SLH | Chapter 25

Strolling Through Lianxi Town

After some investigation, Song Tingzhu got a good grasp of the prices in Lianxi Town. White rice and fine flour range from thirty to seventy wen, while coarse rice and rough flour cost only five to eight wen per jin. A jin of pork costs thirty-five wen, which is about as much as Liu Hu earns in a day’s work.

Clothing is even more expensive. Most warm fabrics start at one tael of silver and go up from there. Ordinary folks can only afford linen, stuffing it with reeds and straw to make a winter coat that keeps the cold out.

Song Tingzhu was taken aback. He finally understood why his husband’s clothes always felt so prickly. It turned out they were stuffed with dried straw instead of cotton.

“Sister-in-law’s husband, we’re here at Chunhui Hall,” Liu Xiaomei tugged at his sleeve.

Song Tingzhu snapped back to reality, leading Xia Ge’er into the clinic. The shopkeeper of Chunhui Hall, surnamed Fang, was in his early forties. Upon seeing the herbs in the basket, he exclaimed, “Wow, husband, these herbs are really well-prepared. It’s rare to see such clean herbs. Yesterday, a few women came to sell herbs, and theirs still had mud mixed in.”

Liu Xiaomei whispered, “It’s the aunties and grannies from the village. I saw them heading to town with baskets yesterday.”

Song Tingzhu nodded and asked the shopkeeper with a smile, “Shopkeeper Fang, does your clinic buy these herbs?”

Shopkeeper Fang replied, “Of course, only a fool wouldn’t buy such clean herbs.” He weighed the basket, “Just over ten jin, subtracting the weight of the bamboo basket, it’s about nine jin and four liang. We pay 7 wen per jin for plantain herbs. Since yours are so clean, we don’t have to process them a second time, so I’ll add an extra wen, making it 73 wen in total. Does that sound right to you, husband?”

Liu Xiaomei widened her eyes suspiciously, “Aren’t you going to weigh it?”

Shopkeeper Fang chuckled, “Little girl, I’ve been buying herbs for over twenty years and never made a mistake. But if you don’t trust me, we can weigh it.”

He called over an apprentice to bring the scale. The scale beam rose high, and Shopkeeper Fang squinted with a proud expression, “See, I even gave you an extra half liang.”

He intended to show off, but Liu Xiaomei was busy counting the copper coins, and Song Tingzhu was sorting the herbs. Only Xia Ge’er, with his bright eyes, cheered, “Wow, Grandpa is amazing~”

Shopkeeper Fang, seeing how cute Xia Ge’er was, bent down to tease him, “What’s your name, tell Grandpa, and Grandpa has some pastries for you.”

“My name is Liu Xia’er.”

“So you’re little Xia Ge’er.” Shopkeeper Fang took an osmanthus cake from a nearby box, “Here, take it and enjoy.”

“Thank you, Grandpa~”

“You’re welcome.”

When Song Tingzhu finished, he turned to see Xia Ge’er standing behind him, carefully holding a piece of osmanthus cake, staring at it without eating, and drooling.

“Why aren’t you eating, Xia Ge’er?”

He had been watching Xia Ge’er and saw when Shopkeeper Fang gave him the cake.

Xia Ge’er smiled, “I want to share it with Uncle and Aunt.”

Song Tingzhu’s heart warmed. He patted the little guy’s slightly messy bun, thinking he should learn to style Xia Ge’er’s hair more nicely.

“The little guy is really considerate. Unlike my kid, who’s seven this year and only cares about eating and drinking, not caring if his parents are hungry or thirsty.” Shopkeeper Fang shook his head and sighed, “If my Chun Ge’er were half as sensible as Xia Ge’er, I’d be content.”

Shopkeeper Fang liked Xia Ge’er a lot and wrapped two more pieces of cake for him to share with his uncle and aunt.

Song Tingzhu didn’t stop him. Shopkeeper Fang ran a clinic, and a few pastries wouldn’t matter to him. If he refused, it would seem pretentious, so he accepted them graciously.

Fang Wanfang, seeing this, took another look at Song Tingzhu. Such a handsome young man was rare even in town, and he had the demeanor of a scholar. He seemed like he came from a wealthy family that had fallen on hard times, which is why he ended up in Lianxi Town.

Nearby, two apprentices whispered to each other.

“The shopkeeper is really generous. Those are pastries from Sifang Zhai, each piece costs seven or eight wen, and he gave away three at once. It makes my heart ache just watching.”

“Our shopkeeper is a fool with money, you know that.” The younger apprentice smacked his lips, reminiscing, “Last time, the young master gave me half a piece of Sifang Zhai’s pastry. It was so delicious, it melted in my mouth. I almost wanted to swallow my tongue with it.”

Seeing his companion’s frantic eye twitches, he asked, “What’s wrong with you, got an eye twitch?”

“…”

The long-faced apprentice gave him a “good luck” look and quickly ran off to the courtyard with the newly received herbs.

Only then did the little apprentice realize something was wrong. He turned his stiff neck to see the shopkeeper standing behind him, hands on his hips, not knowing how long he’d been there.

Fang Wanfang rolled up his sleeves, gritting his teeth, “You think I’m a fool with money, huh? Haven’t disciplined you in a few days, and now you’re talking behind my back. Today, I’m going to teach you a lesson.”

“Ahhh, the shopkeeper at Chunhui Hall is hitting people!”

Song Tingzhu had just put away his purse when he heard a scream from inside the clinic.

“Don’t worry about it, little husband. This happens at Chunhui Hall every now and then. All the shops around here are used to it.”

The tavern owner’s wife next door said, bringing out a small stool to sit at the door and watch the commotion.

Song Tingzhu nodded to her, then took Xia Ge’er and Liu Xiaomei to North Street.

North Street was bustling, with many places for labor work. Many overseers in town would come to North Street to hire workers.

“But most of them are labor jobs. My elder brother found his current job here, but my second brother hasn’t been lucky and hasn’t found stable work for a while.”

Song Tingzhu listened to her while looking around. North Street was full of shops, and if you weren’t careful, you’d be scammed by vendors. If you went back to confront them, they’d deny it, and without evidence, you’d have no choice but to swallow the loss.

Liu Xiaomei had been scammed by a well-dressed woman before. The woman sold her a ribbon, claiming it was made of silk, but when she got home, she found it had been swapped for linen, costing her three or four wen. She was so angry she couldn’t eat for days.

Song Tingzhu found it both amusing and helpless. Passing by a ribbon stall, he asked the price, found it reasonable, and let Xiaomei and Xia Ge’er each pick one.

Xia Ge’er clapped his hands, very happy, but Liu Xiaomei hesitated.

“Sister-in-law’s husband, maybe we shouldn’t buy this. It’s a bit expensive. At the market on West Street, you can get two for one wen.”

“It is a bit pricey, but this style isn’t available on West Street.”

Song Tingzhu turned to the old lady and picked a pink one.

Little girls love beauty, often pinning pretty flowers in their hair, especially favoring pink. He had noticed the little girl frequently eyeing this ribbon, so he chose it for her.

Liu Xiaomei was happy to receive the ribbon, but she thought her sister-in-law’s husband was spending too much money. They had only walked two streets, and nearly half of the copper coins they earned from picking herbs were already spent. If she didn’t stop him, they’d be broke before leaving North Street.

“Old lady, how much for these yellowed white hemp papers?”

Liu Xiaomei sighed, here we go again.

“Huh? What did you say? I can’t hear you.”

Song Tingzhu raised his voice, “Are you selling these papers?”

“You mean the paper? Yes, twenty copper coins for all of them.”

Twenty wen! So expensive!

Liu Xiaomei quickly pulled her sister-in-law’s husband back.

“We only have forty wen left, and we don’t have a use for paper at home. Let’s not waste money.”

Song Tingzhu said, “Why wouldn’t we need it? You’re starting to learn characters with Ning Ge’er soon. How can you do that without paper and pen?”

With that, he handed over the copper coins.

“Little husband, keep it safe. This paper is good, just yellowed from moisture. If it weren’t for my grandson refusing to use it, I wouldn’t have brought it out to sell.”

It was indeed good paper. He had just visited the bookstore in town, where the cheapest yellow hemp paper cost seventy wen, and slightly better white hemp paper was twenty wen more expensive.

It’s often said that it’s hard for poor families to produce successful children. Studying costs so much money, how many families can afford it?

Song Tingzhu sighed inwardly, took the wrapped hemp paper from the old lady, and thanked her, “Thank you, old lady.”

“Huh? Do you want anything else?”

“No, we’re leaving now, old lady.”

Turning to see Xiaomei looking at him like a spendthrift, he couldn’t help but smile.

He said to the little girl with a smile, “You have to spend to gain, and I’m buying what we need right now, not wasting a single coin.”

Liu Xiaomei pouted, “Was buying a dough figurine for Xia Ge’er necessary too?”

Even the cheapest dough figurine cost three wen, which could buy a big meat bun, filling and delicious, better than buying a dough figurine.

Song Tingzhu looked at Xia Ge’er’s face full of smiles and said warmly, “If it makes someone happy, then it’s necessary.”

Spending money can make people happy.

Liu Xiaomei muttered in her heart, but fortunately, her sister-in-law’s husband finally restrained himself and stopped spending money recklessly.

The three of them left North Street and headed to the West Market to find Ruan Xiulian and Tang Chunxing.

When they emerged from the alley, Song Tingzhu nearly stumbled, but Liu Xiaomei quickly caught him.

“Uncle…” Xia Ge’er looked up, his little face full of worry.

“It’s nothing.” He forced a smile to reassure them, “I’m just a bit tired from walking.”

He hadn’t felt tired earlier, distracted by the various market calls, but now he felt his legs were weak. He sat on a stone by the wall to rest for a bit, then felt better.

He got up and said, “Let’s go find Mother and Sister-in-law.”

The West Market wasn’t far from North Street, just a short walk away.

“How can you be so greedy? Celery isn’t a rare item. Others sell it for two copper coins a bunch, why are you selling it for three?”

“Why can’t I sell it for three? My celery is clean, without a speck of dirt, just rinse it and it’s ready to cook. And I’ve added a few radishes, which would cost half a coin on their own.”

Just as the three arrived at the West Market, they saw Ruan Xiulian arguing with someone over vegetable prices.

The old woman wanted to buy pre-cleaned vegetables but didn’t want to spend the money, so she tried to haggle, but her words were unpleasant, and Ruan Xiulian wasn’t one to be bullied, so she retorted immediately.

Tang Chunxing chimed in, “Wanting convenience without spending money, do you think all the good things in the world are just for you?”

The old woman couldn’t argue with two people. She wanted to take advantage but ended up causing a scene, drawing disdainful looks from other women buying vegetables.

“Isn’t that Granny Miao? Here to get a bargain again? Too bad you picked the wrong person. Xiulian isn’t one to be bullied.”

“If it’s too expensive, buy the cheaper ones. There are plenty of vendors at the market. Some don’t even charge money.”

This was a jab, implying she only deserved to eat unsellable wilted greens!

Granny Miao’s face fell, turning as dark as a pot’s bottom.

“Move aside if you’re not buying. This celery looks fresh and clean. Give me two bunches, and half a bunch of chives for dumplings.”

“This radish looks good. I’ll take one.”

“Do you have any more mustard greens? Wild mountain greens are the best for buns, so fragrant.”

Granny Miao’s fuss attracted more business, and the two baskets of vegetables Ruan Xiulian and Tang Chunxing brought were sold out in no time. Even the slightly wilted ones left behind were sold cheaply.

Once the crowd dispersed, Song Tingzhu led Xia Ge’er over.

“Mother, Sister-in-law.” Liu Xiaomei eagerly picked up the bamboo basket, happy, “Thanks to that old lady, our vegetables sold out so quickly.”

Ruan Xiulian beamed, “Indeed, if we could sell this fast every time, it’d save us so much effort.”

“Mother, carry me.” Xia Ge’er reached out to Tang Chunxing.

The little guy was tired from walking. Song Tingzhu had wanted to carry him, but Xia Ge’er refused, letting Liu Xiaomei carry him for a while. Worried about tiring his aunt, he insisted on walking himself after less than a quarter of an hour. Now, seeing his mother, he pouted and acted spoiled.

Tang Chunxing bent down to pick up her son, playfully tweaking his nose, “Aren’t you ashamed? You’re four and still want to be carried by your mother.”

The little guy buried half his face in Tang Chunxing’s embrace, hugging her neck, “Not ashamed, Xia Ge’er is tired. When I grow up, I’ll carry Mother.”

Tang Chunxing felt warm inside but said, “Sure, but by the time you grow up, I’ll be too old. I can’t afford that embarrassment.”

The group chatted and laughed as they left the market.

“Old Peng, when are you heading back?”

At the town entrance, Ruan Xiulian called to Old Peng, who was adjusting his ox cart.

“Just about to leave. With you all, the cart’s just full.”

“Alright.” Ruan Xiulian turned to her son-in-law, “Tingzhu, you take Xiaomei and Xia Ge’er to sit. I’ll walk back with your sister-in-law.”

Tang Chunxing didn’t mind. It was just a short walk, and chatting with her mother-in-law made the time fly by.

“Let’s all sit. It’s just a few coins.” Song Tingzhu took out some copper coins from his purse and paid for everyone.

There were already a few women on the ox cart, unfamiliar faces, likely from another village. One of them, very friendly, greeted them warmly.

“Big sister, are you from Yunxi Village? We’re from Shanghe Village. There’s a happy event at home, so we’re in town to buy things.”

Ruan Xiulian climbed onto the cart, nodding, “Congratulations, sister.”

The women were holding red paper, their faces full of joy, clearly indicating a wedding in the family.

The woman’s smile widened, “Thank you, big sister.”

Song Tingzhu took off his basket and held it in front of him. The contents weren’t covered, catching the woman’s eye.

“Oh, you bought paper and pens. Do you have a child studying at the academy?”

She hadn’t meant to pry, but the young man was so striking that her gaze lingered, and she noticed the contents. Being straightforward, she asked without fear of misunderstanding.

Seeing this, her companion quickly intervened, “Don’t be upset, sister. She means no harm, just excited about her daughter’s wedding.”

Ruan Xiulian waved her hand, “It’s nothing to get upset over.”

Then she looked at Song Tingzhu, her tone full of pride, “We don’t have anyone studying at the academy. It’s my son-in-law. He’s literate and will start teaching the younger ones to read tomorrow.”

The women were shocked.

“What, your son-in-law can read?!”

“If he can read, he must be able to write, right? Sister, aren’t we still missing a ceremony teacher?”

“Not necessarily. My eldest nephew knows a few characters, but he can’t write.”

“He must be able to write. He’s even bought paper and pens.”

They were loud enough for even Old Peng at the front to hear, let alone those sitting on the cart.

Song Tingzhu held his basket with a smile. He was interested in taking on the job for some extra money, but given his health, it wasn’t appropriate to appear at a wedding, so he explained truthfully when asked.

Hua Er’niang, hearing this, became even more enthusiastic.

“We’re not superstitious. I heard them call you Tingzhu, so I’ll do the same. Tingzhu, I’m asking a favor. My daughter is getting married the day after tomorrow, and we need a ceremony teacher. We won’t let you work for free; we’ll pay you.”

Her attitude was almost pleading, making Song Tingzhu suspicious. He didn’t agree immediately but asked, “Auntie, as far as I know, there are many scholars in Shanghe Village. Why seek someone unfamiliar? Wouldn’t it be more convenient to find someone you know?”

Ruan Xiulian, hearing her son-in-law’s words, became cautious.

Tang Chunxing also eyed her suspiciously, thinking there must be a catch.

Seeing the deal about to fall through, Hua Er’niang decided to be honest, “You see, we have a grudge with those scholars.”

She sighed, “My Yuanshan was also studying at the town academy, along with two other boys he grew up with. I thought their bond was as strong as brothers, but then something happened that ruined my eldest’s reputation and made him a laughingstock in the area.”

A laughingstock?

Liu Xiaomei perked up her ears, and Tang Chunxing looked puzzled, “But I heard that man became simple-minded from a childhood fever.”

“They’re lying! He was beaten by the Zhao family!”

The accompanying women all wore faces full of resentment.

———————–

Author’s Note: Still a bit more to write, will update with 7000 words tomorrow~