He went to Chenjiawan, and his younger brother was going to stay at the shop for a while.
Lu Yang said to him, “I asked Xie Yan to write some characters. He’ll teach you later. Once you’ve learned them, you can teach Li Feng at home, which will make it easier for you to keep track of your accounts. If you’re afraid, just stay inside and recognize the characters. Read the ones you recognize several times, and once you’ve finished, ask him to teach you more. Time flies when you’re having fun! I’ve already told them we’ll close early today. Let’s meet on the main road this afternoon and go visit the two fathers.”
After he finished speaking, he glanced at Li Feng’s expression. Li Feng had no objections.
The only elders who knew about their arranged marriage were the two fathers from the Lu family.
Now that everyone knew, the four of them could visit together, and the elders would feel at ease.
Lu Liu nodded. He brought a hat, gloves, and a small vest. He also brought a money basket he had woven.
Last time there was a pair of gloves, and this time he brought another pair. Xie Yan could wear them.
There were three hats, one for the older brother and one for the mother and son from the Xie family. The small vest was for the older brother.
He explained the origin of each item: “The hats, vests, and gloves were all made by my mother, with Shun Ge’s help. I’m slow at handwork, so this time I only made one hat. I thought that since you two both have hats to wear, and Auntie is the only one without one, I’d bring them all along.”
In total, Lu Liu had only made three pairs of gloves and one hat during this period. There were only two pairs of gloves left for the two fathers.
He mentioned it to his older brother, and Lu Yang said, “Since you’re bringing cured meat, I won’t bring any meat. There are only two of us at home, so we’ll see after we finish eating. I’ve been spending a lot lately, so I can’t be extravagant. I’ll just save up and get a few pounds of flour from the store later.”
The two brothers discussed it and settled the matter of the New Year’s gifts.
Lu Yang was quick on his feet, steaming three baskets of meat buns, with the remaining ones for Lu Lin to make do with. He then discussed with Li Feng the various mountain products and the currently agreed-upon categories and prices for procurement. After that, they could pack their things, change clothes with his younger brother, and head to Chenjiawan.
Li Feng told him, “After we agree on the price, I need to go to the mutton soup restaurant to find someone.”
Lu Yang nodded, “Alright.”
It was best to take a detour and arrive at Chenjiawan after dark, so they wouldn’t have to stay for dinner at the Chen family’s house.
He had been taking medicine recently and couldn’t afford the Chen family’s meals.
………………………………
Xie Yan took over the price negotiations.
He had a good memory and made a list, so it wasn’t difficult to talk about it. Lu Yang didn’t want to make money from the mountain goods, so he gave a price, and Li Feng was satisfied.
Lu Yang glanced at him. Xie Yan looked pitiful, so Lu Yang agreed.
After visiting the clinic, Xie Yan wanted to help with everything. Even when Lu Yang went to the kitchen to cook, he offered to help and learn, showing great enthusiasm and diligence.
Lu Yang couldn’t help but be moved. Unfortunately, Xie Yan was still too clumsy and inexperienced. He hadn’t done much housework before, and the matters in the shop weren’t something he could master in just a few days. It would take time.
Lu Yang didn’t leave either. After washing his hands, he sat with his younger brother behind the stove to warm themselves.
The two brothers chatted and listened to what the two men were saying.
Lu Liu was also a bit slow. He glanced at Xie Yan and whispered to Lu Yang, “Brother, what characters should I learn?”
Last time they met, Lu Yang said he would teach him to pass the imperial examination, show him picture books, and use books with both text and illustrations to teach him to recognize characters.
Those books were so embarrassing; even he and Dafeng blushed when they looked at them. If Xie Yan taught him, wouldn’t he be too embarrassed to bear it?
Lu Yang pinched his cheek: “What are you thinking about? I’ll teach you proper characters. Learn your names first, then some numbers, and then how to measure silver coins. For example, ‘wen’ and ‘qian’ in ‘one wen coin’—you need to learn both. I’ll arrange them from one to ten for you to look at every day. Then there’s ‘liang’ in ‘one liang of silver.’ Learn how to write ‘silver’ as well. You can all recite these orally. I’ve already arranged them in order, following the size. It’s very simple.”
Farmers are illiterate, but they know basic arithmetic. Otherwise, when they go out, they wouldn’t even be able to figure out barter transactions.
It’s just that those who haven’t read books are at a disadvantage. Even someone like Li Feng, who handles a lot of money, finds it difficult to calculate large sums and has to use an abacus.
With an abacus but unable to write, they used pebbles to represent the number of silver coins, then counted the pebbles after calculations to clarify the accounts. It was troublesome, and after a day or two, they would forget. The accounts left no trace, making it difficult to verify.
Lu Yang had Xie Yan write two sets of basic vocabulary. The first set was what he had discussed with Lu Liu. The second set consisted of the names of the goods they traded.
The two families lived far apart, making teaching inconvenient. Later, when Li Feng brought the goods, he would place paper slips in the basket, with the names of the goods written on them. They recognized the goods and could read the characters by matching them with the paper slips. Once they could read them, they would look at them more often, practice writing them, and memorize them. That would count as recognizing the characters.
“We’re not trying to become top scholars, so learning some everyday words is enough. First, learn to recognize the characters. Anyway, you can already do simple calculations. Once you can keep accounts, I’ll have Ayan teach you arithmetic and how to keep good accounts,” said Lu Yang.
Lu Liu listened and felt reassured. He chuckled, “Brother, you’re not trying to become a top scholar?”
Lu Yang laughed, “You’re good at teasing me, aren’t you?”
Lu Liu didn’t mean to tease him; he was just asking a question.
He really wanted to spend some quality time with Lu Yang, so he asked, “Do you take a break during the New Year? I heard that shops close during the New Year. Does yours close?”
Lu Yang nodded, “Yes, we close on New Year’s Eve and reopen on the fifth day of the New Year. There aren’t many days left, so I want to take advantage of the closure to have Da Song bring a few brothers over to help me divide the dormitory in the backyard into two small rooms. We’ll move to the county after the New Year. There’s a lot to do here.”
We won’t have time to gather during the New Year.
Lu Liu was a little disappointed, but also happy for him. She glanced at the two men again and lowered her voice once more: “Are things going smoothly in the village?”
The last time she asked, Lu Yang only mentioned his heroic deeds. Lu Liu realized later that he hadn’t given a clear answer, which made her worry.
Lu Yang nodded: “Everything is fine.”
Actually, it wasn’t, but it was almost done.
At first, he pretended to admit his debt, saying that he had already repaid part of it, but some people were greedy and took more money, stirring up trouble in the village.
Later, the village became chaotic, with people fighting each other, and many villagers denied the debt. At this point, Lu Yang could take a hard line.
They say that the law doesn’t punish the masses. In a village, most people are involved, so even if they sue, they won’t get a good result.
Now that the “big creditor” has been isolated, suing won’t be a problem.
This matter will be handled after the New Year, but before the New Year, he will bring a few people to smash Xie Sicao’s house. He will make them sign and press their fingerprints, and first take back the good farmland.
He wasn’t like Xie Yan, who was soft-hearted and let people live in peace. Don’t even think about it.
At that time, they would offer sacrifices to Xie Yan’s father during the New Year’s feast, which would also serve as an explanation.
Lu Yang changed the subject and didn’t mention this upsetting matter. Instead, he asked about Lu Liu’s small shop.
Lu Liu’s eyes lit up, and she was overjoyed.
“We told Mother about it the day we returned, and she agreed right away. Later, while making rice cakes, we discussed it several times with Dafeng and finalized the goods to be taken. Da Feng has been cleaning the house these past few days. There are two newly built rooms in our courtyard. Previously, the family couldn’t fit in them, but now we’ve cleared one out to use as a small shop. The space is quite large. He said that he would place the goods along the walls, leaving a path for people to walk through, and then put three counters to block the view so that customers couldn’t walk in freely. The main hall in the middle will be left empty. and he said he’ll put a table there. The village isn’t like the county seat, so we can sit together and chat. Mother also said that this place will soon become lively, so we shouldn’t be stingy. Sunflower seeds and peanuts shouldn’t be given out freely, but tea should be provided in abundance. Poor-quality tea costs ten coins for a large packet, and a handful can brew two pots of tea. This is something we should be generous with.”
He used to spend a lot of time alone; his two fathers were always busy, and he didn’t have any close friends. After getting married, he had more free time, got along well with Li Feng, and went out to play with Yao Fulang, always holding hands. Now, without realizing it, he likes to be close to people, always wanting to be next to them when talking, and sitting next to them isn’t enough—he always leans on
