Chapter 133 (1/2)

Chapter 133: 133

“The weather’s getting warmer day by day, so it’s better not to put it out for too long . Today I’m giving this duck to Third Young Master Zhou to taste . If he thinks it’s good, we will then talk about cooperating!” Yu Xiaocao smiled faintly .

“That’s good, that’s good! Auntie’s not going to delay you anymore . Go early and come back early, I’ll wait for the good news!” Madam Mao was surprised that Xiaocao was able to come up with a new recipe this quickly . She hoped that the owner of Zhenxiu Restaurant would be attracted to the recipe in Xiaocao’s hands so that her family’s slow-selling ducks could be sold at a good price .

The sisters waved farewell to the Madam Mao . They hurried the little donkey towards the entrance of the village .

“Oh my! Aren’t you the twin sisters from Dahai’s family? Where are you guys going? If you guys are going to town, can you take me along?” A fake sounding voice made the two sisters feel uncomfortable just by hearing it .

Xiaocao looked closely at the person . It turned out to be Madam Xiong, who was usually very close to Madam Li . She was worthy of her surname [1] . Madam Xiong looked tough and she had a stocky build; she had a swarthy complexion and was very rude . She looked even worse than a blind bear!

As the proverb goes, ‘birds of a feather flock together’ . Madam Xiong was the same as Madam Li . She was lazy, greedy, and was a notorious gossip who talked behind other people’s backs . For this reason, almost all the married women in the village have had conflicts with her before . Out of the whole Dongshan Village, it was hard to find a second person who was willing to talk to her besides Madam Li .

Xiaocao didn’t want to bring her along . It wasn’t only because of her character, but more importantly, because of her weight . She weighed over 200 pounds, and Xiaocao was afraid that she would tire out her Little Gray .

However, they were from the same village . If she didn’t bring her along, Xiaocao was afraid that this woman would badmouth her family around the whole village . Xiaocao forced herself to smile and said, “Uncle Liu’s wife, come on up!”

Madam Xiong agreed and climbed up from the back of the handcart; her movement almost made Little Gray snap . Little Gray turned around like a human and glanced behind it . It let out a few whinnies . It sounded like it was protesting .

“Is this the dying donkey that your family bought last time? Its fate is pretty good; it didn’t die! However, it’s still kind of skinny, so it can’t do much work!” She didn’t think about the effect of her weight on the donkey . Instead, she blamed it on Xiaocao’s donkey . She was an annoying woman . Xiaolian was always blunt with her words . “How much money would it cost to buy a strong donkey? Auntie, if you lend us money, then our family will buy a new donkey…”

“Uh . . . ” Madam Xiong choked on Xiaolian’s words . After a while, she replied, “If I had extra money, I would’ve bought one a long time ago . Even if I don’t have the cart, I can ride it when I go back to my parental home!”

Xiaocao thought, ‘With your size, don’t even talk about a donkey, even if it was the strongest horse, it still wouldn’t be able to carry your weight . ’

Madam Xiong continued, “Besides, your family sells braised food and vegetables . You guys probably earned a decent amount of money! Everyone in this village knows that the Yu Family’s second son has connections with the rich families in town . Even if they just gave you a little money, it would be enough for you to eat and spend . Do you still need to ask my family for money to buy a donkey?”

Yu Xiaocao was too lazy to even bother with her . She pulled on Xiaolian clothes quietly, hinting at her to stop the conversation . However, Madam Xiong had no awareness at all, as she continued to talk . She said, “Xiaolian, what are guys doing in town?”

Xiaocao replied faintly, “Nothing much! We’re just buying the ingredients for the braised food . ”

Madam Xiong continued, “You guys must earn a lot from selling braised food, right? I heard from your older uncle’s wife that you earn at least a hundred copper coins in a day . Then don’t you guys earn at least three to four taels of silver in a month? Oh my! Even the head of the village may not be as wealthy as your family . ”

The village head’s oldest son followed people everywhere to do business and earned some money . The younger son was a scholar who had pa.s.sed the county examinations and was highly valued by the previous county magistrate . He became the magistrate’s secretary . The village head’s family had about 100 mu of good farmland . They were considered a first-cla.s.s family in the village . By comparing the Yu Family with the village head’s, Madam Xiong was roasting Xiaocao’s family on fire!

Yu Xiaocao frowned and said in an unhappy tone, “After subtracting the original cost it took for me to make the one copper coin per portion of braised food, how much money would be left over? It’s not even enough for the household expenses . Right now, we’re going to town to buy some seasoning and spices . The amount of money we need to buy these items is at least one to two taels of silver . One to two taels of seasoning would only last about a month before it’s gone! Uncle Liu’s wife, how much profit would we actually earn?”

Madam Xiong eyes whirled as she said, “You also need spices? Which spices do you need? Why don’t you tell me?”

Yu Xiaocao tilted her head and looked at her . She said directly, “It’s an exclusive recipe . I apologize, but I can’t tell you!”

Madam Xiong grumbled a few times and curled her mouth unhappily . She had longed for the Yu Family’s braised food recipe for a long time . Ever since she found out that Madam Zhang and her daughter-in-law got the recipe from Xiaocao, Madam Li had been tricked by Madam Xiong’s words multiple times . Madam Li had always talked without thinking .

Unfortunately, the recipe had been monopolized by Madam Zhang . Even if she couldn’t have a business, she also wouldn’t let other people take advantage of it . Also, Madam Zhang heard that the special recipe was already bought by Zhenxiu Restaurant . Although Madam Zhang appeared to be a tyrant at home, in actuality, she was timid and a coward . She was afraid that if she disclosed the recipe, the powerful Zhou Family in Tanggu Town will punish her . So, Madam Zhang burnt the recipe secretly, and therefore, Madam Xiong couldn’t get anything out of her .

Madam Xiong looked like she was the close relative of a bear, but she wasn’t stupid at all . Instead, she was very shrewd . She knew that she couldn’t get anything from Madam Li, so she wanted to get the information from the sisters by tricking them, thinking that it was easy to trick the kids . The result was that she got rejected by Xiaocao . Madam Xiong silently cursed the Yu Family’s eight generations of ancestors .

After that, the sisters ignored whatever Madam Xiong said, so she stopped looking for trouble herself . The more you paid attention to Madam Xiong, the more she would climb all over you . It was best to give her the cold shoulder .