Turning Antagonist to Protagonist: He is Both Soft and Fierce-Chapter 65 - 60: I’m Happy No Matter What Sister-in-Law Does
In the afternoon, a light drizzle began to fall, lasting four or five days, marking the longest rain of the summer. The fields and gardens soaked up the moisture, and everything grew significantly during these days.
The Chinese cabbage seedlings planted earliest by Lin Qiao were ready to eat. The seeds had been sown over a quarter of the land, now growing densely, far more than they could consume in the short term.
Lin Qiao planned to pick them and take them to town to sell.
That day at dawn, it was also Song Tingfan’s day off.
All four members of the Song Family went to the field to pick the Chinese cabbages. After some days of recuperation, Song Rong could walk ten steps without a cane.
"Grandpa, you just stand there and watch us. Don’t pick anything; be careful not to hurt your back," said Lin Qiao, dressed in a green and white outfit. She carried a basket in her left hand, picking cabbages with her right, with a bit of mud on the back of her hand.
Song Rong didn’t act tough; he only worked because he felt he could, "I won’t hurt myself, I’ll just squat."
Song Qin chuckled, "Qiao’er, let your grandpa work. It’s not heavy labor."
"These cabbages look great; they should sell for twenty cents."
Hearing this, Lin Qiao looked at the youth beside her, "It’s all thanks to Uncle’s hard work. When we exchange it for Silver Coin, I’ll buy Uncle a new piece of clothing."
"Sister-in-law, I don’t want it," Song Tingfan shook his head.
A ready-made garment costs over a hundred cents. It’s really not worth it. Song Qin placed the vegetables into the basket, "Qiao’er, get some fabric for Niu Niu."
"Gran, it strains the eyes," Lin Qiao disagreed.
Song Qin smiled warmly, "Making a set of clothes won’t strain my eyes. Later, I’ll give you Silver Coin, and you should get some fabric for yourself too."
"Gran, I don’t need it. I already have several outfits."
"Gran’s not blind; your clothes have several patches."
"I can still wear them."
"Wear them for what, Qiao’er, listen to Gran."
...
The Chinese cabbage filled three baskets, weighing seven pounds and three taels.
Song Tingfan placed everything into the basket, and then he and Lin Qiao hurried to town by donkey cart.
They arrived just at the time between 7 a.m. to 9 a.m; the streets were already lined with stalls. They walked from one end of the street to the other twice before finding an empty spot.
Fortunately, Song Tingfan acted quickly; otherwise, an old man selling hens would have taken it.
After the rain, the weather wasn’t as hot as before, but going to the market was sweating them out. Lin Qiao reached back to tug on her clothes to get some air.
Song Tingfan wiped the sweat from his brow and shouted, "Fresh Chinese cabbages, four cents a pound, buy two pounds and get one pound free."
In the village, vegetables typically sell for two cents a pound, while in town, it’s three cents, though most bargain it down to two cents.
He really was quite clever. He had seen her sell once before, and now he could do it himself. Lin Qiao had a satisfied look of a proud mother.
The child is both smart and well-behaved.
The Chinese cabbages were indeed quite fresh, and many people came to buy them, leaving only a pound after a short while.
Suddenly, a woman’s voice called out, "How much for the Chinese cabbage?"
"Four cents a pound, the last pound, I’ll give it to you for thre..." Song Tingfan looked up, and his voice abruptly stopped.
It was his third aunt, Song Liu.
Simultaneously, Song Liu saw him, and without any courtesy, she picked up the vegetables and stuffed them into her basket, "Oh, so it’s you. I’ll take this batch of veggies."
"No," Song Tingfan reached out, trying to take them back.
But Song Liu directly slapped his arm, "Taking your batch of vegetables is giving you face."
Lin Qiao furrowed her brows, took the vegetables with her hand, and dropped them on the ground, "Uncle, let’s go home, don’t keep spoiled vegetables. Leave them for the scavengers."
Song Liu was infuriated, "Widow Song, do you believe I’ll teach you a lesson?"
People at the surrounding stalls looked over. A young woman buying vegetables bent over to pack up, "Third Aunt, these veggies are spoiled, with wormholes, not edible. Eating them will rot your liver."
"Who are you calling rotten liver!" Song Liu felt that this Lin Qiao had become sharp-tongued.
Lin Qiao looked innocent and upset, "Third Aunt, I didn’t say anyone had a rotten liver. I just said eating spoiled veggies will rot your liver."
"Don’t think I can’t tell you’re calling me rotten liver. These cabbages aren’t spoiled; they are perfectly fine." Song Liu’s mind turned quickly.
"If these vegetables are fine, then why don’t you give Silver Coin while hitting Uncle?" Lin Qiao calmly questioned her.
Song Liu was choked, and after a while, she forced out a retort, "I’m your Third Aunt, so you should show me respect."
"Then Third Aunt, lend us some Silver Coin. Uncle and I depend on this small amount of cabbage money to live," Lin Qiao said in a lowered voice, looking "helpless."
"I won’t lend!" Upon hearing "lend," Song Liu reflexively refused.
A warm-hearted old man nearby spoke up for Lin Qiao, "Your Third Aunt is doing something wrong. These folks rely on that little cabbage money to live, and you don’t want to give them Copper Coin?"
"You seem well-dressed; do you really lack these few Copper Coins?"
"Mind your own business, you old fool," Song Liu spat.
Little did she know, the warm-hearted old man’s son was the man selling vegetables next to them. When he heard that his father was insulted, he sternly said, "Who are you cursing!"
"Insult my father again, and don’t blame me for hitting a woman!"
Song Liu didn’t dare to be bold anymore, picking up her basket and storming off in a huff.
Soon, gossip swirled around them.
"What kind of Third Aunt is that, trying to take someone’s livelihood vegetables."
"She’s from the other end of the alley, heard she offended all the neighbors,"
"There’s sure to be a problem with someone like that."
...
Lin Qiao picked up the vegetables from the ground, patted them a few times, and put them back in the basket, planning to take them home to make dumplings.
"Uncle, later we’ll have dumplings, isn’t that nice?"
Song Tingfan grinned foolishly, "Nice, whatever Sister-in-law makes is nice."
Lin Qiao couldn’t help but laugh, "Alright then."
Then the two went to the fabric shop, and, of course, all eight sheets were made by Song Qin, with Lin Qiao drawing several extra designs.
This time, before she could speak, the Boss of the fabric shop said, "I’m glad you finally came, I’ve got something to discuss with you!"
"What is it?" Lin Qiao was slightly puzzled.
"Come into the inner room with me." The Boss lifted the curtain, motioning for her to come in.
Lin Qiao looked at Song Tingfan, who sensibly said, "Sister-in-law, I’ll wait outside for you."
"Okay, go eat a bowl of noodles." Lin Qiao handed him the money bag and then went behind the curtain.
The Boss didn’t beat around the bush, "I got a business from a family in Jiangtong Town, making clothes for winter. I selected many styles for them, but they didn’t like any."
"I wanted to see if you can come up with some clothing designs. Rest assured, after it’s done, I’ll give you one tael of silver."
Lin Qiao’s eyes sparkled, "Are there any requirements?"
"Not really, they just said previous designs were too outdated." The Boss shook her head, unsure if Lin Qiao could help, but desperate times call for desperate measures.
She had looked for many embroideresses, but none could do it.
This job was considered a big business for the fabric shop and could earn a considerable amount of Silver Coin.
