Transmigration: A Farm Girl's Brocade-Chapter 114 - Heavy Rain_1
Chapter 114: Chapter 114: Heavy Rain_1
Chapter 114: Chapter 114: Heavy Rain_1
Qian Yixiu was unaware that after seeing how much the master enjoyed the fermented rice and cakes, Steward Wong’s wife discussed with her husband and son the possibility of obtaining the recipes. They could then make these items to show their respect to the master, and perhaps even open up a shop to make money off of it.
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Steward Wong thought it was a good idea and said, “Alright, next time they come, we’ll ask for them. They probably wouldn’t dare to refuse.”
Wong Liang cautioned, “Father, Mother, I don’t think it’s appropriate. It would be one thing if they were only familiar with our family, but they also have very good relations with Baohe Hall, Zhang Family, and Shopkeeper Cui of Wuxi Tea Building. Besides, the eldest young master and the young master cousin also value their two children highly. If we were to forcibly take the recipes, and if the master found out, it would reflect poorly on us. We might even be accused of bullying the common folk and tarnishing the master’s reputation. You know how much Old Great-grandpa and the elder from Capital City value the reputation of our residence…”
Upon reflection, Steward Wong realized it was true. The Qian family had connections not just through him to the manor, but also through the Zhang family and Shopkeeper Cui. Plus, the eldest young master and young master cousin visited the city from Capital City every year. They had asked him to look after this family; if they discovered he had been oppressing them, they would surely blame him. So, he dropped the idea.
His wife was still disgruntled and scoffed, “That peasant is incredibly foolish. We’ve done so many favors for his family; they should take the initiative to give us the recipes. They’re totally lacking in sense.”
Steward Wong snorted, “They’re anything but foolish, especially those two kids; they’re crafty. Just look at the connections they’ve managed to establish. Even we couldn’t have managed to establish such ties, let alone those country peasants.”
Upon hearing this, Steward Wong’s wife reluctantly abandoned certain ideas.
Time slipped by to the seventeenth of August when the house and courtyard walls were finally completed. The agricultural busy season was fast approaching, and the workers were eager to finish building the house in order to attend to their own farming.
The Qian’s third wife ensured good meals for the workers, serving meat in every meal with brown rice and mixed flour (wheat mixed with cornmeal) buns aplenty. Hence, the workers put even more effort into their tasks.
However, the overgrown grass and dirt heaps inside the courtyard remained untouched since they planned to dig a pond there later on. Afterward, Huang Tie and Qian Hua built a pigsty and a chicken coop in the courtyard, set up a cowshed, and even started a small vegetable garden.
Seeing all the servants busy, Old woman Qian stopped scolding Lady Wu. Of course, this came later.
Since this wasn’t considered building a house for themselves, they didn’t invite guests over specially. They only held a feast on the evening of project completion to treat the builders well. Since Wang Lizheng had helped with purchasing the land, they also invited him and his son.
Qian Manchuan and Qian Manhe hadn’t helped with the work, as they were up in the mountains gathering Xia Grass, but Qian Dagui and Qian Ergui were there. Nevertheless, they called the brothers over for the dinner to drink with them. Naturally, Qian Yiduo, the little tag-along, was also present.
Qian Sangui planned to give them their wages after they had eaten and drank their fill. The workers had labored for sixteen days, each earning 160 coins.
Qian Sangui and Qian Yeejin joined the workers for the meal in the courtyard, while Old woman Qian, the women, and children of the third wife ate in the old courtyard. Nowadays, Old woman Qian spent most of her time eating with the third wife, enjoying the special treatment of servants standing by her side.
In fact, Qian Yixiu and the others usually didn’t like Lady Wei and Qian Xiaoyu to wait on them during meals, but the old lady enjoyed the process. So, whenever she came over, Lady Wei and her daughter would stand behind her, diligently attending to her every need, much to the old lady’s delight.
Before the meal was over, it started to rain outside. And unexpectedly, Lady Tang braved the rain to show up.
Lady Tang longed to join the table and kept her eyes fixed on it, remarking, “Wow, the Third Uncle’s family sure is living the good life now, all this meat on the table… tsk tsk, can you even finish all of it? The weather is hot now, it would be a shame if the leftovers went bad.”
The Qian family members pretended not to understand her and continued to eat without inviting her to sit down or even offering a polite phrase.
Lady Tang was so angry that she rolled her eyes. Her shameless behavior was too much for Old Woman Qian to bear, and she regretted marrying such a brazen, gluttonous woman for her son.
Even with her thick skin, Lady Tang was too embarrassed to seat herself at the table and eat. She found a stool nearby and sat down, saying, “My husband is busy here every day, and all the farm work is done by me. Oh, it’s killing me. He even said that relatives help without pay. I told him, even if you don’t want it, Third Uncle will feel uneasy not giving it…”
So that was the matter at hand.
It was then that Lady Wu spoke up, “Second Sister-in-law, don’t worry. My husband has said that even brothers should settle accounts clearly. You won’t miss a single coin for labor.”
Old Woman Qian couldn’t hold back any longer and cursed angrily, “Qian Ergui is such an honest man, how could he marry a foolish wife like you who can’t see reason? All this over a mere hundred or so coins, losing all sense of family affection. It’s infuriating.”
Previously, Qian Dagui and Qian Ergui had discussed helping their brother without asking for payment, which Old Woman Qian also knew about and agreed was for the best. Now that the third household had risen up, it could potentially mend relations and draw in the brother and nephew as well.
But here was Lady Tang, losing face and being a drag on them, coming here to talk about this matter.
In the end, they still gave them the money. Although the Qian brothers indicated they didn’t want it, Qian Sangui still took a stand with the “clear accounts between brothers” argument and firmly handed it over to them.
After seeing off the guests, the Qian Hua family and Huang Tie moved to the house next door despite the light rain.
The small courtyard regained its former tranquility. It was best like this, having a private space for the family, and if anything happened, they could just call and someone from next door would come over.
However, for some reason, Dashan and Monkey Brother had not returned that evening.
Everyone went back to their rooms. The young lad was once again studying under the lamplight, while his mother sat on the bed and zoned out.
Qian Yixiu sat on a small stool listening to the rain outside. Although it wasn’t heavy, it still made a pattering sound as it hit the roof tiles and leaves. Benben and Tiaotiao, not seeing their mother return, fretted and nestled on Qian Yixiu rather than getting off.
Normally, except for the half a month before she was pregnant when Dashan returned late, she would be home by nightfall. But today, Qian Yixiu waited until Hai Hour and still did not see them.
When it was time for rest, she had no choice but to put the two stubborn little ones into Monkey Brother’s sleeping basket and let them sleep there.
The rains grew heavier at night, and Qian Yixiu, already restless, became even more sleepless. She was worried about Monkey Brother and Dashan, regretting letting them go to search for ginseng. At the same time, she was relieved that their house had been repaired. If it had been the original thatched house, such heavy rain would surely leak, and it might not hold up well.
Qian Sangui and Lady Wu were also worried and couldn’t sleep, unsure how long the heavy rain would last. Their corn and peanuts were almost ready for harvest. It was not only them; most of the villagers in Huaxi Village were worrying about their crops.
