Wang and A Lu looked at Chen A Fu in surprise. Chen A Fu nodded at them and said with a smile, "Let's go eat wontons first. We are hungry."
They came to the wonton stand and ordered four bowls of wontons, each costing twelve cents. Wang Shi was not reluctant to part with them. The wontons were thin in skin and rich in meat, and they were so delicious that the two children didn't care about the heat and kept putting them in their mouths. If Chen Ahfu wasn't afraid that their little tummies couldn't take it, he would have wanted to order another bowl for them.
While eating wontons, the last sewing basket was also bought by a girl.
Ah Lu also said, "It smells really good, but it's a pity that I can't bring a bowl back for Dad."
Chen Ahfu pointed to a braised pork stall across the street and said, "Wontons are not easy to carry. There's a stall selling braised pork over there. Let's buy some braised pork for Dad to take back."
Wang said, "That stall sells Xuji braised food from Mingshui Town. I heard it's very delicious."
Chen Dabao sniffed and said, "Yeah, it's fragrant. We can all smell it here."
Wang said, "After buying the braised meat, let's go to the temple and kowtow to the Bodhisattva, thanking the Bodhisattva for blessing Ah Fu to recover from his illness, and add more incense money." She also said, "It would be great if we could meet the fortune teller who told Ah Fu's fortune. We must thank him and accept his good words."
Several people entered the temple, kowtowed to the Buddha and burned incense. Chen Ahfu generously added one or two taels of silver as incense money. After walking through several halls, Wang still couldn't meet the fortune-telling monk, and she didn't know his Buddhist name, so she was very disappointed.
Chen Afu was somewhat happy, but she didn't want to meet a high monk or something.
After leaving the temple, several people went to buy a pound of braised meat. Chen Afu also bought a candied haws for each of the two children.
The afternoon in midsummer was unusually hot. It got even hotter after leaving Honglin Mountain. Chen Afu saw the ox-cart and donkey-cart on the roadside, but he didn't dare to take a taxi. Wang Shi would definitely not accept it.
Fortunately, they walked a short distance before they met a bullock cart from the neighboring village of Guqiao. Several people got on it, and there were also two women from Xiangluo Village on the cart.
A woman said, "Mrs. Chen Er, I heard that your sewing basket sells for ninety coins each. You must have made a lot of money today, right?"
Wang was panicked and said, "How can we earn so much? If we sell them at a high price, people won't buy them. Many of them are sold at a low price."
Another woman said, "You asked for such a high price, how much lower can it be? You can definitely earn four or five strings of cash for a large cart of baskets. My, your family earned as much as our whole family earns in half a year in just half a day, you are really capable."
The people in the car were extremely envious.
Wang Alu and Dabao also quickly denied, "Not that many."
The woman curled her lips and said, "Why are you panicking? No matter how much you earn, no one will snatch it from you."
Chen Afu did not deny it. If he didn’t even acknowledge such a small amount, how would he build a big house in the future?
It was already late in the afternoon when he returned to the village. He saw Chen Ming sitting under the eaves of the house, anxiously looking into the distance. Seeing them coming back, he quickly got up and went to the gate of the fence.
He saw that except for Wang who was carrying a basket, everyone else had nothing in their hands, so he asked with a smile, "Have you sold all your things?"
Dabao put his index finger to his lips and hushed exaggeratedly, "Grandpa, keep your voice down and let's talk inside."
They closed the fence gate, the door of the room, and went into the west room, and asked Dabao to watch from the window to see if anyone came into the yard. As soon as he got this glorious task, Chen Dabao squatted on the kang, holding the window frame and watching outside vigilantly.
Wang put the big money in the backpack on the table, a big pile, mixed with a few small silver coins. When Chen Ming and others saw Chen Afu put a few silver ingots on the table, their eyes were wide open, it was the first time they saw so much silver.
Chen Dabao looked outside and said proudly, "She made so much money. My mother is capable, right? And my grandma. These sewing kits were all made by her."
A Lu nodded heavily, "Yes, my sister and mother can do it."
Wang's eyes turned red, and she said, "A-Lu's leg can finally be cured."
Chen Ming was so excited that his body was shaking. He stared at the silver and said, "This much money can not only cure A-Lu's leg, but also add some land to A-Fu and his mother, so that our family can live a good life." After thinking about it, he put two silver ingots of 20 taels in front of himself and pushed the rest of the silver in front of Chen A-Fu. He smiled and said, "Dad knows that A-Fu contributed the most to the sewing kit being sold for so much money. Dad and mom will take care of it this time. Keep 40 taels, 10 taels for A-Lu to see his leg, and 30 taels for A-Lu to build a tiled house when he gets married. The rest of the money can be used by A-Fu to buy a few acres of land, and some money can be left for Dabao to study and get married. You and your mother will have no worries in the future."
Seeing Chen Ming’s distribution, Chen Afu couldn’t help but look up to him. What a good man with an open mind.
Chen Ahfu smiled and mixed all the silver together. He first took out a silver ingot of 20 taels and said, "This is the money for my brother to have his leg treated. Ten taels of silver may not be enough, so prepare more." He then pushed three silver ingots of 20 taels in front of Chen Ming and said, "These 60 taels include mother's wages and my daughter's filial piety. Dad must keep them. My brother not only needs to have his leg treated, but also needs to go to school. Mom and Dad also need to live a good life." He then took the remaining 36 taels and moved them in front of himself and said, "We mother and son will keep this money for our own use. We won't buy the land for now. We'll do it when we make money later."
Seeing that Chen Ming was still trying to refuse, Wang held his hand and said, "Master, you have loved your daughter for more than ten years. This is the first time she has earned money. You should accept the gift she gave you."
Her voice was a little choked up. She had always been grateful to Chen Ming for treating Chen Afu as his own son, and now that Afu was finally able to honor him with his own ability, she was happier than anyone else.
Chen Ahfu pulled Chen Ming's sleeves a few more times and said, "Dad, just keep it. You have seen my daughter's ability, and I will show my filial piety to you more in the future."
Dabao squatted by the window and laughed, and also advised, "Grandpa, look how lovely my mother is, just keep her."
Chen Ming nodded and said excitedly, "My dear daughter, Daddy will keep it for now. Daddy never dreamed that he would have so much money. If Ah Fu and Da Bao need it in the future, just come to Daddy and get it."
The men counted the money from the sale of the needlework baskets, which totaled more than three thousand coins and six small silver coins. These were kept by Wang for the family's expenses.
Where to put the silver really gave Chen Ming and Wang a headache. In the end, Wang and Chen Afu moved the box next to the kang, dug a hole in the ground, and buried the jar containing the silver.
They discussed that after the house was built, Wang would take A Lu to the city to treat his leg. Chen A Fu wanted to go to the city, but she had to stay at home to take care of Chen Ming.
Chen Afu also suggested that the thatched roofs be replaced with tiles, as thatched houses are prone to leaking. Another option is to replace the fence with adobe walls, which are safer and less likely to be seen by others. Not only did they make changes to the newly built house, but also to the old house.
Chen Ming disagreed. "The new house should indeed have a mud-walled courtyard. It will be safe for you two mother and son to live in, and it won't cost much, just an extra guan. The rest can be discussed later. How much money our family has made today can be calculated by others. A total of more than four guan, and A-Lu still needs to go to the capital to see a doctor for his leg..."
It was especially important for a family like theirs to keep their wealth to themselves, as Chen Ahfu had no choice but to agree temporarily.
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