The maid's road to success

It was the first time that Bihe took care of the New Year's celebrations on her own and she was very excited.

Every day I am busy preparing sticky rice cakes and taking the children to fry rice candy, make braised meat, cakes and honey tea.

Some of the things made were distributed to the neighbors, and a lot was also sent to Chunyuan.

Julien was more hardworking than Ushan, and the two of them made a lot of bamboo mats, bamboo chairs and bamboo baskets to sell.

Wushan was smarter and took Julien to the market after doing better work.

During the Chinese New Year, everyone was willing to spend money on shopping, and we just managed to get through the disaster safely.

Everyone hopes to have a good New Year and get rid of bad luck.

When you buy too many things, there will always be some that you can't carry. At this time, the sturdy and cheap baskets that Julien wove are very practical.

A lot of other things were also sold.

"Are you here to sell your stuff today?"

Julien and Wushan were very careful. They hunted in the mountains for many days. Because of the cold weather, the rabbits were not very agile, so they exchanged them for four pure white rabbit skins that had been nitrated.

Wen Niang and the others each got one.

Touching the soft, plain rabbit fur, Wen Niang felt warm inside.

Some people specialize in nitrifying fur, but the price is not cheap. I don’t know how many days these two children saved up rabbits to exchange for these few pieces.

"What are you going to do with the money you saved?"

Julien took out the purse sewn into his clothes, which was bulging with forty or fifty copper coins, all of which he and Wushan had earned from selling things today.

There were many people at the market today, and many people were buying things, so I made ten cents more than usual.

"The elder sisters have almost finished giving away the things. Some of the younger sisters are clamoring to buy colored strings for their hair, and the younger brothers want candy figures. I will bring them back to them after I finish buying them."

Bihe nodded. She didn't interfere much in her children's money-making affairs, nor did she care much about how they spent the money.

These children have been oppressed by the charity for several years. In fact, they are all willing to endure hardships. Now it is a good opportunity to give them full freedom to let them work hard and strive for success. Even if they need to go out to make a living when they are old in the future, they will be able to adapt.

Besides, these children will not spend money indiscriminately. They have all suffered hardships, gone hungry and cold, and they cherish every penny they earn.

"Today we made some bamboo baskets, and the sisters kept them to put fruits and snacks in to entertain guests."

And, and.

Julien touched his chest embarrassedly. He made a few wooden hairpins and originally intended to give them to his sisters.

However, the wooden hairpins with more patterns that he bought at the market today only cost three cents and were prettier than his, so he felt embarrassed to take them out.

"Julian made wooden hairpins for his sisters. He polished them bit by bit, but they were not exquisite and he was embarrassed to show them."

After Wushan said this, Julien was too embarrassed to take it out, so he took out something wrapped in cloth from his arms.

When the scroll was opened, there were four simple hairpins.

"Very good. This is your first time. You have a lot of talent. If you practice more, you can sell it for money."

Bihe happily took it in her hands and looked at it carefully.

Julien lowered his head in embarrassment, thinking to himself that he must practice well so that he could make better-looking wooden hairpins for his sisters in the future.

An Ning and An Ping had already packed out a basket of things for them to take away when they left.

"We tore up cloth and made new clothes for the children, as well as roast chicken, pork, candy, cakes, and some small items. This is the first time we celebrate the New Year together, and everyone is having a happy New Year."

Julien and Wushan looked at the bamboo baskets filled to the brim and felt a warm feeling in their hearts.

Every day since I came to Chunyuan was like Chinese New Year. I had quilts, my own shoes, enough food and firewood for heating.

This is a life they never dared to aspire to before.

Anping brought a lot of rice, flour, oil and soy sauce to Chunyuan two days ago.

They thought they would be satisfied just by eating steamed buns and making some cabbage dumplings this year.

I can also afford the colored ropes that my younger sisters want and the sugar figures that my younger brothers want.

They still had more than a hundred copper coins in their hands, which was good.

Life today is so much better than before.

This is all because of meeting the sisters in front of me.

Let their lives be filled with hope and happiness.

Julien carried a bamboo basket and went to Wushan to buy colored ropes, sugar figures, red paper and candied haws.

The two of them went back to Chunyuan with happy faces.

"Wushan, I feel like I'm living in a dream now. I dare not wake up, for fear that I will find out it was all a dream."

Wushan kicked him without mercy.

"How is it, is it a dream?"

Julien bit his lip, ready to scold him, but then he smiled happily.

"I can laugh out loud every day when I'm weaving baskets. In the past, I could earn two steamed buns a day from weaving baskets. Now, the money I earn from weaving baskets is a guarantee for me and my younger brothers and sisters."

Wushan feels the same way.

"I am busy every day now, and I feel that I am closer to a happy and fulfilling life. I also plan to wait until our basket weaving profits are better, make the ones with patterns, dye them and sell them to grocery stores. I think I can make more money."

Julien nodded. His brain was not as quick as Wushan's. It was Wushan who came up with the idea of ​​selling baskets at the entrance and exit of the market. He also weaved a lot of straw ropes and gave them to people who bought baskets to tie things.

"Those baskets I gave to my sisters today were slow to make, but I think they can be sold at a grocery store for five cents each."

The two people walked towards the sunset while planning for the future.

The journey doesn’t feel far at all.

"Brother Yu, I met those people from the charity today. They were carrying shovels to clean up the house."

Julien sneered.

"The charity's managers always like to take on these unprofitable jobs and let the children do them. They take the money. The charity suffered a lot from the disaster this time. I don't know how they are going to exploit the children."

Wushan couldn't bear it, but there was nothing he could do.

"I feel like Da Zhuang wants to come to our place, but I don't dare to agree."

Julien quickly stopped and looked at Wushan seriously.

"Absolutely not. We are now living in Chunyuan. It is because of the kindness of our sisters that they have taken us in and provided us with food, drink and clothes. We should not cause any trouble for them."

It's not that Julien and Wushan are selfish, they are just afraid that it will be bad for them if these people come to Chunyuan.

But many of the children in the charity actually have problems.

Da Zhuang is a rather cunning person with dishonest hands. He has stolen things from his roommates in the past. Even though they were not valuables, it was a bad habit.

Besides, Da Zhuang always likes to bully the weak and disabled children when no one is around.

Wulan had her food snatched away by him.

If such a person comes to Chunyuan, it will only make Chunyuan a mess.

They had finally managed to lead their younger siblings to follow the rules and protect Chun Garden.

If it were destroyed by someone like Da Zhuang, I would never be forgiven even if I died.

"I know, but I'm afraid that if we don't agree, Da Zhuang will complain to the manager and come back to us."

Julien thought for a moment and whispered to him.

"Let's wait and see. If he really has bad intentions and threatens us, I see there are people writing letters for others in the market. Then we can find someone to write a note and send it to the charity hall, telling the people there that Da Zhuang has a private letter and take the private job ourselves."

Wushan understood what Julien meant.

"I'll keep an eye on it. Next time I go, I'll bring some delicious food with me. I'll just consider it as wasting some food to eliminate a threat."

Julien nodded. Although Da Zhuang looked honest on the surface, he was actually a very bad person in private.

He was good at talking and often instigated the steward to punish children who did not listen to him.

Julien and Wushan are children who have been in the charity for many years and know Dazhuang better than others.

If such a person does not give up his evil intentions, he will sooner or later find out the location of Chunyuan and do something bad.

They even instigated the charity's manager to seize their achievements.

Julien is very satisfied with his current life. All his previous dreams have come true, so he cannot let anyone destroy them.

Wushan couldn't help feeling guilty. He first brought a few children from the charity to Chunyuan, but those children disliked Chunyuan's shabby appearance and refused to stay.

Although the location of Chunyuan has not been disclosed to the public.

But Wushan was not convinced and felt that they could not see the good.

There were several times when I showed off in front of them that I could sell the things I made and keep the money for myself.

The clothes were also much better than before, and the children all regretted not staying firmly in Chunyuan.

Da Zhuang also heard what those people said. He didn't want to stay in the charity hall to suffer, but wanted to go to Chunyuan to enjoy a good life.

But no one in Chunyuan was willing to accept someone like Dazhuang.

They must make sure that Da Zhuang never dares to have any bad intentions again.

Bihe didn't know that the children had already decided how to eliminate other people's thoughts about Chunyuan, and they were still excitedly fiddling with the New Year's goods.

An Yun couldn't help it in the end and went next door with some velvet flowers he had bought.

"Mrs. Bai, come and sit down."

Bihe recognized the old woman played by An Yun.

She would occasionally see him when she went out shopping, and sometimes the two of them would talk.

"I am your silly nephew. I just helped you out at the market. I am really sorry for taking so many of your things. I have some velvet flowers here. You are young and they will look good on you."

An Yun sat in the courtyard, looking at their warm yard, and felt a little touched.

No wonder Wen Niang refused to stay in Kyoto. It turns out that this is the kind of life she likes.

Compared with the boring life in the inner house of the Duke's Mansion, every day I can only manage servants and deal with those female relatives who speak with ulterior motives.

An Yun also likes this simple and ordinary life.

Bai Yi followed behind, looking at everything in the yard with fascination.

He wanted to write down all the places that Wen Niang had decorated with her own hands, and keep all the places where Wen Niang had lived in his heart.

Wen Niang and Bi He brought tea and snacks and sat aside.

"You fool, don't you see that others are busy frying food? Go and help chop wood and fetch water."

Bai Yi knew that An Yun had discovered his abnormality, so he quickly went to find work to do.

An Ze watched Bai Yi chop the firewood quickly and efficiently, and was very envious.

He didn't have that much strength, and it took him more than ten hits to split a piece of wood into four small pieces.

After chopped the firewood, he helped to stack it in the woodshed, then went to fetch water. He filled the large vat in the kitchen and the water vat in the backyard only when they were full.

Bihe was chatting enthusiastically with An Yun.

An Yun had seen a lot following Chen Luoxi, and when they started chatting, he quickly aroused Bihe's interest.

But she obviously still had her wits about her shoulders and didn't reveal her true identity by talking too much.

"Mr. Bai, please sit down and rest for a while. You helped me, but I didn't repay you. I also asked you to do so much work at home."

Bai Yi shook his head, wiped his hands with the handkerchief handed to him by Wen Niang, and did not return it to her.

"The food you sent was delicious and in large quantities. It helped us save a lot of money and saved us from having to buy it from other places."

Wen Niang couldn't help but laugh at his honest appearance. This guy was really honest. He just started working as soon as he came and didn't just go through the motions.

"It's not necessarily a good idea to save money. The velvet flowers you brought are probably even more expensive."

Bai Yi scratched his head and spoke embarrassedly.

"No one wears that thing at home. You are pretty, so it will be more suitable for you to wear it."

Bai Yi's words made Wen Niang blush. How could this man say such a thing? Fortunately, she was wearing a veil, otherwise she would have been laughed at.

She is not actually beautiful, just pretty.

But being told so bluntly that she was pretty, even the usually calm Wen Niang couldn't help but feel a little shy.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I meant you, you're young, you..."

Wen Niang remained silent, which made Chen Luoxi realize that he had said something wrong and he quickly explained.

The more he explained, the more flustered he became. Wen Niang covered her mouth and smiled, telling him to stop talking.

"I know you are kind-hearted. Thank you for the velvet flowers you sent us today. We like them very much."

Chen Luoxi lowered his head in embarrassment. He did not dare to say that he had picked these velvet flowers himself. Wen Niang did not like those luxurious gold and jade, but he felt that the wooden hairpins could not bring out Wen Niang's beauty. Every time he came across beautiful silk and velvet flowers, he would pick some for Wen Niang and he had saved up quite a few.

"I smell a lot of medicine over there."

Wen Niang didn't know what to say. An Yun and Bi He were chatting enthusiastically and she couldn't get a word in.

I just casually mentioned that there was always a lot of medicinal smell in the neighboring courtyard.

Chen Luoxi suddenly became alert. An Yun couldn't change his habit of tinkering with herbs, but fortunately they had come up with an excuse to cover it up.

"My aunt followed my uncle in business when she was young and suffered from many illnesses. Now she has to take herbal medicine all the time. The smell of herbal medicine always lingers in the house."

Wen Niang actually didn't hate the smell of the medicine. When she lived with An Yun in the past, the whole yard was filled with the bitter smell of medicine. She was used to it. She just felt that no one would like to drink bitter and nauseating medicine all the time.

"In fact, medicinal food is not bad. Many diseases need to be cured slowly. Drinking soup medicine blindly is not as good as eating medicinal food, which is mild and harmless. People say that medicine is three-point poison, so it is better to eat less soup medicine."

Chen Luoxi nodded and said that he would go and ask if there were any suitable medicinal foods.

An Yun deliberately chose to come before dinner, thinking that he could have a meal here, so that the fool Chen Luoxi could also have a good meal.

An Ning and An Ping had already started making preparations, and had specially prepared some extra food considering that their neighbors were visiting.

The freshly braised beef and pork were also cut and served in two large plates.

Stewed chicken soup, fried cabbage, cold-mixed shredded vegetables, and green vegetables and tofu.

Set up a table in the main room.

"You guys are really good at cooking. We ate the braised meat and found it very delicious. It's a great treat to have a meal today."

While eating, An Yun picked up a lot of dishes for Chen Luoxi.

She just didn't believe that Chen Luoxi and Wen Niang would just sit together to eat and eat a little bit and not starve to death?

Sure enough, after seeing Chen Luoxi eat two bowls of rice with a good appetite and finish all the dishes that An Yun had passed to him, An Yun smiled happily.

Seeing the two people caring for each other, Bihe and Wen Niang also felt it was very beautiful. It turned out that aunt and nephew also had true feelings for each other, just like mother and son.

After dinner, it would be inappropriate to stay any longer, so An Yun said goodbye and left. Chen Luoxi also followed and supported An Yun as he left.

As soon as he entered his yard, An Yun looked at Chen Luoxi with a sly smile on his face.

"I have a good appetite today. I almost ate all the food I prepared."

Chen Luoxi was also a little embarrassed. He was happy when he was with Wen Niang. He had a good appetite and ate a lot.

But he also understood that An Yun was asking for credit.

He coughed twice awkwardly and said coldly.

"Whatever herbs you need, ask Zhushan to buy them for you. There is no limit."

An Yun cheered and called the young master magnanimous.

Chen Luoxi touched her belly and the handkerchief he secretly put in her arms, with a look of satisfaction on her face.