bookrebus Chapter 24 Picking up wild goods (2)
Chapter 24 Picking up wild goods (2)
"Da Ya, let your uncle and his family take your dried bamboo shoots and dried meat back for you," Wen Dashan said, feeling sorry for Wen Yuxia and her siblings, and planned to have his other sons help them bring the mountain produce home.
Wen Yuxia smiled and shook her head: "No need, I'll take him down the mountain myself. Grandpa, please take good care of Hong'er. I'll come up the mountain to find you soon."
On the surface, Wen Yuxia only had two bags of dried bamboo shoots and one bag of dried bamboo rat meat, but in reality, she had three more bags of dried bamboo shoots, two more bags of dried bamboo rat meat, and 70 plump bamboo rats in her spatial storage.
She planned to go to town before the villagers who were gathering wild produce went to sell it, and then sell off the produce she had in hand.
The group descending the mountain was led by Zhang the Hunter's father, Old Man Zhang. Wen Yuxia did not accompany them; instead, she carried three sacks and leaped down the mountain. After disappearing from everyone's sight, she placed the sacks into her spatial storage.
When they reached the foot of the mountain at the end of the village, they took the sack out of their spatial storage. Back home, Hua asked in surprise, "Da Ya, why did you come back alone?"
"My uncles are behind us, they should be here before dinner," Wen Yuxia said, placing the sack on the cart. She told Hua that she was going to town to sell dried goods before pushing the cart out of the courtyard gate.
In the backyard of Bifeng Restaurant, Manager He smiled broadly as he looked at the cart piled high with bamboo rats. The young master had sent someone to tell him yesterday...
The restaurant in the county town has booked a banquet for Master Fu's 60th birthday. The banquet will have 100 tables and will require a lot of wild game. Today, Wen Yuxia brought a truckload of bamboo rats, and they are still alive.
"Girl, are the bamboo rats sold individually or by weight?" Manager He asked in a good mood.
"Uncle shopkeeper, how much is it per piece, or how much is it per kilogram?"
"150 coins per bird, sold by weight at 30 coins per kilogram,"
Actually, the price is about the same whether they are sold by weight or sold whole. The smallest bamboo rats on the cart weighed a little over 4 jin (2 catties) and the largest weighed a little over 5 jin (2.5 catties). Manager He was just asking casually.
"I'm in a hurry, so I won't weigh them all. I'll sell them by the piece. Oh, and I also have five bags of dried bamboo shoots. Do you want some, shopkeeper?" Wen Yuxia didn't plan to sell the dried bamboo rats and fresh bamboo shoots; she intended to keep them to eat slowly.
"Girl, this is the peak season for bamboo shoots and dried bamboo shoots. Dried bamboo shoots are 15 coins a pound. I'll buy them if you sell them."
Manager He's price was reasonable, and Wen Yuxia agreed to sell the dried bamboo shoots to him.
Seventy bamboo rats cost 10 taels of silver and 500 cash, and 150 catties of dried bamboo shoots cost 2250 cash, totaling 12 taels of silver and 750 cash. Wen Yuxia took the silver and pushed the cart back home.
Although she had asked Wen Dashan to take care of Wen Yunhong, she was still worried and planned to go up the mountain as soon as she returned, even if it meant traveling through the night to meet up with Wen Yunhong.
Upon returning home, after informing Hua, Wen Yuxia ran wildly up the mountain, briefly pausing when she encountered villagers coming down the mountain.
"Da Ya, you've already gone home?" Wen Zisong asked loudly.
"Mmm," Wen Yuxia hummed softly.
Wen Zisong pointed at Wen Yunhai and said matter-of-factly, "Da Ya, help your eldest cousin carry a bag of dried bamboo shoots."
His family had a total of 6 bags of dried bamboo shoots and 3 bags of dried meat. Wen Zisong carried two bags of dried meat and two bags of dried bamboo shoots, Yang carried one bag of dried meat and two bags of dried bamboo shoots, and Wen Yunhai carried two bags of dried bamboo shoots.
Having just sold all the dried bamboo shoots, Wen Yuxia knew that a bag of dried bamboo shoots weighed only about fifty pounds, and a young boy could easily carry a hundred pounds or so. Besides, even if there were any problems, it wouldn't be her concern.
Wen Yuxia said coldly, "I don't have time. I'm worried about leaving Hong'er alone." Then she turned to Old Man Zhang with a smile and said, "Grandpa Zhang, I'm going up the mountain first."
"Da Ya, be careful!" Old Zhang said cheerfully.
Returning to the cave but finding no one, Wen Yuxia knew the villagers had gone into the mountains. From the original owner's memories, she learned that there were many chestnuts and walnuts near the second hideout.
Following the tracks on the ground, Wen Yuxia continued forward and soon caught up with the slowly moving group.
"Grandpa, I'm back," Wen Yuxia said to Wen Dashan as she returned to the group, taking Wen Yunhong's hand.
Before Wen Dashan could speak, Wen Linshi asked impatiently, "Where are your eldest uncle and your eldest cousin?"
“On the way down the mountain,” Wen Yuxia answered truthfully.
Wen Lin complained, "You run so fast, why didn't you help them carry the mountain goods home? Why did you rush up the mountain in such a hurry!"
The plump aunt next to her said sarcastically, "Wen Linshi, you've already divided the family property. Even if you feel sorry for your eldest son and grandson, you can't mistreat Daya. Why should Daya help you? Is it because you have a big face or a thick neck?"
The plump aunt and Wen Linshi grew up in the same village and never got along since childhood. Even after they married into the same village, they often bickered. The plump aunt would never miss an opportunity to harm Wen Linshi.
"Lin Xiaocao, stop your babbling. What business is it of yours? You should mind your own little corner of the world. I saw Zhu Yidao leaving some widow's house the other day, fastening his belt as he walked," Wen Linshi retorted defiantly.
Zhu Yidao was a misnomer; he looked like a weakling and was the husband of the plump Aunt Lin Xiaocao. He was lazy and cunning at work, and a womanizer; he had flirted with every woman in the village.
With his silver tongue, he seduce many women; he has slept with quite a few women in the village in secret, but no one knows it.
Wen Linshi dared not implicate others, only mentioning Widow Sun from the village, because Zhu Yidao was a frequent visitor to Widow Sun's house.
Lin Xiaocao scoffed and laughed, "Being able to sleep with other women is my husband's skill. If you're not convinced, then let your Wen Dashan go visit some widow and see what happens!"
Lin Xiaocao didn't care at all about Zhu Yidao's affairs with other women. She figured those women would even give Zhu Yidao money, and he would obediently hand it over to her.
She wished Zhu Yidao would go out and fool around more, ruin his health, and then die.
With a blade of grass dangling from his mouth, Zhu Yidao said nonchalantly, "Hey, Da Shan, why are you watching me tie my belt? Is Da Shan not able to feed you?"
"Hahaha",
"Hahahaha",
……
As soon as Zhu Yidao finished speaking, the villagers burst into laughter.
Wen Dashan, Wen Zibai, and Wen Zihua all wore expressions of anger. This anger wasn't directed at Zhu Yidao, but at Wen Linshi. They thought that while they were arguing, she shouldn't have brought up Zhu Yidao and the widow.
Zhu Yidao only has one son and one daughter, but the Zhu family has many brothers. Zhu Yidao has five older brothers, and each of his brothers has several sons. The Wen family has no chance of winning against the Zhu family.