The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 465 - 454: Funeral Arrangements (Part 2)

Chapter 465: Chapter 454: Funeral Arrangements (Part 2)

Manbao thought for a moment and replied, "Okay, I’ll ask him. Dad, did our uncle really die?"

Old Zhou’s smile suddenly stiffened on his face as he let out a long sigh, took the tobacco pipe from behind his waist, and nodded, "Yes, he’s dead."

Manbao turned around to squat next to him, propping her chin in her hands, and she too let out a deep sigh, "I never even met my uncle."

Old Zhou, who had just stuffed the tobacco pipe into his mouth, suddenly had red-rimmed eyes and choked on the smoke, unable to suppress his violent coughing, as tears and snot streamed down his face.

Old Zhou, with little regard for appearances, wiped his face and turned to Manbao, who was looking at him in surprise, and forced a smile, "I choked..."

But the tears were like ones that wouldn’t dry up.

Old Zhou continued to wipe his eyes while muttering unclearly, "This choking is really something..."

For some reason, Manbao felt deeply sad too and promised, hitting her chest, "Dad, don’t worry, I’ll make sure to get a better deal on Bai Shanbao’s wheat."

Of course, Bai Shanbao couldn’t really offer a better deal because he had just found out from his uncle that the grain merchants might have failed to receive the crops they were expecting, which was why the buying price for wheat had gone up again. Yesterday, it had returned to thirty wen per dou, but today it had jumped to thirty-two wen.

It was said that the price at which the stores were selling wheat had also gone up by two wen. Clearly, the cunning grain merchants were unwilling to pay more than the current buying price.

So the three bags of wheat that Bai Shanbao had left were not a hard sell at all. As long as a grain merchant was looking for it, thirty-two wen each, they would sell like hot cakes.

If he weren’t treating Manbao as a familiar face with her eyes still slightly red, clearly having just cried, he would never have sold it to her for thirty wen.

Manbao, because she had just choked along with her father, still had somewhat red eyes and negotiated with Bai Shanbao, "Why don’t you tell my dad that you gave us a discount? I can make up the difference to you, is that okay?"

Bai Shanbao scratched his head and asked, "Why all this trouble? Why don’t you just tell your dad that you bought it from me with money?"

"No, my dad will be happier if the wheat is cheaper."

Whether it was her spending the money or Old Zhou, in his heart it was all the same.

"Okay then, how much should I tell your dad?"

"Twenty wen?"

"Do you think your dad will believe that?"

Manbao thought about it and sensed he probably wouldn’t.

"Then just say twenty-five wen," Bai Shanbao made the decision, "and later you must make up the difference to me."

"No problem."

Having finished with their business, the two kids sat on a rock not far from the gate and chatted. "I see that your place is bustling with noise. What are they doing?"

"My dad is preparing for my uncle’s funeral and is going to invite the Taoist priests from the temple to summon his soul. That way, on festival days, my uncle’s family can come back and have meals with my grandparents."

Bai Shanbao thought for a moment and said, "I don’t think my dad did a soul summoning. Should I do one for him?"

"Probably not necessary," Manbao was unsure herself and hesitated, "your dad has a body, doesn’t he? We need to summon souls because my uncle and his family left no remains."

"Alright then, when will the funeral start? I’ll come to give offerings."

"Maybe the day after tomorrow. Tomorrow my brothers are going to buy the coffin."

Bai Shanbao asked curiously, "Are you going?"

Manbao shook her head, "Children shouldn’t go."

Actually, coffins are usually custom-made from one’s own timber by the carpenters at the coffin shop, but there are always those who die unexpectedly and don’t have time to prepare, and that’s when ready-made coffins from the shop are needed.

Sometimes, when there are no spare coffins in the shop, one might have to borrow or directly take a coffin made for somebody else, which can lead to a lot of complications. Manbao, being a child, should naturally stay away from these morbid matters. How could Ms.Qian let her get involved?

Manbao returned home with the good news. Old Zhou personally went with his two sons to buy those three bags of wheat, and of course, they had to extend their special thanks to Bai Shanbao.

They also took the opportunity to drop by Old Master Bai’s to inform him about Zhou Yin’s affairs, suggesting that they should be considered resolved by now, and to invite him to visit for a prayer session when he had the time, as their family still owed him much gratitude.

Old Master Bai had already been informed of the incident by his sister-in-law and knew that it involved Lord Wei from the capital, so he gladly agreed.

Old Zhou, after bringing the grain home, said to Zhou Sanlang, "I reckon there will be many visitors, and since families around here aren’t wealthy these days, we need to produce more flour to avoid embarrassment if we run out of food."

Zhou Sanlang nodded.

"Let’s husk all three bags, save the bran well, and keep one bag’s worth of bran from the three bags of wheat. Grind it up and mix it into the flour."

Zhou Sanlang hesitated, "Dad, won’t it look bad?"

"It might look bad, but it’s practical," Old Zhou patted him on the head, "Even though our village harvested quite a bit of wheat this year, nobody has the luxury of eating pure white flour all the time. Have you seen how many people there are in the entire village, including your uncle’s family, and all our relatives by marriage..."

Old Zhou clenched his teeth, "There’s my uncle’s family too!"

Zhou Sanlang seemed to realize something, shivered, and nodded repeatedly, asking, "Dad, is one bag of bran going to be enough? Should we mix in more?"

Old Zhou hesitated, "We need to be frugal, yes, but we can’t make it look too bad. The steamed buns need to taste good. Maybe you should go ask your sister-in-law, since she makes the buns, she should know."

Zhou Sanlang rubbed his head and indeed went to the kitchen to consult Junior Ms.Qian.

Not long after, he was chased out by Junior Ms.Qian, "I can’t believe you thought of that. One bag of bran mixed in? How could that make buns? Even with ten pounds of flour, I would complain about one pound of bran. With just these three bags of wheat, you wanted to mix in one...

Zhou Sanlang ducked his head and ran off to find his dad, looking pitiful.

Old Zhou then sighed deeply, "Alright, take another bag of wheat from our house to be ground, sigh. When your sister-in-law makes the buns tonight, let her mix in some bran too. Our family needs to save a bit; summer harvest is still a while away."

Zhou Sanlang nodded and went off to move the wheat.

Ms.Qian was calculating the money for Zhou Dalang to buy the coffin, "Ready-made coffins are much more expensive than those made to order. Take five taels of silver with you, and try to buy the best you can. Your uncle and his wife were buried together, so try to buy something spacious enough."

Zhou Dalang agreed.

Ms.Qian then opened another money box, took out a string of coins, and gave it to him, "Also buy the white paper, hemp cloth, and the mourning flags all from the coffin shop. Pay attention and don’t miss anything; we only have one day to prepare for the funeral, and we must handle this with dignity."

Ms.Qian wiped the corner of her eye and said, "It was rushed at that time, buried in the dark without proper ceremony, just a mat and a quilt. Now we must let them come back properly and leave properly again."

Zhou Dalang took the money and nodded in acknowledgment.