Chapter 108: The Rabbit Comes Calling, Leading to Ruin

"A-Yan, your mother needs to rest and recover. Whether she can conceive again is not certain," Father Jiang said, shaking his head.

Jiang Chengyan did not respond.

"Sanniang, the puppy seems hungry." Just then, Father Jiang called out to Madam Zhao, as the puppy was curled up in his palm with a sunken belly, looking famished.

"Oh? Hungry? Girl, I'm heading back now. Oh my, my little darling!" Madam Zhao rushed out in a flurry, scooped up the puppy, and hurried home.

Madam Qian happened to be passing by with a basket. Seeing Madam Zhao carrying a dirty little puppy, she wrinkled her nose in disgust and said, "Only the eldest sister-in-law would be so unrefined. This dog is so filthy."

"What do you know? Don't you know that a dog arriving brings prosperity?" Madam Zhao snapped at her before rushing off in a hurry.

After the three of them had left, Bai Yan poked her little head out from the small storage room.

"Husband?" Bai Yan asked curiously, "What does 'a dog arriving brings prosperity' mean?"

"It means when a dog comes to your door, good fortune follows," Jiang Chengyan replied, looking at her.

"Then what about a rabbit? What does it mean when a rabbit comes to your door?" Bai Yan's eyes sparkled. She looked at Jiang Chengyan with curiosity, clearly eager for his answer.

"When a rabbit comes to your door, it means poverty and bankruptcy! Our family hasn't eaten meat for days. Someone promised to take care of me, yet she ran off to hide at someone else's house for days." Jiang Chengyan leaned his tall frame against the wall, watching Bai Yan lazily.

Hearing Jiang Chengyan mention money, Bai Yan felt a twinge of guilt. She glanced at him and began to busily haul mushrooms.

Seeing his young wife so diligently working to support the household, Jiang Chengyan remained unmoved, instead lazily reclining on the small lounge chair Father Jiang had specially made for her. The chair rocked back and forth; his tall stature looked quite comical curled up on it.

And so, while Bai Yan was busy gathering mushrooms and picking wild vegetables, his lordship lounged on the chair, basking in the sun. Bai Yan was strong; she tossed the baskets around as if they weighed nothing, handling a heavy load of mushrooms as easily as if they were sticks of wood.

"All packed! Let's head to the county office this afternoon," Bai Yan said, clenching her small fists.

Only then did she notice the small roasted chicken sitting by the stove. It seemed her husband wasn't entirely shameless after all.

***

In the afternoon, Jiang Chengyan pushed a cart loaded with mushrooms and two baskets of wild vegetables toward the county office.

Having been through an earthquake, Magistrate Chen was quite busy, but upon hearing that Jiang Chengyan and his wife had arrived, he hurried out, waddling like a plump duck. Good heavens! To be able to grow such delicious mushrooms in this freezing weather—the future of Yuzhou County's agriculture relied on this couple!

However, when Magistrate Chen saw the half-filled cart of mushrooms, he grew irritated. Pointing at Jiang Chengyan, he demanded, "Why is there less each time? And what are those two baskets you brought along? And those wild vegetables—my, how lush they look! What kind of fertilizer are you using at home?"

"These are pre-ordered for a restaurant. Please settle the payment," Jiang Chengyan said, getting straight to the point.

"Young man, your rabbit-mushrooms sell exceptionally well. Selling them to a restaurant is a huge loss; it’s not a long-term plan!" Magistrate Chen insisted.

"We transported the mushrooms ourselves. From next time on, you'll have to pay a delivery fee," Jiang Chengyan replied, ignoring the remark. He had eyes only for the money.

Magistrate Chen was speechless.

"Young man, this isn't a deal between you and me; this is the imperial court's support for our Yuzhou!" the Magistrate explained.

"Oh," Jiang Chengyan replied expressionlessly.

Just as Magistrate Chen was about to continue, he noticed the young wife sitting on the cart tugging at Jiang Chengyan's sleeve.

"Hungry," Bai Yan said, rubbing her belly.

"I'll take you to eat spicy rabbit," Jiang Chengyan said, the corners of his mouth curving upward.

Bai Yan immediately sprawled out on the cart in contentment.