Chapter 181 - 177: Offsetting Merits and Demerits_1

Translator: 549690339

Upon seeing Wu Daozi and her father unable to carry the conversation, Yingbao quickly interjected: “Uncle Wu, there’s something I wanted to tell you today.”

Wu Daozi turned to look at her: “What is it?”

“We’ve planted golden oyster mushrooms in our village, and I want to label them as a specialty of Qinchuan County.”

“Specialty?” Wu Daozi skimmed the foam off his teacup and nodded approvingly: “That’s a good idea.”

He had tasted the golden oyster mushrooms that Little Yingbao had given him and found them pretty good. Labeling them as a local specialty seemed fitting.

Yingbao continued saying: “That’s why I want to buy a shop in the county town, specializing in selling local specialties.”

Wu Daozi raised his eyebrows and put down his teacup to ask: “Do you plan to run the shop yourself or lease it to someone else?”

“My eldest cousin will run it.” Yingbao replied. “He’s very good at this.”

Without saying much, her eldest cousin made a fair bit of money selling gourds and water chestnuts last year. It was no less profitable than the hard work of growing oyster mushrooms.

Wu Daozi seriously advised: “In accordance with the law of our dynasty, if one family member engages in business, then the whole family would be classified as merchants. Have you thought this through?” As he spoke, he looked at Jiang Sanlang.

Yingbao and her father were taken aback and quickly shook their heads: “No, we haven’t thought it through.”

They hadn’t expected that running a shop could affect the status of the entire family. If this changed their status from farmers to merchants, perhaps they shouldn’t even embark on this venture.

Being a merchant was a low-ranking social status, their descendants couldn’t participate in the imperial examination. She still harbored hopes for her younger brother to become a senior official. It would be ridiculous to ruin his future for a shop.

Seeing the young girl’s anxious face, Wu Daozi smiled: “However, there is a solution.”

Yingbao’s eyes widened, “What’s the solution?”

“You can buy the shop, but the operator must be someone unrelated.”

Wu Daozi leisurely sipped his tea and seeing the confused expressions on the faces of the father and daughter, he had to clarify: “That is, you can hire a shopkeeper to run the business.”

Could it be that simple? Yingbao was surprised.

Wu Daozi was indeed Wu Daozi, his temperament and nature were just like in his previous life. This high-ranking County Magistrate was teaching a child how to exploit loopholes in the law.

Yingbao’s eyes crinkled into a smile, and she imitated her father’s gesture of making a fist salute: “Thank you Uncle Wu for your guidance.”

Wu Daozi responded with a laugh but no words.

Mr. Wu Sr. didn’t show any surprise at his son’s actions. He just quietly sat there, observing the father and daughter duo on the other side.

Jiang Sanlang had a simple and honest face, but his eyes were bright.

The little girl did not behave like a child of her age. Though her movements seemed childish, they carried the clever wit of an adult.

What an extraordinary family.

Wu Rui brought over a plate of washed peaches and placed it on the stone table in front of Wu Daozi.

Wu Daozi picked up a plump, juicy peach and handed it to the senior officer, only then did he pick a rosy one for himself, taking a bite. It was wonderfully sweet and refreshing.

“Not bad, are these early peaches also grown by your family?”

“Yes! We have also grown grapes and peppers at home.” Yingbao perked up, telling Wu Daozi about her family’s business.

To the side, the senior Mr. Wu listened with surprise, “You also grow grapes and peppers?”

“Mmhm.” Yingbao noticed how cultured the elderly officer seemed to be and, putting that together with Wu Daozi’s background as a scholar-official, she couldn’t help but look at him with admiration. “When our grapes ripen, I’ll pick some and bring them for Uncle Wu and Grandpa Wu to taste.”

“That’s thoughtful of you, Little Yingbao. But isn’t your house quite far from the county seat? Isn’t it inconvenient to come all this way?” Mr. Wu Sr. asked with a smile.

” It’s quite easy actually. We bought a property in the county town. My younger brother will be studying here from the second half of the year onward. We’ll be traveling back and forth often.” Yingbao shared.

“Your younger brother?” Mr. Wu Sr. looked at Yingbao, who seemed about four or five years old. How old would her younger brother be then, already coming to the county town to study?

Yingbao said with a smile, “My little brother is almost five years old, and he’s very smart. He can recite the whole of the Three Character Classic, Hundred Family Surnames, and Thousand Character Text.”

“Oh?” When Mister Wu heard that a four-year-old child could recite such long passages, he couldn’t help but be curious. “Then, bring him along next time you come to the city for me to see.”

“Sure.”

Seeing that she had said all that was necessary, Yingbao pulled out a packet of golden oysters from her bag and handed it to the old man. “This is a golden oyster grown in our house. It can keep you healthy and replenish your chi, you must give it a try.”

Mister Wu was thin and his complexion not too good, so her golden oysters might help a little. But the elderly should not eat this with sugar, or else it might have the opposite effect.

“Grandfather Wu, you should best not add treacle when eating this, the effect will be better.” she cautioned.

Mister Wu smiled and nodded, “Thank you, little Yingbao, when you come again I will also give you a gift.”

At that moment, Wu Rui rushed over, holding a bundle in his arms.

In the bundle were toys and some stationery that he just purchased from outside.

Mister Wu handed the bundle over to Yingbao, “Here are some toys for you, take it and have fun.”

“Thank you, Grandfather Wu.” Yingbao pleasantly accepted the bundle.

Wu Shi asked, “Yingbao, are you going to buy a shop now?”

Yingbao nodded, “Yes, but we don’t know where a shopfront is available.”

“Shops that are for sale are all registered in Teeth Row. You can go there and check it out with Wu Rui.” Wu Shi responded.

“Great, we’ll go check it out right away.”

With that, Yingbao and her father got up and bid farewell to Wu Daozi and the old man.

After they left, Old Mister Wu sighed, “This child is really smart. Jiu-lang, it’s time for you to start a family. If you have children like her, your mother and I can rest peacefully in the underworld.”

Wu Shi said nothing, but picked up another peach to eat.

Seeing his son did not speak, Old Mister Wu knew that he didn’t want to discuss this, so he changed the topic. “What did the Provincial Government say about the bandit incident last year?”

Wu Shi chuckled, “Merits offset the faults.”

During the official evaluation at the beginning of the year, the Governor Wang had sent a letter, informing him that although the source of the bandits wasn’t in Qinchuan County, it had greatly affected the surrounding counties. The Emperor was furious and ordered the Provincial Government to thoroughly investigate whether the local officials had failed in their duties.

As such, even after he did his utmost to resist the bandits, instead of being prasied, he was admonished and warned by the Provincial Government’s governor. Luckily, he had previously discovered the cotton seed transportation, so he didn’t get demoted or dismissed.

Embarrassingly, it was little Yingbao who told him about the cotton matter. So basically, Wu Shi indirectly owed a favor to the little girl.

Old Mister Wu was silent for a while, then patted his son’s shoulder, “It’s lucky as it is.”

He glanced at the two baskets of fruit and laughed, “Qinchuan County isn’t all bad. That little girl’s hometown is quite good. As long as you give a little support, you’ll surely pass the end-of-year performance review.”

Wu Shi smiled sarcastically at himself, “I only wish to avoid mistakes, not hoping for merits.” He really wasn’t accustomed to the ways of the bureaucracy.

Even the little County Government was full of intrigue. The county magistrates harbored their own ambitions, wishing for him to be dismissed early so that they could monopolize the power.

The last time they fought the bandits, the County Magistrate disobeyed orders, causing the number of bandits to grow. In the end, a force of over two thousand surrounded the county seat. Fortunately, he had anticipated the situation and asked for reinforcements from his friend’s son, avoiding calamity.

Remembering the bandit incident still sent shivers down his spine.

If the county seat was breached, not only would the citizens of the county suffer, but his family would also be implicated.

Afterwards, his frail old father, despite his old age, rushed all the way to Qinchuan County to help his unfilial son.

Wu Shi rubbed his forehead, feeling incompetent and embarrassed about his role as an officer.

Being nearly thirty years old, he still required the care of his sixty-year-old father.

Old Mister Wu gave his son a glance, then suddenly said, “Your mother and your aunt will be coming over in a while. Your aunt is bringing your niece to Jianglin, and has plans to stop by here on the way. You better receive them well when they arrive.”