OBS Chapter 360 So poor!
Chapter 360 So poor!
Magistrate Zheng hesitated for a moment, unsure whether he should continue speaking. He wondered if his repeated prompting of him might offend someone.
Wang Erniu saw his worry, smiled faintly, and assured him again, "Don't worry, sir, I will definitely do it."
"Alright!" Magistrate Zheng nodded heavily. He should trust them; the world is so big, there must be a few good people out there.
County Magistrate Lou led Chen Wenfang and the others to the house allocated by the government. The house was quite large, much better than the one on Chen Wenfang's estate, and could be considered a small mansion. However, upon entering, Chen Wenfang and the others were greatly disappointed.
It turns out it was all just for show. The house is indeed quite large, but it's overgrown with weeds everywhere. The tall weeds in the yard are almost swallowing up the house inside, not to mention the crooked and broken windows and doors, and the spider webs in the corners of the eaves.
Aside from the good lighting, and the fact that the place is quite large, the overall impression is that it looks like a haunted house... Chen Wenfang was a bit speechless.
"Hehe, I'm so sorry!" Magistrate Lou explained palely, "The county government is short-staffed, and it's the rainy season recently. There are many elderly people and children living alone in the county. We've been busy with disaster relief and rescue, and we forgot to tidy up this for you."
What can you say when they've already said that?
"It's alright, it's alright, we'll clean it up ourselves~" Chen Wenfang smiled.
County Magistrate Lou pushed open the door with a creak, raising a cloud of dust. After entering the room, Chen Wenfang looked around carefully. Although the things were a bit old, the chairs, beds, and utensils were all there. There was a slight smell, but thankfully no mold. He opened the doors and windows to ventilate the room, and after tidying it up, it would be fine for someone to live there.
"Madam Chen, take a look. If you need anything later, just let me know, and I'll try my best to apply to the county to purchase it for you," said Magistrate Lou, rubbing his hands together awkwardly, seeing that she didn't seem angry.
Chen Wenfang then noticed that, as the second-in-command of the county, his undergarment was made entirely of linen, the cuffs were worn out, and a few threads had come loose.
Chen Wenfang was somewhat surprised and quickly refused, "No need, I have no requests. Just arrange for a few people to help clean and tidy up the yard. I want to plant some vegetables."
Following her gaze, Magistrate Lou noticed the loose thread and casually tucked it into his sleeve. She didn't want anything; everything else was fine. The county was simply too poor to offer anything. "No problem," he said. "I'll arrange for ten people to come and help tomorrow."
There was a well in the middle of the courtyard. Several children gathered around when they saw it, and Chu Yi's excited voice came from afar, "Godmother, the water is so clear, and there are fish in it!"
"What are you guys doing? Hurry up and find some tools to clean up. We're staying here tonight, so hurry up!" Chen Wenfang roared in response.
"Oh, oh, you're here!" Chu Yi and the child didn't react much, but came over happily, especially Chu Yi, who felt very warm towards them. However, this startled Magistrate Lou and his two servants, who were standing nearby. This Madam Chen's face changed so suddenly!
Chen Wenfang grinned at him, "Sorry, I lost my composure for a moment, I lost my composure for a moment!"
"It's alright, it's alright. Perfect timing. I'll take you to find your things. I know this place well." Since Wang Duwei's wife had already wiped the table herself, she didn't blame them for giving them a deserted courtyard as their lodging. Poor County Magistrate Lou could only help clean the courtyard himself.
Uncle Hu was directing people to unload things, and several horse-drawn carriages blocked the entrance.
"Hey, hey, step back a bit, one at a time." Uncle Hu complained as he gave instructions.
"Steward Hu, where should we put this?" Wang Erniu's personal guards asked while they were unloading the goods.
"What is this?"
"Chili sauce!"
"Put it in the kitchen!" What a blockhead!
Seeing that he was too busy, Chen Xuanyu dropped the rag and came over, acting like a little adult and giving orders. "These boxes go to my mother's room, those are for Grandma Hu, and this is dried vegetables, put it in the kitchen..."
"Okay, okay, listen to him." Uncle Hu stroked his beard and watched him give instructions with delight.
With more people, the cleaning was quicker. Five or six rooms were tidied up, enough for people to live in today. Aunt Hu looked at the mosquitoes buzzing around and rummaged through her bundle.
"Madam, we're running low on mosquito coils, we need to buy some more!"
"Well, it would be best to buy some more window screens. Everyone has worked hard today, so let's call a 'Sohu' (a local deity) while we're at it. Don't cook dinner tonight. Magistrate Lou, let's eat together here later." Chen Wenfang, who had finally finished her work, plopped down on a stool, and Caiyun quickly handed her a cushion.
“Alright, Madam Chen~” Magistrate Lou was also tired, so he moved a stool and sat down. After hesitating for a moment, he said, “It’s just that we don’t have any food here, and there aren’t many people in the restaurants at this hour.”
"No way! I don't believe it!" Chen Wenfang turned around and shouted, "Chu Yi, you go! Find a way to get a meal back." As she spoke, she threw him a bag of loose silver.
"Okay!" Chu Yi readily accepted the money and prepared to leave.
"I want to go too!" Chen Xuanyu scrambled onto the carriage in a flash. "Then I'll go too!" Shiwu was inseparable from him, so naturally they would go together. Xiao Hao also climbed onto the carriage without hesitation.
Fifteen sighed, got into the carriage, and headed towards town. These kids were so annoying. He knew without asking that they wanted to buy some treats. In Fifteen's words, "Who doesn't have some pocket money? Rich kids are like that, they love to spend."
"Buy more, there are a lot of people today!" Chen Wenfang reminded her from afar.
"Understood!" Fifteen cracked his whip and set off. After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Fifteen returned in his carriage. Several children each carried a food box, and there were two men dressed like waiters beside them, each carrying two food boxes that looked particularly heavy. Why? Because those two men were grimacing.
"Mom, all the shops over there are closed, and no one is setting up stalls. It's not fun at all." Despite his complaints, Chen Xuanyu still obediently put the food box away.
"Exactly! There isn't even anyone buying candy figurines!" Fifteen was also a little angry.
"You can go in the morning. There are some local villagers selling their own homegrown fruits and vegetables at the market. They're quite delicious," Magistrate Lou said, quickly pointing out a good point so that they might not like the place.
"Then, Mother, let's go to the market tomorrow morning!" Chen Xuanyu immediately requested.
"Okay, as long as you can get up!"
Xiao Hao carried a basket of pancakes and placed it on the table. Two young, thin waiters from the restaurant next to him carefully put down food boxes and took out two full plates of scrambled eggs that looked like meat skewers.
"Godmother!" Chu Yi said with a smile, "It's too late, and there's not much left in the shops around here. I went to several places and asked them to make do with whatever they could find. We'll just have to make do with this for today."
"Very good, Chu Yi, you're so capable! As long as there's food, everyone wash your hands and eat first." After praising him, Chen Wenfang called everyone to eat.