Chapter 27: Threading as Fast as the Wind【VIP】
Zeng Shiqiang returned to the shop with a belly full of anger. Before he could ask any questions, he saw his bride bandaging the wounds on the hands of his two uncles. It seemed that what Chen Yao said was true.
He never expected his new bride to be so bold for the family business.
"My husband, you're back. Manager Ren wants to see you to do business with our family?"
Zeng Shiqiang looked at his wife's expectant eyes, holding his breath in his heart. Chen Yao was just a poor farmer. Where did he get the confidence to compete with his family's tofu business that had been passed down for three generations?
Ruyicai? Bean curd sheets?
Since they are all made of soybeans, why can't he make them and sell them?
"My dear, please don't act so impulsively in the future. If Chen Yao really makes a scene at the government office, I might not be able to get my brothers back even if I pawn this shop."
When Zeng Shiqiang said this, the three siblings all looked very unhappy.
"Husband, I, I am not doing this for our family's business."
Zeng Shiqiang opened his money box, took out a hundred coins, and handed them to his bride. "Just focus on running the stall. Why should a woman like you get involved in business matters? Do you think I'm inferior to that poor peasant?"
"Of course not."
One hundred coins were used to shut up the three siblings.
Zeng Shiqiang called the shop assistant and asked him some questions, only to find out that in the village where they often went to collect soybeans, someone was actually exchanging tofu for soybeans.
As time went by, there naturally weren't many beans among the farmers he often visited, so the beans he collected were naturally small in quantity and poor in quality.
Zeng Shiqiang gritted his teeth and pounded his fist on the table. He had thought that Chen Yao was just making a small fuss, but he didn't expect that she would really confront him.
He didn't believe that anyone would refuse to sell soybeans even if he paid for them. When he made Ruyi vegetables and bean curd sheets, he would make sure that Chen Yao knew that not everyone could set up a stall and survive in Qingfeng Town.
Chen Yao only told Huang Dongsheng what happened today, and warned him not to tell his family, and also reminded him to pay attention to his personal safety during these days.
When Huang Dongsheng learned that his cousin was bullied, he could not swallow this anger and decided to find an opportunity to avenge his cousin.
"Cousin, let's go home together in the next few days." Huang Dong was afraid that Zeng Shiqiang would take revenge on his cousin again, so he stopped doing business and packed up his stall to go back with his cousin.
Chen Yao held his hand and said, "No need. I will take the ox cart back to the village in the next few days. I am just a little worried about you."
Huang Dongsheng patted the small meat bun on his arm and widened his eyes: "I'm not afraid of them. If they really dare to come, I will run away if I can't fight them, and then I will expose their evil deeds to Liu the Constable."
After hearing what he said, Chen Yao felt relieved to leave. Before leaving, she thanked Officer Liu for asking his mother about the matter.
After returning home, Chen Yao squatted in the yard and ate the lunch left for her by her family. After washing the dishes in a wooden basin, she carried the empty bucket to the field.
From a distance, she could see the soybean seedlings growing well in the wasteland she had reclaimed.
This is the soybean seedling stage, which is also the soybean root growth stage. A large amount of water and nutrients are needed during this period.
Chen Yao first used a hoe to weed the weeds in the field, and then went to the Yan River to fetch water for irrigation. As for nutrients, the silkworm manure piled in the wheat field was far from enough, so she had to go back and take some time to dig out the manure tank in the earthen toilet behind the house to make fertilizer.
When Chen Yao told her parents about this, Huang Xing sighed, "If our family can raise a pig in the future, Ayao won't have to worry about manure."
Shen Qingshan said, "Ayao, that job is too dirty and smelly. Dad will do it when he gets better. Soybeans grow well and there's no need to fertilize them. It's better to save it and apply it to the wheat fields in winter."
After Shen Qingshan said this, Huang Xing nodded repeatedly to show her agreement.
My husband was right. Soybeans are not as valuable as wheat. Besides, cleaning the manure vat has always been Shen Qingshan's job at home.
My daughter is weak, so don’t let her fall into the dung vat, that would be terrible.
In previous years, there were cases where elderly people fell into toilet tanks and drowned while going to the toilet in the dark at night.
After being persuaded by her parents, Chen Yao had to give up.
In the afternoon, Tian Baozhu came over, and the three of them moved benches to the yard and began to figure out how to reel silk.
Silkworm cocoons cannot be stored for long. If the moth inside breaks out, the cocoon will be useless and no complete silk thread can be spun out.
Therefore, Chen Yao doesn't plan to pretend anymore today.
Yang Wenying and Shen Yao sat in the courtyard selecting cocoons, shaving off the moldy, small, and colored ones, and then peeling off the soft cocoon skins to get smooth and complete cocoons. They placed these peeled cocoons in a winnowing basket.
The two of them each carried a dustpan of light cocoons into the kitchen. Tian Baozhu lifted the lid on the pot and said, "Ayao, the water is bubbling like you said, so just pour it in."
A pot of cocoons was put into boiling water. The cocoon cavities absorbed water, some floated up, and some sank. Chen Yao took out chopsticks and stirred the pot, and soon she found the silk thread.
Yang Wenying and Tian Baozhu were also eager to try.
The cocoons from which silk threads are obtained are called Zhengxu cocoons. Chen Yao fishes out these Zhengxu cocoons and puts them into a wooden basin filled with hot water. The water temperature does not need to be too hot, just human body temperature. This will better dissolve the glue between the cocoon threads, and the spun silk threads will not break easily.
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Yang Wen watched her count out fourteen cocoons and spin the silk. She then wound the silk thread onto a long board and counted fourteen as she did.
The two were about to start when Chen Yao stopped them: "We don't know what thickness of silk thread the embroidery room needs, so it's best to prepare some of each. I'll twist fourteen threads, Wenying will twist twenty threads, and cousin, you will twist fifty threads."
After saying this, Tian Yao said, "Fifty pieces, wouldn't the thread be too thick? Wouldn't it be wasted?"
"Cousin, we are also groping here. If the embroidery building does not accept our silk, we can
"Ayao, only ladies from wealthy families hold round fans in summer, but how did you know?" Yang Wenying's hands, holding twenty Zhengxu calluses, trembled slightly.
Today's silk reeling went too smoothly. If one calmed down and thought carefully, it was not difficult to figure out that it was Chen Yao who was guiding them step by step.
Especially when she saw Chen Yao's slender hands drawing the silk very skillfully, the thought in her heart rose again.
Chen Yao had already prepared an excuse: "You know Officer Liu, he has a widowed mother. When he was young, he made a living by weaving cloth. So I asked his mother for advice. That's how I know. Otherwise, how could we have successfully reeled silk so quickly today?"
So that's how it is. Yang Wenying resolved her doubts and followed Chen Yao's instructions to continue reeling silk.
Tian Baozhu didn't suspect her cousin, but opened her mouth with a hint of fear in her eyes: "How dare you ask the officer about this in private? Did he give you any trouble?"
Chen Yao smiled as she unwound the thread, "Mr. Liu's messenger was quite good. Not only did he not give me any trouble, but his mother also asked him to tell me that the shopkeeper Lu of Qiandaolou in Baihe Town is kind and will not look down on us because of our status. As long as our things are of good quality, I think he will accept them."
"That's great! If this deal goes through, we'll have to thank Officer Liu very much." After counting the fifty cocoons, Tian Baozhu praised as she gathered the silk threads together and wound them onto the wooden board.
Chen Yao also nodded in agreement with her words.
Yang Wenying, who was standing next to him, suddenly said, "How could that officer be so kind as to help us? Is he up to some evil intention, trying to get something from us?"
What do we get? We are broke!
Tian Baozhu was simple-minded and didn't think too much about it. After all, her cousin had also said a lot to Officer Liu in the morning. They were tenant farmers and had nothing to give him. He was just kind-hearted.
Yang Wenying stared at Chen Yao's face without saying a word.
Chen Yao thought of how Liu Chuang's mother had come to her stall today to buy bean curd sheets. She was so enthusiastic that she suddenly coughed and understood what Yang Wenying wanted to say.
"Wenying, you're overthinking it. It's impossible." Her identity outside was a married lady.
Yang Wenying snorted, feeling sorry for her brother. She had saved nearly fifty coins now, but it was still far from enough to redeem her brother.
"In that case, when you go to Baihe Town one day, please ask Shopkeeper Lu if he has any embroidery work. I'd like to take it."
Tian Baozhu and Shen Yao immediately looked over and said in unison, "You can actually embroider?"
Yang Wenying's face turned red. She used to eat for free at the Shen family, but now she is different from the past and has changed her ways.
"My brother and I are both from aristocratic families, so we naturally know a lot. Although I am not as proficient in music, chess, calligraphy and painting as my brother, I can still show off my embroidery skills." Yang Wenying took the opportunity to praise her brother in front of Shen Yao.
Chen Yao didn't guess what she was thinking, and her face looked like "Why didn't you tell me earlier?", which made Yang Wenying's face turn even redder.
"If you want to get embroidery work from the embroidery shop, do you have to show them your embroidery patterns?" Chen Yao asked.
Yang Wenying was originally a little worried that Chen Yao would stop her from spending the money, but now, hearing her encouragement, she let out a breath and nodded: "In a few days, I will have saved up a hundred coins. Then you can help me buy handkerchiefs and needlework. The material doesn't have to be too good."
Instead of saving these small amounts of money, it is better to spend it and get a chance to make big money.
This way, we can bring my brother back quickly. With □□ days ahead, no one will worry about Chen Yao anymore.
"I understand. It mainly depends on your embroidery skills." Chen Yao gently bumped Yang Wenying's shoulder with admiration in her eyes.
This little girl has really grown up now.
The cocoons in the wooden basin were also used up while the three little girls were chatting, and Chen Yao taught them how to add more cocoons to continue the conversation.
This time, they did whatever Shen Yao said without asking any questions.
After the three people each rolled a roll of raw silk on the wooden board, they took the raw silk off the board and hung it on the bamboo pole in the yard to dry.
When the wind blows, the snow-white raw silk sways like catkins, and everyone's eyes are filled with anticipation for the future.
But they didn't enjoy such a good situation for many days.
A week later, Chen Yao and her cousin went to the city to do business. Just after they delivered the goods to the restaurant, it started to rain heavily.
The brother and sister had no choice but to hide from the rain in the backyard of the restaurant, thinking that they would leave when the rain subsided a little, but they never expected to meet their enemy.
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