It's no wonder that Mrs. Cheng dislikes that the courtyard is too small. If it were in the countryside, with three thousand taels of silver, she could build an extremely luxurious courtyard with three entrances.
Old Mrs. Cheng looked around the yard, then went out to walk in the next yard. After asking around, she realized that the three thousand taels of silver was really a bargain.
Not long after, the owner came over with the lease and the contract. He paid the rent on the spot and signed the deposit, and the yard came under Cheng Zhao's name.
Old man Cheng asked the people next door for directions and went out to find a locksmith. The first thing he did when he got a new house was to change the locks so that he would feel safe.
Mrs. Cheng and Sister-in-law Cheng were cleaning the yard and tidying up some old furniture. Cheng Wanwan asked Cheng Jia and Wei Xiaohai to help tidy up as well.
Not long after cleaning up, a motorcade came to the door of the courtyard.
It was furniture sent by Mrs. Situ, escorted by the housekeeper of Situ's house. The dozen or so cars were all filled with Huanghuali tables, chairs and cabinets.
Cheng Wanwan was surprised. Although the price of huanghuali furniture only increased in modern times, it was not cheap in ancient times. Such a complete set would probably cost three to four thousand taels of silver. The Situ family was quite generous.
Cheng Zhao's expression also changed, and he stepped forward and said, "Uncle Li, this is too expensive. I..."
"Uncle, please don't refuse." Uncle Li said with a smile, "If this is a brand new set of huanghuali, the price is almost three thousand taels of silver, but this is a set of furniture that my wife accidentally picked up, and it only costs one thousand two hundred. There is no shortage of these two pieces of silver in Situ's house. If I don't accept it, my wife will have no choice but to sell it at a lower price."
Cheng Wanwan stepped forward and took a look. There were indeed scratches on the Eight Immortals table for dining. Although it was second-hand furniture, it looked no different from brand new ones.
Mrs. Situ also had good intentions in order to allow her son-in-law to accept the housewarming gift with peace of mind.
Cheng Zhao could only accept it, and Li Bo happily asked people to carry the furniture in, leaving a few boys to help clean the yard.
Sister-in-law Cheng watched the young men rushing in and out, and took Brother Cheng and muttered: "A set of furniture in our village only costs more than ten taels of silver. This piece of yellow flower furniture has been used by others, but it costs more than a thousand taels." Money, the capital is too deceptive..."
"The fact that the Situ family is willing to spend so much money shows that they value our Zhao'er." Brother Cheng said to Yourong, "Zhao'er is so outstanding. Sooner or later, his official position will surpass that of his father-in-law. When the time comes, the Situ family will surpass our Cheng family."
"It can be seen that the Situ family is not short of money, and our daughter-in-law's dowry should also be very generous." Sister-in-law Cheng's eyes lit up, "Do you still remember the second daughter-in-law? I heard that the dowry was worth thirty or forty thousand taels of silver, Situ Marrying a daughter into a family will definitely be more luxurious than the Cao family. Five to sixty thousand taels of silver shouldn’t be a problem. Our daughter-in-law is so rich, so we won’t have to worry about spending money..."
Cheng Zhao, who was sweeping the floor not far away, heard it and his fingers froze immediately.
He pursed his lips, put down the broom and walked over.
Sister-in-law Cheng immediately stopped talking and asked warmly: "Zhao'er, are you tired? As a scholar, you shouldn't do such rough work. With so many servants coming to Situ's house to help, they will definitely be able to clean up before dark. Go back quickly. Just rest."
"Father, mother, I have something to tell you." Cheng Zhao said seriously, "Sit down first."
Seeing his serious face, the two of them thought it was something big, so they put down their work and sat down at the stone table in the yard.
"Do my parents think that now that I am a prostitute and have entered the Hanlin Academy, I will have a bright future?" He laughed at himself, "This time among the three people in the first class, I am the only one from a humble family. Both of them are from the capital. The children of aristocratic families will be promoted as soon as they enter the imperial court, and they will be promoted within a year or two. Their official career will be prosperous, while I may spend seven or eight years working on the seventh-grade editor..."
Brother Cheng couldn't believe it: "My son is so good, if the emperor doesn't promote you, then he is blind..."
"Dad, don't say this nonsense again. If outsiders hear it, you can be punished with a crime of gross disrespect, up to and including beheading." Cheng Zhao said with a stern face, "I am not saying this to let my parents do it for me." I'm anxious, but I want to tell you that my only backing in the capital is the Situ family. Lord Situ is also on errands in the Hanlin Academy. Whether I can be promoted or not depends entirely on my future father-in-law. If my future father-in-law is dissatisfied with me, then I In this life, I am just a seventh-grade person..."
Sister-in-law Cheng smiled: "I see Master Situ is very satisfied with you, there is no need to worry at all..."
"But if his daughter has a bad life in the Cheng family, will he still be satisfied with me?" Cheng Zhao's eyes were bright, "The capital has regulations in the capital. The husband's family has no right to use a woman's dowry. If my Cheng family uses it, If word spreads about the Situ family's money, the Cheng family will be criticized by thousands of people, and the Situ family will become the biggest laughing stock in the city."
Sister-in-law Cheng and Brother Cheng's faces froze.
It seems that what they just muttered was heard by their son, and then he came to beat them.
Before her daughter-in-law came in, her son defended her. This made Mrs. Cheng feel a little sour, but she did not dare to argue. She nodded and said: "Your father and I were just joking, how could you really touch your wife's dowry?" Well, doesn't that make the Situ family look down on our Cheng family? Don't worry, after your wife comes in, I will treat her well so that she can't make any mistakes."
Brother Cheng also repeatedly promised.
"There is one more." Cheng Zhao spoke slowly, "All my business is in the name of Cheng Ding, and Cheng Ding's contract of sale is in the hands of the second aunt. From now on, my mother will be more polite to the second aunt. If she offends the second aunt, Auntie, all my business has gone bankrupt."
His mother can only be suppressed by profit, and no other reason makes sense.
Sister-in-law Cheng twitched her lips: "I'm already very polite to her, okay..."
She doesn't have anything to ask for, how dare she be rude to her second sister-in-law. Look, even his son defends this second sister-in-law, but she doesn't dare to really do anything.
"If you don't want others to know, you have to do nothing yourself." Cheng Zhao's eyes were sharp, "I can hear what my mother said behind my back. Can Cheng Jia and the others not hear it?"
Sister-in-law Cheng said: "Okay, then I won't say anything anymore..."
The second sister-in-law's mouth was so powerful that even Mrs. Situ was afraid of her, so it was better for her to avoid it.
Looking at his parents' expressions, Cheng Zhao sighed.
He used to be indifferent to what was going on outside the window and didn't know how his second aunt was getting along with his family. Later, he got away from it and gradually felt it.
On one side is the Cheng family who gave birth to him and raised him, and on the other side is his second aunt who is very kind to him. He hopes that the two parties can get along well with each other instead of becoming enemies.
This road is difficult to walk, but it must be walked. He will slowly make his parents change their attitudes, and he will also slowly make his second aunt change his view of the Cheng family...
Cheng Zhao looked up and saw Cheng Wanwan coming over. He stood up and said, "The yard at the back has been cleaned up. Second aunt can move in later..."
Cheng Wanwan smiled and shook his head: "The main courtyard is your new house, and the courtyard behind is where your family lives. The wing room must be reserved for the servants of the Situ family. I won't squeeze in here. The small rented courtyard is still there. It’s quite comfortable, and I only live here for a short period of time, so I’m too lazy to bother with it.”
"Yes, yes!" Mrs. Cheng quickly helped, "After our family moved here, the yard next door was also used by his second aunt. It will be spacious, right?"
She was afraid that living under the same roof with her second sister-in-law would make her look like the head of the family, while she would look like a mother-in-law doing rough work.
Of course, Cheng Wanwan didn't want to live with the Cheng family. She would get strange looks whenever she ate anything, and she wished she could stay as far away as possible.
