Zhao Liulang, in a fit of annoyance, kicked Liu Huan, and everyone started laughing and joking. Feng Zongping took out a knife, sliced off a piece of at, placed it on a plate, and gave it to Zhou Man before looking at Zhou Liulang, "Co, you are the hero today. Which piece do you want?"
Zhao Liulang snatched the knife and cut a piece for himself, sprinkled a handful of salt over it, took a bite, and his eyes lit up, "Not bad, at I hunted myself tastes the best."
Feng Zongping turned and pulled out another knife, and everyone gathered around to join in.
Manbao ate what was already prepared, nodding slightly, indeed delicious.
After taking a bite, Zhao Liulang asked, "Is the little imperial grandson safe and sound?"
Manbao nodded, "He’s doing quite well."
Zhao Liulang sighed in relief, "Last night, my father was so happy he opened two jars of wine. Even when I withdrew twenty taels of silver from the accounting room early this morning, he didn’t mind."
Bai Erlang thought of sothing, peeking his head from behind the hanging deer leg, and said, "You still owe five taels."
"I know, I know. Isn’t that why I asked my family for the money to pay you back?"
Bai Shan was particularly curious, "How co you spend money so freely?"
Zhao Liulang sighed and said, "It’s not that I spend money freely, it’s that you guys haven’t started your own families yet, so there are fewer expenses. Once you have a wife and kids like , you’ll realize how easily money disappears."
Feng Zongping laughed, "Don’t listen to his nonsense. His wife has her dowry, and he even occasionally spends his wife’s dowry money. Don’t think we don’t know."
"If I didn’t buy them things, would my wife let spend her dowry money?" Zhao Liulang sighed, "But you’re right, spending my wife’s money is indeed a bit shaful, that’s why I borrowed from Bai Er."
He glanced at Bai Cheng and Bai Shan, shaking his head, "Your family is quite sothing; even while still studying, your family is already managing assets for you. Look at , married with kids, and as long as I’m still studying, the household matters don’t involve . I can only withdraw from the accounting room."
Manbao, while eating, asked curiously, "Aren’t you from a noble family? How can you lack money?"
"Who says noble families don’t lack money? He’s from an aristocratic family. Ask him if his family lacks money?" Zhao Liulang pointed at Bai Shan.
Bai Shan thought for a mont and said, "My family doesn’t lack money, but we aren’t wealthy either."
Zhao Liulang sneered, "That’s because your family only has you. If you had six siblings like mine, how much money would be enough to spend?"
He glanced at their robes, pointing, "Like the cloak you’re wearing, made with the fine down from goose necks. Who knows how many geese it takes to make one? One garnt could buy a small house. If my family bought one, they’d have to buy similar ones for the five elder brothers. Otherwise, it would seem unfair."
"Back when it was about the house in Chongyuan Courtyard, my brothers caused such a ruckus. In the end, my father got angry and directly gave it to the Crown Prince. The sa goes for clothes and other things. Given to one, the others make a fuss; given to another, it’s the sa. So simply, no one gets anything. Each household can only withdraw a set amount of silver monthly. If it’s exceeded, they have to figure it out themselves." Zhao Liulang lanted, "All my brothers have jobs now, at least they get so allowances. What do I have?"
To maintain appearances, if soone buys a horse, you must buy one too; if soone invites you to a al, you have to return the favor; if others wear new clothes, you should also get a trendy set...
If he were still single, the money would have been enough, especially with his parents secretly providing him allowances. But now, being married, it’s obviously not sufficient anymore.
In the eyes of his parents, when a child becos a parent, such matters naturally fall to the wives to handle, and they don’t intervene.
So Zhao Liulang’s money is always not enough.
Manbao and the others listened intently, shaking their heads, thinking that he cared too much about appearances.
Bai Shan and the rest didn’t find it important, even Feng Zongping and Yi Ziyang couldn’t quite understand.
Zhao Liulang, seeing their looks of disapproval, shook his head and said, "You guys are too young. Wait until you marry, then you’ll understand how I am driven by circumstances."
Manbao took the knife from him, sliced so at, and ate, saying, "You can ride horses through the streets, get drunk in flower stalls, and even hunt and roast deer at here at the western suburbs racing grounds. How is that being driven by circumstances?"
Bai Shan nodded, pointing at the swirling snowflakes outside, "In this kind of weather, those without charcoal, whose houses leak and collapse, and who have nowhere to go are truly driven by circumstances."
Manbao, recalling sothing, also looked at the white snow outside, "This snow might cause so damage but it’s good for the wheat in the fields. When it lts, it can sowhat alleviate the drought, so it should be seen as a good thing, right?"
Yin Huo said, "Early this morning, my grandmother already had soone invite my sisters over. It seems to discuss the opening of a porridge stall. Would your families like to join in?"
Manbao thought for a mont and said, "My family has quite a bit of blessed rice. I’ll send you a cart of it later, rember to write our family’s na."
Before Yin Huo could say anything, Bai Shan turned and said, "Better ask Grandmother first. Maybe she plans to open a porridge stall this year too. At that ti, our two families’ stalls could be set up side by side."
The last sentence was directed to Yin Huo.
Yin Huo thought it over; Bai Shan is currently studying in Chongwen Pavilion and will definitely enter politics in a few years. The Bai Family, being an aristocratic clan, would certainly start creating a reputation for him, so expanding operations in the capital makes sense. Thus, he nodded, "That’s fine, let’s go back and discuss it first."
Bai Erlang said, "Then I’ll go ask my brother as well, but our family doesn’t have a farm here, so we need to buy rice?"
Manbao generously said, "Rice outside is expensive, I’ll sell it to you, I have blessed rice."
Bai Erlang: "... I know."
Zhao Liulang felt they were overly concerned, but he also began to ponder whether he should ntion it to his mother when he returned, just to make a small contribution.
He was unaware that the State Duke Zhao family was the first in the capital to set up a porridge stall, and they explicitly stated it was to help the victims and pray for family blessings, especially for the newborn imperial grandson.
Even the emperor was delighted and called Minister Li and a few other close subordinates to the palace for a drink, even planning to open a granary for disaster relief, all for the imperial grandson.
But Minister Liu declined.
"Your Majesty, this snow looks heavy now, but it might not last several days. Even if it turns into a snow disaster, it isn’t ti for relief efforts yet."
Minister Li also said, "Indeed, if Your Majesty is pleased, why not donate so incense money to the Guardian of the Nation Temple for the imperial grandson’s blessings?"
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