Rebirth: Not Being a Waste - Chapter 18

When Zhang Shu and his family arrive, the others are already waiting. Fortunately, two or three large trees next to Old Man Li’s tea stall provide some shade.

The village chief walks over, picks up the tea that has been poured for them, and downs it in one gulp. He then takes off his hat and fans himself. “This heat is unbearable.”

“Yeah, every year, these two days of selling grain are enough to kill people with heat.”

“Zhang Shu, have some water and eat a couple of buns.” After spending half the day together, the village chief is quite satisfied with this quiet young man.

Zhang Shu sits down as instructed, takes a few big gulps of tea, and eats four or five buns. Only after finishing does he realize that everyone is looking at him. He suddenly becomes aware that he might have eaten too much.

Each bun is about the size of an adult man’s fist. Ordinary people eat two, and even a big farmer would be full after four. Zhang Shu has eaten five, yet he still doesn’t feel too full.

“Uh… I think I might’ve eaten a little too much,” Zhang Shu says, a little embarrassed.

“It’s fine, young man. It’s mealtime. I’m not worried about you eating too much—I’m more afraid you won’t eat enough.”

The men around him laugh, their expressions lighthearted and teasing, but there is no malice.

Once everyone has almost finished eating, the village chief leaves a few people to watch over the grain and then asks Zhang Shu to go with him.

At the grain station, the grain collector and his four or five yamen runners are also having their meal. The table before them is laden with six dishes, including fish and meat, and a pot of wine.

Seeing the village chief approach, the grain collector greets him cheerfully. “Oh, brother-in-law is here! Come, sit!”

The village chief nods at him and asks, “How’s Yunniang? And Qiang?”

“They’re doing well, but they don’t like studying. If they could attend school in the county like Cheng, I’d be so happy.”

The grain collector, Du Ming, is the village chief Li Desheng’s brother-in-law. The village chief has married Du Ming’s elder sister, Du Lirong, and they have three children: Li Cheng, Li Xin, and a daughter, Li Xiaomei.

“No, no, Qiang will be very capable in the future. He’s got a sharp mind!”

After exchanging a few pleasantries, they get down to business and discuss the grain sale. Du Ming smiles and says, “We’ll weigh your village’s grain first after we finish eating.”

Having connections makes things easier. The village chief’s group is able to cut in line, which some people aren’t happy about, but they can do nothing but wait. After all, during the slack season, time is the least valuable thing.

Sack after sack is poured out and piled together. The yamen runners use a measuring bucket to tally the total: ten shi, five dou, and two liters of wheat.

At a rate of five copper coins per liter, the total comes to about six taels and nine coins of silver.

After recording the transaction, Du Ming hands the money to the village chief. Since the money needs to be distributed among the villagers, he gives it all in copper coins, filling almost half a sack.

Before leaving, the village chief invites Du Ming to his house for dinner in a few days, then leads everyone back to the village.

Upon returning, the village chief instructs others to notify the villagers who have sold their grain to come collect their money.

Zhang Shu takes the account book and calculates how much each household should receive. For instance, the first household, Li Genmin, has sold seven dou and one liter of rice, which amounts to 355 copper coins.

The village chief sits beside him, distributing the money. Zhang Shu calls out a name, explains the amount due, and issues a receipt. The person then collects their money from the village chief.

By the beginning of the evening, the money has been distributed, and the day’s work is finally done.

Both Zhang Shu and the village chief let out a sigh of relief. The village chief pats Zhang Shu’s shoulder and says with a smile, “Come, let’s eat. Your aunt cooked for everyone today.”

In the past, his son had been slow with calculations, and it often took until the next day to settle accounts. Selling grain for the whole village used to take at least four or five days. But now, thanks to Zhang Shu, it will be finished in just three days.

At the dinner table, the village chief’s wife has prepared a large feast, including a generously portioned bowl of two-finger-wide fatty pork. Everyone eats heartily.

By the time Zhang Shu returns home, it is already late at night. The courtyard gate is tightly shut. He knocks for a while, but when no one opens the door, he simply stands there.

Inside, Zhang An hears the knocking stop and smirks. “See? I told you, he wouldn’t knock too hard. The boy’s afraid of waking up his grandparents—such a filial child.”

Wang Cuilan, however, is uneasy. “That kid’s gotten sharper. He even knows how to gain sympathy now. When I went out today, everyone was looking at me strangely, asking why I wasn’t washing my nephew’s clothes. And he dared to talk back to me the other day! If I don’t teach him a lesson, he’ll end up walking all over me one day.”

Earlier, Zhang Shu’s grandparents had left the gate unlatched for him. But after they went to bed, Zhang An secretly locks it. He knows Zhang Shu is obedient—if no one opens the door, he’ll probably spend the night outside.

But Zhang Shu is not as naive as Zhang An thinks. He walks around the yard, looking for the best place to climb over. If they won’t let him in, he’ll just jump in!

Inside the house, a sudden “thud” echoes in the yard. Wang Cuilan stirs. “It sounds like something came in.” She nudges Zhang An. “Go check it out.”

Zhang An, half-asleep, grumbles, “What could it be? Just a wild cat chasing mice.”

Before dawn the next morning, Zhang An is shaken awake. “Go open the gate! If our parents check the lock and see Shu outside, they’ll be furious!”

They have done this trick before—locking the gate when Zhang Shu is out, only to open it in the morning and spread rumors that he was too timid to come home. Over time, Zhang Shu stopped going out altogether.

Zhang An creeps to the gate, unlocks it quietly, and tiptoes back to bed.

When morning comes and the grandparents wake up, they see Zhang An yawning as he steps outside.

“When did Shu come back last night? Did he drink too much?” Grandpa Zhang asks.

“I don’t know. After you two went to bed, I did too. I didn’t hear anything. Maybe he came back really late,” Zhang An replies. Then he glances at the gate and acts surprised. “Hey, Shu didn’t even close the door! What if a thief comes in?”

“What? The door’s still open?” Grandma Zhang panics. “Shu didn’t stay outside again, did he?”

Zhang An smirks inwardly, then walks over and opens the door. “Shu, why are you—huh?”

His eyes widen. There is no one outside.

“What’s wrong? Where’s Shu?” Grandma Zhang asks.

“Grandma, did you need me for something?” Zhang Shu emerges from his room, rubbing his eyes.

“Ah’shu, you’re home! Grandma thought you spent the night outside again!”

“No, Grandma, I’ll never sleep outside again!” Zhang Shu says seriously.

Zhang An clenches his fists. That noise last night—it was this brat jumping over the wall!

“Why didn’t you close the door?” Grandpa Zhang asks, puzzled.

“Oh, my second uncle opened it this morning. I thought he was heading to the market,” Zhang Shu says innocently. “Wait… didn’t he go out?”

Zhang An’s face stiffens. “…Haha, must’ve slipped my mind. I must be getting old. My memory’s not as good as it used to be.”

Grandma scolds him, “Saying you’re old in front of your elders? How shameless.”

Zhang Shu grins. “Grandpa, Grandma, you’ll live long lives! You’ll even help pick out my grandson’s wife someday.”

His grandparents beam with joy, while Zhang An shivers under Zhang Shu’s knowing gaze.

For the next two days, Zhang Shu works late, but the courtyard gate is never locked again.

On the last day, after finishing his tasks, the village chief informs him that his family is exempt from one head tax this time as compensation for all the help he has provided over the past few days.

The village chief warns him not to spread the word, as those who have only helped transport grain are only exempt from half a head tax.

Zhang Shu is surprised. He has assumed this work is simply something he has to do, never expecting there would be a reward. It seems Brother Laiwang has really introduced him to a good job.

Though he can’t talk about the reward, that doesn’t stop him from wanting to treat Laiwang to a meal.