CH 64

Back in the bedroom, Zhulan saw the money on the kang table and counted it with her fingers, “There are three hundred wens.”

Zhou Shuren touched his nose, obviously, he didn’t do it, but he felt guilty, “The original body had saved a private house for half his life. I thought it was not much, so I didn’t mention it. I really didn’t keep it from you on purpose.”

Zhulan said meaningfully: “Do all men who have a family like to hide their private money?”

“I definitely won’t.”

Zhou Shuren felt that he had a strong desire to survive, and he had a quick reaction and a firm attitude.

Zhulan was in a state of mind for a moment, she could only be Zhou Shuren’s wife in this life, was Zhou Shuren promising her?

Zhulan quickly grabbed the money, “Oh, Xuehan is waiting for me to make cotton-padded clothes, you read the book, I’ll go there first.”

Zhou Shuren picked up the book in a good mood, the corners of his mouth could not help but curl up. As long as there was a response, he was happy. He was afraid that someone with thick nerves wouldn’t even feel a needle prick! (1)

Zhulan calmed down after leaving the yard. Zhou Shuren must have made the promise quickly because he was afraid of affecting the trust between the two of them.

In the afternoon, Zhulan took her daughter to make cotton-padded quilts with Zhao shi. Fortunately, Zhao shi had work in hand and was a dedicated person, so Zhulan stayed at ease, otherwise, she would have left early.

When the room was dark, Zhulan’s neck became a little stiff, so she moved around and prepared to continue making clothes tomorrow.

In these ancient times, Zhulan still couldn’t adapt to indoor light. There was no glass, and the windows were not big to keep warm. With thick window paper, the brightness of the room can be imagined. It was necessary to light oil lamps inside when it was dark, and the brightness of the oil lamps was also low. In this dim light, reading books and doing needlework was particularly tiring for the eyes.

Zhulan folded the cotton-padded clothes, and then realized after a pause, “Where did Li shi go?”

She had been at home these few days. Li shi was constantly hovering around her to protect her position as the eldest daughter-in-law. So she now felt like something was missing!

Xuehan raised her head, “Mother, I saw my dàsǎo (2) going out when I came here.”

Mother would have guessed the rest even if she didn’t say anything.

It was only then that Zhulan remembered what she had forgotten, “By the way, why were all the women gathered at the entrance of the village?”

Oh, by the way, the gossip center of Zhoujia Village is at the village entrance. She never understood why they chose the village entrance as the spot, as there is not even a shelter to block the wind and sun.

Xuehan was pretending that she was injured and couldn’t get out, so she shook her head.

Zhao shi collected the needle and thread, “Fourth Wang and his daughter came back with big bags and small bags. The village gossiped about how much money Fourth Wang made.”

Zhulan was so happy shopping and spending money that she completely forgot about that father-and-daughter pair. As for how much money they earned, she didn’t care as it had nothing to do with the Zhou family.

It was time to make dinner, and Li shi came back after her quota for gossip was full. When she saw Zhulan decocting medicine, she felt guilty at first, and said excitedly, “Mother, the Wang family is separating!”

Zhulan no longer relied on the novel’s plot because it had changed beyond recognition. She calmly accepted the plot of splitting up in advance, “Have they separated?”

Li shi glanced at the staple food and dishes that her mother brought out and knew what to do for the evening. A piece of pork belly was divided into three points, and one portion was put together with peppers. One portion was to be made with potatoes, and the last portion with the most fatty meat was going to be fried with oil. And the staple food was pancakes and millet porridge.

Li shi gossiped while washing the vegetables with her hands: “It’s not divided yet, but it will be soon. Wang Zhang shi tried everything from crying, making trouble, and hanging herself. (3) Fourth Wang ignored everything and insisted that they have to separate.”

Zhulan ignored Li shi’s particularly regretful tone and asked, “How many things did Fourth Wang bring back?”

Li shi said, “He bought twenty catties of rice and flour, and he bought a lot of meat. It is said that there are five catties, and there is a lot of fine cotton and fabrics.”

Zhulan calculated in her heart that two jars of kimchi would be about 30 catties, and the price of spicy cabbage would cost four wens per catty, max. The price paid by the restaurant would not be higher than the price of meat. What Fourth Wang spent was far more than the income from Kimchi. So, the recipe for kimchi must have sold it.

By the time Wang Zhang shi makes it, the recipes will be known to many. The price of kimchi will be lowered. Restaurants will not buy from outsiders if they have recipes. Li shi’s natal family had made a lot, so if they don’t sell their stock quickly, they are sure to lose money. Wang Ru did a one-shot deal, cheating both Li shi and Wang Zhang shi.

Zhulan wanted to explain all these to Li shi but swallowed it back. Let the boss go back to his in-law’s house and talk about it.

After dinner, Zhulan and Zhou Shuren talked about the recipe, and Zhou Shuren called the boss and the second son to go to Li shi’s natal house together.