Bride Swap Backfire: My Cousin's Rebirth Made Us a Power Couple-Chapter 88 - 52: Paying a Visit, Part 3

In truth, everyone in the Qian Family had vaguely heard some whispers about the matter. But it was being kept under tight wraps; what the common folk on the street knew was only the news the county government wanted them to know.

The most widespread rumor was that human bones had been dug up on the mountain—decades-old remains belonging to a rebel army. The current court naturally wouldn’t investigate such an old case, so no one thought they would commit so much manpower and resources to it.

With this preconceived notion, Chen Bai had assumed his older brother had finished his work on Xiaoao Mountain and moved on to other things. He never imagined his brother had been on Xiaoao Mountain this entire time.

’This is a much bigger deal than I thought.’

Recalling what his sister-in-law had said about the chests... Chen Bai quickly looked toward Mrs. Qian. Mrs. Qian said, "No one is to breathe a word of this to anyone outside this room. This is a life-and-death matter. It cannot be taken lightly."

Xu Su Ying simply smiled at her words.

’The fact that I’m even talking about it proves the excavation is nearly finished.’

That was the impression she had gotten from Chen Song.

For one, the weather was too cold. The constables couldn’t endure it, and many had already fallen ill.

For another, they had already passed the area with the highest concentration of rebel remains. The deeper they went, the fewer skeletons and the more wild beasts they encountered. Furthermore, based on their surveys and the recollections of an old clerk from the county government, all the treasure chests the rebels had carried away should have been recovered. Now, they were just doing one last search to make sure nothing was missed.

If they made no further progress in the next day or two, Chen Song and his men would call it a day.

But there was no need to share these specific details with the others.

The family continued their meal, the conversation occasionally turning to the children’s studies.

De’an was getting older and had been studying for a few years. He would certainly have to take the examinations next year.

As for Shou’an and Yucheng, they were still young, so there was no hurry.

The topic shifted to De’an’s marriage prospects. Mrs. Qian asked Xu Su Ying, "Have you arranged any potential matches for him to meet?"

Xu Su Ying shook her head. "Not yet. There’s no rush. It’s not that we aren’t in a hurry, but that boy certainly isn’t. He’s adamant about passing his exams and earning a title first. Since he’s still young, we’re letting him have his way for now."

Still, she couldn’t resist asking Mrs. Qian, "Do you happen to have any good candidates in mind?"

"The Yang family next door, the ones who sell cosmetics—their daughter just turned fifteen, and they’re looking for a son-in-law. I thought she would be a good match for our De’an and was meaning to mention it to you. But if De’an wants to pass his exams first, then never mind. Her older brother and sister-in-law are in charge of her household now, so I doubt they’ll let her remain unmarried at home for long."

Xu Su Ying nodded but said nothing more.

This meal lasted half an hour. Toward the end, Mrs. Mei grew restless. Since Xu Su Ying and Chen Wanqing had also finished eating, they all went back to her room together.

Inside the room, an iron rack was set up over the brazier. On the rack lay freshly washed diapers and the baby’s small mattress pad, ready for the next change.

Even when washed frequently and thoroughly, a baby’s things could still have a slight odor when warmed over a fire.

Mrs. Mei felt awkward and had Chen Bai come in to move the rack into the old couple’s room.

"We’re all family here. We all used to do the exact same thing, and I don’t recall you ever laughing at me. Now you’re getting all fussy. Tell me, are you starting to treat me like a stranger?"

"It just doesn’t smell pleasant." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"What’s not pleasant about it? I don’t smell a thing."

After a bit more idle chatter, Mrs. Mei glanced at Chen Wanqing and Yuzhu. The two girls took the hint, and Yuzhu quickly led her older cousin to her own room.

’I don’t care what the adults are going to talk about,’ she thought. ’I have no interest in hearing it anyway. I just want to know if that Third Miss who paid the deposit yesterday showed up, and if Sister actually managed to close the deal. Also, has Sister decided whether to hire help or buy servants?’

The moment Chen Wanqing stepped through the door, her younger cousin bombarded her with a string of questions that made her head spin.

She first answered the question about Third Miss, then explained, "I discussed it with Mom and Dad yesterday. We’re not going to buy servants, and we’re not going to hire permanent staff either. We’ll just outsource the work to our neighbors and pay them in Silver Coins according to how much they complete."

In essence, it was a different means to the same end as hiring employees. The key difference was that hiring someone meant relying on a specific individual, whereas outsourcing the work was more flexible. If they discovered a problem with someone’s work, they could halt it immediately and cut their losses.

Yuzhu, full of curiosity, asked a host of other questions about incense making: Was it difficult? Did you have to follow the recipe exactly? Was talent more important than hard work?

Then she asked in a hushed voice, "My mom said that you learned how to make incense from Auntie, and that it’s a skill Auntie has just always known. But didn’t Auntie lose her memory? She can’t even remember where her family is from or what her parents’ names were, so how does she still remember how to make incense?"

Chen Wanqing felt her head begin to throb from all the questions, and she desperately wished her mother would come and rescue her.

But her mother had no time for her right now.