Chapter 47 Ordering Five Hundred Jin

The Zhang family was still in a daze.

Then they heard Old Lady Shen say in a grand manner, “Second-born’s wife, besides these thirty jin of tofu, I’ll order another two hundred jin. Tomorrow, you help deliver it to my house, okay?”

Old Man Shen, who rarely spent money so lavishly, puffed out his chest and walked up to Zhang Ershun’s husband, Zhang Ershun, and pulled out his bulging money pouch, pouring out a few strings of copper coins and placing them in Zhang Ershun’s hand. “Two hundred and thirty jin of tofu, two copper coins per jin, a total of four hundred and sixty copper coins. Ershun, count them and see if the money is right.”

Zhang Ershun finally came to his senses and looked at Old Man Shen in disbelief. “No, Uncle, are you really buying it?”

Old Man Shen smiled and said, “The money is ready, so of course I’m buying it.”

Zhang Ershun’s wife was confused. “But even with all the people in your family, you can’t eat that much tofu! The weather is getting warmer, and tofu spoils easily. If you can’t finish it, it’ll be wasted!”

Old Man Shen waved his hand with a smile. “Who said we’re eating it? We’re going to sell it.”

The Zhang family was puzzled. “Sell it?”

Old Lady Shen chuckled and said, “Oh, some things I can’t explain to you now. You just need to help us prepare the tofu. Don’t worry, we won’t go back on our word, and we won’t ask for the money back.”

Old Man Shen instructed Zhang Ershun, “I want a lot of tofu, so you have to make it well. If it’s not good, if there are any broken pieces, I’ll come after you.”

Zhang Ershun assured him, “Uncle, don’t worry. You know my skills. It’s just that you really won’t go back on your word? So much tofu…”

Old Man Shen said readily, “No going back. You just go ahead and make the tofu boldly. Make it as soon as possible and deliver it to me. I need it urgently.”

The old couple quickly left the Zhang family. As they walked out of the Zhang family’s gate, their posture and smiles were full of pride.

Sigh!

Their granddaughter is so capable, what can they do?

Zhang Ershun stood at the door, watching the old couple’s proud demeanor, and couldn’t help but mutter, “Did the Shen family strike it rich? It seems they made a lot of money selling cakes.”

Zhang Ershun’s wife came over and said, “It seems the Shen family has come up with another way to make money. Since they got Nian Nian, their life has gotten better and better. No, our village’s life has gotten better and better!”

Zhang Ershun said, “Whether they have a way to make money or not, since we’ve taken the money, we have to make the tofu on time. How much beans do we have left? Is it enough to make two hundred jin of tofu? If not, I’ll go buy some.”

Zhang Ershun’s wife said, “Not enough. Go buy another thirty jin of beans. Go to Zhao Dehai’s house. I heard his wife say last time that they still have a lot of beans left. Buy the good ones, don’t buy the bad ones.”

Zhang Ershun immediately went out.

When Shen Nian returned home, she was slightly surprised to learn that her grandparents had bought two hundred and thirty jin of tofu in one go.

Her grandparents are really decisive!

The milk cakes haven’t even been sold yet, and they’ve already ordered so much tofu.

Besides tofu, they also need to buy small earthenware jars. Shen Nan was already in Liu Village, and he had directly ordered three hundred small earthenware jars, even more extravagant than his grandparents.

After having dinner at the Shen family, Wan Baocai reluctantly followed the guards home.

…

When they returned to the Wan Mansion, it was completely dark.

Wan Baocai, drowsy from the carriage ride, got off and asked the steward if his father had returned. He learned that his father was already back, looking at the accounts in the study. He immediately perked up and asked the guards to get him chopsticks and a small bowl, then hugged the small earthenware jar and went to the study.

He reached the door and wanted to go in without knocking, but remembering what Shen Nian had said about being polite, he quickly stopped and knocked on the door, calling out loudly, “Father, can I come in?”

Just as Mr. Wan finished reviewing the accounts, he suddenly heard his youngest son’s voice. He raised an eyebrow in surprise, “This kid, he actually learned to knock on the door. It seems he learned a lot in Orchid Village!”

The guards would report to him about Wan Baocai every day, so he had long heard of Orchid Village, especially the magical little girl from the Shen family.

Mr. Wan coughed lightly and said calmly, “Come in.”

Wan Baocai pushed the door open and excitedly ran to Mr. Wan, “Father, I have something good here that I want you to try.”

The guard immediately handed him a small bowl and chopsticks. Wan Baocai struggled to open the lid of the earthenware jar, and a foul smell instantly filled the study.

Mr. Wan got up and took a few steps back, pinching his nose and frowning, “What kind of smell is this? Why is it so stinky? You stinky boy, you want your father to eat this stinky thing? You’re asking for a beating, aren’t you?”

Wan Baocai picked up a piece of milk cake and put it in the bowl, proudly presenting it to his father. His father was so scared that he backed away again and again until his back was against the wall.

Wan Baocai laughed, his small eyes squinting into a slit, “Father, this thing is called milk cake. It’s a very rare delicacy. Don’t look at it, it’s not very attractive, and it smells bad, but it tastes very good and goes well with rice. You can eat it with porridge, mix it with rice, mix it with noodles, and you can also use it as a seasoning to stir-fry dishes. It’s delicious. Your son specially brought it back for you to try. You’ll definitely like it.”

Mr. Wan pinched his nose and waved his hand, “Just the smell makes me dislike it. Take it away, take it away!”

Wan Baocai cried out in a loud voice, “Father, it’s rare for your son to show you filial piety. I went through mountains and rivers to bring you back this rare delicacy. How can you be so disrespectful and hurt your son’s heart? My heart! It feels like it’s being cut by a knife, it hurts so much! Wuwuwu, you’re letting down your son’s filial piety!!!”

Old Man Wan’s forehead twitched, and he slapped him on the head, “You little rascal, shut up! Stop howling! I’ve been busy all day, I’m exhausted and dizzy. You’re making me listen to your ghost cries and wolf howls late at night. Are you trying to make me die of anger? Eat! I’ll eat! It’s just eating some stinky stuff, what haven’t I eaten? My golden tongue…”

He picked up the chopsticks and tasted the milk cake.

“Huh? What is this thing? It tastes strange, but it’s quite strong.”

Mr. Wan was surprised.

Wan Baocai smiled triumphantly, “I told you you’d like it!”

“Don’t say anything, let me taste it carefully.” Mr. Wan sat back in his chair and carefully tasted the milk cake in the bowl. The more he ate, the more he felt that this thing was quite good.

His eyes grew brighter, and he turned to ask, “Where did this come from?”

Wan Baocai learned Shen Duo’s trick of keeping people guessing, “Guess?”

Mr. Wan didn’t guess. He directly looked at the guard, “Yang Mu, you tell me.”

Wan Baocai glared at Yang Mu.

Yang Mu smiled apologetically, “Sorry, young master, your father is my master, I can’t disobey him.”

Yang Mu ignored Wan Baocai’s glare and truthfully told him the origin of the milk cake.

Wan Baocai was so angry that he jumped up and hit him, “You traitor, why do you tell my father everything? You’re not allowed to follow me anymore!”

Mr. Wan chuckled, “Out of the four guards you have, Yang Mu has the best martial arts skills. If he doesn’t follow you, you’ll be beaten to death by your enemies.”

Wan Baocai was furious, “I’m the invincible young master of the Wan family, how could I have enemies?”

Mr. Wan chuckled, “You have a lot of enemies. You don’t know what you’ve been doing out there these past two years! You little prodigal son, if it weren’t for your old father holding you back, you would have been dead long ago. Alright, I’m tired, I don’t want to talk to you anymore. If you want me to order milk cakes, it’s not impossible. I heard you learned a lot of characters at the private school in Orchid Village. Now write them for me. If you can write them, I’ll allow you to order five hundred jin of milk cakes from the Shen family.”

Wan Baocai was overjoyed and clapped his hands with him, “Deal, Father, you can’t go back on your word.”

He took paper and pen and asked his father to grind the ink. He wrote on the paper with a flourish, reading as he wrote, explaining the meaning of each character. In a short while, he had written fifteen characters.

Mr. Wan was very satisfied.

Although his stinky son’s handwriting was crooked and ugly, it was still a lot better than before.

This Orchid Village is really interesting!