Song Sanniang's Journey to Wealth

Song Sanniang washed her hands, put some snails in a lotus leaf, and stood in front of the stall, shouting,

"Stir-fried snails with basil and deep-fried crabs are great dishes to go with wine. They are fresh and delicious. Come and have a look and try them."

Song Zuren was stunned when he saw it, but some people were really attracted to it.

There are some places selling snails in the town, but they are all in the West Market. Moreover, they sell raw snails, so you have to go home and cook them yourself.

"I haven't eaten snails for a long time. Give me two to see if they are fried well."

"I'll try it too."

"Give me some too."

Seeing everyone gathering around, Song Sanniang took the opportunity to give them some crabs to try while they were trying the snails.

The crabs were fried until golden and crispy. They were small and were gone in just two or three bites.

After trying one, I felt that I was still not satisfied, so I bought some more.

Some people left after trying the food, but at least the stall started to get busy.

Some of Song Sanniang's old customers thought she had opened a new stall and asked her about it. Song Sanniang explained and then went back to her stall, leaving Song Zuren to do it himself.

Song Zuren was a little flustered at first, but the customers didn't complain and waited patiently.

Some people can't stand it and will do it themselves, while others hear that if they buy more, they can get something free, so they naturally buy larger portions.

Soon, half of the snails were sold out, and the crabs, which were not many to begin with, were all sold out.

Song Zuren was so happy that he showed his big white teeth.

His mother also brought him a special bag to hold his money, which really came in handy. The bag was bulging and it was obvious that it contained a lot of money.

Song Sanniang then noticed his saddlebag. She had previously put the money in a basket.

It would be a bit strange for a girl to use a saddlebag, so she decided to ask Song Sanniang to make her a crossbody cloth bag that could be conveniently carried anything.

When they had sold most of their things, Song Sanniang went to the West Market with Song Zuren.

With Song Zuren as a laborer, Song Sanniang used him without hesitation.

He touched the heavy sack and wished he could turn into a savage bull to help Song Sanniang plow the fields, let alone just carry a few dozen kilograms of things.

Song Sanniang bought 100 salted eggs. Salted eggs were made of salt and were two coins more expensive than ordinary eggs. She spent 300 coins.

Then he spent one ounce to buy a stone of saltpeter and took out half a stone first, so that Song Zuren would not be unable to carry it.

I bought two pounds of black sesame seeds for twenty cents.

I bought a pound of matcha powder for fifty cents.

Finally, he bought two taels of flour and sugar and had them delivered to Song Laoer's stall.

The two returned to Song Laoer's stall. Song Laoer had already packed everything and bought some vegetables. The three of them went to find Song Dazhi.

On the way back, Song Zuren was still smacking his lips. Sanniang's efforts were like throwing money around. He didn't even earn that much in a day.

He couldn't help but ask curiously, "Sanniang, why are you buying so many things?"

“I want to make mooncakes and sell them.”

"So you want to sell mooncakes. No wonder you bought so many things. Are you going to sell lotus seed paste and egg yolk ones? You bought so many salted eggs."

"No, it's a mooncake that's even more delicious than lotus seed paste and egg yolk. I'll give you one to try when I make it." Song Sanniang announced with a little pride.

Song Zuren laughed and said, "Okay, then I must try it."

The ox cart stopped at Song Laoer's house. Everyone helped to move things in and put them away. Then Song Dazhi and Song Zuren went home.

Only Si Niang and Wu Niang were at home in Song Laoer's house. After asking, he found out that Song Ersao had gone to collect firewood. Song Laoer asked where she went to collect firewood, then borrowed a cart to go find Song Ersao.

Song Sanniang saw that the oven was already dry and still a little hot to the touch, so she estimated that it was finished baking in the afternoon.

She ran to the kitchen, washed the rice and steamed it, then began to wash and prepare the vegetables she had bought.

Today Song Laoer bought eggplant stuffed with meat and fried tofu stuffed with meat. They will just be fried, thickened and boiled for a while. He also bought Chinese cabbage, a simple salted Chinese cabbage. These three dishes will not take much time.

She washed the cabbage hearts, cut off the old and worn-out heads, and completed her task.

She ran back to her room to keep accounts. She had spent more than three taels today. In this way, she had spent almost eighteen taels out of the twenty taels.

When Si Niang and Wu Niang ran in, she took the opportunity to teach them a few words. It must be said that the new brains were very useful and they remembered things well.

I said before that I don’t have much time because I have classes for them and my little cousin, and I will have even less time when it comes to making mooncakes. It seems that I have to postpone it.

There was a sound of a cart being pushed outside the house. It was Song Laoer and his wife who had returned, pushing a cart full of wood as thick as thighs. I really didn't know how Song Ersao managed to get such a thick tree down.

"Mother, did you carve such a thick tree by yourself?" Song Sanniang asked.

"No way, your two uncles helped me with this. They have also finished the autumn harvest and are free today. Tomorrow they will go out to collect cassava flour and grain."

Song Ersao and Song Laoer moved the firewood into the kitchen and placed it next to the earthen stove.

"I don't know if it will rain in the next few days, so we have to hurry and pick up more." Song Ersao and Song Laoer said,

"Don't worry about it. I'll go with my brother tomorrow morning.

If you have time in the afternoon, go and load what we have prepared into the car.

You can take the lighter ones home, and wait for me to come back at night for the heavier ones."

Song Ersao felt very happy, even though she had suffered a lot after marrying this man.

But he never did anything wrong to her. He didn't say sweet words, but he did all the hard work.

She thought of herself and her children in all the good things she had, and was good to the children. Even if she didn't give birth to a son, he had no complaints.

I have never said a harsh word to her. Now that I have money, I give it all to her for safekeeping. I take everything she says to heart.

Thinking of this, Song Ersao couldn't help but reveal a shy yet happy smile on her face.

Song Sanniang looked at her. She had been eating well recently and looked a little plumper. She felt that she exuded the beautiful charm of a happy woman. She couldn't help but praise her in her heart, "She is so beautiful."

At the Song clan leader's house, Song Zuren jumped out without waiting for Song Dazhi to park the car and ran towards the ancestral home.

"Grandpa, I'm back, I'm back." He shouted before he even entered the door.

Chief Song did not stop working and continued to saw the bamboo. The front yard was filled with bamboo and bamboo bowls, and the ground was covered with bamboo shavings.

Those who were helping in the yard today included He from the second wife's family, Tian, ​​Song Zuren's mother, and Xiao Liu, Song Dazhi's wife. When they heard his shout, they all stopped what they were doing.

Patriarch Song said calmly, "You shouted so loudly, it seems that sales are good today."

Song Zuren excitedly took off his sack and poured all the money onto the table. The rustling sound made people feel restless.

"Grandpa, let's count the money first.

I was originally selling it today at two cents a piece as we agreed.

Later, Sanniang listened to me and taught me to sell in small, medium and large quantities.

The small portion costs two cents, the medium portion costs five cents, and the large portion costs ten cents, but comes with a small portion of fried crab.

Fried crabs are sold for 5 cents for a small portion and 10 cents for a large portion, with a small portion of fried snails thrown in for free. Everyone loves to buy the large portion.”

Everyone smiled when they saw the table full of money.