The Spirited Daughter-in-law and the mountain man

chapter 72-73

Su Qingyue didn't hear, as planned. After dinner, she brushed her teeth four times. To save salt, she only used a bit of salt mixed with water for the last brush.

There were six willow branches left in the corner of the stove. She gathered them together, as each one was a disposable 'toothbrush'. She could either go to the river or the village well to find more willow trees. Although the distance was short, her physical condition was poor, so she tried not to move too much. These six branches would be enough for her to brush her teeth three times in the morning and evening.

Xiao Yishan went to the secondary bedroom to get the bowl and chopsticks used by Fourth Brother, cleaned them in the kitchen, and brought them back. The chicken soup on the table was nearly finished, with only a few pieces of chicken left. He put the chicken into a bowl, planning to heat it up for his wife to eat tomorrow morning.

He cleared out the used bowls and put them into the wooden washbasin along with the stove pot that his wife had not completely used for her bath. The water temperature was just slightly warm, so he didn't need to add any cold water or heat up any more.

We sold 45 jin at thirteen cents per jin, earning 611 cents. We sold two wild rabbits for 127 cents, and four wild pheasants weighing ten jin for 120 cents. In total, we earned 858 cents from selling the game this afternoon."

"Second Brother, you're in charge of our family's finances, so there's no need to discuss it with me." Xiao Yuchuan was not particularly concerned. "I've already preserved the remaining seven jin of roe deer meat with salt and put it in a jar. And I also managed to sell the roe deer's skin to Master Yang from our village while cooking. Since the skin had three holes in it, it wasn't worth much and I only got ninety cents."

Master Yang was responsible for tanning the fur and skin of the game in the village. Freshly-skin animal hides need a special method of tanning to prevent rot and foul odors. Ordinary people do not have the skill to tan, and even if they could, poor craftsmanship would ruin the fur and kill its market value.

In general, the villagers of Wushan Village would sell animal hides directly to Master Yang while fresh, or pay him to tan the hides properly before selling them in the market.

After some thought, Xiao Yishan said, "Third Brother, I gave the money you gave me to Zhou Fuquan before I went hunting in the mountains. He happened to be going to town, so I asked him to bring two packs of medicine back for Fourth Brother. Fuquan said he had a day-long job in town and would return to the village tomorrow morning. "

"It's a good thing you gave the money to Fuquan to buy medicine." Xiao Yuchuan casually replied.

"Why?"

Xiao Yuchuan glanced at Su Qingyue, who was standing nearby. It seemed like she was listening to how much money the family had made. Thinking of her searching the cabinet for money earlier, he couldn't help but say, "Second Brother, from now on, let's not talk about how much money we've made in front of our wife."

"What's wrong with that?" Xiao Yishan didn't think there was any issue and said discontentedly, "Are you still holding a grudge against your wife for stealing eight taels of silver?"

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"It's not that..." He rubbed his temples. Now, his wife didn't seem like someone who would steal from home again. But when he said she was looking for money earlier, she didn't even deny it. In other words, she really was searching for money again. He would have been willing to believe her if she had just denied it, or remained silent, or even just shook her head.

But she...

He should have told Second Brother about this, but he didn't want to worsen his brother's impression of his wife, so he said, "A woman doesn't understand anything about money. It's better not to let her know.."

Chapter 73: 73 disagrees with buying new clothes for his wife.

Xiao Yishan didn't agree or disagree. He darkened at the thought of his third brother's pettiness over his wife stealing some money.

Su Qingyue stood aside, intending to help her second brother wash the dishes, knowing that he and his younger brother were discussing family matters.

Others listened to words, while she could only 'watch' them. Even when people spoke to her face to face, she had to pay close attention and strain herself to understand.

From her position, her second brother was sideways to her, so she couldn't see what he was saying. His swollen tace was as putty as a pig's snout, making his lips unclear. She was too lazy to watch.

She had thought that it was none of her business and didn't care what they were talking about.

But then his little brother suddenly looked at her, and his face changed. Could it be that he thought she ate too much for dinner almost a whole chicken?

Her face wasn't too pleasant either. The second brother had finished washing the bowls. There was no need for her to help.

She went straight out of the kitchen and prepared to go to bed.

Seeing the bad look on his wife's face, Xiao Yuchuan was even more convinced that she was planning to steal from the house again, "Second brother, my wife..."

"If you have something to say, just say it. What are you stammering for?"

"..." Yuchuan still didn't say it. He thought about persuading his wife to dispel her thoughts of theft, and pretend that it had never happened. "Third Brother..." This time it was Xiao Yishan who had something to say.

"What is it?"

"We now have a total of 948 cents in our house. The string of money you earned and gave to Zhou Fuquan to buy medicine for the fourth brother will last him ten days. Your wife only has one set of clothes and nothing to change into. Why not go to town tomorrow and buy her a new outfit?"

"Let's wait a few more days." Yuchuan was thinking that his wife was so badly injured, and the road to town was long. A woman's clothes always have to be picked out in her favorite pattern. It wouldn't be too late to wait for a few days until she was better.

Just as he was about to share his thoughts with his second brother, Zhou Fuquan's voice came from outside the courtyard, "Second Brother Xiao, Chuan, are you home?"

Xiao Yuchuan heard the voice and walked out.

Xiao Yishan thought that his third brother disagreed with spending money to make clothes for his wife, and his already dark complexion turned as black as the bottom of a pot.

In the yard, Zhou Fuquan from the same village saw Xiao Yuchuan's pig-headed face illuminated by the moonlight and was startled, "Hey yo, Chuan, how the hell did your face swell up like that!"

"Not only my face. Look at my whole body. It's swollen." Xiao Yuchuan lifted his sleeve to show Zhou Fuquan his swollen and bruised arms. His eyes, however, were aimed at his second brother who had come out of the kitchen, thinking that his second brother had beaten him so badly, he should feel pity for his younger brother. Instead, his second brother didn't even spare him a glance.

"I've heard about it. You had a fight with the Zhao brothers and Shi Cai from the village." Zhou Fuquan has always been close to Chuan, he said indignantly, "If I weren't working in town, I would've helped you beat them until they were searching for their teeth on the ground. How could they have beaten you to such a state? It was just a minor verbal dispute from the same village, yet they went so far!"

Yuchuan originally wanted to say that he didn't take any losses in those fights. It was purely the second brother who had beaten him up twice. But then he thought about it, the Zhao brothers and Shi Cai would definitely not let this go. If they blackmailed him...

He was seriously injured now, he had a case to make and could possibly avoid medical expenses. It would be better not to clarify, only said, "I had two fights. It's normal to get some casualties. Weren't you supposed to come back tomorrow morning?"

"Oh, a few people who went to work with me worked hard and finished the job early, so I hustled back on the night road.."