Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!

68: Chapter 68 Dad Left and Mom Passed Away – Part 1 68: Chapter 68 Dad Left and Mom Passed Away – Part 1 Time passed quickly, and a week blinked by.

After paying the tax on the family’s grain, half of what was left was sold.

In ancient times, the yield of grain was too low.

Even someone like Zhulan, who did not know about farming, was aware of the modern grain yields.

In ancient times, with favorable winds and rain, a mu of rice paddy, carefully tended and fertile like Zhulan’s family land, could only yield 320 jin, and the maize yield, though slightly higher, was less than 550 jin.

Zhulan’s family sold half of their grain, earning just over seven taels, and after deducting expenses such as seeds, they made just over six taels for the year.

This was not nearly enough to cover a year’s expenses.

The family had a scholar, and just the annual cost of his stipend was one tael and four silver coins, not to mention the costs of paper and ink.

The two sons were like money pits, and this was just for their education, before even participating in the imperial examinations.

In ancient times, the chance of poor scholars achieving greatness was as scarce as rare species, with silver coins as a crushing burden.

After selling the grain, Zhou Shuren set off for the south.

Zhulan knew all too well how essential silver was for travel.

She didn’t just give Zhou Shuren fifty taels of silver, but she also dug out the jewelry that the original body had never touched.

There was no shortage of jewelry, and the original body had a good father who taught her not to take jewelry with identifying significance.

Thus, she only chose a jade bracelet, pearl jewelry, and did not dare to touch the jade pendant.

Zhulan counted what she unearthed: there were six pairs of jade bracelets, two pearl necklaces, and more than a dozen pearl-embedded vermillion hairpins, along with various other small pieces of jewelry.

Pearls were expensive in ancient times, and those owned by wealthy families were of the finest quality, large and round.

The jewelry hidden by the original body was worth a considerable amount of silver.

Zhulan gave Zhou Shuren a pair of jade bracelets of decent quality and took a pearl necklace with her.

Whether or not they made any profit, they would pawn the items upon return.

There wasn’t much silver left at home anymore, leaving them feeling uneasy without money in hand!

On the first day after Zhou Shuren left, Zhulan was absent-minded, unable to find her energy for anything.

The two were always together, and without him, Zhulan felt restless.

The second day, she began to worry irrationally and had a nightmare at night.

She dreamed that Zhou Shuren had died, leaving her alone in ancient times, filled with regret for not having accompanied him.

The Zhou family’s sons were worried.

With their mother gone, their father’s temper had softened considerably, and the sons were terribly afraid, lest their father return to find their mother gone.

On the third day, Zhulan felt she needed to find something to do.

After breakfast, she delegated tasks, “Eldest, the walls of our courtyard are too low.

You and the second brother find some people and rebuild the wall to at least seven feet high.”

In the fictional dynasty, a foot was similar to that of the Tang Dynasty, approximately thirty-one centimeters, so seven feet was over two meters.

Zhou Eldest exhaled, relieved that his mother had something to do; he hadn’t slept well these past few days.

“Alright, Mother.”

Zhulan looked at Rongchuan, who had little presence but was eager to play, her eldest grandson.

Although her classical Chinese wasn’t great, mathematics was her strong suit.

There were mathematical problems in the imperial examinations, and life couldn’t do without calculations.

“From today on, the whole family will learn arithmetic.”

Lady Li was shocked, suddenly reminded of her husband teaching them to read, her whole body shaking, “Mother, I will be a grandmother in a few more years, I don’t need to learn.”

Zhulan, “…..”

Damn the ancient times, by that reasoning wouldn’t she be a great-grandmother at forty-six in ten years’ time?

Zhao’s eyes sparkled, seizing the chance to get closer to her mother-in-law.

She would be delighted if her sister-in-law didn’t learn.

“Mother, I will definitely learn well.”

Lady Li glared, knowing the second daughter-in-law was plotting something but steeled her heart.

“Mother, I will learn, too.”

Zhulan turned to the several children, “And you?”

Rongchuan longed to learn.

He had a chance at an education, and even when ill, he was making an effort.

He knew he had started late.

“Auntie, I will learn.”

Indeed, Zhang Rongchuan was now calling her “Auntie.”

In the village before, where there were no kinship ties or clan rankings, titles were based on confusion of age and seniority.

But within the clan, it was different; one’s position could be directly discerned from the name, and titles were never muddled.

Rongchuan had moved in; his age was about the same as Zhulan’s eldest son.

Since the couple had other ideas, they corrected his title.

Of course, the couple also couldn’t stand a ten-year-old child calling them grandfather and grandmother.

In modern times, many marry late, in their thirties, and to save their hearts from being pricked, Zhou Shuren decided to take the Scholar exam the next year.

If he passed, it would grant them titles: Scholar Zhou, the Scholar’s wife, and they would no longer face stinging hearts.