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In short, being unreasonably aggressive and causing trouble, pointing fingers and berating others.
Jiang Youcheng knew the temperament of the second household and didn’t want to indulge them. He just tossed the meat he had onto the table and left.
He hurried back home for dinner.
“Look at that temper, bigger than anyone else’s. I just said a few words, and he started giving me a dirty look. How absurd!” Zhang Shi stood at the door, hands on her hips, grumbling. “Look at the piece of meat he gave, not even the size of a palm, barely enough to fill a gap in your teeth. Even a stray cat would probably turn its nose up at it. And he dares say it’s for helping Chunhe recover. Isn’t he afraid of having a guilty conscience?”
“They’ve earned so much from our basket weaving. We’re practically swimming in wealth, even hiring people. Living like a lord, yet he’s so stingy, refusing to give a bit more meat. The poorer you are, the tighter you clutch your purse. A complete miser…”
Zhang Shi’s furious rant left Wu shi too scared to show her face, hiding inside and feeding Jiang Chunhe his rice porridge.
Zhang Shi was extremely dissatisfied with the piece of meat Jiang Youcheng had just delivered. She wanted to throw it back to his place but couldn’t bring herself to do it. Instead, she left it on a table in the yard, made of green bricks and stone slabs.
“Meow!”
A plump and agile tabby cat leaped onto the wall in the darkness, then descended from a walnut tree along the wall and stealthily entered the yard. Catching a whiff of the aroma, it hopped onto the table and seized the piece of meat in one bite.
Zhang Shi continued her tirade, but as she turned around, she caught sight of the tabby cat stealing the meat. She hurriedly grabbed a stick and shooed it away, “Shoo, shoo, you little beast, sneaking in to steal meat. I’ll break your legs if you don’t scram!”
The tabby cat had already clamped onto the meat and naturally had no intention of letting go. Upon seeing Zhang Shi coming to shoo it away, it hastily dragged the meat, leapt off the table, and swiftly climbed the walnut tree before once more jumping onto the wall.
Before Zhang Shi could reach it, the tabby cat, with the meat in tow, had darted from the wall, vanishing into the darkness.
Seeing this, Zhang Shi rushed out and circled around to chase after it. But surrounded by pitch black, and with the cat’s speed, there was no trace of the tabby cat to be seen.
A perfectly good piece of meat, enough to make a bowl of stir-fry, enough for a few meals, all snatched away by a beast!
And this tabby cat seemed unfamiliar, not like a village cat. It was massive, resembling the wildcats found in the mountains.
What a stroke of bad luck, to have this happen!
Zhang Shi was so frustrated, she stomped her foot.
After a spell of autumn rain, the weather had turned cooler.
The workshop where the baskets were woven was gradually getting on track, and the three workers were becoming more proficient.
Jiang Banggu were getting accustomed to when to cut bamboo, how to saw it into various lengths, and which types of bamboo strips to split, having a good sense in mind.
Both Jiang Dongkou and Jiang Qiang were also making good progress in their learning. They were now able to make even and thin bamboo strips, and could weave the simplest and most basic bamboo baskets.
However, progress was slow.
The newcomers were just learning, and Jiang Youcheng and Song Jingyun, as their mentors, were extremely patient.
Song Jingyun, in particular, was even more patient than Jiang Youcheng, tirelessly demonstrating again and again until they both understood and became proficient.
Jiang Mixia couldn’t help but nod in appreciation as she observed these scenes. “Impressive. Very patient. You’ll make excellent mentors in the future.”
“I learned this from Chunyu,” Song Jingyun chuckled.
“He taught you?” Jiang Mixia was somewhat surprised.
She distinctly remembered that it was always Song Jingyun teaching him whenever they made something. Jiang Chunyu hadn’t taught Song Jingyun anything as far as she knew.
“Really, he did teach me,” Song Jingyun earnestly explained. “He said people like me are geniuses, capable of understanding anything at a glance, something ordinary people can’t compare to. Therefore, they find learning difficult.”
“I thought, since they find learning difficult and slow, they must be quite anxious. If I were to be impatient, we might end up arguing. So, I’d better be patient.”
“After all, I am a genius. I need to be more patient than ordinary people.”
Jiang Mixia paused for a moment, unsure whether to praise Song Jingyun for being patient and understanding or to say that Song Jingyun’s ego was getting out of hand.
Two days later, it was time to go to the county town to deliver the satchels.
Due to the family workshop, Jiang Youcheng and Liu Shi stayed to manage affairs at home, while Jiang Mixia and Song Jingyun went to Wen de Academy in the county town.
It had been previously arranged to deliver the goods today, so upon arrival, they informed the gatekeeper of the academy to have the students who had ordered the goods come to collect them.
Some who missed out on ordering waterproof satchels last time came looking to place orders with Jiang Mixia this time.
This kept them occupied well past lunchtime.
Most of those who wanted to buy the satchels had registered, but there were still two from the previous order who hadn’t shown up.
With the sun beginning to shift westward, the coachman Third UncleJiang urged, “We might not be able to wait much longer. If we delay further, we’ll be traveling back in the dark, and it’s not safe on the night roads. The cattle are also getting anxious, and it will be even later by the time we return.”
Jiang Mixia glanced at the sky. “Third Uncle, let’s wait another fifteen minutes. If they still don’t come, we’ll consider other options.”
Seeing Jiang Mixia’s response, Third Uncle Jiang nodded in agreement to wait a little longer.
At that moment, a student noticed that Jiang Mixia still had two satchels in hand and approached her. “It seems those two people won’t be coming today. How about you sell the satchels to me now, and when you come next time, you can supply them then?”
“I’m sorry,” Jiang Mixia replied. “We’ve made an agreement, and it’s best to deliver them today as promised. It wouldn’t be right to delay other people’s affairs.”
The student, bowing deeply to Jiang Mixia, said, “Madam, you are truly principled in keeping your promise. I have been presumptuous.”
“Not at all. You are simply considerate, not wanting me to wait here any longer, wishing for me to finish my business and return home early. There’s no other meaning to it.”
Seeing Jiang Mixia offer a way out, the student felt even more impressed by her pure-heartedness and her diplomatic nature.
“Thank you, Madam,” the student bowed again before departing.
After walking a few steps, he glanced back at Jiang Mixia. She may not have been outstanding in appearance, but there was a unique aura about her, something that ordinary people didn’t possess, truly remarkable.
As for the man beside her, likely her husband, he looked decent enough, with a refined appearance even more so than the students at the academy. However, he seemed a little absent-minded, leaving the business matters to his wife. It was indeed…
It’s said that flowers are often found growing on piles of cow dung, and it seemed to be the case here too.
Shaking his head in resignation, the student walked away.
Seeing this, Song Jingyun couldn’t help but scratch his ear. “Wife, why was that person shaking his head just now?”
Even the persistent rain couldn’t dispel the desolate feeling of autumn…