CH 19.1

It snowed heavily all day and night.

The backyard of the Wu family’s small house is covered with snow.

Xuezhu, who got up early in the morning, stood blankly under the eaves with a broom.

The snow is still falling, and the snow on the ground is getting thicker and thicker.

So Xuezhu doesn’t know what to do now.

If he sweeps now, it will be in vain because the snow hasn’t stopped yet.

If he doesn’t sweep now, he feels uncomfortable with what his eyes see.

The back kitchen in their house is on the opposite side. The Kitchen Aunt who had finished breakfast and cleaned up the kitchen came out yawning. She lightly tapped her foot, stepped on the snow and flew to Xuezhu’s side.

She patted him: “Don’t sweep. It will be useless if you sweep it anyway.”

Xuezhu pursed his lips: “I will feel uncomfortable.”

“You are still a child after all.” The aunt said tenderly, “Seeing that you are a sincere child, I will give you a few words.”

She subconsciously looked at Wu Wei’an’s room and lowered her voice: “Just sweep casually, loaf on the job and don’t be too diligent. Like me, I choose the easiest dishes to prepare for each meal so I can finish my job quickly. And that one——” She pointed her chin towards the room dedicated specially for the person whose job is to wash clothes. “He is the best at loafing on the job. So, just learn more from him.”

Xuezhu thought about it for a long time, but he still rushed out with a broom without hesitation in the end.

The Kitchen Aunt clicked her tongue several times, shook her head, and went back to the room to make up for her sleep.

In the room, Old Qin came to visit again.

Wu Wei’an threw the Danzhi sent by Ji Yunxi early in the morning to the other party.

Old Qin is so delighted while holding that small part of Danzhi and can hardly bear to put it down at all. Then he properly stuffed it into his arms and said: “Finally got it now. I’ll leave for Yu state tomorrow to see that little young master.”

“Alright. Be careful on the road.” Wu Wei’an just got up not long ago and his long hair was only tied with a simple wooden hairpin. He was wearing a white inner robe and his thin figure was partly hidden and partly visible when he walked.

Old Qin looked at him and thought that now he has climbed a high branch, he hinted: “What a long distance I have to travel through. The money I brought with me may not be enough.”

Wu Wei’an raised his eyebrows and asked him: “How much do you have left?”

The Yu state’s side knew that he came to the capital to buy medicinal materials, so they gave Old Qin a little more money.

He now has five hundred taels left: “One hundred taels.”

Wu Wei’an: “It’s enough.”

Old Qin: “I am already old and the weather is cold too. I have to burn some charcoal in the carriage…”

This old man is even healthier than the average young man, and it is not a problem for him to live another fifty or sixty years. Has his courage fattened to the point that he even dares to ask for some money from him now?

Wu Wei’an thought about it for a while, then said with a sincere expression on his face: “How about you give me your one hundred taels and I will let someone arrange it all the way for you?”

Old Qin immediately refused: “No need. Your men are of great use. I won’t bother you with this kind of trivial matter.”

Knowing that he couldn’t cheat money away today, Old Qin planned to leave. But before he left, he saw the small hand-warmer stove in a certain person’s hand and was very tempted: “Why don’t you lend me this hand-warmer stove?”

Wu Wei’an narrowed his eyes: “Keep dreaming.”

Old Qin was angry: “Bah! You heartless person. In the past, when you had no money and no girl that liked you, I lent you my money. Now that you are prosperous, you are not even willing to give me a hand-warmer stove?”

Wu Wei’an: “You lent me a total of ten taels and twenty coins, and I returned you twenty taels in the end.”

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Old Qin coughed with a guilty conscience: “… Although the amount of money was small, what’s important is that I have the heart to do so.”

Wu Wei’an: “Don’t hit this idea anymore. This hand-warmer stove was given to me by Yun Niang.”

Old Qin sighed, shook his hand and then left.

Wu Wei’an sent Old Qin to the outside of the door and carefully urged him a few more times. After seeing him disappear into the winter snow, he returned to his room and sat down at the table with a letter in his hand.

The letter was sent together with Danzhi. He stretched out his hand to open it.

The letter is very simple, inviting him to have dinner at the Ji Mansion tonight.

So at the end of the day, Wu Wei’an took Second Wu to the Ji Mansion.

At this time, it was still early for dinner. Ji Mingxi is still in the Ministry of Civil Officials and hasn’t returned home yet. Ji Yunxi was looking at the account book in the study room.

Ji Mingshuang is also preparing for the Imperial Examination in next year’s spring, reading his Four Books and Five Classics.

The auction just ended yesterday so Ji Yunxi was calculating how much the profit was this time. The more she calculated, the happier her expression was.

She suddenly said: “I think, Sixth Brother came back at the right time.”

Those poisons and antidotes of his, were auctioned with a lot of money.

Ji Mingshuang glanced at her: “These words of yours, let’s see if you can still say it or not later.”

Ji Yunxi sighed: “Where is Sixth Brother now?”