Transmigrated into a Grandpa, Embracing the Laid-Back Life

Night was as black as ink, wrapping the Su family’s small courtyard tightly. In the main room, a dim rapeseed oil lamp cast long shadows of the household on the mottled earthen wall, flickering unsteadily.

The dishes had long since been cleared from the table, yet no one rose to leave.

The air carried an unusual hush, oppressive enough to make it hard to breathe. Mrs. Chen’s eyes were rimmed red, she kept wiping at the corners with her sleeve. Eldest Brother Su Feng and his wife Wang Chuntao kept their heads down, lost in thought. Second Brother Su Yang sat close to Su Ming, their shoulders nearly touching, like a silent wall.

Su Shan sat in the head seat, taking one drag after another of pipe tobacco. The ember in the pipe glowed and dimmed, illuminating the ravines on his face, his expression murky and unreadable. The strong scent of smoke mixed with the after-warmth of the meal, composing the entire atmosphere of the Su family’s main room at that moment.

It was Su Ming who broke the silence.

He stood, walked to the center of the room, and before his parents, solemnly and deeply bowed in a formal salute.

“Father, Mother.”

His voice was clear, but carried a faint, barely noticeable tremor.

Mrs. Chen could no longer hold back her tears; they fell in a soft stream. “Child, what are you doing…?”

Su Shan knocked his pipe against something, and finally spoke; his voice was rough as if sandpaper had been rubbed over it: “Say what you have to say, or spit it out! Stand up straight!”He paused mid-knock, his murky eyes lifting from behind the smoke to look at his youngest son.

Su Ming straightened, his gaze clear as he met his father’s eyes: “Father, Mother, Teacher Zhou at our village school is very learned, and I have learned nearly everything he can teach. I have thought this through carefully. I want to go to the County School to study, maybe even go to the prefectural city to seek schooling.”

“I want to take the imperial examinations.”

Those six words landed like a stone thrown into a still pond, instantly stirring thousands of ripples.

“What? To the prefectural city?” Wang Chuntao cried out in alarm, then realized she had spoken too loudly and quickly covered her mouth.

Su Feng lifted his head, his face full of astonishment: “Little brother, this… this is not something to joke about. From here to the prefectural city takes several days on foot, you won’t know anyone there…”

“Xiao Ming!” Mrs. Chen could no longer sit still. She hurried to his side and grabbed his arm, tearful-eyed. “Have you been listening to people outside and gone daft? Why leave a good home to go so far? You’re so young, your mother worries!”

Su Ming took his mother’s rough hand in his and could clearly feel it trembling. His heart twisted, but he forced himself to continue.

“Mother, I’m not acting on a whim. At the village school, the teacher has taught me nearly everything he can. If I stay, I’ll just be stuck, wasting time. I want to see a bigger world, visit better teachers. Only then can I possibly obtain a degree and bring honor to our family.”

He recited the set of arguments Lin Yu had taught him, using his most sincere tone, word by word.

“To take the imperial examinations… to take the imperial examinations…” Mrs. Chen murmured. For a peasant woman like her, the phrase was both sacred and distant. Of course she wanted her son to succeed, but the thought of him traveling far filled her pride with tidal waves of worry.

“Too easy to say!” Su Shan inhaled deeply again, smoke puffing out of his nostrils. “Do you know how much it costs to go to the prefectural city? Food, lodging, brushes, ink, paper, inkstone — which of those is free? Do you think official rank is like the cabbages in the field that you can just pick up?”

“Don’t worry about money, Father.” Su Yang suddenly said in a muffled voice. “Our paper-making brought in some money. At least let Xiao Ming try!”

Su Ming looked gratefully at his second brother.

He drew in a deep breath, then looked at his father again, his eyes filled with an unprecedented firmness: “Father, do you remember how things used to be for our family?”

Su Shan’s movement froze.

“Eldest Brother’s marriage drained the household. When I wanted to buy a few sheets of paper to study, Second Brother had to risk his life going up the mountain. For a year, we rarely had meat. Mother and Sister-in-law’s clothes were patches on top of patches.”

“Now, life is a bit better. But how did it happen? Because we learned how to make paper!”

“But the paper-making method was something I came across in a book by chance. What does that prove? It proves studying is useful! Books not only hold the sages’ teachings, they contain ways to make our family eat and dress warmly!”

“If I go out now, it’s not to seek comfort, it’s to learn more skills! If I can pass as a xiucai, even just a xiucai, our family will never have to bow to Village Chief Zhao again! I’ll be able to stand tall when meeting the county magistrate!”

“Then who would dare bully the Su family? That is real security!”

His words fell like a hammer, resonating through the small main room.

Everyone was stunned. They had never seen their youngest son like this; the usual naive tone was gone, replaced by a moving sense of responsibility and foresight.

The pipe in Su Shan’s hand had gone out without anyone noticing. His murky eyes stared hard at Su Ming, as if trying to see through him.

After a long while, he slammed the cold pipe down on the table, stood up, and wordlessly walked out the door.

“Father!” Mrs. Chen called anxiously.

Su Shan didn’t look back, leaving only a stiff sentence behind.

“You chose your path, then even if you crawl, finish walking it!”

With that he disappeared into the night beyond the doorway.

Silence filled the room.

A few seconds later, Su Yang suddenly slapped his thigh and let out an excited low roar: “It’s done! Father agreed!”

Mrs. Chen’s tears flowed again as she hugged Su Ming tightly, choking as she said, “My son has grown up… grown up…”

Su Ming’s eyes were wet too. He gently patted his mother’s back, feeling a huge weight lift from his chest.

(Inner thought: Nice! That combination punch was logical and moving. First calculate finances, then play the heart card, finally paint the big promise of “pass the exams, whole family turns their luck around.” Teachable child, teachable child!)

Lin Yu in the ring “nodded” with satisfaction, having finally gotten this kid out of the beginner village in his first successful step.

…

Over the next few days, the Su household was filled with a strange mix of excitement and melancholy.

Mrs. Chen and Wang Chuntao began preparing Su Ming’s travel bundle, sewing new clothes stitch by stitch, repeatedly frying long-lasting dried cakes for provisions. Su Feng and Su Yang worked harder than ever; one hunted in the mountains, the other labored in the fields, trying to save more for the family before their brother left.

Su Ming shut himself in a corner of the backyard.

He called Su Yang over alone.