Chapter 36: So Handsome, Yet So Poor…

Chapter 36: So Handsome, Yet So Poor...

Seeing Fu Mingze leave after finishing his words, Shen Moer stood there holding the rattan box, frowning at his retreating figure, muttering to herself, "How odd."

Since he didn't want it, Shen Moer naturally wouldn't force him, so she carried the box back into the house.

Originally, she thought that since she and her father didn't have many belongings, they could make do with sharing a single box. Now that Fu Mingze didn't want it, she and her father could each have their own box, no need to compromise.

After putting the box away, Shen Moer went to close the courtyard gate.

Although it was daylight, her house was in a location where, except during the busy farming season, there was no one around during the day. If something happened, there would be no one around to call for help.

Shen Moer kicked the stone aside, and a sudden thought occurred to her. She couldn't help but stare at the ordinary stone for a few moments.

She felt that Fu Zhiqing had seemed a little upset ever since she kicked the stone to prop the gate open.

Thinking back to his words about "perhaps feeling the need to keep a certain distance from others," Shen Moer blinked, wondering if it was what she thought.

Not completely sure, she decided to observe further.

In the afternoon, with nothing else to do, Shen Moer cut some paper and pasted it onto the windows of the new house. Hanging curtains would have been best, but fabric was too difficult to obtain, so she had to make do with this.

Otherwise, the glass windows would be transparent from both inside and outside, making it feel less secure. Fortunately, the windows were high, so only the bottom row needed to be covered, leaving the top part untouched.

After pasting the windows, Shen Moer tidied up the house a bit, putting the more valuable items into boxes.

Once everything was done, she went into the treasury to organize it.

The treasury contained gold, silver, jewels, calligraphy pieces, paintings, and jade artifacts, all accumulated and collected by her father over the years. These items were recorded in account books, which she wasn't very familiar with, but her father knew them well.

However, after the rebel army surrounded the city, the items hastily packed up by the servants were something neither she nor her father were clear about.

The treasury was vast, with shelves upon shelves and boxes upon boxes. They had never had the time to thoroughly catalog everything, so now, whenever she had some free time, Shen Moer would go into the treasury to "treasure hunting."

Every time she opened a box, she had no idea what she would find inside—it was indeed a treasure hunt.

Of course, not every opening resulted in a pleasant surprise. Sometimes, she would open a box with high expectations, only to find something that made her both laugh and cry.

For example, last time, she opened a sandalwood box, expecting to find something precious inside. What she found was indeed valuable—deeds to estates and properties around the capital of Great Liang and in various other countries' capitals. In another time and place, these would have been a great fortune, but in this world, like the universally accepted currency, they had become worthless scraps of paper.

Since most of the items in the treasury were things they couldn't use now, Shen Moer wasn't particularly enthusiastic about "treasure hunting." She only did it when she had absolutely nothing else to do.

But today, luck was in her favor. She opened a box to find neatly stacked fabrics inside. These weren't the precious fabrics her father had recorded, but more ordinary ones, likely purchased by the household for the maids' clothing.

Unfortunately, they were silk and in rather flashy colors, making them quite noticeable if taken outside.

Shen Moer thought for a moment, then closed the box and pushed it aside. She pulled out two boxes from underneath and opened them.

This time, it was a real surprise. One box contained silk in plain colors like white, black, blue, and brown, while the other box held pure white cotton fabric!

Shen Moer was even more delighted than if she had found a box of rare treasures.

The cotton fabric looked slightly different from the fabric sold in the supply and marketing cooperatives of this world, but the difference was only in the manufacturing process and not noticeable unless closely inspected.

The key point was that China had countless textile factories, large and small, each with slight variations in their production processes. In a time when fabric was so scarce, no one would pay attention to these minor differences. She could definitely use these fabrics.

Excited, Shen Moer searched around the area near these boxes and indeed found several more boxes filled with fabric.

This was to be expected. Given her family's royal status, they had stored countless supplies over the years. It was just that in the chaos, many things were left behind. Otherwise, even the large treasury might not have held everything.

In fact, the royal household had also stored plenty of food like rice, flour, oil, meat, and eggs. However, when her father sent the servants away, he gave them these supplies. After all, with the city under siege, food would become the most important thing.

They didn’t store grain in the treasury since they couldn’t cook there, making it useless. Besides, even though they hid in the treasury, they were ready to die for their country.

They only kept some dry food and snacks in the treasury, which they eventually ate.

If she had known they’d end up in this world with so little food and clothing, she would’ve stored tons of grain in the treasury.

Too bad you can’t predict the future!

Shen Moer sighed but quickly perked up. Finding so much fabric was almost as good as finding food since, in this world, fabric was like money.

Happy, Shen Moer took some cotton fabric, closed and organized the other boxes, and decided to stop her "treasure hunt." She then got ready to leave the treasury with the fabric.

Just then, she heard a loud crash behind her. Shen Moer turned and saw a leather box falling from a high shelf.

She probably bumped into the boxes while looking through the fabric. This box, placed high and maybe not steady, had fallen.

The box was strong and didn’t break or spill when it fell. Curious, Shen Moer opened it and found precious ingredients like bird’s nests, sea cucumbers, and fish maw. Her eyes lit up.

She glanced at where the box fell, quickly grabbed another, and opened it. Surprisingly, it was full of medicinal herbs.

She then took down a wooden box and found it neatly packed with cured hams!

After opening several boxes, Shen Moer found herself surrounded by crates of ingredients and herbs.

Shen Moer stared at the boxes, remembering the chaos when the rebels attacked the city. Her father had dismissed the household servants, sending them back to their families. However, the loyal steward, Uncle Fu, had led a group of people to gather and transport countless carts of items into the treasury before tearfully departing.

Now, it seemed that this loyal steward had truly gathered everything he could think of and deemed useful. Little did he know that the items he had so diligently collected, which he might not have expected to be of any real use at the time, would now prove to be invaluable for the father and daughter.

Shen Moer spent a considerable amount of time organizing these items before finally leaving the treasury with some cotton fabric and a ham.

As she stepped out, she noticed it was almost time for dinner. She stored the cotton fabric in a rattan box and carried the ham into the kitchen, where she used a cleaver to cut the meat into pieces.

Having recently purchased two rattan boxes, Shen Moer transferred the contents of the old wooden box into the new rattan ones. After cleaning the old wooden box, she repurposed it to store rice, flour, and salted meat.

Given the extreme poverty of the original owner and her father, there was hardly any stored grain in the house. Since Shen Moer's arrival, she hadn't seen any mice in the house. However, she couldn't guarantee that they wouldn't appear in the future, so storing food in boxes was a safer option.

Of course, it would be best to build a cabinet in the kitchen, so that dishes and utensils wouldn't have to be stored directly in an enamel jar as they were now.

At times like these, Shen Moer couldn't help but sigh. This house was truly destitute, with bare walls and nothing of value.

She couldn't understand how the original owner and her father, both able-bodied workers, had managed to live in such dire conditions.

Shen Moer felt as though there was so much to rebuild. For instance, besides a cabinet, they also needed a proper dining table, taller stools, a writing desk, shelves for storing boxes... Of course, it would be ideal to also build a chest of drawers for storage.

However, they couldn't build everything at once. Not only did they lack the funds, but even if they had the money, it wouldn't be appropriate. Building a new house was already drawing enough attention.

Shen Moer decided to prioritize building an Eight Immortals table and a writing desk, as these were the most urgently needed for dining and writing.

As she pondered these plans, she finished preparing dinner.

She cooked a pot of mixed grain rice and made two dishes: stir-fried cured pork with long beans and stir-fried leeks with eggs. Although it was just two simple dishes, this meal was likely among the best in the entire Yangliu Brigade.

Just as dinner was ready, Shen Shaoyuan returned home. After walking for half a day, he was famished. He washed up, sat down, and immediately picked up his chopsticks to eat.

Seeing the dish of stir-fried preserved meat with cowpeas, Shen Shaoyuan paused his chopsticks and asked in surprise, "Did you get this from the Sparrow Market today?"

Shen Moer laughed, "No, Dad, you definitely wouldn't guess."

Shen Shaoyuan glanced at her, picked up a thinly sliced piece of preserved meat, and put it in his mouth. After chewing, he raised his eyebrows high, "This is the ham from Wuzhou tribute!"

Shen Moer nodded with a smile, "Found it in the treasury."

Her father wasn't good at many things, but he knew his way around food and drink. That's why, whenever the emperor received good tribute items, he'd send some to the prince's residence, as if worried his dear brother might starve.

Shen Shaoyuan thought for a moment and sighed, "Uncle Fu was thoughtful."

For a moment, both father and daughter were silent.

Although they had escaped a calamity due to the change in time and space, they had also left their familiar era forever, never to see their former friends and relatives again.

They had no idea if the capital had fallen or if their acquaintances were still safe.

Shen Shaoyuan quickly adjusted his mood and changed the topic, "Did you meet that Zhang Junliang today? What's he like?"

Shen Moer told him about meeting Zhang Junliang and his mother at the Sparrow Market and their later meeting. Shen Shaoyuan frowned, not pleased. "Even if he doesn't live with his mother-in-law, his mother is so difficult and unreasonable. Conflicts are bound to happen. Zhang Junliang isn't a good match."

Shen Moer was sure she could handle an unreasonable mother-in-law, but Shen Shaoyuan, as a father, didn't want his daughter to face any hardships.

Shen Moer thought for a moment and said, "Zhang Junliang seems modest and polite."

Shen Shaoyuan raised an eyebrow, "Is he handsome?"

Shen Moer shook her head, "He's just average-looking."

Shen Shaoyuan said, "Then he's even less suitable."

His daughter liked handsome men. If Zhang Junliang were exceptionally good-looking, they might have considered him, but with average looks, there was no point.

Shen Shaoyuan frowned. He knew their current situation didn't allow them to pick a son-in-law from the elite young men like they did in Great Liang. But he didn't want his daughter to settle for just anyone.

"If he's not suitable, we won't take him as a son-in-law. At most, I'll figure out a way to live near your in-laws," Shen Shaoyuan said.

Shen Moer hadn't thought that far ahead. She just thought Zhang Junliang seemed okay. She never believed one meeting could lead to marriage, so she considered giving him another chance, partly because she was curious about watching a movie and hadn't outright refused his invitation.

Of course, things change. She'd recently had a realization and decided not to meet Zhang Junliang again. Seeing her father's disapproval, she said, "Then you can tell Director Xu to turn him down."

Shen Shaoyuan nodded, and the father and daughter agreed, putting the matter to rest.

Shen Moer remembered something and asked if the commune elementary school teacher had visited him today. Shen Shaoyuan frowned, "The commune's propaganda department is short-staffed, but the higher-ups keep pushing activities and campaigns. There's too much to do. I'd already turned those two down, but they went to Xu Weiguo and convinced me to take on a few students. They said I didn't need to teach at the school, just mentor them during work, like apprentices."

Xu Weiguo had always been good to him and had been helping him get formalized. Shen Shaoyuan owed him this.

Shen Moer's eyes lit up, and she smiled, "Then you can ask them for a favor. For their competition, get our brigade elementary school a few spots. The higher-ups didn't ask brigade schools to join, probably thinking they weren't up to it. If we volunteer, they'll definitely allow it."

Shen Shaoyuan thought for a moment and nodded with a smile, "That's a good idea."

Some commune members still didn't understand the need for art classes at the brigade elementary school. If the children could participate in the provincial competition, there would likely be fewer complaints.

After that, the father and daughter didn't speak much. After finishing their meal quietly, Shen Shaoyuan took the initiative to wash the dishes, while Shen Moer fetched water to boil for a bath, as it was already autumn and cold water was no longer suitable.

After washing the dishes, Shen Shaoyuan took some mugwort and lit it in the room to repel mosquitoes.

After the hot water was ready, Shen Shaoyuan and Shen Moer took turns washing up in the newly built bathroom. The mugwort in the room had almost finished burning, so they took the old enamel basin used for burning mugwort outside and checked all the doors and windows before each retiring to their own rooms to rest.

With nothing to do at night and lighting a lamp wasting oil, especially since Shen Shaoyuan had to walk back and forth early and late every day, he was naturally worn out and preferred to hit the hay early.

Shen Moer lay in bed for a long time without falling asleep and called out, "Dad," to which Shen Shaoyuan responded from the outer room. She then said, "We should try to get a bicycle permit. It's really too hard for you to walk every day."

Shen Shaoyuan's voice came from the outer room, "Buying a bicycle would draw too much attention."

Shen Moer knew that buying a bicycle would indeed draw attention, but she couldn't help but feel sorry for her father, who had probably never suffered such hardships since birth. She thought that if they couldn't buy one, they would have to think of another way.

They couldn't risk showing even a hint of wealth.

Unlike Zheng Jiamin, who carried large and small packages all day without fear of attracting envy.

Thinking about feigning poverty, Shen Moer couldn't help but think of the truly poor person who couldn't even afford a trunk and had most of his soap stolen when left outside. She had specially bought him a trunk, but he refused it.

"Dad, I've been thinking, I still prefer someone who's good-looking. Also, whether their family conditions are good or if they are workers doesn't really matter. Since we're afraid of showing our wealth anyway, it might be better to find someone poor; it'd be more peaceful."

Shen Shaoyuan, probably already half-asleep, murmured vaguely, "So you want someone who is both good-looking and poor? There are plenty of poor people, but good-looking ones are harder to find..."

His voice gradually faded, presumably as he fell asleep.

Shen Moer lay with her eyes open, staring into the dark void, murmuring, "Where's it hard to find? Isn't there one right here?"

So handsome and so broke.

The next day, Shen Moer went to school and assigned an "impromptu quiz" to the students, a method she learned from Cheng Tao, which was quite effective. She quickly sorted through the drawings on various sheets of paper and selected a few with good potential.

After selecting them, she said nothing. When Cheng Tao asked, she only said it was a spontaneous test to see how everyone was learning.

This prompted a burst of laughter from Shen Lingling, "You really think you're teaching some super important subject, huh? Impromptu quizzes for art class, that's a first. I've heard of impromptu quizzes for Chinese and math, but art? That's hilarious."

Shen Moer didn't hold back, retorting, "Since there was no art class before, isn't it normal that you haven't heard of impromptu quizzes for art? Oh, by the way, I've been so busy lately, I forgot to ask about your aunt. Has she been released from the police station yet?"

Hitting where it hurts the most.

Shen Lingling was so angry that she immediately pushed her chair back and left.

Indeed, her mother being held at the police station for half a month had become the village's laughingstock. Moreover, the day her mother was released, she got into a fight with her aunt, tearing her clothes.

But that wasn't the worst part. The worst was that her cousin Wang Jinbao was also released that day and was beaten to a pulp in an alley near the commune. Her aunt Tian Cui was nearly driven crazy, insisting it was a malicious revenge by their family, and had come to their house to make a scene several times.

The family was in chaos, and Shen Lingling's reputation was also affected. A teacher from the commune school, who had promised to introduce her to a potential suitor, seemed to have heard about her family's troubles and had since gone quiet.

Now, whenever someone brought it up, Shen Lingling didn't want to talk about it.

Shen Moer raised an eyebrow and organized the various drawings in her hands.

Cheng Tao, who had been watching the drama unfold, couldn't help but laugh, "Many people in the village say you've changed a lot. Now I see it's true, but that's good. A pushover personality is easily bullied."

Regardless of others' opinions of Shen Lingling, Cheng Tao had worked with her for some time and had his own observations. At least he knew that Shen Lingling was not as gentle and kind as rumored.

With Shen Moer's previous personality, she really could have been easily taken advantage of.

Shen Moer understood his meaning and thanked him with a smile, "Principal Cheng, thank you."

In the morning, Shen Moer had simmered half a pot of mung bean soup before heading out. By noon, the soup was ready. She ladled it into an enamel mug, rekindled the fire, and made two egg pancakes.

After making the pancakes, she ate one with the mung bean soup. Just as she finished washing the dishes, there was a knock at the gate.

It was Fu Mingze, along with Aunt Chen and Aunt Cai's grandsons, one nicknamed Mao Mao and the other Shun'er.

Both kids looked a bit listless, and it was understandable. Being hauled over to do homework in the middle of the day, no child would be happy about it.

Shen Moer quickly served up three small bowls of mung bean soup. As soon as Mao Mao and Shun'er saw the food, their eyes lit up. They grabbed the bowls and slurped down the soup, finishing it in no time. Wiping their mouths, they exclaimed, "Sister Moer, this mung bean soup is really sweet!"

"Yeah, there's a lot of mung bean in it, unlike at home where it's almost like plain water."

Shen Moer laughed softly, "Then come by another day for more."

Actually, she got the mung beans from Aunt Chen, and Aunt Cai's family probably grew some too. But they were thrifty folks with a lot of mouths to feed, so they didn't add much mung bean or sugar when cooking, naturally making the soup pretty watery.

Fu Mingze finished his soup too and took the initiative to wash the bowls. Shen Moer glanced at him but couldn't discern anything from his expressionless face.

She decided to leave him be for now and brought out a small table and stools for the two kids, letting them sit down to do their homework.

Cheng Tao usually assigned the day's homework in the morning, so some kids would find time to finish it before the afternoon bell, without delaying their evening chores at home.

This was just how things were. In the countryside, kids in elementary school were already seen as part of the workforce. Lots of kids had to pitch in with household chores, and if school got in the way of their work, some families might not let their kids go to school.

Sure enough, the two kids pulled out their math books from the small bamboo baskets they brought, along with their crumpled-up homework books, and each pulled out a stubby pencil from their pockets, then got to work on their homework.

They were pretty well-behaved.

Shen Moer also brought out two chairs that were less broken, which Zhao Zhengyang had repaired, from the house and placed them at the other end of the porch, a bit away from the two kids, making sure they could see each other but not hear each other too well.

Fu Mingze came out after washing the bowls, glanced around, and naturally walked over to sit on the empty, broken chair.

"Do you need me to explain from the beginning?" he asked.

Shen Moer shook her head, "No, there are just some parts I don't understand. You can help explain those."

She opened the textbook, found the first part she didn't understand, and pointed at the text, saying, "Here, this paragraph..."

After speaking, she turned her head to look at Fu Mingze, only to meet his deep eyes directly. Shen Moer blinked and said nonchalantly, "Can you explain this part?"

Fu Mingze coughed lightly to cover up, withdrawing his gaze from her and looking back at the textbook, "Hmm, the meaning of this paragraph is..."

After explaining a section, Shen Moer would deepen her understanding by referring to the textbook's questions. Fu Mingze watched her slightly lowered eyes under the midday sun, her long eyelashes fluttering gently, as if lightly brushing against his heart, making him restless.

Fu Mingze sighed inwardly and couldn't help but speak up, "Comrade Shen Moer, I want to apologize for yesterday's incident."

His voice was somewhat low, carrying an inexplicable hint of pleading.