The crowning day was getting close, so Shen Yanbei and Gu Changfeng ought to go to the county to buy the ingredients needed for the banquet. They also had to go to the cloth store to buy clothing materials and then asked the tailor to make them.
Su Qingze and Ming'an also followed them to the county for stopping by the government office. Since childhood, Su Qingze, who had never ridden an ox cart, was fortunate enough to experience this for the first time. He was busy looking around and didn't feel that it was a boring trip. His fleshy face was full of smiles. Holding a long reed in his hand, he was sitting calmly at the rear of the cart like an old man fishing. His two legs were drooping and swaying, following the rhythm of the cart's move. Although it was not as comfortable as a horse-drawn carriage, to sit this such ox-cart was still fun!
Ming'an who sat beside him was looking at the green seedling field in front of him, feeling very relaxed at the moment. Before they started to live in this village, Daye ordered him to take care of the Young Master very well. If he felt discomfort, he ought to bring back the Young Master home immediately. But these days, what he was worried about didn't happen. Shen Xiucai told the Young Master if he wanted to lose weight he had to restrain his mouth and do some physical activities instead. Although he still ate fish and meat, the portion was less. The salt and oil were also less. But the foods were still delicious!
The Young Master's figure indeed didn't change much, but he could feel that Young Master was having a great time. He had been with him for a long time. Unless when Ah Heng was there, he never saw the Young Master lived so happily!
Uncle Shen, who was driving the cart front, was also smiling. His younger son finally got back to work and he also was asked to deliver the vegetables to the restaurant every day. Not only that, different from before, his younger son also worked happily and his salary had been increased. Even his vegetables were bought at a good price!
The bullock cart was heading to the county. After parking the cart, Uncle Shen then would be waiting for them in the tea shop. In this way, they went in separate ways. Su Qingze waved to the two of them and went straight to the government office. While Shen Yanbei and Gu Changfeng went to the Tongfu restaurant to see the shopkeeper Liu.
The restaurant business was running well, the seats in the lobby were almost occupied. Shen Yanbei asked Shopkeeper Liu to take the account book and then started to calculate the accounts for the past few days. The shopkeeper Liu stood aside respectfully, as long as he watched him, he couldn't help but admire Shen Yanbei.
"Have those two people been to a restaurant recently?" Gu Changfeng asked in a low voice.
Shopkeeper Liu stroked his beard and said in a smile, "They still come here, but didn't dare to make trouble. And they honestly pay the bills." His tone became more subtle. "It's all thanks to the magistrate."
They became like this after being frightened by Gu Changfeng that day. They didn't make a fuss and obediently stayed at home for a while. After recovering from their illness, one day they ran straight to the restaurant for morning tea. It turned out that the private room they usually used was being occupied but they persisted to use that room. So they broke into the private room and threatened the visitor inside to give them the private room. But they never expected that the visitor was a beautiful woman. Li Sheng's eyeballs stuck straight to the person, his action of course offended the other party. As a result, he hit the iron plate at that time! That woman was actually the wife of the new county magistrate!
Although the county magistrate kept his face calm, he still rewarded the two of them by hitting them with the board. The magistrate said if they kept acting arrogant and domineering and insulting others, it would not be as simple as being hit by the board!
The two of them were so scared that they broke into a cold sweat, then obediently paid the bill. After that, they ran away while covering their buttock!
"The county magistrate knows right and wrong and governs strictly. It has to be a good thing." Shen Yanbei closed the account book and smiled lightly.
The shopkeeper Liu nodded appreciatively. Since the former county magistrate accepted the benefits of Li's Family, he let Li Sheng and others make a fuss around and Yamen did not dare to interfere in their affairs. It made many people who were insulted have nowhere to complain. Hopefully, this new magistrate was different. After he took the position, he judged justice, so people could live happily.
"Two days later, I will celebrate my crown ceremony. Laifu-gē will have to go back to the village to take charge. So the restaurant will be closed for one day, and the others will take a day off," Shen Yanbei explained.
Shopkeeper Liu hurriedly congratulated, and asked Shen Yanbei, "Is there a banquet for the county magistrate?" As a scholar under the county magistrate's rule, it was normal to send an invitation to the county magistrate. Even if the county magistrate wouldn't come, the courtesy must be done and the etiquette must also be thoughtful.
Shen Yanbei smiled and said, "I have sent the invitation."
It was okay if he didn't know him before. Now since Su Qingze was under his care and Li Zhiyuan had given him some books, he must invite him. Besides that, he still should come for a formal visit personally at the right time.
At this time, the invitation was placed in front of Li Zhiyuan.
"On the sixth day of the sixth year, it will be Shen Gēgē's crown ceremony. Because I came here to visit, I helped him to bring the invitation."
Su Qingze held his nephew high. The little doll grinned, revealing two small white teeth, which were very cute. Su Qingze couldn't help but kissed his soft cheek.
"Xiao Lin'er, do you miss Uncle?"
Little Doll stretched out his hand to touch his face and screamed "Uncle" vaguely. Su Qingze was pleased to hold him in circles.
Looking at the two dumplings, Su Wanqing said with a smile, "Okay, stop making trouble." She stood up and hugged her son, and looked at Su Qingze carefully. She hadn't seen him for several days, now the young man was full of vigor and looked more energetic.
"You are getting darker." She didn't know if it was an illusion, she felt that her brother's fleshy face seemed to be thinner.
"Really?" Su Qingze looked at his hand and didn't care much. "Why does a manly man want to be so vain?" He had been playing outside in the village these days, of course, it would be different than when he was usually staying indoors at home! Recently he went into the water and fished, also went up to the tree to dig out bird eggs. Everything he found interesting and fun, he would do it all!
Su Wanqing groaned, "What nonsense are you talking about? Manly man? Stop talking like that as a little Shuānger! If you really become like a man, you are the one who will cry!"
Su Qingze curled his lips. "What's wrong with being like a man? Isn't Gu Dàgē just like that? I envy him so much!"
"Who is Gu Dàgē?" Su Wanqing asked suspiciously.
Li Zhiyuan coughed slightly. "It's Shen Xiucai's Fulang, a relatively tall and sturdy Shuānger."
"Gu Dàgē is really amazing!" Su Qingze was full of admiration. "He has a lot of strength! He can pick up a big tank of water with one hand! When he chopped the firewood, he did it quickly and neatly. Even each piece was about the same size! He also has good eyesight. He can see a rabbit from a distance. Once he threw a rock, it knocked the rabbit out!"
Su Wanqing asked in disbelief, "Is there really such a Shuānger?"
"Of course! If it wasn't for the mole on the center of eyebrows, Gu Dàgē would be a real man!"
Imagining the appearance of the other party, Su Wanqing frowned and said, "No matter what the other party looks like, don't ever think to be like that too."
Hearing that, Su Qingze just laughed. Su Wanqing glanced at him. "Since you come here, don't run around. I'll let people make a bird's nest soup for you."
Su Qingze shook his head. "No, I have to go! We have agreed to meet at the gate around this time."
After finishing talking, he was afraid that Su Wanqing would nag him again, so he hurriedly left words. "I'm just coming back to see Lin'er. I'm leaving now! Sister, the brother-in-law, take care!"
"What are you doing in such a hurry!" Su Wanqing glared at him. "Lin'er's birthday is coming soon, you ought to remember to be back on that day!"
"Okay!" Su Qingze responded from a distance, pulling Ming'an away.
"This stinky boy!" Su Wanqing sighed helplessly.
"Why? Isn't Qingze very well?" Li Zhiyuan opened the invitation card, glanced at it, then closed it.
"What's good? If a Shuānger acts so wild, who will dare to marry him?" Su Wanqing said in a sad tone.
Li Zhiyuan's eyes flashed. He smiled dryly. "Don't worry about it. If Shen Xiucai can like his Fulang really much, there will be people like Qingze too."
"I hope..." Su Wanqing touched her son's head, and said, "If Qingze can really lose weight, I have to thank Shen Xiucai!"
Her little brother was a beautiful boy, it was a pity that his body was weak so he had been given many supplements since he was a child. Otherwise, the people who came to their house to propose would definitely be able to exceed the threshold. But why when he was gonna at the end of his seventeen, there was still no news yet!
Li Zhiyuan touched his nose. "It's okay. He doesn't need to be too thin, it's better looking a little bit more fleshy."
Su Wanqing glanced at him strangely. Li Zhiyuan guiltily changed the subject. "How about we make a banquet on the day of our son's birthday? I have taken office but I haven’t seen the local gentlemen, so why don’t I take this opportunity to invite people to come and sit?"
"Okay, I can take this opportunity to meet the Furens by the way." Su Wanqing said, thinking of the Gu Dàgē mentioned by Su Qingze just now, she could invite him to see if he was as strong as Su Qingze said.
When the four of them met at the gate of the county seat, they all had a lot of things in their hands and filled the bullock carts with the food.
Uncle Shen yelled and threw the whip. The ox-cart slowly moved.
Everyone in the village knew that Shen Yanbei would hold a crown ceremony in Shen's Family Ancestral Hall. After the ceremony, he would entertain all the villagers to have a meal, so everyone was eagerly waiting. Seeing that the husband and wife came back from the county with large and small bags, they were very enthusiastic about coming to help, but Gu Changfeng himself actually could bring all the things with his two hands!
Shen Yanbei had no choice but to thank the villagers politely, then followed his wife back home.
"Wife, you are so capable!" Shen Yanbei chuckled as he watched him put down the things effortlessly and tidied them one by one.
Gu Changfeng looked at him with serious eyes. "You can study at ease, and I will take care of you." He couldn't do that much except for his strength, while Shen Yanbei had to study hard and found a way out to support his family. What Shen Yanbei did was much better than him but at the same time much harder than simply being a laborer. Therefore, he had to learn to take good care of his husband, so that he did not worry about the trivial matters of life.
"Okay!" Shen Yanbei enjoyed the concern of his wife very much. Seeing the sky was getting dark, it was time to prepare for dinner. So he took the people out to the bamboo forest he bought.
"I plan to use these ten acres of bamboo forest to raise chickens." Shen Yanbei asked Gu Changfeng to chop a few pieces of bamboo to prepare a bowl of bamboo rice.
"Alright." Raising chickens was good. Because reading was so hard, he must boil chicken soup every day to nourish his body.
Shen Yanbei was also thinking about eating chicken in his heart. Salt-baked chicken, fried chicken, boiled chicken, roasted chicken... he could eat whatever he wanted when he raised his own chicken! But before the chickens were here, he had to find someone to take care of these chickens, but he didn't know if there was any news from Uncle Zhong. Also, he still had to find someone to help him watching the ducks. Zhou Yu was his book boy, not his full-time worker. Therefore he still had to bring him out when the time came, so he couldn't stay in the field to watch the ducks.
Shen Yanbei wanted to talk about it with Zhou Yu at dinner later, but before he met Zhou Yu, Zhou Yu came to him with red eyes.
"Gōngzǐ, the ducks were stolen!"
