35 One hundred quilts
◎Before marriage, you must never go beyond the rules.◎
"Don't expose your body during White Dew, and don't expose your feet during Cold Dew." Because White Dew is just two days away, the people of Xixiang often mention this proverb recently.
Although it is very cold at night, the daytime is a good time to work. There is no sun or heat, and the autumn breeze blows from time to time, which is very comfortable.
It’s just that Aunt Wang was not in a good mood. Her mortal enemy Wang Cuihua actually bought meat several times in a row!
Look, smoke is coming out of the kitchen chimney, almost as if it wants to fill the neighboring houses with the aroma of meat.
Just like the previous few days, Aunt Wang brought a stool from the house and was about to climb up stealthily when a child's voice rang out from behind her: "Grandma, are you trying to peek at Aunt Cuihua again?"
Aunt Wang waved her hand and said to the little girl behind her, "Don't talk nonsense. Grandma, come up and get some fresh air. You can go out and play."
Xiao Erya smiled sweetly and ran out.
"Oh, Madam Cuihua, what delicious food have you cooked at home? It smells so good!" The peasant woman said as she wanted to go into Madam Cuihua's house.
Madam Cuihua quickly closed the door and said, "What good stuff is this? It's just that I made half a bowl of lard a few days ago and fried some fern. It was incredibly fragrant."
The peasant woman outside the yard seemed to believe her: "Yes, I'll go get some lard someday and eat some meat."
Aunt Wang, who was lying on the yellow mud wall, didn't believe it. According to her careful observation in the past few days, she brought back half a piece of pork liver the first time, and brought back half a pound of lard two days later.
Normal people would celebrate a good meal with drums and gongs to let the whole village know, but she always kept it secret.
There must be something fishy!
"Ah! Mom! What are you doing!" Wang Laiwang, who was standing at the gate of the courtyard, was frightened by Aunt Wang and couldn't help but scream.
It didn't matter that he made such a noise, but it frightened Aunt Wang who was doing something bad, so much that she staggered and fell off the stool with a "bang"!
“Ouch… Ouch…”
Wang Laiwang quickly placed the lunch he was carrying on the windowsill of the kitchen, rushed to her side, and carefully helped her up: "Mom, are you okay? Did you fall anywhere?"
"Ouch...it's all your fault! Why were you screaming? I was so scared that I thought someone saw us..." Aunt Wang said while rubbing her butt.
"Mom, I didn't mean to do that... As soon as I entered the yard, I saw a dark shadow hanging on our wall. I thought it was a thief..."
Wang Laiwang helped her walk into the house: "Mom, lie down and rest."
He immediately brought another bowl of hot water and when he handed it to Aunt Wang, she said, "Laiwang, why do I feel like Cuihua's family has become rich? They've been buying meat for several days in a row."
"Maybe it's Brother Dazhuang's wages. Eight cents a day, if you save them for a few days, you can buy a lot of meat. Besides, Brother Dazhuang told me that her family boils a bowl of lard, and everything they cook has a meaty aroma... Mom, don't worry about it, come and have some water."
Aunt Wang took the bowl and said, "Who would be willing to spend all their wages at once? Don't they all tighten their belts and save for winter? He told you a lie, and you, a fool, believed him."
"Wang Cuihua's greatest strength, apart from anything else, is her frugality and reluctance to spend money."
Aunt Wang became more and more excited as she analyzed the situation: "It must be profitable. Do you think it has something to do with the county school?"
Wang Laiwang sighed, feeling that his mother seemed to be possessed by a demon. Ever since he saw Cuihua enter the county school, he had been thinking about her day and night.
He was about to bring in lunch when Xiao Erya ran in. Seeing Aunt Wang lying on the bed, she hurried over and took out a piece of salty, fragrant and crispy pork fat residue from her bosom: "Grandma, have some."
Lard scraps are a good thing. After making lard at home, you can only eat one piece of lard scraps a day. The rest are locked in a wooden cabinet. I can't bear to eat more.
"Erya, where did the lard come from?" Wang Laiwang asked.
"Aunt Cuihua gave me four pieces. One for my grandmother, one for my father, one for my eldest brother, and one for Erya."
Madam Cuihua?
Wang Laiwang's heart was pounding. Could it be that what his mother said was true?
*
As for these things, Cuihua had no idea. She had been enjoying her life recently and was very happy.
She listened to what County Magistrate Ye had told her earlier and told the Jingshan brothers to provide Ruyi Tower with thirty crystal cakes every day.
However, each piece was not worth ten cents as County Magistrate Ye had expected, but seven cents.
At that time, she had just raised the price and the Jingshan brothers were about to leave. In a moment of desperation, she agreed to the price of seven cents per piece.
Seven coins... not a small amount...
County Magistrate Ye wouldn't be angry if he knew...
She was in a good mood today and took the initiative to go to the wasteland to pick up Liu Dazhuang and take him home. The wasteland that was once covered with weeds was now exposed to yellow soil, and small mud houses were built in many places. However, building houses in this season was not as good as in summer. The new houses would only become strong after being exposed to the scorching sun. For this reason, the refugees had not yet moved into the small mud houses.
Madam Cuihua walked and looked around, and unexpectedly saw that County Magistrate Ye seemed to be walking with... and the Jingshan brothers!
She hurriedly raised her hand to rub her eyes, stretched her head to observe carefully, and it was really County Magistrate Ye and the Jingshan brothers!
Two young people of marriageable age walked together, the man was unmarried and the woman was unmarried. The more Cuihua looked at them, the more she thought they were a perfect match. Her master was so smart and capable, and in such a big Lingnan County, only the Jingshan brothers were worthy of her.
Apart from anything else, Brother Jingshan is tall and straight, standing out among a group of men.
Madam Cuihua was peeking at something with great interest when someone suddenly made a noise behind her. She turned around as if her good time had been interrupted and asked, "Who is it?"
Liu Dazhuang looked in her direction and said, "Madam, why are you peeking at Brother Jingshan here?"
Madam Cuihua laughed out loud: "What nonsense! I was looking at County Magistrate Ye! I was planning to pick you up, so we can go back together."
The two walked side by side. After three or five steps, Liu Dazhuang tentatively asked, "Are you really not looking at Brother Jingshan?"
She looked around and saw that no one was around. She raised her hand and twisted Liu Dazhuang's ear fiercely: "Try to tell another nonsense?"
"It hurts! I won't do it again. I won't do it again."
The two of them walked home while fighting and making noises, while Ye Yunzhao and Chen Jingshan walked towards the wasteland in silence.
"Why did County Magistrate Ye come to see me?"
Chen Jingshan looked at the increasingly desolate fields not far away. In broad daylight, a young woman and a man were sneaking into the wasteland?
This is really bad for a woman's reputation...
Seeing her dejected, which was quite different from the way she had been arguing with him a few days ago, Chen Jingshan felt a little surprised. Could it be that all young women in love are like this, sometimes happy, sometimes angry?
However, he was clear-headed. Although he had already guessed that she was interested in him and he did not dislike her in his heart, he must not cross the line before getting married.
Seeing Ye Yunzhao remained silent, Chen Jingshan stopped and said in a gentle tone, "If you have something to say, please feel free to speak up."
Ye Yunzhao didn't notice his inappropriately intimate tone. These past few days, she had been thinking about the refugees on the diba. She had spent two whole days studying the county government's account books, but still couldn't find enough money to buy bedding.
She thought about it and decided that there was a wealthy businessman in Lingnan County, so it would be a waste not to use him. That was why Ye Yunzhao had specially looked for Chen Jingshan today.
The two of them walked in silence from the county government office to Xixiang. Ye Yunzhao originally wanted to walk with him to the wasteland that was being reclaimed, so that he could see with his own eyes the poor life of the people in Xixiang. But if he was a person with a conscience, the subsequent deception work would be easy.
But who would have thought that Chen Jingshan would ask her what she was doing halfway and even stopped at this moment. Ye Yunzhao recalled how rude she was to him a few days ago, and now she was really shameless when asking for help.
She sighed and lowered her voice: "Shopkeeper Chen, I went too far a few days ago and said some excessive words..."
Chen Jingshan was stunned for a moment, then looked carefully at Ye Yunzhao who was lowering her head in front of him, and became suspicious. When had she said anything excessive?
Seeing that he didn't respond, Ye Yunzhao said again: "Shopkeeper Chen, don't you want to buy the recipe for crystal cake? Although I can't sell you this recipe, I know other recipes. Do you want them..."
"want."
His decisive voice echoed in Ye Yunzhao's head, shutting up her unfinished words: "Do you want to try it first?"
"Why don't you ask about the recipe?" Ye Yunzhao was a little curious. Running such a large restaurant, wasn't it a bit too hasty to make a decision?
"I believe that the recipes you sell me are all good ones." Chen Jingshan's expressionless face showed a hint of smile. "I will send the money and tea cakes to the county government tomorrow."
It was only then that Ye Yunzhao realized something was wrong. She took a half step back and the two of them put some distance between them.
"I don't want any money or tea cakes."
Chen Jingshan seemed to be possessed by a god, and his cheeks were slightly red.
She looked up, remembering what she was going to say later, and a concerned smile appeared on her face: "Manager Chen, are you okay? Did you catch a cold? Why does your face look so red?"
As soon as these words came out, the redness that was just on her cheeks instantly spread to the tips of Chen Jingshan's ears. He turned around and walked back: "Nothing, you don't want money, what do you want..."
Ye Yunzhao tentatively asked anxiously, "I want a hundred quilts..."
She observed Chen Jingshan constantly and quickly added, "Don't use anything thick. Just a thin layer, or two layers of coarse cloth quilt cover, and two hundred kilograms of the cheapest charcoal will do."
"I know my proposal is ridiculous, but Shopkeeper Chen, please believe me. The recipe I give you will definitely make back this huge expense within two years. By the way, Shopkeeper Chen, don't worry, this isn't just one recipe. When the time comes, I'll let you try it first. If you think the recipe is feasible, I'll offer it to you."
Ye Yunzhao's words were full of sincerity. No matter how rich Chen Jingshan was, he was just a businessman, and no matter how poor she was, she was still a scholar. In this dynasty, the contempt chain of scholars, farmers, merchants and artisans would always exist. It was even worse in Yongzhou where her original body had lived before. Yuezhou was not so bad because it was far away from the capital.
Therefore, although she was only a small county magistrate, she spoke so kindly and considerately for him. If others knew about it, they would definitely feel against Tian Gang.
"County Magistrate Ye, since you know that the recipe is very valuable, why don't you find a few people to sell it like you did with the crystal cakes?" Chen Jingshan asked the question that was in his mind.
"Alas..." Ye Yunzhao sighed and whispered, "To be honest with Shopkeeper Chen, this was exactly what I had planned. Selling the recipe is a one-time deal, so it's better to find someone else to sell it to, which is a long-term and steady stream."
"But right now I have something extremely important to do that requires a lot of quilts. Cotton is expensive, and as a newly appointed county magistrate, how can I afford to buy them? I have no choice but to sell the recipe. What do you think, Shopkeeper Chen?"
Chen Jingshan didn't answer directly, but asked again: "There are many restaurants in Yuezhou City, and there are dozens of restaurants of the same size as Ruyi Tower. Why don't you look for their owners, but come to me instead?"
Ye Yunzhao didn't dare to tell her true intention of "If you don't buy it, I will find other restaurants to sell my house", which made it seem that her recipe was very different and Chen Jingshan's Ruyilou was very ordinary and not the first choice. She was sure that if she pointed it out directly, the deal would be a failure.
What's more, Ye Yunzhao had no idea about the situation in other restaurants. If he investigated one by one, wouldn't more than 200 people have to stay in the cold for a long time?
They couldn't wait, and Ye Yunzhao couldn't wait even more.
With 100% sincerity on her face, she casually made up a story: "Of course it's because Manager Chen is one of the best owners in Yuezhou City! Besides, we are friends. Since I have a recipe for making money, why should I give it to others? Am I going to let other restaurants compete with Ruyi Tower?"
Chen Jingshan didn't say a word, his eyes shining as he stared at her for a long moment: "Okay."
"Really?" Ye Yunzhao asked in surprise.
"really."
The refugees don’t have to suffer from the cold anymore, the refugees don’t have to suffer from the cold anymore!
Ye Yunzhao thought of the biting cold wind on the ground dam, and her eyes turned red. She suddenly grabbed Chen Jingshan's arm and said, "Thank you, Manager Chen! I thank you on behalf of the people of Lingnan County!"
He had a calm expression, tilting his head to look at the hands holding his arms, which were slender, strong, and white without a speck of dust.
A faint warmth passed through his clothes and reached his arms through these hands. Chen Jingshan felt a little strange.
Ye Yunzhao followed his gaze and belatedly realized that her actions were too intimate. She quickly let go of his hand, took a step back awkwardly, and explained, "I was so happy that I was abrupt..."
She twisted her hands behind her back. How could these broken hands still not forget the gesture of thanking others in her previous life!
"Nothing." Chen Jingshan felt a little disappointed.
The two of them walked in silence all the way to the county government office, but the atmosphere was a little tense, and even Ye Yunzhao, who was not very sensitive to emotions, noticed it. After saying a simple goodbye, she turned and walked towards the county government office.
Just as she reached the gate of the county government office, Ye Yunzhao suddenly remembered something she had forgotten to tell him. She turned around and was about to chase after him, but found that Chen Jingshan had not left. He was standing there staring at her at the place where they had just parted.
"What's wrong?" Chen Jingshan asked first.
Ye Yunzhao came back to his senses: "Manager Chen, could you please send over a hundred quilts as soon as possible?"
"That's it?"
"That's it."
"Okay, see you another day."
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