Translator: 549690339
âSince none of you are leaving, I should get back to my errands.â Su Qingyue picked up her basket and the empty jar, âNo matter how expensive the medicinal paste is, we used so much money on the ingredients. When in desperate need of cash, copper coins are more practical. At least we can exchange them for food.â
Qian Zhangâs wife stared at the jar in her hand, âWife of the Xiao Family, this jar looks pretty nice and new. Since youâre selling everything else at a loss, why donât you sell this jar to me? Iâll give you seven cents for it.â
âThis jar in her hand is very delicate, not those rough jars worth only a few cents. Its market price is twenty cents.â Ding Er shook his head, âQian Zhangâs wife, youâre taking too much advantage of others. Offering only seven cents? If sheâs willing to sell for fifteen cents, I would buy it.â
âIâm willing to offer sixteen cents,â Wang Qigu also took a liking to the jar, âMy family needs a jar for pickling vegetables. Itâs so new, seems like itâs only been used for a few days. Iâd buy it for eighteen cents, so I donât have to go all the way to the town.â
âI would like to sell it. Iâm short on money right now, so Iâd even let it go for three to five cents.â Su Qingyue hadnât even finished speaking when Qian Zhangâs wife, worried that someone else would buy it first, immediately moved to take the jar, âThen you sell it to meâ¦â
Su Qingyue held onto it, âSister-in-law Qian, let me finish. I cannot sell it.â
âWhy canât you sell it?â Qian Zhangâs wife instantly put on a stern face, âIf you think the money is not enough, Iâll give you one more centâ¦â
âItâs not about that.â If she had to sell, she would sell to the highest bidder. Su Qingyue felt helpless, âThis jar isnât from my house; it belongs to Aunt Zhangâs family. I borrowed it. How can I sell someone elseâs stuff? I borrowed it to carry things, and now I have to return it.â
Qian Zhangâs wife reluctantly let go of the jar, âYou should have said that earlier.â
âYou were too anxious to snatch it away and didnât even let me finish talking.â
The crowd burst into laughter. Wang Qigu laughed exaggeratedly, âQian Zhangâs wife, youâre too greedy for a bargain. I just remembered, Aunt Zhangâs family bought this jar a few days ago. I saw it and didnât expect that they would lend it to Su Qingyue.â
Having become the joke, Qian Zhangâs wife lost face, âIâm just saying, considering how poor the Xiao Family is, how could they afford such a delicate and expensive jar? They can barely manage to use a few-cent jar. The Xiao Family is so poor and they have no land or fieldsâ¦â
Seeing Su Qingyue about to leave, she chased after her and asked, âWife of the Xiao Family, did you collect the five taels of silver you owe?â
The others also had expressions of curiosity.
âNot enough, thereâs still a large gap.â Su Qingyue shook her head, displaying her worries, âItâs almost getting dark, and I donât know what to do when Granny Sun comes to collect the debt later.â
She wouldnât be stupid enough to tell them absolutely everything, and she wouldnât tell them that she had only managed to gather 100 copper coins by selling medicinal paste. Secrets couldnât be kept for long in the village with so many relatives.
In case Granny Sun found out that she only needed this small amount of money, she might deliberately have someone buy back the medicinal paste. In such a case, Su Qingyue would be short on cash and have no choice but to use her house as collateral.
âThen what does your family plan to do about the debt?â Qian Zhangâs wife was very curious.
âAs a woman, I canât really make any decisions.â Qingyue said bitterly, âWhen the time comes, Iâll just follow my second brother, third brother, and fourth brother.â
Liu Xiaohong sneered, âThat goes without saying. Theyâll definitely sell Su
Qingyue to pay off the debt.â
Ding Er disagreed, âYou donât know, Liu Family. In the early morning, Granny Sun tried to collect the debt, but the Xiao Familyâs three sons would rather mortgage their house and live in a mountain caveâ¦.â