Chapter 25 - Finding a job through a three-in-one arrangement: renting cattle to plow the land...
There were three butcher shops in the market. He went to the first two, but they said the shopkeepers were not there and the only workers were apprentices.
Pei Ying went to the third house.
At this time, there were many people heading to the early market, and long queues formed in front of the meat stalls. At the third meat stall, there was only one woman, cutting meat, weighing it, and selling it while occasionally swinging an axe to chop large bones.
While everyone else was busy, Pei Ying didn't go up to disturb them. Seeing that the pork on the stall had sold out, those who hadn't been able to buy any meat in line were asking, "Is it all gone? Is there any meat left?"
The woman called out, "Yes, we can still buy everything. The meat is in the backyard, please wait a moment."
After saying that, she turned and left the stall, entering the house behind her. Soon after, her voice calling for help could be heard from inside.
"Haruko! Move the meat! Haruko?"
When no one answered her calls, the woman cursed, "Lazy donkey, where have you been all this time?"
As the cursing subsided, she emerged carrying a pig's leg. Taking advantage of the lull, Pei Ying asked, "Sister, do you need a butcher around here?"
The woman looked up and sized him up. "Have you slaughtered pigs for several years?"
Pei Ying replied, "Six years."
"Six years?" The woman was somewhat skeptical, and asked again, "Could one person take down one head?"
Pei Ying nodded slightly: "That's fine."
The woman slammed the pig's leg onto the meat stall. The customers in line ahead of her were already urging her to hurry up. She looked at Pei Ying and said, "Go straight into the house to the backyard and bring the meat out."
Pei Ying didn't say much and quickly went inside to move the meat.
After bringing out several large pieces of meat, he didn't rest. He picked up a knife from the stall and cut off exactly where the people in line wanted, cutting off exactly the weight they wanted. The woman looked at him with some surprise several times, and then let Pei Ying cut the meat while she collected the money and sold it.
When Lin Chuntao arrived, Pei Ying was chopping large bones with an axe at the meat stall, seemingly having found work.
She didn't go up to disturb them while they were busy, and waited by their side.
The butcher shop was doing very well. She didn't have to wait long before the meat was sold out. She saw Pei Ying go back inside and bring out more meat. She watched as they sold the meat from nearly three pigs.
When the stall was empty, the woman turned to Pei Ying and said, "You work quite efficiently. Where do you live?"
"Twin Village".
"I can tell from your accent that you're not from around here. Do you have a household registration certificate?"
“Yes.” Pei Ying said, taking out the household registration certificate. The woman glanced at it and said, “It takes more than half an hour to get from Shuangzi Village to the county town. We start slaughtering pigs no later than the end of Yin hour every day. We can’t go any later, or we won’t be able to finish cleaning. If you’re worried about not being able to make it in time, you can stay at the butcher shop. Some of the workers also stay at the butcher shop.”
Pei Ying shook her head: "Don't worry, shopkeeper, I'll be there on time."
The woman nodded before saying, “Our shop slaughters more than a dozen pigs every day. There are three pig slaughterers in the shop, including you. The wage for slaughtering a pig is thirty coins. If we are too busy, we can deliver meat to restaurants and big eateries for five coins each, and we can watch the stall and sell meat for five coins each pig sold. We can be paid daily, or we can save it up for a month before we get paid. Is there any problem?”
"What time can you go home each day?" Pei Ying asked.
"We can usually leave around noon."
Pei Ying nodded and replied, "Then there's no problem."
The woman looked at him and said, "My surname is He, and my given name is Lan. You can just call me Manager He. What's your name?"
"Pei Ying."
Helan nodded and said, "I won't pay you today. You can start work on time tomorrow. Are you in a hurry to go back? If not, wait a moment and I'll introduce you to the shop's employees. You can start working as soon as you come tomorrow morning."
"No rush." As soon as Pei Ying finished speaking, two meat deliverymen returned with baskets on their backs. Manager He waved to them and said, "You two come here. Let me introduce you to someone. This is our newly hired butcher, Pei Ying."
The two men looked to be no more than sixteen or seventeen years old, one thin and one fat, and their features were quite similar.
Helan looked at Pei Ying and said, "These are A Si and Liu Zi, brothers."
Pei Ying nodded slightly. "My name is Pei Ying."
The two brothers nodded, and Helan said, "A-Si and Liu-Zi mostly deliver meat." As she spoke, she turned to look at the chubby A-Si, "Keep an eye on the stall, I'll take Pei Ying over there to get to know the people."
Ah Si responded, handed the basket to Liu Zi and took it into the house, then sat down at the stall.
Pei Ying had seen Lin Chuntao early on, but she hadn't come over yet. He Lan was about to lead him to recognize her when Lin Chuntao waved to him, and Pei Ying's lips curved into a smile.
After Pei Ying left, Lin Chuntao went to the stall and bought a pound of pork leg meat. The pork leg meat was lean with little fat, and the shopkeeper sold it to her at the price of lean meat, which was a few coins cheaper than the fatty meat she bought a few days ago.
Lin Chuntao took down the small bamboo basket, asked Ah Si for a lotus leaf to place on it, put the meat in the bamboo basket, and then chased after Pei Ying and the others.
When they got to the stalls, Pei Ying realized that the two meat stalls also belonged to the He family.
Helan explained that there were many people queuing to buy meat every day, and crowding in one place affected the neighbors, so they set up two separate stalls. The pigs were slaughtered in the backyard, and the meat was then moved to the other two stalls after it was separated.
Pei Ying, the stall worker, had just met him. The two butchers were meeting for the first time. Before He Lan could introduce them, one of them looked up and saw Pei Ying, and stood up in surprise, "You...you're not the one who pulled the horse at the market entrance the other day?"
He Lan raised an eyebrow slightly. "You two know each other?"
Liu Dayong waved his hand and said, "Shopkeeper, this is the person who saved Xiaolingdang and Xiaohulu at the market entrance a couple of days ago."
As he spoke, Liu Dayong immediately stepped forward and grasped Pei Ying's hand. "Thank you so much for saving my little gourd! If you hadn't stopped the horse in time, that brat would have been in big trouble! Thank you so much!"
Pei Ying then realized that one of the children at the market entrance that day belonged to the butcher's family.
He Lan smiled upon hearing this, "So, you are my daughter's savior. What a coincidence."
"It was just a small favor," Pei Ying said.
He Lan looked at Liu Dayong and introduced, "My new butcher, Pei Ying, will be butchering pigs with you and Lao Zhao from now on."
Liu Dayong, still holding Pei Ying's hand, said warmly, "Brother Pei, if you need any help, please don't hesitate to ask."
Pei Ying smiled and said, "I'm new here, so please take good care of me, elder brother."
"It's nothing, it's nothing. My name is Liu Dayong. You can call me Brother Yong or Brother Liu, this is Zhao Guang."
Zhao Guang slowly stood up, looked at Pei Ying and said, "Just call me Old Zhao."
Pei Ying nodded slightly, but called out "Brother Zhao".
Because it's fresh meat, and it's summer, all the meat must be slaughtered and sold on the same day.
The wages were agreed upon long ago, specifying how much to pay for each pig slaughtered. Zhao Guang felt that since he and Zhang Dayong were the only two slaughtering the pigs, they would be paid more. However, He Lan felt that they weren't enough people, and that having one or two more people would make the process faster and allow them to deliver the meat to each household sooner.
Otherwise, with the sun already up, if the workers are still carrying meat on their backs and running around, restaurants and some households will complain about the late delivery.
Zhao Guang was initially unhappy that someone else was coming to take away his wages, but it just so happened that it was Pei Ying who came.
He and Zhang Dayong witnessed Pei Ying rescuing the children. Zhang Dayong was busy disciplining the children and left before he could thank Pei Ying.
It's fate that we're working together now, so I thought I should let go of my unhappiness.
After meeting everyone, it was lunchtime, and Liu Dayong and the others prepared to go home for lunch.
"Brother Pei, come to my home for dinner."
Liu Dayong greeted him warmly, but Pei Ying smiled and declined, saying, "I'm not going today. My wife is waiting for me over there, and my younger sister is at home. We have to go back first."
Hearing his words, the group looked over and saw Lin Chuntao standing opposite them with a basket on her back.
Lin Chuntao met their gazes, smiled, and nodded in acknowledgment.
"That's fine too, there's plenty of time in the future."
*
Having found work, Pei Ying was in a good mood.
He came over and tried to take the basket from Lin Chuntao's back, but Lin Chuntao said, "It's a bit heavy, you have to help me take the basket off first."
As Pei Ying reached for the basket, she asked, "Did you go to buy grain?"
“No, they are corn seeds,” Lin Chuntao said.
Pei Ying estimated the weight; it seemed to be around forty pounds. He wondered, "Why did you buy so much? Is it expensive?"
Lin Chuntao shook her head, "It's not expensive. We haven't planted anything on our twelve acres of land, so I'm thinking of planting everything we can."
Although Pei Ying came from a poor family, he had little experience in farming and didn't know much about how to care for crops, so he could only follow Lin Chuntao's instructions.
With her basket on her back, Lin Chuntao picked up her small bamboo basket before asking him, "Has the work been settled?"
"It's settled. Thirty coins for slaughtering a pig, plus extra money for delivering meat and watching the stall. You can get paid daily or all at once for the month." Pei Ying finished telling Lin Chuntao everything in one breath. Lin Chuntao asked, "How many pigs can you slaughter in a day?"
Pei Ying said, "I took a quick look and there should be at least three heads."
Lin Chuntao nodded, "That's good. I thought the wages were calculated by the day or by the month."
"Yes, but most are calculated by the number of pigs slaughtered. I don't know if this owner has someone who supplies pigs. If there is no pig supplier, then sometimes there will be no pigs to slaughter, and the pig slaughterer will naturally be idle."
"That's true."
After Lin Chuntao finished speaking, Pei Ying asked her, "Are you hungry?"
“I have a little bit, but I bought some meat, let’s go back and cook.” As she spoke, she lifted the lotus leaf in the bamboo basket, revealing a piece of scarlet meat. “To celebrate you finding a job.” And also to celebrate that she had exchanged for corn seeds.
Pei Ying looked at Lin Chuntao's smiling face. She had very beautiful features, but due to her physical condition, she was too thin, with a pointed chin and slightly yellow hair. However, her eyes were bright, and looking at her made one feel happy.
A strange feeling welled up inside him, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
When the two returned home, the three sisters were squatting dejectedly outside the yard, like branches and leaves wilted by the scorching sun.
Lin Chuntao thought they must have been waiting for her and Pei Ying here for a long time, but they kept waiting and waiting until now.
I usually get home early, but today Pei Ying was looking for work, so I came home late.
She forgot to tell them that the little girl had never worked in the city before and didn't know these things.
"We're back."
As soon as Lin Chuntao finished speaking, the three younger sisters suddenly looked up at her in unison. Their synchronized movements made Lin Chuntao laugh.
“Why are you all squatting outside? Has the rice been steamed yet? I’m starving,” Lin Chuntao said.
Lin Chunxing stood up and said, "I've steamed the rice twice already... Why are you all so late today?"
Lin Chuntao said, "Your brother-in-law probably won't find work so quickly. I forgot to tell you, are you hungry?"
"I'm hungry. My second sister said she has to wait for you to come back."
"From now on, if we come back late, we can cook for ourselves first, so you don't have to wait for us."
Lin Chunxing felt it was wrong; Lin Chuntao, who had gone out to earn money, hadn't eaten yet, while the ones who stayed at home were eating first?
But she didn't refute Lin Chuntao's words. She just took the small bamboo basket from Lin Chuntao's hand. Lin Chuntao said, "I bought a piece of meat. I'll cook it and eat it later. Let me think about how to cook it."
Lin Duo'er's eyes widened when she heard the word "meat," and she quickly ran to Lin Chunxing's side, reaching out to lift the lotus leaf. Lin Chunxing held her hand down, glanced around to make sure no one was watching, and then let her lift it up to take a look.
After reading it, she looked at Lin Chunxing with delight: "Second sister, it's lean meat!"
Lin Chunhe was also curious, so she peeked in and asked Lin Duo'er with a smile, "Do you want to eat fatty meat or lean meat?"
"I want both."
"Little glutton," Lin Chunhe said.
Lin Duo'er pouted and retorted, "Don't you want to eat?"
Lin Chunhe smiled and said, "Of course I want to, so I'm a glutton too."
The sisters entered the courtyard while talking. Pei Ying carried her basket into the house and came out to fetch water to wash her hands. Lin Chunxing put the bamboo basket on the table and then started a fire to cook. Lin Chuntao listened to the noise from the next room and turned to look at the piglet.
The piglet lay on a withered leaf, making a rustling sound with the slightest movement. A pile of pig feed was in front of it, and the piglet ate it bit by bit.
These days, there isn't enough food, and people are reluctant to feed pigs with grain. Pigs that eat only grass grow very slowly and aren't fat enough. If you raise them for a year, they might only weigh about 200 pounds, which is considered pretty good.
The two chickens were still inside, pecking at the leaves on the pig feed.
Chickens need to be free-range, but when they first arrive at their new home, it's best to let them get used to it. Otherwise, if they're let out and run back to Old Lin's house, they might never come back.
She glanced at it and smelled the smoke from the burning firewood before going over.
Lin Duo'er stood beside the basket looking at the corn seeds. When she saw Lin Chuntao go back, she asked, "Sister, did you buy this corn to eat?"
"No, those are corn seeds. We might need to till the land in the next few days and then start planting corn."
Upon hearing this, Lin Duo'er's mouth dropped open.
"Can we still plant them now? Other people's corn stalks are already so tall, will our corn not grow as tall as theirs?"
Lin Chuntao chuckled: "What does it matter? Other people's corn ripens earlier, ours ripens later."
Lin Chunxing was also somewhat surprised. Yesterday, Lin Chuntao had told her that they would plant buckwheat during the autumn harvest. Why did they suddenly decide to plant corn?
Moreover, corn cannot be grown successfully now. Every year when corn is planted, some will not sprout or emerge. Everyone will replant corn, and in the end, the seedlings will emerge and grow, but they will not form ears, and in the end, only a single corn stalk will be harvested.
"Sister, should we plant corn on all our land?"
Lin Chuntao nodded, "Leave a small plot for vegetables, and plant corn in the rest."
Lin Chunxing pursed her lips, her expression somewhat complicated.
"Can we still plant buckwheat later?"
"Yes, it can be planted. The corn can be harvested by October at the latest, and after the corn is harvested, we can plant buckwheat."
Lin Chuntao spoke with certainty, but Lin Chunxing felt uneasy. However, since Lin Chuntao said it could be planted and ripened, she would listen to Lin Chuntao.
"Alright then." If we're going to plant, we need to hurry, the later the better. She asked Lin Chuntao, "Then let's go to the village to ask for help after we finish eating. We need to dig out the land as soon as possible."
When Lin Chuntao heard the words "digging the land" and thought of the twelve mu (approximately 1.3 hectares), she froze on the spot. She swallowed hard and said, "Digging the land is too late; we need oxen."
Lin Chunxing frowned, and Pei Ying asked, "Are there any cattle in this village?"
"No," Lin Chunxing said. "Almost everyone in our village uses people to pull plows or dig. Only the village head's family has ever rented an ox, and it seems to be quite expensive."
This put Lin Chuntao in a difficult position, as she had forgotten that cattle were a very important source of productivity in ancient times, and were also scarce.
"It's alright, let's eat first, and then we'll go to the village head's house to ask him."
After saying that, Lin Chuntao quickly took the meat out to wash it, then cut it into square pieces and put it in a bowl. She also put three slices of dried ginger into the bowl and scooped in some water to soak it.
From the moment she started washing and cutting the meat, Lin Duo'er stayed close by her side.
"Sister, how should we cook this meat?"
Seeing Lin Duo'er staring intently at the meat in the bowl, Lin Chuntao said, "Potato stew with meat, go get me a few potatoes."
Upon receiving the message, Lin Duo'er ran to fetch a few potatoes for Lin Chuntao.
Without a peeler, Lin Chuntao felt like she didn't know how to peel potatoes anymore, and it took her a long time to clean them with a sickle.
I went to look at the meat soaking in the bowl; some blood had seeped out, and the ginger slices had already developed their flavor.
She poured out the bloody water and rinsed it clean. She heated oil in a pan, then added ginger slices and meat to the pan and stir-fried until they turned yellow. Lin Chuntao glanced at the oil in the pan and saw that there was too much. She took a bowl and poured some out. She then cut the potatoes into chunks and added them to the pan to continue stir-frying. After that, she added water to the pan, just enough to cover the meat and potatoes.
Seeing Lin Chuntao bring over the straw cover to cover the steamer, Lin Chunhe looked up at her and asked, "Sister, is this all right?"
"Yes, after it boils, remove some firewood and simmer over low heat until it's soft and sticky. Then add some salt and it's ready to eat."
While the meat was stewing, Lin Chuntao got up, grabbed a handful of green peppers, washed them, broke them into pieces, and put them in a bowl.
The stewed potatoes and meat taste even better if you stir-fry them with a few dried chilies and some Sichuan peppercorns before stewing. Unfortunately, they didn't have any dried chilies or Sichuan peppercorns, so they had to make do.
The firewood was burning brightly, and the water in the pot boiled quickly. Steam began to rise from the straw cover. Lin Chuntao lifted the cover to take a look, turned it over with a bamboo shovel, then covered it again. She squatted down and pulled out two pieces of firewood, which immediately reduced the fire's intensity.
Although it was simmering over a low flame, the aroma quickly filled the air. The group kept swallowing their saliva as they smelled the rich fragrance. Lin Duo'er was quite anxious and kept pursing her lips.
"Sister, can we add firewood to make it cook faster?"
"cannot."
Lin Chuntao resolutely refused, saying, "A high flame will quickly burn it dry; it needs to be simmered slowly over a low flame."
Potatoes are high in starch, and after slow cooking until soft, they will dissolve into the broth and coat the meat.
Simmering over high heat quickly reduces the broth, leaving only dry meat and potatoes in the end, which isn't very tasty.
"It smells so good! How much longer until we can eat it?"
Lin Chuntao brought over the prepared green peppers, lifted the lid to take a look, and saw that the soup was already getting thick.
"It's almost done." She said, pouring the green peppers into the pot, then went to get the salt shaker and added an appropriate amount of salt. "Once the green peppers are cooked, you can eat them. Go get some bowls and chopsticks to serve the rice."
Looking at the half-full pot of potato stew with meat, and realizing there weren't enough pots, Lin Chuntao didn't stir-fry any more vegetables. Besides, everyone was craving meat, so they didn't really want to eat vegetables.
After they rushed back with their rice, Pei Ying got up and brought over Lin Chuntao's as well.
The green peppers were cooked, and Lin Chuntao pulled out the two pieces of firewood from the bottom of the pot. The bubbling sound in the pot gradually subsided.
Lin Chuntao scooped a spoonful of broth into the bowl, the broth covering the rice, and the potatoes and meat were also fragrant.
"This soup is delicious with rice, would you like some?" Lin Chuntao asked.
"want!"
"I want one too!"
As Lin Duo'er and Lin Chunhe were talking, they handed over the bowl.
After Lin Chuntao finished serving them, Lin Chunxing and Pei Ying also scooped two spoonfuls and poured them into their own bowls.
The soft, tender potatoes absorbed the aroma of the meat, and the meat chunks were coated with the starchy texture of the potatoes, making for an excellent taste. Pei Ying originally thought it would be too greasy, but Lin Chuntao added green peppers, which cut through the greasiness and added a touch of spiciness, making it more and more delicious and whetting one's appetite.
Lin Duo'er, that little chatterbox, kept sighing as she ate.
"So delicious, sister! This is the best potato I've ever eaten!!"
With food still in her mouth, Lin Chunhe mumbled, "The meat doesn't taste good?"
Lin Duo'er giggled, "It's the best meat I've ever eaten!"
Lin Chunxing didn't say much, she just kept her head down and ate, unaware that soup was all over her mouth.
Lin Chuntao thought the meat might be a bit gamey, but she was glad she had bought dried ginger that day. She originally bought it to make ginger soup in case she caught a cold, but she forgot to make the ginger soup and instead stewed the meat.
The soup coated the rice, making it even more fragrant, and the group ate until their bellies were bulging.
They were too lazy to clean up after putting down their bowls and chopsticks, and only started moving around after resting for a while.
The sisters were squatting outside washing dishes when Lin Chunxing suddenly realized she had forgotten to ask Pei Ying if she had found work.
She leaned close to Lin Chuntao and whispered, "Has brother-in-law found work yet?"
"I've found a butcher. I'm going to the city to work tomorrow morning."
As Lin Chuntao spoke, Lin Duo'er, who had sharp ears, looked at Pei Ying, who was washing pots in the corner, in surprise and asked excitedly, "Brother-in-law, are you going to slaughter a pig tomorrow?"
Seeing her delighted expression, Pei Ying replied softly, "Yes, I'll go tomorrow morning."
"Does that mean we can have meat every meal?"
Pei Ying smiled upon hearing this, which reminded him of his childhood when he would always hang around the meat stall. After a while, his master, seeing that he had nowhere else to go, simply made him work.
He was overjoyed; working in the butcher shop meant he'd have meat to eat every day.
But that's not the case. Master loved wine but not meat. He would often buy wine from expensive wineries that cost one tael of silver per catty, but he would sell the leftover pig tail at the meat stall cheaply to get money.
Before he could speak, Lin Chuntao started talking about Lin Duo'er.
"Do you think your brother-in-law owns a butcher shop? You have to pay for meat! If you want to eat meat every day, you might as well cut more pig feed, raise our little piglet, and slaughter it for a good meal during the New Year."
Lin Duo'er chuckled, looking rather silly.
Thinking about the stewed meat for today, and looking at the little girl Lin Duo'er, Pei Ying smiled and said, "I'll try to bring back as much meat as possible."
Lin Chuntao glanced at Pei Ying and smiled helplessly.
Pei Ying still remembers how much she craved meat when she was a child.
He worked in the butcher shop for several years, and eventually learned how to slaughter pigs. He was able to slaughter pigs and run the stall by himself every day, and only then would the old man say that if he wanted to eat meat, he could make it himself.
He wasn't very good at cooking. He sliced the meat, stir-fried it, added some salt, and then, without knowing what the problem was, the meat he stir-fried was dry and tough. The old man took a bite, chewed it for a long time without actually chewing it properly, spat it out, and then cursed and said that even a dog wouldn't eat the meat he made.
How could that be? As long as it's meat, he can eat it and stay alive. Even if he can't chew it properly, he'll swallow it whole to fill his stomach.
He had smelled the aroma of meat in the restaurants, which was very different from the taste of his own cooking. However, the prices were high and the portions were small. The old man didn't give him much money, so even if he had some, he wouldn't be willing to eat at a restaurant.
Only after eating Lin Chuntao's stewed potatoes and meat did he realize that although everyone could eat their fill, the feeling after eating was different depending on whether it tasted good or not.
He actually still had some money in his hand, which he had saved up over the years, hoping to one day marry a wife and live a good life together.
But by a twist of fate, he ended up in Yizhou, and without giving betrothal gifts or holding a banquet, he married Lin Chuntao.
Although Lin Chuntao seemed indifferent to these matters, he would still have to make arrangements for them in the future.
After cleaning up the dishes, Lin Chuntao couldn't stay idle any longer; she needed to get the corn planting done as soon as possible.
Not to mention that she needed to hire people to grow crops, how much would it cost to rent an ox? She had to find out all of this quickly, just in case she didn't have enough money to rent an ox.
It's May already, and it'll get hotter every day. We should plant the corn as early as possible.
"I'm going to Muramasa's house, are you coming?"
Lin Duo'er and the others had eaten too much, and their bellies were still bulging, so they were a little too lazy to move.
Pei Ying said, "I'll go with you."
"That's fine too." Lin Chuntao said, looking at Lin Chunxing: "Keep an eye on things at home."
Lin Chunxing nodded and replied, "Mm."
At this moment, the gate of the village head's courtyard was tightly closed. The neighbor next door saw Lin Chuntao and the others and said with a smile, "Chuntao, are you looking for your great-grandfather? They just left and went to the fields."
"Does Auntie know which direction they went?"
The woman replied, "They planted potatoes on the back hill, and they've gone to till the soil."
"If you run faster, you should still be able to catch up."
"Okay, thank you, Auntie."
Lin Chuntao said, pulling Pei Ying along, "Let's hurry up and catch up with Grandpa and the others."
It was an unconscious action of hers, as if she were pulling her younger sisters. Pei Ying felt extremely awkward as she pulled him forward. He thought to himself that it was fortunate that all the villagers were in the fields and no one could see them.
Lin Chuntao pulled him around a corner. The village path was narrow, making it impossible for the two of them to walk side by side, so she let go of his hand.
Pei Ying quietly followed behind her, and the two of them jogged out of the village entrance before they saw the main group of the Shangcun Masa family.
Lin Cunzheng and Sun Shi walked in front, while the two boys who had carried straw for them that day walked at the very back and were the first to spot her and Pei Ying.
He then said to the adult in front of him, "Mother, it seems like Sister Chuntao is chasing after us."
Hearing her son's words, Chen Dongniang turned around and saw that Lin Chuntao and the others seemed to be running after them. She then said to Sun Shi, "Mother, Chuntao and her husband are behind us. I wonder if they have something to ask you and Father."
Chen Dongniang's voice was loud, and Lin Cunzheng and Sun Shi stopped in their tracks, and the whole family also stood still.
As Lin Chuntao approached, Madam Sun called out, "Chuntao, where are you going?"
Lin Chuntao was panting heavily from running. She took a breath before saying, "I came to find you and Grandpa."
She had already walked up to him as she spoke.
Seeing the joy in her eyes, Madam Sun figured it couldn't be anything serious and said with a smile, "What's the matter that's so urgent, child?"
Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "I came here because I heard from the aunt next door that I could catch up with you. It's not urgent."
"Let's talk as we walk."
Sun patted her back to help her catch her breath, and Lin Chuntao calmed down before saying, "I remember that your family rented oxen for plowing before, Madam. I'd like to ask how much it cost, whether it was expensive, and how long the rental period was?"
Upon hearing that the cows were being rented, Mr. Sun was quite surprised.
"Are you going to plow the land? Why did you decide to rent an ox?"
Lin Chuntao truthfully said, "I bought some seeds and wanted to plant the land that I was allocated a few days ago, but digging is too slow. I want to turn the land over as soon as possible and plant the crops."
"Oh dear, you're planting too late now, they won't grow, it's a complete waste of seeds."
Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "I want to try planting them. We'll harvest whatever we can. If we don't plant a single one, we won't have a single grain of food by the end of the year."
She spoke firmly, and Lin Cunzheng said, "You can rent cattle in the county town or in the village head's village. For government-owned cattle, the village head needs to go to the county to act as guarantor, but for cattle from the village head's village, that's not necessary. I can take you directly to the village head. Government-owned cattle are rented on an annual basis, and the rent is around three to four shi of rice. We have little land, so renting government-owned cattle is not cost-effective. The price of privately owned cattle in the township depends on the season. It will increase during the busy farming season, but it should be slightly cheaper now. You can rent for a short period or a day. You'll have to ask."
"But you're only planting now, and you don't even know if you'll be able to earn rent from those cattle by the time the harvest is in the fall."
Lin Cunzheng added, "Even the best fields yield less than two shi of millet per mu, and after pounding, they only produce a little over one shi of rice. When the harvest is not good, there is not even one shi. It's like working for that ox for nothing all year."
Chun Tao sneered at the rent of three to four bushels of rice.
In reality, it would only cost about one or two taels of silver, but unfortunately, grain production is low these days. If you cultivate ten acres of land, you have to pay more than a third of the rent for the cattle. Fortunately, you don't have to pay land rent. If you had to pay land rent, cattle rent, and some taxes, what would you eat after a year of hard work?
"What do you want to plant?" Mrs. Sun asked curiously.
Lin Chuntao replied, "Plant corn."
The village chief's sons and daughters-in-law were listening to Lin Chuntao's conversation with the old man. When they heard Lin Chuntao mention planting corn, they all sneered in unison.
The sound was a bit loud, and when Lin Chuntao turned around, she saw that her uncles and aunts looked embarrassed.
Then Chen Dongniang said, "Chuntao, instead of planting corn, you might as well wait until after the autumn harvest to plant some buckwheat. The yield difference isn't that much, and planting buckwheat is easier."
Lin Chuntao pursed her lips helplessly and looked at Chen Dongniang, saying, "Auntie, I've bought all the corn seeds."
"The seed seller told me that it was a new variety, and that it was not too late to plant it this season. He said the yield was very good, so I bought it."
Upon hearing this, the entire Muramasa family fell silent, looking as if Lin Chuntao had been deceived.
Lin Cunzheng looked at Pei Ying and asked, "Little Pei, what do you think of those seeds?"
Pei Ying didn't really understand either, but he saw the corn seeds that Lin Chuntao bought. They were golden in color, with long buds and plump, round tops, and looked really good.
"I see, Grandpa. The seeds Chun Tao bought look very plump and the grains are quite large."
Lin Cunzheng felt somewhat disbelieving. He looked at Pei Ying suspiciously, wondering if Pei Ying didn't know much about farming either.
With a deep sigh, Lin Cunzheng said, "Even if you want to plant it, you're lacking manure. What are you planning to do about it?"
Lin Chuntao had a plan. Every household was collecting manure, and she couldn't possibly pay to buy it. Farmers valued farming the most, and manure was very important to them, so they couldn't sell it to her. For now, she could only gather some weeds, branches, and withered leaves to burn in the fields. The ash from the burning would be turned into the soil when plowing, which would provide some elements such as calcium, potassium, and phosphorus, as well as prevent insects and inhibit bacteria.
She explained the method of burning wood ash, and Lin Cunzheng nodded slightly: "That's fine, it's better than nothing."
"By the way, Grandpa, can we rent plows and oxen together?" Lin Chuntao asked.
Lin Cunzheng looked at her with a deep gaze, as if he felt that this child was unaware of the cost of daily necessities.
Planting crops after the season is over, and it's still uncertain whether there will be a harvest, yet we've already spent money on seeds and rented oxen. Instead of trying to save money, we also have to rent plows.
"You don't need a plow, I have one at home, you don't need to rent one, just come and take it when the time comes."
Lin Chuntao nodded slightly, "Okay, thank you, Grandpa."
She was a little embarrassed because she would definitely have to hire someone to plant it, and then she would have to use their tools.
From what she's saying, does it mean she's decided to plant it?
He said in a deep voice, “If you decide to plant it, the weeds in the field are too tall and will trip the plow. You need to cut them first. You don’t need to take them away. Just leave them in the field. They will rot when you plow and cover them with soil.”
"And you need to collect some wood ash from each plot of land to burn."
"Let's see which day is suitable for planting. I'll take you to the village head to rent a cow. Renting it for seven or eight days should be enough for twelve mu of land."
Hearing Muramasa's words, Lin Chuntao nodded and asked one last question.
"Grandpa, do I need to deposit money? How much? Is the rent paid in advance?" she asked in a series of questions. Lin Cunzheng replied, "You can deposit farm tools and plows. If you don't have those, you should deposit the rent."
"It's alright. Go back and think about it. I'll take you to the village head's house to ask around this evening."
Lin Chuntao thanked her and then hurried back to work.
Watching them leave, the adults sighed, "That girl Chun Tao is really bold."
Chen Dongniang said, "She said she's already bought the seeds. They're quite capable; they've earned this much money in just a few days."
Sun smiled when she heard her eldest daughter-in-law's words.
Lin Chuntao prepared to divide the work with Lin Chunxing and the others: some would cut weeds, while others would gather dry grass, leaves, and firewood to burn in the field.
The problem is that we're short on tools. We only have one sickle at home, and we need to borrow at least two more. The main workers are her, Chunxing, and Peiying.
Lin Chuntao didn't go straight home. Instead, she took Pei Ying to Aunt Guizhi's house, where Aunt Guizhi was sitting alone in the yard eating lunch.
Seeing Lin Chuntao and Pei Ying go, she stood up with a smile and invited them to sit down.
"Why is Auntie eating so late?"
Aunt Guizhi smiled and said, "I went to the county town to sell vegetables this morning and just got back."
"How is it? Are they sold out?" Lin Chuntao asked curiously.
"The vegetables sold out early. I brought some winnowing baskets, sieves, and bamboo baskets with me, but I came back late because I saw that I had sold so many."
Hearing Aunt Guizhi's words, Lin Chuntao breathed a sigh of relief.
When Aunt Guizhi came out of the house and saw Lin Chuntao, she smiled and brought two stools for her and Pei Ying to sit on.
After they sat down, Aunt Guizhi said to the old lady, "Mother, make two cups of honey water for Chuntao and the others."
Chun Tao quickly refused, "No, no, Sixth Grandma, please don't make it. We're full after dinner and can't drink any more."
The old lady stood at the door and said, "It's just some water, it won't fill my stomach, I'll just have a little."
"No, no, Grandma, don't make it. I'll drink it without hesitation. I really can't drink it."
Seeing how decisively she refused, the old lady finally came out of the house.
"Just tell me if you get thirsty later, and I'll make you some more."
Lin Chuntao responded, and Aunt Guizhi quickly finished her meal. She then told her about the bamboo basket vegetables she sold that morning, explaining that it took her a little more time to sort them after getting up early, but she earned much more than before. She thanked her for the idea.
Lin Chuntao laughed and said, "There's no need for thanks. I didn't do anything."
Aunt Guizhi glared at her, then remembered that she had met the Chen family on her way there and had complained about Lin Chuntao for a while. She asked, "Did Chen Hehua and her family go to the mountains to pick mushrooms with you this morning?"
Lin Chuntao raised an eyebrow upon hearing this, "How did Auntie know?"
"I ran into them on my way to the city, and they were all very angry."
Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "She came to my house earlier and asked me to take my two younger sisters to pick mushrooms. If we found any, we could take them to the city to sell. I refused her. It was dark at night, and we were in the mountains. It's good that nothing happened. But if something did happen, I couldn't take the responsibility."
“That makes sense,” Aunt Guizhi said.
Lin Chuntao continued, "This morning, Pei Ying and I set off before dawn, but my fourth aunt was even earlier, waiting for me at the village entrance with her sisters. I had no objection to going into the mountains with her, so we went together."
"Who knew that after we entered the mountains, she would blame me for not bringing a torch so I couldn't see the way, and she would just follow me without looking for mushrooms."
"Later, when I found some mushrooms, she just reached out and picked them. How can you do things like that? We had a little argument."
Hearing Lin Chuntao's words, Aunt Guizhi thought about what Chen had said. Lin Chuntao and Pei Ying were very domineering, even circling around a spot to prevent her from picking mushrooms. What she said was outrageous.
She was busy going into town at the time, otherwise I would have chatted with her for a bit.
Hearing Lin Chuntao say this, she frowned even more.
"She's shameless. You should avoid her. She can't stand seeing others have anything. Our land is next to hers. One year we planted pumpkins, but hers didn't grow any because it was shaded. She came to my field and took a few, saying that her pumpkins had grown in my field."
Lin Chuntao couldn't help but laugh out loud at this.
Aunt Guizhi looked at her smiling and shook her head helplessly.
"She probably saw that you were picking mushrooms and selling them for money, so she wanted to pick mushrooms and sell them too."
Lin Chuntao said, "The mountain is there, and it doesn't belong to my family. Anyone can pick mushrooms to sell, but I will definitely not let others take the mushrooms I dig up. Let her think what she wants."
"That's right," Aunt Guizhi said, then asked, "Are you going into the mountains again later?"
Lin Chuntao shook her head: "I'm not going. We got so caught up in chatting that we forgot about the important matter. I came here to ask if it would be convenient for my aunt to lend me two sickles. I bought some seeds today and I'm going to plant them. I need to go and cut some weeds in the field."
"What should we plant? Isn't it too late to plant now?"
Lin Chuntao said helplessly, "I thought I'd give it a try, even if it's just a little bit, otherwise we won't have a single grain this year."
Aunt Guizhi understood their situation and simply said, "If you want to plant them, you'd better get on it quickly. Do you need my help?"
"No need, no need, we just lack farm tools, we've been borrowing them from all over the place."
Aunt Guizhi said, "It's alright, we have plenty of sickles at home. Your uncle wears out his sickle while cutting bamboo. I'll go get you some. Are two enough?"
"That's enough, thank you, Auntie."
"No need to be so polite. Everyone in the village helps each other out."
As she spoke, she took out two sickles and two hoes, saying, "You can use these too, just return them to me when you're done planting."
Lin Chuntao was deeply moved when she saw the farm tools in Aunt Guizhi's hands.
Farm tools are as precious to the villagers as cattle that need to be rented. A hoe can be used for three generations. They take great care of their own tools and especially dislike lending them out. The same goes for sickles. They will only ask to borrow them if they really need them urgently.
Last time, she gave them a small bamboo basket, and this time she offered to lend them a hoe. Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "Thank you, Auntie. I will use it carefully."
As she spoke, she took the hoe. Getting to work was the priority, so she didn't linger and called to Pei Ying to prepare to leave.
Aunt Guizhi only called out when everyone had arrived at the door: "Has the planting date been decided?"
"If you need help, just tell me and I'll go plant it for you for two days."
Lin Chuntao replied, "It's not confirmed yet, Auntie. I'll come find you once it's decided."
Back home, Lin Chuntao arranged for Chunxing to go with her to cut weeds in the field.
They didn't have enough firewood to burn, so they had to chop some. Dried fir and pine branches were the best to burn, so Pei Ying went to chop them up. Luckily, there were a few shady fir trees behind the house, so she could also trim their branches.
Lin Chunhe and Lin Duo'er were assigned by her to drag tree branches, which Pei Ying cut down and they dragged to the ground.
After each person was assigned a task, they got busy.
When she and Lin Chunxing arrived at the field, the people working in the surrounding fields had already finished their rounds and were taking a break.
Seeing the two of them squatting in the field cutting weeds, he frowned. "Chuntao, are you cutting pig feed? The weeds in this field are too old."
Upon hearing this, Lin Chuntao looked up and replied, "No, Auntie, we're just cutting these weeds to prepare for planting some crops."
Before the woman who asked the question could reply, a man not far from her exclaimed in surprise.
"What? Plant crops? Aren't you afraid of reaping no harvest at this time?!"
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