Chapter 53: Counting Copper Coins

On the way back, Cao Xiangnan was calculating in his mind. Their current ox cart was rented from someone in the village, which added up to a considerable amount of money each month. Not only was the ox cart slow, but they couldn’t rent it long-term; over time, it would cost too much.

If they could have their own means of transportation, that would be much more convenient. There was no doubt about it.

Cao Xiangnan moved over and chatted idly with Cao Gang, who was driving the cart. The person driving in front didn’t say anything, but he knew that this person was listening to him and was definitely thinking about how to deal with this problem. But all the problems boiled down to one issue: they didn’t have that much money. If they had that much money, they wouldn’t have to worry about these problems.

The sun was setting in the west, and the ox cart plodded along the road home.

With a little time to spare, Qi Wanfeng, who was staying at home to take care of the three children, wasn’t idle either. His An An was an obedient child, and Sun Bailian’s two boys, especially the mischievous younger one, were fine with his older brother looking after them.

In the morning, Qi Wanfeng had taken the three children to the fields, letting them play under the trees while he weeded the fields. When the sun was high in the sky, he took the children home, and after lunch, he sent them back to their rooms to sleep.

The noise in the house quieted down, and a smile appeared on Qi Wanfeng’s face. He went into the house to wipe the sweat from the three children and tucked them in before going out.

There was an open space in the yard. He had planned to turn over the soil and plant vegetables there for a long time, but he had been busy with one thing or another these days. They had even bought the vegetable seeds, but they hadn’t had time to turn over the soil and plant them. With a little time to spare, Qi Wanfeng came out and turned over the open space in the yard.

After planting the seeds and watering them, he wiped the sweat from his forehead, breathed a sigh of relief, and smiled as he looked at the small patch of land. They had chickens at home, so he had to fence off this area to prevent it from being ruined by the chickens.

Just as he was thinking about his husband who had gone to set up the stall in town, wondering if their business was good today and when they would be back, he heard the sound of an ox cart outside. Qi Wanfeng wondered if he had heard wrong.

“Wanfeng, we’re back!” Sun Bailian shouted as soon as he got off the cart.

Qi Wanfeng went to open the door and saw the people returning outside. Seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces, he had a good idea of how things had gone and asked, “How was business today? I was wondering when you would be back. I didn’t expect you to be back so soon.”

He was just about to make dinner, but he hadn’t even started yet.

“Guess,” Sun Bailian said with a smile, telling Qi Wanfeng.

“It must have been good,” Qi Wanfeng said, seeing Sun Bailian so happy, knowing that their business must have been good today. He went over to help his husband off the cart and then helped carry the things from the cart back to the yard.

Cao Gang drove the ox cart back to its owner, and they returned to the yard.

“The little ones are sleeping in the house, they haven’t woken up yet,” Qi Wanfeng said, pointing to the house.

“Let them sleep well. Were my two boys obedient today?” Sun Bailian hadn’t thought about his two boys all day. Now that he was back, he plopped down on a stool and patted his legs, without even going into the house to take a look at his two boys.

He was very relieved to have Qi Wanfeng take care of the children. Qi Wanfeng definitely took better care of them than he did. At the thought of having someone help him take care of the children in the future, Sun Bailian felt that partnering with Qi Wanfeng’s family to run the stall was the right thing to do.

Qi Wanfeng poured a bowl of water for his husband and Sun Bailian and said, “I didn’t know you would be back so early, so I haven’t cooked dinner yet. I thought you would be back later. You’ve been busy all day, so rest here for a while. I’ll go inside and cook dinner.”

It was about time anyway. If he had known they would be back so early, he would have started cooking dinner sooner.

Cao Xiangnan nodded. He was too tired after a day’s work to go into the kitchen and cook, so he let Wanfeng do it.

Cao Gang, who had driven the ox cart back to its owner, returned shortly after, and the little ones who were sleeping in the house also woke up.

Cao Xiangnan hadn’t seen his An An all day, and he was especially fond of him. He hugged him and kissed him several times. An An shyly covered his little face and called out in a soft, sweet voice, “A-die” [father], and kissed him on the face. “An An missed A-die too.”

Cao Xiangnan felt his whole heart melt.

The way the father and son were so affectionate made people’s teeth ache, and Qi Wanfeng, who was cooking in the kitchen, couldn’t help but smile.

Sun Bailian poked his head out to take a look and then went back to talk to Qi Wanfeng.

Cao Xiangnan took advantage of this time to check the children’s homework. He would point out the parts that the child couldn’t recite and have him continue to recite. Later, he taught the child arithmetic step by step, and Sun Bailian’s two boys also joined in to learn.

The second boy was lively and clever. Kang Kang was calm and steady. He learned things step by step, not as quickly as the two younger ones, but he wasn’t stupid either. He had the patience to learn.

Listening to Cao Xiangnan teaching the children, Cao Gang looked at Cao Xiangnan with a hint of curiosity in his eyes, but he hid the light in his eyes well and didn’t show it.

Smoke curled from the small kitchen, and soon the aroma of vegetables wafted out. Qi Wanfeng was stir-frying vegetables, and Sun Bailian was sitting on a small stool in front of the stove, watching the fire and telling Qi Wanfeng about their stall’s business today. Qi Wanfeng listened while stir-frying vegetables, with a smile on his face, and he was also looking forward to going there together tomorrow.

“Okay, everyone, come and eat!” Sun Bailian said as he carried the dishes out.

Qi Wanfeng was the last to come out of the kitchen. The people sitting outside were waiting for him, and they didn’t start eating until everyone was there.

After dinner, Cao Xiangnan took out the bucket they had used to collect the money, put it on the table, and opened the lid. He poured out the copper coins inside. The clinking sound was the most pleasant music in the world. “This is the fruit of our labor today.”

The number of copper coins was still quite considerable. In the end, there were more than two hundred copper coins, which was equal to more than two guan [strings of 1000 coins], almost three guan. Cao Xiangnan calculated today’s costs, and what was left was pure profit.

The pure profit was equal to half a month’s wages for Cao Xiangnan’s previous job, and this was only the money they had earned in one day.

“Wow, so much,” Sun Bailian said, his eyes widening and his mouth opening wide. He turned to look at his husband and asked, “Husband, is this real?”

“Yes,” the serious-faced man nodded earnestly.

Qi Wanfeng hadn’t gone today, so he didn’t know how good the stall’s business was. Now that he saw so much money, a smile appeared on his face. Seeing the smile on Qi Wanfeng’s face, Cao Xiangnan reached out and took his hand. He would fulfill all the promises he had made to this person, and this was just the beginning.

The three children were also seeing so many copper coins for the first time, but the concept of money was still very vague in the minds of the two younger ones. Only Kang Kang understood that this money was earned by his A-die and A-mu [father and mother] who had been out all day. His eyes were fixed on the pile of copper coins on the table.

“I have an idea now. I’ll tell you what I’m thinking, and see what you think,” Cao Xiangnan said, telling everyone about his idea of bringing Sun Ji in to work with them. He didn’t know much about Sun Ji, but from that brief contact the other day, he thought that Sun Ji was definitely a good material for doing business.

As for Cao Dapeng, he was an honest person. Because the other party had helped him once, Cao Xiangnan also wanted to give Cao Dapeng a hand. If his goals were gradually realized in the future, he would need more helpers.

Qi Wanfeng had no objections to what his husband said. He said, “If you think it’s good, then it’s good.”

The two families were now running the stall together, and Cao Xiangnan was the one who came up with most of the ideas, but before that, Cao Xiangnan would also ask everyone for their opinions. Sun Bailian glanced at his husband, knowing roughly what he meant, and then he said, “Yes, I think it’s feasible.”

“My cousin and Dapeng-ge [older brother] are both good people. My cousin went to school for a few years. He’s literate and smart. If it wasn’t for his A-mu being bedridden with illness all those years, the family’s few acres of land would have been sold to pay for doctors for his A-mu. He observed mourning for three years and only came out of mourning the year before last. He’s still unmarried. There’s an A-die in his family, and he still lives with his A-ye [grandfather] and A-mo [grandmother]. The two elders are both good people.”

Sun Bailian was more familiar with these two families. Sun Ji was his cousin, and the relationship between the two families had always been good. Back then, his cousin’s family had borrowed money from everyone to treat his A-mu’s illness, and his family had lent money to their family, and he himself had borrowed some money later. His cousin’s family still couldn’t pay back the money they had borrowed. If there was a way to earn money, his cousin would definitely be willing to come and work together.

His family and Cao Dapeng’s family were neighbors, living next to each other. Sun Bailian also told everyone about Cao Dapeng’s family situation. “His three brothers separated long ago and live their own lives. His A-die passed away a few years ago, leaving an A-mu living with them. The other two brothers aren’t easy to deal with. They’ve never even brought a couple of eggs to their A-mu during the holidays.”

Hearing what Sun Bailian said, Cao Xiangnan had a rough understanding of the two families. Thinking of those people in the Cao family courtyard, he was kicked out as soon as he fell ill. A family that would sell their land to pay for medical treatment for their family members couldn’t be too bad, and someone who could raise their A-mu was also filial. He then decided, “If there are no objections, shall we decide on this?” he asked. “Let’s vote by raising our hands. Please raise your hand if you agree.” Cao Xiangnan glanced at Cao Gang, who wasn’t speaking, wondering what he meant.

He raised his hand first, and the others, looking at his example, also raised their hands. So this became their first way of voting on problems in the future.

Everyone raised their hands, and no one was left out. It was passed unanimously.