Transmigrated to Ancient Times with System

Chapter 29 Worship

To provide Er Dan with a good study environment, Da Zhuang had spent a lot of effort these past few days building a small thatched hut along the edge of the courtyard.

Though the wind could blow in from all sides since it had no walls, it was bright and open. Most important was that it gave a sense of ritual.

In front was a long wooden table, the desk for Lu Xiucai.

There were five small wooden tables. Four were study tables, with straw mats placed alongside as seats. The other table held a smooth, flat slate for practicing calligraphy.

In a straight, smoothly sanded bamboo tube was inserted a brand new sheep hair brush.

When Grandma Wang arrived, Wang Er was with Da Zhuang putting the finishing touches on making a grand master's chair for Lu Xiucai.

"Wang Er, what are you doing?" Grandma Wang called out before even entering the yard. "A scholar like you shouldn't be doing hard labor. You'll hurt your hands. Quickly stop and let your big brother do it!"

"Grandma, I'm fine," Wang Er said softly.

"Listen to grandma and stop immediately!" Grandma Wang snatched the things from Wang Er's hands, then turned to Li Yao lounging nearby and yelled, "What kind of mother are you? Sitting around with nothing to do while making Wang Er work?"

Li Yao didn't want to argue. She just said, "If you have something to say, say it."

"What would I have to say to you?" The old woman pulled Wang Er to the side and stuffed the cloth bundle with coins and silver into his arms. "This is for your studies. Grandma is giving it to you, so keep it safe."

"Grandma, I can't take your money."

"I'm telling you to take it so take it! Keep it safe yourself!" Then she turned back to Li Yao and said in a drawn out tone, "Don't you dare give it to your maternal family again."

Li Yao: ...

"Grandma, Mother won't give it away," Wang Er said softly. "Mother doesn't keep in contact with Grandma's side of the family anymore."

"Humph. How do we know if that's true or not? Although she's your ma, her surname is still Li." Grandma patted Wang Er's hand. "Study hard. Our Wang family ancestors will bless you. In the future you will certainly become an important official."

Li Yao scoffed.

This wish was truly naive, yet also pragmatic.

As etiquette dictates reciprocity, Li Yao called to the kitchen, "Xiao Ya, cut a bowl of stewed meat for your grandma, and add some steamed buns."

"Yes, Mother."

"I don't want it, don't want it. I didn't come to beg food," the old woman yelled as she turned to leave. "You all keep it to sell for money. Giving it to me would just be wasteful."

Wang Er hurriedly pulled her back. "Grandma, go ahead and take it. Even if you don't want it now, Xiao Si will deliver it to you later."

Luckily, Xiao Ya was quick with her hands. She soon had everything packed up neatly. Carrying the heavy bamboo basket, the old woman for once didn't nag them further. The look she gave Li Yao wasn't as sharp as before either.

"It's good that you have some conscience to get Wang Er a tutor," Grandma Wang said. "No matter whether you stay married or not in the future, our Wang family will not forget your kindness."

"There's no need for you to remember any kindness," Li Yao replied. "Tomorrow is the rite of bowing to the master. Come with Father at noon to eat."

"We're not coming, not coming," the old woman said with a wave of her hand as she walked away. "Making such a fuss over bowing to Lu Xiucai. If you have spare money, it'd be better spent buying Wang Er some decent clothes!"

Before she even finished speaking, her figure had disappeared.

Wang Er handed over the bundle. She discovered it contained nearly 1 tael of silver.

The old woman was quite generous despite her prickly demeanor. She just had an awkward way of showing concern.

An Auspicious Day Arrives at an Auspicious Time

Lu Xiucai and his wife had purposely put on a set of clean clothes. Under Village head lead, they arrived at Li Yao's home.

Seeing that a place had been specially prepared for studying, Lu Xiucai felt he was given due respect and was very satisfied. His entire face was smiling radiantly.

Many villagers had also rushed over to watch the liveliness, surrounding the courtyard.

The ceremony took place in the yard. On the square table there was a boiled pig head, pig tail, a jar of rice wine, half a radish and a few incense sticks.

Lu Xiucai lit the incense. Together with his four children, he paid respects from afar to his former teacher, praying that Wenqu Xing would bless them. Only then did he insert the incense into the half radish and sit on the bench with his wife.

After the four children had lined up in a row and performed the grand ceremony of three kowtows, they presented the six gifts for paying respect to a teacher.

The six gifts for paying respect were:

Celery, lotus seeds, red beans, red dates, and longan. These five kinds were worthless, purely for their auspicious meanings.

The last was dried meat, which was for giving the teacher a "tooth sacrifice."

But after searching the entire marketplace, Li Yao hadn't found anyone selling dried meat. So she had prepared an entire pig hind leg, salted it for two days, and had He Xiaoya roast it over a small fire for a whole day. She reckoned the inside should be thoroughly cooked. Lu Xiucai surely wouldn't mind.

Lv Xiucai's delight was genuinely written on his face.

Previously when villagers saw him, it was as if they were watching a joke. His wife at home, although she didn't say it explicitly, her words hinted that he couldn't earn money to support the family.

He was well aware of these matters in his heart, but he really was helpless. When he went to copy books for others, they thought he was too slow; when he did letter writing for others, they still thought he wasn't a true xiucai.

Now it was good. He had studied poetry and books for decades, and could finally earn money.

What's more, Wang Er Mother had made such a big scene, giving him face.

From now on, no one would say she was vulgar, no one would say she was a shrew.