With these two great-horned deer, the money to buy a horse was secured.
That afternoon, Old Man Yun borrowed a flat cart, took ten taels of silver, and headed to the county town with his two sons.
The three of them arrived at the street where the monkeys were sold. As soon as they unloaded the deer, the townsfolk gathered around.
"My heavens, these great-horned deer are so plump!"
"Old sir, cut me a leg of venison, I want to roast it!"
Old Man Yun smiled faintly, "We don't sell these deer by the piece!"
A man in a satin robe stepped closer, "Old sir, how much are you asking for the whole deer?"
Old Man Yun didn't know.
He glanced at his eldest son, then at his second son, looking troubled, "You name a price."
"Oh, that's hard to say, you should at least give us a starting price!" the man said with a smile.
Old Man Yun wanted a thousand taels, but it seemed unrealistic.
Just as he was pondering, Prefect Chen happened to pass by.
This time, he wasn't in a carriage but had come out with his advisor and two servants to buy books.
"Well, old brother, it's you again." Prefect Chen pushed through the crowd and walked over with a smile.
He had met Old Man Yun before when he bought his monkeys.
Old Man Yun stood up and cupped his fists, "Your Excellency the Prefect!"
Prefect Chen looked at the two deer on the ground, his eyes crinkling with a smile, "What fine specimens!"
Deer meat was highly nutritious and rich in flavor.
Moreover, these were both bucks, freshly killed, and still had their testicles and penises.
"Old brother, I'll take both these deer. Name your price!" Prefect Chen said grandly.
Old Man Yun rubbed his hands, a smile appearing on his lips, "Your Excellency the Prefect, just give what you think is fair, what you think is fair..."
Prefect Chen was a straightforward man and directly offered twenty taels of silver.
Yun Erman tugged at his father's sleeve and whispered, "Dad, twenty taels of silver, won't that be... a bit little?"
Wild game was hard to come by these days, and the price of venison had naturally increased.
"Mm!" Old Man Yun nodded slightly, "It is a bit little."
"Your Excellency the Prefect, do you think... you could add a little more?" Old Man Yun asked with difficulty.
Prefect Chen raised his eyebrows and extended his fingers, "Then another ten taels, making it thirty taels in total!"
"Deal, deal!" Old Man Yun quickly agreed.
The townsfolk watched with envy.
Those who didn't manage to buy venison left with sighs.
Prefect Chen gave Old Man Yun thirty taels in silver notes and ordered his servants to take the two deer away.
"Dad, now we have money to buy a horse," Yun Daman said happily.
They now had forty taels of silver.
That was enough to buy two horses.
The three of them went to the livestock market and picked out a fine bay horse.
This horse was tall and strong, with a majestic presence.
It had a streak of white hair on its forehead.
Old Man Yun spent another tael of silver to buy a covered carriage from the owner.
"Haha, we have a carriage now!" The brothers laughed heartily, as if they wanted the whole world to know.
"Hey! What are you shouting about? Have no ambition!"
Old Man Yun shot them a glare and lowered his voice, "This is all thanks to Little Sweetie. Don't you two go blabbing about it!"
"Got it, Dad. I'll go buy sister some candy right now."
"I'll go buy soy milk!"
Which was actually just soy milk.
At dusk, a carriage entered Dashui Village.
The villagers didn't even finish their meals, they all came out to watch.
This was, in essence, the first carriage in Dashui Village.
The villagers were all incredibly envious.
"My, this fine horse is enough for plowing and hauling!" The village chief stroked the horse's mane, looking delighted.
Men loved horses as much as women loved flowers.
The carriage entered the Yun family's courtyard, and the men who passed by came forward to touch it.
After unloading the carriage, Yun Jinhe climbed onto the horse's back and waved his little hands, "Giddy up, giddy up, hey!~"
"Big horsey!~" Little Xi Tian smiled sweetly, her hands clasped behind her back.
The bay horse neighed and nudged Little Xi Tian with its large head.
It liked this little girl.
Mrs. Gu lifted her daughter onto the horse's back, letting Yun Jinhe hold her.
The bay horse trotted around the courtyard, with Little Xi Tian and Yun Jinhe perched on its back, making the whole family laugh heartily.
Liu Cuirong, her belly big, rushed over, "Quick, let me ride too!"
"You, you should go lie down on the kang!" Yun Erman pushed his wife back into the house.
The Yun family courtyard was filled with laughter, while the Yun Wangcai family was gloomy.
"Dad, I heard the old Yun family bought a horse." Yun Goudan sipped his wine.
Yun Wangcai snorted, "What's there to show off about? It's just a beast of burden!"
"Dad, our land still hasn't been plowed. Go and ask them to borrow the horse!" Yun Goudan said.
Yun Wangcai glared at him, "I'm not going."
"Then I will!" Yun Goudan put down his wine cup.
If they couldn't even borrow a horse, what kind of relatives were they?
If word got out, they wouldn't be afraid of being laughed at by the villagers.
Fueled by alcohol, Yun Goudan confidently arrived at the Yun family's.
"No, why are you here again?" Yun Daman frowned and tried to usher him out.
Yun Goudan, like an eel, wriggled into the courtyard.
Seeing the Yun family chatting and laughing around the bay horse, Yun Goudan said with a smirk, "Ho! What a strong horse, it must have cost a lot of silver!"
The Yun family: "......"
No one paid him any attention.
Yun Goudan didn't feel awkward and walked up to the horse, reaching out to pick up Little Xi Tian, "Little one, come, let me hold you!"
"Ugh!~"
A gust of alcoholic breath wafted over, making Little Xi Tian gag.
Nasty uncle, you're so disgusting!
Old Man Yun picked up his daughter and glared at Yun Goudan, "What are you here for again? Get out, our Yun family doesn't welcome scumbags!"
"Oh, Uncle, our two families are close relatives! Why make things so awkward?" Yun Goudan's smile was sheepish.
"Who's related to you? If you don't get out now, I'll break your dog legs!" Old Man Yun's face darkened.
Not a single member of the Yun family looked pleased.
Yun Goudan sneered, "Uncle, to tell you the truth, I'm here to borrow the horse today.
Your family has just settled in the village and hasn't put down roots yet.
As long as you lend me the horse, I'll speak to the villagers and ask them to look after your family.
Otherwise, I'll make sure you can't stay in Dashui Village, everyone will target you, until you're forced to leave!"
These words were spoken with great force and passion.
The faint-hearted would probably be scared to tears.
Mrs. Gu almost laughed in anger, "Yun Goudan, who do you think you are, daring to bark at our house like that?
Not to mention the villagers' attitude towards our family, do you think your word alone is enough to drive us out of Dashui Village?
Why don't you go back and pee on a mirror? Your family is so poor they're almost eating dirt, and you have the nerve to put on airs and spew nonsense.
If you don't find it embarrassing, I'm embarrassed for you. If you know what's good for you, get out of here. You reek, don't suffocate my daughter!"
"You, you, you, you..." Yun Goudan's face turned red and his neck bulged, his mouth unable to form words.
Little Xi Tian cheered for her mother.
Mom, you're so awesome!
Mrs. Gu narrowed her eyes, "What about you? Aren't you going to scram?"
Yun Goudan was berated thoroughly and stumbled out of the Yun family's house, his feet out of sync.
He vowed that he would never step foot in this door again.