Chapter 7: Motivation and Change in Perception

The shopkeeper glared fiercely at the clerk. "You fool! Even the richest family in Dashan Town, the Tangs, can't get their hands on salt of this quality! Where would she get it? Only a passing merchant could possibly obtain such a fine commodity. If I snatched it from her and she truly got angry and made a scene, how would I smooth things over? Would I still be able to run this shop?"

If the other party had been trading a larger amount of salt, he might have been tempted to act dishonestly, but since she only offered one jin, it wasn't worth taking such a huge risk for such a small amount.

Jiang Ning had already considered this issue when she went to trade, which was why she only brought out one jin. It was enough to pique their interest without making them see her as a target.

She couldn't possibly carry all the things she had traded for, so she had to stand not far from the grocery store and wait for Yang Datou to come find her.

When Yang Datou arrived with the grain on his back and saw Jiang Ning surrounded by a pile of goods, his heart ached. "Mother, how... how much money did you spend on all this?"

Jiang Ning shook her head. "I traded for them. I dug up some good things on the mountain yesterday. I just haggled with the shopkeeper; I didn't use any money. I took everything in goods. The twenty wen you gave me is untouched; it's still in my pocket."

The surprise was so sudden that Yang Datou grinned like a simpleton. The mother and son struggled to make their way back with the pile of goods. What should have been a journey of just over half an hour took them more than an hour, and they entered the village under the scorching midday sun.

Jiang Ning stopped at the entrance of the village and asked Yang Datou, "Wait a moment. If we enter the village now and people see us with a pile of goods, will we be able to keep them?"

Their two dilapidated huts couldn't even keep out rats, let alone people.

Yang Datou felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over him and instantly sobered up. "Mother is right. We can't enter the village like this! You stay here and watch the things. I'll take the grain back and then send Erdan over to help."

The adults in the village usually took the main road, but the children had their own secret paths—ditches, slopes, and thickets that adults couldn't navigate. Walking those paths meant risking snakes and "four-legged monsters," but it allowed them to avoid the villagers.

Yang Datou returned shortly, bringing Yang Erdan and Liu Ye. All three had leaves hanging from their hair and clothes; there was no telling which woods or bushes they had crawled through.

Seeing so many things beside Jiang Ning, Yang Erdan and Liu Ye’s eyes lit up. Without waiting for Jiang Ning to speak, they rushed forward and began carrying everything, which made Jiang Ning feel a bit embarrassed.

The three of them returned the way they came. Jiang Ning thought for a moment and decided to carry an empty basket and walk the main road. She was bound to run into a few villagers along the way. Although they shunned her, they couldn't help but be curious when they saw her carrying a basket into the village. The bolder ones even leaned in and craned their necks to peek, only to shrink back after a fierce glare from Jiang Ning.

After Jiang Ning left, a few women gathered around. "Did you see? What did she bring back?"

The woman in the middle curled her lip. "Bring back? Nothing! I think even if she went begging, no one would be willing to give her anything!"

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement and stopped talking about the Jiang woman.

Jiang Ning had no idea that her simple walk through the village had stirred up so much gossip. By the time she returned home, Yang Datou and the others had already put the goods in her room, and a pile of prepared bamboo was stacked in the corner of the courtyard.

She took a look, and Liu Ye hurried over with a bowl of steaming wild vegetable porridge. "Mother, eat something first."

So proactive! Jiang Ning gave her an extra look, sat down, and finished the bowl of porridge in a few gulps. She seemed to have become numb to the taste of this stuff; she didn't feel much of anything anymore.

After filling her stomach, she lay down in the shade of a tree. As the summer mountain breeze blew, sleepiness washed over her, and Jiang Ning was soon fast asleep.

Seeing that she was asleep, Yang Datou and the others didn't dare make a sound. They all went into the house and began to take inventory.

Liu Ye lowered her voice, gasping in surprise, "How much money did those melon seeds trade for? How did you buy so many things?"

Yang Datou made a shushing gesture. "They traded for seventy-four wen. Buying the two jars cost four wen, leaving seventy. I used fifty wen to buy five jin of grain, which is enough for us to eat for a few days. I originally gave Mother twenty wen to buy salt, but she traded for salt, sugar, and other things instead. She still has twenty wen left on her."

Yang Erdan was overjoyed. "That means we still have twenty wen! Big Brother, why didn't you take Mother to see a doctor?"

Yang Datou’s expression stiffened, and he slapped his head in annoyance. "It's all my fault. I was so happy in town that I forgot! Tomorrow, tomorrow I will take Mother to see a doctor."

It cost five wen to have a doctor check one's pulse, and medicine would cost extra. They had twenty wen now, so even if they couldn't afford medicine, they could at least find out what was wrong with their mother.

Liu Ye said, "Datou, since you're going to town tomorrow, I'll go pick more snake gourds now. I'll take them to town tomorrow to sell so we can trade for more money to get medicine for Mother."

"Yezi, thank you!" Yang Datou was deeply moved.

Liu Ye turned her face away, embarrassed. "What are you thanking me for? We're all one family; your mother is my mother!"

She hadn't liked her mother-in-law before and had been terrified of her, trembling whenever she saw her. She hadn't expected that after waking up from her serious injury, her mother-in-law would stop causing trouble and even start earning money for the family. For that alone, she had to find a way to save her.

Yang Erdan hurriedly said, "I'll go too, I'll go too, I'll go help..."

Yang Datou objected, "Just let Yezi take Xiao Ya. Santie and Sizhuang are over there too; we don't need that many people. You help me with the grass shed. Let's try to get it built in the next two days so we at least have a place to shelter from the wind and rain."

Yang Erdan looked disappointed, but after looking down at the newly acquired goods, he regained his motivation.

With nothing else to do, the brothers went to the bamboo grove to cut more bamboo.

When Jiang Ning woke up, it was past two in the afternoon. Yang Datou and Yang Erdan had already tied some bamboo together, and Jiang Ning hurried over to help.

The simple grass shed was built by digging four small holes in the ground and inserting bamboo poles as pillars.

Jiang Ning felt it wasn't stable enough, so she dug several more holes. The roof was sloped to one side, and the gaps between the bamboo on top were made tighter. Although it was more time-consuming, it would last much longer.

By the time the three of them finished the frame of the shed, it was almost dark. Taking advantage of the remaining light, the brothers bundled up the thatch they had cut and threw it onto the roof, laying down as much as they could.

Liu Ye led the others home under the starlight. They had already returned several times that afternoon, and the kitchen was now piled high with snake gourds, reeking of the smell.

The group of children, knowing that these things could be traded for money, didn't mind the stench and worked with great enthusiasm. When they ran out of wood ash, they burned more. After being put through this for two days, one of the kitchen walls had completely collapsed, but no one cared.

Everyone was putting their all into processing the gourds. With their help, Jiang Ning felt significantly more relaxed.

The next day, she and Yang Datou left early, carrying the melon seeds they had roasted the night before.