Chapter (8): A Trip to the Port City to Sell the Great Wild Boars (Part 3)
After the wild boars left the village, the busy onlookers gradually dispersed. Only a few of the most inquisitive souls lingered near Bai Li's hut, most of them women and Ge'ers.
The elders, Du Shi and Mo Hua (Mother Bai), sat at the outdoor table to keep an eye on those who remained. The table only had five stools; with Du Shi, Mo Hua, and the two pregnant daughters-in-law, Zhou Shi and Su Shi, seated, only one spot remained. That final seat was claimed by a latecomer: Lei Shi, the stepmother of Xiao Han from the Xiao family.
Xiao Han, terrified of his stepmother, stood silently behind Mother Bai with his head bowed. Xiaofu and Xiaowu were nestled in the laps of Mo Hua and Du Shi respectively; the two little Ge'ers were so adorable that the women found them irresistible—especially Du Shi, who had no Ge'ers of her own at home.
Lei Shi had heard the news earlier but hadn't believed it. Only after hearing repeated accounts from returning villagers did she finally believe the rumors and rush over. To her immense disappointment, the boars had already been carted away.
Lei Shi coveted those boars. If she could, she would have chased them all the way to the Port City to demand her share. However, the thought of the Village Head being present deterred her from that particular scheme. Instead, she began plotting various ways to squeeze money out of Bai Li once he returned.
Mo Hua detested Lei Shi. How could she not? Lei Shi had demanded a staggering one hundred silver taels for Xiao Han. She had threatened to report Bai Li to the local magistrate for ravishing Xiao Han unless the sum was paid. To save Bai Li from prison, the Bai family had been forced to hand over every scrap of savings they had intended for the fourth son, Bai Wu's, education. Consequently, the brilliant Bai Wu had to drop out of school.
Technically, Bai Li was at fault. However, in the lives of these farmers, even a well-to-do family would only pay one silver tael as a bride price—five taels at the very most. Even if Xiao Han had been sold to a wealthy merchant, he wouldn't have fetched more than thirty taels. It was clear Lei Shi had maliciously extorted the Bai family.
But because a court case would have ended Bai Li's life, the Bais had paid up with bleeding hearts. This was why Mo Hua loathed the money-grubbing Lei Shi so intensely.
Lei Shi's arrival today boded no good. As expected, she spoke with a brazen face.
"Oh, Sister Du Shi is here too. I actually came to speak with my counterpart, Mo Hua. Since it's a family matter, feel free to listen in if you must."
Lei Shi's implication was clear: while Du Shi was the Village Head's wife and couldn't be kicked out, she shouldn't interfere in "family" business.
Though a village woman, Lei Shi was slightly literate, and because the Xiao family didn't do field labor, she didn't look as weathered as others. Compared to the similarly aged Du Shi and Mo Hua, she appeared quite young. In truth, all three had married well. Bai Zhou was prosperous, Jiang Yan was the Village Head, and Xiao Liu (Xiao Han's father) had a lucrative, less physically demanding trade.
Du Shi despised this fox-like woman who pretended to be refined. She snorted but remained silent.
Lei Shi continued, "I heard Son-in-law Bai caught two great boars today, yet he didn't send word to his in-laws. Counterpart Mo Hua, do you think that's proper?"
The moment she spoke, her intentions were crystal clear. Xiao Han's feverish face flushed even deeper with shame. He knew he wasn't worth a hundred taels, but he hadn't been able to stop his stepmother back then. He lived in constant guilt toward the Bai family—the primary reason he never fought back, no matter how much the original Bai Li mistreated him.
Mo Hua's expression hardened. This woman, Lei Shi, was obsessed with money. It was her greed that led her to become Xiao Liu's concubine originally. When the first wife died, she maneuvered her way into becoming the new primary wife.
(Note: Lei Shi was originally the secondary wife. Xiao Han is the child of the first wife.)
Back then, Mo Hua had paid because she feared the law. But now, Bai Li and Xiao Han were married with children. If Lei Shi thought she could extort them again, Mo Hua would give her nothing but a mouthful of spit.
"Lei Shi, what are you saying? Didn't you say back then that once you got the hundred taels, all ties between Xiao Han, Bai Li, and your family would be severed? The whole village heard it. Have you no shame? You live in the same village and haven't visited Xiao Han once, let alone your grandsons Xiaofu and Xiaowu! And yet you expect my son to come groveling? He has his father and three brothers; that is more than enough for him!"
Lei Shi's face faltered at these words, but she didn't retreat. The surrounding villagers, all fond of a good scandal, watched in rapt silence.
"That was obviously said in a fit of anger!" Lei Shi countered. "Your son ravished our Xiao Han! Shouldn't we be angry? But your son has been disrespectful for three years, never setting foot in his in-laws' house. Now that he has boars, he still ignores us. What a piece of trash son-in-law."
Mo Hua's eyes widened in fury. How would Bai Li dare go to the Xiao house? Xiao Liu had threatened to hack him with a cleaver on sight! It was only after the hundred taels were paid that the cleaver stayed sheathed. If Bai Li had invited the Xiaos this time, it would be as good as handing them the boars.
Even a three-year-old could see that Lei Shi wasn't upset about a lack of communication; she was causing a scene because she wanted a cut of the windfall.
Meanwhile, on the road, Bai Li was unaware of the storm brewing at home. He sat at the back of the cart, deep in thought. He turned to the others.
"Father, Village Head, let's pass through the small town first."
The eldest Bai son was driving the cart, and the others couldn't help but smile every time they looked at the massive boars. Bai Zhou was puzzled by the request.
"Going through the town will take longer. Why do you want to go in there?"
Knowing the original Bai Li's history of troublemaking in that town, they couldn't help but be suspicious. But Bai Li explained:
"A slight delay doesn't matter; we have to sleep in the Port City tonight anyway. Though the town is small, there might be people who want wild boar meat. If we pass through, we effectively advertise, and they might follow us to the Port City to buy."
The explanation was logical, and their suspicions vanished. They agreed to the detour. Bai Li was inwardly jubilant. Since his arrival, he hadn't held a single copper coin. Once these boars were sold, he would finally have funds.
From his inherited memories, he understood the currency system:
1,000 copper coins = 1 silver tael.
1,000 silver taels = 1 gold bar.
Bai Li estimated these boars would fetch over a thousand silver taels.
Lost in these happy thoughts, the cart—overflowing with boar—entered the town. Immediately, every eye in the street was drawn to them. The townspeople were stirred into a frenzy. Bai Jiang asked if he should stop, but Bai Li told him to keep a steady, fast pace.
Bai Li didn't believe for a second that no one would give chase. Sure enough, people soon began running after the cart, shouting.
"Hey! Stop the cart! Are those boars for sale? I want to buy!"
The cart didn't stop, forcing the buyers to sprint. Bai Li shouted back from the rear:
"We're heading to the Port City to sell! Follow us if you want some!"
The pursuers slowed down for a moment but then shouted back with even more urgency.
"I'll get my money and follow! Save some for me!"
"Me too! I'm coming quickly!"
"Don't forget us!"
"You better save a lot! I'm buying a huge portion!"
The cart sped away, leaving only Bai Li's loud "Understood!" echoing through the streets. Word of the wild boar sale in the Port City spread like wildfire; anyone craving the rare meat scrambled to make the trip. Regular pork was common, but wild boar was a rare delicacy that appeared perhaps once a year.
By Bai Li's estimation, they reached the Port City around 4:00 PM. They had pushed the buffalo to its limit; any slower and they would have been caught by the dark.
The reaction in the Port City was identical to the town. By the time they parked the cart in a wide, open plaza, a massive crowd had already gathered.
"Uncles, brother," someone called out. "Are these for sale? If you'll sell the whole carcass, I'll give you 300 silver taels for one."
The corners of Bai Li's mouth curled into a slight smirk. 300 taels? That wasn't even half of what he expected.
"Brother," Bai Li replied. "These are for sale, but not as whole carcasses. You can buy as many jin as you need."
The crowd breathed a sigh of relief. Most couldn't afford a whole boar and feared a single wealthy buyer would snatch them up. Seeing the group starting a fire to boil water, someone asked:
"Brother, you're going to scald and de-hair them first, right? We'll go home and get our money then. How much per jin?"
Bai Li replied calmly, "We don't sell by the single jin. Minimum purchase is three jin. Three jin for five silver taels. While you're getting your money, please spread the word to anyone who hasn't heard!"
The crowd didn't even hear the last part. They were too busy reeling from the price.
"Five silver taels for three jin!"
It wasn't just the crowd; Father Bai and the Village Head's family were equally stunned. The Village Head actually stumbled back a step, thinking:
One silver tael per jin is already a fair market price, and you want five taels for three? Aren't you afraid people will call you a highwayman?
Father Bai discreetly tugged at his son's sleeve, signaling that the price was too high, but Bai Li feigned ignorance.
A well-dressed man in the crowd finally spoke up. "Brother... five silver taels for three jin? Isn't that a bit much?"
...........
* Jin : A unit of mass roughly equal to 0.5kg.
...........