Chapter 113 Naming the Child
Bai Zepei quickly apologized, saying that he had failed to provide a proper welcome for Officer Li. Officer Li, with a smile, waved away his apology, insisting that they should not be so formal. Thus, they all headed towards the room in the second house.
To their surprise, as they entered the room, they found that the hot tea had already been prepared. It turned out that Bai Ruozhu had received the news from Fang Guizhi and had almost jumped up in joy.
Being reminded that they were about to have guests, Bai Ruozhu asked Fang Guizhi for help, and together, they prepared the tea.
After Bai Ruozhu greeted Officer Li, she invited him to sit in the room. Bai Zepei pulled her aside and said,"Little sister, you’re still in your postpartum rest, hurry back and get some rest."
Bai Ruozhu knew that her brother was concerned for her, worried that she might get sick, but she had been very careful: she hadn’t touched cold water, nor lifted heavy objects, Fang Guizhi had helped her with all that.
"Alright, then I’ll go." Being a woman who had just given birth, she knew that it was inappropriate for her to remain there. She bowed to Officer Li and left the room.
Observing that Bai Ruozhu looked well, Officer Li smilingly said, "So your younger sister has already given birth. Why don’t you bring the child here? I’d like to share in the joy too."
At times like this, it is a usual practice for friends and family to hold the child and give a gift. It was apparent what Officer Li intended. Although Bai Zepei felt a little embarrassed to have Officer Li spend money, it would be even more inappropriate to refuse his gesture in front of everyone.
He went inside the room and brought Little Dengdeng out. Bai Ruozhu followed out, fearing that her cheeky Dengdeng might wet Officer Li’s clothes.
"Ah, what a chubby boy! You have taken good care of him!" Officer Li praised as he played with Dengdeng.
Dengdeng, surprisingly, behaved himself exceptionally well. He remained calm and even smiled at Officer Li. This lifted Officer Li’s spirits, and he immediately took out a silver coin and offered it to Dengdeng.
Although the silver coin was not too big, children don’t have much strength in their hands and wouldn’t know what it is. If Dengdeng threw it away, it would look ugly. Bai Ruozhu quickly stepped forward, thanking Officer Li while taking Dengdeng from him, and tried to take the silver coin. But Dengdeng, an absolute money freak, held the coin tight and wouldn’t let go.
Officer Li laughed at this, saying, "Your child is clever, really likes my gift. I didn’t have anything good on me today because of the rush. I’ll send a longevity lock for him some other day."
"Too kind, sir. This is already very precious," Bai Zepei quickly responded.
Officer Li just waved it off. Could he, an officer, not afford a few silver coins?
"What is your child’s name?" he asked.
Bai Ruozhu’s eyes lit up suddenly. She had an idea and quickly looked at Bai Zepei. Sure enough, he had the same idea.
She replied, "Brother Li, the child only has a nickname, Dengdeng. How about you give the child a formal name?" Officer Li had asked Bai Zepei to address him as "brother". Since there were no outsiders present, Bai Zepei addressed him as such.
All the members of the family stared at Officer Li anxiously. It wasn’t inappropriate for Officer Li, a father-figure to them, to give the child a name. On the contrary, it would be face-saving for not only the child but the Bai family as well.
Of utmost importance, Bai Ruozhu wouldn’t have to beg the old master to name the child.
Even though Bai Zepei had received a top rank in the Imperial Examination, the old master did not despise him like he used to, but he never liked Bai Ruozhu and Dengdeng. The whole family didn’t want to beg him, but they had to follow the customs. If they gave the child a name themselves, it would be disrespectful.
But if the name is given by Officer Li, who could say that it isn’t good? Even the old master would not dare to say no!
Officer Li didn’t know the inner tension of the Bai family. He thought it was not a bad thing to help name the child. He had been wanting to build a good relationship with Bai Zepei.
After thinking for a bit, he looked at Bai Ruozhu and asked, "What do you hope for your child? Do you want him to be as gifted as his uncle in the future?"
Bai Ruozhu bowed slightly and replied, "I don’t necessarily require him to stand out from the crowd. All I ask is that he is kind, sincere, and that he leads an honest life. That he lives a peaceful and joyful life is enough."
Officer Li was moved, "You are open-minded. Let’s call him Bai Chengtai. Cheng is for sincerity, and Tai is for utmost prosperity."
"What a good name!" Bai Ruozhu praised truly from her heart. Officer Li, as expected of a scholar, gave a fitting name, carrying the hopes she had for her child.
Bai Zepei and the others in the household also complimented the name, then began to play with Little Dengdeng, "Your name is Bai Chengtai, Bai Chengtai is your name. How does it sound?"
No one knew whether little Dengdeng could understand them, but his face had a glint of a smile. The people clapped and enjoyed the moment, saying the child liked his name indeed.
With the big issue solved, Bai Ruozhu happily held Dengdeng, and once again thanked Officer Li, then excused herself to return to her room.
Fang Guizhi had been anxiously waiting in Bai Ruozhu’s room, curious and a little scared. The fear common people harbored towards officers was quite common.
"How did it go? Officer Li likes Dengdeng right?" Fang Guizhi asked.
Bai Ruozhu started laughing, "Yes, he liked him. He also gave the child a name: Bai Chengtai."
On hearing this, Fang Guizhi beamed with delight. Enviously, she said, "Dengdeng is a blessed child. Right after birth, he has an officer giving him a name."
Bai Ruozhu amusedly chatted with her for a while, then put Dengdeng to sleep, after which she finally managed to take the silver coin from his tiny hand.
Seeing this, Fang Guizhi exclaimed admiringly, "Your son is even more of a money freak than me!"
Bai Ruozhu couldn’t help but laugh. Who knew whom the child took after? Was it because when he was in her womb, she was fond of muttering about the lack of money, such that he had a deep impression of it?
So, was it actually because of her improper prenatal education? She chuckled at the thought. Being a money freak didn’t have to be bad. A gentleman loves money in a proper way, Dengdeng just needs to remember that.
Officer Li had some official duties to attend to, so he didn’t stay for dinner at the Bai’s. He had a brief chat with Bai Zepei before heading back to the town. Before leaving, he informed them that they had captured the imposter who brought the Osmanthus Cakes that day. The shop owners had identified him already, and they were now just waiting for Bai Zehao to identify him the next day at the Government Office.
Bai Zehao urgently agreed that there would be no problem, he would be heading to the Government Office first thing in the morning. He actually wanted to go at that moment itself, but with the crowd of people gathering outside their house, and the anticipated arrival of their well-wishers, they would need all the extra hands they could get at home.
Officer Li had probably considered this, hence, instructed them to identify the impostor the following day instead.
As soon as Officer Li and his officers left, villagers started flocking towards the Bai’s second house. There were people to congratulate and also people to establish connections with. When everyone arrived, Lin Ping served them tea. They soon ran out of cups and had to borrow some from the neighbors.
In contrast to the second house, the old mansion which recently was home to yet another Scholar, was nearly empty. This was because the villagers had gone to the second house to congratulate the Bai family. Even those who were not familiar with the Imperial Examination, understood the difference between securing a top rank and just scraping through.
Bai Yibo, in the old mansion, started drinking to drown his sorrows. His eyes reddened, and he threw his cup on the ground. Watching this, the old lady winced. Bai Yibo picked up the wine jar and started guzzling the wine.
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