xymnovel Chapter 11 Year's Single Garment
Chapter 11 Year's Single Garment
Madam Shen held Shen Ce's hand tightly, pouring out all her hopes and expectations over the years. She used to worry that her nagging would affect Shen Ce's mood, but not anymore. Her son had become an official and had even helped the Prince of Qin kill the Crown Prince. As a woman, she didn't know what meritorious service meant in supporting a prince, but she knew that he must be a high-ranking official.
As for her definition of a high-ranking official, it's either someone close to the boss or someone far away from the boss.
There were no social circles in the Tang Dynasty, so when there was a happy occasion in the family, people would naturally go around showing it off.
The next morning, under much urging from Madam Shen Liu, Shen Ce reluctantly put on his official robes and was dragged around, showing off as he went from house to house. Before leaving, Shen Ce gave Shen Wang a wink; his mind wasn't on this, but he was only doing it out of consideration for Madam Shen Liu.
Starting with just one person, gradually some old women and their nephews and nieces also followed, chatting with him casually and occasionally probing whether there were any good jobs for the Crown Prince...
Shen Ce laughed and joked with everyone. It was only natural that when one person attains enlightenment, even their chickens and dogs would benefit. He didn't see anything wrong with it. If one had the ability, why wouldn't the villagers help? What kind of life would that be?
As noon approached, in a low-lying corner of the village, there were two thatched huts made of yellow earth. The yard was small, and the wall was just a bunch of short branches stuck crookedly in it. However, a few bundles of firewood were neatly stacked against the wall.
Standing at the door, Shen Liu pondered for a long time, then reached into her bosom, stamped her foot, and pulled Shen Ce inside. The villagers standing at the door showed no intention of going in.
Seeing this, Shen Ce couldn't help but become suspicious and quickly followed.
Before she even reached the door, Shen Liu called out at the top of her lungs, "Old Liu, I've come to see you."
Then, realizing something was amiss, she quickly added, "My eldest son is here too."
After a while, the door opened, and a middle-aged woman in her thirties, with a hunched back, held onto the door frame with one hand and beckoned to the two of them with the other.
"Come in quickly, come in and rest for a while, have some water."
Shen Ce looked Liu Pozi up and down. She was wearing a faded linen garment covered with centipede-like stitches and repair marks. The sleeves were just past her elbows, and the loose linen threads at the cuffs were neatly tied up. As for her trousers, they were even worse; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they were made of scraps of cloth pieced together.
Shen Ce took the lead, supporting the seemingly unsteady Granny Liu, and led her into the house.
Upon entering the room, one finds the bed, with only about a step's width of open space on one side. Two people are lying on the bed, covered with a feather duster, and have not yet gotten up.
Granny Liu shook off Shen Ce's hand, scooped up some water with a ladle, and handed it to him: "Shen family boy, you drink first."
Shen Ce hesitated for a moment, but still took it, drank two mouthfuls of it with gusto, and handed it to his mother.
Glancing at the two people on the bed, Shen Ce began to wonder. This Granny Liu was a polite person; she wouldn't allow her family to treat her so poorly. So why was she still bedridden? After pondering for a while, unable to contain his curiosity, he asked, "Aunt Liu, are Uncle and the child ill? Should we send a doctor?"
Shen Liu pinched his groin hard from behind, trying to cover it up, saying, "Our eldest son is an official in Chang'an now, and he even has a house. He'll be moving there soon, and I wanted to show it to you before he left." She then glared at Shen Ce.
Granny Liu smiled awkwardly and tugged at her clothes: "I'm fine, don't be sick. Now that the young man has become an official, we don't have much to give you, so we can only offer you a cup of tasteless water."
Old Lady Liu's understanding of being an official was that at most one was a village head or neighborhood chief, or at most someone working in the county government. As for higher positions, she had never seen one and knew nothing about them.
At this point, Shen Ce understood. He immediately took off his official robes and held them in his hands. What kind of person would he be to show off in the home of such a person?
Old Man Shen, lying on the bed, was quite nonchalant and said, "Being afraid of ghosts is no excuse for being a coward. What's there to be ashamed of?"
"This is the only decent piece of clothing the old man owns. When guests come, he naturally has to dress properly."
Shen Ce was stunned. He never expected that a peasant family not far from the capital would be in such dire straits during the early Tang Dynasty. There wasn't a single complete piece of clothing in the whole house, and even the quilt... He turned his head and saw that it was woven from chicken feathers and straw.
Thinking this through, he mustered his courage and asked, "Uncle Shen, how long have you been wearing this garment?"
"You're making a fool of yourself, kid. I don't know which ancestor this garment came from. My grandfather said it should be from the Wei Dynasty," Old Man Shen said, counting on his fingers. "If you count the days, it should be about a hundred years old."
Shen Ce frowned. They had been wearing the same clothes for a hundred years. They were not hooligans, but proper farmers with their own land and houses, though they were few in number, and couldn't even afford a single piece of clothing.
What he was really thinking about was how they had survived for over a hundred years.
After chatting with the two for a while, she got up to leave. Before leaving, Madam Shen pulled out a small string of coins from her bosom, stuffed them into the feather blanket, and said with a smile that this was a reward from the official and that she could not refuse. Granny Liu straightened her back and refused to accept it. Only after Shen Ce asked for the clothes did she reluctantly accept it.
Once outside, Shen Ce no longer wanted to be dragged around by his mother to show off. However, he was eventually escorted away by the family's head eunuch.
The village head's house, with seven or eight large brick houses, sits at the highest point in the village. The courtyard wall, which is taller than a person, is not sure who it is guarding against.
With a high-ranking official leading the way, the crowd felt emboldened and began banging loudly on the village head's gate. After waiting for a long time, all they heard was dogs barking, but no one came to open the gate. With such a commotion today, the village head should have seen it all by now.
Before anyone could react, two young men hurriedly climbed over the wall and fawned over everyone, opening the door for them.
Did they run away?
Everyone looked around and saw that the large courtyard was empty except for the big black dog and a dozen or so free-range chickens and ducks.
The villagers turned to look at each other, their hands trembling and pulling at one another. Suddenly, someone darted out from the crowd and ran straight for the old hen. The crowd then scattered like galloping colts.
With immediate benefits in mind, everyone instantly forgot about his "high-ranking official" status and rushed in, as if they would suffer if they were a little late.
The villagers who had been most oppressed in the past began to "take revenge," and started catching chickens and ducks, firewood, stools, pots and pans—all became their targets.
Squeezed to the back, Shen Ce looked at the scene before him helplessly. He looked up at the sun and figured it was about time. He whispered a few words in Shen Liu's ear and then turned and walked towards home. He didn't want to be accused of instigating villagers and oppressing the locals before he even took office.
Upon reaching her doorstep, Shen Liu looked at the empty courtyard and exclaimed in surprise, "Has our house been burgled?"