The Family Had Split, Why Should I Care if They Go Broke? - Chapter 34

“Xu Zhichun, these potatoes and sweet potatoes really do look pretty good. How about this—you sell us twenty jin of sweet potatoes and twenty jin of potatoes? What do you think? Once you’ve planted your fields and have extra, you can sell us more.”

Since Chief Uncle himself said so, Xu Zhichun naturally couldn’t refuse. After thinking for a moment, she nodded with a smile, “Alright, twenty jin it is. When Xiaoyan and the others return, I’ll ask them to bring it over.”

“Good.”

Chief Liang was satisfied. Chuckling, he fetched the land deeds and handed them to her. “Take these home and keep them safe. Those two plots of land are yours now.”

Both deeds bore the bright red official seals of the government. Though thin sheets of paper, they carried all her hopes. Holding them in her hands filled her with a sense of security.

“Thank you, Chief Uncle.”

Xu Zhichun smiled brightly, carefully folded the two deeds, and tucked them safely into her chest.

“Oh yes, Chief Uncle, I want to hire a few people to clear the land quickly so I can plant. I’ll pay twenty-five wen per day, hire six people, and get the land fully cleared in three days. It needs to be even, with no tree roots left. I plan to ask Uncle Yang Ming, Brother Mingjia from Third-Uncle Liang’s family, and Sister Chunfen from Uncle Liang Dong’s family. Could you suggest who else might be suitable? They need to be hardworking and dependable.”

Twenty-five wen a day was no small sum. With six people, the job could be done in three days—that’s seventy-five wen total. Many people who went to the city to do temporary labor worked themselves half to death for a whole month and still might not make a hundred wen.

If word got out about this pay, plenty of people would fight to do the work. Xu Zhichun deliberately asked him to recommend three people, giving him a chance to hand out favors.

Chief Liang felt quite pleased. Truth be told, he felt respected.

That kind of thoughtfulness was rare.

If his third son’s family hadn’t already made plenty by following Xu Zhichun, he would have been tempted to let his second son take a spot. But after some thought, he reluctantly gave her the names of three honest, hardworking, and relatively poor families.

Xu Zhichun smiled and agreed.

“Oh, one more thing,” Chief Liang couldn’t help but add, “Liang Dong’s Chunfen is a bit of a simple girl, but she’s very strong. I’d say there’s probably no man in the village who can beat her in strength. But since you’re hiring all men, with just one girl, wouldn’t that look a little odd?”

Simple-minded as she was, her strength was undeniable—absolutely a top hand for clearing land. Still, she was a girl. Though, to be fair, hardly anyone in the village considered her the same as other young women.

Xu Zhichun replied, “I’ll speak with Uncle Liang Dong and Auntie first. If they don’t agree, I’ll find someone else.”

Uncle Liang Dong and his son both had weak health, though they were honest folk. Clearing land was heavy labor—if they felt obliged to work themselves too hard for the pay and injured themselves, that would be bad.

That was why Xu Zhichun thought of hiring Liang Chunfen instead.

Chief Liang nodded, feeling it reasonable. “Alright then, go speak with them first.”

Xu Zhichun took her leave and, on the way, stopped by the households to tell them about the job.

Nobody disliked the idea of twenty-five coins a day; they thanked her repeatedly and promised to get the job done properly. The land was also close by—just on the hillside behind Xu Zhichun’s home, where the clearing work would be done.

Xu Zhichun arrived at Liang Dong’s house. His wife, Lady Xu, was busy with housework at home, while the others were out working.

Seeing Xu Zhichun, she was taken aback for a moment, then quickly wiped her hands and warmly invited her inside to sit.

Xu Zhichun’s own fiery enthusiasm made her a little bit embarrassed. She quickly smiled and explained the purpose of her visit.

Lady Xu was overjoyed. Without hesitation, she laughed and said, “It’s rare for someone to think of my simple-minded girl. For clearing land, you’ve definitely found the right person! Don’t worry, don’t worry, she’ll go—of course she’ll go. My girl’s got tremendous strength, stronger than most men. Leave the heavy work to her with confidence.”

Xu Zhichun couldn’t help but feel amused and exasperated at her enthusiasm. “Then I’ll leave it to you, Auntie. Please send her over tomorrow morning.”

“Of course, of course! She’ll definitely be there!”

Even after Xu Zhichun left, Lady Xu remained excited for quite a while, bustling around the house full of energy.

Her simple-minded daughter had a huge appetite. Meals had to be cooked separately for her, with extra vegetables and beans mixed in, and still, she often complained of being hungry. As her mother, Lady Xu, had no choice but to boil beans, taro, and other coarse grains to fill her up.

She even had to do it behind her daughter-in-law’s back, worried that if her daughter-in-law found out, she’d be upset.

She didn’t blame her daughter-in-law either—who would be happy to have a silly girl at home who ate so much? With her daughter’s appetite, it would be difficult to ever find a good family willing to marry her.

She didn’t dare promise her to a poor household either, for fear her daughter might starve after marriage if she couldn’t get enough to eat.

What good was great strength, anyway? In the countryside, there was only so much farm work to be done. People with less strength could manage just as well.

During idle times, she sent her daughter up the mountain to dig wild yams—they were filling enough to at least keep her belly satisfied.

She never expected Xu Zhichun would come to hire her daughter for land-clearing. Lady Xu was genuinely happy—seventy-five coins! Plus, with the lantern fruits they gathered, it meant her simple-minded girl was finally earning money for the family. Now, when cooking for her, she could add an extra handful of coarse rice without feeling guilty.

When Zeng Xiaoyan and the others came back from digging konjac, Xu Zhichun happily brought out a plate of freshly steamed sweet potatoes and potatoes. “Come, come, they’re still hot—hurry and taste! These potatoes and sweet potatoes seemed a lot like taro to me, and since taro can be steamed, I figured these could too. I tried it out, and sure enough, they’re delicious. Come taste them!”

Her explanation was completely reasonable—she couldn’t have sounded more confident.

“Really? Let me see how good it is.”

“They were so sweet raw—steamed, they must be even sweeter, right?”

“So soft! Wow, so sweet, much sweeter than eating them raw!”

“Mm, mm, I agree. This is the sweet potato, right? Delicious!”

“I think steamed potatoes taste even better. They’re not as sweet, but they’re soft and fluffy, with a light fragrance.”

“Haha, I like them all!”

“Come on, who wouldn’t like them?”

“Hahaha.”

After just one bite, it felt like a divine revelation.

They had some hesitation before, but now they were completely won over.

Even if you didn’t cook them into dishes, just steaming them was good enough.

And they were sweet!

Rounded up, it was basically like eating food with sugar added!

And sugar was precious!

“Sister-in-law Zhichun, Sister-in-law Zhichun, my family wants to plant them too.”

“I want some too—make sure you save a share for me!”

Xu Zhichun didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Don’t worry, don’t worry. There’s plenty, and I won’t leave anyone out.”

Zeng Xiaoyan quickly added, “If you figure out any other ways to cook them, don’t forget to tell us.”

“Right, right, right.”

“Of course.”

Sweet potatoes aside, potatoes themselves were a crop with endless possibilities. There were countless ways to cook them—it wasn’t like everyone had to wait for her to experiment. Whoever had them in their hands would quickly figure out plenty of recipes.

Aunt Zhu’er sighed with emotion. “Those two merchants really were good people. They didn’t trick you. Zhichun, you’re really lucky.”

Zeng Xiaoyan nodded in agreement. “Exactly. In these times, it’s rare to meet honest merchants from the outside.”

“…”

Xu Zhichun coughed lightly, a little guilty, then put on a serious face. “You’re right.”

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