Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 316 Not Wishing for Much_1

Chapter 316: Chapter 316 Not Wishing for Much_1

In the evening, Lady Li prepared a sumptuous meal. The hunter’s family never lacked game, especially during the autumn harvest season, which was the fattest time of the year for wild animals. Lady Li had purchased two rabbits and cooked a big pot of rabbit meat.

Zhulan asked Lady Li to deliver a bowl to the Liu family.

Zhang Sanni was extremely nervous. She did not want to expose her own lies. Fortunately, upon seeing her, Lady Li acted as if she didn’t recognize her, which allowed Zhang Sanni to relax. After giving it some thought, she understood it must have been Zhou Yang’s instruction.

She had long noticed that the Zhou family didn’t like trouble and certainly wouldn’t take the initiative to stir up any. Zhang Sanni felt completely at ease.

After the Liu family had their dinner, Zhulan, carrying an umbrella, went with Zhou Shuren to the Liu family’s main house.

Old man Liu was smoking his pipe, while Lady Lauzhang was sewing soles of shoes.

Upon Zhulan’s arrival, Lady Lauzhang greeted her, "What brings the Graduate’s wife here at this hour?"

Zhulan smiled and said, "My husband and I heard from the escort guard that our village is famous for being a hunter’s village. As winter is approaching, I wanted to find some high-quality furs, so I specifically came to ask if your family has any fine pelts."

Lady Lauzhang could not make this decision and looked to the head of the household.

Old man Liu set down his pipe, "Would the Graduate’s wife prefer fox fur or mink fur?"

Upon hearing this, Zhulan knew that the Liu family had good furs, "Both fox fur and mink fur are fine."

Old man Liu turned to his wife, "Bring them out."

Lady Lauzhang, putting down the shoe sole she was working on, responded, "Alright!"

Old man Liu explained, "We had a good market last year, so we sold the stored furs during the winter. It’s rare to get fox furs in a year. We were lucky to have caught two this year. Take a look, Graduate’s wife, and see if any catch your eye."

Old man Liu hoped he could sell them, as for the hunters, acquiring fine furs depended on luck. They relied on high-quality pelts to earn more throughout the year. However, the city’s fur shops, which specialized in buying furs, took advantage of hunters like them. Even if the market was favorable, the price offered wouldn’t be high. They had thought of selling independently, but setting up a stall often led to being robbed or pressured by stewards to lower the price, which left selling directly to shops as a better option.

The villagers quite welcomed the convoys that passed through, although it was a pity that few stayed. However, when some did stay, they were able to sell some furs, even if the quantity was small. The prices were decent, though.

Lady Lauzhang brought out the furs, two pieces of fox fur which Zhulan immediately liked – they were both red fox furs – and two pieces of top-quality mink fur. Zhulan inquired about the price, "How much are you selling these for?"

Old man Liu, tapping his pipe, replied, "I won’t ask for much, cheaper than the shops. Twenty taels for one piece of fox fur, twelve taels for one piece of mink fur."

Zhulan recalled the prices at Pingzhou Fur Shop, where top-quality fox fur was thirty taels per piece, and even lesser-quality mink fur started at ten taels of silver.

Zhulan’s mental calculations whirred – these were much cheaper than the shop. Further consideration of how much less fur dealers paid for these furs revealed quite the exorbitant profit margins. No wonder it was a monopolized business. "I’ll take all four pieces. Do you know if anyone else in the village has top-quality fox fur? I would like to buy a few more pieces."

Old man Liu took another puff from his pipe, "No more. There are plenty of rabbit furs in the village, but foxes are hard to come by. This year, only our family managed to get fox furs; the rest sold theirs last year."

Zhulan’s hope of stocking up on more furs fell through, but being able to buy four pieces was still quite good. They could be used for her daughters’ dowries or as gifts.

Zhou Shuren had been quiet all along; with a sidelong glance at the old man, he hooked the corner of his mouth and spoke up, "Your family must have even better furs, I presume."

Old man Liu, accustomed to dealing with merchants rather than scholars, rarely interacted with learned men. Although scholars often stayed with them every year, they always seemed aloof and unreachable. His family had also hosted the Old Graduate, who in his memory always carried himself with great dignity.

This was his first time speaking with an Old Graduate. After a brief pause and digesting the Old Graduate’s words, old man Liu squinted his eyes and wondered how the Old Graduate had seen through him.

Zhou Shuren smiled and said, "Don’t be nervous, old man, we are sincere buyers. If you have good furs, we will certainly offer a fair price."

Old man Liu winked at his wife, "The Old Graduate is a scholar; I trust him completely."

Lady Lauzhang was delighted; just today, the price for the four pelts was twenty taels more than what the collecting merchants offered!

Zhulan waited a while before she saw the furs Lady Lauzhang brought out—two pieces of white fox fur. Zhulan blinked; they were indeed white fox fur, which cost eighty taels per piece in the Pingzhou Fur Shop, and sometimes you couldn’t even find one for purchase!

Old man Liu felt gloomy; the Old Graduate and the Graduate’s wife wore expressionless faces. He couldn’t read their thoughts at all, making it difficult for him to name his price. After pondering for a moment, he said, "White fox fur is rare; I caught these myself three years ago and never saw another since then. My asking price is seventy taels each."

He was so careful about his catch that he didn’t dare let others know; if the collecting merchants found out, they would definitely drive the price down. Getting forty taels each was already fortunate. If others knew, it would bring trouble, so he had kept them hidden all this time. Today, if he could sell them, that would also be good.

Zhulan looked at Zhou Shuren, who gave an almost imperceptible nod. These two furs were rare white fox furs, excellent for a fine gift when well utilized.

Zhulan spent a total of two hundred and four taels on six pelts and specially cleared a chest to store them.

The rain stopped at midnight, so they could resume their journey the next day. After breakfast, Lady Li, accompanied by Xing Hua, packed their belongings.

The Liu family had made a good profit thanks to the Zhou family last night, so Lady Lauzhang made steamed buns with wild boar and cabbage filling in the morning, specifically for Zhulan to eat on the road.

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren were the last to board the carriage. As Zhulan opened the carriage curtain to look back at the Liu family, she caught sight of Zhang Sanni bowing to her; Zhulan understood the gesture of respect from the young woman.

Zhulan smiled, appreciating that this girl was one of the rare ones who could see reality clearly, someone who knew how to seize opportunities. Zhulan let the curtain fall; among the few girls she had met since crossing over, neither Zhang Sanni nor Wang Rong had ever indulged in the futile chase of an elusive future. Instead, they firmly grasped reality, which allowed them to slowly carve out their own happiness in even the toughest circumstances.

This trip back to Zhou’s village, she had also encountered Wang Rong, who was calm and serene. Her smile never faltered, even earning praise from Lady Zhouwang.

This morning, she also observed the Liu family, which stood out as an honest and kind-hearted household. Although Zhang Sanni’s husband may not have been remarkable in appearance, he was willing to help carry water for her.

In ancient times, finding a husband who would cherish oneself meant that a woman’s future wouldn’t be bad.

Zhulan leaned her head on Zhou Shuren’s shoulder, lifted his hand, and placed hers within it. As his large hand held her smaller one, Zhulan curled the corners of her lips, "It’s so good to have you."

Zhou Shuren reciprocated the grip, "That’s my line."

More than once, he had thought about what would have happened if Zhulan hadn’t saved him. Would he have died? Or crossed over?

Zhulan smiled without saying another word, and Zhou Shuren also smiled, holding her hand tighter.

Because of the rain and the mountain roads, the carriage did not travel fast. By evening, they had barely left the mountainous area and there was still some distance to the station. Fortunately, once out of the mountains, even if it rained again, there would be no danger.

The rest of the journey was not that smooth. After the autumn harvest, the rain became more frequent, and several heavy downpours made the carriage’s progress difficult.

When Zhulan was free, she would lean against the carriage window to look out, watching the farmers struggling in the muddy fields, harvesting their crops. In ancient times, with no machinery, everything relied on human labor, and the heavy rains only added to the farmers’ hardship.

She should be grateful it wasn’t a year of disaster; at least this year was another bumper harvest, despite the heavier rainfall during the harvest season.

Zhulan worried about her family back home, "I wonder if it has rained back home? Also, counting the days, Xue Mei should have finished her postpartum recovery."