The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 114 - 103: Looking for a Job

Chapter 114: Chapter 103: Looking for a Job

Zhou Erlang borrowed a large cauldron from the Qian Family and then, applying the same idea, went to his second uncle to borrow a slightly smaller one.

Ms. Qian glanced at him but said nothing.

Zhou Erlang was then cheerful and took money from Ms. Qian to go to the county town to buy a cart.

Ms. Qian had inquired about the cost of a cart from the village head, but still gave him an extra hundred coins, saying, "Just in case. It’d be better if you can purchase it for less than eight hundred coins, but if you can’t, spending a little more is okay."

With that, most of the family’s savings were gone, and with a sigh, Ms. Qian waved them off.

Manbao was so excited about getting a cart for the house that she felt money should be spent once it’s made; that’s what made it money. Otherwise, left unused at home, it was just a pile of copper.

So she comforted Ms. Qian, "Mother, don’t worry, we will certainly earn a lot of money."

Although Ms. Qian didn’t have as high expectations as her, she still smiled at her younger daughter.

In a farming household, a cart was a sizable asset, nearly worth half a bed’s value. A bed could truly last a lifetime and even be passed from ancestor to father and father to son, cough cough.

So when Zhou Erlang returned with the cart, he was beaming with happiness, and he had even tied two thin red ribbons on it.

The village kids flocked around to join in the excitement, following behind and making a cacophony of noise. When Manbao returned from the fields in the afternoon, the first thing she did was rush to see their family’s cart.

She even climbed on it and had Zhou Wulang push her around the yard.

When Little Aunt climbed on, Datou and others, who were always ordered not to climb recklessly, also scrambled aboard.

The Zhou Family was brimming with laughter.

Zhou Erlang, though ambitious, was always cautious and didn’t dare buy too many things. The next day when he and Zhou Wulang went to the large market to buy meat, he prudently bought slightly less than Zhou Wulang.

After all, it was a new place and they were still uncertain about the market conditions.

Manbao couldn’t go today, but she had her own ideas and whispered to Zhou Wulang to buy eggs to sell, "Don’t sell them at noon, but in the evening you can boil and sell them, one coin each; that way people also have a dish to eat."

Since Manbao’s ideas were always good, Zhou Wulang decided to listen to her. So, when he went to the large market, he discreetly bought a basket of eggs, not too many, just thirty.

That afternoon, Zhou Wulang came back with a smile on his face. He and Zhou Liulang returned and handed over the cloth pouch with money to their mother to reconcile the accounts, then quietly found Manbao and pulled out thirty coins, happily saying, "People really did buy."

Manbao looked at the money in his hand in surprise, "Fifth Brother, why didn’t you count the money with Mother?"

Zhou Wulang said, "I’ll save these minor earnings myself; after all, Mother doesn’t know we also sold eggs."

Manbao looked at him with a pitying gaze, "Fifth Brother, but Third Brother knows, and though Mother doesn’t know now, she’ll definitely find out once Third Brother comes back."

Zhou Wulang stiffened, weighing the situation in his mind, unsure if Third Brother would keep the secret for him.

After considering Third Brother’s honest face, Zhou Wulang hung his head and went back to his mother to confess that he had forgotten about thirty coins in his pocket that he discovered when changing clothes.

Ms. Qian had already counted the money. She furrowed her brow, feeling as if the thirty coins were extra and asked, "How did you earn these thirty coins?"

"Selling eggs, one coin each, sold during the evening meal time."

Ms. Qian glanced at her fifth son and took the money.

Zhou Erlang and his wife returned a bit later, as his route was longer. He sold his soup but brought back most of the vegetables, which were added to the family’s meal provisions.

He said, "As long as the soup sells, there will come a day for the vegetables to sell too. Mother, this business can be done, and the real profit lies in the soup."

Ms. Qian nodded and turned to Ms. He, "You go with Fifth and the others tomorrow. Third has been there for almost ten days; you can help Fifth and also check on Third."

Ms. He happily agreed.

Zhou Wulang hung his head even lower.

Zhou Liulang glanced at Fifth Brother, feeling it was all Fifth Brother’s fault for trying to be too clever.

With Third Sister-in-law going, their share of the money would be less, alas~~

Manbao, however, was gnawing on a bone. Zhou Erlang wasn’t willing to divide the meaty bones among the workers, so he brought them back home, reheated them, and distributed one to each child in the family.

She was gnawing away with glee, her face greasy, and when she heard the conversation, she gave all sorts of advice, "When Third Sister-in-law goes, there’s no need to bring dry food, just bake fresh cakes for Third Brother there; they taste better fresh."

Junior Ms. Qian seemed thoughtful, "It’s two days shy of ten days now, right? By then, the laborers will need to go home for dry food too. Second Sister-in-law, Third Sister-in-law, why don’t you tell the laborers that you’re also selling cakes, you can either take grain or not charge at all."

Junior Ms. Qian, accustomed to dealing with food, gauged these matters more accurately. She instinctively took a larger bowl, filling one with grains and another with wheat, saying, "One bowl of grain for a cake, one bowl of wheat for a pancake."

Ms. Feng hesitated, "Won’t we be at a loss?"

"No, we’ll earn less, but if they all exchange with you, with over a hundred people, you’d earn at least thirty bowls a day, which is enough to feed the family for several days."

Ms. Feng was tempted and quickly looked to Zhou Erlang for approval.

Zhou Erlang pondered and said, "It’s possible, but it will be tiring."

Manbao interjected, "What’s the big deal? Shanbao’s house is almost finished being built. When the time comes, we can ask Fourth Brother for help. He’s not keen on plowing the fields anyway, let him knead the dough."

Zhou Erlang then burst into laughter, patting her little head, "Right, let him knead dough, the young lad, he’s got plenty of strength."

And so it was settled.

Manbao was delighted, her eyes nearly creasing with joy. When Zhou Silang returned from the Bai Family, Manbao even took credit for the idea, "Fourth Brother, don’t say I never find you good tasks. I’ve already figured out the next work for you."

Zhou Silang asked her, "What work?"

"Joining Second Brother and Fifth Brother in the business."

Zhou Silang was delighted, "Will they need me? Won’t there be too many people?"

"Not at all, not at all, it was Big Sister-in-law’s suggestion, and there’s an extra small business too."

Zhou Silang then chuckled, hoping to receive some money each day. Although it wouldn’t end up in his hands, at least his share of the debt would decrease a bit.

However, when he learned that Manbao had assigned him the task of kneading dough, his smile collapsed.

Kneading dough was the most exhausting work, especially for potentially feeding over a hundred people.

Zhou Silang looked at Manbao with indignation. Was this really what a sister would do?

Was she really his sister?

Manbao, oblivious, was happily teaching the others to recognize characters using a stick. She felt her writing had improved slightly, at least the head and body weren’t separated anymore, and it looked quite nice.

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