Chapter 8
Three days later, Ye Jia got up early and went to the blacksmith shop in town to get a frying pan.
It was just getting light; the rain had finally stopped after two days. It was still cold. She squatted by the well, cleaning her teeth and mouth, while Yu Shi strolled nearby, feeling uncertain. There was only a few taels of silver left in the family, and if she had given it all to Jia Niang, what would happen if she gave it to her parents? Furthermore, if she didn't give it to her parents, could she really keep her business going? She kept going to town so often. Was she really checking the market or was she meeting Cheng Lao Er in town?
Yu was worried but couldn't say anything.
Seeing her hesitant look, Ye Jia spat out his mouthwash and turned to her, "Mom, if you have nothing to do today, come with me to town. I can't do this business alone, Mom, you have to come with me and help."
Yu paused, watching her hesitate. She was a noblewoman raised in an aristocratic family, and from a young age, she'd been taught not to show her face in public. The most she'd been able to do during her exile was embroider in the embroidery room. Now, asking her to sell food on the street was a bit much. But then she thought, her whole family was starving, so why should she, a middle-aged woman, care about such things?
Gritting her teeth, she went inside to comb her hair, changed her clothes, and ate some shredded radish cakes with Ye Jia.
Rui Jie'er was a well-behaved girl. In the past, when Mrs. Yu went out to work, she couldn't take her with her. She was always kept at home like a little girl. But she was still young, only two and a half, maybe three years old, and could be easily coaxed away with a piece of candy. It was lucky that nothing happened to her, but you can't rely on luck when it comes to children. Even with modern communications, it can still take another 10 or 20 years to find a lost child. Who knows if there will be kidnappers in this remote village?
Ye Jia took the child's short hand and threw her into her uncle's room. Without even looking at the person sitting up on the bed, she said to the child, "Rui Jie'er, grandma and auntie have things to do today. You stay home and look after your uncle. Auntie will make you something delicious when she comes back."
Third uncle Zhou Jingchen: "..."
Rui Jieer nodded her head heavily, very obediently: "Okay!"
After saying that, Ye Jia turned his head and looked at the person on the bed.
Their eyes met, and the person on the bed raised his face slightly, waiting for her to speak questioningly.
Zhou Jingchen's leg hasn't healed yet. As the saying goes, it takes a hundred days to heal a broken bone. Not only is his leg broken, but his body is also severely weakened. While serving in the Western Field, as the descendant of a rebellious king exiled for treason, he ate the worst food and did the hardest, most exhausting work. When he was sent back that day, the Western Field authorities, knowing he was dead, didn't want to collect his body. That he's awake now is truly a testament to his strong will to live.
"When you have time at home, take care of the chicks," Ye Jia pondered for a moment, lowered his eyes, and gave him a cold and ruthless order. "They are our family's most valuable asset besides food. Make sure to feed them well."
Zhou Jingchen's Adam's apple slid up and down, and he nodded hesitantly: "...Okay."
Over the past few days, he had seemingly remained calm, but in reality, he had a clear understanding of the situation at home. His mother was a gentle woman, having never done any rough work in her early years, and now the household still depended on Jia Niang to run it. He hadn't done any chores in a long time, so he was a little confused at this moment: "How do I feed the baby?"
"Just like you, feeding corn."
man:"……"
Ye Jia nodded. Yu was already waiting outside. When she came out, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law hurried to the town.
The town was much more crowded now. Since it wasn't raining, it was naturally bustling. Many farmers who had gone to the countryside came to buy farm tools for the spring plowing, and there were also merchants from outside the town, carrying their goods on their shoulders and walking through the streets and alleys hawking their wares.
Ye Jia and Yu Shi walked among them, glancing around in both directions. More shops were open today, and Ye Jia discovered that there were actually pastry shops in Libei Town. Perhaps because of the tile market, the shops were open, with only a few customers browsing the goods. After all, the items in the shops were more expensive than those in the tile market. They only came to the shops to look at the goods that were not available in the tile market.
Yu was a little afraid of people, so she walked very slowly and timidly. Ye Jia would stop every few steps to wait for her.
When they arrived at the blacksmith's shop, the large frying pan was already made. Ye Jia had paid him the lump sum last time, and the blacksmith was polite even to such a straightforward customer. He made Ye Jia two iron spatulas that looked like teppanyaki spatulas, but didn't charge her for anything.
This iron shovel was naturally Ye Jia's idea. This type of shovel is more convenient than a household spatula.
Yu, watching from the side, thought the pot and the shovel looked truly odd. But she always knew to keep quiet when she didn't understand, so she didn't blindly give instructions about the stove. She stepped forward and tried to lift the pot onto her shoulders. Ye Jia, fearing she couldn't carry it, helped her lift it. As they lifted it, she said, "We need a pot lid, and we need a bamboo craftsman to weave a basket for the pancakes."
"Then when will we open for business?" Yu was thinking about the shredded radish pancake she had eaten that morning. It was indeed delicious. That was why she hadn't said a word along the way. If something was good, it would naturally sell. "Jia Niang, if we make pancakes at home, how much would we sell each one for?"
Although the pot was heavy, it was not impossible to carry. Carrying it like this was not easy to walk, so Ye Jia decided to carry it himself. "I've been to town four or five times in the past few days. Our cakes are priced at six cents."
"Six coins?!" Yu's heart skipped a beat. Having suffered so much, Yu was no longer just casually rewarding Princess Jing with golden melon seeds. "Libei Town is very poor. How could the people here be willing to pay six coins for a piece of bread?"
If it were her, she would not be willing to pay.
"Let's see tomorrow." Ye Jia was too lazy to explain and led Yu to Wa City.
The last time Ye Jia went to Tile Market, she arrived too early, and she didn't get a good look at it. In fact, while the place might seem small, it's still quite well-equipped. This time, Ye Jia discovered that people were even being sold there. As she and Yu walked inside, they saw several groups of scruffy children kneeling on the ground with grass stuck in their heads. Many were about Rui Jie'er's age.
Most of them were girls, but there were also skinny boys, covered in wounds, kneeling on the ground, afraid to look at anyone. There were also foreigners locked in iron cages, some with curly hair and blue eyes. The vendors spoke in a foreign dialect and said they were Kunnu from the northwest.
Ye Jia stiffly turned his eyes away and went straight to the radish stall with Yu.
In fact, radishes are not easy to sell. They are full of water, but when weighed, they are not filling enough. The villagers can grow them at home, and they can grow a large field of one kind. Most of them grow and eat them themselves, and many of the leftovers either rot in the fields or are fed to pigs. Only the people in town who don’t have land will buy them. But they don’t buy much, only a pound or two, very stingy. When Ye Jia and Yu went there, the vendor who was picking radishes had two large baskets full. The radishes were probably just dug out of the ground not long ago, and they were still covered in dirt. The vendor was sitting on the ground and shouting.
Ye Jia took all the two large baskets of radishes in one go.
The vendor was startled, almost thinking he had misheard. "These two baskets must weigh at least 200 kilograms. Do you want them all?"
"Yeah." Ye Jia ignored Yu's surprised mouth and asked if the whole thing could be cheaper.
These radishes were grown at home, and because they couldn't finish them, they were brought to town to sell. Radishes weren't rare, so how could they be cheap at just two cents for three pounds? The vendor weighed the radishes and found they weighed over 180 pounds. He rounded off the amount and sold it to Ye Jia as 180 pounds. He earned just over 200 cents, and the vendor was so happy he was practically bursting with joy.
A total of one tael of silver, so much gone in a flash. Adding some salt and seasoning, three hundred wen had already been spent. Yu's eyes were red with heartache. Seeing Ye Jia preparing to assemble an oxcart to haul the things back, and even wanting to ask a blacksmith to make a plane, she quickly stopped him.
"Save some money first, save some money first." Yu was really afraid that she would spend all the money. "We'll buy a plane when we earn more money."
Ye Jia simply felt that it would take forever to cut so many radishes. A planer would not only save time but also improve efficiency. However, leaving no money on the table was indeed a bit excessive.
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law worked hard all morning and got home, busy as hell.
We have to go to the tile market early tomorrow morning to shred the radishes and make the pancakes. Otherwise, we won't be able to make it in time tomorrow morning. We have so many radishes to wash, blanch, and mix with the filling. There is too much work for one person to handle. Even Rui Jieer came out and squatted by the small basin, wiping the radishes with her small hands. Ye Jia wiped the water off her clothes, turned around, went to the east room, and carried the injured person on the bed to the yard.
Yu was still washing radishes in the yard when she saw Zhou Jingchen being carried out by Ye Jia. She opened her mouth wide, not knowing what to say.
"Everyone has to work, and you can't rest."
Zhou Jingchen: "..." Since waking up, this wife with a patchy memory has broken his cognition several times. From being dragged and unable to react at first to now accepting it calmly, it has only been four days.
He didn't feel offended. He sat down on the stool and asked, "What do you want me to do?"
"Can you shred radish?" Yu's knife skills were poor, so she could only shred radishes. Ye Jia's palms ached from cutting radishes. She turned around and brought the shredded radish over, confidently asking the strong laborer, "How do you cut it like this?"
The spring sunshine shone on the strong laborer's shoulders, making his eyes and eyebrows shine: "Yes."
That's fine, Ye Jia handed him a large kitchen knife. She turned and went to blanch the radish on the stove. The radish needed to be blanched and wrung dry before the seasoning was added. This was her first attempt, so Ye Jia didn't dare make too many. She only made about a hundred. And, not to mention, Zhou Jingchen, the villain who probably spent most of his time chopping heads off, could shred radish even faster than she did.
We had shredded radish pancakes for dinner. Fresh from the pan, they were much more delicious than warmed up. Yu's hesitation settled after eating a piping hot shredded radish pancake. Each member of the family had a delicious shredded radish pancake, while Zhou Jingchen continued to drink his porridge.
Zhou Jingchen: "...I should be able to drink something else now, right?"
"Sure," Ye Jia felt guilty and poured him a bowl of goat milk. "Drink this."
Zhou Jingchen: “…”
The next day, before daybreak, Ye Jia and Yu Shi were up and on their way. They had to hurry to the tile market; if they arrived late, they wouldn't get a good seat. Ye Jia had borrowed a wheelbarrow the previous night. They piled their belongings onto it and trudged into town in the dark.
Luckily, there were more people in Wa City this time than last time. A group of people crowded in front of Luzhai, waiting for the strong man guarding the gate to strike the gong.
Yu was a little timid, but she couldn't retreat, thinking that the lifeblood of her family was at stake. She straightened her back again. She wanted to remind Ye Jia to push the things a little further in, so that they could get a good spot in Kailu Village. But she turned around and saw Ye Jia pushing the wheelbarrow to the side, unloading the stove, lighting a fire, and setting up the pot.
"Jia Niang, what are you doing?" Yu Shi didn't expect Ye Jia to be so anxious, and hurried over.
"Business." Ye Jia lit the stove and scooped a spoonful of oil into the frying pan. A gust of wind blew, and the fragrant aroma of oil wafted into the air. She opened her backpack and spread the shredded radish pancakes she had made the night before onto the oil. The sizzling aroma of fried starch wafted out, drawing the eager eyes of the merchants guarding Luzhai.
"Mom, hurry up," Ye Jia said with a smile, "Put out the small bowl and bamboo basket for money. We're going to start doing business."
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