Chapter 30 Brother, please!

After dinner, Xie Pei went to the village chief's house to discuss the land purchase.

The village chief had just received the gift and eaten the meat; the aroma of the meat was still lingering in his mouth, so his attitude was naturally better than before.

Despite their good attitude, the underlying message they conveyed was that things were not going to be easy.

The family that bought the land lived not far from the Xie family. Their vegetable garden was located next to a pond between the two families, a good location and a good plot of land. Watering was convenient, and their chili peppers grew more abundantly than those in other people's fields.

But the problem was that as soon as the village chief said the Xie family was willing to buy, that family immediately declared that anyone could buy, except the Xie family. Everyone in the village now knew that the Xie family had a jinx, and regardless of whether they had caused trouble at the Xie family before, most people avoided them like the plague.

Having said all that, what could the village chief say? He could only put on a smiling face and try to calm the man down before calling Xie Pei over to discuss what to do.

“Many people want to buy land, but few want to buy vegetable plots. His vegetable plots definitely won’t sell anytime soon. Don’t worry, go back and think it over with your sister-in-law.” The village chief handed the clean bowl back to him, seemingly savoring the taste, “This meat tastes really good, I wonder how it was cooked.”

Xie Pei took the bowl and left the village chief's house. After returning home, he relayed everything to Zhu Mingyue when she asked him questions.

After hearing this, Zhu Mingyue's expression remained normal, and she did not feel offended. Instead, she asked with interest, "Did the village chief say why that family was suddenly in such a hurry to sell their land?"

Xie Pei was inexplicably relieved to see that he was not as aggrieved and downcast as she had expected: "The eldest son in the family is over twenty-five and is in a hurry to build a house and get married."

“I see,” Zhu Mingyue pondered for a moment, then suddenly broke into a bright smile, “Let’s see if he’s more anxious or we are.”

This vegetable garden wasn't a necessity for them; he only bothered to buy it because he wanted it. He wouldn't mind if he didn't have it. His steamed bun business was booming; with his daily profits, what vegetables couldn't he buy?

But that family was a different story. In ancient times, people had two major life events: getting married and starting a career. Most ordinary people couldn't start a career, so they were busy getting married, having children, and settling down. They would rather sell land to build a house. You can imagine how anxious they were.

Zhu Mingyue also thought of another possibility. He turned his head to look at Xie Pei and said what was on his mind: "Maybe they know their land is hard to sell, but they just want to use the excuse that I'm a jinx to get us to pay more." After all, there's nothing that money can't solve; if there is, then it's not enough.

Xie Pei didn't seem surprised, presumably because he had already thought of this aspect.

"Let's just wait and see who can outlast whom." Zhu Mingyue yawned, said goodnight, and went back to her room to sleep.

After he left, Xie Pei looked in the direction of his bedroom and said with his lips slightly parted, "Good night."

Before we knew it, it was the end of February. The willows at the village entrance sprouted new buds, and the wild grass at the edge of the field turned green, exuding vitality.

Zhu Mingyue has been so busy lately that she's been dozing off while walking. These past few days, she's finally had some free time to catch her breath and has suddenly realized that spring has arrived without her noticing.

It all comes down to Xie Pei. A few days ago, he brought back a pig that was a size bigger than the previous one, with its belly jiggling with fat. It was definitely a good pig.

Unfortunately, now that the weather is warming up, the snow in the ground has already melted, so even the best meat can't be stored properly.

He suggested that Xie Pei go to town and sell the pig as soon as possible, because if they kept it for their own consumption, it would go bad in just a few days.

Xie Pei listened to his words and went to town alone carrying the pig. In the afternoon, he returned carrying the pig intact.

The pork stall in town originally sold pure pork for twelve coins a pound, but when it came to him, the pork stall owner was only willing to charge seven coins a pound. He wanted to make a full five coins with just one transaction. What's even more outrageous is that the stall owner only wanted the meat and didn't want the bones, internal organs, or four trotters.

Xie Pei refused without hesitation. Wild boars in the mountains are not easy to hunt, especially after the winter snow melts. More people go up the mountain to hunt, and the wild boars become more vigilant. If they encounter a group of wild boars, they may even attack people.

He had gone through so much trouble to sell the pig at a low price and then buy it back at a high price. He wasn't willing to be taken advantage of, so he decisively carried the pig back home.

Zhu Mingyue was furious when she heard this, and cursed the stall owner as a complete swindler who was obviously trying to bully people and then get something for nothing.

And...and these pig's trotters are so delicious! Why wouldn't this person want them? They have no taste at all!

That evening, he made a spicy braised pig's trotter. After dinner, he and Xie Pei squatted on the doorstep and each ate two as snacks. They were fragrant, spicy, and full of collagen, which was very satisfying.

The two of them couldn't finish the remaining pork, so they gave a piece to the village chief's family as a favor, keeping the best parts for themselves to eat over several days. Towards the end, the mere sight of pork made him nauseous.

He had no other ideas, so Zhu Mingyue came up with a solution: they decided to risk making braised pork and transporting it to town to sell. They would sell as much as they could, and if they couldn't sell it, they would take care of it themselves. It was better than letting the pork vendors profit from it.

Zhu Mingyue's braised pork is exceptional; as soon as it was delivered to town and placed down, it was surrounded by people.

Everyone asked what kind of filling the steamed buns were made of today, as they were different from usual, with a strong meaty aroma that made them irresistible.

Zhu Mingyue opened the lid of the wooden bucket, and what came into view was a bucket full of meat, which immediately captivated everyone's eyes.

These days, who doesn't crave meat? Normally, you can at least tolerate the smell of meat when you pass by a pork stall, but now, not only can you smell the meat, but there's also meat practically shoved right into their mouths. It takes incredible willpower to resist.

What's more, when Zhu Mingyue inquired, she revealed that the meat only cost twelve coins, causing everyone to go wild with excitement.

This is the price of raw meat! You can buy finished products for the price of raw meat. It seems like a great deal without even thinking about it. I praise Zhu Mingyue for being honest in her business dealings.

Only Xie Pei knew that Zhu Mingyue was harboring a wicked intention!

He set this price because he wanted to steal business from the meat stall in town. For every extra pound of pork he sold, the stall owner would sell one less pound.

The word spread quickly, and many people in the town knew that Zhu Mingyue was selling braised pork for twelve coins a pound. Everyone who had tasted it said it was even more authentic than that of the big restaurants. Who would want to spend the same amount of money on raw meat? They would wait at the stall early in the morning to buy some to try.

As a result, the braised pork was sold out as soon as it hit the ground for several days in a row.

Those people were having a blast eating, but poor Zhu Mingyue had to cook meat after making the buns, her hands were trembling, and she was so tired that she didn't even want to eat. Xie Pei was also miserable, busy with both cooking and chopping wood. At the busiest times, the two of them were in the same room but didn't have the energy to say a word.

Fortunately, the result was good. The cold wild boar turned into heavy silver coins. Zhu Mingyue sat on the bed, hugging the box and laughing for a long time.

Those who buy braised pork say he's honest; he goes to so much trouble with soy sauce and salt, yet he only sells it for the price of raw meat—it's no different from doing charity.

Whenever asked, Zhu Mingyue would just smile and remain silent. He had earned quite a bit this time. It was said to be a pound of braised pork, but the weight included the broth.

The diners were happy, and so was he, but the pork stall owner stared at the unsold pork on his stall for days on end, weeping in despair.

"Xie Pei, take me with you when you go up the mountain tomorrow!"

Zhu Mingyue sat on a small wooden stool in the courtyard, holding a cup of warm tea, his eyes fixed on Xie Pei stacking firewood. When Xie Pei stopped to rest, he got up and eagerly went over to him, handing him the tea. Only after watching Xie Pei take the tea did he immediately make his request.

Xie Pei took a few gulps, turned to look at him, and said seriously, "It's springtime, and animals are rampant on the mountain. Besides the animals you can see, there are countless snakes and insects lurking in the shadows. It's very dangerous."

It seemed they didn't want to take him up the mountain. Zhu Mingyue's eyes darkened, but he refused to give up. He had longed to go up the mountain for a long time, and every time he saw Xie Pei bringing back animals, he was filled with envy. He had heard that the mountain was rich in resources in spring, and he would like to feast his eyes on them and broaden his horizons!

Xie Pei finished drinking the water and was about to continue stacking firewood when, as he turned around, a soft and gentle hand grabbed his wrist.

Zhu Mingyue pleaded softly, "I just want to go up and take a look. I've heard there are lots of good things up there. Please take me! I trust you won't let me get hurt, right?"

"Once we get to the mountain, I promise I won't wander off. I'll follow you wherever you are!"

No matter how much he talked, Xie Pei remained unmoved.

Seeing this, Zhu Mingyue had no choice but to use his trump card. He raised his hand and rubbed his eyes hard. When he lowered his hand, his eyes were already red and glistening with tears. He looked like he had been badly bullied and looked pitiful.

His first words were choked with sobs: "Please, please?"

"All I do every day is make money and sleep. I'm so bored, I feel like there's no hope in life..."

"I've never seen what a mountain looks like in my entire life, I'm so pitiful..."

"If you hadn't taken me, I might have gone up there on my own someday. If I got gored to death by a wild boar, don't be sad for me, I won't blame you."

"Xie Pei! Brother! I'm begging you!"

"Enough," Xie Pei stopped his endless sob story, his tone no longer as firm as before, "If you want to go, come up the mountain with me tomorrow."

Zhu Mingyue burst into laughter through his tears. He had even called Xie Pei "brother" in order to beg him. Putting aside their different statuses, Xie Pei was two months older than him. In his previous life, he would never have called anyone else that.

However, calling him "brother" was definitely worth it. He remained unmoved by all the previous explanations, but that one "brother" had an immediate effect. It's unclear whether he's just naturally susceptible to this kind of thing, or if he was simply disgusted and couldn't stand it anymore.

Zhu Mingyue licked her lips, deciding to use this trick again next time.