Old Mrs. Mu held her head and wailed like a banshee, as the few people of the Old Mu Family leaned closer.
"Mom, what’s wrong with you? How co you don’t watch where you’re walking? There’s no gold falling from the sky, and now look, you’re bleeding." Mu Dazhong was the first to speak, but as soon as he did, Old Mrs. Mu slapped him.
"You beast! Here I am, an old woman in this state, and you’re spouting nonsense! Get the doctor, get the doctor..."
Blood continued to flow profusely from Old Mrs. Mu’s head. She grimaced in pain, while Mu Shuangshuang buried her head in Mu Dashan’s arms, trying hard to suppress her laughter. Old Mrs. Mu’s current state was starkly different from her usual domineering self; people might even mistakenly think she was having a seizure.
Mu Dazhong turned back to look for Zhang Huai Shu to inspect the injury, but Zhang Huai Shu had already taken advantage of the chaos to slip away. The old woman had cursed him as a ’cheating old turtle,’ and if he tended to her wound, he might actually end up with a bruise himself.
"Mom, Uncle Zhang has left..."
At the ntion of this, Old Mrs. Mu panicked and fainted on the spot. It was another flurry of chaos in the Old Mu Family, and there was no ti for Mu Dazhong to fetch the doctor. Old Mrs. Mu could very well be at death’s door, so Mr. Mu followed an old redy, grabbed a handful of ash from the stove, sprinkled it on Old Mrs. Mu’s wound, pressed it down, and finally stopped the bleeding!
The people of the Old Mu Family finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing this, Mr. Mu didn’t want to waste more ti on Old Mrs. Mu, so he took the n of the Old Mu Family to work in the fields.
The fields of the Old Mu Family couldn’t be delayed any longer. Any more delay would miss the double harvest.
Mu Shuangshuang, estimating it was safe now, sprang up from the bed, inadvertently scaring Xiao Han who was about to wipe her face.
"Sis, are you... alright?"
"Yeah, I originally wanted to stir things up for the family division, but Grandpa disagreed. It’s okay, though; now it’s basically like we’ve divided the family. In the future, whatever silver I earn won’t be snatched away by Granny under the guise of being fair and square."
Thinking of the contract in her possession, a grin spread wider across Mu Shuangshuang’s face!
"Well... Sis, hang on. I’ll go boil so water for you to take a bath. The sll of blood on you though..."
Knowing her sister had changed, becoming cleaner, Xiao Han voluntarily took on the task of boiling hot water. Mu Shuangshuang didn’t stand on ceremony, especially since the old lady wouldn’t be out causing trouble for the next few days. No one would be looking for trouble.
Once she finished her bath, she’d go help Lu Yuanfeng with selling pork; his honest nature would certainly get him swindled.
Mu Shuangshuang was not at all worried about people suspecting her of not being injured or colluding with Zhang Huai Shu, because Zhang Huai Shu was a straightforward person, with good relations with the villagers. Occasionally, villagers lacking money for dicine would receive cheaper prescriptions from him. What he said held nearly as much sway as half a village chief.
After finishing her bath, Mu Shuangshuang soaked her bloody clothes in a basin, ready to wash them when she returned.
Shuang and Little Zhi exchanged a few simple words, then she and Xiao Han went out together.
Lu Yuanfeng’s house was at the foot of a small hill in the south of the village. The hill wasn’t tall, and the trees weren’t dense enough, so there weren’t any dangerous animals, making it quite safe.
Much like the Old Mu Family, Lu Yuanfeng’s family hadn’t split up. The Lu brothers lived together, but unlike Shuangshuang’s house, they didn’t have a courtyard wall, so coming and going was fairly free.
Right now, quite a few villagers gathered around Lu Yuanfeng’s house, pointing and discussing the wild boar. Each looked at Lu Yuanfeng with both envy and admiration.
Lu Yuanfeng was cleaning the pig in the yard, placing the wild boar in a large wooden basin, and using a hair-scraping knife to shave its bristles. Each stroke took away a handful of bristles.
"Fengzi, this wild boar is so big, you can’t possibly eat it all yourselves. Lucky for you, my man’s been working hard lately, why don’t you let us help you and take so ho?"
The neighbor, Aunt Zhang, craned her neck, eyeing the wild boar in Lu Yuanfeng’s hands with an intense gaze.
As soon as she spoke, it imdiately drew disdain from the crowd.
Everyone wished to taste a bite of the boar, and so even started drooling, but no one else was as bold as Aunt Zhang to outright demand so.
Lu Yuanfeng ignored Aunt Zhang. Who knew she wouldn’t give up and then said, "Fengzi, your mother passed away early. If it weren’t for , Yuanbao would’ve starved long ago. You ought to repay , right?"
Aunt Zhang placed her hands on her hips, with an expression as if Lu Yuanfeng owed her.
"Auntie, it’s fourteen coins per pound for pork. You can buy it if you want," Lu Yuanfeng looked up, glanced at Aunt Zhang, and continued his work.
"Hey, you..."
She wanted to say more, but was interrupted by Mu Shuangshuang, who just arrived.
"Brother Yuan Feng, Shuangshuang is here to help. Have you started selling the pork?"
Seeing Mu Shuangshuang, villagers were astir, as they had just co from watching the commotion at the Old Mu Family’s house, they knew Mu Shuangshuang’s situation well. Yet, everyone was unsure how co she was up and about so quickly, so they couldn’t help but gossip.
"Why is the Old Mu Family’s Shuang here? Wasn’t she supposed to be bedridden?"
"Who knows, I heard she’s carrying a debt of twenty liang and was rescued by Fengzi. I guess she’s here to settle the debt."
"What a pity, this girl. I heard she was acting daft before due to so episode, never saying a word. Now that she’s normal, she’s even calling people herself."
Mu Shuangshuang smiled at several familiar villagers, picked up a knife from the side, and handed it to Lu Yuanfeng. It was ti to cut the at now that the bristles were scraped off enough.
Over three hundred pounds of at, which Lu Yuanfeng divided into sections: fatty at, lean at, and bones, with fatty at being the most expensive, the villagers’ favorite.
Standing by the cutting board, Mu Shuangshuang addressed the villagers:
"Everyone knows Lu Yuanfeng risked his life to hunt this wild boar, so naturally, it’s his alone. Considering everyone’s double harvest at ho, and the laborers’ hard work, Lu Yuanfeng decided to sell this pork to everyone at a cheaper rate.
In town, the fatty at goes for eighteen coins a pound, we’re selling it for sixteen. Lean at in town is fifteen coins a pound, we’re selling it for thirteen. As for bones, twelve coins a pound, you can take so ho for your n to eat, shape complents shape, strengthening the body and bones.
Passersby, don’t miss the hero’s wild boar. Eating it will turn you into a hero too!"
Mu Shuangshuang had their usual shout out in front of the villagers. At first, they hesitated, but rembering the hard work their n were putting in the fields, and the at’s reasonable price, even half a pound seed worthwhile.
"Shuang, give half a pound of lean at, and toss a bit of fatty at to make so lard at ho."
Without a word, Mu Shuangshuang sliced the at as requested and weighed it.
"I’ll take two pounds, toss so fatty at as well."
" too, too..."
Once soone started, and realizing they could request fatty at thrown in, the crowd surged forward.
Previously ignored, Aunt Zhang saw Mu Shuangshuang busy looking after business. She reached out, grabbed a piece of five-flavor pork from the cutting board, stuffed it under her belly, and turned towards her house.
(Two Chapters tomorrow!)
User Comments
0 comments from readers