Transmigrated into a minor official in a county government, with children at home waiting for rice t

The worker, Awang, pushed a wheelbarrow out of the backyard, loaded the corn and flour sacks onto it, tied them up, placed the oil can and salt bag in the middle of the grain sacks, and put the window paper on top, securing it with two hemp ropes.

He greeted them with a forced smile, then pushed his wheelbarrow and left.

They've been neighbors for years, so Ah Wang naturally knew where the Zhang family's old house was, and there was no need for him to follow them.

After leaving Songji Grocery Store, Zhang Sanlang went to the cloth shop on the street corner.

Manager Zhu was a round-faced, chubby man who was directing his employees to stack the newly arrived linen on the shelves.

Seeing Zhang Sanlang enter, his chubby face scrunched up in a wide grin: "Sanlang's here!"

Zhang Sanlang nodded, walked to the counter, and reached out to touch a piece of linen on the shelf.

The fabric is rough but thick, making it suitable for winter clothing.

"Manager Zhu, how much is this linen?"

"This horse is newly arrived, it costs 120 coins. Sanlang, would you like some clothes made with it?"

Zhang Sanlang counted out twenty-four coins and placed them on the counter. "Make winter clothes for the two children. Just eight feet."

He glanced at the fabrics spread out on the counter and casually remarked, "Your linen came from Puyang, right? I heard Puyang just had a flood, and more than half of the mulberry fields were submerged. The price of silk and linen is probably going to go up."

Upon hearing this, Manager Zhu stopped holding the cloth on the counter and glared at him. "Sanlang, is this information accurate?"

"The tax bills handled by the Household Department show that the price of silk has already gone up," Zhang Sanlang said casually.

Upon hearing this, Manager Zhu turned around, pulled out the bolt of linen from the shelf, picked up the cutting scissors, and cut another piece.

He folded the newly cut cloth, tied it together with the previous eight feet, and pushed it into Zhang Sanlang's hands. "Take this. It's enough to make three outfits. I think you should change the one you're wearing."

Zhang Sanlang took the roll of cloth and weighed it in his hand.

The weight was much heavier than before, at least twenty feet. "Manager Zhu, how can I accept this?"

"What's there to be embarrassed about?" Manager Zhu slammed the scissors on the counter. "Whether what you just said is worth ten feet of cloth or not, I know better than you. From now on, let me know if you have any news; it's worth much more than ten feet of cloth."

He turned to his shop assistant and shouted, "Don't rush to sell this batch of linen. Hold onto it until the price goes up!"

Shopkeeper Zhu turned around, smiling and lowering his voice, "Sanlang, I've been doing business with you for several years now. Before, when you came to buy cloth, you'd just put down the money and leave without saying a word. What's wrong with you today? Why are you suddenly concerned about the floods in Puyang?"

Zhang Sanlang tucked the roll of cloth under his arm, glanced at him, and said, "I used to be tongue-tied and didn't know how to talk. A while ago, I got a blow to the back of the head and lay in bed for three days. When I woke up, I suddenly had a breakthrough. I guess that blow cleared my mind."

Shopkeeper Zhu was stunned for a moment, then laughed heartily and patted the counter, "That was a good blow! It's brought out a eloquent Zhang Sanlang. From now on, you'll have to take a few more blows, uh, no, I mean, come and sit in my shop more often."

"I'll remember what Manager Zhu said." Zhang Sanlang pointed to the back of his head and grinned. "Once my injury is fully healed, I'll come back and ask you for a cup of tea."

Shopkeeper Zhu laughed and nodded in agreement. His eyes swept over Ximei and Qingge, and he slapped his forehead, pulling out an oil paper package from under the counter. He waved to them, "Here, Uncle has some sesame candy. I was so busy talking to your father that I forgot to take it out."

happy Mei glanced at Zhang Sanlang, and only after seeing him nod did she step forward to take the oil paper package and thank Manager Zhu.

Manager Zhu straightened up, cupped his hands in greeting to Zhang Sanlang, and said, "You must come again if you have any news next time."

"Definitely." Zhang Sanlang switched the cloth roll to his other armpit, and led the two children out of the cloth shop.

Qingge looked up and asked, "Dad, why is the price of cloth going up?"

"Because the mulberry fields were flooded."

"What does the flooding of Sangtian have to do with us?"

"It's alright. We're not wearing silk anyway." Zhang Sanlang pulled him to the side of the road, and a woodcutter carrying a load of firewood squeezed past them, with a large bundle of dry firewood hanging from each end of the carrying pole.

The firewood brushed past Qingge's head, and a few withered leaves fell onto his shoulders.

Qingge shrank his neck, and Ximei picked off the leaves for him.

Qingge'er then asked curiously, "Will the price of silk clothing go up too?"

"Prices are going up too. Those wearing silk will have to pay more, while those wearing hemp will suffer the same fate." Zhang Sanlang patted the roll of cloth under his arm. "But let's buy it now, so we won't suffer the same fate for the next few months."

Qingge'er seemed to understand but not quite, and walked forward stepping on the cracks between the stone slabs on the street.

happy Mei'er chimed in from the side, "What Dad means is that the fabric has already been bought, so whether the price goes up or not is none of our business."

She watched as Zhang Sanlang chatted with the shopkeepers while driving down the prices of the goods. She couldn't quite understand what he was saying, but the shopkeepers, after listening, humbled themselves and busied themselves sending out goods.

He never used to haggle when buying things; he would just pay whatever the shopkeeper asked for. It wasn't that he didn't want to save money, but he was too embarrassed to ask.

Today's father doesn't haggle with people, but he's more eloquent than those shopkeepers, and he can get people to give him discounts and freebies with just a few words.

She recalled what Zhang Sanlang had just said to Manager Zhu: "After being hit on the back of the head, I suddenly had a breakthrough."

Zhang Sanlang spoke with a smile, and Manager Zhu also smiled and patted the counter, but happy Mei couldn't smile.

Others might not know how heavy that blow was, but she did.

She stayed by the bedside for three days, tearing old cloth into strips every day to change the dressing. The blood clots dried and then got wet again, and dried and then got wet again, staining more than a dozen strips of cloth.

When Zhang Sanlang was unconscious, his jaw was clenched tightly, and he couldn't be woken up no matter how much you called him.

Things were different after I woke up.

The way he speaks is different, the way he looks at people is different, even the tone of his voice when he speaks to the shopkeeper is different.

He chatted casually with the shopkeepers, a smile on his face that I had never seen before.

happy Mei held Qing Ge'er's hand tightly.

She didn't know whether the blow had injured her father or healed him.

All she knew was that the person in front of her, and the father she had guarded for three days and three nights, seemed to be no longer the same father.

Back home, Zhang Sanlang began pasting paper on the windows.

He peeled off the old window paper, and bits of dried paste fell off in a flurry.

After Ximei took a handful of flour and cooked it into a paste, Zhang Sanlang dipped a brush in it and spread it evenly on the window frame. He then unfolded the new window paper, aligned it, and stuck it on, using his palm to push out the air bubbles from the center outwards.

happy Mei helped hold down the corner of the paper. Qing Ge squatted on the ground, holding the old window paper and looking out through the hole, when happy Mei gently patted him on the head.

The father and daughter worked for most of the hour. After the window paper was pasted on, the room became much brighter. Sunlight shone through the new paper, making the whole room bright, and even the copper buckle on the broken wooden box in the corner gleamed.

happy Mei walked to the stove and started a fire to cook.

She rinsed two handfuls of the newly bought rice, then thought for a moment and grabbed an extra small handful.

As the water in the iron pot boiled, the rice grains tumbled and rolled in the boiling water. The firelight from the stove reflected on her face, and her eyes were a little red.

Qingge held the newly bought bag of flour, gestured with his hand on the bag, and shouted that he wanted to eat pancakes.

happy Mei nodded and poked at the firewood in the stove with a fire poker.