The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 389 - 378: Following Manbao

Chapter 389: Chapter 378: Following Manbao

Yang Heshu pondered and asked, "If you had a cow, could it replace a laborer?"

"Hey, sir, you must be joking. A cow is not just equivalent to one laborer—it’s like three laborers. People like me have to stop and rest after walking up three rows, but if you feed a cow well, it can keep going for ten or eight rows without stopping. A cow’s endurance is much stronger than a human’s."

Yang Heshu hadn’t realized the usefulness of a cow was so great and quickly asked, "If the County Governmental Office was willing to let you buy a cow on credit, would you be interested?"

Manbao couldn’t help but sit up straight, they hadn’t settled the earlier matter yet, and now was County Magistrate Yang about to abandon her for someone else?

"This won’t do. Can people like us even afford to buy a cow?"

The other person clearly didn’t have Manbao’s courage or boldness and took it as a joke. He laughed and said, "The County Governmental Office is that generous? Buying on credit must include interest, and if you can’t pay it back later, they could take away your house and land. Wouldn’t that be a terrible injustice?"

"The interest is not high, one tael of silver a month for only twelve coins."

The villager shook his head and clucked his tongue, "A cow is so expensive. The County Governmental Office can make money just by sitting around. I’m not buying on credit."

Yang Heshu: ...

He looked toward Manbao, whose eyes were sparkling as she watched him, "Look at me, I really trust the County Governmental Office, honestly!"

Yang Heshu looked away, changing the subject. He asked a few more questions about farming before preparing to stand up and leave.

By chance, it was getting late, and the wives of the villagers saw that their men were sitting and chatting instead of working, so they simply brought out the midday meal and called the children over to eat.

Their lives weren’t much better; they had black steamed buns made from wheat bran mixed with flour, and a pot of vegetables that had gone cold in the basket they had brought.

They invited Manbao and the others to join them for the meal.

Manbao and the others declined, and they didn’t insist. These days, each family’s food supply was hardly sufficient. It was merely a polite gesture.

There were quite a few who politely declined with Manbao, and as it was time for the midday meal, the families walked up the field ridges, found a wider patch of grass to sit down, and opened their baskets to eat.

Manbao and the others passed by, and although the villagers greeted them, once they refused, they were not asked again.

Yang Heshu was very interested in their midday meal. He observed it as he walked by, managing to keep a calm face, but inside he felt quite distressed.

These were things he hadn’t even seen before coming to Luojiang County, let alone eaten.

Yang Heshu wouldn’t eat it because the food they were eating now was something he had tasted in several farmhouses over the past couple of days and it was really not delicious.

As he continued on his way, he spoke with several more households. He posed the same question about the willingness of the County Governmental Office to provide cattle on credit, but to his surprise, not a single person he asked was willing.

Yang Heshu began to suspect Manbao was doing this deliberately.

Manbao just looked at him and said, "The village chief has cattle; his family definitely won’t buy. Zhou Hu’s family is very poor now. Would you like to go see?"

Zhou Hu couldn’t plow the fields alone, so this spring, he was still teaming up with the Zhou Family, although they worked together, they ate separately.

The Zhou Family was accustomed to going home to eat since they needed to rest at noon, but Zhou Hu didn’t go back. He sat with his two sons, bowing his heads to eat, planning to check his own land afterward.

When Zhou Hu saw Manbao and the others coming, he raised a smile and waved at them, "Have you had your midday meal? If not, come and eat with me?"

Manbao politely declined, "We’ve already eaten, Zhou Hu. This is Mr. Yang, he’s here to ask some questions."

Zhou Hu looked curiously at Yang Heshu and asked, "What questions?"

Manbao, disliking Yang Heshu’s tendency to preface his questions with a long introduction, spoke up before him, "He wants to ask you, if the County Governmental Office is willing to provide you a cow on credit, would you want it?"

Zhou Hu hesitated and asked, "Would that cost money?"

"Well, yes," Manbao said uncertainly, "Grandma Liu said that a cow costs at least 3,200 coins, but, ah, Mr. Yang, are you providing me with silver or copper coins?"

"I’m providing you with a cow."

"A cow has to be bought with money," Manbao insisted, "Assuming a cow costs three taels and two hundred coins, I can afford the two hundred coins. I just have to get three taels on credit from you. That way, it’s easier to calculate interest. So are you providing us with silver or copper coins?"

"Since it’s about three taels, naturally it would be in silver."

"Can you give me the silver first? Then I can take the money to the County Governmental Office to buy the cow, and we’ll sign a document for borrowing silver."

Yang Heshu looked at her skeptically, "Why complicate things? Wouldn’t it be simpler to just get the cow on credit? Just say how much you want to borrow, sign the note, and hand over any extra amount."

"No, that sounds confusing. I think it’s better to sign separately, to borrow silver first, then buy the cow, keeping the two transactions distinct."

Zhou Hu listened to their back and forth and couldn’t help asking, "Manbao, is your family getting a cow on credit?"

"Yeah," Manbao nodded, "Using people to pull plows is too tiring. A cow is very useful, it can easily substitute for two laborers, and three if it’s a strong cow."

Zhou Hu then looked down and thought for a moment before lifting his head to ask Yang Heshu, "Mr. Yang, if I can’t pay back the money in a year, can I sell the cow to repay the debt?"

Yang Heshu was taken aback, having not considered this point. He frowned and pondered for a moment, "In principle, it should be possible, but any sale would have to go through the County Governmental Office. It must be ensured that the draft ox ends up in the hands of farmers for plowing the land."

This was to prevent them from slaughtering the cattle.

This kind of thing was very common; the Yang Family often did this. How else could they have beef to eat?

"Alright, I’ll also get silver on credit to buy a cow. How much is the monthly interest?"

Yang Heshu hadn’t expected him to agree so readily, mainly because along the way it seemed not many trusted this policy.

And even less trusted the County Governmental Office.

Zhou Hu didn’t look at Yang Heshu but rather turned to Manbao and sighed, "Manbao is like a fairy reborn. Following her advice can’t go wrong, right?"

Yang Heshu: ...

Manbao felt the mounting pressure and said uncertainly, "Well, not necessarily..."

Although she was starting to believe her mother’s tales about the fairy, deep down, she knew Keke was right—superstitions were not to be trusted.

Yet Bai Shanbao nodded in approval at Zhou Hu, "Zhou Hu, you’re making the right decision. If it weren’t for the fact that my family isn’t poor enough, I’d consider getting a few more myself."

Zhou Hu immediately said, "One is enough for me."

So, Zhou Hu and Manbao eagerly looked at Yang Heshu, "Mr. Yang, do you think we could get silver on credit to buy cows?"

Yang Heshu hesitated, thinking it over. Although the steps were different, the result was the same, and it didn’t seem to pose a problem.

After pondering for a while, Yang Heshu said, "It’s possible, but you must promise that the silver you borrow will be used to buy cows from the County Governmental Office. Otherwise, I’ll have to impose a fine."

"Yes, yes, yes, we’ll definitely follow Mr. Yang’s instructions. By the way, Mr. Yang, are you in charge of something in the county?"

Manbao was amused, waiting to see how Yang Heshu would answer.

Yang Heshu smiled and replied, "I’m currently in charge of agricultural and sericulture affairs, which is why I’m trying to get you to buy cattle—to cultivate more land."

Zhou Hu was not stingy with his praise, "That’s a good official."