The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure
Chapter 363 - 364 Unbearable

Chapter 363: Chapter 364 Unbearable

Wang Yonggui’s patience wore thin in a flash, and as he raised his hand, Lady Jiang, alert, quickly slipped to the door. Although she dared not fight back, she was certainly quick to flee.

Lady Jiang knew perfectly well that as long as her sister-in-law was at home, she would never allow her own man to beat her.

Wang Yonggui also understood that if he truly dared to lay a hand on Lady Jiang today, he would likely end up tied outside and fed to the mosquitoes for the night once again.

Thinking of the meat and bones to be had that night, and how these past days they had basked in Laosi’s prosperity, it was truly better living conditions at home, where one could have full meals, with meat and dishes. Wang Yonggui had spent the year outside, and days with a full belly were indeed rare, so he treasured them all the more.

After some thought, that money in Lady Jiang’s hands wouldn’t run away; he would always find a chance to take it back. Even if he couldn’t, wasn’t he capable of stealing it back when Lady Jiang wasn’t watching, something he had done before?

So, Wang Yonggui withdrew his hand and laid down on the kang bed with abandon, unmindful of the clothes still smeared with mud on his body, and commanded nonchalantly, "Your man is tired. Go fetch a basin of water and wipe your man down."

As long as it didn’t involve her monthly allowance, Lady Jiang always worked hard without complaint.

And with her head lowered, she went to fetch water without mention.

***

The autumn harvest loomed close, and the village blacksmith shop was busier than ever, with everyone coming to have their sickles and shoulder poles repaired.

Wang Laozhu and Wang Yongfu had brought out all the family sickles these past few days, and by the well, they had sharpened them until they gleamed.

Old Granny Zhang, together with Lady Lin and Lady Jiang, was making ropes from the straw outside the door, to be used for bundling the harvested grain.

Wang Yongzhu had also been busy lately, getting in touch with the Horse and Carriage Shop to see if there were any suitable carts available.

Only then did she learn that nowadays, horses were a rarity and the so-called cart-pulling horses at the average Horse and Carriage Shop were basically mules.

Mules, docile and endurance-strong, were most ideal for hauling goods.

And furthermore, mules were cheaper than horses.

With this knowledge, Wang Yongzhu immediately changed her mind. No need for a horse-drawn cart; a mule-drawn cart would do just fine, perfectly meeting the needs of the Wang Family.

The mules and matching carts for hire at the Horse and Carriage Shop did not impress her, and upon having Xiao Tiantian scan them as well, she also felt that the mules were too old, not worth the purchase.

Without the need for a horse, the budget was sufficient, so she thought of buying a younger mule. Initially, the Horse and Carriage Shop staff thought Wang Yongzhu, being a young lady, would be inexperienced with cattle and the like.

They were even plotting to fob her off with an old mule, only to be seen through by her at a glance, after which they dared not entertain the idea of shirking responsibility.

In order to close the deal, they actually went out and searched for her.

Yesterday, they sent word that they had found a fine mule; just four years old and at the prime age, asking her to come take a look today.

Upon hearing this, Wang Yongzhu rushed to the town.

Arriving at the Horse and Carriage Shop, she saw the shop assistant already waiting at the entrance. Seeing Wang Yongzhu, he hastened to greet her, "Miss Wang, you’ve finally arrived. The mule we’ve found this time is absolutely top-notch. Our steward made quite an effort to persuade its owner to sell..."

As he spoke, he led Miss Wang into the yard.

Upon entering the yard, Wang Yongzhu saw a grayish-green mule, with ears longer than a horse’s but shorter than a donkey’s. Its neck manes stood up short and bristly, and it was leisurely eating its feed, swishing its tail back and forth.

There were three men standing by the mule, circling and assessing it, while also muttering something among themselves.

Among them, weren’t there two whose backs seemed eerily familiar?

"Steward, Miss Wang has arrived!" The shop assistant’s announcement turned all three men around.

Song Chongjin? What was he doing here?

Wang Yongzhu was taken aback.

The steward of the Horse and Carriage Shop immediately stepped forward to meet her: "Miss Wang, what do you think of this mule? I’ve been in this business for many years, and such a handsome and sturdy mule is indeed rare. To tell you the truth, if it weren’t for the fact that the mule’s owner was in a difficult situation and insisted on selling it only to someone who would cherish it instead of just any Horse and Carriage Shop, I really wouldn’t have recommended it to you."

Wang Yongzhu looked at Song Chongjin, signaling with her eyes: What are you up to? What does this mule have to do with you?

Song Chongjin gave her a slight nod, indicating she should buy it.

Although Wang Yongzhu was full of doubts, she thought that Song Chongjin would not harm her, so she had Xiao Tiantian scan the health of the mule.

Indeed, among its kind, it was almost considered to be in good health.

With nothing to worry about, Wang Yongzhu pretended to carefully examine the mule for quite a while before asking, "This mule is not bad, how much for this mule, boss?"

The steward scratched his head, "Miss Wang, I’m only responsible for making the introduction. You can negotiate with him directly. Once you’ve agreed, we’ll help draft the contract and just take a little commission."

So that’s how it was, Wang Yongzhu thanked the steward.

Understanding that the buyer and seller needed to discuss the price, the steward found it inappropriate to stay, so he left with the shop assistant.

Only then did Wang Yongzhu speak up, "This mule..."

Song Chongjin smiled slightly, introducing, "This mule belongs to Brother Zhao. His family is in urgent need of money and wants to sell the mule. People nearby know they need the cash, so they’ve been offering low prices. I happened to come across him, and since I heard you mention before that you wanted to buy a mule, I thought I might as well introduce you."

Brother Zhao, the seller, had a face full of woe. When he saw Wang Yongzhu looking over, he nodded, "Miss, are you really looking to buy a mule?"

Despite the barrage of questions in her mind, Wang Yongzhu didn’t remember having told Song Chongjin she wanted to buy a mule.

However, she quickly responded, "Big brother, how much are you planning to sell this mule for?"

Brother Zhao clenched his teeth, "It can’t be less than this amount!" he said, stretching out his hand and making a gesture.

What? Wang Yongzhu was puzzled, what amount was that?

Shoot, she vaguely remembered reading somewhere that in these types of livestock transactions, people generally didn’t speak about the amounts; they indicated them with hand gestures.

Did she really need to learn a kind of sign language just to buy a mule? Could she learn it quickly enough?

Her eyes swept around in a plea for help, landing on Song Chongjin.

Song Chongjin covered his mouth, coughing lightly, and with amusement in his eyes, he leaned in close to Wang Yongzhu’s ear and whispered, "This big brother here is asking for forty taels."

Wang Yongzhu blinked, feeling her ears tickle and tingle.

But she soon snapped back to reality. Forty taels were much cheaper than her budget. Including buying a carriage, she should be able to handle it with fifty taels.

If she had been dealing with the steward of the Horse and Carriage Shop, Wang Yongzhu might have haggled.

Yet, looking at the seller, with his deeply worried expression and restless demeanor, she couldn’t bear to do it.

After a moment’s hesitation, she spoke, "So, are you paying the commission?" She felt uncomfortable not bargaining at all, so she asked the seller to take care of the commission. That was a form of haggling, wasn’t it?

Brother Zhao was taken aback; he hadn’t been holding out much hope. In his neighborhood, he could hardly get twenty taels at most, it was just too low to sell.

Even this Horse and Carriage Shop had tried to push him down to thirty taels. He was almost at his limit and had been about to cut his losses and sell cheaply, since the money was desperately needed at home to save lives.

If it hadn’t been for Brother Song at his side, encouraging him to hold on a bit longer, he would have given up.

Seeing this young lady, he also feared that quoting a high price might scare her away, yet he also worried that a low price would cause his family to suffer a loss.

After much deliberation, the forty taels were a bit lower than the market price. Even if the young lady bargained, he planned to give in by no more than five taels, that was his final line.

Unexpectedly, this young lady cheerfully agreed so readily.

And she cautiously asked if he could cover all of the commission.

Brother Zhao’s eyes reddened; he could tell the young lady was likely reluctant to bargain out of compassion. He felt grateful and somewhat ashamed.