Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

Chapter 115: Chapter 111: The New Bride Enters the House

According to Yang Zhenshan’s intentions, Yang Mingcheng returned to Anning County this time to set the wedding date for Yang Minghao and Liang Zhen because, after all, marriage is a very troublesome business, with three proposals and six rites, none of which can be omitted. Even after setting the wedding date, it would take some time before they could get married.

However, Yang Zhenshan did not expect Mr. Liang to be so eager, having completed the remaining processes in just a few days, and then managed to hold the wedding for Yang Minghao and Liang Zhen within half a month.

With Mr. Liang pushing so urgently, Yang Mingcheng, being a junior, naturally could not refuse. And with Yang Zhenshan not around, the elders of the Yang family like Yang Zhengxiang also could not impede the process, especially since Yang Zhenshan had already agreed to their marriage, Yang Zhengxiang certainly would not say much more but would help with the preparations.

Initially, Yang Zhenshan was wondering why Yang Mingcheng had been away for so long, but regrettably, due to inconvenient communication, Yang Zhenshan was not able to ask immediately.

As for safety issues, Yang Zhenshan was not worried at all. Nowadays, Chongshan Town, under the control and management of Liang Chu, was much more stable than before, with not even the bandits daring to blatantly stop travelers on the road.

Besides, both Yang Mingcheng and Yang Minghao were martial artists, and with the postnatal martial artist Ding Qiu following along, their safety was naturally guaranteed.

So Yang Zhenshan, busy with his own affairs, put Yang Mingcheng and others to the back of his mind.

It was not until the end of August when Yang Mingcheng and others returned from Anning County that Yang Zhenshan was surprised to find that he had actually gained a daughter-in-law.

And when he learned that Mr. Liang had hurried the marriage, he was somewhat bemused.

With everything already decided, he had no intentions of going back on his word, and Mr. Liang’s impatience seemed to be unnecessary.

However, given Mr. Liang’s indecisive nature, he should not have been so eager, suggesting that this was probably the wish of the Liang family.

What could Yang Zhenshan say to that? He could only accept this daughter-in-law.

Yang Mingcheng and others returned to Yinghe Castle the next morning.

Yang Zhenshan sat upright in the main hall, waiting for the two newlyweds to serve tea.

Looking at Liang Zhen, dressed as a young bride, Yang Zhenshan showed a fatherly smile.

He was quite satisfied with this daughter-in-law.

The more he knew her, the more he felt that Liang Zhen was a good girl.

Liang Zhen was different from Ms. Wang and the Li family. Ms. Wang and the Li family were village women before, while Liang Zhen had lived in the affluent Liang family in Jing’an City and had seen the world.

She was born from both the main wife and a concubine, which put her in an awkward position in the Liang family. Plus, dealing with her unreliable father, Mr. Liang, her life at the Liang family was probably quite miserable.

But Liang Zhen didn’t develop a resentful personality; under her gentle appearance, she was quite strong-willed.

Moreover, Liang Zhen was very decisive and clear-headed in her views, which she probably inherited from her mother of the Liang family.

As for Yang Minghao, this young man had matured a lot over the past two years, but was still somewhat unfettered and carefree.

Having such a wife to keep watch over Yang Minghao, Yang Zhenshan felt that this marriage would be beneficial for Yang Minghao.

Looking at his young daughter-in-law, then at his son who couldn’t stop grinning foolishly beside her, Yang Zhenshan couldn’t help but curve his lips slightly. The boy wasn’t good at many things, but he did have a good eye for choosing such a wife.

“Dad, please drink the tea!” Liang Zhen, trembling slightly with nervousness, presented the tea in front of Yang Zhenshan.

Her father-in-law held the rank of a Standard Fifth Rank defense officer, and she felt both pride and apprehension facing such a father-in-law.

Considering the status of Liang family in Jing’an, not to mention someone like her, born from both the legitimate wife and a concubine, it is unlikely for even the legitimate daughters to marry into a government official’s family.

Daughters of wealthy families either marry into other wealthy families or become concubines to important people to build relationships and gain benefits for their families.

Being able to marry into a family with a Standard Fifth Rank defense officer as a daughter-in-law was unique for the Liang family in Jing’an.

Yang Zhenshan took a sip of tea and said, “Now that you are married, you must live well together. As husband and wife, you need to care for each other, support each other, and be understanding.”

Well, he himself had never been married, so naturally, he didn’t know how to get along with a daughter-in-law.

Let’s just say something in favor of a harmonious marriage, that shouldn’t be wrong.

Sure enough, Liang Zhen showed a pleased expression after hearing his words.

Yang Zhenshan took out an old silver hairpin from the basket beside him and handed it to Liang Zhen, saying, “This is a silver hairpin left by your mother-in-law. She’s no longer with us, so I will give it to you on her behalf!”

It was customary for the new bride to receive a red envelope when serving tea.

Yang Minghao was the son of the original married couple, but since the original couple had both left this world, only he could represent them now in completing this ritual.

When he first came to this world, the original owner left him two silver hairpins and two silver bracelets.

The pair of silver bracelets had already been given to his eldest daughter-in-law, Ms. Wang, and one of the silver hairpins to his second daughter-in-law of the Li family. This remaining silver hairpin was meant for his youngest daughter-in-law.

Such a silver hairpin wasn’t expensive, it was just to leave a memento.

“Thank you, Dad!” Liang Zhen said as she received the silver hairpin.

Yang Zhenshan nodded slightly and then took out a red envelope.

This was a real red envelope, wrapped in red paper, containing a silver note.

It wasn’t much, just a fifty-tael silver note.

As a father-in-law, it wasn’t appropriate for him to give jewelry and such to his daughter-in-law, so he chose the most practical and useful thing.

“This is for you, spend it as you wish,” Yang Zhenshan said, feeling somewhat uncomfortable himself.

Previously, facing Ms. Wang and the Li family, aside from feeling a little uncomfortable at the beginning, he later got used to it.

Now facing this new daughter-in-law, he felt awkward again.

I myself don’t have a wife yet, but now I have three daughters-in-law!

It seems too easy to be an honorary father-in-law.

“Thank you, Dad!” Liang Zhen said again.

“Dad, what about mine?”

Seeing the red envelope, Yang Minghao, who had been standing by the side, could not help but interject.

Yang Zhenshan looked up and glared at him, then took out another money bag from the basket and handed it to Yang Minghao, “This is for you.”

The money bag was bulging and appeared to contain a lot of silver, but in fact, there were only ten taels of fragmented silver.

Yang Minghao wasn’t foolish. After receiving the money bag, his face fell.

“Dad!”

He looked at Yang Zhenshan with a look of sorrow.

“If you don’t want it, you can give it back to me,” said Yang Zhenshan.

Yang Minghao wouldn’t give it back, hurriedly hiding the money pouch behind him.

He was really short on money, or perhaps it should be said that within the Yang family, he was the poorest.

Yang Mingcheng and Ms. Wang, one managed the family assets and the other took care of the inner courtyard—naturally, neither of them lacked silver.

And Yang Mingzhi had his own salary and wasn’t short on silver either.

As for Yang Yunxue, Yang Zhenshan had always been very generous towards this younger daughter, often giving her some small silver coins. Though each time it wasn’t much, the young girl liked to save money, and over the past year, she had managed to save up dozens of silvers.

The only one was Yang Minghao. Even though he followed Yang Zhenshan around every day as a runner, Yang Zhenshan rarely gave him money. Plus, he himself was very extravagant with spending, and occasionally, whatever money he had wouldn’t last more than a few days.

Even Wang Yunqiao and Lin Zhan were wealthier than he was.

Next, Yang Minghao took Liang Zhen to see his eldest brother and sister-in-law, or rather they should be referred to as the Liang Family now.

“Eldest brother, sister-in-law, please enjoy the tea!”

The two of them acted obediently and cleverly, indeed looking the part.

Ms. Wang accepted the tea with a smile, took a sip, and then took out a small box to give to Liang Zhen.

“I don’t have any nice things to give you, so I bought you a pair of jade bracelets!”

Saying this, she opened the wooden box, revealing the white jade bracelets inside.

The bracelets weren’t particularly expensive, probably just around twenty silvers.

“Thank you, sister-in-law!” Liang Zhen returned with a warm smile.

Watching the pair of jade bracelets with envy, Yang Minghao’s gaze then shifted to Yang Mingcheng.

“Eldest brother, is the tea good?”

“Mhmm, the tea leaves dad bought are naturally good,” Yang Mingcheng honestly replied.

“So~~,” Yang Minghao stared intently at Yang Mingcheng, his intention clear without saying a word.

After drinking the tea, it’s time for my red envelope!

Yang Mingcheng also knew it was time to give a red envelope, so he searched his person and pulled out a red envelope.

Yang Minghao surprisedly accepted the red envelope. It was genuinely a red envelope, the same size as the one Yang Zhenshan gave to Liang Zhen, but instead of a silver note, it contained a piece of silver.

“Brother, isn’t this a bit too little?”

“It’s not too little. When your eldest brother got married, dad only gave me ten copper coins!” Yang Mingcheng said with an honest face.

He was right—in those days when the Yang family was poor, after Ms. Wang was married in, there was not much spare money left, and so the red envelopes given to Yang Mingcheng and Ms. Wang were just a handful of copper coins.

“What~~” What else could Yang Minghao say? He could only begrudgingly offer tea to Yang Mingzhi.

He thought that since Yang Mingzhi was an official and had his own salary, he should give him a generous red envelope.

Instead, the Li family gave Liang Zhen a gilded hairpin, and Yang Mingzhi gave Yang Minghao a piece of broken silver.

“I couldn’t possibly give more than my elder brother, right?”

Yang Mingzhi’s reasoning was also solid.

Next were Yang Yunyan and Yang Yunxue, who each prepared a sachet and a handkerchief for Liang Zhen, both handmade by them as a token of their heart.

As for Yang Minghao, he didn’t manage to get a single copper coin from them.

Lastly, Lin Zhan and Wang Yunqiao, as well as Yang Chengye, Yang Chengmao, and the other youngsters didn’t need to give red envelopes, they just needed to recognize their relations.

Yang Minghao was completely wilted. After this round, he had only collected eleven silvers and eight copper coins, while Liang Zhen had received fifty silvers plus a pair of white jade bracelets and a gilded hairpin.

The discrepancy was just too great!

After the recognition ceremony, Yang Zhenshan spoke again: “Eldest son, find time in the next few days to go to the dentist’s to buy some servants.”

Ms. Wang and Mrs. Li each had a woman and a young maid by their side, and naturally, Liang Zhen should too.

“Alright, Dad!” Yang Mingcheng replied.

Then Yang Zhenshan dismissed everyone.

With a new bride entering the family, she naturally needed a few days to adjust. Yang Zhenshan didn’t concern himself with how well Liang Zhen adapted; household matters were managed by Ms. Wang, and Yang Zhenshan believed she could take good care of this younger sibling.

As for where the young couple would live, the family no longer had any available courtyards, so they had to stay in a wing room of the main courtyard.

When everyone was leaving, Yang Zhenshan called Yang Mingcheng aside.

“Is everything okay at home?”

Yang Mingcheng had just returned yesterday, and it wasn’t an appropriate time to ask. Now that there was time, Yang Zhenshan wanted to understand the situation at Yang Family Village.

“Everything is fine, this year’s crops are growing well, and the harvest should be quite good!” Yang Mingcheng said.

The Yangs had one hundred and twenty mu of farmland in Yang Family Village. Although these lands were no longer crucial for the Yang family’s current situation, Yang Mingcheng still cared a lot about the harvest.

Yang Zhenshan nodded slightly. “In a couple of days, the horse farm will release a batch of horses. First, pay back the money owed to the government. With the remaining silver, buy some good farmland when you return to Yang Family Village next time.”

Here, farmland was the most stable investment, which is why those aristocratic families were keen on buying land.

Yang Zhenshan was not an exception—he would also invest in farmland when it was time. For now, it was just buying some land, but once they had more money, he wanted to buy some large farms to manage.

“Yes!” Yang Mingcheng replied.

Yang Zhenshan then asked, “How are things going on Mr. Liang’s side?”

“He has already arranged for Shopkeeper Luo’s liaison with the Liang family’s merchant caravan. In a few days, the Liang family’s caravan will deliver the cloth to the fortress city. In addition, Mr. Liang said that once the arrangements for the cloth store are settled, he will come over,” Yang Mingcheng said.

Yang Zhenshan nodded.

With this, the issue with Luo Shang was resolved, and the Liang family would proceed to develop in Ningzhou City.

Perhaps the Liang family wouldn’t thrive in Ningzhou City, but their lives would certainly be better than in Anning County.