In the dead of night, a request for pink powder.
******...****
In the Upper Room East Room, Old Master Lian, was propped up against his rolled-up bedding, eyes closed. Since his sons had left earlier, he had maintained this sa posture without moving.
He had neatly rolled the bedding into a cylinder and placed it by the windowsill, rather than stowing it away in the cabinet or bedding stack—a habit from his apprentice years.
Back then, several apprentices and journeyn would sleep together on a large communal kang bed, each occupying a space like that. The rule in the shop was to fold and roll up the bedding in the morning and, upon returning in the evening, to unroll it and crawl in to sleep.
Later, after he had started a family, had his own house, and bore children with Lady Zhou, he abandoned this habit. Only in recent years, for so reason, had he picked it up again.
In a typical tenant farrs’ household, the kang bed must be kept clean and clear during the day; bedding was not allowed to remain. In the Lian Family, only Old Master Lian had this special privilege.
Lady Zhou and Lian Xiuxiu were sitting two arm’s lengths away from Old Master Lian, both careful not to make any noise. Lady Zhou occasionally glanced at Old Master Lian and seed to want to speak several tis, but each ti she swallowed her words back.
"Ah..." Old Master Lian let out a long sigh and finally opened his eyes.
"Old man..." Lady Zhou began with so concern.
Old Master Lian waved his hand at Lady Zhou, signaling her to say nothing.
"I know what I’m doing. Don’t say anything."
Lady Zhou fell silent.
Old Master Lian sat up straight, deliberately took out his tobacco pouch, filled his pipe with a generous amount of dry tobacco, lit it, and began to puff away. The rising smoke curled up, blurring Old Master Lian’s face deep in thought.
The heart of Old Master Lian was anything but calm.
It’s not the lack of effort in running a household that one fears but the lack of unity, with everyone harboring their own selfish desires, unwilling to accommodate one another. It’s like a horse-drawn carriage. If the horses each pull in different directions, not only will the carriage not progress, it might even overturn. But, if so horses are unwilling to exert themselves, as long as the others are willing and follow commands, the carriage can move forward smoothly.
As the driver of the carriage, noticing an uncooperative horse, one would naturally encourage it. However, the driver wouldn’t focus all his attention on the lazy horse; instead, to make the carriage run faster and more smoothly, he would focus more on encouraging those horses that are willing to work and take direction.
It may seem unfair, but where in this world is there absolute fairness? The most important thing for a carriage driver is to steer smoothly, not to expend too much effort on the lazy horse, which is not only fruitless but may also negatively influence the diligent and cooperative horses, leading to dire consequences.
Old Master Lian, of course, knew the saying, ’spurring the fast horse to death.’ It was certain that a quick horse would be spurred on more, but he wasn’t foolish enough to let things get to that point.
However, in recent months, things had gradually started to go off course, becoming increasingly difficult to control.
He firmly believed he had always done well, so why was this happening?
Lian Shouren’s repeated failures to pass his examinations were undoubtedly one of the important reasons, along with the series of calamities that befell the family. And of course, another reason was becoming more and more obvious.
The grandchildren had grown up and begun to have their own ideas. Plus, the daughter-in-law married by Erlang was a misstep—if it had been soone like Old Fourth’s wife, it would definitely not have co to this.
"I must not have accumulated virtues in my past life..." Old Master Lian sighed softly. Though he could be considered a semi-literate man, like other farrs, he attributed the events that were beyond human control to fate.
Still, he had to co up with a strategy for the issue at hand.
He had seen how Zhao Xiue feigned illness and how the second family made a fuss; he understood it all stemd from Lian Jizu needing money.
He was clear about it but didn’t expose them, firstly because Zhao Xiue was carrying the Lian family’s offspring, which related to the crucial issue of continuing the lineage, and secondly because the second family had united this ti, seemingly determined. If exposed, relations between the families would sour, losing both face and a chance for reconciliation.
"Not a single understanding person..." Old Master Lian puffed hard on his dry pipe.
If the second family hadn’t made such a fuss and had returned the wage advances
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