Poisonous Peasant 'Concubine' Ch 31 - Hyacinth in Bloom

Chapter 31 — Thirty Wen? Are you robbing people? That’s expensive!

Today, they had a lot of things to buy. In addition to getting medicine for Ling Jinghan, they also needed to go to the blacksmith shop to buy hoes, spades, kitchen knives, and other common farming and kitchen tools. The food at home was running low, and they needed to buy more oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and other supplies from the grocery store. Also, they had to buy clothes, shoes, and other daily necessities for Ling Jingxuan and the two children. These were all things that the father and the two sons had already discussed yesterday, and even Da Baozi had agreed, although when it came to buying clothes and shoes, he was very reluctant.

“What? Thirty wen? Are you robbing people? This is so expensive!”

The family of three stood in the ready-made clothing shop. As soon as Da Baozi heard that a set of clothes for summer would cost thirty wen, his face immediately turned red. He tightly gripped the worn-out money pouch with his little hands, and the shopkeeper, as well as the customers who were buying things, all stared at them in shock. Ling Jingxuan immediately felt like crying. “Son, we earn money to spend it, not to save it for when we have grandchildren!”

Cough cough… “Xiao Wen, thirty wen isn’t that expensive. Look, these are complete sets. You can wear them as soon as you buy them.”

While speaking, Ling Jingxuan subtly glanced at the customers around them who had started to react and were pointing and whispering. Ling Wen’s face turned even redder with embarrassment. However, after glancing at the thin, small clothes his father was holding, and considering that such a small amount of fabric would cost thirty wen, he still refused to budge.

“Hmm… if you think ready-made clothes are too expensive, how about looking at the cloth over here? This cotton fabric is only ten wen per foot. With your sizes, a foot and a half should be enough to make a set of clothes, and there’ll even be some left over.”

The shopkeeper, quickly regaining his composure, picked up a piece of blue cotton fabric. Ling Wen’s eyes lit up, and he was about to speak, but Ling Jingxuan hastily stopped him. “No, Xiao Wen, don’t. Father can’t make clothes. Let’s just buy the ready-made ones, alright?”

Let him pick up a needle and thread? Don’t be ridiculous—he’s only ever used surgical needles and silver needles for acupuncture, not needles for sewing clothes!

“But the fabric is cheap. A foot and a half can make a whole set of clothes!” Ling Wen still wasn’t willing to give up. He kept staring at the fabric, unwilling to look away. Thirty wen for a ready-made set of clothes… he could buy three feet of fabric and make two sets instead!

“No, Xiao Wen, listen to me. The fabric is cheap, but it’s not clothes yet. You can’t wear it just like that. Father doesn’t know how to make clothes. We’d have to ask Grandma to help, but now it’s the busy farming season. Would you really want Grandma to spend all day working in the fields and then stay up at night making clothes for us? And besides, I plan to send you and your brother to private school in a few days. You’ll need at least two decent sets of clothes, won’t you?”

No matter what, he wasn’t going to let his son buy a bunch of fabric and bring it home.

“Well… alright then.”

After a long moment of staring deeply into his father’s eyes, Ling Wen turned his gaze to the crowd around them, who had been paying attention to their conversation. He gritted his teeth, finally nodded. He may be a little stingy, but he really did feel for his hardworking grandparents and didn’t want to add to their burdens.

Ling Jingxuan couldn’t help but let out an exaggerated sigh of relief. He stood up and said to the shopkeeper, “Please, according to our sizes, two sets for adults, four sets for the children, and matching cloth shoes. Also, give me a roll of white cotton fabric.”

The one good thing about ancient clothing was that there was no need to try it on. Everything was a loose fit, which suited Ling Jingxuan’s preferences.

“Alright, please wait a moment, guest.”

The shopkeeper couldn’t help but smile when he heard this, quickly turning to instruct his assistants to get the items ready. Da Baozi, with an unhappy face, tugged at Ling Jingxuan’s sleeve. “Didn’t you say one set of clothes per person? Why are you buying so many? And the white cotton fabric—why buy so much?”

Da Baozi was also very concerned about his image. When Ling Jingxuan bent down, Da Baozi whispered into his ear, pouting his bright red lips, clearly upset.

“Don’t we need to change clothes? Anyway, we’d have to buy them eventually, so why not buy them all at once? That white cotton fabric is for sealing the jam jars. We’re planning to sell a hundred jars tomorrow. How could we have enough rag scraps at home? Xiao Wen, we really can’t save money on things like this.”

No matter how much Ling Wen complained, Ling Jingxuan always had a hundred different ways to persuade him. If he, a grown man, couldn’t even convince a five-year-old, he might as well give up on life.

Upon hearing this, Ling Wen, though still unhappy, had no choice but to purse his lips and agree. He tried his best to stop thinking about the money being spent. But the moment he turned around, as if remembering something, he cautiously glanced at Ling Jingxuan before carefully asking, “What about that person? He doesn’t have any clothes. Should we buy him a set?”

As soon as he said it, he regretted it. He felt like biting his own tongue. Why did he have to say something so silly? What if Father…

Ling Jingxuan froze for a moment, then saw his son’s expression full of regret. He couldn’t help but laugh and ruffle his hair. The father-son bond was undeniable. No matter how much Ling Wen resented the man, he still cared about him in his heart.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, sir. The adult clothes are fifty wen each. Four sets will be two hundred wen. The children’s clothes are thirty wen each, four sets for one hundred and twenty wen. The white cotton fabric is three hundred wen per roll. The shoes are a gift from our shop, so the total comes to six hundred and twenty wen.”

In the end, Ling Jingxuan bought two sets of clothes for the man as well. When it came time to pay, Da Baozi felt so heartbroken it was almost painful. In contrast, Xiao Baozi was much more innocent, happily looking forward to his new clothes. Ling Jingxuan asked the shopkeeper to have the large bundle delivered to the fish market and left the ready-made clothing shop, empty-handed, holding the two Baozis’ hands.

“Don’t count it. We make money to spend it, right? We can’t save on things like this.”

Seeing Da Baozi repeatedly count the remaining silver and four big coins in the pouch, Ling Jingxuan couldn’t help but shake his head helplessly. He had already picked the cheapest items. It was funny how, in ancient times, cotton clothes were the cheapest, but satin—so fragile it unraveled with a touch—was ridiculously expensive. Compared to that, he’d rather wear cotton clothes. They absorbed sweat, were breathable, and were far more comfortable.

“I know, I’m just upset about the money.”

Putting the big coins back in the pouch, Ling Wen grumbled, clutching it tightly. Ling Jingxuan, seeing his son’s reaction, didn’t press the issue. Some things took time, and he couldn’t be too demanding. If he pushed too hard, his little bun might turn into a sulky one.

Afterward, the three of them visited the blacksmith shop and the grocery store. Even though they had enough money, no matter how much Ling Jingxuan tried to persuade him, Da Baozi insisted on buying the cheapest things, even if it meant sacrificing quality. As they were heading to the apothecary, Ling Jingxuan looked at his satisfied, smiling little buns and clenched his fists, silently vowing that one day he’d turn them into super little meat buns—pampered second-generation rich kids!

Hehe. . . My little miser Da Baozi. . .

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Translator: LazyHermitGal