Chapter 80: Chapter 47: The Village Head’s Viewpoint

When Li Gengtian and his wife, Mrs. Fang, heard their two sons had returned, they rushed out of the house.

Mrs. Fang pulled her younger son close with one hand while her eyes darted to her elder son. She chided, “Why come home in such heavy snow? What if you catch a chill?”

Despite her words, her face was beaming with joy.

Her two sons studied at the county school in Qinghui County and lived at their aunt’s house, only returning home every few months. She missed them terribly, but she also knew that not just anyone could study at the county school. For the sake of her sons’ futures, she had to endure the separation.

Now that her sons were back, she was overjoyed. Her chiding was merely words spoken out of habit, tinged with genuine concern that they might have gotten cold.

Li Changfeng smiled. “We were thinking of coming back the day before yesterday, but then it unexpectedly started snowing yesterday. Changyu was eager to get home, so we decided to brave the snow. It’s not even that cold out. See? We’re sweating from the walk.”

The family went inside. Mrs. Fang and Grandpa busily brought two small braziers over to the boys. Li Gengtian took the packs from his sons, set them aside, and asked, “Did you walk all the way from Xiatang Market? You didn’t hire an ox-cart?”

Li Changyu pouted. “Where would we find an ox-cart? There wasn’t a soul on the road. We had no choice but to walk!”

Mrs. Fang asked with a gentle smile, “You must be hungry. I’ll go make some food. Oh dear! We don’t have any special dishes. Gengtian, go over to Changhe’s house and buy some pork offal and pig’s head meat. Changfeng and Changyu have never tried it before. Get some for them to taste! We’ll slaughter a chicken tomorrow morning.”

Grandpa also chimed in, “That stuff is good. Buy some for Changfeng and Changyu to try.”

Li Gengtian hesitated. “Isn’t that just like asking for a handout? How can I bring myself to ask? Qingmu’s mother has already sent some over several times.”

Mrs. Fang chided him, “They’re running a legitimate business; they just happen to carry their goods to Xiatang Market to sell. If you go to their door to buy something, it’s only right that you pay, isn’t it? Just tell them that from now on, whenever we want some, we’ll buy it directly from them. Isn’t that a ready-made business right at their doorstep? If she keeps giving it to us for free, we’ll be too embarrassed to accept. Besides, with so many people in the village, if she gives it to some but not to others, she’ll just end up offending people.”

Grandpa nodded. “You must pay them. It’s not easy for Changhe and his wife. It’s all hard-earned money.”

Li Gengtian couldn’t help but laugh. “Of course I was going to pay. I was just worried he’d be too embarrassed to accept the money. Alright, I know what to say now. Bring me two clay pots, or I’ll have nothing to carry it in.”

So Mrs. Fang went to the kitchen to get them.

Just then, Li Changyu asked his father, “Dad, is this Changhe you’re talking about the family that lives at the foot of Little Qing Mountain? The one with that ugly girl, Juhua?”

Li Gengtian replied, “That’s them. That Juhua is very capable. She can take stinky pork offal and cook it until it’s fragrant and delicious. Her mother carries it to Xiatang Market every day to sell and earns a good bit of money. It’s just exhausting, dirty work.”

Li Changyu said, “Oh! My brother and I just saw her. She was standing at the entrance to the village, looking around like she was waiting for someone. It looks like she was waiting for her mother.”

Li Gengtian was taken aback. “Her mother is usually back in the morning. Why isn’t she home yet?”

Mrs. Fang came out of the kitchen just then, carrying a basket with two clay pots inside. Hearing what was said, she grew worried too. “Is that true? You really saw Juhua waiting at the village entrance? In this weather, if Aunt Zheng isn’t back by now, that’s not good at all. Gengtian, you’d better hurry over and check.”

Li Gengtian hurriedly took the basket, slipped a pair of wooden-soled straw sandals on over his shoes, and rushed out the door.

Juhua waited at the entrance to the village for a while, her body growing colder and colder.

She grew more and more anxious, wanting to go back but unwilling to give up. Just as she was about to wear out her eyes from staring, she suddenly spotted two small black dots at the far end of the snowy landscape. The dots gradually grew larger and their outlines became clearer. This time, she was certain it was her mother and brother. Overjoyed, she ran to meet them.

When Mrs. Yang saw Juhua stumbling toward them through the snow, she pulled her to a stop. Lifting the girl’s face scarf, she saw her lips were indeed purple from the cold. Her heart ached as she chided, “You silly child, what are you doing out here? Even if something had happened to me, your brother was already on his way. There was no need for you to come too! Wouldn’t it just cause more trouble if you got sick from the cold?”

Qingmu also looked at her reproachfully.

Juhua, however, just smiled happily. “I got worried when you were gone for so long, so I came to the village entrance to have a look. Let’s not talk about it anymore. Let’s hurry home and warm up by the fire!”

Mrs. Yang said, “Oh, so *now* you feel the cold and want to warm up by the fire?”

Juhua changed the subject. “Mother, why are you back so late? You didn’t have much to sell. If it didn’t sell, you could have just brought it home to give away. What was the point of staying there so long?”

At the question, a smile touched Mrs. Yang’s face. “It’s my fault. I should have told you I’d be going tomorrow instead. Today, Laixi and I carried our goods to the villages further down the road to sell. They sold very well! People don’t want to go out when it’s snowing, but since we brought the food right to their doorsteps, anyone who wanted some bought it right away. We only had to visit two villages before we sold out. They all asked me to come back tomorrow.”

It pained Juhua to hear this. She sighed. “But that’s so exhausting, walking all that way, especially in the snow. You shouldn’t go tomorrow.”

Qingmu agreed. “It’s fine to sell a bit less. We managed just fine before we started this business.”

Mrs. Yang knew they were worried about her and smiled. “We were late today because Laixi and I only thought of this strategy toward the end of the day. We just let your uncle know and went down. Tomorrow, Laixi and I will head there first thing in the morning, so we’ll be home much earlier. We’ll still sell at Xiatang Market, too—we’ll just leave some goods at your uncle’s shop. We can handle both locations without any trouble.”

Juhua thought for a moment and said, “Let’s discuss it with Dad again when we get home.”

The three of them headed home. Once they reached the village, Qingmu went to the schoolhouse to greet the teacher.

Just as they left, Village Head Li Gengtian rushed to the village entrance, missing them by moments. Not seeing Juhua, Li Gengtian figured, ’The girl must have gone home,’ and so he also headed toward Little Qing Mountain.

As he left the village, he saw several figures in the distance entering the Zheng Family’s courtyard. Realizing it was the mother and her children returning, he relaxed and continued slowly toward their home.

By the time Li Gengtian reached the Zheng Family home, Mrs. Yang and Juhua were changing their shoes and warming themselves by the fire, while Zheng Changhe and Qingmu were unpacking their baskets.

“Oh! Village Head, what a rare visitor! Please, come in and have a seat.”

Zheng Changhe saw it was the village head, and although surprised, he very enthusiastically welcomed him into the house.

Li Gengtian smiled. “How am I a rare visitor? We’re all from the same village. Mrs. Zheng, you’re back? I was getting worried. My son Changyu told me he saw Juhua waiting for you at the village entrance. You’re usually home much earlier, so why so late today? I ran over to check, but I didn’t see you, so I came here.”

Mrs. Yang glanced at Juhua in surprise. ’Why didn’t she mention this?’

Li Gengtian then recounted how his two sons had returned, how Mrs. Fang had sent him to buy some pork offal and pig’s head meat, and what Li Changyu had said.

Mrs. Yang said gratefully, “Oh, I’m so sorry to have made Changyu’s mother worry. I took my goods to the villages below Xiatang Market to sell today, which is why I’m back late. Here, let me dish some out for you. And don’t you dare mention money, how embarrassing would that be? We’re neighbors, after all. Changfeng and Changyu only come home every few months. As their auntie, it’s only right I give them a little something to eat.”

Li Gengtian laughed. “That’s exactly what I came to talk to you about! If you can carry your goods to sell in other villages, why can’t you sell them in our own? If you refuse payment every time, who will have the nerve to come and buy from you again? Even if you offer it as a gift, people will be too embarrassed to accept. Besides, there are so many families in the village; it wouldn’t be right to give to some and not others. This is a long-term business. Anyone who wants some can come and buy it. Isn’t it a better deal than buying fresh meat? Plus, it saves them the trouble of cooking. Qingmu’s mother, trust me on this!”

Juhua, warming herself with the brazier, silently praised the village head’s words. ’He really knows what to say. Once or twice is fine, but if you give things away for free too often, nobody feels comfortable, and you risk offending people.’

Mrs. Yang could only smile. “Well, since the Village Head puts it that way, I’ll be shameless and accept your money.” ’Since we’re from the same village,’ she thought, ’I’ll just give him an extra-large portion.’

So, in addition to the portion he paid for, she scooped a generous amount of extra pork offal for Li Gengtian, saying it was a gift from her, as their auntie, for Changfeng and Changyu. She also found a small jar and filled it with spicy pickled cabbage for him.

Zheng Changhe, standing to the side, kept muttering that it wasn’t right to take their money.

Li Gengtian rebuked him, “All you men know how to do is act generous. Is it easy for this mother and daughter to earn a bit of money? Look at this snow! They just now got back from selling. Brother Changhe, as the village head, let me be blunt. The next time someone comes to buy, don’t you go acting like a big shot trying to be the nice guy. Juhua and her mother work so hard; it’s only right that they get paid.”

Zheng Changhe was extremely embarrassed!

He had to admit it was true. In this business, he only helped clean the pig heads and trotters; Mrs. Yang and Juhua did everything else. For him to be so concerned with saving face really was going too far. He could only scratch the back of his head and give a sheepish laugh.

Mrs. Yang found his reaction amusing and was secretly grateful to the village head for his eloquence.

She added a few instructions. “Village Head, the pig’s head meat is already fully cooked; just heat it up and it’s ready to eat. But the pork offal hasn’t finished simmering. We usually let it stew in the pot overnight and then sell it in the morning. When you get home, please tell Changyu’s mother to let it simmer on low heat for another two-hour period. Otherwise, it won’t be flavorful enough.”

Seeing how generous and sensible Mrs. Yang was, Li Gengtian was also very pleased. He readily agreed and took his leave.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep