The sky was turning pale.
When Liang woke up, she opened her eyes and habitually turned her head to look beside her, only to find that the man was not there. She touched the bedding with her hand and found it to be cold.
Suddenly remembering the murderous look in his eyes last night, a chill ran down my spine. Oh no, he must have gone to settle scores with Erdanzi.
She quickly sat up, put on her clothes, and prepared to get out of bed, but hadn't even had time to put on her shoes yet.
Then I heard footsteps in the yard, and I felt relieved. It seemed I had been overthinking things.
She called out, "Fugui, where have you been so early?"
Hearing Liang's shouts, Liang Fugui didn't speak. He walked dejectedly into the house. He'd spent the whole night trying to steal the secret recipe and had almost been sent to the authorities.
He felt incredibly ashamed and embarrassed, and even contemplated suicide. But after wandering around all night, he couldn't bring himself to do it.
Seeing the man covered in mud and holding a kitchen knife, Liang's heart jumped again. "Fugui, what happened to you? Did you really chop Erdanzi up? Say something!"
Liang Fugui glanced at Liang Shi indifferently, feeling both guilty and remorseful. He had let his wife down. If he had listened to her, he wouldn't have been caught. Now everything was over.
He shook his head weakly, "Wife, I'm fine, I didn't kill anyone."
Liang's heart finally settled down. "So what did you go to do? Why were you carrying a kitchen knife? And what happened to get all muddy?"
Liang Fugui sighed in self-pity, "Alas, it's all over. That girl surnamed Chen is too clever for her. We are no match for her at all."
He then recounted how he went to find Erdanzi last night, how he got arrested, how he was almost sent to the county government by Chen Qingqing, and how Wu Baoan finally kept him there.
Upon hearing this, Madam Liang's expression immediately changed. "You damned bastard, I told you to shut up, but you wouldn't listen. What are we going to do now?"
"What should I do? How should I know what to do? I did all this so you could have a better life. How was I supposed to know Qing girl had so many tricks up her sleeve? Now you're blaming me? Why didn't you stop me when I said I wanted to go it alone?"
"Alright, is there any point in arguing about this now?" Madam Liang said, giving him a disgruntled look. "Raw sugar just won't sell right now. The only way is for us to go find Qingya and sell all the sweet vegetables we have to her. Only then will we be able to avoid having to beg for food."
"No, I don't agree." Liang Fugui refused without even thinking. "You find someone to continue making sugar. I'll go to town in a bit. I don't believe no one will want brown sugar that costs fifty coins a pound."
Knowing she couldn't persuade him otherwise, Madam Liang sighed helplessly and said nothing more.
Liang Fugui turned around, tidied himself up, and carried fifty catties of brown sugar to the town's market.
He found an open space, laid out the brown sugar, and began to loudly hawk his wares.
"Don't miss out! Top-quality brown sugar, only fifty coins a pound! This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity..."
As the sun rose higher and more and more people gathered in the market, he shouted until his throat was dry, but no one paid any attention.
Liang Fugui was unwilling to give up, refusing to believe that no one would recognize its value, and kept urging people to buy it...
Next to him was an old man selling eggs. He had brought a full basket of eggs that morning, but they were all sold out now.
Seeing that Liang Fugui hadn't opened for business yet, he couldn't help but speak up.
"Alright, young man, stop shouting. Everyone who comes here is a poor farmer. Who would spend fifty coins to buy a pound of brown sugar?"
These words were overheard by several women passing by, who then chimed in.
“That’s right. A pound of millet only costs three coins, enough for a family of four to eat for a day. Your brown sugar costs fifty coins a pound. Farmers don’t have the spare money to eat such expensive things. It would be better to use that money to buy some fine rice.”
"That's right, this stuff doesn't keep you full, so I'll feel more at ease if I buy more millet."
......
The old man selling eggs continued, "Did you hear that? Selling this stuff is completely useless. Even if you wait until dark, I doubt anyone will buy it. If you ask me, you'd be better off going to a restaurant or a bakery. Maybe you can sell it there."
Upon hearing this, Liang Fugui's eyes lit up, and he suddenly realized that such a precious item was probably too expensive for most people to afford in this bustling marketplace.
"Thank you for the reminder, sir. I'll go give it a try right away."
With that, he slung the brown sugar over his shoulder and headed towards the busiest street in Qingshui Town.
Arriving at the entrance of a restaurant of moderate size, Liang Fugui straightened his clothes, gave himself a pep talk, and then went inside.
"Shopkeeper, do you keep any of your best brown sugar? It's only fifty coins a pound."
"Do you have any white sugar? If it's fifty coins a pound, I'll keep twenty pounds," the shopkeeper said irritably.
Liang Fugui shook his head. "We don't have white sugar, but how about brown sugar? It's only fifty coins a pound, very cheap."
"No, no, it's not about the money. Get out of here and don't interfere with our business."
"Okay, I'll be going now."
After leaving the restaurant, Liang Fugui asked at several other restaurants and snack shops, but still no one bought anything.
He was not discouraged and went to town to sell brown sugar every day. More than ten days passed, but in the end, he did not sell a single pound of sugar.
That noon, Liang Fugui returned home looking exhausted, like a wilted eggplant.
When Liang saw the man return, she hurried forward and subconsciously glanced at the basket on his back.
She desperately hoped for a miracle, but the fifty pounds of brown sugar in her basket stung her eyes.
"If I can't do the housework and I can't sell the brown sugar, I can't make a living like this."
Liang Fugui had been subjected to a lot of cold treatment these past few days, and he was extremely irritable. He said bluntly, "Then you can go back to your mother's house. Who are you trying to impress with that sour face?"
"Who are you showing this to? I'm showing it to you. If it weren't for you, would our family be living like this?"
Liang could no longer control her emotions and vented her dissatisfaction.
"I told you, let's stop making sugar, but you wouldn't listen. Now look what's happened, the whole house is full of brown sugar. What are you going to do if people come knocking on the door demanding their wages!"
Liang Fugui felt a bitter taste in his mouth. He had overestimated himself. Now, the brown sugar at home couldn't be sold, and if he didn't hire more people to process the remaining sugar beets, they would rot sooner or later.
It's understandable that the wife would get angry when faced with these upsetting things.
His eyes were filled with tears, and he looked remorseful. "I'm sorry, my wife. I've dragged you and the children down with me."
......
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
