Chapter 37: Understanding between Mother and Son
Editor: Atlas Studios
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Of course, Wang Shouzhe and Gongsun Hui could not participate arbitrarily. Otherwise, not only would it not increase the morale of the clan servants and guards, it would cause them to panic.
The entire transportation channel had already been established, so Wang Shouzhe no longer participated in it. Such a large amount of food transportation was not something that could be settled in a short period of time.
This was not a gaming world where the food delivery mission could be completed with a click of the mouse.
In addition, he was the patriarch of a clan, so he naturally had to focus on the major matters and delegate the minor ones, looking at the situation as a whole. If he did everything personally and participated from the start to the end, what was the use of those clansmen and clan guards?
Even Madam Gongsun Hui was called away by him. The last part of the entire transport line was completely entrusted to Wang Luotong to manage. The girls in the family had to be responsible as well.
As he walked and chatted with Gongsun Hui, they passed through the huge backyard and entered the backyard of the Wang Clan's main residence. Then, they slowly walked to the residence of the patriarch's heir apparent, where he had grown up.
His personal manservant, Wang Gui, was tidying up the courtyard with two servants. When he saw Wang Shouzhe and Gongsun Hui, he immediately stepped forward and bowed. "Greetings, Patriarch, Madam."
Wang Gui was Wang Shouzhe's servant. He came from an honest background and was originally a collateral descendant of the Wang Clan. Most importantly, he was a talented young man among the collateral descendants, with an aptitude of Third Rank, Lower Tier.
While he was only a personal manservant, he had served the patriarch's heir apparent since he was young. In the future, he would definitely be Wang Shouzhe's trusted aide. Once he established a family and gave birth to children with tiered aptitude, he would have a chance to be promoted to the direct lineage of the clan. Even his name would be included in the clan register.
"Wang Gui, this is the Little Spirit of Shanyang. Make a pot of tea for Mother and me." Wang Shouzhe handed the spirit tea he brought back to the manservant, Wang Gui.
"Spirit tea?" Wang Gui had accompanied Wang Shouzhe for ten years, and had only ever seen spirit tea for a few times. He was immediately stunned.
"Zhe'er, you must not. This is something your grandfather gave you to drink alone." Gongsun Hui immediately rejected him. "These few years are the most critical period for your growth. You have to break through to the eighth or even the ninth level of the Qi Refining realm as soon as possible. That is more in line with the level of strength you should have as the patriarch!"
"Mother, don't decline. Weren't you curious about where this batch of aged grain came from? Let's drink some spirit tea together. I'll tell you slowly." Wang Shouzhe invited firmly and berated Wang Gui, "What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and brew the tea."
"Y-y-yes." Wang Gui shuddered and hurriedly retreated.
With her legitimate son so determined, Gongsun Hui also couldn't refuse. At the square table in the hall in his courtyard, the two of them sat opposite each other. Not long after, the manservant, Wang Gui, served a pot of spirit tea, some fruits, candied plums, and other snacks. Then, he bowed and left.
"Zhe'er, your courtyard no longer befits your status as the patriarch." Gongsun Hui looked around and said, "After my first year of mourning is over, I'll move out of the main courtyard and make room for you. When the time comes, it'll also be more convenient for you to marry the daughter of the Liu Clan."
"Mother, there's no need for that." Wang Shouzhe smiled indifferently and raised his hand to pour two cups of tea for each of them. "My courtyard is quite nice, and I'm used to living here. Just stay with Sister Luomiao properly. Don't go to all that unnecessary trouble."
"How can this be called unnecessary trouble? You're the patriarch of the clan now, so you should live in the main courtyard," said Gongsun Hui. "Besides, even if you are used to staying here, the young mistress of the Liu Clan might not be. Once she enters the Wang Clan, I'll have to hand over my accounts and finances to her. These are all the rules of the clan."
However, Wang Shouzhe shook his head and said, "Even if Lady Liu marries into the clan, she's still your daughter-in-law. How can she overstep her bounds like this? Let's not talk about this for now. Mother, have some tea first. I'll tell you about the gains from this trip in detail. There are still many things that I need to discuss with you next."
To Wang Shouzhe, Madam Gongsun Hui was mature and reliable. Added to her status, her prestige within the clan was very high. Even the prestige of a few elders was inferior to hers.
If cultivating every day could revitalize the clan, he wouldn't mind doing so. However, his horizons and goals were far beyond those of those elders. With his status as a young patriarch, if he wanted to improve the clan radically, he would definitely encounter resistance from the conservative faction.
Madam Gongsun Hui, on the other hand, would likely be his strongest and most resolute ally. She was the main daughter of the Gongsun Clan of Shanyang!
Gongsun Hui took a sip of the spirit tea as instructed. Her eyes were also filled with curiosity. Ever since this legitimate son of hers took charge, he had suddenly become more and more mature. Even she could not understand many of his methods.
After a slight pause, Wang Shouzhe explained how he had obtained a large sum of money and food from the Qian's Trading Company. Of course, he concealed his secret pact with Qian Xue'an.
Gongsun Hui's mouth kept hanging agape as her eyes gradually widened. This… This was just too unbelievable and audacious. He had relied on some foresight information regarding the outbreak of the pest disaster to attack so decisively and manipulate even the Qian Clan.
This maneuver was something that Gongsun Hui would never have thought of. Moreover, she felt a lingering fear. After all, Shouzhe had used the family's reputation to mortgage 4,200 gold! If his prediction failed, he would probably become the greatest profligate in the history of the Wang Clan of Ping'an!
Even though this matter had already succeeded, Gongsun Hui's heart was still in turmoil. She found it difficult to calm down. It was bold, way too bold!
"Mother, please don't blame Zhe'er for not discussing it with you beforehand. The opportunity of this matter was fleeting, and I couldn't afford to discuss it slowly with the clan." Wang Shouzhe sipped his tea calmly and said, "This sum of money can be transferred into the clan's accounts, but only announce to the elders that I borrowed the money from the Gongsun Clan of Shanyang and the Lu Clan of Yingxiu, in case the elders can't digest this news and cause needless trouble."
"I understand." Gongsun Hui drank two cups of spirit tea in a row before she could calm her emotions and banish the distracting thoughts. She finally understood why her legitimate son wanted her to drink spirit tea when hearing the news. The impact of this news was too great, and he was afraid that she wouldn't be able to withstand it.
After calming her mind, Gongsun Hui said slowly, "Zhe'er invited me to drink spirit tea. I'm afraid it's not as simple as just telling me about the news, right?"
"Heh, Mother is insightful. I really can't hide these personal thoughts from you," Wang Shouzhe said with a smile. "It's just that I find some disadvantages to the system of the clan, especially in the sequence rankings. It only looks at bloodline, aptitude, and gender, which is very undesirable. It lacks a competitive mechanism, over-nourishes the younger generation, and so on."
Gongsun Hui frowned and said, "You're referring to that child Zongwei, right? I've already heard about his matter. Right now, he has already been escorted back by Shouyi's people. It's said that Shouxin was furious after hearing about it and personally rushed back from Silkworm Farm, almost breaking Wang Zongwei's leg with the beating. I heard that he's still locked in the woodshed."
"Mother, what do you think about this?" Wang Shouzhe sipped his tea and said with seeming casualness.
Gongsun Hui pondered for a moment and said after some deliberation, "That child is indeed rather disgraceful. As the patriarch and the elder, it's only right for you to teach him a lesson. It's not a problem for you to strip him of his cultivation resources at the last minute as punishment. However, you have to consider the dignity of Second Old Master, Uncle Dingchuan, and your Eldest Brother Shouxin. After all, they have worked hard for the clan their entire lives. You can't possibly transfer the treatment he deserves to Luotong forever, right?"
"Mother, look. This is why Zhe'er wants to have tea with you to discuss things." Wang Shouzhe smiled confidently. "Even you think so, let alone others."
"Could it be that you really want to deprive Wang Zongwei of his resources forever?" Gongsun Hui said in surprise. "Wouldn't you be harming your Eldest Brother Shouxin's line of descent?"
"Of course they won't be deprived forever, but if he wants his share back, no one has a say in it, not even me," Wang Shouzhe said calmly.
Gongsun Hui was slightly taken aback. "If not even you have a say in it, who does?"
Just as he was about to reply, a middle-aged woman's voice came from outside the door. "Fourth Brother-in-law… Is Fourth Brother-in-law Shouzhe home?"
Gongsun Hui's expression changed slightly. "It's Zongwei's mother. This woman descended from the Xu Clan of Changning, and has always been arrogant and difficult to deal with. Shouzhe, you have to be careful."
However, Wang Shouzhe smiled confidently. "Mother, you must be joking. Madam Xu is my eldest sister-in-law. We're family. What's there to deal with?"
Right away, he pushed the door open and went out to welcome her personally. With a warm smile, he cupped his hands and said, "Eldest Sister-in-law, why didn't you inform me beforehand that you're coming to visit personally? I could have gone out to pick you up."
Even Gongsun Hui was a little taken aback by such a smooth change in attitude. This legitimate son of hers was really quite formidable. Now, not only did she feel that her brother Gongsun Qiang was far inferior to him, she even felt that her late husband Wang Dingyue was far inferior to him.
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