The Rong Family of Hibiscus City

The closer she drew to home, the more apprehensive she felt.

In Hibiscus City, most people bore the surname Rong.

Lady Yourong's full name was Rong Ruo.

She had not heard her full name in many years.

Only when a woman at a distant pork stall called out did Lady Yourong realize that all her worries had been unnecessary.

Her older sister was just as she had always been.

Their appearances had changed, and their accents had changed, but the bond between the sisters remained the same.

"Ruoruo, is it really you?"

Several great mountains lay between Hibiscus City and Zhang Household Village.

In an age when transportation was so undeveloped, a single mountain was enough to sever family ties completely.

At the pork stall, a stout woman had rolled up her sleeves and was preparing to pack up when she spotted a familiar face.

No matter how Lady Yourong had changed, the familiarity between family members was enough for her sister to recognize her at a glance.

"You're as slim and slender as ever, while your sister has eaten herself into a short, fat ball!"

The woman made fun of herself, and her words instantly put Lady Yourong's worries to rest.

"Sister!"

Lady Yourong called out, her face lighting up with joy.

Without a thought for the woman's greasy hands, she seized them tightly.

"Back then, I told you to run the tofu shop while I managed the pork stall, but look at you! You ran off to live carefree in the mountains, leaving me with no tofu to eat. All I could do was eat the rotten pork I couldn't sell, day after day!"

The woman's name was Rong Li, and she was Zhang Xuezhou's aunt by blood.

Rong Li's introduction also showed Zhang Xuezhou what a well-to-do family in the city was like.

It was not that he looked down on selling pork, but this well-to-do family was a little different from what Zhang Xuezhou had imagined.

"Don't underestimate the meat trade. Anyone who can keep a permanent meat stall in the city has some ruthless methods. Without some ability, they couldn't hold on," Zhang Zhong said in a low voice. "When I ran off with your mother, your aunt chased me for more than thirty li with a pig-slaughtering knife!"

"That must have been an unforgettable time for you!"

Zhang Xuezhou sighed, and Zhang Zhong then went over to properly greet Rong Li.

Before Rong Li could lose her temper, Zhang Zhong pushed Zhang Xuezhou forward.

"Elder Sister, look at your nephew. Handsome, isn't he?" Zhang Zhong said ingratiatingly.

"This is my nephew? Good thing he didn't take after your looks!"

Rong Li was affectionate toward Lady Yourong, but not nearly as kind to Zhang Zhong. Still, at least she did not pick up a pig-slaughtering knife and start a fight.

"My nephew really is handsome, tall and fair. I'm afraid the young ladies in the city will fall lovesick at the sight of you!"

Rong Li studied Zhang Xuezhou closely. Only when she saw that he did not shrink from her greasy hands in the slightest was she satisfied.

Little details revealed a person's character. Her nephew was not ill-natured, and the blood tie between them remained.

"Come on, come on, I'm closing up. Let's go home!"

Without asking about anything else, Rong Li took Zhang Xuezhou by the hand and led the way.

"Your parents probably never told you, but our Rong Household has slaughtered pigs in Hibiscus City for generations. As long as you follow your aunt, I guarantee you can open a pork stall in the southern part of the city!"

Rong Li reached out and gave Zhang Xuezhou's right hand a tug. Though his arm was fair, she felt that it held considerable strength.

If Zhang Xuezhou took up a knife, he would surely be able to slaughter and skin a pig on his own.

She thought Zhang Xuezhou was a natural for slaughtering pigs and immediately laid out a fallback path for him.

"Auntie, I still want to study and learn to read," Zhang Xuezhou muttered.

"What studying? What reading? Those penniless scholars know a few characters, but they can't even afford meat every day. They're so hungry they've wasted away to ribs. Let me tell you, there's no future in studying. Slaughtering pigs is what gives you a stable life!"

Rong Li advised him earnestly, evidently having seen too many stingy, penniless scholars at her pork stall.

After seeing so many, Rong Li had come to think little of studying.

At best, those who did well would become teachers someday, going on to teach that bunch of penniless scholars and squeeze out what little grain their families had left.

A thousand roads lay before a person, but studying for official distinction was a dead end.

In Hibiscus City, there were far too many young people who dreamed of becoming marquises and ministers, but the city had never produced any high officials.

Having seen wave after wave of scholars come and go, many of them living their whole lives in poverty, Rong Li did not want Zhang Xuezhou to walk such a bitter road.

"In our Great Han Dynasty, if you want official distinction, you need someone backing you," Rong Li said. "It's just like our pork stall. It's only thanks to the standing we've built up over the years that no one comes to overturn it. Back then, your grandfather took a pig-slaughtering knife and chased Wang Er and his gang of hoodlums through three streets before he brought them to heel. If you want official distinction, you need someone with status to hold things down for you too. Otherwise, you won't be able to keep it, and sooner or later you'll end up someone's scapegoat!"

"All right, Auntie. I'll slaughter pigs with you tomorrow. Let me tell you, I'm really good at judging weight. Whatever the meat, I can heft it in my hand and know how much it weighs!"

Zhang Xuezhou changed his tune so quickly that Rong Li was delighted with him.

"I knew it! Our Rong Household has slaughtered pigs for generations. How could we produce a bookworm? You really are a natural for slaughtering pigs!"

Overjoyed, Rong Li led Zhang Xuezhou along for five li before pointing ahead.

"Look, that's our house!"

The Rong Household's residence in Hibiscus City was not particularly large, but it occupied more than five hundred square meters, and its spacious courtyard and house had a very imposing appearance.

Comparing it with a home in a good school district in the real world, then thinking of the earthen-and-timber houses in Zhang Household Village, Zhang Xuezhou had to admit that the Rong Household was indeed well-to-do. The family estate handed down through the generations had amassed considerable wealth.

"The women in our family just haven't been up to the task of bearing children. If we'd had two or three sons, things would have been much easier!"

Rong Li strode into the residence, and a middle-aged man with fairly delicate features came out to meet them.

"Lili, you're back. These are..." the man asked.

"This is my second sister, that's your brother-in-law, and this is your nephew," Rong Li said. "Where's Tianding? Making his chicken scratches again?"

"Mother, that's painting! It's a highly sophisticated skill!"

A voice sounded from inside the residence, full of helplessness, and a young man about Zhang Xuezhou's age emerged from a room.

"Painting! All you know how to do is paint all day, and I haven't seen you make anything of it," Rong Li said discontentedly. "Do you know how much your canvases cost? In a few days, you and your younger cousin can learn to slaughter pigs from me, and see how many jin of pork we have to sell to pay for one of your canvases!"

"Oh, Mother, they're just a few canvases. It's not as if my painting can paint our family into poverty!" the young man protested.

"I never should have let a bookworm like your father marry into the family, only to give birth to a good-for-nothing like you!"

Rong Li's scolding left the middle-aged man too afraid to say a word. He merely kept shooting the young man looks, hoping the battle would not turn on him.

"Hahaha, is this my younger cousin?"

After several such looks, the young man finally caught on and began pulling Zhang Xuezhou and the others along as well, and peace finally settled over the harmonious family.

"No wonder Auntie kept recommending slaughtering pigs!"

Zhang Xuezhou finally caught on. It seemed to him that if no one took over, the Rong Household would have to find another line of work.

With Rong Tianding as a cautionary example, it was no wonder Rong Li was so prejudiced against studying.

But Zhang Xuezhou genuinely wanted to learn some of the distinctive culture that had appeared in his dreams.

He looked at the uncle who had married into the Rong Household and felt he had found himself a free teacher.