Elder Uncle Liang could only force a smile, “Then you go on with your work, we’ll leave first. After all, we are one family. You are the daughter‑in‑law of the Liang household, so when you speak, you must think more about the family’s reputation.”
Don’t speak recklessly about things that shouldn’t be said.
Xu Zhichun raised her brows: “Uncle, rest assured, I understand. As a person, one must recognize their own identity. Not only should words match that identity, but actions as well.”
Xu Zhichun thought to herself, ten or eight of them—if she said it aloud, it would scare you all to death.
Of course it could not be spoken.
She kept silent, Zhang’s eyes rolled so hard they nearly turned to the heavens, while Bai showed a trace of mockery: not speaking? Then it must be that she earned too little and was embarrassed to say.
Zeng Xiaoyan, being straightforward by nature, couldn’t stand this. While checking whether a batch of Lantern fruit seeds was clean, she raised her head and sneered: "Even if we wanted to harm, we couldn’t. These Lantern fruits are ours once we’ve bought them, nothing to do with anyone else, so you don’t need to meddle."
The villagers glanced at each other, silently curling their lips—wasn’t that exactly the truth? They only needed to sell the lantern fruits; the Xu family was happy to buy, everyone was happy to sell, money in one hand and goods in the other, and that was the end of it.
It’s just that simple a truth.
Xu Zhichun laughed and said: "We’ve already discussed it, so please, Uncle Lizheng, go and tell them."
“Good good!”
Xu Zhichun, smiling again, brought up the matter of buying land.
Liang Lizheng was startled, gave her a look, and said: "Have you thought it through? If you have, then buy. Wasteland costs two taels of silver per mu. Within a year it must be reclaimed, or else it will be taken back. Starting next year, tax must be paid—twenty coins per mu, or ten pounds of dried soybeans."
Xu Zhichun quietly explained the reason, and Zeng Xiaoyan and the others laughed, saying: Congratulations!
Xu Zhichun said: "So today’s lunch is on me—don’t be polite with me."
The three saw this, and so they no longer stood on ceremony.
A woman who can make ice jelly, gray tofu, and gray bean noodles must be clever indeed. Shopkeeper Tang grew intrigued: “Miss Xu, why not come inside and explain in detail?”
"No need, it’s just a few words. This fish skin can be made into something delicious, surely adding a new specialty dish to the Lotus Restaurant. Not only tasty, but easier to prepare. I wonder if Shopkeeper Tang is interested?"
Is it made with this fish skin?
Aunt Liang rolled her eyes at him, then smiled, not rebuking him, her tone surprisingly gentle: “Back already? Go wash up quickly, dinner will be ready soon.”
Isn’t it just about the same as finding money.
Liang Lizheng and his two sons: “.”
Looks like Mother really did pick up money.
“We didn’t hurt anyone. What we sold was properly treated, safe from poison. Coming into the city these days wasn’t for nothing—we managed to earn a bit of hard‑earned money.”
“Oh”
Half of the probing gazes had faded away.
“I told you, doing business is never that easy.”
“Exactly. If you ask me, it’s better to honestly tend the family’s few acres and earn some food—that’s the proper way to live. Those restless ones who love to stir things up only end up poorer the more they fuss.”
Having bought what each person wanted, everyone went together to the meat stall to buy meat.
There were several meat stalls in the county town, both in the East Market and the West Market. Since they sold goods in the East Market, they bought meat there as well.
The best fat for rendering lard is pork back fat, the most sought‑after cut, but it was already gone when they arrived. So they had to buy meat with both fat and lean, then trim off the fat at home to render oil.
Today was their first time delivering goods. Shopkeeper Tang personally brought them with a helper, each item weighing ten pounds. On the scale, some were a pound or two over. Xu Zhichun laughed and said: “Shopkeeper Tang counts them as ten pounds and the extra is a gift from us.”
A grand restaurant doesn’t lack this bit of money, but who doesn’t love generous words?
Shopkeeper Tang wasn’t pretentious, and said with a cheerful smile: “Alright, thanks to fortune we got a pound or two extra. How long will you be selling at the market before leaving? If sales go well, I’ll send someone to tell how much to bring tomorrow.”
That evening, Auntie Liang quietly told Village Head Liang exactly how much their third son and his wife had earned that day. Liang, always steady and reliable, couldn't help but lose his composure: "How much?!"
Startled, Auntie Liang quickly covered his mouth with her hand, frantically squeezing her eyebrows and giving him meaningful looks: "Keep your voice down!"
Village Head Liang couldn't believe it: "This— did they hit the jackpot or just stumble upon a load of money today?"
When mixing in the lye water just now, Xu Zhichun intentionally kept away from Liang Mingliang.
With Xu Zhichun’s reminder, Zeng Xiaoyan and Aunt Zhu’er suddenly recalled the secrecy contract. Both felt a hidden fear—for in their excitement, they had nearly forgotten the need for secrecy.
After all, to them, a husband was someone very close. From childhood, the teachings they absorbed impressed upon them that a husband was their pillar, their reliance. To deliberately conceal something from a husband—such a thought had never even crossed their minds before.
Zeng Xiaoyan and Aunt Zhu’er wrapped their money in handkerchiefs and left it with Xu Zhichun, planning to dig konjac and pick lantern fruit first, then bring the money home later.
Xu Zhichun was willing to help them get rich, letting them earn 151 wen a day, so of course she wouldn’t be greedy for their money.
They had nothing to feel uneasy about.
When they reached the Sifang Restaurant, Zeng Xiaoyan and her husband stopped the ox cart some distance away, choosing not to come closer. Xu Zhichun and Aunt Zhu’er stepped forward with the baskets and knocked on the back gate.
“Who is it?” After a long while, a worker opened the door impatiently.
Seeing two rural women, he immediately showed a look of disgust and wariness, sizing them up rudely.
Aunt Zhu'er quickly said yes too.
Zeng Xiaoyan felt there was no need to pay her husband wages. “I’m already taking a share of the profit—there’s no need to pay Mingliang. That would be too distant.
Liang Mingliang benefited from his wife’s favor and often slacked off at home. Except during the busy farming season, his two older brothers turned a blind eye and didn’t say anything. He was more than happy to tag along and help out, just to avoid going up the mountains or down to the fields. He quickly added, “Yes, yes, why would I ask Xiaoyan for wages? No need for money.”
Zhao, fuming and speaking sharply, snapped: “So, Third Sister-in-law buys a chicken, but instead of eating it at her own place, she goes off to someone else’s house? What’s the meaning of that? Do you look down on us, afraid we might get a share?”
Zeng Xiaoyan snapped, “It’s my money — I’ll spend it however I want! If you’re so upset, go buy your own chicken and slaughter it at someone else’s house. I won’t say a word!”
Xu Zhichun said to the other two, “People say husband and wife are one, and by rights, we shouldn’t be hiding this money-making method from our men. But think about it — if he knows, and his parents, brothers, or relatives start asking, what’s he supposed to do? If he tells them, everyone will know, and our business won’t be worth much. If he doesn’t, they’ll blame him for keeping secrets. So better we don’t tell them at all. If anyone asks, we just say it’s the three of us women earning a bit of pocket money, nothing serious. That way, no one feels entitled to poke their nose in, right?”
That will be a no.
Logically, had she prepared it before, it’s unlikely she would’ve consumed it alone. Her brother-in-law would have sampled it as well.
If she slip up in front of her brother-in-law, there’s no way to cover it up.
Xu Zhichun shook her head with a quiet sigh. “I’d been busy with the work, just focused on tending the fields while waiting for Minglang to return. But now things have turned out differently. If I don’t find a way to earn money, the days ahead will be hard. So I thought I’d give it a try.”
Zeng Xiaoyan thought the same. Whether it was drinking brown sugar water or eating snacks, she did it secretly.
But after all, they are still one family, and it won't lasts forever, and people will always find out.
The eldest brother and sister-in-law don’t have any objections. After all, she bought them with her own money. It is enough to sometimes give out a handful of melon seeds and two candied fruits to her nephews and nieces. Which adult would dare to eye her snacks?
Yesterday when making konjac tofu, Xu Zhichun thought of grass jelly while watching the konjac tofu rest and take shape in a large bowl.
When selling konjac tofu, wouldn’t it be better if the grass jelly is also sold together?
There are a lot of books in the harbor warehouse. She spent a long time browsing in them last night before she found the traditional method of making grass jelly. She is a person with strong hands-on skills. She understands thing by carefully going through and making it a few times.
