Chapter 95: Not Expensive, Seventeen Taels
Wen Yao nearly rolled her eyes to the sky, but when Luo Shi swung at them, she quickly stepped forward, linked arms with the old lady, and cleverly took the stick from her hand.
“Grandma, don’t be angry. I bought the cow. It has nothing to do with Father. If you want to hit someone, hit me.” Wen Yao tossed the stick aside first.
After all, what if their grandmother–granddaughter bond turned out to be fragile? She couldn’t very well hand over the stick herself.
Sure enough, Luo Shi raised her hand high and brought it down lightly. Wen Nong and Wen Jun immediately commented, “Grandma hitting Yaoyao is like brushing dust off her.”
Wen Jun couldn’t help laughing.
“You foolish girl, how could you make such a big decision without discussing it with the family?” Luo Shi wasn’t upset that Wen Yao bought the cow—she was upset that such a large sum of money hadn’t been discussed first.
Wen Yao spread her hands. “I did. You and Grandpa didn’t agree.”
Luo Shi fell silent. She had thought it was just casual talk.
Old Wen finally came back to his senses and had already circled the ox cart several times, clearly pleased as he patted Da Huang’s head.
“How much was the cow?” he asked.
“Not expensive. Seventeen taels,” Wen Xiuyi said, then immediately ran away, picking up Da Tou and standing upright.
Da Tou shifted his small body, trying to shield his father.
Old Wen dropped his pipe in shock. He knew cows were expensive, but not this expensive.
Luo Shi’s anger flared again.
Before anyone exploded, the usually quiet Wen Xiuqing suddenly pointed at the curved plow. “Big Brother, what’s this?”
Everyone turned to look.
“This is a plow?” Old Wen asked.
Wen Xiuyi carried Da Tou over and explained, “Yes, Father. The straight-beam plow we use is faster than manual labor but still has many flaws—hard to turn, shallow plowing, and so on. So I improved it.
This is the curved-beam plow—an upgraded version. It saves time and effort, turns easily, and digs deeper. Yaoyao and I went to the city to have Liuzi’s father make it. Tomorrow we’ll test it in the fields. With Da Huang, our work will be much faster.”
As he explained, he didn’t forget to take credit.
Old Wen, the two brothers, and even Luo Shi shifted their attention to the plow. Wen Xiuyi and Wen Yao exchanged relieved looks—they had escaped disaster.
The brothers lifted the curved plow down. It was much heavier than the village chief’s.
“Will it really work?” Old Wen asked.
“Trust me this once, Father. It will. We’ll test it tomorrow,” Wen Xiuyi promised confidently.
After all the commotion, the cow purchase faded into the background, but Luo Shi still wasn’t letting the family off easily.
“Explain everything,” she said, pointing at Da Huang.
Wen Yao carefully described the entire process of buying the cow, its benefits, and the expected returns. The last of Luo Shi’s anger melted away.
“The cow is good. Seventeen taels is expensive, but a good cow lasts long. And an ox cart will make travel easier,” Luo Shi sighed. They couldn’t slaughter it anyway—killing cattle privately was illegal.
Seeing everyone still crowding around Da Huang, Luo Shi snapped, “Why are you still standing there? Take him to the backyard and build a shed! You bought a cow but prepared nothing—should he stand in the cold courtyard all night?”
After scolding everyone, she turned to Wen Yao. “Since you bought him, you’ll feed him from now on. Cows eat grass. And you—” she added, looking at Da Tou, “you even dared to deceive us.”
Da Tou hugged her leg and pouted. “Grandma, I didn’t lie. I was reading and writing for you all day. You agreed to let them go out.”
Luo Shi fell silent. Where did this cleverness come from?
Wen Yao happily agreed to feed Da Huang. After all, she had space to grow plenty of grass.
Da Huang seemed to like his new home. Once the shed was built, he obediently walked inside.
That night, despite worries about Grandma’s scolding, the Wen family felt happy. Aside from the village chief’s house, they were now the only family in the village with a cow.
The next morning, everyone woke refreshed—especially Old Wen, who even wore one of his less-patched clothes. He spent the morning feeding Da Huang and chatting with him affectionately.
After breakfast, the family set out, led by Old Wen holding the cow’s rope.
In the village, any new possession was big news. Seeing the Wen family proudly leading a big yellow ox drew attention everywhere.
“Yes, we bought a cow.”
“Not cheap.”
“The children are filial. With so much new land, we needed help.”
“Borrow it? Maybe after we finish our own fields.”
“All thanks to my son!”
All along the road, Old Wen cheerfully chatted with villagers.
Luo Shi whispered to Wen Yao, “Your grandfather has one bad habit—showing off. One day it’ll get him in trouble. See those people asking to borrow the cow? He sounds polite, but if he actually lends Da Huang out, he’ll follow him everywhere out of worry.”
Wen Yao burst out laughing. Buying the cow had been the right decision—the old couple looked far more spirited already.
