Chapter 35: Change

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“…”

Ning Dalang cried out inwardly, Oh no.

He had been so excited about finally having a mule in the family that he had completely forgotten to tell his wife about the house deed and land deed.

Feeling his way up, Ning Dalang crept quietly toward the room.

Inside the room, Meng-shi, who was accustomed to the whole family sleeping crammed together, was not asleep either. After her excitement had faded, she remembered that she had forgotten to ask Ning Dalang about the house deed, the land deed, and when they should visit his parents, eldest sister, and younger sister.

Just then, she heard the door creak softly and chuckled.

“Wife, wife, are you asleep?”

Ning Dalang carefully felt his way to the bedside. “Wife?”

“I’m awake,” Meng-shi replied irritably.

If she did not answer, Ning Dalang would keep asking for ages.

“Wife, the house deed and land deed are all taken care of. I’ll give them to you for safekeeping. Father and Mother said they’ll come to our house on the fourth day of the New Year. Their brothers will come too. My eldest sister-in-law and youngest sister-in-law said they’ll come on the fifth day and help us work for a day.”

The main reason was that their house was too small to accommodate everyone.

“I also went to speak with your uncles. They said they’ll come on the morning of the fifth.”

Meng-shi noted everything down one by one: how many people from the family branches in the village would come, how many tables they would need to set up, how much grain would be required, and how many bowls, chopsticks, stools, and other things they would have to borrow.

“You’ll also need to go to the county town to buy grain.”

“Should I take the mule?” Ning Dalang asked quickly.

“That mule looks awfully stubborn. I’m afraid it won’t let you lead it. Have A-Xin go with you. When you reach the county town, remember to buy her something to eat.”

“Our daughter is wonderful in every way, but she doesn’t know how to take care of herself. As her father, if you take her to the county town and pinch every penny so tightly that you don’t spend a single coin, won’t she learn that from you?”

“If we had no money and were poor, that would be one thing. But now she’s brought back several dozen taels of silver. That’s more than enough to repair the house. Once we reclaim that wasteland and plant some fruits and vegetables, then raise chickens, ducks, and pigs, there will certainly be enough for the whole family to eat.”

“When you come back from the county town, buy the children some snacks too. It doesn’t matter how much. At least give them something to look forward to from you.”

Meng-shi patiently spelled it all out for Ning Dalang.

He was a man, after all, and careless by nature.

But as a husband, he was an excellent one.

As a father, he was better still.

“Mm-hmm. Don’t worry, wife. I’ll remember everything.”

Meng-shi snorted and urged him, “Go bring the three children inside. What if they catch cold sleeping outside?”

“Right away.”

Ning Dalang carried his three younger sons into the room. After thinking it over, he decided to continue sleeping beneath the eaves with his two elder sons.

Meng-shi did not bother with him.

Men remained boys at heart until the day they died. It was a good thing that her own man still possessed such an innocent heart.

Compared with the peaceful happiness of the eldest branch, Wu-shi of the second branch was telling Ning Erlang that she wanted to arrange for Ning Xin to marry her nephew from her maiden family.

Ning Erlang sneered. “Your nephew? He thinks he’s good enough for her? Has a donkey kicked your brain?”

“Ning Erlang…”

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“You’re driving me crazy. If you’re not going to sleep, I still am.”

As he spoke, Ning Erlang turned over, presenting his back to Wu-shi. Before long, his snores filled the room.

Wu-shi angrily pinched the bedding several times.

She thought that since Ning Xin had bought a mule, she could borrow it later to take her son to her maiden family.

The thought made her especially pleased with herself.

Mu-shi of the fifth branch was likewise unable to sleep, tossing and turning restlessly.

“What are you doing, making pancakes? You keep flipping over and over,” Ning Wulang teased.

“The eldest branch bought a mule.”

“So they bought one. It’s only a—” Ning Wulang suddenly sat up. “What did you say? What did the eldest branch buy?”

“A mule.”

“A mule? Where did the eldest branch get the money to buy a mule…?”

Ning Wulang could not finish the sentence.

After all, Ning Xin was capable and strong enough to bring down wild boars.

“Eldest Sister-in-law even said that the mule would be part of Ning Xin’s dowry.”

“Why should it be? That mule belongs to the Ning family. Why should we give it away cheaply to Ning Xin’s future husband’s family? No, I won’t agree to this.”

Mu-shi said nothing more. She certainly had no intention of reminding Ning Wulang that they had already divided the family estate and were no longer one household.

Ning Wulang would not make a fuss, but his mother would.

It did not matter who caused the commotion, so long as Mu-shi herself benefited in the end.

As for whether her mother-in-law would lose face or be scolded by her father-in-law, that was none of her concern.

Ning Xin woke precisely on time and entered the spatial realm to train. She discovered that the realm was once again making things difficult for her today, subjecting her to even heavier pressure.

Still, Ning Xin gritted her teeth and endured it.

After an hour, she was ruthlessly expelled from the realm.

Ning Xin sat up in bed. With her two younger brothers gone, the bed was much more spacious.

Ning Nuan and Ning Huan slept beneath the same quilt, nestled against each other in sweet slumber.

She vaguely remembered someone washing her face and feet for her.

Ning Xin pinched both her younger sisters’ cheeks, then smiled and got out of bed to wash and dress.

Now that she was the owner of a mule, she had to earn plenty of silver to buy grain. After they moved, she would also need to build a shed for the mule.

At least then it would not freeze in winter.

Ning Xin would never have imagined that her father, Ning Kui, and Ning Zhuang would be sleeping beneath the eaves.

The mule, meanwhile, was sleeping as soundly as if the heavens themselves had collapsed.

Ning Xin did not linger. Carrying a woodcutter’s knife and a coil of hemp rope, she headed into the mountains.

After Ning Xin climbed over the courtyard wall, Ning Dalang slowly sat up.

He had never imagined that his daughter would leave for the mountains so early. For a moment, Ning Dalang felt deeply distressed.

His heart grew heavy.

Ning Xin, however, was thinking of none of that. At that moment, she was searching the mountains for sable and had already caught three.

The sables ran quickly, but Ning Xin was faster.

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Moreover, her eyesight was keen and her sense of smell exceptionally sharp. After catching four sables, Ning Xin went on to capture two deer. Then she happily descended the mountain and headed for the county town.

It was only just becoming light when she reached the city gate. Ning Xin waited for a while, and once the gates opened, she hoisted her prey and walked into the city.

The guards still failed to stop her.

Mostly because they were stunned speechless.

“…”

When Shopkeeper Yuan saw her, he was equally astonished.

The four sables sold for sixty taels, while the two deer brought ten. Ning Xin asked only for small silver coins, one tael at a time.

“With so much silver, won’t it be difficult to carry?” Shopkeeper Yuan asked in a low voice.

Ning Xin shook her head. “No.”

She could simply put it in her spatial realm. It would not inconvenience her in the slightest.

Smiling, Shopkeeper Yuan took out a booklet and handed it to Ning Xin.

“…”

Ning Xin looked at the pictures of animals inside. She had seen some of them before, while others were unfamiliar.

“Is this a pangolin?”

She seemed to remember seeing their heads.

“Truly precious animals include tigers and bears, but we don’t have such creatures around here.” Shopkeeper Yuan sounded somewhat regretful.

If they could obtain tigers or bears, even dead ones would fetch an enormous sum.

Ning Xin had no desire to travel far from home.

The mountains behind Ning Family Village were vast beyond measure. Ning Xin had run through them for several years without ever reaching the end.

There were many wild animals in the great mountains, as well as many medicinal herbs and valuable things. She simply had not understood any of that before and did not recognize them.

Ning Xin put away the silver and left Drunken Immortal Tower in high spirits.

To avoid having her mother twist her ear, she had learned her lesson today. She walked to a shop selling wontons, steamed buns, and mantou, then hesitantly said, “I’d like one mantou.”

“One copper coin.”

Ning Xin thought to herself that she could now be considered a little rich woman.

After steeling herself, she added, “I also want a bowl of wontons and one steamed bun.”

“Wontons, five copper coins; mantou, one; steamed bun, two. Eight copper coins altogether.”

“Miss, sit over there.”

The shopkeeper gestured toward an empty seat nearby.

Ning Xin sat down properly and waited for her food.

The wontons were brought over, steaming with fragrance. She picked up a spoon and scooped one up.

“Mmm, it’s delicious.”

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