Chapter 37: Who Would Make a Good Daughter-in-Law?
“Really!” Yang Mingcheng’s face lit up with excitement as soon as Yang Zhengshan mentioned finding him a daughter-in-law. He instantly forgot about the recent events with the warhorse.
Which one is better, a warhorse or a daughter-in-law? Compared to a warhorse, he was more interested in getting married.
Yang Zhengshan didn’t bother to pay attention to his foolish son and yelled towards the kitchen, “Old Lady Wang, Old Lady Wang!”
“Papa!” Wang Shi walked out of the kitchen, wiping her hands.
“Find a matchmaker and see if they can find a suitable girl for Old Three!” Yang Zhengshan instructed.
As the eldest sister-in-law, Wang Shi was like a mother, and since Yang Zhengshan didn’t have a wife, this task could only be handled by her.
In ancient times, marriages were often blind dates, and even the parents wouldn’t know much about the other family. Of course, before finalizing the marriage, Yang Zhengshan could still meet the potential daughter-in-law a few times, but it was impossible to deeply understand her personality.
As a future father-in-law, Yang Zhengshan felt that matchmaking was problematic.
A virtuous wife can bring prosperity to three generations, while an evil wife can ruin a family. He naturally hoped Yang Mingcheng would marry a virtuous wife, but he couldn’t handle it himself and had to rely on Wang Shi.
His requirements weren’t high; as long as the girl was similar to Wang Shi and Li Shi, that would be enough. Wang Shi and Li Shi might be simple village women without much knowledge, but they were kind and hardworking. Although they couldn’t help the Yang family with big matters, they could take care of the family, which was already sufficient.
“Okay, Papa, I’ll go ask Old Lady Wang this afternoon,” Wang Shi agreed with a smile, having already prepared herself for this task.
She also wanted to find a good daughter-in-law for Yang Mingcheng, as they would be living together in the future, and she didn’t want to cause trouble for herself.
“Alright! You go ask, and if you find a suitable one, tell me! I’ll go take a look myself,” Yang Zhengshan said.
“Papa, can I say something?” Yang Mingcheng asked.
Yang Zhengshan didn’t bother to listen and turned to look at other things in the courtyard.
It was fortunate that the Yang family’s courtyard was large enough; otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to put away even the gifts from the Lan family.
He first focused on the golden fish-shaped gun, swinging it a few times and laughing, “Good gun!” This gun was much heavier than his previous one, probably weighing over 50 kilograms.
However, with his strength, swinging it was effortless, and it felt even more comfortable in his hands.
Yang Mingcheng and Yang Mingzhi looked at him with envy, hoping they could also have a good gun like that.
Yang Zhengshan swung the gun a few more times before putting it down to look at other things. There were silk fabrics, golden and silver ornaments, and other items.
He glanced at these things, a strange expression flashing in his eyes. The Lan family had prepared these gifts according to the Yang family’s population, like the four sets of golden and silver ornaments. Although they weren’t extremely valuable, they were already quite rare for the Yang family.
The women in the Yang family included Wang Shi, Li Shi, Yang Yunxue, and Yang Yunyan, who had already been married off. As for Yang Qingwan, she was still young and didn’t need any ornaments yet.
The fabrics were also prepared according to the Yang family’s population. This General Zhou was indeed meticulous.
Yang Zhengshan thought for a moment before distributing the gifts to each household.
“Papa, is this for me?” Yang Yunxue asked with a happy smile.
“Yes, it’s for you. Take good care of it, and it’ll be useful as a dowry in the future!” Yang Zhengshan patted Yang Yunxue’s head.
“Thank you, Papa!” Yang Yunxue’s face lit up like a blooming flower, her beauty increased by a few folds.
Later, Yang Zhengshan selected some furs and herbal medicine and stored them separately. As for the remaining 1,000 taels of silver, Yang Zhengshan pondered for a while.
This gift shouldn’t only belong to him. During that time, there were over 100 villagers from Yangjia Village who helped Zhou Lan, and he didn’t want to keep everything for himself.
After thinking, Yang Zhengshan took out 200 taels and put them in his cabinet, then carried the remaining 800 taels to Yang Zhengxiang’s house.
At that time, Yang Zhengxiang was at home discussing the ancestral worship ceremony with some elderly clansmen. When he saw Yang Zhengshan arrive, he and the clansmen immediately welcomed him warmly.
“You came at the right time! We were discussing the ancestral worship ceremony.”
“Ancestral worship? What’s there to discuss?” Yang Zhengshan asked, puzzled.
“Ancestral worship is straightforward, but we’re discussing whether to hold a banquet. This is a grand occasion for our Yang clan, and we should invite some local gentry to celebrate!” Yang Zhengxiang said.
Celebrating was just an excuse; the real purpose was to show off.
Of course, showing off wasn’t just to satisfy their vanity but to announce the Yang clan’s prosperity and growth through the banquet, intimidating those who were jealous of the Yang clan.
Yang Zhengshan thought for a moment, “Then let’s hold a banquet!”
Holding a banquet wouldn’t cost much, and it would be easy to set up 20-30 tables. He was about to leave for Chongshan Pass, and it was only natural to invite some people to celebrate.
“Let’s do it then! The clan will cover the expenses. We still have some silver left,” Yang Zhengxiang said, pleased with Yang Zhengshan’s agreement.
Yang Zhengshan waved his hand, “No need, I’ll cover the expenses myself. There will be many opportunities for the clan to use money in the future.”
Saying so, he handed over the wooden box, containing 800 taels of silver.
“What’s this?” Yang Zhengxiang asked.
Yang Zhengshan opened the box, revealing the silver coins, “I want to use this to build a clan school and repair the village road.”
Seeing the silver coins, Yang Zhengxiang and the clansmen’s eyes almost popped out.
To get rich, one must first build roads. Yangjia Village was close to the official road, only about four or five miles away. However, the road was unpaved and would become impassable during rainy or snowy days.
As for the clan school, although the Yang clan had a martial arts tradition, there were few who could become warriors. With a clan school, the Yang clan’s younger generation could improve their social status through the imperial examinations.
“Martial arts and imperial examinations, two legs walking together, would definitely be better than one leg walking alone,” Yang Zhengshan said.
“If there’s still some left, let’s buy some land as clan property, and the harvest can be used to support the clan school and take care of the clansmen in the future,” Yang Zhengshan added.
Yang Zhengxiang took a while to tear his gaze away from the silver coins, “This isn’t too good, Yang Zhengshan. You’re already doing so much for the clan, and now you want to spend more money on building a clan school and repairing the road. We really can’t accept this.”
“Yes, we all know you want to help the clan, but it’s too much for you to bear alone,” the clansmen chimed in.
Yang Zhengshan smiled, “I want the clan school to be built as soon as possible, and I hope our Yang clan’s younger generation will become versatile talents!”
He didn’t mention that the gifts had a share from the Yangjia Village villagers, and since Zhou Lan gave them to him, they were his.
He was willing to share with the clan, which was his way of caring for them. This was a favor.
He wanted to bind the Yang clan tightly to himself, so that no matter where he went, the Yang clan would be his allies.
He wanted every Yang clan member to remember his kindness and let them work for him in the future.
He believed that the seeds he sowed today would bear fruit in the future.
Actually, he had already harvested several fruits. Yang Mingwu, Yang Chengze, Yang Chengxu, and Yang Qinwu, these Yang clan members already looked up to him with admiration.
Although they were still weak, as long as he continued to invest in them, he believed they would become his most loyal subordinates soon.
Yang Zhengshan wasn’t a foolishly kind person; he was just trying to win people over.
(End of chapter)
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