Farming and reading family

Although the pearl was irregular, it had a good luster and even had a layer of halo.

Gao E looked at the pearl in Lei's hand and asked, "What does the shell look like?"

It is obvious that this is not a pearl produced by the pleated crown oyster.

"It's just an ordinary river clam." Lei thought, does the appearance of river clams matter?

Gao E didn't know how to describe it to Lei: "Did you pick up a lot?"

"Not much." Lei handed the pearl to her second sister-in-law. "I heard it's very expensive."

Gao E didn't know what the price of this thing was now, but pearls were indeed very expensive in ancient times.

But before she traveled through time, she didn't know that this place produced pearls, or that pearls had been produced in history.

Moreover, although Baotou Village experienced such a severe flood, there were still people left in the end. It might be related to this pearl. Doesn’t Chen Ke know?

Or did the villagers leave the village in the previous life and fail to pick up these pearls?

Seeing that her second sister-in-law was silent, Mrs. Lei asked, "Should we pick up more?"

"If you have time, go ahead and pick them up, but don't take me to a dangerous place." Gao E returned the pearls to Lei.

"This is a gift for my second sister-in-law. She just gave birth to a child, but we don't have much to congratulate her on." Lei said with a smile.

Gao E smiled and said, "As a family, we don't say such awkward things."

"Then Second Sister-in-law will keep it well."

"Okay." Gao E was no longer polite. "Bring me the oyster shell with the pearl."

"Okay." Lei nodded.

After Lei left, Gao E planned to open the big clam shell that the second son brought back. Although the pearls produced by the pleated crown clam were of poor quality, they were still pearls.

At this time, Chen Ke turned back and saw Gao E prying open the clam shell.

"You want pearls too?" Chen Ke saw Gao E struggling.

At first, the villagers just wanted to pick up some edible things, thinking that such a large clams should have a lot of meat. As a result, they found pearls in the clams, so they began to pry the clams open.

"I'll just take a look." Gao E said as she pried it open.

Chen Ke widened his eyes. He didn't expect that Gao E could actually pry open such a big clam shell.

Gao E pressed her fingers inside the clam shell, and when she was sure there were no pearls, she threw it aside.

Wild pearls are extremely rare, and pearl divers can only get one or two pearls from a boatload of clam shells.

Chen Ke took a cloth and soaked it in water to wipe Gao E's hands: "If you want, I can buy you a few."

Gao E took the cloth and wiped her hands with it, then smiled. "Just curious, didn't Batou Village have pearls before?"

"I've only heard that some fishermen have picked them up, but this kind of freshwater pearls are not of top quality, and there are few round ones, so the prices vary on the market." Chen Ke didn't know much about it either.

"Is that so?" Gao E lowered her eyes. "I rarely see anyone wearing pearl jewelry. I thought it was extremely expensive or that ordinary people couldn't afford it."

"Not really." Chen Ke thought for a moment, "It's just that compared to pearls, gold and silver are more practical for ordinary people."

This is true. Ordinary people just want to have gold hairpins and silver bracelets, which they can use as money in emergencies.

"What's the matter with you coming back?" Gao E then asked why Chen Ke came back.

Chen Ke watched Gao E prying the clam shells, and he actually forgot what he had discussed with Gao E: "I want to collect some pearls."

"Give it to me?" Gao E was surprised.

Chen Ke smiled awkwardly and said, "I just think the price of pearls will go up. If I sell them in the state capital, I should make some money."

Gao E understood that the price of pearls would increase in the future. "I think you shouldn't worry. The villagers now think those pearls are very precious. No matter what price you offer, it will not be appropriate."

Chen Ke didn't expect this.

He only knew that in a few years, Dachang no longer had so many requirements for the clothing and makeup of the people, and pearl makeup became popular among the powerful and wealthy. At that time, pearls were in short supply and the price increased more than tenfold.

"If you really want to buy it, you have to understand the market conditions first." Gao E saw that Chen Ke was silent.

Chen Ke nodded: "Then I'll listen to my wife."

Except for those who went into the mountains, all the people in Batou Village went to dig out clam shells, mostly women and children. However, they didn't know how to open the shells. After getting the clams, they just smashed them open. After half a day, they only got a few pearls.

"I found it, I found it." Wang Chunxi's wife Liu shouted excitedly while holding a pearl.

The people around cast envious glances at her, and Liu immediately put the pearl in her arms.

When the people who went up the mountain at night came back, they found out that there were pearls in the river clams that were washed down. Many people were eager to pick up pearls on the mudflats instead of going up the mountain tomorrow.

Seeing that the time was almost right, Chen Qing called the village head aside to discuss.

"We agreed before that our Chen family would be responsible for providing food when the flood surrounded the mountain. Now that the silt underneath has almost dried up, people can leave. Our Chen family will no longer provide free food." Chen Qing said directly.

The village head nodded. He knew the Chen family had done enough. "That's right. So, are you planning to sell the grain?"

Chen Qing couldn't make the decision: "I just want Uncle Zheng to make it clear to the villagers, so that they don't think that our Chen family is standing by and watching someone die."

"Whoever said that you Chen family members would watch someone in need without helping him, I would be the first one who disagrees." Zheng Fengan promised.

"Thank you, Uncle Zheng." Chen Qing said politely.

In the evening, Chen Qing and the others returned home and gathered around Gao E's bed to discuss what to do next.

"Should we call Dad over as well?" Chen Ke suggested.

"Forget it." Chen Qing and Chen Jie said at the same time.

Chen Jie looked at his elder brother awkwardly.

"Dad is old, so it's better to let him worry less." Chen Qing said with a smile.

Gao E understood in her heart that this elder brother was also a shrewd person.

"Then let's start." Chen Ke didn't force it.

"The question now is whether we should sell food to the villagers, how much to sell, and what price to set." Chen Qing raised his question. "From what I've observed recently, some people in the village have taken money out, but not much."

"Now they can only live in the caves over there. If we don't provide them with food, those who are already poor may not be able to survive."

"And if this happens, the villagers won't be as united. Now that the famine is not completely over, it will be difficult to organize people if something happens again." Chen Qing expressed all his concerns.

Gao E looked at Chen Jie: "What do you think?"

"My eldest brother and I have similar ideas. I think if we don't provide food to everyone, some people will leave, especially those who pick up pearls. Some people have said that a pearl is worth a thousand gold." Chen Jie said exaggeratedly.

"Not that much." Chen Ke said in a low voice.

"Then how much is it?" Chen Jie immediately went to his second brother's side, and actually he also had his eyes on Zhenzhu.

Chen Ke didn't know what to say: "It's only a few to a dozen taels. The price will be higher for very good ones."

"That's not much." Chen Jie thought that such a small thing was worth more than a pig.

"Let's get down to business." Chen Qing saw that Chen Jie was about to go off topic.

Chen Jie sat down immediately.

"I think..." Chen Qing was embarrassed. "Now the weather is getting colder and colder. Apart from hunting, there is not much food to find in the mountains. Their life will be difficult."