An ox is a prized possession, and an expensive one at that. A healthy, prime-aged water buffalo costs no less than 10,000 wen. Because of this, it is common for an entire extended family to share a single ox, rotating its use for plowing and taking turns feeding it. Those who cannot afford even a share must pay others to plow their fields.
Li Yao had been caught in a dilemma: should she buy an ox or a horse?
“Dazhuang, what do you think?”
“We should buy an ox, of course!” Dazhuang answered without hesitation. “An ox can pull a cart and plow the fields. A horse can’t do that; it’s only good for pulling a cart, and we’d still have to borrow from Grandmother’s family to plow.”
A farm boy through and through. Even when a tractor and a Ferrari were placed before him, he would choose the tractor every time.
In the end, Dazhuang chose a young, year-and-a-half-old calf, which cost them 6,000 wen. For now, it could be used for pulling a light cart, and by next year, it would be strong enough for plowing.
“From now on, it’s under your care.”
“I’ve got it!”
With an ox to call their own, Dazhuang was as thrilled as a man on his wedding day, his face flushed with excitement. He carefully harnessed the cart to the young calf and let it lead the way at a leisurely pace.
At the market, there were also chicks for sale—newly hatched fluff-balls that looked like tiny cotton balls. Li Yao had long since noticed Wang Xiaosi stealing glances at them.
“Do you want to raise some chicks?”
“Mother, whatever you say is fine.”
“I can buy them for you,” Li Yao said, “but you must take good care of them.”
“Don’t worry, Mother! I’ll look after them properly!”
Given Wang Xiaosi’s young age, Li Yao didn’t plan on buying too many.
“How much for a pair of chicks?”
“30 wen a pair,” the peddler said. “Don’t you worry, I’ve hand-picked these; they’re all hens. If any turn out to be roosters, I’ll take them back!”
Li Yao didn’t particularly care about the gender—roosters grew faster and, frankly, tasted better. Seeing that the chicks were all energetic and healthy, she bought the whole lot of twenty. The merchant was so delighted that he threw in a bamboo crate for free.
With the eldest and the youngest sorted, the second son was busy with his studies, and as for the third son…
“Mother,” Wang San-er said, looking at her with wide, pleading eyes. “I think we could raise two pigs. I’ll go out and cut grass to feed them every day.”
“Let’s buy one for now,” Li Yao replied. “But it cannot be penned up; it must be free-range. From now on, you’ll have to carry it up the mountain to graze every day, then carry it back home. Can you manage that?”
“Why do I have to carry it?”
“Don’t ask so many questions,” Li Yao said. “Just tell me if you can do it or not.”
“Of course I can!”
And so, Li Yao bought a piglet. With this, everyone in the family had their own responsibilities; life would surely be fulfilling. Afterward, Li Yao visited a pharmacy and bought every bit of beeswax in the shop—over ten jin in total. With this supply, she would be able to produce a much larger batch of herbal balm next time.
Remembering that she owed Zou Youcai an update, she decided to treat the family to a meal at the market. When they arrived at the He Family Restaurant, Proprietor Fan saw them and immediately had a waiter lead them to a private room on the second floor, serving them with attentive hospitality.
But just as they reached the second floor, Li Yao spotted someone she recognized—Ding Xiaoyan, the girl betrothed to Wang Er. She was in a private room with a young man, sitting close enough that the atmosphere was unmistakably intimate.
Seeing this, Li Yao quickly shielded the partially opened door with her body, keeping the children from catching a glimpse.
“Why is she here?”
Wang Er stood frozen at the threshold. Seeing his future bride acting so intimately with another man left a bitter taste in his mouth, his eyes burning with indignation. Dazhuang started to storm into the room to confront them, but Li Yao blocked him, guiding them into the room next door instead.
As a modern woman, she didn’t want to interfere too deeply in Wang Er’s life; she wanted him to make his own decisions.
“Do you still want to marry her?”
Having already been humiliated by the Ding family’s attempt to break the engagement previously, and now witnessing this, Wang Er felt no warmth left for Ding Xiaoyan.
“No, I don’t.”
Li Yao nodded slightly. That was a wise decision.
“Eat first,” Li Yao said. “We’ll go break off the engagement once we’re done.”
It was their first time dining in a restaurant. Li Yao ordered several of the establishment’s signature dishes. The flavors were quite good, and she ate with genuine enjoyment. The children, however, were too filled with indignation to do much more than pick at their food.
After the meal, Li Yao made a few discreet inquiries with Proprietor Fan.
It turned out the young man accompanying Ding Xiaoyan was Yun Jingyu, the eldest son of the Yun family. The Yuns owned several hundred acres of prime farmland in Baichuan County and operated a cloth shop in the market, making them quite wealthy. However, Yun Jingyu was not only married, but he also kept two concubines; rumor had it that he was a frequent visitor to brothels and often stayed out all night.
After the meal, Li Yao had the children head to the cart while she waited outside the entrance of the He Family Restaurant.
Before long, Ding Xiaoyan and her companion descended the stairs. Upon suddenly catching sight of Li Yao, Ding Xiaoyan panicked—she knew full well what kind of shrew Li Yao could be. But then she remembered that Young Master Yun had promised to marry her, offered a handsome dowry, and vowed to resolve the matter of her engagement. With that thought, she raised her chin and marched right up to her.
“Auntie Li, what a coincidence.”
“It’s no coincidence,” Li Yao replied coolly. “I’ve been waiting for you here for quite some time. Ding Xiaoyan, do you even know what you’re doing?”
Facing the interrogation, Ding Xiaoyan didn’t back down an inch. “As long as I haven’t stepped foot into your Wang household, I’m not yet one of your people. Don’t you think you’re overstepping your bounds?”
Yun Jingyu stepped forward and said to Ding Xiaoyan, “Why bother wasting your breath on a vulgar mountain woman?”
“Auntie Li, let’s settle this once and for all today,” Ding Xiaoyan said, emboldened by her man’s presence. “Even if we have to take this to the magistrate, I will never marry into your family. If you dare to come to my house to act like a shrew, my father says you are more than welcome to try.”
Li Yao chuckled and asked, “Are you certain?”
“Of course I am. I’m going to marry Young Master Yun,” Ding Xiaoyan declared. “Perhaps you aren’t familiar with the Yun family? They have five hundred acres of farmland and a cloth shop in the market. Even the county magistrate gives them a measure of respect. Do you really think your Wang family can compare to that?”
With a flourish, Ding Xiaoyan pulled a box of herbal balm from her purse. “Do you know what this is? This is ‘Herbal Balm.’ He bought it as a gift for me. A single tiny box costs five taels of silver—your entire family probably doesn’t earn that much in a year!”
Li Yao: …
Well, as long as you’re happy, she thought. Actually, she had been worried that if the Ding family found out how well her business was doing, they might dig their heels in and refuse to dissolve the engagement, which would have been a nuisance. But now? That concern was clearly unnecessary.
Fine, let’s dissolve it immediately—the sooner, the better.
“Since you are so unwilling to marry into my family, I shall grant you your wish,” Li Yao said. “Call your father over. Let’s sign the cancellation papers right now.”
Ding Xiaoyan’s heart leaped with joy. She never imagined that a few sharp words would be enough to make this shrew agree to break the engagement! She must be terrified of the Yun family’s influence. She cast a lingering, affectionate look at Yun Jingyu, a sense of dizzying happiness washing over her.
“You’re a sensible one,” Yun Jingyu remarked. “Xiaoyan, isn’t your father at the market? I’ll have someone fetch him.”
Two servants quickly brought Old Man Ding over. Borrowing a table at the He Family Restaurant, they drafted the cancellation of the betrothal on the spot. The moment Ding Xiaoyan held the document, she felt she had reached the pinnacle of happiness. No one could stand in the way of her marriage into the Yun family or her rise to become Young Master Yun’s lady. She was finally about to sprout wings and become a golden phoenix!
Old Man Ding also felt a surge of triumph. With a haughty air, he tossed five hundred copper coins onto the table. “Here is your returned dowry! From this day forward, our two families have nothing to do with one another!”
Watching this spectacle from the side, Proprietor Fan found it almost comical. Is this Ding family truly that stupid? Didn’t they realize that Mistress Li was currently earning at least ten taels of silver a day? But then, he supposed it made sense; the Ding family rarely frequented the market, so they were likely still in the dark about her success.
He stepped forward. “Mistress Li, is everything settled here?”
“It is. Is something the matter?”
“It’s just that Squire Liu is hosting a ‘Full Moon’ banquet the day after tomorrow, and he specifically requested thirty of your braised geese. I wanted to put in a request in advance,” Fan said, placing 20 taels of silver gently on the table. “This is the deposit. Please, take it.”
“Mmm, understood. I can do that.”
“That’s good, that’s very good.”
Looking at the silver ingots on the table, the faces of the Ding father and daughter drained of color.
Twenty taels! That was twenty taels of silver! And that was just the deposit!
The braised goose that had been the talk of the town recently—the one everyone said was utterly delicious—was made by Li Yao?
That… that’s impossible, surely?