Chapter 21

The three of them were fervently picking leaves, and Chen Youtian returned home.

Mrs. Chen sat in the courtyard, spinning hemp. Seeing her son returning with a bucket, she exclaimed, “Back so early?”

As she spoke, she got up to look into the bucket he brought home. Apart from the basket taken out in the morning, there was also a pottery basin from their own home. “How did it go? Was it successful?”

Chen Youtian put down the bucket and nodded, “Yes, it went smoothly. Those eggs of mine sold out early, thanks to them.”

Mrs. Chen became interested and asked her son to explain the situation in detail. She glanced outside the courtyard, not far from the Shen family’s house. She called out to Chen Youtian, “Come inside and tell me.”

Qin Fangniang had been weaving in the west room. When she heard the commotion, she stopped the loom and came out. The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law entered the main room together to listen to Chen Youtian talk about Sang Luo’s experiences at the market today.

Chen Youtian looked at the scene between his mother and wife, and fell silent for a moment.

He wasn’t much of a talker. He dryly recounted how much fairy tofu Sang Luo brought today, how much it sold for per piece, and what she bought with the earnings, and then fell silent.

After a moment of thought, he mentioned Sang Luo’s adeptness at managing things at the market, her distinctive calls, and also talked about how she had changed her route by the mountains. He said, “She’s quite capable.”

Mrs. Chen thought it was good. “Being capable is what supports a household.”

Qin Fangniang, however, envied, “In just this half morning’s work, she earned over fifty wen?”

In a rural household, this was a considerable sum.

For instance, the dozen or so eggs her husband took out this morning, which their family had saved for six or seven days, averaged about two or three wen in earnings per day from egg sales.

Chen Youtian shook his head. “It’s more than that. Some of it was traded for goods. If you count the value of those goods, it’s probably over sixty wen.”

Qin Fangniang was speechless with envy.

Over sixty wen in a day. With one market every five days, how much would that be in a month? And in a year?

She couldn’t calculate it, but she felt it must be an enormous sum that she couldn’t even imagine.

Mrs. Chen was quite pleased. “At this rate, they will gradually settle down. Xiao An and An Ning will also have some support.”

Turning to see her daughter-in-law looking absent-minded and bewildered, she pulled her back to reality. “Don’t envy them. They have no land, relying entirely on this craft to make a living. Haven’t you heard what Youtian said? They spend everything they earn, even the slightest amount, on necessities like food and buying a basin or some grains.”

Qin Fangniang nodded dazedly. “I know. I just think having a craft like this is really good.”

Of course, having such a skill was good, but it didn’t come with envy. Mrs. Chen was perceptive and, thinking about the approaching autumn harvest, asked Chen Youtian, “How are grain prices now?”

Hearing his mother ask about grain prices, Chen Youtian paused. “Seventy wen per dou.”

Qin Fangniang’s eyes lit up. “Seventy wen?”

Chen Youtian nodded, but couldn’t muster a smile.

Qin Fangniang was puzzled. “Isn’t it good that the price went up? We’ve already paid the autumn taxes. When the grain in the fields is harvested, we’ll keep what we need at home and sell the rest to the grain merchants at the good prices. This year, our family should have some surplus.”

Saving money in a rural household wasn’t easy. Without other sources of income, they could only rely on the grain from their fields and occasional odd jobs during off-seasons. From the beginning to the end of the year, after paying taxes and land rent, and dealing with various expenses and obligations, if they could save one or two taels of silver, it was considered a good year.

This was why Qin Fangniang particularly envied Sang Luo’s earning over sixty wen today.

Chen Youtian nodded. “It’s a good thing.”

And then, he didn’t say much more.

Mrs. Chen glanced at her son, knowing that he had some unresolved thoughts. His wife hadn’t noticed, and she didn’t say anything either, changing the subject instead. “You came back early today. Rest for a bit, drink some water, then go help your father in the fields.”

It was better than being at home and overthinking things.

Chen Youtian nodded and fetched a bowl, pouring himself half a bowl of water from the cold water pot in the main room. He drank it, then went to the courtyard, picked up a hoe, and headed for the fields.

Qin Fangniang was somewhat puzzled. “Mother, what’s wrong with him?”

Mrs. Chen looked at her.

What’s wrong? He’s probably missing his wife.

 The rise in grain prices was due to continuous warfare and insufficient grain supply from the court, prompting early taxation. People were tight on grain, and with disasters in the north, prices naturally rose.

Because of the death of the eldest grandson, involving himself in warfare was like poking a sore spot in his son’s heart.

Unlike the Shen family, who used silver to manipulate things and pushed Shen Lie out despite his young age, their eldest son was concerned for his father. He voluntarily went to the recruitment office to change the list of conscripts. When they were about to leave, the family found out, but couldn’t reverse the decision.

When Chen Youtian first heard that his eldest son and Shen Lie were in the same battalion, he wished he could die himself when he learned that the entire battalion had been lost.

After over half a year, people gradually recovered, but whether they truly healed inside, everyone in the family knew.

They didn’t.

But could he say that to his daughter-in-law?

Both parents loved their son equally. His daughter-in-law didn’t make any connections, so why remind her and reopen old wounds?

So Mrs. Chen just waved her hand and said, “He’s probably thinking about the severe disaster in the north. We also fled famine in those years.”

Qin Fangniang remembered the disaster in her hometown and the journey her family took to escape. She sighed, “Ah, if heaven doesn’t provide a way out, there’s nothing we can do.”