Chapter 185

Chapter 185

“Hope this letter finds you well. It has been many days since we parted, and I trust all is well at home. We have arrived safely in the capital, and the journey was smooth. We are currently staying at an inn in the city and plan to buy a house and move in soon.” Lin Sui read the letter aloud as Li Shi and Qing Yun listened attentively.

“Qing Yan and I visited Chang Yi’s paternal uncle. Uncle Liu and Aunt Liu are very kind. Knowing that we are new to the capital with no one to rely on, they sent a servant to accompany me to look at houses in the city. I have already found one I like on Changping Road, Qinglong Street. However, the price is quite high—living in the capital is not easy. Fortunately, we have enough silver on hand, so please don’t worry.”

Qing Yun chimed in, “Yesterday, Chang Yi mentioned his uncle and aunt to me, saying they would return for the child’s first-month celebration!”

Li Shi said, “We’re causing them so much trouble.”

Lin Sui continued reading, “There is another important matter I must tell Brother Sui. I learned from Lord Liu that Wuping Marquis did not die in battle. It is said he faked his death to lure the enemy and then launched a surprise attack on their supplies, achieving a remarkable feat. The news of this victory has already reached the capital. I wonder if you have heard about it.”

“We are all doing well in the capital and hope that my mother, younger brother, and younger sister are safe and healthy. Wang Ying respectfully.”

After finishing the letter, Lin Sui wiped away excited tears. “The Marquis of Wuping is actually alive—he didn’t die!”

Qing Yun shared her joy, “That’s wonderful! I just wonder when he will return. Once he’s back, the two of you can finally hold your wedding.”

Lin Sui dried her tears, a hint of happiness on her face, and felt a renewed sense of hope in her heart.

*

On August 9th, Chen Qinghuai finally arrived in the capital. He had actually set out from Shanzhou earlier but made a detour to Laizhou first. The time had come for his marriage arrangement with the Bai family’s young lady, and he went there to finalize the engagement.

Since Chen Jing was unable to come, he wrote a letter instead, which Chen Qinghuai and his mother brought with them. The wedding was originally scheduled for the tenth month of that year, but in mid-June, the Bai family’s patriarch—the young lady’s grandfather—had passed away. According to local customs, weddings could not be held that year, so the ceremony was postponed to the second month of the following year. As it happened, Chen Jing would also be arriving in the capital to report on his official duties around that time and could attend his son’s wedding.

After the engagement was settled, their Fourth Aunt returned to Shanzhou, while Chen Qinghuai brought Chen Guang and his page boy, Chen Guo, to the capital.

Upon arrival, he first stayed at an inn. After settling in, he paid a visit to the Liu family. He had brought many gifts with him—regional specialties from Shanzhou. This gesture was not only to express gratitude for their previous kindness but also served another purpose: Chen Jing hoped to forge connections and possibly secure a better position. Previously, they had no ties to Lord Liu, but now that the two families were related by marriage, it was important to strengthen their relationship—or at least avoid giving offense.

Mrs. Liu received him warmly as always. “Your elder brother and his wife arrived some time ago. I was wondering when you would come.”

Chen Qinghuai asked, “Elder Brother is already here?”

“Yes, they’ve settled in the city. You probably don’t know where they live yet, do you?”

Chen Qinghuai nodded.

“I’ll have a servant take you there later, so you won’t have to search around.”

“Thank you, Madam.”

“It’s nothing. Feel free to visit whenever you have time. My husband holds both you youngsters in high regard.”

Chen Qinghuai smiled modestly and exchanged brief pleasantries. He then prepared to leave to find his elder brother.

Mrs. Liu summoned the steward, Liu Bo, to take him to Chen Qingyan’s current residence. The carriage ride took only a quarter of an hour.

After getting out of the carriage, Chen Qinghuai thanked Steward Liu and happily ran to knock on the door. Soon, a familiar face appeared. Tian Ju exclaimed in surprise, “Second Master Huai, you’re here!”

“Yes! Is Elder Brother and his wife home?”

“They are, they are! Master, Sir, Second Master is here!”

Inside, Chen Qingyan was teaching Yuanbao how to hold a brush. Hearing the commotion, he stood up joyfully. “Yuanbao, your second uncle is here!”

Father and son hurried out and saw the visitor in the courtyard. “Qinghuai!”

“Second Uncle!”

“Hey!” Chen Qinghuai bent down to catch his plump nephew, who came running toward him, nearly knocking him over.

“Did you come alone?”

“I came with Chen Guang and Chen Guo. They’re still at the inn.”

“Which inn? I’ll have Tian Ju pick them up.”

Chen Qinghuai gave the name of the inn, and Tian Ju hitched up the carriage to go pick them up.

“Where’s your sister-in-law?”

“Probably asleep inside. I’ll go get her.” Chen Qingyan went inside but didn’t see anyone. Knowing Wang Ying must be in the experimental field, he quickly went in to call her out.

Recently, the wheat and millet in the experimental field had ripened. After harvesting, Wang Ying planned to plant some vegetables and find a way to restart his business ventures. There were many expenses in the capital, and relying solely on their savings would not be sustainable.

The two emerged from the experimental field and hurriedly invited Qinghuai inside.

“Your elder brother and I were just talking about you yesterday, wondering why it took you so long to arrive. We thought you’d come earlier.”

Chen Qinghuai explained, “Mother and I went to Laizhou first to finalize the engagement before coming here.”

Wang Ying laughed upon hearing this. “No wonder! It seems we’ll soon be toasting at your wedding celebration.”

“The date is set for the sixteenth of the second month next year. By then, Father, Mother, and my younger siblings will all come. I wonder if Aunt and the others will be able to make it.”

“They should be able to. When the time comes, our whole family can have a proper reunion.”

Chen Qingyan asked, “How has the old master been lately?”

“He’s doing well. Not long ago, he went to the frontier again to seek inspiration for his poetry.”

“The frontier? Isn’t there a war going on there?”

“The battlefield has moved beyond the frontier passes, so it doesn’t affect Shanzhou much. As long as you avoid Xizhou, it’s relatively safe.”

“That’s good to hear. The old master truly never sits still. I wonder when he’ll have time to visit the capital—we all miss him.”

“Master did say that if he has the chance, he’ll definitely come for my wedding next year.”

Wang Ying clapped his hands. “That’s excellent! Once he arrives, our family will be fully gathered.”

Since Chen Qinghuai was scheduled to assume his duties at the Hanlin Academy on the sixteenth of the eighth month, time was tight. Wang Ying suggested he stay with them directly, as buying or renting a house in the capital was too expensive.

At noon, Tian Ju brought the others and their luggage from the inn. Chen Qinghuai and his page boy settled into the east wing, while Chen Guang took a room in the rear quarters.

Once everything was arranged, Chen Qingyan took his younger brother out to buy household necessities and introduced him to the capital and his future workplace.

Soon, it was the sixteenth of the eighth month. Early in the morning, before dawn, the Chen brothers were already up. For their first day of work, they wore their regular clothes; official robes would be provided later.

After getting ready, they boarded the carriage and hurried toward the Hanlin Academy.

Along the way, they encountered many other carriages also heading to their posts. The capital had over three thousand officials, but only those of the fifth rank or higher were eligible to attend court—amounting to fewer than one hundred.

When they reached Xuanwu Street, the carriages went separate ways. Chen Qingyan and Chen Qinghuai watched enviously as some carriages headed toward the palace, wondering when they would have the chance to take that route.

Upon arriving at the Hanlin Academy, they found two colleagues already waiting at the gate. After a brief greeting, they lined up for the morning roll call.

At a quarter past mao hour (5:15 AM), the gates of the Hanlin Academy opened, and everyone formed a line to sign their names in the register.

Since Chen Qingyan and many others were starting their first day of work that day, someone was specially assigned to go over procedures with them.

The person who arrived was none other than Minister Jiang, whom they had met previously.

Jiang Lin served as the Director of the Hanlin Academy, holding a sixth-rank official position. He wore a crimson official robe embroidered with bamboo branches on the chest, a black gauze hat on his head, and had a kindly expression.

“I am Jiang Lin, the Director of the Hanlin Academy. For the next three years, I will be working alongside all you gifted scholars.”

The group cupped their hands respectfully and said, “Greetings, Minister Jiang.”

Jiang Lin raised his hand slightly. “No need for formalities. Each of you has come here as an exceptionally gifted scholar. I hope we can all fulfill our duties and share the burdens of His Majesty.”

“Yes, sir.”

“In a moment, I will take you to familiarize yourselves with the Hanlin Academy and assign the daily tasks. Do not think that editing texts is dull or tedious—it is also a way to build discipline.”

Just as he was speaking, someone hurried in through the door. “S-sorry, I’m late.”

Everyone turned to see a young man catching his breath as he greeted them. This was none other than Xu Wei, the third-ranked scholar of this year’s imperial examinations.

Jiang Lin frowned slightly and said, “Why are you so late? Come quickly and join the group.”

Xu Wei scratched his head awkwardly. “My apologies, I was delayed by crowded streets on the road.”

Someone nearby whispered, “Crowded streets? Could it be that he lives in the market quarter?” Aside from the market quarter, which was already bustling with people early in the morning, other areas generally didn’t have traffic jams.

Indeed, Xu Wei lived in the market quarter, as he was too strapped for cash to afford accommodation elsewhere.

His father served as a county magistrate in Yongzhou. In theory, he should have been able to provide the necessary funds, but Official Xu was known for his integrity and never accepted bribes. As a result, when his son came to the capital, he could only spare five hundred silver taels.

Jiang Lin coughed lightly and repeated what he had said earlier before instructing someone to show the group around their official duties.

On the first day, there was not much actual work to do. The main tasks were to familiarize themselves with the place and have their measurements taken for official robes, which would take about half a month to be ready.

Since Chen Qingyan held a seventh-rank position as a Compiler, one rank higher than the other scholars, he was assigned his own office, which happened to be next to Li Bin’s.

Due to their previous encounter, both felt somewhat awkward upon meeting again. However, remembering what his husband had said, Chen Qingyan took the initiative to greet the other openly and generously.

Li Bin, on the other hand, seemed a bit embarrassed and quickly fetched a broom to help tidy up Chen Qingyan’s office. Politics aside, he was quite amiable, and the two soon got to know each other.

*

In the blink of an eye, Wang Ying and the others had been in the capital for over a month, and the weather was growing cooler day by day.

During this time, Wang Ying had taken the opportunity to scout out storefronts but was immediately deterred by the prices. The cheapest shop near Qinglong Street cost over a thousand taels of silver per year, and shops in other locations were not much cheaper. He feared that the income from selling his vegetables would not even cover the rent!

The experimental field was still too small. If only it were a hundred acres! Although he could use accelerated planting, the energy or resources required for acceleration were more expensive than the silver earned from sales.

Wang Ying gave up on the idea of reopening a shop and turned his attention to restaurants.

If he could partner with one of the restaurants and sell his vegetables directly, he could save on rent and perhaps even earn more.

However, without first understanding the market, Wang Ying was cautious about introducing his fresh vegetables, as attracting unwanted attention in the capital could lead to trouble.

With time on his hands, he spent his mornings teaching Yuanbao to read and write and his afternoons working on his agricultural book.

Over the years, he had procrastinated and never found the time to write it. Now, with ample time, Wang Ying planned to write the book in one push.