Chapter 22 Going to town
Qianhuan did it right away. She took a sack and went to the stream to pick up sand and gravel.
After running back and forth several times, she picked up more than 100 kilograms of sand and gravel in total. She picked up the sand and gravel of similar size.
After returning home, she poured all the sand and gravel on the bamboo fence, washed them all with water, and put them in the yard to dry.
Liu helped to use scissors to cut open the green thorny shell on the outside of the chestnut and take out the brown chestnut fruit inside.
"Mom, after you cut out all the chestnuts with thorny shells at home, rinse them with water and dry them in the yard. After the water dries up, bring them in." Qianhuan instructed.
"Okay, mom will make sure it's done well for you." Liu responded to her daughter while cutting chestnuts.
Qianhuan went back to her room and tied her hair up high. She used burning charcoal to make her eyebrows thicker, dressing herself like a man.
"Qianhua, why are you dressed like this?"
Seeing her daughter dressed in a weird way, Liu couldn't help but ask questions while cutting chestnuts.
"Mom, we need maltose to fry chestnuts, and we also need oil paper to pack chestnuts for sale. We also need an iron spatula, an iron stove and a scale. I plan to go to town and buy some things. It's more convenient for a woman to dress up as a man when she's out."
Qianhuan actually planned to go to the county town to investigate the market, but she knew her parents would definitely be worried, so she only said she would go to the town.
The young couple were indeed a little worried about her going alone.
"Qianhuan, let me go with you. I'm really worried about you, a girl, going to the town alone." Liang Laoer had difficulty walking and couldn't follow, so Liu asked to go with her.
"Mom, you just stay busy at home. After cutting all the chestnuts, you have to turn over the other half of the land in the backyard, and then you have to be busy planting vegetables. There are so many things waiting for you to do at home, and you don't even have enough time to do these chores, so how can you waste time accompanying me to town?" Qianhuan persuaded Liu.
She didn't want her parents to treat her like a kid, worrying about her when she went out. This would restrict her from doing anything on her own in the future. She had to let them see that she was capable of being on her own.
"Do you know the way to town? I'm afraid you'll get lost, or encounter danger on the way." Liu was worried that Qianhuan couldn't find the way.
"I have followed Dad to the town to sell small game many times before, so I am very familiar with the road. Besides, it is only four or five miles to the town. If we walk fast, we will be there in a quarter of an hour. I am a woman dressed as a man in broad daylight, so how can there be any danger? You and Dad can rest assured, it is very safe."
Qianhuan persuaded Liu and Liang Laoer. She inherited the original owner's memory, so she knew the way to the town.
"But, your father always took care of you before, but this time you are alone." Liu was still a little worried.
"Mom, I'm already 13 years old. The elder sister in the village is only one year older than me and she's already married. Don't worry, I can do it on my own." She continued to persuade Liu.
In the end, Liu couldn't resist and had to agree to her request, and asked her to come back early.
At the age of 13, a child is indeed a little adult. Many girls in the village get married at the age of thirteen or fourteen. In two years, her daughter will be able to get married and have children.
It's just that her marriage had just been broken off, her reputation was damaged, and she didn't know what her marriage would be like in the future. It would be nice to let her go out and walk around town by herself.
Qianhuan followed the original owner's memory and walked quickly all the way. In less than fifteen minutes, she reached the town.
There is only one street in the town, with shops on both sides. Most of the shops sell daily necessities such as firewood, rice, oil and salt.
There are also some shops selling cloth, but one can tell at a glance that there are not many materials and patterns to choose from.
Qianhuan walked into a Liuchen shop, which sold a variety of items, including salt and maltose. Qianhuan asked about the prices of the items. Maltose was 60 wen per pound, and one wen could buy oil paper bags.
After asking about the price, Qianhuan left. She wanted to go to the county town to have a look and compare prices.
The shopkeeper was very depressed when he saw that she asked a lot of questions and left without buying anything.
She went into another bookstore, trying to find a historical book. She searched for a long time but couldn't find it. Finally, the bookstore owner couldn't bear it anymore.
"I wonder what kind of books the young master wants to buy? Can I help find them?" The boss sitting at the door of the store asked Qianhuan.
"Old sir, I want to find a historical book, preferably one that records the situation of our entire continent."
"My bookstore mostly sells children's enlightenment books such as The Analects and Three Character Classic, as well as the Four Books and Five Classics, poetry and songs, and some folk story books. I don't have books like Historical Records here. I'm afraid you'll have to go to a larger bookstore in the county to buy them."
The old gentleman was a little puzzled. Don't scholars read the Four Books and Five Classics and books like poetry and songs every day? Who would have the leisure time to read books like Records of the Grand Historian?
Qianhuan thanked the old man and left the bookstore. The bookstore in this town is really too small. It seems that many things can only be bought in the county town.
Perhaps to avoid disturbing others, the town’s blacksmith shop is located at the end of the street, and the sound of “nailing, clanging, clanging” can be heard from a long distance away.
Qianhuan followed the sound and came over, only to see that the blacksmith shop was very simple.
Outside, the four corners of a tarpaulin were tied with four strong ropes, which were stretched tight and fixed on several sturdy pillars.
Under the tarpaulin, there was a large stove, a bellows, an anvil, and next to the anvil was a water tank.
But in such a simple shop, the raw iron blocks were turned into various production tools and daily necessities by the blacksmith's hammering.
The blacksmith was in his fifties, short in stature, and wore an apron full of holes on his chest.
Seeing Qianhuan coming in, he stopped what he was doing and asked, "Little brother, what kind of ironware do you need?"
"Excuse me, how much silver does it cost to make a big iron spatula? It's about twice the size of the spatula I usually use for cooking." Qianhuan gestured. She needed a big spatula to stir-fry sugar-roasted chestnuts.
"A normal spatula costs 25 wen each, and a double-sized one costs 50 wen."
The blacksmith glanced at him, probably because he was a little curious about this skinny boy, but he didn't expect him to need such a big spatula.
"Okay, then I want a spatula."
"Excuse me, how much silver does it cost to make an iron furnace?" Qianhuan asked again.
"That depends on the weight of the furnace. It can range from half a tael of silver to two or three taels of silver." The blacksmith thought for a moment and replied.
"Do you have a pen and paper? I want to design the shape of the iron stove myself."
"Yes, I'll get it right away." The blacksmith immediately took out a piece of paper and a pen and handed them to Qianhuan.
Qianhuan drew the appearance of a movable iron stove used in modern rural areas. The stove had three legs and a plate at the bottom to collect ash. There was a large hole in the stove body to put in firewood.
"Excuse me, how much does it cost to make an iron furnace like this?" Qianhuan drew the blueprint, handed it to the blacksmith and asked.
The old man in the blacksmith shop couldn't help but admire the iron stove she drew. He thought that an iron stove designed like this was indeed very convenient.
If you are traveling long distances, it is easy and convenient to bring an iron stove like this to make a fire and cook on the road.
"Little brother, I'll give you this iron stove for free. But can you give me this drawing? I want to make some iron stoves according to your drawing and sell them." The old man negotiated with Qianhuan.
"Okay, you can use this blueprint. I wonder when this iron stove and iron spatula can be made. I need them urgently. How long will it take for me to pick them up?"
She wanted to go to the county town early to set up a stall to sell sugar-roasted chestnuts, so the sooner she finished the food, the better.
"I can make an iron spatula in an hour, but an iron stove will take longer. Pay the spatula, tell me your name and address, and let my apprentice register it. Then you can come and pick it up tomorrow morning."
"Okay, then I'll come back tomorrow morning to get the iron stove, but I'll come back this afternoon to get the iron spatula."
Because the sale of iron was strictly controlled during this era, information had to be registered when purchasing ironware.
Qianhuan told the young apprentice her father Liang Laoer's name and her own address, paid 50 copper coins for the iron spatula, and then left the blacksmith shop.
Originally, Qianhuan wanted to make an iron stove for about half a tael of silver, but she didn't expect that she didn't spend the last penny. She got an iron stove in exchange for a design drawing for free. It was really a pleasant surprise.