So, tomorrow after getting the craftsmen, once the house repairs are done, buying a donkey cart will need to be put on the agenda.
Back home, Chen Xiaobei handed the ginseng over to Cui Hongyu.
When Cui Hongyu saw the two ginseng roots, her eyes immediately lit up.
"Hubby, today you've found a treasure! These two must be at least fifty years old. Each one is worth at least two taels of silver."
Upon hearing this, Chen Xiaobei was thrilled. This was great! When he went down the mountain, he was thinking about when he could save enough to buy the donkey cart.
Now it seemed that he was only two ginseng roots away from getting the cart.
After checking the ginseng, he took out the other plants he had picked, but Cui Hongyu's response disappointed him. These plants didn't have any medicinal value. They were just common plants rarely seen at the foot of the mountain.
But disappointment aside, the good news was that these plants weren't poisonous, and could be used as wild vegetables, so they would still be useful.
Before it got dark, Chen Xiaobei went next door to find Da Chun.
During the off-season, Da Chun would often work with the village craftsmen to do odd jobs like house repairs. He didn't have complete expertise, but he at least understood the basics.
When he heard that Chen Xiaobei wanted to repair the house, Da Chun was a bit surprised, as it was a big project.
But thinking about it, after all, Cui Hongyu had brought a lot of dowry with her.
From the way Da Chun looked at Chen Xiaobei, he could tell it was the kind of look one would give to someone who lived off their wife.
But none of this mattered to him; the important thing was to get the job done first.
Da Chun lowered his head and thought for a long while before slowly saying, "At least four taels of silver, plus we need to feed the workers for a few days."
Chen Xiaobei nodded. Feeding them was not a problem, and the costs were still within his budget.
"Alright, Da Chun, go help find someone. Let me know when they can come."
The next morning.
Chen Xiaobei woke up early and headed to the riverbank. He still needed to catch a few more fish today.
He planned to sell the two ginseng roots in town, so he would take some fish with him. He also needed to check on the water bags he had ordered.
Additionally, Chen Xiaobei wanted to go to the mountain to collect the wild chicken droppings, but he didn't have the right tools, so he would need to buy two bamboo baskets.
When adding everything up, today's expenses were going to be quite a bit.
However, today things didn't go as planned. After a busy morning, not a single fish was caught.
Seeing that the sun had already risen, Chen Xiaobei had no choice but to give up on fishing. He grabbed the two ginseng roots and headed to the county town.
When he arrived at Huahaotang, Jia Wannian's eyes immediately lit up upon seeing the two ginseng roots.
With a smile on his face, Jia Wannian looked at Chen Xiaobei. "Young Master Chen, what price are you hoping for today?"
Seeing that the other party was asking for his price, Chen Xiaobei secretly rejoiced. He recalled what Cui Hongyu had told him earlier—that these ginseng roots were worth at least two taels, so he needed to aim for a higher price.
He gritted his teeth and extended three fingers. "At least this price for each one."
Jia Wannian laughed heartily and cupped his hands. "Young Master Chen, let's sit down and talk this through."
He then turned to a servant nearby and shouted, "Tea."
As they drank tea, Jia Wannian, still smiling, said to Chen Xiaobei, "Young Master Chen, can we renegotiate the price for these ginseng roots? These two must be at least fifty years old, but your asking price of three taels is a bit too high."
Hearing this, Chen Xiaobei was secretly surprised.
He couldn't help but think that Cui Hongyu really had a keen eye for medicinal herbs. It was true that these roots were more than fifty years old, and she had told him they would be worth at least two taels. Asking for three was simply to raise the price.
He smiled slightly. "Master Jia, since you've put it like this, for the sake of our long-term cooperation, I'll take half a tael less, and you can add half a tael. How about that?"
Upon hearing this, Jia Wannian lowered his head, thought for a moment, and then smiled.
"Alright, since Young Master Chen has made the offer, we'll go with what you said."
He stood up, walked behind the counter, and took out five copper coins.
One copper coin was equivalent to one thousand wen, which was the same as one tael of silver.
So, five copper coins were equivalent to five taels of silver.
"You can count them, Young Master Chen. This is five copper coins."
Chen Xiaobei didn't even look at them as he took the coins. A large establishment like Huahaotang surely wouldn't be short a little bit from him.
After taking the copper coins, Chen Xiaobei went on to the general store. The two extra-large water bags he had ordered were ready. When the shopkeeper saw him, he smiled so widely that it looked like he could trap a fly.
"Ah, Young Master, you've come! Come and see how well they're done."
The shopkeeper demonstrated by filling the water bags with water. Not a drop leaked, which surprised Chen Xiaobei. The craftsmanship of these water bags was indeed better than he had expected.
Chen Xiaobei paid for the items and then went on to buy two bamboo baskets and a shoulder pole.
After everything was sorted, as he was about to head back, he made a special detour to buy one pound of pork and two pounds of bones.
Since Chen Qiaoer was still growing, she needed extra nutrition, and of course, Cui Hongyu also needed to strengthen her nutrition; she still looked somewhat frail.
Back home, when Cui Hongyu saw that Chen Xiaobei had bought so many strange things, she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. When would her husband's habit of wasting money ever change?
Chen Xiaobei knew that his explanations wouldn't help; everything would have to be proven by actions.
So after lunch, he didn't even take a nap and set out with the two bamboo baskets.
His goal was clear: to collect wild chicken droppings.
This time, no matter what, Cui Hongyu insisted on accompanying him into the mountains.
Sighing, Chen Xiaobei had no choice but to send Chen Qiaoer to Second Aunt's house next door.
When he arrived, Second Aunt greeted him with her usual warm smile.
"Xiaobei, you two go ahead and take care of things, I'll look after Qiaoer."
After thanking her, Chen Xiaobei left with Cui Hongyu.
Seeing them leave, Second Aunt Xiu Mei quickly went inside, took out a handful of seeds, and peeled them for Chen Qiaoer to eat.
As she ate, Second Aunt began to probe for information.
"Qiaoer, did your sister-in-law bring a lot of dowry?"
Chen Qiaoer was confused by the question. "Second Aunt, what do you mean?"
Second Aunt Xiu Mei smiled slightly. "Oh, nothing. Yesterday, your brother came to talk about fixing the house, and I guessed that your sister-in-law must have brought quite a bit of dowry."
Chen Qiaoer, being young and unaware, didn't suspect anything and immediately followed the conversation. "No, my brother didn't use any of sister-in-law's dowry."
"All of this was exchanged for ginseng that my brother dug from the mountains."
Second Aunt Xiu Mei's thoughts shifted, and she smiled even more brightly. "Qiaoer, you can't be lying. If you're lying to me…"
Before she could finish, Chen Qiaoer quickly interrupted. "I know, if there's one lie, I'll be struck by five thunderbolts from heaven."