Chapter 71
Thinking that he might be kicked out of the house, Pei Liu backed off.
"Yes, I was sent to live in the countryside for a while. People in the village told me about it." Pei Liu hesitated a bit. "In the village, I had to figure everything out on my own, but I learned a lot."
Gu Ran nodded.
So that's why Pei Liuniang said that in order to avenge her parents, she had practiced skinning and bone removal, which she learned when she was in the countryside. This also explains why Pei Liuniang seems to be good at everything.
It’s because he has become self-reliant at such a young age!
Gu Ran imagined Pei Liuniang's tragic experience as a child without the love of her father and mother. He looked at her lovingly and reached out to pat her head gently to comfort her.
Pei Liu reached out and touched the back of his head, smiling lightly.
Gu Ran went to the Donglin Township ferry that day and took a boat to the county town.
Pei Liu stayed in the small house to look after the house.
Firstly, the kitten needed someone to take care of it, and secondly, Gu Ran was more familiar with buying and selling mountain products than she was.
Pei Liu had no way to refute and could only accept Gu Ran's arrangement.
This time, Gu Ran brought some mountain products that he planned to exchange for money. In fact, there were also many fresh mushrooms and wild vegetables, but what he sold at the Hefeng Fur Shop were mainly leather.
She stored up the mushrooms, wild vegetables, and other prey she found in the traps when she first entered the mountains as her own food reserves.
At this time, thinking that Manager Zheng liked to eat bamboo rats, she took out one without hesitation and planned to sell it to him.
"Oh, it's Gu Er Niang!"
Unexpectedly, as soon as Gu Ran entered the fur shop, he met his acquaintance Xu Sanlang.
"Xu Sanlang, why are you here?"
Xu Sanlang said with high spirits, "Well, of course I'm buying some goods!" Then his eyes fell on the bamboo basket behind Gu Ran, "What mountain products did you bring to sell?"
"Just usually... including some skins accumulated last year and..." When Gu Ran took out more than ten skins and the bamboo rat that had just died, Xu Sanlang's eyes lit up: "Is this a bamboo rat?"
"That's right. I sell bamboo rat fur and rabbit fur. This bamboo rat..."
“Are you selling it too?”
"certainly."
"Then sell it to me!" Xu Sanlang stretched out his hand to grab the bamboo rat, but the quick-eyed and quick-handed shopkeeper Zheng snatched it away. "Hey, Mr. Xu San, don't try to steal it from me. All the bamboo rats that Gu Erniang sells in the fur shop are for me."
"Tsk!" Xu San glanced at Shopkeeper Zheng, then looked at the leather that Gu Erniang had brought out, touching each piece. "Hey, this leather is pretty good. Did you tan it, Gu Erniang?"
"Why."
"You can?"
Gu Ran immediately remembered the fake daughter of a marquisate that she had never created during her exile, and she almost hit her forehead with her hands.
By the way, Xu San is someone who knows the inside story.
"Of course I won't be able to do it at first, but I can always learn!"
"Who did you learn this from?"
"Pei Liuniang, do you remember?" Fortunately, Pei Liuniang now lives in her own small house and can explain it clearly. "She lived with me, she taught me."
As a fellow Zhengzhou native, Xu Sanlang was well aware of Pei Liuniang's background and immediately gasped, "Why are you hanging out with her?"
"Her village is quite close to where I live, and we're both single, so it's no surprise we're hanging out together," Gu Ran explained. "Mrs. Pei Liu is incredibly capable."
"You are quite capable." Xu Sanlang couldn't help but compliment Gu Erniang when he thought of the time when she broke the thief's leg.
"You're welcome. Thank you for your consideration, Xu San."
"Hey, Gu Er Niang, do you know Xu San?" Shopkeeper Zheng, who was counting the leather and calculating money for Gu Er Niang, was multitasking and could tell from their tone that they knew.
It turns out that Xu San already knew Gu Er Niang?
"Yes, we knew each other before. It must have been before Manager Zheng and Gu Erniang started their business."
“No wonder!”
When Manager Zheng was calculating the price of leather for Gu Ran, Xu San didn't leave. He just sat aside, waving a fan in his hand. Although Gu Ran was surprised, he glanced at him and said nothing.
He said before that he was here to collect the goods, right?
So you came all the way here to do business with the Hefeng Fur Shop?
The dozen or so skins together were sold for about six taels, and the bamboo rat was also sold for one tael, for a total of seven taels.
When Gu Ran was about to leave with the silver, Xu San stood up with a smile and said, "Second Aunt Gu, should we go to a teahouse for tea or a restaurant for dinner?"
So he was waiting for her? Thinking of the big deal she had made with Xu Sanlang last year, Gu Ran's heart moved. Could it be that Xu Sanlang still needed her?
At this time, Shopkeeper Zheng also came out from behind the counter and said, "Xu San, don't just pick up the mountain products and sell them to you. Feng Xing and I also want some!"
"I am the biggest customer of you and Fengxing now. Why should we distinguish between you and me?" Xu San didn't listen.
"Ah!"
Seeing Gu Ran turn around and look at him with a smile before leaving with Xu San, Manager Zheng sighed in his heart.
Even if Xu San is the biggest customer of Hefenghang, there is a huge difference between reselling mountain product leathers to him from Hefenghang and Gu Erniang selling mountain product leathers to him directly.
How come Gu Er Niang and Xu San are old acquaintances?
I wonder how much money he has to rob for nothing!
Xu San asked Gu Ran again whether she wanted to have tea or a meal. It was almost noon, so Gu Ran of course said she wanted to have a meal. She hadn't been to Zuiyue Tower or other restaurants for a long time and missed it very much.
He went to Zuiyue Tower and booked a private room. After ordering the dishes with ease, he exchanged greetings with Xu San and learned that the powerful official in Zhengzhou who had bullied the Zhu family had fallen.
After the new emperor ascended the throne, he investigated and punished a group of corrupt officials and court parasites. The powerful eunuchs that Xu San had offended were soon found out and became the first batch of criminals to be liquidated after the new emperor took office.
With the fall of the powerful eunuch, the crimes of the Zhengzhou clan members were naturally exposed and they were convicted of debauchery. All their evil deeds of oppressing the people and forcing confessions were uncovered. Naturally, the Xu family also reported Xu San's affairs to the local authorities.
As a result, Xu San's crimes were exonerated and cleared up. Now he has received an amnesty order and is no longer a criminal. He can return to his hometown in Zhengzhou at any time.
"But, I have just started to make some progress here. I also helped my family's business provide a large number of goods from the south and made a lot of money. How can I give up so easily?" Xu San smiled.
Having tasted the sweetness, Mr. Xu naturally supported his youngest son to make a name for himself in the south.
Since he was not a criminal and was no longer constrained by the difficulties he had faced before, Xu San received support from his father and naturally worked very hard. He was even given an extra merchant ship funded by his family.
Therefore, in order to collect more good goods to be shipped to Zhengzhou and the capital, Xu Sanzhang directly cooperated with local fur shops and other merchants in Jianzhou and even other counties to purchase a large amount of local specialties and supplies.
"So, you want to find me?" To purchase mountain products directly?
The small amount of leather she tanned alone is far from enough to meet Xu San's purchase volume, right?
Xu San laughed. "You're an old acquaintance of mine selling mountain products in Yongchang County, and you've done business with us before. Naturally, I'll place an order with you early on."
Came here for the red mushrooms.
"You mean, Russula?"
Xu San nodded.
"Sell me all this year's red mushrooms. I'll give you a deposit in advance. How about that?"
Of course, Gu Ran was immediately moved and greeted him with a smile: "No problem, no problem. Since you are going to take all the red mushrooms I picked, I will naturally sell them all to you."
The last time I sold it, I got fifty taels of silver.
In other words, she can earn fifty taels by selling red mushrooms this year.
Gu Ran didn't even eat anymore. He put down his chopsticks and rubbed his hands.
"Actually, if I hadn't met you at Hefenghang today, I was planning to go to that village to discuss this with you." Xu San said, waving his hand and having the servants following him produce a deed. "Take a look, the deposit is the same as last time, ten taels upfront. After we receive the goods, the price will be calculated based on the number of red mushrooms and their quality. How about that?"
"Okay, no problem." Gu Ran looked at the contract Xu San gave him, nodded, and signed three copies very readily. Then he accepted the ingot of ten taels of silver from Xu San. "But how should I give it to you?"
"On the first and fifteenth day of the lunar month, someone comes to Yongchang County to collect goods. At the dock..." Xu San suddenly remembered, "Hey, I came here today, but I didn't see you setting up your stall. However, there is still a stall selling your roasted grass jelly."
"That's my business partner. His family sells the goods, and I supply them."
"Why don't you do it yourself?"
"My home is too far from the county town now. It's tiring and troublesome to come here every day to set up a stall."
"Hey, if you save enough money, you can buy a house in the city, right?" Xu San said, glancing at the open window of the box and fanning himself. "Here in Jianzhou, there are a lot of good things, and the environment seems pretty good now, but the weather..." Xu San shook his head. "It's too windy, rainy, and hot. We've been here for a year, and if we want to stay cool, we have to pay double the price for ice. Ice cubes are selling for exorbitant prices."
Gu Ran chuckled and said nothing.
"By the way, Gu Erniang, you caught a lot of bamboo rats!"
"I found a place with bamboos growing. I could catch one or two here and there, and as I accumulated them, I had a lot."
"Can you give me two live ones next time?"
"Master Xu, isn't it easy for you to eat them? Don't you go to all the fur shops in the county to buy them? Can't you just spend some money to buy a few?"
"If I can buy it anytime, can I ask you?" Xu San said, "This place has a lot of seafood. I used to eat mostly wild delicacies. If I want to change my taste, I have to go to more places."
"Why?"
"You're in this line of work, don't you know?"
Gu Ran really didn't know.
"Have you heard of the miasma forest?"
After Xu San's guidance, Gu Ran finally understood.
"Many places here are said to have miasma and other such things that can easily cause one's death. Therefore, many hunters and mountain dwellers dare not go into the deep mountains and old forests. The mountain food that can be found there is usually only small things. It's not easy to find roe deer or mountain deer!" Xu San said regretfully, "I collect large animal skins, but they are mostly sold at the fur shops in the north of Jianzhou. The further south you go, the less there are."
Because the further south you go, the more undeveloped wild jungle there is, and the fewer hunters dare to enter the mountains, so naturally there will be only small-scale conflicts.
But the leather from the south is indeed transported back to the north and sold, and is one of the commodities that can be sold at a high price.
Because it is much colder in the north, many wealthy families have a high demand for leather.
"Mrs. Gu, you usually only hunt bamboo rats and rabbits, nothing else?"
Gu Ran's heart skipped a beat. Of course not.
There was still an uneaten mountain deer in her space.
Last year, the only big animals she caught by digging traps were two mountain deer and a wild boar. It can be said that if she were to be a hunter, she would only be barely qualified!
Because she had also asked Manager Zheng about the price of bulk goods. If it was just leather, wild boar skin was cheap, so a large piece would only cost one to two taels. Mountain deer was expensive, and depending on the quality, one piece could be sold for four or five taels.
First, she could actually generate nine to twelve taels of silver last year just from the income from big beasts. For ordinary people, this was a huge income.
What's more, there are deer antlers and antlers that can be sold to pharmacies, as well as the meat of the three major beasts, which can also be exchanged for a lot of money.
However, Gu Ran ate a wild boar and a mountain deer, and gave the skins to himself and Pei Liuniang to make fur coats. As for the remaining antlers and antlers, he kept them for himself because he did not dare to sell them to Hefenghang for large animals, nor did he dare to send them to the pharmacy to exchange for silver.
Although hunters had to make a living in the mountains and forests with their heads on their shoulders, they were considered wealthy families in the Great Sheng Dynasty.
Of course, you have to be as capable as her.
"Xu San, what do you mean?"
"If you have a big beast, you can sell it to me directly!" Xu San licked his lips and said, "My father will come to Jianzhou in person next month. I have seafood, and I plan to get some fresh and delicious mountain delicacies for him to try."
"So what does your father like to eat?"
"Deer meat is good, and..." Xu San paused, "Hey, I say, can you catch it? Anyway, whether it's a deer or a badger, as long as you can get one for me, that'll be great."
"Okay? I'll keep an eye out for you, if there's anything?"
"It would be best if you could come to the dock on the 15th. My dad will be arriving around the 18th of next month, according to the schedule," Xu San said. "If there are any other rare local mountain products, you can also find them for me. My dad also likes rare foods."
"no problem."
After Gu Ran and Xu San made their appointment, they finished their lunch. After going downstairs to say goodbye to Xu San, Gu Ran returned to the private room. The waiter who was clearing the dishes inside saw her and was surprised: "Hey, my lady, you are leaving after eating and drinking well, right?"
"We would like to order a few more dishes, is that okay?" Gu Ran smiled.
It's a rare opportunity to come to the county town, so I must go shopping.
First, pack up a few of your favorite dishes at Zuiyuelou, and then buy them from restaurants one by one.
There are also cakes, dried fruits, snacks, candies, seasonal vegetables and fruits, etc., all of which should be bought. It is best to fill up space number eight.
Anyway, I made some money today and got Xu San's deposit, which is enough for me to spend.
As Gu Ran was shopping along the way, he bought a lot of seafood at the dock. He also did not forget to buy three more cat mouths for the family and some more shrimps and fish.
I also bought some goat milk for him.
It is said that giving kittens a little goat milk can strengthen their physique, so let's prepare a little more for the three little ones.
Gu Ran returned with a full load. After returning, he stored the things he bought in the bamboo basket into the warehouse one by one. Seeing that the small warehouse was full, Gu Ran felt at ease.
"I also used a food box to buy some meat dishes prepared at a restaurant in the county town. We can just cook dinner tonight."
As Gu Ran spoke, he picked up the food boxes at the bottom of the bamboo basket and opened them to show Pei Liuniang: "They are delicious, right?"
Pei Liu took a look and nodded.
So, after cooking the rice in the kitchen, Gu Ran warmed up the dishes while telling Pei Liuniang about his encounter with Xu San in the county town, and also about his plan to buy the big beast she caught in the mountains.
"So, I think I need to make a couple of trips to the mountains in the next few days. It would be great if I could catch the big beast he wants. If not, I can always find other mountain products to sell to him."
Gu Ran didn't tell her that Xu San still wanted to buy red mushrooms from her.
It's not the right time yet, so it's useless to tell Pei Liuniang earlier.
"How much silver can a big beast be sold for?" Pei Liu asked as he added firewood to the stove.
"If it's around a hundred pounds, I'm afraid it could be worth twenty or thirty taels of silver."
Pei Liu remained silent for a while before he asked sullenly, "Are you planning to go to the miasma forest alone, too?"
Gu Ran didn't notice Pei Liuniang's expression and nodded. "I have to go into the mountains to take a look anyway. You just stay at home and help dry the grass jelly, feed Daju's three grandchildren, and the donkey."
"Hmm!" Pei Liu responded sullenly again.
This time, Gu Ran noticed that Pei Liuniang was in a low mood and quickly comforted her: "Liu Niang, don't be upset. The chores around the house are also very important. When I lived alone before, I had to ask Sister-in-law Lin to come and look after the house before going into the woods. You are already a great help now."
"Oh." Pei Liu regained some of his spirits. "Then when Xiaohua and the others can find food independently, will you really take me into the miasma forest?"
"must."
With Pei Liuniang's help, she could sell animal skins openly in the future, or even sell a whole animal.
So of course I'll take her along.
With Gu Ran's promise, Pei Liuniang's mood finally improved. After dinner, Gu Ran took out the lychees he bought in the city today and cooked them.
That’s right, fresh lychees are now available.
There were also loquats, peaches, and so on, which some people had already seen taking to the market to sell. Gu Ran bought some, put some in his space, and took some back to the warehouse to eat slowly.
Let’s eat lychees first today.
I hadn't come to Xiaxi Village at this time last year. Even after I settled down, I saw lychees but didn't buy any.
At that time, my pockets were very empty, and it was the time to open up new land, so I was not willing to spend money on food and drink like I do today.
After he and Pei Liu finished peeling the lychees, Gu Ran took out the six taels of silver he had earned from selling the skins today, and gave three taels to Pei Liuniang.
Pei Liuniang looked at the three taels of silver, hesitated for a moment, and then put it away.
In fact, Pei Liu is not short of money.
He had been secretly saving money long before he planned to escape from the Assassin's Order.
Especially later on, he often disguised himself as a maid and cooperated with other assassins to sneak into the target's house to scout the place. He also looted a lot of money and saved the rewards for completing the task in order to plan for his future life after escaping.
The mission with the Pei family was his last attempt to escape, so he naturally hid all his belongings in advance and carried some silver bills that were easy to hide. He was just waiting to kill the target assassin and leave the place. After the storm had passed, he would come back and dig out the gold and silver he had hidden.
Man proposes, God disposes. I didn't expect to be arrested as Pei Liuniang.
At that time, he could actually deny it on the spot.
But he was caught wearing a maid's clothes, and was witnessed killing someone with a weapon in his hand. In that situation, there was no more reasonable explanation than admitting that he was Pei Liuniang, so he silently admitted it and told Pei Liuniang's experience to save his life.
Now the hidden money could no longer be retrieved, but the banknotes sewn into her inner clothes were not taken away by the officers and soldiers. Moreover, out of sympathy for Pei Liuniang's situation, on the day she was exiled, some kind-hearted ladies gave her bags filled with clothes, boots, etc. to help her feel at ease in her exile.
This is also why he had extra needles, thread and fabric when he made cotton shoes for Gu Ran.
After arriving at Qinghuai Village, he took the opportunity to take the silver notes to the county town to exchange them for silver. That was how he got the twenty taels of silver he gave to Gu Ran.
However, although he regarded Gu Ran as an accomplice, he did not know her in detail, so Pei Liu naturally would not tell her directly.
He is Pei Liuniang now, so he should just be a good Pei Liuniang first.
Just when Gu Ran was thinking about choosing a day to go into the mountains again, Village Chief Wu came to him.
It has been a year since Gu Ran was exiled to Xiaxi Village.
Village chief Wu came to remind Gu Ran that the ten acres of wasteland had to be developed.
After the exiled criminals settled down, they had to reclaim ten acres of wasteland within two years, which had to be registered in the government office in the future.
If Village Chief Wu hadn't told him, Gu Ran wouldn't have realized that he had been in Xiaxi Village for a year.
“Time flies by!”
"That's right." Village Chief Wu was very satisfied with the new family that had come to his village. "Also, I mentioned your windmill to the county magistrate earlier, but it's too expensive. Also, I'm afraid it'll only be effective temporarily and won't be widely adopted in every village with a miasma forest. So, I'll have to give up on your good performance!"
"Let's just forget it. I'm very grateful that you, Village Chief, can think of me like this." Gu Ran smiled.
"Also, Pei Liuniang..." Village Chief Wu turned to look at Pei Liuniang, "You arrived in Qinghuai Village around the same time as Gu Erniang, right? Your household registration is in Qinghuai Village, so you have to go back to Qinghuai Village to reclaim those ten acres of wasteland."
"Can I find someone to help me open it?" Gu Ran asked.
"Of course." Village Chief Wu paused and thought, "If you have money, you can go to the Donglin Township head and rent a set of horse harnesses for this wasteland."
"Harness?"
"Hey, in our village, we use horse plows to open up wasteland. We harness horses to special farming tools and can open up three acres of land a day. In three or four days, the land will be ready."
"Really?" Gu Ran was surprised. "Then why isn't there one in Xiaxi Village?"
"Xiaxi Village is such a small village, the government naturally won't allocate a house specifically for us. If we want to use it, we have to rent it from the head of the Donglin Township."
“Is it expensive?”
"One hundred coins a day."
Gu Ran was dumbfounded.
“So expensive?”
"That's a horse, a plow horse allocated by the imperial court to every government office. Moreover, it can help you cultivate at least three mu of land a day, saving you almost half a month's work. It's a great deal." Village Chief Wu emphasized the key points to them. "This is the price of renting the plow horse and the harness. If you don't know how to ride, hiring someone else to ride will cost an additional fifty cents."
"Ha!" These officials really know how to make a living.
The original owner, it seems, doesn’t know how to ride a horse?
In fact, she doesn't know how to do it.
In the first life, there was no need to ride a horse. In the second life, since you can fly, there is no need to ride a horse either.
Gu Ran scratched his head helplessly, "I can't ride a horse."
"I can." Pei Liu said.
Gu Ran and Village Chief Wu both looked at her.
"You can? That's great, we can save a lot of money." Gu Ran said happily.
"You'd better register with the Donglin Township head as soon as possible. The number of horses and harnesses allocated to Donglin Township is limited. If there are many people renting them, you may have to wait for some time even after registering and paying the deposit." Village head Wu reminded.
"Okay, let's go sometime."
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