Chapter 65
As night fell, Xun Yi was still in the furnace room.
If someone familiar with the layout of his furnace room came here, they would immediately notice that the room was much emptier.
The table, which had been displaying various ironware items, was now completely empty; Xun Yi had put them all into a wooden basket.
The first wooden basket was piled high, but he didn't stop there; he continued to take things from the ones hanging on the wall.
Those unaware of the situation might think he was moving, but in reality, he was preparing goods to sell at the market the next day.
As the pillar of his family, Xun Yi knew how to make a living.
Despite the fact that he seems to spend all his time at the blacksmith's forge, before his skills became famous, he would often take a bunch of ironware to the market to set up a stall.
Back then, he was so poor that he would walk dozens of miles to a market, just in the hope of selling a piece of ironware there.
It's no exaggeration to say that he knows exactly which day and place the market is held every month in the entire Fangyuan County.
Just as he dared not forget those days of poverty and hardship, he also dared not forget these dates.
Even though he has become a well-known blacksmith, and most people come to his shop to buy things, he still occasionally goes to the market whenever he has free time.
There are many things to prepare for getting married and exchanging betrothal gifts.
Since there were no elders to consult with at the moment, he compared the betrothal gifts to the ones Wu Zheng had given Xun Ai.
He made a shopping list in his mind, went to the county a few days ago to ask about the prices, and when he came back and did the math, he found that the money he had was enough for the wedding, but most of his savings would be spent.
Looking around, he saw that the shop was piled with finished ironware. Selling one piece would give him more cash, so he had been going to the market more often lately.
On this day, the market was held at the entrance of Wutou Village.
This is a three-way intersection that connects four or five surrounding villages. Every time the market is held, a large number of people come here.
Xun Yi had calculated the time early in the morning, and when he arrived at the market with two baskets of ironware in a wheelbarrow, there were hardly any people there yet.
He found a mediocre spot, spread a tattered straw mat on the ground, and took some small pieces of ironware out of the basket and placed them on it.
To make money, you have to set up your stall early; to buy good goods, you also have to leave early.
Almost as soon as he set up his stall, the surrounding open space was occupied by others.
After a short while, more and more people started buying goods at the market.
Xun Yi's surname, physique, appearance, and skills are all easily identifiable.
Those who have met him will never forget him.
When there are more people, many will greet him with a smile as they pass by his stall.
Although Xun Yi was taciturn, he would nod in response when others greeted him.
Half an hour later, a large number of people had already passed by his stall.
The vendors around him selling eggs, needles and thread, hemp shoes, pork, and all sorts of other things had made a few sales, but few people stopped at Xun Yi's stall.
Ironware is expensive, but once purchased, it can be used for a long time.
Therefore, business is not as brisk as with other goods.
Xun Yi wasn't in a hurry; he simply squatted down and arranged the goods on the straw mat more neatly.
"oh?"
"Isn't this blacksmith Xun?"
Sensing a loud male voice coming from diagonally in front of him, Xun Yi looked up.
This was a familiar face; Xun Yi remembered that he had bought many goods from his blacksmith shop.
He stood up and nodded in return.
The man cupped his hands in greeting and said, "Congratulations! I heard you're getting married soon?"
"What?"
Having not uttered a word all morning, Xun Yi's voice was somewhat hoarse, and the man opposite him did not hear what he said clearly.
He had no choice but to ask again, "What good thing is coming?"
"This..." the man scratched his beard, "Is it just a rumor? Are you getting married?"
Xun Yi was momentarily stunned.
He clearly liked Shu Wanxiu, but he didn't reveal it to anyone else. How could anyone else know?
He pressed for more details, but the man's answer was even more absurd.
"I heard from Li Er from Maozhu Village that you are going to marry your master's daughter?"
Xun Yi almost couldn't catch his breath.
What kind of rumors are these?
His master didn't have a daughter at all!
Seeing that Xun Yi showed no joy but instead appeared extremely solemn, the man knew that the rumor might be wrong. He gave an awkward smile, and without even saying goodbye, hurriedly left.
Xun Yi was left standing there, pondering who Li Er from Maozhu Village really was.
He had no recollection of this person's name at all, but the more he thought about it, the more incomprehensible it became why the other party would spread such an absurd rumor.
After pondering for a long time without reaching a conclusion, I reluctantly set it aside.
I thought it was just an isolated case, but after a whole morning, two more regular customers came and said that they wanted to go to Wupai Village to ask for a drink after their wedding!
This time he asked them where they had heard it from.
One says it's Wuli Village, another says it's Wupai Village.
As for the woman he will marry, her identity is also the subject of much speculation.
Xun Yi realized this wasn't just a rumor, so he packed up his things before finishing the market trip.
Li Er from Maozhu Village, Chen Shu from Wuli Village, and Pang Zhili from Wupai Village.
These are names I got from three regular customers.
Xun Yi didn't have much of an impression of the first two, but he knew the last one who was from his own village.
Pang Zhili and Pang Zhishan are brothers.
Their mother originally gave birth to six boys, but several of them unfortunately died young. Only the eldest, Pang Zhishan, the second, Pang Zhishui, and the sixth, Pang Zhili, survived to adulthood.
After the three brothers grew up, they each made their own way in the world. Pang Zhishan succeeded his father as the new village head of Wupai Village, while Pang Zhishui opened a general store in the county and only returned to the village once or twice a year.
Pang Zhili was the worst off of the three brothers, but had the best life.
He was pampered by his mother since childhood and never suffered any grievances at home.
After growing up, Pang's father and mother passed away one after another. Before their deaths, the two elders instructed the two older children to take good care of the sixth son.
For the next few decades, he enjoyed his wife's care, his brother's support, and even the blessings of his son.
He was spoiled and pampered his whole life, so even in his forties and fifties he was still lazy, selfish, cunning, spineless, and loved to gossip.
Although Pang Zhili was not popular in the village, Xun Yi did not dislike him.
When he first settled in the area, Pang Zhili's family had helped him.
But since this news came from the other party, he had no choice but to ask for clarification.
...
Xun Yi left with his thoughts in his mind. He had no eyes in the back of his head and was unaware that after he left, two people who had been hiding for a long time emerged from the roadside.
Shu Shouyi tilted his head back and asked, puzzled, "Why didn't you let me call you Uncle Xun just now?"
Shu Wanxiu lowered her head. "Because...because your Uncle Xun was doing business just now."
“We might bother him if we go there.”
This explanation is reasonable enough; at least, it's enough to convince a four-year-old.
Shu Wanxiu had been planning this trip to the market in Wutou Village for a long time.
The rice bran that the family had exchanged for was all eaten up by the chicks, and Aunt Chen's own hen had hatched a brood of eggs, so there was no extra rice bran to exchange for her.
So she was taught to go to the market to buy grass seeds that other people had collected the previous year to feed the chickens.
Anyway, her chicks are already alive, and this stuff is cheap, more cost-effective than rice bran.
Of course, buying grass seeds was only one of the purposes.
In recent days, she has been experiencing occasional dull pain in her lower abdomen.
This is especially noticeable after working in the fields in the early morning or after drinking several bowls of cold water in the morning or evening.
These feelings were very similar to the signs she had when her period was about to start.
She counted on her fingers and realized that her menstrual flow had stopped since she fled the famine, and she had been absent for more than half a year.
Although she had always been very comfortable with the days when she didn't have her period, she couldn't do anything about it now that it was going to return.
I came to the market this time hoping to buy some fabric and thread before my period started so I could sew a few menstrual belts myself.
These days, we're not starving anymore, and we occasionally get to eat meat. I heard that pork is sold at these markets.
She also wanted to buy some pork to render some lard so she could occasionally add it to her dishes.
In short, she brought Shu Shouyi to the market in Wutou Village for multiple reasons.
Meeting Xun Yi was an unexpected surprise.
She suppressed her inner turmoil and casually led Shu Shouyi to the stall she had already spotted to select the items they needed.
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