amaotonovel Chapter 288 Departure to Shayang County
Chapter 288 Departure to Shayang County
"Second sister-in-law, it's just a Trojan horse, how can it be spoiled so easily? Besides, Xiaohai is still young. If you don't play with him more now, when he grows up, he might be taken around the village by that kid Lin He, and you won't be able to find him when you want to play!" Shen Wanning said deliberately.
Lin He, who was about to go out with a slingshot in his hand, turned around and said, "Aunt, don't talk nonsense. I didn't take my brother running around! If you don't believe me, look at Xiao Hu. I didn't even take him running around."
Lin Hu made a face and said, "No, that's not the case. You just asked me to go out bird hunting with you. I said I had to review the lessons that the teacher taught me today, so you went out by yourself."
Lin He blushed all of a sudden, and jumped up and down anxiously, "Forget it, I don't care about you guys anymore, I'll go out and play by myself."
Seeing this scene, not only Shen Wanning and Wen, but even Xu was amused and laughed out loud.
She had once thought that Lin He and Lin Jiang should study hard, believing that only by studying could they have a bright future. However, after so many days of Shen Wanning's subtle influence, she realized that studying was not the only way out, and that interest was the most important thing.
So now she has slowly let it go. Her children's happiness is the most important thing. The family situation now is not that they cannot afford to support them.
In addition, Lin Jiang was rewarded for his waterwheel and became an eighth-rank official. This made her feel that one didn't have to study to become an official. Now her mentality is much better than before.
Shen Wanning continued to play with Lin Hai on the wooden horse. After a while, Lin Hai began to rub his eyes. Shen Wanning knew that he was sleepy and wanted to sleep.
"Second sister-in-law, Xiao Hai seems sleepy and wants to go to bed. You should take him back to wash up and rest first!" Shen Wanning picked up Lin Hai from the wooden horse and put him in Wen's arms.
"Okay, Wanning, thank you for your hard work." Wen took Lin Hai and shook his hand towards Shen Wanning. "Come and say goodbye to your aunt."
Shen Wanning smiled and said, "Goodbye, Xiaohai. Have a sweet dream tonight~"
As soon as Lin Hai left, Yue Mingzhu couldn't wait to run over to the wooden horse and sit and play for a while. Lin Jiang stood nearby, whittling some sticks while it was still light. He would glance at Yue Mingzhu from time to time, a smile occasionally curling his lips.
Shen Wanning stayed in Daqing Village until one evening when Lin Jingcheng came back with a piece of news.
"Wan Ning, Mr. Qian from Shayang County sent someone to say that the milk tea shop in Shayang County has been renovated and asked people to check it out at any time." Lin Jingcheng mentioned this matter while eating.
Shen Wanning thought for a moment and said, "It would take about half a day to get to Shayang County by carriage. I can probably get there in an hour and a half on horseback. I'd rather go on horseback."
She thought to herself that Lin Jingyou had been gone for almost half a month, so it was a good opportunity for her to stop by and see him and bring him some snacks.
Aunt Zhang disagreed, "It's such a long way, and you don't have to go. There are so many people in the milk tea shop, just send someone. It will save you the trouble of running back and forth."
Shen Wanning smiled and said, "Mom, I'm going to Shayang County. After this is over, I'll go to Baocheng County. Didn't Mom make another set of light summer clothes for Third Brother recently? I'll just give it to him."
Mrs. Xu immediately joked, "Oh, so Wan Ning is thinking about her third brother. Mother, please let Wan Ning go. They are so in love, but they are separated by distance. It is natural for them to miss each other."
Aunt Zhang thought about it and realized that this made sense. Ever since these two had been together, they had been apart more often than together. It was rare for Shen Wanning to have such feelings, so she decided not to stop her.
She nodded and said, "Wan Ning is right. I just made a set of clothes for the third brother a few days ago. Why don't you give it to him?"
"Okay, then I'll set off tomorrow! It's a good time to ride the newly bought horse." Shen Wanning said.
A few days ago, when she came back from the county town, she bought a good horse, which she rode back from the county town.
"As a girl, you should be more careful outside. You are familiar with the road from Daqing Village to the county town, but this is your first time going to Shayang County, so be careful." Aunt Zhang reminded.
"I know, Mom. I will be careful and come back safely." Shen Wanning promised.
The weather at the end of April was neither too hot nor too cold, making it the most comfortable time. After dinner, we sat in the yard and chatted for a while before returning to our rooms.
After waking up and having breakfast in the morning, Shen Wanning went back to her room, applied sunscreen, and rode to Shayang County.
They set out at around 7 a.m. and arrived in Shayang County at around 10 a.m. When they arrived at the entrance to Shayang County, Shen Wanning dismounted from her horse.
Perhaps it was rare to see people riding horses, so as soon as Shen Wanning arrived at the city gate, she attracted a lot of people's attention.
Coupled with her outstanding appearance, many people stopped and looked at her for a long time.
This was the first time Shen Wanning encountered such a situation, and she felt a little uncomfortable. She frowned slightly and wanted to go into the city as soon as possible.
Arriving at the city gate, she lined up and prepared to go in. She stood on tiptoe to look forward, feeling very strange.
Logically speaking, the city gate has been open for quite a while now, so why is there still such a long queue at this time?
There was someone making noise up ahead, but the soldiers guarding the gate dragged them away to who knows where.
After waiting in line for more than ten minutes, it was finally her turn. She glanced at the person in front of her and realized why they were still queuing. It turned out that everyone had to pay a two-cent entrance fee to enter the city.
Although she had doubts in her heart, she did not want to conflict with others, so she paid two cents and entered the city like everyone else.
After entering the city, Shen Wanning randomly pulled over an older woman and asked, "Auntie, why do we have to pay a two-cent entrance fee to enter the city? Shouldn't this be cancelled?"
When the old lady heard her ask this, her face changed, she looked scared, waved her hand and left quickly.
Shen Wanning felt even more puzzled. She found another child, took out two coins, and placed them in front of the child. "As long as you answer one of my questions, the money will be yours."
"Ask!" the little boy said, staring at the copper coins in her hand.
"Why do we need to pay two cents to enter the city gate?" Shen Wanning asked.
The little boy made a gesture, asking Shen Wanning to bend down.
Shen Wanning leaned over, and the little boy leaned close to her ear and whispered, "This city entrance fee thing started last year during the famine. The county magistrate said it was to protect us and prevent refugees from entering the city."
"But later we had cassava to survive, and after the rain, the famine was over. I didn't see any refugees when I came in. Why do they still charge a fee to enter the city?" Shen Wanning continued to ask.
The little boy rolled his eyes and said, "That's the second question."