"It was on my first day of business when Chen Hu showed up with his little gang. I thought it was all over at the time, and sure enough, he made a scene by spilling the hot pot broth everywhere and even burned one of our customers. The rest of them were scared away, and we couldn't stand watching any longer, so we ended up getting into a fight with those hooligans. Although we managed to chase them off, the opening day went downhill from there. Not only did we make no money, we also had to pay for damages." Mr. Qian said.
"How despicable! This man is such a tyrant—how can nobody stop him?" Xu Dabo fumed angrily.
"How could we possibly provoke someone like that when we just arrived?! I wanted to take the token the old man gave me to go see the governor, but I hesitated, since this person has connections with him. If he intended to cover up the incident, we wouldn't be able to stay in Qingyun Town." Mr. Qian explained.
"I feared further disruption and stopped operations for a few days, pondering potential solutions. I considered bribing Chen Hu with some silver, but right as I was feeling at wits' end, something completely unexpected occurred!"
Seeing everyone's eyes fixed upon himself, listening intently, Mr. Qian cleared his throat. "The governor came personally with people to apologize, bringing along his secretary and Chen Hu to accompany him."
"Wait, Mr. Qian, even if Chen Hu came to apologize, why would the governor himself come over?" Xu Dabo was puzzled.
"Actually, I don't know why it's like this, and the governor has driven away the chief magistrate who has been following him for years!" Mr. Qian exclaimed.
"What? This...doesn't make sense! We're just a merchant, and are not even worthy of the governor's attention. Is there something fishy going on here?" asked the old man.
"I'm not sure either, but our business has continued to thrive since then. The governor even came by personally to show his support after what happened. With this connection, our sales have skyrocketed and we haven't encountered any trouble along the way!" Mr. Qian said.
The old man sighed: "If you can't figure it out, don't worry about it. We've definitely been blessed with good fortune!"
Qibao was also somewhat suspicious—just who exactly had helped them from behind the scenes? It was impossible for Mr. Qian alone to warrant such an apology from a governor, so she began to suspect that among those who had opened a branch in Qingyun Town were the two other shopkeepers, Tong and Hong.
If they knew, their masters must as well, though Qibao couldn't be certain which one it was. Either way, these men had helped her family, so she made a mental note to repay their kindness.
Master Qian continued: "It's Chinese New Year now! There are fewer people in the store, so I'm thinking about taking a few days off, and then going back after the Chinese New Year is over."
The old man nodded: "That sounds reasonable. The New Year should be celebrated with lively gatherings and family reunions—it is only proper! You shall celebrate this year here!"
Master Qian hesitated and said: "But sir, isn't that improper?"
Mrs. Wang replied: "What is there to fear? We will all be one family from now on, so let us not be strangers anymore either. From here on out, you may call me aunt, just as Yue Ru does!"
"Dad, I want to spend the New Year at Granny Xu's house!" Zhi'er piped up.
Master Qian replied: "Then I won't be a stranger, from now on, Auntie, just call me Shusheng! My full name is Qian Shusheng..."
"Shusheng? What an interesting name." the old man remarked.
Mr. Qian blushed slightly: "My father bestowed upon me such a name, he wished for me to pursue scholarly studies, hoping my accomplishments would bring honor to our family. Alas, though I have indeed studied, my mind is rather dull, and I have made no achievements whatsoever. Thus, I can only inherit the family estate upon returning home, thus betraying the title of 'shusheng'."
Qibao thought to herself—this was exactly what modern people meant when they spoke of those who didn't study diligently being forced to inherit their family's estate upon returning home. This had been the dream of countless young people in her previous lifetime, yet she never imagined she'd encounter it in this world.
The old man said: "That's not quite right, someone who can read and do business is not something to be taken lightly. Moreover, Xuedong has been studying diligently, so it won't be difficult for him to accomplish your father's wishes."
Master Qian replied: "How can he compare to Wenwu? I heard that even the Master thinks highly of Wenwu's knowledge! It won't be a problem for him to pass the imperial examination in the future."
The old man was internally delighted, but his words were: "Who knows what the future holds? Anything could happen. You two have just returned, so rest up—we're having dinner soon."
Since the white wolf stopped running to the mountain, Yaya and Zhier have two more playmates. Why not say four? It's because Baishuang and Baixue have been leaders and have a high status among the wolf pack.
These two wolf cubs have other names, one is called Baiyin and the other is called Baiyan. Why are they called Baiyan?
It was all because of Xiaoliu. At that time, Xiaoliu hadn't gone to school yet, and he often played with the white wolves, and tricked them many times. So one of them rolled its eyes when it saw Xiaoliu, and that's how it got this name. Qibao couldn't persuade her sixth brother, so she just let it be.
Yaya and Zhier often play with Baiyin and Baiyan, but the two children are much gentler than Xiaoliu, and the two wolves are willing to play with them.
In the afternoon, the brothers also came back from school. When Qian Xuedong saw his father, he immediately ran up to embrace him happily: "Father! You're finally back!"
"How old are you? Don't you know how to be more composed?" Mr. Qian said mildly despite his scolding.
Mrs. Wang asked: "Wenwu, when will your academy have a holiday? It's almost the New Year, why is it so late this year?"
Xu Wenwu replied: "It's because there was a great scholar of literature visiting our academy for a lecture, so the headmaster didn't want to miss this opportunity for learning and thus delayed it until now. However, the scholar left today, so we won't need to go to school tomorrow."
"Ah!" Xiao Wu sighed: "The headmaster also asked us all to write a report on what we've learned from these lectures, and he will personally review them upon our return. How am I supposed to write something like that if I don't even understand the lecture?"
The old man said: "Your headmaster means well, if you listened carefully, how could you possibly not have anything to write about? Clearly, you weren't paying attention, or your thoughts wandered off somewhere else entirely."
Xu Wenwu said: "Don't panic, Fifth Brother. I've written everything down. I'll give you a copy of the important ones when the time comes. You can read them slowly and you will gain some insights."
Xiaowu replied: "Ah!...Brother...this...isn't necessary? You have other homework to do, so I won't bother you."
Xu Wenwu said: "How can this be possible? If you can't write it, the dean will hit your palm with a ruler."
Xiaowu said: "It's okay, I have thick skin, I won't be hurt even if I get hit a few times!"
Xu Erbo was enraged and grabbed Xiaowu by the ear: "Let me see if your ears are as thick as your face. How can you say such a thing? Aren't you afraid that other classmates will laugh at you?"
Xiaowu yelped, attempting to free his poor ear from his father's grip with a grimace: "Ow... Father, please let go, my ear's about to fall off! I'll listen to elder brother, just let go of my ear already, father!"
Only then did Second Uncle Xu let go of his hand and said: "Your elder brother is thinking about you wholeheartedly, but you don't appreciate it, you ungrateful bastard."
He rolled his eyes at Xu Laoer and snorted, showing some dissatisfaction.
Xiaowu rubbed his red ears and felt his teeth itching as he looked at his brothers who were watching the fun with their hands folded and smiling on their faces.
Mrs. Wang said: "All right, all right, look how many people there are! Give the child some face, it's almost the new year anyway—let's discuss this after the festivities. Let him enjoy himself for a few days first, he's had a tough time too."