kvmb Chapter 170 The Envious Villagers of Xiahe Village
Chapter 170 The Envious Villagers of Xiahe Village
The villagers of Xiahe Village were talking amongst themselves, their faces filled with envy. In this year when even bran couldn't be eaten, Wang Yuan's family was able to receive such plump chickens. How could anyone not be envious?
Some villagers with daughters of marriageable age couldn't help but think... "Maybe I can marry my daughter off to Chenjia Village, and maybe I can receive chickens as a betrothal gift."
"Squeak!"
When Li Qian opened her door, not only Li Qian and Wang Yuan came out, but also Li Qiang, who had been waiting at Li Qian's house since early morning.
Seeing the crowd outside banging drums and gongs, Li Qian couldn't help but smile brightly: "Mother-in-law, come in quickly!"
After saying that, Li Qian welcomed Liu Yan, Chen He, Chen Dao, and Li Ping into the house, while the young men who came with Chenjia Village stayed outside to continue playing drums and gongs.
"Father-in-law and mother-in-law, this is the betrothal gift we are giving to the bride!"
Liu Yan placed a chicken coop containing two yellow-feathered chickens in the living room, and then took out a red cloth bag from her bosom and stuffed it into Li Qian's hand.
Li Qian weighed the cloth bag in her hand, and her face lit up with even more joy. The bag was quite heavy, and Li Qian knew without even opening it that there must be a lot of copper coins inside.
Immediately, Li Qian looked at the chicken coop that Liu Yan had put down, and her eyes shone even brighter.
These days, meat is an extremely rare commodity for ordinary people. The two chickens that Liu Yan gave as betrothal gifts were not only golden in color and exceptionally festive, but also very large, making it clear that they could produce a lot of meat.
"Oh, you're too kind!"
Li Qian said with great joy, her unhappiness about her daughter not being able to marry Chen Cheng vanished instantly.
There was no way around it; the betrothal gifts were simply too generous, including not only a large amount of copper coins but also two such plump chickens, enough to satisfy Li Qian.
Not to mention Li Qian, even Wang Yuan and Li Qiang next to her were all smiling, their hearts filled with satisfaction.
The dowry that Liu Yan brought was not bad even in a peaceful year, let alone in this year of famine.
"Mother-in-law, please sit down."
Li Qian cheerfully took Liu Yan's hand and said, "Brother Dao, Village Chief Chen, please sit down. I'll go get you some water!"
After Li Qian served everyone hot water and some food, they ate and chatted.
Meanwhile, the sound of gongs and drums outside Li Qian's house attracted more villagers. Some who had just arrived and were unaware of the situation asked those who knew her, "What's going on at Li Qian's house? Why is it so lively?"
"You don't know yet?"
The villager who was asked replied, "Li Qian's daughter is going to marry into Chenjia Village. Chenjia Village is quite generous; they gave her two chickens as a betrothal gift!"
"There are more than just two chickens!"
A villager chimed in, "There are copper coins too! I just saw that woman surnamed Liu stuff a red money bag into Li Qian's hand. I reckon there are at least five hundred copper coins in that bag!"
"what?!"
These words shocked the villagers of Xiahe Village!
Two chickens were already the most generous gift they could ask for, but there were even copper coins included.
"500 copper coins?"
Hearing the commotion, the young men from Chenjia Village immediately showed disdain and said, "How can you possibly offer 500 copper coins? There are a full 888 copper coins in that bag!"
888 pieces?
The villagers of Xiaohe Village, who were nearby, stood frozen in place as if struck by lightning.
The villagers of Xiahe Village were even poorer than those of Chenjia Village. 500 copper coins were a considerable sum to them, but the young man told them...
Not 500, but 888?
"Young man, you're not lying to us, are you?"
The middle-aged man called Old Jiang looked directly into the eyes of the young man from Chenjia Village and asked.
"Why did I lie to you?"
A young man from Chenjia Village said, "I heard it from Daoge himself. There are 888 copper coins in the bag. It can't be fake!"
After saying that, the young man added, "Besides the copper coins, those two chickens are also quite valuable. Do you know how much those two chickens can sell for in the city?"
"Seize the young master?"
The villagers of Xiahe Village asked subconsciously. They had just noticed that the chickens in the coop were unusually different, and now that the young men from Chenjia Village mentioned it, they couldn't help but become curious.
"This number!"
The young man held up one finger and said, "A yellow-feathered chicken can sell for one tael of silver in the city!"
"hiss!"
The gasps of surprise from those around them almost drowned out the sound of gongs and drums.
"How can it be so expensive?"
"Is this chicken some kind of chicken that can grant longevity? And one chicken costs one tael of silver?"
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
"..."
The villagers of Xiahe Village stared in disbelief at the young man who quoted the price of the chicken, and subconsciously uttered statements like "impossible."
"How is it impossible?"
The young man, however, remained noncommittal and said, "Didn't you see? The chicken's feathers are golden yellow, making it look incredibly wealthy. Rich families in the city love these kinds of things, so what's so strange about selling them for a tael of silver?"
"..."
Upon hearing this, the villagers of Xiahe Village fell silent. Just as the young men of Chenjia Village had said, they certainly wouldn't buy a chicken for one or two taels of silver, but wealthy families in the city might not.
The wealthy families in the city had plenty of money; buying a chicken for one or two taels of silver was not necessarily impossible for them.
“One tael of silver for one chicken. I just saw that the woman surnamed Liu gave Li Qian two chickens, plus 888 copper coins. Doesn’t that mean this betrothal gift is worth at least 2 taels and 8 mace?”
A villager from Xiahe Village who was particularly good with numbers said this, and as soon as he said it, everyone's eyes widened even more.
"A dowry of only three taels of silver? Are the people of Chenjia Village really that rich?"
"Damn it!! Why wasn't my daughter married off to Chenjia Village?!"
"Li Qian's family has really struck it rich! A dowry of three taels of silver, they'll be living the high life from now on!"
"The family that married Li Qian's daughter is so wealthy. After Li Qian marries into Chenjia Village, won't she live the life of a landlord's wife?"
"That's right! The dowry alone is worth three taels of silver. After she gets married, she'll probably be eating white rice every day!"
"White rice? They're offering three taels of silver as a betrothal gift, how can just white rice be enough! I think they could easily afford to eat meat every meal."
"..."
The villagers of Xiahe Village spoke with a sour tone, their envy of Li Qian's family reaching its peak at this moment.
There was no way around it; the dowry from Chenjia Village was simply too extravagant. Some villagers with daughters even wished they could take Li Qian's place, so they could be the ones receiving the three taels of silver as a dowry, and...
Those who married into Chenjia Village and lived a good life became like daughters of the family!