Chapter 143 Buying Firewood

  Everyone was delighted, this big white cabbage is not enough to eat, so they planned to go home and marinate a few more jars of old sour vegetables, waiting for the flavor to come in, this is just money...... In an instant, everyone ran back home to move jars, some families didn't leave any, all brought them over, only new jars weren't brought, no way, otherwise they would have been brought too...... Five cents a pound of old sour vegetables, this is more profitable than growing grain, it's just that it takes some effort.

  So the villagers were all smiling, Shen Sisi had already instructed Da Bao and Si Bao to weigh and record the accounts on one side, first taste the flavor, confirm that it was old sour vegetables, then take all the jars of sour vegetables brought by everyone and weigh them, record the number in a notebook, then subtract the weight of the jar, the weight of the jar is almost the same, use an empty jar at home to weigh it out, then calculate how much money, pay the bill and let the person paying the bill press a handprint on the account, as proof, however, Li Zheng was also present, he can recognize characters, after everyone received the money, each face was filled with joy.

  Some families even received several taels of silver, but that was because they had a lot of pickled vegetables at home. As a result, the villagers were even more excited than during Chinese New Year.

  Shen Sisi had expected this, after all, the price she was asking wasn't low. Moreover, taking these things to the city to sell, it's hard to say if they would even sell, the most important thing is that going back and forth is exhausting, now she's collecting them in the village, and the price is still so high, naturally everyone is delighted.

  Shen Sisi paid the money and smiled: "Everyone go home, this jar is numbered, everyone's jar has an account here, it won't be missing, when Fuman Building finishes using the jar, it will naturally return, and I have already made marks on each household's jar corresponding to the ledger, absolutely no mistakes will be made...when the time comes, let everyone come to pick it up..."

  These symbols are naturally Arabic numerals, and Da Bao is extremely skilled at them.

  Everyone laughed and said a few more words: "Tuni, will your family always be so poor?!"

  "Of course, we'll accept it, but I hope the quality is guaranteed. If we find out that you're selling inferior goods as high-quality ones, there won't be a next time..." Shen Sisi's words made everyone take notice and they all nodded in agreement, laughing and saying: "That goes without saying, we're all from the same village, we can't do something like that to each other!"

  "Yes, yes......" The crowd chimed in, smiling and chatting a few words before happily returning home.

  Shen Sisi's ears hurt from being disturbed by so many people, fortunately they all left and she finally relaxed, luckily the courtyard at home was extremely large, otherwise it would have been impossible to accommodate them.

  Some were placed in the storage room and some were placed in the yard. Anyway, this jar is sealed, so I'm not afraid of wind or sun exposure.

  What was left was the old vinegar dish from Lǐ Zhèng's family, and Mrs. Lǐ Zhèng smiled happily, even if each catty cost an extra copper coin, she was overjoyed.

  Dabao and Sibao skillfully weighed the goods, calculated the price, and handed over the money to Lǐzhèng's wife. She smiled as she accepted it, saying: "Thanks for taking care of our family, Tuniu..."

  Shen Sisi smiled and said: "Auntie's pickled vegetables are the most delicious, worth this price..."

  The young woman smiled and accepted the silver, no longer declining or speaking in official tones. Whatever the case, her family would take this relationship, and she was even more delighted, hoping to let Chunxiang marry into their family.

  Just as the processing was almost done, he bid farewell to Li Zheng and his wife. Shen Sisi didn't keep them either, mainly because they were really busy at home, digging ponds, slaughtering pigs, making braised meat...and also moving pickled vegetables and settling accounts, truly exhausting.

  After the house quieted down, Niu Laogen brought a jar of pickled vegetables and came over, holding it from the donkey cart, looking a bit embarrassed. Actually, their family was doing well, but not to the point where they were extremely rich, so when he saw people in the village selling pickled vegetables, he was also tempted. Under Tian Guihua's urging, he came over. In fact, Tian Guihua also wanted to come, but was persuaded by him to stay behind. These days, Tian Guihua had improved a lot and no longer insisted on getting her way. Mainly, she seemed to have figured things out. After the last time, Niu Laogen thoroughly believed that she really missed their daughter, so he comforted her that they would definitely bring her to the Zhong family's house to see their daughter when they had a chance, but not at this moment when they were selling pickled vegetables. The Zhong family already looked down on them, and going there now would only make things more awkward. How embarrassing would it be?!

  Niu Laogen had just entered when Shen Sisi smiled and said: "Uncle Niu, why have you come at this time?!"

  Niu Laogen smiled foolishly and said, "I was afraid you'd be busy at home, so I'd rather come later..."

  Shen Sisi then had Da Bao weigh it for him, and also calculated six cents per catty. Niu Laogen was very embarrassed, saying: "Tuniu, just let me be the same as the villagers, how can I let you suffer a loss..."

  Shen Sisi just smiled, "I won't be at a disadvantage, don't worry, Uncle Niu."

  The old cow saw that he was not joking, so he collected the money. He knew that Niu Xiaohua was doing embroidery at this time and didn't call her again. He drove the donkey cart back.

  Finally at home and truly at peace, Shen Sisi let out a sigh of relief, saying: "It's really exhausting, spending the whole afternoon on this..."

  Dabao calculated carefully and handed over the account book to her, saying: "The total expenditure is one hundred twenty-six taels and four hundred coins..."

  "......uh-huh." Shen Sisi nodded and smiled: "Although collecting pickled vegetables took some effort, even small mosquitoes are meat. We're doing this to make a profit, after all. We'll split the money evenly and still make over 100 taels, which isn't bad..."

  Dà bǎo hān hòu de xiào le xiào, dào: "cháng qī lái kàn, shì zhēn de hěn bù cuò, bú guò hái shì bǐ bù shàng nǐ de dǐ liào zhuàn de duō luò, wǒmen mài lǔ ròu leì gè bàn sǐ, yě méi nǐ de dǐ liào nà me zhí de qián ne, āi……"

  Shen Sisi smiled and said, "Don't envy me, don't underestimate this braised meat either... it'll make more money in the future..."

  Later on, she would also sell her children, one by one, in different places, which was the best outcome.

  Dabao smiled and didn't mind, and started moving the jars with Sibao. Shen Sisi laughed and said: "Leave the pickled vegetables from Lizi's family for us to eat at home, her pickled vegetables are a specialty, and our family just happens to be out of old pickles. Let's have pickled fish for dinner tonight..."

  The two of them smiled and said: "I know."

  Bian moved the pickled vegetable jar from Li Zheng's house to the other side.

  He Axiu and Niu Xiaohua's pickled vegetables, at least have to wait until spring to taste good, so these three jars of pickled vegetables are enough for the family to eat for a whole winter.

  The fish pond at home was completed quickly after more than a month, Shen Sisi looked at the formed fish pond and was very delighted, settled the wages with the workers, invited them to have a big meal, and gave them a lot of food before leaving, and finally the house was slightly cleaner...

  As the weather gets colder, Shen Sisi pulls Zhong Gensheng, who has become thinner and stronger due to his hard work: "Dad, get some quicklime powder back and spread it inside to disinfect, then dry it in the sun. After spring arrives, pour water into it..."

  Zhong Gensheng was slender, but his complexion was exceptionally good. Due to the good food, his skin had a wheat-like color and looked very healthy. He smiled and said: "The New Year is approaching, after passing the first month, when spring begins, there will be more work at home..."

  "Yes... " Shen Sisi smiled and said: "We need to irrigate, open the orchard, buy fish and release them, and also plant crops..."

  Although there are only three acres of land at home, it is grain, and if it is not planted, Zhong Gen's heart will not be at ease. Farmers, no matter how they engage in sideline industries, must still plant the land, because this is the foundation of farmers...

  Zhong Gensheng smiled and didn't ask what was going on with the lime powder, he quickly went out to borrow a donkey cart to buy lime.

  She gazed at her own backyard, laughing deeply. This place... would be her utopia, she would make it the best place for her to live. As time passed, even if it was a wasteland, it would become a place with gentle breezes, babbling brooks, and fragrant fruit trees. When she opened her eyes, she would see vegetable gardens and birds, and when she closed them, she would hear the sounds of wind, rain, and birdsong. Living here for a lifetime, until old age, was truly a wonderful thing...

  Zhong Gensheng's current efficiency is amazing. He hastily went to estimate the amount of lime needed and then pulled a cart full of lime back.

  A thick layer was scattered down, and even the sloping slope was exposed to a thick layer. Then there were still some left, all of which were exposed on the rice stalks and in the toilet.

  Zhong Gensheng was busy with a big sweat on his head, but he had a smile all over his face. This year's life at home has undergone a great change, and he is only happy about it.

  The Lunar New Year is approaching and he's even more thrilled. This year, they can finally have a great new year. Starting from tomorrow, their family life will be completely different from before.

  Fortunately, the pond was dug out before it froze in the cold weather. The weather turned cold suddenly, and the river also started to freeze. Even this morning, there was a thick layer of frost on the ground.

  Shen Sisi and Zhong Gensheng made several more trips into the city, buying all the things they needed for the New Year's celebration at home. Only then did they start to hibernate at home, but most of the time the whole family was stuck in the kitchen because it was warm there, with fires burning constantly, stir-frying ingredients, braising meat, cooking... There was hardly any downtime, and it was really cozy. Sometimes the whole family would gather around the table to do some odd jobs, and Niu Xiaohua and He Axiu had also moved into the big kitchen to do their embroidery work. All the outdoor chores were done, and now that it was cold outside, they could only do these things. Fortunately, this year wasn't too cold, and in the warmth of the kitchen, they didn't have to worry about their hands freezing. Compared to many other families, this was really a great situation...

  But because the family used firewood fiercely, everything was done with firewood, and the family's firewood was not enough to use. The speed at which Si Ba chopped, split, and dried could not keep up with the burning speed, even if he split it open for use. Shen Sisi also discussed with Zhong Gensheng: "...... Dad, now the weather is bad, and we can't chop firewood either. Our family should buy some firewood back, first ask around in the village to see which family has extra firewood, we'll buy it back, if we really can't buy it, we'll go to the city to take a look, maybe there's another village that sells it..."