Chapter 407: Chapter 211: Starch Washing_1
Erlang and Zhao Xiue had dinner at the old house before returning to the town. Tomorrow is Zhao Xiue’s third-day visit back to her parental home after marriage, and the rituals were prepared by Lady Zhou according to the old customs. Lian Shouyi and Lady He didn’t accompany them back to town this time because with the New Year approaching, there were many chores to be done at home, and Lady Zhou had assigned tasks to both Lian Shouyi and Lady He.
As for the couple, Erlang and Zhao Xiue, Old Master Lian and Lady Zhou’s preliminary plan was for them to spend the days in the village and return to stay in the big house in town at night. At least, that was the arrangement until the coming spring.
Old Master Lian had stopped taking his medicine and had become as diligent as a healthy man, rising before dawn each day and going out with his basket to collect manure. While at home, he wandered the yard idly whenever he had nothing to do. These days, he took particular interest in measuring the vegetable garden south of the east wing room with his steps, walking a few paces, then pausing to ponder.
"What is Grandpa planning to do?" Lian Manman asked Lian Shouxin.
"There’s a bit of trouble with Erlang," Lian Shouxin didn’t answer directly, "I don’t know whether his wife will agree."
"It looks doubtful to me," Lady Zhang continued to unravel a quilt without looking up, "In my opinion, Erlang’s wife doesn’t seem like the type to do fieldwork. She probably wouldn’t want to live in the village."
Lian Manman listened for a while before she understood.
It turned out Old Master Lian planned to sell the house in town and build two more rooms beneath the east wing room for Erlang and Zhao Xiue to move back in.
"Once the house in town is sold, three rooms can be built on top of it; let Erlang and his wife live there first, and when Sanlang marries, there will be enough space for them too," Lian Shouxin relayed Old Master Lian’s plan, "The money from selling the house could even leave us with some surplus to buy a few more acres of land. If the family works hard for a few years, without major expenses, we can even acquire more land. Life would gradually improve."
Of course, this was predicated on frugality.
"Old Master mentioned his intentions to Erlang, who hemmed and hawed without giving a response," Lian Shouxin continued, "The Old Master said this must be because Erlang’s wife had already spoken to Erlang, indicating her reluctance to live in the village. When he asked Erlang about his plans, he didn’t answer either. The Old Master said to take it slow, and Erlang nodded along."
Zhao Xiue wasn’t the typical robust rustic daughter-in-law; Old Master Lian had seen that straight away. If Lian Shouren could secure a government position and elevate the family’s status, marrying such a daughter-in-law would indeed be fitting. But after Old Master gave up on the idea of Lian Shouren becoming an official, the marriage became somewhat awkward.
However, since the marriage had already been agreed upon and Erlang was fond of her, he compromised.
Old Master’s strategy was akin to boiling a frog in warm water. A woman must slowly integrate into her husband’s family life regardless of what her previous life was like at her parental home, adhering to the saying, ’marry a chicken, follow the chicken; marry a dog, follow the dog.’ Once Zhao Xiue and Erlang had been married for a while, hopefully after she became pregnant, it would be convenient to move them back to be near and take care of them.
"They haven’t split the family yet. If the two of them live there, how will they manage eating and working? It could become an issue over time. After the New Year, the Old Master will probably discuss this formally with them," Lian Shouxin concluded.
Getting a daughter-in-law and adding a member to the household was a joyous occasion but also introduced many problems. Still, these were concerns for Old Master Lian’s family to address.
With the end of the year drawing near, the family had to work even harder than usual with the shop remaining open for several more days before closing for the holiday and the increasing household chores.
After the celebration of the Little New Year, the major cleaning began in preparation for the New Year. First came sweeping the house, both inside and out, cleaning every nook and cranny, followed by washing the family’s clothes and bedding.
There wasn’t much need to wash clothes since Lady Zhang had already finished making new clothes for everyone in the family, which were to be worn during the New Year celebrations.
The big task was washing the bedding. This large washing involved taking apart the cotton-padded quilts—removing the inner lining, the outer fabric, and the heads of the quilts, as well as the mattresses, and it was the same procedure. They boiled hot water in a pot, and the mother and three others spent a whole morning washing everything that needed to be washed before hanging it all out to dry.
Lady Zhou of the Upper Room, along with her daughters-in-law, granddaughters-in-law, and granddaughters, were also busy washing their bedding over these two days, resulting in a yard full of hanging quilts and mattresses.
Zhao Xiue didn’t come, claiming she was sick and, of course, did not join them for meals.
With the outside temperatures very low in winter, the linings and fabrics quickly froze solid, water dripping from them formed icicles rather than reaching the ground. Only during midday, when the sun was at its strongest, did the ice melt into water and the water evaporate, allowing the fabrics to dry a bit.
