Chapter 8: The Heiress of the Gu Family
East of Hexi Village stood a spacious two-yard mansion perched atop a hill.
Bang! Bang!
“Who is it?”
A middle-aged man opened the door.
“Um...”
“Is Master Gu home?”
Cheng Dashan rubbed his hands nervously, feeling somewhat restrained.
The man sized up the father and son before him, his eyebrows gradually rising.
“We’re not in need of any hired hands.”
“No, no, we’re not here to find work…”
Cheng Dashan hurriedly pulled out a pulley, explaining, “This is something I’ve invented. It’s very useful, and Master Gu will definitely need it.”
“A wheel?”
The man sneered.
In essence, the pulley worked on the same principle as a lever, but no one had thought to apply it this way yet.
Worried his father might falter, Cheng An stepped forward, “With this, when your household transports goods, it will save a lot of effort. It’s very convenient.”
“Hmph, so what?”
The man laughed disdainfully.
He glanced at the pair and said, “I heard the government is raising taxes again. You two… just here to scam money, right? Too bad you picked the wrong place! Get lost, or don’t blame me for being rude!”
The Gu family was a prominent household in Qingshui Town, owning hundreds of acres of fertile land.
Every year during the lean season, many neighbors who couldn’t pay their taxes would come to borrow money or sell their land cheaply to the Gu family.
But no one blamed the Gu family.
On the contrary, their reputation throughout the surrounding villages was good. Whether hiring laborers or dealing with those selling property, the Gu family always offered fair prices.
The only fault was…
Harsh governance was fiercer than any tiger.
Cheng An sighed inwardly.
“Uncle Sun, who’s at the door?”
A light, graceful voice came from inside.
A young girl with twin braids appeared, her delicate and lovely face radiant, her bright eyes full of life.
“Nothing, Miss.”
The middle-aged man bent slightly with a smile, adding, “It’s just about another tax hike, and two scammers showed up again.”
Cheng An frowned slightly, “We’re not scammers! This is a good thing; what would take ten people to do can be done by three! And it’s easy to operate!”
“Just this?”
The girl pointed at the pulley in Cheng Dashan’s hand.
But his father clearly lacked confidence.
Especially seeing how well-dressed the others were, he was too embarrassed to speak.
Cheng An explained on his father’s behalf, “This is a pulley. When installed on a frame for lifting items and oiled, it reduces the weight of the load.”
“Let me see?”
The girl reached out her hand.
Cheng An didn’t move.
He just quietly observed her.
She smiled gently, “Uncle Sun, bring a coin from the treasury for him… Oh, and also get some flatbreads from the kitchen.”
Cheng An was speechless.
He felt treated like a beggar.
The middle-aged man looked at the girl and hesitated in a low voice, “Miss, can such a broken wheel be worth a coin? Don’t let him fool you!”
“Didn’t you understand what he said?”
The girl’s lively eyes sparkled as she smiled, “This wheel works on the same principle as using a cart pulled by horses.”
“Look…”
She demonstrated with the pulley.
“Before, whenever our family shipped goods, we needed many people to carry them. But with this wheel, two people can do the work, saving a lot of time.”
“Is it really good?”
The man glanced at Cheng Dashan and his son, half convinced.
Cheng An stared at the girl.
She was smart!
Piercingly so.
Since arriving in the Great Zhou Dynasty, she was the sharpest girl he had ever seen.
It’s said that wealth nurtures talent.
This was a perfect example.
Ordinary village girls, no matter how clever, were often worn down by poverty from birth.
Later, the middle-aged man returned with coins and flatbreads.
A coin was heavy.
It was the first time Cheng An had seen so many copper coins; his eyes gleamed.
His father wasn’t much better, hiding the money around his waist and wrapping it several times, looking left and right nervously, afraid of being discovered.
Once home, the family of three closed the door early and went to bed.
“Mother, come here.”
“What for?”
Cheng An pulled Liu over mysteriously to the bedside.
Cheng Dashan sighed with satisfaction, “Cuiyun, our youngest son has made progress!”
“Don’t be ridiculous!”
“Do I need you to say it? He’s my son!”
Liu gave her husband a teasing look.
But she was clearly distracted, still thinking about the words from Old Han and the Qin family earlier that day, a trace of worry on her brow.
“Ha!”
Cheng Dashan lowered his voice and chuckled, then began undressing, revealing a strong chest.
“Hey, hey!”
Liu jumped up from the bed, blushing and scolding, “You crazy Cheng Dashan! Our son is right here! Have some shame!”
“Why would I have no shame?”
Cheng Dashan looked puzzled, then said, “Look, what’s this!”
“Go away, go away!”
“I’m not looking, I’m not as wild as you!”
Liu slapped her husband’s face playfully, scolding, “Hurry up and put your clothes back on! The child’s grown, don’t you feel embarrassed?”
“What are you saying, you old woman!”
Cheng Dashan’s face flushed late in the game, annoyed, “Look, look what this is!”
Liu looked back suspiciously.
“This…”
“Where did this come from?”
Seeing the pile of copper coins on the bed, Liu’s first reaction was not joy but shock!
Cheng Dashan smiled proudly.
“It wasn’t stolen, anyway!”
Liu ignored him, turning to her son with a hoarse voice, “Youngest son, you’re so good! Tell me, where did this money come from?”
“Father and I earned it this afternoon.”
“Nonsense!”
Liu’s face was full of worry. “What work can earn so much at once? Tell me, did your father go gambling? Or…”
Such worries were a woman’s privilege.
Liu unconsciously imagined the worst, her eyes filled with concern.
“Ha!”
Cheng Dashan laughed softly, proudly, “It was really earned, and by your precious son, a whole coin…”
After hearing her husband’s explanation, Liu still found it hard to believe, “Just a broken wheel sold for so much? Are the Gu family all fools? Have they no money to spend?”
“Mother~~~”
Cheng An pouted in dissatisfaction.
“No, mother, that’s not what I meant…”
Liu quickly pulled her son into her arms, both happy and worried, “But so much money can’t be kept at home, or it’ll surely disappear!”
“Right, Grandma would snatch it.”
Cheng An’s innocent face was full of worry.
Cheng Dashan sighed awkwardly.
Liu paid no mind, her face full of joy, “My youngest son is so clever! Remember, if anyone asks, just say... it’s borrowed from your grandmother’s house.”
“Okay!”
Cheng An smiled to himself.
This suited him perfectly…
Old Han was the mountain pressing on the Cheng family’s head. If she found out about this, there would be tears, tantrums, and threats, forcing his father to shell out money for the household.
If he refused?
He’d be called unfilial!
Old Han would sit at the village entrance with her cane, wailing loudly, and the whole village would curse Cheng Dashan as a heartless son.
Liu glanced out the window.
“School!”
She exhaled softly, snorting, “People say our son isn’t meant to study? Hmph! He has studied for several years—could he have earned this much money?”