| TBBOTOF | 186
Tang Xu is a person of action who doesn't procrastinate.
So, on a day with good weather, they decided to prepare braised duck.
They contacted the Wu family and collected around a hundred live ducks, and made arrangements to buy any healthy ducks they had.
Fortunately, their backyard is spacious, otherwise, it would have been quite a mess with so many ducks.
Even so, Tang Xu was not bothered by the noise. He urged Wei Dong and Liu Yao to quickly kill the ducks, put the duck feathers into sacks, and after cleaning and drying, they would be used to make cotton-padded jackets and trousers.
Wang Cuicui and Tang Erhu were responsible for taking care of the three children, Tang Xu and Tang Li were mainly responsible for braising the ducks, Liu Yao and Wei Dong handled killing the ducks, and Xu Ze, Tang Yang, and Wei Xi followed Old Xu and Old Wen to learn medicine.
Wei Xi requested to learn medicine himself, saying that since his health has been poor and he has been taking medicine since childhood, although he might lack knowledge in medical theory, he is familiar with the efficacy of various herbs. With two doctors in the family, he wanted to learn more.
Tang Xu and Wei Dong have always been the kind of parents who let their children do whatever they want, only offering advice in the general direction.
So when Wei Xi said he wanted to study medicine, they agreed without much thought.
Tang Yang was purely tagging along; since Wei Xi wanted to study medicine, he wanted to as well. To him, it all seemed like memorizing words, and he didn't think there was much difference.
However, Old Master Xu refused to teach Tang Yang, saying he didn’t have the aptitude for medicine. If he only learned a bit and then used the wrong medicine, it could be harmful.
Tang Yang was quite disappointed but bounced back quickly. A few days later, he was full of energy, saying that Old Master Wen had been teaching him and it was much better than the old scholar's teachings.
Tang Xu thought to himself that having spent many years in the palace, Old Wen surely had a lot of knowledge, so he didn’t question why Old Wen was taking the time to teach Tang Yang.
Time passed amidst the busy days. Tang Xu had Wei Dong build a simple shed out of bamboo in the backyard specifically for drying and curing the braised ducks.
The bright red braised ducks were hung on strings from the bamboo beams, one after another. Even though there were gaps in between, it looked densely packed.
"… Four hundred ninety-nine, five hundred!" Xu Ze said, tilting his head, his eyes blurry and neck sore from counting.
Finally, he turned to Tang Xu, who was adjusting the position of the ducks, and said, "Brother Xu, there are a total of five hundred ducks!"
Tang Xu nodded, looking at the layers of ducks with satisfaction.
This was all money!
"This little bamboo shed can't fit another duck. Yesterday, Ah Li came over and said that the last two ducks we hung up were too close together. They aren’t drying as well as the ones in the front,” Xu Ze muttered as he gently adjusted the strings with a bamboo pole. “There are too many; it didn’t seem like it at the time of hanging.”
Tang Xu chuckled lightly, “With so many batches to dry, we don’t have the time. If we don’t get this done while the weather is clear, we might not be able to finish drying them if it snows a couple more times.”
The ducks had been drying for five days, changing from their original bright red color to a reddish-brown. As they dried further, the color would deepen, and once they reached a soy sauce red, they’d be ready.
The ducks needed to be turned daily to ensure the meat didn’t spoil.
Xu Ze had been helping Tang Xu with this task and had learned how to check the quality of the meat. He nodded in agreement, “Yes, when it snows, the air gets damp, and the meat can spoil easily.”
“Dad!” The chubby child’s voice came from outside the bamboo shed, “Dad!”
Tang Xu went to the door and asked, “What’s wrong?”
The chubby child pointed toward the front yard, “Auntie is here.”
“Okay, I’ll be there shortly. Tell her I’m coming,” Tang Xu said, turning to Xu Ze. “Finish turning these ducks, and take care of the ones over there.”
Xu Ze quickly nodded, “Got it. You go ahead.”
In the front yard, the chubby child ran back and said to Wei Zhonghong, who was sitting on a chair holding a small baby, “Auntie~ Daddy will be here soon~”
“Oh, you’re so good with your words, you can say anything now,” Wei Zhonghong said with a smile.
Her own grandchildren were about the same age as the chubby child, and right now, they couldn’t even run a few steps without stumbling.
Wei Zhonghong sighed, thinking about her troublesome two daughters-in-law's at home.
She had originally thought that her second daughter-in-law was a quiet and unambitious person, but after having a son, her true nature gradually began to show.
It wasn’t that she couldn’t accept her making plans for her own family, but sometimes her behavior was just too difficult to handle.
“Auntie,” Tang Xu came over, shaking the water droplets from his hands. “What brings you here at this time?” This was the time when every family was preparing lunch, and he remembered that Wei Zhonghong usually handled it herself.
Wei Zhonghong put Xiao Bao on the ground and patted him, letting him play with the chubby child and Er Bao.
With the good weather, the chubby child was leading his little brother to a sunny spot, as their dad said that more sunshine would help them grow taller.
Er Bao, still the most energetic, was running ahead.
Xiao Bao obediently followed his older brother, moving slowly.
Wei Zhonghong watched the three of them leave and couldn’t help but sigh.
Tang Xu sat down next to her, raising an eyebrow after hearing her sigh. Oh, it seems like there’s something on her mind.
Sure enough, after Wei Zhonghong sighed twice, she turned to Tang Xu and asked, “Do you think if I let them split up the family now, would it work?”
Tang Xu was taken aback by the question, realizing that this might be a serious issue.
Initially, she hadn’t considered splitting the family ever since she had a conflict between her granddaughter and the eldest daughter-in-law.
Now, however, the idea of a split seemed to have come out of nowhere.
There hadn’t been any recent reports of troubles in that household, so why the sudden decision to split?
Thinking she might have no one else to confide in and was feeling pent up, he pondered briefly and asked, “Is it about the money?”
Wei Zhonghong gave a wry smile. Just then, Wang Cuicui brought over a cup of ginger tea for her. Wei Zhonghong gestured for her to sit down.
Wang Cuicui then handed a cup to Tang Xu and asked curiously, “Why are you here? Aren’t you supposed to be cooking?”
Wei Zhonghong shook her head, “I don’t feel like cooking. Let whoever wants to cook do it; I won’t starve.”
Wang Cuicui was startled and looked at Tang Xu, seeking more information about the situation.
Tang Xu shrugged and explained, “Auntie is asking me if it would work to split the family now.”
Wei Zhonghong looked at Wang Cuicui and asked, “What do you think?”
Wang Cuicui replied, “Well, although your husband doesn’t really manage things, would he actually agree to split if it came to that? And your two daughters-in-law are currently focused on making money. They wouldn’t be willing to split the family.”
Wang Cuicui shook her head, indicating that splitting the family at this time was just an impractical idea.
Wei Zhonghong took a sip of her drink, looking weary.
“Auntie, what’s really going on?” Tang Xu asked directly, unable to make sense of the situation.
“Well, it’s like this,” Wei Zhonghong started explaining. “I bought three hundred ducks. Recently, most of the money earned by the fourth son has been put into the family fund. He had agreed with the family that he wouldn’t work in the fields but would focus on selling braised duck and offal. The money he earned was to be split—some for the family’s needs, and the rest was his to keep.”
Both Tang Xu and Wang Cuicui nodded. It made sense.
After all, working in the fields was physically exhausting and didn’t bring in much money over the year.
If Wu Hong wasn’t working in the fields, the remaining work would be redistributed among others. So it was reasonable for him to use the money he earned to improve the family’s food and other needs.
Wei Zhonghong continued, “Originally, everything was fine. My fourth son said he would take a hundred ducks for himself and leave the remaining two hundred for the eldest and second sons, asking them to handle it. Since my third son isn’t around, he wasn’t included in this deal.”
Both Tang Xu and Wang Cuicui nodded in agreement. It seemed reasonable to share the earnings and responsibilities.
So what’s the issue?
It sounded like a good arrangement.
However, Wei Zhonghong’s expression turned disappointed and slightly angry as she continued, “But my eldest and second sons said no. Their wives argued that they didn’t have any money. They want my fourth son to give all his earnings to them first, and then they’ll share the profits when the money is earned.”
Tang Xu’s eyelid twitched. This seemed like a clear case of taking advantage of the situation.
Wang Cuicui also looked puzzled and couldn’t help but ask, “What are they thinking?”
Wei Zhonghong sneered, “What are they thinking? They don’t want to take any risk. They told me it made sense to them because they felt the merchant caravan might not sell all the goods in one trip. If they made so many braised ducks and some spoiled on the way, it would be a loss. They said they’re not unwilling to help, but they genuinely don’t have spare money.”
After she finished speaking, Wei Zhonghong, feeling agitated, pounded the table and raised her voice, “I give them money every month, at least a hundred or so copper coins. The daily expenses are covered by the family funds. How can they claim they don’t have money and complain to me?”
Wang Cuicui snorted and muttered, “It’s like the beads of an abacus are popping in their faces, and they still dare to say such things.”
Wei Zhonghong waved her hand dismissively and turned to Tang Xu, saying, “Xu Ge’er, you’re good with ideas. Please help me figure out how to handle this.”
Tang Xu thought to himself that apart from splitting the family, there didn’t seem to be a good solution.
However, splitting the family wouldn’t be smooth either. If it came out that the old lady was favoring the fourth son and neglecting the two older sons who worked hard in the fields, she’d be criticized and gossiped about by those who love to spread rumors.
He pondered for a moment and then asked, “What does Uncle say about this?”
“What can he say? He just said it’s up to me to decide,” Wei Zhonghong replied, clearly frustrated.
If her father were here, he would have been firm and made the sons use their own money, and she wouldn’t be so distressed.
“Well, you should just tell them that if they don’t provide the money, they won’t get any share of the earnings. Draft a contract to make it clear. Otherwise, if Wu Hong earns money and they get envious and start complaining again, it will be a mess.”
“Can I do that?” Wei Zhonghong asked uncertainly.
Wang Cuicui also felt that it wouldn’t work well. The family hadn’t been divided yet, and a contract wouldn’t be of much use.
Tang Xu shrugged and said, “Then let them live their own lives. If the family isn’t divided, they don’t need to contribute to the family funds, and you don’t give them any share of the earnings. That should settle it.”
He chuckled lightly, with a hint of sarcasm in his tone. “Auntie, you’re the mother-in-law. Surely you can handle them.”
If it had been a few years ago, before there were any grandchildren, the daughters-in-law would not have dared to cause such a ruckus.
Now that both daughters-in-law have children, with the eldest son having a son and a daughter, they feel more secure and emboldened.
Seeing that she was still hesitant, Tang Xu bluntly said, “If you let them get their way this time, they’ll only become more demanding in the future. They’ll grow increasingly arrogant, and you’ll lose your say in the household. To be honest, I can help you earn money because of you, not because of them.”
Wei Zhonghong’s expression instantly hardened with determination. Yes, that’s right. The family is making so much money now thanks to her!
1 Comments
thank you for the update.. ❤️🐾
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