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Chapter 404: Chapter 407: Probing the Depths - 1
The next day, Qiao Duo’er went over to Old Lady Huang’s House, hoping to ask Aunt Huang to help find a few reliable people to cut grass.
Musk deer are omnivorous animals that can eat common tree leaves and the stems of crops.
But they have a high standard for cleanliness, so the grass that is cut must be washed clean.
The mountain muntjacs were fed three times a day, and each were likely to eat about six jin of fresh grass. Qiao Duo’er roughly estimated that a total of 5000 jin was needed to ensure all the animals could safely get through the winter.
As for the price, for every five jin of grass that met the requirements, one could receive One Wen money.
The strong laborers in the village could easily cut 200 jin of grass a day, and with others helping to wash and dry the grass, earning thirty to forty Wen a day was no problem, which was much more profitable than working in town.
Aunt Huang wasn’t worried at all about people not taking the job; she was just concerned whether Qiao Duo’er could really use so much grass.
She kindly advised, "Your seven lambs are still young, and even with the cattle and donkey, they won’t finish all that grass. You should collect less."
"Thank you for the reminder, Auntie. Actually, besides those, we’re raising some other animals as well. If anyone asks, I’m hoping you can help come up with an excuse for me," said Qiao Duo’er politely—that was her real reason for seeking Aunt Huang’s help.
Aunt Huang nodded, "That’s easy to handle. I’ll just say I’m collecting a little on behalf of relatives."
As long as Qiao Duo’er kept track of everything, that was fine.
"I’m troubled by your help, Auntie."
Aunt Huang scolded playfully, "What trouble? Just go home and rest easy. I’ll go find people in a moment."
After sending Qiao Duo’er off, Aunt Huang knocked on several doors, all of trustworthy people, sure to be reliable workers.
However, everyone thought the idea of buying grass a bit strange and were somewhat skeptical about whether it would really sell for money, so many of them brought a basket of grass just to test the waters first.
If it really could be exchanged for money, then they would confidently cut more.
When the grass arrived at the Tan Family’s place, Tan Zhenghong weighed it, and Qiao Duo’er promptly paid.
Even if it was a liang or two short, she wasn’t nitpicky and gave the silver coins generously. She also arranged for them to deliver the grass in the evening thereafter.
Everyone expressed their thanks and then mobilized their entire families, young and old, to go cut grass.
People who had been watching from outside the Tan Family’s place saw others bringing in basket after basket of grass, and they couldn’t help but smile as they left. Could they not guess what was happening?
Thus, some came uninvited, bringing the grass they’d cut.
If it was clean, Qiao Duo’er would take it without question. But some people tried to game the system.
For instance, the Wife of Niu Er brought a basket of grass that was half full of mud.
After Tan Zhenghong reported the weight, Qiao Duo’er knew right away that it couldn’t possibly be that heavy if it was just grass.
Without a glance, she said, "You should take the grass back."
"Wife of the Fourth Boss, that’s not right. You’ve taken everyone else’s grass, why don’t you want mine?" the Wife of Niu Er protested dissatisfied.
Qiao Duo’er stated indifferently, "I made the requirements for the grass clear before I started to collect it. Look for yourself, is there a single stalk in this basket that meets the conditions?"
The Wife of Niu Er looked at the grass from other people and then her own, and her face started to show her embarrassment.
She thought Qiao Duo’er, taking one basket after another and paying for them, surely wouldn’t notice the mud in her basket.
But Qiao Duo’er didn’t even look at it before telling her to take it back.
"Wife of Niu Er, were you trying to sneak some extra money by mixing mud in? Or is it that your pigs and sheep eat mud?"
"If only mud could make them grow, there’d be no need to bother cutting grass, right?" Another woman joked.
