The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 429 - 418: Shared Enjoyment

Chapter 429: Chapter 418: Shared Enjoyment

Old Zhou lit his pipe and after a few puffs, he called Zhou Dalang over, "You and Two need to make a trip to your uncle’s home tonight—hmm, don’t let your second and third uncles know, just your eldest uncle. Ask him how this spring’s wheat harvest turned out; actually, we should have gone there a couple of days ago."

After muttering to himself, Old Zhou added, "Once you’re clear on that, if the seed over there is good, discuss it with him quietly. Have him bring the best wheat over first thing tomorrow morning. Don’t bring too much—just one load per person will do."

"What about the second and third uncles..."

"Let your eldest uncle handle it," Old Zhou said, "You need to enter the village before dawn, and try not to be seen by anyone in the village. If you are seen, it’s no big deal, just say your mother’s illness has improved and your uncles have come to visit the house..."

Zhou Dalang nodded.

Old Zhou continued, "Remember, the wheat you bring must be of good quality; make sure to clarify with your eldest uncle that this is for Old Master Bai in our village to use as seed. If it’s not good, it’s our Zhou Family’s reputation on the line. Two, keep a close eye on things when you’re there."

Zhou Dalang and Zhou ErLang both nodded in agreement.

After taking another drag of his pipe, Old Zhou said, "I’m not worried about your eldest and second uncles. It’s just your third uncle..."

Old Zhou felt his back turning blue.

Ms. Qian withdrew her hand from his waist, and not daring to speak ill of his brother-in-law any further, Old Zhou coughed lightly and waved his hand, "Alright, off you go."

Junior Ms. Qian immediately went to the kitchen to prepare torches for her two brothers-in-law, as the matter directly involved her parents’ home. The torches she bound were both quick and sturdy.

Ms. Feng followed to help, feeling envious in her heart. Her parents’ home was quite far away, so she usually only visited during Chinese New Year and Double Ninth Festival.

She glanced outside carefully and quietly asked Junior Ms. Qian, "Big sister, what if my parents come to exchange grain..."

Junior Ms. Qian lowered her voice and chuckled, "Don’t worry, mother prepared well in advance. There are three sacks of wheat in your eldest brother’s room, and they all have circles drawn on them."

Ms. Feng’s eyes sparkled as her hands moved faster, and she whispered, "Then I’ll make a trip to my parents’ home in a few days."

Ms. He and Ms. Fang, holding their children, couldn’t go in to help, but they were likewise tempted.

Last year, when they exchanged wheat seeds, they hadn’t realized how good this strain would be; although they’d mentioned it to their families, their relatives hadn’t actually come to exchange seeds.

Ms. He’s family lived somewhat far away, while in Ms. Fang’s case, her family had just recently established ties and weren’t that close yet.

Moreover, both Ms. Fang’s and Ms. He’s families, like Ms. Feng’s, thought the Zhou Family was just being polite—who would go out of their way to lug a big sack of wheat seeds to exchange?

If they wanted to exchange wheat seeds, giving a pound or two during family visits to test grow in a corner of the wheat field was the best approach.

The wives of the second, third, and fourth sons of the Zhou Family also regretted not taking it seriously at the time; they had missed out on such a big opportunity.

By this time, few houses in the village still had lights on; everyone was starting to wash up and get ready for bed.

Zhou Dalang and Zhou ErLang took the torches and headed for Qian Family Village.

The walk from Qili Village to Qian Family Village was much farther than to Dali Village; traveling the night path would take at least half an hour.

After his sons left, Old Zhou turned to Manbao and asked, "Manbao, this won’t be a problem, will it?"

Manbao: "...Dad, you only asked me after you’ve already sent Big Brother and Two on their way—isn’t it a bit late?"

Old Zhou felt slightly embarrassed as he patted her head and said, "Isn’t your dad just trying to make sure with you?"

Manbao replied, "Don’t worry, Dad, as long as the seeds are alright, that’s what matters."

Old Zhou was still somewhat worried, "Can Old Master Bai use so many seeds? What if in the end he thinks it’s too much and doesn’t want it?"

"He won’t, he’s not just using it for himself, he’s also selling it. So, don’t worry, as long as the seeds are good, he’ll take as much as we can give," Manbao said, "It has to be new wheat seeds; if not, our family’s reputation will take the hit."

Old Zhou wasn’t concerned that his elder brother would deceive them—cough, strictly speaking, even if he wanted to play tricks, his elder brother wouldn’t.

Of course, Old Zhou noted that this wasn’t a very apt comparison.

Reassured by his daughter’s affirmation, Old Zhou was relaxed enough to chat, "Old Master Bai is planning to sell these further? They’re already princely priced. How much more could he possibly sell them for?"

"I guess it’ll be one hundred and eighty wen," Manbao said, "That’s the price Shanbao and I set at the beginning."

Old Zhou gave her a thumbs up, laughing heartily, "You really don’t know the cost of essentials until you run a household; is there any price you wouldn’t dare to ask for?"

Laughing, Old Zhou asked, "One hundred and eighty wen, who’s buying it?"

At the same time, Mrs. Bai was asking Old Master Bai the same question.

She had just learned about this business venture between her husband and their three children from her son. Her initial thought was that her husband was using the household money to entertain the children.

In her view, wheat priced at one hundred and fifty wen per dou was already exorbitant.

But Old Master Bai claimed that the price was actually cheap.

Old Master Bai chuckled, "Yizhou is in dire need of revival, especially in these next two years, so the wheat seeds that come through me won’t lack for places to go."

"So how much can you sell them for? Really like they set at one hundred and eighty wen per dou?"

Old Master Bai laughed, "The children were a bit too timid; that price is a bit on the low side."

Mrs. Bai couldn’t help but exclaim, "That price is still low?"

Old Master Bai nodded, lying back on his pillow, contentedly saying, "I’m planning to sell it to Wu Fang for two hundred wen per dou. As for how much Wu Fang will sell it for outside, that’s his business."

Mrs. Bai: ...Well, that settled it—her children’s courage was indeed a little lacking.

Mrs. Bai couldn’t help but say, "Didn’t you mention that these wheat seeds haven’t been grown in other places yet, and we don’t know if they’ll suit the local land and water? Selling them off like this..."

"Aren’t wheat seeds always transported from one place to another? Whether they can adapt to the local land and water is something the seed buyers should consider. We only need to ensure that our seeds are a new strain and that they have yielded a bumper crop in Qili Village, that’s all," Old Master Bai said, "The rest of the issues are for them to deal with themselves."

"In this world, taking risks is a part of any venture; it’s just a matter of scale," Old Master Bai added with a smile, "Look at how the children borrowed wheat seeds to exchange; do you think they didn’t take a risk?"

He smiled, "To us adults, their risk might seem trivial, but for their age, it’s actually quite substantial. Luckily for them, the wheat strain turned out to be good; otherwise, all this wheat would have been stuck in their hands."

Mrs. Bai laughed, "Wheat being stuck in their hands? They could just sell it off."

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