Going out for business
It was October, and the weather was soon turning cold. During the winter, villagers began to stockpile food for their livestock.
Cattle usually ate straw, so the villagers just needed to carry home bales of straw directly from the fields and put them away.
The pigweed, as well as the feed for hens and ducks, were all unique. They were essentially impossible to get from outside in the cold. Furthermore, it was far too chilly for anybody to go out and get the feed.
Many families had already purchased piglets by this time. These piglets would grow into large pigs in June or July, allowing them to be sold for a high price.
This benefit was higher than the income of planting crops. Thus these days, some married Ge'ers were seen everywhere carrying baskets on their backs looking for pigweed.
All of this was not a concern for Xu Ran's family. After all, pigs may be slaughtered even in the dead of winter. They may then wait until the next spring to purchase more piglets. During the chilly winter days, the radish leaves saved at home would be fed to Big Black and the Ewe. Xu Ran figured that almost all the chickens and ducks would be prepared for Liu Tong to eat in his confinement, so they didn't have to worry about the feeding of the fowl, either.
At the moment, all Xu Ran's family needed to do was corner firewood. Liu Tong cut all of the firewood last winter, but he was unable to do it this year. The construction crew had almost depleted the branches they had previously chopped.
And, as a result of last year's lesson, Xu Ran realized that they would need to stockpile enough firewood this year, and that each room would require a brazier to keep them warm. In any case, the ash from the braziers would make excellent fertilizer for potatoes and strawberries.
Xu Ran and Gao Quan were the leading firewood cutters this year. Xu Ran stood there, staring at the mountain behind the house he had been planning to buy since the beginning of the year. He wanted to grow fruit trees, but he couldn't since he didn't have enough money.
These forests were not under any special ownership. Anyone with a desire to obtain firewood could climb the mountain. No one would be able to stop them. There was only one stipulation: they couldn't cut down all of the firewood at once.
The mountain Xu Ran decided to go today was the one he had wanted to buy. After he had spare money next year, he would buy the mountain and plant fruit trees.
As Gao Quan advised, Xu Ran also brought Tangtang and Guoguo along. Gao Quan was teaching the two kids fundamental Kungfu techniques. Above all, it was beneficial to their health and practice. As a result, Gao Quan decided to allow them two accompany them around the mountain.
Their four dogs, of course, had to work as well. Two of them were to keep an eye on the house every day, while the others followed Tangtang and Guoguo and safeguarded them.
The two Ge'ers stayed at home and worked on household chores. They were also producing new winter garments. Of course, Shao Yu was the one who did the majority of the job. He was sewing garments for himself, Gao Quan, and Mr. Hu. The new garments for Xu Ran's family were produced by Liu Tong the previous year. These garments appeared to be brand new. Thus they didn't need to have new clothes this year.
Mr. Hu was now very good at playing chess, and he had got a few apprentices. Anyway, whoever had time would come to play chess with him.
As long as they weren't busy, not only the elderly but also many other young men wanted to come watch or play chess with him. Mr. Hu, on the other hand, rarely played chess at home. He didn't want to bother Liu Tong, so he went out to find a spot to play. He was becoming increasingly energised.
Seeing how curious and enthusiastic the villagers were about chess, Xu Ran suddenly had an idea to make money from the game.
It was very close to the spring celebration. Those who went around to see their relatives, Xu Ran understood, would have to entertain themselves throughout their visit.
Thus, he planned to wait until he had got enough firewood to go home and write down the rules for how to play chess games. After that, he would pay to print the booklets and sell them during the festival.
Xu Ran also reasoned that their family would be able to sell a lot of items at the festival. This year, they could buy chestnuts and sell them. Furthermore, potatoes and dried bamboo shoots might be used to produce money, as well as sausages and bacon to sell at the market.
Thinking of these, Xu Ran realized that the two pigs in his family were not enough. He had to buy another one.
While cutting firewood, Xu Ran was thinking about his business proposal. He came to a halt to wipe the sweat. Who claimed that keeping a business is more difficult than starting one? It was also difficult to start a business, OK?
Anyone looking for a way to make money had to first figure out how to sell the items. All of these things took time and effort, including figuring out how to sell them and how much money to sell them for.
Xu Ran believed they made more sense the more he thought about them. In any case, he had already implied that starting a business was more difficult than maintaining one.
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They had quite a bit of firewood by the end of October, and Xu Ran was back to his other businesses. Xu An had developed a number of chess sets. As a result, Xu Ran sent a set to Zhuo Yun and taught him how to play. He then advised Zhuo Yun to find another player to play with. He could team up with Qin Shuwen or someone else. What Xu Ran hoped was that Zhuo Yun could help promote the business so that he could get its buyer.
At Zhuo Yun's house, Xu Ran drew down the instructions for playing chess. He asked Zhuo Yun, waving the paper in his hand where the ink was still wet, "Is it possible to print this paper, Zhuo Yun? There aren't many words in it. How much is it going to cost me to get a copy?"
Zhuo Yun stared at the piece of paper he was holding "It can, of course, be printed. You don't have to make it so gently, in my opinion. It's ok as long as people can read and understand it. You only need to locate the individual who makes your chess. Ask him to get a wooden board, carve the words on it, and then print them on paper using ink."
Xu Ran thought it was okay, but he was not sure if Xu An could carve characters or not. There were quite a few words and Xu An probably couldn't even recognize them himself.
He asked Zhuo Yun, "Do you know someone who can carve characters? I am afraid that Xu An can't carve characters, so I'll have to find someone else. The time in the course of contacts would be waste, so why not you directly find one for me?"
Zhuo Yun considered whether any of his acquaintances could engrave characters. Finally, he shook his head and said, "I don't know someone like that, but you can ask for help from my older brother. He's a man with a wealth of information and expertise. He must be acquainted with someone. You can inquire of him."
Xu Ran believed it to be true. Qin Shuwu was older than them both and had a diverse background. Even if he didn't know somebody like that, he definitely knew someone who performed wonderful work. He'd packed two sets of chess pieces with him today, so he figured he'd send one to Qin Shuwu.
When Xu Ran was about to leave, Zhuo Yun asked him if he had any new things to leave for him. He said that he was going out for business in the new year.
Xu Ran was a little surprised and asked him, "You and Shuwen have a good relationship now, and your child was just born. Why are you still going out for business?"
Zhuo Yun glanced at Xu Ran, "Do you suppose that so many people in my family don't need to eat or drink? I have only one shop and how can it support the whole family? Besides, I've just got a precious baby in my family. I must try to earn some property for him, right?"
Well, Xu Ran rubbed his nose. Zhuo Yun had always acted very generously, so he had never thought of this.
Xu Ran then asked, "Which road are you planning to take this time? What are you selling? "
Zhuo Yun replied, "I'm going to the north. The people there like our food the most. I'm going to sell something new. I'm going out twice next year."
"Does Shuwen know it?" Xu Ran asked.
Zhuo Yun sighed and shook his head, "I haven't told him yet. I'm afraid if he knows it, we can't be at ease during the spring festival."
When he finished speaking, he noticed Xu Ran blinking at him. Zhuo Yun didn't react for a moment and asked, "Ran, are you having a cramp in your eyes?"
However, he noticed Xu Ran blinking even more intensely, and he even squeezed his eyebrows together.
Seeing that he said nothing, Zhuo Yun felt that it was a little strange. He guessed boldly and pointed behind him. Xu Ran nodded seemingly telling him 'you are toast'.
Although he had the guess, Zhuo Yun still wished for luck, "Ran, you can lie to me. Shuwen is now feeding our baby."
Xu Ran threw his hands open, "I really didn't lie to you. If you don't believe me, you can look back. Shuwen is holding the baby in his arms."
Zhuo Yun suddenly felt weak in his legs. He dared not turn back!
Qin Shuwen approached Zhuo Yun with the baby in his arms and locked his gaze on him "If you told me we wouldn't be able to enjoy the spring festival this year, what did you mean by that sentence? Do you intend to marry a concubine?"
Zhuo Yun hurriedly waved his hand and shook his head, "No, no, Shuwen. Don't misunderstand me. I won't take a concubine."
Qin Shuwen let out a sigh of relief when he heard that he was not taking a concubine, but his tone was still not very good, "Then what were you talking about? Tell me!"
Not daring to say anything, Zhuo Yun dropped his head. It seemed to him to be much more serious than taking a concubine. When Qin Shuwen realized he couldn't pull anything out of Zhuo Yun, he moved his focus to Xu Ran.
Xu Ran also had his thoughts, so he said truthfully, "Shuwen, I can testify that Zhuo Yun didn't say he wanted to take a concubine. We were talking about something else."
Xu Ran paused and Qin Shuwen pressed anxiously, "Xu Ran, what's the matter? If you don't tell me anything, I'll be really angry!"
"After the spring festival, Zhuo Yun stated that he was heading out on business. He didn't inform you because he didn't want you to be concerned after you found out "Xu Ran admitted his mistake and looks at Zhuo Yun.
Zhuo Yun lowered his head and saw nothing.
When Qin Shuwen didn't love Zhuo Yun in the past, he didn't care if Zhuo Yun went out on business or returned. Furthermore, he had never seen Zhuo Yun hurt before, so he had no reason to be alarmed.
It was different now, though. He and Zhuo Yun had fallen in love. Furthermore, while on business, Zhuo Yun had told him numerous risky things. So when he heard Zhuo Yun was heading out on business, his heart skipped a beat.
He handed his baby to Xu Ran and walked up to Zhuo Yun. He raised his head, "Zhuo Yun, tell me, did you really think so?"
Zhuo Yun nodded. "Shuwen, I want to support the whole family, but the income from our store is definitely not enough. Thus I have to go out to do some business."
For a little moment, Qin Shuwen remained still. He had never given a thought to how much money his family spent on a daily basis, where their money came from, or how many servants they had in their Zhuo Mansion.
He couldn't help but feel a little sad.
Seeing Qin Shuwen's sudden depressed expression, Zhuo Yun knew what he was thinking. He held him in his arms and comforted him, "Shuwen, I didn't mean to blame you. I just want you to live a life like this without worrying about anything."
"But I should care about these things. I didn't give a damn about it before because I didn't want to. Things have changed since then. Yun, I understand you have to support this family, but can't we do some business together? Isn't it obvious that we still have shops? My father had sent me two businesses when I got married here back then, I recall. Shall we do our own business here? Don't go out to do business. You used to tell me it's so dangerous outside.
Zhuo Yun hugged him even tighter. Xu Ran couldn't stand the scene anymore, so he held the baby in his arms and sat aside.
Zhuo Yun said, "Shuwen, from now on, I'll only go out for business twice a year, for a duration of two months. This way, I'll be able to spend the rest of the year at home with you and our baby. We won't be able to make much money if we solely run shops. Worse yet, I have to go the shop every day. As a result, I'd rather go on a work trip."
Qin Shuwen patted him on the head, "But it's safe to run your own stores. Once you leave home for business outside, you have to be away for a few months. We won't even know what your situation is outside. Can I not be worried?"
He didn't talk about this with Qin Shuwen in the past.He understood that Qin Shuwen wouldn't be concerned about him at the moment, therefore he never told or wrote the family about his condition outside. Furthermore, sending a letter when doing business was inconvenient. Hearing Qin Shuwen's remarks, he realized how dreadful it was to be cut off from communication for two months.
And he started to hesitate about his decision.
05.18.21