allonlinenovel Chapter 253 Temple Fair
Chapter 253 Temple Fair
The next day, the sky was slightly bright.
Everyone in Shenjia Village packed up what they needed and prepared to set off. Bai Zhantang also came over early and asked Xiaowu to go with them, so that they wouldn't be in an unfamiliar place and get bothered by some street urchins at the temple fair.
Shen Zhiqiu felt warmed in his heart. They had agreed to sell the pao cakes to the post station for one penny a piece yesterday, but Bai Zhantang refused to take the recipe for free and insisted on sharing the money earned from the pao cakes with them.
Later, many guests from the inn opposite came here to buy steamed cakes. Just by selling them to the guests of the inn, I made more than two taels. Together with the thirteen taels given by Bai Zhantang, I made fifteen taels in one night.
The other people in Shenjia Village were too excited. This was different from Pueraria powder and Eucommia bark. It was not a one-time deal. They could make it as long as they could buy buckwheat noodles.
Everyone feels like they have endless energy.
The reason we set out so early was because Xiaowu said, "During the three days of the temple fair, animal vehicles are not allowed to enter the county town. They need to be stored outside."
So Shen Zhiqiu decided to just push the cart and leave the animals at the post station.
The distance is indeed not very far. If you set out early, you can arrive in less than an hour.
Who are the most excited people at the temple fair? It must be the children. They are so happy that the whole way can be heard with their chattering.
Originally the elders said, "Why don't we leave the kids here and let some girls look after them? There will be noisy temple fairs, so there won't be any more kidnappers."
It was Shen Zhiqiu who said, "Take them all with you. How could they not want to go to the temple fair? Don't assign other tasks to the girls. Let them take care of their younger brothers and sisters one by one. They won't be too busy to take care of them all."
We have been fleeing from famine, and both the older and younger kids have suffered a lot, so let’s just treat it as a temple fair and let them have some fun.”
Since the leader said so, everyone agreed to take it with them.
To be honest, many girls and boys have never been to a temple fair, let alone children.
Along the way, Shen Luming had been asked by several little kids what the temple fair was like.
Shen Luming replied: "I just remember being held in my arms, there were many people around, and my sister also bought lanterns."
Shen Youyou looked at his father after hearing the answer. Shen Zhiqiu understood: "Hey, Lulu is talking about the Lantern Festival. Our family went out for a walk. He is too young to remember anything."
But this made the other kids envious, and they all asked Shen Luming: "What kind of lanterns are there?"
Xiaowu followed Shen Zhiqiu and the others, and became familiar with Dabao and the others. On the way, the little boys were also asking about the temple fair.
Just like that, in a particularly lively atmosphere, everyone arrived at Xinle County.
The city gate had probably just been opened not long ago, so there weren't many people entering the city, and I didn't meet many people who were attending the temple fair along the way.
Generally at this time, most people come here specifically to set up their stalls in order to get a good spot.
Shen Zhiqiu's family was in front, and behind them were people from Shenjia Village pushing carts. Although the city gates were guarded by officials, there was no need to check proof of entry and exit.
When they entered the city, they saw that they brought many children with them. I don’t know if the official reminded Shen Zhiqiu and the others because he knew Xiaowu or what.
"Every year, there are many people at the temple fair, and there are kidnappers who kidnap children. Although there are bailiffs patrolling, there are times when they can't keep an eye on them. In previous years, there were even young ladies and young masters from wealthy families who were kidnapped. You have to be more careful with so many children with you."
Regardless of the reason, everyone was grateful for the reminder and nodded, saying, "Got it, we'll pay attention. Thank you, sir."
The gatekeeper warned him and waved his hand: "Go quickly, don't stay at the gate for too long, there are too many of you, and you are blocking the entire city gate."
Just like that, they finally entered the city. The group pushed the cart and began to walk towards the center of the temple fair. Before they arrived, they heard the sounds of chickens, ducks, and geese, as well as some people talking and greeting each other.
Xiao Wu glanced at Shen Zhiqiu and said, "Uncle Shen, it should be Mr. Zhang who has arrived."
Shen Zhiqiu nodded: "It's indeed early. It's good to be close."
The group quickened their pace and realized that many people were already packing up their stalls. Shen Zhiqiu ordered a few guys to go and occupy two stalls a distance apart.
Xiaowu followed up by asking, "How far are they? I'm with them."
Shen Zhiqiu said: "About ten meters away!"
As soon as these words were spoken, a dozen guys rushed into the street and then dispersed to find stalls.
Shen Zhiqiu was still greeting everyone:
"According to the groups we divided yesterday, the women and old ladies are in charge of the steamed cake stall, and the men and old men are in charge of the ring-tossing stall.
Young boys are just like bricks, busy with work and moving things around. Girls just need to take care of themselves and their younger siblings. If they want to go out and have fun, that’s fine.
Don't stray too far from your stall. We have many stalls. If you encounter any problems, just shout loudly. Everyone will understand. "
Everyone in Shenjia Village answered in unison: "We know!"
The sound was so loud that it attracted the attention of patrolling yamen runners.
Shen Youyou pulled Shen Zhiqiu and said, "That's enough. Don't let the patrol see that we are so aggressive. We don't look like we are here to set up a stall, but rather to attack the city."
Shen Zhiqiu waved his hand, and took a few men to occupy a place far away from the Renzu Temple. He called out to Mr. Zhang, who was selling poultry, "Come here, wait a moment, we'll surround it first."
Mr. Zhang was confused: "What are you doing? You can't be buying my chickens and ducks to sell at the temple fair. Then let me tell you,
This won’t work. We have a lot of chickens and ducks at home, and we sell them at the temple fair. The price we give you is the price you get, and you won’t make any profit.”
The eldest brother Shen Zhichun, the fourth brother Shen Zhidong, and the eldest brother-in-law, Gao Erzhuang, who was still standing here, began to take down the bamboo fence.
But this section of the road in the county is made of blue bricks, and they won't allow you to damage the road surface by building wooden houses.
When Shen Zhiqiu and his friends returned from the county town yesterday, they guessed that their previous plan to order wooden stakes to fix the fence would definitely not work.
It was Shen Youyou who came up with the idea. They placed two flatbed trucks sideways on both sides, leaving a few meters of distance in between, and then tied the bamboo fence to the flatbed trucks.
In order to verify whether it was feasible, the strong laborers even conducted experiments at the post station.
So there was no rush when it came to setting up the stall.
Today, everyone in Shenjia Village wore their best clothes. Women wore hairpins on their heads, rings on their hands, and copper-plated ceramic earrings on their ears.
Even the old ladies are no exception, this is a living signboard.
The woman here was still using wooden boards and adobe to build tables and stools, when a woman selling eggs nearby asked:
"Sister-in-law, why do the hairpins and earrings on your head look so unique? They must be very expensive, right?"
The person being asked was Shen Laoshi's wife. People always say that a couple should have complementary personalities, and this statement is fully reflected in this couple.
Shen Laoshi doesn't like to talk much, but when Shen Laoshi's wife opens her mouth, she might say:
"Oh, this girl has really good taste. This thing on my head is really not cheap. Look at it. It's ceramic. It was specially fired by someone. It has a specific shape.
And the color is also specific, so beautiful. Look at the pattern, it is a painting of peony flowers, which has a great meaning and calls for prosperity and wealth.
Although you can't buy what you want, you can go to our ring stall. There are all kinds of hairpins, rings, pendants, bracelets, etc. You can take any one you like. The pendant can be made into a necklace and hung around your neck."