The Overachieving Little Husband of the Top Scholar’s Household - Chapter 67: Su Xinbai

The cat seller was also a stubborn person. He raised his neck and said, “I don’t care if it’s the Left Censorate Governor or the Right Censorate Governor. This cat has already been sold. Even if the emperor himself comes, I won’t change my mind!”

He was originally wearing an old-fashioned mink-fur melon cap, with half of his face buried in a thick woolen scarf. At this moment, agitated, he lifted his hat to cool down, a few strands of sweat-dampened hair hanging down, revealing a faint red mole at the center of his brow. Surprisingly, he was a delicate-featured, young Ge’er.

The maidservant of Miss Su was so furious she cursed, “You—You! Insolent commoner! How dare you speak of the Censorate Governor like that? I’ll have the authorities arrest you right now!”

The young cat seller was not intimidated in the slightest, “Fine, I’m just afraid you won’t! This young master doesn’t change his name whether sitting or standing. Come arrest me at Qingfeng Academy—my name is Min Leyi!”

Miss Su, who had been standing gracefully among her maidservants and older female attendants, finally showed some reaction when she heard the words ‘Qingfeng Academy’ and the surname ‘Min’.

“Zizhu, come back. This cat is of mediocre quality anyway. I want to pick a better one.”

The maidservant Zizhu gave Min Leyi a resentful glare and kicked the cat cage with a loud thump. “What a worthless thing!”

The little lion cat, startled, meowed loudly and puffed up all its fur.

Min Leyi, now truly enraged, rolled up his sleeves despite the cold weather, revealing two pale arms and waving them in the air. “Su Xinyue, are you looking for a beating?”

Miss Su, Su Xinyue, pursed her lips and pulled down the beaded and jade-decorated veil hat, taking a step back. A group of maidservants and older female attendants quickly surrounded her to protect her.

Most of them had already recalled who this Min Leyi was—the infamous youngest son of Min Taikang, the headmaster of Qingfeng Academy, who just a month ago had gotten into a brawl with several officials’ children at a banquet hosted by the wife of the Censorate Governor of Liaozhou, leading to his house arrest!

This Ge’er who had recently come to Xiangping Prefecture from the south had none of the gentle grace typical of those raised in the misty southern lands. He was quarrelsome, uncouth, and nearly a laughingstock among the local officials’ families!

Su Xinyue naturally looked down on Min Leyi, but she didn’t want to make a big scene with him here.

If word got out, she too would become a topic of idle gossip.

“I heard you were under house arrest by Headmaster Min for two months. How did you get out? And dressed so ridiculously? I won’t argue with you; otherwise, people might think I’m like you and tarnish the Su family’s reputation.”

Su Xinyue turned and walked away, her steps quickening, and all her maidservants and attendants followed suit.

Min Leyi waved his little fist and cursed from behind, “You call that a good reputation? Hiding behind your maidservants to do dirty work! If you’re scared and running away, just admit it. Don’t pretend to be all high and mighty!”

It wasn’t until Su Xinyue was far away that he calmed down. His gaze accidentally met Qiu Huainan and Meng Yuanling, who were holding a fish. The atmosphere turned awkward.

Min Leyi put his hat back on, pulled up his scarf again, and tried to act as if nothing had happened.

Qiu Huainan chuckled and squatted down to place the one-jin fresh carp into the cage. The little lion cat, seeing the fish, reached out its white paw and curiously swiped at it, forgetting its earlier fright. Qiu Huainan gently touched the tip of its ear through the cage. The kitten meowed softly and did not shy away.

Min Leyi smiled when he saw Qiu Huainan interacting amicably with the cat.

“Thank you, Young Master Min, for saving the cat for me.”

Min Leyi’s voice was full of energy. “I’d already promised to sell it to you. Besides, no matter how much money Su Xinyue offered, I wouldn’t have sold it to her. I’m looking for someone who genuinely likes cats, not someone just out to take advantage.”

Knowing Min Leyi’s connection to Qingfeng Academy, Qiu Huainan became very curious about him. Since he was new to Xiangping Prefecture, he wanted to gather more information. So, he asked Min Leyi, “Young Master Min, do you know that Miss Su? She didn’t seem to recognize you at first.”

“We’ve never met before, but we’ve certainly heard of each other. After all, I’m pretty famous here.”

“That Miss Su doesn’t seem like the type to give up easily. You should be careful,” Qiu Huainan advised.

In the Yu Dynasty, the Censorate was the highest administrative body in a province, with the Left and Right Censorates managing all state affairs. The Right Censorate had more authority, so the Left Censorate Governor’s position was slightly lower.

The Left Censorate Governor of Liaozhou was equivalent to a Deputy Governor of a modern-day Liaoshen Province. That Miss Su was essentially the daughter of a deputy governor.

“No worries. The Left Censorate Governor Su has a good reputation, and my father has some influence. She can’t do much to me.”

Min Leyi shrugged indifferently and picked up the cage with the cat. “I have to hurry back before my family finds out I’ve been out for so long. I’ll leave the little cat to you. I can tell you really like cats. I wasn’t going to charge anything anyway. Taking money was just to scare off those who want something for nothing and don’t truly care for cats.”

He hesitated a moment and then shyly asked, “By the way, could you leave me your name and address? Once my house arrest is over, I’d like to come visit the little cat.”

Qiu Huainan, noticing his reluctance, asked, “Why didn’t you keep it for yourself, Young Master Min?”

Min Leyi shook his head regretfully, “It originally belonged to the family of the Censorate Governor of Liaozhou. The mother cat had four kittens, but when I found them, only this one was still alive. I couldn’t reason with those people, so I fought them and snatched the cat away. That’s why my father put me under house arrest.”

Qiu Huainan smiled and provided his name and address. “Young Master Min, feel free to visit anytime.”

“You live nearby? Great! Once I’m free, I’ll definitely come over. Just call me Yi Ge’er; that’s what my family and friends from the south call me.”

As Min Leyi left, Qiu Huainan brought the kitten home. Jiujiu and Chunsheng eagerly surrounded him.

Qiu Huainan found a shallow bamboo basket and placed it in a sheltered corner of the hallway. Jiujiu arranged old cushions and scraps of fabric inside, making a cozy little nest.

The little lion cat, not picky at all, looked around before gently leaping into the nest, curling its tail, pressing its front paws together, and sitting there obediently while everyone looked at it.

“It’s so beautiful…” Jiujiu whispered. “Brother Hua, shouldn’t we give him a name?”

Chunsheng racked his brain. “How about… Mimi?”

Jiujiu expressed her speechlessness with a glance.

Meng Yuanling said nothing, because he also couldn’t think of a name other than Mimi.

Qiu Huanian reached out and waved his finger in front of the kitten. The kitten elegantly shifted its sapphire and golden eyes, the tip of its tail twitching slightly.

As expected of a purebred lion cat, it looked alert and noble.

Qiu Huanian thought for a moment, “Let’s call it Naishuang. Its color is like milk and also like frost on grass leaves, and its temperament is both gentle and aloof.”

And so, the name Naishuang was decided. Jiujiu and Chunsheng gained a new playmate, and they spent half of each day playing with the cat. Even the older Qiu Huanian and Meng Yuanling couldn’t resist.

Naishuang was a bit shy at first, but after getting used to the environment, she became affectionate, especially fond of Qiu Huanian, who often brought her back with small fish. Every time he stepped out of the house, she would trot over with her tail raised high, circling around his legs, making everyone else envious.

Two days later, the results of this year’s entrance exam for Qingfeng Academy were released. More than two hundred people applied, and only thirty-eight were admitted—twenty-one into Class C, twelve into Class B, and only five into Class A.

Generally speaking, Class B is for scholars and exceptionally outstanding tongsheng, while Class A is for juren and tongsheng who are just a step away from becoming juren. Class C is for regular tongsheng.

Yuncheng was only admitted into Class C. He wasn’t surprised by this result and accepted it well. After all, Qingfeng Academy gathered the brightest students of the entire province. He was still young, and just getting admitted was already quite an achievement. With time, he would surely rise to a higher class.

What was surprising was Du Yunse—he actually made it into Class A on his first try. Aside from him, the other four new students in Class A were all already juren, planning to spend a year in focused study to prepare for next year’s imperial examination.

Even the head of Qingfeng Academy, Min Taikang, had previously thought that Du Yunse would need to study in Class B for at least half a year before moving up to Class A.

When all the exam papers were reviewed and the names of the admitted students were unsealed, Min Taikang stared at Du Yunse’s name on the paper that the examiners unanimously ranked as the top exam of this year, and was silent for a long time.

It was as if he was watching a hidden dragon rise from the shallows.

Thinking about Du Yunse’s age, Min Taikang felt a bit regretful that someone so young already had a husband. Then he thought about his own troublesome son and cast the thought aside.

Not a good match—better not to think about it.

Back in their countryside home, his elderly mother had sent little Yi all the way here, saying that he was of age and that as his father, Min Taikang should help arrange a good marriage. But Yi had been spoiled rotten. After just a few days in the city, he got into a brawl at a banquet, and his “fine reputation” had spread throughout Xiangping Prefecture. What respectable family wouldn’t keep their distance from him? How could he possibly find a good match?

Min Taikang sighed heavily. After the headache passed, he still had to plan carefully for his own son. Perhaps he could ask a few reputable young men in Xiangping Prefecture to guide him…

…

After the results of the Qingfeng Academy entrance exam were released, it was only a few days before the official start of classes. Qiu Huanian and Du Yunse packed their luggage together and also took the time to carefully calculate their expenses in the provincial city.

“Our daily food expense is one hundred wen. Brother Ling and the others cover twenty wen of that. Over a month, that adds up to about two taels and five qian of silver. Then we give Qiao Pozi eight qian as her monthly wage. Firewood, lamp oil, horse feed, cat food, and chamber pot cleaning together cost another tael. Just these necessary expenses alone already total over four taels a month.”

Back in Du family village, if they lacked firewood, they’d go to the back hill to gather some; if they needed vegetables, they’d pick them from the garden. Fruits and eggs came from their own home. But in the prefectural city, everything costs money. Luckily, the new house had a well. Otherwise, even water for daily use would have to be bought.

Ancient cities were far more prosperous than the countryside, but surviving in them was also much harder.

“Prices in the prefectural city are thirty to forty percent higher than in Zhang County. A bolt of cotton cloth costs six hundred wen. Silk and satin generally cost over five taels, though their colors and patterns are indeed more beautiful than those in Zhang County. If you want to make one new set of clothes each season, even twenty taels a year won’t be enough.”

“As for jewelry and cosmetics, I don’t really use them, but Jiujiu is getting to the age where she’ll need to start dressing up, so we’ll have to prepare for that sooner or later.”

Qiu Huanian set down his bookkeeping pen and let out a long sigh. Money—once they got to the prefectural city, money really didn’t last. That one hundred and twenty taels they had saved—without meticulous planning, it simply wouldn’t be enough.

And he hadn’t even factored in the biggest expense yet—an expensive daily medicine prescription, the actual price of which could scare people to death if spoken aloud!

The dividend from the Red Fermented Bean Curd Shop brought in more than thirty taels each quarter. The popcorn and sorghum candy recipes had been entrusted to Meng Wudong before they left, also under a profit-sharing model. That could bring in over ten taels a quarter. All these incomes added up to a decent amount, but still not quite enough to cover all expenses.

Du Yunse massaged his temples and kissed his forehead. “As long as we have enough to eat and wear, and your medicine is guaranteed, being a little short elsewhere doesn’t matter. Don’t wear yourself out.”

Qiu Huanian leaned into Du Yunse’s arms and nodded, but in his heart, he was already thinking about how to work around the non-merchant restrictions in the prefectural city to make some extra money.

He thought of the phrase “卷王” (King of Hustle) that often popped up in the comments of his past-life videos and couldn’t help but chuckle.

“卷王” really did seem to be a part of him that he couldn’t shake. Now that he could survive, he still wanted to live well—forever striving toward the life he dreamed of.

Qiu Huanian shook his head and brought his mind back to the task at hand.

“The annual tuition for Qingfeng Academy is six taels of silver. Meals must be paid for separately. I’ll give you one tael of silver per month for food. If it’s not enough, you must say so—don’t try to save money there.”

Du Yunse nodded, but Qiu Huanian still wasn’t at ease. “You need to eat enough every day… enough meat, staple grains, and vegetables. That way your brain will stay sharp.”

Qiu Huanian swallowed overly advanced terms like protein, carbohydrates, and dietary fiber, and replaced them with words more suited to the time period.

Du Yunse replied helplessly. Hua-ge had emphasized this so many times that he could recite it backward by now. Even if only for Hua-ge’s sake, he wouldn’t dare neglect it.

Paying Du Yunse’s annual tuition and purchasing his necessities for living at the academy cost ten taels of silver. That left the household with one hundred and ten taels.

From then on, monthly living expenses would be five and a half taels, plus three taels for the ingredients in the medicine prescription—a total of eight and a half taels. In the most extreme case, it would be just enough for a year.

But if you accounted for making clothes, social obligations, and the cost of buying rare medicinal herbs once the current supply of primary medicine ran out, the budget would be very tight.

And if Du Yunse passed the provincial exam this autumn and became a juren, they would need to prepare for the cost of traveling to the capital for the metropolitan exam in the spring.

The road would appear when the cart got to the mountain. Qiu Huanian calculated all the accounts clearly, and once he had a firm grasp of the situation, he wasn’t as anxious anymore. His health couldn’t take emotional stress or worry. Fortunately, Qiu Huanian’s temperament was excellent to begin with—he wasn’t easily affected by outside forces.

Zhu Jingcheng had gone south to negotiate business and wouldn’t return for a while, so once again it was Su Xinbai who came to congratulate Du Yunse and the others on his behalf.

Su Xinbai brought a kitchen assistant and plenty of ingredients himself, and had Qiao Pozi supervise the meal preparation so as not to trouble Qiu Huanian’s household. Though Su Xinbai appeared cold and indifferent, he was actually very thoughtful—but his thoughtfulness was distant, as if separated by a wall, giving off no warmth.

In Qiu Huanian’s heart, his impression of Su Xinbai was that of a cold beauty—exceptionally talented, with an ethereal aura.

This kind of cold was different from Shiliu’s “three-no” personality. Shiliu seemed to have lost most emotions, whereas Su Xinbai was more like someone who repressed his emotions, burying them under an icy surface.

After the banquet, Yuncheng, his wife, and the children all went to rest. The servants tidied up, and Su Xinbai spoke with Qiu Huanian.

“The eldest young master wrote in his letter that he wants to entrust a manor near the prefectural city to you, Young Master Qiu, to try growing cotton. I’ve picked out three manors that are closer—please have a look.”

One of the three manors was sixty mu(9.88acre) in size, and the other two were forty mu(6.59acre) each—all medium to small-sized manors. One was by the mountain and could be used for hunting wild game, one had a few mu of fish ponds, and one had a hot spring.

Su Xinbai had written down the details of the manors very clearly. His handwriting was very different from his outward demeanor—elegant and unrestrained, full of literary charm.

Qiu Huanian chose the forty-mu manor with the hot spring. Partly because it was the closest, and partly because he was curious to see what ancient hot springs were like.

Su Xinbai nodded. “This manor was part of my dowry. In two days, I’ll have the manor steward come to meet you, Young Master Qiu.”

Qiu Huanian was a little surprised that Su Xinbai had included his dowry manor as an option. Logically, this was something Zhu Jingcheng had agreed to, so it should have only included manors from the Zhu family.

Su Xinbai referred to Zhu Jingcheng with the proper and distant “Eldest Young Master,” without a trace of affection between husbands. The servants in the Zhu household also had subtle attitudes. It seemed that the relationship between Su Xinbai and Zhu Jingcheng was not very harmonious.

“Young Master Qiu, I have an impertinent request.”

“Please speak, Young Master Su.”

“I heard from the Eldest Young Master that you compiled an agricultural book on cotton cultivation. May I read it?”

“The manuscript is in the study. Please come with me, Young Master Su.”

Qiu Huanian didn’t mind others reading the agricultural book. He was planning to offer it to the public for free once it was completed anyway. The original manuscript had already been reviewed by Magistrate Wang, and Shiliu had taken a copy as well. He wasn’t worried about anyone stealing it and twisting the facts.

Su Xinbai came from a prestigious family and had never been involved in agriculture. At first, he simply wanted to see what kind of book a ge’er could compile. But as he read, he gradually became engrossed.

It wasn’t until he finished reading the section on seed selection and breeding that Su Xinbai finally pulled himself out of the book.

“What do you think, Young Master Su?” Qiu Huanian was quite invested in this agricultural book and wanted to hear a variety of opinions.

Su Xinbai spoke, his tone somewhat different from usual. “The choice of words and phrasing is unlike most books in the world, but it is excellent.”

Qiu Huanian smiled. “What I usually hear is that such plain wording is no good. You, Young Master Su, are quite different.”

Su Xinbai shook his head. “Even someone like me, who has never done farm work, now understands how to breed cotton after reading this. For language to be this vivid and concise—not even many scholars can achieve that. Books are meant to be understood by those who need them. Teaching and passing on knowledge is the true purpose. Those who deliberately make things obscure are merely showing off.”

Su Xinbai’s pace of speech quickened slightly. After finishing, he paused and lowered his gaze again. “Apologies. I lost my composure.”

Qiu Huanian smiled and shook his head. “How is that losing composure? You have insights, Young Master Su, and you’re willing to speak them. I’m glad to listen. It’s just the two of us here—no one else will hear.”

Su Xinbai relaxed a little. A bit of liveliness lit up his cold eyes. “I’m not afraid of others hearing. I’ve said as much publicly before. It’s just that at the time…”

“Your book is extraordinary, Young Master Qiu. But I’m afraid the common folk might not recognize its worth. If you need it printed and published in the future, you can come to me.”

“You have connections in that area, Young Master Su?”

“The Zhu family started with publishing houses. Though later the silk and fabric business grew larger, the publishing side was never abandoned. All of Zhu family’s publishing houses are under my management now.”

Even if it wasn’t the most profitable line of work, all the publishing houses combined still made up a substantial enterprise. Su Xinbai was so young, and he hadn’t been married into the Zhu family for long, yet he managed such a large industry directly—his status in the Zhu family was far higher than Qiu Huanian had imagined.

Su Xinbai… Qiu Huanian’s thoughts stirred. Since they had become somewhat familiar during the earlier conversation, he directly asked, “Young Master Su, are you related to the Zuo Buzhengshi family of Liao Prefecture?”

Su Xinbai lowered his beautifully cold gaze and answered quietly with a soft “mm,” as if it were just an ordinary matter of no great consequence.

“The Zuo Buzhengshi of Liao Prefecture, Lord Su, is my father.”

His tone was calm, but the listener could not stay calm. In ancient times, when the social ranks of scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants were strictly defined, for the son of a second-rank official—the second-in-command of Liao Prefecture—to marry into a merchant’s family, even if Zhu Jingcheng was the eldest son and heir of the Zhu family, it was still a shockingly unconventional marriage.

Seeing Qiu Huanian about to ask but hesitating, Su Xinbai directly answered the unspoken questions. “I am the child of my father’s original wife. In the household, there is also a stepmother and siblings born of concubines. These matters are no secret in Xiangping Prefecture. Once you get familiar, you can find them out easily.”

“…”

Su Xinbai’s eyelids twitched ever so slightly. He didn’t want any judgment about these matters—whether ridicule or sympathy.

“I’ve disturbed you today. If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave now.”

“Wait.” Qiu Huanian stopped him.

Su Xinbai turned back, and that beautiful, vibrant ge’er gave him a bright smile.

“I feel like your views on books align with mine. Do you have any favorite good books you could recommend to me?”