Lijiagou is not far from Dahe Village, but the mountain road is a bit rugged.
In addition to Cheng Wanwan and Zhao Orion, Zhao Dashan also went with them. After all, Cheng Wanwan was a widow, and being alone with a man in his thirties would easily lead to unpleasant rumors.
Along the way, Zhao Orion told the situation there.
This female goat was caught by a hunter in Lijiagou. Because the goat was pregnant, he kept it and was reluctant to kill it. Looking at the month, it was almost a month before the goat would give birth. Hunter Li wanted to wait until the goat gave birth before selling it. , but it’s not impossible to buy it now. Let’s discuss the price in person.
These days, the most expensive thing is beef. Cows are production tools. The imperial court prohibits slaughtering them. Cows that have lost the ability to work need to be sent to a special location for slaughter with the approval of the government. It is precisely because of this that the price of beef is very expensive, and only nobles can buy it. Affordable.
Secondly, mutton is also considered a luxury product. Many large families slaughter sheep for banquets. Generally speaking, the price of pure mutton fluctuates around 40 cents.
The cheapest is pork. People raise pigs in many villages. Pork is the most common, and the price has come down. It is around 20 cents. In a good year, a pound of pork costs about 15 cents a pound.
Cheng Wanwan determined a price that she could accept. When she saw the goat, she was a little dissatisfied. The goat was too thin. Its belly protruded, making it look even thinner. Its hind feet were pinched by the beast. I was walking unsteadily, and I always felt like I would fall to the ground in the next second. Whether I would be able to give birth alive was unknown.
Li Orion said: "It's hard to catch a female goat, and it's even harder to catch a pregnant female goat. For four taels of silver, you can take away both the female goat and the baby in her belly."
Cheng Wanwan smiled: "Even if the whole sheep is calculated at forty cents per catty, it doesn't require four taels of silver."
Zhao Orion then spoke: "Old Li, you are too greedy. You still want to sell a sheep for four taels of silver. Forget it, don't do this business."
He thought that he could only get two taels of silver at most, so he brought Dashan Niang over. He didn't want to trick his fellow villagers.
"Hey, we can negotiate the price slowly." Li Orion said, "There are two lambs in this ewe's belly. Each lamb in the town costs three to four hundred cash. If you add the three sheep together, I It’s not too much to ask for three taels of silver, right?”
Cheng Wanwan said softly: "All the goats in the town have been raised for at least half a month. If you can ensure that this ewe gives birth smoothly and both babies survive, I will give you three taels of silver." .”
No one can guarantee this. Li Orion has seen too many livestock die in childbirth, and he even dare not guarantee such a thing.
He took a look at the female goat. As soon as he came back from hunting, he took it to the town to sell it, but the owner of the restaurant refused to accept it. The pregnant goat had tears in its eyes. It was taboo to kill it. No chef dared to use the knife. He Since he couldn't sell it, he had no choice but to raise it himself. But he didn't have time to take care of it, so the sheep became thinner and thinner. Even when he was pregnant, he weighed less than 100 pounds.
Cheng Wanwan said: "I guess it weighs a hundred kilograms. Calculated as twenty cents per kilogram for a whole sheep, it's a total of two taels of silver."
Orion Li still wanted to struggle, but seeing Cheng Wanwan's determined look on his face, he did not dare to pull any further, for fear that the ewe would hit her hand and die in childbirth.
The two parties negotiated the price and delivered the goods.
A group of people came back with the ewe, and many people from the village came to watch.
Most of the people in Dahe Village raise chickens and ducks, and a few families raise pigs, but no one has ever raised goats, and everyone comes over to see what's strange.
Aunt Wang shook her head and said, "I think this sheep may have difficulty giving birth, so you won't be able to spend the two taels of silver on it."
Li Zheng's wife squeezed in and said carelessly: "When I was young, I delivered a sow. When the sheep started to move, Dashan Niang called someone to call me. I will ensure that the lamb is born smoothly."
After saying that, Li Zheng's wife took Wu Huiniang's hand and said, "Your mother-in-law really loves you. There is no other mother-in-law who loves your daughter-in-law so much in Dahe Village. You must give birth to a fat boy for Dashan." , so that you can be worthy of your mother-in-law's heart."
Wu Huiniang's hands covered her towering abdomen, and she nodded with red eyes: "I will."
If this child is a daughter, then have another one. If it is still a daughter, then continue to have children... She cannot let down her mother-in-law's love.
"Auntie, I don't like hearing what you are saying." Cheng Wanwan said with a smile, "I gave birth to four sons at one time, and my head feels swollen when I see these boys. I am really afraid of these naughty boys. , I just hope that Hui Niang will give me a well-behaved and smart granddaughter. Of course, if Hui Niang gives birth to a son, I will also be happy. Whether it is a boy or a girl, he will be the child of our family."
Wu Huiniang's heart, which had just been high, suddenly fell back into her stomach, and her eyes became even redder.
During this period of pregnancy, almost everyone told her that she must give birth to a son. Only by giving birth to a son could she establish a firm foothold in the Zhao family and stand up straight as a human being. She dreamed several times that she had given birth to a daughter. In her dream, The mother-in-law suddenly became the same as before, mean and bitter, and even wanted to push her daughter into a water tank and drown her.
For several nights, she was awakened by nightmares but did not dare to tell anyone.
Now that the mother-in-law said this in front of so many people in the village, her uneasy heart suddenly found a place to stay.
Zhao Dashan built a temporary sheepfold for the ewe, and then went to the mountains to cut the most tender and juicy weeds and feed the sheep back, feeding the ewe very well.
Cheng Wanwan revised the drawings and took them to Zhao Anjiang. He asked someone to add a sheepfold behind the house and build a place for rabbits to live. The yard was expanded invisibly.
Forty or fifty people can start work very quickly. One day will be the same, but in three days it will be completely different.
Seeing that the house was about to be completed, Mr. Zhao became more and more nervous. He took the initiative to take on the job of finding beams. He searched for wood on the mountain every day. After searching for almost ten days, he still couldn't find anything he liked.
When building a house in this dynasty, the most important thing was to install the beams. The beams in the house represented the role of the head of the family and had a profound meaning. Therefore, the selection of beams became a very sophisticated matter.
It must be fir, but it cannot be a single tree. The trunk must be straight and the branches and leaves are lush, which means that the descendants will be prosperous. The width of the tree body cannot be too different...
Old man Zhao patrolled the mountains for many days and finally found a perfect fir tree. He quickly called for help to cut down the tree.
If you are cutting down a tree normally, you don’t need to be so nervous, but this is a central beam, and cutting down is also very particular. For example, when a cedar tree falls, it must face south, and it must not damage any small cedar trees in the surrounding area...
After a lot of effort, the tree was finally cut down perfectly. The four people carefully carried the tree down the mountain.
When he arrived at the bottom of the mountain, before Mr. Zhao had time to show off his achievements, he saw Mrs. Zhang talking in the middle of the village with her beaming eyes.
