Daily life of farming and supporting a family on the ancient Loess Plateau

A moment later, Yuan the fortune teller looked up at the wealthy woman and said solemnly, "Although you've already had this old man bandaged up and sent away, it's definitely not a good omen. The divination indicates that an 'unclean' person has entered your house. You must find this person and drive him out, otherwise not only will your family suffer misfortune, but your business will probably also go bankrupt..."

Upon hearing that the business was going to fail, the wealthy woman slammed her hand on the table, stood up abruptly, and shouted, "It must be that wretched woman that the deadbeat brought back! I'll go and deal with her right now!"

Yuan Banxian was startled by the rich woman's loud voice and thought to himself, "Why is this woman getting more and more irritable?"

Before he could say anything more, the rich woman asked again, "Someone read my fortune and said I have some health problems. Master, could you please give me a separate divination?"

After carefully examining the wealthy woman, Yuan the fortune teller cast his divination again.

Looking at the divination results, Yuan Banxian frowned slightly and after a long while slowly said, "Madam, according to this divination, you do have some health problems, but they are also related to your family troubles. You might as well ask a doctor to take a look."

After listening, the wealthy woman thought about it for a moment, agreed in her heart, and nodded in agreement.

After seeing Yuan the fortune teller off, the rich woman immediately went out to see a doctor. After taking her pulse and examining her tongue, the doctor said, "Madam, you probably have goiter caused by emotional distress. However, the lump on your neck is not very noticeable yet, and it is not easy for ordinary people to notice."

The wealthy woman recalled Huang Daopo's words and immediately believed in her Taoist practice. So when she came to the Taoist temple again, she was much more attentive to Huang Daopo.

After watching her son finish his medicine, the wealthy woman asked Huang Daopo about her illness.

Huang Daopo's satisfied lips twitched slightly as she spoke at length about Yin and Yang and the Five Elements.

The wealthy woman was completely confused, but seeing how professional Huang Daopo's explanation sounded, she blurted out, "Fairy, I've seen a doctor and received a prescription, but I'm afraid it's still not good. After all, I have a large family and a lot of wealth, and my husband is unreliable. Could you perhaps perform a ritual to help me, to purify and enlighten me?"

Huang Daopo reluctantly said, "Heavenly secrets are not to be revealed, and I have already broken that precept—"

The wealthy woman, knowing her place, took out two silver ingots, weighing a full ten taels, and handed them over with a smile: "A small token of respect, please perform your magic, fairy."

Huang Daopo raised her eyelids slightly, and Jin Hehua stepped forward to take the silver, then went to prepare the items for the ritual.

Soon, Huang Daopo, with her ethereal and otherworldly appearance, smoothly lit a torch, sprinkled pine resin, and began casting a spell, raising her peach wood staff. Next, she placed a bowl of clean water on the table, drew a talisman, lit it, and chanted, "Heavenly spirits, earthly spirits, gods of the past three days..."

Finally, Granny Huang took out a small cloth bag from her bosom and said to the rich man's wife, "I see that you seem to have insomnia. You can hide this cloth bag in your pillow in the future. It will keep you calm and refreshed."

The wealthy woman hurriedly and reverently accepted the gift, clasping her hands together and repeatedly expressing her gratitude.

After seeing the wealthy man's wife off, Jin Hehua asked in confusion, "Master, this cinnabar stone is so rare, why did you give it to this woman?"

Granny Huang shook her head and said, "If we want to make money from rich people in the future, we have to build up our reputation. Reputation is more valuable than money. Otherwise, why don't you see the young ladies from official families in the city, who casually create titles like 'talented woman' for themselves?"

Jin Hehua nodded, seemingly understanding.

After the incident with the rich woman, Huang Daopo and her apprentices gained fame in Qingzhou Prefecture. Her deworming medicine became extremely rare and expensive, with the last dose being sold for twenty taels of silver.

The group made a fortune from this trip.

Huang Daopo instructed her two apprentices: "Pack your things, hide the money, and let's go back to Ningping County."

Jin Hehua pouted and asked, "Master, it's so easy to make money in Qingzhou Prefecture, and there are so many rich people. When we go back to that dilapidated temple, all the people around us are poor peasants, they're dirt poor. How much money can we make there?"

Huang Daopo shook her head: "Qingzhou Prefecture is not a place for us to stay for long. In our line of work, we can't reveal all our resources. We have to keep some things to ourselves, but we also have to keep innovating. After all, we make a living with our skills. Besides, I have more important things to do in Ningping County."

Seeing that Jin Hehua was still unhappy, Huang Daopo comforted her again: "I have already asked Qiuju to buy a small courtyard. Next time we come, we won't need to stay at someone else's place."

Golden Lotus was immediately overjoyed and danced with delight.

Yin Qiuju was puzzled and asked, "Master, you said we need to innovate, but our profession has only had this one set of tools since the time of our founder. What new tricks can we come up with?"

Huang Daopo did not explain, but only said, "Go back to Ningping County, and you will know in time."

Yin Qiuju continued, "Then... what about those little girls we bought at the slave market?"

Huang Daopo sighed softly, "Alas, they are all poor girls. Leave them some rice and flour so they can stay at the Taoist temple for a few days and then leave on their own."

"This...aren't we just wasting our money? What if these girls run home again and get sold by their families a second time?"

"That's the path they chose themselves. I'll only save them this once!"

Huang Daopo's eyes were filled with sadness and confusion. If only someone could have saved her daughter back then.

........

After several days of tidying up, the Ji family finally managed to clean up all the rapeseed, bagged it, and put it into the grain cellar.

Early that morning, before dawn, Yang was calling out in the courtyard, urging everyone to get off the kang (heated brick bed) and get ready, because it was Ji Yong'an's one-month birthday.

Although it's not a major event, everything that needs to be packed and prepared must be done. This reflects the strong sense of etiquette that people from Northwest China, known for their pride, value.

In rural Northwest China, the term "passing the ceremony" refers to holding a banquet for weddings and funerals, including burying the deceased, a child getting married, a daughter getting married, a baby's full moon celebration, and so on.

However, the event was not very elaborate, and no banquet was held.

So, as soon as it was light, the gate to Old Ji's house was already wide open, the threshold had been removed, the yard was swept clean, the pigs, mules, and chickens were all kept in their pens and fed with hay, the furniture in each cave dwelling was dusted clean with a feather duster, the kang mats were wiped shiny, the water vat in the kitchen was overflowing, and even the buckets were filled with water.

The whole family dressed in their best clothes. Ji Yongning and Ji Yongzhou finally wore the new trousers that Ji Yongling had given them. Although they were wide and big, with the bottom of the trousers folded several times, making them look like two burlap sacks, they were brand new trousers without any patches. Only the children of wealthy families could afford to wear them.

Hu Xirong said that the two were so excited when they learned that they could wear new pants today that they woke up several times in the middle of the night just to touch the new pants above their pillows.

The old man and his sons also put on old trousers that had been patched up using the "pouches" taken from Ji Yongning's new trousers. Ji Manqing, in particular, was very pleased with himself as he pulled on the butt of his trousers and said to Ji Manchuan with great pride, "Third brother, this time the crotch and groin are patched up really well, so we don't have to worry about the crotch tearing when we squat down anymore."