Chapter 36
“He Hong, I…I…” Zhao Huanniang crawled forward and clung to He Hong’s leg.
“I’m going to Mother’s house right now. I’m going to get the silver back.”
“I’ll go with you, Huanniang. If you don’t get the silver, you really won’t be coming back here.” He Hong reached out to help her up and even wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes.
“I’ve been treating you quite well these past few years. Where do you put me by treating me like this? You didn’t just take away the silver. You also took away our relationship as husband and wife, as well as my dignity, my personality, my moral character, and my trust for you.”
“I was wrong. Dear, I was wrong, dear.”
He Hong didn’t speak. He called the old woman in to take care of Cheng’er, who had woken up from the shock, and ordered people to prepare a carriage to go to the Zhao house.
Zhao Huanniang was crying as she sat at the side in a panic.
Heng Yi left the restaurant and walked towards Jimintang, looking for Han Qiao and the others.
They all just happened to be at Jimintang. They were buying golden sore medicine and summer-cooling pills with Bai Cha.
Han Qiao took the opportunity to ask if they wanted any dried herbs.
“Dried herbs, such as withered gra.s.s, calamus, and the like.”
“Yes, but these things are cheap. They’re very c.u.mbersome to pick up, so no one usually messes with them.”
“We don’t mind the trouble. As long as you collect them here, we’ll send them over when they’re dry,” Han Qiao said quickly.
Things like withered gra.s.s and calamus were everywhere.
In one trip you could bring back a couple tens of catties, but when dried that same amount would only weigh a few catties.
“Dried gra.s.s will go for seven coins a catty, and calamus will go for six.”
“Alright.”
They could dry ten catties a day, which meant they could make enough money to buy salt and sugar.
The children were willing to go fetch it.
To Han Qiao, even a few coins was a lot.
“Mister Heng,” Bai Cha called out enthusiastically.
“Yes?” Heng Yi nodded and entered the hall.
He was big and tall, so he felt a little crowded when he entered the apothecary.
“Shopkeeper, how much is that wild ginseng? The ones with more than ten leaves?”
“More than ten leaves?” The shopkeeper’s eyes instantly lit up.
“More than ten leaves must be at least a hundred years old. The minimum price is a hundred taels. If the quality is good, it will be more expensive, and if the roots aren’t injured, it will be even more expensive.”
Heng Yi acknowledged, “I found one in the mountain, but I can’t tell its age. Plus, I wasn’t digging for ginseng, so I didn’t want to do anything with it.”
“Then, I’ll send someone to follow you. If the ginseng really is over a hundred years old, then how does a hundred taels of silver sound?”
Han Qiao, Uncle Yao, and Bai Cha looked at Heng Yi enviously.
A hundred taels…?
He was too lucky.
“Actually, a hundred and fifty taels, regardless of whether it’s over a hundred years old or not, and regardless of its appearance. I want you to help me dig up some small cl.u.s.ters on the side and give them to me.”
The shopkeeper at Jimintang was no fool.
Normally, ginseng would grow in small cl.u.s.ters. Large cl.u.s.ters would be a hundred years old or more.
“Okay!”
He immediately gave his a.s.sent.
Heng Yi and the shopkeeper agreed to set out the next day.
After leaving the Jimintang, Bai Cha asked Heng Yi, “Master Heng, are you still going hunting tomorrow? Can I follow you into the mountains to broaden my experience?”
“Sure.”
Heng Yi agreed, then asked Uncle Yao, “Uncle Yao, do you want to come along too?”
“Yes!”
Uncle Yao immediately agreed.
When pa.s.sing by the cloth store, Han Qiao stopped for a moment. She thought about going in, but ended up not.
She decided then that the next time she came to the county capital to sell herbs, she would see if she could also buy some rags and to make bed sheets and quilts with. New soles for her shoes would also be good.
She could go out and pick some random flowers and gra.s.s to supplement the cloth. That would also make it look very nice.
Nighttime in Puyi County was very lively. There were stalls selling all kinds of things, and none was lacking in customers.
There were lanterns hanging everywhere. These oil-fueled lamps lit up the pitch-black night. The moon was half full and the stars were twinkling.
Even if they didn’t buy anything from the stalls, the scene still made for a very pleasant walk.
When He Hong and Zhao Huanniang made it to the Zhao house, the people there were extremely shocked. Zhao Huanniang’s two brothers immediately jumped up. They pointed at He Hong and swore.
He Hong didn’t say a word. He just beat his two brothers-in-law into the dirt.
“I will be taking the silver today. If you don’t give it to me, I will directly report this to the authorities.”
Zhao Huanniang raced over to her mother. She begged, “Mother, please give me back the silver. I beg you.”
Of course, Mother Zhao could not bear to part with it.
But she was more afraid of her sons getting beaten to a pulp by He Hong.
He Hong’s gaze was really fierce. It differed completely from his usual gentle bearing and coolness. He listened to Zhao Huanniang’s every word.
They had crossed the line.
“Go and get the silver for him,” Father Zhao said in a dark voice.
Then, he said to He Hong, “Son-in-law, Huanniang didn’t mean anything by it. She just brought the silver back for her mother to hold on to temporarily.”
He Hong didn’t say a word.
Mother Zhao reluctantly took out a brocade case. She counted 2,300 taels.
Zhao Huanniang asked anxiously, “Mother, didn’t I give you 3,000 taels?”
“Where did the other 700 taels go?” Zhao Huanniang’s eyes were filled with horror.
She looked at He Hong in panic.
He Hong ignored her, took the brocade case and walked out.
Zhao Huanniang tried to detain him.
“Huanniang, a woman obeys her father at home, and after marriage, she obeys her husband. A daughter, once married off, is like spilt milk. You have forgotten who you are and whose wife you are..”
“What happened to the remaining 700 taels is your family’s business. It is your and your mother’s business. I will not tolerate a family thief like you. I will get someone to deliver the divorce papers tomorrow.”
“He Hong…”
“Son-in-law…”
“Dear!”
He Hong strode out.
Zhao Huanniang stood where she was and fell limp to the ground.
“Huanniang…”
He Hong stopped in his tracks, but he hardened his heart and walked out.
There was no way he was actually going to divorce his wife.
After all, he had loved her as soon as he set his eyes on her. However, he wouldn’t tolerate her touching the money that rightfully belonged to Heng Yi.
She’d touched the money even before it had been divided up.
They were the ones who had earned it, so it ought to belong to them. She could use it however she wanted. She could give it to whomever she wanted. She could respect whomever she wanted.
He wanted Zhao Huanniang to remember that he would cherish her like a precious jewel, but if she stepped out of line, he would not let her off lightly.
He Hong returned to the restaurant. Cheng’er was still crying loudly. He took his son and fondled him gently.
Soon, he managed to get his son to stop crying. He asked the old woman to cook some porridge for him to eat before he put the baby to sleep.
Cheng’er, however, had other plans. He wanted to look for his mother.
“Your mother has done something wrong. Cheng’er, we want to be good. We aren’t going to be like Mother.”
How could a child understand such things? After crying for a long time and eating his fill, he groaned in his father’s arms. After a while, his eyelids drooped and he was fast asleep.
He Hong carefully placed his son on the bed and called for the old woman to guard him while he went to the guest room to wait for Heng Yi.
He stood under the eaves. He looked tall, but his shoulders were already drooping.
When Heng Yi returned, he was in a good mood.
The reason for that was, on the way back, Han Qiao had a few words with him. She asked if there was a lot of ginseng that could be found out in the mountains. She also asked if he would show her where the ginseng was, so that, when the time came for her to go into the mountains on her own, she would at least know a thing or two.
This is exactly the kind of thing Han Qiao was clever at pulling off.
Although Han Qiao was born and raised in Xishan Village, she had never found any ginseng in the mountains. She’d never even seen ginseng even after she married Sun Yiming. It was impossible for her to just know about it all of a sudden.
Therefore, Heng Yi would make a great shield.
Heng Yi had no idea, though.
He felt that he stood out from the rest in Han Qiao’s eyes.
But he also made sure to carefully hide his thoughts. He was afraid of startling others.
When he saw He Hong looking like that, Heng Yi frowned slightly.
“Bai Cha, take Uncle Yao and Sister Qiao to the guest house to rest.”
Yes, according to age, Han Qiao was three years older than Heng Yi.