Chapter 42: You’re Not in a Hurry, but We Are
Wen Xiuyi gave it some thought and felt this idea was workable. “Why don’t we go ask the old house?” He was the kind of person who, once he had a plan, acted on it immediately. Since it was still early, he figured they’d better settle this soon, so his son could focus on studying medicine without worries.
“Let’s go ask!” Wen Yao was the same way—action first. Even Da Tou clapped his hands and stood up, marching forward with a sense of righteous purpose.
Wen Jun’s mouth twitched. “There’s no rush, though…”
All three of them turned to look at him and said in unison, “You’re not in a hurry, but we are.”
Left with no choice, Wen Jun could only follow behind them.
The people at the old house were getting ready to rest for the night and hadn’t expected them to show up at this hour.
“What’re you doing here so late? Something happen?” asked Granny Luo, sitting cross-legged on the kang. Old Man Wen had already taken off his outer robe and was wearing it loosely as he sat nearby.
Wen Xiuyi rubbed his hands together and said, “Mom, there’s something I’d like to discuss with you.”
Granny Luo glanced at him rubbing his hands and cut straight to the chase. “If it’s about money or land—we don’t have any.”
…
Speechless.
Wen Xiuyi stopped rubbing his hands and got to the point. “It’s not that. Here’s the thing—I want to let Xiao Jun go study medicine. But if he goes, we’ll be short-handed at the stall. So I wanted to ask if Wen Nong would be willing to help me out there. I’ll pay him two hundred wen per month. Don’t worry, there’s no heavy lifting—just some basic chores like cleaning up, wiping things down, going out with me in the morning and coming back in the evening.”
Granny Luo was stunned for a moment and looked from Wen Xiuyi to Wen Jun. “Let him go study medicine? You sure about that?”
Truth be told, both she and Old Man Wen had always had high hopes for Wen Jun. He’d studied under Liu Shi since young, and if not for Wen Xiuyi’s past mistakes, he should have already gone to take the provincial exams.
Now that Wen Xiuyi had finally turned over a new leaf, they were thinking about when to bring this up. And now, here he was saying he wanted Wen Jun to study medicine?
Once you went down the medical path, it had nothing to do with the imperial exams anymore.
Wen Xiuyi knew exactly what she was thinking and nodded. “Yes, we’ve decided. He likes it, and I want to respect his choice. If he wants to study medicine, then that’s a good path too. That’s why we came over this late—to ask if Wen Nong can take Xiao Jun’s place.”
Granny Luo went quiet and exchanged a look with Old Man Wen. Since the eldest had already made up his mind with his family, they couldn’t say much.
“We’ll need to ask your second brother and his wife, and Wen Nong himself. Yao Yao, go call them over,” Granny Luo said.
Wen Yao answered and went outside the second house’s window to shout, “Second Uncle, Second Aunt, Brother Wen Nong—Grandma’s calling you.”
Ever since the eldest family had arrived, Li Shi had been dying of curiosity about why they came so late, but she couldn’t sneak out to eavesdrop with Wen Xiuzhu nearby. When she heard Wen Yao calling, she immediately came out of the room.
Wen Xiuzhu and Wen Nong followed as well.
Li Shi asked why Granny wanted them, but Wen Yao only said, “You’ll know when you get there.” Though confused, Li Shi still followed them into the main room.
“Dad, Mom, you called us?” Wen Xiuzhu asked.
Granny Luo nodded and gestured at Wen Xiuyi. “Your big brother wants Wen Nong to help out at the stall. He’ll pay him two hundred wen a month. What do you all think?”
“Huh?” The couple both froze, and even Wen Nong looked surprised. They wanted him? And offered money?
He was familiar with his uncle’s food stall and had visited it before. The workload wasn’t heavy—washing dishes was about the worst of it. For something that light, Uncle was offering two hundred wen a month?
Wen Xiuyi added, “Yes. On top of that, I’ll teach Wen Nong how to make fried rice. If we ever decide to stop doing the business, the stall can go to him. You’ve seen how good business is at the docks. It’s a solid livelihood.”
If Li Shi had been hesitant a moment ago, now her eyes lit up.
Pass on the skill? If what Big Brother said was true, Wen Nong wouldn’t have to worry about his future. Plus, he wasn’t married yet. All the money he made would go straight into her hands. They could even start saving for their family.
As for Wen Xiuzhu, he had been shocked, and now was even more shocked.
But shock aside, he still said, “Big Brother, this isn’t right. The stall is yours, the cooking skill is yours. If anyone should inherit it, it’s Xiao Jun. If the stall’s short-handed, Wen Nong can just help out. No need to talk about wages—we’re family.”
Li Shi nearly bit her tongue. She wished she could jump up and cover her husband’s mouth. What an idiot! This was such a good opportunity—how could he reject it?
But since Wen Xiuzhu had already spoken, she couldn’t contradict him publicly. All she could do was shoot him meaningful glances and hope he’d shut up.
Wen Nong quickly chimed in, “Yeah, Uncle, no need for wages. I can just help when it’s busy.”
But Wen Xiuyi waved it off. “This isn’t about helping me and Jun—it’s about helping me. I’m sending Jun to study medicine, and I can’t run the stall alone. If you don’t want to be paid, I’ll find someone else.”
The previous Wen Xiuyi may have taken advantage of the old house, but that wasn’t going to happen with him. He was a professor—he had principles.
Family or not, fair is fair.
Li Shi panicked. No, that wouldn’t do. It had to be Wen Nong. Only Wen Nong.
She stopped caring about what her husband and son had just said and blurted, “Big Brother, come on, what are you saying? We’re all family. Of course we’ll help you if you’re in a bind, right?”
Granny Luo gave her a glance and then looked away. “Your big brother’s right. Fairness among family is still important. If Wen Nong doesn’t want the job, then he doesn’t take it. No working for free.”
“But I do want it!” Wen Nong cried, confused and overwhelmed. All he’d meant was that they could skip the pay—how did it turn into him being unwilling?
Granny Luo, as decisive as ever, clapped her hands. “Alright, it’s settled. Wen Nong, you start going with your uncle to the stall tomorrow.”
“Yes, Grandma,” Wen Nong nodded.
Granny Luo then turned to Wen Xiuyi. “Since you want Jun to study medicine, have you found a place? A teacher?”
“Nope. We just decided over dinner, so we came straight here to talk about Wen Nong,” Wen Xiuyi replied.
Granny Luo looked like she was about to pop a vein. These people—nothing prepared, and they’re already making plans? Study medicine? Study your head!
She couldn’t even bear to look at her son anymore. Her lifespan might shorten just from seeing him.
“Then go figure it out yourselves. The matter’s settled. It’s late. Go home.” And with that, Granny Luo kicked them out for the sake of her own sanity.
