Chapter 206 – The Old Madam is From a Scholarly Family (part 20)

“I’m wrong!” Li Yu looked at the surrounding environment. When he thought about the past, he couldn’t help but lower his head in shame. He thought that after he was promoted, he would be able to bring a better life to his family. He didn’t expect that in the end he would…

“What is there to be wrong about? You can live in the past, or you can live now. Don’t you think that’s right, Yingniang?” Li Su said with a smile.

Liu Yingniang nodded gently. “Mother is right. As long as the family is together, it is better than anything else.”

Li Yu looked at the needlework in his wife’s hand. He thought about his wife’s persistence for so many years and smiled affectionately.

“Actually, it’s pretty good here, but it’s a little far from your Hanlin Academy. Besides, there is also Heng’er’s reading problem, and I can’t let go of Yuan’er and Ru’er. Although the Ling family and Zuo Kui’s family are there, I’m still worried,” Li Su said again.

Li Yu had many thoughts. “It doesn’t matter how far away it is. I only have one day off every ten days. Heng’er and Li’er are studying, and there are many private schools in the capital. I will make arrangements tomorrow. As for Yuan’er, I am now a seventh-grade imperial compiler. According to the rules, one of my sons gets a place to study at the imperial college. I just don’t know if Yuan’er is willing to go! As for Ru’er, there is Qingyun Academy, which is in the suburbs of the capital. Shanchang is the only person in this dynasty who holds the title of the winner at the provincial, national, and imperial level. Qingyun Academy has been established for twenty years. From there, twenty people have passed the highest imperial exam, twelve have passed the provincial exam, and plenty have passed the county exam. If one wants to enter Qingyun Academy, one only needs to pass the entrance exam. Tomorrow, I will write a letter and ask Wan Hong to come and give it a try.”

The Wan family were smart. Not only would Wan Hong come, but also Ru’er would follow.

“That’s good. You must remember it! As for the imperial college, with Yuan’er’s intelligence, he probably doesn’t need this opportunity. So, let’s keep it. Heng’er’s talent for reading cannot compare to Yuan’er. I think that Qingyun Academy is very suitable for Yuan’er. Of course, if Yuan’er has different thoughts… You should write a letter to him and let him choose! As for Wan Hong, quickly write to your in-laws,” Li Su said.

Li Yu also thought so. “Don’t worry, mother!”

However, Yingniang felt distressed for her husband. “Mum, the hot water has been prepared a while ago, so let Husband Yu take a bath first!”

Li Su smiled and said, “I was negligent. You can go quickly. The water was heated by Heng’er and Li’er! Yingniang, you go to serve A-Yu and I will go to the kitchen to take a look.” Now that there were no servants at home, a lot of things had to be done by hand. Fortunately, there were not many people at home, and there was not much to do.

“I’ll do it myself. Let Yingniang go. Mother, just rest,” Li Yu said quickly.

“What? Are you afraid that your mother’s cooking isn’t delicious? Hurry up!” Li Su ignored him.

Yang Anshu had already started to make a fire. He cooked rice in one pot and cooked vegetables in the other. Although Li Su hadn’t personally cooked for a long time, her hands were a bit raw, but she gradually got used to it. Liu Yingniang’s needlework was first-class, but her cooking was hard to describe. After Li Heng and Li Li ate the meal made by Liu Yingniang for a few days, they kept asking to eat dishes made by their grandmother.

Li Su also felt that it was better to cook herself, so she simply cooked.

“Anshu, have you thought about bringing your wife and child over?” Li Su asked while cooking.

Yang Anshu laughed. “I have only one son in my family. If my wife comes, who will take care of my mother? I can’t let my older sisters deal with things. Isn’t that letting others poke me in the spine? I only need to send money back every month.”

Li Su wanted to say a few words, but she thought that most people have likely lived like this. Besides, this was also someone else’s private matter, so she didn’t ask much.

In the evening, the family sat together for a simple meal. After eating, Li Yu took out his salary from the past few months, the money he earned from copying books in his spare time, and some extra income. “Mother, let’s get another person at home. What about washing and cooking? For the rest of the rough work, Anshu can help. Now that I have a salary, I can’t let my mother cook. My mother should enjoy herself.”

Li Su opened it and saw that there were about 70-80 taels. Her eyes widened. Although Li Yu started to make money after being promoted, it was too much! “You didn’t make any mistakes, right? Son, mother knows your heart, but our family really does not lack money. You can’t be confused!”

Li Yu smiled bitterly. “Mother, don’t worry. All the money came from a legitimate source. If you don’t believe me, ask Anshu! I am in a rental every day except when in Hanlin Academy, and Anshu followed me.”

Yang Anshu nodded. “Old lady, this one can testify that master did nothing wrong. In addition to the salary, the master has also earned money by copying books, writing letters of recommendation and letters of guarantee. It’s okay to accept the money.”

Li Su was relieved. “That’s good. But don’t do stupid things for money!”

Li Yu laughed. How could he dare to?!

Half a month later, Li Yuan and Wan Hong came. Similar to what Li Yu thought, Li Yuan did not want to study in the imperial college. Like Wan Hong, he wanted to study at Qingyun Academy. He also got a recommendation letter, so he was exempted from taking the entrance exam. Although Wan Hong had to pass the exam, he was quite confident in his knowledge.

Li Su didn’t see Li Ru, and was a little disappointed. At the same time, there was some speculation in her heart. Maybe it was because the Wan family did not allow Ru’er to go out.

Seeing this, Wan Hong said quickly, “Don’t worry, grandmother. My family was afraid there would be a lot of work, so they let my uncle and I go to the capital first to organise the house. My second older brother will escort Ru’er and her servants here later.”

Li Su was satisfied. “What kind of house are you going to buy? If you can’t find a place, then just live here!” Even if his family was rich, there were still two older brothers above him!

“That’s absolutely impossible. My parents want me to live in the academy on weekdays. I will worry about leaving Ru’er alone, so I was planning on renting a room near the in-law’s house so that you can take care of each other.” Wan Hong said quickly.

Li Su thought about it too. Yang Anshu was eager to say something, so Li Su quickly said, “Anshu, do you have something to say?”

“Old lady, I heard from the aunt of the Yang family next door that her daughter married and moved out of town. She has two empty rooms that she wants to rent out,” Yang Anshu said quickly.

“Really?” Li Su was suspicious. How did Yang Anshu know what she didn’t?

“Yes. The dissatisfied old lady said that I should consider the aunt of the Yang family as my godmother. My godmother has no son, only two daughters, and the house is empty when both of them are out. In fact, my godmother is not short of money. She just wants someone to talk to. If you think this is suitable, then I will talk to my godmother,” Yang Anshu said.

Li Su looked at Wan Hong. Wan Hong hesitated for a moment. “Could I go and see it for myself?” After all, it was the place where his wife would live for a long time in the future. He didn’t want to wrong his wife.

“Of course you can.” Yang Anshu smiled. After obtaining Li Su’s consent, he took Wan Hong to the Yang family next door.

The final result, of course, was that the two were happy. Aunt Yang and Wan Hong were very satisfied with each other, and soon signed a contract. Wan Hong paid half a year’s rent upfront.

The Yang family and the Li family were separated by a wall, so Li Su and Yingniang were naturally happy. Half a month later, Li Ru arrived in the capital, and Wan Hong also successfully passed the entrance exam to get into Qingyun Academy. He and Li Yuan entered the academy together.

The one who accompanied Li Ru to the capital was a little girl from the Wan family. Yingniang was still wondering why Yan’er didn’t come with her.

Li Ru explained with a smile, saying that Yan’er was reluctant to leave her parents. So, Li Ru left her in her hometown and came with another girl, Huan’er.

Yingniang was fine, but Li Su frowned. “Is Yan’er staying at Wan family’s house or is she going back to her old house?”

Li Ru pursed her lips and smiled. “Don’t worry, grandma. I will keep Yan’er to serve my mother-in-law. Yan’er took a fancy to Zhuangtou’s eldest son, and said that she would pay it back in the future. That person is also interested in Yan’er. My mother-in-law and I also agreed that, when Yan’er turns sixteen, we will let her marry.” She naturally hoped that it would end well. Fortunately, Yan’er hadn’t changed, and neither had she.

Only then did Li Su feel relieved. She was afraid that Ru’er was too kind.

Liu Yingniang next to her had absolutely no idea what her mother-in-law and daughter were talking about. She only knew that her daughter was happy. Except for the holidays, Husband Yu only came back for one day in ten days. During the day, the two children went to the private school. She and her mother-in-law were the only ones at home. Although the family had hired a cook, the cook was taciturn. She felt suffocated. Fortunately, her daughter was here, and there would be more people to talk to in the future.

For Liu Yingniang, she had no regrets in her life.

And Wet Nurse Yan, after going through untold hardships, finally returned to Prince Kang’s mansion and saw Princess Kang. Princess Kang was still wondering. A few years ago, Wet Nurse Yan suddenly disappeared and there had been no news all these years. Now, she suddenly appeared. What happened?

But after Wet Nurse Yan told Princess Kang her experience in the past few years, Princess Kang did not believe her at all. “You are joking! You said that it was my son who asked you to go to Jixian to teach a woman from a small family. You say that my son intended to take her as a concubine, but that family married her off? Hahaha, you are out of your mind! In addition to my son never having set foot in Jixian, how old was that woman a few years ago? My son has never seen that woman before and he was thinking of accepting her as a concubine?”

This old woman, could it be that she couldn’t hang around outside anymore, so she looked for her for aid. She was really busy listening to her nonsense!

Princess Kang rolled her eyes. “Someone, kick her out for me!”

Wet Nurse Yan was kicked out like this. She was trembling with anger, but there was nothing she could do. Right now, only the eldest prince could prove her innocence. She must wait until the eldest prince returned. But her savings had been robbed earlier when she was on the way to the capital. She was now penniless. How could she wait for the eldest prince to come back?

In desperation, Wet Nurse Yan had no choice but to turn to her former sister. It was a pity that the sisters she knew in the palace before had been invited by the dignitaries in the capital to be nannies, so they couldn’t see each other in a while.

Just when Wet Nurse Yan was desperate, the people of county princess Qinghe’s mansion found her.

After listening to Wet Nurse Yan’s words, Zhao Shuning frowned. She didn’t believe that Wet Nurse Yan was so courageous to dare to lie to her. But, if what she said was true, then what was her younger bro doing? Why would a woman from a small family be worth so much trouble for younger bro? It was so very strange.

Zhao Shuning kept Wet Nurse Yan, and then sent someone to send a letter to Zhao Zongqing to ask whether the matter was true. At the same time, the investigation of the Li family began.

A few days later, she really found her.