WSMTATMC C24

Chapter 24

Since Chen Qingyan had injured his leg, there was no question of lingering outside. Wang Ying quickly wheeled him back to Steward Chen Xi’s home.

When Chen Bo heard the young master had been bitten by a snake, he was so frightened he paled; in ancient times, venomous snakes were ranked alongside wolves, tigers, and leopards as deadly beasts—once bitten, there was almost no chance of survival.

Fortunately, it had been a harmless flower snake. The bite was red and swollen, an alarming sight, but it posed no mortal danger.

Chen Xi called over the barefoot village doctor, who simply smeared some crushed green leaf poultice on it. Wang Ying was still uneasy and planned to take him to a physician in town for a proper look once they got back.

This meant there was no time to transplant the cherry tree from the experimental field as planned; that would have to wait until the next visit.

Dashun summoned the horse groom to ask if he’d be willing to work in town.

The groom, in his early thirties, was dark-skinned from the sun, thin and short. Years ago, he had married a ge’er, but during childbirth, both parent and child had died. Since then, he had lived alone on the manor.

With few family members and little land, his life was meagre, and he was often bullied by the other tenants.

Hearing the master wanted to bring him to town to work, he was, of course, more than willing, and immediately went home to pack his things.

Ershun also got his clothes and bedding together to accompany them back to town.

Before leaving, Chen Xi and his wife clutched their son’s hands and laid down countless earnest instructions: once in town, obey the masters, work diligently, and don’t get into trouble.

“Don’t worry, Father, Mother—I’ll do right by the masters!” Ershun promised.

As they were boarding, Wang Ying remembered the sack of selected wheat seed he’d brought from the experimental field and handed it down to Chen Xi. “Remember those few mu I asked you to leave bare?”

“Of course.”

“These seeds are picked by hand—once the millet is harvested, plant them with the rest of the wheat. I’ll check back later.”

“Rest assured, Young Master—we’ll plant them well!”

Chen Bo, anxious about his young master’s injury, drove faster on the return, reaching home before dark.

When Li Shi heard her son had been bitten by a snake, she burst into tears on the spot. Wang Ying could only keep repeating that it had been non-venomous to calm her down.

A quarter of an hour later, Chen Bo arrived with a physician from town, who examined Qingyan carefully, confirmed there was no danger, and prescribed a tonic decoction. Only then did Li Shi finally relax.

“You mustn’t go to the manor anymore—too many insects and snakes. What if you’re badly hurt?”

“Mother, this was just an accident.”

“An accident is still no excuse. Your health is returning—you need to focus on school and the imperial exams. Stop wasting time in the fields.”

At those words, Qingyan’s face went pale in an instant.

Wang Ying quickly changed the subject. “His health still isn’t fully back, and the days are getting colder. There’s no harm in waiting until he’s stronger.”

Li Shi agreed, taking Wang Ying’s hand and patting it. “Once he’s healthy, you two should try for a child soon.”

Now it was Wang Ying’s turn to change colour, hastily pulling away. “After a day’s trouble, Qingyan’s tired—I’ll take him to rest.”

Once back in the rear courtyard, Wang Ying asked, “When do you plan to tell your mother the truth?”

Qingyan kept his head down and stayed silent. For all his early maturity, he was still just a seventeen-year-old boy—stubborn and proud—unwilling to confess such a humiliating thing to his family.

But it couldn’t be put off forever. Delay it a day, perhaps, but a lifetime? Was he going to feign illness forever? That would invite nothing but scorn.

“I’ll tell her later today.”

“No rush this minute. First, think out a plan for your future. Your mother has no strong opinions—if she learns you can’t take the exams, she’ll just cry again. At least give her a goal to latch on to.”

“I’ll open a sishu and teach.”

The town already had two schools — one run by an old xiucai, the other by a tongsheng. Neither was very accomplished; in truth Qingyan’s learning was better than either.

“If you’ve decided, I’ll help you find a house tomorrow so we can establish it early.”

“Agreed.”

After settling Qingyan, Wang Ying went to the front courtyard to arrange things for the two newcomers from the manor.

Shidunzi, the groom, would handle the livestock for room, board, and 100 copper cash a month, staying in the old Tian Lao Han’s quarters. Taciturn and honest, he did as he was told without a word.

Ershun was livelier, quick with his hands and feet, trailing Wang Ying to learn the ropes. Marketing in this household wasn’t hard — buying rice, flour, grain, and oil, and running errands — except during festivals, when gifts for kin had to be prepared.

Wang Ying intended to keep him close for more training; once his shop opened, he’d be just the helper he needed.

In the end, Qingyan did bare the truth to his family: he could never again sit for the imperial exams.

Even prepared as she was, the disappointment on his mother’s face was still hard to see, bringing tears to Qingyan’s eyes.

Under the table, Wang Ying took his hand and patted it, silently urging him to stay calm — he’d already shown courage in saying it; no need to risk a relapse.

“This is no small matter — why didn’t you say sooner? Write to Fourth Uncle at once and have him look into it!”

“If he could help, I’d have told him long ago. There’s nothing to be done…”

Li Shi nearly fainted, her tears spilling freely. No wonder her son had been bedridden since the county exam.

“In such a blow, anyone would feel crushed,” Wang Ying said. “But if you can’t take the exams, then do something else. We still have your second brother — if he makes juren, it’s the same for the family.”

This made Chen Qingsong go white. With neither his brother’s diligence nor his scholarly aptitude, and not even a tongsheng title yet, the pressure felt like a mountain.

After a long while, Li Shi stopped crying. “Enough. If it’s impossible to test again, have you decided what you’ll do?”

“I want to open a private school, to teach children their first characters.”

“I plan to open a shop,” Wang Ying added. “With both, the household will be more comfortable.”

“I’m getting older and can’t help much. Whatever you choose, do it. If you need silver, I’ll give it to you.”

Wang Ying let out a silent breath of relief — at least his mother-in-law wasn’t going to dwell, which would only make Qingyan feel worse.

The next morning, Wang Ying began asking around for available shop fronts.

Selling vegetables didn’t require much room, as the experimental field’s output was limited. The sell was in the rarity: in winter, even the rich couldn’t get fresh greens, and he could. Prices could easily be several times the norm.

Location was key — ideally somewhere passersby would see first thing upon opening, so everyone would know what was sold.

After much searching, he turned up the very shop Chen Biao had lost to the gambling house. The owner had been trying to sell for over a month without luck; the price had dropped from 60 taels silver to 50.

Considering its good location, suitable size, and the fact that Chen Biao’s family had been exiled to Cangzhou, buying it posed no risk of trouble.

Careful by nature, Wang Ying hired an expert to oversee the transaction, wary of being swindled.

It was straightforward: with prior notification, they went to the yamen1, registered the deed, paid the silver, and the shop was theirs.

At the yamen, he ran into Huang San and some fellow constables — he’d yet to thank the man for his help the last time, so he invited them to a meal at the restaurant.

“Too polite — it was a trifle, not worth a feast,” Huang said.

“It’s thanks to you they confessed so quickly,” Wang Ying replied — the kind of talk constables liked, putting smiles on their faces.

Seeing the deed in his hand, Huang asked, “Buying a shop, Master Chen?”

“Just took over the empty one on East Street. Planning to sell fresh greens and fruit from the south this winter.”

“From the south?”

“My Fourth Uncle is stationed in Laizhou, where it’s warmer. Some farmers there use hothouses for vegetables — I’ll bring some here to sell.”

“Must fetch a high price, eh?”

“In winter, those who can treat themselves to greens won’t blanch at the cost.”

“True enough! Wishing your business prosperity then. We’ll skip the drinks — duty calls — but another time.”

Wang Ying nodded to Ershun, who produced 200 cash for them as a drink token.

Grinning, Huang pocketed it. “Need something? You know where to find me.”

He wasn’t in a rush to renovate or hang a sign — the weather wasn’t cold enough yet. Vegetables would sell better later. First came finding a place for the sishu.

A private school didn’t need a prime location — remoteness was fine. Skill mattered more than size.

Most available buildings were too dilapidated or cramped, so in the end he partitioned two rooms off the outer courtyard of the Chen home.

Based on his own memories of classrooms, he commissioned ten sets of desk-benches and one large, flat board. Painted black and hung on the wall, it became a blackboard. With lime-pencil, it wrote as smoothly as chalk, if not cleaner.

As the weather cooled, Wang Ying also had an earth-dragon2 heating bed built around the wall, to keep the room warm in winter.

Qingyan, visiting in his wheelchair, was immediately drawn to the blackboard.

“What’s this for?”

Wang Ying took the limestone stick and wrote “Chen Qingyan” neatly on it. “See? Clear, isn’t it? You can write for the students to learn, then just wipe it clean.”

“Brilliant! How did you think of it?”

“Oh, it’s nothing — back home, all our schools used them.”

It took him a second to recall “back home” meant elsewhere. “This ought to be popularised — if scholars used them, poor children without books could still learn.”

But easier said than done — the more learned the man, the more stubborn. They’d never be persuaded, so they let the idea drop.

By the end of the ninth month, Qingyan could walk unaided again.

With everything ready, the sishu officially opened for enrollment!

notes:

 

1. Yamen (衙门) – The administrative office of a local magistrate in imperial China, also the law court. 
2. Earth-dragon (地龙) – A heated bed or heated brick kang system built into walls or floors in northern China for winter warmth.