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墨書 Inktalez
To do business, one must call out. Yu Chunmiao stood up and shouted, "Fresh Clams! Fresh Clams!" With water and salt, a couple of slices of ginger, some tofu, and a sprinkle of scallions, one sip would fill your mouth with flavor. "Fresh Clams! Fresh Clams!" Toss them into boiling water, scoop them out, mix with ginger vinegar, smash some garlic, and add a bit of chili for a delightful pairing with wine.
The novelty of the sales pitch, along with the seller teaching the recipe as they went along, quickly attracted many customers. The freshness of the clams was comparable to that of sea clams but at a fraction of the price. "Are they fresh? They’re not dead, are they?"
"I guarantee they’re fresh! They’ve been kept in water for a day, and all the sand has been expelled. If you don’t believe me, take a whiff; there’s no smell at all!"
This was thanks to Chen Ruolan, who diligently changed the water for the clams and kept them out of the sun to maintain their freshness. Without plastic bags, she had cut down some banana leaves nearby yesterday. Besides covering them on the way to prevent other villagers from seeing, they could also be used to pack the clams.
Yu Chunmiao couldn’t read the scales, so Chen Ruolan kept weighing while Yu Chunmiao handled packing and making change. In less than two hours, they sold over a basket of clams. Yu Chunmiao counted roughly and was astonished to find they had made over four hundred wen.
"Mother, there are still more clams in the river! We can sell again in two days. Once we have money, we can get you and Qi Chong treated, and our family will be better off!"
In contrast to her daughter-in-law's excitement, Chen Ruolan felt tears welling up in her eyes. She took Yu Chunmiao's hand and said, "If that day really comes, you will be our Qi Family's lucky star."
Yu Chunmiao handed her the money pouch and said, "Here, let’s go to the medicine shop and get you two doses of medicine."
Chen Ruolan hurriedly waved her hand and replied, "No, we need to save it for Qi Chong’s leg treatment. Today I need to buy you some cloth for clothes."
As a mother, her son was always more important than herself.
Yu Chunmiao disagreed and frowned. "Qi Chong’s injury will require a lot of money. What if by the time we save enough money for him, you’re too worn out? Each time we come here, we’ll get you two days’ worth of medicine so you can treat yourself while saving for Qi Chong’s injury; it’s a win-win. I have enough clothes for now; I’ll buy more next time."
Chen Ruolan realized that Yu Chunmiao had planned this all along. Her previous life had been dictated by her husband; after he passed away, she was controlled by Qi Chong. After Qi Chong fell ill, she felt increasingly hopeless about life and made her first significant decision since marrying into the Qi Family.
That decision was to buy a wife for Qi Chong. She didn’t expect her to be particularly beautiful or smart—she couldn’t afford such girls—just someone who could take care of the three brothers' needs.
She had hoped to wait for her second son’s apprentice return to support the family but unexpectedly found that it was this purchased daughter-in-law who began to bear the family’s burdens.
She pushed the money pouch toward Yu Chunmiao and said, "I don’t know how to manage finances; you help me with that. Otherwise, I won’t listen to you."
Yu Chunmiao thought it made sense and set off with an empty basket toward the medicine shop.
After finding a doctor and having her pulse checked—though she didn’t understand much of what he said—the final conclusion was that she needed rest and shouldn’t exert herself. She should keep her spirits high and take cough-relieving medicine; after some time on this regimen, she would improve.
Two doses of medicine per day cost forty wen each—a total of one hundred ten wen.
Yu Chunmiao understood that her mother-in-law's illness stemmed from her husband’s death and her son’s injury; thus her heart was heavy with grief leading to excess liver fire. As long as life seemed hopeless, she would remain ill; taking medicine wouldn’t help if she felt trapped in despair. That was why it had dragged on for two years without improvement.
Then comfort must follow immediately.
"Mother, we still have over three hundred wen left. At this rate, we'll soon have enough money for Qi Chong's treatment. But you need to listen to the doctor, don't think too much, and keep your spirits up. The sooner you recover, the quicker we can gather the money for Qi Chong."
As soon as Chen Ruolan heard that her illness directly affected her son's treatment, she quickly replied, "Yes, yes, yes! Mother will listen to you. I'll be happy every day and smile every day."
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