Chapter 192: Five Maces of Monthly Silver

Piglets!

Her father brought back six piglets!

Yan Yu reached out with her cloth-wrapped hands and touched them one by one.

The little piglets, disturbed from their sleep, grunted in displeasure.

The sound was tiny—absolutely adorable.

Aunt Rong was filled with enthusiasm upon seeing the six piglets.

This time, Yan Yu wasn’t mistaken—her eyes were genuinely shining…

Aunt Rong quickly tidied up a small shelter made of bricks, padded it with dry straw, and ran back and forth twice to carry all six piglets inside.

She milked a goat on the spot to feed them, wiped the dirt off their snouts and mouths with a warm cloth, and even set up a small fire nearby.

She did it all herself, caring for them meticulously.

Yan Yu squatted beside them, staring at the piglets that quickly snuggled together and fell asleep again—she just couldn’t get enough of looking at them.

These were all meat!

Slurp!

“Big Brother, you’re finally back! I was thinking of heading to Crouching Tiger City to see you in a day or two after I finished up here,” Yan Lao’er said excitedly.

“You don’t know—when I was in Yongning City today, I heard that some refugees from Gu Feng had contracted a plague. The rumors were spreading like wildfire, and the city has tightened its entry inspections. Didn’t you say this batch of refugees was brought over from Gu Feng by Third Master? How are they? Are they okay?”

Yan Huaiwen shook his head. “No issues. It must have happened recently, so we happened to miss it. There haven’t been any abnormalities among the refugees that arrived in Crouching Tiger City.”

Yan Lao’er let out a sigh of relief. “That’s good, that’s good. I was worried sick.”

“The house isn’t even built yet—why were you in such a hurry to get pigs?” Yan Huaiwen asked.

He noticed that both Tianyou and his niece had a similar tendency—impatience.

“These are piglets born on that estate. The previous litter was lost when their pen collapsed under the snow, not a single piglet survived.

They originally planned to let the sow rest for a few months before breeding again, but who knew it would conceive so soon?

Since the two litters were too close together, this batch of piglets was weaker. After feeding them for about a month, the other piglets in the same litter grew strong, but these six remained weak. They look like they’re barely twenty days old, much smaller than the others.

So, they decided to sell them off—hehe, real cheap!”

Yan Lao’er grinned like he had just snagged a great deal, his eyes narrowing in delight.

Yan Huaiwen: …

He was wrong—it wasn’t impatience; it was an inability to resist a bargain.

“If they’re weak piglets and we have no experience raising them, how will we take care of them properly?”

Yan Lao’er chuckled sheepishly. “Well, Big Brother, Aunt Rong used to raise pigs—she even knows how to assist a sow in labor.

I know we’re asking a lot of her already, so I wanted to discuss with you… should we give her a raise?”

From the way Aunt Rong had been diligently tending the vegetable garden late into the night and the snippets of conversation he overheard earlier, it did seem like she deserved a little extra.

“Did you ask her if she’s willing to stay on as a full-time worker?” Yan Huaiwen asked.

Previously, she was employed as a temporary worker paid by the day. If she became a full-time worker, her monthly wage would need to be renegotiated.

“I asked—she’s willing,” Yan Lao’er replied confidently.

Yan Huaiwen wasn’t surprised. Aunt Rong’s circumstances were pitiful—she had no family or support. Staying with them was mutually beneficial.

“How much were you planning to offer her?”

Yan Lao’er had already done the calculations and rattled them off: “She gets twenty wen a day, so that’s six hundred wen a month. Brother, you don’t know—Aunt Rong is incredibly capable! I was thinking of giving her a five-wen raise per day, making it seven hundred and fifty wen per month. What do you think?”

Yan Huaiwen shook his head with an amused smile.

“That’s not how it works. Daily wages for temporary workers are higher, but they don’t work every day. Full-time workers have stable employment, so their wages are generally lower. Instead of lowering her pay, you actually raised it—you’ve gotten quite generous.”

He said it casually, but Yan Lao’er immediately panicked.

Hurriedly, he explained, “I just wanted to keep Aunt Rong here. She’s great in the kitchen, good with farmwork, and she can raise chickens, sheep, and pigs. Especially pigs! I only dared to buy these weak piglets because I’m counting on her to keep them alive.”

“How about this—you don’t handle this. I’ll discuss it with her,” Yan Huaiwen decided.

Since the family spent more time with Aunt Rong and seemed to get along well with her, it might be awkward for them to negotiate wages directly.

Yan Lao’er didn’t dare say more, afraid he’d give himself away.

That was close.

He had a bit of a selfish motive in offering Aunt Rong a higher wage—he figured what’s hers is basically ours anyway…

So, paying her more was just like moving silver from a big money pouch to a small one—hehe!

He had forgotten how different he was from his past self. He had no idea if his reasoning had convinced his older brother.

Yan Huaiwen originally planned to discuss the wages with Aunt Rong that night.

Unexpectedly, Tianyou insisted on planting the saplings immediately, and Aunt Rong followed along.

So, he had to go too—to check on the family’s land while he was at it.

When he arrived, he finally understood why his usually stingy younger brother wanted to give her a raise.

This Aunt Rong… was truly capable.

His family members were essentially following her lead.

The orientation of the saplings, the depth of the pits, how to press the soil, how to water and how much—Aunt Rong guided them every step of the way.

Yan Huaiwen quietly adjusted the wage he had in mind.

Tianyou was right—someone this capable should be kept around.

After all the saplings were planted, the family headed home.

Yan Huaiwen figured he had to leave early the next day, so the wage discussion would have to wait until next time.

But Aunt Rong still didn’t leave.

She took the fruit Tianyou had brought back, washed it by the river, and quickly separated the seeds from the pulp…

Yan Huaiwen hesitated for a long time before finally approaching her.

She immediately stopped what she was doing and stood up nervously, looking at a loss.

He softened his tone. “Aunt Rong, housework is heavy labor, and you’ve worked hard. It’s so late, and you still haven’t gone home—we feel bad about it. Why don’t you head back? We can handle the rest.”

Aunt Rong frantically shook her head, looking very anxious.

Yan Huaiwen quickly reassured her, “Don’t misunderstand—I’m not dissatisfied with you. In fact, my family likes you very much. We’d like you to stay and help long-term. What do you think?”

She nodded enthusiastically, her face full of joy.

“In that case, let’s sign a long-term contract—three years to start, with five maces of monthly silver, plus seasonal clothing…”

Before he could finish, Aunt Rong eagerly nodded again, looking incredibly grateful.

Yan Huaiwen paused, then took out a small piece of silver and handed it to her.

“From now on, you’ll receive your wages on the tenth of each month. I’ll have Tianyou keep a record.”

Aunt Rong bowed clumsily in thanks.

Yan Huaiwen gestured slightly to help her up, then urged her to go get some rest.

Only then did she reluctantly leave.

Watching from a distance, the three family members whispered.

Yan Lao’er: “Old Yan handed over the silver—Aunt Rong is settled.”

Yan Yu, ever the money-lover, focused on the silver.

“I wonder how much Uncle gave her? I really want to know.”

Li Xuemei yawned. “Just ask her tomorrow. It’s late—go to sleep.”

For food lovers, excitement is simple and straightforward—raising pigs means eating meat!

Oink!