Chapter 28: Thank You Gift for the Village Chief

In the morning, after finishing breakfast at the village chief’s house, Old Lady Su arrived with her second son Su Laoer, third son Su Laosan, and Li Sumei, following Zhang Hongzhuang to the door.

The village chief’s wife was somewhat reluctant to let them in, but Village Chief Wang Baorui guessed that they must have something to discuss with him. He asked his wife to take the family members to the back room to avoid them, while he went alone to greet the Su family in the main room. He exchanged pleasantries, saying, “Old sister, you’re here early. Have you eaten yet?”

“We’ve eaten. What about you, village chief?” Old Lady Su asked, smiling as she set down the basket. Inside were two fresh pieces of pork, weighing at least five jin, twenty eggs, and a large bowl of dumplings.

Old Lady Su smiled and said, “I’m really sorry to bother you so early, but you helped us with our household registration, and that was a huge favor. I simply must show my gratitude!”

“Yesterday, I sent two of my sons to the city to buy some things, and I kept these two pieces of pork belly aside for you. The dumplings were made by my third son’s wife, who chopped up some chives and mixed it with the pork lard we made yesterday. She got up early this morning to wrap them fresh. Village chief, please have a taste. It’s our homemade recipe. If it doesn’t taste good, don’t blame us.”

The dumplings were indeed freshly wrapped, and the aroma of chives, onions, ginger, and pork lard could be smelled even before they were cooked. Wang Baorui swallowed, immediately smiling and inviting them to sit. He poured Old Lady Su a cup of hot tea and spoke with more enthusiasm, “You’re too kind. Our bond from childhood is still there. You’ve worked hard to escape the famine and return to your homeland. If you have anything to say, just ask. If I can help, I certainly will.”

Due to the recent drought in the Central Plains, pork prices had risen. What used to cost 13 wen per jin now sold for 33 wen per jin. Eggs were also 2 wen each. This basket of eggs had twenty in total, and with the five jin of pork belly, it was enough for the whole family to enjoy a hearty meal.

Old Lady Su said, “It’s not a big deal. I just want to buy a few acres of land from you, with both land and a house. Only then can we live more securely. I went with Hongzhuang to look at the vacant land in the village earlier, and we think the plots near the pond are good.”

Compared to before, the amount of land opened up by Qing Shui Village over the past few years had increased significantly. However, most of the newly opened land had already been claimed, and now there was only poor land that couldn’t yield crops and very expensive, fertile land near water sources.

When Wang Baorui heard this, he smiled and said, “How many acres do you want to buy? If it’s three to five acres, I can make the decision. But if it’s more, we’ll need to hold a meeting and get approval from the village elders first.”

Before coming here, Old Lady Su had discussed it with her second son, third son, and Li Sumei. Due to the years of disaster, land prices had dropped. This was the best time to buy more, as they could either use it later or sell it when prices rose. If they divided the land later, there wouldn’t be enough for everyone, which could cause awkwardness and resentment.

So they had decided on a plan: buy forty acres of fertile land and sixty acres of poor land.

Additionally, Old Lady Su wanted to buy the pond, with the understanding that everyone in the village could use it for irrigation, but her family would have priority. They could also use the pond to raise fish, and it would be convenient for washing clothes.

Old Lady Su explained all these plans to Wang Baorui and then left his house to wait for news.

The village chief’s wife, who had been eavesdropping inside, came out after the Su family had left. She picked up a bucket of wood ash water and, while sprinkling it over where the Su family had been standing, muttered, “These refugees really think they’re big landowners now, wanting to buy so much land. Do they even have that kind of money? Not to mention, they want to buy our big pond too.”

That pond hadn’t dried up much during the drought and was worth a lot of money. At least fifty taels of silver would be needed to buy it.

Adding up the forty acres of fertile land, which was selling for ten taels of silver per acre (totaling four hundred taels of silver), and the sixty acres of poor land, which had dropped to one hundred wen per acre (totaling six taels of silver), it was clear that they would need a considerable amount of money.

“Alright, take these inside. Tonight, we’ll make braised pork for your parents and the kids.”

Wang Baorui handed the thank-you gift from the Su family to his wife and reminded her, “Don’t forget to return the basket and the bowl. We still need to give them back.”

“Got it. I wouldn’t want to take any small advantage from them, especially since they’ve brought such bad luck to the village,” the village chief’s wife grumbled. She carried the basket of goods into the kitchen, and after taking out the pork and eggs, she was surprised to find a ten-tael silver note at the bottom.

“Could this be the Su family’s thank-you gift to us?”

She thought she might be mistaken, but when she picked up the note and carefully wiped it off, she realized it was indeed a ten-tael silver note. Unsure what to do, she hurried to find Wang Baorui and told him everything she had just discovered.

Wang Baorui was also taken aback by the generosity of Old Lady Su. After thinking for a moment, he told his wife to take out a string of coins, totaling one tael of silver, in the form of one hundred wen, and went to visit the village elders.

……

After leaving the Wang family’s house, Old Lady Su, along with her sons and daughter-in-law, returned home. Zhang Hongzhuang had planned to go to the mountains to gather firewood, but Old Lady Su stopped him, saying, “Our big ginkgo tree is still in the yard, not divided yet. Hongzhuang, come help me with it. Stay for lunch.”

Zhang Hongzhuang quickly agreed. After resting for a while in the yard, he and Su Laoer and Su Laosan took axes and saws to divide the tree.

This ginkgo tree was over a hundred years old and nearly thirty meters high, with a thick trunk and large branches. Once it was completely divided, it would yield at least 13,000 jin of wood, enough to make over ten sets of furniture.

Even if they didn’t make furniture, the wood could still be sold for more than fifty taels of silver.

In the following days, Su Laoer, Su Laosan, and Zhang Hongzhuang were busy dividing the tree and transporting the wood. Su Laosi and Su Lawu went to the city to buy building materials and mixed glutinous rice paste with lime to repair the collapsed wall in the northeast corner of the yard. After the ginkgo tree was removed, they also relaid the floor tiles in the yard, filling in the large holes that had been left by the tree.

Meanwhile, they also repainted the faded doors, windows, and corridors. Liu Yingying, being skilled, even painted some beautiful designs of koi playing in lotus flowers, magpies welcoming the new year, and pine cranes symbolizing longevity on the corridor walls and windows.

Wu Chunhe, Zhang Xiaolan, and the Su family cleaned the entire house, collecting all the garbage and taking it to the village’s trash pit ten miles away to burn. Broken ceramics and pottery pieces that couldn’t be burned were saved to be sold to the city’s craftsmen who recycled materials for melting.

Li Sumei stayed home to take care of the young daughter, the nanny goat, and the two lambs. During her free time, she worked with Liu Yingying to make cotton clothes and quilts for the family. She also asked Su Laosi to go out and gather herbs to help treat her daughter’s dark circles under her eyes.

At night, little Su Huan lay on the warm kang in the east room, wearing only her bellyband and kicking her little legs. While sucking on a bottle of milk, she enjoyed the hot compress her mother had prepared for her.

Suddenly, there was a loud crash from the cellar, followed by a hushed curse, “Be careful! Are you trying to get caught?”

Su Huan paused, her little legs freezing in place. She looked toward the cellar with curiosity, tilting her head.

Hmm? Is there a thief?