Chapter Seventy-Nine Hidden Money

  Strawberries are easily bruised and transportation is a problem.

  Qī Zhēnér thought that putting some straw in the bamboo basket would be better. Moreover, to hold 500 catties of strawberries, their family's bamboo baskets were not enough, so she asked Yè Lù Yuǎn to find some straw, and she went with Yè Bái Zhǐ to buy four large-sized bamboo baskets.

  Ye Luyu brought over his family's ox cart, claiming he was helping Zhen'er transport some things back from the neighboring village. Ye Qiushu and the others didn't think much of it and handed over the cart, only reminding him to be careful and return early in the evening.

  Around the time of You, the sun set in the west. Qizhen and his group pulled a full cart of bamboo baskets, with thick layers of straw inside, heading into the mountain valley.

  From the other side, the mountain pass is actually quite close to the foot of the mountain. It's just that it's blocked by a few dense trees, so you can't see it from the outside. Qizhen had already surveyed the route long ago, and the ox cart was parked at the foot of the mountain, which could be seen directly from the mountain pass. Moreover, this area is usually deserted, so as long as they didn't make too much noise, it wouldn't be easy to get discovered.

  Knowing the time was pressing, they went to the mountain pass, each took a basket and started busy. Hu Zi also carried his exclusive small basket, picking those ripe strawberries at the edge of the grass.

  Qizhen had already told them that the strawberries were ripe and they should be picked when they were seven or eight parts ripe, so it would be easy to put them in baskets later. Also, when picking, leave a small piece of stem about the length of a thumb nail. She didn't know why, but she remembered seeing strawberries with stems on them before, so it should be right.

  They picked this to avoid people, so they can only come in the late afternoon and early morning. Qizhen'er and Qianzhongren agreed to pick up the goods at noon tomorrow, so they only have tonight and tomorrow morning to pick strawberries.

  Around the time of You, the sky slowly darkened, and Qizhen and the others stopped their work. They had already picked two large bamboo baskets, plus three small ones, which was still a bit short of 500 catties. However, it was getting late, and they couldn't pick anymore.

  They drove the carriage back to Qizhen's home, carried several large baskets into the house, casually stir-fried two dishes, and after the four of them ate, they sent Yeluyuan rushing back home in his ox cart.

  I don't know if it's because their bodies have really deteriorated or they're just too exhausted, but Qizhen and the others slept all night until dawn. If Yelufan hadn't shouted loudly at the door, they wouldn't have woken up easily.

  The sky was already bright. They didn't even have time for a meal, simply washing up and then carrying bamboo baskets onto the ox cart to head into the mountain valley.

  Three people were hastily searching for strawberries in the strawberry bushes. They also had to be careful not to trample them, which was a nerve-wracking task. By the end of the morning, they had barely picked two large bamboo baskets and two small ones. Qizhen estimated that it was almost enough, seeing that the buyers were about to arrive. There was no one at home either. They hastily rushed back home again.

  Back home, Qian Zhongren and his family had not arrived yet. Qi Zhen'er let out a heavy sigh of relief. They quickly unloaded all the strawberries from the cow cart.

  Qizhen's home is at the end of the village, closest to the mountain. The route she told Qianzhong yesterday was to come from the side of the mountain, so as not to pass through the village and attract attention. Moreover, she lives in a thatched hut, which is easy to recognize.

  Zijin'er had just fed the piglets that had been crying out of hunger all morning. Just then, she heard the sound of horse-drawn carriages at the door. She opened it and saw that Qianzhongren had indeed arrived with two carriages.

  After weighing, it was 523 catties. After deducting the weight of the bamboo basket, it was almost exactly 500 catties. Qizhen and Qian Zhongren didn't care about those few extra catties. It's just a matter of saving face.

  Qian Zhongren gave another 40 taels of silver. It was considered that all the accounts had been paid off. When leaving, Qi Zhen'er gave the carters 200 coins to buy wine and eat, and also sent a basket of strawberries to Qian Zhongren, sending them away happily.

  Qī Zhēnér took out fifty taels of silver, wanting to divide it equally with Yè Bái zhǐ and Yè Lù yuǎn. However, Yè Bái zhǐ held on tight and wouldn't let go, shouting that she had to warm up first before they could talk about it.

  Zijin couldn't outdo her, and now that she had finished all the chores, she was also hungry, so she went to the kitchen to cook.

  After dinner, regardless of Ye Bai Zhi's reluctance, Qi Zhen'er took the silver and insisted on dividing it.

  "We have three people, deducting two taels of silver to buy bamboo baskets and the cost of using a cow cart and rewarding the carter, totaling 48 taels. It works out that each of us gets 16 taels. What do you think?" asked Qi Zhen'er.

  Ye Baiji and Ye Luyuan looked at each other and said in unison: "Too many."

  "We only exerted our efforts, picked strawberries, and discussed prices. All these were done by you, and the money you gave was too much." Ye Luyuan said. Ye Baiju heard this and nodded in agreement, "I think so too."

  Zi Zhen'er didn't expect Ye Baiji to come around so quickly, and now she even refused the silver, "Didn't you want this silver very much? This is what you earned yourself, how can you say it's too much?" She turned to Ye Luyuan, "Luyuan ge, if not for your accompaniment to the county town and finding a middleman, I wouldn't have been able to negotiate this deal. This is what you deserve, why don't you want it?"

  "You all worked hard for it, so this money is well-deserved." Qizhen concluded.

  Having seen Qizhen'er's tactics in negotiating prices, Yeluyuan felt that he was not her match. However, taking so much money made him feel uneasy. "If it comes to exerting effort, isn't there still Huzi?"

  Huzi sat obediently beside Qizhen'er, listening to their conversation. When he heard his name mentioned, he didn't know what was going on and looked around in confusion, switching his gaze from one person to another with a bewildered expression.

  Rubbing Hu Zi's head, Qi Zhen'er said: "Hu Zi didn't exert himself, he doesn't count."

  At this time, Ye Baiji also seemed to have found a way out and argued: "Why doesn't Hu Zi count? He also went to pick strawberries, right Hu Zi?"

  The young and ignorant Hu Zi was deceived by her, nodded, and Ye Baiji seemed to have found an ally, saying: "If you put in the effort, you should get paid, go find your sister for some silver."

  Houzi didn't dare ask about the silver, he still hadn't figured out why they needed it, and could only look at his sister in confusion.

  Qī Zhēn ér was just about to speak when Yè Bái zhǐ said to Yè Lù yuǎn, "Anyway, we have to give a share to Hǔ Zǐ, otherwise none of us will get any silver."

  Bai Zhi's sister was about to argue again, but Qi Zhen'er raised her hand to stop her. "I'll still follow the previous division," she said, "but each of us will take out one or two silver coins for Hu Zi. It's a reward for his labor and also some pocket money from all of you brothers and sisters. What do you think?"

  Ye Baiji and Ye Luyuan also knew that this was the best solution. Zhen'er would never count as a person for Hu Zi.

  "I have no opinion." Ye Baiji spoke first.

  "I have no opinion either." Ye Luyuan followed, "But the money for this ox cart is too much," he said with an embarrassed smile, "In the future, if Zhen'er needs help, just find brother, and brother will be there at any time."

  Ye Lu Yuan usually looked out of place, like a rogue from the market, but actually he was still a kind and simple-minded young man at heart. After hearing his words, Zhen Er smiled and agreed.

  One person divided three silver ingots, and Qizhen'er also took out two taels of silver from her own pocket money to give to Yelufang.

  Look at them, they have silver in their bosoms like a charcoal basin. They are restless. Qizhen'er joked: "Now it's all set, Lu Yuan'ge has the money to marry his wife, Bai Zhi's dowry silver is also available, and even our Hu Zi's school fees are available, it's really a happy ending for everyone."

  Even the most careless person would feel shy when mentioning these topics, Ye Luyuan is a bit better, after all, he's already a young man. When they go out to work, they will also talk about some vulgar things, and he has practiced a bit. But Ye Baiju is different, she has also learned some characters since childhood, and read "Nu Jie" and other books. When hearing this topic, she still feels like dying of shyness, her whole face turns red like a peach blossom, it's really beautiful to see.

  "You little brat! You dare to say anything, if you tease me again in the future, I'll tell Grandpa and let him deal with you." Ye Baiju knew she couldn't outtalk Qi Zhen'er, so she used Grandpa to scare her.

  But the obvious tiger son was much happier. "Sister, can I go to school to learn characters?" In the past few days, Tiger Son had been following Old Master Ye. When the old master was diagnosing illnesses, he feared that Tiger Son would be bored, so he casually pulled out a book and taught him to recognize the words on it, then let him practice writing with tea water on the table. He liked writing characters and also wanted to go to school.

  Qī Zhēn ér smiled and nodded.

  Life's worries start with recognizing characters, and remembering names is a trivial matter. To teach Tiger a lesson, nothing beats sending him to school. She had been thinking about this for some time, but didn't dare mention it before because they were short of money. Now that they have the money, and maybe more in the future, she decided to bring up the idea again. Moreover, when she went to Old Master's place to pick up Tiger, she saw how seriously he took writing with tea-stained fingers. Tiger likes it, no matter what, she will satisfy his desires.

  Ye Lu Yuan had a large sum of silver hidden in his bosom, driving the ox cart along the way, his mind constantly thinking about where to hide the money. The strawberries hadn't been sold out yet, so this matter couldn't be let known by the people at home, not even his parents, he had sworn an oath after all, but hiding such a large sum of silver was still a problem.

  Ye Baiji returned home and was also thinking about this issue. The house she lived in was too insecure, not to mention that her mother would help her tidy up things in her room, just saying that the house was so empty and unsafe, what if her mother found out about the money, wouldn't she be scared to death?

  Qizhen'er was much better than them. Her own house, so dilapidated, no thief would have the eyesight to visit her, and she had experience hiding money. She wrapped the silver in cloth, dug out a brick in the corner of the wall, stuffed the silver inside, and put a jar on top. Qizhen'er looked left and right, saw nothing unusual, and took two strings of cash with peace of mind, leading Huizi out the door.

  First went to the doctor's office and invited Old Ye for dinner at his home in the evening, Zhen'er pulled Hu Zi to He Tu Fu's house in the village. He Tu Fu had a butcher's stall in the county town, but he usually returned home every night because he had to get up early to kill pigs.

  Qizhen'er bought 2.5 kilograms of pork, picked up a few large bones and paid 25 cents. Then she took Huizi to the village where many people grew vegetables and bought some lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes and green vegetables.

  On the way back, she saw several half-grown kids rolling up their pants legs, carrying buckets or nets in their hands, filled with fish and lobsters. Qizhen's eyes lit up, how could she have forgotten? In previous years after the rain, when the river rose, she had also gone down to the river to catch fish with her little friends.

  This month still no pink slip, very embarrassing ~~ seeking everyone's support

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