The next morning, a strange thing happened at the Old Yun household.
Liu Cuirong was actually up early to cook.
She hummed a little tune, full of energy and vigor, her pretty cheeks flushed with a rosy glow.
"That darn man, he's worn me out completely..." Liu Cuirong muttered to herself.
After a moment's thought, she let out another chuckle.
Yun Erman had now become famous, a prominent figure in Dashui Village and even Heyang County.
Liu Cuirong felt very happy and proud to be his wife...
"Second sister-in-law, let me do it!" Zhao Guihua stood at the doorway, unable to articulate her feelings.
This second sister-in-law usually wouldn't get out of bed until the sun was high in the sky.
What was going on today?
Liu Cuirong stirred the millet porridge in the pot with a spoon and turned back with a smile, "Eldest sister-in-law, help me get the bowls, the meal will be ready soon!~"
Zhao Guihua: "..."
She squinted at Liu Cuirong's pretty face, her complexion rosy, her charm captivating.
As a woman herself, Zhao Guihua seemed to understand something.
She silently fetched bowls and chopsticks, wiped the table, and got the pickles.
Once everything was prepared, she began calling the family members to wake up for breakfast...
Little Xi Tian looked at Liu Cuirong with a mischievous glint in her eyes, her gaze full of meaning.
"Dad, Mom, you should eat more, there's still some in the pot!" Liu Cuirong said with a smile.
Old Man Yun: "..."
Madam Gu: "..."
They both felt a chill down their spines.
Yun Daman slurped down three bowls of millet porridge and let out a satisfied burp, "Dad, I counted yesterday, there were eight earth dragons in total, and nine wild wolves."
"Let's keep a few at home, and we'll load them onto the cart later to sell in the county town!"
Their family had sold monkeys and antlered deer before.
All of them had been bought by Prefect Chen.
And at very high prices.
Old Man Yun grunted, "I'll go with you!"
Just after breakfast, the door of the Yun family's house was knocked.
"Knock, knock, knock..."
"Is this the Old Yun household?"
Yun Jinshan went to open the door and nodded when he saw a man in a purple robe standing outside.
The man in purple glanced into the courtyard, "I heard you have earth dragon meat and wolf meat, is that right?"
Yun Jinshan nodded and welcomed the guest inside.
"Wow, such a big wolf, plump and meaty, must be over a hundred catties!"
"Old sir, how much are you selling this whole wolf for?"
Old Man Yun fell into thought. He glanced at Madam Gu and asked softly, "How much silver?"
He remembered that the two antlered deer they sold last time fetched twenty taels.
Were wild wolves even more valuable?
Madam Gu pondered for a moment and said faintly, "Esteemed sir, please offer what you think is fair. We farmers aren't used to selling wolf meat, so we don't know how to price it!"
Madam Gu kicked the ball back.
The man in purple smiled slightly, "Then five taels of silver per wolf. We won't cheat farmers."
Madam Gu: "..."
Wasn't this cheating?
A high-quality wolf pelt alone was worth more than that.
Including the wolf meat and teeth, everything was valuable.
This man was clearly trying to swindle them.
Madam Gu politely refused, "Five taels of silver is too little. You should buy elsewhere!"
After speaking, Madam Gu called out to Yun Jinshan, "See the guest out!"
Yun Daman and Yun Erman exchanged glances, feeling a little uneasy.
Mother, five taels of silver, isn't that a lot?
If all nine wolves were sold, that would be forty-five taels of silver.
Their large house was only worth fifty taels.
The man in purple quickly put on a smile and continued to increase his offer, "Madam, if you think that's too little, how about I add another tael of silver?"
Madam Gu: "..."
So, with a gritted teeth and a stomp of his foot, you could only add one tael?
Good heavens, you really took her for an ignorant country bumpkin.
"I'm sorry, we're not selling these wolves and earth dragons anymore!" Madam Gu didn't want to waste any more time with him.
Little Xi Tian sat on the steps, propping her chin on her hand and looking at Madam Gu.
Mother was right to confront him; such a profiteer shouldn't be treated politely.
The man in purple didn't get his way and felt a bit resentful.
Hmph, these impoverished villagers who grubbed for a living, how many of them weren't greedy for money?
Why was this family so unyielding?
"I'll add another tael. Don't push your luck!" The man in purple lost his patience.
A bunch of ungrateful wretches.
Yun Ertou's face instantly darkened, "Didn't you hear? We're not selling!"
Yun Daman and Yun Erman also ran over, rolling up their sleeves and preparing to fight.
The man in purple flinched, scared, and fled the Yun household, getting into his carriage and speeding away...
If they weren't selling, they weren't selling, why would they want to fight?
"Mother, why didn't you sell them just now?" Yun Daman asked.
Madam Gu casually replied, "The offer was too low, it wasn't worth it!"
"Then... how much silver can these earth dragons and wolves actually sell for?"
The men in the family all looked at Madam Gu in unison.
Little Xi Tian also curiously took her mother's hand, tilting her little head to look at her.
Madam Gu gave a wry smile, "It's definitely more than seven taels of silver!"
The men: "..."
The number of refugees lingering in Dashui Village was decreasing.
They fished in Goutou Lake during the day, or gathered dried goods in the mountains, and returned to their own villages to sleep at night.
With food, they no longer had to rely on Dashui Village for handouts.
Yun Erman's heroic deeds spread like bamboo shoots after rain, throughout the surrounding ten villages.
Thus, the Old Yun household, which had just quieted down, became lively again.
As soon as the profiteer was driven away, Prefect Chen arrived in a hurry, carrying a large red flower.
"Old Yun, hurry out, the Prefect has arrived!~"
The village chief scurried in, his eyes gone from joy.
"Erman, the Prefect has personally come to reward you, hurry out and thank him!"
A large crowd had gathered at the Yun family's entrance, all smiling and beaming with joy.
Prefect Chen had visited the Yun family twice before; what an honor and prestige this was!
Old Man Yun led his family out to greet him.
"Haha, Brother Yun, your Yun family is truly a blessing to the imperial court!"
"You have repeatedly benefited the villagers, driven away the rat plague, eliminated the earth dragons, and killed all the wild wolves. You have made great contributions!"
Prefect Chen's face was flushed with joy, his mood excellent.
Old Man Yun bowed, "Your Excellency praises us too highly. Even if we didn't do these things, other villagers wouldn't stand by idly..."
Alas, he disliked conversing with Prefect Chen.
He felt he could never organize his words properly.
Prefect Chen waved his hand, "Brother Yun, there's no need for politeness. This red flower, I must personally present it to the hero!"
The Old Yun household had added another brick to his path of promotion.
Yun Erman stepped forward, giving a shy smile, "Your Excellency!"
Was it really right for him to accept the credit like this?
The earth dragons and wild wolves were clearly killed by his sister.
"Truly young and promising!"
Prefect Chen patted his shoulder, then pinned the red flower on Yun Erman's chest.
The villagers applauded and cheered, congratulating him loudly...
"Someone, quickly bring the items in!~" Prefect Chen ordered.
Little Xi Tian was very curious.
Last time, the imperial court had rewarded two bolts of cloth, and everyone in the family had made new clothes.
She wondered what the reward would be this time.
A moment later, a large red wooden chest was carried in.
"Haha, hero, the things in this chest are all rewards from the imperial court for you!"
Prefect Chen exclaimed boisterously, "Open the chest!"
And then, under everyone's gaze, two more bolts of silk appeared in the chest.
Little Xi Tian: "..."