Top Scholar

Chapter 102 Things are different now
While the younger uncle was out, the old clan chief asked the old man, "Why hasn't the third son's wife come back?"

"Well, he's sick again," the old man said with a cough.

"Why are you always getting sick? Have you seen a doctor?" the old clan chief asked worriedly.

"Let's not talk about that today, let's start the feast!" The old man quickly changed the subject.

~~
With the whole family gathered, the eldest aunt brought out a large pot full of old hen soup and ladled out chicken legs for the two elders, and the birthday banquet officially began!

"Come on, let's all wish Sixth Brother good health and a long and happy life!" Su Daji was in charge of leading the drinks, and the younger generation also raised their glasses to celebrate the old man's birthday.

We were drinking a ten-year-old vintage he brought, but I didn't know if it came from the distillery or was his own...

My uncle put down his wine cup and looked at the sumptuous dishes on the table, feeling quite uncomfortable for a moment.

"Brother, are we not going to continue?" the uncle asked in a low voice.

"It's just a meal, what's the big deal?" The eldest uncle acted the same as always in front of the other family members, but he put on airs in front of the third son. "Can't our family's life get better?"

"That's right, eldest brother is now a banner commander," Su Youcai said with a smile, boasting about his eldest brother. "And he's taken on the job of Banner Commander Liu in town!"

"I knew it!" my uncle exclaimed, suddenly realizing, "Why didn't you tell me about something this big?"

"There are many things I haven't told you yet," the uncle said with increasing pride. "In the six months you were away, our family finally turned our lives around."

"It's not like I'm the one who caused this," the uncle said with a wry smile.

"Hey, that's quite possible, the timing is perfect," Su Youcai said with a smile.

"How about you stay in the county town and never come back, third brother?" the eldest uncle said with a smile.

"No way! Even though I live far away, I've never missed a single thing at home!" The uncle hurriedly poured wine for his brother, full of curiosity, and said, "Tell me what's happened in the last six months."

Last time Chun-ge was sick, he and his uncle spent more than half a month together, but at that time everything was still uncertain, so his uncle naturally didn't tell him anything.

"It all started the day you left..." The uncle took a sip of ten-year-old aged wine and began his story of Su Youcai demanding repayment of a debt...

The younger uncle blushed and raised his wine cup to toast Su Youcai, saying, "Second brother, it's all because of me that you three have suffered..."

"It's alright, it's all in the past." Su Youcai waved his hand generously, clinked glasses with his uncle, and said, "Besides, we've actually benefited from this misfortune. The children have a godmother, and our family's finances have improved."

The aunt listened quietly from the side and finally understood why Cheng Xiucai's daughter was treated as an honored guest in the family.

The thought that the other woman was also a widow made her admire the landlady's abilities even more.

The proprietress also shared some words of sympathy with the young woman, then took off her own silver bracelet and put it on her wrist, holding her hand affectionately and saying, "From now on, we are sisters."

“Okay, sister.” The aunt nodded, and the two’s relationship instantly warmed up.

Su Lu and Su Tai didn't neglect Xiao Tiantian either. They sandwiched her between them, serving her food and chatting with her, making the little girl completely relax.

Everyone was talking, Auntie was still busy, only the old lady and Jinbao were quietly gnawing on pig's trotters.

"Delicious, delicious! Even the banquet at the public square during the Spring Festival isn't this good!" the old lady exclaimed.

"The pig's trotters at the outdoor banquet smell terrible!" Jin Bao'er wholeheartedly agreed.

Su Daji blushed and hurriedly said loudly, "That was because the winery was short of money last year, so we had no choice. Try it again this year, and I guarantee you won't say a word after one bite!"

"Oh, oh!" Jin Bao'er nodded happily, feeling quite proud of herself. With just one sentence, she had elevated the New Year's Eve dinner to a whole new level.

"Stop eating, it's time to toast your grandfather!" The uncle glanced at his little girl, whose mouth was glistening with oil.

The toasting started with the youngest. Little Jinbao, upon hearing the order, put down his half-eaten pig's trotter, picked up his medium-sized sweet water cup, and after hesitating for a long time, finally managed to squeeze out a sentence:
"Grandpa, I wish you live longer than a turtle."

"Cough cough cough..." The old man almost choked, and said with a wry smile, "Good, good, at least it's better than what your grandma did."

Last time the old lady had her birthday, Little Jinbao wished her to live a long and healthy life, but luckily the old lady couldn't hear him...

Then it was Xiaotian's turn. She went over to toast the old man and said, "May Grandpa's happiness be as boundless as the Eastern Sea and his longevity as enduring as the Southern Mountain pine."

"Haha, good, good!" The old man happily drank the cup, took Xiaotian's hand and said, "From now on, this is your own home. Your mother can stay here if she's too busy. It'll be good for her to keep Jinbao company."

"Yes." Although Tian Tian is only ten years old, she is as sensible as a little adult.

Then it was Su Lu's turn. He was about to say a couple of awkward toasts and then slip away when the old man grabbed him and said, "My dear grandson, sit next to your grandfather."

"Sigh." Su Lu had no choice but to sit down obediently.

"How are my grandsons?" the old man asked his old friend, holding Su Lu's hand.

"Amazing, each one of them is outstanding." The two said with genuine admiration, "We thought you were lucky to have a son like Chun Ge in your family, but we didn't expect the two from your second son's family to be just as good."

"Not just good, they're all top-notch!" Su Daji praised. "Take Xia Ge'er for example. He doesn't seem like much, but he's got a knack for it and he's got the job done. Everyone was worried about him lately, but he's doing a fantastic job as a second-in-command. I think if I train him for another two years, I can hand over the reins." "Of course! Xia Ge'er has always been a hidden talent, and Chun Ge'er has been promising since he was little." The old man, who had drunk quite a bit, nodded and swayed his head proudly.

"Originally, I thought my youngest grandson was the least promising, which was normal. None of my sons were good enough. I'm just grateful to have two good grandsons."

Su Youjin, Su Youcai, and Su Youma were chatting and laughing when they heard this, and they immediately fell silent. Even the uncle was no longer pleased with himself...

Fortunately, they were just caught in the crossfire; the old man wasn't talking about them. Holding Su Lu's hand tightly, the old man said proudly, "But guess what? Ever since he was carried back from the fields last year after suffering heatstroke, Qiu-ge'er suddenly became sensible and enlightened!"

As he spoke, he held up a finger and waved it in front of his old friend, saying, "I started memorizing the Three Character Classic on August 17th, and studied day and night for a hundred days before I was admitted to Taiping Academy!"

As he spoke, he slammed his hand on the table and exclaimed, "Tell me, isn't that amazing?!"

"Impressive, impressive." Su Daxiang and Su Daji nodded repeatedly, not out of flattery. Su Dan was the former's grandson, and Su Lang was the latter's grandson; no one in the clan knew Su Lu's talent better than the two of them.

"Dan-ge said that Qiu-ge went from last place to the top in just half a year, and even helped the whole school improve." Su Da-xiang praised, "That child is very proud and doesn't respect anyone, except your Qiu-ge."

"Our Su Lang is practically Qiu Ge'er's student now. This kid is amazing! Not only is he good at studying, but he can also motivate those around him to improve! Incredible!"

Su Lu sat next to the old man, and could practically hear the whole thing from his toes. He thought to himself, "Even if you want to praise me, don't do it in front of me. It's so embarrassing..."

However, since the old man was in a good mood today, he could only treat himself as an object and let the old man show off.

As the old man drank more, he picked up a full glass of wine, raised it to the sky, and said, "God, you haven't treated our family badly after all. I was wrong to scold you before. I apologize!"

Having said that, he poured the wine on the ground to thank God for the gift.

~~
That evening, the old man got completely drunk, and the old woman ate until her belly was round and full. I don't know how the guests felt, but the hosts certainly had a good time…

The eldest and youngest uncles helped the elderly clan chief and the seventh uncle, who were both quite drunk, and escorted them home. Su Youcai was about to go, but his eldest uncle gave him a wink and whispered, "You stay; you have a more important task."

Su Youcai then turned back and said to Tian Tian and her daughter, who were also preparing to leave, "Don't leave tonight."

"Huh?" The mother and daughter were both taken aback.

"Huh?" The aunt, uncle, and even Chun-ge and Xia-ge who were clearing the dishes were all taken aback.

"Isn't this a bit too hasty?" Auntie blurted out.

"Sister-in-law, what are you saying?" Su Youcai blushed and quickly coughed, "I mean, on this day, it would be better for them to stay."

"That's right, that's right." Everyone suddenly realized. The gates of hell open on the fifteenth of July, and the mother and daughter returned to the empty house in the mountain valley, which was indeed quite eerie.

"Second brother is so meticulous, I didn't even think of that until you mentioned it." The aunt immediately took the landlady's arm and said with a smile, "Let's sleep together tonight."

"What about Xiaotian? Can three people squeeze into your bed?" Aunt shook her head and said, "Listen to my arrangement. Uncle, you go and stay with Chun-ge for the night. Aunt, you sleep in Uncle's room. His godmother, you and your daughter go to Aunt's room to sleep."

The aunt smiled at the landlady and said, "Don't worry, since my aunt hasn't been home for half a year, all the bedding has been replaced!"

"I'm so sorry to have troubled you so much, sister-in-law," the proprietress said apologetically.

"Don't be so formal! Didn't we agree we're family?" Aunt stamped her foot and said, "We don't stand on ceremony in our family. If you don't want to stay, leave. If you're staying, then stay and have a good time!"

The proprietress had fully experienced her aunt's ability to make people feel both pain and pleasure, and said with a wry smile, "So, does that mean I can't leave?"

"That's right." The aunt happily took her and her daughter's hands and said with a smile, "Come on, I'll show you the room."

The proprietress glanced quickly at Su Youcai and saw that he was all smiles, clearly pleased that she had stayed.

Actually, she was quite happy...

~~
All of this had nothing to do with Su Lu. After finishing his meal, he went back to his room to study.

After finishing all his assigned tasks, Su Youcai pushed open the door and went inside.

"Oh, you're coming back to sleep tonight?" Su Lu asked with a smile.

"What are you saying!" Su Youcai rolled his eyes at him and said, "If I don't come back, am I supposed to sleep on the street?"

"That's true." Su Lu nodded, half-jokingly and half-reminding Su Youcai, "You've passed the old man's test, but there's still one more hurdle for Father to consider."

Su Youcai naturally knew he was referring to Cheng Xiucai, and coughed, saying, "There are still eighteen months left, what's the rush?"

"It's still so long?" Su Lu clicked his tongue and said, "Then Dad will have to be careful and not eat the wedding wine and eggs at the same time."

"Don't talk nonsense." Su Youcai said, feeling extremely embarrassed, "Our feelings were mutual but remained within the bounds of propriety, completely innocent, don't you understand?"

"Oh, oh." Su Lu nodded perfunctorily; only a fool would believe him.

(End of this chapter)