Rebirth: Not Being a Waste - Chapter 75

When Zhang Shu returns home and sets down his backpack, Grandma Zhang and Li Mujin immediately gather around him.

A small puppy trembles as it pokes its head out, its watery black eyes looking at them innocently. The moment it’s stroked, it hurriedly squeezes back down, burying itself under the bellies of its siblings, leaving only a tiny tail exposed.

Zhang Shu takes out the doghouse that Grandpa Zhang made that morning, then stuffs it with the straw Zhou Nan gave him for the puppies. After preparing the nest, he carefully places the puppies inside one by one.

The puppies sniff around and, detecting the lingering scent of their mother, curl up inside contentedly.

“Ah’shu, why are they so small? What do they eat? Do they need milk?”

“They’re already weaned. Just mix some leftovers with broth for them at night.” Proper feeding at night is essential—well-fed dogs will have the energy to guard the house.

“Oh, I see. By the way, did you meet my brother’s friend? What kind of person is he?” Li Mujin suddenly remembers.

Zhang Shu smiles mysteriously and pulls Li Mujin aside while the others are still fussing over the puppies. “I think your brother might have taken a liking to someone. That person is a ger named Zhou Nan. He has a generous personality, an upright appearance, and looks decent. But his family is a bit poor.”

Li Mujin glances at him sideways. “You sure are observant.”

Zhang Shu immediately cries out in mock injustice. “Didn’t you tell me to look? I wanted to observe carefully so I could report back to you! Ever since I first met you as a child, I haven’t looked at any other gers or girls.”

Li Mujin waves his hand dismissively. “Fine, fine. But why do you think my brother likes him?”

“You know how your brother is—he’s always polite, except when he talks to your Aba. But with this ger, he speaks softly, afraid of offending him. He’s eager to help him, just like I am with you.”

Li Mujin studies Zhang Shu, who is earnestly trying to explain himself. “I’ve noticed you’ve become a lot chattier since you came back from Nanhai County. Did you go somewhere you weren’t supposed to?”

Zhang Shu straightens his posture and declares righteously, “That’s just how our Zhang family is. We’re tongue-tied in front of outsiders but eloquent with our spouse. Just look at my grandfather—he barely says a word most of the time, but in front of my grandmother, he never stops talking.”

“Alright, alright, I won’t accuse you anymore. I’m going out to check on the puppies. Don’t follow me.” Li Mujin leaves, his slightly rounded belly swaying as he walks.

But he doesn’t let the matter rest. He plans to find the right moment to tell his Aba and have him keep an eye on things. From Zhang Shu’s description, Zhou Nan seems like a decent person. So what if his family is poor? They can always support him when the time comes.

Zhang Shu knows why Li Mujin is so suspicious—it’s because he has always avoided talking about what happened on his trip to Nanhai County.

If he reveals everything, then the next time he has to go, he’ll be the only one sleeping peacefully at home while everyone else worries. Since he’s returned safely, it’s better to let those things sink to the bottom of the sea.

Right now, the most important task is to finish producing the dried vermicelli. He’s signed a contract to deliver the goods by May 10th. If he fails to meet the deadline, it’ll be a disaster.

The previous trip from the river to Nanhai County took ten days because their boat stopped for a long time. Normally, the journey takes about nine days.

That means he has to set off no later than May 1st. Today is April 15th—only fifteen days remain.

According to the records in Li Mujin’s account book, they’ve harvested over 4,000 kilograms of spring potatoes in the past two days. It seems the harvest in their village is nearly complete, though the surrounding villages have yet to begin.

Zhang Shu estimates a total harvest of around 14,000 kilograms. At a price of one and a half coins per two kilograms, the potatoes will cost about 13 to 14 taels of silver. Labor wages vary depending on the work, but they’ll also cost around 13 to 14 taels.

Then there are additional expenses—buying a large vat, a grinding wheel, a rack, and firewood for continuous burning. The production of the dried vermicelli alone will cost about 40 taels.

He’s nearly spent all of the 70-plus taels of silver he earned before the New Year. Sometimes, he thinks he must be crazy—when he was just farming at home, he never spent so much. That amount could have supported his family for five or six years. But then again, how could he have ever earned this much just by farming?

Spring potatoes have a better flour yield than autumn ones—about two and a half catties of potatoes can produce one catty of flour. With over 14,000 jin of spring potatoes, he can produce more than 5,600 jin of vermicelli. At a selling price of 30 wen per jin, that would bring in about 220 taels of silver.

After deducting the costs, the profit would be around 170 or 180 taels!

Even if the other products sell for a lower price, it won’t matter. Just selling 1,000 jin will be enough to break even!

Zhang Shu’s hands tremble as he finishes calculating the numbers. Excited, he hurries to the backyard to start making dried vermicelli!

The backyard is bustling with activity. No one stops working. The job is close to home and not too exhausting. Besides, the Zhang family is kind—they even provide snacks in the afternoon to keep everyone’s energy up.

Zhang Shu enters the rice-processing room and joins Grandpa Zhang and Grandma Zhang in their work…

Fifteen days pass in a flash, but the result exceeds Zhang Shu’s expectations. They harvest more than 18,000 kilograms of spring potatoes. Surrounding villages use ox carts to transport their potatoes for sale, and some from farther villages even carry their loads to their relatives’ homes to rest for the night before continuing on their journey.

Seeing the happy expressions on their frost-covered faces, Zhang Shu feels a little uneasy. He’s never worried about food or clothing since childhood, and his village is relatively well-off, so he can’t fully grasp what it means to have no money.

But after visiting Zhou Nan’s village, he realizes that many places are like that—some people can’t even afford salt. Yet, despite their hardships, they are content. Even if they live on wild vegetable soup every meal, they can still smile.

Compared to them, he’s truly fortunate…

In fourteen days, they produce 5,000 kilograms of dried vermicelli. Zhang Shu can’t afford to wait for the rest, so he decides to sell it locally in the future, keeping any unsold portions to set up a stall selling sour and spicy vermicelli in winter.

He borrows the village chief’s ox cart to transport the dried vermicelli to the county river. The vermicelli is packed in sacks, wrapped in oil paper, and finally carried into the cabin of a large ship docked at the shore.

The Nan family’s large ship is about 400 tons, capable of carrying around 24,000 kilograms of cargo. After Zhang Shu’s goods are loaded, the Nan family adds over 10,000 kilograms of their own cargo. This time, Master Nan doesn’t board the ship; instead, Shopkeeper Yan accompanies the shipment.

When Shopkeeper Yan sees Zhang Shu, he beams. After what happened last time, he seems to regard Zhang Shu as a hidden master—someone who usually disguises himself as a simple and honest farmer but steps up to save lives at critical moments.

He cups his hands and greets Zhang Shu, “Brother Zhang, the young master sent me to accompany you on this trip. My life is in your hands.”

After returning, Shopkeeper Yan has learned more about the river bandits. Knowing that previous merchant ships were completely wiped out, leaving no survivors, he realizes just how lucky he is.

Zhang Shu returns the bow. “Shopkeeper Yan, you’re too polite. I should be the one asking for your guidance.”

The two exchange smiles and board the ship. Zhang Shu notices that only a dozen of the guards are familiar faces from the last voyage, while the other twenty or so have been replaced. It makes sense—after what happened last time, Master Nan is generous enough not to pursue the matter further, but how could he entrust his life and wealth to those same people again?

“Shopkeeper Yan, we set sail tomorrow. Besides myself, there are three or four more people coming along. Is that all right?” Zhang Shu asks.

“Of course. The young master already instructed that you can bring as many people as you want. The more people on board, the less likely the river bandits will be to attack. More guards mean more security for our cargo—it’s a win-win.”

“Thank you, Shopkeeper Yan, and please extend my gratitude to the young master. I’ll cover the expenses for their food and supplies.”

“No need to be so polite. What’s a little food? You saved all our lives on that ship, especially the young master’s. Do you know where he comes from?” Shopkeeper Yan asks, lowering his voice mysteriously.

Zhang Shu shakes his head. He only knows that Young Master Nan owns the Nantong Grocery Store. He’s assumed Young Master Nan’s wealth is similar to Brother Hu’s, but judging by Shopkeeper Yan’s tone, does he have an even more powerful background?

Shopkeeper Yan gives him a disappointed look. “Haven’t you heard of the four great families in Qingzhou Prefecture?”

“Ping, Gu, Zhang, and Fang—who doesn’t know them? But there’s no Nan family among them.”

“You’re so rigid in your thinking! Just because the Nan family isn’t on that list doesn’t mean they have no connections! The eldest young master’s mother is none other than the third legitimate daughter of the Gu family. People are still talking about her grand wedding procession to this day! Back then, she married into the Nan family because of their strong ties to the government. Did you know that Master Nan’s elder brother is already a fourth-rank official? That’s someone who can go to court and meet the emperor!”

Zhang Shu inhales sharply at the revelation. After a moment of thought, he asks, “Then why does it seem like the eldest young master isn’t favored compared to the second young master?”

“Hah! That’s just because he can’t be bothered to compete. The household finances and external business affairs are all under his and his mother’s control. They just keep the second young master around for show. It’s laughable, but that fool actually thinks he’s important. He doesn’t even realize that Concubine Li and the Madam are leagues ahead of him!”

Shopkeeper Yan’s loyalty is evident in his proud expression. He used to worry about his position as a grocery store manager, but now he doesn’t care about such trivial things anymore.

Zhang Shu doesn’t fully understand the complexities of the rich and powerful. After inspecting his goods, he disembarks. He still needs to return home and will come back early the next morning.

Driving the ox cart, Zhang Shu stops to buy a jar of fine wine, a bag of pork head, and two bags of pastries. The village chief lent him the ox cart without asking for payment, but he can’t be ungrateful. If he doesn’t show his appreciation, people will gossip that the richer he gets, the stingier he becomes.

Humming a tune, Zhang Shu heads home, completely unaware of what awaits him there…