Chapter 3 Money Can't Stop Being Spent

After resting for a while, Yang Zhenshan felt much better, but his stomach started growling again.

It was almost noon, and he had only had a bowl of mixed grain porridge in the morning, which was not filling at all.

Yang Zhenshan looked up at the kitchen; the family only ate two meals a day, and the next meal would be in the evening. He felt he couldn't last until then.

Man is iron, food is steel; skipping a meal leaves one terribly hungry.

"Daughter-in-law, start cooking!"

Yang Zhenshan called out unceremoniously.

Ms. Wang, who was sweeping the courtyard, paused, "Dad, cook now?"

This family only ate two meals a day and did not have the habit of eating at noon.

"Yes, from now on we will eat three meals a day," Yang Zhenshan stayed in character, speaking concisely and to the point.

"Three meals a day!" Ms. Wang was surprised, "Dad, there isn't much grain left in the house."

No one wants to go hungry, but there wasn't much grain left; without conserving, they probably couldn't last until the harvest.

"I know, this afternoon I'll go to the county town with eldest son to buy some grain," said Yang Zhenshan indifferently.

He wanted to buy not just grain, but also some meat; it had been a long time since the family had eaten meat. The original body was reluctant to eat meat, but he would not shortchange himself.

Besides, he needed to restore his body. While Spiritual Spring Water had healing properties, his plan to retrain in Martial Arts also required nutrition.

Ms. Wang gave Yang Zhenshan a surprised look but did not question further, as this was the authority of the head of the household, and as a daughter-in-law, she should not question her father-in-law's decisions.

Soon, Ms. Wang prepared a meal consisting primarily of cornbread and mixed grain porridge, with the addition of a dish of stir-fried leeks and eggs.

Saying it was stir-fried leeks and eggs, it actually contained only two eggs mixed into two large bowls of leeks.

Yang Mingcheng and Yang Mingzhi, who had been working in the fields, returned and looked surprised at the meal on the table, as if wondering what had gotten into Ms. Wang to make lunch today.

"Dad asked for it!" Ms. Wang whispered to Yang Mingcheng.

Yang Mingcheng looked at Yang Zhenshan, who stepped out of the house. He wanted to ask why lunch was made today, but seeing Yang Zhenshan's expressionless face, he swallowed back his question.

"Wash up and eat." Yang Zhenshan couldn't be bothered to explain; he was their dad now, and could do as he pleased without needing to offer explanations to them.

In feudal society, filial piety was paramount; for children to question their parents was unfilial.

Yang Zhenshan sat down at the head of the table and began eating the porridge.

He was really hungry.

The meal Ms. Wang made was really quite plain; if Yang Zhenshan hadn't been so hungry, he might not have been able to eat it.

But Ms. Wang couldn't be blamed, as it is difficult to cook without rice; just now Yang Zhenshan had checked the kitchen and found nothing but a small jar of lard and coarse salt -- no other seasonings.

Given such conditions, how could one expect delicate or delicious dishes?

Now Yang Zhenshan had no right to complain; having something to eat was already good enough.

...

Yang Family Village is backed by Changqing Mountain. Standing at the entrance of the village, looking north, one can see the continuous stretch of woods, and looking south, endless fertile fields.

Most villagers in the village share the Yang surname and come from the same clan; however, Yang Zhenshan's branch was rather thin, having only one male heir for the past three generations, so he didn't have many brothers or sisters.

In the afternoon,

Yang Zhenshan had Yang Mingcheng hitch the ox-cart and they slowly made their way to the county town.

The country roads were uneven, and the ox-cart's wheels had no suspension, causing a bumpy ride. By the time they reached the county town, Yang Zhenshan felt like he was falling apart.

Yang Family Village was relatively close to the county town, only about ten miles away, but they had taken half an hour.

This ridiculous travel speed made Yang Zhenshan not even want to think about how long it would take if it were several hundred or thousand miles.

Upon entering the county town, Yang Zhenshan curiously observed his surroundings; the county town in his memory was different from what he was seeing with his own eyes. The county town was quite prosperous, with shops lined up along the streets and an unending stream of pedestrians.

This wasn't one of those tourist ancient cities but a genuine ancient town, with a row of quaint buildings giving a genuine ancient look, and all the people wore true traditional costumes, adding an authentic old charm.

The county town was called Ning County, located in the northeast of the Da Rong Dynasty. Three hundred miles further north lay the northeastern border of the Dynasty, beyond which were the territories of nomadic tribes. Yang Zhenshan's original body had joined the army to defend against invasions by these nomads at this northeastern border.

"Dad, should we go see third brother first?" asked Yang Mingcheng, who was driving the cart.

Yang Zhenshan blinked, then remembered he had a third son who was apprenticing at a blacksmith's shop in the county town.

It would be improper not to visit his third son while he was here.

"Let's go to the market first!"

He couldn't visit his son empty-handed, after all.

Recalling the original body's memories, Yang Zhenshan knew that apprenticing at a blacksmith's shop was not an easy task.

Apprentice, apprentice, is actually just hard labor.

The dirty and tiring tasks are all done by apprentices, and whether they can learn the skills depends on whether the master is willing to teach.

Moreover, being an apprentice doesn't come with a wage, it only covers food and lodging.

The third son, Yang Minghao, was thirteen years old, and it was just a year ago that he was sent to the blacksmith shop by the original host.

Thirteen years old, not even graduated from elementary school, Yang Zhenshan just felt frustrated thinking about it.

Arriving at the market, Yang Zhenshan first bought two stones of grain, then some cooking oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and finally, he bought ten pounds of pork and some pork bones.

Thinking that he still had to visit his third son, Yang Zhenshan bought an additional twenty meat buns.

After a round at the market, the ten taels of silver Yang Zhenshan brought were reduced to less than two taels.

When leaving the market, Yang Zhenshan couldn't help feeling sentimental about how quickly money is spent.

He still had many things he wanted to buy, but seeing the remaining silver, he could only quench his desire to splurge.

The ironworks in Anning County have a broad scope of business, not only making various agricultural tools but also forging weapons like knives, spears, swords, and halberds.

Martial Arts are prevalent in the Da Rong Dynasty, and although Martial Artists are not many, many people have practiced Martial Arts, much like Yang Family Village, where almost everyone has some Martial Arts skills, which is the tradition of the Yang family.

In feudal society, clans are a very important component; big clans are aristocratic families, while smaller clans are local grassroots institutions, and each clan follows its own traditions.

Anning County is close to the border and often has to deal with threats from the nomadic tribes in the North, contributing to a higher number of residents who practice Martial Arts. This also results in many families owning weapons such as knives, spears, swords, and halberds.

Moreover, with Changqing Mountain close by, there are many hunters at the foot of the mountain, and people skilled with bows and arrows are not few.

This ironworks shop in front of themis the largest in Anning County, with five master craftsmen and more than a dozen apprentices, and it is a property of the Lu family of Anning.

"Third, why are you here?"

Upon entering the ironworks, Yang Zhenshan encountered a burly man, who, however, limped as he walked.

Lu Zhou, a collateral member of the Lu family, an old comrade of the original host, was the flag officer of the original host when he joined the army. Yang Minghao became an apprentice here through connections facilitated by Lu Zhou.

"Brother Lu, I came to see Ming Hao." Yang Zhenshan revealed a faint smile.

When he enlisted in the army, the original host was the youngest soldier under Lu Zhou, which is why everyone called him 'the youngest'.

The two were brothers-in-arms, and Lu Zhou had taken good care of the original host over the years; unfortunately, Lu Zhou suffered a serious injury in that battle, and to this date, he still limps as he walks.

"Ming Hao, Ming Hao!" Lu Zhou's voice was particularly loud; his call managed to drown out the continuous clangs of iron forging in the shop.

"Dad!"

A sturdy young man ran over, his shoulders bare, his skin darkened.

Yang Zhenshan nodded at his third son, then handed over the three pounds of pork he was holding to Lu Zhou, "Brother Lu, I'll have a word with Ming Hao."

"Why bring something for a chat?" Lu Zhou reproached.

Yang Zhenshan didn't elaborate, simply stuffing the pork into Lu Zhou's hands, "I have to rush back today, so I won't talk much with Brother."

After that, he turned and walked out of the ironworks. Based on the original host's memories, he knew Lu Zhou was a generous man who wouldn't mind the three pounds of pork, but Yang Zhenshan was meticulous about reciprocity; his third son still needed Lu Zhou's care, and it was fitting to give a gift.

Lu Zhou looked at the pork in his hands and then at the departing Yang Zhenshan, thinking that he needed to take good care of Yang Minghao in the future.

Sadly, he was just a collateral member of the Lu family, and the ironworks wasn't within his control, so there wasn't much he could do to help Yang Minghao.

"Big brother!"

Walking out of the ironworks, Yang Minghao saw his dad and big brother, his face showing a naive smile.

"How have you been lately, not too tired?"

Yang Mingcheng, the big brother, cared deeply for his little brother, and it was hard to come to the county seat even just once, so naturally, he chatted warmly with him.

Yang Zhenshan stood on the side quietly watching, he didn't feel much for these stepsons and couldn't bring himself to make small talk.

Moreover, the original host was not someone who liked talking much, so maintaining silence wasn't out of character.

After the brothers talked for a while, Yang Zhenshan handed five meat buns to his third son and also handed him a hundred copper coins.

"Everything at home is fine, don't worry!"

Yang Zhenshan patted his third son on the shoulder.

"Take care of yourself!"

Yang Mingcheng, driving the ox cart, left the ironworks, and Yang Minghao stood in front of the ironworks with a reluctant look on his face.

Leaving home at a young age, and it was hard to see his family even for a brief moment.

Sitting in the ox cart, Yang Zhenshan watched the ironworks growing more distant, sighing deeply in his heart.

Life at home is truly tough.

He needed to think of ways to improve the family's situation; at the very least, they should be well-fed and warm.