Chapter 46 Our Family is Going to Become Rich!
There were 36 people on the construction site, and 30 of them bought ice jelly.
The remaining six people were probably really poor, and they stubbornly refrained from coming over.
Cheng Wanwan glanced at the bucket; there were at least seventy or eighty bowls of ice jelly left. It was definitely not going to sell here, so she had to find another place.
She was thinking about where to go next.
Zhao Dashan and Zhao Sanniu sat on the side excitedly counting their money.
Zhao Dashan was dumbfounded: "Sixty-four coins in total! My goodness, how can you earn so much in one day!"
Zhao Sanniu also looked incredulous: "Carrying heavy loads only earns twenty coins a day, but selling ice jelly can earn sixty-four coins. Our family is going to become rich!"
Cheng Wanwan: "..."
Can these two kids stop acting like they've never seen the world before?
She said irritably, "The brown sugar in the ice jelly cost forty coins, and these porcelain bowls and spoons cost thirty coins. We didn't even make back the cost. What are you so happy about?"
Zhao Dashan and Zhao Sanniu's dark faces immediately fell.
The two of them counted on their fingers how much more they needed to make money, but they couldn't figure it out no matter how much they calculated.
Cheng Wanwan packed her things: "Let's eat something first, then we'll go to the next place."
Zhao Dashan and Zhao Sanniu carried two loads of goods and followed her into the street.
Although the morning market had closed, there were still many food stalls on the street. Cheng Wanwan sat down at a noodle stall.
Zhao Sanniu immediately grabbed her: "Mom, I can just eat steamed buns..."
A vegetarian steamed bun costs two coins, but a bowl of noodles here costs ten coins. They need to sell five bowls of ice jelly to make up for the difference.
Zhao Dashan shook his head vigorously: "Mother, let's go back to eat. Hui Niang must have already made lots of delicious food..."
"Eat what I tell you to eat!" Cheng Wanwan looked at her two silly sons with some worry. "How can you have the strength to work if you don't eat your fill? We still have to sell ice jelly later. We'll go back after we sell it all."
Zhao Dashan and Zhao Sanniu had no choice but to sit down.
The owner quickly brought over three bowls of noodles. As soon as the aroma wafted over, Zhao Sanniu's mouth watered instantly, dripping onto the table. He quickly wiped it clean with his sleeve when no one was looking.
Cheng Wanwan picked up her chopsticks: "Eat quickly."
Zhao Dashan and Zhao Sanniu buried their heads in their noodles and began to eat. They wolfed them down, finishing the noodles in no time, even drinking the soup clean.
Cheng Wanwan couldn't bear to look at the scene. She turned to the noodle stall owner and asked, "Sister-in-law, do you know if there's a school in our Ping'an Town?"
"The largest school in our Ping'an Town is Dekang School, which was founded by an old scholar. However, the old scholar is getting old and has some forgetfulness." The shopkeeper lowered his voice. "Now many people send their children to study in the neighboring Hekou Town. Hekou Town was founded by a scholar who passed the imperial examination. Only by studying there can one have a bright future."
Cheng Wanwan vaguely remembered that Cheng Zhao, the most promising child in the Cheng family, seemed to be studying at a school in Hekou Town called Nanfu Academy.
Having made up her mind, she asked, "How long does it take to get from here to Hekou Town?"
"It's not far, it only takes half an hour to walk there."
Cheng Wanwan thanked the shopkeeper, paid thirty coins for the noodles, and then took her two sons to Hekou Town.
It was midday, and there were no oxcarts at the town gate, so the mother and her two children had to walk. They finally saw the town walls of Hekou Town around noon.
With just one glance, Cheng Wanwan sensed that Hekou Town was more economically developed than Ping'an Town. There were people coming and going everywhere. Not far away, a large river ran along the edge of the town, with a few boats on the sunken riverbed. The dock area must be even more lively.
The morning market in Ping'an Town is nearly deserted after it closes, but the town of Hekou remains bustling with people.
Zhao Dashan and Zhao Sanniu looked left and right, their eyes almost not enough to take it all in. It was their first time in Hekou Town, and everything was new and exciting to them.
Cheng Wanwan led her son across the street. She glanced at the grain store as usual. Grain in Hekou Town was not cheap either. The price of millet had risen to ten coins, while white rice and white flour were not displayed for sale at all. She guessed that they knew that ordinary people could not afford them.
She turned her head and saw a woman kneeling on the ground in front of the grain store, with a sallow-faced, thin girl next to her, who looked about four or five years old.
The woman's tears streamed down her face: "We've run out of food. If this continues, all the children will starve to death. We have no choice but to give this girl away. Three hundred copper coins will be enough to take her away. Please, everyone, have mercy..."
The four- or five-year-old girl cried pitifully, her big eyes looking at the onlookers with fear in them.
Cheng Wanwan's feelings were extremely complicated.
If she were in that situation, she would rather starve to death than sell the child she had carried for ten months.
Buying a maid for three hundred coins isn't expensive at all, but she's not the only one in the world forced to sell herself for food...
As the disaster worsens, the number of people selling children will only increase, and most of those being sold will likely be girls.
Cheng Wanwan withdrew her gaze and continued walking forward with her two sons, her steps heavy.
Walk to the end of this street, and you'll reach the renowned Nanfu Academy in Hekou Town.
This academy was jointly established by the government and a scholar who had passed the imperial examinations. The teachers they hired were all at least scholars who had passed the county-level imperial examinations. After studying to a certain level, the outstanding children from the nearby towns would gather here to study.
In other words, those who study here are either gifted in their studies or come from wealthy families.
There were also some stalls at the entrance of the school, but most of them sold writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstones, as well as books and paintings, creating a scholarly atmosphere.
As soon as Cheng Wanwan set up her stall, a kind vendor reminded her, "Nanfu Academy has a canteen, and the students here generally don't go out to buy these kinds of food. Auntie, you should go somewhere else."
"Thanks for the reminder," Cheng Wanwan said with a smile. "Since we're already here, let's give it a try."
Zhao Sanniu had already borrowed a table, and the mother and her two sons laid out the samples of ice jelly in a row. Just as they finished, a bell rang in the academy.
As soon as the bell rang, the vendors at the door immediately stood up straight, looking energetic and ready to welcome customers.
Before long, groups of students emerged from the academy.
They were dressed in matching white and blue academy uniforms, and as far as the eye could see, they were all handsome young men, a truly pleasing sight.
Cheng Wanwan and her two sons started shouting.
"Selling ice jelly, refreshing and cool ice jelly!"
"Free samples available, first come, first served!"
The vendors who had set up stalls nearby were immediately dumbfounded.
This is an academy, a sacred place for reading and writing. Why is this woman shouting without considering the occasion?
Those who sell writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones value elegance; if someone were to hawk their wares in such a vulgar manner, the students wouldn't even give them a second glance!
The vendors silently lit a candle for Cheng Wanwan. Today was the first time they had seen this woman, and it would probably be the last.
However!
To everyone's surprise, three or five students actually walked over and stopped right in front of Cheng Wanwan's stall.
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