Chapter 59 Chapter 59 You two stop
The next day, Yu Li came back from delivering the goods. As soon as he arrived at the butcher shop, he saw Yu Jin standing not far from the butcher shop.
Yu Jin was wearing a gray coarse cloth dress, a typical country girl's attire, and it had many traces of patching.
She stood there somewhat awkwardly, staring at the butcher shop, hesitating and not daring to go over.
No matter how smart she was, she was just a fourteen-year-old country girl who had never seen the world. It was her first time in the county town and she was somewhat timid.
Yu Li walked over and called out, "Ah Jin."
Yu Jin turned around in surprise, and when he saw her, he subconsciously moved closer, grabbed her sleeve, and called out, "Big Sister."
Yu Li touched her head, as if to comfort her and tell her not to be afraid.
She asked, "Why don't you go in?"
Yesterday, she and Yu Jin agreed to wait for her at the butcher shop after she arrived in the county town, and gave her the address of the butcher shop. Before going to deliver the goods, she also told Zhang Yaoping that her second sister would come to find her, and asked him to help bring people into the butcher shop to wait for her.
Yu Jin must be scared since it’s her first time in the county town, so it’s better to let her wait in the butcher shop.
"There are too many people..." Yu Jin said a little embarrassedly.
It's still morning market time, and there are many people coming to the butcher shop to buy meat.
But this was not the reason. The main reason was that her eldest sister was not inside and she was embarrassed to go over and disturb others.
Yu Li didn't say anything and took her to the butcher shop.
She asked the people who were surrounding the butcher shop to make way and walked into the butcher shop with Yu Jin.
Someone looked puzzled and asked Zhang Yaoping, "Xiao Zhang, your butcher shop hired a new girl? Where is the previous girl?"
He remembered that the little girl was literate.
Although he was quite thin and looked extremely shabby, he looked neat and clean, and didn't seem that ugly if you looked at him for a long time.
But that girl was definitely not the two who just went in.
The two girls looked like sisters at first glance. Their eyes and eyebrows were somewhat similar. The one carrying the bamboo basket was especially beautiful. Even though she was dressed very simply and carrying a bamboo basket, she still seemed out of place.
Maybe she was too beautiful, too beautiful to look like a young lady struggling for a living in the market.
Before Zhang Yaoping could say anything, someone nearby laughed and said, "How could you recruit anyone? It's that little girl again. Didn't you recognize her?"
"What?"
Sure enough, the man's eyes widened in shock.
Everyone around him laughed and asked him if he hadn't come to buy meat for a long time.
If you come here often, you will definitely know that the butcher has not changed.
"There was indeed a period of time. I went to visit relatives in the capital a while ago and stayed there for more than half a month before returning." The man replied, still shocked, "How could it be? The girl just now was not the same as the previous one."
A dark and thin person, so thin that he is even a little ugly;
Although she is thin, she is not so thin that she looks ugly. Instead, she has a kind of fragile beauty. Not to mention her face, with delicate features and fair skin. She doesn't look like a girl from a poor family who is struggling to make a living.
Although there are good-looking girls from poor families, they are tired from the stress of life, exposed to the wind and sun, and their skin is rough, so how can their skin be so fair and tender?
It would be more accurate to say that she was a girl who was spoiled by a wealthy family.
That demeanor is really different from the people around him.
"What's the matter? I heard that the girl was sick a while ago and hasn't been here for several days. Doctor Xu from Huichuntang prescribed her some tonic medicine to help her recuperate. She has been taking this medicine for more than half a month and now she is like this."
"Indeed, she rested for several days. When she came back, we couldn't recognize her."
"These days, I can see her delivering goods every day. It seems like she changes every day. I didn't think anything of it every day, but in the blink of an eye, she has become like this."
"It's Doctor Xu's medical skills that are really good. I wonder what kind of tonic he prescribed for her that could make her so well."
"Hey, why don't I go find Doctor Xu to prescribe some tonic medicine for my two daughters and see if I can make them prettier."
"Prescribe a tonic? I heard that a dose of tonic costs two or three hundred coins. Are you willing to spend that?"
"So expensive? Forget it, my daughter isn't actually ugly, she doesn't need any repairs."
…………
Everyone was talking at once, and soon the topic turned to Doctor Xu of Huichuntang. Unknowingly, the topic had already gone off track, and no one paid attention to Yu Li's changes anymore.
-
Yu Li brought his sister to the backyard of the butcher shop, poured her a cup of tea, and asked her to sit down and rest.
She put down the bamboo basket, poured herself a few bowls of tea, then rolled up her sleeves to clean the yard.
After slaughtering the pig every day, the yard had to be swept and washed with water. Sometimes Yu Li came back early and would start cleaning and sharpen the butcher knife at the same time.
When Zhang Fu saw this, he wanted to give her more money for her hard work, saying that she should be paid for her work.
Since Yu Li refused in the end, he changed it by stuffing a piece of meat into her mouth and asked her to take it back and eat.
How could Yu Jin just sit there and watch her sister work? She hurriedly said, "Big sister, let me help you."
She also rolled up her sleeves, picked up the broom and helped clean.
Yu Li did not refuse. Seeing that she was uncomfortable, he asked her to help.
The two sisters were efficient at work. By the time Zhang Fu, Uncle Luo, and Boss Tu came back, they had already cleaned the yard and washed away the blood stains on the ground with water.
Seeing the little girl working with Yu Li, Zhang Fu was stunned for a moment, then he remembered that Yu Li said her sister would come to the county town to see her today.
He asked with a smile: "Li Niang, is this your sister?"
Yu Li hummed and introduced them, then turned to Yu Jin and said, "This is Zhang Fu, Brother Zhang. He's the owner of the butcher shop. You can just call him Brother Zhang."
Yu Jin was a little nervous and called out "Brother Zhang" in a low voice.
Zhang Fu smiled and responded to the call of "brother", saying, "It's rare for Li Niang's sister to come over, why don't you stay for lunch and have lunch together? I'll stew meat for you."
Yu Li's eyes lit up and he readily agreed: "Okay, thank you, Brother Zhang."
Yu Jin didn’t know what to say, so she decided to follow her elder sister and said “Thank you, Brother Zhang” as well.
Zhang Fu chuckled and said to Boss Tu: "Now I have two sisters who call me brother, so I can be considered as having sisters."
Boss Tu was not very happy, "Why are you so proud? You are only two years younger than me."
Zhang Fu chuckled, "Two years younger is still younger, so I am the elder brother, and Brother Tu, you are the uncle."
Yu Li brought his sister with him, asked her to recognize everyone, and said to them, "My sister is in the county for the first time today. She wants to find a job here. I will take her out to have a look later."
She was familiar with the people in the butcher's shop, so she didn't need to be polite to them.
Upon hearing this, everyone asked with concern what kind of job he was looking for and whether he needed their help.
Yu Jin blushed slightly, a little embarrassed, and whispered, "I want to take a look first. I'm not sure what to do yet."
Seeing that the little girl was shy, everyone was very sensible and did not tease her. They just told her to come and ask them if she had any questions.
Yu Jin said gratefully, "Thank you."
She could see that these people were very welcoming to her because of her elder sister. Thinking that her elder sister usually worked here and felt good about it, she felt relieved.
Seeing that Yu Jin was still holding a rag, Zhang Fu said, "Li Niang, this is your sister's first time here, how can you let her do any work?" Then he praised, "You all cleaned the yard, it seems that we don't have to do anything today, Li Niang, you are really capable."
"It's okay." Yu Li said, "There's nothing to do."
They usually take good care of her and give her a lot of free meat to take home, so it’s no big deal for her to do some work.
After cleaning the yard, Yu Li drew a bucket of water from the well, rubbed his hands several times with fat beads, and then went to a room in the backyard to change his clothes.
She was reluctant to wear new clothes to work, so she always wore old clothes and changed back into them after finishing work.
There are several rooms in the butcher shop for storing sundries and for people to rest. Zhang Fu also gave her a room to rest, but Yu Li seldom rested here.
After changing clothes, Yu Li took his sister out of the butcher shop and went shopping in the county town.
Knowing that Yu Jin had not had breakfast yet, Yu Li took her to a roadside stall selling steamed buns and wontons, and ordered ten meat buns and five bowls of wontons in one go.
Yu Jin's eyes widened, "Sis, so many?"
Can you finish it? And the price is so expensive, one meat bun costs three cents, and four costs ten cents.
Still expensive.
"Not much." Yu Li calmly picked up a hot meat bun and handed it to her, and moved the rest in front of himself, "These are all mine."
Yu Jin: “…”
While I was eating the buns, the wontons were ready.
Five bowls of wontons were served, sprinkled with chopped green onions, and the aroma was fragrant.
Yu Li placed a bowl of wontons in front of his sister and moved the remaining four bowls to his side, "These are mine."
Yu Jin: “…”
Yu Jin silently lowered her head and ate the wontons, almost forgetting that her sister had a big appetite.
When she first arrived in the county town, she felt extremely unfamiliar with the place, which made her curious and timid. When she saw people passing by, they all wore neat clothes without patches. She felt that her patched clothes looked tacky and old, and she felt very embarrassed. She didn't know where to put her hands and feet, and was nervous when asking for directions.
At this moment, seeing her sister sitting there, happily finishing all the food, Yu Jin suddenly calmed down.
Although the county town is unfamiliar, her sister is here.
As long as her elder sister is around, she is not afraid of anything.
The meat buns were very solid and the wontons were quite large. After eating a meat bun and a bowl of wontons, Yu Jin was already very full.
She touched her stomach and said, "Sister, maybe I can't eat at noon."
If she were alone, she felt that it would be enough to just eat this meal and not have to eat at noon or dinner, so she could save some food.
Yu Li didn't care. "Then walk around the county more. You'll be hungry by noon, so eat more meat then."
As she spoke, she looked at her sister and reached out to pinch her cheek, which was soft and somewhat satisfying.
In the past few months, not only has she been eating hard, but her three younger sisters have also been eating. They are finally no longer as thin as when I first met them. They have all gained some weight and have the body shapes that girls of this age should have, which is pretty good.
Yu Li took Yu Jin and walked through the streets of the county, looking around as they walked.
When she saw people selling candies, roasted melon seeds, sesame cakes, sugar-coated cakes and the like on the roadside, she bought some and shared them with her sister.
"Sister, I can't eat..." Yu Jin said with difficulty.
She never thought that one day, she would be unable to finish a bunch of delicious snacks. But her sister bought too much, and her backpack couldn't even hold them.
She had wondered before why her sister came out with a basket on her back, and it turned out that it was to carry the things she bought.
Seeing her sister spending money like water, Yu Jin went from being shocked at first to gradually becoming numb, and couldn't help but feel a little worried.
She was very skeptical, was the money her sister earned in a day really enough for her to spend?
Yu Li said: "It's okay, I just want you to have a taste, I can eat all of this."
Yu Jin: “…”
In response to her question, Yu Li said: "It is indeed not enough to spend, but it doesn't matter, your brother-in-law can make money, and his money is my money."
There is still a rich man at home. Anyway, when Fu Wenxiao gets better in the future, he will make money for her to spend. She is not worried and can buy whatever she wants. This is also the goal she set when she first came to the county town.
Buy whatever you want.
The most important thing is that she was tired and hungry after using up her superpowers, so she had to eat more.
"Ah?" Yu Jin's eyes widened, "Brother-in-law can actually make money?"
She probably didn't expect that her brother-in-law, a frail man who never left the house and was suspected of being too ugly to be seen in public, could actually make money?
Didn’t her sister say that she had eaten all the food in the Fu family and they didn’t have much money, so why did she need to find a job?
"Of course!" Yu Li said as a matter of course, "He is a scholar and is very good at making money."
Yu Jin refuted and cited strong evidence: "My uncle, eldest cousin, and second cousin are also scholars, but they are not very good at making money."
If he could make money, he wouldn't have to let the second and third wives support them together.
My uncle worked as an accountant in a rice shop, earning three taels of silver a month.
Three or two is quite a lot.
However, I heard that my uncle has to rent a house in the county town, and he has to spend money on food, clothing, housing, and other expenses, plus buying pens, ink, paper, and inkstone, etc. The three taels of silver are not enough to spend. Therefore, the amount of money that my uncle hands over to the public treasury every month is not much, and he can't be considered to be making money.
"He is different!" Yu Li frowned, "Don't compare uncle and his friends with Xiao Ge'er, they are useless and their studies are in vain. Only people like Xiao Ge'er can be considered as real scholars."
Yu Jin was confused and didn't quite understand what she meant.
What is the difference? Are those who can make money considered normal scholars?
In the end, Yu Jin only confirmed one thing, that her brother-in-law was indeed good at making money.
Although she didn't know how he made money without going out, her sister would not lie to her, and there was no need to do so.
So her sister now spends money lavishly and doesn't treat money seriously at all. If she has nothing left, she will just spend the money earned by her brother-in-law.
Yu Jin thought about it and felt that there was no problem.
Her sister is right, her brother-in-law's money belongs to her sister. There is nothing wrong with her sister spending her own money. If she spends it all, she can let her brother-in-law earn it!
-
The two sisters walked across a river in the city and stood on an arch bridge. They could see small boats shuttling across the river. The boats were loaded with all kinds of groceries, and the people on the boats were paddling the boats and hawking their wares along the way.
If someone on the shore wants to buy something, the boat will stop, and after the goods are sold, it will continue to move forward.
Seeing this, Yu Jin said, "Sister, I used to envy Wang the boatman. I heard that he made a lot of money every day. Wang the boatman made a lot of money with this boat and was able to send his children to school. It's much better than our family."
"At that time, I also wanted to go out and find a job. Any job was fine. I was not afraid of hardship or fatigue. As long as I could make money and feed ourselves..."
Yu Li touched her head, "You can do it now."
"Yes!" Yu Jin looked up and smiled at her, then said, "Sister, you seem to have grown taller again."
In the past, the eldest sister was only slightly taller than her, but now she is almost half a head taller than her.
Yu Li said: "You are only fourteen years old. You are still growing and will grow taller in the future."
I think the younger sisters will grow to be around 1.6 meters tall in the future.
In Qingshi Village, if a girl is 1.6 meters tall, she is considered quite tall.
Yu Jin smiled, took another look at the small boats shuttling across the river and the unfamiliar environment around her, and felt her heart filled with joy and anticipation.
After crossing the bridge, they walked forward for a while and arrived at the dock of the county town.
The dock is always bustling, and the hard work of people in the lower class can be seen in the bustle.
Yu Jin looked at the busy laborers at the dock, looked around, and said, "Big sister, look at those laborers, they are all doing manual labor, they don't have much money, usually they don't want to eat or drink, just like dad and third uncle, they come to the county town to find work during the slack season, usually they bring some dry food with them, otherwise they will go hungry, and they are reluctant to spend money to buy food."
Yu Li nodded and waited for her to continue.
"I used to think that the food sold in the county town is quite expensive, and the things sold in the small stalls are not much cheaper. Otherwise, I can make some rice balls made of mixed grains and sell them in the county town. I can lower the price and it should be able to sell."
Yu Li asked: "Rice ball?"
She has eaten a lot of food, but has never eaten rice balls. Is it made by kneading rice?
There is no such thing as rice balls here.
Yu Jin thought for a moment and whispered, "Well, it's just mixing cooked multi-grain rice with some sauce to add some flavor, wrapping it with green leaves, and making it into a ball, so I call it a rice ball. Of course, it would be nice if there were other things added to the rice ball."
"Meat is too expensive. It's not worth adding meat. You can add something else, like boiled beans, shelled, add some flavor, and stuff them into the rice balls. It will taste good... Oh, and you can also add one or two slices of offal. Offal is not expensive, but spices are more expensive. But a pot of marinade can make a lot of marinade, and you can add some marinade to the rice balls to enhance the flavor. It's so fragrant..."
Yu Jin murmured to himself, and his eyes became brighter and brighter as he spoke.
She turned to look at Yu Li excitedly, "Sister, what do you say about me selling rice balls here?"
"That's good!" Yu Li encouraged her, "You can try it."
Yu Jin actually had too many uncertainties in his heart, but after hearing her encouragement, he was filled with courage and hope, "Then I'll give it a try."
As the two sisters were talking, a shout was heard from the dock.
When they turned their heads to look, they saw a steward enthusiastically greeting a young man in brocade clothes who was very elegantly dressed. The young man in brocade clothes had a slicked-back hair and powdered face, and looked very stylish. He was actually followed by two yamen runners, who were like followers, making the young man look very impressive.
Yu Jin was stunned for a moment, a little confused. He wondered who this young man was and how he could have the yamen runners serve as his followers.
Looking at the two yamen runners, it was obvious that they were very flattering towards this young man.
They heard someone nearby say, "Manager Cui is here again. I wonder where he's going to eat today."
"I hope he won't come to our place. He never pays for the food he eats and always complains that it's not tasty. He always eats and takes away things at the same time, and no matter how much we take, it's never enough for him."
"What can we do? He is the county magistrate's brother-in-law."
"Bah, what brother-in-law? He is just the brother of a concubine in the county magistrate's mansion, not the brother of the county magistrate's wife. How can he be the county magistrate's legitimate brother-in-law?"
"Even so, we can't afford to offend him."
"That's right, we really can't afford to offend them."
Just at this time, a porter carrying goods passed by. Because he walked unsteadily, he accidentally bumped into Manager Cui. Manager Cui was very angry, and the yamen runner beside him kicked the porter.
The man fell to the ground, his head was broken and bleeding, and he soon lost consciousness.
The manager of the dock cursed at the man, had him dragged away, and then said something to Manager Cui in a flattering manner. Manager Cui's anger finally subsided.
Seeing this scene, Yu Jin's face turned pale.
It was obvious that Na Lifu did not do it on purpose, but those people did not take it seriously. When he was dragged away, the blood from his forehead flowed down his face, and no one knew what would happen to him.
The people around were also whispering, feeling sorry for the man, but as ordinary people they couldn't afford to offend these people, so they dared not say anything.
"Big sister..."
Seeing that she looked bad, Yu Li knew that she was frightened and wanted to take her away.
But a arrogant voice sounded behind him: "You two, stop!"
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