Chapter 192 - 188: Pepper Vine_1

Translator: 549690339

“Sis, we’ve already agreed that the shop belongs to Baobao. She paid for it with her own money. Henceforth, it will be her dowry. Sanlang has made it clear that no one else should lay claim to it.”

Chunniang cracked six eggs into the pot and then used a pair of chopsticks to stir the dough pieces.

“” Jiang Yunniang abruptly stood up, fuming with anger, and ran back to the house of the eldest Jiang brother.

As soon as she saw her mother Jiang Liu, she started complaining: “Mother, aren’t you going to do something about the mess that your third son’s family is making?”

“What’s going on now?” Jiang Liu frowned, “What chaos has Sanlang caused?”

Jiang Yunniang pulled her mother into the house, holding onto her sleeve and whispering, “Chunniang even dared to say that the shop is Baobao’s dowry. Tell me, has our third brother’s family lost their minds?”

Jiang Liu brushed off her daughter’s hand and flashed her an angry look, “What a fuss. The shop has always been Baobao’s. Sanlang said that the money to buy the shop was earned by Baobao herself. What’s wrong with it being her dowry?”

“How much money could a little child earn?”

She suddenly remembered that Baobao seemed to be growing adventures on her own and quickly changed the topic, “Even if she earned all the money to buy the shop, she isn’t our family’s bloodline. You people, letting her have so much money”

“Shut up!” Jiang Liu got angry, pointing at her daughter, “You’re the one who’s confused! I don’t want to hear this kind of talk again. Baobao is our Jiang family’s child, no one can argue about bloodline!”

Jiang Yunniang was startled by her mother’s harsh words. She stared at her in a daze, taking a while to recover.

Jiang Liu let out a sigh. She was still concerned about her daughter, and spoke softly, “Yunniang, if there’s nothing else, you should go back. Do not mention the shop again. If your father heard what you just said, he might beat you with a stick.”

Jiang Yunniang’s eyes became red instantly, and she felt wronged.

She was merely speaking the truth, but it wasn’t acceptable? Just like throwing water out, once a daughter gets married, she’s no longer taken seriously at her maternal home?

The more she thought about it, the sadder she became. Jiang Yunniang suddenly got up to leave the house, shouting for her son, “Yukan! Yukan! Get the mule cart, we’re going home!”

When the eldest Jiang sister-in-law saw that her sister was going to leave, she didn’t stop her. Instead, she said, “Just wait a moment, Sis, I’ll pull some radishes for you.”

It was the season when the radishes were tender and fresh. They were crispy and sweet when eaten raw. The eldest sister was a city dweller and had no such things at home. Hence, she would take some home every time she visited her maternal home.

“There’s no need!” Jiang Yunniang flatly refused. Once her son had the mule cart ready, she climbed up and left immediately.

Jiang Liu watched her daughter go with a sigh.

Her good daughter, who was not usually like this, has become so calculating since she started doing business in the county town with her son-in-law.

Now she’s even calculating her own brother. Well, it’s a good thing that Sanlang didn’t hear what his sister just said, otherwise it would’ve been a mess.

After breakfast, Baobao went to the orchard with her second cousin.

As Jiang Quan climbed the tree to pick apples, he began to discuss the shop with his little cousin.

The aunt made sense, once the apples and pears were sold out, the shop’s business would surely plummet.

Because not many people bought preserved fruit or gold wonder plants, sometimes they wouldn’t sell a pound for several days.

If it weren’t for the fresh fruit from home to attract customers, the shop would be deserted.

“Baobao, what are you going to do when the fruits are sold out?” Jiang Quan asked anxiously.

Baobao put the picked apples in the basket, “Things will get straight when the boat gets to the pier. You don’t need to worry.”

At worst, they could set up a wonton stall at the door of the shop. There would always be a way.

However, this was simply a last resort. She wouldn’t take that step unless there was no other choice.

Although the food stall seems profitable, it merely provides a subsistence living. It doesn’t earn as much as growing golden ears.

But the shop couldn’t be left idle, because a city tax has to be paid every month. If the payment is overdue, the tax collector could seize the shelves in your shop.

The golden ears weren’t easy to sell in the shop, as those who could afford it would go to the large pharmacies to buy, rather than her tiny, unknown shop.

With that in mind, she was better off dealing with popular merchandise, like the rouge and fragrant powder made by her aunt.

She had many flowers and trees in her fairy residence; there were so many flowers that she couldn’t finish picking them. It would be a waste to let them fall down untouched.

If things get tough, she could make fragrant medicinal pills for sale.

There were many shops in Prefecture City selling medicinal pills, like ammoniacum, sobriety, patchouli, clove, frankincense, agarwood, sandalwood, and so on. These pills could be made for consumption or to be worn as accessories.

Across from her shop was the county school, and every scholar there used fragrance. For anything from a headache, fever, stomachache, or diarrhea, they would first use the medicinal pills they had on hand, only then would they go to the pharmacy for treatment if they still weren’t feeling better.

She had the Pupil Spring, from which she could grow many fragrant flower materials; she could even grow some medicinal herbs, as long as she could get the seeds.

If worst came to worst, she could purchase medicinal herbs from the stores, add just a little bit of ingredients, and the medicinal pills produced would be guaranteed to cure the ailment.

After filling several large baskets with apples and a basket with pears, and picking two baskets of fragrant melons from her vegetable garden, only then did Jiang Quan load the baskets onto the carriage, flagged down his companions, and they all headed to the county town together.

Before leaving, she touched the gourds hanging on the fence of her vegetable garden, muttering to herself, “They should be well grown in another month and can be sold in the county town then.”

Last year, Jiang Quan made quite a bit of money from selling gourds. That’s why he planted a lot more this year by the edge of his vegetable garden, waiting for the gourds to ripen so he could sell them.

Li Dao and Wang Dashan have also planted quite a number. However, their gourds were growing slower than Jiang Family’s, and the reason was unclear.

Once Jiang Quan left, Yingbao went to find Chuchu.

These days, Chuchu had been picking peppers with Erni and the others. After the peppers were picked, they had to be sent to the Chuanhe riverbank to soak and remove the skin.

When Yingbao wasn’t home, Chuchu would live with Erni. They would eat, sleep, and work together.

Arriving at the pepper field with the two dogs, she saw her father and several villagers pruning the pepper vines. They seemed to be preparing for plant propagation.

“Sanlang, we agreed, a hundred coins for a seedling is a hundred coins, but you must ensure that they will survive after planting,” said Chen Changsheng, the head of West Village. “We need five hundred seedlings, a total of fifty guan, and you won’t be a penny short.”

Jiang Sanlang raised his eyebrows and said, “What, you want to take the goods without paying? Then forget about buying. There’s a whole line of villagers waiting to buy.”

On hearing this, the villagers of West Village became anxious and shot Chen Changsheng an angry look, “Chen Uncle, could you please keep your mouth shut? If the seedlings don’t survive, we will discuss it then. Speaking about it now is just looking for trouble.”

Seeing that Jiang Sanlang had actually stopped, Chen Changsheng quickly said, “Look, the money is here. You can start pruning.” He pointed to a bag next to him, “The fifty taels of silver are all inside.”

He was really afraid that Jiang Sanlang would be stubborn and refuse to give the West Village pepper vines.

The villagers of his village had been waiting for a long time. They couldn’t plant golden ears or cotton seeds, so they also couldn’t miss out on the pepper vines.

Seeing West Village becoming the poorest village in the whole township, Chen Changsheng was really anxious.

Li Dayong and Li Eryong, who were with Jiang Sanlang, immediately went to check the amount of silver. After counting the silver in the bag, they nodded at Jiang Sanlang, “It’s just fifty taels.”

Only then did Jiang Sanlang begin pruning the vines.

Yingbao admired her father. He could always find a way to earn money with every single crop at home.

In fact, she still had many pepper vines herself. If she could sell each chopstick-length vine for a hundred coins, she would become rich even without managing a shop.