Chapter 222: Stocking Up On Firewood
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
As for food and sustenance, whenever Wang Dashan and his father went into the mountains to gather firewood, they would find something in the mountains from time to time.
In addition to the money he earned from chopping wood, and… the subsidy given by his younger sister, the father and son might be able to survive.
Upon hearing this, Wang Xiaomei finally felt more at ease.
“Don’t worry about the food. I have… stocked up almost 800 catties of brown rice and coarse flour here. If you and Father are a little more frugal, it should be enough to last us for quite a while,” she said.
Wang Xiaomei had just bought 550 catties of brown rice and coarse flour with Mrs. Song. Together with those that she had been stocking up cumulatively previously, she had at least 800 catties now.
Wang Dashan got a big shock.
“So… much?” He found it a little unbelievable.
Wang Xiaomei nodded her head.
“However, you must keep this a secret for now. Don’t tell Father yet.”
“After you guys move to town, you can come here to take the food away.”
Wang Dashan thought for a while and nodded.
“Alright,” he said.
Immediately after that, he looked like he wanted to say something but stopped.
“What’s wrong? If Big Brother has something to say, feel free to say it.” Wang Dashan’s hesitation caused Wang Xiaomei to smile.
“The food you…” Wang Dashan asked.
Wang Xiaomei’s eyes flickered momentarily.
“Oh, those? I stocked up on them earlier.”
“Previously, Mrs. Song said that the price of grain might rise. After 1 earned the money, I exchanged it for food and began stocking up,” Wang Xiaomei said, pretending to be relaxed.
“Thankfully, I did that. Otherwise, you and Father would have to suffer later on.”
“You exchanged all your money for food?” Wang Dashan exclaimed in shock.
Wang Xiaomei paused for a while before nodding her head.
“Mm-hmm.”
“So, you guys have to pay for the rental of the room yourself.”
“We should be paying for the rental ourselves in the first place!” Wang Dashan immediately said.
“How much did you spend on those grains?” he asked again anxiously.
Wang Xiaomei’s eyes flickered a little.
“Not much really,” she replied.
“Gosh, Big Brother! Don’t ask so many questions.
“At this point, food is more important than money.
“If there’s no money, we can just go on to earn it later. As long as one is alive and his hands are working, one will be able to make money sooner or later.”
Wang Dashan was silent.
When she saw this, Wang Xiaomei smiled.
“Oh, yes. You better hurry up and decide on the room rental issue soon. It’s best to confirm it within ten days.”
Previously, Mrs. Song had told her to take the grain away within half a month.
If her big brother and father did not come and get the grain, Wang Xiaomei could only move the grain into her own room.
At that point, she was afraid that it would take up a lot of space.
In her opinion, it didn’t matter if the people of Brook Falls Village fled or not.
It would be more cost-effective for big brother and father to live in the town.
After all, the rent was only 100 copper coins a month, but it could save the two of them time traveling back and forth.
With the time saved, they might be able to gather an extra handcart of firewood.
Before Uncle Liu and Aunt Liu bought the courtyard house, they had wanted to go back to Brook Falls Village to live.
However, in the end, after coming to town, they never once considered going back.
Although the couple also complained that they had to spend money on many aspects of town life, grumbling about spending money to buy this and that, ultimately they also liked the cleanliness and convenience of the town. The couple actually preferred the life they were leading now.
A wisp of hesitation flashed across Wang Dashan’s face.
After his younger sister looked at him, he nodded.
“I’ll find time to discuss this with Father after 1 go back,” he said.
Although Wang Dashan said it was a discussion, he was fairly certain that his father would be happy to move.
In fact, the moment Wang Dashan brought up this subject, his father would definitely be eager to move immediately.
After all, the old man often grumbled in front of Wang Dashan, saying how much he envied the Song and Liu families.
Wang Dashan sighed in his heart when he thought of this.
He was really useless. If it wasn’t for his sister making these arrangements, he really didn’t know what to do next.
The brother and sister chatted for a while more. At this moment, Qin Xiaoyao came over.
“Mrs. Song!” The two of them greeted Qin Xiaoyao.
Qin Xiaoyao nodded with a smile.
“Dashan.” She turned toward Wang Dashan.
“Yes, Mrs. Song!” Wang Dashan quickly replied.
“Of the 85 loads of firewood I ordered previously, how much has been delivered?” Qin Xiaoyao asked.
Wang Dashan was caught by surprise.
After pondering for a while, he answered, “Including today’s delivery, it’s 46 loads. I still owe you 39 loads.”
Qin Xiaoyao nodded.
“I heard that the price of firewood has increased?” she asked again.
Wang Dashan was surprised again.
Then, a smile appeared on his face.
“It did rise a little. But it doesn’t affect the firewood you ordered earlier. I’ll still deliver the remaining 39 loads of firewood to you!” he said.
The Song family treated his younger sister well and even allowed her to earn so much money. He was grateful for that inwardly.
When Wang Xiaomei heard this, she nodded her head as well. Obviously, she agreed with her big brother.
However, Qin Xiaoyao simply laughed.
“The town entrance fee has increased. If we still base it on the original price, you’ll lose a lot.
“How about this? I’ll give you an additional two copper coins for every load of firewood. Take it as we are helping to compensate you for some town entrance fees.
“However, you will have to give priority to my family when you deliver firewood. Give me the 39 loads of firewood you owe me within a month.”
Seeing Wang Dashan’s surprised expression, Qin Xiaoyao smiled and said, “My family’s woodshed isn’t full yet.”
“In addition, you can also store some firewood in the storage room.”
There were many things in the attic of the house’s storage room, so Qin Xiaoyao had to think of some way to cover them up.
In addition, it was also good to stock up on more firewood at home now.
According to her husband, Mountain Spring Town would be sealed off before long.
Then, the town gate would only be opened again when the war disaster broke out.
“No problem!” Wang Dashan quickly answered.
Only then did Qin Xiaoyao leave.
After that, the Wang siblings chatted for a while longer before Wang Dashan left.
After hearing his sister’s words during his trip to town this time, Wang Dashan’s heart was much more at ease.
He didn’t stay idle after he returned home and continued to deliver firewood to town.
After delivering the firewood for the second time, he finally went home.
Wang Laoshuan was also at home.
He had cooked a pot of porridge, and the side dishes were salted vegetables and the locusts which had been dried earlier.
For the past few days, Wang Laoshuan and his son had only been eating locusts, and he really felt that he couldn’t stomach it anymore.
When he saw that his son had returned, Wang Laoshuan quickly asked Wang Dashan about the situation in town.
After learning that his daughter was doing well and the price of firewood in town had gone up, Wang Laoshuan’s aged face immediately broke into a smile.
“Since you’ve earned money, why didn’t you buy some grains?” Wang Laoshuan asked again very quickly.
Wang Dashan glanced at his father.
“The price of firewood has increased, but the price of grain has increased even more.”
“In addition, the price of anything that is remotely related to food has grown by a large amount.”
Wang Laoshuan frowned.
“What’s the price of brown rice and coarse flour now?” he asked hurriedly.
Wang Dashan sighed and replied, “22 copper coins.”
“What?” Wang Laoshuan’s eyes widened, thinking that he had heard wrong.
“You didn’t hear wrong. The price of brown rice and coarse flour has risen to 22 copper coins per catty.
“And it’s limited in supply. If people queue up, each person can only buy five catties at a time. If they go too late, they won’t be able to buy any!”
Fortunately, Wang Xiaomei had stocked up on the grain in advance. Otherwise, he wouldn’t know what to do henceforth.
“Then what do we do? Our family…” As he said that, Wang Laoshuan looked in the direction of the kitchen in a panic.
“We have only a dozen catties of food left..”