Chapter 36: Leech Knocks on the Door

In Chen Shou Xin's house.

Chen Shou Xin's wife Zhang Yue Hong looked at the mounting pile of gloves on the table and frowned, "These gloves are made of the best furs, how come no one is buying them from us?"

Chen Shou Xin sighed. He scrambled to buy furs after he heard Chen Xiao Mi made a huge profit from selling gloves. He ended up outbidding others who also wanted to purchase the fur to make gloves. He offered the seller seven tales, two taels higher than the list price.

Chen Shou Xin had this calculation based on his wishful thinking, he thought he could easily make a dozen of gloves with the fox fur he had bought, he could at least make twenty tales of silver. However, against all expectations, he didn't even sell one pair.

It baffled Chen Shou Xin why those young masters were willing to pay Chen Xiao Mi two or even three tales for the same product, but now his business wasn't improving even though he was willing to sell them for one tale! He had only made one sale after he made tremendous effort on that pitch.

Chen Shou Xin gnashed his teeth and blamed it all on Chen Xiao Mi.

Chen Shou Xin's son Chen Jing, on the other hand, wasn't feeling too down. He loved the idea of having a new pair of gloves every day, he enjoyed the attention from his classmates. He had a few classmates from wealthy families, but the majority of them were just plain folks.

Zhang Yue Hong asked her son anxiously, "How come your classmates are not buying gloves from us?"

"They all have bought gloves elsewhere already. Some of them can't afford fox fur, so they are happy with their rabbit fur ones." Replied Chen Jing.

Cliques existed everywhere, Chen Jing's class was no exception. Those wealthy young masters who went to school with a page to take care of them had their own circle and clique, kids like Chen Jing and Lu Cheng Yu who were from the village couldn't fit in. Chen Jing could only show off in front of Lu Cheng Yu and the like.

Zhang Yue Hong sighed, "What can we do now?"

Grandpa Chen had rebuked Chen Shou Xin when he spent seven taels on the fox fur, but Chen Shou Xin guaranteed Grandpa Chen that he was going to make a fortune. But now he had only sold one pair of gloves for one tael, Chen Shou Xin ended up losing money.

Zhang Yue Hong couldn't imagine how mad Grandpa Chen was going to be when he found out the truth.

"Jing, why don't you bring several pairs of gloves and ask whether your classmates are interested... ..."

Chen Jing replied with a frown, "Mother! I will attend imperial examinations and pursue an official career, doing business is despicable and it will tarnish my good reputation!"

Zhang Yue Hong regretted it as soon as she asked her son the question, "I'm so muddleheaded!"

Chen Shou Xin didn't want to just give up, he went to town several times to try his luck. To his utter astonishment, sellers were even more than buyers! No one showed any interested in his fox fur gloves, but some stalls which features rabbit fur gloves had attracted quite a few customers for small profits but quick turnover.

Chen Shou Xin always borrowed or rented ox-carts from the villagers whenever he went to town, but as time went by, the villagers were just fed up with him and they were reluctant to help him. Chen Shou Xin had to go to town on foot, soon he gave up on the idea of selling gloves.

In Chen Xiao Mi's house.

"Chen Xiao Mi! Chen Xiao Mi, come out!" someone banged on the door.

Chen Xiao Mi's eyes dimmed as he heard that, he grabbed a bamboo stick and dashed out.

Lu Lin was terrified on seeing that.

"Chen Xiao Mi, your grandfather is sick, you need to visit him." Shouted Chen Shou Xin.

Chen Xiao Mi snorted, "Does that have anything to do with me?"

"You cold-hearted viper! That's your grandfather you are talking about!"

Chen Xiao Mi said in a sarcastic manner, "This reminds me of when Mai was sick, he was the one who told me not to send for a doctor because Mai would just turn better. Look how the table has turned, I'm sure he will just turn better."

"What a scoundrel! You unfilial monster!" Chen Shou Xin shook his head in exasperation.

Chen Xiao Mi squinted his eyes and said, "I know what you are up to! But I have been living independently for the past few years, you and your family have renounced me! Tell you what, the money I've made has nothing to do with you! Just piss off!"

Chen Shou Xin gnashed his teeth, "You! What a jerk! You! How could my brother rest in peace knowing you are so unfilial!"

Chen Xiao Mi's face darkened, "Unfilial? Me? Okay, you are unfilial, why don't you send a doctor for your own father now that he is sick? Yes, my father wouldn't rest in peace knowing you are still harassing me!"

It was Chen Shou Xin who had incited Grandma Chen to force Chen Xiao Mi's father to venture into the mountains. Chen Xiao Mi would never forget about that.

Chen Shou Xin made a scene by thumping his chest and stamping his feet, "Second Brother! Just look at your unfilial son, so disrespectful... ..."

Chen Xiao Mi brandished the bamboo stick impatiently, "Just piss off already!"

Lu Lin who was walking out of the room had caught Chen Shou Xin's attention. He pointed at Chen Xiao Mi and said, "Your husband is right here! How dare you brandish a weapon like this! You need to behave in front of your husband!"

Chen Xiao Mi sneered, "Stay out of my business. Save your nonsense for your son."

"You know what, you have to give me ten taels! I'm not leaving unless I have ten taels of silver!"

Killing intent flashed across Chen Xiao Mi's eyes, he dashed towards Chen Shou Xin with the bamboo stick.

Chen Shou Xin didn't see that coming, he had no idea Chen Xiao Mi would really attack him. He scrambled to his feet and ran away, almost wet his pants in terror.

Chen Xiao Mi walked back to the room and sat on the kang in a daze.

Lu Lin rubbed Chen Xiao Mi's forehead and asked, "What's wrong?"

Chen Xiao Mi took a deep breath and said, "I don't know whether my father would blame me for this."

Lu Lin smiled, "No way would he blame you for doing the right thing!"

Chen Xiao Mi raised his head and said out of the blue, "But you've wronged grandma, you said she stole from us, but that's not true."

Lu Lin had no idea why Chen Xiao Mi brought it up again, he just said, "I was protecting us, she was the one who made a scene in the first place."

In Chen Shou Xin's house.

"Shou Xin, have you got the money?" Grandma Chen asked anxiously.

Chen Shou Xin shook his head, "He refused to give me any."

"That stingy little jerk, didn't he make over fifty taels in a day?" Grandma Chen said that furiously.

Grandpa Chen sighed and said, "So be it, just let it go."

"Let it go? No way." Grandma Chen clenched her fists, how she regretted that she had renounced Chen Xiao Mi.

Grandpa Chen got a bit impatient, "What else can we do at this point?"

Grandma Chen didn't talk back on seeing her husband was getting angry.

"Shou Xin, how could you spend seven taels on a whim? You should know better than that." Grandpa Chen blamed Chen Shou Xin.

Seven taels of silver was no small amount of money for them.

Grandma Chen defended her son, "This is not entirely his fault, it's just bad timing. Those young masters were fighting each other to buy gloves from Chen Xiao Mi, Shou Xin was just a bit late."

"There's risk in any business", sighed Chen Shou Xin's Third Brother Chen Shou Ren. "Those young masters didn't like to wait for gloves, I heard some of them had even tore their fox-fur robe to make gloves. Brother, you should think twice before you spent that large amount of money. That money was for the special purchases for the Spring Festival, we can't afford anything now."

Chen Shou Xin's face darkened as he heard that, "I meant well, I wanted to make some more money for us."

"But brother, for fur isn't that expensive, you are ripped off." Chen Shou Ren shook his head.

Chen Shou Xin felt more depressed as he heard that, he knew he had paid a ridiculously high price for the fox fur, but he made that decision of his own free will.

"Those businessmen are all greedy, they saw an opportunity to raise the price and of course they would do it." Said Grandma Chen indignantly.

Chen Shou Xin walked out to the yard in low spirits.

Zhang Yue Hong asked worriedly, "How did it go?"

Grandma Chen had been giving Zhang Yue Hong a hard time, she blamed Zhang Yue Hong for her son's failure, she said Zhang Yue Hong's needle work must be terrible, that was why no one was buying anything from them. Zhang Yue Hong felt so wronged, she had all the confidence about her needlework.

"Father is a bit unhappy." replied Chen Shou Xin listlessly.

Chen Jing walked towards them and said, "Don't you find it a bit strange? Chen Xiao Mi is just a boor, how come he has all these inventive ideas like kang and gloves? And all of sudden, he became so rich."

"People say he has found something in the mountain." Murmured Chen Shou Xin.

"Something in the mountain?" Chen Jing was confused.

"Some people took refuge in the mountain to avoid the chaos of war, I heard Chen Xiao Mi has found some books saved by those people."

Chen Jing sneered, "But Chen Xiao Mi is completely illiterate."

Chen Jing was the only one who went to school in Chen Family, he wasn't doing great at school, but he took great pride in it.

"Maybe there are drawings in the books." Said Chen Shou Xin.

"Have you seen the book?" Chen Jing asked in excitement. He was so stoked by that 'treasure book', he wished he could invent something and attract some attention as well.

"I heard it's burned already."

"What?" Chen Jing couldn't believe it.

The villagers had been talking to Chen Xiao Mai for inside information, but Chen Xiao Mai didn't know much, he would just say a few random words and the villagers just made up a whole story about Chen Xiao Mi stumbling across a 'treasure book' and burning it accidentally.

Chen Jing sighed, "I can't believe the book is burned, but that Chen Xiao Mi, damn his luck!"