As the saying goes, good news doesn't travel far, but bad news travels fast.
Not long after, news of Chen Zhancai selling his wife reached Nanshan Village.
Upon hearing this news, the villagers all cursed Chen Zhancai for being ungrateful and a heartless ingrate.
"Hey, have you heard? It seems that the scholar has sold Ruhua."
"real?"
"That's right! I went to town to sell eggs the day before yesterday and saw Ruhua. She was with Wang Laowu, who sells tofu in town."
I asked her what happened, but she stammered and couldn't give a clear answer. Later, I heard from the butcher next door that it was Wang Laowu's new wife, and that she might have dried up.
“You’re right, I’ve seen it too. Ruhua has changed a lot. Before, when she was in our Nanshan Village, she worked so hard to make sure Old Man Chen and his wife had enough to eat that she became dark and thin. But now she looks fair and clean, just like a young wife. She’s much happier than when she was in the Chen family.”
"According to you, Ru Hua has finally gotten over her hardships and found happiness."
"Yes. That's right, it's better to follow anyone than to follow Chen Zhancai."
"Who says otherwise? That scoundrel is utterly despicable, he even sold his wife, and he's supposed to be a scholar."
“Selling his wife is nothing compared to the suffering of Old Man Chen and his wife. They are now struggling to make ends meet and are so hungry that they don’t even have the strength to walk.”
"You mean Chen Zhancai doesn't even care about his own parents anymore?"
"That's right. A few days ago, that old couple went to town to ask Chen Zhancai for money to buy grain. That heartless guy gave them a few copper coins and then chased them back."
“Fugui, what exactly happened? Tell me in detail.”
Everyone looked on with curiosity and pricked up their ears.
"As you all know, ever since my wife stopped working for Qingya, I went to town to find odd jobs. That day, I happened to be working at that restaurant, and I saw Chen Zhancai order two ounces of beef, a plate of dumplings, and a small pot of wine. He ate with great relish."
After he finished eating and left, I finished my work and wanted to say hello to him, but before I could catch up with him, I saw Mr. and Mrs. Chen walking towards me.
I quickly hid behind a tree by the roadside and heard everything they said clearly.
"You don't know..." Liang Fugui recounted Chen Zhancai's actions from beginning to end.
Upon hearing this, everyone began to criticize.
"Chen Zhancai is such a scoundrel. He eats and drinks the good life himself, but he doesn't give anything to his parents."
"That's right, he's a complete beast. Back then, the Chen family's old couple really sold everything they owned to support his education, and now look what happened, he's been hung on the wall."
"There's always a reason why someone is pitiful. This old couple brought it on themselves; they deserve it!"
"That being said, surely the eldest and second eldest sons of the Chen family wouldn't really just watch their old couple starve to death?"
"If I were Zhan Shan or Zhan Liang, I definitely wouldn't care. Since we chose the third son, we have to swallow the bitter pill now and can't blame anyone else."
"Alright, alright, Da Bao's here, let's all keep quiet!"
The sixth brother's wife made a shushing gesture, and the crowd immediately quieted down.
"Dabao, are you going to deliver goods again?"
Da Bao was already used to the questions from the villagers at the entrance. He drove the carriage and replied with a smile, "I'm going to town to take care of some business. Talk to you all later."
"Okay, get back to work!"
Watching Da Bao drive the carriage away into the distance, the crowd began to discuss it again.
"Fortunately, Qingya encouraged us to plant sugar beets. My family had a bumper sugar beet harvest this year. I was worried that they wouldn't buy them, but I didn't expect to sell them all. We sold them for several times more than we did in previous years when we grew crops."
"My family too, we're sure to have a good New Year this year!"
"That's right, I've already decided that next year I'll plant all the land in my family's fields with sugar beets, and I'm just waiting to make a fortune."
"Yes, yes, that's what we think too."
Everyone chimed in...
Qingshui Town.
Chen Qingqing was busy at Jishetang as usual when she looked up and saw Da Bao walk in.
"Da Bao, what brings you here?"
"Sister Qingqing, I came to see you and brought you this month's profits."
"No rush, let's go inside and sit down to rest."
"good."
As they spoke, the two entered the inner room.
Chen Qingqing poured Da Bao a cup of tea. Da Bao took the cup and drank a few mouthfuls before saying, "Sister, you don't know yet, do you? Chen Zhancai sold Ru Hua."
Chen Qingqing smiled faintly, "I know. Wang Laowu, who makes tofu in the north of town, has been doing well for a while now. I saw Ruhua when I went to the market to buy vegetables the other day. She seems to be doing well and has escaped her misery. It's better than following Chen Zhancai."
"Yes, she is much better than Chen Zhancai. But then again, Chen Zhancai is really vicious. How could he do such a despicable thing?"
Chen Qingqing chuckled softly. The elderly couple of the Chen family had placed all their hopes on Chen Zhancai, but now it had all come to nothing, and they would likely face many more troubles in the future.
"This is not surprising for someone who only knows how to take and never shows gratitude. Perhaps something even more surprising is yet to come!"
"You mean Grandpa and Grandma?" Da Bao frowned slightly and pondered for a moment. "They've been quite quiet lately. Ever since they found out that Ru Hua was sold, Grandma has stopped running around the streets. Grandpa doesn't even have the confidence to walk anymore. When he sees people in the village, he either lowers his head or walks around them. It's quite unpleasant to see. I guess after this incident, he's seen through Chen Zhancai."
"You reap what you sow; every cause has its effect. They deserve all of this. If they don't suffer a bit, how will they realize their mistakes?"
“That’s right, they should be given a wake-up call.” Chen Dabao said, taking out an account book from his cloth bag and changing the subject, “Sister Qingqing, this is the profit account of all the prefectures and counties, take a look first.”
Chen Qingqing took the ledger, opened it, and her eyes widened in surprise. "Ningjing's profits are actually this much silver."
Chen Dabao nodded seriously, "Yes, Sister Qingqing, not only Ningjing, but also Anyang, Fengyang, Guangyuan, Nan'an and other places have earned so much money. If you look further, the profits in the capital are even more unexpected. In less than a month, the sales have surpassed all other regions."
Chen Qingqing looked at it carefully and couldn't help but sigh, "As expected of the capital, the sales volume is extraordinary. You'd better think about how to expand the production scale now, otherwise the supply will fall short of demand."
“Sister Qingqing, you’re right. I’ve signed another supply agreement with Zheng Zhong, asking him to encourage the local people to expand sugar beet cultivation. Secondly, I’ve also signed purchase agreements for sugar beets with villages and towns around Anyang. I came here today to discuss with you that I want to expand production and buy that vacant land on the west side of the village to build a sugar-making workshop that’s even bigger than our sugar mill.”
Da Bao briefly explained his plan...
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