Chapter 57

"Big brother!"

Mu Jin asked Bai Qiqiu to fetch a bamboo basket, but when she returned, she brought back a little tagalong from Mu Jin's side.

"Bai'er, what brings you here?"

As Mu Jin spoke, she continued picking mulberries. When she got hungry, she would eat one or two. They were sweet and sour, and really delicious.

"I finally learned how to embroider before my stepfather let me out the door, so I quickly got ready and came over."

Mu Bai put down the bamboo basket in her hand, rolled up her sleeves, and helped pick mulberries. She ate them as she picked, her beautiful eyes narrowing.

During this time, Zhou Ling saw that he was getting old and in two or three years he would have to go to see other people, so it was not good for him to run around and play all day.

So they took him and found the embroiderer Zhou Si had previously learned from, spent two taels of silver, and sent him to learn embroidery.

With Mu Bai's restless nature, how could he calm down? After much persuasion, Zhou Lingfang agreed to learn embroidery and let him rest for a month.

If you can't learn it, then you can only keep learning; there's no room for discussion.

Seeing that his father was determined, Mu Bai had no choice but to endure it and study for a while.

"Brother, when I was embroidering, I planned to give you my first piece of embroidery. It's a hibiscus flower. When you get back, take a look. It's so beautiful."

Mu Bai spoke with considerable pride, his little expression radiating smugness.

Bai Qiqiu chimed in from the side, "I can vouch for that; it's more beautiful than Zhaoran's embroidery."

Mu Bai entered the courtyard carrying a money bag. Before even seeing who it was, he started showing off. Bai Qiqiu saw it clearly.

Mu Jin smiled and said, "This is the first thing you embroidered yourself that you gave me, so it's the most beautiful one in my collection."

Mu Bai's little face was flushed. "Let me learn some more, and then I'll embroider an even better one for you, big brother."

The hibiscus tree, with its curved eyebrows, was left with only pale green and pink mulberries after the mulberries were picked. So, it quickly moved to another tree.

"How is your health, Father?"

“He’s doing great. We went to see a doctor in town, and he said he’s a healthy young man. Dad was overjoyed and bought several old hens. Every now and then, he’ll stew one for his little dad. He’s gotten quite fat.”

Mu Jin chuckled, "Your father's health is getting worse, aren't you going to stay home and keep him company? Are you planning to stay here for a few days?"

Mu Bai took a bite of a mulberry and grumbled, "My aunt and uncle come to my uncle's house to chat from time to time. He doesn't need me to accompany him. My uncle always takes care of me at home. I want to stay here for a while longer."

Mu Jin smiled and said, "Okay, do you want to stay with Si'er and Zhao Ran or with Qi Qiu?"

Mu Baiyu said evenly, "I'll stay with Brother Si and Brother Er for a few days, and then with Brother Qiqiu for a few more days."

Mu Jin sighed and smiled, "She's quite good at handling household chores."

The three chatted and picked mushrooms for most of the hour, filling two bamboo baskets to the brim, with the mushroom basket still half full.

While the mulberries were still fresh, Mu Jin didn't delay and left three bunches of mulberries at home, along with three ounces each of hazel mushrooms and pine mushrooms. Then, she and Bai Qiqiu hurriedly took their bamboo baskets and went to town.

Mu Bai wanted to go with them, but Mu Jin kept him behind and went to cut pig feed with Wen Zhaoran and Zhou Si.

The two arrived in town around late afternoon, when there were hardly any people left in the market.

Mu Jin's eyes flickered slightly, and she led Bai Qiqiu directly to the Zhao residence. The Zhao steward was wealthy and powerful, so he could probably buy everything, saving her the trouble of hawking her wares on the street.

As Mu Jin had predicted, Steward Zhao glanced at the mushrooms and then collected them all, totaling two jin and eight liang, for fifty coins.

Although they brought a lot of mulberries and hibiscus, there were many adults in the Zhao family, and even with these two bamboo baskets, it wasn't enough for the young masters and ladies of the Zhao family to share.

"Young master, you've sent such a thoughtful gift. The matriarch, young masters, and young ladies all love mulberries, and they especially enjoy a sip of mulberry wine. If you have any more at home, please send them directly to the manor. We want them all."

Mu Jin smiled and said, "I knew that the old lady liked wild game, so I didn't dare to delay after picking them and sent them over as soon as they were fresh."

Steward Zhao, with his large, protruding belly, smiled and beckoned to his servants to bring the mulberries into the mansion. They were then quickly delivered to Old Madam Zhao, and the rest were distributed among the various courtyards.

Steward Zhao bought all the mulberries at ten coins per pound, and the twenty-three pounds of mulberries were exchanged for two hundred and thirty coins.

He earned 280 coins in one day. If it weren't for Steward Zhao being there, Mu Jin would probably have been so happy that he looked like he'd never seen a copper coin before.

After paying the money, Steward Zhao asked, "Would you like to go inside and wait for Lin boy to come back together?"

Mu Jin glanced at the sky; Zhou Lin had finished work, but they would have to wait a little longer.

He shook his head and said, "I have things to do at home, so I won't wait for him. Thank you, Steward Zhao. I'll bring them over tomorrow after I've picked them."

Butler Zhao nodded.

While it was still early, Mu Jin went to the bran shop and bought fifty catties of wheat bran. She and Bai Qiqiu carried the sacks of wheat bran home.

As the chickens and ducks at home grew up, in order to get them to lay more eggs and for the piglets to grow bigger, Mu Jin thought of feeding them some better food.

When feeding, mix in some wheat bran.

Wheat bran is a good thing; people can eat it when they're starving. Dark flour contains a lot of wheat bran, so it's good for feeding poultry and livestock.

When the two returned home, the sun was setting and it wasn't as hot as it was at noon.

Mu Jin and Bai Qiqiu carried the wheat bran into the kitchen and wiped the sweat from their foreheads.

Zhou Si poured two bowls of cold water for them and handed them over, saying, "Brothers, why are you buying so much wheat bran? If you really want to buy it, just have your brother bring it back tomorrow. There's no need to go through all this trouble."

Mu Jin took a big gulp of water and said after a moment, "I was thinking of feeding the pigs as soon as possible so they could gain weight quickly, but I didn't expect that carrying these fifty pounds back from town would be so tiring."

Zhou Si sighed and laughed, "After you've dried the water, you and Qi Qiu should go wash up first, brother."

Wearing sweaty, sticky, and uncomfortable clothes, Mu Jin and Bai Qiqiu went to take a shower first.

When Zhou Lin returned home as the sun set, the aroma of stewing meat wafted from the kitchen.

The hotter the weather gets, the first thing he does when he gets back is take a cold shower. Men are naturally hot, so he doesn't need much water. These days, Zhou Lin often takes advantage of the heat to find a secluded spot by the river to bathe in.

Mu Lingyun brought over a pheasant today, and coincidentally, Mu Jin picked some mushrooms, so while they were still fresh, she stewed them together with the chicken.

A while ago, Zhou Ming went to Mu Lingyun to ask for a pheasant. Because of Zhou Si, he still gave him one as a token of respect to his father-in-law and mother-in-law.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Ming's appetite grew after receiving the benefits; today he wanted pheasants, tomorrow he wanted wild rabbits.

If Mu Lingyun had hunted the game himself, that would be one thing, but these prey were brought down the mountain by his elder brother and father, so how could they let him eat them like this?

When Mu Lingyun refused, Zhou Ming brought up Zhou Lin and Zhou Si.

When Zhou Si learned of this, and with the wedding approaching, she decided to avoid trouble and told Mu Lingyun to stop sending them game.

So that his parents wouldn't use this matter to control him.

Today's pheasant was secretly sent to Zhou Si by Mu Lingyun, who thought that Zhou Si hadn't eaten meat in a long time and felt sorry for her.

Those who knew it was a delivery of meat would have thought Mu Lingyun's behavior resembled that of someone sneaking into the Zhou family's house to steal.

When Zhou Si saw his furtive appearance, she, Wen Zhaoran, and Mu Bai all laughed so hard they couldn't stand up straight.

Mu Lingyun felt embarrassed, put the pheasant down, chatted with Zhou Si for a while, and then secretly went back home.

Zhou Si brought a pot of mushroom and chicken stew to the table, and thinking of this, the corners of her mouth couldn't help but curl up.

When the food was served, the chicken head was, as usual, given to Zhou Lin; none of the brothers in the family ate anything that had the "head" in it.

"When I came back, Steward Zhao said to me, 'You went to the Zhao residence this afternoon? Why didn't you wait for me?'"

The chicken head was stewed until it was very tender. Zhou Lin took a bite, and the chicken skull broke, revealing the chicken brain inside.

“I went there early today and came across a mulberry patch. I picked quite a few. I told Steward Zhao that I would go there again tomorrow at noon.”

Zhou Lin nodded and glanced at the bowl of mulberries next to him, which had just been washed and were still wet with water droplets.

The chicken soup with steamed buns and a plate of chicken were eaten clean by several people, leaving not a drop of soup in the bowl.

The owl was nestled under the table, and Zhou Lin tossed it a piece of coarse flour bun soaked in chicken broth.

The owl raised its head and opened its mouth, sending the steamed bun directly into the dog's mouth.

After the meal, the group gathered around the table and shared the mulberries in their bowls, each bite revealing a burst of purple flesh.

Mu Bai glanced at Wen Zhaoran and laughed, "Second brother, look at your mouth."

Wen Zhaoran wiped her face with her hand and glared at Mu Bai, "You're one to talk, you're the same."

The group chuckled. As Mu Jin laughed, he suddenly remembered that he had eaten mulberries when he went to town.

Wouldn't that mean he'd be laughing and joking with Steward Zhao while showing off his purple teeth?

Thinking of this, he couldn't laugh anymore. With a glimmer of hope, he glanced at Bai Qiqiu and asked, "Qiqiu, when we went to town today, were my teeth purple?"

Bai Qiqiu paused for a moment, then thought back carefully.

"Brother, I really didn't notice."

Hibiscus: "..."

Zhou Lin glanced at him and couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"

Mu Jin waved helplessly, truly too ashamed to go to town again. It was strange that Steward Zhao and the people in the bran shop didn't say a word to them, nor did they laugh. It was strange that they could endure it.

Before going back to their rooms to sleep, the group washed up, leaving only some color on their tongues.

After rinsing his mouth and washing his arms, Zhou Lin returned to the room and grinned foolishly at Mu Jin.

Mu Jin glanced at him twice and chuckled, "What's wrong? Did eating chicken make you stupid?"

Zhou Lin just smiled foolishly and remained silent, mysteriously pulling out a heavy-looking money pouch from his pocket.

Mu Jin took the money pouch, weighed it in her hand, and her eyes lit up. She opened the pouch and, in the light of the oil lamp, peeked inside. Her eyes immediately crinkled with a smile.

Inside, a silver ingot lay quietly.

"Steward Zhao gave us money today, a total of five taels of silver. I didn't let him break it and took the whole tael back."

Mu Jin took the heavy silver coins out of her purse, brought them close to the oil lamp, and examined them closely.

Seeing him like this, Zhou Lin felt a surge of bittersweet emotions.

"When the money is distributed next time, I will tell Steward Zhao to keep it and give it to me together with the next payment. I will then exchange it for one tael of gold for you."

Mu Jin withdrew her hand, placed the silver on the table, and put it, along with the three qian of silver she had earned that day, into the money bag in the hidden compartment.

He nodded with a smile, "Okay."

He sighed inwardly, thinking that putting silver in there hadn't been a waste of the hidden compartment.

There are currently seven taels and five mace of silver in the hidden compartment, and one hundred and fifteen coins for expenses outside.

We could take the vegetables from home to town and earn money every day.

This is a skill that makes it much easier to save money than others.

Early the next morning, Mu Jin was full of energy. After Zhou Lin went to town, she took Mu Bai and Bai Qiqiu to the mountains.

Yesterday's pink mulberries have turned purple today.

This time, Mu Jin resisted the urge to pick and eat as she went, truly feeling too weak to go to town just thinking about it.