Chapter 74: The First Frost

The villagers, who were just there to watch the excitement, heard that the grain Chen You Tian and others were carrying wasn't theirs but was purchased by the Sang family to pay their taxes.

They quickly realized that the amount of grain Sang family had bought was still far short of the required tax payment, making them even less well-off than themselves. They could at least pay their taxes.

A sense of superiority instantly inflated among them.

Looking at what Chen You Tian and the others were carrying, which amounted to barely ten jin of grain, they thought that must be the so-called 'high-priced grain' they bought to hoard. Tsk, it wasn't much. Running to the county every day as if they were doing something big, huh.

The group's envious tone suddenly lightened, turning into genuine curiosity and idle chatter.

Li Shi, however, seeing Sang Luo coming and going with a group of men who could be her uncles, and hearing them offer to lend her grain for taxes, gritted her teeth and ultimately couldn't help but spit lightly.

Wanting to curse but remembering her previous quarrel with Sang Luo, she forcibly held back her words.

When Sang Luo got tough, she showed no mercy, and the term 'seductress' was something Li Shi dared only to mutter resentfully in her heart.

Sang Luo, unaware of Li Shi's dirty thoughts seeing her walking with Chen You Tian and other men who could be her uncles, had almost no interaction with Li Shi since crossing over, not even greeting her when passing by on the road. Therefore, she didn't give Li Shi a second glance, nor did she notice Li Shi's resentful expression.

After thanking everyone for carrying the grain, Sang Luo stored the not-quite-full bags and, together with her two children, moved the grain inside the house.

Seeing two more bags of grain brought home, Shen An knew the crystallized fruit must have made money again, happily exclaiming like a squirrel that had stored food for winter, "Big sister, did you sell all the crystallized fruit you took today?"

"Sold out. From now on, our family will be exclusively cooperating with Yongfeng Restaurant. We'll deliver our crystallized fruit there to be sold in their shop."

"Yongfeng Restaurant? That's the best snack shop in the county, isn't it?"

The siblings were delighted. Shen Ning asked, "How much will they sell our crystallized fruit for?"

Sang Luo shook her head, "I don't know, but definitely much more expensive than the price we sold it to them."

The products from Yongfeng Restaurant are exquisitely packaged and sold by the box, none of them cheap. The markup really depends on them.

Shen An commented, "Even if they sell each piece for one coin, it’s still a good profit. Big sister, shall we go back to the mountains later?"

Sang Luo nodded, "We need to go to the mountains. We promised a delivery in about four days, but first, we need to cut some bamboo to make three simple drying mats."

With the twenty molds provided by Yongfeng Restaurant, Sang Luo could save using four winnowing baskets. The konjac could be sliced thickly and dried for later use when fresh konjac is no longer available.

Sang Luo planned to make four simple drying boards for the Yongfeng Restaurant molds, not needing the fine craftsmanship of thin bamboo strips like the winnowing baskets, but rather more substantial bamboo bars woven into a large, relatively flat surface that can fit into the drying rack and hold the molds steadily.

The saved winnowing baskets would be dedicated to drying konjac slices, as konjac also has a harvest period. If she wanted to continue selling vegetarian tripe beyond the harvest period, she needed to stockpile ingredients now.

Sang Luo was quite adept at bamboo crafting by now, even storing some of Chen You Tian's tools at her place. The simple drying mats were not difficult to make, and she had them ready by mid-afternoon.

The following busy period goes without saying.

……

Soon, it was the 7th of September, the day the tax collector was scheduled to visit Shili Village.

Early in the morning, families were preparing, transporting their grain to the village's drying field to wait.

Sang Luo, not having a male in the household and not wanting to attract attention in the village while pretending to be poor, decided not to go. She planned to buy more grain and pay the taxes closer to the 13th or 14th of September, when a trip to the county would be less conspicuous.

Although not paying taxes, Sang Luo didn't miss the chance to observe the scene.

The observation only highlighted the tax collector's malice and the hardships of the villagers. Paying taxes involved not just handing over grain but also appeasing the tax collector with a smile and discreet bribes.

The tax collector's measuring instruments were the bushel, and the amount of tax grain collected depended on his mood. Those who paid a bribe were passed easily, while others found the collector stepping in the bushel to reduce the measured amount.

Indeed, the heavy stamping on the wooden grain-measuring bucket by the tax collector drastically reduced the seemingly overflowing grain. Just a few stomps, and the grain level visibly decreased.

At that moment, even offering a bribe was useless. The collector wouldn't accept it if the amount was insufficient. No choice but to add more grain, and tears wouldn't help.

This incident served as a stark warning to the entire village. Nobody dared to challenge the collector again, although their faces clearly showed discontent. Yet, they were forced to maintain a polite facade in front of the tax collector.

Sang Luo felt suffocated by the injustice and left for home with Shen Ning.

On the 9th of September, Sang Luo went to the county again, delivering the first batch of crystallized fruit made with the molds to Yongfeng Restaurant. The goods were excellent, and Manager Yan was extremely happy, promptly paying 400 coins for them.

Chen You Tian, Zhou Village Head, and others were still in the county buying grain, which had risen to 92 coins per bushel.

The grain price was surging every few days, and a sense of panic was visible on the faces of people in the main streets of the county. The line at the grain store grew even longer. Chen You Tian and his group had to enter the city as soon as the gates opened; otherwise, by their usual arrival time, the day's grain would be sold out.

Initially, the Chen, Shi, and Lu families bought grain following Sang Luo and Zhou Village Head's advice to stockpile. But seeing the rapid price increase and hearing the various concerns and discussions among the townspeople, their decision to stockpile became even more resolute.

In reality, spending each day like this to buy a bushel or two didn't accumulate much.

Helplessly, they couldn't afford to buy more. The price of grain increased daily, and later, they could only buy seven or eight bushels at a time. They dared not skip days for fear the price would rise even further.

Sang Luo brought out almost all the money she had saved from selling tofu these past few days, but it was only enough to buy one stone and four bushels of grain.

However, considering the weather might turn colder any time, Sang Luo decided to hold onto some cash and only bought one stone.

As for Zhou Village Head's family, it wasn’t just him coming to buy grain anymore; his two sons, having completed their travel permits, joined him, along with two young men rumored to be Zhou's sons.

The rising grain prices gradually spread to nearby villages, including Ten Mile Village. People who were initially indifferent became increasingly anxious.

Those who spoke with the Chen, Lu, and Shi families sought their opinions, with many villagers starting to turn to Zhou Village Head’s family for advice.

“Isn’t it just a disaster? Our vast empire always faces calamities in one or two regions every year, right? Although grain prices have risen in the past, they’ve never soared like this.”

What could Zhou Village Head say? In this era, the furthest most people had traveled was to the county town, with some never having stepped into the city due to distance, the cost involved, and various restrictions.

Therefore, news from other states or counties was not easily accessible, let alone information from farther regions. He had already shared everything he knew.

That night, many in Ten Mile Village had a restless sleep.

As for Sang Luo, she had already stockpiled enough grain for the next autumn thanks to Mr. Xu's loan, and her ongoing grain accumulation was methodically planned. She felt at ease. After finishing the day's batch of crystallized fruit and celestial tofu, she and the two children washed up and went to bed early.

In the middle of the night, she woke up shivering from the cold, curled up tightly. It took her a while to fully awaken. Rubbing her ice-cold arms and body, she noticed, by the faint moonlight seeping in, that the two siblings were also huddled together like shrimps.

Without a second thought, Sang Luo grabbed her thin blanket and squeezed onto Shen An's new bed. The three of them huddled together under two thin blankets, which finally brought some warmth.

Sang Luo felt the thickness of the blanket, a mere summer sheet made of two layers of hemp, barely more than a bed sheet. Thankfully, she had retained over four hundred coins from her county trip and had just earned another two hundred and sixty, bringing her total to seven hundred coins.

After considering the upcoming revenue from tofu and crystallized fruit sales, Sang Luo realized she couldn't spend on grain anymore. Instead, she needed to save for clothing and blankets. Once September passed and October arrived, it would be winter.

Even though this was the south, the mountainous region inherently had lower temperatures than the plains.

Waking up before dawn to make tofu, she felt it was significantly colder than usual.

She didn't notice it at first, but when Chen Youtian and others came to collect tofu, carrying torches, the light revealed a layer of white frost on the wild grass outside her courtyard.

"So it's already the time of the first frost," she remarked.

Qin Fangniang nodded, "Indeed, the mountain roads are already slippery."

She then asked Sang Luo, "Your family hasn't prepared winter clothes and blankets yet, have they?"

Sang Luo nodded. The little money she had earned was mostly used to compete with grain merchants for grain. The summer and autumn clothing of rural people like them barely differed, and it was only when winter approached that they gradually added layers.

"If your families have fabric, let's use it to pay for today's tofu order. Otherwise, I'll have to make another trip to the county," Sang Luo suggested.

Qin Fangniang promptly replied, "Yes, we have fabric."

Gan Shi and Feng Liu Niang, who came along, also readily agreed. Gan Shi said, "Don't wait for us to come back for you to collect. If you need it, just come by our house later. Since you'll be coming daily for tofu, we can just settle the account when you return."

Sang Luo had indeed planned to do so and nodded with a smile.

After seeing the others off and having breakfast with the children, as the sky began to brighten, Sang Luo led Shen An down the mountain to collect fabric from the three families.

Learning the fabric was for autumn and winter clothing, all three families provided thick, durable autumn fabric. Sang Luo and Shen An carried enough material to make three sets of autumn clothes for each of the three members of their family, then headed home.

As deep autumn approached and winter was just around the corner, why was it necessary to prepare three sets of autumn clothes?

Simply because of poverty.

At that time, people typically made one set of cotton or padded clothes filled with willow catkins or reed flowers, and wore oversized autumn clothes over them. Only the outer two layers were changed regularly. The inner cotton or padded clothing was worn repeatedly, as neither fabric nor cotton was cheap; hence, saving wherever possible was the norm.

Sang Luo did the same. The money she earned was saved for household expenses and grain, not making her much richer than the other villagers. Her winter clothing preparations followed the same pattern: one set of padded inner clothing and two outer layers.

However, Sang Luo had no intention of letting herself and the children endure winter in catkin or reed flower fillings. Despite the high cost of cotton, she was determined to save up for cotton clothes, trousers, and blankets.