Chapter 74 Chapter 74 - Buy Potatoes in 2-in-1 (Change Price)
As they were talking, Lin Chuntao went to help take down her backpack. The firewood was chopped into neat lengths. Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "We can burn it ourselves. There's no need to make it so neat. It won't take much effort, right?"
"I felt comfortable watching Meng Yun do this, so I followed suit."
Lin Chuntao put her arm around her shoulders and asked, "Did you go out for breakfast?"
“I ate mooncakes.”
"It's probably not as delicious as it was two days ago," said Lin Chuntao.
Lin Chunhe smiled and said, "No, it's still delicious. The ones with rose filling are the best."
"If you like it, go back tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. If you can buy petals, make some more."
Lin Chuntao had no appetite after waking up from a full sleep. It was still early at noon, so she was thinking about buying potatoes. After Lin Chunhe had rested for a while, she called her and took the money to her grandmother's house.
Almost all the potatoes have been dug up in the past two days. Everyone is picking potatoes at home, leaving some for eating and some for seeds, which are picked up and separated.
There are also some that have been dug up and are still intact. You can pick them up now, peel them, wash them, and then stir-fry or boil them.
There were only one or two people left in the field. They walked around with baskets on their backs, mainly picking up the potatoes that had been missed.
When Lin Chuntao arrived, Sun, Chen Dongniang, and their sisters-in-law were all picking up trash. The old lady was a little surprised to see the two sisters coming. "Chuntao, didn't you go to the county town today?"
"Chun Xing and Duo Er went, but Chun He and I didn't."
Lin Chuntao replied and looked at the pile of potatoes. Most of them had been picked up. She marveled at their speed.
Chen Dongniang laughed and said, "If there are too many people, each one will pick up a little bit and it will be gone."
Lin Chuntao then explained her purpose and brought a sack with her. Sun and Chen Dongniang picked up the food and put it directly into the sack. After weighing it, they carried it back home.
The old lady and the others were picking up the things. Lin Chuntao said to the old lady, "Grandma, please help me pick them up. I'll go check on Qingqing's house."
Sun responded and then reminded her: "Don't worry, go and pick it up, then come back."
When Lin Chuntao went there, Lin Qingqing and the others were not at home. Her mother and grandmother were picking potatoes at home.
Lin Chuntao greeted Wang and then looked at the old lady.
"Third Grandma, are you selling potatoes? If so, pick up three sacks and sell them to me."
Wang had already told Lin Chuntao that she wanted to buy potatoes. Seeing her come to ask, she just smiled and replied, "I heard from your second aunt that you wanted to buy some, so I saved some for you. I brought a bag and picked them up for you."
Lin Chuntao gave the bag to the old lady, and Wang and Lin Qingqing's third aunt picked up the trash together. It didn't take long before the three sacks were filled.
After weighing it, it was 358 kilograms. Lin Chuntao asked the old lady to calculate the price, but the old lady smiled and said, "We haven't been to the market for a long time. I don't know the price. Chuntao, you can calculate it."
Lin Chuntao was also thinking about the prices at the market, so she said frankly, "Yesterday I saw potatoes being sold at the market for 12.5 cents per pound. Can we use that price?"
The old lady smiled happily and said, "Yes, yes."
The total amount was four hundred and forty-seven and a half cents, and Lin Chuntao gave four hundred and forty-eight cents.
Lin Changhua happened to come back, so Wang asked Lin Changhua to help her carry Lin Chuntao over.
Lin Chuntao gave the key to Lin Chunhe and took Wang and the others there first. She still had to go to her great-grandfather's house.
Lin Chunhe asked, "Sister, where should we put these bags of potatoes?"
Lin Chuntao said, "Bring the bamboo rack that holds the dustpans outside into the house. Put the three bags on the rack, on the bottom shelf."
After explaining this to Lin Chunhe, Lin Chuntao smiled at Wang and Lin Changhua and said, "Then I'll trouble you, Uncle and Auntie. Thank you."
Wang smiled and said, "Why are you being so polite to us? We'll send it to you first."
Lin Chuntao nodded, and they carried the potatoes and went out together.
When Lin Chuntao came over, Sun and the others had already picked up the items and were tying them up in bags.
Seeing Lin Chuntao coming back, Chen Dongniang went to get a scale and weighed the three sacks in front of Lin Chuntao. The weight was 364 kilograms.
Sun calculated the money for Lin Chuntao based on one cent per pound.
Lin Chuntao laughed and said, "Grandma, you calculated this wrongly, didn't you? Why is it only one penny per pound?"
Sun said, "Yesterday, people from the city came to the village and said that they were buying grain. Big potatoes are only one penny per pound, and the smaller ones are even cheaper. I picked up the big ones for you, so I'll charge you one penny per pound."
Lin Chuntao was a little surprised, "You're here to collect grain so early?"
Chen Dongniang took over the conversation and said with a smile, "Maybe the potatoes around here are good this year, so the farmers came to harvest them. They shouted in the village for a long time before leaving."
Lin Chuntao thought of what Third Grandma next door had just said. She smiled, then looked at Sun and Chen Dongniang in front of her and said, "I saw an old man selling potatoes at the market yesterday. He sold ten catties for twelve and a half cents. Let's use that price."
Upon hearing this, Sun quickly refused: "No, no, the market is the market, aren't we selling it at home? People at the market make money, how can we make money from you at home?"
Lin Chuntao said, "If I buy it at the market, I have to carry it back myself. I'll have to trouble my aunt and the others to deliver it to me later. I'll give it to you based on the market price."
Lin Chuntao calculated the amount to four hundred and fifty-five coins and directly counted out the copper coins and gave them to the old lady.
The old lady refused to accept it, and she and Lin Chuntao pushed it back and forth for a long time before she accepted it.
Not to mention that they were in the same village, Sun and the others had helped her a lot. No matter how much the goods sold at the market, she would definitely pay them according to the market price so that they would not lose money.
Even if ten kilograms is worth two more copper coins, three hundred kilograms can be worth dozens more copper coins.
The old lady accepted the money, and Chen Dongniang and her sisters-in-law were all delighted.
Several people came together to help carry the potatoes over. There were about 700 kilograms of potatoes. Lin Chuntao felt that it was enough to eat for a while. She said to Chen Dongniang, "Auntie, please save some for me when you dig sweet potatoes. I don't need a lot, just a sack will be enough."
Chen Dongniang agreed with a smile, "Okay, I'll save it for you when the time comes."
Wang and Chen Dongniang went together. It was their first time to visit Lin Chuntao's house. The yard was clean and tidy, and there were many things in the house, including jars, clay pots, steamers, and baskets, but they were also arranged in an orderly manner, which surprised them a little.
She laughed and said, "We're all about the same age, and the few shoes we have at home are thrown around after we wear them."
Chen Dongniang said, "That's because we adults spoiled her. Chuntao was sensible at an early age. She manages the household and has already become a little adult."
Wang nodded. She had some selfish thoughts in her heart, but Chen Dongniang and the others walked closer to Lin Chuntao, and tentatively asked, "I wonder if Chuntao is ready to propose marriage to Chunxing."
Wang asked this, which must be because she wanted to introduce Chun Xing to her nephew or something. Chen Dongniang was a little surprised. Before this, which family in the village would want to introduce Chun Tao and Chun Xing to their own nephews?
"I haven't heard Chuntao talk about this. I have to ask Chuntao."
Chen Dongniang seemed to have not said anything, and Wang Shi stopped there without saying anything extra.
When she returned home, Lin Qingqing and the others had already returned. She wanted to go to the vegetable garden, so she called Lin Qingqing to go with her. The mother and daughter could talk about any private matters.
"Qingqing, have you heard Chunxing talk about her marriage arrangements?"
Upon hearing this, Lin Qingqing looked at her own mother. She and her sisters must have talked about this with each other.
"Mom, why are you asking?"
Wang looked at her daughter's scrutinizing eyes and said, "Don't ask yet, have you ever said that?"
"Yes."
"What did you say?" Wang asked.
Lin Qingqing whispered, "Chun Xing said that Sister Chun Tao said that they would consider getting married after they turned nineteen."
Wang hissed coldly, her brows furrowed.
"At nineteen, she's already an old girl."
Lin Qingqing said, "That's what I said, but Sister Chuntao told them that marrying early means suffering early. She said that if they want to serve others, they can stay at home and serve her for a few more years, and she will support them."
Lin Chuntao did talk to her three younger sisters about getting married when they were older, but she still didn't say anything about how good it would be to get married early.
This was choreographed by Lin Duoer and her friends.
But if Lin Chuntao heard this, she would probably laugh out loud.
Wang looked at Lin Qingqing. She would soon be fifteen, and should get married at the latest by sixteen or seventeen.
Lin Chuntao didn't seem to notice it, but she couldn't refute what she said. She got married at the age of sixteen or seventeen, with a mother-in-law above her and a child below. Life would be a little better if she had a nice mother-in-law, but if she met a bad-hearted mother-in-law, she could only swallow the bitter water and endure it year after year. Who could escape?
"Have you told Chun Xing that it's hard to find a marriage partner now that you're older?"
"Yes," Lin Qingqing replied, "It's more fun to talk about this. Sister Chuntao and Chunxing said that when we were fifteen or sixteen, we could wash clothes and cook. Some boys at fifteen or sixteen can only pick bird eggs all day long. Marrying such a person would only make you suffer. It's better to wait and choose slowly, and choose someone who can take care of you and your family before marrying."
"Does Chun Xing agree with her sister?"
Lin Qingqing nodded and said, "I agree. Besides, Chun Xing only wants to make money now and doesn't want to get married at all. I think that's great. I'm the only one who can't do that. Otherwise, I would go and make money too."
Wang said, "You better give up on this idea. It's not safe to get up before dawn and walk to the county town in the dark. Besides, it's a lot of work for a girl to do business."
Lin Qingqing said: "If I can't do it alone, why not call a brother or a younger brother to come along?"
"It's a pity that I don't have any skills."
Lin Qingqing sighed.
Wang looked at Lin Qingqing in front of her, thinking carefully about what Lin Qingqing had just said, as if she, as a mother, was not as good as Lin Chuntao, as a sister.
But she had no choice. She already had a son and couldn't let her daughter wait until she was 19 to get married.
Otherwise, when the time comes for my son to get married, no one will be happy if they know there is an old girl in the family.
Lin Qingqing didn't know what her mother thought, nor did she think about getting married. She was just worried about how she could go to the county town to make money like Lin Chunxing.
If Wang had a daughter, she would have some idea in her mind. She would have to get married no matter what, so getting married later would not affect the current engagement, right?
She would try to find out what Lin Chuntao was thinking about another day, and then talk to her sister-in-law at home.
After Wang had finished picking the vegetables, Lin Qingqing belatedly asked Wang, "Mom, why are you asking about Chun Xing's marriage?"
Wang looked at her dazed daughter and slowly smiled.
"I don't know if it's my destiny to be your cousin's wife."
As soon as Wang finished speaking, Lin Qingqing's eyes widened, "Which cousin-in-law?"
"Your eldest cousin from your uncle's family, how many eldest cousins do you have?"
After Wang finished speaking, Lin Qingqing opened her mouth wide and looked at Wang with complicated eyes.
"What's that look in your eyes?"
Wang looked at her with a somewhat displeased expression.
Lin Qingqing said: "You must not tell anyone, otherwise I will not be able to face Chun Xing in the future!"
Wang's face changed slightly, and she cursed in a deep voice, "You heartless little thing, where are you going? Are your uncles and the others treating you badly? Or is it your cousin who treats you badly?"
"What does this have to do with being good or not? My cousin is so stupid and fat! How can he be worthy of Chun Xing?"
Lin Qingqing's words made Wang very unhappy. Her eldest nephew was a little slow in thinking, but he was honest and obedient. Only if he found a capable and powerful wife would the old lady feel at ease in the future.
"You silly girl, other people's families want to eat fat but they can't even get enough to eat. Besides, your eldest cousin is an honest man, but you say he's stupid behind his back? I've been nice to you for nothing, you ungrateful little bastard."
"Also, Chun Xing and the others have no parents, so how do you know what kind of husband they want? Don't talk nonsense in front of them!"
Seeing that her mother was serious, Lin Qingqing felt unhappy and pouted.
"You should not tell anyone!" She really felt so ashamed. If Chun Xing was unhappy and misunderstood her as helping her, she would never be able to clear herself even if she jumped into the river.
Wang responded unhappily and pushed her forward.
After Chen Dongniang returned home, she told Sun, "Mom, Wang Chunlan just asked me about Chunxing's marriage."
Upon hearing this, Sun paused what she was doing, raised her eyebrows slightly, and asked after a while, "And then?"
"I don't know. Tell her to ask Chuntao."
Sun smiled and said, "Is this a question for her nephew?"
Chen Dongniang said, "That should be the case. I remember that fat nephew of hers hasn't gotten married yet."
Sun sighed and said calmly, "Before, Chuntao was nineteen and no one wanted to propose marriage to her. But now it's different. Fourteen-year-old Chunxing has people interested in her."
Chen Dongniang pursed her lips. Speaking of nephews, who doesn't have a few nephews and nieces? They are all about the same age.
Chen Dongniang did not agree with her mother-in-law's words.
People can change, too. How could the Chuntao sisters be like this before? That family was filled with filth and corruption, and the sisters were skinny and spent their days working. Furthermore, that family wanted to sell them off and eat them. Their families couldn't afford such a large betrothal gift, so no one would rush to find trouble for them.
Life is going smoothly now. Not to mention Lin Chuntao and Pei Ying, even Lin Chunxing can stand on her own and go to the county town to set up a stall and do business. Those who are interested will definitely think about it.
In other words, Wang asked directly, but she might still have a lot of questions in her mind.
Sun looked at Chen Dongniang who didn't respond and said bluntly, "No hope."
"If you don't believe me, just wait and see. No matter who asks Chun Tao, there will be no hope."
Chen Dongniang looked at the old lady's confident look and raised her eyebrows slightly, "If you don't like one, there's always another one."
Sun looked at Chen Dongniang and smiled, thinking to herself that she was just as moved as Wang. But she didn't say it out loud, considering her daughter-in-law's reputation.
"This isn't a matter of liking or not. You've been with Chuntao for so many days, and you still can't figure out what she's thinking?"
Chen Dongniang was a little confused. Sun said, "That Zhang Bao before, Chuntao asked Chunxing to pretend to be sick. This is no small matter. If she wanted her sisters to get married early, she would not have come up with such an idea. Since she came up with such an idea, it means that she would rather support these sisters than let them get married easily."
Chen Dongniang hissed coldly, "She'll have to get married sooner or later. And if we keep supporting her forever, won't Xiao Pei have any objections?"
Sun frowned slightly and said bluntly, "What's blinding you today?"
"Chun Tao didn't say she wanted to keep her forever. Didn't she send Chun Xing to do business? She's making money herself, so who needs to keep her? Then she'll be the one relying on her from now on!"
Chen Dongniang suddenly realized and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Chun Tao... is she thinking so far ahead?"
Sun shook her head slightly. She didn't know if she was thinking too far ahead, but the facts were before her. Whether they lived together, separated, or something else in the future was a matter for them sisters and had nothing to do with outsiders.
Lin Chunhe was in a particularly good mood as she looked at the six sacks of potatoes.
"Sister, do you want to pour out these potatoes?"
Lin Chuntao replied, "Let's not dump it yet. Just put it on the shelf. We'll try to find money by the end of this month to find someone to build a house. Once the house is built, all the stuff will have to be moved over, and we'll have to pick it up again after we dump it out."
After Lin Chuntao said this long sentence, she heard that the house would be built before the end of the month.
"So soon? How long will it take to build the house?"
"It's not fast, is it? I didn't have enough money before, otherwise I would have wanted to build it a long time ago. As for how long it will take, that depends on the craftsmen."
Lin Chunhe was looking forward to it.
The two sisters cleaned up the house at home. They steamed the rice and washed and cut the vegetables ready when they expected Lin Chunxing and the others to come back soon. They could cook and eat as soon as they got home.
Lin Chuntao was sprinkling water on the rice. Lin Chunhe, who was peeling potatoes beside her, suddenly asked, "Sister, can you make a big bed for us when the time comes?"
Lin Chuntao raised her eyebrows slightly and asked, "How big do you want it to be?"
Lin Chunhe stood up and opened her arms. "It's a little wider than mine."
Lin Chuntao smiled, thinking she wanted a certain size.
"Don't worry, it's definitely wider than this."
Lin Chunhe felt her eyes light up, and asked unsurely, "Really?"
Lin Chuntao said, "It must be true."
"When we build the house, we'll leave the sleeping area a little more spacious so the bed can be bigger, and we can also build a wardrobe for clothes."
Lin Chunhe was so excited when she heard this that she rushed over and hugged her, saying coquettishly, "Sister, you are so kind!"
Lin Chuntao shivered and felt uncomfortable all over.
"Hiss~ I can't stand it. I just painted a pie for you and you said I was fine. It seems that I haven't been fine these days?"
"No, no, I'm just too happy. I want to sleep by myself. Duo'er is too clingy. She always squeezes against me when she sleeps. It's so hot!"
Lin Chuntao understood what she said and smiled helplessly, "I understand. You'll live in your own room from now on. Go peel potatoes."
After getting that, she ran back to continue peeling potatoes, and Lin Chuntao also scooped the rice in the winnowing basket back into the steamer.
Lin Chunhe, whose reaction arc was a little slow, raised her head slowly after a while and asked Lin Chuntao: "Sister, what do you mean by drawing a pie in the sky?"
Lin Chuntao almost burst out laughing, but looking at her silly sister, she explained: "It means telling you a lot of things you really want, but I haven't done anything yet. This is called empty promises."
Lin Chunhe was stunned. "Ah? Sister, are you lying to me?"
Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "No, I do want to do it, and I can make it happen for you soon."
Lin Chunhe patted his chest and breathed a sigh of relief: "Oh, that's good."
Lin Chuntao put all the rice back into the steamer and prepared to take the dustpan over there. As she walked, she asked Lin Chunhe, "Do you want to know how to tell whether the pie the other person drew is real or fake?"
Lin Chunhe pondered for a long time before nodding. Lin Chuntao smiled curiously and asked, "What are you thinking about?"
Lin Chunhe said, "I was thinking about it before. My aunt and grandmother always said that we should cut grass and feed the pigs, and then we can eat the meat after we kill the pigs. Is that just empty talk?"
Lin Chuntao's eyes darkened slightly, and then she nodded.
"Um."
“So when you listen to someone talking about what they want, you should carefully distinguish what they are saying at the moment in combination with how they usually act.”
Lin Chunhe nodded solemnly, "Sister, I understand."
Lin Chuntao touched her head and smiled, "If someone paints a rosy picture for you and you can't tell the difference, you can come and tell me and I'll show you."
"Okay, I'll remember that."
Not long after they finished preparing the dishes, Lin Chunxing and the others came back.
Lin Duoer was the first to rush into the yard, her little face flushed red. Lin Chuntao had already prepared honey water for them in advance.
"There's honey water in the room. One bowl for each person. Come in and drink."
As soon as Lin Chuntao finished speaking, Lin Duoer came into the house with a smile. Lin Chunxing followed in and seemed to be in a good mood. Lin Chuntao smiled and asked, "How is it?"
Lin Chunxing smiled and said, "They're all sold out. There aren't enough eggs to go around. Lots of kids are coming to buy them." As she spoke, Lin Chuntao went over and took down her backpack. After putting it down, Lin Chunxing said, "Let's make some bamboo sticks. The kids can just hold the eggs in their hands after they buy them, because they don't have anything to put them in and want to take them away."
"Well, I'll get some bamboo later. Come inside and drink some water."
Lin Chunxing entered the house, and Pei Ying put down the backpack and handed something to her.
Lin Chuntao took it and saw that it was a wooden box. She raised her eyebrows slightly and asked, "What is it?"
"Facial cream and lip balm, you can try them when you have time."
Pei Ying's voice was very low. Lin Chuntao pursed her lips and asked, "Why did you think of buying this for me?"
When she asked this, Pei Ying looked at her and blushed from cheeks to earlobes.
In Lin Chuntao's eyes, facial cream and lip balm are just daily necessities. She doesn't have the energy to put on makeup because she works every day. It's summer, the air humidity is high, and her skin is fine, so she doesn't think about using facial cream.
But Pei Ying would blush even if she was given lip balm, so her mind must be full of dirty trash.
She smiled and took it into the house. As soon as she entered the house, Pei Ying washed his hands and followed her in.
The first thing this person did when he got home every day was to change his clothes. Although the two of them lived together, they had not yet reached the stage where they would change clothes face to face. Lin Chuntao quickly put down her things and said, "I'm going to cook. You can change and wash after dinner."
Pei Ying hummed in a depressed tone, and Lin Chuntao had already left.
The lunch dishes were relatively simple. There was some chicken left from last night, so Lin Chuntao heated it up and made a dish of twice-cooked pork, a dish of scrambled eggs with leeks, and a dish of shredded potatoes with green peppers.
Lin Duoer and Lin Chunxing drank some water and rested for a while, and finally noticed something different in the room.
"Oh sister, you bought so many potatoes!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com