Chapter 3: Use Your Brain a Little

After finishing her work, Mo Yi rested her chin on her hand and fell into a daze

Father, when will you be back?

The New Year is approaching, and there is still so much to do outside!

I have no idea how the business has been these days! I’m truly anxious...

She had two maids. The older one was called Xiangzhi, and the younger one was Xiangye. They were biological sisters with no parents or brothers.

All the chores in her room were their responsibility.

Though they were her maids, they still had to do needlework for her mother’s room, sweep the courtyard, and help out in the kitchen whenever things got busy; they were never idle.

The sisters were tight-lipped and diligent in their work.

But sending them out to handle business matters was still out of the question.

Her cousin Mo Fan, from her eldest uncle’s house, was the one she was closest to, but even that was limited to having him buy a few things for her or chatting about interesting news from the outside.

She dared not entrust him with business matters.

She was terrified that if he accidentally let something slip, her mother would find out.

Heh, not only would her mother shut it all down in one go, but she would also fly into a rage.

And what would happen to Father then?

The Mo family’s ancestral home was in Xinzhou, and they owned about a hundred acres of land, barely qualifying as a family of scholars and farmers.

Her grandfather was a *juren* and a man of caution and detail. With the help of his former classmates, he secured a minor official post that came with some perks.

He had three sons and one daughter.

The eldest son, her Uncle Mo Rushan, was an excellent scholar and became a *jinshi* at twenty-one.

After passing the *jinshi* exam, he secured a position in the capital, and Grandfather moved the whole family there.

However, although the eldest uncle’s scholarship was beyond reproach, he had no connections at court, making his official career difficult.

The family didn't have enough money to help him grease the wheels.

He was now a fourth-rank official—not a low position—and held a reputation for elegance and integrity. But for all these years, he had only been doing work like editing and compiling books...

He spent his days buried in moldy, tattered ancient texts, rising in rank only through seniority and the passage of time.

But according to Father, he had likely reached his limit.

To step up to the third rank—the threshold of high officialdom—was impossible without a great stroke of luck.

In the capital, if you dropped a brick, you’d likely hit four fifth-rank officials.

The Mo family was just too inconspicuous...

After years of grinding, the eldest uncle had lost his youthful ambition, becoming worldly-wise and calculating.

He married a woman named Zhuang. She was the legitimate daughter of a fourth-rank official, so it could be considered a marriage "downward."

However, the eldest uncle had been a promising young talent back then, and Madam Zhuang was short and unremarkable in both talent and appearance, so it wasn't exactly a climb for her either.

The two had two daughters and one son.

Below the eldest uncle was her aunt, Mo Ruzhen, who married one of the uncle’s classmates and lived a stable life.

Next was Mo Ruhai, her own father. He held the title of *xiucai*.

Grandfather could only ensure a decent marriage for the eldest uncle.

The marriages of her father and the third uncle, Mo Rusong, were essentially contributions to the Mo family.

For instance, her father married Wang Xiu'e, the daughter of a merchant. The third uncle married the illegitimate daughter of a military officer.

These two marriages brought benefits to the family, to varying degrees.

Her father was sensitive and simple-minded, with a love for elegance.

But the wife he married happened to be from an *nouveau riche* family that chased after fame and fortune. She was vulgar and overbearing. Sometimes, she didn't even care about maintaining appearances.

Since they married, the two could never see eye to eye. Her father found it hard to focus on his studies, failed the *juren* exam, and gave up on it entirely.

Now, he worked as a clerk in the Ministry of Personnel.

Her parents had five children together.

The third uncle, Mo Rusong, hadn't even passed the *xiucai* exam and now managed the family’s farmland.

He married a woman named Liu, whose family background wasn't low, but she was born of a concubine.

The two had only one daughter. The third uncle had returned to their hometown and rarely came back.

Long ago, when Grandfather passed away, the three brothers had already divided the family property.

The courtyard they lived in now actually belonged to the eldest uncle.

Her father and the third uncle each had their own small courtyard elsewhere.

Among the three brothers, only the eldest uncle held a respectable official position.

As the eldest, he knew he had to look after his younger brothers, so after much deliberation, he had them live with him.

For one, he was the only one with an official title, which sounded good for the family reputation.

For another, the two younger brothers could rent out their own courtyards to have a bit more spending money.

Furthermore, since the third uncle wasn't in the capital, it wasn't convenient for the third aunt to live alone with her daughter.

Living together also saved on personnel and expenses.

In truth, the eldest aunt was unwilling, not only because it was crowded, but because she had to deal with her two sisters-in-law all day long.

And those two sisters-in-law: "Neither of them are good birds!"

But she couldn't sway the eldest uncle.

The three brothers agreed that the two younger brothers would give a symbolic amount of silver to Madam Zhuang every year.

The household covered housing, three meals a day, and the social obligations between relatives. It also managed the use of carriages for each branch a few times a month.

Everything else—such as raising children, marriages, clothing, and accessories—was handled by each branch individually.

Her mother wasn't happy living here either. Her maternal family had provided her with a courtyard as part of her dowry; it was quite tidy.

It was close to her maternal family, and it would save her from dealing with her sisters-in-law.

But Father was adamant about not going!

The way things were now... he already couldn't hold his head up in front of Mother!

If they moved into her dowry courtyard, he feared the next step would be Mother forcing them to change their surname to Wang, effectively making him a live-in son-in-law!

Heh heh...

In her generation, the eldest uncle only had a son, Mo Fan, after having two daughters.

He was the second among the Mo men, seventeen years old, and still not betrothed. His brain... he took after the eldest aunt; although he was still studying, but...

The eldest daughter, Mo Hong, and the second daughter, Mo Xin, were both already married.

Her parents had five children.

The eldest son, Mo Da, was nineteen. He was handsome and a good student, having already passed the *xiucai* exam. He was studying at Xishan Academy and was set to take the exams the following autumn. He was the apple of Mother’s eye!

He had just married at the beginning of the year to a woman named Zhou, the legitimate daughter of a fifth-rank official...

The young couple was now renting a house in Xishan, with the eldest sister-in-law accompanying him in his studies.

The eldest daughter, Mo Wen, was the most beautiful, clever, and opinionated. Among their relatives, she was the most outstanding young lady.

She was also the apple of Mother’s eye!

And then there was herself, born after that... Mo Yi turned to look in the mirror and touched her face. Although she wasn't as pretty as her older sister, she was alright, wasn't she?

With an older brother and sister above her, she couldn't attract Mother’s attention.

Then came her younger sister, Mo Qing, and her younger brother, Mo Bao...

Mo Qing had a personality like their maternal grandmother, and Mother liked her very much.

The little fatty, Mo Bao, was already in school. He loved to eat and was as round as a ball. But according to the eldest uncle and Father, he had the best brain among all the Mo children. Naturally, he was also the apple of Mother’s eye.

There were too many "apples of her eye"... She had become completely transparent; Mother never saw her.

Fortunately, I have Father...

A smug smile appeared on Mo Yi’s lips. Father put more thought into her than he did into the eldest brother!

...Perhaps this had become one of the reasons why Mother didn't like her?

She smiled indifferently and looked at the magnolia she had painted...

As for the third uncle and third aunt...

Madam Liu didn't have a low background, and the third uncle was quite satisfied when they were first betrothed. But he hadn't expected that: the third aunt didn't have much of a dowry, but she had plenty of issues.

Upon closer inquiry, it turned out that Madam Liu’s biological mother had been a woman of the night... she was already pregnant when the Liu family had no choice but to take her in.

The third uncle and third aunt had only one daughter, her fourth sister: Mo Yuan.

The Mo girls were all quite pretty. Only Mo Qing was slightly less so...

Thinking of this family, she turned to look at the narcissus and felt a headache coming on.

Everyone inside and outside the house praised Mo Wen: bright and beautiful, clever and talented, dignified and virtuous.

But in reality...

Hmph! In reality, she was the stingiest and most calculating. She never admitted her mistakes and was overbearing.

But what could she do?

Resigned, she got up, found a small pot, and transplanted the two stalks Mo Wen wanted, including the one that had just bloomed.

Hmph! She wanted whichever one was blooming! That was just like Mo Wen’s personality!

After dinner, while no one was around, she quickly had Xiangye send them over. She also had to tell the eldest uncle that the narcissus were budding one after another, so he should just take them!

Otherwise, if the third aunt, Mo Yuan, and Mo Qing found out about this... a chill ran down her spine.

She whispered a reminder to herself: Mo Yi, you really need to be more careful!

Stop showing off when there’s nothing to do!

Otherwise, how would the eldest uncle know you can carve narcissus?

Remember: more trouble is worse than less trouble!

(End of chapter)