While he was thinking this, Xu Huaiqian focused on a servant from a third-rank official's household who came to buy charcoal. A third-rank official was very high—high enough for all of Yong'an Prefecture to look up to.
If he could make use of this third-rank official, even if the prefect of Yong'an wanted to seize the charcoal mountain or harm them, wouldn't he have to think twice?
So, upon learning that among the accompanying ships was a servant from this third-rank official's household, Xu Huaiqian's group acted exceptionally friendly.
Of course, they had to be friendly—this was a third-rank official, and coincidentally, a servant from the household of the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
The Ministry of Personnel, which managed civil official appointments, was someone all civil officials wanted to curry favor with—especially magistrates like Min Wenkai and the others. After all, barring unexpected events, they would never have a chance to befriend a Vice Minister of Personnel.
Even someone with some background like Magistrate Sheng—when he served as a supervising secretary in the Ministry of Personnel, his superior was only a sixth-rank official but had him dismissed.
A third-rank Right Vice Minister like this was someone they could hardly even see in the Ministry, let alone befriend or gain favor with.
Now, just a small servant from his household came to Taoyuan to buy charcoal, and all the magistrates gave him the green light, offering the greatest convenience so he could be the first to buy charcoal and sail back to the capital.
Once he left, heaven is high and the emperor is far away. Xu Huaiqian had people spread rumors throughout the county that the magistrates had curried favor with the Vice Minister of Personnel and would surely be promoted within a few years.
Whether it worked or not, it was worth a try. Since he had come, not making use of his third-rank status would be a waste.
In fact, the Vice Minister of Personnel had also been having a hard time lately. The Emperor didn't value civil officials, but their ministry had the power to appoint all civil officials—the Emperor's eyes were always on the Ministry of Personnel.
In previous winters, subordinates would purchase silver frost charcoal for his household's heating. This year, he didn't dare be so extravagant, afraid of being caught and investigated for some offense.
But while other households could cut back, his could not. He had a critically ill elderly mother and several pregnant daughters-in-law—all with delicate health. Using ordinary charcoal would be life-threatening for them, but without charcoal, they couldn't just freeze.
Fortunately, a trend for imitation silver charcoal spread quietly in the capital. His daughters-in-law heard about it at social gatherings. At first, he didn't pay attention, but when another household used this charcoal at a gathering, it was truly good. The Vice Minister's daughters-in-law went home and persuaded their husbands via pillow talk.
It was just some affordable, useful charcoal—not silver frost charcoal. The persuaded sons of the Vice Minister waved their hands and had household servants go buy it.
At that time, no one knew that this quietly spreading trend of imitation silver charcoal would eventually reach the Emperor himself.
But all that had nothing to do with Xu Huaiqian at the moment. After arranging everything in Taoyuan, once Chen Liejiu sold all the charcoal, they took the money back to Xinghua Village to distribute it and discuss ginger planting with the villagers.
Dealing with the entire village's envy required his wife's skills. He was just a sickly man who spoke softly—he was afraid he'd argue poorly and die of anger first.
"Home still needs A-Jiu." Sitting in the carriage back to the village, Xu Huaiqian sat in one corner peeling an orange for his wife while praising her.
Chen Liejiu ate the orange Xu Huaiqian fed him, hearing how much his little husband needed him, his smile lifting proudly.
He always knew his little husband couldn't do without him.
"Alright, I'll handle everything for you." Chen Liejiu, dizzy from Xu Huaiqian's pillow talk, agreed without a second thought.
"A-Jiu is the best." Xu Huaiqian fed the last segment of the orange to Chen Liejiu, then turned to grab another from a basket to peel for him.
"Don't just feed me," Chen Liejiu took the orange from his hand, peeled it deftly, and fed it to him segment by segment, imitating him. "These were bought for you—you eat too."
"Tastes good." Although the orange was still a bit sour, since it was fed by his wife, even sourness was sweet.
After eating one, Chen Liejiu shook his head: "Still a bit sour, but we'll make do. In deep winter, you can't get good fruit anyway."
These were oranges Chen Liejiu specially bought for Xu Huaiqian in Suzhou Prefecture. Doctor Miao had said that Xu Huaiqian couldn't just be fed ginseng and bird's nest—since his body was weak and couldn't handle too much tonics, he needed fruits and vegetables too.
Vegetables were easy—they could grow them in their own fields.
But fruit truly worried Chen Liejiu. Mishan County was so poor people couldn't even afford meat—where would they find fruit?
There were wild fruits in the mountains, but they were all sour and likely to cause diarrhea. With Xu Huaiqian's health, a couple of bouts of diarrhea could be fatal. Chen Liejiu didn't dare fool around with mountain stuff.
Usually, he fed Xu Huaiqian red dates, goji berries, and silver ear fungus, but even the tastiest things become boring after eating them for two years straight.
Seeing Xu Huaiqian develop the same disgust for red dates as he had for medicine, Chen Liejiu knew they had to change.
Coincidentally, this trip to Suzhou made money. When he saw the red oranges in Suzhou, he bought two large baskets for Xu Huaiqian without hesitation.
The locals said they could last all winter if stored with straw. They were a bit sour, but better than nothing.
"Having some is already great." Xu Huaiqian wasn't picky. He hadn't eaten much fruit in the two years since coming to this world. Now that he had some, he was eager to enjoy it—how could he be picky?
"I heard Suzhou also produces apples, but I went too late in the season—they were all gone. When apples come in next year, I'll go buy some for you." Chen Liejiu wasn't a stingy person. Now that the family had money, he wouldn't hide it or hesitate to spend.
"Big Brother, don't just focus on Suzhou," Chen Jinhu said, eating a red orange so sour his eyes narrowed to slits, but he refused to spit it out. "Other places have fruit too—Shengbei has pomegranates and persimmons."
"Oh!" Chen Jinhu scratched his head when mentioning persimmons. "I forgot—I should have brought some dried persimmons for Second Brother. Well-stored dried persimmons can last a whole year!"
"It's fine, you can bring some back next time." When Chen Liejiu mentioned apples, Xu Huaiqian wanted to refuse—apples were his least favorite fruit. But how could he tell his wife, who had never left Yong'an, that he had eaten apples? Chen Jinhu's words perfectly helped change the subject.
Broadening his perspective, Chen Liejiu had more to say: "Speaking of fruit, I heard grapes from the Western Regions and lychees from Nanyue are first-class fruits."
Xu Huaiqian nodded. "Grape wine in luminous cups" and "a single horse raising dust to make the consort smile"—he knew all that.
Chen Liejiu asked Xu Huaiqian: "A-Qian, would you like to try them?"
Xu Huaiqian was about to nod, but then shook his head: "They must be hard to buy." If they're hard to buy, better not eat them.
"We'll get them eventually." Chen Liejiu fed Xu Huaiqian another orange but didn't dare give more—too much sour stuff wasn't good.
He didn't think he couldn't buy those fruits; he was just thinking about how to store and bring them back.
After all, Xu Huaiqian was too weak to travel far, and bringing them back over such a long distance, they wouldn't last long.
"You could ask where to buy raisins." Seeing his wife was tempted, and afraid he would be stubborn, Xu Huaiqian thought about it and offered a direction.
"Raisins?"
"Dried grapes, similar to preserved fruit, but our local preserved fruit shops probably don't sell them," Xu Huaiqian gestured. "The book says raisins are even sweeter than fresh grapes."
Grapes weren't widely grown in the Jin Dynasty yet. Although there were poems about grapes, they were popular only among high officials and nobles. Remote areas like theirs had none—they'd only heard of them; no one knew what they looked or tasted like.
Chen Jinhu nodded repeatedly: "Next time I'm on an escort trip, I'll ask around."
"Ask more, and best to find a few people from the Western Regions to ask." Chen Liejiu thought about it and advised Chen Jinhu. "Don't be foolish and get cheated again."
Chen Liejiu knew all about Chen Jinhu being cheated in business. Although he earned it back later, being cheated was a fact.
"Got it." Chen Jinhu responded listlessly. So annoying—Big Brother had eyes everywhere in the escort agency.
"Hehe." Wang Wanwan and Chen Xiaomei, also eating oranges nearby, laughed when they saw Chen Jinhu being lectured. It was so true—one thing conquers another: Second Brother conquers Big Brother, Big Brother conquers Little Brother.
Hahaha, so funny.