After a brief discussion, the work was set. Country folk were mostly hardworking, once a task was decided, they acted without hesitation.
By mid-morning, Lu Gu had coaxed Little Lingjun to sleep. Shen Yan was doing needlework at the old house, so with nothing else to do and Shen Xuanqing not yet back, he wandered over to the new house.
In front of the woodshed, Shen Xuanqing and Shen Yaoqing were each sawing wood, the screeching sound sending wood chips scattering everywhere. Their household only had one saw, so Shen Yaoqing had gone into the village to borrow another from the nearby Chen family so they could work faster together.
Since ten more pairs of breeding rabbits had been selected and new hutches were needed, Lu Gu wasn't much help with the carpentry works. The sound of sawing was too grating, so he went to the front yard, poured Wei Lanxiang a bowl of hot tea, and took Zhao’er to play.
The sun was bright, and Da Hui and the other dogs were sprawled in the front yard basking in the warmth, eventually dozing off.
Wei Lanxiang wrapped rope tightly around the broom handle, securing it firmly, then added a layer of cloth for a comfortable grip. Homemade brooms didn’t need elaborate craftsmanship, as long as they didn’t prick the hand, they were good enough. She held it up for inspection, deemed it satisfactory, and set it aside.
Zhao’er could now walk with the support of a waist band. At the moment, Lu Gu was following behind the child, gripping the end of the band.
[腰帶 (yāo dài): waist belt/band, it refers to a traditional child-walking aid - a cloth strap tied around a toddler's waist for adults to hold while the child learns to walk]
“Give, give me!” Zhao’er marched straight to the table in the main hall, having spotted the steamed buns earlier. He reached out, calling out as he went.
“How can you eat so much?” Ji Qiuyue broke off a small piece for him.
Wei Lanxiang, with nothing else to do, was overjoyed to see her grandson’s steps growing steadier. She took the waist band from Lu Gu and let Zhao’er toddle between the main hall and the yard.
After a few days of household chores, they still needed to set up the stove in the shop for boiling water when slaughtering livestock.
As usual, Shen Xuanqing and Shen Yaoqing went together, bringing two baskets of straw to mix with yellow mud. As for the mud itself, they could dig a few baskets from unclaimed wild land near Jixing Town, no need to haul it all the way from home.
Once the mule cart was hitched, Lu Gu, who was also there, helped load the shovel, brooms, feather duster, and other items.
“Building the stove won’t take long, we’ll be back by evening.” Shen Xuanqing smiled. Since the shop hadn’t opened yet, there was no need to stay overnight.
“Alright, I’ll keep food warm for you two.” Lu Gu agreed.
Seeing that everything was loaded, Shen Xuanqing added, “Remember to pay Third Ahma the market price for the chickens and ducks. Also, ask around the village to see if anyone else is selling their poultry. If it’s awkward, just pay the market rate. If no one is, I’ll go to neighboring villages after I return.”
“I know. Don’t worry.” Lu Gu nodded with a smile.
Jixing Town was thirty li away, so Shen Xuanqing didn’t delay further. After his instructions, he flicked the reins to urge the mule forward. The road was bumpy, and with the cart loaded, Shen Yaoqing sat in the back to prevent things from falling off.
After they left, Lu Gu helped clean the new house before going with Wei Lanxiang to Third Uncle’s family.
Yesterday afternoon, Zhou Xiangjun had brought Shen Yu over for a visit and mentioned wanting to sell some chickens and ducks in town - two old hens and two old ducks, kept for three years, and no longer laid many eggs. Selling them would bring in some money to buy spring chicks later.
Shen Xuanqing, who happened to be home, told them to keep the poultry. Their own hens and ducks were still laying, so it was best not to sell them yet. But since they were opening a meat shop, they couldn’t have too little stock. Even if they didn’t make much profit at first, having more items on the opening day would make the shop look better stocked than if they only had rabbits.
When they arrived, Zhou Xiangjun and Shen Yu were both home. They welcomed the two into the main hall, serving tea and date paste cakes.
The two families had always been on good terms, far better than with Eldest Uncle’s family.
After some chatting, Lu Gu, worried about Little Lingjun napping back at the old house, said, “Ahma, Erqing said I should take the chickens and ducks back today. It’ll be easier to transport them to town later.”
Not having to go to town or hawk the chickens and ducks in the streets, Zhou Xiangjun was more than happy to agree. With a smile, he said, “Alright, I’ll go catch them now.”
He called Shen Yu to the backyard, and Lu Gu and Wei Lanxiang followed, there were two chickens and two ducks to collect.
Zhou Xiangjun and Shen Yu helped carry the chickens and ducks to the new house. Since these four were outsiders, putting them directly into the existing flock might cause fights and injuries. Lu Gu propped up an old fence against the wall to create a small enclosure for them to move around in.
Once the chickens and ducks were settled, he took out the prepared strings of copper coins from his pocket - sixty coins in total. Old hens and ducks that no longer laid eggs currently sold for fifteen coins each, just as Shen Xuanqing had told him.
Zhou Xiangjun had initially thought that, as relatives, Shen Xuanqing might offer a discount since he was taking them to sell at the shop. He hadn’t expected to receive full market price, so he politely declined at first.
“Just take it. Why stand on ceremony with the youngsters? It’s not like we’d cheat you.”
With Wei Lanxiang’s urging, he finally accepted.
Two chickens and two ducks alone weren’t quite enough. Following Shen Xuanqing’s instructions, they needed a few more to fill out the shop’s display. Wei Lanxiang, equally invested in the shop’s success, called Zhou Xiangjun to accompany her to neighboring villages to inquire about sellers after Lu Gu returned home to tend to the child.
No comments:
Post a Comment