The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 589 - 578: Going Home (Ten More Rewards Added for the Crowdfunding Leader’s Readers)

Chapter 589: Chapter 578: Going Home (Ten More Rewards Added for the Crowdfunding Leader’s Readers)

Zhou SiLang was driving the horse carriage into the village when a group of children surrounded him, including his family’s third and fourth.

Upon seeing Fourth Uncle, the two of them immediately clambered onto the carriage, trying to climb up.

Zhou SiLang grabbed the waistbands of the two and pulled them onto the carriage, scolding, "The carriage is on its way to Old Master Bai’s house, what are you climbing up for?"

Though he said this, Zhou SiLang still reached the Bai Family under the noisy escort of a bunch of children.

If the carriage was driven by the Bai Family, everyone wouldn’t be so excited, and the children would intentionally avoid it, but since it was Zhou SiLang driving, people didn’t feel as distant.

After the carriage stopped, two bold kids even reached out to touch the horse, frightening Zhou SiLang into quickly waving his hands to chase them away.

"Be careful of the horse kicking."

The servants of the Bai Family came out to meet him, helped to hold the horse, and Zhou SiLang first put down his and Manbao’s belongings, and then began to separate the items for the two families.

This is for Bai Erlang, this is for Bai Shanbao, this is for Mr. Zhuang...

After everything was distributed, Zhou SiLang handed his and Manbao’s belongings to a group of children and told them to take them home while he went into the Bai Family to speak with Old Master Bai.

Zhou SiLang took out a stack of papers from his bosom and handed them over respectfully, "Old Master Bai, these are the items that the two young masters and Mr. Zhuang asked me to bring back."

Old Master Bai flipped through them and his eyelids twitched, asking, "Has Mr. Zhuang decided to stay in Yizhou?"

They had learned yesterday that Young Master Bai Shan had been accepted into the prefectural school. Old Master Bai was worried whether Mr. Zhuang would take Bai Er back with him, but seeing this, it seemed they planned to stay in Yizhou for the long term.

Zhou SiLang nodded, "Yes, Mr. Zhuang says that Young Master Bai Shan needs guidance, and neither Young Master Bai Er nor my youngest sister can leave without the teacher, so they might as well all stay in Yizhou."

Although Old Master Bai was very reluctant to part with his younger son, he thought this was also good. His eldest son was in the prefectural school in Mianzhou, which was inferior to Yizhou. If Erlang could get into the Yizhou prefectural school...

Well, that possibility was rather low, but it would be good for him to get exposed to more in Yizhou.

But about these things that need to be brought...

Old Master Bai frowned, "There’s too much stuff to bring, can you handle it all by yourself?"

Zhou SiLang said, "As long as it can be tied to the carriage, I can bring it."

Old Master Bai looked at him, "What I mean is, is it safe for you to travel alone with so much stuff?"

Zhou SiLang, stunned, asked, "Unsafe? Our journey here was quite safe."

Old Master Bai’s finger tapped on the table, and then he smiled, "No rush on this matter, it will take us a couple of days to pack everything. When do you plan to set off?"

"I also need to stay at home for three or four days, Old Master Bai can pack slowly. About next door, Old Madam Bai..."

"I’ll speak to her."

Zhou SiLang brightened up at that; he had been eager to return home. If after speaking with Old Master Bai he had to run next door, it would surely delay him for another half day. It was best if Old Master Bai was willing to take the task upon himself.

Zhou SiLang explained everything that needed to be said and then dashed home.

Zhou’s family had been waiting in the courtyard, and they immediately gathered around him, bombarding him with questions. Ms. Fang, holding a child, was even squeezed to the outside.

Of course, Old Zhou wouldn’t join the jostling crowd. He coughed twice, and seeing that no one paid him any attention, he raised his voice to disperse them, "Alright, alright, disperse, disperse, have you got nothing else to do?"

Only then did the crowd break up slightly, and Old Zhou frowned and asked Zhou SiLang, "Why did you suddenly come back? Where’s Manbao?"

Zhou SiLang smiled at Ms. Fang, took his son from her arms, and came forward to sit beside his father, saying, "Manbao is studying with Mr. Zhuang. Dad, Young Master Bai Shan from the Bai Family has been accepted into the prefectural school. Mr. Zhuang will stay in Yizhou to teach them, and Manbao has also stayed behind."

Old Zhou frowned, "Then what did you come back for?"

"I’ve come back to fetch some things and to discuss some matters with the family," Zhou SiLang said, indicating his return wasn’t pointless. He briefly mentioned what he had come back to take, saying, "Besides these, I want to bring all the remaining old ginger and ligustrum seeds from home. Dad, you have no idea, the medicinal materials in Yizhou City are a little more expensive than in the county."

Old Zhou snorted, "I know, we’ve been selling so many herbs, and definitely been undercharged. How much more expensive is it in Yizhou City?"

"It varies, about two to three coins more, but that’s a lot per pound, and for a hundred or a thousand pounds, that adds up to a significant amount."

Old Zhou glanced at him, "Do you have a thousand pounds of herbs?"

Zhou SiLang scratched his nose, a bit embarrassed, "Not currently, but won’t I if the quantity increases?"

Zhou Dalang immediately said, "Dad, why don’t we also use the remaining dry land on the small ridge to grow ginger? Though we’ve already planted beans this year, we’ll have to wait until next year."

Zhou Sanlang said, "And ligustrum seeds, we can plant them on the mountain, without even needing to use the dry land."

"Not only can we plant them, but villagers can too. When the time comes, we can collect and resell them, earning a bit of profit."

Old Zhou frowned, "That’s a big operation, what if we can’t sell them?"

Zhou SiLang, "If we can’t sell them, we’ll just eat them ourselves; ginger is edible, after all."

Everyone: ...

Old Zhou asked, "What does Manbao think?"

"Manbao agreed," Zhou SiLang said, "Dad, you see Manbao thinks it’s alright, so it must be doable."

Old Zhou pondered for a while, then nodded and sighed, "It’s been over a month since I’ve seen Manbao, I really miss her."

But Manbao probably doesn’t miss you, Zhou SiLang thought to himself.

In Yizhou City, the two siblings mostly missed their sister-in-law, then occasionally Manbao would think of their mother, and Zhou SiLang of his wife and child.

Thinking of this, Zhou SiLang looked up and smiled at Ms. Fang.

Just as Old Zhou saw this and frowned, he asked, "Now that you’re back, who will take care of Manbao?"

"Ah, dad, Manbao’s living with Mr. Zhuang and the others; five people together, what’s there to worry about?"

"But which one of them looks like they can take care of someone?" Old Zhou said, "With you gone, how will Manbao manage when she needs hot water for washing up, dirty clothes, or meals?"

Zhou SiLang didn’t dare tell him that they bought meals from outside and simply said, "Don’t worry, they all know how to boil water and wash clothes now, I’m not needed for these trivial things."

"What?" Old Zhou exclaimed, "You even let your sister wash clothes? Don’t you know that water is so cold and she’s frail, she never had to wash clothes at home."

Zhou SiLang, "...It was Mr. Zhuang’s requirement."

Ms. Qian, who had been silent until then, glanced at him and said, "What’s with the shouting; Manbao is not so young anymore. What’s wrong with washing clothes?"

She continued, "If she were home, she should be learning how to cook with her sister-in-law by now."