Chapter 118 Lord Xie
As Song Chunxue carried the chamber pot out the door, she caught a glimpse of someone squatting by the wall, which startled her so much that she almost dropped what she was holding.
"Zhao Yufang?"
"What are you doing squatting here? You almost got pissed on."
Zhao Yufang's legs went numb from squatting, so she stood up, clutching her knees, wincing in pain.
"Go ahead and wash it, then I can ask you for something."
When Song Chunxue saw that her lips were blue from the cold, and remembering that she was currently preparing for her son's wedding, she instantly understood why she had come.
"Looking to borrow money?"
Zhao Yufang lowered her head. "Yes, their parents changed their minds at the last minute. They said they wanted to add an extra tael of silver as a dowry, otherwise the marriage would fall through."
As she spoke, Zhao Yufang wiped the moisture from the corner of her eyes.
“I’ve already borrowed from the Li family, but I only managed to scrape together five hundred copper coins. I’m still short five hundred. Besides, my family is practically broke. I have no money left to buy wine or cloth, and we don’t even have money to buy coarse salt.”
As she spoke, she couldn't help but burst into tears, "Wang the Bald isn't worried at all. After all, the eldest son isn't his son. If this marriage falls through, the second son won't be able to find a wife either. Song Chunxue, I can only ask you for help. I know you've had a hard time, but I wouldn't have asked if I wasn't desperate, sob sob sob..."
Song Chunxue patted her on the back, "Don't cry, it'll be bad if others hear. Wait for me inside."
How can she talk like that? She's still holding a chamber pot.
She ran quickly to the pile of ash on the kang (a heated brick bed) in the distance, poured her urine on it, and planned to use it as fertilizer in the field after a while.
It was getting cold, so she went to the kitchen to boil some hot water to wash her face. Washing her face with cold water would keep her feeling cold all day.
She applied some mutton fat ointment to her face and then brought some steamed buns to Zhao Yufang.
"Eat something first, then I'll get you some money," Song Chunxue said. "When will you be able to pay me back?"
“I’ll pay you back a little before the New Year, and I’ll pay you back the rest before the autumn harvest next year,” Zhao Yufang hurriedly stood up. “If you don’t trust me, you can write a written agreement. You can also come to my house to take my things then, and I will definitely pay you back.”
Song Chunxue knew that she was not the kind of person who would break her promises.
"Alright, then write it down. I'm afraid Wang the Bald will deny it later." She took out an ounce of silver from the wooden box on the table. "Let Sanwa write it for you."
Just then, the third child stepped into the house and washed his face in the basin.
“I can write it; the teacher just taught me this a few days ago.” With that, Sanwa turned and went to his room to get his pen and ink.
Zhao Yufang looked at Sanwa's back with envy.
"Look, the child is indeed better at studying. He's dressed neatly, looks good, and is much more energetic than before." She rubbed her red eyes. "Alas, it's a pity that not only can our family not afford to send him to school, but he's also not cut out for studying. He didn't even finish a year of school."
Before long, Sanwa found a pen and ink, and wrote a document stroke by stroke. Then, he found some red clay from somewhere and had Zhao Yufang put her fingerprint on it.
Just then, the fourth son came in from outside, his eyes barely open, and asked, "Mother, are you making soup today?"
“I’ll go cook it in a bit.” Song Chunxue looked at Zhao Yufang. “You sit for a while, I’ll go cook the soup, and then we can go back after we’ve finished drinking it.”
"No need, no need, I'm going back now. I have to go over at noon, and I need to prepare for the banquet in a few days." Zhao Yufang stood up and looked at Song Chunxue gratefully. "I will remember your kindness for the rest of my life."
Song Chunxue patted her on the shoulder, "Just pay me back the money."
The fourth brother frowned as he saw the third child applying mutton fat ointment and changing into new clothes. "Where are you going?"
"..." Sanwa was stunned for a moment.
“Your eldest brother’s child had a seizure in the middle of the night last night. I went to check on him. Sanwa was also woken up. He said he wanted to buy toilet paper today, but he didn’t have time to tell you. Go change your clothes quickly.”
Song Chunxue said calmly, "I'll buy you some pig's trotters."
"Huh?" The fourth brother stood up from his chair. "We're going to the county? Then I need to go and add hay for the donkey. Has the third brother done it?"
"I was just about to go." Sanwa felt a little guilty; he had completely forgotten that Lao Si was also going.
“You’re dressed so neatly, how can you carry grass? Let me do it.”
The fourth brother wasn't angry at all; he even walked briskly out of the yard.
Song Chunxue was deeply moved. This child, who used to be unwilling to even carry a bucket of water, is now gradually doing the work that Sanwa used to do, and is becoming more and more adept at it.
I must buy him some food today, otherwise he might quit one day, and I'll have to herd the sheep again.
After drinking the egg drop soup and tidying up, they tied up a donkey cart and headed to the county.
Just as the cart left the gate, the eldest brother came out of the thatched kiln.
"Where are you going? Buy me something on the way."
As he spoke, the eldest brother ran over and took out five hundred copper coins from his pocket. "Five feet of new cloth, three catties of cotton, and two chickens. If there's anything left, buy some peppercorns and brown sugar."
"So, are you going to hold a full-month celebration?"
The fourth brother weighed the copper coin in his hand and said, "If you're going to the Chen family to demand an explanation, remember to take me and Sanwa with you. You probably can't beat Chen Feng's brother by yourself. Don't embarrass us."
The eldest brother's gaze fell on the haystack not far away. "Well, we'll talk about it when you guys get back."
Song Chunxue didn't say anything. Sanwa sat in front driving the cart, and the three of them didn't stop as they passed through the villages.
An hour later, Song Chunxue felt the urge to urinate.
"Sanwa, stop first."
The car stopped by the roadside; there were few other vehicles on the official road.
Song Chunxue found a secluded spot, relieving herself on the edge of a field next to a grove of trees.
She noticed a grayish-brown jar with patterns lying in front of the old earthen kiln not far away.
Judging from the color, it looks quite old.
Song Chunxue picked it up and carried it to the car, handing it to Lao Si.
"We just happened to run into it. Do you think it's some kind of chamber pot or spittoon used by the servants? Otherwise, we could take it home and use it to store things."
Although the pickled vegetables are a bit small, they still look quite nice on the table.
Wide-mouthed jars can also be used to store lard.
"This thing..." The fourth brother held it in his hand and examined it carefully. "The patterns on it are quite exquisite, and it doesn't look like a pottery jar. It's heavier than a pottery jar. Could it have been accidentally dropped by a tomb robber?"
Sanwa turned his head and glanced at it. "Could it be someone's tin can that fell down when they were moving?"
"No, no, I don't think it looks like it. It has a bit of green on it. If it were bronze, it would be valuable." The fourth brother was overjoyed. "Let's go to the pawnshop and see. If it's that old Taoist priest's lucky charm that worked, we might be able to sell it for a few taels of silver."
Song Chunxue was also amused. She had indeed received quite a bit of silver recently, and even if this only sold for a few hundred coins, it would still be money.
Even if you don't sell it for money, you can use it to store things at home; it's all free stuff anyway.
Sanwa laughed and said, "If we really find a treasure, Mother, can you buy me a better ink?"
"Sure, of course, I'll buy you all the traditional writing implements."
Although Song Chunxue didn't think at all that this drab gray jar could be sold for money.
Before long, they arrived at Zhuanglang City. It wasn't market day, so the streets were rather deserted.
"My lord, my lord, please slow down."
As Song Chunxue got off the donkey cart, she saw a familiar figure walking towards her.
"Lord Xie?"
The person in front of them, their clothes fluttering, slowed their pace and looked in their direction, seemingly surprised. "Sister-in-law Song?"
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