The Lucky Farmgirl-Chapter 1933 - 1908: The Mask

The carriage stopped at the entrance of the County Governmental Office. The Xia Family had already arrived and were enjoying their second cup of tea. Upon receiving the report that the Zhou Family had arrived, the patriarch and clan elders of the Xia Family put down their teacups and sat up straight, awaiting the guests.

However, when they looked up, all they saw was Xia Xia being carried inside.

Xia Family elders: ...

Old Zhou and the Xia Family invited Mr. Zhuang in first. The three followed behind, while Manbao, Bai Shan, and Bai Erlang were unusually attentive in serving them. Once they were all seated, they looked toward the Xia Family leaders opposite them.

Neither side recognized the other, creating some awkwardness. Xia Xia propped himself up and sat slightly straighter, introducing both sides, "Madam, this is our patriarch."

No matter what she thought inside, Manbao approached with a respectful demeanor, bowing with both hands, "Zhou Man greets the patriarch."

The Xia patriarch quickly reached out to support her, and with a face full of excitement, said, "You resemble her so much, you and Lady Xin really resemble each other."

Old Zhou couldn’t help but think: Clearly, she looks more like our Zhou Family, how does she look so much like my sister-in-law?

Manbao followed, feeling a bit despondent.

When Magistrate Zhai arrived, Manbao then followed the Xia patriarch to meet all the clan elders and members present. Afterward, the Xia patriarch met Old Zhou and Ms. Qian, speaking of Xia Yan as he entered. At that moment, the Xia patriarch was talking about Xia Yan’s lifetime contributions and assistance to the family, and upon seeing Magistrate Zhai, he quickly turned to greet him.

Magistrate Zhai observed their friendly interactions and couldn’t help but raise a brow and then squeeze out a smile, warmly inviting both parties to sit down before taking his place and slightly bowing to Zhou Man, first inviting her to sit.

Manbao smiled, "The magistrate, please sit. I am content to sit below."

Even though Xia’s people had some preparation, they were still astonished at how courteous Magistrate Zhai was to Zhou Man.

Only then did Magistrate Zhai sit down and look to both sides, saying, "Since both sides are here today, let us speak openly and eliminate any future grievances and conflicts."

He turned to Xia’s patriarch, saying, "You should know by now, shouldn’t you, that Lord Zhou is here in Shangzhou seeking family, and both sides should be able to confirm the relationship?"

The Xia patriarch then remembered that they hadn’t confirmed yet, so he looked toward the Zhou Family’s side.

Zhou Dalang immediately took out the prepared household registration of his little uncle, along with the registration documents from the bag discovered in the mountains years ago.

After examining them, the Xia patriarch sighed, "These indeed belong to Zhou Yin and Lady Xin, showing they are the same person. I didn’t expect they died fourteen years ago... Alas, I remember how filial Lady Xin was. Zhou Yin never lacked a conscience."

The Zhou Family members exchanged glances, suddenly feeling as if the relationship might not need to be strained.

Indeed, they heard the Xia patriarch say to Manbao, "I didn’t expect to meet the lady of the house in my lifetime. When I meet your grandfather in the afterlife, I can give him an account." 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

Manbao lowered her head, full of regret.

Xia Xia, growing impatient with the small talk, took the initiative to speak, "Patriarch, when will you give the lady what Brother Yan left for her?"

He continued, "I plan to have Rui clear out the shop soon to give it to her, along with all the rent accumulated over the years. At that time, I hope the patriarch can bear witness."

Saying this, his hand trembled as he searched inside his embrace, unable to produce anything for a while, prompting Rui to step forward and pull out a yellowed piece of paper for him.

Xia Xia shookly opened it, saying, "This is the contract I signed with Zhou Yin years ago. I rented his shop, paying him eighteen silver coins a year. He entrusted me with collecting rent and overseeing the property, which was to my advantage. However, over the past twelve years, I haven’t managed to collect much rent, so I plan to add ten silver coins annually to this..."

The Xia patriarch raised an eyebrow slightly, smiled, and pressed Xia Xia’s hand, saying, "Third Brother, why the rush? I’ve always collected rent for Lady Xin’s land. Besides, despite your years of hard work, even if Lady Xin and Zhou Yin returned in person, they wouldn’t want this extra from you."

Manbao paused for a moment before nodding immediately, "Indeed, Lord Uncle overwhelms me with favor."

Xia Xia was undeterred by Manbao’s words, focusing solely on questioning the Xia patriarch, "You say you collected rent for her?"

The Xia patriarch nodded, "Of course, I’ve always rented Lady Xin a piece of land, and that land was initially leased by you to me."

Xia Xia’s heart sneered; he had rented three pieces to them back in the day. But he hadn’t counted on being able to preserve all the land anyway, so Xia Xia wasn’t overly angered.

The Xia patriarch turned and sighed at Manbao, saying, "All these years, although I’ve never seen your parents return, the land wouldn’t go to waste. Clan speculation naturally soared, so later on, I rented out all the land. One piece is rented by me, another to Officer Xu, and the last is fragmented among family members."

"But what you don’t understand is that farming is reliant on the weather. For the past ten years, it’s been floods or droughts. Breaking even has been considered lucky," the Xia patriarch explained. "Fortunately, I’ve stored some early rents, and I’ll retrieve them for you later."

Manbao looked at the Xia patriarch with a face full of gratitude and said, "Patriarch Grandpa, after all these years of tending my family’s land, we are most grateful. How could we ask for your rent!"

The Xia patriarch replied, "Renting land and collecting rent is my duty."

Manbao shook her head and sighed, saying, "Had my parents not met with an accident, they surely would have returned every year. When I arrived, I did not anticipate my parents’ industry might still be intact, so I held the land deed merely as a keepsake."

Upon saying this, Manbao took out the well-preserved but somewhat yellowed land deed from her garments.

Seeing it wrapped in a layer of oil paper, despite his maturity, the Xia patriarch couldn’t help but change his expression slightly, considering it was impossible she wasn’t scheming—who’d she think she was fooling?

The Xia patriarch hadn’t expected Zhou Man at such a young age to be so diplomatic and two-faced, saying one thing, while thinking something entirely different.

He put away his last bit of cunning and insisted on giving Zhou Man the rent, even deciding to perfect the account books for Zhou Man to inspect.

Manbao certainly couldn’t accept, repeatedly declining. She genuinely did not want to do so, prying out the meat from someone’s mouth is one thing, but asking them to regurgitate what they’d already swallowed would invite collective ire, resulting in severe disagreement.

Moreover, when it comes to fields requiring farming and management, what she truly wanted was the house in Songhua Alley. She therefore persistently declined, sighing, "Regarding land, I’ve always trusted the patriarch and the uncles and brothers in the family, but the house my grandparents used to reside..."

She lamentingly said, "I was young when I left home, remembering only that our yard had a jujube tree under which they would let me eat whenever my mother craved it, plucked for her by my father and grandfather. I just wish to return to that house to accompany my grandparents, to see where they lived."

Xia Family: ...Who are you fooling? You left for only a few months, do you remember anything?

The more convinced everyone became of her cunning, the more they realized that those in official positions are complex, especially one so young holding official duties in the capital.

However, the Xia family courtyard indeed harbored a jujube tree, planted shortly after Xia Xin’s birth.