TATLC Chapter 47 — The Lu Family's Conflicts

At the Lu’s

“Dad, I want to eat cake,” Lu Songshi whined.

Lu An rubbed his son’s head and said, “Be patient. Didn’t I bring some for you? Go ahead and eat.”

Lu Songshi pouted. “Dad, all my friends went to play with Chen Xiaocai and won’t play with me anymore. They even ate delicious tangyuan at his house.”

Hearing this, Lu An felt a twinge of discomfort. He had never paid much attention to Lu Lin, and in his impression, this nephew had always been a bit slow, the kind of hopeless, pitiable type.

Who would’ve thought that after being married off to another family, Lu Lin’s luck would take such a turn?

Lu An worked in town and knew that Chen Xiaomi and Lu Lin could freely enter the Hongyun Restaurant, doing business with the owner. The restaurant employees kept their mouths shut tight, so he couldn’t find out much for the time being. Still, with Chen Xiaomi frequently visiting the place, they must have been making a lot of money.

As Lu Songshi nibbled on his sweet cake, Lu Tong suddenly came over. “Songshi, what are you eating? Is that Top Scholar Cake?”

When Lu Songshi saw Lu Tong coming, he instinctively hid his hands behind his back.

Among all the grandchildren, Grandma Lu doted on Lu Chengyu the most, her eldest grandson who was expected to top the imperial examinations. She wasn’t unkind to Lu Songshi, but compared to Lu Chengyu, he was clearly ranked lower.

Now that Lu Chengyu was preparing for the imperial examination, everything revolved around him.

Recently, the old woman had been finding all sorts of ways to get Lu Chengyu good food – red date, longan and lotus seed sweet soup, sugar cakes from restaurants, scholar wine… The things she made herself were fine, but the restaurant items were not cheap at all!

Lu Chengyu got whatever he wanted, while everyone else in the family had to live frugally.

Lu Songshi hadn’t seen meat for several days. Watching Lu Chengyu eat and drink well, he started making a fuss. Lin Xiu’er wasn’t happy about it either, but since Lu Chengyu was about to take the exam, she could only persuade her son.

Lu Songshi had been pampered since childhood and wasn’t very obedient. One day, lured by a delicious smell, he snuck into the kitchen and saw chicken soup in the pot, so he secretly drank a bowl.

When Tang realized there was noticeably less chicken soup¹, she got so angry that she slapped Lu Songshi.

Unlike Lu Lin, who would’ve taken the hit silently, Lu Songshi made a big fuss and cried loudly. Lin Xiu’er, who came after hearing the commotion, argued with Tang for a few words before the old couple stepped in to calm things down.

Although Grandma Lu favored Lu Chengyu, she still had some affection for her youngest son’s child, so she scolded Tang a few words. After being lectured, Tang restrained herself somewhat.

Lu An ultimately felt sorry for his son. After getting his wages, he would secretly buy his son some good food from time to time.

Lu An’s expression changed when he saw Lu Tong suddenly appear at the door.

Lu Tong didn’t knock and suddenly barged in, so Lu An didn’t have time to put the things away.

Lu Tong looked at the cakes on the table and said, “Fourth Uncle, you bought these for my brother, right? I’ll take them to him.”

Before Lu Songshi could finish what little he’d eaten, Lu Tong swept the treats away, leaving the boy on the verge of tears. And sure enough, he burst into sobs the moment she left.

Lu An watched his son cry until he was out of breath and immediately developed some resentment toward Lu Tong.

When Lin Xiu’er returned and heard the whole story, her face looked quite ugly.

“That Tang’s tail is about to reach the sky now, you’d think Chengyu’s already the top scholar,” she muttered bitterly. “And that Lu Tong’s not much better.” Just a damn girl, nothing but a farmer’s daughter, yet she put on the airs of a young lady, constantly daydreaming about becoming an official’s wife. At this rate, if they didn’t marry her off soon, she’d just be a money-losing burden.

Lu An sighed. “Just bear with it a little longer. If Chengyu passes the exams and becomes an official, we’ll be relatives of a government official.”

Lin Xiu’er frowned. If it weren’t for this, why would she have tolerated the eldest branch’s family for so long? Tang Shi had been getting more and more insufferable lately.

“That’s only if Chengyu can really become an official!” Lin Xiu’er grumbled.

Lu An worked in town, and half of his money had to be handed over to the two elders in the family, and most of the money handed over was used for Lu Chengyu’s tuition fees.

Lin Xiu’er rubbed Lu Songshi’s head. Back when Lu Lin’s family was still around, she could still find some balance by picking on Lu Lin’s family. But now that the second branch was gone, more work fell on Lin Xiu’er, and she was far from pleased.

Recently, with Lu Chengyu about to take the exam, the two elders in the family attached great importance to it, almost to the point of giving him the stars if he asked for them.

Tang used the excuse of needing to take care of Lu Chengyu to dump most of the work on Lin Xiu’er. Lately, Lin Xiu’er had been washing clothes for the entire family by herself, leaving her in a foul mood.

Lu An narrowed his eyes. “Let’s wait until after the spring exam.”

Lin Xiu’er sighed. “That’s all we can do.”

Lu Chengyu paid three taels in taxes last year. Lin Xiu’er figured that this year, whether he passed or not, he would probably need to take a wife. If he could pass this time, that would be good, but if he couldn’t, Tang probably wouldn’t be able to act so proud anymore. Lin Xiu’er’s feelings were complicated. Part of her wanted to see Tang Shi humbled, yet another part hoped that Lu Chengyu would pass and be able to help the family.

If he really passed the exam and became a Xiucai, he could be exempted from taxes on twenty mu of land, which would save a large sum of money. Then the family’s life should improve somewhat.

Lu An took a deep breath.”I heard that the Xiucai exam isn’t easy to pass. Let’s just hope he makes it.”

Most villagers only had a vague understanding of the exam. Lu An worked in town and had more exposure to various matters, so he understood more about taking the scholar exam than the villagers did.