The Farmer’s Wife has a Magical Spiritual Spring
The Farmer’s Wife has a Magical Spiritual Spring Chapter 98

Chapter 98 Sending Prescriptions

The next day, as dawn broke, Shen Zi’an and Su Zhi got up early, heated some breakfast, and ate before rushing out with the ox cart. They first went to Li Shi’s house to pick up Li Shi, then went to pick up Shugen’s Wife and Li Qing’s Wife. Xiaosuo and Huzi also tagged along. Even though it was winter, the men from both families were still quite busy, especially with Su Zhi’s designs, which brought them more work. This made Shugen’s Wife and Li Qing’s Wife even more appreciative of Su Zhi.

Xiaosuo and Huzi kept pestering Su Zhi about Little Black and Little White. Su Zhi told them that Little Black and Little White hadn’t woken up yet, mentioning that they had eaten two large meat pies yesterday, which had satisfied the two boys. However, as soon as they heard the words “meat pies,” their mouths started watering.

On the way, they encountered Liu Siniang again. Su Zhi invited her to join them, and Liu Siniang gladly accepted.

Since the incident at the market where Liu Siniang was beaten by her mother-in-lae, Su Zhi had only seen her once. On that occasion, Liu Siniang had given her a well-made handkerchief as a token of gratitude, a gift for her kindness. Liu Siniang hadn’t come to Su Zhi’s house-warming that day because of the injury on her head, which prevented her from helping with the work. She thought Su Zhi had been kind to her, so she secretly saved up to buy the handkerchief as a gift.

After that, Su Zhi hadn’t seen Liu Siniang again, nor had she sought her out. She didn’t like Liu Siniang’s mother-in-law and sister-in-law, and she believed that out of sight, out of mind. Besides, she feared that visiting Liu Siniang might only cause more trouble from the old lady, so she decided it was best to stay away.

Looking at the injury on Liu Siniang’s head, Su Zhi noticed that it had healed quite well, though her face appeared thinner, and her spirit seemed diminished. Su Zhi sympathized with Liu Siniang, recognizing that she had been through a lot recently, especially after that incident. She felt sorry for her friend’s plight and wondered how she could help. Liu Siniang had been not only Zhao Xiaomei’s childhood companion but also a kind-hearted person who hadn’t shunned Su Zhi even when she was ill. Such genuine people were worth cherishing.

“Sister, you can come and visit me when you have time. I have a Sacred Beast at home, but it doesn’t harm people indiscriminately.”

“Okay.”

Liu Siniang smiled at Su Zhi. Even with her pale complexion, there was still a hint of beauty in her smile, evoking even more sympathy from Su Zhi for someone so young to bear such burdens.

Li Qing’s wife also chimed in, “That’s right, Sister, come over to my place when you have time. There are no outsiders there, so we can speak freely. Your mother-in-law is too strict with you. Do you even have any private money in your hands? I heard you’re skilled at weaving nets, but you’re always busy with other tasks and hardly have time for it. If you come to my house, you can weave there, and then leave the nets at my place. Even if your mother-in-law searches you, she won’t find anything.”

Upon hearing this, Su Zhi felt that Liu Siniang had truly encountered misfortune with such a mother-in-law. Although Li Qing’s wife was talkative, she never exaggerated. If she mentioned Li Qing’s mother-in-law searching her daughter-in-law, then it must have happened. No wonder Liu Siniang didn’t even have any private money. In such circumstances, her discreet gift of a handkerchief was indeed remarkable.

Shugen’s wife also added, “Yes, Sister, don’t be foolish. Saving some money will give you peace of mind. At least, if you fall ill again, you can buy medicine for yourself. Otherwise, your mother-in-law’s family might just watch you suffer without caring.”

“Thank you, sisters-in-law. But I don’t have the time to go,” Liu Siniang expressed her gratitude, feeling troubled in her heart. She still owed Su Zhi money, but her mother-in-law would never allow her to repay it. All the money in the house was under her mother-in-law’s control, and Liu Siniang couldn’t even keep a single coin for herself. She offered to help Su Zhi with chores, but if Su Zhi didn’t ask her, she would always feel anxious. It would be great if things could be as Li Qing’s wife suggested, but her mother-in-law wouldn’t allow her to visit others.

Li Qing’s wife frowned and said, “Your mother-in-law really wants to work you to death. You’re her daughter-in-law, not a servant, let alone an animal!”

Liu Siniang lowered her head upon hearing this. She knew Li Qing’s wife was right, but she had no choice. Her parents had passed away, and other relatives wouldn’t stand up for her. Even if she were divorced, she had no family to take her in. She could only endure it. People say that a daughter-in-law who endures for many years eventually becomes the mother-in-law. She just had to endure it.

Su Zhi thought that if she ever decided to hire help, she would hire Liu Siniang, using “asking her to work to repay the debt” as a reason. She could then instruct her to underreport the amount of work to her mother-in-law, allowing her to save some money secretly. However, she hadn’t made up her mind yet, so she didn’t mention it to Liu Siniang.

After their conversation, they arrived at the marketplace. First, Su Zhi accompanied Li Shi to a wealthy household in the town to deliver persimmons. Su Zhi taught Li Shi how to keep the persimmons fresh and crispy, making them even sweeter and more delicious. Su Zhi decided to keep the basket of persimmons Li Shi gave her for herself. Since Li Shi’s family had plenty more, she couldn’t finish them alone, so she decided to sell them. Last time they sold well, and they even met a wealthy household who offered to buy them at three coins for two persimmons, which was quite a high price. When Shen Zi’an sold two baskets at this price, they earned over two hundred coins. Li Qing’s wife and the others were amazed.

“Brother Shi, how come your persimmons are so valuable?”

Li Qing’s wife asked, noting that they weren’t the type to pry into other people’s belongings. Since Li Shi’s basket was covered, they naturally didn’t know what was inside. Discovering that it contained persimmons and sold for such a high price came as a surprise to them all.

Li Shi picked out a few unsold persimmons from the basket he brought back and handed them to them, saying, “These are the persimmons Su Zhi taught me how to preserve. I didn’t expect the method to work so well.”

As Li Qing’s wife held the persimmons, she felt they were different from regular ones. They still looked fresh, and they weren’t soft to the touch. She wiped one off, took a bite, and found it crispy and sweet! Although she wanted to eat more, when she saw Huzi also wanting a bite, she immediately offered hers and then claimed she shouldn’t eat too many in the cold weather to avoid stomach upset, she gave Huzi hers.

Shugen’s wife also shared one with Xiaosuo and herself.

Liu Siniang took a persimmon from Li Shi’s hand, brought it to her mouth, and took a bite, finding it truly sweet.

“You’re amazing, little sister. These persimmons are so soft, but once they’re in your hands, you have a way to make them crispy. They’re delicious. Eating this in winter is really comforting. No wonder they’re so valuable,” she exclaimed.

Su Zhi smiled and replied, “It’s not really anything extraordinary. If you’d like to learn, sister-in-law, I can teach you.”

“Really?! Thank you so much, little sister!” Li Qing’s wife exclaimed, feeling both happy and a little embarrassed for taking advantage of Su Zhi again. However, she could tell that Su Zhi didn’t mind sharing her method. From now on, they would treat Shen Zi’an and Su Zhi better.

Shugen’s wife listened with delight.

Liu Siniang was even more impressed by Su Zhi now. She looked at Su Zhi’s fair face and thought how beautiful she looked now that she had recovered from her illness. This was the result of her husband’s love and care for her. Compared to her,  she had married into a good family, she on the other hand seemed weary, as if she were already thirty years old.

After selling the persimmons with Li Shi, the women went to sell the lace.

The shopkeeper was pleased to see Su Zhi and praised her for making the decorative knots so well. He bought Su Zhi’s decorative knots at the same price as last time. This time, Su Zhi had made fifty-six pieces of knots and sold them for a total of five hundred and sixty wen. The three women beside her widened their eyes in astonishment. They wondered why everything seemed so valuable today. However, when they looked at Su Zhi’s decorative knots, they understood why the price was high—it was unique and innovative.

Su Zhi told the three women, “If you want to learn this, I can teach you. But for now, you shouldn’t teach others, or the price will drop.”

Li Qing’s wife was too embarrassed to feel happy now and said, “Sister, you were about to teach us the method of ripening persimmons just now. I don’t think we should learn this knot-making from you anymore.”

Shugen’s Wife nodded in agreement, and Liu Siniang did the same.

Su Zhi smiled and said, “The persimmons won’t be ready until next year. We can talk about it then. As for the knot-making, if you learn it, you learn it. I’ll still be making other things. If you don’t learn, someone else will eventually learn on their own. So why not make some money while we can?”

Li  Qing’s wife and Shugen’s Wife nodded in agreement with this reasoning and felt even more inclined to treat Su Zhi well.

Su Zhi bought a lot of embroidery thread and a set of specialized embroidery needles. She planned to have Shen Zi’an make a frame for embroidering flowers later. She also bought a large piece of light red silk, thinking of making a screen or something similar with it.

“Sister, when you go home, tell your mother-in-law that you’ll help Sister Li at her house and that she’ll pay you twenty wen for an afternoon’s work. Then you can go to Sister Li’s house to make knots. After making the knots, let Sister Li sell it for you. Take twenty wen back to your mother-in-law, and save the rest of the money. Have you thought about where to hide the money?”

Su Zhi told Liu Siniang as soon as they left. This was the quickest way she could think of to help Liu Siniang. Once she taught Liu Siniang how to make knots, she wouldn’t need to worry about the rest.

Sister Li clapped her hands and said, “This is a great idea, Sister. Come to my house for work then. That old woman will definitely let you come. She must want that twenty wen!”

Liu Siniang looked at Su Zhi with slightly teary eyes and said, “Thank you, Su Zhi.”

Su Zhi shook her head and said, “No need to thank me. We’re both married women from the same village, and we used to be friends. Why be polite with each other?”

Shen Zi’an looked at his wife, feeling proud. This was his wife—she didn’t mince words with people she didn’t like, yet her heart was so kind.

The group left the embroidery workshop happily, ready to sell the eggs they had brought and buy some other things.

Su Zhi and Liu Siniang were about to board the cart when suddenly, as they both stepped to the side to prepare to get on—one in front of the other—the street erupted into chaos. A horse came charging through!

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