"Two pairs of wild chickens, ten live ducks..." You Miao ticked off the list and gave the tenants money. The most was three or five taels of silver, and the least was five cents and one tael. These tenants worked for the You family all year round. The tea they picked was sold to You Dechuan by pound and pound. At the beginning of next year, they had to pay rent to Biyu Villa. Many people were counting on this New Year's gift to exchange for a gift and go home for the New Year.
This is also the rule in Jiangbei and Jiangnan. If the tenant earns less in a year, the landlord will always give him a reward. The tenant can send some things to pay respect to the village and exchange some reward money to go home. It is a good omen and a good year-end so that he can continue to work for the landlord to make a living next year.
"Twelve stone of polished rice, one stone of red beans... five catties of various cured meats..." You Miao said with a smile: "You are so good, Da Zhuang, you have made a fortune."
A strong man smiled foolishly and said: "My mother arranged a marriage for me, and my wife's family gave me some money..."
You Miao hooked his finger, indicating You Hange to take out more money, and gave him two more taels of silver, including the reward money, and said: "You don't have to come up to treat me to a drink. On the day of the wedding, just kowtow to the mountain manor and that's it."
The strong man smiled and left with the silver in his hands, thanking him profusely.
"Five live chickens..."
"Ten live chickens..."
The cages were lined up on the ground, all cooing.
"A cart of cured fish..."
"Ten jars of rice wine..."
You Miao was distributing rewards, You Hange was holding his wrist and watching from the side. When a tenant greeted him, he smiled and nodded. A moment later, Wang came with Ma Yi Niang and a group of maids. You Miao glanced at her. Wang and Ma Yi Niang were both wrapped in the fox furs they brought back, looking elegant and luxurious.
You Hange: "Mother."
Wang nodded and watched You Miao distributing rewards to the tenants. When a tenant came forward, he smiled and asked You Miao, "Master, don't raise the rent next year. My father and I have worked for our family for forty years..." You
Miao waved his hand and said, "Don't worry if the rent is not raised. Be filial to your father. Go back and have a good New Year."
Wang's face changed when she heard this. You Miao just ignored her, but as long as Wang stood by his side, You Miao felt unspeakably uncomfortable. He knew that Wang was here to keep an eye on him, so that his son would not be overshadowed by him.
You Miao felt disgusted, and suddenly felt that it was really boring to stay at home. It would be better to find a place and leave early.
"You come." You Miao motioned You Hange to take over, and turned to leave.
"Brother!" You Hange called behind him.
You Miao walked lonely in the corridor, and a gust of wind blew, and petals fell all over the yard.
When You Miao heard You Hange call him like this, his heart was still somewhat warm. During the three years in the capital, although he had a group of friends to play with, he still felt lonely and desolate in a foreign land. Every time he went to Li Yan's house and saw his illegitimate brother, Li Yan never gave him a good color. He did not allow his brother to touch anything he played with, lest it be broken.
At that time, You Miao thought to himself, how nice it would be to have a brother. If he had a transparent, cute and naughty brother, he would definitely not treat him like Li Yan.
However, when it came to himself, there was a You Hange in the family, and You Miao couldn't tell what it felt like for a while.
He didn't hate You Hange that much, or even Wang, but he was too lazy to talk to the mother and son. Everyone was fighting for their own things. A familiar saying among businessmen is "seek profit and avoid harm", and to put it more shamelessly, it is "If a man does not work for himself, he will be punished by heaven and earth."
If he had to hate someone, he should hate his father You Dechuan, who didn't make any progress back then and caused so many troubles.
You Miao stood still, and Li Zhifeng also stood still behind him. You Miao said, "Mute, say something."
Li Zhifeng's brows moved slightly.
You Miao said, "I don't want to live in this house anymore. I feel upset."
Li Zhifeng nodded. You Miao said, "Let's go to the place where my mother lived before she died. Do you want to go?"
Li Zhifeng nodded. You Miao frowned slightly. Li Zhifeng said, "Go. Wherever you go, I'll go."
You Miao was very satisfied. He planned to ask his father for money and run away. He would not stay in Biyu Villa anymore and buy some peace of mind.
You Miao walked into the hall. You Dechuan was talking to his two uncles. The women were in the west wing, accompanied by Aunt Ma. You Miao tucked his sleeves in, walked in and nodded with a smile, saying, "Fifth uncle, eighth uncle. Dad."
You Dechuan stopped talking, and the fifth uncle said, "How is Miaozi doing in the capital?"
You Miao smiled and said, "Well, I'm going home to study, and I'm going to go to the capital to take the imperial examination in a few years."
You Dechuan said to the two old men, "The north has been really unstable in recent years."
The eighth uncle nodded and said, "Didn't Deyou's caravan get robbed for a while this winter?"
You Miao immediately said, "Yes, yes, yes! I was in the caravan..."
You Miao described the matter vividly to the two uncles. Hearing the old man's horrified face, You Dechuan's face twitched constantly. You Miao exaggerated the incident ten times, and finally said: "Fortunately, I bought a servant in the capital..."
It was the first time that You Dechuan heard of it, and finally asked: "What is the name of the Yanbian city defense that came to rescue you? You must thank him very much."
You Miao said: "I don't know, no need to thank him, I'll come myself when I have a chance. By the way, Dad."
The three people in the hall looked at You Miao, and You Miao said: "Tomorrow I will go to the villa you mentioned last time to clean up. After all, it is my mother's place."
"Jiangbo Villa?" asked the eighth uncle, looking up at You Dechuan.
You Dechuan's face turned ugly. The fifth uncle said, "Since you are determined to take the exam, you don't have to go to Jiangbo Mountain. What's so good about living there?"
You Miao smiled and said, "I can't calm down to study at home. I'll have peace and quiet in another place."
You Dechuan said, "Why do you have to bother with all these things when you just live at home?"
You Miao said, "Just let me go, Dad. It just so happens that I miss my mother too. I haven't taken care of the things she left me for so many years. Anyway, I have some time."
You Dechuan said, "It's not that Dad doesn't want you to go. Jiangbo Mountain Villa is across the river, and the wind is strong and dangerous... It's not a good place..."
You Miao sneered in his heart. Didn't he just tell me to go there yesterday? Why did the old man change the subject again when he met the clan members today?
"Go and learn now." You Miao said, "So I can help you manage the family business in the future?"
The father and son had their own thoughts and talked in front of the clan elders. The two uncles were very smart and saw that the father and son were not in harmony after You Miao returned. The fifth uncle was silent for a moment and said, "It's hard for you, Miaozi."
You Miao laughed it off. The eighth uncle taught him, "Tokugawa, what you said at the clan meeting must be counted. We are old bones, and we will be punished with a handful of yellow soil in the future. , you still have to rely on your descendants to burn paper and visit your grave. Qiao Ke'er helped you make a fortune, so you have to be affectionate and righteous, and you can't favor one over the other. "
You Dechuan was sweating, and he said repeatedly: "Yes, yes."