Chapter 18

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

Shen Dalang furrowed his brow. “Stop trying to sound like an adult.”

Chen Xiaosang was dissatisfied. “Well, what about you? You’re just a child too, but you always have that serious look on your face. Beside, shouldn’t you stay at home instead of going to the mountain to hunt boars all the time?”

“I’m ten years old, I’m an adult, unlike you,” Shen Dalang replied, gesturing with his hand above her head.

Even though they were both crouching, he was still much taller than her.

So, being tall meant being an adult. Well, Chen Xiaosang was actually a few decades old, but she didn’t hear Shen Dalang calling her “auntie” or anything.

Chen Xiaosang grumbled in her mind, but she didn’t want to offend Shen Dalang. She didn’t care about Old Chen anymore. She grabbed Shen Dalang’s arm and shook him, whispering in his ear, “Brother Dalang, you know my family is in trouble. Please help me.”

“Look, your father even injured my father. My father can’t earn money anymore, and my brothers are going to be conscripted.”

Shen Dalang’s eyelids twitched in annoyance. Chen Xiaosang was making it sound like he was forcing her brothers to die by not taking her to the mountain.

What frustrated him even more was that his father had pushed him into this situation, making him feel guilty.

Shen Dalang glared at Shen Xingyi, who touched the back of his neck and pretended to look elsewhere.

Seeing that he didn’t object, Chen Xiaosang continued, “Look, when you took me up the mountain yesterday, you earned over 900 wen. That’s enough for my four brothers to work in town for ten days.”

“If you could earn 900 wen every day, you could make twenty-seven taels of silver in a month. In a few months, your family could build several large brick houses. Wouldn’t that be great?”

What she didn’t say was, “Then you could even tell Uncle Xingyi that you’ve found him a good wife. Life would be great.”

Chen Xiaosang couldn’t determine whether Shen Dalang wanted a stepmother or not, so she didn’t finish her sentence. She just looked at him.

Shen Dalang wanted to refuse, but no matter how hard he tried, the words wouldn’t come out.

If it weren’t for his father, he wouldn’t have gotten himself into such big trouble. The more he thought about it, the angrier he became.

Shen Xingyi chuckled and approached Chen Xiaosang, asking, “Xiaosang, do you want to go to the county town with Uncle Xingyi?”

The big wild boars that his son had hunted wouldn’t sell out in town. He had to quickly take them to the county’s restaurant to sell them; otherwise, they wouldn’t be fresh tomorrow.

Chen Xiaosang’s eyes lit up. She left Shen Dalang and shouted to Shen Xingyi, “Yes!”

Her four brothers had been in the county for several days, and she wanted to visit them. Besides, she had never been to the county town before and wanted to experience it. She wondered if the medicine in the county town would be more expensive.

Old Chen also had this idea and discussed it with Shen Xingyi. Shen Xingyi readily agreed.

As Old Chen led Chen Xiaosang towards the ox-cart, she repeatedly turned back and reminded Shen Dalang, “Don’t forget what you promised me. I’ll come find you early tomorrow morning.”

Shen Dalang was speechless.

What had he promised her? Like, nothing? What was this now?

Chen Xiaosang was filled with excitement at the thought of meeting her four brothers. However, her mood soured when two guards collected seven wen from Shen Xingyi.

Noticing her discontent, Old Chen cheerfully patted her head and said, “You now understand how quickly money goes to waste. Remember to count it carefully next time.”

Chen Xiaosang grumbled unhappily, “We’ve already paid our taxes, so why do we still have to pay an entrance fee to enter the county?”

Patiently, Old Chen explained to his daughter, “Our county is quite large, and it requires a considerable amount of money to build roads and dams. The tax and grain we paid are simply not enough.”

“This entrance fee prevents many people from entering the city. With fewer people, the county will become less prosperous, and the local government will earn even less,” Chen Xiaosang argued.

Each person had to pay one coin to enter the city, while an ox cart cost five coins. As a child, she had spent seven coins. Ordinary villagers had no means to earn extra money, so they couldn’t afford to spend so much on the entrance fee.

Glancing at the nearby guard, Old Chen said, “The officials know this stuff better than we do, so we need not worry about such matters.”

Chen Xiaosang no longer dwelled on the issue and was escorted to the dock amid the clamor of the crowd.

Once Shen Xingyi sold the wild boar and arrived to pick them up, he drove the ox cart away.

The porters at the dock were covered in dust, struggling to carry their bags and bowing their heads. Old Chen couldn’t even recognize his own son.

Growing anxious, Chen Xiaosang cupped her hand around her mouth and called out, “Eldest Brother, Second Brother, Third Brother, Fourth Brother, it’s Xiaosang here to see you!”

Her words caught the attention of the bag-carrying individuals nearby. They couldn’t help but mutter, “Which family’s little kid has come to the dock?”

A man with a grimy face by the river turned to his companion and said, “I think I heard Xiaosang calling out to us.”

His companion, casually lifting a large sack onto his shoulder, replied, “Xiaosang is running around the village. Why would she come to the dock? Are you feeling homesick?”

Just as he finished speaking, a familiar childish voice shouted, “Eldest Brother, Second Brother, Third Brother, Fourth Brother, where are you?”

“It’s Xiaosang! Big brother, it’s really Xiaosang, and Dad too!” Chen Ershu excitedly pointed towards the old man and the young boy at the end of the pier.

Following Ershu’s gesture, Chen Dashu squinted and, after recognizing their figures, swallowed hard. He urged Ershu to add two more sacks to the one on his shoulder and quickly approached Old Chen.

Ignoring Old Chen’s grasp, Chen Xiaosang ran towards her beloved brother, playfully circling his legs. She exclaimed, “Big brother, I finally get to see you! Work must be hard, right?”

Seeing his little sister’s lively appearance, Chen Dashu couldn’t contain his joy and wanted to pat her head. However, realizing his hands were dirty, he contented himself with replying as they walked, “Nothing’s hard once I see you, my little sister.”

Chen Xiaosang let out a sigh. “Big brother is all dirty. Must be an exhausting day.”

“Did big brother eat well?”

“Ah, he just had some dough made by our mother?”

“Where will he sleep?”

“On the floor? Actually, that won’t do. It’s better for him to come home with me. I’ll earn money to take care of my brothers!”

Chen Dashu, being a strong man, had tears welling up in his eyes. He tried to comfort Chen Xiaosang, saying, “We’ll earn enough money in a few days, and then we’ll go back. You be good and don’t follow me. You might get hurt.”

“I miss you, so I’m not going anywhere!” Chen Xiaosang stubbornly replied.

If he didn’t have goods on his shoulders, he would have had a good conversation with his little sister.

Old Chen saw his daughter talking to his eldest son and silently observed him. It hadn’t even been three days, but Dashu had already lost weight. It was even harder than the busy days on the farm.

With his hands behind his back, he walked over and took a sack from Dashu’s shoulder.

Chen Dashu quickly said, “Let me do it, Dad. Later, you still have to carry Xiaosang back. Don’t dirty your clothes.”

Old Chen gave him a stern look and said, “If the clothes get dirty, your mother will wash them.”

After saying that, he paid no attention to his eldest son and walked toward the nearby registration officer on his skinny legs.

Chen Dashu followed closely behind, keeping an eye on his father’s back. He only breathed a sigh of relief when they finished registering and walked to the side.

Old Chen dusted off his shoulder and asked, “Where are the other three rascals?”