Transmigrated as A Farm Girl Making Her Family Rich-Chapter 199 - 198 Lady Loves Scholar
Chapter 199: Chapter 198 Lady Loves Scholar
Chapter 199 -198 Lady Loves Scholar
Madam Zhao, after hearing her husband’s words and reading the letter, nodded and said:
“Good, tomorrow I’ll have the housekeeper take care of this matter. I already have someone in mind. Since the Tang Mansion wishes to hire Mr. Instrument, and there are both men and women in their household, we might as well invite a teacher of each gender. I happen to know such a couple; they should agree.”
Mr. Zhao didn’t know at the moment which couple his wife was referring to and asked:
“Madam, would you please enlighten me?”
The housekeeper, hearing their conversation, smiled tiredly, relieved that the matter could be resolved quickly so he could return home sooner.
Moreover, he had been tasked with bringing a teacher back with him. If he couldn’t complete this task, he would have to wait here. The sooner the matter was settled, the better.
“Old Master, have you forgotten my distant relatives from one of my branches? They are but a small wealthy family, and their daughter, spoiled and pampered, knows Qin, Chess, Calligraphy, and Painting. Yet despite the pursuit of many gentlemen from the Capital, she chose to marry a poor scholar.”
“Madam, now I remember. You once said that it was a pity this lady’s character was so virtuous she didn’t marry into our family. How could she marry a poor scholar and become the subject of ridicule?”
“Matters of matrimony are hard to predict. The Lady fell in love with a poor scholar. This poor scholar was handsome and knowledgeable in Qin, Chess, Calligraphy, and Painting. It was his fortune to marry a rich lady, yet he was somewhat unlucky in his future prospects, failing to pass the imperial examinations as anything higher than a Scholar.”
As a woman, Madam Zhao could understand to a degree; when you love someone, you wish to marry him. However, her relative loved a poor scholar, dooming him to a life of difficulty. Living in rented accommodations in Capital City, how could life be easy?
Having a fallout with her family only added to their hardships. The path was one they chose themselves, and they had to shoulder all the joys and sorrows that came with it.
“A Scholar from Shangjing who couldn’t pass the examinations saw rich Ladies fail as well, leaving both of them unable to return to their parents’ homes. They had to rent a place to live and survive by doing odd jobs. He would have been better off taking his wife back home.”
Mr. Zhao believed that a man who couldn’t provide a better life for his wife, let alone a Scholar who couldn’t promise a rich lady a better future, didn’t act like a real man. He was a weak man, and the rich lady was blind to have chosen him.
“Old Master, this Lady fell out with her family but still longs for them, hoping one day they will forgive her. Another reason the scholar hasn’t given up on continuing his examinations.”
As a relative, Madam Zhao felt sympathy when the Lady married without her family’s blessing and no dowry, so she secretly gave the Lady some dowry.
Perhaps the Lady and her husband have been living in Capital City for over half a year, yet securing no stable job because they’ve become role models for some gentlemen of the Capital.
Some might deliberately interfere with the scholar’s work, maybe the scholar’s rival, a wealthy young master who wants you to fail. If that’s the case, you are left with nothing to do but rely on your wife’s support.
The lady has been surviving on her dowry all this while, with the scholar unable to find work and idling away in the Capital, failing in his examinations. Their predicament has become a popular topic in the Capital.
Storytellers recount their tale, and elderly members of wealthy families use their story as a cautionary lesson, admonishing the young not to marry rashly but to adhere to parental and matchmaker arrangements, lest they not find happiness.
The couple exchanged their views on this, hmm, it seems the backgrounds of the two teachers have been laid out.
The housekeeper felt as long as the teachers could be employed, the rest wasn’t their concern.
They had been away from the disturbances of the Capital for twenty to thirty years, even less aware of the recent happenings.
Having decided on the teachers to be invited, Madam Zhao told the housekeeper to go downstairs for food and rest, leaving the matter in her hands.
The housekeeper withdrew, and Madam Zhao wrote a letter overnight, sending it via a servant to the relative’s house the next day.
The couple rented a small courtyard in the Capital to avoid living in squalor, yet the rent for this yard was far from cheap.
As Miss, she should have had a dowry, such as shops and residences, as part of her marriage. However, angered by her insistence on marrying without her family’s blessings, they did not give her any dowry.
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The couple had lived in this courtyard for over half a year, subsisting on the money she had from before her marriage, and some dowry gifts given by elders and relatives who pitied her determination to marry, not wishing her to live too hard a life.
Especially Madam Zhao, who would always have her do some work to help with the household expenses.
Her husband, however, could not find a job and could only earn a living by setting up a stall and writing for people outside. His calligraphy and paintings also sold poorly, and one couldn’t help but wonder if it was due to deliberate sabotage that he couldn’t even make enough to support the family.
Even so, the couple did not employ servants. The husband’s appearance remained unchanged. Although poor scholar, his clothes, while not luxurious, were patchless. Madam dressed him cleanly and neatly, making him just as charming and dashing as ever.
It made the women who saw him think that it was no wonder the Miss had defied everything to marry him; it was for his looks, for his love that she had put everything on the line.
Many women thought her foolish. She gave up being Miss, passed on becoming a rich lady, and instead chose to be a scholar’s wife. She used to be helped with pouring tea and washing clothes, could ride in horse carriages and sedans when going out.
Now, as the wife of a scholar, she had to do all kinds of chores such as washing clothes, sweeping, and cooking the three meals a day. In addition, she had to go out and purchase groceries on foot, looking after her husband’s daily life.
The Miss had transformed into a plain-looking housewife in an instant.
During these arduous months, the Miss didn’t seem to have lost her zest for life amidst the struggles; the couple remained loving and supported each other, and they did not lose their fighting spirit even while grappling with financial woes.
The wife believed that her husband would not always be like this. Even if he didn’t pass the imperial examination, he wouldn’t remain mediocre forever. All they lacked at the moment was a little bit of luck.
With his wife’s support, the husband also thought that he was just short of luck. With his talent, even if he didn’t pass the imperial examination, becoming a teacher, an expert in any of the disciplines of Qin, Chess, Calligraphy, and Painting, would be more than possible, and teaching at the academy was not a problem.
The couple had always been a hot topic in the Capital. The husband was embarrassed to apply for a teaching position at the academy, still believing he had a chance.
In the morning, after the wife had prepared breakfast and they had eaten together, the husband prepared to go out and set up his stall, while the wife helped him clean up. It was then that the door to their small courtyard was knocked.
The couple glanced at each other, surprised. Who could it be looking for them?
Could it be the rent collector? But wasn’t it not yet time to pay the rent?
“Husband, I’ll go open the door.”
“Wife, you tidy up the bowls and chopsticks. If someone has come, it is better that I open the door.”
“Yes, alright!” The wife looked at the small living room; indeed, it wouldn’t do to have a guest while it was in disarray. She quickly cleared the bowls and chopsticks into the kitchen.
The scholar went to open the door of the courtyard and saw that it was Mr. Zhao’s housekeeper whom he had met before; a servant of Madam Zhao’s relatives who had sent gifts to their family.
