Ch 134: The Farmer Ger in the Apocalypse

Shen Zhigao had spent the entire day toiling in the fields. In his younger years, he was accustomed to farm work, but now that he was older, most of the labor had fallen onto Shen Qing in recent years. It had been a long time since he had exerted himself so much.

Now that Shen Qing was gone, the family had lost a strong laborer. Old Man Shen was too old to work the fields, so the burden fell back onto Shen Zhigao and Shen Zhiwei. Even Shen Zhuang, who used to do nothing but play around foolishly, was dragged into the fields to help.

But once bones have grown accustomed to idleness, they don’t recover their strength just because one wants them to. The Shen family’s fields were far from what they used to be when Shen Qing was around. The village folk only needed one glance to tell whether a family’s land had been well tended, and they could even roughly estimate the harvest. When they passed by the Shen family’s fields, all they could do was sigh and shake their heads.

Shen Zhigao felt his strength failing him. On top of that, he had heard snippets of the village gossip, which only made him more frustrated. After an exhausting day’s work, he just wanted to return home and relax, but as soon as he stepped inside, Li Jiaofeng approached him with tears in her eyes, clutching their child.

Shen Zhigao glanced at the frail, sickly child in her arms, feeling both irritation and struggle within himself. When the baby was first born, he was overjoyed to finally have the son he had long dreamed of, cherishing him like a precious gem. But at just three months old, the child had already fallen ill multiple times, draining the Shen family’s last savings, emptying both his and Li Jiaofeng’s private stashes, and even leaving them deep in debt.

Now, the entire village relied on Shen Qing for money. They were afraid that associating too closely with the Shen family would displease him, so they refused to let them work at the workshop. The men who used to drink and chat idly with Shen Zhigao now avoided him as if he carried bad luck. Only Zhao Youdang had lent him some money, and even that had earned Wu Guixiang’s cold stares.

Under such financial pressure, Shen Zhigao no longer felt the same joy when looking at his child. Li Jiaofeng’s sobbing grated on his nerves, but he barely registered her words. Instead, he just stared at the baby for a long time, his mind chewing over the village gossip.

“No son left in the open… Should be the end of the line… Won’t live to grow up…”

Shen Zhigao pondered these words for a while, then suddenly stood up, yanked Li Jiaofeng by the arm, and dragged her forcefully into the bedroom.

At that moment, Li Jiaofeng truly regretted stepping into the mess that was the Shen family!

She had only wanted to find someone to rely on for the rest of her life, to have a son who could provide for her in the future. She had never been particularly fond of Shen Zhigao himself—he was just the best option available, and he had been relatively easy to lure away. After all, the Shen family had once been quite well-off in the village.

As for the tangled mess of relationships within the Shen household, she had always considered herself smart, young, and pretty enough to keep Shen Zhigao under her control. She had never taken those issues too seriously, believing she would live a smooth and comfortable life in the Shen family.

However, reality gave her a harsh slap in the face.

First, she was secretly harmed and nearly lost both her life and the child’s. After a series of struggles, the once relatively wealthy Shen family had spent all their savings, to the point where even medical expenses required borrowing money. Shen Zhigao’s attitude toward her also changed—he no longer catered to her every need as he did when she was pregnant. Instead, he was constantly anxious about that one thing, desperate to have another son.

She had a difficult labor giving birth to Shen Qiang. With the family short on money, she never properly recovered. If she got pregnant again, how could her body endure it? Besides, if she really gave birth to another son, would Shen Zhigao still be willing to spend money to treat Shen Qiang’s illness?

Li Jiaofeng felt a chill spread through her body. It was easy for Shen Zhigao—just a few moments on her body, and he could be a father again. But this child had grown in her womb for eight months, and she had fought for her life to bring him into the world. How could she bear to give up on him?

Only now did she realize that it wasn’t her youth, beauty, or intelligence that had helped her surpass Miao Shi and gain control over Shen Zhigao. It was because Miao Shi had lost the ability to bear children, while she still could. Shen Zhigao married her only to have a son—her only value was in giving birth to sons.

How foolish she had been! How could she have thought she was clever? The smartest one was Shen Qing. Shen Qing had probably been beyond relieved to escape this mess, running away from the Shen family as fast as possible. Look at what happened after he left—he immediately rose to success. She, on the other hand, had mistaken glass for a pearl and fought tooth and nail to squeeze herself into this sinking ship.

But now, it was too late for regrets. A woman’s marriage was like a second life—there was no turning back. Unless someone as blind as she had been came along, like a wandering ghost seeking a replacement, and willingly took her place, she had no chance of escaping like Miao Shi did. But now, with Shen Qing leading the way, every household in Lantang Village was thriving. The contrast only made the Shen family’s decline more glaring. Who in their right mind would choose Shen Zhigao?

She had no choice but to pull herself together and try to secure as many benefits for herself as possible in this worst-case scenario.

That night, just before bed, Li Jiaofeng once again brought up what she had wanted to say earlier. “Times are hard, the child is weak, and we never know when we’ll need money again. We have to plan ahead… Can’t we borrow some more from Little Sister? And about the village workshop—Shen Qing is still part of the Shen family. How can he be so heartless? The whole village works there, and yet our family…”

Shen Zhigao kept his eyes closed and didn’t even twitch. He was just as resentful about the workshop situation, but he had too much pride to go to Shen Qing. Working at his son’s workshop felt beneath him, and apologizing or pleading was even more humiliating. Even with his family struggling, he refused to walk past the workshop, as if avoiding it could erase its existence. That way, he could still cling to the illusion that he hadn’t been outshone by his ger son—that he was still the man who had once driven Shen Qing and Miao Shi out of the family.

Li Jiaofeng’s words made him uncomfortable. He turned over, facing away from her, and ignored the topic. “Now that you’re out of confinement, don’t just sit around in the house all day. Help Mother with the chores. The second son-in-law still refuses to come back—what kind of fulang is that? How could he be so unfilial?” He pulled the blanket tighter around himself. The exhausting farm work had left him sore all over, but he had to get up and do it again tomorrow. “As for money, I’ll talk to Mother and have her ask them for more. You should also behave better and stop making Mother unhappy.”

Li Jiaofeng swallowed her grievances. She knew very well that the “accidental fall” she had suffered was no accident. Given Shen Zhuang’s early death, who knew if someone had their eyes on her child too? That was why she clung to her baby like a mother hen, never leaving his side. But she had no proof. If she told Shen Zhigao, he might accuse her of stirring up trouble between family members. So, she could only mutter, “I understand.”

Shen Zhigao’s mother had endured a lot from Li Jiaofeng before. But since Shen Zhigao had protected her back then, she couldn’t do anything about it. Now that Li Jiaofeng had given birth, she had finally fallen into her clutches. The balance of power had shifted—Shen Zhigao’s mother was finally back in control.

But never mind how she tormented Li Jiaofeng. Four days later, the starch sausage shop in the county finally opened for business.

Early in the morning, they swept the dust away, paid their respects to the God of Wealth, burned yellow paper, and hung bright red lanterns. When the red cloth covering the signboard was lifted, Shen Qing personally lit a string of firecrackers—marking the official opening of the starch sausage shop.

Gold-Tooth gifted a bronze cauldron for the counter—it looked beautiful and auspicious and could also be used to store spare coins.

Most notably, the county registrar sent a congratulatory couplet, personally handwritten and specially engraved by a carpenter. Shen Qing returned the favor with a generous gift. Though he had never met the registrar in person, this gesture showed the official’s willingness to support him.

Shen Qing immediately had the couplet hung at the entrance. With the registrar’s personally inscribed couplet displayed, no matter how jealous others might be of the shop’s business, they wouldn’t dare to stir up trouble.

Clerk Yang also had Gold-Tooth deliver a bronze Pixiu statue, which was placed on the counter as well. With this, Shen Qing was more than satisfied.

On opening day, the locals mostly gathered to watch the excitement rather than buy anything. So, Shen Qing instructed Mudan to fry ten sausages, cut them into pieces, and offer them as free samples to the neighbors.

During renovations, Shen Qing had specifically arranged for the stove to be built near the shop’s entrance. The moment the sausages hit the hot oil, a rich, enticing aroma filled the entire street. Even those who hadn’t planned to eat couldn’t help but salivate, eager to try a bite.

Once people had a taste, they were completely hooked.

“With that much oil, how could it not taste good? So generous!”

“This is meat, right? The texture is different, but it tastes just like meat!”

“My goodness, with all this oil and meat, it must be expensive. Why open in the northern part of the city? Not many people here can afford it.”

“It’s delicious, Grandma, I want more!”

Everyone who tried it gave it a thumbs-up! The crispy outer layer, the rich meat-like filling, and the perfectly seasoned flavors left them craving more. Yet, no one dared to ask the price.

It was so flavorful, so meaty—surely it wasn’t cheap.

Finally, the grandmother with her grandson couldn’t resist. She had originally come to buy sweet soup next door and had brought extra money. She hesitated before asking, “What’s this called? And how much does it cost?” She pinched her coin pouch. As delicious as it was, it couldn’t possibly cost more than a pound of meat, could it? The sausage looked substantial, but at most, it weighed half a pound.

Shen Qing didn’t even have to step in—Shopkeeper Xiao Miao smiled and said, “This is called Blooming Sausage. Five wen per piece. Since it’s our grand opening, we’re offering a deal—three for ten wen, but only for three days. After that, no more discounts.”

Blooming Sausage? With the way it was sliced, it did look like a flower! But the price shocked everyone. They couldn’t believe it.

Five wen? And right now, it was even cheaper?

The grandmother didn’t even have time to wonder why—it was too good to pass up! “I’ll take three—no, six!”

Courtesy demands reciprocity. Once the shop was less busy, Shen Qing also had two sausages sent to the neighboring shop, letting them have a taste.

The day’s business was even better than expected. As the day went on, Mudan and Jade took turns frying sausages, while the other rested. Later, Haitang and Manao were called in from the courtyard to lend a hand. Even so, by the time the sun had yet to set, they were all completely exhausted and closed up early to rest.

“We were inexperienced on the first day. We should have called for extra help earlier. Starting tomorrow, Mudan and Jade will take shifts, and Haitang and Manao will alternate assisting.” Shen Qing summed up the day’s shortcomings, then added, “It should only be this busy for the first two or three days. Right now, everyone is just excited to try something new. Eventually, things will settle down.”

In the morning, most of the customers were residents from the northern part of the city. But by the afternoon, word had spread, and many people came from other areas just to try the Blooming Sausage.

Mudan’s hair was damp with sweat, but her face still carried a bright smile. “We’d rather be this busy! I hope our business keeps going strong like this!”

The bronze cauldron Gold-Tooth had gifted was now filled with copper coins, and the drawers beneath the counter were packed as well. Xiao Miao’s abacus clattered rapidly as he grinned from ear to ear. “We made a profit! We made a great profit today!”

Shen Qing was about to lean over and take a look at the ledger, curious to see exactly how much they had earned, when Tieshan suddenly walked in from outside. “Boss, there’s someone outside asking to see you. They say they’re the shopkeeper from the Cuihua Store next door, bringing a gift to congratulate us on our grand opening.”

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