take them. It’s rare to see such juicy lantern fruits on Xiaofeng Mountain.” Jing’s mother said while tidying up. The gift was substantial.

 

“Right, I also need to bring a jug of wine to have a drink with Big Brother Lin,” Jing’s father said happily.

 

In rural areas, people didn’t like to go out unless it was during festivals or holidays. Going out meant spending money and arranging meals.

 

That’s because the most valuable thing in the countryside was food.

 

For example, this time when the Lin family’s five mouths came over to eat, if they encountered someone stingy, it would be annoying. They might even make some snide remarks.

 

The Lin family had a good temperament and were generous, so Jing’s mother was willing to get along with them and made sure to prepare an ample gift.

 

Moreover, they were going to be in-laws in the future.

 

Wangjiazhuang village, Lin family.

 

Let’s talk about what happened after Jing Yi left the Lin family that day.

 

“Brother Ling, do you think Big Brother Jing and Caiyun came to visit us intentionally?” Mother Lin didn’t finish his sentence but gave a meaningful look to his younger brother.

 

“Dad, Mother, I’m going back to my room to embroider a sachet.” Chuxia, who saw Mother Lin and his father exchanging glances, pondered for a moment, feeling like sitting on a hot seat, and hurriedly greeted them before rushing back to his room.

 

“Now he knows how to be shy.” Mother Lin indulgently looked in the direction where Chuxia disappeared.

 

“I think it’s probably because of Xiao Yi and our Xiaxia,” continued Mother Lin, discussing the topic that he hadn’t finished earlier.

 

“That’s right. According to etiquette, it should be us going to visit Caiyun’s family.” Mother Lin smiled brightly. But then his thoughts took a turn, and he became a bit worried. “Xiao Yi is a good person, and the Jing family is also good. I’m not worried about that. I’m just afraid that there might be a misunderstanding about Ying’er’s situation once the Jing family knows.”

 

“Our family conducts ourselves properly, and Ying’er hasn’t done anything wrong. What is there to fear?” Father Lin said firmly.

 

These days, he would get angry whenever he thought about his eldest daughter’s situation. But now he had to comfort himself in a soft voice, “Yuanyuan, don’t worry. The Jing brothers’ family is reasonable.”

 

“Yes, if the Jing brothers really bring up the matter of Xiao Yi and Xiaxia, I have to inform Caiyun about Ying’er’s situation in advance. It’s better to hear it from us than from someone else.” Mother Lin thought it through and wanted to make their situation clear to the other party.

 

“Yes, you’re right.”

 

Lin Father poured a cup of tea for Mother Lin and then changed the topic, not wanting him to worry anymore.

 

In the following days, the Lin family remained busy. Lin Father and Lin Mother occasionally discussed the menu for the tenth month and started preparing the ingredients, showing their importance.

 

As for Chuxia, he was busy making fragrant sachets for “Jing Mother”. It wasn’t urgent, so he did it whenever he had free time, putting great care and thought into it.

 

Although Chuxia was born in the countryside, the living conditions of the Lin family had always been decent since he was young. After the incident, they faced some financial difficulties for a few months, but they had already recovered.

 

The relationship between the two fathers was very good, and they loved their children very much, creating a warm family atmosphere.

 

Therefore, compared to many young people in the village, he had a more interesting life. Naturally, he was willing to spend time helping Jing Yi embroider the fragrant sachets.

 

These past few days, as he watched his father and grandfather prepare for the guests, he was filled with anticipation.

 

Soon, it was already the fifth day of the tenth month.

 

Early in the morning, the Jing family in Xiwan village became busy. Everyone started by getting up, washing up, and having breakfast, then changed into slightly more formal clothes.

 

Xiao An and Xiao Shu were young and grew up quickly. Recently, they had just made new clothes for them, and today they finally had the opportunity to wear them. However, they couldn’t find where they had put their new clothes, so they kept shouting for Jing Mother. The courtyard instantly became chaotic.

 

“Both of you! Hurry up and change. Don’t mess up your hair! I don’t have time to fix it for you!” Jing Mother looked at Jing An, who was standing shirtless and waiting for her to find his clothes, and felt overwhelmed.

 

After a lively and bustling time, they were finally ready to set off.

 

Jing Father and Jing Yi each carried a basket and put things inside, filling them up completely, but no one could see what was inside from the outside.

 

It took about half an hour to walk from Xiwan village to Wangjiazhuang Village. The family of five was not in a hurry, and their faces were filled with joy as they walked leisurely along the road. Jing Mother reminded Xiao An and Xiao Shu not to misbehave later.

 

When they arrived at Wangjiazhuang, it was already around ten in the morning. As they were about to enter the village, Jing Father immediately saw Lin Father standing at the village entrance, looking over in their direction.

 

“Jing, my dear friend, you’ve come! Hurry, come home with me!” Lin Father laughed loudly, beckoning them to follow him home.

 

The six of them walked along the north-south village path in wangjiazhuang, talking and laughing.

 

The Lin family had been the gossip focus of the village for the past two months. The men who gathered to chat in the village were fine and greeted Lin Father before moving on. The older women, whether they were visiting each other, mending clothes, or picking vegetables, all came to have a look at the commotion.

 

There were also the gossipy busybodies: “Old Ling, I think I’ve seen this young man a couple of times. What brings him here?”

 

“Third Aunt, what else could it be? My brother came to pay us a visit!”

 

Lin Father generally didn’t indulge in these nosy people. He responded indifferently and returned inside.

 

“Just pay a visit and be done with it. Why be so nosy?” When the third aunt saw that Lin Father’s expression wasn’t good, she didn’t dare to say anything more. Lin Ling was a tough nut to crack and shouldn’t be offended.

 

Others who had a good relationship with the Lin family saw that the third aunt, who usually liked to talk back, had suffered a loss and asked Lin Father a few questions before leaving.

 

After arriving at the Lin family’s house, Lin Mother and the four children went out to greet them. Then they greeted each other and took their seats. They chatted for a while, and Lin’s eldest daughter said she was busy and went back to her room. The remaining people chatted warmly.

 

“Jing Big Brother and Caiyun, you can talk first. Xiaxia and I will go prepare lunch. The children don’t need to be restrained. Xiao Shan and Xiao Jiang can take their brothers outside to play, but don’t go too far. We’ll be eating soon.” Lin Mother said as he stood up, preparing to take the youngest son to the kitchen.

 

“Yuanyuan Ge, I’ll go with you guys.” Jing Mother also stood up quickly. There was nothing to chat about here with the two men, and it would make Lin Big Brother uncomfortable.

 

Jing Yi was also tempted to spend some time with Chuxia, but he also knew it would be inappropriate for a guest to offer help in someone else’s house.

 

“That’s fine. It’s troublesome, but Caiyun can help us.” Lin Mother was not at all concerned and knew that Caiyun was more comfortable around them.

 

Chuxia, who went into the kitchen together: …nervous.