Fortunate Life of the Rural Beauty
Chapter 84 - 83: Picking up the Gem

Chapter 84: Chapter 83: Picking up the Gem

Chen Afu specially checked that the Dashun dynasty did not yet have diamonds, so she hasn’t figured out when to introduce these two little stones to the world. But she could sell the other jewels at the right opportunity.

In the wanted notice for the gold thief, the stolen items are also listed, none of which include gold ornaments encrusted with emeralds or rubies.

So, Chen Afu selected three rubies and an emerald. She planned to let Chen Dabao "stumble" upon these gems while picking firewood.

The two emeralds are translucent emerald green, each half the size of a fingertip. One is round and the other is diamond-shaped. She chose a slightly darker round emerald, leaving the preferred one for later. The three rubies, slightly smaller than the emerald, are oval-shaped and seem to have come from the same piece of jewelry.

Now, with over 130 taels of silver, 40 taels of gold, and potentially 200 to 300 taels more from selling these gems, she could amass over 800 taels of silver.

The price here for top-quality land is five taels of silver per mu, while paddy fields are six taels per mu. Whether it’s dry land or paddy fields, she wants to buy over 100 mu, allocate several dozen mu to Chen Ming, and keep 100 for herself - to live the comfortable life of a real small landlord.

She didn’t know how much silver Master Chu would pay, but she guessed that though the Ten Brocade Sparrow was rare and pretty, it couldn’t be worth more than Qi Qi and Hui Hui. However, it’s certain to fetch at least 100 taels of silver. She’d save the money he’d pay for house repairs and to cover next year’s expenses.

Having solidified her relationship with the right people, she didn’t want to be too hard on herself. Currently, in her thatched hut, every heavy rain made her worry about possible leaks.

Chen Afu wrapped the gems in a handkerchief and shared her idea with Jin Yanzi. Jin Yanzi, pausing her work, said, "Anything that isn’t from the agarwood can be sold by mommy as she pleases."

Chen Afu also mentioned Chu Hanyan’s illness, asking whether they could sell a piece of the agarwood to help her once she returned to Tang Garden.

Jin Yanzi readily agreed, "Sure, helping the pretty sister and mommy too, it’s a win-win."

Chen Afu retorted, "You’re the one helping the pretty sister. Why drag me into it?"

Jin Yanzi giggled, "Mommy is the one helping the pretty sister. I’m just an unsung hero."

Well, that did make sense.

The next day, after lunch and without a break, Chen Afu, wearing a sun hat, took Dabao and Zhui Feng to collect firewood in the woods to the west of the village.

It was the hottest time of the day. The autumn sun was still fierce. Few people were out gathering firewood, and only a few acquaintances greeted Dabao. Few people in the village greeted Chen Afu, except a few men with ulterior motives, the Chens, and Carpenter Wu’s family. Partly because they weren’t familiar with her, and partly because they either feared or disliked her forthright manner.

Chen Afu was happy with this. She led Chen Dabao and Zhui Feng towards a deserted area. Once there, she placed Dabao at a safe distance and quickly dug a hole with a mini hatchet, burying the three gems. She covered the hole with soil, then leaves and twigs, finally hiding the remaining ruby among the branches.

As she got up, she saw that Dabao was intensely focused on collecting firewood. She called him over, claiming the area was abundant in firewood. As Dabao approached, Chen Afu pretended to be tripped by a twig and "accidentally" pushed him, causing him to roll over.

Dabao fell flat on his face. About to cry out in pain, he spotted something sparkling red. Catching the sunlight sprinkling through the branches, it was glittering. His eyes widened as he quickly cleared the twigs and leaves, revealing the small stone. Could it be a gemstone like those wealthy women adorned?

His heart pounded furiously as he quickly closed his small hand into a fist and surreptitiously looked around.

Luckily, there were no enemies in sight.

He beckoned Chen Afu to kneel down and whispered into her ear, "Mother, look. I found a treasure!" He slightly opened his clenched fist to reveal the gem.

Chen Afu suppressed a smile, feigning surprise, and whispered back into Dabao’s ear, "My son, this is a ruby. It’s worth a lot of money."

Dabao tensely put his small hand inside Chen Afu’s bigger one, saying, "Mother, quickly take it. Let’s stay here a bit longer. If no one comes looking for it, it’ll be ours."

This kid wasn’t too greedy. His behavior was already commendable given the lack of a police station to report found items to at the time. If handed to the yamen, those minor officials would certainly pocket it.

Chen Afu laughed, pocketing the gem, saying, "Good, let’s dig around here more and see if there’s anything else valuable."

Dabao looked at Chen Afu approvingly and whispered back, "Mother indeed thought this through. I’ll start digging."

He looked around again to make sure no one was coming then kneeled down and started digging with his small hatchet. Lo and behold, he found three more shining stones, two red and one green.

Dabao could hardly contain his excitement. He quickly grabbed the three gems, along with a handful of mud due to his nervousness. After checking yet again for any potential threats, he put the small gems into Chen Afu’s bigger hand, whispering, "Mother, quickly put them away."

The boy’s nervous excitement caught on to Chen Afu. After making sure no threats were around, she whispered back, "Son, these must have been buried here a long time ago. The owner won’t be coming back for them." She meant that since the owner was gone, these gems should belong to them now.

With a beaming smile, Dabao nodded in agreement. Mother and son, laden with firewood and accompanied by Zhui Feng, headed out of the woods.

However, every now and then, Dabao would "trip" and fall, then examine the ground closely, digging around the dead leaves. Upon finding no shining gems, he would get up, disappointed.

Watching him, Chen Afu couldn’t help but chuckle. Did he think that tripping would guarantee finding a gem?

Holding his hand, she gently remarked, "Dabao, tripping over and finding treasures is a piece of rare good fortune. Most people never experience this in a lifetime."

Only after hearing this did Dabao stop purposely tripping.

Once they got home and shut the door, Chen Ming and Mrs. Wang were astounded upon hearing this unbelievable story. Seeing the gems, still smeared with dirt, they were both so shocked that they were almost speechless.

This, this, how could this happen?

Chen Ming marvelled, "Afu truly is blessed as the senior monk predicted. Once her illness healed, not only did our lives turn for the better, but even Dabao could strike such good fortune. My goodness, who would have thought? These three rubies and one jade gem must be worth at least 100 taels of silver."