Chapter 154

Chapter 154

The basket, usually used for carrying eggs, was large. After removing the wooden bottom and bamboo grid, Gu Lanshi measured the combined thickness of these two components with his hands.

He then compared this thickness to the exterior of the bamboo basket and said, "It should be able to hold five layers."

"Enough indeed," Pei Yan replied while shaving another piece of wood. "Four or five layers will do, as long as the eggs don't collide." The board he was working on was made from a different type of wood, thicker and heavier. He not only had to shave it down to fit the size of the basket but also thin it out to make it lighter when carried.

The base board and the bamboo grid didn't need to be tightly fitted together; thus, the wooden board just needed to be whole and smooth to separate each layer effectively.

"Only two wooden boards?" Gu Lanshi asked.

Pei Yan, focused on his work with a knife in hand, didn't look up and said, "Yes, I could only find these two. There are no more in the firewood shed, and there shouldn't be any elsewhere either. If necessary, I'll visit Xu Muto's house. He's a carpenter and might have some scraps. It would cost a bit of money, but it's a small expense."

Gu Lanshi pondered for a moment and suggested, "What about weaving bamboo strips? Like a bamboo mat, we could weave several smaller ones. Wouldn't that be lighter than wooden boards?"

Pei Yan paused, lifting his gaze to look at the person sitting across from him. He smiled and said, "Indeed, you're clever. Weaving bamboo strips wouldn't require further thinning."

After thinking for a moment, he added, "Compared to wooden boards, mats are softer. If the bottom layer isn't flat, they might tilt or deform. We'd have to find a way to integrate them with the bamboo grids."

Gu Lanshi found this argument reasonable. The large bamboo mats at home tended to deform when rolled up, requiring bricks to be placed on the corners to flatten them out.

He nodded and said, "In that case, wooden boards are indeed better."

Pei Yan remained silent, contemplating the bamboo grid he had just finished. Then, he placed the wooden board he was shaving onto it.

Both sides of the bamboo grid were wrapped with straw, handmade and not uniformly thick. The wooden board, shaved by Pei Yan with a knife, was uneven and not as smooth as one made by a carpenter. As a result, it didn't sit as stably on top.

Gu Lanshi watched alongside him and commented, "The bottom of the bamboo basket is flat, and the previous board was also flat, so it sat securely inside. However, if the second layer's wooden board is flat, it should work."

Pei Yan nodded in agreement. A slight wobble in the base board used for support shouldn't be a problem. He put the knife aside, stopping his random shaving.

He then said, "If we weave bamboo strips, I wonder if glue would hold them together firmly. Perhaps punching holes and tying them might work. As long as the bottom can continuously support the eggs, it should be fine."

This was their first attempt, and they were now faced with a dilemma. Both of them lowered their heads, deep in thought. Eventually, Pei Yan laughed and said, "Regardless of whether it's wooden boards or woven bamboo strips, let's try both and see which one works better."

Indeed, it was true that endless deliberation without action would lead nowhere. Gu Lanshi agreed, "Alright, since we have nothing else to do right now, I'll start weaving a bamboo strip."

Pei Yan got up with him. The sun was getting hot, so he moved everything into the main room and said, "I'll go find Xu Muto and see if he has any pre-planed wooden boards. I'll pay him some money, and when I return, I'll cut them to the size of the bamboo basket. They'll be much flatter than the ones I've shaved."

"Go ahead," Gu Lanshi replied. Since he didn't have a purse on him, he added, "The money is in the house."

"Okay," Pei Yan acknowledged, entering the house to retrieve the money before leaving.

*

Xu Muto was skilled and often worked with wood. Upon hearing Pei Yan's request, he rummaged through his pile of wooden boards and found several suitable pieces, which he promptly planed thinner.

Seeing that the boards were thin, flat, and made from a lighter type of wood, perfect for supporting eggs, Pei Yan was very satisfied. He reached into his purse to pay.

"Tsk, what money? We're neighbors, and this isn't worth much. Just take them," Xu Muto declined.

Pei Yan noticed that the wooden boards were all wide and long enough, clearly cut from entire large logs rather than pieced together from scraps. Even if Xu Muto had cut the trees himself, it would have required considerable effort.

Thus, he said, "These are good boards; how could they not be valuable? I'm here to buy wooden boards. If Uncle Xu doesn't name a price, I won't take them."

"You... this..." Xu Muto was initially wary of offending Pei Yan and wanted to curry favor. The wood he had was purchased from others, and he had spent some money on it. He then chuckled awkwardly and said, "Just three boards, not big and thin. Twenty coins should suffice."

Having a specific price made things much easier, especially since it sounded like a fair deal. Pei Yan didn't haggle and took twenty copper coins from his purse to give to Xu Muto. After thanking him, he left with the three wooden boards.

After Pei Yan left, Xu Muto scratched his head and tucked the twenty copper coins into his chest pocket.

The window of the east room, which had been carefully closed, was now opened slightly. His husband, He Xiaozhi, whispered, "Is he gone?"

Xu Muto nodded and said, "Gone."

He Xiaozhi then came out of the room, looked at Xu Muto, and merely held out his hand without saying a word.

"Hehe," Xu Muto laughed, retrieving the twenty coins from his chest pocket and handing them over. He seemed to sigh with emotion, "They say he's a living Yama, but I think he's a reasonable living Yama, far better than those ruffians and scoundrels."

He Xiaozhi counted the copper coins in his palm. Although he had been hiding in the room, he wasn't deaf and could naturally hear the conversation. The twenty coins were neither too many nor too few, exactly the right amount. He then raised his head to glare at Xu Muto and said, "He's someone who lives a proper life, naturally better than those outside."

Xu Muto continued, "Last time, when digging the well and making the rocking chair, he paid more promptly than many others, settling the accounts immediately. You were worried that he might default on the payment and even said that if he did, no one would dare to ask for the money. Now, looking back, his temper may be a bit harsh, but he still follows reason."

"Just you talk too much!" He Xiaozhi glared at him, taking the money and going back into the room without saying anything else.

Xu Muto sighed in relief, having successfully concealed the fact that he had pocketed the money. In his heart, he knew that the money would eventually be taken away from him, but he couldn't resist the temptation.

*

Making egg compartments wasn't difficult, but it was time-consuming. Recently, they had been cutting and gathering grass in large quantities every day. Gu Lanshi and Pei Yan could only work on the compartments for a while after lunch, and sometimes, if dinner was early and it was still light outside, they would spend some time bundling and assembling in the courtyard.

By the time it was the day to deliver eggs and vegetables to the tavern, they had managed to create three egg baskets.

In the evening, instead of gathering grass, the two of them sat in the courtyard packing eggs.

The weather had been good recently, with only the mornings and evenings being slightly chilly. It was a pleasant autumn season. With fifty-four hens, they could collect at least thirty to forty eggs daily, accumulating around two hundred eggs over the past five days.

Previously, Gu Lanshi would count the number of eggs collected each day, but lately, he had stopped counting.

Each layer of the compartments had a set number. The bottom and the second layer could hold twelve eggs each, while the third and fourth layers could hold sixteen. As they went up, the basket's opening became wider, allowing the top layer to accommodate twenty eggs.

Therefore, one egg basket could hold seventy-six eggs. These were the larger baskets, and they had two of them, each with five layers.

There was also a smaller basket with four layers, where each layer could hold twelve eggs, allowing it to carry forty-eight eggs in total.

Filling these three bamboo baskets completely, neither more nor less, resulted in precisely two hundred eggs.

After finishing the packing, Gu Lanshi looked up and asked, "Should we bring the duck eggs as well? We've been collecting three to four duck eggs daily, and we haven't finished eating the salted duck eggs from last time. Over the past ten days, we've accumulated another forty to fifty duck eggs. Should we sell them as fresh eggs or salt them and sell them as salted eggs?"

Pei Yan thought for a moment and replied, "If we salt the duck eggs now, they'll be ready to eat during winter. The egg baskets are already full, and we can't fit any more. Let's save them. When we accumulate more, we can use a large jar to salt them. After winter, we'll keep enough for our own consumption and sell the rest."

"Good idea," Gu Lanshi nodded. Although salting duck eggs required salt, when prices were favorable, each egg could fetch seven to eight coins, or even more. The cost of the salt would be covered, and they could make a small profit.

In winter, apart from Chinese cabbage and radishes, only pickled vegetables and dried ones were edible.

After filling the bamboo basket, there were still a dozen eggs left in the basket that usually held them, but that wasn't all; in the kitchen was another egg basket half full.

Gu Lanshi carefully lifted the bamboo basket and said, "Move the egg basket into the main room; dew forms at night."

"Mm, I know," Pei Yan agreed, picking up an egg basket and walking steadily toward the main room.

Vegetables would be picked early tomorrow morning; otherwise, they'd wilt after a night, losing their freshness.

As soon as the sun set, the sky quickly darkened. After washing up, Gu Lanshi climbed onto the kang bed, and not long after, Pei Yan, who had just emptied the foot-washing water, came in.

The door creaked shut and was bolted. Pei Yan sat on the edge of the kang bed, kicking off his shoes with one foot against the other. As he undressed, he said, "I want to visit Uncle's house tomorrow."

Gu Lanshi had already slipped under the covers and looked at him upon hearing this, asking, "Why did you think of this?"

Pei Yan folded the sweatband he had removed and placed it beside his pillow, saying, "It's been several days without any news from Uncle's side. Just waiting at home doesn't seem right. If people find out, they'll only think we don't care about ourselves, waiting for Uncle to help us. It happens to be market day tomorrow. I'll buy two jars of good wine and some meat, then take these gifts to Uncle's house to ask about things."

Seeing the logic in this, Gu Lanshi said, "That's how it should be. We'll go together tomorrow."

"Alright." Pei Yan finished undressing, revealing a lean upper body with evenly developed muscles, covered by nothing but his underpants.

His chest aside, the eight abdominal muscles were indeed handsome and well-built, but Gu Lanshi was used to seeing them by now. At this moment, his mind was solely focused on selling vegetables and eggs tomorrow.

He recalled something and said, "Remember the old lady who bought eggs last time, the one who kept talking about her young master and miss? Let's go over there tomorrow. The courtyards there are large, and the families living there seem to be wealthy."

"Mm," Pei Yan acknowledged.

Outside, darkness fell, and sleepiness overtook Gu Lanshi. He yawned and was about to close his eyes when a hand reached over from inside the covers.

"We have to get up early tomorrow," he gently pushed it away.

"I know," Pei Yan's voice was low.

About half an hour later, the sounds in the room ceased. Compared to the previous time, they had indeed exercised more restraint.

*

Clouds drifted over, obscuring the moon and dimming its light somewhat.

A while later, the clouds moved on, and the moonlight brightened again.

In the large vegetable field, Pei Yan was alone, picking eggplants. Gu Lanshi slept deeply, and Pei Yan dressed quietly, not disturbing him.

A strong, young man, full of energy, even if he had slept late the previous night, was always happiest after intimacy. Not only was he energetic, but his mood was also particularly cheerful.

It was just that they had been too busy recently. Gu Lanshi, tired from working during the day, was a bit worn out. There were only the two of them at home, and the work never stopped. They could only rest more after winter set in.