Chapter 162 One pound of refined rice can be exchanged for three pounds of wheat bran
She was silent for a moment, then asked, "Xiao Ran, do you know whose property that pawnshop is?"
"We know! It's Master Qian from Ping'an County! Everyone in the village knows about it."
The villagers went to the county government to inquire, but the county magistrate said there was insufficient evidence and treated it as an accident, so the matter was dropped.
Master Qian?
Jiang Ling frowned slightly.
She vaguely remembered the name; she seemed to have heard Madam Song mention it occasionally. She said he was the richest man in Ping'an County, with immense wealth and businesses all over the county. He was indeed a very influential person.
If the deaths of Zhao Shiying's parents were indeed related to Qian Yuanwai, then this grudge... would probably not be so easy to avenge.
Zhao Shiying has escaped back to the village severely injured this time. His path to revenge will likely be extremely difficult, and he may have even alerted the enemy.
After lunch, Jiang Ling and Xiao Ran packed up, took the food and the prepared cloth, and went to Bailong Temple.
As the weather grew colder, Jiang Ling specially prepared twenty bolts of thick cotton cloth, which she had just bought from a cloth factory, for the children in the temple.
She was still thinking about Xiaoyi, worried that he wouldn't have enough winter clothes, so she packed two new cotton-padded coats and a thick quilt for him separately.
This was the time when the village women went up the mountain to help.
There were too many things for Jiang Ling and Xiao Ran to carry, so they called on Xiao Ran's mother, Aunt Qian, and Aunt Zhou to help them.
Each person carried five bolts of cloth, while Xiao Ran carried two bags of grain. The group walked along the mountain path toward the temple.
Aunt Qian reached out and touched the fabric, her eyes full of admiration. "This fabric is wonderful! The stitches are so fine you can't see them, and it feels so soft to the touch. It's perfect for making cotton-padded coats in winter!"
Aunt Zhou nodded in agreement: "This cloth sells even better than the cloth shops in the county town. You have really a wide network of connections."
Xiao Ran's mother also praised her, saying, "Miss Jiang is kind-hearted; she always thinks of the children in the temple and the disaster victims."
Jiang Ling paused in her tracks as she listened.
The wind grew colder and colder, making her cheeks sting. She thought of the winter clothes worn by the villagers.
Most of them were old cotton wadding with several patches, stuffed with cattail fluff, which did not keep out the cold at all.
There was no cotton in this dynasty, and weaving was all done by hand, which was slow and rough. In winter, poor people had to stay in bed and dared not go out.
Since they've already considered the disaster victims, it's impossible that they wouldn't prioritize the people around them.
Jiang Ling thought for a moment, then suppressed the thought and secretly made plans.
The higher we went up the mountain, the colder the wind became. By the time we reached the entrance of Bailong Temple, the temperature was several degrees lower than at the foot of the mountain.
Some elderly and frail refugees were unable to move elsewhere and could only huddle together against the walls to keep warm. One old man was barefoot, his toes turning purple from the cold.
Jiang Ling saw this and felt a pang of sadness in her heart.
Upon arriving at the temple, she handed over the grain and cloth to Master Chenji.
Master Chenji accepted the cloth, clasped his hands together, and said, “This cloth is thick, so the children won’t have to suffer from the cold this winter. The hundred taels that Benefactor Jiang donated last time have all been exchanged for coarse rice and mixed grains, enough for the disaster victims to eat for a while. This old monk thanks Benefactor Jiang on behalf of the disaster victims and the children.”
Jiang Ling smiled. "You're too kind, Master. I'd like to visit Xiao Yi while I'm at it. Would that be convenient?"
Master Chenji's smile faltered, a hint of hesitation flashing in his eyes. He then said to the young novice beside him, "Take Benefactor Jiang and Benefactor Xiaoran to the backyard."
Xiao Ran followed behind silently. He used to think Xiao Yi was clumsy when they were in the shop, but after not seeing him for so long, he actually missed him a little.
The smell of burning firewood wafted from the woodshed in the backyard.
As soon as Jiang Ling turned the corner, she saw a thirteen or fourteen-year-old novice monk chopping wood with an axe, and a thin figure squatting next to him, which was Xiao Yi.
He was wearing a faded monk's robe, with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, revealing his thin arms, as he neatly stacked the chopped firewood piece by piece.
His small body couldn't carry too many at once, so he could only move them little by little back and forth.
Jiang Ling looked at him carefully. His complexion seemed better than before, but he seemed to have lost some weight. His monk's robe hung loosely on his body, clinging to his back in the wind.
As soon as Xiao Yi looked up and saw Jiang Ling, he immediately dropped the firewood he was holding and ran over: "Sister!"
Jiang Ling knelt down and hugged him, tenderly wiping the dust off his face: "Xiao Yi, your sister and brother Xiao Ran have come to see you. Are you settling in well at the temple?"
Xiao Yi clutched the hem of her clothes, buried her head in her chest and rubbed against her. After a while, she finally looked up and forced a smile.
"Don't worry, sister. Everyone at the temple is very kind to me, and I've made a lot of friends! I can already help with the work."
Hearing him say that, Jiang Ling felt a little relieved and pointed out the clothes and quilts she had brought to him: "I brought you winter clothes and thick quilts, as well as some candy and biscuits."
Xiao Ran stepped forward, shoved the bag into Xiao Yi's arms, and said stubbornly, "It's so heavy, it's all for you, take it."
Xiao Yi took it, hugged it tightly, and her eyes curved into crescent moons.
Xiao Yi spoke to the young novice monk who was chopping wood, and after receiving permission, he took Jiang Ling and Xiao Ran to their lodgings.
The room was the same one as before. Jiang Ling helped him lay out the new quilt and neatly fold his clothes.
Just then, several children of similar age to Xiaoyi quietly gathered around the door, peering inside curiously.
Jiang Ling smiled and waved: "You're all Xiao Yi's friends, right? Come on, I have some candy here, I'll share it with you."
Xiao Yi jumped off the bed and angrily blocked her way: "Sister, they aren't!"
Jiang Ling was taken aback, and then one of the slightly older boys spoke up:
"You still say you weren't abandoned? We're here because our parents died. Your sister is alive, but she refuses to take care of you!"
Xiao Yi immediately retorted loudly, "You're talking nonsense! My sister didn't abandon me! She just... she just doesn't come to see me often!"
"Liar! You've been here for so long, and your sister has only come to see you once. Who knows when she'll come next time!" another child chimed in.
Another child joined in, making a face: "Maybe they won't come back! You big talker! Hehehe!"
These words struck Jiang Lingxin like pebbles.
Seeing this, Xiao Ran frowned and walked over, sternly addressing the child at the door: "What are you looking at? Everyone disperse! If you keep talking nonsense here, I'll tell Master!"
The children were frightened by his fierce appearance and ran away quickly.
Jiang Ling gave Xiao Yi a few more instructions before leaving with Xiao Ran, her heart filled with mixed emotions.
As she was leaving, Xiaoyi tugged at her sleeve, looked up at her, and asked, "Sister... will you come to see me again next time?"
A fire was being lit to cook porridge in the open space in the front yard, and the aroma of the porridge wafted out.
Xiao Ran saw his mother stirring porridge by the stove, so he went over to help, rolled up his sleeves, and helped add firewood.
Jiang Ling stood under the tree, looking listless.
Master Chenji slowly walked to her side. “Benefactor Jiang, there is something I must let you know. Every time you send me fine rice, I have the novice monk take it to the market and exchange it for wheat bran. One pound of fine rice can be exchanged for three pounds of wheat bran.”
Jiang Ling nodded: "Now that I've brought it over, Master can decide how to handle it."
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