Chapter 17: Finally, No More Money Troubles.

Sun Laizi tried to step back.

However, Lu Chuan took a step forward.

These fools!

They had originally planned to cover him with a sack, but now that their plan had failed, instead of thinking about escaping, they charged forward.

Lu Chuan didn’t hesitate at all.

The stick in his hand twirled.

With a sharp flick, he flipped Sun Laizi onto the ground.

Then, he calmly looked at the others around him and asked, “Anyone else want to try?”

“Lu Chuan!”

At this moment, Sun Laizi, wincing in pain, pressed his hands to his chin, blood spilling from his mouth.

His eyes burned with intense hatred!

“You… How dare you hit me?”

Sun Laizi staggered to his feet. “Do you believe I can make sure you never return to Shuangshui Village?”

“I don’t believe it!”

Lu Chuan stared coldly at Sun Laizi, then crouched down.

He gave a playful smile and said, “But I have a hundred ways to kill you without anyone ever knowing. Do you believe it?”

“I told you, don’t mess with me!”

“Today, I’m just teaching you a lesson.”

As he spoke, Lu Chuan reached out and grabbed Sun Laizi’s arm.

He then took a withered branch from the side and snapped it in half with one hand.

“Smack…”

He violently shoved the stick into Sun Laizi’s palm.

“Be good, go see a doctor to have that hand checked. Otherwise, it might be permanently damaged!”

“You still have time to go now.”

Sun Laizi screamed in agony, rolling on the ground.

“You… why are you so cruel?” Sun Laizi’s eyes were filled with deep fear and resentment.

“I never said I was a good person.”

Lu Chuan patted Sun Laizi’s head. “You should be thankful you’re encountering me now. Otherwise, even if you had ten lives, it wouldn’t be enough for me to kill you.”

With that, Lu Chuan turned and left.

Sun Laizi climbed painfully to his feet.

The intense pain made him grit his teeth in agony.

“Why are you all just standing there? Hurry up and take me to see the doctor!”

…

Lu Chuan walked to the Xu residence.

When he saw Xu Houxiang again, Xu’s eyes widened in surprise. “You already caught something so quickly? It seems you’ve been humble. This isn’t luck; it’s clearly skill!”

“It really is luck!”

“The badger I hunted, but the wild boar was just a matter of chance!”

With a smile, Lu Chuan added, “Look here…”

“Wild boar meat!”

“It’s about 100 jin!”

Xu Houxiang paused, then continued, “I’ll give you 150 coins per jin. That means I’ll pay you 15,000 coins!”

This really made Lu Chuan excited.

Is wild boar meat really that expensive?

“It’s almost the end of the year, and I really need it at home. It’s difficult to find it outside, so I’ll give you the highest market price. But…”

“Don’t worry, I’ll return you 3,000 coins!”

Before Xu Houxiang could speak, Lu Chuan hurriedly said.

Xu Houxiang narrowed his eyes!

This kid is quite clever.

“Alright, then the badger meat will be calculated at 6,000 coins. You don’t need to return anything!”

At that moment, Xu Houxiang was in a great mood.

Though greedy, he also understood that no matter what, he had to maintain a good relationship with the young man in front of him.

Having been a steward for so long, he knew that only when everyone made money would there be more for all to share!

If he became too greedy, this kid might take the meat and sell it to someone else, and his source of income would be cut off!

“Then, thank you, Steward Xu!”
Lu Chuan cupped his hands and smiled.

Now, Lu Chuan really didn’t have to worry about money.

The half wild boar was sold for 12,000 coins, and the badger added another 6,000, so he could get a total of 18,000 coins.

Next, he needed to exchange it for grain.

Also, the loom could be arranged now.

This was something Bai Siyu had been thinking about for a while.

Bai Siyu was actually a somewhat conflicted and proud woman.

She clearly understood that her contribution to the family was insufficient, so she was eager to prove herself.

That’s why, when Lu Chuan went hunting, she stayed at home and worked on embroidery.

However, embroidery was a delicate task. It required a lot of time, and although she could do it, she wasn’t particularly skilled, so it wasn’t easy to sell for a good price.

The wealthy people didn’t value it, and the poor couldn’t afford it.

Therefore, weaving was more suitable for her, and she was especially good at weaving hemp cloth.

This fabric was affordable for regular farming families and could help supplement household expenses.

Ordinary farmers could afford a loom, but it wasn’t cheap—it would cost around 3,000 coins.

“By the way!”

At this point, Xu Houxiang seemed to have thought of something.

“You asked me about old grain before!”

“Is it because your family needs to pay the annual food tax? So, you wanted to use the old grain to make do?”

Xu Houxiang asked.

“Yes!”
Lu Chuan nodded.

Xu Houxiang looked around and then continued, “Now, old grain is really hard to find. I do have a source, but the price won’t be much cheaper. The market price for new grain mixed with old grain is 50 coins per jin.”

“As for my source,”
“I can get it for you at 40 coins per jin!”
“That’s the best I can do!”

Xu Houxiang lowered his voice and then asked, “How many people are in your family?”

“Three.”
Xu Houxiang was stunned for a moment and then asked in surprise, “Why only three people? Recently, the authorities arranged for women for the men in each family!”

“Does your family have others?”
Xu Houxiang asked again.

“No!”
Lu Chuan gave a wry smile and shook his head, “I offended the official who was delivering the women, so I was forced to choose two, and they’ve already been registered. I really had no choice but to start hunting in the mountains!”

“Who knew, I was lucky!”
“I managed to gather enough grain before the tax payment!”

“Of course, this is all thanks to Steward Xu. If it weren’t for you, I would have had no way to seek help!”

Lu Chuan raised his hands in gratitude.

Xu Houxiang nodded, “You need to be careful. These officials each manage a region. Since he came to deliver the women, it’s likely he will be the one to collect the food tax as well!”

“He might make things difficult for you later!”
“Once the food tax is collected, you won’t be able to live peacefully!”

Xu Houxiang said with a bitter smile, “Anyway, just take care of yourself!”

“You can follow this road, go east, and cross the Ding Shui River. You’ll find a store called ‘Cui Ji Grain Shop.’ Look for someone named Cui Baiwei. He has old grain!”

“Just tell him you were introduced by the steward of Xu’s house, and he’ll know!”
Xu Houxiang added, “You’d better prepare more!”

“You never know, that official might give you trouble again!”