Union

Chapter 93 The Lu Family
Mr. Lu arrived very quickly.

He really was a very refined and gentle gentleman.

Although he was weathered and looked very poor, some people's integrity is etched into their bones. Even though he was wearing a short tunic and straw sandals, his skin was tanned dark, and there were small scars on his hands, it did not prevent Yunying from recognizing him at a glance as a scholar of distinguished background.

Yunying looked at the Second Master, who seemed to sense the gaze beside him and looked back at Yunying. Both of them had the same expression in their eyes, and after their eyes met, the corners of their lips involuntarily turned up, but realizing the occasion, they quickly regained their composure.

Mr. Lu greeted the Second Master, who quietly called him to rise. After that, the two did not exchange many pleasantries, but went straight to talking about the matter of nurturing pearls in the crescent moon pond.

Second Master asked about the feasibility of this matter, whether there were any precedents for artificial pearl cultivation, and where Mr. Lu learned about these things.

Mr. Lu answered some of the questions, while remaining silent for others.

He wasn't a liar, but Mr. Lu chose to avoid answering some difficult questions.

If this happened to a magistrate with a bad temper, he would inevitably say that Mr. Lu was arrogant.

In fact, the village head had already given Mr. Lu a "disrespectful" label.

Mr. Lu used to seem very approachable. He treated everyone in the village, whether they were poor or well-off, with courtesy. He never spoke ill of others or had any disputes with his neighbors.

Yet this polite and courteous gentleman became arrogant when facing the county magistrate.

The village head was so anxious that he couldn't help but kick Mr. Lu's leg under the table.

However, there are some questions that Mr. Lu considers taboo, and if he answers them, he will have to reveal his origins.

Of course he didn't want to.

At the very least, he couldn't utter a single word related to his identity until he achieved something that convinced the magistrate would protect his family.

He could see the village head's eagerness, but there were some questions he really couldn't answer.

Not only was the village headman anxious, but even Madam Lu, who was outside the capital, was very anxious at this moment.

She was worried that Mr. Lu would offend the county magistrate, and she was also worried that if their origins were revealed, her family would be taken back to their clan, which would truly mean certain death.

Fortunately, the county magistrate is not one to hold grudges.

Or rather, as long as what Mr. Lu says is useful, no matter how arrogant or disdainful he is, Second Master will not bother with him.

The second master then asked about the conditions and feasibility of pearl farming. Mr. Lu had already prepared his answer, and he was about to speak.

But the village headman added a pause.

Under everyone's gaze, the village head bowed to the Second Master and said, "Sir, this matter is of great importance. Would you and Mr. Lu like to come inside and discuss it?"

The village headman said with a serious expression, "If this matter fails, so be it; if it succeeds, that would be a tremendous success. But if word gets out and someone else learns about it..."

The village head naturally wanted to have an exclusive business, since the rarer something is, the more money it makes.

But the county magistrate certainly doesn't think so.

If freshwater pearl cultivation succeeds, the adults will definitely expand it to Yungui County... But as I said before, it's fine if their entire county benefits, but if it's expanded to Lingnan Prefecture, or other prefectures, then artificial pearl cultivation will become a common craft. All their hard work will be for nothing, and they'll end up benefiting others. Just thinking about it makes me want to vomit.

Second Master had obviously thought of this as well, so under the guidance of the village head, he led Mr. Lu into the main room of the village head's house.

Yunying naturally had no idea what they said in detail.

Yunying, Suiyun, and Leiting stood guard outside. Because Suiyun and Leiting were so imposing, the village head's family members were too intimidated to speak. So Yunying mustered her spirits and started exchanging pleasantries with the village head's family.

She would ask the old lady in the village head's family how old she was, or ask the child with the little pigtails how old he was.

Of course, knowing that Mr. Lu would teach the children of Houtang Village to read and write during the off-season, Yunying also asked the boy how Mr. Lu was teaching him, how he was learning, and whether Mr. Lu taught them anything else besides reading.

The youngest grandson of the Zheng family there was a chatterbox. Perhaps it was because Yunying was beautiful and had a friendly attitude that the child was not afraid of her and became bold in front of her.

The little guy answered Yunying's question in a clear, crisp voice.

“Mr. Lu taught us to read many books, but I was too young and only learned the Three Character Classic. I’ll recite it for you: ‘At the beginning of life, people are inherently good; their natures are similar, but their habits are different…’”

Halfway through reciting, the child forgot how to recite it and blushed. But the little guy quickly changed the subject, saying, "Mr. Lu also taught us to write. I'm not good at it, so Mr. Lu told me to practice more when I have free time. We write on the ground with sticks, which isn't difficult, but it's tiring for our hands. Mr. Lu knows so much. He can even make soap, and he told us the story of the sea god."

Yunying hadn't interrupted the child named Yang'er until now, when she heard the words "Sea God," she couldn't help but ask him, "What is the Sea God?"

“The sea god is the god of the sea. Mr. Lu said that if we go north from here, there are some people who make a living by fishing. They don’t fish in rivers, they fish at sea. People who go out to sea to fish revere the sea god. Before each voyage, they will perform a ritual to ask the sea god to bless them with safety.”

"However, the rituals to worship the sea god are quite bloody."

"How is it bloody?"

The little boy whispered to Yunying, "I'm only telling you this. Don't tell anyone else. I haven't even told my parents or grandfather."

Yunying nodded and agreed.

After receiving her assurance, Yang'er whispered in her ear, "The sea god needs living people for the sacrifice. I heard that not only children but also adults are needed. The children are served as food and drink for the sea god, while the adults are sent to serve him, do his laundry, cook for him, and give birth to his babies. Oh dear, it's quite frightening."

Yunying quickly echoed with a frightened expression, "Where did you hear about this? Aren't you scared?"

“I overheard what my teacher’s wife said. My grandmother was stewing our old hen and asked me to take a bowl of chicken soup to my teacher’s wife to thank her for teaching my aunt embroidery. When I went to deliver the soup, I heard my teacher and his wife talking about the sea god. Aunt Yun, you mustn’t tell anyone about this, or I’ll get a beating. But this is really terrifying. All the adults and children who were sent out for sacrifice must have died, right?”

Yunying quickly promised not to tell anyone. As for whether the person sent for the sacrifice ultimately died or not, Yunying didn't say.

She took out a few candies from her purse and gave them to Yang'er so that he could share them with his younger siblings.

Yang'er is still a child, and he has a sweet tooth; his mouth waters at the sight of candy.

He took the candy from Yunying, thanked her a few times, and ran out.

When the old lady of the Lu family, Lu Yang's grandmother, saw him taking Yun Ying's things, she tried to stop him, but Yun Ying stopped her with a smile. "Yang'er is so lovable. What I gave him was just a few pieces of candy, nothing valuable. Please don't be angry with the child."

The old lady quickly said, "Don't be angry, don't be angry. It's just that the young lady has spent too much money."

Yunying said, "What do you mean by spending money? It's just a few candies."

The old lady kept talking to Yunying, but Yunying couldn't help but look outside the fence.

Earlier, Madam Lu was standing outside, and the old lady had asked her to come in and sit down. But Madam Lu, whether out of shyness or because she really had things to do at home, declined a few times and did not come in. After Mr. Lu followed the second master into the main room, she left.

Now, when recalling Madam Lu's appearance, Yunying only has a vague impression; Madam Lu seemed to have a rather delicate and pretty face.

When Yunying and the old lady talked about Mr. Lu, the conversation naturally turned to Mrs. Lu, and even the entire Lu family.

The old lady thought it was just casual conversation, so she didn't hide anything from Yunying and told her everything.

"Both Wan Niang and Mr. Lu were unfortunate people. Mr. Lu made a living under his stepmother's care, while Wan Niang lost her parents at a young age. Her uncle and aunt were heartless and wanted to sell her to a filthy place. It was Mr. Lu who was kind-hearted and rescued Wan Niang, and the two got married. Later, it is said that Mr. Lu's father passed away, and he was driven out by his stepmother and her brothers. The family had nowhere to go and had to go to a distant place to make a living."

"Initially, they planned to seek refuge with Mr. Lu's maternal uncle, but unfortunately, Madam Lu's health was deteriorating, and the children were too young to endure the arduous journey. Coupled with the hot weather, they decided to find a place to stay nearby. Before they could even decide where to stay, their travel expenses were stolen, and they even encountered a ferocious beast..."

"Madam Lu is skillful and kind-hearted. She even taught my maid how to sew. Her needlework was truly superb. Miss Yun, you haven't seen it, but the patterns Madam Lu embroidered were practically lifelike. However, she injured her body during childbirth, and Mr. Lu was very considerate, preferring to work hard in the fields himself rather than let Madam Lu earn money by doing needlework..."

Yunying managed to glean quite a bit of information from the old woman through her rambling conversation. She didn't know which parts were useful and which weren't, but she tried her best to remember everything the old woman said.

Lei Ting left for a moment and returned carrying a large piece of meat, a half-grown yellow goat, and some wine, rice, and noodles. This clearly indicated that they would be having lunch here that day.

Seeing this, the old lady quickly slapped her forehead, "Look at my memory. Miss Yun, please sit down first, I have to go cook. It's rare for the adults to come, I can't let you go back on an empty stomach."

She quickly refused the gifts in Lei Ting's hands, saying, "Fine, I'll take your gifts. I have plenty of these things at home. I also have chickens and ducks at home, I'll have someone kill them and cook them right away."

Lei Ting wasn't the type to back down to anyone. He went straight to the kitchen, put the things down, and came out again.

The things were already inside, so she couldn't refuse any longer. The old lady quickly called out several of her daughters-in-law to come out and help.

Actually, the old lady didn't need to call out; all the daughters-in-law were peering through the holes in the windows, keeping a close eye on what was happening outside.

Seeing the strip of meat and the yellow sheep, they couldn't help but drool. Even if the old lady didn't call them, they would have run out soon.

Do you have any monthly passes? Do you have any monthly passes? My darlings, I need monthly passes!!!

(End of this chapter)