Chapter 42

Chapter 42

They arrived in town.

Lu Yuan found her stall, and Ah Qi leaned in, whispering, "Mrs. Su, while I was setting up, the soy milk vendor behind us was shouting 'two bowls for one coin,' and a lot of people went to buy from them."

She listened carefully and indeed heard someone hawking, "Soy milk, two bowls for one coin!"

She walked to the middle of the path, stood on tiptoe amidst the crowd, and peered over the heads of the people.

Her gaze quickly located the competing stall. A large crowd had gathered there, jostling to buy soy milk.

Lu Yuan pondered for a moment, then gave Ah Qi an extra coin. "Find someone to buy two bowls and taste them. Then come back and tell me how they are, alright?"

Ah Qi took the coin, nodded, and replied, "I'll go find someone to buy the soy milk right now and be back in a flash."

Old Lady He arrived just as Ah Qi returned, and she overheard the conversation.

Ah Qi reported, "That soy milk is as watery as can be—nothing like what Mrs. Su sells!"

This confirmed Lu Yuan's earlier suspicion.

When costs rise, if one is unwilling to accept lower profits, the only recourse is to compromise on quality.

Previously, a pound of beans yielded about thirty bowls of rich soy milk. But to avoid reducing profits, they would have to add more water.

More water meant a diluted taste.

She smiled and said, "That's fine then. Could you help me fetch a bucket of water? I'll treat you to a bowl of soybean pudding."

Ah Qi responded, "I'll go right away."

While Ah Qi went to fetch water, Lu Yuan bought eight sets of bowls and spoons.

Once the water arrived, Lu Yuan washed the bowls, scooped two servings of soybean pudding, added a spoonful of sweet syrup to each, and had Ah Qi and Old Lady He stand in front of the stall to eat, drawing in customers.

As they began eating, Lu Yuan started calling out, "Soybean pudding for sale! Sweet and smooth soybean pudding, two coins a bowl!"

A regular customer approached and asked, "Madam, weren't you selling soy milk before? Why the sudden switch to soybean pudding?"

Lu Yuan smiled and replied, "We have both soy milk and soybean pudding."

"This soybean pudding comes with syrup—two coins a bowl. Would you like to try some?"

No one in town sold soybean pudding, and those who loved soy milk could hardly resist trying it.

"Then give me a bowl."

Lu Yuan scooped another bowl of soybean pudding, added a spoonful of syrup, handed it over, and continued her calls.

Soybean pudding was a novelty in town, and her calls indeed attracted a large crowd.

Most people came for the soybean pudding, with only a few asking for soy milk.

In the first half-hour of opening, Lu Yuan had sold only two bowls of soy milk.

However, she overheard people complaining about the rival stall's soy milk—cheap, yes, but so bland it was only good for quenching thirst.

A child who had just tried the other stall’s soy milk lingered in front of Lu Yuan’s stall, begging his grandmother to buy him soybean pudding.

His grandmother coaxed, "Didn't you just have soy milk? Let's skip the soybean pudding this time and have it next market day, alright?"

The child immediately threw a tantrum, lying on the ground and rolling around, shouting, "No, no! That soy milk was awful! I want soybean pudding! I want soybean pudding!"

His loud cries made even those considering the two-bowls-for-one-coin deal stop in their tracks.

After much hesitation, most people ended up buying soybean pudding or soy milk from Lu Yuan’s stall.

Once a crowd gathered, others were quick to follow.

Seeing the people at her stall, Lu Yuan breathed a sigh of relief.

By noon, nearly half a bucket of soybean pudding and soy milk remained unsold.

Old Lady He said worriedly, "There's still so much left. What should we do?"

She thought for a moment, then looked at Lu Yuan and asked, "Should we sell it at a discount?"

Lu Yuan shook her head. "No. If we sell it cheap once, most people will wait until noon to buy next time. It's not worth it."

But bringing it back to Weishan Village would mean it would spoil.

Lu Yuan thought for a while and said, "Let's go to the Welcome Guest restaurant."

Old Lady He asked, puzzled, "Are you going to sell it to Welcome Guest?"

Lu Yuan shook her head. "Not sell—give it away."

At this hour, Welcome Guest was at its busiest with lunch customers.

When Lu Yuan arrived, the place was packed.

She found Manager Liu and explained her intention: "If we take this soy milk and soybean pudding back to the village, it will spoil. But if we sell it cheap, people will expect discounts next time. So, I thought we could give it to you to attract customers."

Manager Liu smiled. "Really, free?"

Lu Yuan nodded. "No cost."

Manager Liu called over a server, and after a brief discussion, the server stood in the middle of the dining area and announced loudly, "The Qi Family’s soybean pudding and soy milk from the market are free today! If you enjoy them, remember to patronize them next time!"

The diners responded with a loud "Okay!"

Manager Liu turned to Qi Cheng’s wife and said, "Go ahead and serve them. If they decide to buy next time, they’ll remember you."

Lu Yuan had initially hoped to curry favor by offering the products to Manager Liu for attracting customers, but she hadn’t expected Manager Liu to help her instead.

With such people skills, no wonder Manager Liu had managed to run such a successful restaurant in town for so long.

Lu Yuan said gratefully, "Thank you for your support, Manager."

Manager Liu smiled and waved her hand. "Go ahead."

There were about a dozen people eating lunch in the eatery, and the remaining soy milk and soybean pudding were enough to serve everyone, with some to spare even if more tables arrived.

By the time they finished distributing, it was almost time to head back.

Lu Yuan went to the market and bought a pound of rice noodles for ten coins.

She could make cakes with them for the journey to the county later.

As for the soybeans, she didn’t dare buy too much this time—only six pounds, which was more than enough.

She had been too greedy before, buying ten pounds of beans and using nine to make soybean pudding and soy milk. There were still some left at home now.

Four pounds of beans for soybean pudding and two pounds for soy milk—just right.

The soy milk from that rival vendor cut corners. Once people were tricked once, they wouldn’t go back for a second time. Next time, her soy milk business would surely bounce back.

The vegetables and other items were also bought. Lu Yuan and Old Lady He hurried toward the edge of town.

When they arrived, Liu Junsheng asked, "Why are you so late this time?"

Old Lady He replied, "We had too much soybean pudding and soy milk and couldn’t sell it all at once, so we stayed a bit longer."

Back home, after greeting Qi Cheng, Lu Yuan and Old Lady He went straight to their room to count the coins without even drinking water.

Qi Cheng, puzzled, followed them into the room.

As soon as he entered, he heard his grandmother say excitedly, "Quick, count how much we earned today."

Lu Yuan poured out a pouchful of copper coins.

Though Qi Cheng couldn’t see, he could imagine how excited they were.

After a little while, Lu Yuan said happily, "187 coins. And we spent quite a few in town, so what we actually made today should be around 200 coins."

Old Lady He, who couldn’t earn this much even after a month of embroidery, exclaimed, "You said the soybean pudding uses only a few more beans than the soy milk. How did we earn so much?!"

Lu Yuan explained, "There’s no one selling soybean pudding in our town. Many people have only ever been to the town and never to the county, so they naturally want to try it."

After thinking it over, she added, "We likely won’t earn this much next time."

Old Lady He said, "Even if it’s halved to just a hundred coins, that’s still a lot. I couldn’t even earn a hundred coins from a month of embroidery before!"

Bringing up embroidery, Lu Yuan asked, "How many handkerchiefs have you made recently, Old Lady?"

Recently, Old Lady He had been very busy, making shoes for everyone in the family, so she hadn’t made many handkerchiefs.

Old Lady He said, "About four. Why do you ask?"

Lu Yuan smiled and said, "When we go to the county the day after tomorrow, I’ll sell them for you. I’ll get you two more coins per handkerchief compared to what you’d get in town."

Old Lady He raised an eyebrow. "Did you sell them for a good price last time?"

Lu Yuan said flatteringly, "It’s all because your embroidery is so fine and can fetch a good price."

Old Lady He huffed and said, "I still have half a handkerchief left to finish. I’ll complete it tomorrow, and you can take it along."

Lu Yuan agreed cheerfully, "Sure."

As she was stringing the coins together, she added, "When should we go and inform the village chief?"

Old Lady He thought for a moment and said, "I’ll go ask later. The village chief may not charge for the ox cart. Use the money from selling the handkerchiefs for tea and meals while we're traveling. Don’t skimp."

Lu Yuan nodded. "I understand."

After counting the money, the grandmother and granddaughter-in-law finally went to drink water and have some congee.

It wasn’t particularly hot today, so the congee cooked in the morning was still good.

After eating, they rested for a while before Xiao Wu from the Wu family came over.

Old Lady He filled a bowl of tofu pulp for him.

As Xiao Wu was about to leave, Old Lady He called him back and gave him an extra bowl of rice bran.

After he left, Lu Yuan joked, "Old Lady, you’re so generous now. Before, you’d stretched a few rice bran cakes over two meals, but now you’re willing to give away a whole bowl of rice bran."

Old Lady He rolled her eyes at her. "Don’t tell me you actually like rice bran cakes. If you do, I’ll make them for you every day."

Lu Yuan quickly shook her head. "Better to give them away."

When people's lives get better, they no longer want to endure hardship.

Old Lady He added, "If you won’t eat it, we’ll just feed it to the chickens. It’s better for people to eat it than for the chickens."

"Go rest for a while. I’ll go to the village chief’s house in a bit."

Lu Yuan took Qiu Hua back to the room and asked Qi Cheng, "What did you do at home today?"

Qi Cheng replied truthfully, "Looked after the house, watched the children, and spaced out."

Lu Yuan said, "How boring. It’d be better to get your eyesight treated sooner. Even if you can’t do heavy work right away, you could start with some light handiwork."

Qi Cheng smiled and asked, "Are you complaining that I’m not pulling my weight?"

Lu Yuan placed Qiu Hua on the bed and pulled Chun Hua up as well, replying, "I wouldn't dare! If I said anything, your grandmother would scold me."

Qi Cheng’s smile widened as he sat on a stool nearby. "Grandmother would never scold you. You’re both a lucky star and a money-maker—she’d probably treat you like royalty if she could."

"If you scold me, she’d assume I did something wrong. If I scold you, she’d point at my nose and berate me."

Lu Yuan said, "That’s not how it works. Her kindness to me is based on how well I treat you."

"Yes, yes, you’re absolutely right, my dear."

Hearing him call her "my dear," Lu Yuan got excited. She leaned in, placed her hands on his shoulders, and rested her chin on the back of her hands.

Noticing his posture stiffen unconsciously, Lu Yuan smiled playfully.

She said softly, "Hearing you call me ‘my dear’ makes my heart melt. Say it again."

As she spoke, her warm breath brushed against the man’s ear.

Qi Cheng was silent for a moment, then raised his hand and pushed her back by the forehead with his index finger.

His voice was low. "Be serious. The children are here."

Pushed away, Lu Yuan glanced at his reddening ears and tsked lightly.

So easy to fluster.

She turned to look at the two children and saw them watching her with wide eyes.

Though Lu Yuan was usually thick-skinned, she found herself a bit embarrassed this time.

"I was just joking around with your uncle—I mean, your father."

Heaven forbid her behavior just now influence the children badly.

Qi Cheng felt the room was stuffy and could barely stand it. His throat tightened as he said, "You guys take your nap. I'll go sit outside."

Lu Yuan followed him to the doorway and said something that made him stumble in his steps.

"Do you mean that when the children aren't around, I can act less proper?" Lu Yuan's voice was so low only the two of them could hear it.

Watching Qi Cheng stumble, Lu Yuan giggled softly.

Making a little money while busy and occasionally teasing a sickly handsome man—life wasn’t so boring after all.

Knowing full well she was doing it on purpose, Qi Cheng couldn’t really blame her and only said helplessly, "Whatever you say."

After all, they were husband and wife. Even if there wasn’t much affection between them, it wouldn’t be right to make her stay lonely forever.

Lu Yuan’s smile faltered, and she glanced suspiciously at his back as he walked away.

Was he actually taking it seriously?

Lu Yuan shook her head. She had the desire but not the nerve.

Within controllable limits, she only took responsibility for teasing, not for putting out the fire.

Lu Yuan shrugged, shut the door without much thought, and turned back to take a nap on the bed with her two little bedmates.

Qi Cheng drank a bowl of water, and only then did the restlessness subside a little.

Even though he knew his wife wasn’t much to look at, the way she had spoken softly by his ear, her breath brushing against it, had stirred something in him.

Perhaps it was because he was at an age of vigorous vitality, and she was, after all, his rightful wife—that was why she could so easily arouse him.

Recalling what she had just said, Qi Cheng couldn’t help but ponder.

If she really wanted it...

Should he then give her what she wanted?