Chapter 242: The Fortune Has Arrived
It wasn’t that he could be blamed; the moment he returned, the villagers acted as though they had found their pillar of support.
If one were to speak of who was the happiest, it would be Datou, who had just returned from school. Having not seen Wen Xiuyi for nearly a month, Datou wished he could glue his entire body to him, following him wherever he went.
Wen Xiuyi also missed this youngest child of his.
The meals at home had improved, and they had raised dairy cows. Now, every single morning, Wen Yao had the several children at home—including herself, Wen Di, and Wen Ying—as well as Old Madam Luo and Old Man Wen, drink a cup of milk and eat an egg each, in addition to whatever else they had for breakfast.
Coupled with the fact that the three little tots, including Datou, followed Xun Feng every day to practice martial arts and strengthen their bodies, their physiques grew at a remarkably rapid pace. If Wen Xiuyi hadn’t possessed great strength, he would have almost been unable to lift the boy.
Datou didn’t just cling to him; he also pestered him to talk about the happenings in the prefecture seat.
As Wen Xiuyi spoke, not only the little ones but even the other members of the Wen family listened with great relish.
This small courtyard instantly restored its former bustle.
Early the next morning, the moment Wen Yao crawled out of bed, she saw that an extra pigeon had appeared in the pigeon coop outside her room.
She lifted her feet and ran outside.
“Brother Xun Feng, did a letter come from Li Yi?”
Ever since Li Yi went back, Wen Yao properly tended to the two carrier pigeons he had left behind every single day.
The first time she received a letter from Li Yi was when he arrived in the capital and sent them a letter to report his safe arrival, while also asking about the situation at home.
Wen Yao had originally intended not to reply, but Xun Feng said that perhaps his family’s Heir Apparent was waiting for Wen Yao to write back, so Wen Yao replied with one.
What she wrote about were all sorts of trivial matters happening at home. Fortunately, the pigeons couldn’t carry too large a piece of paper; otherwise, Wen Yao would have even written down exactly how many eggs the ducks at home had laid.
Who would have thought that not long after the carrier pigeon flew away, it brought back another letter? Li Yi also wrote a great deal in his letter about the local customs, practices, and fun things in the capital.
Through this back-and-forth, the two had already exchanged letters several times using these carrier pigeons.
Xun Feng was currently squatting at the kitchen entrance drinking porridge. Today’s porridge had shredded meat added to it, making it incredibly savory.
Seeing her approach, he fished a small bamboo tube straight out from his bosom and handed it over.
Wen Yao took it and opened it. This time, the letter contained no mention of local customs or practices, but only a single passage:
The Emperor Uncle is highly pleased with the corn, potatoes, and sweet potatoes brought back by my Imperial Father. Uncle Wen’s good fortune has arrived; an imperial decree may come within days, so make preparations early.
A simple sentence, yet it encompassed everything.
Wen Yao almost jumped up, running toward Wen Xiuyi: “Dad, you’re about to strike it big!”
Wen Xiuyi was buried in his food, because someone outside was already shouting for him.
“What is it?” Wen Xiuyi asked.
Wen Yao handed the letter to him. “A letter from Li Yi, see for yourself.”
The characters were too small, so Wen Xiuyi had to squint his eyes to read them. Once he saw clearly what was written on it, even Wen Xiuyi was startled: “Oh, holy cow!” He stood up instantly, quickly setting down the bowl in his hand as he held that piece of paper, pacing back and forth while looking at it.
Old Madam Luo leaned close to Wen Yao and asked, “Has your dad gone mad?”
Wen Yao muttered a few words into the old lady’s ear. The old lady blanked out first, asking in disbelief, “Are you telling the truth?”
Wen Yao nodded. “Li Yi said it himself, it can’t be wrong.”
Old Madam Luo was dazed for a long time. Right after, she set down her bowl and chopsticks and walked straight outside.
“Grandma, where are you going?” Wen Yao chased after her.
Before long, the news that the Wen family was offering double wages to have them build the new house next door at the fastest possible speed spread throughout the village.
No one knew why the Wen family had suddenly become so anxious, but with double wages, who could possibly complain about it being too much?
Not only that, in order to build the house even faster, the Wen family also hired quite a few extra workers to do the job.
Old Madam Luo stated that as long as they could build their family’s house at the fastest possible speed, then during this period, not only would they receive double wages, but they would also be provided with two meals, lunch and dinner.
Even so, Old Madam Luo was still worried that it might be too late, constantly confirming with Wen Yao whether the pigeon flew faster or the people coming to proclaim the decree traveled faster.
Wen Yao comforted the old lady, saying that the rules for proclaiming a decree from the palace were numerous. Li Yi had definitely sent them the news the moment he received word, and by the time that side prepared to depart, she had already received the news here.
The old lady wanted to welcome the imperial decree with grand pomp, so that residence simply had to be built quickly.
As for Old Man Wen, his opinion was no longer important.
The opinions of the other members of the Wen family were even less important, which was why Old Madam Luo hadn’t let Wen Yao and Wen Xiuyi tell them about this matter at all.
Even though it was so, the family had absolutely zero experience with this kind of matter, so they could only seek help from someone with experience.
Wen Xiuyi took Wen Yao to find Manager Qiu. Manager Qiu wasn’t surprised by this matter at all.
“Brother Wen, I said long ago that what you are doing is a grand matter capable of changing the State of Annan. All your good fortune lies ahead, and isn’t it arriving right now?” Qiu Zhi was highly delighted. Although he was not in officialdom, he was still happy on his friend’s behalf. A talent like Wen Xiuyi truly shouldn’t be buried.
Only, doing so would more or less definitely touch upon the interests of certain people. After all, once grain production increased, it meant grain would no longer become a bargaining chip in the hands of certain individuals. Once the common people of the State of Annan no longer worried about food and clothing, it would inevitably threaten the interests of some people. As such, Wen Xiuyi would certainly be targeted.
Yet Qiu Zhi wasn’t worried about this point at all. After all, at this very moment, the person standing behind Wen Xiuyi was the one whose status was equal to heaven itself.
Wen Xiuyi only wanted to let the common folks eat their fill and no longer go hungry; he had never thought about what he could gain from doing these things. But to be able to receive recognition, he was still happy in his heart.
“As for whether it’s good fortune or not, I don’t pray for those things. I just want to ask, in case an imperial decree truly comes, what ought I to do?” The key point was that he didn’t understand it either.
Qiu Zhi stroked his beard and said, “His Majesty is wise and enlightened. For Annan to develop to this point is also related to His Majesty always promoting benevolent governance. Our Emperor is a person whose heart is with the common people. Toward a talented person like you, His Majesty will only cherish you. You just need to keep your composure and wait peacefully for the imperial decree to arrive.
As for what needs to be done, you don’t need to do anything at all. Although you hold the scholarly status of a xiucai, you are still just an ordinary citizen. If you prepare too thoroughly, it will counterproductively look bad.”
Since Manager Qiu said so, Wen Xiuyi also snapped out of it. It was indeed true that he had been too nervous; it was just an imperial decree after all, so when it came, he would just receive it.
During the days that followed, although Wen Xiuyi appeared very normal every day, only Wen Yao and Wen Jun knew that their dad was feeling anxious inside.
Ten days later, Old Man Wen and the others’ new house was built. It was just that the finer details inside hadn’t been completed yet, and the doors and windows could only be barely installed on the side closer to the roadside. A new main gate was made; in any case, once the gate was closed, no one could tell what it looked like inside. But at a single glance, this was also a new residence, unlike the messy look of one piece here and one piece there from before.
It was just when the house had just been built and tidied up cleanly that the county magistrate sent people over. They only notified the Wen family to get ready; the envoy delegation from the capital had already arrived and settled in the county seat, and they would come to Gutong Village the very next day.
The other members of the Wen family, who had been kept in the dark all this time, only found out at this moment that their eldest brother/eldest uncle had actually managed to make a real name for himself just through farming.
