Gou Zai Xianwu Wenjing Search for Opportunities

Old Man Lin didn't believe his cunning son at all, and snorted coldly. But he was tired and sleepy from chopping wood during the day and stealing fish at night, and he was too lazy to scold his son anymore. He said helplessly:

"Sun Jingang and his gang have been keeping a close eye on things lately, and they've caught quite a few people catching fish illegally in the last two months. Don't take this fish to town to sell; keep it at home for yourself. Where's the fish you caught? Bring it over quickly, and I'll marinate it before dawn."

Over the years, the salted fish Lin Yuan ate was all secretly obtained by his father in the middle of the night. In this difficult world, people in the countryside resort to all sorts of methods to survive.

"Father, I really didn't go fishing." Lin Yuan smiled tactfully.

"You went to the river in the middle of the night and got all wet. What else could you be doing but fishing! Have you forgotten how to fish?" The old man was really angry now. His youngest son had been fishing with him for several years, and he had taught him by hand. Now that he had just started studying and learning martial arts, he had forgotten how to make a living.

"I had just gone into the water when I heard someone coming, which scared me so much that I ran back immediately." Lin Yuan dared not tell the truth and could only make up a lame excuse.

"They're all just slacking off, what's there to be afraid of? Just ask him for two fish, what's wrong with him?" The old man shook his head in disappointment, angry at his son's lack of ambition, feeling that this son was a waste, having lost his courage after learning martial arts.

How can you live in this world if you don't have guts?

Lin Yuan fell silent. His father was truly a master of slacking off; he was no match for him.

The old man snorted and ignored him, carrying the fish basket to the water tank to clean the fresh fish.

Lin Yuan silently returned to his room, found some scissors, dug out a bamboo basket from under the bed, and cut all the silver ingots engraved with "Jiuling" into small pieces. He then put five taels of the silver into a small cloth bag.

After thinking for a moment, he added another five taels.

The ten taels of silver were the two years' worth of tuition money that his family had lent him. Now he was paying it back to his family in advance. It could be used to pay off debts or to pay the autumn tax. His father and elder brother wouldn't have to work day and night anymore.

He wanted to give more, but he needed the money to practice martial arts, so he had to use it wisely. Only when he became a martial arts master could the Lin family truly escape the clutches of the rural people.

Lin Yuan went out of the house with his money bag in his hand and found that the fish had been cleaned and the pickled fish were hanging in the shed. His father was cooking the fish in the kitchen.

"How did this tinder go out?" the old man scolded from inside the kitchen, blowing on the tinder. "That Xi'er girl is so careless, really..."

Lin Yuan pushed open the door and entered, ignoring the dying tinderbox, and handed over the money bag directly: "Father, I have something to tell you."

"What?" The old man asked, puzzled, but still took the money pouch. He opened it, his brows furrowing as he quickly pulled out some loose silver. He weighed it in his hand, his old eyes instantly brightening. He lowered his voice and said, "So much? Where did it come from? Borrowed? You dare lend it to me at interest? Don't you want to live?"

The old man's eyes were wide open, and his rough hands pressed down on his youngest son's shoulders. As soon as the other party said it was borrowed money for interest, he would immediately take action.

"Li Tingzuo gave me five taels last time, and then my elder brother gave me another five taels. I've been saving them and haven't spent them... I'm already very grateful that you sent me to school; life at home isn't easy. I'll find a way to pay for my martial arts lessons myself, so you don't need to worry about it. But don't tell anyone else about this; just say you borrowed it from your aunt..."

"Stop giving me that crap. This past month, you've spent a fortune on renting a place, buying new clothes, and attending martial arts classes... Don't think I'm some country bumpkin who doesn't know anything. Hurry up and pay back the interest!"

The old man shoved the money bag into his arms, slapping him on the shoulder at the same time: "Don't borrow money with interest in the future. You might borrow it but not pay it back. Don't get yourself into trouble!"

"Dad, don't get agitated!" Seeing that his father was so shrewd and not easily fooled, Lin Yuan quickly pressed his hand down and reassured him, "It really wasn't borrowed! I've been favored by Master Xu and am now working as his teaching assistant to earn some money. I've also made many good friends and am doing odd jobs for them to earn some extra cash... This money is mine, I can handle it, don't worry."

"Really?" Old Man Lin breathed a sigh of relief when he saw him nod firmly, which didn't seem like a lie. He then sighed with satisfaction, "You little rascal, you've been cunning since you were a child. I don't think you'll be so easily tricked."

Lin Yuan was both amused and exasperated, and could only accept his father's praise.

After saying this, the old man stuffed the money pouch into his pocket, tightened his collar, and said earnestly, "I heard from your older brother that you work for Li Tingzuo and have some dealings with those people from the Black Snake Gang?"

"I was just offering an idea; this won't involve me. Don't worry."

"Sigh, you'd better stay out of the Black Snake Gang's business. They're all bad people. I don't expect you to amount to anything. You don't need to practice any martial arts. Why waste your money? Just be a good accountant, get married, and start a family. Isn't that good enough?"

"I know," Lin Yuan replied perfunctorily.

Seeing that his son wouldn't listen, the old man knew his son was grown up and he couldn't control him too much, so he could only sigh and say, "Even if you make money, don't go around talking about it, lest you bring trouble upon yourself."

"Okay, I'm going back to my room to sleep."

"Go."

Watching his youngest son's retreating figure, the old man lit a fire and started cooking a pot of carp soup, a smile involuntarily playing on his lips: "He's been clever since he was little; he's more successful than his older brother!"

……

Lin Yuan returned to his room, but couldn't fall asleep. He hid the loose silver pieces in different places to spread out the risk.

Finally, he put several dozen taels of loose silver into the egg bag. The ground was so uncomfortable that he had to take some out and hide them on his person and in the bamboo basket.

After he finished his fuss, he lay on the bed pretending to sleep until dawn.

……

The sky was just beginning to lighten.

Lin Yuan smelled the aroma of fish and immediately felt hungry. He got up and went to the kitchen. The door was closed, and people were talking inside.

Old Man Lin said, "Xi'er, last year we borrowed five taels of silver from your mother to send Erlu to school, and this year we borrowed another five taels for Erlu's martial arts training. Consider this ten taels of silver as repayment to your mother. Today, you and Dalu go back to your mother's house to return the money. You two should also take some rice and cooking oil with you; life in the mountains isn't easy..."

"Father, it was agreed that this was for Erlu's wedding expenses. As the eldest brother, Dalu shouldn't take this money..." the sister-in-law advised.

"Father, yes. Erlu said he doesn't want the family's land and houses, so I should pay for Erlu's share. I can pay my aunt back later," the eldest brother chimed in.

"There are floods every year. Farming means paying taxes, while not farming means paying less tax. Don't you see how many families in the village have sold their land at rock-bottom prices? If there's another flood next year, will you still be able to pay the autumn tax? Let me tell you the truth, this year I plan to sell half of my land to the Marquis of Jiuling's mansion." The old man scolded his eldest son with a hint of anger.

"Ah, selling it to the Zhang family at such a low price, it's practically giving it away for free. These fields were reclaimed by our ancestors!" The eldest brother couldn't bear it.

"What can we do? If we don't send them out, how will our family survive if there's another flood? How many more years can I chop firewood with my old bones? How many more years can you carry sacks, no matter how strong you are? Don't you see how many people in the village have been exhausted to the point of vomiting blood after carrying sacks?" The old man sighed.

With years of severe flooding, even if there isn't a major flood next year, what about the year after?

Given the current trend of flooding, these fields are uncultivable.

The sister-in-law opened her mouth as if to speak, but then closed it again, while the brother-in-law lowered his head and remained silent.

Seeing the two of them lower their heads, the old man continued, "If you're successful and can earn money, then pay it back, and I won't say anything. Right now, your aunt is worried about arranging a marriage for Dali. These days, how can you get married without a dowry, especially a marriage in the mountains? Hurry up and pay the money back, don't delay Dali's marriage!"

The older brother sighed and accepted reality.

"Father, we still have to pay the autumn tax and corvée labor fees next month. How about we keep some for ourselves?" The eldest sister-in-law knew about the situation of both families.

The Zhou family were hunters in the Jiuling Mountains, making a living by gathering herbs and hunting. They didn't own any land, so they had to buy rice, flour, oil, and salt from outside the town because they were too expensive. Therefore, they traded with relatives who farmed.

Herb gathering and hunting are random and risky, with a high ceiling and a low floor. In addition, having to pay half of the taxes to the Marquis of Jiuling makes the floor even lower, which is why the Zhou family ancestors did not have an easy life.

In earlier years, the weather was favorable, and the Lin family had accumulated some savings thanks to the hard work of their ancestors in reclaiming wasteland and farming. When the Zhou family was poor, the Lin family helped them out and even married their daughter to them without accepting any dowry.

Later, her sister-in-law's father dug up a century-old ginseng, which was bought by the Marquis's mansion for sixty or seventy taels of silver, and that's how she turned her life around. That year, Zhou Xi'er was born, and the old man was so happy that he named his granddaughter Xi'er, meaning that good things were about to happen. Later, he married Xi'er into the Lin family, and the families became related through marriage for generations.

For the past decade, the Lin family's fields have been flooded year after year, gradually depleting their wealth. The Zhou family, in turn, has been helping the Lin family out.

Neither of the two families owes the other anything; they simply support each other and weather the storm together.

"We have the money for the grain tax; Da Lv will go buy the grain these next few days. As for the poll tax and other levies, Da Lv and I can work for another two months and that will be enough... As for corvée labor, I'll do it when the time comes." The old man had the temperament of a patriarch, and his words were not to be questioned.

"Sigh, alright then." The eldest sister-in-law sighed, accepted the silver, then suddenly her eyes lit up with curiosity, and she asked, "Father, where did this silver come from?"

"Don't ask! Don't flaunt your wealth, it attracts envy," the old man cautioned again. "And you two, don't gossip!"

"I know, I know!" Although my sister-in-law loves to gossip, she only ever talks about other people's gossip.