Nine copper coins a day in wages—if this were the capital, that would be outrageously stingy. But Hezhou was different. There, when common people found outside work, they usually got seven or eight coins a day, sometimes even six. Fang Zichen paid nine, and for heavier labor, he gave even more.
As long as the people lived well, he dared not ask for anything else.
And if Fang Zichen weren't so greedy for money, he'd never have been lured to Hezhou in the first place—and he probably wouldn't have thought to build those factories, which meant the people wouldn't have had work at all.
Ah, well.
The two Chancellors felt the same way.
They considered themselves good officials, but they'd also bent the rules for personal gain now and then.
The imperial guard, seeing that the emperor wasn't angry, figured that Fang Zichen must be truly favored.
Xia Jinghong dismissed him and told him to rest for two days before returning to Hezhou.
As the imperial guard stepped out, the Left Chancellor's mind was already wandering. Xia Jinghong knew him well and let him withdraw. The Left Chancellor took his leave and immediately chased after the guard, pulling him aside to grill him about other matters. Had the three children really gone hungry? Especially Guaizai—he hadn't grown much to begin with. Hopefully he was eating well, or else when he came back in five years, he might have ended up shorter!
The imperial guard had ridden hard back to the capital and couldn't carry much. But Guaizai missed the Left Chancellor and his family terribly. Last time, he'd sent a painting to the Qin family, and the Qin family soldiers had told him that the masters loved it so much they looked at it every single day.
This time, naturally, he'd also entrusted the guard with a few more paintings—so the Left Chancellor and his grandfather (Zhao Ger's father) could admire his dashing little figure.
Earlier, before entering the imperial study, the imperial guard had left his bundle with the two young palace maids attending outside. Now he took it back, opened it, and pulled out several sheets of drawing paper.
The Left Chancellor took the paintings and couldn't wait to look.
There was one of Guaizai showing off with a long spear, looking cool. Another of him sitting in a woven basket, a string of steamed buns hanging around his neck as he meditated. Another of him holding a little chick, grinning so wide every tooth was showing—same as always, mischievous and adorable. And the last one: him holding Gungun and Dandan by the hands.
The Left Chancellor nearly choked the moment he saw Gungun and Dandan.
Just moments ago, the imperial guard had said Fang Zichen was crying poor, claiming the three children were always howling with hunger—and yet…
Gungun and Dandan were that fat. It really didn't look like they'd ever gone hungry. Still, they were awfully cute—plump and fair-skinned, with big, dark, sparkling eyes.
He took the paintings home. The Left Chancellor's wife hadn't gone to bed yet—it was the middle of the New Year celebrations, and he'd been summoned to the palace late at night. She feared something major had happened, so how could she possibly rest?
When she saw him come back grinning, she asked and learned that a letter had arrived from Hezhou. She naturally wouldn't pry into official matters, but she was about to ask if there was any news of Guaizai—was he doing well? Had he adjusted to life there? If not, could he find a way to bring the whole family back? A whole year they'd been gone, and she'd thought of them every single day!
The Left Chancellor handed her the paintings directly.
One look and she couldn't sleep at all. She clutched the drawings, unable to look at them enough, wishing she had two more eyes. She murmured that Guaizai looked thinner, and so did Gungun and Dandan. "The children must have suffered—" She cut herself off, then stood abruptly. "No. When is the imperial guard heading back? I need to go buy some things for the kids and have him take them along."
The Left Chancellor: "..."
Thinner? Really?
How can I not see it?
Guaizai is just the same as before—as for Gungun and Dandan, their faces have so much flesh on them that they're practically sagging. They're only one year old, and their faces are already as big as a plate. I'd reckon their weigh a good pound or two. And you call that skinny?
Then what exactly counts as plump?
As the Left Chancellor's wife looked on, her nose started to sting. She thought of Fang Zichen's family, and also of her own ger, who had married far away. Her fingers traced the faces of the three children in the painting, and finally her gaze settled on Guaizai's face:
"Tell me, how is it that this child looks so much like Qing Ger! If Guaizai just stood there quietly without speaking, I wouldn't be able to tell them apart."
Meng Ruqing was always rather composed and elegant, even as a child—a real little adult, standing properly, sitting properly, with perfect posture and manners.
Nothing like Guaizai, who acts like he's lost his mind—babbling nonsense, bouncing and hopping around, rarely ever still. He's just so lively and adorable.
The Left Chancellor also sighed: "He really does look like him. And the Qin family dotes on this little one too!"
They even sent over their private soldiers—not the elite troops, but still a sign of great affection.
The Left Chancellor's wife smiled: "The year before last, Qing Ger wrote saying Guaizai had gone to Hengyang and stayed at the Qin family for a while."
During that time, the Qin household was in constant chaos. Word had it that Old General Qin nearly passed out from anger several times because Guaizai said his face hurt and told him: "Grandpa, if you want to kiss, kiss Guaizai's bottom! Guaizai's bottom is nice to kiss too—it has the flavor of pee-pee!" And for that remark, Old General Qin chased him all night long.
Just thinking about Guaizai's mouth made the Left Chancellor laugh: "How could he not be angry? That little rascal... when you see him, you can't stand his yapping; when you don't see him, you truly miss him. Our Qing Ger wasn't like that as a child—they only look alike."
But if he were to be honest, the Left Chancellor felt that children ought to be more cheerful. His own ger was so proper it made him feel like he'd raised a little old man.
Perhaps that's why he extended his affection to Fang Zichen and Guaizai as well.
The imperial guard also sent men to Zhao Song.
Several of the daughters-in-law at home were also saying the children looked thin—only the men of the Zhao family thought the kids were chubby.
The imperial guards didn't dare stay long. After resting two days, they headed back. When they came, each man carried one bundle; when they left, they took a whole carriage loaded with gifts from the Meng and Zhao families for the children, plus four old men from the Ministry of Revenue.
All of them were heading to Hezhou.
"What in the world is this chemical fertilizer stuff? It can make farmlands yield four shi per mu?" When they heard that yesterday, they nearly burst out laughing right there in the imperial study.
They figured Fang Zichen really knew how to spin a tale. And yet the Emperor actually bought it and was sending them all the way there. Once they got to Hezhou, he'd probably have to come up with some excuse to fob them off—what a complete waste of a trip.
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