Chapter 56
She soon found out why.
The children's table ate everything in no time and ran out to play after finishing. The men's table had just started eating because they were drinking, but the women's table was already full and they all helped to clear the table.
After the table was cleared, they all sat back down neatly, eyes full of joy.
"Alie's wife, please tell us in detail what you just said."
Old Mrs. Lu spoke first.
At this moment, the children were making noise outside the courtyard, so the courtyard was relatively quiet. The men at the other table also heard it. Shi Erlang turned around and saw that the women at the table were particularly excited. His wife's eyes were shining. She asked curiously, "What are you talking about?"
Others had no time to answer him, as they were all looking at Sang Luo. His wife, on the other hand, loved him and whispered, "Did you eat the tofu on the table? The white and green ones. They are made with A Lie's wife's own recipe. She asked if we would sell them to you."
Shi Erlang suddenly became more spirited.
They have long known that Sangluo cannot rely on selling wild vegetables to build houses.
What is it? Tofu?
The men at the table also pricked up their ears.
Sang Luo did not keep the secret any longer and briefly told the story of how she and Qin Fangniang used to sell tofu and wild vegetables in the county. She said, "There are two markets in the county, the east and west markets. You have to pay market taxes to enter. You can carry poles and hawk your goods in the alleys of the county. The other market is the market in Sanli Village and the surrounding villages. You may not be able to afford to eat tofu at two cents a piece, but occasionally someone will buy it."
"As for me, I used to make divine tofu, and now I have tofu. To be honest, fleeing from famine and enduring the past few months have worn out my health. Making these foods is too time-consuming, so I don't want to go back and forth twenty miles to the county every day to set up a stall, so I can give myself some breathing time. This time, I owe all of you for your help in building the house, and I have nothing to repay you, so the first thing I thought of was to ask you if you are willing to take some tofu from me and sell it like Aunt Arita, which can also be considered a livelihood."
"Of course I am willing! Why wouldn't I be willing?"
This time, the men responded without waiting for the women to respond.
Only a fool would not be willing to do that, since this is a wealth of money that is right in his hands.
In the countryside, there is really no other way to make money except farming. There are odd jobs in the county, but it is not easy and you can't always find work. If you don't find a job in the city, you have to pay a penny for the entrance fee every time you enter.
Sang Luo waited for the Shi family and the Lu family to express their opinions before continuing, "In that case, let me tell you about my rules. Tofu and magic tofu are sold at three cents per piece from me, and you sell them at two cents per piece. For every two pieces of tofu sold, you can make one cent, a 25% profit. It doesn't sound like much, but I've been selling them for a while, and they're still selling well. Before, I only sold magic tofu, and in the county, I could make fifty or sixty yuan a day. Of course, my situation can only be used as a reference for you. Doing business is up to the individual, and there is also talent and luck. I can't guarantee that you can sell well too."
Everyone nodded, and Mrs. Lu smiled and said, "We understand this principle."
Sang Luo then explained that the tofu could probably be sold for more than a month, and that it could be sold all year round, and said, "It takes a lot of effort to make these, and I can't supply much, so for now I can only supply one portion to each of you three. Of course, if you think you can't sell that much, you can order less to reduce the risk of the food going bad in your hands. Just tell me the amount the morning before, and I'll prepare it accordingly."
Shi Erlang, who had just felt a little uncertain, nodded repeatedly: "That's right, it's better to be steady at the beginning, try to sell it, and then slowly add more if it sells well."
Gan asked, "Anything else you want?"
Sang Luo nodded, "Yes, Aunt Youtian is selling in the East Market. We can't squeeze out our own business, so if you take it from me, you can't go to the East Market in the county. You can discuss and decide on other places by yourselves, who will go to the West Market and who will go to the alleys to sell. I won't interfere with this, but it's best not to be in the same place, otherwise it will only compete with each other and no one will benefit."
"The selling price must follow my pricing. Don't raise it or increase it. Don't ruin the price yourself. This business can be successful in the long run. These are probably the only requirements I have."
The three families all nodded. They were already acquainted with each other and they definitely wouldn't want to ruin their friendship by fighting over business territory.
Old Man Lu said, "Then let's go home tonight and discuss who will do this business, and then we can start the work after the busy farming season is over."
Because of this, the men were eager to go home and discuss things, so they ate faster.
After everyone finished eating, a group of women helped to clear the table and wash the dishes. Sang Luo looked at the remaining dishes. As there were quite a lot of people attending the banquet, there was really nothing left on the three tables except for the chicken, duck and braised pork. With just these few items, there wasn't much left.
Sang Luo picked out a few pieces for the two little ones to enjoy later, and shared some with the other three families: "It's too hot today, the food won't keep well, so I shared it out, a few pieces per family, not much, just to satisfy the kids."
It’s not that Sang Luo wants to do a favor, but because of her past life, she won’t touch leftovers, especially leftovers from the previous meal, except for things like lard residue that are allowed to be left over.
So even if he only had one cent left, he still had two eggs, some soybeans, and a lot of vegetables sent by other families that he hadn't used yet, so he had to fill a small basket.
So she had no worries about food and shared the food happily.
…
The liveliness in the courtyard faded away at the end of the You hour. By then, the courtyard and the kitchen had been tidied up by a group of people. Because Sang Luo had distributed the remaining dishes to each family, even the tables, chairs, bowls and plates were carried back. The yard was also cleaned for her, so she didn't have to clean anything with her two children.
Even the group of younger ones were outside helping to build the fences around the vegetable garden.
Everyone is busy with farming. Sang Luo was too busy today, and there were too many people in the yard, so she didn't go to pick the leaves of the fairy tree. Only the two liters of soybeans bought during the day could be used. She simply didn't bother tonight. She took a shower and rested early, soaked the soybeans before going to bed, and got up early the next morning to grind the beans to make tofu. It was just right that she could have fresh and hot tofu pudding for breakfast.
The aunts and sisters-in-law went to the backyard to feed the chickens and ducks, took a comfortable bath, and went to bed early.
On the other hand, the Chen family is fine, but the Lu family and the Shi family are destined to have a sleepless night tonight.
The Shi family was excited, while the Lu family was upset.
…
Wang Chunniang was wiping tears in the room.
"Mother is too partial. It's you and your sons who are going to help Sang build the house. Sang gave us this business opportunity to thank us, so it should be me who goes, right? If she doesn't want to go, then my brother and sister-in-law will have to go."
Lu Dalang was very troubled. He was originally very happy. His wife didn't say anything when his mother talked about this outside. But when she came back home, she couldn't stop crying.
"Whether you go or your sister-in-law goes, isn't it the same? They are all family businesses, and the money will eventually be given to mother, right?"
Wang Chunniang was angry: "How is it the same? You can touch the money. Picking some wild vegetables on the road and selling them can also make a few more dollars. Isn't it all money? What can I touch at home?"
Lu Dalang knew that his wife always wanted to save some money, but it was very difficult to do so. Lu Dalang just turned a blind eye and was too lazy to say anything.
But now there is suddenly a job in the family that involves handling money every day, and his mother has specifically assigned this job to his younger brother and sister-in-law. Seeing the opportunity to touch the money slip away from them, his wife didn't dare to say anything outside, and she just kept wiping her tears when she returned to the room, just making trouble for him.
Lu Dalang didn't support it, but he didn't know how to make her calm down.
Wang Chunniang wiped her tears for a while, and seeing that the man didn't say anything, she said, "Go talk to mother and let me go. My second brother's wife doesn't like to talk, and it's not a good place to do business. I don't think my second brother's wife wants to go."
Lu Dalang shook his head, "I didn't see that my second sister-in-law didn't want to go. She's just worried that she can't do well. Isn't Youtian's sister-in-law not talkative? Isn't she doing well? Our father asked and found out that she can earn more than 30 coins a day. My second sister-in-law sits in the weaving room every day. I think mother's arrangement is good. Let my second sister-in-law go out for a walk. Maybe she will feel better slowly."
At this point, Lu Dalang looked ashamed and his voice became weaker: "We have let down our second brother and sister-in-law too much. You are the eldest sister-in-law, so don't fight with your second brother and sister-in-law. Don't fight for anything."
Wang Chunniang was choked and could only wipe her tears and sulk.
I cried for so long that my eyes were swollen when I woke up the next morning.
Old Mrs. Lu walked into the kitchen and saw it at a glance in the dim light of the oil lamp.
She didn't say anything. After her second daughter-in-law went out to fetch firewood, she asked, "Why, are you not happy with my decision to let your sister-in-law sell tofu while you stay at home to weave cloth?"
Wang Chunniang remained silent.
Mrs. Lu: "If you are not satisfied, you should speak up. I will listen to you and decide whether it makes sense or not. If it makes sense, I will agree with you. If it doesn't make sense, you can just calm down and don't have to hold a grudge in your heart."
I don't know what touched Wang Chunniang's heart with this sentence, or maybe she really felt wronged, so she actually spoke.
"Since you want me to reason with you, then I will say it. Mother, this business was originally made possible by the help of Mr. Xie of the Sang family and a few people from Shuanzhu. My man and my children helped, so it should be me who should go, right? Besides, my sister-in-law's personality is not as suitable as mine, so I can't understand it."
Old Madam Lu glanced at her and said, "It's not that you can't figure it out, it's that you're not convinced. Your husband and your children helped you, so you deserve to be the one who picks the fruit. Did you tell Madam Liu these words before we went to the banquet yesterday?"
Wang Chunniang didn't expect the old lady to know about this. Her face changed slightly and she turned away.
Old Madam Lu sneered, "Wang Chunniang, you should be more conscientious sometimes. Your man? Your child? Where is Liu Niang's man? Where is Erlang?"
Wang Chunniang's body trembled slightly.
Old Madam Lu was not prepared to forgive her: "Where is Erlang? When the army was being recruited, it should have been Dalang's turn to go, but because of your crying, because of your making a fuss, because you tried to commit suicide while holding your child, Erlang finally went to fight for his brother. Did Liu Niang want to let her husband go? Didn't she have any children? Ah Xu is one year younger than Shitou!"
"Mom." Wang Chunniang's lips trembled slightly. "My child's father almost lost his life while repairing the canal last winter. His body was damaged. Mom, I was afraid that he would die before he even reached the battlefield."
Mrs. Lu's eyes became sore when she mentioned her second son. She blinked away the soreness in her eyes, glanced outside the kitchen, nodded, and said in a low voice, "Yes, you love your man, and you have your reasons, so Erlang went in his place. Even though Liu Niang shed tears, she didn't make a fuss."
"Now that Erlang is gone, Liu Niang and A Xu have lost their husband and father respectively, and have become orphans and widows."
"Wang Chunniang, how dare you? How dare you use your husband and son to make a fuss? If Erlang hadn't gone through this for Dalang, would Liuniang be without a husband? Would Ah Xu be without a father? Would he still not have a brother or sister at the age of five? How dare you?!"
Wang Chunniang was frightened by her mother-in-law's last subdued but powerful question. She took a half step back and stood by the stove. She was so scared that tears fell from her eyes. "Mom, I didn't mean it. I didn't say those words to my second brother's wife. I just complained to my eldest daughter. I didn't know that my second brother's wife would hear it. Over the years, my second brother's wife blamed me and hardly said a word to me or treated me well. I never dared to say anything, mom."
Old Madam Lu was so angry that she laughed: "What's wrong with her not being nice to you? It's only been less than a year, Erlang's body is still warm, do you still want her to smile at you?"
"You didn't say anything, what else do you want to say? You are the only one who can kill people and destroy their hearts."
"Since you asked me today, I might as well tell you clearly. If you hadn't said those words to stab your sister-in-law yesterday, I might have let you do the tofu business, thinking that your personality is indeed more suitable for going out. But since you can say such things, don't think about it from now on."
"You say I am biased, and I am biased. You have a man and four sons, so they don't need my love. But I have to help your sister-in-law get on her feet. After all, she only has Ah Xu now. If you still don't understand what I say, and you are still not convinced, then you should weave more in the future. Weave to calm your mind and think slowly. If you can't figure it out in one day, then take a month. If you can't figure it out in one month, then take a year."
In the corner not far from the kitchen, Feng Liuniang did not go to fetch firewood. She stood there for a long time, listening to her mother-in-law mentioning her husband and defending him, and tears fell down her face.
She pressed her palms to wipe away the tears, and after a while she quietly went to the woodshed to get some firewood.
What the mother-in-law said was right. She still had Ah Xu, and she couldn't just wallow in grief. She had to stand up for herself, even for the sake of her child.
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